Fingerprint recognition with embedded presentation attacks detection: are we ready?

The diffusion of fingerprint verification systems for security applications makes it urgent to investigate the embedding of software-based presentation attack detection algorithms (PAD) into such systems. Companies and institutions need to know whether such integration would make the system more “secure” and whether the technology available is ready, and, if so, at what operational working conditions. Despite significant improvements, especially by adopting deep learning approaches to fingerprint PAD, current research did not state much about their effectiveness when embedded in fingerprint verification systems. We believe that the lack of works is explained by the lack of instruments to investigate the problem, that is, modeling the cause-effect relationships when two non-zero error-free systems work together. Accordingly, this paper explores the fusion of PAD into verification systems by proposing a novel investigation instrument: a performance simulator based on the probabilistic modeling of the relationships among the Receiver Operating Characteristics (ROC) of the two individual systems when PAD and verification stages are implemented sequentially. As a matter of fact, this is the most straightforward, flexible, and widespread approach. We carry out simulations on the PAD algorithms’ ROCs submitted to the most recent editions of LivDet (2017-2019), the state-of-the-art NIST Bozorth3, and the top-level Veryfinger 12 matchers. Reported experiments explore significant scenarios to get the conditions under which fingerprint matching with embedded PAD can improve, rather than degrade, the overall personal verification performance

Mitigating Sensor and Acquisition Method-Dependence of Fingerprint Presentation Attack Detection Systems by Exploiting Data from Multiple Devices

The problem of interoperability is still open in fingerprint presentation attack detection (PAD) systems. This involves costs for designers and manufacturers who intend to change sensors of personal recognition systems or design multi-sensor systems, because they need to obtain sensor-specific spoofs and retrain the system. The solutions proposed in the state of the art to mitigate the problem still require data from the target sensor and are therefore not exempt from the problem of obtaining new data. In this paper, we provide insights for the design of PAD systems thanks to an overview of an interoperability analysis on modern systems: hand-crafted, deep-learning-based, and hybrid. We investigated realistic use cases to determine the pros and cons of training with data from multiple sensors compared to training with single sensor data, and drafted the main guidelines to follow for deciding the most convenient PAD design technique depending on the intended use of the fingerprint identification/authentication system

Expanding the role of bitter taste receptor in extra oral tissues : TAS2R38 is expressed in human adipocytes

Increasing evidence indicates that taste receptors mediate a variety of functions in extra-oral tissues. The present study investigated the expression of bitter taste receptor TAS2R38 in human adipocytes, the possible link with genetic background and the role of TAS2R38 in cell delipidation and lipid accumulation rate in vitro. Subcutaneous (SAT) and visceral (VAT) adipose tissues were collected in 32 obese and 18 lean subjects. The TAS2R38 gene expression and protein content were examined in whole tissues, differentiated adipocytes and stroma-vascular fraction cells (SVF). The P49A SNP of TAS2R38 gene was determined in each collected sample. The effect of two bitter agonists (6-n-propylthiouracil and quinine) was tested. TAS2R38 mRNA was more expressed in SAT and VAT of obese than lean subjects and the expression/protein content was greater in mature adipocytes. The expression levels were not linked to P49A variants. In in vitro differentiated adipocytes, bitter agonists induced a significant delipidation. Incubation with 6-n-propylthiouracil induced an inhibition of lipid accumulation rate together with an increase in TAS2R38 and a decrease in genes involved in adipocyte differentiation. In conclusion, TAS2R38 is more expressed in adipocytes of obese than lean subjects and is involved in differentiation and delipidation processes

Cardiac tamponade occurred after endoscopic submucosal dissection : conservative management of the esophagopericardial fistula

Key Clinical Message We describe the case of an esophagopericardial fistula generated after endo- scopic submucosal dissection in a patient affected by a superficial esophageal squamous cell carcinoma immediately treated with percutaneous pericardial drainage and placement of a partially covered self-expanding metal stent that has been removed using the stent-in-stent technique after 35 days

Differences in visceral fat and fat bacterial colonization between ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. An in vivo and in vitro study

Crohn's disease (CD) is notably characterized by the expansion of visceral fat with small adipocytes expressing a high proportion of anti-inflammatory genes. Conversely, visceral fat depots in ulcerative colitis (UC) patients have never been characterized. Our study aims were a) to compare adipocyte morphology and gene expression profile and bacterial translocation in omental (OM) and mesenteric (MES) adipose tissue of patients with UC and CD, and b) to investigate the effect of bacterial infection on adipocyte proliferation in vitro. Specimens of OM and MES were collected from 11 UC and 11 CD patients, processed and examined by light microscopy. Gene expression profiles were evaluated in adipocytes isolated from visceral adipose tissue using microarray and RTqPCR validations. Bacteria within adipose tissue were immuno-detected by confocal scanning laser microscopy. Adipocytes were incubated with Enterococcus faecalis and cells counted after 24 h. Morphology and molecular profile of OM and MES revealed that UC adipose tissue is less inflamed than CD adipose tissue. Genes linked to inflammation, bacterial response, chemotaxis and angiogenesis were down-regulated in adipocytes from UC compared to CD, whereas genes related to metallothioneins, apoptosis pathways and growth factor binding were up-regulated. A dense perinuclear positivity for Enterococcus faecalis was detected in visceral adipocytes from CD, whereas positivity was weak in UC. In vitro bacterial infection was associated with a five-fold increase in the proliferation rate of OM preadipocytes. Compared to UC, visceral adipose tissue from CD is more inflamed and more colonized by intestinal bacteria, which increase adipocyte proliferation. The influence of bacteria stored within adipocytes on the clinical course of IBD warrants further investigation

RNA-seq dataset of subcutaneous adipose tissue: Transcriptional differences between obesity and healthy women

In this data article, we present the dataset from the RNA-Seq analysis of subcutaneous adipose tissue collected from 5 healthy normal weight women (NW, age 37 +/- 6.7 years, BMI 24.3 +/- 0.9 kg/m(2)) and 5 obese women (OBF, age 41 +/- 12.5 years, BMI 38.2 +/- 4.6 kg/m(2)). Raw data obtained from Illumina NextSeq 500 sequencer were processed through BlueBee (R) Genomics Platform while differential expression analysis was performed with the DESeq2 R package and deposited in the GEO public repository with GSE166047 as accession number. Specifically, 20 samples divided between NW (control), OBF (obese women), OBM (obese male) and OBT2D (obese women with diabetes) are deposited in the GSE166047. We hereby describe only 10 samples (5 healthy normal weight women reported as NW and 5 obese women reported as OBF) because we refer to the data published in the article "Transcriptional characterization of Subcutaneous Adipose Tissue in obesity affected women highlights metabolic dysfunction and implications for lncRNAs" (DOI: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2021.09.014). Pathways analyses were performed on g:Profiler, Enrichr, ClueGO and GSEA to gain biological insights on gene expression. Raw data reported in GEO database along with detailed methods description reported in this data article could be reused for comparisons with other datasets on the topic to obtain transcriptional differences in a wider co-hort. Moreover, detailed pathways analysis along with cross-referenced data with other datasets will allow to identify novel dysregulated pathways and genes responsible for this regulation. The biological interpretation of this dataset, along with related in vitro experiments, is reported by Rey et al., in Genomics (DOI: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2021.09.014). (C) 2021 Published by Elsevier Inc

Development of Technologies for the Detection of (Cyber)Bullying Actions: The BullyBuster Project

Bullying and cyberbullying are harmful social phenomena that involve the intentional, repeated use of power to intimidate or harm others. The ramifications of these actions are felt not just at the individual level but also pervasively throughout society, necessitating immediate attention and practical solutions. The BullyBuster project pioneers a multi-disciplinary approach, integrating artificial intelligence (AI) techniques with psychological models to comprehensively understand and combat these issues. In particular, employing AI in the project allows the automatic identification of potentially harmful content by analyzing linguistic patterns and behaviors in various data sources, including photos and videos. This timely detection enables alerts to relevant authorities or moderators, allowing for rapid interventions and potential harm mitigation. This paper, a culmination of previous research and advancements, details the potential for significantly enhancing cyberbullying detection and prevention by focusing on the system’s design and the novel application of AI classifiers within an integrated framework. Our primary aim is to evaluate the feasibility and applicability of such a framework in a real-world application context. The proposed approach is shown to tackle the pervasive issue of cyberbullying effectively

Dor versus Toupet fundoplication after Laparoscopic Heller Myotomy: Systematic review and Bayesian meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Laparoscopic Heller Myotomy (LHM) with partial fundoplication has become the treatment of choice for esophageal achalasia. However, the choice of the partial fundoplication is debated. The aim of this study was to compare outcomes for Dor and Toupet fundoplication after LHM. A systematic search of randomized controlled trials comparing Dor and Toupet fundoplication was performed using PubMed, EMBASE and Web of Science. Three studies met the inclusion criteria. Overall, 174 patients were included in the analysis. The postoperative abnormal acid reflux [pooled Risk Ratio 0.98 (95% HPD 0.54-1.80)] and dysphagia [pooled Risk Ratio 1.03 (95% HPD 0.51-2.05)] were similar comparing Dor and Toupet fundoplication. The % total time pH  64 4 [estimated pooled mean difference -0.08 (95% HPD -1.04-0.90)] and DeMeester score [estimated pooled mean difference 0.51 (95% HPD -0.90-1.94)] were comparable. Additionally, the operative time [estimated pooled mean difference 0.02 (95% HPD -0.53-0.52)] and iatrogenic esophageal perforation [pooled Risk Ratio 1.05 (95% HPD 0.52-2.10)] were similar in the two groups. Dor and Toupet fundoplication after laparoscopic Heller myotomy seem comparable in term of postoperative abnormal acid exposure and dysphagia. The choice of the partial fundoplication should be left to surgeon experience and tailored on each patient

Drop-out rate among patients treated with omalizumab for severe asthma: Literature review and real-life experience

BACKGROUND: In patients with asthma, particularly severe asthma, poor adherence to inhaled drugs negatively affects the achievement of disease control. A better adherence rate is expected in the case of injected drugs, such as omalizumab, as they are administered only in a hospital setting. However, adherence to omalizumab has never been systematically investigated. The aim of this study was to review the omalizumab drop-out rate in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and real-life studies. A comparative analysis was performed between published data and the Italian North East Omalizumab Network (NEONet) database. RESULTS: In RCTs the drop-out rate ranged from 7.1 to 19.4 %. Although the reasons for withdrawal were only occasionally reported, patient decision and adverse events were the most frequently reported causes. In real-life studies the drop-out rate ranged from 0 to 45.5 %. In most cases lack of efficacy was responsible for treatment discontinuation. According to NEONet data, 32 % of treated patients dropped out, with an increasing number of drop outs observed over time. Patient decision and lack of efficacy accounted for most treatment withdrawals. CONCLUSIONS: Treatment adherence is particularly crucial in patients with severe asthma considering the clinical impact of the disease and the cost of non-adherence. The risk of treatment discontinuation has to be carefully considered both in the experimental and real-life settings. Increased knowledge regarding the main reasons for patient withdrawal is important to improve adherence in clinical practice