A Multiview Visualisation Architecture for Open Distributed Systems

Program visualisation is an attractive way for understanding collaboration structures of complex distributed systems. By using the concepts of the open distributed processing-reference model (ODP-RM) as entities for visualisation, a multiview visualisation architecture is presented, which provides a large degree of flexibility in visualising the actions of an ODP system. The architecture has been implemented for visualising the CORBA system resulting in a visualisation tool called OBVlouS

The insect pest complex and related problems of lowland rice cultivation in South Sulawesi, Indonesia

CHAPTER 1.The Department of Entomology of the Research Institute for Agriculture at Maros is concerned with insect pests of food crops, and serves the needs of farmers, most of them living near subsistance level, and of extension workers.South Sulawesi, formerly known as South Celebes, is a major rice-growing province and one of the two provinces of Indonesia that produces a rice surplus. The area planted with rice is about 550,000 hectares, which is more than half of the total arable land. A sketch of the agriculture of South Sulawesi is given.A justification of the activities is presented by the results that have been obtained while striving for a more up-to-date and varied research programme in order to achieve a better control of rice insects at farmers' level.CHAPTER 2.The major and minor insects pests of rice and the rice tungro virus are presented and the nature of damage described.The white stem borer, Tryporyza innotata is the most important pest. The rice seedbug, Leptocorisa oratorius, and the rice leaf folder, Cnaphalocrosis medinalis, come next. Insects of minor significance include the whorl maggot Hydrellia phillippina, the caseworm Nymphula stagnalis, armyworms Spodoptera spp., the green leafhopper Nephotettix virescens, the white-backed planthopper Sogatella furcifera, the pink stem borer Sesamia inferens, the striped stem borer Chilo suppressalis, the brown planthopper Nilaparvata lugens, the green stinkbug Nezara viridula and grasshoppers.The brown planthopper is likely to become a major pest in South Sulawesi and it is quite possible that there will be other shifts in the future as well.CHAPTER 3.Evaluation systems for infestations in insecticide trials, in phenological studies and in varietal screening tests are described for the whorl maggot, caseworm, stem borers, brown planthopper, green leafhopper, leaf folder and seedbug. These systems include rating scales, assessments and direct and indirect counting methods.CHAPTER 4.Experiments to establish the crop losses inflicted by each individual insect species on its specific plant stages were conducted both in the field and in greenhouses.It was found that roughly 5 to 10 per cent of the crop is lost by the combined effects of normal, light infestations of Hydrellia, Cnaphalocrosis, Nymphula and grasshoppers up to four weeks after transplanting.Yield losses of 10 to 20 per cent caused by stem borers is the rule rather than the exception. There was a poor correlation between dead heart counts and yield loss, but every unit per cent white head consistently caused about one per cent loss in yield.Cnaphalocrosis medinalis infestations of the later vegetative and generative stages may often inflict losses of 5 to 10 per cent.Another 5 to 10 per cent is frequently caused by Leptocorisa oratorius, sucking on the ripening grains. Boiling mature grains in a KOH solution provides an easy and reliable method to assess the percentage of infested grains. This percentage of infested grains proved to be silimar to the yield loss inflicted.Defoliation experiments, designed to simulate the damage caused by leaffeeding insects, showed that rice does not fully recover after serious defoliations even in very early growing stages. The effect of defoliation is most severe between 7 and 9 weeks after transplanting. Towards maturity of the grains defoliation becomes progressively less damaging.Every one per cent increase in tungro infection reduces yield by a half or one per cent depending upon the rice variety and the time of infection.It is concluded that insects alone reduce the potential yield of rice varieties such as Pelita, C4-63, IR5, IR20, IR26, SPR and B462c by 1 to 3 tons per hectare or 30 to 40 per cent in South Sulawesi.CHAPTER 5.Population densities of most of the pest insects and the rice tungro virus incidence were monitored by rating scales and direct counts from the end of 1974 onwards. A light trap was used to monitor fluctuations of T. innotata, Ch. suppressalis, Noctuidae, Cn. medinalis, N. virescens and N. nigropictus.Of course, not many conclusions can be drawn from graphs that represent the data of less than two and a half years. They form, however, a basis for further work.CHAPTER 6.A great number of insecticide experiments were conducted with insecticides that became available in the late sixties and seventies. Up to about 1973 most of the attention was focussed on conventional applications, later other modes of applications were very successfully investigated.Insecticides proved to be effective in controlling the pest insects and tungro virus. Carbofuran is an excellent insecticide but chlordimeform, mephosfolan, cartap, diazinon, BPMC, monocrotophos and others are also good.Granular broadcast applications are superior to spraying. By far the best method is the root-zone application of systemic insecticides. The insecticide is applied between the roots and taken up by the plant. The Maros Research Institute developed and concentrated on the mud ball technique.If a lump, plucked from a big moist mud ball containing insecticide, is applied soon after transplanting, it often gives protection up to harvest time. The quantity of insecticide required is quite low, there is no equipment needed, it cannot be washed away, one application suffices and the secondary effects are probably negligible. The root-zone application almost invariably gives the highest yields and in many cases doubles even the best spray or granular application. It requires more labour, which is advantageous macro-economically, but is of course disliked by the farmer.It is envisaged that with the growing concern for the environment and ecosystems and the increasing prices of insecticides, there is a future for this rootzone application technique, in spite of its prophylactic nature. Several methods, such as mud balls and liquid applicator, and time and density of application are discussed.The total insecticide consumption in South Sulawesi is low, less than one litre per hectare per season. There is a discrepancy between what is available, what should be used and the actual demand. The situation is slowly changing for the better.CHAPTER 7.The incorporation of insect-resistant genes into high-yielding rice varieties has only recently been given much attention. Because of a coincidence, the search for varietal resistance has been most rewarding for Maros in the case of the leafhopper-transmitted tungro virus. Many thousand varieties and lines have been evaluated and the information has been incorporated into breeding material and varieties of the International Rice Research Institute and other institutions.From the screening for varietal resistance against the brown planthopper, Nilaparvata lugens, at least two local Sulawesi varieties were found promising for breeding activities. Biotype 1 is the predominant planthopper in South Sulawesi.The impact of the release of tungro-resistant varieties in South Sulawesi and brown planthopper resistant varieties elsewhere in Indonesia, has been enormous. In the latter case only temporary, due to the development of new biotypes. Voluntary restraints are suggested with the introduction of resistant material to places where that particular pest is not (yet) a problem, such as the brown planthopper in South Sulawesi.CHAPTER 8A detailed account is given of the recent tungro outbreak transmitted by the green leafhopper, Nephotettix virescens, in South Sulawesi with special reference to some ecological and phenological aspects.Discouraging the growing of Pelita and increasing the growing of resistant varieties, especially C4-63, IR20 and some local varieties have been the main reason for the decrease in tungro incidence.Insecticide sprays and broadcast applications are fairly effective in controlling the virus. The root-zone application of carbofuran, BPMC, cartap and mephosfolan proved to be extremely effective. When these insecticides are applied to the root- zone, the green leafhopper is killed before it can transmit sufficient tungro inoculum.Rice plants are infected by tungro in the field after transplanting and not in the seedbed. Also, direct-seeded rice is less infected than transplanted rice

Service and device discovery of nodes in a wireless sensor network

Emerging wireless communication standards and more capable sensors and actuators have pushed further development of wireless sensor networks. Deploying a large number of sensor\ud nodes requires a high-level framework enabling the devices to present themselves and the resources they hold. The device and the resources can be described as services, and in this paper, we review a number of well-known service discovery protocols. Bonjour stands out with its auto-configuration, distributed architecture, and sharing of resources. We also present a lightweight implementation in order to demonstrate that an emerging standards-based device and service discovery protocol can actually be deployed on small wireless sensor nodes

Circulating B-vitamin biomarkers and B-vitamin supplement use in relation to quality of life in patients with colorectal cancer: results from the FOCUS consortium

Background: B vitamins have been associated with the risk and progression of colorectal cancer (CRC), given their central roles in nucleotide synthesis and methylation, yet their association with quality of life in established CRC is unclear.Objectives: To investigate whether quality of life 6 months postdiagnosis is associated with: 1) circulating concentrations of B vitamins and related biomarkers 6 months postdiagnosis; 2) changes in these concentrations between diagnosis and 6 months postdiagnosis; 3) B-vitamin supplement use 6 months postdiagnosis; and 4) changes in B-vitamin supplement use between diagnosis and 6 months postdiagnosis.Methods: We included 1676 newly diagnosed stage I-III CRC patients from 3 prospective European cohorts. Circulating concentrations of 9 biomarkers related to the B vitamins folate, riboflavin, vitamin B6, and cobalamin were measured at diagnosis and 6 months postdiagnosis. Information on dietary supplement use was collected at both time points. Health-related quality of life (global quality of life, functioning scales, and fatigue) was assessed by the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire 6 months postdiagnosis. Confounder-adjusted linear regression analyses were performed, adjusted for multiple testing.Results: Higher pyridoxal 5'-phosphate (PLP) was cross-sectionally associated with better physical, role, and social functioning, as well as reduced fatigue, 6 months postdiagnosis. Associations were observed for a doubling in the hydroxykynurenine ratio [3-hydroxykynurenine: (kynurenic acid + xanthurenic acid + 3-hydroxyanthranilic acid + anthranilic acid); an inverse marker of vitamin B6] and both reduced global quality of life (beta = -3.62; 95% CI: -5.88, -1.36) and worse physical functioning (beta = -5.01; 95% CI: -7.09, -2.94). Dose-response relations were observed for PLP and quality of life. No associations were observed for changes in biomarker concentrations between diagnosis and 6 months. Participants who stopped using B-vitamin supplements after diagnosis reported higher fatigue than nonusers.Conclusions: Higher vitamin B6 status was associated with better quality of life, yet limited associations were observed for the use of B-vitamin supplements. Vitamin B6 needs further study to clarify its role in relation to quality of life

Apparent Lack of BRAFV600E Derived HLA Class I Presented Neoantigens Hampers Neoplastic Cell Targeting by CD8+ T Cells in Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis

Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis (LCH) is a neoplastic disorder of hematopoietic origin characterized by inflammatory lesions containing clonal histiocytes (LCH-cells) intermixed with various immune cells, including T cells. In 50-60% of LCH-patients, the somatic BRAFV600E driver mutation, which is common in many cancers, is detected in these LCH-cells in an otherwise quiet genomic landscape. Non-synonymous mutations like BRAFV600E can be a source of neoantigens capable of eliciting effective antitumor CD8+ T cell responses. This requires neopeptides to be stably presented by Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) class I molecules and sufficient numbers of CD8+ T cells at tumor sites. Here, we demonstrate substantial heterogeneity in CD8+ T cell density in n = 101 LCH-lesions, with BRAFV600E mutated lesions displaying significantly lower CD8+ T cell:CD1a+ LCH-cell ratios (p = 0.01) than BRAF wildtype lesions. Because LCH-lesional CD8+ T cell density had no significant impact on event-free survival, we investigated whether the intracellularly expressed BRAFV600E protein is degraded into neopeptides that are naturally processed and presented by cell surface HLA class I molecules. Epitope prediction tools revealed a single HLA class I binding BRAFV600E derived neopeptide (KIGDFGLATEK), which indeed displayed strong to intermediate binding capacity to HLA-A*03:01 and HLA-A*11:01 in an in vitro peptide-HLA binding assay. Mass spectrometry-based targeted peptidomics was used to investigate the presence of this neopeptide in HLA class I presented peptides isolated from several BRAFV600E expressing cell lines with various HLA genotypes. While the HLA-A*02:01 binding BRAF wildtype peptide KIGDFGLATV was traced in peptides isolated from a

Recombinant human erythropoietin α modulates the effects of radiotherapy on colorectal cancer microvessels

Recent data suggest that recombinant human erythropoietin (rhEPO) modulates tumour growth and therapy response. The purpose of the present study was to examine the modulation of radiotherapy (RT) effects on tumour microvessels by rhEPO in a rat colorectal cancer model. Before and after 5 × 5 Gy of RT, dynamic contrast-enhanced -magnetic resonance imaging was performed and endothelial permeability surface product (PS), plasma flow (F), and blood volume (V) were modelled. Imaging was combined with pO2 measurements, analysis of microvessel density, microvessel diameter, microvessel fractal dimension, and expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), hypoxia-inducible factor-1 α (HIF-1α), Bax, and Bcl-2. We found that RT significantly reduced PS and V in control rats, but not in rhEPO-treated rats, whereas F was unaffected by RT. Oxygenation was significantly better in rhEPO-treated animals, and RT induced a heterogeneous reoxygenation in both groups. Microvessel diameter was significantly larger in rhEPO animals, whereas VEGF expression was significantly lower in the rhEPO group. No differences were observed in HIF-1α, Bax, or Bcl-2 expression. We conclude that rhEPO results in spatially heterogeneous modulation of RT effects on tumour microvessels. Direct effects of rhEPO on neoplastic endothelium are likely to explain these findings in addition to indirect effects induced by increased oxygenation

A murine model of ulcerative colitis: induced with sinusitis-derived superantigen and food allergen

BACKGROUND: The etiology of ulcerative colitis (UC) is to be understood. The basic pathological feature of UC is intestinal chronic inflammation. Superantigen, such as Staphylococcus enterotoxin B (SEB), is reported to compromise intestinal barrier function by increasing epithelial permeability and initiate inflammation in the intestinal mucosa. Inasmuch as anatomic position of the sinus, chronic sinusitis-derived SEB may follow the secretion and to be swallowed down to the gastrointestinal tract and induce lesions to the intestinal mucosa. METHODS: Sinus wash fluid (SWF, containing SEB) was collected from a group of patients with both chronic sinusitis (CS) and UC. A group of mice were sensitized to ovalbumin (OVA) in the presence of SWF. The sensitized mice were challenged with the specific antigen OVA. The inflammatory status of the colonic tissue was determined with histology, serology and electron microscopy. Using horseradish peroxidase (HRP) as a tracer, another group of mice was stimulated with SWF for 2 hours. The HRP activity was detected in the colonic tissue with enzymatic approaches and electron microscopy. RESULTS: Epithelial hyperpermeability in colonic epithelium was induced by stimulating with SWF. The HRP activity in the colonic mucosa was almost 11 times more in the SWF treated group (3.2 ± 0.6 μg/g tissue) than the control group (0.3 ± 0.1 μg/g tissue). Mice were sensitized using a mixture of SWF and OVA (serum OVA-specific IgE was detected with a highest titer as 1:64). Challenge with OVA induced extensive inflammation in the colonic mucosa by showing (1) marked degranulation in mast cells (MC, 46.3 ± 4.5%) and eosinophils (Eo, 55.7 ± 4.2%); (2) inflammatory cell infiltration (MC = 145.2 ± 11.4; Eo = 215.8 ± 12.5; mononuclear cell = 258.4 ± 15.3/mm(2 )tissue); (3) increased MPO activity (12.9 ± 3.2 U/g tissue) and inflammatory scores (1.8 ± 0.3); (4) mucosal surface ulcers; (5) edema in the lamina propria; (6) bacterial translocation and abscess formation in the subepithelial region. CONCLUSION: Introducing Sinusitis-derived SEB-containing SWF to the gastrointestinal tract compromised colonic mucosal barrier function increasing epithelial permeability to luminal macromolecular protein in mice. The SWF facilitated colonic mucosal sensitization to luminal antigen. Multiple challenging the sensitized colonic mucosa with specific antigen OVA induced inflammation, induced a condition similar to human ulcerative colitis