An Effective Data Embedding Technique Based on APPM in Transform Domain

This paper proposes an efficient data embedding technique based on adaptive pixel pair matching in transform domain. The basic principle of a Pixel Pair Matching (PPM) based data embedding technique is to use the values of a pixel pair as a reference coordinate and search a coordinate in the neighborhood set of that pixel pair according to given message digit. In order to conceal secret data the pixel pair is then replaced by the searched coordinate. In transform domain data embedding techniques, the image pixels are converted into transform domain by using a particular transform and then the secret data is embedded by using an efficient data embedding algorithm. In this paper the Haar transform is used. The proposed method not only offers lower embedding distortion but also more robust against various noise attacks. The experimental results shows that this method performs better when compared to the spatial domain technique

Enhanced photoactivity and hydrogen generation of LaFeO 3 photocathode by plasmonic silver nanoparticle incorporation

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from ACS via the DOI in this record.A plasmonic LaFeO3-Ag (LFO-Ag) photocathode was synthesised by incorporating Ag nanoparticles to excite surface plasmon resonances (SPR) for enhanced light harvesting to drive photoelectrochemical (PEC) hydrogen evolution. The Ag nanoparticles were modelled using finite difference time domain (FDTD) simulations and the results show an optimal dimension of 50-80 nm for SPR enhancement. Nanostructured LFO films were prepared by a novel and inexpensive spray pyrolysis method and the Ag nanoparticles were dispersed uniformly on to the films by simple spin coating method. The LFO-Ag photocathode exhibited strong light absorption capability and high current density, twice that than of its untreated counterpart. This subsequently led to enhanced PEC hydrogen evolution, doubling the volume of hydrogen generated compared to untreated LFO. The enhancement is ascribed to the strong SPR effect and the synergy between the Ag nanoparticles and nanostructured LFO photocathode.We acknowledge UKIERI-DST2016-17-0089 project and Engineering and Physical Science Research Council, UK (EPSRC) under the research grant EP/R512801/1 for financial support. A.E. and S.S. would like to thank the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) for the award of Senior Research Fellowship. NSG Pilkington Glass Ltd. is acknowledged for kindly providing the FTO substrates for this work

Ultra-fast Microwave Synthesis of ZnO Nanowires and their Dynamic Response Toward Hydrogen Gas

Ultra-fast and large-quantity (grams) synthesis of one-dimensional ZnO nanowires has been carried out by a novel microwave-assisted method. High purity Zinc (Zn) metal was used as source material and placed on microwave absorber. The evaporation/oxidation process occurs under exposure to microwave in less than 100 s. Field effect scanning electron microscopy analysis reveals the formation of high aspect-ratio and high density ZnO nanowires with diameter ranging from 70 to 80 nm. Comprehensive structural analysis showed that these ZnO nanowires are single crystal in nature with excellent crystal quality. The gas sensor made of these ZnO nanowires exhibited excellent sensitivity, fast response, and good reproducibility. Furthermore, the method can be extended for the synthesis of other oxide nanowires that will be the building block of future nanoscale devices

1α,25(OH)2-3-Epi-Vitamin D3, a Natural Physiological Metabolite of Vitamin D3: Its Synthesis, Biological Activity and Crystal Structure with Its Receptor

Background: The 1 alpha,25-dihydroxy-3-epi-vitamin-D(3) (1 alpha,25(OH)(2)-3-epi-D(3)), a natural metabolite of the seco-steroid vitamin D(3), exerts its biological activity through binding to its cognate vitamin D nuclear receptor (VDR), a ligand dependent transcription regulator. In vivo action of 1 alpha,25(OH)(2)-3-epi-D(3) is tissue-specific and exhibits lowest calcemic effect compared to that induced by 1 alpha,25(OH)(2)D(3). To further unveil the structural mechanism and structure-activity relationships of 1 alpha,25(OH)(2)-3-epi-D3 and its receptor complex, we characterized some of its in vitro biological properties and solved its crystal structure complexed with human VDR ligand-binding domain (LBD). Methodology/Principal Findings: In the present study, we report the more effective synthesis with fewer steps that provides higher yield of the 3-epimer of the 1 alpha,25(OH)(2)D(3). We solved the crystal structure of its complex with the human VDR-LBD and found that this natural metabolite displays specific adaptation of the ligand-binding pocket, as the 3-epimer maintains the number of hydrogen bonds by an alternative water-mediated interaction to compensate the abolished interaction with Ser278. In addition, the biological activity of the 1 alpha,25(OH)(2)-3-epi-D(3) in primary human keratinocytes and biochemical properties are comparable to 1 alpha,25(OH)(2)D(3). Conclusions/Significance: The physiological role of this pathway as the specific biological action of the 3-epimer remains unclear. However, its high metabolic stability together with its significant biologic activity makes this natural metabolite an interesting ligand for clinical applications. Our new findings contribute to a better understanding at molecular level how natural metabolites of 1 alpha,25(OH)(2)D(3) lead to significant activity in biological systems and we conclude that the C3-epimerization pathway produces an active metabolite with similar biochemical and biological properties to those of the 1 alpha,25(OH)(2)D(3)

Analyses of In Vivo Interaction and Mobility of Two Spliceosomal Proteins Using FRAP and BiFC

U1-70K, a U1 snRNP-specific protein, and serine/arginine-rich (SR) proteins are components of the spliceosome and play critical roles in both constitutive and alternative pre-mRNA splicing. However, the mobility properties of U1-70K, its in vivo interaction with SR proteins, and the mobility of the U1-70K-SR protein complex have not been studied in any system. Here, we studied the in vivo interaction of U1-70K with an SR protein (SR45) and the mobility of the U1-70K/SR protein complex using bimolecular fluorescence complementation (BiFC) and fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP). Our results show that U1-70K exchanges between speckles and the nucleoplasmic pool very rapidly and that this exchange is sensitive to ongoing transcription and phosphorylation. BiFC analyses showed that U1-70K and SR45 interacted primarily in speckles and that this interaction is mediated by the RS1 or RS2 domain of SR45. FRAP analyses showed considerably slower recovery of the SR45/U1-70K complex than either protein alone indicating that SR45/U1-70K complexes remain in the speckles for a longer duration. Furthermore, FRAP analyses with SR45/U1-70K complex in the presence of inhibitors of phosphorylation did not reveal any significant change compared to control cells, suggesting that the mobility of the complex is not affected by the status of protein phosphorylation. These results indicate that U1-70K, like SR splicing factors, moves rapidly in the nucleus ensuring its availability at various sites of splicing. Furthermore, although it appears that U1-70K moves by diffusion its mobility is regulated by phosphorylation and transcription

Mapping of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Complex Genetic Diversity Profiles in Tanzania and Other African Countries

The aim of this study was to assess and characterize Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) genotypic diversity in Tanzania, as well as in neighbouring East and other several African countries. We used spoligotyping to identify a total of 293 M. tuberculosis clinical isolates (one isolate per patient) collected in the Bunda, Dar es Salaam, Ngorongoro and Serengeti areas in Tanzania. The results were compared with results in the SITVIT2 international database of the Pasteur Institute of Guadeloupe. Genotyping and phylogeographical analyses highlighted the predominance of the CAS, T, EAI, and LAM MTBC lineages in Tanzania. The three most frequent Spoligotype International Types (SITs) were: SIT21/CAS1-Kili (n = 76; 25.94%), SIT59/LAM11-ZWE (n = 22; 7.51%), and SIT126/EAI5 tentatively reclassified as EAI3-TZA (n = 18; 6.14%). Furthermore, three SITs were newly created in this study (SIT4056/EAI5 n = 2, SIT4057/T1 n = 1, and SIT4058/EAI5 n = 1). We noted that the East-African-Indian (EAI) lineage was more predominant in Bunda, the Manu lineage was more common among strains isolated in Ngorongoro, and the Central-Asian (CAS) lineage was more predominant in Dar es Salaam (p-value<0.0001). No statistically significant differences were noted when comparing HIV status of patients vs. major lineages (p-value = 0.103). However, when grouping lineages as Principal Genetic Groups (PGG), we noticed that PGG2/3 group (Haarlem, LAM, S, T, and X) was more associated with HIV-positive patients as compared to PGG1 group (Beijing, CAS, EAI, and Manu) (p-value = 0.03). This study provided mapping of MTBC genetic diversity in Tanzania (containing information on isolates from different cities) and neighbouring East African and other several African countries highlighting differences as regards to MTBC genotypic distribution between Tanzania and other African countries. This work also allowed underlining of spoligotyping patterns tentatively grouped within the newly designated EAI3-TZA lineage (remarkable by absence of spacers 2 and 3, and represented by SIT126) which seems to be specific to Tanzania. However, further genotyping information would be needed to confirm this specificity

Identification of Ventricular Tachycardia Using Intracavitary Ventricular Electrograms: Analysis of Time and Frequency Domain Patterns

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/74961/1/j.1540-8159.1988.tb06279.x.pd

Regulation of Plant Developmental Processes by a Novel Splicing Factor

Serine/arginine-rich (SR) proteins play important roles in constitutive and alternative splicing and other aspects of mRNA metabolism. We have previously isolated a unique plant SR protein (SR45) with atypical domain organization. However, the biological and molecular functions of this novel SR protein are not known. Here, we report biological and molecular functions of this protein. Using an in vitro splicing complementation assay, we showed that SR45 functions as an essential splicing factor. Furthermore, the alternative splicing pattern of transcripts of several other SR genes was altered in a mutant, sr45-1, suggesting that the observed phenotypic abnormalities in sr45-1 are likely due to altered levels of SR protein isoforms, which in turn modulate splicing of other pre-mRNAs. sr45-1 exhibited developmental abnormalities, including delayed flowering, narrow leaves and altered number of petals and stamens. The late flowering phenotype was observed under both long days and short days and was rescued by vernalization. FLC, a key flowering repressor, is up-regulated in sr45-1 demonstrating that SR45 influences the autonomous flowering pathway. Changes in the alternative splicing of SR genes and the phenotypic defects in the mutant were rescued by SR45 cDNA, further confirming that the observed defects in the mutant are due to the lack of SR45. These results indicate that SR45 is a novel plant-specific splicing factor that plays a crucial role in regulating developmental processes

Membranous nephropathy and lupus-like syndrome after hematopoietic cell transplantation: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>The kidney is increasingly recognised as a target organ of chronic graft-versus-host disease after hematopoietic cell transplantation in the context of the development of the nephrotic syndrome. Chronic graft-versus-host disease is associated with autoimmune phenomena similar, but not identical, to those observed in various rheumatologic disorders, implicating autoimmunity as an important component of the disease.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We report the case of a 57-year-old Caucasian man who developed the nephrotic syndrome due to membranous nephropathy in association with recurrent chronic graft-versus-host disease, along with a lupus-like syndrome manifested with pancytopenia, hair loss, positive anti-DNA antibodies and sub-epithelial and mesangial immune deposits. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case reported in the literature. The nephrotic syndrome subsided soon after he was treated with a short course of cyclosporin with steroids. Unfortunately he died seven months later due to a relapse of leukemia.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our case report confirms the notion that chronic graft-versus-host disease is characterized by the appearance of autoimmune phenomena similar, but not identical, to those seen in autoimmune diseases. The decision for more immunosuppression has to be weighed against the need for preservation of the graft versus leukemia phenomenon.</p