Statically Checking Web API Requests in JavaScript

Many JavaScript applications perform HTTP requests to web APIs, relying on the request URL, HTTP method, and request data to be constructed correctly by string operations. Traditional compile-time error checking, such as calling a non-existent method in Java, are not available for checking whether such requests comply with the requirements of a web API. In this paper, we propose an approach to statically check web API requests in JavaScript. Our approach first extracts a request's URL string, HTTP method, and the corresponding request data using an inter-procedural string analysis, and then checks whether the request conforms to given web API specifications. We evaluated our approach by checking whether web API requests in JavaScript files mined from GitHub are consistent or inconsistent with publicly available API specifications. From the 6575 requests in scope, our approach determined whether the request's URL and HTTP method was consistent or inconsistent with web API specifications with a precision of 96.0%. Our approach also correctly determined whether extracted request data was consistent or inconsistent with the data requirements with a precision of 87.9% for payload data and 99.9% for query data. In a systematic analysis of the inconsistent cases, we found that many of them were due to errors in the client code. The here proposed checker can be integrated with code editors or with continuous integration tools to warn programmers about code containing potentially erroneous requests.Comment: International Conference on Software Engineering, 201

Opportunities in Software Engineering Research for Web API Consumption

Nowadays, invoking third party code increasingly involves calling web services via their web APIs, as opposed to the more traditional scenario of downloading a library and invoking the library's API. However, there are also new challenges for developers calling these web APIs. In this paper, we highlight a broad set of these challenges and argue for resulting opportunities for software engineering research to support developers in consuming web APIs. We outline two specific research threads in this context: (1) web API specification curation, which enables us to know the signatures of web APIs, and (2) static analysis that is capable of extracting URLs, HTTP methods etc. of web API calls. Furthermore, we present new work on how we combine (1) and (2) to provide IDE support for application developers consuming web APIs. As web APIs are used broadly, research in supporting the consumption of web APIs offers exciting opportunities.Comment: Erik Wittern and Annie Ying are both first author

The Sequelae of Psychological Symptoms Exhibited by Children Exposed to Trauma: A Developmental Perspective

Children who experience developmental trauma often exhibit a constellation of symptoms across several psycho-social-bio domains. This study explored the symptom clusters that school-age children and adolescents who have experienced maltreatment exhibit and whether these children/adolescents can be differentiated from those without trauma histories. Using data from the Child and Youth Mental Health instrument, exploratory factor analyses of clinical items were completed for children/adolescents who have experienced maltreatment. Six factors for children (i.e., dysregulation in cognitive processes, dysregulation in self-concept, externalizing behaviours, violent or high-risk behaviours, indicators of withdrawal and depression, and hyperarousal and anxiety behaviours) and 5 factors for adolescents (i.e., externalizing behaviours, affect dysregulation, substance use, withdrawal and indicators of depression, and hyperarousal and dysregulation in cognitive processes) emerged. Discriminant function analyses using factors scores accurately differentiated children and adolescents who have experienced maltreatment from those who have not, 61.5% and 63.7% of the time respectively

Language maintenance through primary school education: the case of Daighi

Ongoing language shift to Taiwanese Mandarin is a pressing concern in Taiwan. With the concerns of losing the rich linguistic and cultural assets of Taiwan’s multilingual society, this study sets out to explore the language maintenance endeavours in primary schools, focusing on Daighi. Exploration of language attitudes is the angle this study adopts to approach language shift, looking specifically at whether language attitudes are promoted through the mandatory local languages class at primary school level. However, a large piece of the picture would be missed without the evaluation of the context, which is crucial to understand Daighi’s position. Sociocultural theory is then adopted as an analytical lens to view teachers’ practices as mediated actions, and to make visible the impact of context in Daighi maintenance. Interviews are used to explore the insights of the frontline Daighi teachers, and Daighi classes of these teachers are observed to investigate their practices, and to match these with their perceptions. In spite of the good teaching practices found at schools and attitudes to support language maintenance, there is still a gap in terms of actual language maintenance, which is defined as developing students to become functional bilinguals (Li Wei, 2006). It is possible that language maintenance is not best achieved by focusing on classroom practice alone. The Discussion Chapter then presents the mediators from global level, national level to classroom, students and teacher agency. Language policy, educational system, and perceived language attitudes of the government, local authority, school, colleagues, family and students emerge as influential mediators that contribute to the ongoing language shift to Taiwanese Mandarin. This study provides an analytical insight into Taiwanese local language education and language attitudes. Through engaging with the teachers, it also inspired critical reflections of their own practices. The findings of this study demonstrate an in-depth understanding of Daighi maintenance and shift, and provide a starting point for further research in Daighi, and in the area of language maintenance in multilingual settings

DCB-3503, a Tylophorine Analog, Inhibits Protein Synthesis through a Novel Mechanism

BACKGROUND: DCB-3503, a tylophorine analog, inhibits the growth of PANC-1 (human pancreatic ductal cancer cell line) and HepG2 (human hepatocellular cancer cell line) tumor xenografts in nude mice. The inhibition of growth leads to cancer cell differentiation instead of cell death. However, the mechanisms of action of tylophorine analogs is unknown. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: In this study, we show that DCB-3503 suppresses the expression of pro-oncogenic or pro-survival proteins with short half-lives, including cyclin D1, survivin, beta-catenin, p53, and p21, without decreasing their mRNA levels. Proteasome inhibitor reversed the inhibitory effect of DCB-3503 on expression of these proteins. DCB-3503 inhibited the incorporation of radiolabeled amino acid and thymidine, and to a much lesser degree of uridine, in a panel of cell lines. The mechanism of inhibition of protein synthesis is different from that of cycloheximide (CHX) as assayed in cell culture and HeLa in vitro translation system. Furthermore, in contrast to rapamycin, DCB-3503 does not affect protein synthesis through the mTOR pathway. DCB-3503 treatment shifts the sedimentation profiles of ribosomes and mRNAs towards the polysomal fractions while diminishing monosome abundance, indicative of the inhibition of the elongation step of protein synthesis. Preferential down regulation of several studied proteins under these conditions is likely due to the relative short half-lives of these proteins. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: The inhibitory effect of DCB-3503 on translation is apparently distinct from any of the current anticancer compounds targeting protein synthesis. Translation inhibitors with novel mechanism could complement current chemotherapeutic agents for the treatment of human cancers and suppress the occurrence of drug resistance

Hsp83 loss suppresses proteasomal activity resulting in an upregulation of caspase-dependent compensatory autophagy

The 2 main degradative pathways that contribute to proteostasis are the ubiquitin-proteasome system and autophagy but how they are molecularly coordinated is not well understood. Here, we demonstrate an essential role for an effector caspase in the activation of compensatory autophagy when proteasomal activity is compromised. Functional loss of Hsp83, the Drosophila ortholog of human HSP90 (heat shock protein 90), resulted in reduced proteasomal activity and elevated levels of the effector caspase Dcp-1. Surprisingly, genetic analyses showed that the caspase was not required for cell death in this context, but instead was essential for the ensuing compensatory autophagy, female fertility, and organism viability. The zymogen pro-Dcp-1 was found to interact with Hsp83 and undergo proteasomal regulation in an Hsp83-dependent manner. Our work not only reveals unappreciated roles for Hsp83 in proteasomal activity and regulation of Dcp-1, but identifies an effector caspase as a key regulatory factor for sustaining adaptation to cell stress in vivo

Hypermethylation of SOX2 Promoter in Endometrial Carcinogenesis

This paper aimed at investigating the expression and methylation profiles of SOX2, a gene coding for the stem cell-related transcription factor SOX2, in endometrial carcinomas. By methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MS-PCR), the methylation status of SOX2 promoter region in 72 endometrial carcinomas and 12 normal endometrial samples was examined. Methylated allele was found in 37.5% (27/72) of endometrial carcinomas but only in 8.3% (1/12) of normal endometrial, significantly more frequent in cancers (P = .0472). SOX2 mRNA level was significantly reduced in endometrial carcinoma compared with nonneoplastic endometrium (P = .045). A significant correlation between SOX2 mRNA expression and hypermethylation of SOX2 was found (P = .024). Hypermethylation of SOX2 tended to be more frequently found in type II serous or clear cell adenocarcinoma. SOX2 methylation was also significantly correlated with shorter survival of patients (P = .046). In conclusion, epigenetic mechanisms may play a crucial role on the transcriptional regulation of SOX2 and loss of SOX2 expression may be related to endometrial carcinogenesis

Digital health promotion: promise and peril

The World Health Organization defines health promotion as process of enabling people to increase control over their health and its determinants, and thereby improve their health. As the world transitions into the information age, incorporating digital technologies into health promotion is becoming commonplace. This article discusses current applications of digital health promotion (DHP) and addresses its potential benefits, challenges, as well as how differences in cultures, governance models and digital readiness across the globe will shape the implementation of DHP differently in each society. The benefits include expanding access to health information and health promoting services, lowering scaling up costs, personalizing health advice and real-time ‘nudging’ toward healthier options. Key challenges would involve privacy control, appropriate use of data including secondary usage beyond the original intention, defining the limits of ‘nudging’ and the right of free choice, and ensuring widespread accessibility and affordability to minimize the exacerbation of social inequities. Finally, we discuss the enabling factors for successful DHP implementation, suggesting measures that should be taken at both individual and system levels. At the individual level, we explore the factors necessary to access and benefit from DHP meaningfully; at the system level, we examine the infrastructure required to provide wide access, establish trust among users and enable sustainability of behavioral changes.http://heapro.oxfordjournals.orghj2022Speech-Language Pathology and Audiolog

Core-sheath nanofibers as drug delivery system for thermoresponsive controlled release

In this work, a smart drug delivery system of core–sheath nanofiber is reported. The core-sheath nanofibers were prepared with thermoresponsive poly-(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm) (as core) and hydrophobic ethylcellulose (EC) (as sheath) by coaxial electrospinning. Analogous medicated fibers were prepared by loading with a model drug ketoprofen (KET). The fibers were cylindrical without phase separation and have visible core-sheath structure as shown by scanning and transmission electron microscopy. X-ray diffraction patterns demonstrated the drug with the amorphous physical form was present in the fiber matrix. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analysis was conducted, finding that there were significant intermolecular interactions between KET and the polymers. Water contact angle measurements proved that the core-sheath fibers from hydrophobic transformed into hydrophobic when the temperature reached the lower critical solution temperature. In vitro drug-release study of nanofibers with KET displayed that the coaxial nanofibers were able to synergistically combine the characteristics of the two polymers producing a temperature-sensitive drug delivery system with sustained release properties. In addition, they were established to be non-toxic and suitable for cell growth. These findings show that the core–sheath nanofiber is a potential candidate for controlling drug delivery system