Spartan Face Mask Detection and Facial Recognition System

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), wearing a face mask is one of the most effective protections from airborne infectious diseases such as COVID-19. Since the spread of COVID-19, infected countries have been enforcing strict mask regulation for indoor businesses and public spaces. While wearing a mask is a requirement, the position and type of the mask should also be considered in order to increase the effectiveness of face masks, especially at specific public locations. However, this makes it difficult for conventional facial recognition technology to identify individuals for security checks. To solve this problem, the Spartan Face Detection and Facial Recognition System with stacking ensemble deep learning algorithms is proposed to cover four major issues: Mask Detection, Mask Type Classification, Mask Position Classification and Identity Recognition. CNN, AlexNet, VGG16, and Facial Recognition Pipeline with FaceNet are the Deep Learning algorithms used to classify the features in each scenario. This system is powered by five components including training platform, server, supporting frameworks, hardware, and user interface. Complete unit tests, use cases, and results analytics are used to evaluate and monitor the performance of the system. The system provides cost-efficient face detection and facial recognition with masks solutions for enterprises and schools that can be easily applied on edge-devices

Alternatives to Pretrial Detention:Pre Global Best Practice Catalog

This Global Best Practice Catalog of Alternatives to Pretrial Detention was completed by students of the Master of Arts Degree Program in International Crime and Justice at John Jay College of Criminal Justice as part of their capstone course, in collaboration with the US State Department\u27s Diplomacy Lab program. This catalog is intended to cover best practices in reducing pretrial detention (either before it occurs or while it is occurring) across the globe, including laws, policies and programs. It does not include Oceania or very detailed information on North America. Each entry meets 5 of 8 criteria below, as decided by the students: 1. It respects human rights 2. It is affordable for the country\u27s budget 3. It is available to the majority of accused 4. It is definable: we know how the best practice works in context 5. It ensures public safety: no further crime or victimization occurs upon release from detention 6. It is verifiable: more than one source attests to it (it is not a recommendation - it really exists) 7. It is sustainable - it really works and it can self-subsist 8. It should not result in profits for private entities, beyond reasonable salaries Each entry includes: Title of the Practice Listing of the class best practice criteria that it meets (5 out of 8) Paragraph description of the practice, to include -how long it’s been in practice -what the main components of the best practice are -scope: local or national -who it affects -costs if available (how it’s funded) -who’s in charge of it (e.g. NGO/organizational structure) -any independent evaluations? -results -whether it has been exported elsewhere (used in another country) Links Bibliography Associated files are a series of case studies where student teams apply global best practice to selected countries. (El Salvador, Uruguay, Bangladesh, Ghana, Liberia and Macedonia.

N-(4-Chloro-1,3-benzothia­zol-2-yl)-2-(3-methyl­phen­yl)acetamide monohydrate

In the title compound, C16H13ClN2OS·H2O, the dihedral angle between the mean planes of the benzothia­zole ring system and the methylphenyl ring is 79.3 (6)°. The crystal packing features inter­molecular O—H⋯N, O—H⋯O and N—H⋯O hydrogen bonds involving the water mol­ecule and weak C—H⋯O, C—H⋯Cg and π–π stacking inter­actions [centroid–centroid distances = 3.8743 (7), 3.7229 (7) and 3.7076 (8) Å]

Mitochondrial pyruvate carrier inhibition initiates metabolic crosstalk to stimulate branched chain amino acid catabolism

OBJECTIVE: The mitochondrial pyruvate carrier (MPC) has emerged as a therapeutic target for treating insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). We evaluated whether MPC inhibitors (MPCi) might correct impairments in branched chain amino acid (BCAA) catabolism, which are predictive of developing diabetes and NASH. METHODS: Circulating BCAA concentrations were measured in people with NASH and type 2 diabetes, who participated in a recent randomized, placebo-controlled Phase IIB clinical trial to test the efficacy and safety of the MPCi MSDC-0602K (EMMINENCE; NCT02784444). In this 52-week trial, patients were randomly assigned to placebo (n = 94) or 250 mg MSDC-0602K (n = 101). Human hepatoma cell lines and mouse primary hepatocytes were used to test the direct effects of various MPCi on BCAA catabolism in vitro. Lastly, we investigated how hepatocyte-specific deletion of MPC2 affects BCAA metabolism in the liver of obese mice and MSDC-0602K treatment of Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF) rats. RESULTS: In patients with NASH, MSDC-0602K treatment, which led to marked improvements in insulin sensitivity and diabetes, had decreased plasma concentrations of BCAAs compared to baseline while placebo had no effect. The rate-limiting enzyme in BCAA catabolism is the mitochondrial branched chain ketoacid dehydrogenase (BCKDH), which is deactivated by phosphorylation. In multiple human hepatoma cell lines, MPCi markedly reduced BCKDH phosphorylation and stimulated branched chain keto acid catabolism; an effect that required the BCKDH phosphatase PPM1K. Mechanistically, the effects of MPCi were linked to activation of the energy sensing AMP-dependent protein kinase (AMPK) and mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) kinase signaling cascades in vitro. BCKDH phosphorylation was reduced in liver of obese, hepatocyte-specific MPC2 knockout (LS-Mpc2-/-) mice compared to wild-type controls concomitant with activation of mTOR signaling in vivo. Finally, while MSDC-0602K treatment improved glucose homeostasis and increased the concentrations of some BCAA metabolites in ZDF rats, it did not lower plasma BCAA concentrations. CONCLUSIONS: These data demonstrate novel cross talk between mitochondrial pyruvate and BCAA metabolism and suggest that MPC inhibition leads to lower plasma BCAA concentrations and BCKDH phosphorylation by activating the mTOR axis. However, the effects of MPCi on glucose homeostasis may be separable from its effects on BCAA concentrations

Measure Twice: Promise of Liquid Biopsy in Pediatric High-Grade Gliomas

Purpose To review and critique the current state of liquid biopsy in pHGG. Materials and Methods Published literature was reviewed for articles related to liquid biopsy in pediatric glioma and adult glioma with a focus on high-grade gliomas. Results This review discusses the current state of liquid biomarkers of pHGG and their potential applications for liquid biopsy development. Conclusions While nascent, the progress toward identifying circulating analytes of pHGG primes the field of neuro-oncoogy for liquid biopsy development

Genetic regulators of sputum mucin concentration and their associations with COPD phenotypes

Hyper-secretion and/or hyper-concentration of mucus is a defining feature of multiple obstructive lung diseases, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Mucus itself is composed of a mixture of water, ions, salt and proteins, of which the gel-forming mucins, MUC5AC and MUC5B, are the most abundant. Recent studies have linked the concentrations of these proteins in sputum to COPD phenotypes, including chronic bronchitis (CB) and acute exacerbations (AE). We sought to determine whether common genetic variants influence sputum mucin concentrations and whether these variants are also associated with COPD phenotypes, specifically CB and AE. We performed a GWAS to identify quantitative trait loci for sputum mucin protein concentration (pQTL) in the Sub-Populations and InteRmediate Outcome Measures in COPD Study (SPIROMICS, n = 708 for total mucin, n = 215 for MUC5AC, MUC5B). Subsequently, we tested for associations of mucin pQTL with CB and AE using regression modeling (n = 822-1300). Replication analysis was conducted using data from COPDGene (n = 5740) and by examining results from the UK Biobank. We identified one genome-wide significant pQTL for MUC5AC (rs75401036) and two for MUC5B (rs140324259, rs10001928). The strongest association for MUC5B, with rs140324259 on chromosome 11, explained 14% of variation in sputum MUC5B. Despite being associated with lower MUC5B, the C allele of rs140324259 conferred increased risk of CB (odds ratio (OR) = 1.42; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.10-1.80) as well as AE ascertained over three years of follow up (OR = 1.41; 95% CI: 1.02-1.94). Associations between rs140324259 and CB or AE did not replicate in COPDGene. However, in the UK Biobank, rs140324259 was associated with phenotypes that define CB, namely chronic mucus production and cough, again with the C allele conferring increased risk. We conclude that sputum MUC5AC and MUC5B concentrations are associated with common genetic variants, and the top locus for MUC5B may influence COPD phenotypes, in particular CB.</p

Genetic regulators of sputum mucin concentration and their associations with COPD phenotypes

Hyper-secretion and/or hyper-concentration of mucus is a defining feature of multiple obstructive lung diseases, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Mucus itself is composed of a mixture of water, ions, salt and proteins, of which the gel-forming mucins, MUC5AC and MUC5B, are the most abundant. Recent studies have linked the concentrations of these proteins in sputum to COPD phenotypes, including chronic bronchitis (CB) and acute exacerbations (AE). We sought to determine whether common genetic variants influence sputum mucin concentrations and whether these variants are also associated with COPD phenotypes, specifically CB and AE. We performed a GWAS to identify quantitative trait loci for sputum mucin protein concentration (pQTL) in the Sub-Populations and InteRmediate Outcome Measures in COPD Study (SPIROMICS, n = 708 for total mucin, n = 215 for MUC5AC, MUC5B). Subsequently, we tested for associations of mucin pQTL with CB and AE using regression modeling (n = 822-1300). Replication analysis was conducted using data from COPDGene (n = 5740) and by examining results from the UK Biobank. We identified one genome-wide significant pQTL for MUC5AC (rs75401036) and two for MUC5B (rs140324259, rs10001928). The strongest association for MUC5B, with rs140324259 on chromosome 11, explained 14% of variation in sputum MUC5B. Despite being associated with lower MUC5B, the C allele of rs140324259 conferred increased risk of CB (odds ratio (OR) = 1.42; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.10-1.80) as well as AE ascertained over three years of follow up (OR = 1.41; 95% CI: 1.02-1.94). Associations between rs140324259 and CB or AE did not replicate in COPDGene. However, in the UK Biobank, rs140324259 was associated with phenotypes that define CB, namely chronic mucus production and cough, again with the C allele conferring increased risk. We conclude that sputum MUC5AC and MUC5B concentrations are associated with common genetic variants, and the top locus for MUC5B may influence COPD phenotypes, in particular CB.</p