Automatic Integration of Web Services

In today's web application paradigm, web services play a vital role as a reusable application component. Web services act as bridge to connect different software applications, running on a variety of platforms and/or frameworks. We developed a web based system to integrate the reusable application component and giving different applications a way to link their data: Automatic Integration of Web Services (AIWS). AIWS connects to any given web service and provides a means to search, invoke, integrate and examine the web services. AIWS proposes a way to determine QoS(Quality of Service) metrics for examining today's web services which focuses on testing three main QoS requirements Performance, Reliability, and Capacity as defined by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). The core functionality of AIWS is to provide the user to create graphical web service composition in Microsoft .Net which allows different web services to be connected through their inputs and outputs

Alogliptin: a new addition to the class of DPP-4 inhibitors

Radha Andukuri, Andjela Drincic, Marc RendellDivision of Endocrinology, Department of Medicine, Creighton University School of Medicine, Omaha, Nebraska, USABackground: Alogliptin is an oral antihyperglycemic agent that is a selective inhibitor of the enzyme dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4). Inhibition of DPP-4 elevates levels of the incretin hormones glucagon-like peptide (GLP-1) and glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) by preventing their degradation.Objective: To review the evolution of alogliptin and its pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, clinical efficacy and adverse effects. In addition, we compared alogliptin to other DPP-4 inhibitors.Methods: A comprehensive literature search was performed using the term ‘alogliptin’. Original research articles and review articles as well as scientific abstracts were included. Results: Alogliptin raises postprandial levels of GLP-1. It has excellent bioavailability exhibiting a median Tmax ranging from 1 to 2 hours and a mean half-life of 12.4 to 21.4 hours across all doses. When given as monotherapy, mean hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) reductions achieved were 0.5% to 0.6%. Combination therapy yielded similar reductions (−0.5% with metformin, −0.6% with glyburide, −0.8% with pioglitazone and –0.6% with insulin). Administration of alogliptin does not promote weight loss but has not resulted in weight gain. The agent is relatively well tolerated with few adverse effects, the major finding being a marginally higher rate of skin events, primarily pruritus.Conclusions: Alogliptin causes significant reductions in HbA1c when used alone or in combination with other oral agents in patients with type 2 diabetes similar to other DPP-4 inhibitors in current clinical use. The side effect profile also does not differ from that of other DPP-4 inhibitors. However, long-term studies are necessary before the place of alogliptin in the management of type 2 diabetes can be established.Keywords: alogliptin, DPP-4 inhibitors, GLP-1, vildagliptin, sitagliptin, saxaglipti

Enhancing the Security using Blockchain-Based Privacy-Preserving Framework for Stock Exchange Platform

This article introduces a privacy-preserving architecture for a distributed stock exchange platform, which keeps investors' accounts and trades private and untraceable. In order to fulfil these privacy needs, the proposed framework (i) uses specialised data generalisation and distortion techniques to conceal the unique account identifier (NIN) and balance information, and (ii) prevents trading transactions from being traced back to their original investors by making the NIN and balance k-anonymous, meaning that k accounts belonging to different investors share the same balance. In addition, the anonymization procedure is carried out on a periodic basis (after each trading session) to provide permanent anonymity. The suggested framework includes not only anonymity and unlinkability but also traceability and non-repudiation. The simulation studies on a variety of sized and kinds of markets verify the efficiency of the proposed framework in obtaining complete k-anonymity. Furthermore, we undertake a number of tests with varying degrees of anonymity k to evaluate the impact of the proposed privacy algorithms on the trade execution time. We evaluate our proposed platform by looking at how quickly trades are executed in comparison to a standard stock exchange built on a blockchain that does not protect user privacy. Even under the worst-case circumstances, the findings obtained reveal a reasonable increase in execution tim

High-Value Care Education in the USA: Lessons from a National Value Curriculum for Resident and Fellow Physicians

PurposePhysicians are estimated to be responsible for more than 50% of national healthcare costs and hold the greatest potential to improve value by orchestrating quality-driven programs to reduce unnecessary practices and variability. A physician's ability to practice cost-conscious care has been linked to their training, underscoring the importance of integrating cost-conscious practice into training.MethodsThe High Value Practice Academic Alliance was formed to help advance the value-improvement work of individual institutions through a national organization. We developed a curriculum and mentorship model for trainees throughout the country titled the Future Leaders Program (FLP). Upon entry to FLP, GME physicians completed a baseline self-assessment of their knowledge about costs, payment, and value in healthcare. Over 1 year, these physicians participated in structured educational activities related to high-value care (HVC), received mentorship focused on leading a value-based quality improvement (QI) project, and then completed a second self-assessment upon completion of the program.ResultsOver four academic years (AY17-18 through AY20-21), we had 161 respondents. Most participants report some prior education in healthcare value; however, many had never participated in a QI project. Participants showed variability in their knowledge. After completion of the program, paired sample t-tests demonstrated significant differences in the subscale scores for value knowledge (M =  - 0.63, SD = 0.93), attitudes (M =  - 0.46, SD = 0.45), and skills (M =  - 0.40, SD = 0.71) indicating that participating in a value-focused QI project improved value knowledge, t(160) =  - 9.66, p < .001; attitudes towards high-value care teaching, t(160) =  - 12.48, p < .001; and high-value care practice frequency, t(160) =  - 6.93, p < .001.ConclusionsSkills and knowledge are significantly improved after completion of our program, demonstrating that a free, web-based curriculum and tiered mentoring program can be effective in teaching HVC skills and preparing physicians to lead this work

Fibers for hearts: A critical review on electrospinning for cardiac tissue engineering

Cardiac cell therapy holds a real promise for improving heart function and especially of the chronically failing myocardium. Embedding cells into 3D biodegradable scaffolds may better preserve cell survival and enhance cell engraftment after transplantation, consequently improving cardiac cell therapy compared with direct intramyocardial injection of isolated cells. The primary objective of a scaffold used in tissue engineering is the recreation of the natural 3D environment most suitable for an adequate tissue growth. An important aspect of this commitment is to mimic the fibrillar structure of the extracellular matrix, which provides essential guidance for cell organization, survival, and function. Recent advances in nanotechnology have significantly improved our capacities to mimic the extracellular matrix. Among them, electrospinning is well known for being easy to process and cost effective. Consequently, it is becoming increasingly popular for biomedical applications and it is most definitely the cutting edge technique to make scaffolds that mimic the extracellular matrix for industrial applications. Here, the desirable physico-chemical properties of the electrospun scaffolds for cardiac therapy are described, and polymers are categorized to natural and synthetic.Moreover, the methods used for improving functionalities by providing cells with the necessary chemical cues and a more in vivo- like environment are reported

Anti-obesity effects of olivetol in adult zebrafish model induced by short-term high-fat diet

Obesity is a complex disease caused by various factors, and synthetic drugs used to treat it can have side effects. Natural compounds, such as olivetol, could be a promising alternative. Olivetol is a substance found in certain lichen species and has anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. In this study, researchers conducted in-silico molecular docking studies and found that olivetol had significant binding affinity with receptors involved in obesity. They also investigated the effects of olivetol on a diet-induced obese zebrafish model and found that high doses of olivetol reduced excessive fat accumulation and triglyceride and lipid accumulation. The low dose of olivetol showed a significant reduction in liver enzymes' levels. However, the high dose of olivetol resulted in a significant increase in HMG-CoA levels. These results suggest that olivetol may be a promising anti-obesity agent for the treatment of hyperlipidemia-related disorders, but further research is necessary to understand its full effects on the body.</p

A Bioinspired Multifunctional Nanomatrix for Cardiovascular Applications

Bioinspired solutions for challenges faced by conventional therapies are rapidly emerging, especially as new and innovative improvements in medical devices are constantly being researched and developed. Stents are a common therapeutic device for cardiovascular diseases that have undergone incrementally developmental changes over the last two decades. However, there are concerns about in-stent restenosis with bare metal stents and incomplete endothelialization, late stent thrombosis, and late inflammatory responses with drug-eluting stents. New strategies for stents include the development of bioresorbable stents and the utilization of endothelial progenitor cell capture techniques. Despite the promise of recent developments aimed at overcoming the limitations of current stents, concerns still remain and success is limited. It is critical to develop an innovative strategy to overcome these limitations. Hence, the goal of this dissertation is to develop a bioinspired strategy for a multifunctional self-assembled peptide amphiphile (PA) nanomatrix coating that can provide characteristic properties of the native endothelium on the surface of stents. The PAs used in the study to develop an endothelium mimicking stent coating comprise endothelial cell adhesive ligands, nitric oxide donors, enzyme mediated degradable sites, and water based self-assembly into a nanofibrous matrix. Incorporation of these features endows the nanomatrix with the ability to closely mimic the native endothelium. It is hypothesized that this bioinspired multifunctional nanomatrix promotes endothelialization, but limits neointimal hyperplasia, restenosis, thrombosis, and inflammatory reactions. Preliminary studies have successfully demonstrated the feasibility of the bioinspired multifunctional nanomatrix. Successful self-assembly into nanofibers and long term release of nitric oxide was achieved. The bioinspired nanomatrix promotes endothelial proliferation, but limits smooth muscle cell proliferation and platelet adhesion. It also promoted the adhesion and differentiation of endothelial progenitor cells. This bioinspired multifunctional nanomatrix coating has the potential to overcome current challenges of stents and further be applied to various cardiovascular implants

Bioequivalence and Cross-over Study Design: Part 1

Presentation given at The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi Sixth Annual Graduate and Undergraduate Research Symposium, Georgia Southern Universit

Bioequivalence Study: Part 1

Presentation given at The First Annual Graduate Student Scholarship Day, Jack N. Averitt College of Graduate Studies, Georgia Southern Universit