Privacy through Anonymisation in Large-scale Socio-technical Systems: Multi-lingual Contact Centres across the EU

Large-scale socio-technical systems (STS) inextricably interconnect individual – e.g., the right to privacy –, social – e.g., the effectiveness of organisational processes –, and technology issues —e.g., the software engineering process. As a result, the design of the complex software infrastructure involves also non-technological aspects such as the legal ones—so that, e.g., law-abidingness can be ensured since the early stages of the software engineering process. By focussing on contact centres (CC) as relevant examples of knowledge-intensive STS, we elaborate on the articulate aspects of anonymisation: there, individual and organisational needs clash, so that only an accurate balancing between legal and technical aspects could possibly ensure the system efficiency while preserving the individual right to privacy. We discuss first the overall legal framework, then the general theme of anonymisation in CC. Finally we overview the technical process developed in the context of the BISON project

Microfluidic interactions between red blood cells and drug carriers by image analysis techniques

This paper was presented at the 4th Micro and Nano Flows Conference (MNF2014), which was held at University College, London, UK. The conference was organised by Brunel University and supported by the Italian Union of Thermofluiddynamics, IPEM, the Process Intensification Network, the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, the Heat Transfer Society, HEXAG - the Heat Exchange Action Group, and the Energy Institute, ASME Press, LCN London Centre for Nanotechnology, UCL University College London, UCL Engineering, the International NanoScience Community, www.nanopaprika.eu.Blood is a complex biological fluid composed of deformable cells and platelets suspended in plasma, a protein-rich liquid. The peculiar nature of blood needs to be considered when designing a drug delivery strategy based on systemically administered carriers. Here, we report on an in vitro fluid dynamic investigation of the influence of the microcapillary flow of red blood cells (RBCs) on micron sized carriers by high speed imaging methods. The experiments were carried out in a 50μm diameter glass capillary that mimicked the hydrodynamic conditions of human microcirculation. Spherical μ particles (μ-Ps), with sizes ranging between 0.5 and 3μm, were tested. Images of the flowing RBCs and μ-Ps were acquired by a highspeed/ high-magnification microscopy. The transport and distribution of rigid particles in a suspension of RBCs under shear flow were followed for: i) the migration of RBCs towards the vessel centerline due to their deformability; ii) the cross-flow migration of μ-Ps towards the vessel wall due to their hydrodynamic interactions with RBCs; iii) the radial distribution of μ-Ps in the presence of RBCs. This study suggests that the therapeutic efficacy of μ-Ps could be ultimately affected by their interactions with the flowing RBCs in the vasculature

Emulating the GLink Chip-Set with FPGA Serial Transceivers in the ATLAS Level-1 Muon Trigger

Many High Energy Physics experiments based their serial links on the Agilent HDMP-1032/34A serializer/deserializer chip-set (or GLink). This success was mainly due to the fact that this pair of chips was able to transfer data at \sim 1 Gb/s with a deterministic latency, fixed after each power up or reset of the link. Despite this unique timing feature, Agilent discontinued the production and no compatible commercial off-the-shelf chip-sets are available. The ATLAS Level-1 Muon trigger includes some serial links based on GLink in order to transfer data from the detector to the counting room. The transmission side of the links will not be upgraded, however a replacement for the receivers in the counting room in case of failures is needed. In this paper, we present a solution to replace GLink transmitters and receivers. Our design is based on the gigabit serial IO (GTP) embedded in a Xilinx Virtex 5 Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA). We present the architecture and we discuss parameters of the implementation such as latency and resource occupation. We compare the GLink chip-set and the GTP-based emulator in terms of latency, eye diagram and power dissipation

IGHV mutational status of nodal marginal zone lymphoma by NGS reveals distinct pathogenic pathways with different prognostic implications

The precise B cell of origin and molecular pathogenesis of nodal marginal zone lymphoma (NMZL) remain poorly defined. To date, due to the rarity of NMZL, the vast majority of already-published studies have been conducted on a limited number of samples and the technical approach to analyze the immunoglobulin genes was of amplifying rearranged variable region genes with the classical direct sequencing of the PCR products followed by cloning. Here, we studied the B cell Ig heavy-chain repertoires by next-generation sequencing (NGS) in 30 NMZL cases. Most of the cases were mutated (20/28; 71.5%) with homologies to the respective germ line genes ranging from 85 to 97, 83%, whereas 8/28 (28.5%) were unmutated. In addition, our results show that NMZL cases have a biased usage of specific immunoglobulin heavy-chain variable (IGHV) region genes. Moreover, we documented intraclonal diversity in all (100%) of the mutated cases and ongoing somatic hypermutations (SHM) have been confirmed by hundreds of reads. We analyzed the mutational pattern to detect and quantify antigen selection pressure and we found a positive selection in 4 cases, whereas in the remaining cases there was an unspecific stimulation. Finally, the disease-specific survival and the progression-free survival were significantly different between cases with mutated and unmutated IGHV genes, pointing out mutational status as a possible new biomarker in NMZL

NASA Light Emitting Diode Medical Applications from Deep Space to Deep Sea

This work is supported and managed through the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center-SBIR Program. LED-technology developed for NASA plant growth experiments in space shows promise for delivering light deep into tissues of the body to promote wound healing and human tissue growth. We present the results of LED-treatment of cells grown in culture and the effects of LEDs on patients’ chronic and acute wounds. LED-technology is also biologically optimal for photodynamic therapy of cancer and we discuss our successes using LEDs in conjunction with light-activated chemotherapeutic drugs

Use of cinacalcet in nephrolithiasis associated with normocalcemic or hypercalcemic primary hyperparathyroidism: Results of a prospective randomized pilot study

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate, by means of a prospective randomized study, the efficacy of cinacalcet in the forms of nephrolithiasis associated with primary hyperparathyroidism in both the hypercalcemic and normocalcemic variant. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ten patients suffering from active nephrolithiasis associated with primary hyperparathyroidism (4 hypercalcemics and 6 normocalcemics), equally divided between males and females, were randomly but not blindly addressed to treatment with potassium citrate and allopurinol, or to the same therapeutic regimen in combination with cinacalcet. The dosage of cinacalcet was optimized for each patient in order to obtain a reduction of parathyroid hormone (PTH) within normal limits while enabling the maintenance of adequate calcemic values. All study participants were given the same diet based on a reduction in sodium intake, oxalate-rich foods and animal protein with standardized intake of calcium and an increase in hydration. After a follow up period of 10 months , cinacalcet was associated to standard therapy and diet in patients who were not taken it, conversely cinacalcet was withdrawn in the remaining patients who remained on standard therapeutic regimen and diet. Follow up was continued for a second period of observation of the same duration of the first. RESULTS: At the end of the period of treatment with cinacalcet, for both variants of hyperparathyroidism, a statistically significant reduction in the overall number and in the diameter of renal stones was found. CONCLUSIONS: This prospective randomized study shows the effectiveness of cinacalcet used in combination with a diet with normalized calcium intake, in reducing the number and size of urinary stones in hypercalemic and normocalcemic forms of primary hyperparathyroidism

Aging is associated with increased FGF21 levels but unaltered FGF21 responsiveness in adipose tissue

Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) has been proposed to be an antiaging hormone on the basis of experimental studies in rodent models. However, circulating FGF21 levels are increased with aging in rodents and humans. Moreover, despite the metabolic health‐promoting effects of FGF21, the levels of this hormone are increased under conditions such as obesity and diabetes, an apparent incongruity that has been attributed to altered tissue responsiveness to FGF21. Here, we investigated serum FGF21 levels and expression of genes encoding components of the FGF21response molecular machinery in adipose tissue from healthy elderly individuals (≥70 years old) and young controls. Serum FGF21 levels were increased in elderly individuals and were positively correlated with insulinemia and HOMA‐IR, indices of mildly deteriorated glucose homeostasis. Levels of β‐Klotho, the coreceptor required for cellular responsiveness to FGF21, were increased in subcutaneous adipose tissue from elderly individuals relative to those from young controls, whereas FGF receptor‐1 levels were unaltered. Moreover, total ERK1/2 protein levels were decreased in elderly individuals in association with an increase in the ERK1/2 phosphorylation ratio relative to young controls. Adipose explants from aged and young mice respond similarly to FGF21 “ex vivo”. Thus, in contrast to what is observed in obesity and diabetes, high levels of FGF21 in healthy aging are not associated with repressed FGF21‐responsiveness machinery in adipose tissue. The lack of evidence for impaired FGF21 responsiveness in adipose tissue establishes a distinction between alterations in the FGF21 endocrine system in aging and chronic metabolic pathologies.This work was funded in part by Fondo de Investigaciones Sanitarias, Instituto de Salud Carlos III (PI14/00700, PI14/00063, PI17/00420), Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (SAF2017‐85722), cofinanced by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)

The ATLAS RPC ROD for Super LHC

The number of interactions per bunch crossing for the upgrade of the Large Hadron Collider is expected to be ten times greater than the actual one. As a consequence, the ATLAS detector for SLHC foresees the use of a larger number of readout channels and also a new trigger level is under development. In order to face with such issue, we developed a new architecture for the Read Out Driver (ROD) for the ATLAS RPC Muon Spectrometer in the barrel region. Presently, each ROD board receives ATLAS RPC Muon readout data and arranges all the data fragments of a sector of the spectrometer in a unique event, sending it to the next acquisition systems. Our new design is based on the new generation Xilinx Virtex5 FPGA and it works with a clock frequency six times greater than the actual bunch crossing rate of the LHC. We also implemented the output channel of the ROD, presently based on S-Link protocol, by using the GTP transceivers inside the FPGA. We present an overview of our design, focusing on the newly added hardware features

High Doses of Ascorbate Kill Y79 Retinoblastoma Cells In vitro

Objectives: To tests the sensitivity of Y79 retinoblastoma cell lines to high doses of ascorbate, in vitro, and compare its effects with those of some chemotherapeutic agents routinely employed in the treatment of retinoblastoma. Methods: Y79 retinoblastoma cells have been exposed to increasing doses of either sodium ascorbate (SA) or Melphalan (MEL), to define a dose-response curve around the peak plasma concentrations reached by both chemicals when administered according to the existing therapeutic procedures and protocols. The assessment of cell number and viability was performed, before and after exposure, with both the manual (Trypan Blue Exclusion Test) and automated (flow cytometry) methods. Fluorescence microscopy and direct observation of cells in culture, with inverted microscope, were also performed. Results: Y79 cells are highly sensitive to the cytotoxic effect of SA, with cell viability reduced of over 90% in some experiments. As reported in the literature, this effect is directly cytotoxic and most probably mediated by acute oxidative stress on different cellular components. The same does not apply to Melphalan which, at the doses commonly used for therapeutic purposes, did not show any significant effect on cell viability, in vitro. Conclusion: To our knowledge, this is the first report showing that high doses of SA can actively kill retinoblastoma cells in vitro. While it is not surprising for SA, to show direct cytotoxic effect on tumor cells, the data reported herein represent the first evidence in favor of the possible clinical use of high doses of intravenous SA, to treat children affected by retinoblastoma. Given the many advantages of SA over the chemotherapeutic agents commonly employed to treat cancer (including its almost total absence of toxic or side effects, and its exclusive specificity for cancer cells), it is reasonable to assume, from the data reported herein, that the high doses of intravenous ascorbate, have the potential to represent a real revolution in the treatment of retinoblastoma

Experimental Study of the Effects of Three Types of Meat on Endothelial Function in a Group of Healthy Volunteers

Background: There is a relationship between atherosclerotic risk factors and increased vascular production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Oxidized LDL and ROS may directly cause endothelial dysfunction by reducing endothelial nitric oxide (NO) bioavailability. The semi-essential amino acid L-arginine is the only substrate for NO synthesis in vascular endothelial cells. Therefore, this amino acid improves endothelial function and plays a role in the prevention and/or treatment of multiple cardiovascular diseases: atherosclerosis, hypertension, diabetes and so on. To determine the effects of three different protein matrices (250 g Fillet of Beef, FB; Chicken Raised on the Ground, CRG; Free-Range Chicken, FRC) with a known content of arginine on the cardiovascular workload, vascular compliance and urinary excretion of some parameters of endothelial function as TGF–Beta, NO (nitrate e nitrite) in a group of healthy volunteers. Materials and methods: We enrolled 10 men to study the behavior of Systolic, Diastolic, Mean, and Pulse Blood Pressure, of Vascular Resistances, of Macro and Micro Vascular Elasticity, of urinary excretion of TGF-β and Nitric Oxide as ratio of creatinine before and after two hours of each meal. The cardiovascular parameters are determined by HDI/Pulse Wave CR 2000 (Hypertension Diagnostic Inc, Eagan, MN); TGF-β is analysed by Elisa method (R&D Systems) and NO by colorimetric method (Cayman). Results and Conclusion: The protein meal packed with CRG causes a significant decrease in diastolic blood pressure mean pressure and vascular resistance in urinary excretion of TGF. FB resulted in a significant decrease in vascular resistance and urinary excretion of NO, while significantly increasing the Pulse Pressure, heart rate and urinary excretion of TGF-β. FRC resulted in a significant reduction of macrovascular elasticity; increase the urinary excretion of TGF and Pulse Pressure. We can conclude that CRG meat looks better both in terms of metabolic and cardiovascular load especially at endothelial level