DGTTSSA: Data Gathering Technique Based on Trust and Sparrow Search Algorithm for WSNs.

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) have been successfully utilized for developing various collaborative and intelligent applications that can provide comfortable and smart-economic life. This is because the majority of applications that employ WSNs for data sensing and monitoring purposes are in open practical environments, where security is often the first priority. In particular, the security and efficacy of WSNs are universal and inevitable issues. One of the most effective methods for increasing the lifetime of WSNs is clustering. In cluster-based WSNs, Cluster Heads (CHs) play a critical role; however, if the CHs are compromised, the gathered data loses its trustworthiness. Hence, trust-aware clustering techniques are crucial in a WSN to improve node-to-node communication as well as to enhance network security. In this work, a trust-enabled data-gathering technique based on the Sparrow Search Algorithm (SSA) for WSN-based applications, called DGTTSSA, is introduced. In DGTTSSA, the swarm-based SSA optimization algorithm is modified and adapted to develop a trust-aware CH selection method. A fitness function is created based on the nodes' remaining energy and trust values in order to choose more efficient and trustworthy CHs. Moreover, predefined energy and trust threshold values are taken into account and are dynamically adjusted to accommodate the changes in the network. The proposed DGTTSSA and the state-of-the-art algorithms are evaluated in terms of the Stability and Instability Period, Reliability, CHs Average Trust Value, Average Residual Energy, and Network Lifetime. The simulation results indicate that DGTTSSA selects the most trustworthy nodes as CHs and offers a significantly longer network lifetime than previous efforts in the literature. Moreover, DGTTSSA improves the instability period compared to LEACH-TM, ETCHS, eeTMFGA, and E-LEACH up to 90%, 80%, 79%, 92%, respectively, when BS is located at the center, up to 84%, 71%, 47%, 73%, respectively, when BS is located at the corner, and up to 81%, 58%, 39%, 25%, respectively, when BS is located outside the network.

Microwave Dual-Crack Sensor with a High Q-Factor Using the TE20 Resonance of a Complementary Split-Ring Resonator on a Substrate-Integrated Waveguide.

Microwave sensors have attracted interest as non-destructive metal crack detection (MCD) devices due to their low cost, simple fabrication, potential miniaturization, noncontact nature, and capability for remote detection. However, the development of multi-crack sensors of a suitable size and quality factor (Q-factor) remains a challenge. In the present study, we propose a multi-MCD sensor that combines a higher-mode substrate-integrated waveguide (SIW) and complementary split-ring resonators (CSRRs). In order to increase the Q-factor, the device is miniaturized; the MCD is facilitated; and two independent CSRRs are loaded onto the SIW, where the electromagnetic field is concentrated. The concentrated electromagnetic field of the SIW improves the Q-factor of the CSRRs, and each CSRR creates its own resonance and produces a miniaturizing effect by activating the sensor below the cut-off frequency of the SIW. The proposed multi-MCD sensor is numerically and experimentally demonstrated for cracks with different widths and depths. The fabricated sensor with a TE20-mode SIW and CSRRs is able to efficiently detect two sub-millimeter metal cracks simultaneously with a high Q-factor of 281.

Very long-chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency and type I diabetes mellitus: Case report and management challenges.

BACKGROUND: Very long-chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency (VLCADD) is a rare autosomal recessive disorder of fatty acid metabolism. Its clinical presentation includes hypoketotic hypoglycemia and potentially life-threatening multiorgan dysfunction.Therefore, the cornerstone of management includes avoiding fasting, dietary modification, and monitoring for complications. The co-occurrence of type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM1) with VLCADD has not been described in the literature. CASE REPORT: A 14-year-old male with a known diagnosis of VLCADD presented with vomiting, epigastric pain, hyperglycemia, and high anion gap metabolic acidosis. He was diagnosed with DM1 and managed with insulin therapy while maintaining his high complex carbohydrate, low long-chain fatty acids diet with medium-chain triglyceride supplementation. The primary diagnosis (VLCADD) makes the management of DM1 in this patient challenging as hyperglycemia related to the lack of insulin puts the patient at risk of intracellular glucose depletion and hence increases the risk for major metabolic decompensation.Conversely, adjustment of the dose of insulin requires more attention to avoid hypoglycemia. Both situations represent increased risks compared to managing DM1 alone and need a patient-centred approach, with close follow-up by a multidisciplinary team. CONCLUSION: We present a novel case of DM1 in a patient with VLCADD. The case describes a general management approach and highlights the challenging aspects of managing a patient with two diseases with different potentially paradoxical life-threatening complications.

A review on recent studies utilizing artificial intelligence methods for solving routing challenges in wireless sensor networks.

Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) are becoming increasingly important, providing pervasive real-time applications that have been used to enhance smart environments in various fields such as smart cities, manufacturing, and the Internet of Things (IoT). This survey reviews and analyzes the research trends related to the utilized Artificial Intelligence (AI) methods for WSN and the potential enhancement of WSNs using these methods. We highlight the routing challenge in WSN and present a comprehensive discussion on the recent studies that utilized various AI methods in addressing the routing challenge to meet specific objectives of WSN, during the span of 2010 to 2020. This would guide the reader towards an understanding of up-to-date applications of AI methods with respect to routing challenge in WSN. In addition, a general evaluation is provided along with a comparison of utilized AI methods in WSNs, which guides the reader in identifying the most appropriate AI methods that can be utilized for solving the routing challenge. Finally, we conclude the paper by stating the open research issues and new directions for future research.

Diffuse Arterial Atherosclerosis Presenting With Acute Ischemic Gastritis.

Ischemic gastritis is a rare cause of gastrointestinal bleeding due to the rich blood supply of the stomach. A 66-year-old lady with a history of coronary artery disease and hyperlipidemia presented with acute abdominal pain, diarrhea, and recent coffee-ground emesis. She had diffuse abdominal tenderness on physical exam with mild leukocytosis. A CT scan of the abdomen showed new peripheral wedge-shaped hypoenhancing regions in the spleen and both kidneys, suggestive of embolic infarcts. Posterior pneumatosis of the stomach suggestive of gastric wall ischemia was detected, with associated portal venous gas. She was started on heparin anticoagulation, broad-spectrum antibiotics, and intravenous fluids and underwent an urgent upper endoscopy showing hemorrhagic mucosa and fibrinous debris. A transesophageal echocardiogram showed mild aortic atherosclerosis. A CT angiogram of the abdomen showed calcified plaques at the origins of the hepatic artery, celiac artery, and superior mesenteric artery with severe ostial narrowing. Symptoms resolved, and she was started on statin therapy, prophylactic anticoagulation with apixaban, and high-dose peptic ulcer prophylaxis with pantoprazole. This ischemic gastritis case with multiple embolic spleen and kidney lesions is likely a sequela of extensive atherosclerosis and suggests that extensive atherosclerosis should be considered as a rare cause of acute gastrointestinal bleeding.

About a new entity in the coronal shear fracture of the distal humerus: Broberg-Morrey's fracture with Laugier's fracture in the same elbow.

Coronal shear fractures of the distal humerus involving only the capitellum or the trochlea are rare injuries. Their combination has rarely been described. Herein, we report the case of a 39-year-old man who presented with pain and total functional impotence in his right elbow following a fall; the clinical and radiological findings revealed a new entity in the coronal shear fractures of the distal humerus, which included a comminuted fracture of the capitellar and displaced separate trochlea in the same elbow. This fracture was treated surgically with a good outcome at the last follow-up.

An unusual cause of tarsal tunnel syndrome: Schwannoma of the posterior tibial nerve; a rare cause and rare localization.

INTRODUCTION: Schwannoma of the posterior tibial nerve is extremely rare. CASE PRESENTATION: A 25-year-old female with a one-year history of left foot pain is presented. Clinical and radiological findings were in favor of a tarsal tunnel syndrome caused by a schwannoma of the posterior tibial nerve, prompting the patient to undergo surgery. We performed a complete excision of the tumor with the aid of a loupe magnification. At the last follow-up, the patient did well, with no recurrent pain and no neurological squeals. DISCUSSION: The diagnosis of a tibial nerve schwannoma can often be difficult as, in the early stages, a mass may not be palpable and symptoms are often non-specific because of the slow-growing soft tissue mass. CONCLUSION: Although schwannoma is a rare cause of tarsal tunnel syndrome, it should be kept in mind by physicians, especially in cases of chronic unexplained foot pain with a positive Tinel's test.

Compressive sensing based secure data aggregation scheme for IoT based WSN applications.

Compressive Sensing (CS) based data collection schemes are found to be effective in enhancing the data collection performance and lifetime of IoT based WSNs. However, they face major challenges related to key distribution and adversary attacks in hostile and complex network deployments. As a result, such schemes cannot effectively ensure the security of data. Towards the goal of providing high security and efficiency in data collection performance of IoT based WSNs, we propose a new security scheme that amalgamates the advantages of CS and Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC). We present an efficient algorithms to enhance the security and efficiency of CS based data collection in IoT-based WSNs. The proposed scheme operates in five main phases, namely Key Generation, CS-Key Exchange, Data Compression with CS Encryption, Data Aggregation and Encryption with ECC algorithm, and CS Key Re-generation. It considers the benefits of ECC as public key algorithm and CS as encryption and compression method to provide security as well as energy efficiency for cluster based WSNs. Also, it solves the CS- Encryption key distribution problem by introducing a new key sharing method that enables secure exchange of pseudo-random key between the BS and the nodes in a simple way. In addition, a new method is introduced to safeguard the CS scheme from potential security attacks. The efficiency of our proposed technique in terms of security, energy consumption and network lifetime is proved through simulation analysis.

Millimeter-Wave-Based Spoof Localized Surface Plasmonic Resonator for Sensing Glucose Concentration.

Glucose-monitoring sensors are necessary and have been extensively studied to prevent and control health problems caused by diabetes. Spoof localized surface plasmon (LSP) resonance sensors have been investigated for chemical sensing and biosensing. A spoof LSP has similar characteristics to an LSP in the microwave or terahertz frequency range but with certain advantages, such as a high-quality factor and improved sensitivity. In general, microwave spoof LSP resonator-based glucose sensors have been studied. In this study, a millimeter-wave-based spoof surface plasmonic resonator sensor is designed to measure glucose concentrations. The millimeter-wave-based sensor has a smaller chip size and higher sensitivity than microwave-frequency sensors. Therefore, the microfluidic channel was designed to be reusable and able to operate with a small sample volume. For alignment, a polydimethylsiloxane channel was simultaneously fabricated using a multilayer bonding film to attach the upper side of the pattern, which is concentrated in the electromagnetic field. This real-time sensor detects the glucose concentration via changes in the S11 parameter and operates at 28 GHz with an average sensitivity of 0.015669 dB/(mg/dL) within the 0-300 mg/dL range. The minimum detectable concentration and the distinguishable signal are 1 mg/dL and 0.015669 dB, respectively, from a 3.4 µL sample. The reusability and reproducibility were assessed through replicates.

Effect of Obesity on Plasma Alkaline Phosphatase Activity in Breast Cancer.

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer is most common cancer in women. Obesity is one of related-risk factor in breast cancer. In obese normal subjects, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) has been studied. However, there is no previous study investigate the association between ALP and obesity in breast cancer and its correlation with other clinical characteristics. Therefore, the objective of present study is to investigate the association between ALP and clinical characteristics in generally and obesity in particularly. METHODS: A cross-study 111 new diagnosed breast cancer patients was included. Plasma ALP was measured in different subgroups: patients age <40 vs >40, premenopausal vs postmenopausal, estrogen receptor-positive (ER+) vs estrogen receptor negative (ER-), metastasis vs non-metastasis and obese vs non-obese patients. RESULTS: Significant increasing on plasma ALP were shown between groups of each age, menopausal status, metastasis, and obesity (p< 0.05, p< 0.05, p< 0.01 and p< 0.05) respectively. Positive correlation was observed between plasma ALP and age, menopausal status, metastasis, and obesity (r: 0.616, p< 0.05; r: 0.667, p< 0.01; r: 0.691, p< 0.005; and r: 0.627, p< 0.01). Multiple regression analysis was indicated that ALP can be determined by menopausal status, metastasis, and obesity (ß-Coefficient = 0.428, p< 0.01; ß-Coefficient = 0.534; p< 0.001; ß-coefficient= 0.545; p= 0.005), respectively. CONCLUSION: Together, the relation between ALP and obesity indicates that ALP could have a role in maturation of preadipocytes of breast cancer patients. Further investigations are needed to confirm that there could be a potential hormonal link between ALP and obesity in breast cancer patients.

Electroencephalographic evidence of gray matter lesions among multiple sclerosis patients: A case-control study.

ABSTRACT: This study aimed to investigate evidence of gray matter brain lesions in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients by evaluating the resting state alpha rhythm of brain electrical activity.The study included 50 patients diagnosed with MS recruited from the MS clinic with 50 age and gender-matched control participants. The study investigated parameters of posterior dominant rhythm (PDR) in the electroencephalography (EEG) recordings including wave frequency and amplitude. Functional disability among the patients was evaluated according to the expanded disability status scale. Univariate statistical analysis was completed using one-way analysis of variance and t test with a P value of less than .05 to indicate statistical significance.Patients with MS had significantly lower PDR frequency and amplitude values compared to the controls (P value < .01) and 34% of the MS patients had a PDR frequency of less than 8.5 Hz. The PDR frequency was negatively associated with the level of functional disability among the patients (P value <.001) and 4% of the patients had abnormal epileptiform discharges.Background slowing of resting alpha rhythms and epileptiform discharges are suggestive of gray matter degeneration and may help in the prediction and follow-up of cortical damage and functional disabilities among MS patients. Therefore, electroencephalography monitoring of the PDR spectrum may serve as an alternative or complementary tool with other imaging techniques to detect and monitor cerebral cortical lesions.

Zoonotic and non-zoonotic helminths in black rats of rain-fed and irrigated areas of Swat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.

Present study was conducted to get information on helminth parasites of zoonotic importance among the black rats of district Swat, Pakistan. Two hundred and sixty nine rats were captured from agricultural ecosystem of the district using live captured traps from 2011 to 2013. Captured rats were anesthetized and surveyed for the presence of ectoparasites, then were carefully dissected for investigation of endoparsites. Helminth parasites of 8 species were identified. Presence of parasite was noticed in 23.7% of sampled rats. The infection rates of sampled rats was given in order of their infectivity as Syphacia obvelata 13(4.83%), Aspiculuris tetraptera 13(4.83%), Heterakis spumosa 12 (4.46%), Hymenolepis spp. 9(3.34%), H.diminuta 8(2.97%), Hymenolepis fusa 4(1.48%), Lutziella microacetabularae 4(1.48%) and Lutziella spp. 1 (0.37%). No significant difference (P < 0.4289) was found in prevalence of parasites among areas, crops, crop stages and sex of the host while adult rats were found more infected than sub-adults. S. obvelata and A. tetraptera were the most common species of helminths while Lutziella sp., 1 (0.37%) was found only in one host. Rattus rattus (the black rat) was regarded as the host of helminth parasites of zoonotic importance, therefore the hidden health hazards of this rodent species needed to be considered to prevent infectivity of humans. Current study was concluded that Rattus rattus harbored a wide variety of helminth parasites which shows a hidden risk to inhabitants of the region. Monitoring rats' population in settle areas and educating the local community about the risk of rat borne parasitic diseases transmission through rats appears to be absolutely essential.

Simplified Approach to Detect Dielectric Constant Using a Low-Cost Microfluidic Quarter Mode Substrate-Integrated Waveguide.

Liquid materials' characterization using commercial probes and radio frequency techniques is expensive and complex. This study proposes a compact and cost-effective radio frequency sensor system to measure the dielectric constant using a three-material calibration. The simplified approach measures reflection coefficient magnitudes for all four materials rather than the complex values in conventional permittivity detection systems. We employ a sensor module based on a circular substrate-integrated waveguide with measured unloaded quality factor = 910 to ensure measurement reliability. Miniaturized quarter-mode substrate-integrated waveguide resonators are integrated with four microfluidic channels containing three known materials and one unknown analyte. Step-wise measurement and linearity ensures maximum 4% error for the dielectric constant compared with results obtained using a high-performance commercial product.

Impaired Exercise Tolerance Early After Heart Transplantation Is Associated With Development of Cardiac Allograft Vasculopathy.

BACKGROUND: Exercise performance remains limited in some patients after heart transplantation (HTx). The goal of this study was to assess for association between cardiopulmonary exercise test performance at 1 year after HTx and future development of cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV). METHODS: Overall 243 HTx recipients performed cardiopulmonary exercise testing at 1 year after HTx. During the median follow-up period of 31 (interquartile range 19;61) months, 76 (32%) patients were diagnosed with CAV (CAV group). RESULTS: The CAV group patients had lower exercise capacity (5.2 ± 1.9 versus 6.5 ± 2.2 metabolic equivalents; P = 0.001) and duration (9.6 ± 3.5 versus 11.4 ± 4.8 min; P = 0.008), lower peak oxygen consumption (VO2) (18.4 ± 5.4 versus 21.4 ± 6.1 mL/kg/min; P = 0.0005), lower normalized peak VO2 (63% ± 18% versus 71% ± 19%; P = 0.007), and higher minute ventilation (VE)/carbon dioxide production (VCO2) (34 ± 5 versus 32 ± 5, P = 0.04). On Cox proportional hazards regression analysis, normalized peak VO2 ≤60%, and VE/VCO2 ≥34 were associated with a high hazard for CAV (HR = 1.8 [95% CI 1.10-4.53, P = 0.03] and 2.5 [95% CI 1.01-8.81, P = 0.04], respectively). The subgroup of patients with both normalized peak VO2 ≤60% and VE/VCO2 ≥34 was at highest risk for development of CAV (HR = 5.2, 95% CI 2.27-15.17, P = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Normalized peak VO2 ≤60% and VE/VCO2 ≥34 at 1 year after HTx are associated with the development of CAV.

Discovery of an antivirulence compound that reverses ß-lactam resistance in MRSA.

Staphylococcus aureus is the leading cause of infections worldwide, and methicillin-resistant strains (MRSA) are emerging. New strategies are urgently needed to overcome this threat. Using a cell-based screen of ~45,000 diverse synthetic compounds, we discovered a potent bioactive, MAC-545496, that reverses ß-lactam resistance in the community-acquired MRSA USA300 strain. MAC-545496 could also serve as an antivirulence agent alone; it attenuates MRSA virulence in Galleria mellonella larvae. MAC-545496 inhibits biofilm formation and abrogates intracellular survival in macrophages. Mechanistic characterization revealed MAC-545496 to be a nanomolar inhibitor of GraR, a regulator that responds to cell-envelope stress and is an important virulence factor and determinant of antibiotic resistance. The small molecule discovered herein is an inhibitor of GraR function. MAC-545496 has value as a research tool to probe the GraXRS regulatory system and as an antibacterial lead series of a mechanism to combat drug-resistant Staphylococcal infections.

Recent advances in noninvasive flexible and wearable wireless biosensors.

Flexible and wearable biosensors have great potential to interface with skin and noninvasively extract biofluids for real time and continuous monitoring of physiological status. Soft electronics is the prime factor in these wearables, regardless of sensing mechanism and fabrication technology. Wireless connectivity would be a valuable addition to enhance wearable biosensor's scope for remote and resource limited settings. These skin-adaptable, user-friendly, battery-free (although not all), and noninvasive devices continuously and simultaneously monitor wearer well-being and transfer data wirelessly. Thus, they have a great potential to improve quality of life with timely diagnostics and hence early treatments. However, they remain in the early stages, with relatively conventional sensing modalities, battery requirements, soft electronics fabrication limitations, and practicable size restrictions to retain skin compatibility. We classify wearable biosensors by sensing functionality, such as skin temperature, pH, heart rate, sweat glucose, uric acid, sweat electrolyte, cerebrospinal shunt flow, and toxic chemicals, and discuss challenges and prospects for these biosensors.

Light and Flexible Composite Nanofibrous Membranes for High-Efficiency Electromagnetic Absorption in a Broad Frequency.

With the fast advancement of up-to-date communication technologies, electromagnetic wave (EMW) absorption materials are widely required for various applications. However, it is still a big challenge to produce lightweight, flexible, and high-efficiency EMW absorption materials in a broad-ranging frequency. Herein, we designed to fabricate the magnetic and dielectric nanofibrous membranes which can be effectively used as EMW absorption materials by facile electrospinning process. The as-fabricated composite carbon nanofibers (CNFs), which combined the components of nickel, cobalt antioxidant nanoparticles, and carbon nanotubes, exhibited outstanding magnetic and dielectric properties and strong absorption ability in a wide frequency range. These nanoparticles encapsulated in CNFs are extremely beneficial to the electrical conductivity of the composites through decreasing the contact loss within the CNFs by formation of the metal-metal interfaces. Correspondingly, the RL value of -46.60 dB was reached at 4.88 GHz frequency range with a layer thickness of 5.5 mm for these mechanically light and flexible membranes. The enhanced absorption performance (<-10 dB) in the wide frequency band (4.16-18 GHz) can be achieved by selecting a suitable thickness of the material. Results demonstrate that the permittivity and permeability of developed samples have been largely improved because of the integrated interaction of all introduced components in the structure. The composite membranes are a promising candidate for scalable, lightweight, and high-performance EMW absorption materials in the frequency range from C band to Ku band (4-18 GHz).

Low-Cost and Lightweight 3D-Printed Split-Ring Resonator for Chemical Sensing Applications.

In this paper, a microwave cavity resonator is presented for chemical sensing applications. The proposed resonator is comprised of a three dimensional (3D) split-ring resonator (SRR) residing in an external cavity and capacitively coupled by a pair of coaxial probes. 3D-printing technology with polylactic acid (PLA) filament is used to build the 3D SRR and cavity. Then, the surfaces of the SRR and the inside walls of cavity are silver-coated. The novelty of our proposed structure is its light weight and inexpensive design, owing to the utilization of low density and low-cost PLA. A Teflon tube is passed through the split-gap of the SRR so that it is parallel to the applied electric field. With an empty tube, the resonance frequency of the structure is measured at 2.56 GHz with an insertion loss of 13.6 dB and quality factor (Q) of 75. A frequency shift of 205 MHz with respect to the empty channel was measured when deionized water (DIW) was injected into the tube. Using volume occupied by the structure, the weight of the proposed microwave resonator is estimated as 22.8 g which is significantly lighter than any metallic structure of comparable size.

Recent advances in the metamaterial-inspired biosensors.

Metamaterials (MM)-inspired microwave biosensors are a valuable addition to the field of diagnostic approaches and prognostic tools. The fundamental principle behind these biosensors is unique dielectric signatures corresponding to healthy/diseased tissues. Relying on nonionizing radiation and offering an increased resolution with accuracy comparable to that of ultrasound devices, they are an attractive solution for noninvasive and label-free biosensing applications. High-quality-factor MM-inspired resonators are integrated with microfluidics to accelerate the lab-on-chip and point-of-care diagnostic approaches owing to the small detection volume and overall compact size of these devices. A variety of biomolecular detection, glucose detection and hyperthermia treatment using state-of-the-art MM-inspired biosensors have been discussed. Optical transduction techniques (e.g., surface plasmon resonance) which enhance the sensitivity in terms of limit-of-detection and resolution, have also been outlined. Utilization of microwave biosensors as therapeutic agents is at its initial stages owing to lack of required sensitivity and reliability in recently proposed MM-inspired biosensors.