Modern research in Steganography focuses on increasing the capacity without keeping any perceptible signature into the stego-media. In this work, we present a pixel value difference (PVD) based high ...capacity methodology. Embedding is not restricted only to high contrast pixel pairs. Low contrast pairs are also considered to enhance the capacity. Embedding process varies depending on the local contrast of the pair. Secret message is encrypted before embedding and pixels pairs are chosen in a non-sequential manner, rendering the methodology more secure. Experiment is performed on more than two hundred images. It is observed that embedding by proposed technique is visually imperceptible and can withstand various types of attacks. The benchmark test like StirMark analysis also indicates the strength of the work. Comparison of performance with a number of other methods shows that proposed methodology maintains high PSNR with enhanced capacity.
The study applies vulnerability index models to appraise livelihood vulnerability to climate change of human communities living in coastal fronts of some selected
mouzas
of Namkhana Block part of the ...Indian Sundarbans. Primary household surveys (528 households in seven
mouzas
) are carried out to procure data on indicators of socio-demographic profile, livelihood strategies, health, food, water, social networks, natural disaster and climatic fluctuations. The data then have been processed by indices like livelihood vulnerability index (LVI) and livelihood vulnerability index-intergovernmental panel on climate change (LVI-IPCC) to evaluate and compare vulnerabilities of
mouzas
currently suffering from physical processes like coastal erosion, embankment breaching and flood events. The research outcome implies that Baliara and Iswaripur
mouzas
are highly vulnerable (LVI score > 0.600 and LVI-IPCC score > 0.170); Narayanpur, Mousuni, Kusumtala
mouzas
are moderately vulnerable (LVI score 0.540–0.600 and LVI-IPCC score 0.060–0.170); and Bagdanga, Patibania
mouzas
are least vulnerable (LVI score > 0.540 and LVI-IPCC score < 0.060) to changing climate phenomena. The foremost reasons behind higher vulnerability are greater exposure to climatic fluctuation, natural hazards and higher sensitivity to improper access to food, health, water and finally lower adaptive capacity in terms of poor socio-demographic profile and livelihood security. Findings of the study provide a deeper understanding of people’s perception, adaptation and their ever-increasing vulnerability to changing climate. This approach based on indicators emphasizes sectors that necessitate particular intercession to design management plans for threatened communities. Such type of pragmatic approach of study formulates reliable methodology to quantify vulnerability and develop disaster management strategies to increase the resilience of vulnerable coastal people to climate change.
Recent studies have suggested a bacterial role in the development of autoimmune disorders including type 1 diabetes (T1D). Over 30 billion nucleotide bases of Illumina shotgun metagenomic data were ...analyzed from stool samples collected from four pairs of matched T1D case-control subjects collected at the time of the development of T1D associated autoimmunity (i.e., autoantibodies). From these, approximately one million open reading frames were predicted and compared to the SEED protein database. Of the 3,849 functions identified in these samples, 144 and 797 were statistically more prevalent in cases and controls, respectively. Genes involved in carbohydrate metabolism, adhesions, motility, phages, prophages, sulfur metabolism, and stress responses were more abundant in cases while genes with roles in DNA and protein metabolism, aerobic respiration, and amino acid synthesis were more common in controls. These data suggest that increased adhesion and flagella synthesis in autoimmune subjects may be involved in triggering a T1D associated autoimmune response. Extensive differences in metabolic potential indicate that autoimmune subjects have a functionally aberrant microbiome. Mining 16S rRNA data from these datasets showed a higher proportion of butyrate-producing and mucin-degrading bacteria in controls compared to cases, while those bacteria that produce short chain fatty acids other than butyrate were higher in cases. Thus, a key rate-limiting step in butyrate synthesis is more abundant in controls. These data suggest that a consortium of lactate- and butyrate-producing bacteria in a healthy gut induce a sufficient amount of mucin synthesis to maintain gut integrity. In contrast, non-butyrate-producing lactate-utilizing bacteria prevent optimal mucin synthesis, as identified in autoimmune subjects.
As obligate blood-feeding arthropods, ticks transmit pathogens to humans and domestic animals more often than other arthropod vectors. Livestock farming plays a vital role in the rural economy of ...Pakistan, and tick infestation causes serious problems with it. However, research on tick species diversity and tick-borne pathogens has rarely been conducted in Pakistan. In this study, a systematic investigation of the tick species infesting livestock in different ecological regions of Pakistan was conducted to determine the microbiome and pathobiome diversity in the indigenous ticks.
A total of 3,866 tick specimens were morphologically identified as 19 different tick species representing three important hard ticks, Rhipicephalus, Haemaphysalis and Hyalomma, and two soft ticks, Ornithodorus and Argas. The bacterial diversity across these tick species was assessed by bacterial 16S rRNA gene sequencing using a 454-sequencing platform on 10 of the different tick species infesting livestock. The notable genera detected include Ralstonia, Clostridium, Staphylococcus, Rickettsia, Lactococcus, Lactobacillus, Corynebacterium, Enterobacter, and Enterococcus. A survey of Spotted fever group rickettsia from 514 samples from the 13 different tick species generated rickettsial-specific amplicons in 10% (54) of total ticks tested. Only three tick species Rhipicephalus microplus, Hyalomma anatolicum, and H. dromedarii had evidence of infection with "Candidatus Rickettsia amblyommii" a result further verified using a rompB gene-specific quantitative PCR (qPCR) assay. The Hyalomma ticks also tested positive for the piroplasm, Theileria annulata, using a qPCR assay.
This study provides information about tick diversity in Pakistan, and pathogenic bacteria in different tick species. Our results showed evidence for Candidatus R. amblyommii infection in Rhipicephalus microplus, H. anatolicum, and H. dromedarii ticks, which also carried T. annulata.
Non-typhoidal Salmonella (NTS) infection is one of the major causes of diarrheal disease throughout the world. In recent years, an increase in human S. Javiana infection has been reported from the ...southern part of the United States. However, the sources and routes of transmission of this Salmonella serotype are not well understood. The objective of this study was to perform a systematic review of the literature to identify risk factors for human S. Javiana infection. Using PRISMA guidelines, we conducted a systematic search in Web of Science, PubMed, and the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR). Searches returned 63 potential articles, of which 12 articles met all eligibility criteria and were included in this review. A review of the literature indicated that both food and non-food (such as animal contact) exposures are responsible for the transmission of S. Javiana infection to humans. Consumption of fresh produce (tomatoes and watermelons), herbs (paprika-spice), dairy products (cheese), drinking contaminated well water and animal contact were associated with human S. Javiana infections. Based on the findings of this study, control of human S. Javiana infection should include three factors, (a) consumption of drinking water after treatment, (b) safe animal contact, and (c) safe food processing and handling procedures. The risk factors of S. Javiana infections identified in the current study provide helpful insight into the major vehicles of transmission of S. Javiana. Eventually, this will help to improve the risk management of this Salmonella serotype to reduce the overall burden of NTS infection in humans.
Several studies have shown that gut bacteria have a role in diabetes in murine models. Specific bacteria have been correlated with the onset of diabetes in a rat model. However, it is unknown whether ...human intestinal microbes have a role in the development of autoimmunity that often leads to type 1 diabetes (T1D), an autoimmune disorder in which insulin-secreting pancreatic islet cells are destroyed. High-throughput, culture-independent approaches identified bacteria that correlate with the development of T1D-associated autoimmunity in young children who are at high genetic risk for this disorder. The level of bacterial diversity diminishes overtime in these autoimmune subjects relative to that of age-matched, genotype-matched, nonautoimmune individuals. A single species, Bacteroides ovatus, comprised nearly 24% of the total increase in the phylum Bacteroidetes in cases compared with controls. Conversely, another species in controls, represented by the human firmicute strain CO19, represented nearly 20% of the increase in Firmicutes compared with cases overtime. Three lines of evidence are presented that support the notion that, as healthy infants approach the toddler stage, their microbiomes become healthier and more stable, whereas, children who are destined for autoimmunity develop a microbiome that is less diverse and stable. Hence, the autoimmune microbiome for T1D may be distinctly different from that found in healthy children. These data also suggest bacterial markers for the early diagnosis of T1D. In addition, bacteria that negatively correlated with the autoimmune state may prove to be useful in the prevention of autoimmunity development in high-risk children.
Urban green spaces play a crucial role in maintaining the sustainability of a city with the promotion of essential ecological functions to supplement the natural and social environment of the urban ...area. Preservation of a substantial proportion of the city’s space under green cover has now become a qualification for city planning and design. But the urban green spaces are vanishing out at an alarming rate caused by rapid and unplanned urbanization—especially in India. It has posed serious threats to the ecological equilibrium of the metros. The present study strives to explicate the spatiotemporal dynamisms of green areas in industrially reliant Asansol city as a corollary of its lopsided expansion during the past years. Though more than half of the study area (55.66%) is covers with vegetation, with notable per capita green space of 44.76 m
2
/city dwellers, but only 0.12% area in the core region of Asansol city is occupied by green cover with a negligible amount of per capita green space of 0.27 m
2
/city dweller, which is much lower than the international standard. Hence sharp discrimination in the distribution of green space has been observed between the city core and the peripheral region. Land use/land cover (LULC) map (2000 and 2018) and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) of the same years have been prepared to attest the land transformations in spatiotemporal context. The alterations consequent upon the surface temperature has also been appraised through land surface temperature (LST) maps of 2000 and 2018. A drastic change in LULC mosaic with vast destruction of green spaces (from 66.25 km
2
in 2000 to 20.41 km
2
in 2018) and increasing built-up and commercial spaces has been experienced over the last 18 years (2000–2018). Hence, nearly 14% of vegetated land has vanished during the observation period. Besides, a sharp increment in LST (both the maximum and minimum) has also been found during the stipulated period. The negative relationship between NDVI and LST reveals that the disappearing green spaces act as one of the active factors of increasing temperature during the study period, which has intimidated the sustainability of the natural as well as the social sphere of the city.
Many commonly prescribed chemotherapy drugs such as cyclophosphamide (CYP) have adverse side effects including disruptions in taste which can result in loss of appetite, malnutrition, poorer recovery ...and reduced quality of life. Previous studies in mice found evidence that CYP has a two-phase disturbance in taste behavior: a disturbance immediately following drug administration and a second which emerges several days later. In this study, we examined the processes by which CYP disturbs the taste system by examining the effects of the drug on taste buds and cells responsible for taste cell renewal using immunohistochemical assays. Data reported here suggest CYP has direct cytotoxic effects on lingual epithelium immediately following administration, causing an early loss of taste sensory cells. Types II and III cells in fungiform taste buds appear to be more susceptible to this effect than circumvallate cells. In addition, CYP disrupts the population of rapidly dividing cells in the basal layer of taste epithelium responsible for taste cell renewal, manifesting a disturbance days later. The loss of these cells temporarily retards the system's capacity to replace Type II and Type III taste sensory cells that survived the cytotoxic effects of CYP and died at the end of their natural lifespan. The timing of an immediate, direct loss of taste cells and a delayed, indirect loss without replacement of taste sensory cells are broadly congruent with previously published behavioral data reporting two periods of elevated detection thresholds for umami and sucrose stimuli. These findings suggest that chemotherapeutic disturbances in the peripheral mechanisms of the taste system may cause dietary challenges at a time when the cancer patient has significant need for well balanced, high energy nutritional intake.
Brain injury can lead to the loss of neuronal functions and connections, along with the damage of the extracellular matrix (ECM). Thus, it ultimately results in devastating long-term damage, and ...recovery from this damage is a challenging task. To address this issue, we have designed a sulfo-group-functionalized injectable biocompatible peptide hydrogel, which not only mimics the ECM and supports the damaged neurons but also releases a neurotrophic factor around the injured sites of the brain in the presence of the matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9) enzyme. It has also been observed that the driving force of hydrogel formation is a β-sheet secondary structure and π–π stacking interactions between Phe-Phe moieties. The hydrogel is able not only to promote neurite outgrowth of PC12-derived neurons and primary neurons cultured in its presence but also to nullify the toxic effects of anti-nerve growth factor (Anti-NGF)-induced neurons. It also promotes the expression of vital neuronal markers in rat cortical primary neurons, displays substantial potential in neuroregeneration, and also promotes fast recovery of the sham injured mice brain. Increased expression of reactive astrocytes in the hippocampal dentate gyrus region of the sham injured brain clearly suggests its tremendous ability in the neural repair of the damaged brain. Thus, we can convincingly state that our hydrogel is capable of repairing brain injury by mimicking an ECM-like environment and providing neuroprotection to the damaged neurons.
This paper attempts to assess the vulnerability to climate change of human communities in selected
mouzas
of Sagar Island, South 24 Parganas District of India. A primary household survey has been ...conducted to collect data on socio-demographic profile, livelihood strategy, health, food, water, social network, natural disaster and climate variation indicators, were selected for Livelihood Vulnerability Index (LVI) and Livelihood Vulnerability Index-Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (LVI-IPCC) analyses to measure and compare the vulnerability of
mouzas
(administrative unit) currently suffering from frequent flooding, coastal erosion and embankment breaching on an annual basis. Secondary data collected from the Indian Meteorological Department, the Water Resources Information System of India and the Global Sea Level Observing System have been used to identify dynamics of climate change by employing statistical and Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques. A GPS survey has been conducted to identify locations of embankment breaching, and satellite images obtained from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and U.S. Geological Survey (NASA USGS) Government website have been applied to shoreline and land use change detection, using a supervised maximum likelihood classification. The results indicate that the study area has experienced increasing temperature, changing precipitation patterns, rise in sea level, higher storm surges, shoreline change, constant land loss, embankment breaching and changing land use, which have had impact on vulnerability, particularly of poorer people. The LVI (0.48 to 0.68) and LVI-IPCC (0.04 to 0.14) scores suggest that the populations of Dhablat, Bankimnagar, Sumatinagar, Muri Ganga and Sibpur
mouzas
are highly vulnerable (LVI scores of 0.60 to 0.68 and LVI-IPCC scores of 0.11 to 0.14) to climate change both because the communities are more exposed to it, and because poor access to food, health facilities and water makes them extremely sensitive to it and lowers their adaptive capacity. The findings of this study could be crucial to framing further development and adaptation strategies relating to climate change, and to safeguarding the estuarine ecosystem and the vulnerable population.
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