Evolutionary techniques for updating query cost models in a dynamic multidatabase environment

Deriving local cost models for query optimization in a dynamic multidatabase system (MDBS) is a challenging issue. In this paper, we study how to evolve a query cost model to capture a slowly-changing dynamic MDBS environment so that the cost model is kept up-to-date all the time. Two novel evolutionary techniques, i.e., the shifting method and the block-moving method, are proposed. The former updates a cost model by taking up-to-date information from a new sample query into consideration at each step, while the latter considers a block (batch) of new sample queries at each step. The relevant issues, including derivation of recurrence updating formulas, development of efficient algorithms, analysis and comparison of complexities, and design of an integrated scheme to apply the two methods adaptively, are studied. Our theoretical and experimental results demonstrate that the proposed techniques are quite promising in maintaining accurate cost models efficiently for a slowly changing dynamic MDBS environment. Besides the application to MDBSs, the proposed techniques can also be applied to the automatic maintenance of cost models in self-managing database systems.Received: 25 November 2002, Accepted: 20 May 2003, Published online: 30 September 2003Edited by: L. LiuResearch supported by the US National Science Foundation under Grant # IIS-9811980 and The University of Michigan under OVPR and UMD grants.     

Sex-Related Differences in Murine Models of Chemically Induced Pulmonary Fibrosis

We developed two models of chemically induced chronic lung injury and pulmonary fibrosis in mice (intratracheally administered hydrochloric acid (HCl) and intratracheally administered nitrogen mustard (NM)) and investigated male–female differences. Female mice exhibited higher 30-day survival and less weight loss than male mice. Thirty days after the instillation of either HCl or NM, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid displayed a persistent, mild inflammatory response, but with higher white blood cell numbers and total protein content in males vs. females. Furthermore, females exhibited less collagen deposition, milder pulmonary fibrosis, and lower Ashcroft scores. After instillation of either HCl or NM, all animals displayed increased values of phosphorylated (activated) Heat Shock Protein 90, which plays a crucial role in the alveolar wound-healing processes; however, females presented lower activation of both transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) signaling pathways: ERK and SMAD. We propose that female mice are protected from chronic complications of a single exposure to either HCl or NM through a lesser activation of TGF-β and downstream signaling. The understanding of the molecular mechanisms that confer a protective effect in females could help develop new, gender-specific therapeutics for IPF.     

响应面法优化黄浆水絮凝工艺及其代谢组学分析

为了提高黄浆水的附加值和利用率,缓解排放黄浆水带来的环境污染,本文对黄浆水中的可溶性固形物进行絮凝处理。在单因素实验基础上结合响应面法对黄浆水中可溶性固形物的絮凝工艺进行优化,并且对絮凝前后黄浆水进行了蛋白质和总糖含量测定、生化需氧量和化学需氧量测定以及代谢组学测定。实验结果表明,絮凝沉降黄浆水可溶性固形物最佳工艺参数为:壳聚糖添加量为0.54 mg/mL,海藻酸钠添加量为0.24 mg/mL,pH为4.4,温度为47 ℃,此时黄浆水可溶性固形物沉降率为（46.26%±0.38%）;蛋白质含量下降40.68%、总糖含量下降8.41%;生化需氧量和化学需氧量去除率分别为43%、40.95%。代谢组学实验结果表明:黄浆水絮凝前后有66种化合物含量存在显著变化。本研究结果表明絮凝能有效的降低黄浆水中可溶性固形物的含量,为黄浆水的进一步开发利用提供一定的参考。     

Utilization of Black Liquor for Production of Antimicrobial Substance by Streptomyces Species

Utilization of black liquor hydrolyzates, obtained from different sources, for the growth of different Streptomyces species and production of antimicrobial substance was studied. Streptomyces violaceoniger, which exhibited good growth and production of the antimicrobial substance, was chosen for further studies. Removal of aldehydes, lactones, and furfural from the liquor resulted in a considerable increase in biomass and yield.     

Texture anisotropy technique in brain degenerative diseases

Structural alterations anisotropy-based measured for different areas for the most common types of dementia diseases could be a biomarker of brain impairment. The current work aims to assess whether texture anisotropy can discriminate both healthy versus Alzheimer’s and Pick’s patients based on regional evaluation while maintaining high predictive power. The investigated area is reduced from the whole-brain surface to three major lobes (i.e., frontal, temporal and parietal). A predictive model was proposed to associate a disease with a specific area in the brain based on the anisotropy values. Simultaneous analysis of 1680 measurements from 105 brain magnetic resonance images acquired as T2w and PD sequences was performed to establish the significance of the model. The cerebral calcinosis disease has been used as artificial ground truth. The association based on textural anisotropy between targeted diseases and control patients was performed by using Pearson’s correlation coefficients. A new proposed consistency index investigated the texture anisotropy relevance for all image’s types and all analyzed classes and regions. The validation study is based on area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve that depicted the overall diagnostic performance of the texture anisotropy in each region. The proposed model demonstrated that texture anisotropy is accurate solution in diagnosis of Alzheimer’s and Pick’s diseases when the investigated area is reduced to major lobes, with sensitivity >90% and specificity >80%.

     

On the Effect of Carbon Nano-Tubes Addition on Structure and Superconducting Properties of Bi(Pb)-2223 Phase

In this work, a series of ceramic samples of Bi_1.6Pb_0.4Sr₂Ca₂Cu₃O _y (Bi(Pb)-2223) added with different amounts (0, 0.2 and 0.4 wt%) of carbon nano-tubes (CNT) are prepared from commercial powders and characterized. The study shows that the volume fraction of the Bi(Pb)-2223 phase decreases with CNT content while the grain size of the samples increases. The obtained cell parameters as well as the onset critical transition temperature are independent of this kind of addition. Also, it has been concluded that CNT addition makes the grains of the samples more connected. The measured magnetization in FC and ZFC modes indicates that CNT addition makes the grains of the samples more connected even if the irreversibility line is decreased. The variation of the residual resistivity and metalicity with CNT content suggests that the addition introduces disorder and defects into the samples. Also, the added samples present broad transitions to the superconducting state when compared to the pure one; this result may be associated to the increase of the volume fraction of the secondary phases. The activation energies, upper critical fields H _c2(0) and coherence lengths ξ(0) are extracted from the magneto-resistivity curves and their evolutions with CNT content are discussed.     

Effect of Eu doping on structural and magneto-electrical properties of La0.7Ca0.3MnO3 manganites

We have investigated the influence of europium (Eu) doping on structural and magneto-electrical properties of La_0.7Ca_0.3MnO₃ compounds. In order to analyze the physical mechanism of a spin disorder system and study their relative evolutions, two samples of nominal compositions (La_0.7?xEu_x)Ca_0.3MnO₃ (x = 0.0 and 0.1) have been elaborated and characterized. In addition to structural changes seen by this kind of doping, the magnetoresistance (MR) and resistivity are increased while the metal–insulator transition temperature is decreased. Comparing the experimental data with the theoretical models shows that in the metal-ferromagnetic region, the electrical behaviour of both samples is quite well described by a theory based on Kondo-like spin dependent scattering, electron–electron scattering, electron–phonon and electron–magnon scatterings. For the high temperature paramagnetic insulating regime, the adiabatic small polaron hopping model is found to fit well the experimental curves.     

Low cholesterol along with inflammation predicts morbidity and mortality in hemodialysis patients

Low and not high cholesterol seems to predict high mortality in hemodialysis (HD) patients. The confirmation of this reverse epidemiology as well as its possible interconnection with the increased inflammatory activity observed in this population is being explored in the present study. A group of 136 HD patients was prospectively studied for 2 years, and cardiovascular disease (CVD) as well as all-cause mortality and morbidity were recorded. Baseline lipid profile, inflammatory status, and patients' characteristics were studied as potential survival and hospitalization predictors. During the 24-month follow-up, 21 deaths (52.4% due to CVD) and 38 hospitalizations (55.3% due to CVD) were recorded. In multivariate Cox regression analysis, decreased interleukin-10 (IL-10) and decreased total serum cholesterol (TChol) were the only independent predictors of CVD mortality while C-reactive protein and decreased TChol predicted all-cause mortality. Interleukin-10 at baseline was 11.29 ± 21.49 vs. 5.51 ± 4.57 pg/mL (P<0.018) and TChol 167.37 ± 47.84 vs.122.04 ± 26.48 mg/dL (P<0.000) in survivors vs. nonsurvivors from CVD, while C-reactive protein at baseline was 9.37 ± 11.54 vs. 23.15 ± 18.76 mg/L (P<0.000) and TChol 169.26 ± 46.42 vs. 133.26 ± 46.33 mg/dL (P<0.003) in survivors vs. nonsurvivors from any cause of death. Using the same method of statistical analysis, IL-6 and decreased soluble gp130 (sgp130)—an antagonist of IL-6 action—were found to be the only independent prognostic factors for hospitalization due to CVD while decreased soluble gp130 remained the sole predictor of hospitalization due to any cause. In conclusion, reverse epidemiology regarding cholesterol is confirmed in the present study. Furthermore, inflammatory activity also predicts, independently of or in conjunction with low-cholesterol, CVD and all-cause morbidity and mortality in HD patients.