A mobile ad hoc network (MANET) is a set of mobile, decentralized, and self-organizing nodes that are used in special cases, such as in the military. MANET properties render the environment of this network vulnerable to different types of attacks, including black hole, wormhole and flooding-based attacks. Flooding-based attacks are one of the most dangerous attacks that aim to consume all network resources and thus paralyze the functionality of the whole network. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to investigate the capability of a danger theory-based artificial immune algorithm called the mobile dendritic cell algorithm (MDCA) to detect flooding-based attacks in MANETs. The MDCA applies the dendritic cell algorithm (DCA) to secure the MANET with additional improvements. The MDCA is tested and validated using Qualnet v7.1 simulation tool. This work also introduces a new simulation module for a flooding attack called the resource consumption attack (RCA) using Qualnet v7.1. The results highlight the high efficiency of the MDCA in detecting RCAs in MANETs. In the last few decades, many researchers have focused on mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) as wireless networks with specific features not found in other network types. The decentralization, rapid deployable topology, and open wireless medium of MANETs increase their feasibility for application in roughly structured areas, such as earthquake-prone areas and war-torn regions. However, these features as well as the limitations of MANET  make this network very vulnerable to different types of attacks. Many intrusion detection systems (IDSs) have been introduced to protect the routing protocols in MANETs –3. HowevMoreover, the lack of a fixed infrastructure in MANETs renders the use of certificate authorities infeasible. Thus, the general trend at present is to employ lightweight computing algorithms to secure MANETs .On the basis of the many similarities between the human body tissue environment and the MANET environment concluded from the study in , we claiAickelin et al.  attempteThe objective of this paper is to propose and investigate the capability of a danger theory-based artificial immune algorithm called the mobile dendritic cell algorithm (MDCA) to detect flooding-based attacks in MANETs. The MDCA applies the dendritic cell algorithm (DCA) to securThis paper is organized as follows. Section 2 reviews the background of the study. Section 3 thoroughly explains the MDCA. Section 4 describes the simulation design and environment applied and the details of the proposed MDCA validation and testing. Finally, Section 5 discusses conclusions and future works.DCs have three main differentiation states, immature, semi-mature and mature. When immature DCs receive enough input signals, they become either semi-mature or mature DCs based on the concentration of specific types of these input signals. Immature DCs receive four types of input signals, PAMP, danger, safe and inflammation signals. PAMP signals indicate strongly the existence of infectious pathogen. Danger signals are released by necroses which are the human body cells under stress or abnormal death. However, safe signals are released by apoptosis which are healthy cells or cells that die in a normal way. Inflammation signals are released as a result of an increase in the cells’ temperature caused from unhealthy state or infection. DCs input signals are divided into, endogenous and exogenous signals. Endogenous signals are those released from the cells of the body itself such as safe, danger and inflammation signals. However, exogenous signals are the signals released from the microbes which inter the human body from the outside environment. An example of this type is PAMP signals .When immature DCs are exposed to these input signals, the concentration of each controls their next terminal differentiation state (either mature or semi-mature DCs). For example, if the concentration of the received PAMP signals and danger signals are greater than that of safe signals, this means the differentiation of immature DCs is to mature DCs. PAMP and danger signals cause the receiver immature DCs to process its contents and produce a certain cytokine called interleukin-12 (IL-12). Also, PAMP and danger signals induce immature DCs to produce costimulatory molecules (csm), also called CD80/86 in biology. The csm signal simplifies the process of antigen presentation to the T-cells in lymph nodes. Conversely, if the concentration of safe signals is greater than that of PAMP and danger signals, then immature DCs should differentiate to semi-mature DCs. Also, safe signals are responsible for producing interleukin-10 (IL-10) in this case. Additionally, safe signals induce producing csm signals by the DCs same as PAMP and danger signals. Therefore, the received input signals indicate the behavioral context of the digested antigens if either they are benign or malignant.The AODV, the underlying routing protocol considered in this study, is a reactive on-demand routing protocol in MANETs. The AODV has many advantages, such as self-starting ability, the capability to avoid congested routes, and the feasibility over scalable wireless networks . HoweverBased on the AODV routing protocol, source node S must wait for the timeout period to receive RREP from either an intermediate node or the destination node D. Otherwise, source node S can rebroadcast the RREQ packet with high timeout to receive the desired RREP packet with a newly established route to the destination node D. In addition, based on the AODV routing protocol, the RREQ packet must contain two important fields; namely, the RREQ packet broadcast identification (ID) and the source node IP address. The two fields distinguish each RREQ packet from other packets broadcasted by the same source node to discover different routes. When intermediate nodes receive duplicate RREQ packets (packets with the same IP address and broadcast ID), they simply discard such packets. In this way, the AODV helps the legitimate nodes avoid network overflow and unnecessary power consumption. However, in RCA , the attThe work in ,18 introIn , the autGreensmith et al. ,12 introThe MDCA is a standalone algorithm designed to secure routing protocols in each mobile node in MANETs. This algorithm depends mainly on the function of DCs as anomaly detectors and immune response controllers. Therefore, each DC in the MDCA is responsible for two main tasks: detecting RCA in the AODV and controlling the response of each mobile node to the detected RCA. Specifically, each DC passes through three main stages: (i) collection stage, (ii) processing stage, and (iii) response stage. Unlike the DCA, the MDCA in the collection stage does not use antigens and signals matrix; instead each immature DC (iDC) collects only one antigen and its related signals.csm); interleukin-10 (IL-10), which causes the iDC to transform into a semi-mature DC (smDC); and interleukin-12 (IL-12), which causes the iDC to transform into a fully mature DC (mDC) [semi and mat, respectively.As shown in mat and csm output signals. A danger signal also indicates the existence of an attack, but its strength is lower than that of the PAMP signal. A danger signal induces the production of mat and csm signals as well. A safe signal strongly indicates the non-existence of an attack and induces the production of semi and csm signals. Inflammation signals are considered as an amplifier for the other input signals. They are not applied in the detection of RCAs in this work; since there are no signals which can be applied to represent this type of signal.Input signals differ from one another in terms of strength and the indication of an existence of an attack. For example, a PAMP signal strongly indicates the existence of an attack and induces the production of Three input signals are applied in this work to detect RCAs in MANETs: PAMP, danger, and safe signals. As PAMP and safe signals are two strong signals that provide opposite indications and effects, the MDCA applies both of them to represent the rate at which the RREQ is received by the destination node in the MANET. In the AODV routing protocol , the ratHowever, a danger signal represents an increase in the number of link breaks registered by the mobile node that applies the MDCA. As the number of link breaks in normal states (no congestion and no attack) does not exceed 3 times/s, the MDCA calculates the concentration of the danger signal to represent the number of link breaks per second which exceeds 3 times/s. The number of link breaks is chosen to represent the danger signal because such value does not strongly indicate the existence of an attack. In other words, link breaks may increase because of normal congestion in the network itself.csm, mat, and semi, respectively) for each DC:The MDCA processes the infusion of each antigen signal using the Eqs mat signal is changed from (-3) as in [csm exceeds a certain threshold (15 in the experiments conducted in this work) and until iDC size is exceeded. The MDCA is distinguished from the DCA in terms of iDC size because the MDCA considers the size of the DC to be equal to 1 in all of its antigens and signal manipulations; here, iDC size refers to the number of antigens processed by the iDC in each time period.In the MDCA, the weight value of the safe signal for calculating the 3) as in  to (-2) Establishing the correlation between each input antigen and its related input signals is essential in the MDCA to avoid high FP and FN rates resulting from the DCA. The correlation is built using a genes list that represents the input antigens and their related input signals. The list depicted in The MDCA stores the received RREQs in the routing packet queue and processes them according to the first in, first out queuing system. Then, the MDCA extracts the RREQ antigen and its input signals  using the RREQ antigen extractor and the RREQ related signal extractor, respectively. In the RREQ antigen extractor, the extracted antigen represents the IP address of the source node. Meanwhile, the RREQ related signal extractor calculates the PAMP, safe, and danger signals based on the behavior of the processed RREQ in terms of its rate and the link breaks it caused.The antigen of each RREQ and its related signals are combined in the genes list in the Genes Store. The existence of a new gene stimulates the MDCA to create a new DC in the DC component that checks the genes list continuously for new input genes. Each DC manipulates only one antigen but not only one gene. Specifically, the Genes Store may store genes with the same antigen but different signals. However, whether a certain input antigen can be duplicated in several genes in the genes list is not a condition in this process.csm, mat, and semi signals are calculated by applying Eqs csm exceeds the threshold.Once a DC is created, it manipulates the newly created gene in the genes list. The accumulative mat and semi. If mat is greater than semi, then the RREQ is considered to have originated from an attacker. In this case, the response controller should stimulate the AODV to silently discard the packet. If the semi is greater than mat, then the RREQ is considered to have been sent by a legitimate node. In this case, the AODV is permitted to continue processing the received RREQ.Finally, the context of the RREQ is determined based on the values of Securing any system entails additional overhead for computational functions. High overhead costs lead to high performance degradation. In this study, a set of experiments are conducted to verify the capability of the MDCA to detect RCAs in MANETs. This section discusses the design of the simulation experiments including the design of network parameters. The efficiency of the MDCA is proved in the results and discussion subsection.The experiments for testing the MDCA are conducted using Qualnet v5.0.2 . Table 2The following network performance metrics are also tested: throughput, end-to-end delay, number of retried RREQs, and number of initiated RREPs. Throughput is the number of bits received per unit of time. End-to-end delay is the duration between the time at which the first bit of a packet is sent from the source node side and the time at which the last bit of the same packet is received by the destination side. Performance metrics are measured by varying the radio ranges of RCA attackers . All attackers are distributed randomly. Each attacker floods 10 RREQs/s in all simulation runs.In The routing overhead represented by initiating the retried RREQs is attributed to the loss of RREQ packets and/or RREP packets when a legitimate source node is trying to discover a route with a legitimate destination node. In normal cases, network congestion can cause packet loss. However, the congestion may be initiated for a certain period and in a certain network location. By contrast, the RCA initiates flooding all over the targeted network thereby extend the duration of the congestion.As shown in The objective of this study is to investigate the capability of a danger theory-based artificial immune algorithm, that is, the MDCA, to detect flooding-based attacks, representing by RCA, in MANETs. The MDCA applies the DCA to secure MANETs with additional improvements. In this study, the MDCA was tested and validated using Qualnet v7.1 simulation tool. A new simulation module of a flooding attack referred to as the RCA was introduced using Qualnet v7.1. The MDCA outperformed the DCA in terms of security and network measurements. The MDCA also demonstrated high robustness and resistance to RCA flooding. In addition, the MDCA successfully secured the MANET without affecting its network performance. On the basis of the comparison between the MDCA (iDC size = 1) and DCA (iDC size = 5), we can conclude that a high number of antigens processed in iDC leads to a low performance for the security algorithm.In the future, we will test the performance of the MDCA given different numbers of attackers with different attack positions in the MANET. Real test bed experiments will be conducted to test the feasibility of applying the MDCA in MANETs.


Imaging modalities used to diagnosis this syndrome includes ultrasonography and magnetic resonance imaging. We reported a case of a 60-year-old man presented to our formation with painful swelling on the dorsum of the wrist and forearm. An MRI and an ultrasound were performed, and objectified a dual cross syndrome of the forearm.The intersection syndrome, described since the 19 Multiple conditions can cause wrist and forearm pain; the most common are de Quervain tenosynovitis and thumb carp metacarpal arthritis. Intersection syndrome  is common cause of wrist pain but under diagnosed, because of an atypical presentation of symptoms or because of a rarely unrecognized entity. It is a non-infectious inflammatory pathology located at the crossing point between the first and the second dorsal compartment muscles and the radial wrist extensor muscles. Its incidence is reported to be between 0,2% and 0,37% . PatientA 60-year-old man was admitted to our hospital suffering from pain and swelling on the dorsal forearm, 3 cm from the wrist . He someThe intersection syndrome was described for the first time in 1841 by Velpeau, and it is also referred as adventitial bursitis, subcutaneous perimyositis, Abductor pollicislongus syndrome, peritendinitiscrepitans, cross-over syndrome, and oarsmen's wrist . Yet mosIt is common cause of wrist pain but under diagnosed, because of an atypical presentation of symptoms or because of a rarely unrecognized entity. It is a non-infectious inflammatory pathology located at the crossing point between the first and the second dorsal compartment muscles and the radial wrist extensor muscles . There iAt first we should define the proximal intersection syndrome, and the distal intersection syndrome. The pathogenesis of the first syndrome is explained by the musculotendinousjunctions of the first dorsal compartment tendons (abductor pollicislongus and extensor pollicisbrevis tendons) which intersect the second compartment tendons  with an angle of approximately 60° and which is approximately 4cm far from the Lister′s tubercle . ConcernA subtle but important distinction must be made between intersection syndrome and the De Quervain'sstenosing tenosynovitis, a pain in the wrist that involves thickening of the extensor retinaculum of the first dorsal compartment with stenosis of the canal that contains the APL and the EPB . While tThe diagnosis is often made clinically but may also be found thanks to sonography and MRI. MRI is well suited to show the findings of intersection syndrome. The most important finding is the presence of peritendinous edema concentrically surrounding the second and the first extensor compartments, centredaround the point of crossover, about 4cm far from the Lister tubercle. Sometimes the edema may extend as far as the radiocarpal joint . It may The treatment is similar to the one given for overuse injuries. Conservative measures are the first line of treatment. Symptoms resolve within 2 to 3 weeks for 60% of patients with rest, administration of non-steroidanti-inflammatory drugs, and splinting. Surgery is indicated typically only for patients not responding to therapy. When conservative treatment fails, a tenosynovectomy and a fasciotomy of abductor pollicislongus can be performed.Intersection syndrome is an overuse disorder of the dorsal distal forearm, presenting with particular symptoms and signs that may be clinically misdiagnosed. The diagnosis is made on the basis of clinical findings, which must be confirmed by imaging studies (US and MRI). It may be discovered only after an MRI especially during acute or sub acute periods. Thus, radiologists must keep in mind this possibility while diagnosing wrist pains because a clinical diagnosis could be difficult in such cases.


A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) guided stereotactic system was developed to provide veterinarians a method to accomplish minimally invasive stereotactic brain biopsies and procedures involving the cerebrum in canines. While MR-guided procedures are prevalent for humans, they are less common in animal practices. The system was designed to minimize fabrication costs in an effort to make such procedures more accessible in the veterinary field. A frame constrained the head without the need for punctures and supported registration and guidance attachments. Location data for registration and relevant structures were selected by the clinician, and a reverse kinematic analysis program generated the settings of the stereotactic arch to guide a needle to the desired location. Phantom experiments and three cadaver trials showed an average targeting error of <3 mm using the system. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is widely used in medical research and practice due to its ability to peer inside biological organisms with superior image quality, providing high-quality soft tissue imaging while not exposing patients to potentially ionizing radiation or contrast agents . AdvanceUtilizing MRI to perform brain biopsies in humans is common, but in canine subjects tumor diagnosis is most commonly performed postmortem. Naturally, such timing does not help the patient, and access to tumors in vivo is desirable. Image-based diagnosis by itself provides less certainty, and open-skull biopsies require a sizable amount of tissue and bone to be damaged or removed; both cases have their drawbacks . StereotInside an MR suite, use of certain materials will degrade image quality and/or endanger the safety of a patient . For thiPreviously, researchers have developed various stereotactic brain biopsy platforms for animal subjects . While p Z-frames inside the scanner with a modified Leskell stereotactic arch used outside the magnetic field to enable arch-based isocentric stereotaxy. The request for the construction of this device came from the neurosurgical unit of the University of Georgia Veterinary School. Following an MRI scan to locate brain tumors and determine operability, an open skull biopsy is performed to obtain a sample. Desiring a less invasive method of surgery, the developed system took inspiration from previous research and developed a low-cost system  to integrate with current operational procedures. Given an average tumor diameter of 10 mm to biopsy, the surgeons requested less than 3 mm of error when targeting the center of the tumor.This study aimed to integrate fiducial marker Z-frame approaches and 3-point head fixations [Previous studies have been conducted to develop stereotactic cerebral interventions or MRI-compatible guidance frames, including several which implementixations , 31–37. The design consists of a primary frame with two sets of attachments; one for imaging and the other for needle placement. The frame's cross-section is U-shaped in order to maintain sufficient strength and stiffness, contain a canine's head, and fit inside a standard MRI head coil. Z-frame attachments contain tubes of Vitamin E oil acting as a localizing agent  to facilitate image registration. The geometry of the markers ensures that either a dorsal or transverse plane will contain 6 points where the plane intersects the tubes. A LabView program  was written to use location data  from these points and create a mapping of the scanner's coordinate system onto the coordinate system of the frame.TheFollowing image acquisition, the veterinarian determined the location of structure(s) to be targeted. The relevant coordinates from the scanner were mapped onto the frame's coordinate system using the developed transform. After transformation, the relevant coordinates were fed into a second LabView program which performed reverse kinematics calculations to generate the adjustments on the stereotactic arch which enable the point of a biopsy needle to arrive at the target point. Z-frame attachments could be removed outside the MRI suite and replaced with the stereotactic arch and its supports. Once attached, the arch would be adjusted following the parameters established by the program, providing a precise guide for the clinician to perform their procedures.After completing the necessary imaging, theBy utilizing a simple frame, a commonplace material for a contrast agent, and a surplus stereotactic arch, the cost of materials for the project was minimized. An outline of pricing for the materials used in the final system is shown in  Z-frames, the arch support attachments, the stereotactic arch, and a 14-gauge biopsy needle. The primary frame consists of Delrin U-shaped end pieces with Delrin lateral supports , rotates about an axis drawn between the rails (rotates around Y), slides along that same axis (Y), and rotates about an axis parallel and central to the two rails (rotates around X). Additionally, the support frames can be set to one of two vertical positions and the needle depth adjusted with a stopper (both affect Z position).The stereotactic arch has 5 degrees of freedom. The arch slides along the rails of the arch support frame  and the stereotactic frame coordinate system (P1) is required to perform kinematic calculations. We used known physical relationships of the Z-frames . Signal-to-noise ratio reductions were under 2% while the system was in the scanner. After acquiring images containing the points necessary for registration  were targeted and hit by the needle with an average accuracy of 2 mm.Ongoing work aims to improve registration point selection through the use of feature-based image registration techniques. The system will be tested in a cohort of swine and canine cadavers to verify the functionality and accuracy of the system. After verification, the system will be used for the testing and treatment of live patients.


Increasing levels of insecticide resistance as well as outdoor, residual transmission of malaria threaten the efficacy of existing vector control tools used against malaria mosquitoes. The development of odour-baited mosquito traps has led to the possibility of controlling malaria through mass trapping of malaria vectors. Through daily removal trapping against a background of continued bed net use it is anticipated that vector populations could be suppressed to a level where continued transmission of malaria will no longer be possible.A stepped wedge cluster-randomised trial design was used for the implementation of mass mosquito trapping on Rusinga Island, western Kenya . Over the course of 2 years (2013–2015) all households on the island were provided with a solar-powered mosquito trapping system. A continuous health and demographic surveillance system combined with parasitological surveys three times a year, successive rounds of mosquito monitoring and regular sociological studies allowed measurement of intervention outcomes before, during and at completion of the rollout of traps. Data collection continued after achieving mass coverage with traps in order to estimate the longer term effectiveness of this novel intervention. Solar energy was exploited to provide electric light and mobile phone charging for each household, and the impacts of these immediate tangible benefits upon acceptability of and adherence to the use of the intervention are being measured.This study will be the first to evaluate whether the principle of solar-powered mass mosquito trapping could be an effective tool for elimination of malaria. If proven to be effective, this novel approach to malaria control would be a valuable addition to the existing strategies of long-lasting insecticide-treated nets and case management. Sociological studies provide a knowledge base for understanding the usage of this novel tool.NTR3496 – SolarMal. Registered on 20 June 2012.Trialregister.nl: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13063-016-1469-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. Significant reductions in malaria infections and mortality since the year 2000 are associated with increased coverage of vector control interventions such as long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) and indoor residual spraying (IRS), as well as improved availability and access to preventive therapies, diagnosis and treatment . HoweverAnopheles gambiae s.s. have led to the identification of a large number of compounds [Anopheles gambiae s.l. and Anopheles funestus populations enough to lower the entomological inoculation rate (EIR) to a level at which malaria transmission cannot be sustained [Studies to characterise the components of human odour which are attractive to host-seeking ompounds –9 which,ompounds , 10. Theompounds . Synthetompounds –14. By compounds  and by 5ompounds . It is austained . The priustained , 18, andThe Asembo Bay area of western Kenya was one of the first regions in sub-Saharan Africa to receive insecticide-treated bed nets (ITNs) as part of a trial in the mid-1990s , but desIn this rural region of Kenya, few residential buildings are connected to the main electrical grid, and most households light their homes using kerosene tin lamps. The requirement of electrical energy to power the fan inside the odour-baited trap prompted the decision to integrate the mosquito trapping systems into a solar-home system, henceforth referred to as a solar-powered mosquito trapping system (SMoTS). The SMoTS includes two light emitting diode (LED) lights and a mobile phone charging port in addition to the odour-baited mosquito trap. These additional, immediate, private benefits of the system were expected to increase usability and improve adherence to the public health intervention, which requires the sustained participation of residents .Here we describe the study design and methods used by the SolarMal project to test this intervention on Rusinga Island, western Kenya  result.To determine the impact of mass mosquito trapping on malaria prevalence measured by RDT, with subsequent high-resolution melting PCR used to estimate the prevalence of sub-patent malariaTo calculate differences in both measured and reported all-cause fevers following the introduction of odour-baited trapsThe medical objectives are as follows :To assess whether the mass trapping of mosquitoes reduces the population density of malaria vectors on Rusinga IslandTo determine whether the mass distribution of odour-baited mosquito traps leads to changes in mosquito species compositionTo record changes in entomological inoculation rate associated with implementation of the interventionTo compare mosquito densities and species composition indoors and outdoorsThe entomological objectives are as follows :To determine the behavioural, socio-cultural and organisational factors that influence the effective and sustainable use of SMoTSTo foster learning relevant to adapting the implementation and sustainability strategy as an integral component of the interventionTo understand how the introduction and use of SMoTS affects and/or is affected by the use of other malaria control interventionsThe sociological objectives are as follows:2. Research activities are conducted through the Thomas Odhiambo Campus of the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe) in Mbita Point, located 2 km from Rusinga Island. In a population census conducted by the project in May 2012, the total population of the island was 23,337 people, living in 4062 households [dala) may comprise more than one house. The primary occupations of people are fishing in Lake Victoria and small-scale farming. The climate is tropical with a long rainy season typically occurring from February to May with a shorter rainy season from October to November. Malaria is typically endemic in this region, and transmission occurs throughout the year [The study took place on Rusinga Island, western Kenya, an island that is located approximately 75 km southwest of the city of Kisumu and has a surface area of around 44 kmuseholds . The majthe year , 26.All households and residents of Rusinga Island were eligible for inclusion in the study with recruitment commencing in June 2012 and continuing until November 2015  as well as malaria testing by RDT, individual written consent was provided by adults aged 18 years and older for themselves and for mature minors. For persons aged 13–17 years, individual assent was provided alongside written consent of an adult. For persons under 13 years of age, written parental consent was provided before recruitment to the study. All consent forms were in either English or Dholuo and were signed by the recruiter (a member of the project staff) and a witness. Informed verbal consent was provided by individuals or heads of household before participation in sociological and entomological studies, respectively. Participation in the study was voluntary, and all participants were free to withdraw at any time without giving a reason for their withdrawal. Unique identification numbers were assigned to preserve the anonymity of study participants.Enumeration of the population and recruitment of participants were ongoing throughout the study period (i.e. from May 2012 until November 2015). Three rounds of HDSS took place during each year of the study, with recording of births and deaths as well as in- and out-migration across both arms of the study. A unique identification number was assigned to every individual, house and household recruited to the study during the HDSS.The population of Rusinga was sensitised about project activities and findings in a number of ways throughout the course of the study. An initial community launch day was held on the island in August 2012 with the aim of informing community members about the project using song, dance, sketches and speeches. In order to ensure good communication between the project scientific staff and the study participants, a community advisory board (CAB) was established, including representatives of key groups of stakeholders. The CAB met formally four times each year to receive updates on project progress and plans from scientific staff and in turn to provide feedback from the community and to discuss project plans. Informal meetings between the CAB and project staff were also held whenever the need arose. In May 2013 a public balloting event was held where the sequence of the rollout was selected with the participation of community members . Thereaficipe, Kenya) and Biogents AG (Germany) [An. gambiae even after weekly use over 52 weeks [The odour-baited traps (Suna traps) that were used during this intervention were developed in collaboration between Wageningen University and Research Centre (the Netherlands), the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (Germany) . The traGermany) . The bleGermany)  in orderGermany) . Baits w52 weeks . During Previous studies have shown that a host-seeking mosquito can detect human or animal odours at distances of 50 m or more , 30, andDuring the course of the study each eligible household on Rusinga Island was offered one SMoTS. If a household comprised more than one residential structure (house), the project staff requested household members to reach a consensus agreement as to which house should have the SMoTS installed. If no consensus was reached, the SMoTS was not installed.Two weeks prior to SMoTS installation in any given cluster, residents of the cluster were invited to attend a community training workshop held at a local community centre, such as a church or school building. During each training workshop study participants were reminded of the aims of the study and took part in question-and-answer sessions about malaria transmission and prevention. Demonstration SMoTS were used to show participants how the system operates and how to empty the trap of mosquitoes and clean it on a weekly basis . ContactThe SolarMal trial used a stepped wedge cluster-randomised trial (SWCRT) design  where thClusters of households were constructed by means of a travelling salesman algorithm whereby the shortest distance from one household to another was continually chosen, creating a cluster after every 50 or 51 households see Fig. . The numComputer simulations of possible rollout scenarios were made on the basis of a human susceptible-infected-susceptible transmission model . A hieraPrior to a community rollout ballot held in May 2013, a large number of possible rollout sequences were computer generated, each consisting of a distinct ordering of the 81 clusters . Nine poDuring successive rounds of health and demographic surveillance . Any person with a positive RDT was provided with an appropriate dose of artemether-lumefantrine or referred to a local health clinic in the case of pregnancy, child under 6 months of age or severe symptoms. By collecting clinical malaria data continuously, information was available for baseline and throughout the course of the rollout for all 81 of the clusters.Clinical malaria incidence was recorded during the routine HDSS surveillance of all individuals .A mixture of quantitative and qualitative approaches to social science data collection was used. Prior to the commencement of the intervention rollout, a structured questionnaire was completed with one adult male and one adult female in each of 204 randomly selected households . The questionnaire was repeated with a new random selection of 5 % of households after completion of the rollout.In addition to the structured questionnaires, listening surveys were conducted during each community training workshop to record trends in questions asked by community members over the course of the rollout. Listening surveys were performed during the installation of SMoTS in order to gauge initial reactions to the intervention. Data were also collected informally  during other project community events such as an event held to launch the project on the island and the rollout ballot, among others. Throughout the course of the study, focus group discussions with specific stakeholders not only provided a useful tool for gathering information on community knowledge, attitudes and perceptions, but also helped the project to build links with the community.Throughout the duration of the study, community members were able to contact a project community liaison officer and the solar technicians by phone in order to report technical faults in the SMoTS. A detailed record of phone calls was maintained by an on-site project manager, and these records were used to schedule maintenance activities as well as to understand how well the systems were performing over time. Intermittent spot checks were carried out one evening per week in 20 randomly selected households from a single metacluster to allow the field staff to monitor the performance of systems during the hours of darkness.During the final phase of the project (December 2014–December 2015), interviews with key stakeholders and focus group discussions were used to develop and finalise a sustainability plan for the maintenance of SMoTS beyond 2015.The collection and management of data was fully digitised, with all data entered by means of a tablet computer. The data collection was managed by the researchers, who operated independently from the project sponsor. Open Data Kit (ODK)  was usedA progress and quality monitoring plug-in for OpenHDS, SU2, used to ensure quality post hoc, was deployed in 2013 . The proThere is some controversy about power calculations for SWCRTs , and theThe datasets included for the analysis comprise results of the HDSS, clinical malaria surveys, cross-sectional malaria prevalence surveys and monitoring of mosquito densities. Malaria fever incidence is the primary outcome of the trial. Data are included up to the end of the next month after full intervention coverage was attained. For analyses of parasitological as well as entomological outcomes, intervention status is classified week by week on the basis of whether traps had been installed in the cluster. The whole study cluster is classified as intervened or non-intervened based on whether installation was complete in that cluster by the end of the week. Clusters are excluded from analysis during weeks in which some, but not all, of the households were provided with the intervention . For malaria prevalence and incidence, the numbers and proportions of positive RDT tests were summarised by week and arm of the trial. For mosquito densities, rates of anophelines collected per trapping night were presented by week and arm of the trial.Following the SWCRT design described by Silkey et al. , an analThe long-term sustainability of malaria control achieved through the use of LLINs and case management with drugs is threatened by the development of insecticide and drug resistance. The SolarMal project has been designed to test for the first time whether mass trapping of mosquitoes can form a viable option for malaria control on Rusinga Island in Kenya, in addition to the already established LLIN plus curative strategy of the Kenyan National Malaria Control Programme (NMCP). The study took place in an area where LLIN coverage is high and drugs for case management are available and accessible.Plasmodium parasite prevalence, mosquito densities, EIR and sociological outcomes. A SWCRT design allows for before-and-after as well as contemporaneous measures of intervention effect, and clustering of the intervention permits measurement of a possible spill-over effect of traps into neighbouring non-intervened areas. Through gradual scale-up of intervention coverage over 2 years, with baseline measurements before the commencement of the rollout and at least 7 months of follow-up after completion of the rollout, an understanding of the time taken to achieve an impact through mass trapping will also be gained. By gathering data on multiple outcomes, i.e. human health and entomology, we anticipate that it will be possible to attribute an effect on malaria to the SMoTS intervention. Likewise, if the intervention is ineffective, it will be possible to offer explanations for this outcome. Understanding the mechanism behind a successful intervention will be vitally important in optimising the system for future scale-up and, in the instance of no observed effect, understanding this result will also allow improvements to the approach, which could lead to success in the future.The primary outcomes of the study will provide information about the efficacy of mass mosquito trapping on clinical malaria incidence, In addition to the anticipated impact on malaria, members of the study population were expected to immediately benefit through the electrical lighting and mobile phone charging facilities provided with the SMoTS. Electrical lighting is expected to reduce a reliance on kerosene that is typically used to light houses in this region. As the fumes emitted by burning kerosene are known to negatively affect the respiratory system , replaceIn order to ensure that risks to the population were minimised, the continued use of LLINs by all age groups was recommended at all community meetings and training sessions. Participation in the intervention did not affect the use of existing health facilities. The creation of a CAB facilitated regular exchanges of information between scientists, project field staff and the Rusinga Island community, and it is expected that some members of this board will remain actively involved in the maintenance of the SMoTS beyond the follow-up period of the study. By the completion of the rollout in mid-2015, the community were beginning to form groups to save money for the purpose of maintaining SMoTS beyond the research period. The provision of electrical lighting and mobile phone charging provides an incentive for users to keep the systems running, and links with Kenyan solar-home system providers are being made to ensure continuous provision of replacement components at prices which are affordable for low-income households. By working closely with the Kenyan Ministries of Health and Energy, the SolarMal project has formed a strong basis for continuing and expanding the use of SMoTS on Rusinga Island and elsewhere in the region. If the intervention is proven to be an effective tool for malaria control, researchers will work together with industry and policy makers to develop cost-effective, long-lasting and readily available malaria mosquito trapping systems for use in at-risk areas.During the course of this study there was not a specific protocol for monitoring mosquito behavioural adaptations. Unlike well-established tools for mosquito control such as insecticide-treated bed nets and indoor residual spraying, there are no protocols for measuring behavioural adaptations to odour-baited traps. Future studies could measure the responses of field-caught mosquitoes from Rusinga Island to the odour baits and compare response rates with lab-reared mosquitoes, or with responses of mosquitoes from areas where odour-baited traps have never been used.Additional studies and modelling of the impact of this trial will be required to extrapolate the findings of this study to other areas, including regions with different dominant vector species and routine control practices. It is anticipated that a scale-up of systems would follow a public-private model with investment from governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as well as financial contributions by end-users. Scale-up would initially be focused in the East African region with exploratory studies in the Americas and Southeast Asia.Trials. Recruitment of participants for continued HDSS and entomological monitoring of intervention efficacy was completed in November 2015 with a view to assessment of the long-term effects of SMoTS on malaria.The rollout of SMoTS was complete at the time that the protocol manuscript was submitted for review by CAB, community advisory board; EIR, entomological inoculation rate; HDSS, health and demographic surveillance system; ITN, insecticide-treated bed net; KEMRI, Kenya Medical Research Institute; LLIN, long-lasting insecticidal net; NMCP, National Malaria Control Programme; ODK, open data kit; RDT, rapid diagnostic test kit; SMoTS, solar-powered mosquito trapping system(s); SWCRT, stepped wedge cluster-randomised trial; TWI, topographic wetness index; WHO, World Health Organization


Both optical tweezers and acoustic tweezers have been demonstrated for trapping small particles in diverse biomedical applications. Compared to the optical tweezers, acoustic tweezers have deeper penetration, lower intensity, and are more useful in light opaque media. These advantages enable the potential utility of acoustic tweezers in biological science. Since the first demonstration of acoustic tweezers, various applications have required the trapping of not only one, but more particles simultaneously in both the axial and lateral direction. In this research, a method is proposed to create multiple trapping patterns, to prove the feasibility of trapping micro-particles. It has potential ability to electronically control the location and movement of the particles in real-time. A multiple-focus acoustic field can be generated by controlling the excitation of the transducer elements. The pressure and intensity of the field are obtained by modeling phased array transducer. Moreover, scattering force and gradient force at various positions are also evaluated to analyze their relative components to the effect of the acoustic tweezers. Besides, the axial and lateral radiation force and the trapping trajectory are computed based on ray acoustic approach. The results obtained demonstrate that the acoustic tweezers are capable of multiple trapping in both the axial and lateral directions. Optical tweezers have been applied to biology and physical research after they were first introduced in 1986 . AlthougPrevious studies have also demonstrated the feasibility of manipulating particles by acoustic waves ,9,10,11.et al. t in Equation (7) at the same depth 670 μm in the plane perpendicular with the Z direction in the XYZ coordinate system, as shown in First, four focal points are created in the ultrasonic field using the pseudoinverse method to achieve the desired field patterns and intensity levels at the control points. All four control points are set as the same weight z axis. Within the instantaneous pressure field, the wave front converges to two focal points and diverges afterwards. So it satisfies the geometry and behavior of a Gaussian beam. According to Equation (9), the diagonal plane of ultrasonic intensity field with desired intensity level at control points is obtained, which is shown in z axis. It can be seen that the field intensity around the four focal points is symmetrical, also the intensity at the four focal points are equal to each other. 2, the beam width is defined as the spatial extent between the half power points, which is 22 μm here. Hence, the four focal points can be regarded as four beams with 22 μm beam waist.z-axis), and lateral direction (y-axis) respectively. And the focal point o is set as origin of coordinates yoz, shown in The acoustic intensity field with four multiple-focus points  has beenzyo that shown in z-axis, is shown in z axis, but 20 μm distance off it, the axial radiation force is plotted in z-axis, it still produces negative radiation force for acoustic trapping, though the magnitude is smaller than that on the beam axis. z-axis. It can be seen that, although the gradient force component has similar performance with z axis get smaller and smaller as increased distance off the z-axis. Also, the scattering force mainly contributes to the positive axial force which pushes forward, whereas gradient force gives majority negative force which attracts the objective particle back.In coordinate system y-axis and passes through point  mm in the zoy coordinate system. The alternative positive and negative lateral forces indicate that once the particle locates off the beam axis, the lateral force will tend to pull it back to the z-axis. Also, it can be seen that the dash-dot line nearly overlaps with the solid line, while the dashed line is close to the zero. Since the scattering force has the same direction with the incident ray, the major part of the scattering force is in axial direction, while the part of the scattering force for lateral force is very small. y-axis and passes through point  mm. Compared with z-axis similarly, however, as farther from the y-axis, the magnitude of the lateral force gets smaller. From the gradient and scattering forces component shown in z-axis in the coordinate system zoy. It is intriguing to note that bigger trapping force and longer attractive radiation force region are more likely to occur when using bigger particles.Particles with various diameters are also used to evaluate the trapping performance. Meantime, according to Newton’s second law of motion, the displacement trajectories of particles are determined after motion analysis in consideration of radiation force and the resistance of water viscosity. To simplify the analysis, the radiation force and displacement trajectory by axial and lateral direction are calculated separately. To investigate the acoustic streaming effect on multiple-trapping acoustic tweezers, we introduce the approach studied by Nowicki  to estimz-axis, which is calculated with the consideration of axial radiation force and the resistance of water viscosity. The initial speed is zero and the initial position is in the end of negative force points in z-axis and paralleling to y-axis, and their locations varying along this line, the lateral force along this line could be calculated and is plotted in z-axis, the lateral radiation forces have opposite directions at two sides of z-axis, which means that once the particle is off z-axis, lateral radiation force will tend to trap it back.It can be noted that although the asymmetric lateral radiation force at the two sides of z-axis.Since there is almost zero radial acoustic streaming velocity at the ultrasonic transducer center, the drag force due to radial acoustic streaming effect is omitted when calculate the trajectory as particle move across the axial direction. Given the specific particle size, the maximum axial trapping force, its axial trapping position, axial trapping regions and maximum lateral trapping force are listed in A multiple trapping acoustic tweezers model is proposed in this paper. The pseudoinverse approach is used to produce desired intensity levels at the control points. Then, the pressure and intensity at any field point can be obtained by modeling the surface of the phased array. Besides, scattering force and gradient force at various positions are also evaluated to analysis their relative components to the effect of the acoustic tweezers. The radiation forces along and across the beam propagation direction for particles with various diameter and positions are calculated based on the acoustic ray approach. In addition, this paper reveals the trapping trajectory along and across the beam propagation directions with the consideration of acoustic streaming effect and the resistance due to viscosity of water. The results obtained demonstrate that the acoustic tweezers have feasibility for multiple trapping in both the axial and lateral directions. They could be used for non-contact and non-invasive manipulation of small particles such as cell sorting, trapping, and manipulation. Cancerous cells could be separated from healthy cells. The measurement of mechanical properties of the cell could also be achieved by acoustic tweezers by non-contact squeezing the cell. In addition, they could be used for drug delivery to drive particles along and across the wave propagation direction.


A large number of studies have analyzed measurable changes that Alzheimer’s disease causes on electroencephalography (EEG). Despite being easily reproducible, those markers have limited sensitivity, which reduces the interest of EEG as a screening tool for this pathology. This is for a large part due to the poor signal-to-noise ratio of EEG signals: EEG recordings are indeed usually corrupted by spurious extra-cerebral artifacts. These artifacts are responsible for a consequent degradation of the signal quality. We investigate the possibility to automatically clean a database of EEG recordings taken from patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease and healthy age-matched controls. We present here an investigation of commonly used markers of EEG artifacts: kurtosis, sample entropy, zero-crossing rate and fractal dimension. We investigate the reliability of the markers, by comparison with human labeling of sources. Our results show significant differences with the sample entropy marker. We present a strategy for semi-automatic cleaning based on blind source separation, which may improve the specificity of Alzheimer screening using EEG signals. Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common type of dementia among the elderly; its socioeconomic cost to society is sizeable and expected to increase. It is characterized by progressive and irreversible cognitive deterioration with memory loss, impairments in judgment and language, and other cognitive deficits and behavioral symptoms that finally become severe enough to limit the ability of an individual to carry out the professional, social or family activities of daily life. As the disease progresses, patients develop increasingly severe disabilities, becoming in the end completely dependent on others. An early and accurate diagnosis of AD would be of much help to patients and their families, both in facilitating planning for the future and in beginning treatment of the symptoms of the disease early. A diagnosis of AD requires, on the one hand, the confirmation of the presence of a progressive dementia syndrome and, on the other hand, the exclusion of other potential causes of dementia as demonstrated by the patient’s clinical history. An unambiguous diagnosis of AD is considered to require that a post-mortem analysis demonstrate the typical AD pathological changes in brain tissue ,2,3. TheIn order to develop a system for an early diagnosis of AD, the potential of a recording technique known as electroencephalography (EEG) has been investigated. EEG consists in recording brain-related electrical potentials using different electrodes attached to the scalp . EEG actEEG recordings are indeed usually corrupted by spurious extra-cerebral artifacts, which should be rejected or cleaned up by the practitioner. These artifacts are responsible for a consequent degradation of the signal quality. In previous works we presented several methodologies to improve the quality of EEG data in patients with AD using blind source separation (BSS) ,12. BSS versus sources identified as clean EEG). Since manual screening of human EEGs is inherently error prone and might induce experimental bias, automatic artifact detection is an issue of importance. It is most certainly one of the keys to achieve reliable diagnostics, and obtain useful results for clinical purposes . Automatp = 0.05 without correction). None of the experts showed a significant difference of treatment between the groups .We first compared the number of rejected sources from the control and Alzheimer groups  with a Wp = 0.05 without correction). Whether on patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, control subjects or when aggregating all subjects, sample entropy always appears as the most powerful feature, with the strongest Z-score and the lowest p-value . The differences between the four markers for rejected and non-rejected sources are illustrated on typical examples on When comparing the control and patient groups before and after the procedure, the Leave-One-Out root mean square error (RMSE) of validation dropped from 0.32 to 0.28 (training RMSE dropped from 0.30 to 0.26). Classification of EEG relative powers after the artifact cleaning procedure was more efficient than before cleaning.We investigated markers that could be used to automatized the three source removal criteria described in etc.)”, is a real challenge, and was the main object of our investigation. Our working hypothesis was that this rule could be implemented based on the statistical properties of the time series. However, note that we do not show the statistic for the third rule only, but for the global combination of the three rules: indeed, almost all the rejected sources are selected by the experts with the combined application of the three rules. For instance, a source with sufficiently high amplitude and a sufficiently abnormal shape was rejected by most experts. However, a source with slightly high amplitude and normal shape may not be rejected by all three experts . We investigated in this manuscript four potential statistical markers in order to characterize the time series, which could provide some information about potentially abnormal shapes in the EEG sources. Our observations are congruent with the existing literature. Kurtosis K is higher for the artifacted source: their distributions are farther from Gaussianity than non-rejected sources [et al. [The third rule, “Abnormal wave shape . In other words, the classifier can automatically detect a subset of suspicious sources, and thereby alleviate the task of the expert who will only need to remove the non-artifacted sources from this selection. Taking into account the fact that the expert labeling is error prone, these results are encouraging.These data were obtained using a strict protocol from Derriford Hospital, Plymouth, UK and had been collected using normal hospital practices . EEGs wex. The linear and instantaneous models of BSS can be formulated as:Blind Source Separation (BSS) consists in recovering a set of unknown sourcesee e.g., ,22,23). The Second-Order Blind Identification (SOBI) algorithm is a well-known blind source separation (BSS) method for source signals with temporal structures and distinct spectra (AR processes). It already proved to be useful in many biomedical applications. A weight-adjusted version of SOBI was suggested in . SOBI joetc.) are removed after visual inspection by three independent experts, according to the following criteria .-Abnormal scalp distribution of the reconstructed channels .-etc.).Abnormal wave shape Dh=lSevcik proposes a double linear transformation of the curve into another normalized metric space, making all axes equal since the topology of a metric space does not change under linear transformation. After this normalization, and taking The measure of Sevcik is approximately equal to the fractal dimension and the approximation improves as  signals ,18,19.In order to control for the predictive power of the statistical markers, we designed a multilayer perceptron . The modIn order to control for the effect of the artifact rejection procedure, we aggregated the Fourier power of each patient and each control subject into five regions . Linear discriminant analysis was applied before and after the artifact rejection procedure. We estimated a Leave-One-Out error : iteratiOur results confirm that SEnt was the best of the four investigated markers. As stated in the introduction, the presence of artifacts in EEG is one of the main reasons of its limited specificity for the diagnostic of Alzheimer’s disease. SEnt was previously shown to decrease significantly for patients suffering from Alzheimer, and could be used as a marker of the pathology . Obvious