الصفحة 1
الصفحة 1
Vaccine Adjuvants
The authors lay down a rational basis for vaccine adjuvant function and analyze a number of significantly distinct adjuvant-active molecules to illuminate the principles of their function and use. The focus is on specific receptor-ligand interactions, including the molecular features needed for a compound to possess adjuvant activity. The critical interface zone between the innate and adaptive immune systems is also analyzed to show how adjuvants exert their effects on T- and B-cell activation. Additional chapters address the possibility of tailoring adjuvants to yield optimally safe and effective responses.
Theory of Evolutionary Computation : Recent Developments in Discrete Optimization
Reports on recent developments in the theory of evolutionary computation, or more generally the domain of randomized search heuristics. It starts with two chapters on mathematical methods that are often used in the analysis of randomized search heuristics, followed by three chapters on how to measure the complexity of a search heuristic: black-box complexity, a counterpart of classical complexity theory in black-box optimization; parameterized complexity, aimed at a more fine-grained view of the difficulty of problems; and the fixed-budget perspective, which answers the question of how good a solution will be after investing a certain computational budget. The book then describes theoretical results on three important questions in evolutionary computation: how to profit from changing the parameters during the run of an algorithm; how evolutionary algorithms cope with dynamically changing or stochastic environments; and how population diversity influences performance. Finally, the book looks at three algorithm classes that have only recently become the focus of theoretical work: estimation-of-distribution algorithms; artificial immune systems; and genetic programming.
Sugar substitute stevia
Added sugars are a controversial and hotly debated topic. Consumption of added sugars has been implicated in increased risk of a variety of chronic diseases including obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) as well as cognitive decline and even some cancers. Stevia is a naturally sourced, zero-calorie sweetener that has been used as a natural sugar substitute and flavoring ingredient for hundreds of years...
Stress and immunity
Many people have experienced the connection between stress and getting sick. Colds, influenza, herpes and allergies seem worse when we are severely stressed at work or in the home. Others are never sick until they go on vacation (that is, after the stress is over), and then they spend the whole time fighting the virus. Because of intrinsic connections like these, many researchers are today exploring whether (and how) stress and illness are actually linked. One specific focus of this research is to study the effects of stress on the immune systems; after all, if stress affects immunity, that would be one way in which stress could contribute to illness. The function of the immune system is to protect us from organisms that cause disease, and from other materials that would be harmful to the body. Cells of the immune system (i.e., white blood cells) circulate throughout the body in the blood and are also located in various organs, including the bone marrow, thymus, lymph nodes and spleen. There are a number of different kinds of white blood cells, but the most important in this context are lymphocytes.
Specialization and Complementation of Humoral Immune Responses to Infection
In recent years the results of past studies on T cell dependent and T cell independent antibody responses have coalesced with discoveries regarding the roles of various primary B cell subsets and components of the innate immune system in conferring resistance to infectious pathogens. As a consequence, a new and more complete understanding of how antibody-mediated resistance to pathogens is elaborated has emerged. The recent explosion of knowledge of Toll-like receptor specificity and function has further embellished this understanding. It is now clear that there is not only extensive overlap and cross-complementarity in the action of innate and adaptive immune systems, but also specialization of function of the various B cell subsets and the types of antibodies they produce. This synergistic interaction of multiple components of these systems is perhaps best exemplified in antibody responses to bacteria.
Product-Focused Software Process Improvement ; 9th International Conference, PROFES 2008 Monte Porzio Catone, Italy, June 23-25, 2008 Proceedings
The papers address different development modes, roles in the value chain, stakeholders’ viewpoints, collaborative development, as well as economic and quality aspects. The papers are organized in topical sections on quality and measurement, cost estimation, capability and maturity models, systems and software quality, software process improvement, lessons learned and best practices, and agile software development.
Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP): Therapy and Applications
Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) is a portion of the plasma fraction of autologous blood with a platelet concentration above the baseline with the full complement of growth factors and other plasma proteins, the purpose of this research is to evaluate and summarize literature, with particular focus on rejuvenation process, these include regeneration of soft tissue, skin aging mechanisms, as well as wound healing and a study reported in burns. Emerging autologous cellular therapies that utilize platelet-rich plasma (PRP) applications have the potential to play adjunctive roles in a variety of regenerative medicine treatment plans. There is a global unmet need for tissue repair strategies to treat musculoskeletal, osteoarthritis (OA), and patients with chronic complex and recalcitrant wounds.
Parallel Problem Solving from Nature - PPSN X ; 10th International Conference, Dortmund, Germany, September 13-17, 2008. Proceedings
Constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Parallel Problem Solving from Nature, PPSN 2008, held in Dortmund, Germany, in September 2008.The 114 revised full papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 206 submissions. The conference covers a wide range of topics, such as evolutionary computation, quantum computation, molecular computation, neural computation, artificial life, swarm intelligence, artificial ant systems, artificial immune systems, self-organizing systems, emergent behaviors, and applications to real-world problems. The paper are organized in topical sections on formal theory, new techniques, experimental analysis, multiobjective optimization, hybrid methods, and applications.
Neural Nets ; 16th Italian Workshop on Neural Nets, WIRN 2005, International workshop on natural and artificial immune systems, NAIS 2005, Vietri sul Mare, Italy, June 8-11, 2005, Revised Selected Papers
This book constitutes the thoroughly refereed postproceedings of the 16th Italian Workshop on Neural Nets, WIRN 2005, as well as the satellite International Workshop on Natural and Artificial Immune Systems, NAIS 2005, held in Vietri sul Mare, Italy in June 2005. The 41 revised papers presented together with a lecture by the winner of the Premio Caianiello award were carefully reviewed and improved during two rounds of selection and refereeing.
Nature Inspired Cooperative Strategies for Optimization (NICSO 2007)
The aim for NICSO 2007 was to provide a forum were the latest ideas and state of the art research related to cooperative strategies for problem solving arising from Nature could be discussed. The contributions collected in this book were strictly peer reviewed by at least three members of the international programme committee, to whom we are indebted for their support and assistance. The topics covered by the contributions include several well established nature inspired techniques like Genetic Algorithms, Ant Colonies, Artificial Immune Systems, Evolutionary Robotics, Evolvable Systems, Membrane Computing, Quantum Computing, Software Self Assembly, Swarm Intelligence, etc.
Mathematics for Life Science and Medicine
Dynamical systems theory in mathematical biology has attracted much attention from many scientific directions. The purpose of this volume is to present and discuss the many rich properties of the dynamical systems that appear in life science and medicine. The main topics include cancer treatment, dynamics of paroxysmal tachycardia, vector disease models, epidemic diseases and metapopulations, immune systems, pathogen competition and coexistence and the evolution of virulence and the rapid evolution of viruses within a host. Each chapter will serve to introduce students and scholars to the state-of-the-art in an exciting area, to present new results, and to inspire future contributions to mathematical modeling in life science and medicine.
In Silico Immunology
"in silico Immunology" is a book for the future: it will summarize these emergent disciplines and, while focusing on cutting edge developments, will address the issue of synergy as it shows how these three are set to transform immunological science and the future of health care.
Fuzzy systems and knowledge discovery ; Vol. 3614 ; 2nd International Conference, FSKD 2005, Changsha, China, August 27-29, 2005, Proceedings, Part II
This book and its sister volume, LNAI 3613 and 3614, constitute the proce- ings of the Second International Conference on Fuzzy Systems and Knowledge Discovery (FSKD 2005), jointly held with the First International Conference on Natural Computation (ICNC 2005, LNCS 3610, 3611, and 3612) from - gust 27–29, 2005 in Changsha, Hunan, China. FSKD 2005 successfully attracted 1249 submissions from 32 countries/regions (the joint ICNC-FSKD 2005 received 3136 submissions). After rigorous reviews, 333 high-quality papers, i. e. , 206 long papers and 127 short papers, were included in the FSKD 2005 proceedings, r- resenting an acceptance rate of 26. 7%. The ICNC-FSKD 2005 conference featured the most up-to-date research - sults in computational algorithms inspired from nature, including biological, e- logical, and physical systems. It is an exciting and emerging interdisciplinary area in which a wide range of techniques and methods are being studied for dealing with large, complex, and dynamic problems. The joint conferences also promoted cross-fertilization over these exciting and yet closely-related areas, which had a signi?cant impact on the advancement of these important technologies. Speci?c areas included computation with words, fuzzy computation, granular com- tation, neural computation, quantum computation, evolutionary computation, DNA computation, chemical computation, information processing in cells and tissues, molecular computation, arti?cial life, swarm intelligence, ants colony, arti?cial immune systems, etc. , with innovative applications to knowledge d- covery, ?nance, operations research, and more.
Fuzzy systems and knowledge discovery ; Vol. 3613 ; 2nd International Conference, FSKD 2005, Changsha, China, August 27-29, 2005, Proceedings, Part I
This book and its sister volume, LNAI 3613 and 3614, constitute the proce- ings of the Second International Conference on Fuzzy Systems and Knowledge Discovery (FSKD 2005), jointly held with the First International Conference on Natural Computation (ICNC 2005, LNCS 3610, 3611, and 3612) from - gust 27–29, 2005 in Changsha, Hunan, China. FSKD 2005 successfully attracted 1249 submissions from 32 countries/regions (the joint ICNC-FSKD 2005 received 3136 submissions). After rigorous reviews, 333 high-quality papers, i. e. , 206 long papers and 127 short papers, were included in the FSKD 2005 proceedings, r- resenting an acceptance rate of 26. 7%. The ICNC-FSKD 2005 conference featured the most up-to-date research - sults in computational algorithms inspired from nature, including biological, e- logical, and physical systems. It is an exciting and emerging interdisciplinary area in which a wide range of techniques and methods are being studied for dealing with large, complex, and dynamic problems. The joint conferences also promoted cross-fertilization over these exciting and yet closely-related areas, which had a signi?cant impact on the advancement of these important technologies. Speci?c areas included computation with words, fuzzy computation, granular com- tation, neural computation, quantum computation, evolutionary computation, DNA computation, chemical computation, information processing in cells and tissues, molecular computation, arti?cial life, swarm intelligence, ants colony, arti?cial immune systems, etc. , with innovative applications to knowledge d- covery, ?nance, operations research, and more.
Evolvable systems : From biology to hardware ; 7th International Conference, ICES 2007, Wuhan, China, September 21-23, 2007, Proceedings
The 41 revised full papers collected in this volume are organized in topical sections on digital hardware evolution, analog hardware evolution, bio-inspired systems, mechanical hardware evolution, evolutionary design, evolutionary algorithms in hardware design, and hardware implementation of evolutionary algorithms.
Evolvable systems : From biology to hardware ; 6th International Conference, ICES 2005, Sitges, Spain, September 12-14, 2005, Proceedings
The flying machines proposed by Leonardo da Vinci in the fifteenth century, the se- reproducing automata theory proposed by John von Neumann in the middle of the twentieth century and the current possibility of designing electronic and mechanical systems using evolutionary principles are all examples of the efforts made by humans to explore the mechanisms present in biological systems that permit them to tackle complex tasks. These initiatives have recently given rise to the emergent field of b- inspired systems and evolvable hardware. The inaugural workshop, Towards Evolvable Hardware, took place in Lausanne in October 1995, followed by the successive events of the International Conference on Evolvable Systems: From Biology to Hardware, held in Tsukuba (Japan) in October 1996, in Lausanne (Switzerland) in September 1998, in Edinburgh (UK) in April 2000, in Tokyo (Japan) in October 2001, and in Trondheim (Norway) in March 2003. Following the success of these past events the sixth international conference was aimed at presenting the latest developments in the field, bringing together researchers who use biologically inspired concepts to implement real systems in artificial intelligence, artificial life, robotics, VLSI design, and related domains. The sixth conference consolidated this biennial event as a reference meeting for the community involved in bio-inspired systems research. All the papers received were reviewed by at least three independent reviewers, thus guaranteeing a high-quality bundle for ICES 2005.
Computational Intelligence in Multimedia Processing : Recent Advances
This book presents a large number of interesting applications to intelligent multimedia processing of various Computational Intelligence techniques, such as rough sets, Neural Networks; Fuzzy Logic; Evolutionary Computing; Artificial Immune Systems; Swarm Intelligence; Reinforcement Learning and evolutionary computation.
Computational intelligence ; Vol. 174 : Engineering of hybrid systems
Hybrid Intelligent Systems has become an important research topic in computer science and a key application field in science and engineering. This book offers a gentle introduction to the engineering aspects of hybrid intelligent systems, also emphasizing the interrelation with the main intelligent technologies such as genetic algorithms? evolutionary computation, neural networks, fuzzy systems, evolvable hardware, DNA computing, artificial immune systems. A unitary whole of theory and application, the book provides readers with the fundamentals, background information, and practical methods.
Computational intelligence : Principles, techniques and applications
The book Computational Intelligence: Principles, Techniques and Applications presents both theories and applications of Computational Intelligence in a clear, precise and highly comprehensive style. The textbook addresses the fundamental aspects of Fuzzy Sets and Logic, Neural Networks, Evolutionary Computing and Belief Networks. The application areas include Fuzzy Databases, Fuzzy Control, Image Understanding, Expert Systems, Object Recognition, Criminal Investigation, Telecommunication Networks and Intelligent Robots. The book contains many numerical examples and homework problems with sufficient hints so that the students can solve them on their own. Emerging areas of Computational Intelligence such as artificial life, particle swarm optimization, artificial immune systems, fuzzy chaos theory, rough sets and granular computing have also been addressed with examples in this book. The book ends with a discussion on a number of open- ended research problems in Computational Intelligence. Graduate students interested to pursue their research in this subject will greatly be benefited with these problems.
Communication in Plants : Neuronal Aspects of Plant Life
Plant neurobiology is a newly emerging field of plant sciences. It covers signalling and communication at all levels of biological organization – from molecules up to ecological communities. In this book, plants are presented as intelligent and social organisms with complex forms of communication and information processing. Authors from diverse backgrounds such as molecular and cellular biology, electrophysiology, as well as ecology treat the most important aspects of plant communication, including the plant immune system, abilities of plants to recognize self, signal transduction, receptors, plant neurotransmitters and plant neurophysiology. Further, plants are able to recognize the identity of herbivores and organize the defence responses accordingly. The similarities in animal and plant neuronal/immune systems are discussed too. All these hidden aspects of plant life and behaviour will stimulate further intense investigations in order to understand the communicative plants in their whole complexity.
