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The notion of selective opening attacks (SOAs) was first introduced by Dwork et al. at FOCS'99. Informally, an encryption scheme is SOA secure if an adversary is given a vector of ciphertexts and can adaptively corrupt some fraction of them by obtaining not only their messages but also their randomness, the uncorrupted ciphertexts retain secure. Provably achieving security against SOA has been proven extremely challenging. In this paper, we propose a security model to capture simulation‐based selective opening chosen‐plaintext attacks (SIM‐SO‐CPA) for certificateless encryption. We provide a concrete construction and prove its security in our simulation‐based selective opening chosen‐plaintext attack security model, based on the real or random and computational Diffie–Hellman assumptions. Compared with previous SOA‐secure public key encryption and identity‐based encryption, our certificateless encryption scheme is more simple and efficient. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Background The C‐reactive protein (CRP)/albumin (Alb) ratio (CAR) is a basic inflammatory factor that has been related to poor survival of patients with various tumors. Our research retrospectively examined the relationship between the CAR and the prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods This study included 172 patients with HCC who were treated with transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) and radiofrequency ablation (RFA). Results The CAR was weakly related to the neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR, r = .159, P = .037) and the lymphocyte/monocyte ratio (LMR, r = −.263, P = .001). The Glasgow Prognostic Score (GPS) (0/1‐2) was related to liver cirrhosis (P = .003), tumor number (P = .02), Child‐Pugh grade (P = .001), the platelet/lymphocyte ratio (PLR, P = .006), and the LMR (P = .021). Correlation analysis demonstrated that an elevated CAR was markedly correlated with the tumor size (P = .019), alpha‐fetoprotein (AFP) level (P = .033), thrombosis of the portal vein (P = .004), the NLR (P = .036), and the LMR (P = .001). Multivariate analysis indicated that the prognosis of the CAR‐High and NLR‐High cohort (mOS = 7 months) was significantly worse than those of the CAR‐High or NLR‐High cohort (mOS = 15 months) and the CAR‐Low and NLR‐Low cohort (mOS = 26.5 months). Conclusions Combination of the NLR and the CAR represents a convenient, quick, and noninvasive biological marker that could improve prognostic prediction in patients with HCC.

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Long Y, et al. An efficient pairing-free certificateless signature scheme for resource-limited systems.

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Background Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) ranks fifth among malignancies globally. Previous studies have shown that systemic inflammatory response, platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR) are associated with poor prognosis of various types of cancer. Materials and methods Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) was performed using an internal cooling electrode with a 2- or 3-cm exposed tip. The LMR was calculated as the ratio of lymphocytes to monocytes. In order to explore the influence of pretreatment with PLR and LMR on survival of HCC patients undergoing transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) and RFA, 204 cases with HCC which accepted RFA and TACE were retrospectively analyzed and assigned into 2 groups based on optimal cutoff values for LMR (low: ≤2.13 or high: >2.13) and PLR (low: ≤95.65 or high: >95.65). Results Patients with a lower PLR had a longer overall survival (OS) compared to those with a higher PLR (median OS, 20 versus 13 months), and patients with a higher LMR had a longer OS than those with a lower LMR (OS, 22 versus 10 months). Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed using Cox proportional hazards regression analysis for multiple prognostic factors and identified PLR and LMR as prognostic factors for OS of HCC cases. Conclusion We conclude that PLR and LMR, whose detection is generally available and affordable, may be novel noninvasive circulating markers to potentially assist doctors assess the prognosis of patients.

Clinical observation of eight patients with superficial stromal precipitation of calcium phosphate is presented. In all cases the predisposing factors for the formation of these depositions were: epithelial defects and the combined use of topical dexamethasone phosphate or prednisolone phosphate with topical beta-blocking agents. In two patients the medication that gave rise to these precipitates was used without preservatives, suggesting that the medication itself and not the preservatives contribute to the deposits. Discontinuance of simultaneous administration of the steroids and beta-blocking agents prevented further formation of precipitates. The authors suggest an interaction between simultaneously given steroid and beta-blocking agents, giving rise to calcium phosphate precipitates when an epithelial defect is present which allows easy access to the superficial corneal stroma.