Americas Juvenile Justice System Essay - 3756 Words

The Juvenile Justice system, since its conception over a century ago, has been one at conflict with itself. Originally conceived as a fatherly entity intervening into the lives of the troubled urban youths, it has since been transformed into a rigid and adversarial arena restrained by the demands of personal liberty and due process. The nature of a juveniles experience within the juvenile justice system has come almost full circle from being treated as an adult, then as an unaccountable child, now almost as an adult once more. Studies and anecdotes have shown that our modern approach, however, is ill-equipped to reduce crime or deal with chronic delinquents while at the same time protecting their due liberties. We now stand on the†¦show more content†¦Colonists placed their children either in the homes of others or, as technology enabled the industrial revolution, in factories and other locations of modern industry near the home. Writes Feld, ?The coterminous location of home and workplace and the limited range of occupations enabled young people to learn most of their required economic skills either from their parents or from surrounding adults and quickly to achieve adult productivity,? (21). More importantly, children from a relatively young age were expected to assume adult culpability for crimes they committed. Punishments for children rivaled those for adults. As time marched on, childhood became a socially constructed stage of life. Coupled with a rise in the traditional family view of domesticity (men at work, women isolated as homemakers), new concepts of child rearing took hold in the middle and upper classes. Instead of exposing children to the world, ?Deferral of adult responsibilities rather than assumption of adult roles became the child-rearing norm,? writes Feld (30). The ?child saving? movement worked to segregate children from society both directly and indirectly. These protective measures were based chiefly on middle class, protestant, white, rural idealists who viewed childhood as a stage of moral immaturity and impressionability. ?Progressive reformers implemented a variety of child-saving strategiesShow MoreRelatedBook Review for: No Matter How Loud I Shout, by Edward Humes Essay879 Words   |  4 Pageslife of juvenile court. New York, NY: Simon amp; Schuster Paperbacks. Edward Humes is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, non-fiction, and true crime writer. Of his twelve books, five involve the criminal justice system. In this work, Humes takes on the sizeable task of examining the complicated juvenile justice system, chronicling the stories of several juvenile offenders and juvenile justice officials, and how they navigate the confusing and often arbitrary laws of the California juvenile justiceRead More Juvenile Justice Essay881 Words   |  4 Pages Juvenile Justice nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;The Juvenile Justice System as it typically functions in Americas thousands of jurisdictions is the subject that will be covered. The Juvenile Justice System is defined as that quot;sociolegal process having responsibility and authority for public reaction to current juvenile delinquency and deterrence of future juvenile delinquency, including within that process the public and private agents, agencies, laws, rules, and policies having to do withRead MoreThe Issues Of The Juvenile Justice Act820 Words   |  4 Pagesfor its contrasting position on the youth justice system, contravening with the Conventions of the Right of the Child (CRC) and disregarding recommendations made by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). The Juvenile Justice Act 1992 (QLD) is particularly scrutinized for containing legislation that states 17 year olds can be charged, tried and detained as an adults, giving courts the potential to overcharge punishments for juveniles and threaten their safety in adult prisonsRead MoreEssay on Life Without Parole for Juveniles956 Words   |  4 Pagesthe use of life without parole for juveniles who committed non-homicide crimes, and Roper v. Simmons (2005) abolished the use of the death penalty for juvenile offenders. They both argued that these sentences violated the 8th Amendment, which prohibits cruel and unusual pun ishment. While these landmark cases made great strides for the rights of minors passing through the criminal justice system, they are just the first steps in creating a juvenile justice system that takes into consideration the vastRead MoreAmerica s Juvenile Justice System Essay1678 Words   |  7 PagesAmerica’s juvenile justice system has been around for ages and has had problems since its creation. The courts have failed to devise a way to help juveniles and keep them from even entering the justice system. More often than not, juveniles are forgotten and never dealt with until they reach the point where they are either going to be placed within the system or receive some sort of diversion or alternative. This is where the problem exists. There needs to be more communication between the differentRead MoreBurning Down The House By Neil Bernstein761 Words   |  4 Pages Burning Down the House Review America’s answer for dealing with crime prevention is locking up adult offenders in correctional facilities with little rehabilitation for reentry into society. American response for crime prevention for juvenile’s offenders is the same strategy used against adult offenders taken juvenile offenders miles away from their environment and placed in adult like prisons. However the way juvenile our house and treated while in the care of state corrections officer isRead MoreJuvenile Rehabilitation: Adult Prison vs. Juvenile Incarceration1703 Words   |  7 PagesJuvenile Rehabilitation: Adult Prisons vs. Juvenile Incarceration Maureen Fries-Labra English 122 Anna Hopson December 14, 2009 Juvenile Rehabilitation: Adult Prisons vs. Juvenile Incarceration The criminal justice system has a branch for juvenile offenders. Established in the early twentieth century; it is the responsibility of this division to decide the fates of youthful offenders. This is administered by family court with support of social workers and family. With the increased numberRead MoreEssay on The History and Evolution of the Juvenile Justice System1368 Words   |  6 PagesThe history of the juvenile justice system is a mixture of the criminal justice system, family court, child protective services, social services, orphanages, adoption and humanitarian growth. (Schmalleger, 2007) Where a child fit into the system would depend on the crime, family pedigree, financial standing, color and social status. Children of color would be treated harsher than whites, Indian children were treated worse than African American Children, and status was determined by the color ofRead MoreCriminal Law Foundations Essay examples1543 Words   |  7 PagesCriminal Law Foundati ons Megan Ray CJA/484 April 7, 2012 Terri Madison Criminal Law Foundations Every system has a foundation that it builds off of even the criminal justice system. America finds governmental and legal foundations within the Constitution and the Bill of Rights; as time has gone by there have been amendments added to these important documents. These amendments help to support the constitution as well as the Bill of Rights. The Amendments make articles withinRead MoreJuvenile Justice System Essay1694 Words   |  7 PagesThe juvenile justice system is a foundation in society that is granted certain powers and responsibilities. It faces several different tasks, among the most important is maintaining order and preserving constitutional rights. When a juvenile is arrested and charged with committing a crime there are many different factors that will come in to play during the course of his arrest, trial, conviction, sentencing, and rehabilitation process. This paper examines the Juvenile Justice System’s court process

Human Resource Management ( Hrm ) Essay - 2085 Words

Introduction Human Resource Management (HRM) can be described as the term that is used to define formal systems developed for the administration of people/ personnel within the organization. The major responsibilities of the Human Resource are normally divided into three major areas of management: employee compensation, staffing the employees, and defining/designing work. Fundamentally, the major purpose of Human Resource Management is to make the most of the productivity of an organization by improving the efficiency of its staffs. The Human Resource comes across numerous issues and challenges, and in order to solve those issues, the HR managers have to take specific steps. In this paper, I am describing a particular issue related to Human Resource Management, which I have witnessed and I am intended to solve through my strategic and organizational point of view (Simons, 2011). Issue in the Organization The organization where I work is related to both manufacturing and customer service. I had heard about many issues happening within the organization. However, the most significant issue that I noticed/ observed in the Organization was related to the Human Resource Management. The customers often complained that they are not satisfied from the services being provided to them, which was majorly due to lack of capability of the employees to treat customers in a right way. They did not know what to do and when to do. Also, I noticed that most of the employees seemedShow MoreRelatedHuman Resource Management ( Hrm )1508 Words   |  7 Pagesâ€Å"Human resource management (HRM) is the managing of human skills and talents to make sure they are used effectively and in alignment with an organization’s goals† (Youssef, 2012). The primary role of human resource management is to plan, develop, and order policies and programmers designed to make prompt use of an organizationâ€℠¢s human resources. It is that part of management which is concerned with the people at work and with their relationship within an organization. I currently work for a HumanRead MoreHuman Resource Management ( Hrm )1552 Words   |  7 PagesHuman Resource Management (HRM) is the function within an association that has emphases on the employment of, administration of, and providing direction for the employees within an organization. The Human Resource Management department members deliver knowledge, training, tools, administrative services, and lawful and organization advice. The HRM department is organized by very talented managers who has a mission to make sure the rest of the business has the needs for successful operation. HumanRead MoreHuman Resource Management ( Hrm )1562 Words   |  7 PagesHuman resource management (HRM) is an important strategic and systematic approach that provides each company with the opportunity to create policies and practices, as well as to establis h administrative forms (Pfeffer, 2007). According to Armstrong (2009) HRM is an approach that deals with ‘employment, development, and well-being of the people working in organizations’. However HRM has evolved significantly through the years due to the rapid social, economic, political and environmental changes.Read MoreHuman Resource Management ( Hrm )1142 Words   |  5 Pageshe HRM Process Human Resource Management (HRM) is a combination of elements that work interdependently on each other to carry out the daily functions within an organization. Human Resources Management operates in several roles serving as a liaison between the organization and the employee. This dual role often present challenges within HRM; therefore it is vital the HRM Department is skilled on various issues that may arise on a daily basis within an organization. In this paper, I will discussRead MoreHuman Resource Management ( Hrm )1105 Words   |  5 PagesHuman Resource Management (HRM) is the function within an association that has emphases on the employment of, administration of, and providing direction for the employees within an organization. The Human Resource Management department members deliver knowledge, training, tools, administrative services, and lawful and organization advice. The HRM department is organized by very talented managers who has a mission to make sure the rest o f the business has the needs for successful operation. HumanRead MoreHuman Resource Management : Hrm772 Words   |  4 Pagesa brief description of the models of HRM discussed in the first chapter of the textbook, and explain how each one relates to strategic human resource management. Human Resource Management (HRM) at its best seeks to manage people and resources to maximize economic and social outputs. Social output resulting from providing opportunity for advancement will ultimately make employees become true participants in the company. Bratton and Gold (2012) outline six HRM models, they are: the Forbrum, TichyRead MoreHrm And The And Human Resource Management1094 Words   |  5 PagesIntroduction The main purpose to write this essay is to analogize the differences in the field of HRM and IR. The Foundation of Industrial Relations and Human Resource Management is based on intense academic study. The essay is an endeavor to illustrate by scrutinizing their objectives and the viewpoints or the approaches of this field. The first part of the essay is an attempt to define HRM and IR and it further continues to explain the differences and similarities between the two. In the lastRead MoreHuman Resource Management ( Hrm )1405 Words   |  6 PagesHuman Resource Management (HRM) seeks to manage people and resources to maximize economic and social outputs. Bratton and Gold (2012) outline six HRM models which include: the Forbrum, Tichy and Devanna model, the Harvard model, the Guest model, the Warwick model, The Storey model, and Ulrich’s Strategic Partner model of HRM. Forbrum Tichy and Devanna model of HRM is based on the principle of selecting, appraising, developing and rewarding employees who fulfill management strategic business interestsRead MoreHuman Resource Management ( Hrm )2412 Words   |  10 Pages these human traits can bring considerable benefits to organizations† (Mullins 1999). However, when managed poorly they have the potential to limit organizational growth and threaten the viability of a business. â€Å"There are countless examples of corporate and project crises in the construction sector which have arisen as the result of people s behaviour, and it would seem that human resource management (HRM) has the potential to eliminate more construction risks than any other management approach†Read MoreHuman Resources Management ( Hrm ) Essay794 Words   |  4 Pages Human Resources Management (HRM) is people who work in an organization. The manager is a person who manages people, leads, facilitates and provide tools for the organization. Human resources management also, sets strategic processes and procedures, run difficult and complex communication as the organization attracts the best talents from the recruiting process. Human resources management is where everything begins and ends for an individual and the organization. Consequently

Carbohydrate and Peptide †Based Vaccines The Way Forward Free Essays

string(85) " being developed against certain types of pneumococci \(Francis and Tillett, 1930\)\." Abstract Existing treatments and therapies have supported a huge variety of diseases and infections, a significant example being antibiotics. However the increasing presence of multi-resistant bacteria, as well as increased changes observed in the mechanisms responsible for variation in viruses, involving accumulation of mutations within the genes that code for antibody-binding sites (known as antigenic drift), has resulted in these new strains not being inhibited as effectively by those treatments that originally targeted them (Reche, Fernandez-Caldas, Flower, Fridkis-Hareli and Hoshino, 2014). The knock-on effect has been that the bacteria or virus is able to spread more easily, and therapeutic treatments (used after a person contracts a disease), become less effective, unable to work by boosting the host’s own immune system. We will write a custom essay sample on Carbohydrate and Peptide – Based Vaccines: The Way Forward or any similar topic only for you Order Now As a result, it has been recognised that the vaccine offers the advantage of preventing the anticipation of disease occurrence, using advance action to counteract infection and chronic illness. Prophylactic, and to a lesser extent therapeutic, vaccines are the most cost-effective and efficient alternative to other treatments and prevention of infectious and chronic diseases. They work by causing changes to the T- and B-cells of the adaptive immune system to eliminate or prevent pathogen growth (Plotkin, Orenstein, and Offit, 2013). Going back to the introduction of vaccines more than 200 years ago, these were initially composed of killed pathogens, which although successful, also caused unacceptably high levels of adverse reactions. During the years of research that have since followed, as with the changes observed with antibiotics and other treatments becoming less effective, the need for safer and more effective vaccines has also been acknowledged. In addition, an improved underst anding of antigen presentation and subsequent recognition has supported the development of newer vaccine types (Flower, 2013). Equally, whilst many diseases and infections are controlled by vaccines, for some, no vaccines have been developed, including Streptococcus pyogenes, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) (Wang and Walfield, 2005; Barrett and Stanberry, 2009). Efforts to develop new vaccines are discussed in more details, with a focus on peptide-based and carbohydrate-based vaccines. Challenges are also discussed, leading to a summary of the potential direction of vaccination and research, which describes a promising future. Peptide-based vaccines An example of a newer category of vaccine is peptide-based vaccines. Peptides are short sequences of proteins, and diseases/infections use these proteins as part of their attack on the immune system. In many cases, the immune system has the ability to recognise the proteins associated with an attack by disease or infectious causing pathogens and can respond effectively. However as observed with many cancers, HIV, HCV and other conditions, an effective immune response is not triggered, hence the need for newer vaccine developments including those based on peptides, which encompass single proteins or synthetic peptides encompassing many antigenic determinants (B- and T-cell epitopes) (Flower, 2013). Peptide vaccines are a type of subunit vaccine, which presents an antigen to the immune system, using the peptide of the original pathogen, supporting immunity. Such peptide-based vaccines avoid the adverse effects described with traditional whole-organism vaccines (Moisa and Kolesanova, 20 12) with additional benefits also noted (Ben-Yedidia and Arnon, 1997), including: The absence of infectious material An immune response that is specific, focusing only on the targeted epitope, with the induction of site-specific antibodies No risk of an immune attack or cross-reactivity with the host tissues Flexibility, with an ability to modify products accordingly Improved effectiveness in relation to manufacturing on a large scale, and long-term storage where necessary e.g. a pandemic. However, a number of difficulties have been encountered during the development of such vaccines (Simerska, Moyle and Toth, 2011; Dudek, Perlmutter, Aguilar, Croft and Purcell, 2010) including: A short biological activity of peptides due to degradation by enzymes The trigger of a weak immune response when used alone i.e. single peptides Finding optimal delivery systems. As a result, and to overcome the difficulties mentioned above, synthetic peptide vaccines have been developed, on the basis that a greater more accurately targeted immune response will be achieved. Peptide antigens are not immunogenic by themselves, so this has led to investigations into co-administration of subunit peptide antigens with adjuvants (immunostimulants) to increase the peptide-induced responses to corresponding antigens. Appropriate delivery systems and often toxic adjuvants have demonstrated effective immunity, however, although many adjuvants are described in the literature, only a few have been approved for use with vaccines for delivery in humans due to their toxicity and include water/oil emulsions, liposomes, and bacterial lipophilic compounds to offer a few examples (Heegaard et. al., 2010). Incomplete Freund’s adjuvant (IFA) and Montanide ISA (both oil-based) have been used in clinical trials. Focusing on liposomes as another example, researchers have demo nstrated that use of lipid core peptide (LCP) technology (lipidation of peptides) improves the effectiveness of a self-adjuvanting vaccine delivery system, targeting a specific disease and triggering an effective immune response. This system provides a promising platform for human vaccine development (Zhong, Skwarczynski and Toth, 2009; Moyle and Toth, 2008). In animal models, peptide vaccines have been effective in generating the required immune response, and during recent years, peptide-based vaccines have advanced from animal models and pre-clinical studies, to human clinical trials (Yang et al., 2001). Although currently, all known peptide vaccines under development for humans remain at the stage of clinical trials, these trials should build on the promising evidence resulting from research to date of the potential application of vaccine candidates based on a LCP system, as well as other strategies. Prevention of not only many infectious diseases including hepatitis C virus, malaria, human immunodeficiency virus and group A streptococci), but also for cancer immunotherapy and improved allergen specific tolerance, remains an exciting, and very real possibility. Carbohydrate-based vaccines The development of vaccines based on carbohydrates not only has quite a history, but is also an area that is fast moving in the current research world. The literature provides evidence as far back as the early 1900s where researchers discovered a connection between type-specific polysaccharides and the induction of antibodies being developed against certain types of pneumococci (Francis and Tillett, 1930). You read "Carbohydrate and Peptide – Based Vaccines: The Way Forward" in category "Essay examples" This was confirmed by evidence of pneumococcal capsular polysaccharides being used as vaccines, providing effective and long lasting immunity (Heidelberger, Dilapi, Siegel and Walter, 1950). However despite these early findings, the discovery and success of other treatments such as antibiotics and chemotherapeutics led to this area of research being put on hold. As mentioned earlier however, due to increased resistance to existing treatments such as antibiotics, coupled with th e recognition for a need of newer treatments including improved vaccines, renewed interest into preventive vaccines has resulted in novel approaches, which include carbohydrate vaccines. Vaccines are commonly made from weakened pathogens, or, as we now know, other approaches also use immunogenic proteins or polysaccharides. Carbohydrates have been the centre of attention in the research field of vaccination because not only do they exhibit more stability than proteins, but they have roles in both physiology and pathophysiology, including cell interaction and signalling, inflammation, pathogen host adhesion/recognition, to name a few examples (Doshi, Shanbhag, Aggarwal, Shahare and Martis, 2011). During the last ten years or so, they have been used as adjuvants, as carriers for protein antigens to aid immunotherapy, and as targets for vaccines against bacteria. Additionally, as observed with DNA and proteins, carbohydrates are now recognised as biopolymers also, playing a role in many molecular and biological activities (Doshi et. al., 2011). These discoveries, partnered by an improved understanding of the immune system and the identification of specific and relevant carbohydrate structures, led to the development of glycoconjugates, which in turn led to carbohydrate vaccine development (Holemann and Seeberger, 2004). Glycoconjugates are present in the surfaces of cells, as well as in the surrounding extracellular matrices and connective tissue. Therefore both the identified structure and presence of glyconjugates, plus the role they play, means they are a suitable basis for the development of new vaccines. Induction of protective antibodies is key to an effective immune response as a result of a vaccine, and as with peptide vaccines, challenges have been evident in the research to develop effective carbohydrate vaccines, including the following: Glycans struggle to effectively induce protective antibodies Carbohydrates have a low immunogenic impact by themselves (as observed with peptides). There are two main carbohydrate vaccine types: 1. Natural carbohydrate vaccines: these include small amounts of impurities 2. Synthetic carbohydrate vaccines: these are produced with no contaminants, and are cost-effective due large-scale production. Synthetic carbohydrate antigens used to develop vaccines have triggered immune responses in clinical studies and are favourable given the risk of adverse effects with natural vaccines. Four crucial aspects need to be considered for the design of carbohydrate-based vaccines (Astronomo and Burton, 2010): The antigen source: glycan antigens are diverse, ranging from large polysaccharide capsules, to small monosaccharides, to oligosaccharides, all of which have been shown to be adequate for preparation of vaccines. The carrier: this is most often proteins, although other materials have been investigated, with the aim of ensuring that the link between the antigen and the carrier is specific. The method of conjugation (or ligation): protein conjugates, lipid conjugates and polyvalent scaffold conjugates have been developed. The success of a conjugate vaccine depends partly on the method of conjugation employed. This should be simple and efficient, as well as causing minimal distortion to the individual components involved, with many differing techniques used (Zou Jennings, 2009; Ada and Isaacs, 2003). The choice of adjuvant: required to improve immunogenicity of the carbohydrate antigens being targeted, with a limited choice approved for use in humans. Examples of diseases targeted by carbohydrate-based vaccines The discussion will now move on to the use of carbohydrate-based vaccines in three disease areas: Group A Streptococcus (GAS), HIV/AIDS and Haemophilus influenza type b. GAS The need for a safe, effective, affordable and practical vaccine against GAS (also known as Streptococcus pyogenes), has been recognised for many years, as has the research into a vaccine against this disease, given the global burden on health that this disease causes in particular in less developed countries. More than 500,000 deaths result from the GAS each year, with the bacteria causing a range of both less complicated and life-threatening illnesses (Carapetis, Steer, Mulholland and Weber, 2005). The diversity of GAS strains is the major challenge for the development of an anti-GAS vaccine, with more than 100 different strains identified, of which the genetic sequence for several different strains have been determined (Johnson and Pinto, 2002). Research has identified that GAS bacteria contain a surface polysaccharide made up of long, repetitive polysaccharide chains. The conserved and constant arrangement of these chains suggests conjugate vaccines to be an attractive and achiev able option, with animal models supporting this theory (Cunningham, 2000). Synthetic carbohydrate vaccines, although only studied in a limited set of GAS infections, have demonstrated a protective immune response (Robbins et al., 2009). In addition, some areas of research have focused on the molecular analysis of a surface protein labelled the M protein, which is encoded by the emm gene. This particular gene has been found to be the major cause of GAS related clinical manifestations (Smeesters, McMillan and Sriprakash, 2010). These findings have allowed a greater understanding of the functioning of specific proteins responsible for the virulence of the disease, which in turn, supports the development of potential GAS vaccines. Vaccine prevention of GAS and the resulting symptoms and complications has been a goal of researchers for many years. A number of vaccines have been in research development to offer protection against GAS, with the research vaccine strategies focusing on eithe r M protein, or non-M protein antigens (Smeesters, 2014). However only those vaccines that use the M protein as the antigen have progressed to clinical trials (McNeil et. al., 2005), and have included conserved antigens coverage across the many strains of GAS, a type-specific vaccine based on the N-terminal portion of the M protein, and a recombinant vaccine that reached phase II clinical trials (Pandey, Wykes, Hartas, Good and Batzloff, 2013; Bauer, 2012). However no vaccine has currently reached licensing and so the diseases caused remain uncontrolled in many areas, with reviews covering the research suggesting that even those vaccines developed with the aim of providing large coverage of GAS strains, these vaccine might achieve acceptable coverage in developed countries, but in less developed countries where the disease burden is much greater, the positive impact of the vaccines would be much lower due to a greater strain diversity (Smeesters, McMillan, Sriprakash, and Georgousak is, 2009; Steer, Law, Matatolu, Beall and Carapetis, 2009; McMillan and Sanderson, 2013). Equally, antibiotic treatment is either impractical with regards to implementation (specifically in less developed countries) or ineffective. One research group targeted the bacteria by synthesising a new self-adjuvanting vaccine candidate, incorporating a carbohydrate carrier and an amino acid-based adjuvant, resulting in successful synthesis and characterisation of the vaccine candidate. This may contribute to the identification of a safe and effective vaccine against GAS in the future (Simerska et. al., 2008; Simerska, Lu and Toth, 2009). HIV/AIDS One of the main challenges researchers have faced within the field of vaccine development against HIV/AIDS, is that the virus surface is covered with layers of glycans, which conceal underlying viral antigens that are potential good targets in the production of vaccines (Scanlan, Offer, Zitzmann, and Dwek, 2007). They are produced by the host cell, which makes the virus appear as â€Å"self† resulting in no attack being triggered by the host immune system. The layers of carbohydrate also contain mannose residues, making these another potential target for a vaccine aimed at preventing HIV infection, whereby lectins preferentially bind to ? 1-2 linked mannose residues. Such lectins are being investigated as possible therapeutic tools (Tsai et al., 2004) although the fact that lectins are often toxic needs to be researched further to avoid the host immune system damaging host cells. Indeed, other drugs that are known to inhibit synthesis of carbohydrates only have this effect at often toxic concentrations to cause antiviral activity. Another strategy based on the same principle of developing a carbohydrate vaccine, is the identification of antibodies that again recognise and bind to glycans. (Scanlan et al., 2002, Scanlan et al., 2007). The antibody appears to recognize these glycans because although they belong to the host, they are arranged in a â€Å"non-self† manner (Scanlan et al., 2002; Scanlan et al., 2007), making the production of effective ant-HIV vaccines a real possibility, in addition to vaccines for other diseases such as cancer (Galonic and Gin, 2007). Studies have also been described using immune enhancing adjuvants, carrier peptides such as keyhole limpet hemocyanin and altered glycan structure constructs that support immune recognition in the development of vaccines against cancer (Galonic and Gin, 2007). These same strategies are being used in development of possible HIV vaccines, where antibodies target self-carbohydrates arranged slightly differently on cancer cells and HIV-infected cells, in comparison to healthy cells. (Galonic and Gin, 2007). These approaches have not as yet led to clinically effective vaccines, but it is clear that antibodies that strongly bind to carbohydrate antigens on, for example, prostate cancer cells, have been generated (Slovin et al., 2003) and this appears to be a highly promising approach. Further exploration is required based on the carbohydrate coat of the virus, which may lead to improved prevention treatment of HIV. Haemophilus influenza type b The first synthetic vaccine for human application was developed in 2003 for protection against Haemophilus influenza type b vaccine, not only providing protection against this bacterium, but also against all the associated diseases it causes ranging from meningitis, septicaemia, pneumonia and arthritis (Doshi, Shanbhag, Aggarwal, Shahare and Martis, 2011). Indeed this bacterium is the leading cause of serious illnesses in children under 5 years worldwide. The majority of strains of Haemophilus influenza are non-encapsulated, and are lacking in any carbohydrate polysaccharide protective structure, as opposed to the GAS bacteria and HIV virus described earlier. This structural information armed researchers with the knowledge that carbohydrate polysaccharide conjugate vaccines would be required to ensure the development of an effective vaccine (Verez-Bencomo et. al., 2004). As a result, carbohydrate-based vaccines have been licensed for protection in humans against haemophilus influenza type b, using oligomerization and a carrier protein (Doshi et. al., 2011). Evidence of progress To end this section of the discussion, several conjugate polysaccharide carbohydrate vaccines are now well into pre-clinical/clinical development, or have been licensed and are now commercially available. Examples of licensed vaccines include the following (Astronomo and Burton, 2010): Haemophilus influenza type b (Hib) – 4 carbohydrate-based vaccines are licensed via 3 different pharmaceutical companies: ActHIB and Hiberix; Pentacel; PedvaxHIB; and Comvax Neisseria meningitides A, C, Y and W-135 – 2 carbohydrate-based vaccines are licensed via the same pharmaceutical company: Menactra; and Menomune-A/C/Y/W-135 Salmonella typhi – 1 carbohydrate- based vaccine is licensed: TYPHIM Vi Streptococcus pneumonia variants – 2 carbohydrate-based vaccines are licensed via 2 different pharmaceutical companies: Prevnar; and Pneumovax 23. Examples of carbohydrate-based vaccines in development include the following, where the disease is described in addition to the phase of development (Astronomo and Burton, 2010): Breast cancer – with 1 vaccine at the preclinical phase and a second at phase I Prostate cancer – 4 vaccines are in development at the preclinical, phase I and phase II stages HIV-1 – 1 vaccine at the preclinical phase Group A streptococcus – 1 vaccine at the preclinical phase Group B streptococcus – 1 vaccine at phase II. Conclusion It is fact that vaccines have had a major role to play in the success of preventing and treating many diseases, however many challenges remain. Diseases exist for which no effective vaccines have yet been discovered, including HIV/AIDs. In addition, diseases that have been controlled by vaccines in some parts of the world continue to affect the lives of people adversely in other areas where infrastructures for vaccination are poor/non-existent. Continued research is necessary to develop vaccines not only for those diseases with no vaccine available, but also to improve the effectiveness of existing vaccines. In addition to research focusing on novel and promising approaches such as carbohydrate and peptide based vaccines, efforts also need to concentrate on areas such as lower cost, more convenient delivery of vaccines, and longer-term protection. The future direction of research in this field has become focused with the help of new evidence-based information and promising data. The advent of synthetic peptide-based and carbohydrate-based vaccines signified a new era for vaccines, over-taking traditional treatments and vaccines which have become either ineffective or only offer short term protection. As the discussion demonstrates, a number of vaccines are already successfully protecting humans against some pathogens and disease, with the potential for further vaccines to follow. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, it should be remembered that unlike drug-based medicines, vaccines primarily offer a cure, a goal all aim to achieve. Word count: 3130 (excluding references) References Ada, G. Isaacs, D. (2003). Carbohydrate-protein conjugate vaccines. Clinical Microbiology and Infection. 9(2): p. 79-85. Astronomo, R.D. Burton, D.R. (2010). Carbohydrate vaccines: developing sweet solutions to sticky situationsNature Reviews: Drug Discovery. 9: p. 30-324. Barrett, A.D.T. Stanberry, L.R. (Eds.). (2009). Vaccines for Biodefense and Emerging and Neglected Diseases. Elsevier Inc., ISBN 978-0-3-69408-9. Bauer M.J., Georgousakis M.M., Vu T., Henningham A., Hofmann A., Rettel M., Hafner L.M., Sriprakash K.S. McMillan D.J. (2012). Evaluation of novel streptococcus pyogenes vaccine candidates incorporating multiple conserved sequences from the C-repeat region of the M-protein. Vaccine. 30(12): p. 2197-2205. Ben-Yedidia, T. Arnon, R. (1997). Design of Peptide and Polypeptide Vaccines. Curr. Opin. Biotech. 8(4): p. 442-448). Carapetis, J.R., Steer, A.C., Mulholland E.K. Weber, M. (2005). The global burden of group A streptococcal diseases. Lancet Infect Dis. 5(11): p. 685-694. Cunningham M. (2000). Pathogenesis of group A streptococcal infections. Clin Microbiol Rev. 13: p. 470-511. Doshi, G.M., Shanbhag, P.P., Aggarwal, G.V., Shahare, M.D. Martis, E.A. Carbohydrate Vaccines- A burgeoning field of Glycomics. Journal of Applied Pharmaceutical Science 1(02): p. 17-22. Dudek, N.L., Perlmutter, P., Aguilar, M.I., Croft, N.P. Purcell, A.W. (2010). Epitope discovery and their use in peptide based vaccines. Curr Pharm Des. 16: p. 3149-3157. Flower, D.R. (2013). Designing immunogenic peptides. Nature Chemical Biology. 9(12): p. 749–753. Francis Jr, T. Tillett, W.S. (1930). Cutaneous reactions in pneumonia. The development of antibodies following the intradermal injection of type-specific polysaccharide. J. Exp. Med. 52: p. 573–585. Galonic, D.P. Gin, D.Y. (2007). Chemical glycosylation in the synthesis of glycoconjugate antitumour vaccines. Nature. 446: p. 1000–7. Heegaard, P.M.H., Dedieu, L., Johnson, N., Le Potier, M-F., Mockey, M., Mutinelli, F., Vahlenkamp, T., Vascellari, M. Sorensen, N.S. (2010). Adjuvants and delivery systems in veterinary vaccinology: current state and future developments. Arch Virol. 156(2):p. 183-202. Heidelberger, M., Dilapi, M.M, Siegel, Walter, A.W. (1950). Persistence of antibodies in human subjects injected with pneumococcal polysaccharides. J. Immunol. 65l: pp. 535–541. Holemann, A. Seeberger, P. (2004). Carbohydrate diversity: Synthesis of glycoconjugates and complex carbohydrates. Curr Opin In Biotech. 15(1): p. 615-622. Johnson, M.A. Pinto, B.M. (2002). Saturation transfer difference 1D-TOCSY experiments to map the topography of oligosacchraides recognised by a monoclonal antibody directed against the cell-wall polysaccharide group A streptococcus. J Am Chem Soc. 124: p. 15368-15374. McMillan, D.J., Sanderson-Smith, M.L., Smeesters, P.R. Sriprakash, K.S. (2013). Molecular markers for the study of streptococcal epidemiology. Current topics in microbiology and immunology. 368: p. 29-48. McNeil, S.A., Halperin, S.A., Langley, J.M., Smith, B., Warren, A., Sharratt, G.P., Baxendale, D.M., Reddish, M.A., Hu, M.C., Stroop, S.D., Linden, J., Fries, L.F., Vink, P.E. Dale, J.B. (2005). Safety and immunogenicity of 26-valent group A streptococcus vaccine in healthy adult volunteers. Clin Infect Dis. 41(8): p. 1114-22. Moisa, A.A. Kolesanova, E.F. (2012). Synthetic Peptide Vaccines, Insight and Control of Infectious Disease in Global Scenario. Dr. Roy Priti (Ed.), ISBN: 978-953-51-0319-6. Moyle, P.M. Toth, I. (2008). Self-adjuvanting lipopeptide vaccines. Current Medicinal Chemistry. 15: p. 506–516. Pandey, M., Wykes, M.N., Hartas, J., Good, M.F. Batzloff M.R. (2013). Long-term antibody memory induced by synthetic peptide vaccination is protective against Streptococcus pyogenes infection and is independent of memory T cell help. Journal of immunology. 190(6): p. 2692-701. Plotkin, S.A., Orenstein, W.A. Offit, P,A. Eds (2013). Vaccines. 6th ed. Edinburgh: Elsevier/Saunders. Reche, P.A., Fernandez-Caldas, E., Flower, D.R., Fridkis-Hareli, M. Hoshino, Y. (2014). Peptide-Based Immunotherapeutics and Vaccines. Journal of Immunology Research. Editorial. 2014: 2 pages. Robbins, J.B., Kubler-Kielb, E., Vinogradov, E., Mocca, C., Pozsgay, V., Shiloach, J. Scheerson, R. (2009). Synthesis, characterisation, and immunogenicity in mice of Shigella sonnei O-specific, oligosaccharide-core-protein conjugates. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 106: p. 7974-7978. Scanlan, C.N., Pantophlet, R., Wormald, M.R., Ollmann Saphire, E., Stanfield, R., Wilson, I.A., Katinger, H., Dwek, R.A., Rudd, P.M. Burton, D.R. (2002). The broadly neutralizing anti-human immunodeficiency virus type 1 antibody 2G12 recognizes a cluster of alpha12 mannose residues on the outer face of gp120. J Virol. 76: p. 7306–21. Scanlan, C.N., Offer, J., Zitzmann, N. Dwek, RA. (2007). Exploiting the defensive sugars of HIV-1 for drug and vaccine design. Nature. 446: p. 1038–45. Simerska, P.,Abdel-Aal, A.B.M, Fujita, Y., Batzloff, Good, M.F. Toth, I. (2008). Synthesis and in vivo studies of carbohydrate-based vaccines against group A Streptococcus. Peptide Science. 90(5): p. 611-616. Simerska, P., Lu, H. Toth, I. (2009). Synthesis of a Streptococcus pyogenes vaccine candidate based on the M protein PL1 epitope. Bioorganic Medicinal Chemistry Letters. 19(3): p. 821-824. Simerska, P., Moyle, P.M. Toth, I. (2011). Modern lipid-, carbohydrate-, and peptide-based delivery systems for peptide, vaccine, and gene products. Med Res Rev. 31: p. 520-47. Slovin, S.F., Ragupathi, G., Musselli, C., Olkiewic,z K., Verbel,D., Kuduk, S.D., Schwarz, J.B., Sames, D., Danishefsky, S., Livingston, P.O. Scher, H.I. (2003). Fully synthetic carbohydrate-based vaccines in biochemically relapsed prostate cancer: clinical trial results with alpha-N-acetylgalactosamine-O-serine/threonine conjugate vaccine. J Clin Oncol. 21:p. 4292–8. Smeesters, P.R., McMillan, D.J. and Sriprakash, K.S. (2010). The streptococcal M protein: a highly versatile molecule. Trends Microbiol. 18: p. 275-282. Smeesters, P.R., McMillan, D.J., Sriprakash, K.S. Georgousakis, M.M. (2009). Differences among group A streptococcus epidemiological landscapes: consequences for M protein-based vaccinesExpert Rev Vaccines. 8(12): p. 1705-20. Smeesters, P.R. (2014). Immunity and vaccine development against Streptococcus pyogenes: is emm-typing enoughProc Belgian Roy Acad Med. 3: p. 89-98. Steer, A.C., Batzloff, M.R., Mulholland, K. Carapetis, J.R. (2009). Group A streptococcal vaccines: facts versus fantasy. Current Opinion in Infectious Diseases. 22(6): p. 544-552. Steer, A.C., Law, I., Matatolu, L., Beall, B.W. Carapetis, J.R. (2009). Global emm type distribution of group A streptococci: systematic review and implications for vaccine development. Lancet Infect Dis. 9(10): p. 611-6. Tsai, C.C., Emau, P., Jiang, Y., Agy, M.B., Shattock, R.J., Schmidt, A., Morton, W.R., Gustafson, K.R., Boyd M.R. (2004). Cyanovirin-N inhibits AIDS virus infections in vaginal transmission models. AIDS Res Hum Retroviruses. 20(1): p. 11–18. Verez-Bencomo, V., Fernandez-Santana, V., Hardy, E., Toledo, M.E., Rodriguez, M.C., Heynngnezz, L., Rodriguez, A., Baly, A., Herrera, L., Izquierdo, M., Villar, A., Valdes, Y., Cosme, K., Deler, M.L., Montane, M., Garcia, E., Ramos, A., Aguilar, A., Medina, E., Torano, G., Sosa, I., Hernandez, I., Martinez, R., Muzachio, A., Carmenates, A., Costa, L., Cardoso, F., Campa, C., Diaz, M. Roy, R. (2004). A synthetic conjugate polysaccharide vaccine against Haemophilus influenzae type b. Science. 305(5683): p. 552-555. Wang, C.Y. Walfield, A.M. (2005). Site-specific peptide vaccines for immunotherapy and immunization against chronic diseases, cancer, infectious diseases, and for veterinary applications. Vaccine. 23(17-18): p. 2049–2056. Yang, D., Holt, G.E., Rudolf, M.P., Velders, M.P., Brandt, R.M.P., Kwon, E.D. Kast, W.M. (2001). Peptide Vaccines. In: New Vaccine Technologies. Chapter 12: p. 214-226. Zhong, W., Skwarczynski, M. Toth, I. (2009) Lipid Core Peptide System for Gene, Drug, and Vaccine Delivery. Australian Journal of Chemistry. 62: p. 956–967. Zou, W.. Jennings, H.J. (2009). Preparation of glycoconjugate vaccines. In: Carbohydrate-Based Vaccines and Immunotherapies. Chapter 2. How to cite Carbohydrate and Peptide – Based Vaccines: The Way Forward, Essay examples

Improving Data Transparency in Clinical Trials

Question: Discuss about the Improving Data Transparency in Clinical Trials. Answer: Introduction: The block chains are the distributed databases maintaining continuous growth of records ordered in lists called blocks. It is the public ledger of every Bitcoin transactions which have been executed. The completed blocks are incorporated to it leading to constant increase in size of the block chains. These blocks have been imposed over the blockchain in chronological order and linear manner. The research would be conducted around Bitcoins. The bitcoins has been developed as rewards in competitions where users offer power of computing to authenticate and record transfer of data into block-chains. The study would not reveal any other cases supported by the block-chains like smart contracts and the licensing. The study would describe the research. Then the evaluation of the contribution of block-chains with bitcoins has been discussed. A model to stimulate has been developed with its limitations and justifications. Lastly conclusion has been drawn on the key findings fitting to the research. At first the topic blockchain technology in Bitcoin is defined. Then the area of blockchain technology in Bitcoin is unfolded. The areas that are not to be included in this research are mentioned. Lastly the general findings from blockchain technology in Bitcoin are revealed. In the next section, the fiend of the review has been described. After describing the research, evaluation is done on the contribution of the research that has been done to the area. Next the limitations of blockchain technology in Bitcoin are shown. Lastly the section ends by mentioning the values of the limitations in the project. Then the best solution for the present situation is given. It important features are discussed. Its quality and contribution to the given research field is analyzed. A model is drawn stimulating it. Lastly conclusion is drawn upon the key findings from the review of blockchain technology in Bitcoin. Research description: Boyd Carr, (2016) researched that Blockchain is the decentralized method for data transaction in data management. It was first designed for the Bitcoin cryptocurrency. The interest in this field originated since the idea has been coined in the year of 2008. The reason behind this was its core attributes providing data integrity, anonymity and security. This has been done in the absence of a third party organization that could manage its transactions. Thus it created attractive areas of research. This has been especially from the view point of limitations and technical challenges. A systematic mapping of the study with the aim of gathering every relevant research on the technology of lock-chain is set. The main aim has been the understanding of the present challenges, future directions and topics of the research. Various online journals are studies. That show focus on the Bitcoin systems. Most of the studies has been dealing with reveal and improve of the Blockchains from the security and privacy view-points. Several of the proposed solutions have been lacking concrete discussion on the effectiveness. Many scalability of Block-chain involving the latency and throughput has been kept unstudied. Evaluation of the contribution of the research:The contribution of the research has been interesting to watch where it has been heading. Bitcoin has got many attentions in cryptocurrency. According to Gbel et al. (2016) more people has been buying and trading Bitcoins per day. Hence it has been crucial as a research topic. The research would attract the academia and industries to carry on further researches from both the technical and business perspectives. The Bitcoin has been the only solution to utilize the Blockchain technology. There has been various other cryptocurrencies currently who have been giving competition to Bitcoin. The future researches from this study might also involve other cryptocurrencies. The review would not only help in focusing on Bitcoin and the other cryptocurrencies but also highlight applications possible utilizing the solution of blockchain. Utilizing of decentralized scenario like the share of virtual properties could be a contribution of the research. This would revolutionize the approach in which the organizations would sell the products. Gipp, KostiBreitinger (2016) states that as the solutions of blockchain are used for more users, it would appreciate the reviews like this done on the technical challenges and limitations. The increase in sizes and bases of users has triggered to conduct this type of researches relating to the scalability. Moreover, the research will leave its impact on the privacy and security concerns. This would give birth to inventions of new areas to prevent the disturbance on blockchains. Limitations of the research:The systematic mapping of the research would enable the understanding of the present gaps in the research. Crosby et al., (2016) state thatone of the fundamental limitations on the study is relating to the publication bias. It refers that the problem that the positive outcomes are to be published more than that of the negative ones. This is because that the negative take much time to get published. Moreover, they have been less cited in the publications. Other limitation has been the selection bias. It refers to the distortion of the statistical analysis. This has been owing to the used criteria for selecting the publications. Lastly the there has been limitation regarding inaccuracy the extraction of data and the misclassification. This indicates the possibility of extraction of data differently by various reviewers. Importance of the research gaps in the project:As researched by Zheng et al., (2016) this identification of systematic mapping of the research would help the practitioners and the researchers to concentrate on research areas that need more researches. The seeking of the gaps of research would reply the unanswered queries in the present technology of blockchain. The addressing of the publication issue has brought the usage of various scientific databases. This is done within the search protocols to seek maximum number of papers. This has raised the quantity of papers found for this study along with raising the possibility to seek the papers with negative outcomes. Nonetheless, the Blockchain innovation has been considered as another subject in the software engineering industry. It has been further distributed as white papers inside the companies. Thus, all exploration led on the specialized perspectives on Blockchain could not been incorporated in this mapping study. In any case, by u sing just logical databases as hotspots for finding significant research, papers are gathered of higher quality. The issue of selection bias has been addressed by the developing o careful search protocols. Pilot searches could be done on various keywords ensuring what has been concluded from the study. Rigorous criteria for inclusion and the exclusion could be defined form this. This would ensure that every paper elected has been the section of the research topic (Bracamonte, Yamasaki Okada, 2016). Most of the researches relating to the block-chain have been relevant to the regulation, legal and economic factors of Bitcoin with the possibility of its cryptocurrency. The current selected solution at best: The solution is the data extraction and mapping process. Matzuttet al., (2016) claimed is designed to gather data required to address the queries of research in this review. The data items collected are the basic information regarding the study. It includes the objectives and major findings from the study. It helps to organize and assess the data. The selection and search outcomes are found from the process. There has been the Prisma-Flow model provided with the process. Many journals have been retrieved initially as the search protocol designed has been registered to the scientific databases selected. The initial round on the inclusion and the exclusion has been lying on the basis of the titles of the papers retrieved. Various papers excluded have been discussed from the business view-point of Bitcoin. They have not been included in the study. Retrieval of numerous papers relevant to other scientific fields where the Blockchain has another definition than technology in computer scie nce is done. The most important features have been the identification of security, wasted resources, usability and privacy. These have been good due to the identification of exchanging property of Bitcoin. This has caused economic harm for the clients. This fit into the research was said by Karame (2016). This is because there is a scope of introducing the audit software to increase the usability in the Bitcoin exchanges. The aim of this software has been to deduce the solvency of exchange participants. This could be done without the publication of crucial data. There has been connection between the buyer and the seller with limited layer for anonymity. This prevents the buyers to find and validate data in Bitcoin. Different models could be presented through which the rating or reputation could be imposed conjoining the transactions of Bitcon. This considers every pros and cons. These aspects could be improved. This could be done on the network of Bitcoin. Thus the usability is improved delivering extra data for users who have been making transactions. Limitations:Colombo (2016) argues that the technology of block-chain has certain challenges that are identified through the review. Several technical limitations identified in adapting the technology of block-chain in future are throughput, latency, bandwidth and size, security, wasted resources, usability and versioning with hard forks and multiple chains. They have been the limitations for certain reasons. The potential issues throughput in the network of Bitcoin presently gets maximized to transactions per second. In order to develop enough protection for the transaction block of Bitcoin, it takes 10 minutes to finish a transaction roughly. In order to gain security efficiency, more time has to be spent in the blocks. This is because it has been outweighing the expense of couple of attacks. Currently the block-chains size in the network of Bitcoin has been over five hundred thousand megabytes. The community of Bitcoin assumes that the quantity of each block has been one mega bytes. The block has been created for every ten minutes. Dwyer (2016) discusses that this causes limitations in the quantity of transactions to be handled. In the security section the present block-chain at Bitcoin can have 51% attack. The mining at Bitcoin has been wasting large quantity of energy about fifteen million dollars per day. This has been the reason of effort of proof-of-work. The API of Bitcoin to develop services has been hard to use. There has been the requirement to design an API for blockchain that is more developer-friendly. This resembles the REST APIs many times. Small chains that comprises of lower quantity of nodes possess high chances of fifty-one percent attack. Another problem arises as the chains have been split for versioning and administrative purposes (Krug Peterson, 2015). These limitations fit to the review as the blockchain posses the ability to alter the method of transactions. Moreover, the block-chains applications have not been limited to the crypto currencies. The data integrity attributes of security and the anonymity has been suffering from various restrictions and obstacles. They are assesses and resolved in this research. Scalability has been another problem which has been also mentioned in this study. This research would help in identifying the present status done by blockchain. Conclusion: The research has continued to seek several problems and solutions to overcome the limitations of the technology of Block-chain. Most of the study has concentrated on addressing the challenges. Every block comprises of a timestamp. It comprises of links to previous blocks. As recorded once, the block-chains have been resistant inherently to any kind of modification of data. Maximum researches on block-chain of present day have been concerned about the security and privacy issues. It has conducted scalability problems on the Blockchain. The review has evaluated the ability of the solutions suggested in an aim of the evaluation criteria. The limitations are searched and the way it has been valuable to the project is found out. A suitable model is drawn justifying the best solution selected. Though various solutions to the limitations and solutions are presented but few of them has been just small proposals and lack strong assessment on the effectiveness. References: Boyd, C., Carr, C. (2016, July). Fair Client Puzzles from the Bitcoin Blockchain. InAustralasian Conference on Information Security and Privacy(pp. 161-177). Springer International Publishing. Bracamonte, V., Yamasaki, S., Okada, H. (2016). A Discussion of Issues related to Electronic Voting Systems based on Blockchain Technology. Colombo, R. J. (2016). Bitcoin: Hype or Harbinger.J. Int'l Bus. L.,16, 1. Crosby, M., Pattanayak, P., Verma, S., Kalyanaraman, V. (2016). Blockchain technology: Beyond bitcoin.Applied Innovation,2, 6-10. Dwyer, G. P. (2016). Blockchain: A Primer. English, S. M., Nezhadian, E. (2017). Conditions of Full Disclosure: The Blockchain Remuneration Model.arXiv preprint arXiv:1703.04196. Ferrin, D. (2015). A Preliminary Field Guide for Bitcoin Transaction Patterns. InProc. Texas Bitcoin Conf. Gipp, B., Kosti, J., Breitinger, C. (2016). Securing Video Integrity Using Decentralized Trusted Timestamping on the Bitcoin Blockchain. Gbel, J., Keeler, H. P., Krzesinski, A. E., Taylor, P. G. (2016). Bitcoin blockchain dynamics: The selfish-mine strategy in the presence of propagation delay.Performance Evaluation,104, 23-41. Hari, A., Lakshman, T. V. (2016, November). The Internet Blockchain: A Distributed, Tamper-Resistant Transaction Framework for the Internet. InProceedings of the 15th ACM Workshop on Hot Topics in Networks(pp. 204-210). ACM. Karame, G. (2016, October). On the Security and Scalability of Bitcoin's Blockchain. InProceedings of the 2016 ACM SIGSAC Conference on Computer and Communications Security(pp. 1861-1862). ACM. Krug, J., Peterson, J. (2015). Sidecoin: a snapshot mechanism for bootstrapping a blockchain.arXiv preprint arXiv:1501.01039. Matzutt, R., Hohlfeld, O., Henze, M., Rawiel, R., Ziegeldorf, J. H., Wehrle, K. (2016, October). POSTER: I Don't Want That Content! On the Risks of Exploiting Bitcoin's Blockchain as a Content Store. InProceedings of the 2016 ACM SIGSAC Conference on Computer and Communications Security(pp. 1769-1771). ACM. Miscione, G., Kavanagh, D. (2015). Bitcoin and the Blockchain: A Coup D'tat through Digital Heterotopia?. Nugent, T., Upton, D., Cimpoesu, M. (2016). Improving data transparency in clinical trials using blockchain smart contracts [version 1; referees: awaiting peer review]. Zheng, Z., Xie, S., Dai, H. N., Wang, H. (2016). Blockchain Challenges and Opportunities: A Survey.