Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Intelligent System for the Diagnosis of Skin Cancer on Digital Images taken with Dermoscopy

Skin cancer is a major health issue affecting a vast segment of the population regardless the skin color. This affectation can be detected using dermoscopy to determine whether the visible spots on skin are either benign or malignant tumors. In spite of the specialists' experience, skin lesions are difficult to classify, reason for which computer systems are developed to increase the effectiveness of cancer detection. Systems assisting in the detection of skin cancer process digital images to determine the occurrence of tumors by interpreting clinical parameters, relying, firstly, upon an accurate segmentation process to extract relevant features. Two of the well-known methods to analyze lesions are ABCD (Asymmetry, Border, Color, Differential structures) and the 7-point check list. After clinically-relevant features are extracted, they are used to classify the presence or absence of a tumor. However, irregular and disperse lesion borders, low contrast, artifacts in images and the presence of various colors within the region of interest complicate the processing of images. In this article, we propose an intelligent system running the following method. The feature extraction stage begins with the segmentation of an image, for which we apply the Wavelet – Fuzzy C-Means algorithm. Next, specific features should be determined, among others the area and the asymmetry of the lesion. An ensemble of clusterers extracts the RedGreen-Blue values that correspond to one or more of the colors defined in the ABCD guide. The feature extraction stage includes the discovery of structures that appear in the lesion according to the method known as Grey Level Co-Occurrence Matrix (GLCM). Then, during the detection phase, an ensemble of classifiers determines the occurrence of a malignant tumor. Our experiments are performed on images taken from the ISIC repository. The proposed system provides a skin cancer detection performance above 88 percent, as measured by the accuracy. Details of how this performance fares when compared with other systems are also given. Acta Polytechnica Hungarica Vol. 14, No. 3, 2017 – 170 –
Epoxyeicosatrienoic acids alleviate methionine‐choline‐deficient diet–induced non‐alcoholic steatohepatitis in mice

The epoxyeicosatrienoic acids (EETs) are products of cytochrome P450 epoxygenases and have recently been found to have an anti‐inflammatory activity. However, the role of EETs in non‐alcoholic steatohepatitis has not been fully understood. In this study, we investigated the protective role of EETs in methionine‐choline‐deficient (MCD) diet–induced non‐alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) in mice and the potential mechanisms. We used 1‐trifluoromethoxyphenyl‐3‐(1‐propionylpiperidin‐4‐yl)urea(TPPU), a soluble epoxide hydrolase inhibitor, to increase the endogenous EET level in mice. Upon TPPU treatment, the liver steatosis and inflammatory damage were significantly ameliorated in mice with steatohepatitis, paralleled by the downregulation of pro‐inflammatory cytokines (TNF‐α, IL‐1β, IL‐6) as well as chemokines (CXCL1, MCP‐1). Compared with untreated NASH mice, mRNA levels of sterol regulatory element binding protein 1c (SREBP1c) and inflammation relevant adhesion molecules (ICAM‐1, VCAM‐1) were downregulated, whereas mRNA level of peroxisome proliferator–activated receptor α(PPAR‐α) was elevated in TPPU‐treated mice. In vitro, 11,12‐EET treatment remarkably attenuated free fatty acid (FFA)–induced inflammation in HepG2 and THP‐1 cells. Further, 11,12‐EET inhibited the activation of NF‐κB signalling pathway in macrophages from mice with steatohepatitis. Collectively, these results suggest that EETs play a protective role and alleviate the MCD diet–induced steatohepatitis in mice mainly by downregulating activation of NF‐κB pathway in macrophages.
Burn wound classification model using spatial frequency-domain imaging and machine learning

Abstract. Accurate assessment of burn severity is critical for wound care and the course of treatment. Delays in classification translate to delays in burn management, increasing the risk of scarring and infection. To this end, numerous imaging techniques have been used to examine tissue properties to infer burn severity. Spatial frequency-domain imaging (SFDI) has also been used to characterize burns based on the relationships between histologic observations and changes in tissue properties. Recently, machine learning has been used to classify burns by combining optical features from multispectral or hyperspectral imaging. Rather than employ models of light propagation to deduce tissue optical properties, we investigated the feasibility of using SFDI reflectance data at multiple spatial frequencies, with a support vector machine (SVM) classifier, to predict severity in a porcine model of graded burns. Calibrated reflectance images were collected using SFDI at eight wavelengths (471 to 851 nm) and five spatial frequencies (0 to 0.2 mm − 1). Three models were built from subsets of this initial dataset. The first subset included data taken at all wavelengths with the planar (0 mm − 1) spatial frequency, the second comprised data at all wavelengths and spatial frequencies, and the third used all collected data at values relative to unburned tissue. These data subsets were used to train and test cubic SVM models, and compared against burn status 28 days after injury. Model accuracy was established through leave-one-out cross-validation testing. The model based on images obtained at all wavelengths and spatial frequencies predicted burn severity at 24 h with 92.5% accuracy. The model composed of all values relative to unburned skin was 94.4% accurate. By comparison, the model that employed only planar illumination was 88.8% accurate. This investigation suggests that the combination of SFDI with machine learning has potential for accurately predicting burn severity.
Effects of land use, cover, and protection on stream and riparian ecosystem services and biodiversity

Protected areas are an important part of broader landscapes that are often used to preserve biodiversity or natural features. Some argue that protected areas may also help ensure provision of ecosystem services. However, the effect of protection on ecosystem services and whether protection affects the provision of ecosystem services is known only for a few services in a few types of landscapes. We sought to fill this gap by investigating the effect of watershed protection status and land use and land cover on biodiversity and the provision of ecosystem services. We compared the ecosystem services provided in and around streams in 4 watershed types: International Union for Conservation of Nature category II protected forests, unprotected forests, unprotected forests with recent timber harvesting, and unprotected areas with agriculture. We surveyed 28 streams distributed across these watershed types in Quebec, Canada, to quantify provisioning of clean water, carbon storage, recreation, wild foods, habitat quality, and terrestrial and aquatic biodiversity richness and abundance. The quantity and quality of ecosystem services and biodiversity were generally higher in sites with intact forest—whether protected or not—relative to those embedded in production landscapes with forestry or agriculture. Clean‐water provision, carbon storage, habitat quality, and tree diversity were significantly higher in and around streams surrounded by forest. Recreation, wild foods, and aquatic biodiversity did not vary among watershed types. Although some services can be provided by both protected and unprotected areas, protection status may help secure the continued supply of services sensitive to changes in land use or land cover. Our findings provide needed information about the ecosystem service and biodiversity trade‐offs and synergies that result from developing a watershed or from protecting it.
Crystal structure of a predicted precorrin‐8x methylmutase from Thermoplasma acidophilum

The biosynthesis of vitamin B12 involves many enzymatic steps and two evolutionarily divergent pathways. Although the pathways differ in their requirement for molecular oxygen and the timing of cobalt insertion, the precorrin-8x methylmutase genes cobH and cbiC share greater than 30% identity, and are designated as the CobH family.1 These enzymes catalyze the methyl isomerization of metal-free (CobH) and cobalt bound (CbiC) precorrin-8x to hydrogenobyrinic acid (HBA). We have determined the 2.1-A crystal structure of precorrin-8x methylmutase from the facultative anaerobe Thermoplasma acidophilum (Ta0654). Although cobalamin synthesis has not been investigated in T. acidophilum, the structure bears a striking resemblance to CobH from Pseudomonas denifitricans (Pa2905), to which it shares 33% sequence identity. The structure–function relationships for Pa2905 have been characterized, including the role of catalytic residues and crystallographic observation of the product HBA in the active site formed by dimerization.2–4
Division plane placement in pleomorphic archaea is dynamically coupled to cell shape

One mechanism for achieving accurate placement of the cell division machinery is via Turing patterns, where nonlinear molecular interactions spontaneously produce spatiotemporal concentration gradients. The resulting patterns are dictated by cell shape. For example, the Min system of Escherichia coli shows spatiotemporal oscillation between cell poles, leaving a mid‐cell zone for division. The universality of pattern‐forming mechanisms in divisome placement is currently unclear. We examined the location of the division plane in two pleomorphic archaea, Haloferax volcanii and Haloarcula japonica, and showed that it correlates with the predictions of Turing patterning. Time‐lapse analysis of H. volcanii shows that divisome locations after successive rounds of division are dynamically determined by daughter cell shape. For H. volcanii, we show that the location of DNA does not influence division plane location, ruling out nucleoid occlusion. Triangular cells provide a stringent test for Turing patterning, where there is a bifurcation in division plane orientation. For the two archaea examined, most triangular cells divide as predicted by a Turing mechanism; however, in some cases multiple division planes are observed resulting in cells dividing into three viable progeny. Our results suggest that the division site placement is consistent with a Turing patterning system in these archaea.
Rapid evolution in plant-microbe interactions - a molecular genomics perspective.

Rapid (co-)evolution at multiple timescales is a hallmark of plant-microbe interactions. The mechanistic basis for the rapid evolution largely rests on the features of the genomes of the interacting partners involved. Here, we review recent insights in genomic characteristics and mechanisms that enable rapid evolution of both plants and phytopathogens. These comprise fresh insights in allelic series of matching pairs of resistance and avirulence genes, the generation of novel pathogen effectors, the recently recognized small RNA warfare, and genomic aspects of secondary metabolite biosynthesis. In addition, we discuss the putative contributions of permissive host environments, transcriptional plasticity and the role of ploidy on the interactions. We conclude that the means underlying the rapid evolution of plant-microbe interactions are multifaceted and depend on the particular nature of each interaction. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
(R)-Di-tert-butyl 1,1′-binaphthyl-2,2′-dicarboxylate

The crystal structure of the title compound, C30H30O4, comprises two crystallographically independent half-molecules which are completed by crystallographic twofold symmetry. The dihedral angles between the naphthalene ring planes are 85.83 (3) and 83.69 (3)° for the two molecules. The atoms of the tert-butyl group of one molecule are disordered over two sets of sites with occupancies of 0.60:0.40. The crystal packing is achieved via π–π stacking interactions between the naphthyl groups of adjacent molecules, with a separation of 3.790 (1) Å between the centroids of the rings.
A neuropsychological and behavioral study of PLS

Abstract Background: Primary lateral sclerosis (PLS) is a rare motor neuron disease characterized by progressive degeneration of upper motor neurons, resulting in spasticity and disability. There is, however, mounting evidence that the disease is not limited to upper motor neurons alone and that cognitive and behavioral changes within the spectrum of frontotemporal dementia (FTD) are part of the clinical phenotype. Objectives: To provide an in-depth classification of the cognitive and behavioral profiles of PLS by using the golden standard, a full neuropsychological evaluation, as well as a comprehensive behavioral assessment in a cohort of 30 cases. Results: Only 7 out of 30 PLS patients scored within normal range on all of the tests within our battery. The neuropsychological profile of PLS consists of deficits in social cognition (affective theory of mind (ToM) in particular), fluency, executive functions and memory. Using the revised Strong criteria, we could classify 57% of patients within the FTD spectrum (of which 17% had behavioral variant FTD). An additional 20% of patients had deficits which were not characteristic of FTD. Conclusions: This study confirms that PLS is not a restricted phenotype (only affecting upper motor neurons) and that behavioral and cognitive changes are common. Therefore, clinicians treating PLS patients should routinely assess cognition and behavior as part of routine care as cognitive and behavioral changes impact management, decision-making and care-giver burden. This assessment should be sensitive to the neuropsychological profile of PLS (social cognition (affective ToM in particular), fluency, executive functions and memory) and behavioral changes.
Mechanical circulatory support devices in cardiogenic shock and acute heart failure: current evidence.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW The main purpose of this review is to highlight and summarize recently published studies on the usage of short-term mechanical circulatory support devices for treatment of cardiogenic shock. Importantly, this review will focus on percutaneously implanted devices. RECENT FINDINGS In recent years, usage of active mechanical circulatory support devices, such as catheter-based left ventricular-assist devices and veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation devices, has been widely adopted. Several device-specific strategies have been proposed to improve outcome of treated patients with cardiogenic shock, ranging from early identification and treatment of patients via dedicated shock protocols to combinatory usage of these devices. However, this is not supported by prospective, randomized trials but by retrospective analysis, which are significantly impacted by bias. SUMMARY Randomized, controlled trials are utterly needed to guide treatment with mechanical circulatory support for patients with cardiogenic shock. Importantly, such trials should focus patient selection criteria.
Frailty and Associated Outcomes and Resource Utilization Among Older ICU Patients With Suspected Infection.

OBJECTIVES Suspected infection and sepsis are common conditions seen among older ICU patients. Frailty has prognostic importance among critically ill patients, but its impact on outcomes and resource utilization in older patients with suspected infection is unknown. We sought to evaluate the association between patient frailty (defined as a Clinical Frailty Scale ≥ 5) and outcomes of critically ill patients with suspected infection. We also evaluated the association between frailty and the quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score. DESIGN Analysis of a prospectively collected registry. SETTING Two hospitals within a single tertiary care level hospital system between 2011 and 2016. PATIENTS We analyzed 1,510 patients 65 years old or older (at the time of ICU admission) and with suspected infection at the time of ICU admission. Of these, 507 (33.6%) were categorized as "frail" (Clinical Frailty Scale ≥ 5). INTERVENTIONS None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality. A total of 558 patients (37.0%) died in-hospital. Frailty was associated with increased risk of in-hospital death (adjusted odds ratio, 1.81 [95% CIs, 1.34-2.49]). Frailty was also associated with higher likelihood of discharge to long-term care (adjusted odds ratio, 2.06 [95% CI, 1.50-2.64]) and higher likelihood of readmission within 30 days (adjusted odds ratio, 1.83 [95% CI, 1.38-2.34]). Frail patients had increased ICU resource utilization and total costs. The combination of frailty and quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment greater than or equal to 2 further increased the risk of death (adjusted odds ratio, 7.54 [95% CI, 5.82-9.90]). CONCLUSIONS The presence of frailty among older ICU patients with suspected infection is associated with increased mortality, discharge to long-term care, hospital readmission, resource utilization, and costs. This work highlights the importance of clinical frailty in risk stratification of older ICU patients with suspected infection.
A new compact nonlinear model improvement methodology for GaN-HEMT

The analysis of the nonlinear charge bias dependence according to the input power, with respect to the intermodulation distortion (IMD) product for a GaN-HEMT, is presented. The results obtained from the analysis of the two-tone measurements, are used to determine the GaN-HEMT model deficiencies. An extrinsic non-linear capacitance element is added to improve the accuracy of the core compact model. The simplicity of the measurement procedure and data analysis, makes this a suitable methodology for a good non-linear characterization for GaN-HEMT. A comparison between simulated and experimental data is presented over a Lm = 08μm GaN-HEMT under different bias and input power conditions to validated the proposed model.
Differential Space Time Block Codes for High Mobility Scenarios

In this paper the advantages of using a particular class of Differential Space Time Block Codes (DSTBCs) in high mobility scenarios are reported. This is a high bandwidth efficiency technique with specially good performance when the mobile terminal velocity is high. For Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) based systems in high mobility scenarios, as the ones that can be considered for Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) and Long Term Evolution (LTE), the analyzed technique reports improvements of up to 14 dB with respect to the use of 64PSK in DSTBCs.
Contemporary occurrence and aetiology of chronic leg ulcers in Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis protocol

Introduction Chronic leg ulcers are known as a major and snowballing threat to public health and the global economy. In Africa, there is controversy on the dearth of studies reporting the epidemiology of chronic leg ulcers. The present systematic review and meta-analysis aim at synthesising the prevalence, incidence and aetiologies of this ailment in this continent from contemporary data. Methods and design We will include cohort studies, case–control, cross-sectional studies and case series with more than 30 participants. Electronical databases including African Journals Online, MEDLINE, Excerpta Medica Database and Web of knowledge, and grey literature will be searched for relevant abstracts of studies published and unpublished between 1 January, 2000, and 28 February, 2019, without language restriction. The review will be reported according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis guidelines. Each study included in this review will be assessed for methodological quality. Clinically homogenous studies will be pooled using random-effects meta-analysis. Visual inspection of funnel-plots and the Egger’s test will be used to investigate publication bias. Meta-regression and subgroup analyses will be performed to investigate the possible sources of heterogeneity. Ethics and dissemination The present study will be based on published data; therefore, ethical approval is not required. Result of the review will be presented at conferences, to relevant health authorities and will be published in a biomedical peer-reviewed journal. Protocol registration number CRD42018108250.
A comprehensive review on wheat flour dough rheology

The applications of rheology to the main processes encountered during bread making (mixing, fermentation and baking) are reviewed. Factors affecting dough rheology and influences of various additives on the rheological properties of flour doughs are illust rated and the component interactions are emphasized. The most commonly used rheological test methods and their relationships to product functionality are reviewed. Rheological testing has become a powerful and preferred approach for examining the structure and the fundamental properties of wheat flour doughs because of its characteristic and sensitive response to the structure variation o f wheat flour doughs. It is shown that the most commonly used method for rheological testing of doughs, shear oscillation dynamic rheology, is generally used under deformation conditions inappropriate for bread making and shows little relationship with end -use performance. The frequency range used in conventional shear oscillation tests is limited to the plateau region, which is inse nsitive to changes in the HMW glutenin polymers thought to be responsible for variations in baking quality. Molecular size and structure of the gluten polymers that make up the major structural components of wheat are related to their rheological propertie s via modern polymer rheology concepts. Interactions between polymer chain entanglements and branching are seen to be the key mechanisms determini ng the rheology of HMW polymers.
QCC: A novel cluster algorithm based on Quasi-Cluster Centers

Cluster analysis is aimed at classifying elements into categories on the basis of their similarity. And cluster analysis has been widely used in many areas such as pattern recognition, and image processing. In this paper, we propose an approach based on the idea that the density of cluster centers are highest in its k nearest neighborhood or reverse k nearest neighborhood, and clusters is divided by sparse region. We firstly define the similarity between clusters. Based on this idea, no matter non-spherical data or complex manifold data, the proposed algorithm is applicable. And the proposed algorithm has a certain capacity on outliers detection. We demonstrate the power of the proposed algorithm on several test cases. Its clustering performance is better than DBSCAN, DP and K-AP clustering algorithms. Keywords—Cluster; Center; Similarity; Neighbor; manifold
Re: Diagnostic Value of Volume-Based Fluorine-18-Fluorodeoxyglucose PET/CT Parameters for Characterizing Thyroid Incidentaloma

Copyright © 2019 The Korean Society of Radiology RE: Diagnostic Value of Volume-Based Fluorine-18Fluorodeoxyglucose PET/CT Parameters for Characterizing Thyroid Incidentaloma Jinshan Zhang, MD, Hongxia Yao, MD, Yuwei Zhang, MD, Haicui Su, MD Department of Nuclear Medicine and Radiation Oncology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China; The Third Clinical School of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China