bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Deep Learning Pipeline to Automate High-Resolution Arterial Segmentation With or Without Intravenous Contrast
Authors: Chandrashekar Anirudh , Handa Ashok , Shivakumar Natesh , Lapolla Pierfrancesco , Uberoi Raman , Grau Vicente , Lee Regent
Published: November 2020

Background:

Existing methods to reconstruct vascular structures from a computerized tomography (CT) angiogram rely on contrast injection to enhance the radio-density within the vessel lumen. However, pathological changes in the vasculature may be present that prevent accurate reconstruction. In aortic aneurysmal disease, a thrombus adherent to the aortic wall within the expanding aneurysmal sac is present in >90% of cases. These deformations prevent the automatic extraction of vital clinical information by existing image reconstruction methods.

Aim:

In this study, a deep learning architecture consisting of a modified U-Net with attention-gating was implemented to establish a high-throughput and automated segmentation pipeline of pathological blood vessels in CT images acquired with or without the use of a contrast agent.

Methods and Results:

Seventy-Five patients with paired noncontrast and contrast-enhanced CT images were randomly selected from an ongoing study (Ethics Ref 13/SC/0250), manually annotated and used for model training and evaluation. Data augmentation was implemented to diversify the training data set in a ratio of 10:1. The performance of our Attention-based U-Net in extracting both the inner (blood flow) lumen and the wall structure of the aortic aneurysm from CT angiograms was compared against a generic 3-D U-Net and displayed superior results. Implementation of this network within the aortic segmentation pipeline for both contrast and noncontrast CT images has allowed for accurate and efficient extraction of the morphological and pathological features of the entire aortic volume.

Conclusions:

This extraction method can be used to standardize aneurysmal disease management and sets the foundation for complex geometric and morphological analysis. Furthermore, this pipeline can be extended to other vascular pathologies.
Percutaneous Transhepatic Choledochoscopic Lithotomy (PTCSL) is Effective for the Treatment of Intrahepatic and Extrahepatic Choledocholithiasis
Authors: Zhuo Hua , Chen ZeMing , Lin RunZhui , Yang ShaoHua , Zhuang HongCai , He Chao , Liu Xingmu
Published: November 2020

Background:

To explore percutaneous transhepatic choledochoscopic lithotomy (PTCSL) as a treatment for intrahepatic and extrahepatic choledocholithiasis.

Patient and Methods:

A retrospective review of 67 patients with intrahepatic and extrahepatic choledocholithiasis treated by PTCSL from January 2014 to January 2019, including 36 males and 31 females, with an average age of 66 years. During the operation, the doctor established a channel through a 16-Fr Amplatz sheath and removed the stone in the channel with the aid of nephroscope. The clinical efficacy and complications of all patients were analyzed.

Results:

Sixty-seven patients (67/67, 100%) had their stones successfully removed in the first operation. Only 2 patients (2/67, 3.0%) developed mild reactive pleural effusion after the operation, and 1 patient (1/67, 1.5%) with cholangiocarcinoma after the operation. The incidence of severe bleeding during the operation was 0%.

Conclusion:

PTCSL is a minimally invasive, simple, effective and easy to repeat procedure for use in the clinic. It is an effective surgical treatment and is worthy of clinical use.
Activities of Daily Living Performance in Persons With Dementia
Authors: Burch Kari , Burch Brent D.
Published: November 2020

Introduction:

Persons living with dementia require assistance in making day-to-day and health care decisions. Health care professionals select treatments based on the care partner (CP) report of the person’s function; however, the accuracy of CPs’ appraisal has received limited exploration.

Methods:

Retrospective analyses of observational, programmatic data were performed across 161 dyads (CPs and persons with dementia) participating in an evidence-based, community-level dementia intervention program. We examined the differences in the appraisal of activities of daily living performance by CPs versus occupational therapists specialized in dementia treatment and investigated factors related to this discrepancy.

Results:

The discrepancy in the assessment of function is common between CPs and clinicians. CPs tend to overestimate the abilities of persons with dementia. Appraisal discrepancy was most strongly associated with (1) sex of the person with dementia, (2) timing of assessment performance, (3) number of behavioral symptoms of the person with dementia, and (4) cognitive abilities of the person with dementia.

Discussion:

Many factors influence the ability of CPs to appraise the function of persons with dementia. The inaccurate appraisal could result in insufficient daily assistance for, or even unnecessary health care utilization, of the person with dementia. Timeliness of intervention is crucial as their health status may change quickly.
The acute vs. chronic effect of exercise on insulin sensitivity: nothing lasts forever
Authors: DiMenna Fred J. , Arad Avigdor D.
Published: November 2020

Regular exercise causes chronic adaptations in anatomy/physiology that provide first-line defense for disease prevention/treatment (‘exercise is medicine’). However, transient changes in function that occur following each exercise bout (acute effect) are also important to consider. For example, in contrast to chronic adaptations, the effect of exercise on insulin sensitivity is predominantly rooted in a prolonged acute effect (PAE) that can last up to 72 h. Untrained individuals and individuals with lower insulin sensitivity benefit more from this effect and even trained individuals with high insulin sensitivity restore most of a detraining-induced loss following one session of resumed training. Consequently, exercise to combat insulin resistance that begins the pathological journey to cardiometabolic diseases including type 2 diabetes (T2D) should be prescribed with precision to elicit a PAE on insulin sensitivity to serve as a first-line defense prior to pharmaceutical intervention or, when such intervention is necessary, a potential adjunct to it.

Video Abstract: http://links.lww.com/CAEN/A27
Novel biomarkers for subtle myocardial involvement in type I diabetes mellitus
Authors: El-Saiedi Sonia A. , Hafez Mona H. , Sedky Yasser M. , Sharaf Sahar A. , Kamel Mona S. , AbdelMassih Antoine F.
Published: November 2020

Background

Evaluation of certain biomarkers could be used to predict left ventricular (LV) and right ventricular (RV) function impairment in children with type 1 diabetes mellitus. The aim of this study was to determine the best cardiac biomarker for prediction of diabetic cardiomyopathy.

Methodology

This study was designed as case-control study. A total of 55 children with type 1 diabetes mellitus (group/G1) and 55 healthy controls (G2) were subjected to echocardiography including 3D-Speckle Tracking Echocardiography and tissue Doppler imaging for assessment of RV and LV systolic and diastolic functions. As well as HbA1c, troponin I, brain natriuretic peptide (BNP), plasma cardiotrophin (CT-1), activin-A, transforming growth factor-β, and human insulin-like growth factor binding protein-7 (IGFBP-7) measurements.

Results

Diabetic patients showed RV and LV systo-diastolic dysfunction compared to controls, the best predictor of LV systolic dysfunction was CT-1 (sensitivity: 69%, while IGFBP-7 was found to be the best predictor of RV systolic dysfunction (sensitivity: 63%). BNP was found to the best predictor of diastolic RV and LV dysfunction (sensitivity: 82% for both).

Conclusion

CT-1 has proven to be a diagnostic superiority in LV systolic dysfunction whilst BNP continues to prove every day through our study and through many others that it is the chief marker of diastolic dysfunction and HFpEF. This potential accuracy and the increasing availability of BNP in the outpatient setting make it clear that it should be used as a screening test for diabetic patients.
Pulmonary B cells ameliorate Alzheimer’s disease-like neuropathology
Authors: Feng Weixi , Zhang Yanli , Wang Tianqi , Wang Ze , Chen Yan , Sheng Chengyu , Zou Ying , Pang Yingting , Gao Junying , Zhang Yongjie , Shi Jingping , Li Qian , Xiao Ming
Published: November 2020

Increasing evidence shows that the peripheral immune system is involved in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Here, we report that pulmonary B cells mitigate beta-Amyloid (Aβ) pathology in 5xFAD mice. The proportion of B cells rather than T cells increases in brain, meningeal and lung tissues in 3-month-old 5xFAD mice. Deletion of B cells aggravates Aβ load and memory deficits of 5xFAD mice. Mechanimsly, pulmonary B cells can migrate to the brain parenchyma and produce interleukin-35 that inhibits neuronal β-site APP-cleaving enzyme 1 expression, subsequently reducing the production of Aβ. In turn, proliferation of pulmonary B cells is associated with activation of toll-like receptor/nuclear factor kappa-B pathway by elevated Aβ that is drained from the brain parenchyma to the lungs via meningeal lymphatics. Furthermore, promoting pulmonary B cell proliferation via overexpression of B-cell-activating factor ameliorates brain Aβ load and improves cognitive functions of 10-month-old 5xFAD mice. Together, these results highlight the lungs as both immune targets and effector organs in Aβ pathogenesis. Pulmonary B cells might be a potential target against AD.
Dibenzoate esters of cis-tetralin-2,3-diol as analogs of (–)-epigallocatechin gallate: synthesis and crystal structure of anticancer drug candidates
Authors: Rutherford Ryan Noboru , Ura Shinji , Chan Tak-Hang , Fukumoto Kozo , Nishioka Takanori , Renzetti Andrea
Published: November 2020

(−)-Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), the main component of green tea extract, displays multiple biological activities. However, it cannot be used as a drug due to its low cellular absorption, instability and metabolic degradation. Therefore, there is a need to provide analogs that can overcome the limitations of EGCG. In this work, six synthetic analogs of EGCG sharing a common tetralindiol dibenzoate core were synthesized and fully characterized by 1H NMR, 13C NMR, HRMS and IR spectroscopies, and X-ray crystallography. These are (2R,3S)-1,2,3,4-tetrahydronaphthalene-2,3-diyl bis[3,4,5-tris(benzyloxy)benzoate], C66H56O10, and the analogous esters bis(3,4,5-trimethoxybenzoate), C30H32O10, bis(3,4,5-trifluorobenzoate), C24H14F6O4, bis[4-(benzyloxy)benzoate], C38H32O6, bis(4-methoxybenzoate), C26H24O6, and bis(2,4,6-trifluorobenzoate), C24H14F6O4. Structural analysis revealed that the molecular shapes of these dibenzoate esters of tetralindiol are significantly different from that of previously reported dimandelate esters or monobenzoate esters, as the acid moieties extend far from the bicyclic system without folding back over the tetralin fragment. Compounds with small fluorine substituents take a V-shape, whereas larger methoxy and benzyloxy groups determine the formation of an L-shape or a cavity. Intermolecular interactions are dominated by π–π stacking and C—H...π interactions involving the arene rings in the benzoate fragment and the arene ring in the tetrahydronaphthalene moiety. All six crystal structures are determined in centrosymmetric space groups (either P-1, P21/n, C2/c or I2/a).
Crystal structure of the coordination polymer catena-poly[[bis[hydroxy(phenyl)acetato-κ2
O
1,O
2]zinc(II)]-μ2-1,2-bis(pyridin-4-yl)ethane-κ2
N:N′]
Authors: Fwu Ming Shen , Shie Fu Lush
Published: November 2020

In the title polymeric ZnII compound, [Zn(C8H7O3)2(C12H12N2)]
n
, the Zn cation is coordinated by two N atoms from 1,2-bis(pyridin-4-yl)ethane unit and four O atoms from two mandelate [or hydroxy(phenyl)acetate] anions in a slightly distorted octahedral coordination geometry. The 1,2-bis(pyridin-4-yl)ethane unit bridges two ZnII cations, related by an inversion centre, to form a polymeric chain along [110]. The crystal structure features extensive O—H...O and weak C—H ...O hydrogen bonds, with C—H ... π interactions and π–π interactions also being present. The centroid–centroid distance between the phenyl ring of the mandelate group and the 1,2-bis(pyridine-4-yl)ethane moiety is 4.951 (2) Å. The 1,2-bis(pyridin-4-yl)ethane ligand is disordered over two positions, with a refined occupancy of 0.578 (14) for the major component.
Synthesis and structure of a 1:1 co-crystal of hexamethylenetetramine carboxyborane and acetaminophen
Authors: Ayudhya Theppawut , Raymond Casey , Dingra Nin
Published: November 2020

Hexamethylenetetramine carboacetaminophenborane, a molecule with two pharmacophores attached to a central carboxyborate moiety, was synthesized and crystals were grown with an acetaminophen co-crystal former to result in the title 1:1 co-crystal [hexamethylenetetramine 4-acetamidophenyl 2-boranylacetate–4-acetamidophenol (1/1)], C15H22BN5O3·C8H9NO2. In the first of these molecules, both the borate-ester and acetylamino groups are considerably twisted away from the plane of the intervening benzene ring [dihedral angles = 76.89 (9) and 65.42 (9)°, respectively]. The extended structure of this co-crystal features N—H...O and O—H...O hydrogen bonds, which link the components into (100) sheets and weak C—H...O hydrogen bonds help to consolidate the structure.
Crystal structures of the penta- and hexahydrate of thulium nitrate
Authors: Klein Wilhelm
Published: November 2020

Tm(NO3)3·5H2O and Tm(NO3)3·6H2O, or more precisely [Tm(NO3)3(H2O)4]·H2O and [Tm(NO3)3(H2O)4]·2H2O, respectively, have been obtained from a concentrated solution of Tm2O3 in HNO3. The crystal structures of the two hydrates show strong similarities as both crystallize in space group P\overline{1} with all atoms at general positions and contain neutral, molecular [Tm(NO3)3(H2O)4] complexes, i.e. ten-coordinated TmIII cations with three nitrate anions as bidentate ligands and four coordinating water molecules, and one or two additional crystal water molecules, respectively. All building units are connected by medium–strong to weak O—H...O hydrogen bonds. Tm(NO3)3·6H2O represents the maximally hydrated thulium nitrate as well as the heaviest rare earth nitrate hexahydrate known to date.
Radial basis Taylor series method and its applications
Authors: Karamanli Armagan
Published: November 2020

Purpose

The study aims to present a new meshless method based on the Taylor series expansion. The compact supported radial basis functions (CSRBFs) are very attractive, can be considered as a numerical tool for the engineering problems and used to obtain the trial solution and its derivatives without differentiating the basis functions for a meshless method. A meshless based on the CSRBF and Taylor series method has been developed for the solutions of engineering problems.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper is devoted to present a truly meshless method which is called a radial basis Taylor series method (RBTSM) based on the CSRBFs and Taylor series expansion (TSE). The basis function and its derivatives are obtained without differentiating CSRBFs.

Findings

The RBTSM does not involve differentiation of the approximated function. This property allows us to use a wide range of CSRBF and weight functions including the constant one. By using a different number of terms in the TSE, the global convergence properties of the RBTSM can be improved. The global convergence properties are satisfied by the RBTSM. The computed results based on the RBTSM shows excellent agreement with results given in the open literature. The RBTSM can provide satisfactory results even with the problem domains which have curved boundaries and irregularly distributed nodes.

Originality/value

The CSRBFs have been widely used for the construction of the basic function in the meshless methods. However, the derivative of the basis function is obtained with the differentiation of the CSRBF. In the RBTSM, the derivatives of the basis function are obtained by using the TSE without differentiating the CSRBF.
A recipe for food promotion: effects of color brightness on food evaluations and behavioral intentions
Authors: Cai Ruiying , Chi Christina Geng-Qing
Published: November 2020

Purpose

Building upon humans’ trichromatic vision systems, dual-process theory and halo effects, this paper aims to examine the effects of red and green color brightness of food pictures on customers’ evaluations and purchase intention of restaurant food.

Design/methodology/approach

The proposed hypotheses were tested across three experimental designed studies on a total of 575 participants. Multilevel analysis, analysis of variance and multivariate analysis of variance were applied for data analysis.

Findings

This paper provides empirical evidence of the effects of red brightness and green brightness on customers’ affective and cognitive evaluation of food and purchase intention in Study 1. Study 2 validates the effects of red and green brightness on food evaluation with the presence of nutrition information. Study 3 further elaborates on the halo effects of color brightness on customers’ favorable intentions to patronize a restaurant and willingness to pay for a meal in a controlled lab experiment.

Research limitations/implications

One main limitation is that this paper focuses on unveiling the role of color brightness and does not consider other picture properties, which opens an avenue for future research.

Practical implications

This paper includes implications for food promotion and management of customers’ experience via food pictures.

Originality/value

This paper is one of the first attempts to reveal the effects of red and green brightness of food pictures on customers’ food evaluation and food consumption behavioral intentions.
Parametric optimization of fused deposition modelling process using Grey based Taguchi and TOPSIS methods for an automotive component
Authors: R. Sakthivel Murugan , S. Vinodh
Published: November 2020

Purpose

This paper aims to optimize the process parameters of the fused deposition modelling (FDM) process using the Grey-based Taguchi method and the results to be verified based on a technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) and analytical hierarchy process (AHP) calculation.

Design/methodology/approach

The optimization of process parameters is gaining a potential role to develop robust products. In this context, this paper presents the parametric optimization of the FDM process using Grey-based Taguchi, TOPSIS and AHP method. The effect of slice height (SH), part fill style (PFS) and build orientation (BO) are investigated with the response parameters machining time, surface roughness and hardness (HD). Multiple objective optimizations were performed with weights of w1 = 60%, w2 = 20% and w3 = 20%. The significance of the process parameters over response parameters is identified through analysis of variance (ANOVA). Comparisons are made in terms of rank order with respect to grey relation grade (GRG), relative closeness and AHP index values. Response table, percentage contributions of process parameters for both GRG and TOPSIS evaluation are done.

Findings

The optimum factor levels are identified using GRG via the Grey Taguchi method and TOPSIS via relative closeness values. The optimized factor levels are SH (0.013 in), PFS (solid) and BO (45°) using GRG and SH (0.013 in), PFS (sparse-low density) and BO (45°) using TOPSIS relative closeness value. SH has higher significance in both Grey relational analysis and TOPSIS which were analysed using ANOVA.

Research limitations/implications

In this research, the multiple objective optimizations were done on an automotive component using GRG, TOPSIS and AHP which showed a 27% similarity in their ranking order among the experiments. In the future, other advanced optimization techniques will be applied to further improve the similarity in ranking order.

Practical implications

The study presents the case of an automotive component, which illustrates practical relevance.

Originality/value

In several research studies, optimization was done on the standard test specimens but not on a real-time component. Here, the multiple objective optimizations were applied to a case automotive component using Grey-based Taguchi and verified with TOPSIS. Hence, an effort has been taken to find optimum process parameters on FDM, for achieving smooth, hardened automotive components with enhanced printing time. The component can be explored as a replacement for the existing product.
Is the CIT susceptible to misleading information? A constructive replication
Authors: klein Selle Nathalie , Waxman Danna , Volz Katja , Ambach Wolfgang , Ben‐Shakhar Gershon
Published: November 2020

The Concealed Information Test (CIT) utilizes psychophysiological measures to detect crime‐related knowledge in a suspect's memory. In other words, it can discriminate between knowledgeable (guilty) and unknowledgeable (innocent) suspects. The majority of CIT research is however conducted in controlled laboratory settings, which are more resistant to external influences than realistic forensic settings. Such influences include retroactive memory interferences which may threaten the validity of the CIT. One notable example is the misinformation effect – retroactive memory distortions caused by exposure to misleading information regarding a past event. The current study is a constructive replication of Volz et al. (J Forensic Sci2017;63:1419) examining the effects of misleading information on the CIT. Participants underwent a three‐stage experiment including a mock crime, exposure to misleading information, and a CIT. Results show that when misleading information was presented, explicit memory of the mock crime was reduced, but the physiological responses to the critical CIT items were only partially attenuated. This could suggest that the detection of crime‐relevant information, using skin conductance and respiration measures, might be possible even when suspects are exposed to misleading information.
Isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 gene variants analysis of glioma patients from Pakistan
Authors: Naz Huma , Bashir Qamar , Rashid Naeem , Shahzad Naveed
Published: November 2020

Various somatic isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1) gene variants have been reported to drive lower‐grade gliomas and secondary glioblastomas. In the current study, we explored the IDH1 variants in the glioma biopsy samples of patients from Pakistan. We explored the incidence of isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 gene variants by hotspot sequencing in 80 formalin‐fixed paraffin‐embedded tissues of different types of glioma biopsy samples. Structural modeling of the identified variants in isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 protein was done to see their possible consequences. The frequently described p.Arg132 variants were not found in any of the glioma types. However, in our study, we identified nonsynonymous variants at the residues p.R109 and p.G136 in astrocytomas and p.R100 in oligodendroglioma. These variants are affecting a part of the conserved domain in isocitrate dehydrogenase 1. Both of p.R100 and p.R109 variants are rare and described before, whereas the p.G136 variant identified in this study has never been described previously. Structural modeling showed that variants of these residues would directly affect the substrate binding and hence the enzyme activity.
Non‐invasive haemoglobin measurement as an index test to detect pre‐operative anaemia in elective surgery patients – a prospective study
Authors: Wittenmeier E. , Paumen Y. , Mildenberger P. , Smetiprach J. , Pirlich N. , Griemert E.‐V. , Kriege M. , Engelhard K.
Published: November 2020

Non‐invasive haemoglobin measurement using absolute values lacks the precision to be the sole basis for the treatment of pre‐operative anaemia. However, it can possibly serve as a screening test, indexing ‘anaemia’ with high sensitivity when values remain under prespecified cut‐off values. Based on previous data, non‐invasive haemoglobin cut‐off values (146 g.l−1 for women and 152 g.l−1 for men) detect true anaemia with 99% sensitivity. An index test with these prespecified cut‐off values was verified by prospective measurement of non‐invasive and invasive haemoglobin pre‐operatively in elective surgical patients. In 809 patients, this showed an estimated sensitivity (95%CI) of 98.9% (94.1–99.9%) in women and 96.4% (91.0–99.0%) in men. This saved invasive blood tests in 9% of female and 28% of male patients. In female patients, a lower non‐invasive haemoglobin cut‐off value (138 g.l−1) would save 28% of invasive blood tests with a sensitivity of 95%. The target 99% sensitivity would be reached by non‐invasive haemoglobin cut‐off values of 152 g.l−1 in female and 162 g.l−1 in male patients, saving 3% and 9% of invasive blood tests, respectively. Bias and limits of agreement between non‐invasive and laboratory haemoglobin levels were 2 and − 25 to 28 g.l−1, respectively. Patient and measurement characteristics did not influence the agreement between non‐invasive and laboratory haemoglobin levels. Although sensitivity was very high, the index test using prespecified cut‐off values just failed to reach the target sensitivity to detect true anaemia. Nevertheless, with respect to blood‐sparing effects, the use of the index test in men may be clinically useful, while an index test with a lower cut‐off (132 g.l−1) could be more clinically appropriate in women.
Reciprocal Associations between Burnout and Depression: An 8‐Year Longitudinal Study
Authors: Tóth‐Király István , Morin Alexandre J.S. , Salmela‐Aro Katariina
Published: November 2020

The purpose of the present four‐wave longitudinal study was to examine the differentiation and reciprocal associations between burnout and depression, and their associations with a series of correlates related to employees’ physical and psychological health (sleep disturbances, somatic symptoms, self‐rated subjective health, and life satisfaction). A total of 542 early career Finnish workers filled out questionnaires four times over a period of 8 years. First, our results supported the superiority of a bifactor exploratory structural equation modeling (bifactor‐ESEM) representation of employees’ burnout ratings, and the empirical differentiation between burnout and depression ratings over each measurement occasion. These results further revealed moderate cross‐sectional associations between burnout and depression, supporting their inter‐related character but also their empirical distinctiveness. Second, autoregressive cross‐lagged analyses revealed that both constructs presented a moderate level of stability over time and reciprocal associations that generalized to all time intervals considered. Finally, relations between depression and all correlates measures during the last wave of the study were in the expected direction, whereas burnout was found to be more weakly related to only a subset of these correlates. Taken together, these results thus support the distinctiveness of burnout and depression, and the presence of mutually reinforcing relations between them.
PAR2 induces ovarian cancer cell motility by merging three signalling pathways to transactivate EGFR
Authors: Jiang Yuhong , Lim Junxian , Wu Kai‐Chen , Xu Weijun , Suen Jacky Y. , Fairlie David P.
Published: November 2020

Background and Purpose

Specific cellular functions mediated by GPCRs are often associated with signalling through a particular G protein or β‐arrestin. Here, we examine signalling through a GPCR, protease‐activated receptor 2 (PAR2), in a high‐grade serous ovarian cancer cell line (OV90).

Experimental Approach

Human ovarian cancer tissues (n = 1,200) and nine human ovarian cancer cell lines were assessed for PAR2 expression. PAR2 signalling mechanisms leading to cell migration and invasion were dissected using cellular assays, western blots, CRISPR‐Cas9 gene knockouts, pharmacological inhibitors of PAR2 and downstream signalling proteins in OV90 cancer cells.

Key Results

PAR2 was significantly overexpressed in clinical ovarian cancer tissues and in OV90 ovarian cancer cells. PAR2 agonists, an endogenous protease (trypsin) and a synthetic peptide (2f‐LIGRL‐NH2), induced migration and invasion of OV90 ovarian cancer cells through activating a combination of Gαq/11, Gα12/13 and β‐arrestin1/2, but not Gαs or Gαi. This novel cooperative rather than parallel signalling resulted in downstream serial activation of Src kinases, then transactivation of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), followed by downstream MEK–ERK1/2–FOS/MYC/STAT3–COX2 signalling. Either a PAR2 antagonist (I‐191), CRISPR‐Cas9 gene knockouts (PAR2 or Gα proteins or β‐arrestin1/2), or inhibitors of each downstream protein attenuated human ovarian cancer cell motility.

Conclusion and Implications

This study highlights a novel shared signalling cascade, requiring each of Gαq/11, Gα12/13 and β‐arrestin1/2 for PAR2‐induced ovarian cancer cell migration and invasion. This mechanism controlling a cellular function is unusual in not being linked to a specific individual G protein or β‐arrestin‐mediated signalling pathway.
Memory‐Efficient Bijective Parameterizations of Very‐Large‐Scale Models
Authors: Ye Chunyang , Su Jian‐Ping , Liu Ligang , Fu Xiao‐Ming
Published: November 2020

As high‐precision 3D scanners become more and more widespread, it is easy to obtain very‐large‐scale meshes containing at least millions of vertices. However, processing these very‐large‐scale meshes is still a very challenging task due to memory limitations. This paper focuses on a fundamental geometric processing task, i.e., bijective parameterization construction. To this end, we present a spline‐enhanced method to compute bijective and low distortion parameterizations for very‐large‐scale disk topology meshes. Instead of computing descent directions using the mesh vertices as variables, we estimate descent directions for each vertex by optimizing a proxy energy defined in spline spaces. Since the spline functions contain a small set of control points, it significantly decreases memory requirement. Besides, a divide‐and‐conquer method is proposed to obtain bijective initializations, and a submesh‐based optimization strategy is developed to reduce distortion further. The capability and feasibility of our method are demonstrated over various complex models. Compared to the existing methods for bijective parameterizations of very‐large‐scale meshes, our method exhibits better scalability and requires much less memory.
Fast Out‐of‐Core Octree Generation for Massive Point Clouds
Authors: Schütz Markus , Ohrhallinger Stefan , Wimmer Michael
Published: November 2020

We propose an efficient out‐of‐core octree generation method for arbitrarily large point clouds. It utilizes a hierarchical counting sort to quickly split the point cloud into small chunks, which are then processed in parallel. Levels of detail are generated by subsampling the full data set bottom up using one of multiple exchangeable sampling strategies. We introduce a fast hierarchical approximate blue‐noise strategy and compare it to a uniform random sampling strategy. The throughput, including out‐of‐core access to disk, generating the octree, and writing the final result to disk, is about an order of magnitude faster than the state of the art, and reaches up to around 6 million points per second for the blue‐noise approach and up to around 9 million points per second for the uniform random approach on modern SSDs.
Procedural Physically based BRDF for Real‐Time Rendering of Glints
Authors: Chermain X. , Sauvage B. , Dischler J.‐M. , Dachsbacher C.
Published: November 2020

Physically based rendering of glittering surfaces is a challenging problem in computer graphics. Several methods have proposed off‐line solutions, but none is dedicated to high‐performance graphics. In this work, we propose a novel physically based BRDF for real‐time rendering of glints. Our model can reproduce the appearance of sparkling materials (rocks, rough plastics, glitter fabrics, etc.). Compared to the previous real‐time method [ZK16], which is not physically based, our BRDF uses normalized NDFs and converges to the standard microfacet BRDF [CT82] for a large number of microfacets. Our method procedurally computes NDFs with hundreds of sharp lobes. It relies on a dictionary of 1D marginal distributions: at each location two of them are randomly picked and multiplied (to obtain a NDF), rotated (to increase the variety), and scaled (to control standard deviation/roughness). The dictionary is multiscale, does not depend on roughness, and has a low memory footprint (less than 1 MiB).
Monocular Human Pose and Shape Reconstruction using Part Differentiable Rendering
Authors: Wang Min , Qiu Feng , Liu Wentao , Qian Chen , Zhou Xiaowei , Ma Lizhuang
Published: November 2020

Superior human pose and shape reconstruction from monocular images depends on removing the ambiguities caused by occlusions and shape variance. Recent works succeed in regression‐based methods which estimate parametric models directly through a deep neural network supervised by 3D ground truth. However, 3D ground truth is neither in abundance nor can efficiently be obtained. In this paper, we introduce body part segmentation as critical supervision. Part segmentation not only indicates the shape of each body part but helps to infer the occlusions among parts as well. To improve the reconstruction with part segmentation, we propose a part‐level differentiable renderer that enables part‐based models to be supervised by part segmentation in neural networks or optimization loops. We also introduce a general parametric model engaged in the rendering pipeline as an intermediate representation between skeletons and detailed shapes, which consists of primitive geometries for better interpretability. The proposed approach combines parameter regression, body model optimization, and detailed model registration altogether. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method achieves balanced evaluation on pose and shape, and outperforms the state‐of‐the‐art approaches on Human3.6M, UP‐3D and LSP datasets.
Colorization of Line Drawings with Empty Pupils
Authors: Akita K. , Morimoto Y. , Tsuruno R.
Published: November 2020

Many studies have recently applied deep learning to the automatic colorization of line drawings. However, it is difficult to paint empty pupils using existing methods because the convolutional neural network are trained with pupils that have edges, which are generated from color images using image processing. Most actual line drawings have empty pupils that artists must paint in. In this paper, we propose a novel network model that transfers the pupil details in a reference color image to input line drawings with empty pupils. We also propose a method for accurately and automatically colorizing eyes. In this method, eye patches are extracted from a reference color image and automatically added to an input line drawing as color hints using our pupil position estimation network.
Slice and Dice: A Physicalization Workflow for Anatomical Edutainment
Authors: Raidou Renata G. , Gröller M. Eduard , Wu Hsiang‐Yun
Published: November 2020

During the last decades, anatomy has become an interesting topic in education—even for laymen or schoolchildren. As medical imaging techniques become increasingly sophisticated, virtual anatomical education applications have emerged. Still, anatomical models are often preferred, as they facilitate 3D localization of anatomical structures. Recently, data physicalizations (i.e., physical visualizations) have proven to be effective and engaging—sometimes, even more than their virtual counterparts. So far, medical data physicalizations involve mainly 3D printing, which is still expensive and cumbersome. We investigate alternative forms of physicalizations, which use readily available technologies (home printers) and inexpensive materials (paper or semi‐transparent films) to generate crafts for anatomical edutainment. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first computer‐generated crafting approach within an anatomical edutainment context. Our approach follows a cost‐effective, simple, and easy‐to‐employ workflow, resulting in assemblable data sculptures (i.e., semi‐transparent sliceforms). It primarily supports volumetric data (such as CT or MRI), but mesh data can also be imported. An octree slices the imported volume and an optimization step simplifies the slice configuration, proposing the optimal order for easy assembly. A packing algorithm places the resulting slices with their labels, annotations, and assembly instructions on a paper or transparent film of user‐selected size, to be printed, assembled into a sliceform, and explored. We conducted two user studies to assess our approach, demonstrating that it is an initial positive step towards the successful creation of interactive and engaging anatomical physicalizations.
Short‐term outcomes after transanal total mesorectal excision for rectal cancer in Denmark – a prospective multicentre study
Authors: Klein Mads Falk , Seiersen Michael , Bulut Orhan , Bech‐Knudsen Flemming , Jansen Jens Erik , Gögenur Ismail
Published: November 2020

Aim

The aim of this study was to evaluate the short‐term surgical and oncological outcomes after transanal total mesorectal excision (TaTME) for rectal cancer during the implementation phase of this procedure in Denmark.

Method

This is a retrospective review of prospectively recorded data. Registration was initiated by the Scientific Council of the Danish Colorectal Cancer Group (DCCG.dk) in order to assess the quality of care during the implementation of TaTME. Pre‐, intra‐ and postoperative data including early recurrences were recorded at the operating centres.

Results

From August 2016 to April 2019, 115 TaTME procedures were registered. Patients were predominantly male (74%) with mid‐rectal (88%) tumours. The level of surgical complications was comparable to previous nationwide results. Anastomotic leakage occurred in 6/109 (5.5%). One urethral injury occurred. The plane of dissection was mesorectal in 60% of cases, intramesorectal in 28% and muscularis in 12%. Nonmicroradicality was seen in 8% (R1, 6%; R2, 2%). Four local recurrences occurred after a median of 23 months of follow‐up. One of these was multifocal.

Conclusion

In an implementation phase where patient selection is expected, surgical and oncological results after TaTME were comparable to those of other approaches reported in the literature.
Industry submissions on alcohol in the context of Australia's trade and investment agreements: A content and thematic analysis of publicly available documents
Authors: Miller Mia , Wilkinson Claire , Room Robin , O'Brien Paula , Townsend Belinda , Schram Ashley , Gleeson Deborah
Published: November 2020

Introduction and Aims

Alcohol use is a leading risk factor for death and disability, responsible for 3 million deaths in 2016. The alcohol industry is a powerful player in shaping trade and investment rules in ways that can constrain the ability of governments to regulate alcoholic beverages to reduce harm. This paper analyses publicly available submissions about alcohol in the context of Australia's free trade agreements to determine the key themes put forward by industry.

Design and Methods

We searched for submissions made to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade by alcohol industry trade associations, alcohol manufacturers, distributors and retailers, general industry association, and government agencies with responsibilities for alcohol trade, about specific free trade agreements involving Australia. Thirty‐one submissions in relation to eight trade agreements were included for analysis. The analysis involved both descriptive content analysis and thematic analysis.

Results

Findings suggest that industry is actively seeking to shape trade negotiations around alcohol. Priority issues for the industry include improving market access, harmonising regulation, improving clarity and transparency, reducing the burden of regulation and preventing monopolies on product names.

Discussion and Conclusion

The alcohol industry and associated business and government organisations are actively working to influence trade agreement negotiations for industry economic gain, arguing for rules which may undermine public health goals. The analysis suggests that public health experts should pay attention to trade and investment agreements and develop counter frames to ensure agreements do not create barriers for coherent health policies.
Independent walking and cognitive development in preschool children with Dravet syndrome
Authors: Verheyen Karen , Wyers Lore , Del Felice Alessandra , Schoonjans An‐Sofie , Ceulemans Berten , Van de Walle Patricia , Hallemans Ann
Published: November 2020

Aim

To investigate the relation between cognitive and motor development in preschool aged children with Dravet syndrome, in particular between the age of independent walking and cognitive development.

Method

Results of cognitive and motor developmental assessments and the age of independent walking were retrieved retrospectively from the medical records of 33 children (17 males, 16 females; mean age at last evaluation 33.2mo, SD 8.2mo, range 9–48mo) diagnosed with Dravet syndrome. Cognitive and motor developmental age, derived from the Bayley Scales of Infant Development or through standardized neurodevelopmental assessment, were converted into cognitive and motor developmental quotients. Multiple test scores per child were included.

Results

A strong positive relation was found between cognitive and motor developmental quotient (Pearsonr=0.854;p<0.001) in 20 children (slope=0.75; 95% CI: 0.54–0.95). A later age of independent walking was associated with a lower cognitive developmental quotient (28 children;p<0.001; slope=−1.01; 95% CI: −1.53 to −0.49). A higher cognitive developmental quotient was seen in children with an age at testing younger than 24 months. The cognitive developmental quotient of children with a delay in independent walking (>17.6mo) was significantly lower than those without a delay (p=0.006).

Interpretation

A strong relation exists between cognitive and motor development. Furthermore, the age of independent walking might be an important indicator of the development of children with Dravet syndrome.

What this paper adds

Cognitive and motor development are strongly related in children with Dravet syndrome.

Later age of independent walking is associated with worse cognitive development in children with Dravet syndrome.
Exploring the crosstalk of glycolysis and mitochondrial metabolism in psychiatric disorders and brain tumours
Authors: Vlaikou Angeliki‐Maria , Nussbaumer Markus , Komini Chrysoula , Lambrianidou Andromachi , Konidaris Constantinos , Trangas Theoni , Filiou Michaela D.
Published: November 2020

Dysfunction of metabolic pathways characterises a plethora of common pathologies and has emerged as an underlying hallmark of disease phenotypes. Here, we focus on psychiatric disorders and brain tumours and explore changes in the interplay between glycolysis and mitochondrial energy metabolism in the brain. We discuss alterations in glycolysis versus core mitochondrial metabolic pathways, such as the tricarboxylic acid cycle and oxidative phosphorylation, in major psychiatric disorders and brain tumours. We investigate potential common patterns of altered mitochondrial metabolism in different brain regions and sample types and explore how changes in mitochondrial number, shape and morphology affect disease‐related manifestations. We also highlight the potential of pharmacologically targeting mitochondria to achieve therapeutic effects.
Mutation analysis of MFSD8 in an amyotrophic lateral sclerosis cohort from mainland China
Authors: Huang Ling , Liu Zhen , Yuan Yanchun , Shen Lu , Jiang Hong , Tang Beisha , Wang Junling , Lei Lifang
Published: November 2020

Recent studies have suggested that rare variants in MFSD8 contribute to risk for frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Considering the common underlying pathogenesis and the shared genetic risk between amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and FTD, we screened the coding region of MFSD8 in 551 unrelated patients with ALS (510 unrelated sporadic ALS and 41 familial ALS probands) from mainland China by whole‐exome sequencing to assess its mutation frequency in patients with ALS and evaluate its association. Two rare deleterious variants, c.343G>A (p. V115M) and c.695T>C (p.L232P), were identified in this study. The variant c.695T>C (p.L232P) has not been previously reported and the carrier of this variant exhibits a relatively younger age of disease onset. Our studies provide some independent evidence showing that the rare variant p.L232P in MFSD8 might be a candidate risk factor for ALS. However, the relatively small sample size and the lack of patient‐derived cells limit the power of the genetic exploration of this study, further robust multicenter studies with larger sizes and biological experiments with patient‐derived cells are needed to elucidate the pathogenesis of the rare variant in MFSD8 in ALS.
Severe hypertensive flare‐up after intravitreal injection of ranibizumab for retinal venous branch occlusion
Authors: Tournon Nicolas , Bertrand Laura , Bagheri Haleh , Amar Jacques
Published: November 2020

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) proteins are involved in the regulation of angiogenesis. Systemic adverse effects of some anti‐VEGF include hypertension, proteinuria and cardiovascular complications which could involve lower systemic VEGF levels. However, the question regarding intravitreal administration of anti‐VEGF remains controversial given that the patients receiving these drugs are often elderly and present cardiac risk factors such as arterial hypertension or atrial fibrillation. We report a case of hypertensive flare‐up following intravitreal injection of ranibizumab for retinal vein occlusion. The outcome was favourable after adapted antihypertensive treatment. This case report adds to the growing body of evidence suggesting that intravitreal administration of anti‐VEGF, regardless of agents, may result in hypertensive episodes in some predisposed patients. Listing this adverse effect should help to minimize risks by heightening clinician and patient awareness and to improve blood pressure monitoring following the intravitreal administration of anti‐VEGF agents.