Normal voice processing after posterior superior temporal sulcus lesion.

PubMed

Jiahui, Guo; Garrido, Lúcia; Liu, Ran R; Susilo, Tirta; Barton, Jason J S; Duchaine, Bradley

2017-10-01

The right posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS) shows a strong response to voices, but the cognitive processes generating this response are unclear. One possibility is that this activity reflects basic voice processing. However, several fMRI and magnetoencephalography findings suggest instead that pSTS serves as an integrative hub that combines voice and face information. Here we investigate whether right pSTS contributes to basic voice processing by testing Faith, a patient whose right pSTS was resected, with eight behavioral tasks assessing voice identity perception and recognition, voice sex perception, and voice expression perception. Faith performed normally on all the tasks. Her normal performance indicates right pSTS is not necessary for intact voice recognition and suggests that pSTS activations to voices reflect higher-level processes. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The effectivenes of science domain-based science learning integrated with local potency

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kurniawati, Arifah Putri; Prasetyo, Zuhdan Kun; Wilujeng, Insih; Suryadarma, I. Gusti Putu

2017-08-01

This research aimed to determine the significant effect of science domain-based science learning integrated with local potency toward science process skills. The research method used was a quasi-experimental design with nonequivalent control group design. The population of this research was all students of class VII SMP Negeri 1 Muntilan. The sample of this research was selected through cluster random sampling, namely class VII B as an experiment class (24 students) and class VII C as a control class (24 students). This research used a test instrument that was adapted from Agus Dwianto's research. The aspect of science process skills in this research was observation, classification, interpretation and communication. The analysis of data used the one factor anova at 0,05 significance level and normalized gain score. The significance level result of science process skills with one factor anova is 0,000. It shows that the significance level < alpha (0,05). It means that there was significant effect of science domain-based science learning integrated with local potency toward science learning process skills. The results of analysis show that the normalized gain score are 0,29 (low category) in control class and 0,67 (medium category) in experiment class.

A normal incidence, high resolution X-ray telescope for solar coronal observations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Golub, L.

1984-01-01

A Normal Incidence high resolution X-ray Telescope is reported. The design of a telescope assembly which, after fabrication, will be integrated with the mirror fabrication process is described. The assembly is engineered to fit into the Black Brant rocket skin to survive sounding rocket launch conditions. A flight ready camera is modified and tested.

Cognitive Processes in Dissociation: An Analysis of Core Theoretical Assumptions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Giesbrecht, Timo; Lilienfield, Scott O.; Lynn, Steven Jay; Merckelbach, Harald

2008-01-01

Dissociation is typically defined as the lack of normal integration of thoughts, feelings, and experiences into consciousness and memory. The present article critically evaluates the research literature on cognitive processes in dissociation. The authors' review indicates that dissociation is characterized by subtle deficits in neuropsychological…

ProNormz--an integrated approach for human proteins and protein kinases normalization.

PubMed

Subramani, Suresh; Raja, Kalpana; Natarajan, Jeyakumar

2014-02-01

The task of recognizing and normalizing protein name mentions in biomedical literature is a challenging task and important for text mining applications such as protein-protein interactions, pathway reconstruction and many more. In this paper, we present ProNormz, an integrated approach for human proteins (HPs) tagging and normalization. In Homo sapiens, a greater number of biological processes are regulated by a large human gene family called protein kinases by post translational phosphorylation. Recognition and normalization of human protein kinases (HPKs) is considered to be important for the extraction of the underlying information on its regulatory mechanism from biomedical literature. ProNormz distinguishes HPKs from other HPs besides tagging and normalization. To our knowledge, ProNormz is the first normalization system available to distinguish HPKs from other HPs in addition to gene normalization task. ProNormz incorporates a specialized synonyms dictionary for human proteins and protein kinases, a set of 15 string matching rules and a disambiguation module to achieve the normalization. Experimental results on benchmark BioCreative II training and test datasets show that our integrated approach achieve a fairly good performance and outperforms more sophisticated semantic similarity and disambiguation systems presented in BioCreative II GN task. As a freely available web tool, ProNormz is useful to developers as extensible gene normalization implementation, to researchers as a standard for comparing their innovative techniques, and to biologists for normalization and categorization of HPs and HPKs mentions in biomedical literature. URL: http://www.biominingbu.org/pronormz. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Vitrification of neat semen alters sperm parameters and DNA integrity.

PubMed

Khalili, Mohammad Ali; Adib, Maryam; Halvaei, Iman; Nabi, Ali

2014-05-06

Our aim was to evaluate the effect of neat semen vitrification on human sperm vital parameters and DNA integrity in men with normal and abnormal sperm parameters. Semen samples were 17 normozoospermic samples and 17 specimens with abnormal sperm parameters. Semen analysis was performed according to World Health Organization (WHO) criteria. Then, the smear was provided from each sample and fixed for terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) staining. Vitrification of neat semen was done by plunging cryoloops directly into liquid nitrogen and preserved for 7 days. The samples were warmed and re-evaluated for sperm parameters as well as DNA integrity. Besides, the correlation between sperm parameters and DNA fragmentation was assessed pre- and post vitrification. Cryopreserved spermatozoa showed significant decrease in sperm motility, viability and normal morphology after thawing in both normal and abnormal semen. Also, the rate of sperm DNA fragmentation was significantly higher after vitrification compared to fresh samples in normal (24.76 ± 5.03 and 16.41 ± 4.53, P = .002) and abnormal (34.29 ± 10.02 and 23.5 ± 8.31, P < .0001), respectively. There was negative correlation between sperm motility and sperm DNA integrity in both groups after vitrification. Vitrification of neat ejaculates has negative impact on sperm parameters as well as DNA integrity, particularly among abnormal semen subjects. It is, therefore, recommend to process semen samples and vitrify the sperm pellets.

Drosophila Sld5 is essential for normal cell cycle progression and maintenance of genomic integrity

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gouge, Catherine A.; Christensen, Tim W., E-mail: christensent@ecu.edu

2010-09-10

Research highlights: {yields} Drosophila Sld5 interacts with Psf1, PPsf2, and Mcm10. {yields} Haploinsufficiency of Sld5 leads to M-phase delay and genomic instability. {yields} Sld5 is also required for normal S phase progression. -- Abstract: Essential for the normal functioning of a cell is the maintenance of genomic integrity. Failure in this process is often catastrophic for the organism, leading to cell death or mis-proliferation. Central to genomic integrity is the faithful replication of DNA during S phase. The GINS complex has recently come to light as a critical player in DNA replication through stabilization of MCM2-7 and Cdc45 as amore » member of the CMG complex which is likely responsible for the processivity of helicase activity during S phase. The GINS complex is made up of 4 members in a 1:1:1:1 ratio: Psf1, Psf2, Psf3, And Sld5. Here we present the first analysis of the function of the Sld5 subunit in a multicellular organism. We show that Drosophila Sld5 interacts with Psf1, Psf2, and Mcm10 and that mutations in Sld5 lead to M and S phase delays with chromosomes exhibiting hallmarks of genomic instability.« less

Excitatory, inhibitory and facilitatory frequency response areas in the inferior colliculus of hearing impaired mice.

PubMed

Felix, Richard A; Portfors, Christine V

2007-06-01

Individuals with age-related hearing loss often have difficulty understanding complex sounds such as basic speech. The C57BL/6 mouse suffers from progressive sensorineural hearing loss and thus is an effective tool for dissecting the neural mechanisms underlying changes in complex sound processing observed in humans. Neural mechanisms important for processing complex sounds include multiple tuning and combination sensitivity, and these responses are common in the inferior colliculus (IC) of normal hearing mice. We examined neural responses in the IC of C57Bl/6 mice to single and combinations of tones to examine the extent of spectral integration in the IC after age-related high frequency hearing loss. Ten percent of the neurons were tuned to multiple frequency bands and an additional 10% displayed non-linear facilitation to the combination of two different tones (combination sensitivity). No combination-sensitive inhibition was observed. By comparing these findings to spectral integration properties in the IC of normal hearing CBA/CaJ mice, we suggest that high frequency hearing loss affects some of the neural mechanisms in the IC that underlie the processing of complex sounds. The loss of spectral integration properties in the IC during aging likely impairs the central auditory system's ability to process complex sounds such as speech.

iMOSFLM: a new graphical interface for diffraction-image processing with MOSFLM

PubMed Central

Battye, T. Geoff G.; Kontogiannis, Luke; Johnson, Owen; Powell, Harold R.; Leslie, Andrew G. W.

2011-01-01

iMOSFLM is a graphical user interface to the diffraction data-integration program MOSFLM. It is designed to simplify data processing by dividing the process into a series of steps, which are normally carried out sequentially. Each step has its own display pane, allowing control over parameters that influence that step and providing graphical feedback to the user. Suitable values for integration parameters are set automatically, but additional menus provide a detailed level of control for experienced users. The image display and the interfaces to the different tasks (indexing, strategy calculation, cell refinement, integration and history) are described. The most important parameters for each step and the best way of assessing success or failure are discussed. PMID:21460445

Integrative mental health care: from theory to practice, Part 2.

PubMed

Lake, James

2008-01-01

Integrative approaches will lead to more accurate and different understandings of mental illness. Beneficial responses to complementary and alternative therapies provide important clues about the phenomenal nature of the human body in space-time and disparate biological, informational, and energetic factors associated with normal and abnormal psychological functioning. The conceptual framework of contemporary Western psychiatry includes multiple theoretical viewpoints, and there is no single best explanatory model of mental illness. Future theories of mental illness causation will not depend exclusively on empirical verification of strictly biological processes but will take into account both classically described biological processes and non-classical models, including complexity theory, resulting in more complete explanations of the characteristics and causes of symptoms and mechanisms of action that result in beneficial responses to treatments. Part 1 of this article examined the limitations of the theory and contemporary clinical methods employed in Western psychiatry and discussed implications of emerging paradigms in physics and the biological sciences for the future of psychiatry. In part 2, a practical methodology, for planning integrative assessment and treatment strategies in mental health care is proposed. Using this methodology the integrative management of moderate and severe psychiatric symptoms is reviewed in detail. As the conceptual framework of Western medicine evolves toward an increasingly integrative perspective, novel understanding of complex relationships between biological, informational, and energetic processes associated with normal psychological functioning and mental illness will lead to more effective integrative assessment and treatment strategies addressing the causes or meanings of symptoms at multiple hierarchic levels of body-brain-mind.

Integrative mental health care: from theory to practice, part 1.

PubMed

Lake, James

2007-01-01

Integrative approaches will lead to more accurate and different understandings of mental illness. Beneficial responses to complementary and alternative therapies provide important clues about the phenomenal nature of the human body in space-time and disparate biological, informational, and energetic factors associated with normal and abnormal psychological functioning. The conceptual framework of contemporary Western psychiatry includes multiple theoretical viewpoints, and there is no single best explanatory model of mental illness. Future theories of mental illness causation will not depend exclusively on empirical verification of strictly biological processes but will take into account both classically described biological processes and non-classical models, including complexity theory, resulting in more complete explanations of the characteristics and causes of symptoms and mechanisms of action that result in beneficial responses to treatments. Part 1 of this article examines the limitations of the theory and contemporary clinical methods employed in Western psychiatry and discusses implications of emerging paradigms in physics and the biological sciences for the future of psychiatry. In part 2, a practical methodology for planning integrative assessment and treatment strategies in mental health care is proposed. Using this methodology the integrative management of moderate and severe psychiatric symptoms is reviewed in detail. As the conceptual framework of Western medicine evolves toward an increasingly integrative perspective, novel understandings of complex relationships between biological, informational, and energetic processes associated with normal psychological functioning and mental illness will lead to more effective integrative assessment and treatment strategies addressing the causes or meanings of symptoms at multiple hierarchic levels of body-brain-mind.

A New Method to Determine the Half-Life for Penicillin Using Microcalorimeter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Z. X.; Zhao, W. W.

2015-01-01

The dissolution process of penicillin in normal saline and isotonic glucose solution was reported using a microcalorimeter. Both the integral and differential heats of solution were measured. The quantitative relationships between the amount of heat released and the quantity of dissolved penicillin were established. Meanwhile, the kinetics and the half-life of the dissolution processes as well as the enthalpy of solution, the entropy of dissolution, and the free energy of dissolution were determined. The results showed that a change of the solvent from normal saline to isotonic glucose solution had little effect on the half-life of penicillin in the dissolution process, and there was no significant difference between the stabilities of penicillin in isotonic glucose solution and normal saline. Moreover, the dissolution process of penicillin in isotonic glucose solution followed the first-order kinetics. These results could provide a theoretical basis for the clinical applications of penicillin.

Building the ECON extension: Functionality and lessons learned

Treesearch

Fred C. Martin

2008-01-01

The functionality of the ECON extension to FVS is described with emphasis on the ability to dynamically interact with all elements of the FVS simulation process. Like other extensions, ECON is fully integrated within FVS. This integration allows: (1) analysis of multiple alternative tree-removal actions within a single simulation without altering “normal” stand...

A measure for assessing the effects of audiovisual speech integration.

PubMed

Altieri, Nicholas; Townsend, James T; Wenger, Michael J

2014-06-01

We propose a measure of audiovisual speech integration that takes into account accuracy and response times. This measure should prove beneficial for researchers investigating multisensory speech recognition, since it relates to normal-hearing and aging populations. As an example, age-related sensory decline influences both the rate at which one processes information and the ability to utilize cues from different sensory modalities. Our function assesses integration when both auditory and visual information are available, by comparing performance on these audiovisual trials with theoretical predictions for performance under the assumptions of parallel, independent self-terminating processing of single-modality inputs. We provide example data from an audiovisual identification experiment and discuss applications for measuring audiovisual integration skills across the life span.

Influences of Normalization Method on Biomarker Discovery in Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry-Based Untargeted Metabolomics: What Should Be Considered?

PubMed

Chen, Jiaqing; Zhang, Pei; Lv, Mengying; Guo, Huimin; Huang, Yin; Zhang, Zunjian; Xu, Fengguo

2017-05-16

Data reduction techniques in gas chromatography-mass spectrometry-based untargeted metabolomics has made the following workflow of data analysis more lucid. However, the normalization process still perplexes researchers, and its effects are always ignored. In order to reveal the influences of normalization method, five representative normalization methods (mass spectrometry total useful signal, median, probabilistic quotient normalization, remove unwanted variation-random, and systematic ratio normalization) were compared in three real data sets with different types. First, data reduction techniques were used to refine the original data. Then, quality control samples and relative log abundance plots were utilized to evaluate the unwanted variations and the efficiencies of normalization process. Furthermore, the potential biomarkers which were screened out by the Mann-Whitney U test, receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, random forest, and feature selection algorithm Boruta in different normalized data sets were compared. The results indicated the determination of the normalization method was difficult because the commonly accepted rules were easy to fulfill but different normalization methods had unforeseen influences on both the kind and number of potential biomarkers. Lastly, an integrated strategy for normalization method selection was recommended.

Different patterns of metabolic cryo-damage in domestic cat (Felis catus) and cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) spermatozoa.

PubMed

Terrell, Kimberly A; Wildt, David E; Anthony, Nicola M; Bavister, Barry D; Leibo, S P; Penfold, Linda M; Marker, Laurie L; Crosier, Adrienne E

2012-04-01

Felid spermatozoa are sensitive to cryopreservation-induced damage, but functional losses can be mitigated by post-thaw swim-up or density gradient processing methods that selectively recover motile or structurally-normal spermatozoa, respectively. Despite the importance of sperm energy production to achieving fertilization, there is little knowledge about the influence of cryopreservation or post-thaw processing on felid sperm metabolism. We conducted a comparative study of domestic cat and cheetah sperm metabolism after cryopreservation and post-thaw processing. We hypothesized that freezing/thawing impairs sperm metabolism and that swim-up, but not density gradient centrifugation, recovers metabolically-normal spermatozoa. Ejaculates were cryopreserved, thawed, and processed by swim-up, Accudenz gradient centrifugation, or conventional washing (representing the 'control'). Sperm glucose and pyruvate uptake, lactate production, motility, and acrosomal integrity were assessed. Mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) was measured in cat spermatozoa. In both species, lactate production, motility, and acrosomal integrity were reduced in post-thaw, washed samples compared to freshly-collected ejaculates. Glucose uptake was minimal pre- and post-cryopreservation, whereas pyruvate uptake was similar between treatments due to high coefficients of variation. In the cat, swim-up, but not Accudenz processing, recovered spermatozoa with increased lactate production, pyruvate uptake, and motility compared to controls. Although confounded by differences in non-specific fluorescence among processing methods, MMP values within treatments were positively correlated to sperm motility and acrosomal integrity. Cheetah spermatozoa isolated by either selection method exhibited improved motility and/or acrosomal integrity, but remained metabolically compromised. Collectively, findings revealed a metabolically-robust subpopulation of cryopreserved cat, but not cheetah, spermatozoa, recovered by selecting for motility rather than morphology. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Two-part models with stochastic processes for modelling longitudinal semicontinuous data: Computationally efficient inference and modelling the overall marginal mean.

PubMed

Yiu, Sean; Tom, Brian Dm

2017-01-01

Several researchers have described two-part models with patient-specific stochastic processes for analysing longitudinal semicontinuous data. In theory, such models can offer greater flexibility than the standard two-part model with patient-specific random effects. However, in practice, the high dimensional integrations involved in the marginal likelihood (i.e. integrated over the stochastic processes) significantly complicates model fitting. Thus, non-standard computationally intensive procedures based on simulating the marginal likelihood have so far only been proposed. In this paper, we describe an efficient method of implementation by demonstrating how the high dimensional integrations involved in the marginal likelihood can be computed efficiently. Specifically, by using a property of the multivariate normal distribution and the standard marginal cumulative distribution function identity, we transform the marginal likelihood so that the high dimensional integrations are contained in the cumulative distribution function of a multivariate normal distribution, which can then be efficiently evaluated. Hence, maximum likelihood estimation can be used to obtain parameter estimates and asymptotic standard errors (from the observed information matrix) of model parameters. We describe our proposed efficient implementation procedure for the standard two-part model parameterisation and when it is of interest to directly model the overall marginal mean. The methodology is applied on a psoriatic arthritis data set concerning functional disability.

Helping Children with Sensory Processing Disorders: The Role of Occupational Therapy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sweet, Margarita

2010-01-01

Normally functioning sensory systems develop through sensory experiences. Children are stimulated through their senses in many different ways. Even though a person's sensory system is intact, he or she may have a sensory processing disorder (SPD), also known as sensory integration dysfunction. This means the person's brain does not correctly…

Connections between density, wall-normal velocity, and coherent structure in a heated turbulent boundary layer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saxton-Fox, Theresa; Gordeyev, Stanislav; Smith, Adam; McKeon, Beverley

2015-11-01

Strong density gradients associated with turbulent structure were measured in a mildly heated turbulent boundary layer using an optical sensor (Malley probe). The Malley probe measured index of refraction gradients integrated along the wall-normal direction, which, due to the proportionality of index of refraction and density in air, was equivalently an integral measure of density gradients. The integral output was observed to be dominated by strong, localized density gradients. Conditional averaging and Pearson correlations identified connections between the streamwise gradient of density and the streamwise gradient of wall-normal velocity. The trends were suggestive of a process of pick-up and transport of heat away from the wall. Additionally, by considering the density field as a passive marker of structure, the role of the wall-normal velocity in shaping turbulent structure in a sheared flow was examined. Connections were developed between sharp gradients in the density and flow fields and strong vertical velocity fluctuations. This research is made possible by the Department of Defense through the National Defense & Engineering Graduate Fellowship (NDSEG) Program and by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research Grant # FA9550-12-1-0060.

Parallel Architectures and Parallel Algorithms for Integrated Vision Systems. Ph.D. Thesis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Choudhary, Alok Nidhi

1989-01-01

Computer vision is regarded as one of the most complex and computationally intensive problems. An integrated vision system (IVS) is a system that uses vision algorithms from all levels of processing to perform for a high level application (e.g., object recognition). An IVS normally involves algorithms from low level, intermediate level, and high level vision. Designing parallel architectures for vision systems is of tremendous interest to researchers. Several issues are addressed in parallel architectures and parallel algorithms for integrated vision systems.

The Process of Adjustment Among Caregivers of Individuals with Spinal Cord Injury: A Qualitative Study

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-10-01

anxiety, and were within normal range for physical health complaints and social problem solving skills. We found a bivariate relationship between burden...functioning, we know little about impacts on their physical health , social integration, intimacy, and participation in meaningful activities like...functioning, physical health , social integration, intimacy, and participation in meaningful life roles (including employment and career development

Acceleration of planes segmentation using normals from previous frame

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gritsenko, Pavel; Gritsenko, Igor; Seidakhmet, Askar; Abduraimov, Azizbek

2017-12-01

One of the major problem in integration process of robots is to make them able to function in a human environment. In terms of computer vision, the major feature of human made rooms is the presence of planes [1, 2, 20, 21, 23]. In this article, we will present an algorithm dedicated to increase speed of a plane segmentation. The algorithm uses information about location of a plane and its normal vector to speed up the segmentation process in the next frame. In conjunction with it, we will address such aspects of ICP SLAM as performance and map representation.

Auditory processing disorders, verbal disfluency, and learning difficulties: a case study.

PubMed

Jutras, Benoît; Lagacé, Josée; Lavigne, Annik; Boissonneault, Andrée; Lavoie, Charlen

2007-01-01

This case study reports the findings of auditory behavioral and electrophysiological measures performed on a graduate student (identified as LN) presenting verbal disfluency and learning difficulties. Results of behavioral audiological testing documented the presence of auditory processing disorders, particularly temporal processing and binaural integration. Electrophysiological test results, including middle latency, late latency and cognitive potentials, revealed that LN's central auditory system processes acoustic stimuli differently to a reference group with normal hearing.

An order insertion scheduling model of logistics service supply chain considering capacity and time factors.

PubMed

Liu, Weihua; Yang, Yi; Wang, Shuqing; Liu, Yang

2014-01-01

Order insertion often occurs in the scheduling process of logistics service supply chain (LSSC), which disturbs normal time scheduling especially in the environment of mass customization logistics service. This study analyses order similarity coefficient and order insertion operation process and then establishes an order insertion scheduling model of LSSC with service capacity and time factors considered. This model aims to minimize the average unit volume operation cost of logistics service integrator and maximize the average satisfaction degree of functional logistics service providers. In order to verify the viability and effectiveness of our model, a specific example is numerically analyzed. Some interesting conclusions are obtained. First, along with the increase of completion time delay coefficient permitted by customers, the possible inserting order volume first increases and then trends to be stable. Second, supply chain performance reaches the best when the volume of inserting order is equal to the surplus volume of the normal operation capacity in mass service process. Third, the larger the normal operation capacity in mass service process is, the bigger the possible inserting order's volume will be. Moreover, compared to increasing the completion time delay coefficient, improving the normal operation capacity of mass service process is more useful.

Whole-House Solutions for Existing Homes: Philadelphia Housing Authority Energy-Efficiency Turnover Protocols

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None

2016-02-24

The Philadelphia Housing Authority worked with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Building America Program to integrate energy-efficiency measures into the refurbishment process that each unit normally goes through between occupancies.

Timing of Formal Phase Safety Reviews for Large-Scale Integrated Hazard Analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Massie, Michael J.; Morris, A. Terry

2010-01-01

Integrated hazard analysis (IHA) is a process used to identify and control unacceptable risk. As such, it does not occur in a vacuum. IHA approaches must be tailored to fit the system being analyzed. Physical, resource, organizational and temporal constraints on large-scale integrated systems impose additional direct or derived requirements on the IHA. The timing and interaction between engineering and safety organizations can provide either benefits or hindrances to the overall end product. The traditional approach for formal phase safety review timing and content, which generally works well for small- to moderate-scale systems, does not work well for very large-scale integrated systems. This paper proposes a modified approach to timing and content of formal phase safety reviews for IHA. Details of the tailoring process for IHA will describe how to avoid temporary disconnects in major milestone reviews and how to maintain a cohesive end-to-end integration story particularly for systems where the integrator inherently has little to no insight into lower level systems. The proposal has the advantage of allowing the hazard analysis development process to occur as technical data normally matures.

Beta-Band Functional Connectivity Influences Audiovisual Integration in Older Age: An EEG Study

PubMed Central

Wang, Luyao; Wang, Wenhui; Yan, Tianyi; Song, Jiayong; Yang, Weiping; Wang, Bin; Go, Ritsu; Huang, Qiang; Wu, Jinglong

2017-01-01

Audiovisual integration occurs frequently and has been shown to exhibit age-related differences via behavior experiments or time-frequency analyses. In the present study, we examined whether functional connectivity influences audiovisual integration during normal aging. Visual, auditory, and audiovisual stimuli were randomly presented peripherally; during this time, participants were asked to respond immediately to the target stimulus. Electroencephalography recordings captured visual, auditory, and audiovisual processing in 12 old (60–78 years) and 12 young (22–28 years) male adults. For non-target stimuli, we focused on alpha (8–13 Hz), beta (13–30 Hz), and gamma (30–50 Hz) bands. We applied the Phase Lag Index to study the dynamics of functional connectivity. Then, the network topology parameters, which included the clustering coefficient, path length, small-worldness global efficiency, local efficiency and degree, were calculated for each condition. For the target stimulus, a race model was used to analyze the response time. Then, a Pearson correlation was used to test the relationship between each network topology parameters and response time. The results showed that old adults activated stronger connections during audiovisual processing in the beta band. The relationship between network topology parameters and the performance of audiovisual integration was detected only in old adults. Thus, we concluded that old adults who have a higher load during audiovisual integration need more cognitive resources. Furthermore, increased beta band functional connectivity influences the performance of audiovisual integration during normal aging. PMID:28824411

Beta-Band Functional Connectivity Influences Audiovisual Integration in Older Age: An EEG Study.

PubMed

Wang, Luyao; Wang, Wenhui; Yan, Tianyi; Song, Jiayong; Yang, Weiping; Wang, Bin; Go, Ritsu; Huang, Qiang; Wu, Jinglong

2017-01-01

Audiovisual integration occurs frequently and has been shown to exhibit age-related differences via behavior experiments or time-frequency analyses. In the present study, we examined whether functional connectivity influences audiovisual integration during normal aging. Visual, auditory, and audiovisual stimuli were randomly presented peripherally; during this time, participants were asked to respond immediately to the target stimulus. Electroencephalography recordings captured visual, auditory, and audiovisual processing in 12 old (60-78 years) and 12 young (22-28 years) male adults. For non-target stimuli, we focused on alpha (8-13 Hz), beta (13-30 Hz), and gamma (30-50 Hz) bands. We applied the Phase Lag Index to study the dynamics of functional connectivity. Then, the network topology parameters, which included the clustering coefficient, path length, small-worldness global efficiency, local efficiency and degree, were calculated for each condition. For the target stimulus, a race model was used to analyze the response time. Then, a Pearson correlation was used to test the relationship between each network topology parameters and response time. The results showed that old adults activated stronger connections during audiovisual processing in the beta band. The relationship between network topology parameters and the performance of audiovisual integration was detected only in old adults. Thus, we concluded that old adults who have a higher load during audiovisual integration need more cognitive resources. Furthermore, increased beta band functional connectivity influences the performance of audiovisual integration during normal aging.

File format for normalizing radiological concentration exposure rate and dose rate data for the effects of radioactive decay and weathering processes

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kraus, Terrence D.

2017-04-01

This report specifies the electronic file format that was agreed upon to be used as the file format for normalized radiological data produced by the software tool developed under this TI project. The NA-84 Technology Integration (TI) Program project (SNL17-CM-635, Normalizing Radiological Data for Analysis and Integration into Models) investigators held a teleconference on December 7, 2017 to discuss the tasks to be completed under the TI program project. During this teleconference, the TI project investigators determined that the comma-separated values (CSV) file format is the most suitable file format for the normalized radiological data that will be outputted frommore » the normalizing tool developed under this TI project. The CSV file format was selected because it provides the requisite flexibility to manage different types of radiological data (i.e., activity concentration, exposure rate, dose rate) from other sources [e.g., Radiological Assessment and Monitoring System (RAMS), Aerial Measuring System (AMS), Monitoring and Sampling). The CSV file format also is suitable for the file format of the normalized radiological data because this normalized data can then be ingested by other software [e.g., RAMS, Visual Sampling Plan (VSP)] used by the NA-84’s Consequence Management Program.« less

Multi-sensory learning and learning to read.

PubMed

Blomert, Leo; Froyen, Dries

2010-09-01

The basis of literacy acquisition in alphabetic orthographies is the learning of the associations between the letters and the corresponding speech sounds. In spite of this primacy in learning to read, there is only scarce knowledge on how this audiovisual integration process works and which mechanisms are involved. Recent electrophysiological studies of letter-speech sound processing have revealed that normally developing readers take years to automate these associations and dyslexic readers hardly exhibit automation of these associations. It is argued that the reason for this effortful learning may reside in the nature of the audiovisual process that is recruited for the integration of in principle arbitrarily linked elements. It is shown that letter-speech sound integration does not resemble the processes involved in the integration of natural audiovisual objects such as audiovisual speech. The automatic symmetrical recruitment of the assumedly uni-sensory visual and auditory cortices in audiovisual speech integration does not occur for letter and speech sound integration. It is also argued that letter-speech sound integration only partly resembles the integration of arbitrarily linked unfamiliar audiovisual objects. Letter-sound integration and artificial audiovisual objects share the necessity of a narrow time window for integration to occur. However, they differ from these artificial objects, because they constitute an integration of partly familiar elements which acquire meaning through the learning of an orthography. Although letter-speech sound pairs share similarities with audiovisual speech processing as well as with unfamiliar, arbitrary objects, it seems that letter-speech sound pairs develop into unique audiovisual objects that furthermore have to be processed in a unique way in order to enable fluent reading and thus very likely recruit other neurobiological learning mechanisms than the ones involved in learning natural or arbitrary unfamiliar audiovisual associations. Copyright 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Process mapping and the integration of care

PubMed Central

Santana, Silvina; Redondo, Patrícia

2011-01-01

Introduction The main objective of this work is to show how process mapping may contribute to the improvement of intra- and inter-organizational integration of care. Theory and methods Under logic of service integration, quality of care depends not only on how the internal processes are implemented, but also on the quality of the transitions of care with external entities. We conducted a case study on a health centre located in the Centre Region of Portugal. Data was collected during the first semester of 2009. Petri nets were used as a modeling tool. Results We mapped eleven processes involving a patient directly. The informality of many of the processes became evident. Activities are guided by formalisms imposed by law and by the good practices of professionals. Some processes are not normalized and represented in the computerized information system. The media most used to communicate with other entities are the phone and paper. Under the RNCCI (Rede Nacional de Cuidados Integrados e Continuados—National Network for Integrated Care), the information is all organized in an integrated manner, and the processes are support by a customized, nation-wide, web-based information system. However, this platform is not integrated with the other applications in use. Conclusions and discussion We have demonstrated the viability and the benefits of process mapping techniques in the context of a Health Centre. It allowed to identify and understand the ‘what’, ‘why’, ‘when’, ‘where’, ‘who’ of each process, sub-process, task and activity and to develop graphical views of the processes.

Tunable integration of absorption-membrane-adsorption for efficiently separating low boiling gas mixtures near normal temperature

PubMed Central

Liu, Huang; Pan, Yong; Liu, Bei; Sun, Changyu; Guo, Ping; Gao, Xueteng; Yang, Lanying; Ma, Qinglan; Chen, Guangjin

2016-01-01

Separation of low boiling gas mixtures is widely concerned in process industries. Now their separations heavily rely upon energy-intensive cryogenic processes. Here, we report a pseudo-absorption process for separating low boiling gas mixtures near normal temperature. In this process, absorption-membrane-adsorption is integrated by suspending suitable porous ZIF material in suitable solvent and forming selectively permeable liquid membrane around ZIF particles. Green solvents like water and glycol were used to form ZIF-8 slurry and tune the permeability of liquid membrane surrounding ZIF-8 particles. We found glycol molecules form tighter membrane while water molecules form looser membrane because of the hydrophobicity of ZIF-8. When using mixing solvents composed of glycol and water, the permeability of liquid membrane becomes tunable. It is shown that ZIF-8/water slurry always manifests remarkable higher separation selectivity than solid ZIF-8 and it could be tuned to further enhance the capture of light hydrocarbons by adding suitable quantity of glycol to water. Because of its lower viscosity and higher sorption/desorption rate, tunable ZIF-8/water-glycol slurry could be readily used as liquid absorbent to separate different kinds of low boiling gas mixtures by applying a multistage separation process in one traditional absorption tower, especially for the capture of light hydrocarbons. PMID:26892255

Normal composite face effects in developmental prosopagnosia.

PubMed

Biotti, Federica; Wu, Esther; Yang, Hua; Jiahui, Guo; Duchaine, Bradley; Cook, Richard

2017-10-01

Upright face perception is thought to involve holistic processing, whereby local features are integrated into a unified whole. Consistent with this view, the top half of one face appears to fuse perceptually with the bottom half of another, when aligned spatially and presented upright. This 'composite face effect' reveals a tendency to integrate information from disparate regions when faces are presented canonically. In recent years, the relationship between susceptibility to the composite effect and face recognition ability has received extensive attention both in participants with normal face recognition and participants with developmental prosopagnosia. Previous results suggest that individuals with developmental prosopagnosia may show reduced susceptibility to the effect suggestive of diminished holistic face processing. Here we describe two studies that examine whether developmental prosopagnosia is associated with reduced composite face effects. Despite using independent samples of developmental prosopagnosics and different composite procedures, we find no evidence for reduced composite face effects. The experiments yielded similar results; highly significant composite effects in both prosopagnosic groups that were similar in magnitude to the effects found in participants with normal face processing. The composite face effects exhibited by both samples and the controls were greatly diminished when stimulus arrangements were inverted. Our finding that the whole-face binding process indexed by the composite effect is intact in developmental prosopagnosia indicates that other factors are responsible for developmental prosopagnosia. These results are also inconsistent with suggestions that susceptibility to the composite face effect and face recognition ability are tightly linked. While the holistic process revealed by the composite face effect may be necessary for typical face perception, it is not sufficient; individual differences in face recognition ability likely reflect variability in multiple sequential processes. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An Order Insertion Scheduling Model of Logistics Service Supply Chain Considering Capacity and Time Factors

PubMed Central

Yang, Yi; Wang, Shuqing; Liu, Yang

2014-01-01

Order insertion often occurs in the scheduling process of logistics service supply chain (LSSC), which disturbs normal time scheduling especially in the environment of mass customization logistics service. This study analyses order similarity coefficient and order insertion operation process and then establishes an order insertion scheduling model of LSSC with service capacity and time factors considered. This model aims to minimize the average unit volume operation cost of logistics service integrator and maximize the average satisfaction degree of functional logistics service providers. In order to verify the viability and effectiveness of our model, a specific example is numerically analyzed. Some interesting conclusions are obtained. First, along with the increase of completion time delay coefficient permitted by customers, the possible inserting order volume first increases and then trends to be stable. Second, supply chain performance reaches the best when the volume of inserting order is equal to the surplus volume of the normal operation capacity in mass service process. Third, the larger the normal operation capacity in mass service process is, the bigger the possible inserting order's volume will be. Moreover, compared to increasing the completion time delay coefficient, improving the normal operation capacity of mass service process is more useful. PMID:25276851

Orientation of chain molecules in ionotropic gels: a Brownian dynamics model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Woelki, Stefan; Kohler, Hans-Helmut

2003-09-01

As is known from birefringence measurements, polysaccharide molecules of ionotropic gels are preferentially orientated normal to the direction of gel growth. In this paper the orientation effect is investigated by means of an off-lattice Brownian dynamics model simulating the gel formation process. The model describes the integration of a single coarse grained phantom chain into the growing gel. The equations of motion of the chain are derived. The computer simulations show that, during the process of integration, the chain is contracting normal to the direction of gel growth. A scaling relation is obtained for the degree of contraction as a function of the length parameters of the chain, the velocity of the gel formation front and the rate constant of the crosslinking reaction. It is shown that the scaling relation, if applied to the example of ionotropic copper alginate gel, leads to reasonable predictions of the time course of the degree of contraction of the alginate chains.

CPICOR{trademark}: Clean power from integrated coal-ore reduction

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wintrell, R.; Miller, R.N.; Harbison, E.J.

1997-12-31

The US steel industry, in order to maintain its basic iron production, is thus moving to lower coke requirements and to the cokeless or direct production of iron. The US Department of Energy (DOE), in its Clean Coal Technology programs, has encouraged the move to new coal-based technology. The steel industry, in its search for alternative direct iron processes, has been limited to a single process, COREX{reg_sign}. The COREX{reg_sign} process, though offering commercial and environmental acceptance, produces a copious volume of offgas which must be effectively utilized to ensure an economical process. This volume, which normally exceeds the internal needsmore » of a single steel company, offers a highly acceptable fuel for power generation. The utility companies seeking to offset future natural gas cost increases are interested in this clean fuel. The COREX{reg_sign} smelting process, when integrated with a combined cycle power generation facility (CCPG) and a cryogenic air separation unit (ASU), is an outstanding example of a new generation of environmentally compatible and highly energy efficient Clean Coal Technologies. This combination of highly integrated electric power and hot metal coproduction, has been designated CPICOR{trademark}, Clean Power from Integrated Coal/Ore Reduction.« less

Tissue Architecture and Microenvironment Sustain Hormone Signaling | Center for Cancer Research

Cancer.gov

Cells interact with their environments in part through protein receptors embedded in the cell membrane. Activation of a receptor by external signaling molecules sets off a complex chain of events within the cell that can result in alterations in protein structure and function and/or changes in gene expression. Proper integration of these signals is crucial for normal cell growth and development. A more complete understanding of these normal processes will help elucidate how aberrant signaling results in diseases such as cancer.  

A roadmap for the integration of culture into developmental psychopathology.

PubMed

Causadias, José M

2013-11-01

In this paper, I propose a roadmap for the integration of culture in developmental psychopathology. This integration is pressing because culture continues to be somewhat disconnected from theory, research, training, and interventions in developmental psychopathology, thus limiting our understanding of the epigenesis of mental health. I argue that in order to successfully integrate culture into developmental psychopathology, it is crucial to (a) study cultural development, (b) consider both individual-level and social-level cultural processes, (c) examine the interplay between culture and biology, and (d) promote improved and direct cultural assessment. I provide evidence in support of each of these guidelines, present alternative conceptual frameworks, and suggest new lines of research. Hopefully, that these directions will contribute to the emerging field of cultural development and psychopathology, which focuses on the elucidation of the cultural processes that initiate, maintain, or derail trajectories of normal and abnormal behavior.

Integrated Information Support System (IISS). Volume 8. User Interface Subsystem. Part 3. User Interface Services Product Specification.

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-11-01

User Interface that consists of a set of callable execution time routines available to an application program for form processing . IISS Function Screen...provisions for test consists of the normal testing techniques that are accomplished during the construction process . They consist of design and code...application presents a form * to the user which must be filled in with information for processing by that application. The application then

Temporal Ventriloquism Reveals Intact Audiovisual Temporal Integration in Amblyopia.

PubMed

Richards, Michael D; Goltz, Herbert C; Wong, Agnes M F

2018-02-01

We have shown previously that amblyopia involves impaired detection of asynchrony between auditory and visual events. To distinguish whether this impairment represents a defect in temporal integration or nonintegrative multisensory processing (e.g., cross-modal matching), we used the temporal ventriloquism effect in which visual temporal order judgment (TOJ) is normally enhanced by a lagging auditory click. Participants with amblyopia (n = 9) and normally sighted controls (n = 9) performed a visual TOJ task. Pairs of clicks accompanied the two lights such that the first click preceded the first light, or second click lagged the second light by 100, 200, or 450 ms. Baseline audiovisual synchrony and visual-only conditions also were tested. Within both groups, just noticeable differences for the visual TOJ task were significantly reduced compared with baseline in the 100- and 200-ms click lag conditions. Within the amblyopia group, poorer stereo acuity and poorer visual acuity in the amblyopic eye were significantly associated with greater enhancement in visual TOJ performance in the 200-ms click lag condition. Audiovisual temporal integration is intact in amblyopia, as indicated by perceptual enhancement in the temporal ventriloquism effect. Furthermore, poorer stereo acuity and poorer visual acuity in the amblyopic eye are associated with a widened temporal binding window for the effect. These findings suggest that previously reported abnormalities in audiovisual multisensory processing may result from impaired cross-modal matching rather than a diminished capacity for temporal audiovisual integration.

The autistic brain in the context of normal neurodevelopment.

PubMed

Ziats, Mark N; Edmonson, Catherine; Rennert, Owen M

2015-01-01

The etiology of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) is complex and largely unclear. Among various lines of inquiry, many have suggested convergence onto disruptions in both neural circuitry and immune regulation/glial cell function pathways. However, the interpretation of the relationship between these two putative mechanisms has largely focused on the role of exogenous factors and insults, such as maternal infection, in activating immune pathways that in turn result in neural network abnormalities. Yet, given recent insights into our understanding of human neurodevelopment, and in particular the critical role of glia and the immune system in normal brain development, it is important to consider these putative pathological processes in their appropriate normal neurodevelopmental context. In this review, we explore the hypothesis that the autistic brain cellular phenotype likely represents intrinsic abnormalities of glial/immune processes constitutively operant in normal brain development that result in the observed neural network dysfunction. We review recent studies demonstrating the intercalated role of neural circuit development, the immune system, and glial cells in the normal developing brain, and integrate them with studies demonstrating pathological alterations in these processes in autism. By discussing known abnormalities in the autistic brain in the context of normal brain development, we explore the hypothesis that the glial/immune component of ASD may instead be related to intrinsic exaggerated/abnormal constitutive neurodevelopmental processes such as network pruning. Moreover, this hypothesis may be relevant to other neurodevelopmental disorders that share genetic, pathologic, and clinical features with autism.

Semiclassical description of resonance-assisted tunneling in one-dimensional integrable models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Le Deunff, Jérémy; Mouchet, Amaury; Schlagheck, Peter

2013-10-01

Resonance-assisted tunneling is investigated within the framework of one-dimensional integrable systems. We present a systematic recipe, based on Hamiltonian normal forms, to construct one-dimensional integrable models that exhibit resonance island chain structures with accurately controlled sizes and positions of the islands. Using complex classical trajectories that evolve along suitably defined paths in the complex time domain, we construct a semiclassical theory of the resonance-assisted tunneling process. This semiclassical approach yields a compact analytical expression for tunnelling-induced level splittings which is found to be in very good agreement with the exact splittings obtained through numerical diagonalization.

Integrated guidance, navigation and control verification plan primary flight system. [space shuttle avionics integration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1978-01-01

The verification process and requirements for the ascent guidance interfaces and the ascent integrated guidance, navigation and control system for the space shuttle orbiter are defined as well as portions of supporting systems which directly interface with the system. The ascent phase of verification covers the normal and ATO ascent through the final OMS-2 circularization burn (all of OPS-1), the AOA ascent through the OMS-1 burn, and the RTLS ascent through ET separation (all of MM 601). In addition, OPS translation verification is defined. Verification trees and roadmaps are given.

Age-related white matter integrity differences in oldest-old without dementia.

PubMed

Bennett, Ilana J; Greenia, Dana E; Maillard, Pauline; Sajjadi, S Ahmad; DeCarli, Charles; Corrada, Maria M; Kawas, Claudia H

2017-08-01

Aging is known to have deleterious effects on cerebral white matter, yet little is known about these white matter alterations in advanced age. In this study, 94 oldest-old adults without dementia (90-103 years) underwent diffusion tensor imaging to assess relationships between chronological age and multiple measures of integrity in 18 white matter regions across the brain. Results revealed significant age-related declines in integrity in regions previously identified as being sensitive to aging in younger-old adults (corpus callosum, fornix, cingulum, external capsule). For the corpus callosum, the effect of age on genu fractional anisotropy was significantly weaker than the relationship between age and splenium fractional anisotropy. Importantly, age-related declines in white matter integrity did not differ in cognitively normal and cognitively impaired not demented oldest-old, suggesting that they were not solely driven by cognitive dysfunction or preclinical dementia in this advanced age group. Instead, white matter in these regions appears to remain vulnerable to normal aging processes through the 10th decade of life. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Qualitative and Quantitative Distinctions in Personality Disorder

PubMed Central

Wright, Aidan G. C.

2011-01-01

The “categorical-dimensional debate” has catalyzed a wealth of empirical advances in the study of personality pathology. However, this debate is merely one articulation of a broader conceptual question regarding whether to define and describe psychopathology as a quantitatively extreme expression of normal functioning or as qualitatively distinct in its process. In this paper I argue that dynamic models of personality (e.g., object-relations, cognitive-affective processing system) offer the conceptual scaffolding to reconcile these seemingly incompatible approaches to characterizing the relationship between normal and pathological personality. I propose that advances in personality assessment that sample behavior and experiences intensively provide the empirical techniques, whereas interpersonal theory offers an integrative theoretical framework, for accomplishing this goal. PMID:22804676

Power processor for a 20CM ion thruster

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biess, J. J.; Schoenfeld, A. D.; Cohen, E.

1973-01-01

A power processor breadboard for the JPL 20CM Ion Engine was designed, fabricated, and tested to determine compliance with the electrical specification. The power processor breadboard used the silicon-controlled rectifier (SCR) series resonant inverter as the basic power stage to process all the power to the ion engine. The breadboard power processor was integrated with the JPL 20CM ion engine and complete testing was performed. The integration tests were performed without any silicon-controlled rectifier failure. This demonstrated the ruggedness of the series resonant inverter in protecting the switching elements during arcing in the ion engine. A method of fault clearing the ion engine and returning back to normal operation without elaborate sequencing and timing control logic was evolved. In this method, the main vaporizer was turned off and the discharge current limit was reduced when an overload existed on the screen/accelerator supply. After the high voltage returned to normal, both the main vaporizer and the discharge were returned to normal.

Radio frequency tags systems to initiate system processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Madsen, Harold O.; Madsen, David W.

1994-09-01

This paper describes the automatic identification technology which has been installed at Applied Magnetic Corp. MR fab. World class manufacturing requires technology exploitation. This system combines (1) FluoroTrac cassette and operator tracking, (2) CELLworks cell controller software tools, and (3) Auto-Soft Inc. software integration services. The combined system eliminates operator keystrokes and errors during normal processing within a semiconductor fab. The methods and benefits of this system are described.

An Integrated Protein Chemistry Laboratory: Chlorophyll and Chlorophyllase

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arkus, Kiani A. J.; Jez, Joseph M.

2008-01-01

Chlorophyll, the most abundant pigment in nature, is degraded during normal plant growth, when leaves change color, and at specific developmental stages. Chlorophyllase catalyzes the first chemical reaction in this process, that is, the hydrolysis of chlorophyll into chlorophyllide. Here, we describe a series of laboratory sessions designed to…

Simulating Limb Formation in the U.S. EPA Virtual Embryo - Risk Assessment Project

EPA Science Inventory

The U.S. EPA’s Virtual Embryo project (v-Embryo™) is a computer model simulation of morphogenesis that integrates cell and molecular level data from mechanistic and in vitro assays with knowledge about normal development processes to assess in silico the effects of chemicals on d...

The experience of weight management in normal weight adults.

PubMed

Hernandez, Cheri Ann; Hernandez, David A; Wellington, Christine M; Kidd, Art

2016-11-01

No prior research has been done with normal weight persons specific to their experience of weight management. The purpose of this research was to discover the experience of weight management in normal weight individuals. Glaserian grounded theory was used. Qualitative data (focus group) and quantitative data (food diary, study questionnaire, and anthropometric measures) were collected. Weight management was an ongoing process of trying to focus on living (family, work, and social), while maintaining their normal weight targets through five consciously and unconsciously used strategies. Despite maintaining normal weights, the nutritional composition of foods eaten was grossly inadequate. These five strategies can be used to develop new weight management strategies that could be integrated into existing weight management programs, or could be developed into novel weight management interventions. Surprisingly, normal weight individuals require dietary assessment and nutrition education to prevent future negative health consequences. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Oxidative Stress, Motor Abilities, and Behavioral Adjustment in Children Treated for Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.

PubMed

Hockenberry, Marilyn J; Krull, Kevin R; Insel, Kathleen C; Harris, Lynnette L; Gundy, Patricia M; Adkins, Kristin B; Pasvogel, Alice E; Taylor, Olga A; Koerner, Kari M; Montgomery, David W; Ross, Adam K; Hill, Adam; Moore, Ida M

2015-09-01

To examine associations among oxidative stress, fine and visual-motor abilities, and behavioral adjustment in children receiving chemotherapy for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL)
. A prospective, repeated-measures design
. Two pediatric oncology settings in the southwestern United States. 89 children with ALL were followed from diagnosis to the end of chemotherapy. Serial cerebrospinal fluid samples were collected during scheduled lumbar punctures and analyzed for oxidative stress biomarkers. Children completed fine motor dexterity, visual processing speed, and visual-motor integration measures at three time points. Parents completed child behavior ratings at the same times. Oxidative stress, fine motor dexterity, visual processing, visual-motor integration, and behavioral adjustment
. Children with ALL had below-average fine motor dexterity, visual processing speed, and visual-motor integration following the induction phase of ALL therapy. By end of therapy, visual processing speed normalized, and fine motor dexterity and visual-motor integration remained below average. Oxidative stress measures correlated with fine motor dexterity and visual-motor integration. Decreased motor functioning was associated with increased hyperactivity and anxiety
. Oxidative stress occurs following chemo-therapy for childhood ALL and is related to impaired fine motor skills and visual symptoms
. Early intervention should be considered to prevent fine motor and visual-spatial deficits, as well as behavioral problems.

A modular framework for biomedical concept recognition

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Concept recognition is an essential task in biomedical information extraction, presenting several complex and unsolved challenges. The development of such solutions is typically performed in an ad-hoc manner or using general information extraction frameworks, which are not optimized for the biomedical domain and normally require the integration of complex external libraries and/or the development of custom tools. Results This article presents Neji, an open source framework optimized for biomedical concept recognition built around four key characteristics: modularity, scalability, speed, and usability. It integrates modules for biomedical natural language processing, such as sentence splitting, tokenization, lemmatization, part-of-speech tagging, chunking and dependency parsing. Concept recognition is provided through dictionary matching and machine learning with normalization methods. Neji also integrates an innovative concept tree implementation, supporting overlapped concept names and respective disambiguation techniques. The most popular input and output formats, namely Pubmed XML, IeXML, CoNLL and A1, are also supported. On top of the built-in functionalities, developers and researchers can implement new processing modules or pipelines, or use the provided command-line interface tool to build their own solutions, applying the most appropriate techniques to identify heterogeneous biomedical concepts. Neji was evaluated against three gold standard corpora with heterogeneous biomedical concepts (CRAFT, AnEM and NCBI disease corpus), achieving high performance results on named entity recognition (F1-measure for overlap matching: species 95%, cell 92%, cellular components 83%, gene and proteins 76%, chemicals 65%, biological processes and molecular functions 63%, disorders 85%, and anatomical entities 82%) and on entity normalization (F1-measure for overlap name matching and correct identifier included in the returned list of identifiers: species 88%, cell 71%, cellular components 72%, gene and proteins 64%, chemicals 53%, and biological processes and molecular functions 40%). Neji provides fast and multi-threaded data processing, annotating up to 1200 sentences/second when using dictionary-based concept identification. Conclusions Considering the provided features and underlying characteristics, we believe that Neji is an important contribution to the biomedical community, streamlining the development of complex concept recognition solutions. Neji is freely available at http://bioinformatics.ua.pt/neji. PMID:24063607

Dissociating Normal Aging from Alzheimer’s Disease: A View from Cognitive Neuroscience

PubMed Central

Toepper, Max

2017-01-01

Both normal aging and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are associated with changes in cognition, grey and white matter volume, white matter integrity, neural activation, functional connectivity, and neurotransmission. Obviously, all of these changes are more pronounced in AD and proceed faster providing the basis for an AD diagnosis. Since these differences are quantitative, however, it was hypothesized that AD might simply reflect an accelerated aging process. The present article highlights the different neurocognitive changes associated with normal aging and AD and shows that, next to quantitative differences, there are multiple qualitative differences as well. These differences comprise different neurocognitive dissociations as different cognitive deficit profiles, different weights of grey and white matter atrophy, and different gradients of structural decline. These qualitative differences clearly indicate that AD cannot be simply described as accelerated aging process but on the contrary represents a solid entity. PMID:28269778

Hard to “tune in”: neural mechanisms of live face-to-face interaction with high-functioning autistic spectrum disorder

PubMed Central

Tanabe, Hiroki C.; Kosaka, Hirotaka; Saito, Daisuke N.; Koike, Takahiko; Hayashi, Masamichi J.; Izuma, Keise; Komeda, Hidetsugu; Ishitobi, Makoto; Omori, Masao; Munesue, Toshio; Okazawa, Hidehiko; Wada, Yuji; Sadato, Norihiro

2012-01-01

Persons with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are known to have difficulty in eye contact (EC). This may make it difficult for their partners during face to face communication with them. To elucidate the neural substrates of live inter-subject interaction of ASD patients and normal subjects, we conducted hyper-scanning functional MRI with 21 subjects with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) paired with typically-developed (normal) subjects, and with 19 pairs of normal subjects as a control. Baseline EC was maintained while subjects performed real-time joint-attention task. The task-related effects were modeled out, and inter-individual correlation analysis was performed on the residual time-course data. ASD–Normal pairs were less accurate at detecting gaze direction than Normal–Normal pairs. Performance was impaired both in ASD subjects and in their normal partners. The left occipital pole (OP) activation by gaze processing was reduced in ASD subjects, suggesting that deterioration of eye-cue detection in ASD is related to impairment of early visual processing of gaze. On the other hand, their normal partners showed greater activity in the bilateral occipital cortex and the right prefrontal area, indicating a compensatory workload. Inter-brain coherence in the right IFG that was observed in the Normal-Normal pairs (Saito et al., 2010) during EC diminished in ASD–Normal pairs. Intra-brain functional connectivity between the right IFG and right superior temporal sulcus (STS) in normal subjects paired with ASD subjects was reduced compared with in Normal–Normal pairs. This functional connectivity was positively correlated with performance of the normal partners on the eye-cue detection. Considering the integrative role of the right STS in gaze processing, inter-subject synchronization during EC may be a prerequisite for eye cue detection by the normal partner. PMID:23060772

Impairments in part-whole representations of objects in two cases of integrative visual agnosia.

PubMed

Behrmann, Marlene; Williams, Pepper

2007-10-01

How complex multipart visual objects are represented perceptually remains a subject of ongoing investigation. One source of evidence that has been used to shed light on this issue comes from the study of individuals who fail to integrate disparate parts of visual objects. This study reports a series of experiments that examine the ability of two such patients with this form of agnosia (integrative agnosia; IA), S.M. and C.R., to discriminate and categorize exemplars of a rich set of novel objects, "Fribbles", whose visual similarity (number of shared parts) and category membership (shared overall shape) can be manipulated. Both patients performed increasingly poorly as the number of parts required for differentiating one Fribble from another increased. Both patients were also impaired at determining when two Fribbles belonged in the same category, a process that relies on abstracting spatial relations between parts. C.R., the less impaired of the two, but not S.M., eventually learned to categorize the Fribbles but required substantially more training than normal perceivers. S.M.'s failure is not attributable to a problem in learning to use a label for identification nor is it obviously attributable to a visual memory deficit. Rather, the findings indicate that, although the patients may be able to represent a small number of parts independently, in order to represent multipart images, the parts need to be integrated or chunked into a coherent whole. It is this integrative process that is impaired in IA and appears to play a critical role in the normal object recognition of complex images.

Dependence of normal brain integral dose and normal tissue complication probability on the prescription isodose values for γ-knife radiosurgery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ma, Lijun

2001-11-01

A recent multi-institutional clinical study suggested possible benefits of lowering the prescription isodose lines for stereotactic radiosurgery procedures. In this study, we investigate the dependence of the normal brain integral dose and the normal tissue complication probability (NTCP) on the prescription isodose values for γ-knife radiosurgery. An analytical dose model was developed for γ-knife treatment planning. The dose model was commissioned by fitting the measured dose profiles for each helmet size. The dose model was validated by comparing its results with the Leksell gamma plan (LGP, version 5.30) calculations. The normal brain integral dose and the NTCP were computed and analysed for an ensemble of treatment cases. The functional dependence of the normal brain integral dose and the NCTP versus the prescribing isodose values was studied for these cases. We found that the normal brain integral dose and the NTCP increase significantly when lowering the prescription isodose lines from 50% to 35% of the maximum tumour dose. Alternatively, the normal brain integral dose and the NTCP decrease significantly when raising the prescribing isodose lines from 50% to 65% of the maximum tumour dose. The results may be used as a guideline for designing future dose escalation studies for γ-knife applications.

Integrating seawater desalination and wastewater reclamation forward osmosis process using thin-film composite mixed matrix membrane with functionalized carbon nanotube blended polyethersulfone support layer.

PubMed

Choi, Hyeon-Gyu; Son, Moon; Choi, Heechul

2017-10-01

Thin-film composite mixed matrix membrane (TFC MMM) with functionalized carbon nanotube (fCNT) blended in polyethersulfone (PES) support layer was synthesized via interfacial polymerization and phase inversion. This membrane was firstly tested in lab-scale integrating seawater desalination and wastewater reclamation forward osmosis (FO) process. Water flux of TFC MMM was increased by 72% compared to that of TFC membrane due to enhanced hydrophilicity. Although TFC MMM showed lower water flux than TFC commercial membrane, enhanced reverse salt flux selectivity (RSFS) of TFC MMM was observed compared to TFC membrane (15% higher) and TFC commercial membrane (4% higher), representing membrane permselectivity. Under effluent organic matter (EfOM) fouling test, 16% less normalized flux decline of TFC MMM was observed compared to TFC membrane. There was 8% less decline of TFC MMM compared to TFC commercial membrane due to fCNT effect on repulsive foulant-membrane interaction enhancement, caused by negatively charged membrane surface. After 10 min physical cleaning, TFC MMM displayed higher recovered normalized flux than TFC membrane (6%) and TFC commercial membrane (4%); this was also supported by visualized characterization of fouling layer. This study presents application of TFC MMM to integrated seawater desalination and wastewater reclamation FO process for the first time. It can be concluded that EfOM fouling of TFC MMM was suppressed due to repulsive foulant-membrane interaction. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Wound healing.

PubMed

Harvey, Carol

2005-01-01

Wound healing in orthopaedic care is affected by the causes of the wound, as well as concomitant therapies used to repair musculoskeletal structures. Promoting the health of the host and creating an environment to foster natural healing processes is essential for helping to restore skin integrity. Normal wound healing physiologic processes, factors affecting wound healing, wound classification systems, unique characteristics of orthopaedic wounds, wound contamination and drainage characteristics, and potential complications are important to understand in anticipation of patient needs. Accurate wound assessment and knowledge of nursing implications with specific wound care measures (cleansing, debridement, and dressings) is important for quality care. New technologies are enhancing traditional wound care measures with goals of effective comfortable wound care to promote restoration of skin integrity.

Process to remove rare earth from IFR electrolyte

DOEpatents

Ackerman, John P.; Johnson, Terry R.

1994-01-01

The invention is a process for the removal of rare earths from molten chloride electrolyte salts used in the reprocessing of integrated fast reactor fuel (IFR). The process can be used either continuously during normal operation of the electrorefiner or as a batch process. The process consists of first separating the actinide values from the salt before purification by removal of the rare earths. After replacement of the actinides removed in the first step, the now-purified salt electrolyte has the same uranium and plutonium concentration and ratio as when the salt was removed from the electrorefiner.

Process to remove rare earth from IFR electrolyte

DOEpatents

Ackerman, J.P.; Johnson, T.R.

1992-01-01

The invention is a process for the removal of rare earths from molten chloride electrolyte salts used in the reprocessing of integrated fast reactor fuel (IFR). The process can be used either continuously during normal operation of the electrorefiner or as a batch process. The process consists of first separating the actinide values from the salt before purification by removal of the rare earths. After replacement of the actinides removed in the first step, the now-purified salt electrolyte has the same uranium and plutonium concentration and ratio as when the salt was removed from the electrorefiner.

Process to remove rare earth from IFR electrolyte

DOEpatents

Ackerman, J.P.; Johnson, T.R.

1994-08-09

The invention is a process for the removal of rare earths from molten chloride electrolyte salts used in the reprocessing of integrated fast reactor fuel (IFR). The process can be used either continuously during normal operation of the electrorefiner or as a batch process. The process consists of first separating the actinide values from the salt before purification by removal of the rare earths. After replacement of the actinides removed in the first step, the now-purified salt electrolyte has the same uranium and plutonium concentration and ratio as when the salt was removed from the electrorefiner. 1 fig.

Medical image registration based on normalized multidimensional mutual information

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Qi; Ji, Hongbing; Tong, Ming

2009-10-01

Registration of medical images is an essential research topic in medical image processing and applications, and especially a preliminary and key step for multimodality image fusion. This paper offers a solution to medical image registration based on normalized multi-dimensional mutual information. Firstly, affine transformation with translational and rotational parameters is applied to the floating image. Then ordinal features are extracted by ordinal filters with different orientations to represent spatial information in medical images. Integrating ordinal features with pixel intensities, the normalized multi-dimensional mutual information is defined as similarity criterion to register multimodality images. Finally the immune algorithm is used to search registration parameters. The experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed registration scheme.

Bio-inspired feedback-circuit implementation of discrete, free energy optimizing, winner-take-all computations.

PubMed

Genewein, Tim; Braun, Daniel A

2016-06-01

Bayesian inference and bounded rational decision-making require the accumulation of evidence or utility, respectively, to transform a prior belief or strategy into a posterior probability distribution over hypotheses or actions. Crucially, this process cannot be simply realized by independent integrators, since the different hypotheses and actions also compete with each other. In continuous time, this competitive integration process can be described by a special case of the replicator equation. Here we investigate simple analog electric circuits that implement the underlying differential equation under the constraint that we only permit a limited set of building blocks that we regard as biologically interpretable, such as capacitors, resistors, voltage-dependent conductances and voltage- or current-controlled current and voltage sources. The appeal of these circuits is that they intrinsically perform normalization without requiring an explicit divisive normalization. However, even in idealized simulations, we find that these circuits are very sensitive to internal noise as they accumulate error over time. We discuss in how far neural circuits could implement these operations that might provide a generic competitive principle underlying both perception and action.

Short-Term Load Forecasting Error Distributions and Implications for Renewable Integration Studies: Preprint

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hodge, B. M.; Lew, D.; Milligan, M.

2013-01-01

Load forecasting in the day-ahead timescale is a critical aspect of power system operations that is used in the unit commitment process. It is also an important factor in renewable energy integration studies, where the combination of load and wind or solar forecasting techniques create the net load uncertainty that must be managed by the economic dispatch process or with suitable reserves. An understanding of that load forecasting errors that may be expected in this process can lead to better decisions about the amount of reserves necessary to compensate errors. In this work, we performed a statistical analysis of themore » day-ahead (and two-day-ahead) load forecasting errors observed in two independent system operators for a one-year period. Comparisons were made with the normal distribution commonly assumed in power system operation simulations used for renewable power integration studies. Further analysis identified time periods when the load is more likely to be under- or overforecast.« less

The Behavioral Pediatrics Feeding Assessment Scale is a reliable and valid tool for Greek children.

PubMed

Sdravou, Katerina S L T; Evangeliou, Athanasios; Tentzidou, Kyriaki; Sotiriadou, Fotini; Stasinou, Eleanna; Fotoulaki, Maria

2018-05-11

Development of normal feeding is a highly complex sensorimotor process that depends upon the integration of neurological maturation, internal motivation and experiential learning (1-3). Disruption of the child's feeding process can lead to feeding problems during infancy and early childhood. One of the most widely used and validated scales for measuring whether a child's feeding problem has clinical significance is the Behavioral Pediatric Feeding Assessment Scale (BPFAS) (4). The objective of this study was to translate the BPFAS into Greek and culturally adapt the scale to evaluate the psychometric properties among the Greek parents of normally developing children. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Normalization is a general neural mechanism for context-dependent decision making

PubMed Central

Louie, Kenway; Khaw, Mel W.; Glimcher, Paul W.

2013-01-01

Understanding the neural code is critical to linking brain and behavior. In sensory systems, divisive normalization seems to be a canonical neural computation, observed in areas ranging from retina to cortex and mediating processes including contrast adaptation, surround suppression, visual attention, and multisensory integration. Recent electrophysiological studies have extended these insights beyond the sensory domain, demonstrating an analogous algorithm for the value signals that guide decision making, but the effects of normalization on choice behavior are unknown. Here, we show that choice models using normalization generate significant (and classically irrational) choice phenomena driven by either the value or number of alternative options. In value-guided choice experiments, both monkey and human choosers show novel context-dependent behavior consistent with normalization. These findings suggest that the neural mechanism of value coding critically influences stochastic choice behavior and provide a generalizable quantitative framework for examining context effects in decision making. PMID:23530203

Development of economic consequence methodology for process risk analysis.

PubMed

Zadakbar, Omid; Khan, Faisal; Imtiaz, Syed

2015-04-01

A comprehensive methodology for economic consequence analysis with appropriate models for risk analysis of process systems is proposed. This methodology uses loss functions to relate process deviations in a given scenario to economic losses. It consists of four steps: definition of a scenario, identification of losses, quantification of losses, and integration of losses. In this methodology, the process deviations that contribute to a given accident scenario are identified and mapped to assess potential consequences. Losses are assessed with an appropriate loss function (revised Taguchi, modified inverted normal) for each type of loss. The total loss is quantified by integrating different loss functions. The proposed methodology has been examined on two industrial case studies. Implementation of this new economic consequence methodology in quantitative risk assessment will provide better understanding and quantification of risk. This will improve design, decision making, and risk management strategies. © 2014 Society for Risk Analysis.

Analytic integrable systems: Analytic normalization and embedding flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Xiang

In this paper we mainly study the existence of analytic normalization and the normal form of finite dimensional complete analytic integrable dynamical systems. More details, we will prove that any complete analytic integrable diffeomorphism F(x)=Bx+f(x) in (Cn,0) with B having eigenvalues not modulus 1 and f(x)=O(|) is locally analytically conjugate to its normal form. Meanwhile, we also prove that any complete analytic integrable differential system x˙=Ax+f(x) in (Cn,0) with A having nonzero eigenvalues and f(x)=O(|) is locally analytically conjugate to its normal form. Furthermore we will prove that any complete analytic integrable diffeomorphism defined on an analytic manifold can be embedded in a complete analytic integrable flow. We note that parts of our results are the improvement of Moser's one in J. Moser, The analytic invariants of an area-preserving mapping near a hyperbolic fixed point, Comm. Pure Appl. Math. 9 (1956) 673-692 and of Poincaré's one in H. Poincaré, Sur l'intégration des équations différentielles du premier order et du premier degré, II, Rend. Circ. Mat. Palermo 11 (1897) 193-239. These results also improve the ones in Xiang Zhang, Analytic normalization of analytic integrable systems and the embedding flows, J. Differential Equations 244 (2008) 1080-1092 in the sense that the linear part of the systems can be nonhyperbolic, and the one in N.T. Zung, Convergence versus integrability in Poincaré-Dulac normal form, Math. Res. Lett. 9 (2002) 217-228 in the way that our paper presents the concrete expression of the normal form in a restricted case.

Dopamine transporter availability in clinically normal aging is associated with individual differences in white matter integrity.

PubMed

Rieckmann, Anna; Hedden, Trey; Younger, Alayna P; Sperling, Reisa A; Johnson, Keith A; Buckner, Randy L

2016-02-01

Aging-related differences in white matter integrity, the presence of amyloid plaques, and density of biomarkers indicative of dopamine functions can be detected and quantified with in vivo human imaging. The primary aim of the present study was to investigate whether these imaging-based measures constitute independent imaging biomarkers in older adults, which would speak to the hypothesis that the aging brain is characterized by multiple independent neurobiological cascades. We assessed MRI-based markers of white matter integrity and PET-based marker of dopamine transporter density and amyloid deposition in the same set of 53 clinically normal individuals (age 65-87). A multiple regression analysis demonstrated that dopamine transporter availability is predicted by white matter integrity, which was detectable even after controlling for chronological age. Further post-hoc exploration revealed that dopamine transporter availability was further associated with systolic blood pressure, mirroring the established association between cardiovascular health and white matter integrity. Dopamine transporter availability was not associated with the presence of amyloid burden. Neurobiological correlates of dopamine transporter measures in aging are therefore likely unrelated to Alzheimer's disease but are aligned with white matter integrity and cardiovascular risk. More generally, these results suggest that two common imaging markers of the aging brain that are typically investigated separately do not reflect independent neurobiological processes. Hum Brain Mapp 37:621-631, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Archetype-based semantic integration and standardization of clinical data.

PubMed

Moner, David; Maldonado, Jose A; Bosca, Diego; Fernandez, Jesualdo T; Angulo, Carlos; Crespo, Pere; Vivancos, Pedro J; Robles, Montserrat

2006-01-01

One of the basic needs for any healthcare professional is to be able to access to clinical information of patients in an understandable and normalized way. The lifelong clinical information of any person supported by electronic means configures his/her Electronic Health Record (EHR). This information is usually distributed among several independent and heterogeneous systems that may be syntactically or semantically incompatible. The Dual Model architecture has appeared as a new proposal for maintaining a homogeneous representation of the EHR with a clear separation between information and knowledge. Information is represented by a Reference Model which describes common data structures with minimal semantics. Knowledge is specified by archetypes, which are formal representations of clinical concepts built upon a particular Reference Model. This kind of architecture is originally thought for implantation of new clinical information systems, but archetypes can be also used for integrating data of existing and not normalized systems, adding at the same time a semantic meaning to the integrated data. In this paper we explain the possible use of a Dual Model approach for semantic integration and standardization of heterogeneous clinical data sources and present LinkEHR-Ed, a tool for developing archetypes as elements for integration purposes. LinkEHR-Ed has been designed to be easily used by the two main participants of the creation process of archetypes for clinical data integration: the Health domain expert and the Information Technologies domain expert.

TRAPR: R Package for Statistical Analysis and Visualization of RNA-Seq Data.

PubMed

Lim, Jae Hyun; Lee, Soo Youn; Kim, Ju Han

2017-03-01

High-throughput transcriptome sequencing, also known as RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq), is a standard technology for measuring gene expression with unprecedented accuracy. Numerous bioconductor packages have been developed for the statistical analysis of RNA-Seq data. However, these tools focus on specific aspects of the data analysis pipeline, and are difficult to appropriately integrate with one another due to their disparate data structures and processing methods. They also lack visualization methods to confirm the integrity of the data and the process. In this paper, we propose an R-based RNA-Seq analysis pipeline called TRAPR, an integrated tool that facilitates the statistical analysis and visualization of RNA-Seq expression data. TRAPR provides various functions for data management, the filtering of low-quality data, normalization, transformation, statistical analysis, data visualization, and result visualization that allow researchers to build customized analysis pipelines.

Shocks and metallicity gradients in normal star-forming galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ho, I.-Ting

Gas flow is one of the most fundamental processes driving galaxy evolution. This thesis explores gas flows in local galaxies by studying metallicity gradients and galactic-scale outflows in normal star-forming galaxies. This is made possible by new integral field spectroscopy data that provide simultaneously spatial and spectral information of galaxies. First, I measure metallicity gradients in isolated disk galaxies and show that their metallicity gradients are remarkably simple and universal. When the metallicity gradients are normalized to galaxy sizes, all the 49 galaxies studied have virtually the same metallicity gradient. I model the common metallicity gradient using a simple chemical evolution model to understand its origin. The common metallicity gradient is a direct result of the coevolution of gas and stellar disk while galactic disks build up their masses from inside-out. Tight constraints on the mass outflow rates and inflow rates can be placed by the chemical evolution model. Second, I investigate galactic winds in normal star-forming galaxies using data from an integral field spectroscopy survey. I demonstrate how to search for galactic winds by probing emission line ratios, shocks, and gas kinematics. Galactic winds are found to be common even in normal star-forming galaxies that were not expected to host winds. By comparing galaxies with and without hosting winds, I show that galaxies with high star formation rate surface densities and bursty star formation histories are more likely to drive large-scale galactic winds. Finally, lzifu, a toolkit for fitting multiple emission lines simultaneously in integral field spectroscopy data, is developed in this thesis. I describe in detail the structure of the toolkit and demonstrate the capabilities of lzifu.

Zinc oxide integrated area efficient high output low power wavy channel thin film transistor

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hanna, A. N.; Ghoneim, M. T.; Bahabry, R. R.

2013-11-25

We report an atomic layer deposition based zinc oxide channel material integrated thin film transistor using wavy channel architecture allowing expansion of the transistor width in the vertical direction using the fin type features. The experimental devices show area efficiency, higher normalized output current, and relatively lower power consumption compared to the planar architecture. This performance gain is attributed to the increased device width and an enhanced applied electric field due to the architecture when compared to a back gated planar device with the same process conditions.

Epigenetic Age Acceleration Assessed with Human White-Matter Images.

PubMed

Hodgson, Karen; Carless, Melanie A; Kulkarni, Hemant; Curran, Joanne E; Sprooten, Emma; Knowles, Emma E; Mathias, Samuel; Göring, Harald H H; Yao, Nailin; Olvera, Rene L; Fox, Peter T; Almasy, Laura; Duggirala, Ravi; Blangero, John; Glahn, David C

2017-05-03

The accurate estimation of age using methylation data has proved a useful and heritable biomarker, with acceleration in epigenetic age predicting a number of age-related phenotypes. Measures of white matter integrity in the brain are also heritable and highly sensitive to both normal and pathological aging processes across adulthood. We consider the phenotypic and genetic interrelationships between epigenetic age acceleration and white matter integrity in humans. Our goal was to investigate processes that underlie interindividual variability in age-related changes in the brain. Using blood taken from a Mexican-American extended pedigree sample ( n = 628; age = 23.28-93.11 years), epigenetic age was estimated using the method developed by Horvath (2013). For n = 376 individuals, diffusion tensor imaging scans were also available. The interrelationship between epigenetic age acceleration and global white matter integrity was investigated with variance decomposition methods. To test for neuroanatomical specificity, 16 specific tracts were additionally considered. We observed negative phenotypic correlations between epigenetic age acceleration and global white matter tract integrity (ρ pheno = -0.119, p = 0.028), with evidence of shared genetic (ρ gene = -0.463, p = 0.013) but not environmental influences. Negative phenotypic and genetic correlations with age acceleration were also seen for a number of specific white matter tracts, along with additional negative phenotypic correlations between granulocyte abundance and white matter integrity. These findings (i.e., increased acceleration in epigenetic age in peripheral blood correlates with reduced white matter integrity in the brain and shares common genetic influences) provide a window into the neurobiology of aging processes within the brain and a potential biomarker of normal and pathological brain aging. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Epigenetic measures can be used to predict age with a high degree of accuracy and so capture acceleration in biological age, relative to chronological age. The white matter tracts within the brain are also highly sensitive to aging processes. We show that increased biological aging (measured using epigenetic data from blood samples) is correlated with reduced integrity of white matter tracts within the human brain (measured using diffusion tensor imaging) with data from a large sample of Mexican-American families. Given the family design of the sample, we are also able to demonstrate that epigenetic aging and white matter tract integrity also share common genetic influences. Therefore, epigenetic age may be a potential, and accessible, biomarker of brain aging. Copyright © 2017 the authors 0270-6474/17/374735-09$15.00/0.

G-189A analytical simulation of the integrated waste management-water system using radioisotopes for thermal energy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Coggi, J. V.; Loscutoff, A. V.; Barker, R. S.

1973-01-01

An analytical simulation of the RITE-Integrated Waste Management and Water Recovery System using radioisotopes for thermal energy was prepared for the NASA-Manned Space Flight Center (MSFC). The RITE system is the most advanced concept water-waste management system currently under development and has undergone extended duration testing. It has the capability of disposing of nearly all spacecraft wastes including feces and trash and of recovering water from usual waste water sources: urine, condensate, wash water, etc. All of the process heat normally used in the system is produced from low penalty radioisotope heat sources. The analytical simulation was developed with the G189A computer program. The objective of the simulation was to obtain an analytical simulation which can be used to (1) evaluate the current RITE system steady state and transient performance during normal operating conditions, and also during off normal operating conditions including failure modes; and (2) evaluate the effects of variations in component design parameters and vehicle interface parameters on system performance.

Bringing the Meaning Back In: Exploring Existentially Motivated Terrorism

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-06-01

approaches, radicalization theory examines terrorists with a multidisciplinary integration of psychology and rational choice along pathways and processes...Individual psychological traits or abnormalities combine with upbringing and environment to lead an individual down a path toward violence. It is...profiles of individual terrorists finds but one commonality— their essential normalness.56 Explaining terrorism though abnormal psychology is

Drosophila Uri, a PP1α binding protein, is essential for viability, maintenance of DNA integrity and normal transcriptional activity

PubMed Central

Kirchner, Jasmin; Vissi, Emese; Gross, Sascha; Szoor, Balazs; Rudenko, Andrey; Alphey, Luke; White-Cooper, Helen

2008-01-01

Background Protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) is involved in diverse cellular processes, and is targeted to substrates via interaction with many different protein binding partners. PP1 catalytic subunits (PP1c) fall into PP1α and PP1β subfamilies based on sequence analysis, however very few PP1c binding proteins have been demonstrated to discriminate between PP1α and PP1β. Results URI (unconventional prefoldin RPB5 interactor) is a conserved molecular chaperone implicated in a variety of cellular processes, including the transcriptional response to nutrient signalling and maintenance of DNA integrity. We show that Drosophila Uri binds PP1α with much higher affinity than PP1β, and that this ability to discriminate between PP1c forms is conserved to humans. Most Uri is cytoplasmic, however we found some protein associated with active RNAPII on chromatin. We generated a uri loss of function allele, and show that uri is essential for viability in Drosophila. uri mutants have transcriptional defects, reduced cell viability and differentiation in the germline, and accumulate DNA damage in their nuclei. Conclusion Uri is the first PP1α specific binding protein to be described in Drosophila. Uri protein plays a role in transcriptional regulation. Activity of uri is required to maintain DNA integrity and cell survival in normal development. PMID:18412953

Chapter 1: Direct Normal Radiation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Myer, Daryl R.

2016-04-15

This chapter addresses the quantitative and qualitative aspects of the solar resource, the direct solar radiation. It discusses the total or integrated broadband direct beam extraterrestrial radiation (ETR). This total integrated irradiance is comprised of photons of electromagnetic radiation. The chapter also discusses the impact of the atmosphere and its effect upon the direct normal irradiance (DNI) beam radiation. The gases and particulates present in the atmosphere traversed by the direct beam reflect, absorb, and scatter differing spectral regions and proportions of the direct beam, and act as a variable filter. Knowledge of the available broadband DNI beam radiation resourcemore » data is essential in designing a concentrating photovoltaic (CPV) system. Spectral variations in the DNI beam radiation affect the performance of a CPV system depending on the solar cell technology used. The chapter describes propagation and scattering processes of circumsolar radiation (CSR), which includes the Mie scattering from large particles.« less

Emissivity measurements of shocked tin using a multi-wavelength integrating sphere

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Seifter, A; Holtkamp, D B; Iverson, A J

Pyrometric measurements of radiance to determine temperature have been performed on shock physics experiments for decades. However, multi-wavelength pyrometry schemes sometimes fail to provide credible temperatures in experiments, which incur unknown changes in sample emissivity, because an emissivity change also affects the spectral radiance. Hence, for shock physics experiments using pyrometry to measure temperatures, it is essential to determine the dynamic sample emissivity. The most robust way to determine the normal spectral emissivity is to measure the spectral normal-hemispherical reflectance using an integrating sphere. In this paper we describe a multi-wavelength (1.6–5.0 μm) integrating sphere system that utilizes a “reversed”more » scheme, which we use for shock physics experiments. The sample to be shocked is illuminated uniformly by scattering broadband light from inside a sphere onto the sample. A portion of the light reflected from the sample is detected at a point 12° from normal to the sample surface. For this experiment, we used the system to measure emissivity of shocked tin at four wavelengths for shock stress values between 17 and 33 GPa. The results indicate a large increase in effective emissivity upon shock release from tin when the shock is above 24–25 GPa, a shock stress that partially melts the sample. We also recorded an IR image of one of the shocked samples through the integrating sphere, and the emissivity inferred from the image agreed well with the integrating-sphere, pyrometer-detector data. Here, we discuss experimental data, uncertainties, and a data analysis process. We also describe unique emissivity-measurement problems arising from shock experiments and methods to overcome such problems.« less

Identification of nonlinear normal modes of engineering structures under broadband forcing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Noël, Jean-Philippe; Renson, L.; Grappasonni, C.; Kerschen, G.

2016-06-01

The objective of the present paper is to develop a two-step methodology integrating system identification and numerical continuation for the experimental extraction of nonlinear normal modes (NNMs) under broadband forcing. The first step processes acquired input and output data to derive an experimental state-space model of the structure. The second step converts this state-space model into a model in modal space from which NNMs are computed using shooting and pseudo-arclength continuation. The method is demonstrated using noisy synthetic data simulated on a cantilever beam with a hardening-softening nonlinearity at its free end.

Don't kill canaries! Introducing a new test device to assess the electrostatic risk potential to photomasks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sebald, Thomas

2008-10-01

Electrostatic protection is an issue for all masks, whether during mask production, shipping, storage, handling or inspection and exposure. Up to now, only manual electrostatic field measurements, or expensive and elaborate analyses with Canary reticles have given hints about the risks of pattern damage by ESD events. A new test device is being introduced, which consists of electrostatic field sensors, integrated INSIDE a closed fused quartz housing which has the outside dimensions of a 6 inch mask. This device can be handled and used like a normal 6 inch reticle. It can be handled and processed while recording the electrostatic charges on the chrome patterns created by friction or field induction just as a reticle would "see" during normal processing.

Abnormal emotion processing, but intact fairness and intentionality considerations during social decision-making in schizophrenia.

PubMed

de la Asuncion, Javier; Docx, Lise; Sabbe, Bernard; Morrens, Manuel; de Bruijn, Ellen R A

2015-01-01

Schizophrenia is a severe mental disorder that is highly characterized by social cognitive impairments. Most studies investigating these impairments focus on one specific social domain such as emotion recognition. However, in daily life, processing complex social situations relies on the combination of several social cognitive and affective processes simultaneously rather than one process alone. A modified version of the economically based Ultimatum Game was used to measure the interplay between fairness, intentionality, and emotion considerations during social decision-making. In this task, participants accept or reject fair and unfair monetary offers proposed intentionally or unintentionally by either angry, happy, neutral, or sad proposers. Behavioral data was collected from a group of schizophrenia patients (N = 35) and a group of healthy individuals (N = 30). Like healthy participants, schizophrenia patients differentiated between fair and unfair offers by rejecting unfair offers more compared to fair offers. However, overall patients did reject more fair offers, indicating that their construct of fairness operates within different margins. In both groups, intentional unfair offers were rejected more compared to unintentional ones, indicating a normal integration of intentionality considerations in schizophrenia. Importantly, healthy subjects also differentiated between proposers' emotion when rejecting unfair offers (more rejections from proposers depicting angry faces compared to proposers depicting, happy, neutral, or sad faces). Schizophrenia patients' decision behavior on the other hand, was not affected by the proposers' emotions. The current study thus shows that schizophrenia patients have specific problems with processing and integrating emotional information. Importantly, the finding that patients display normal fairness and intentionality considerations emphasizes preservation of central social cognitive processes in schizophrenia.

Neural changes associated with semantic processing in healthy aging despite intact behavioral performance.

PubMed

Lacombe, Jacinthe; Jolicoeur, Pierre; Grimault, Stephan; Pineault, Jessica; Joubert, Sven

2015-10-01

Semantic memory recruits an extensive neural network including the left inferior prefrontal cortex (IPC) and the left temporoparietal region, which are involved in semantic control processes, as well as the anterior temporal lobe region (ATL) which is considered to be involved in processing semantic information at a central level. However, little is known about the underlying neuronal integrity of the semantic network in normal aging. Young and older healthy adults carried out a semantic judgment task while their cortical activity was recorded using magnetoencephalography (MEG). Despite equivalent behavioral performance, young adults activated the left IPC to a greater extent than older adults, while the latter group recruited the temporoparietal region bilaterally and the left ATL to a greater extent than younger adults. Results indicate that significant neuronal changes occur in normal aging, mainly in regions underlying semantic control processes, despite an apparent stability in performance at the behavioral level. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Delayed audiovisual integration of patients with mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease compared with normal aged controls.

PubMed

Wu, Jinglong; Yang, Jiajia; Yu, Yinghua; Li, Qi; Nakamura, Naoya; Shen, Yong; Ohta, Yasuyuki; Yu, Shengyuan; Abe, Koji

2012-01-01

The human brain can anatomically combine task-relevant information from different sensory pathways to form a unified perception; this process is called multisensory integration. The aim of the present study was to test whether the multisensory integration abilities of patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer's disease (AD) differed from those of normal aged controls (NC). A total of 64 subjects were divided into three groups: NC individuals (n = 24), MCI patients (n = 19), and probable AD patients (n = 21). All of the subjects were asked to perform three separate audiovisual integration tasks and were instructed to press the response key associated with the auditory, visual, or audiovisual stimuli in the three tasks. The accuracy and response time (RT) of each task were measured, and the RTs were analyzed using cumulative distribution functions to observe the audiovisual integration. Our results suggest that the mean RT of patients with AD was significantly longer than those of patients with MCI and NC individuals. Interestingly, we found that patients with both MCI and AD exhibited adequate audiovisual integration, and a greater peak (time bin with the highest percentage of benefit) and broader temporal window (time duration of benefit) of multisensory enhancement were observed. However, the onset time and peak benefit of audiovisual integration in MCI and AD patients occurred significantly later than did those of the NC. This finding indicates that the cognitive functional deficits of patients with MCI and AD contribute to the differences in performance enhancements of audiovisual integration compared with NC.

Delayed Audiovisual Integration of Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer’s Disease Compared with Normal Aged Controls

PubMed Central

Wu, Jinglong; Yang, Jiajia; Yu, Yinghua; Li, Qi; Nakamura, Naoya; Shen, Yong; Ohta, Yasuyuki; Yu, Shengyuan; Abe, Koji

2013-01-01

The human brain can anatomically combine task-relevant information from different sensory pathways to form a unified perception; this process is called multisensory integration. The aim of the present study was to test whether the multisensory integration abilities of patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) differed from those of normal aged controls (NC). A total of 64 subjects were divided into three groups: NC individuals (n = 24), MCI patients (n = 19), and probable AD patients (n = 21). All of the subjects were asked to perform three separate audiovisual integration tasks and were instructed to press the response key associated with the auditory, visual, or audiovisual stimuli in the three tasks. The accuracy and response time (RT) of each task were measured, and the RTs were analyzed using cumulative distribution functions to observe the audiovisual integration. Our results suggest that the mean RT of patients with AD was significantly longer than those of patients with MCI and NC individuals. Interestingly, we found that patients with both MCI and AD exhibited adequate audiovisual integration, and a greater peak (time bin with the highest percentage of benefit) and broader temporal window (time duration of benefit) of multisensory enhancement were observed. However, the onset time and peak benefit of audiovisual integration in MCI and AD patients occurred significantly later than did those of the NC. This finding indicates that the cognitive functional deficits of patients with MCI and AD contribute to the differences in performance enhancements of audiovisual integration compared with NC. PMID:22810093

A Neural Signature of Divisive Normalization at the Level of Multisensory Integration in Primate Cortex.

PubMed

Ohshiro, Tomokazu; Angelaki, Dora E; DeAngelis, Gregory C

2017-07-19

Studies of multisensory integration by single neurons have traditionally emphasized empirical principles that describe nonlinear interactions between inputs from two sensory modalities. We previously proposed that many of these empirical principles could be explained by a divisive normalization mechanism operating in brain regions where multisensory integration occurs. This normalization model makes a critical diagnostic prediction: a non-preferred sensory input from one modality, which activates the neuron on its own, should suppress the response to a preferred input from another modality. We tested this prediction by recording from neurons in macaque area MSTd that integrate visual and vestibular cues regarding self-motion. We show that many MSTd neurons exhibit the diagnostic form of cross-modal suppression, whereas unisensory neurons in area MT do not. The normalization model also fits population responses better than a model based on subtractive inhibition. These findings provide strong support for a divisive normalization mechanism in multisensory integration. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effect of care management program structure on implementation: a normalization process theory analysis.

PubMed

Holtrop, Jodi Summers; Potworowski, Georges; Fitzpatrick, Laurie; Kowalk, Amy; Green, Lee A

2016-08-15

Care management in primary care can be effective in helping patients with chronic disease improve their health status, however, primary care practices are often challenged with implementation. Further, there are different ways to structure care management that may make implementation more or less successful. Normalization process theory (NPT) provides a means of understanding how a new complex intervention can become routine (normalized) in practice. In this study, we used NPT to understand how care management structure affected how well care management became routine in practice. Data collection involved semi-structured interviews and observations conducted at 25 practices in five physician organizations in Michigan, USA. Practices were selected to reflect variation in physician organizations, type of care management program, and degree of normalization. Data were transcribed, qualitatively coded and analyzed, initially using an editing approach and then a template approach with NPT as a guiding framework. Seventy interviews and 25 observations were completed. Two key structures for care management organization emerged: practice-based care management where the care managers were embedded in the practice as part of the practice team; and centralized care management where the care managers worked independently of the practice work flow and was located outside the practice. There were differences in normalization of care management across practices. Practice-based care management was generally better normalized as compared to centralized care management. Differences in normalization were well explained by the NPT, and in particular the collective action construct. When care managers had multiple and flexible opportunities for communication (interactional workability), had the requisite knowledge, skills, and personal characteristics (skill set workability), and the organizational support and resources (contextual integration), a trusting professional relationship (relational integration) developed between practice providers and staff and the care manager. When any of these elements were missing, care management implementation appeared to be affected negatively. Although care management can introduce many new changes into delivery of clinical practice, implementing it successfully as a new complex intervention is possible. NPT can be helpful in explaining differences in implementing a new care management program with a view to addressing them during implementation planning.

Contour integration impairment in schizophrenia and first episode psychosis: state or trait?

PubMed

Feigenson, Keith A; Keane, Brian P; Roché, Matthew W; Silverstein, Steven M

2014-11-01

Contour integration is a fundamental visual process that recovers object structure by representing spatially separated edge elements as a continuous contour or shape boundary. Clinically stable persons with schizophrenia have repeatedly been shown to be impaired at contour integration but it is unclear whether this process varies with clinical state or whether it arises as early as the first episode of psychosis. To consider these issues, we administered a contour integration test to persons with chronic schizophrenia and to those with a first episode of psychosis. The test was administered twice-once at admission to short term psychiatric hospitalization and once again at discharge. A well-matched healthy control group was also tested across the same time points. We found that contour integration performance improved to the same degree in all groups over time, indicating that there were no recovery effects over and above normal practice effects. Moreover, the schizophrenia group demonstrated poorer contour integration than the control group and the first episode group exhibited intermediate performance that could not be distinguished from the other groups. These results suggest that contour integration ability does not vary as a function of short-term changes in clinical state, and that it may become further impaired with an increased number of psychotic episodes. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Pistol that Injured the Cowboy: Difficulty with Inanimate Subject-Verb Integration Is Reduced by Structural Separation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lowder, Matthew W.; Gordon, Peter C.

2012-01-01

Previous work has suggested that the difficulty normally associated with processing an object-extracted relative clause (ORC) compared to a subject-extracted relative clause (SRC) is increased when the head noun phrase (NP1) is animate and the embedded noun phrase (NP2) is inanimate, compared to the reverse animacy configuration. Two eye-tracking…

Dynamic intervention: pathogen disarmament of mitochondrial-based immune surveillance.

PubMed

Holland, Robin L; Blanke, Steven R

2014-11-12

In this issue of Cell Host & Microbe, Suzuki et al. (2014) describe a Vibrio cholerae Type-III-secreted effector that targets mitochondrial dynamics to dampen host innate immune signaling. This suggests that mammalian hosts possess surveillance mechanisms to monitor pathogen-mediated alterations in the integrity of normal cellular processes and organelles. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Amblyopic deficits in detecting a dotted line in noise.

PubMed

Mussap, A J; Levi, D M

2000-01-01

We compared detectability of a dotted line masked by random-dot noise for the amblyopic versus non-amblyopic eye of two strabismic amblyopes. Small but consistent deficits in the amblyopic eye of these observers were found, and shown to be limited to dotted-line targets composed of greater than seven dots (with performance being normal for targets of less than seven dots). These deficits were unrelated to impaired visual acuity, impaired sensitivity to dot density, and differential positional uncertainty between the eyes of our observers. The deficits were also unlikely to be due to CSF losses due to abnormal low-spatial-frequency filters involved in detecting long chains of collinear dots. Instead, the results of simulations indicate that the inefficiency in utilising large numbers of dots is due to deficits of global, integrative processes in strabismic amblyopes. These simulations also show that while neither undersampling nor positional uncertainty of inputs into integrative processes can themselves account for the amblyopic deficits, if such abnormal inputs lead to the development of stunted integrative processes then impaired sensitivity to long chains of collinear dots is indeed predicted.

White matter integrity and processing speed in sickle cell anemia.

PubMed

Stotesbury, Hanne; Kirkham, Fenella J; Kölbel, Melanie; Balfour, Philippa; Clayden, Jonathan D; Sahota, Sati; Sakaria, Simrat; Saunders, Dawn E; Howard, Jo; Kesse-Adu, Rachel; Inusa, Baba; Pelidis, Maria; Chakravorty, Subarna; Rees, David C; Awogbade, Moji; Wilkey, Olu; Layton, Mark; Clark, Christopher A; Kawadler, Jamie M

2018-05-11

The purpose of this retrospective cross-sectional study was to investigate whether changes in white matter integrity are related to slower processing speed in sickle cell anemia. Thirty-seven patients with silent cerebral infarction, 46 patients with normal MRI, and 32 sibling controls (age range 8-37 years) underwent cognitive assessment using the Wechsler scales and 3-tesla MRI. Tract-based spatial statistics analyses of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and neurite orientation dispersion and density imaging (NODDI) parameters were performed. Processing speed index (PSI) was lower in patients than controls by 9.34 points (95% confidence interval: 4.635-14.855, p = 0.0003). Full Scale IQ was lower by 4.14 scaled points (95% confidence interval: -1.066 to 9.551, p = 0.1), but this difference was abolished when PSI was included as a covariate ( p = 0.18). There were no differences in cognition between patients with and without silent cerebral infarction, and both groups had lower PSI than controls (both p < 0.001). In patients, arterial oxygen content, socioeconomic status, age, and male sex were identified as predictors of PSI, and correlations were found between PSI and DTI scalars (fractional anisotropy r = 0.614, p < 0.00001; r = -0.457, p < 0.00001; mean diffusivity r = -0.341, p = 0.0016; radial diffusivity r = -0.457, p < 0.00001) and NODDI parameters (intracellular volume fraction r = 0.364, p = 0.0007) in widespread regions. Our results extend previous reports of impairment that is independent of presence of infarction and may worsen with age. We identify processing speed as a vulnerable domain, with deficits potentially mediating difficulties across other domains, and provide evidence that reduced processing speed is related to the integrity of normal-appearing white matter using microstructure parameters from DTI and NODDI. Copyright © 2018 The Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. on behalf of the American Academy of Neurology.

Evidence for perceptual deficits in associative visual (prosop)agnosia: a single-case study.

PubMed

Delvenne, Jean François; Seron, Xavier; Coyette, Françoise; Rossion, Bruno

2004-01-01

Associative visual agnosia is classically defined as normal visual perception stripped of its meaning [Archiv für Psychiatrie und Nervenkrankheiten 21 (1890) 22/English translation: Cognitive Neuropsychol. 5 (1988) 155]: these patients cannot access to their stored visual memories to categorize the objects nonetheless perceived correctly. However, according to an influential theory of visual agnosia [Farah, Visual Agnosia: Disorders of Object Recognition and What They Tell Us about Normal Vision, MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, 1990], visual associative agnosics necessarily present perceptual deficits that are the cause of their impairment at object recognition Here we report a detailed investigation of a patient with bilateral occipito-temporal lesions strongly impaired at object and face recognition. NS presents normal drawing copy, and normal performance at object and face matching tasks as used in classical neuropsychological tests. However, when tested with several computer tasks using carefully controlled visual stimuli and taking both his accuracy rate and response times into account, NS was found to have abnormal performances at high-level visual processing of objects and faces. Albeit presenting a different pattern of deficits than previously described in integrative agnosic patients such as HJA and LH, his deficits were characterized by an inability to integrate individual parts into a whole percept, as suggested by his failure at processing structurally impossible three-dimensional (3D) objects, an absence of face inversion effects and an advantage at detecting and matching single parts. Taken together, these observations question the idea of separate visual representations for object/face perception and object/face knowledge derived from investigations of visual associative (prosop)agnosia, and they raise some methodological issues in the analysis of single-case studies of (prosop)agnosic patients.

Using Neuropsychological Process Scores to Identify Subtle Cognitive Decline and Predict Progression to Mild Cognitive Impairment.

PubMed

Thomas, Kelsey R; Edmonds, Emily C; Eppig, Joel; Salmon, David P; Bondi, Mark W

2018-05-26

We previously operationally-defined subtle cognitive decline (SCD) in preclinical Alzheimer's disease (AD) using total scores on neuropsychological (NP) tests. NP process scores (i.e., provide information about how a total NP score was achieved) may be a useful tool for identifying early cognitive inefficiencies prior to objective impairment seen in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia. We aimed to integrate process scores into the SCD definition to identify stages of SCD and improve early detection of those at risk for decline. Cognitively "normal" participants from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative were classified as "early" SCD (E-SCD; >1 SD below mean on 2 process scores or on 1 process score plus 1 NP total score), "late" SCD (L-SCD; existing SCD criteria of >1 SD below norm-adjusted mean on 2 NP total scores in different domains), or "no SCD" (NC). Process scores considered in the SCD criteria were word-list intrusion errors, retroactive interference, and learning slope. Cerebrospinal fluid AD biomarkers were used to examine pathologic burden across groups. E-SCD and L-SCD progressed to MCI 2.5-3.4 times faster than the NC group. Survival curves for E-SCD and L-SCD converged at 7-8 years after baseline. The combined (E-SCD+L-SCD) group had improved sensitivity to detect progression to MCI relative to L-SCD only. AD biomarker positivity increased across NC, SCD, and MCI groups. Process scores can be integrated into the SCD criteria to allow for increased sensitivity and earlier identification of cognitively normal older adults at risk for decline prior to frank impairment on NP total scores.

[Implementation of a palliative care concept in a geriatric acute care hospital].

PubMed

Hagg-Grün, U; Lukas, A; Sommer, B-N; Klaiber, H-R; Nikolaus, T

2010-12-01

To integrate palliative care patients into an acute geriatric ward requires extensive and continuous education and preparation of all participating professionals. It can be a lengthy process to integrate palliative care concepts despite cooperation of the hospital administration. The group of patients to be integrated differs from the patients of regular geriatric wards because of a higher percentage of relatively young oncologic patients and they differ from a regular palliative ward because about 50% are non-oncologic patients, while the average age is much higher than in normal palliative care. It is possible to integrate specialized palliative care into a regular geriatric ward. Patients admitted without palliative intention will benefit the most from ward-integrated palliative care if the treatment aim turns this way. Ward-integrated palliative care can be an integral part of treating geriatric patients in addition to acute geriatric medicine, rehabilitation, and prevention. It can also provide caretakers and patients with the benefits from continuity of treatment and care.

Delineating the Structure of Normal and Abnormal Personality: An Integrative Hierarchical Approach

PubMed Central

Markon, Kristian E.; Krueger, Robert F.; Watson, David

2008-01-01

Increasing evidence indicates that normal and abnormal personality can be treated within a single structural framework. However, identification of a single integrated structure of normal and abnormal personality has remained elusive. Here, a constructive replication approach was used to delineate an integrative hierarchical account of the structure of normal and abnormal personality. This hierarchical structure, which integrates many Big Trait models proposed in the literature, replicated across a meta-analysis as well as an empirical study, and across samples of participants as well as measures. The proposed structure resembles previously suggested accounts of personality hierarchy and provides insight into the nature of personality hierarchy more generally. Potential directions for future research on personality and psychopathology are discussed. PMID:15631580

Delineating the structure of normal and abnormal personality: an integrative hierarchical approach.

PubMed

Markon, Kristian E; Krueger, Robert F; Watson, David

2005-01-01

Increasing evidence indicates that normal and abnormal personality can be treated within a single structural framework. However, identification of a single integrated structure of normal and abnormal personality has remained elusive. Here, a constructive replication approach was used to delineate an integrative hierarchical account of the structure of normal and abnormal personality. This hierarchical structure, which integrates many Big Trait models proposed in the literature, replicated across a meta-analysis as well as an empirical study, and across samples of participants as well as measures. The proposed structure resembles previously suggested accounts of personality hierarchy and provides insight into the nature of personality hierarchy more generally. Potential directions for future research on personality and psychopathology are discussed.

Design and simulation of optoelectronic complementary dual neural elements for realizing a family of normalized vector 'equivalence-nonequivalence' operations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krasilenko, Vladimir G.; Nikolsky, Aleksandr I.; Lazarev, Alexander A.; Magas, Taras E.

2010-04-01

Equivalence models (EM) advantages of neural networks (NN) are shown in paper. EMs are based on vectormatrix procedures with basic operations of continuous neurologic: normalized vector operations "equivalence", "nonequivalence", "autoequivalence", "autononequivalence". The capacity of NN on the basis of EM and of its modifications, including auto-and heteroassociative memories for 2D images, exceeds in several times quantity of neurons. Such neuroparadigms are very perspective for processing, recognition, storing large size and strongly correlated images. A family of "normalized equivalence-nonequivalence" neuro-fuzzy logic operations on the based of generalized operations fuzzy-negation, t-norm and s-norm is elaborated. A biologically motivated concept and time pulse encoding principles of continuous logic photocurrent reflexions and sample-storage devices with pulse-width photoconverters have allowed us to design generalized structures for realization of the family of normalized linear vector operations "equivalence"-"nonequivalence". Simulation results show, that processing time in such circuits does not exceed units of micro seconds. Circuits are simple, have low supply voltage (1-3 V), low power consumption (milliwatts), low levels of input signals (microwatts), integrated construction, satisfy the problem of interconnections and cascading.

Differentiating gastrointestinal stromal tumors from gastric adenocarcinomas and normal mucosae using confocal Raman microspectroscopy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hsu, Chih-Wei; Huang, Chia-Chi; Sheu, Jeng-Horng; Lin, Chia-Wen; Lin, Lien-Fu; Jin, Jong-Shiaw; Chen, Wenlung

2016-07-01

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) are the most common mesenchymal neoplasms of the gastrointestinal tract, and gastric adenocarcinomas are a common cancer worldwide. To differentiate GISTs from adenocarcinomas is important because the surgical processes for both are different; the former excises the tumor with negative margins, while the latter requires radical gastrectomy with lymph node dissection. Endoscopy with biopsy is used to distinguish GISTs from adenocarcinomas; however, it may cause tumor bleeding in GISTs. We reported here the confocal Raman microspectroscopy as an effective tool to differentiate GISTs, adenocarcinomas, and normal mucosae. Of 119 patients enrolled in this study, 102 patients underwent gastrectomy (40 GISTs and 62 adenocarcinomas), and 17 patients with benign lesions were obtained as normal mucosae. Raman signals were integrated for 100 s for each spot on the specimen, and 5 to 10 spots, depending on the sample size, were chosen for each specimen. There were significant differences among those tissues as evidenced by different Raman signal responding to phospholipids and protein structures. The spectral data were further processed and analyzed by using principal component analysis. A two-dimensional plot demonstrated that GISTs, adenocarcinomas, and normal gastric mucosae could be effectively differentiated from each other.

Integrated genomic analysis of mitochondrial RNA processing in human cancers.

PubMed

Idaghdour, Youssef; Hodgkinson, Alan

2017-04-18

The mitochondrial genome is transcribed as continuous polycistrons of RNA containing multiple genes. As a consequence, post-transcriptional events are critical for the regulation of gene expression and therefore all aspects of mitochondrial function. One particularly important process is the m 1 A/m 1 G RNA methylation of the ninth position of different mitochondrial tRNAs, which allows efficient processing of mitochondrial mRNAs and protein translation, and de-regulation of genes involved in these processes has been associated with altered mitochondrial function. Although mitochondria play a key role in cancer, the status of mitochondrial RNA processing in tumorigenesis is unknown. We measure and assess mitochondrial RNA processing using integrated genomic analysis of RNA sequencing and genotyping data from 1226 samples across 12 different cancer types. We focus on the levels of m 1 A and m 1 G RNA methylation in mitochondrial tRNAs in normal and tumor samples and use supervised and unsupervised statistical analysis to compare the levels of these modifications to patient whole genome genotypes, nuclear gene expression, and survival outcomes. We find significant changes to m 1 A and m 1 G RNA methylation levels in mitochondrial tRNAs in tumor tissues across all cancers. Pathways of RNA processing are strongly associated with methylation levels in normal tissues (P = 3.27 × 10 -31 ), yet these associations are lost in tumors. Furthermore, we report 18 gene-by-disease-state interactions where altered RNA methylation levels occur under cancer status conditional on genotype, implicating genes associated with mitochondrial function or cancer (e.g., CACNA2D2, LMO2, and FLT3) and suggesting that nuclear genetic variation can potentially modulate an individual's ability to maintain unaltered rates of mitochondrial RNA processing under cancer status. Finally, we report a significant association between the magnitude of methylation level changes in tumors and patient survival outcomes. We report widespread variation of mitochondrial RNA processing between normal and tumor tissues across all cancer types investigated and show that these alterations are likely modulated by patient genotype and may impact patient survival outcomes. These results highlight the potential clinical relevance of altered mitochondrial RNA processing and provide broad new insights into the importance and complexity of these events in cancer.

The effects of aging on the working memory processes of multimodal information.

PubMed

Solesio-Jofre, Elena; López-Frutos, José María; Cashdollar, Nathan; Aurtenetxe, Sara; de Ramón, Ignacio; Maestú, Fernando

2017-05-01

Normal aging is associated with deficits in working memory processes. However, the majority of research has focused on storage or inhibitory processes using unimodal paradigms, without addressing their relationships using different sensory modalities. Hence, we pursued two objectives. First, was to examine the effects of aging on storage and inhibitory processes. Second, was to evaluate aging effects on multisensory integration of visual and auditory stimuli. To this end, young and older participants performed a multimodal task for visual and auditory pairs of stimuli with increasing memory load at encoding and interference during retention. Our results showed an age-related increased vulnerability to interrupting and distracting interference reflecting inhibitory deficits related to the off-line reactivation and on-line suppression of relevant and irrelevant information, respectively. Storage capacity was impaired with increasing task demands in both age groups. Additionally, older adults showed a deficit in multisensory integration, with poorer performance for new visual compared to new auditory information.

When novel sentences spoken or heard for the first time in the history of the universe are not enough: toward a dual-process model of language.

PubMed

Van Lancker Sidtis, Diana

2004-01-01

Although interest in the language sciences was previously focused on newly created sentences, more recently much attention has turned to the importance of formulaic expressions in normal and disordered communication. Also referred to as formulaic expressions and made up of speech formulas, idioms, expletives, serial and memorized speech, slang, sayings, clichés, and conventional expressions, non-propositional language forms a large proportion of every speaker's competence, and may be differentially disturbed in neurological disorders. This review aims to examine non-propositional speech with respect to linguistic descriptions, psycholinguistic experiments, sociolinguistic studies, child language development, clinical language disorders, and neurological studies. Evidence from numerous sources reveals differentiated and specialized roles for novel and formulaic verbal functions, and suggests that generation of novel sentences and management of prefabricated expressions represent two legitimate and separable processes in language behaviour. A preliminary model of language behaviour that encompasses unitary and compositional properties and their integration in everyday language use is proposed. Integration and synchronizing of two disparate processes in language behaviour, formulaic and novel, characterizes normal communicative function and contributes to creativity in language. This dichotomy is supported by studies arising from other disciplines in neurology and psychology. Further studies are necessary to determine in what ways the various categories of formulaic expressions are related, and how these categories are processed by the brain. Better understanding of how non-propositional categories of speech are stored and processed in the brain can lead to better informed treatment strategies in language disorders.

Unisensory processing and multisensory integration in schizophrenia: A high-density electrical mapping study

PubMed Central

Stone, David B.; Urrea, Laura J.; Aine, Cheryl J.; Bustillo, Juan R.; Clark, Vincent P.; Stephen, Julia M.

2011-01-01

In real-world settings, information from multiple sensory modalities is combined to form a complete, behaviorally salient percept - a process known as multisensory integration. While deficits in auditory and visual processing are often observed in schizophrenia, little is known about how multisensory integration is affected by the disorder. The present study examined auditory, visual, and combined audio-visual processing in schizophrenia patients using high-density electrical mapping. An ecologically relevant task was used to compare unisensory and multisensory evoked potentials from schizophrenia patients to potentials from healthy normal volunteers. Analysis of unisensory responses revealed a large decrease in the N100 component of the auditory-evoked potential, as well as early differences in the visual-evoked components in the schizophrenia group. Differences in early evoked responses to multisensory stimuli were also detected. Multisensory facilitation was assessed by comparing the sum of auditory and visual evoked responses to the audio-visual evoked response. Schizophrenia patients showed a significantly greater absolute magnitude response to audio-visual stimuli than to summed unisensory stimuli when compared to healthy volunteers, indicating significantly greater multisensory facilitation in the patient group. Behavioral responses also indicated increased facilitation from multisensory stimuli. The results represent the first report of increased multisensory facilitation in schizophrenia and suggest that, although unisensory deficits are present, compensatory mechanisms may exist under certain conditions that permit improved multisensory integration in individuals afflicted with the disorder. PMID:21807011

Integrated Building Management System (IBMS)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Anita Lewis

This project provides a combination of software and services that more easily and cost-effectively help to achieve optimized building performance and energy efficiency. Featuring an open-platform, cloud- hosted application suite and an intuitive user experience, this solution simplifies a traditionally very complex process by collecting data from disparate building systems and creating a single, integrated view of building and system performance. The Fault Detection and Diagnostics algorithms developed within the IBMS have been designed and tested as an integrated component of the control algorithms running the equipment being monitored. The algorithms identify the normal control behaviors of the equipment withoutmore » interfering with the equipment control sequences. The algorithms also work without interfering with any cooperative control sequences operating between different pieces of equipment or building systems. In this manner the FDD algorithms create an integrated building management system.« less

Normal forms for Poisson maps and symplectic groupoids around Poisson transversals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Frejlich, Pedro; Mărcuț, Ioan

2018-03-01

Poisson transversals are submanifolds in a Poisson manifold which intersect all symplectic leaves transversally and symplectically. In this communication, we prove a normal form theorem for Poisson maps around Poisson transversals. A Poisson map pulls a Poisson transversal back to a Poisson transversal, and our first main result states that simultaneous normal forms exist around such transversals, for which the Poisson map becomes transversally linear, and intertwines the normal form data of the transversals. Our second result concerns symplectic integrations. We prove that a neighborhood of a Poisson transversal is integrable exactly when the Poisson transversal itself is integrable, and in that case we prove a normal form theorem for the symplectic groupoid around its restriction to the Poisson transversal, which puts all structure maps in normal form. We conclude by illustrating our results with examples arising from Lie algebras.

Normal forms for Poisson maps and symplectic groupoids around Poisson transversals.

PubMed

Frejlich, Pedro; Mărcuț, Ioan

2018-01-01

Poisson transversals are submanifolds in a Poisson manifold which intersect all symplectic leaves transversally and symplectically. In this communication, we prove a normal form theorem for Poisson maps around Poisson transversals. A Poisson map pulls a Poisson transversal back to a Poisson transversal, and our first main result states that simultaneous normal forms exist around such transversals, for which the Poisson map becomes transversally linear, and intertwines the normal form data of the transversals. Our second result concerns symplectic integrations. We prove that a neighborhood of a Poisson transversal is integrable exactly when the Poisson transversal itself is integrable, and in that case we prove a normal form theorem for the symplectic groupoid around its restriction to the Poisson transversal, which puts all structure maps in normal form. We conclude by illustrating our results with examples arising from Lie algebras.

Volume-preserving normal forms of Hopf-zero singularity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gazor, Majid; Mokhtari, Fahimeh

2013-10-01

A practical method is described for computing the unique generator of the algebra of first integrals associated with a large class of Hopf-zero singularity. The set of all volume-preserving classical normal forms of this singularity is introduced via a Lie algebra description. This is a maximal vector space of classical normal forms with first integral; this is whence our approach works. Systems with a nonzero condition on their quadratic parts are considered. The algebra of all first integrals for any such system has a unique (modulo scalar multiplication) generator. The infinite level volume-preserving parametric normal forms of any nondegenerate perturbation within the Lie algebra of any such system is computed, where it can have rich dynamics. The associated unique generator of the algebra of first integrals are derived. The symmetry group of the infinite level normal forms are also discussed. Some necessary formulas are derived and applied to appropriately modified Rössler and generalized Kuramoto-Sivashinsky equations to demonstrate the applicability of our theoretical results. An approach (introduced by Iooss and Lombardi) is applied to find an optimal truncation for the first level normal forms of these examples with exponentially small remainders. The numerically suggested radius of convergence (for the first integral) associated with a hypernormalization step is discussed for the truncated first level normal forms of the examples. This is achieved by an efficient implementation of the results using Maple.

An analysis of the surface-normal coupling efficiency of a metal grating coupler embedded in a Scotch tape optical waveguide

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barrios, Carlos Angulo; Canalejas-Tejero, Víctor

2017-01-01

The coupling efficiency at normal incidence of recently demonstrated aluminum grating couplers integrated in flexible Scotch tape waveguides has been analyzed theoretically and experimentally. Finite difference time domain (FDTD) and rigorously coupled wave analysis (RCWA) methods have been used to optimize the dimensions (duty cycle and metal thickness) of Scotch tape-embedded 1D Al gratings for maximum coupling at 635 nm wavelength. Good dimension and tape refractive index tolerances are predicted. FDTD simulations reveal the incident beam width and impinging position (alignment) values that avoid rediffraction and thus maximize the coupling efficiency. A 1D Al diffraction grating integrated into a Scotch tape optical waveguide has been fabricated and characterized. The fabrication process, based on pattern transfer, has been optimized to allow complete Al grating transfer onto the Scotch tape waveguide. A maximum coupling efficiency of 20% for TM-polarized normal incidence has been measured, which is in good agreement with the theoretical predictions. The measured coupling efficiency is further increased up to 28% for TM polarization under oblique incidence. Temperature dependence measurements have been also achieved and related to the simulations results and fabrication procedure.

Abnormal emotion processing, but intact fairness and intentionality considerations during social decision-making in schizophrenia

PubMed Central

de la Asuncion, Javier; Docx, Lise; Sabbe, Bernard; Morrens, Manuel; de Bruijn, Ellen R. A.

2015-01-01

Schizophrenia is a severe mental disorder that is highly characterized by social cognitive impairments. Most studies investigating these impairments focus on one specific social domain such as emotion recognition. However, in daily life, processing complex social situations relies on the combination of several social cognitive and affective processes simultaneously rather than one process alone. A modified version of the economically based Ultimatum Game was used to measure the interplay between fairness, intentionality, and emotion considerations during social decision-making. In this task, participants accept or reject fair and unfair monetary offers proposed intentionally or unintentionally by either angry, happy, neutral, or sad proposers. Behavioral data was collected from a group of schizophrenia patients (N = 35) and a group of healthy individuals (N = 30). Like healthy participants, schizophrenia patients differentiated between fair and unfair offers by rejecting unfair offers more compared to fair offers. However, overall patients did reject more fair offers, indicating that their construct of fairness operates within different margins. In both groups, intentional unfair offers were rejected more compared to unintentional ones, indicating a normal integration of intentionality considerations in schizophrenia. Importantly, healthy subjects also differentiated between proposers’ emotion when rejecting unfair offers (more rejections from proposers depicting angry faces compared to proposers depicting, happy, neutral, or sad faces). Schizophrenia patients’ decision behavior on the other hand, was not affected by the proposers’ emotions. The current study thus shows that schizophrenia patients have specific problems with processing and integrating emotional information. Importantly, the finding that patients display normal fairness and intentionality considerations emphasizes preservation of central social cognitive processes in schizophrenia. PMID:26257699

Defense Logistics Standard Systems Functional Requirements.

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-03-01

Artificial Intelligence - the development of a machine capability to perform functions normally concerned with human intelligence, such as learning , adapting...Basic Data Base Machine Configurations .... ......... D- 18 xx ~ ?f~~~vX PART I: MODELS - DEFENSE LOGISTICS STANDARD SYSTEMS FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS...On-line, Interactive Access. Integrating user input and machine output in a dynamic, real-time, give-and- take process is considered the optimum mode

Reduced Structural Connectivity in Frontostriatal White Matter Tracts in the Associative Loop in Schizophrenia.

PubMed

Levitt, James J; Nestor, Paul G; Levin, Laura; Pelavin, Paula; Lin, Pan; Kubicki, Marek; McCarley, Robert W; Shenton, Martha E; Rathi, Yogesh

2017-11-01

The striatum receives segregated and integrative white matter tracts from the cortex facilitating information processing in the cortico-basal ganglia network. The authors examined both types of input tracts in the striatal associative loop in chronic schizophrenia patients and healthy control subjects. Structural and diffusion MRI scans were acquired on a 3-T system from 26 chronic schizophrenia patients and 26 matched healthy control subjects. Using FreeSurfer, the associative cortex was parcellated into ventrolateral prefrontal cortex and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex subregions. The striatum was manually parcellated into its associative and sensorimotor functional subregions. Fractional anisotropy and normalized streamlines, an estimate of fiber counts, were assessed in four frontostriatal tracts (dorsolateral prefrontal cortex-associative striatum, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex-sensorimotor striatum, ventrolateral prefrontal cortex-associative striatum, and ventrolateral prefrontal cortex-sensorimotor striatum). Furthermore, these measures were correlated with a measure of cognitive control, the Trail-Making Test, Part B. Results showed reduced fractional anisotropy and fewer streamlines in chronic schizophrenia patients for all four tracts, both segregated and integrative. Post hoc t tests showed reduced fractional anisotropy in the left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex-associative striatum and left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex-sensorimotor striatum and fewer normalized streamlines in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex-sensorimotor striatum and in the left and right ventrolateral prefrontal cortex-sensorimotor striatum in chronic schizophrenia patients. Furthermore, normalized streamlines in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex-sensorimotor striatum negatively correlated with Trail-Making Test, Part B, time spent in healthy control subjects but not in chronic schizophrenia patients. These findings demonstrated that structural connectivity is reduced in both segregated and integrative tracts in the striatal associative loop in chronic schizophrenia and that reduced normalized streamlines in the right-hemisphere dorsolateral prefrontal cortex-sensorimotor striatum predicted worse cognitive control in healthy control subjects but not in chronic schizophrenia patients, suggesting a loss of a "normal" brain-behavior correlation in chronic schizophrenia.

Wavefront Sensing Analysis of Grazing Incidence Optical Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rohrbach, Scott; Saha, Timo

2012-01-01

Wavefront sensing is a process by which optical system errors are deduced from the aberrations in the image of an ideal source. The method has been used successfully in near-normal incidence, but not for grazing incidence systems. This innovation highlights the ability to examine out-of-focus images from grazing incidence telescopes (typically operating in the x-ray wavelengths, but integrated using optical wavelengths) and determine the lower-order deformations. This is important because as a metrology tool, this method would allow the integration of high angular resolution optics without the use of normal incidence interferometry, which requires direct access to the front surface of each mirror. Measuring the surface figure of mirror segments in a highly nested x-ray telescope mirror assembly is difficult due to the tight packing of elements and blockage of all but the innermost elements to normal incidence light. While this can be done on an individual basis in a metrology mount, once the element is installed and permanently bonded into the assembly, it is impossible to verify the figure of each element and ensure that the necessary imaging quality will be maintained. By examining on-axis images of an ideal point source, one can gauge the low-order figure errors of individual elements, even when integrated into an assembly. This technique is known as wavefront sensing (WFS). By shining collimated light down the optical axis of the telescope and looking at out-of-focus images, the blur due to low-order figure errors of individual elements can be seen, and the figure error necessary to produce that blur can be calculated. The method avoids the problem of requiring normal incidence access to the surface of each mirror segment. Mirror figure errors span a wide range of spatial frequencies, from the lowest-order bending to the highest order micro-roughness. While all of these can be measured in normal incidence, only the lowest-order contributors can be determined through this WFS technique.

Genome-wide predicting disease-related protein complexes by walking on the heterogeneous network based on data integration and laplacian normalization.

PubMed

Liu, Zhiming; Luo, Jiawei

2017-08-01

Associating protein complexes to human inherited diseases is critical for better understanding of biological processes and functional mechanisms of the disease. Many protein complexes have been identified and functionally annotated by computational and purification methods so far, however, the particular roles they were playing in causing disease have not yet been well determined. In this study, we present a novel method to identify associations between protein complexes and diseases. First, we construct a disease-protein heterogeneous network based on data integration and laplacian normalization. Second, we apply a random walk with restart on heterogeneous network (RWRH) algorithm on this network to quantify the strength of the association between proteins and the query disease. Third, we sum over the scores of member proteins to obtain a summary score for each candidate protein complex, and then rank all candidate protein complexes according to their scores. With a series of leave-one-out cross-validation experiments, we found that our method not only possesses high performance but also demonstrates robustness regarding the parameters and the network structure. We test our approach with breast cancer and select top 20 highly ranked protein complexes, 17 of the selected protein complexes are evidenced to be connected with breast cancer. Our proposed method is effective in identifying disease-related protein complexes based on data integration and laplacian normalization. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

The Effect on Non-Normal Distributions on the Integrated Moving Average Model of Time-Series Analysis.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Doerann-George, Judith

The Integrated Moving Average (IMA) model of time series, and the analysis of intervention effects based on it, assume random shocks which are normally distributed. To determine the robustness of the analysis to violations of this assumption, empirical sampling methods were employed. Samples were generated from three populations; normal,…

Eye movements during object recognition in visual agnosia.

PubMed

Charles Leek, E; Patterson, Candy; Paul, Matthew A; Rafal, Robert; Cristino, Filipe

2012-07-01

This paper reports the first ever detailed study about eye movement patterns during single object recognition in visual agnosia. Eye movements were recorded in a patient with an integrative agnosic deficit during two recognition tasks: common object naming and novel object recognition memory. The patient showed normal directional biases in saccades and fixation dwell times in both tasks and was as likely as controls to fixate within object bounding contour regardless of recognition accuracy. In contrast, following initial saccades of similar amplitude to controls, the patient showed a bias for short saccades. In object naming, but not in recognition memory, the similarity of the spatial distributions of patient and control fixations was modulated by recognition accuracy. The study provides new evidence about how eye movements can be used to elucidate the functional impairments underlying object recognition deficits. We argue that the results reflect a breakdown in normal functional processes involved in the integration of shape information across object structure during the visual perception of shape. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Process computerization of No. 13 blast furnace at Gary works

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sherman, G.J.; Zmierski, M.L.; Hyle, F.W.

1993-10-01

No. 13 blast furnace underwent extensive modifications to the process control system during the second reline. This represents a major shift in control philosophy from hardwired relays and analog controllers to a totally integrated computer control system. The new system created the opportunity for comprehensive diagnostic analysis and increased flexibility for control strategy modifications. The goal of achieving maximum production with minimal delay was accomplished by an integrated test, and comprehensive operator and maintenance training. Normal production was reached within four days of blow-ink and design production capacity of 7800 NTHM/day was met in the third month of operation. Recordmore » furnace productivity of 8931 NTHM/day (8.56 NTHM/100 crwv) was achieved in less than five months of operation and again in April 1992 of 9062 NTHM/day (8.68 NTHM/100 cfwv).« less

With simple gasoline stripping devices, a problem of gas transportation by pipeline is resolved (in Spanish)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Couto, J.A.

1975-06-01

Liquid hydrocarbons contained in Argentina's Pico Truncade natural gas caused a number of serious pipeline transmission and gas processing problems. Gas del Estado has installed a series of efficient liquid removal devices at the producing fields. A flow chart of the gasoline stripping process is illustrated, as are 2 types of heat exchangers. This process of gasoline stripping (gas condensate recovery) integrates various operations which normally are performed independently: separation of the poor condensate in the gas, stabilization of the same, and incorporation of the light components (products of the stabilization) in the main gas flow.

Estrogen Effects on Wound Healing

PubMed Central

Horng, Huann-Cheng; Chang, Wen-Hsun; Yeh, Chang-Ching; Huang, Ben-Shian; Chang, Chia-Pei; Chen, Yi-Jen; Tsui, Kuan-Hao

2017-01-01

Wound healing is a physiological process, involving three successive and overlapping phases—hemostasis/inflammation, proliferation, and remodeling—to maintain the integrity of skin after trauma, either by accident or by procedure. Any disruption or unbalanced distribution of these processes might result in abnormal wound healing. Many molecular and clinical data support the effects of estrogen on normal skin homeostasis and wound healing. Estrogen deficiency, for example in postmenopausal women, is detrimental to wound healing processes, notably inflammation and re-granulation, while exogenous estrogen treatment may reverse these effects. Understanding the role of estrogen on skin might provide further opportunities to develop estrogen-related therapy for assistance in wound healing. PMID:29099810

Identification of candidate genes in osteoporosis by integrated microarray analysis.

PubMed

Li, J J; Wang, B Q; Fei, Q; Yang, Y; Li, D

2016-12-01

In order to screen the altered gene expression profile in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of patients with osteoporosis, we performed an integrated analysis of the online microarray studies of osteoporosis. We searched the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database for microarray studies of peripheral blood mononuclear cells in patients with osteoporosis. Subsequently, we integrated gene expression data sets from multiple microarray studies to obtain differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between patients with osteoporosis and normal controls. Gene function analysis was performed to uncover the functions of identified DEGs. A total of three microarray studies were selected for integrated analysis. In all, 1125 genes were found to be significantly differentially expressed between osteoporosis patients and normal controls, with 373 upregulated and 752 downregulated genes. Positive regulation of the cellular amino metabolic process (gene ontology (GO): 0033240, false discovery rate (FDR) = 1.00E + 00) was significantly enriched under the GO category for biological processes, while for molecular functions, flavin adenine dinucleotide binding (GO: 0050660, FDR = 3.66E-01) and androgen receptor binding (GO: 0050681, FDR = 6.35E-01) were significantly enriched. DEGs were enriched in many osteoporosis-related signalling pathways, including those of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and calcium. Protein-protein interaction (PPI) network analysis showed that the significant hub proteins contained ubiquitin specific peptidase 9, X-linked (Degree = 99), ubiquitin specific peptidase 19 (Degree = 57) and ubiquitin conjugating enzyme E2 B (Degree = 57). Analysis of gene function of identified differentially expressed genes may expand our understanding of fundamental mechanisms leading to osteoporosis. Moreover, significantly enriched pathways, such as MAPK and calcium, may involve in osteoporosis through osteoblastic differentiation and bone formation.Cite this article: J. J. Li, B. Q. Wang, Q. Fei, Y. Yang, D. Li. Identification of candidate genes in osteoporosis by integrated microarray analysis. Bone Joint Res 2016;5:594-601. DOI: 10.1302/2046-3758.512.BJR-2016-0073.R1. © 2016 Fei et al.

Nonstationary Deformation of an Elastic Layer with Mixed Boundary Conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kubenko, V. D.

2016-11-01

The analytic solution to the plane problem for an elastic layer under a nonstationary surface load is found for mixed boundary conditions: normal stress and tangential displacement are specified on one side of the layer (fourth boundary-value problem of elasticity) and tangential stress and normal displacement are specified on the other side of the layer (second boundary-value problem of elasticity). The Laplace and Fourier integral transforms are applied. The inverse Laplace and Fourier transforms are found exactly using tabulated formulas and convolution theorems for various nonstationary loads. Explicit analytical expressions for stresses and displacements are derived. Loads applied to a constant surface area and to a surface area varying in a prescribed manner are considered. Computations demonstrate the dependence of the normal stress on time and spatial coordinates. Features of wave processes are analyzed

Mixing induced by a propagating normal mode in long term experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dossmann, Yvan; Pollet, Florence; Odier, Philippe; Dauxois, Thierry

2017-04-01

The energy pathways from propagating internal waves to the scales of irreversible mixing in the ocean are numerous. The triadic resonant instability (TRI) is an intrinsic destabilization process that can lead to mixing away from topographies. It consists in the destabilization of a primary internal wave generation leading to the radiation of two secondary waves of lower frequencies and different wave vectors. In the process, internal wave energy is carried down to smaller scales. A previous study focused on the assessment of instantaneous turbulent fluxes fields associated with the TRI process in laboratory experiments [1]. The present study investigates the integrated impact of mixing processes induced by a propagative normal mode over long term experiments using a similar setup. Configurations for which the TRI process is either favored or inhibited are tackled. Optical measurements using the light attenuation technique allow to follow the internal waves dynamics and the evolution of the density profile between two runs of one hour typical duration. The horizontally averaged turbulent diffusivity Kt(z) and the mixing efficiency Γ are assessed. One finds values up to Kt = 10-6 m2/s and Γ = 11 %, with slightly larger values in the presence of TRI. The maximum value for Kt is measured at the position(s) of the maximum shear normal mode shear for both normal modes 1 and 2. The development of staircases in the density profile is observed after several hours of forcing. This mechanism can be explained by Phillips' argument by which sharp interfaces can form due to vertical variations of the buoyancy flux. The staircases are responsible for large variations in the vertical distribution of turbulent diffusivity. These results could help to refine parameterizations of the impact of low order normal modes in ocean mixing. Reference : [1] Dossmann et al. 2016, Mixing by internal waves quantified using combined PIV/PLIF technique, Experiments in Fluids, 57, 132.

Disconnected aging: cerebral white matter integrity and age-related differences in cognition.

PubMed

Bennett, I J; Madden, D J

2014-09-12

Cognition arises as a result of coordinated processing among distributed brain regions and disruptions to communication within these neural networks can result in cognitive dysfunction. Cortical disconnection may thus contribute to the declines in some aspects of cognitive functioning observed in healthy aging. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is ideally suited for the study of cortical disconnection as it provides indices of structural integrity within interconnected neural networks. The current review summarizes results of previous DTI aging research with the aim of identifying consistent patterns of age-related differences in white matter integrity, and of relationships between measures of white matter integrity and behavioral performance as a function of adult age. We outline a number of future directions that will broaden our current understanding of these brain-behavior relationships in aging. Specifically, future research should aim to (1) investigate multiple models of age-brain-behavior relationships; (2) determine the tract-specificity versus global effect of aging on white matter integrity; (3) assess the relative contribution of normal variation in white matter integrity versus white matter lesions to age-related differences in cognition; (4) improve the definition of specific aspects of cognitive functioning related to age-related differences in white matter integrity using information processing tasks; and (5) combine multiple imaging modalities (e.g., resting-state and task-related functional magnetic resonance imaging; fMRI) with DTI to clarify the role of cerebral white matter integrity in cognitive aging. Copyright © 2013 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Disconnected Aging: Cerebral White Matter Integrity and Age-Related Differences in Cognition

PubMed Central

Bennett, Ilana J.; Madden, David J.

2013-01-01

Cognition arises as a result of coordinated processing among distributed brain regions and disruptions to communication within these neural networks can result in cognitive dysfunction. Cortical disconnection may thus contribute to the declines in some aspects of cognitive functioning observed in healthy aging. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is ideally suited for the study of cortical disconnection as it provides indices of structural integrity within interconnected neural networks. The current review summarizes results of previous DTI aging research with the aim of identifying consistent patterns of age-related differences in white matter integrity, and of relationships between measures of white matter integrity and behavioral performance as a function of adult age. We outline a number of future directions that will broaden our current understanding of these brain-behavior relationships in aging. Specifically, future research should aim to (1) investigate multiple models of age-brain-behavior relationships; (2) determine the tract-specificity versus global effect of aging on white matter integrity; (3) assess the relative contribution of normal variation in white matter integrity versus white matter lesions to age-related differences in cognition; (4) improve the definition of specific aspects of cognitive functioning related to age-related differences in white matter integrity using information processing tasks; and (5) combine multiple imaging modalities (e.g., resting-state and task-related functional magnetic resonance imaging; fMRI) with DTI to clarify the role of cerebral white matter integrity in cognitive aging. PMID:24280637

Dissolution process analysis using model-free Noyes-Whitney integral equation.

PubMed

Hattori, Yusuke; Haruna, Yoshimasa; Otsuka, Makoto

2013-02-01

Drug dissolution process of solid dosages is theoretically described by Noyes-Whitney-Nernst equation. However, the analysis of the process is demonstrated assuming some models. Normally, the model-dependent methods are idealized and require some limitations. In this study, Noyes-Whitney integral equation was proposed and applied to represent the drug dissolution profiles of a solid formulation via the non-linear least squares (NLLS) method. The integral equation is a model-free formula involving the dissolution rate constant as a parameter. In the present study, several solid formulations were prepared via changing the blending time of magnesium stearate (MgSt) with theophylline monohydrate, α-lactose monohydrate, and crystalline cellulose. The formula could excellently represent the dissolution profile, and thereby the rate constant and specific surface area could be obtained by NLLS method. Since the long time blending coated the particle surface with MgSt, it was found that the water permeation was disturbed by its layer dissociating into disintegrant particles. In the end, the solid formulations were not disintegrated; however, the specific surface area gradually increased during the process of dissolution. The X-ray CT observation supported this result and demonstrated that the rough surface was dominant as compared to dissolution, and thus, specific surface area of the solid formulation gradually increased. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

User-friendly solutions for microarray quality control and pre-processing on ArrayAnalysis.org

PubMed Central

Eijssen, Lars M. T.; Jaillard, Magali; Adriaens, Michiel E.; Gaj, Stan; de Groot, Philip J.; Müller, Michael; Evelo, Chris T.

2013-01-01

Quality control (QC) is crucial for any scientific method producing data. Applying adequate QC introduces new challenges in the genomics field where large amounts of data are produced with complex technologies. For DNA microarrays, specific algorithms for QC and pre-processing including normalization have been developed by the scientific community, especially for expression chips of the Affymetrix platform. Many of these have been implemented in the statistical scripting language R and are available from the Bioconductor repository. However, application is hampered by lack of integrative tools that can be used by users of any experience level. To fill this gap, we developed a freely available tool for QC and pre-processing of Affymetrix gene expression results, extending, integrating and harmonizing functionality of Bioconductor packages. The tool can be easily accessed through a wizard-like web portal at http://www.arrayanalysis.org or downloaded for local use in R. The portal provides extensive documentation, including user guides, interpretation help with real output illustrations and detailed technical documentation. It assists newcomers to the field in performing state-of-the-art QC and pre-processing while offering data analysts an integral open-source package. Providing the scientific community with this easily accessible tool will allow improving data quality and reuse and adoption of standards. PMID:23620278

An integrative approach to the assessment of narcissism.

PubMed

Roche, Michael J; Pincus, Aaron L; Lukowitsky, Mark R; Ménard, Kim S; Conroy, David E

2013-01-01

Narcissism research is poorly calibrated across fields of study in part due to confusion over how to integrate normal and pathological descriptions of narcissism. We argue that pathological and normal narcissism can be integrated in a single model that organizes around self-regulation mechanisms. We present theoretical and empirical support for this interpretation, and demonstrate that modeling pathological and normal narcissism as 2 dimensions underlying the narcissistic character can help to resolve some of the inconsistencies in the field regarding how to best assess adaptive and maladaptive expressions of narcissism.

Fusion yield: Guderley model and Tsallis statistics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haubold, H. J.; Kumar, D.

2011-02-01

The reaction rate probability integral is extended from Maxwell-Boltzmann approach to a more general approach by using the pathway model introduced by Mathai in 2005 (A pathway to matrix-variate gamma and normal densities. Linear Algebr. Appl. 396, 317-328). The extended thermonuclear reaction rate is obtained in the closed form via a Meijer's G-function and the so-obtained G-function is represented as a solution of a homogeneous linear differential equation. A physical model for the hydrodynamical process in a fusion plasma-compressed and laser-driven spherical shock wave is used for evaluating the fusion energy integral by integrating the extended thermonuclear reaction rate integral over the temperature. The result obtained is compared with the standard fusion yield obtained by Haubold and John in 1981 (Analytical representation of the thermonuclear reaction rate and fusion energy production in a spherical plasma shock wave. Plasma Phys. 23, 399-411). An interpretation for the pathway parameter is also given.

Cancer prevention, the need to preserve the integrity of the genome at all cost.

PubMed

Okafor, M T; Nwagha, T U; Anusiem, C; Okoli, U A; Nubila, N I; Al-Alloosh, F; Udenyia, I J

2018-05-01

The entire genetic information carried by an organism makes up its genome. Genes have a diverse number of functions. They code different proteins for normal proliferation of cells. However, changes in the base sequence of genes affect their protein by-products which act as messengers for normal cellular functions such as proliferation and repairs. Salient processes for maintaining the integrity of the genome are hinged on intricate mechanisms put in place for the evolution to tackle genomic stresses. To discuss how cells sense and repair damage to their deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) as well as to highlight how defects in the genes involved in DNA repair contribute to cancer development. Methodology: Online searches on the following databases such as Google Scholar, PubMed, Biomed Central, and SciELO were done. Attempt was made to review articles with keywords such as cancer, cell cycle, tumor suppressor genes, and DNA repair. The cell cycle, tumor suppression genes, DNA repair mechanism, as well as their contribution to cancer development, were discussed and reviewed. Knowledge on how cells detect and repair DNA damage through an array of mechanisms should allay our anxiety as regards cancer development. More studies on DNA damage detection and repair processes are important toward a holistic approach to cancer treatment.

Relativistic scattered-wave theory. II - Normalization and symmetrization. [of Dirac wavefunctions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yang, C. Y.

1978-01-01

Formalisms for normalization and symmetrization of one-electron Dirac scattered-wave wavefunctions are presented. The normalization integral consists of one-dimensional radial integrals for the spherical regions and an analytic expression for the intersphere region. Symmetrization drastically reduces the size of the secular matrix to be solved. Examples for planar Pb2Se2 and tetrahedral Pd4 are discussed.

Development of an integrated chemical process system for utilization of complete Paraquat-treated pine trees. Final report, 1 July 1977-31 March 1979

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

O'Neil, D.J.; Bery, M.K.; El-Barbary, I.A.

1979-01-01

In 1973 it was reported that the treatment of southern pine trees with the herbicide Paraquat could induce lightwood formation with very significant increases in the extractable oleoresins and turpentine fractions. The objectives of this project included the characterization of this phenomenon, development of realistic qualitative and quantitative data on the extent of lightwood formation and the recovery of oleoresin and turpentine fractions. The principal objective was to determine if the yields of oleoresinous products and turpentine justified a stand-alone, economic wood extraction process technology, based on the utilization of whole- or complete-Paraquat-treated pine trees. The application of this technologymore » was considered to be appropriate as a sub-system of an integrated chemical process system wherein ethanol, lignin (or hydrocarbon derivatives), and sugars would be manufactured as co-products. Alternately, such extraction technology could be used as a pre-treatment operation prior to Kraft pulping processing. Yield results tended to be variable. Turpentine increases ranged from 2- to 4-fold on a merchantable bole basis with increases at the site of injection as high as 12-fold. The distribution of the turpentine content in Paraquat-treated trees, as well as for extractives content, decreased to normal background levels at about six feet above the wound site. Oleoresin content increases normally ranged from 2 to 3 fold with a maximum total extractables content (or yield) of about 8% on a dry weight basis. Under current conditions, the phenomenon of lightwood formation in mature trees may best be exploited in pulp process plants.« less

Display device for indicating the value of a parameter in a process plant

DOEpatents

Scarola, Kenneth; Jamison, David S.; Manazir, Richard M.; Rescorl, Robert L.; Harmon, Daryl L.

1993-01-01

An advanced control room complex for a nuclear power plant, including a discrete indicator and alarm system (72) which is nuclear qualified for rapid response to changes in plant parameters and a component control system (64) which together provide a discrete monitoring and control capability at a panel (14-22, 26, 28) in the control room (10). A separate data processing system (70), which need not be nuclear qualified, provides integrated and overview information to the control room and to each panel, through CRTs (84) and a large, overhead integrated process status overview board (24). The discrete indicator and alarm system (72) and the data processing system (70) receive inputs from common plant sensors and validate the sensor outputs to arrive at a representative value of the parameter for use by the operator during both normal and accident conditions, thereby avoiding the need for him to assimilate data from each sensor individually. The integrated process status board (24) is at the apex of an information hierarchy that extends through four levels and provides access at each panel to the full display hierarchy. The control room panels are preferably of a modular construction, permitting the definition of inputs and outputs, the man machine interface, and the plant specific algorithms, to proceed in parallel with the fabrication of the panels, the installation of the equipment and the generic testing thereof.

Indicator system for a process plant control complex

DOEpatents

Scarola, Kenneth; Jamison, David S.; Manazir, Richard M.; Rescorl, Robert L.; Harmon, Daryl L.

1993-01-01

An advanced control room complex for a nuclear power plant, including a discrete indicator and alarm system (72) which is nuclear qualified for rapid response to changes in plant parameters and a component control system (64) which together provide a discrete monitoring and control capability at a panel (14-22, 26, 28) in the control room (10). A separate data processing system (70), which need not be nuclear qualified, provides integrated and overview information to the control room and to each panel, through CRTs (84) and a large, overhead integrated process status overview board (24). The discrete indicator and alarm system (72) and the data processing system (70) receive inputs from common plant sensors and validate the sensor outputs to arrive at a representative value of the parameter for use by the operator during both normal and accident conditions, thereby avoiding the need for him to assimilate data from each sensor individually. The integrated process status board (24) is at the apex of an information hierarchy that extends through four levels and provides access at each panel to the full display hierarchy. The control room panels are preferably of a modular construction, permitting the definition of inputs and outputs, the man machine interface, and the plant specific algorithms, to proceed in parallel with the fabrication of the panels, the installation of the equipment and the generic testing thereof.

Novel method of extracting motion from natural movies.

PubMed

Suzuki, Wataru; Ichinohe, Noritaka; Tani, Toshiki; Hayami, Taku; Miyakawa, Naohisa; Watanabe, Satoshi; Takeichi, Hiroshige

2017-11-01

The visual system in primates can be segregated into motion and shape pathways. Interaction occurs at multiple stages along these pathways. Processing of shape-from-motion and biological motion is considered to be a higher-order integration process involving motion and shape information. However, relatively limited types of stimuli have been used in previous studies on these integration processes. We propose a new algorithm to extract object motion information from natural movies and to move random dots in accordance with the information. The object motion information is extracted by estimating the dynamics of local normal vectors of the image intensity projected onto the x-y plane of the movie. An electrophysiological experiment on two adult common marmoset monkeys (Callithrix jacchus) showed that the natural and random dot movies generated with this new algorithm yielded comparable neural responses in the middle temporal visual area. In principle, this algorithm provided random dot motion stimuli containing shape information for arbitrary natural movies. This new method is expected to expand the neurophysiological and psychophysical experimental protocols to elucidate the integration processing of motion and shape information in biological systems. The novel algorithm proposed here was effective in extracting object motion information from natural movies and provided new motion stimuli to investigate higher-order motion information processing. Copyright © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Unisensory processing and multisensory integration in schizophrenia: a high-density electrical mapping study.

PubMed

Stone, David B; Urrea, Laura J; Aine, Cheryl J; Bustillo, Juan R; Clark, Vincent P; Stephen, Julia M

2011-10-01

In real-world settings, information from multiple sensory modalities is combined to form a complete, behaviorally salient percept - a process known as multisensory integration. While deficits in auditory and visual processing are often observed in schizophrenia, little is known about how multisensory integration is affected by the disorder. The present study examined auditory, visual, and combined audio-visual processing in schizophrenia patients using high-density electrical mapping. An ecologically relevant task was used to compare unisensory and multisensory evoked potentials from schizophrenia patients to potentials from healthy normal volunteers. Analysis of unisensory responses revealed a large decrease in the N100 component of the auditory-evoked potential, as well as early differences in the visual-evoked components in the schizophrenia group. Differences in early evoked responses to multisensory stimuli were also detected. Multisensory facilitation was assessed by comparing the sum of auditory and visual evoked responses to the audio-visual evoked response. Schizophrenia patients showed a significantly greater absolute magnitude response to audio-visual stimuli than to summed unisensory stimuli when compared to healthy volunteers, indicating significantly greater multisensory facilitation in the patient group. Behavioral responses also indicated increased facilitation from multisensory stimuli. The results represent the first report of increased multisensory facilitation in schizophrenia and suggest that, although unisensory deficits are present, compensatory mechanisms may exist under certain conditions that permit improved multisensory integration in individuals afflicted with the disorder. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Impaired holistic processing of unfamiliar individual faces in acquired prosopagnosia.

PubMed

Ramon, Meike; Busigny, Thomas; Rossion, Bruno

2010-03-01

Prosopagnosia is an impairment at individualizing faces that classically follows brain damage. Several studies have reported observations supporting an impairment of holistic/configural face processing in acquired prosopagnosia. However, this issue may require more compelling evidence as the cases reported were generally patients suffering from integrative visual agnosia, and the sensitivity of the paradigms used to measure holistic/configural face processing in normal individuals remains unclear. Here we tested a well-characterized case of acquired prosopagnosia (PS) with no object recognition impairment, in five behavioral experiments (whole/part and composite face paradigms with unfamiliar faces). In all experiments, for normal observers we found that processing of a given facial feature was affected by the location and identity of the other features in a whole face configuration. In contrast, the patient's results over these experiments indicate that she encodes local facial information independently of the other features embedded in the whole facial context. These observations and a survey of the literature indicate that abnormal holistic processing of the individual face may be a characteristic hallmark of prosopagnosia following brain damage, perhaps with various degrees of severity. Copyright (c) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Memory Allocation: Mechanisms and Function.

PubMed

Josselyn, Sheena A; Frankland, Paul W

2018-04-25

Memories for events are thought to be represented in sparse, distributed neuronal ensembles (or engrams). In this article, we review how neurons are chosen to become part of a particular engram, via a process of neuronal allocation. Experiments in rodents indicate that eligible neurons compete for allocation to a given engram, with more excitable neurons winning this competition. Moreover, fluctuations in neuronal excitability determine how engrams interact, promoting either memory integration (via coallocation to overlapping engrams) or separation (via disallocation to nonoverlapping engrams). In parallel with rodent studies, recent findings in humans verify the importance of this memory integration process for linking memories that occur close in time or share related content. A deeper understanding of allocation promises to provide insights into the logic underlying how knowledge is normally organized in the brain and the disorders in which this process has gone awry. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Neuroscience Volume 41 is July 8, 2018. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.

Modulation of cortical activity during comprehension of familiar and unfamiliar text topics in speed reading and speed listening

PubMed Central

Buchweitz, Augusto; Mason, Robert A.; Meschyan, Gayane; Keller, Timothy A.; Just, Marcel Adam

2014-01-01

Brain activation associated with normal and speeded comprehension of expository texts on familiar and unfamiliar topics was investigated in reading and listening. The goal was to determine how brain activation and the comprehension processes it reflects are modulated by comprehension speed and topic familiarity. Passages on more familiar topics differentially activated a set of areas in the anterior temporal lobe and medial frontal gyrus, areas often associated with text-level integration processes, which we interpret to reflect integration of previous knowledge with the passage content. Passages presented at the faster presentation resulted in more activation of a network of frontal areas associated with strategic and working-memory processes (as well as visual or auditory sensory-related regions), which we interpret to reflect maintenance of local coherence among briefly available passage segments. The implications of this research is to demonstrate how the brain system for text comprehension adapts to varying perceptual and knowledge conditions. PMID:25463816

Modulation of cortical activity during comprehension of familiar and unfamiliar text topics in speed reading and speed listening.

PubMed

Buchweitz, Augusto; Mason, Robert A; Meschyan, Gayane; Keller, Timothy A; Just, Marcel Adam

2014-12-01

Brain activation associated with normal and speeded comprehension of expository texts on familiar and unfamiliar topics was investigated in reading and listening. The goal was to determine how brain activation and the comprehension processes it reflects are modulated by comprehension speed and topic familiarity. Passages on more familiar topics differentially activated a set of areas in the anterior temporal lobe and medial frontal gyrus, areas often associated with text-level integration processes, which we interpret to reflect integration of previous knowledge with the passage content. Passages presented at the faster presentation resulted in more activation of a network of frontal areas associated with strategic and working-memory processes (as well as visual or auditory sensory-related regions), which we interpret to reflect maintenance of local coherence among briefly available passage segments. The implications of this research is that the brain system for text comprehension adapts to varying perceptual and knowledge conditions. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Auditory word identification in dyslexic and normally achieving readers.

PubMed

Bruno, Jennifer L; Manis, Franklin R; Keating, Patricia; Sperling, Anne J; Nakamoto, Jonathan; Seidenberg, Mark S

2007-07-01

The integrity of phonological representation/processing in dyslexic children was explored with a gating task in which children listened to successively longer segments (gates) of a word. At each gate, the task was to decide what the entire word was. Responses were scored for overall accuracy as well as the children's sensitivity to coarticulation from the final consonant. As a group, dyslexic children were less able than normally achieving readers to detect coarticulation present in the vowel portion of the word, particularly on the most difficult items, namely those ending in a nasal sound. Hierarchical regression and path analyses indicated that phonological awareness mediated the relation of gating and general language ability to word and pseudoword reading ability.

Error recovery in shared memory multiprocessors using private caches

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wu, Kun-Lung; Fuchs, W. Kent; Patel, Janak H.

1990-01-01

The problem of recovering from processor transient faults in shared memory multiprocesses systems is examined. A user-transparent checkpointing and recovery scheme using private caches is presented. Processes can recover from errors due to faulty processors by restarting from the checkpointed computation state. Implementation techniques using checkpoint identifiers and recovery stacks are examined as a means of reducing performance degradation in processor utilization during normal execution. This cache-based checkpointing technique prevents rollback propagation, provides rapid recovery, and can be integrated into standard cache coherence protocols. An analytical model is used to estimate the relative performance of the scheme during normal execution. Extensions to take error latency into account are presented.

Neutronic calculation of fast reactors by the EUCLID/V1 integrated code

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koltashev, D. A.; Stakhanova, A. A.

2017-01-01

This article considers neutronic calculation of a fast-neutron lead-cooled reactor BREST-OD-300 by the EUCLID/V1 integrated code. The main goal of development and application of integrated codes is a nuclear power plant safety justification. EUCLID/V1 is integrated code designed for coupled neutronics, thermomechanical and thermohydraulic fast reactor calculations under normal and abnormal operating conditions. EUCLID/V1 code is being developed in the Nuclear Safety Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The integrated code has a modular structure and consists of three main modules: thermohydraulic module HYDRA-IBRAE/LM/V1, thermomechanical module BERKUT and neutronic module DN3D. In addition, the integrated code includes databases with fuel, coolant and structural materials properties. Neutronic module DN3D provides full-scale simulation of neutronic processes in fast reactors. Heat sources distribution, control rods movement, reactivity level changes and other processes can be simulated. Neutron transport equation in multigroup diffusion approximation is solved. This paper contains some calculations implemented as a part of EUCLID/V1 code validation. A fast-neutron lead-cooled reactor BREST-OD-300 transient simulation (fuel assembly floating, decompression of passive feedback system channel) and cross-validation with MCU-FR code results are presented in this paper. The calculations demonstrate EUCLID/V1 code application for BREST-OD-300 simulating and safety justification.

Synchrony of corticostriatal-midbrain activation enables normal inhibitory control and conflict processing in recovering alcoholic men.

PubMed

Schulte, Tilman; Müller-Oehring, Eva M; Sullivan, Edith V; Pfefferbaum, Adolf

2012-02-01

Alcohol dependence is associated with inhibitory control deficits, possibly related to abnormalities in frontoparietal cortical and midbrain function and connectivity. We examined functional connectivity and microstructural fiber integrity between frontoparietal and midbrain structures using a Stroop Match-to-Sample task with functional magnetic resonance imaging and diffusion tensor imaging in 18 alcoholic and 17 control subjects. Manipulation of color cues and response repetition sequences modulated cognitive demands during Stroop conflict. Despite similar lateral frontoparietal activity and functional connectivity in alcoholic and control subjects when processing conflict, control subjects deactivated the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC), whereas alcoholic subjects did not. Posterior cingulum fiber integrity predicted the degree of PCC deactivation in control but not alcoholic subjects. Also, PCC activity was modulated by executive control demands: activated during response switching and deactivated during response repetition. Alcoholics showed the opposite pattern: activation during repetition and deactivation during switching. Here, in alcoholic subjects, greater deviations from the normal PCC activity correlated with higher amounts of lifetime alcohol consumption. A functional dissociation of brain network connectivity between the groups further showed that control subjects exhibited greater corticocortical connectivity among middle cingulate, posterior cingulate, and medial prefrontal cortices than alcoholic subjects. In contrast, alcoholic subjects exhibited greater midbrain-orbitofrontal cortical network connectivity than control subjects. Degree of microstructural fiber integrity predicted robustness of functional connectivity. Thus, even subtle compromise of microstructural connectivity in alcoholism can influence modulation of functional connectivity and underlie alcohol-related cognitive impairment. Copyright © 2012 Society of Biological Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

ACHS Quality Awards 2000. Quality is the way we do business.

PubMed

Cruickshank, N; Bullock, J

2001-01-01

Hollywood Private Hospital recognized that the use of quality management processes can achieve numerous benefits; however, for this to occur quality must be regarded as normal business practice rather than a separate programme. Therefore, the means of ensuring a quality service must be embedded in the strategic plans of both the organization and individual departments. The Hollywood Private Hospital Executive committed the organization to this approach further building on the 'core values' of the hospital by: integrating quality into the Strategic Planning of the organization; integrating risk management into the existing quality system; further embedding of the core values into the culture of the organisation; introducing systems thinking into the organization; taking a process improvement approach to improving quality; involving staff in Quality Action Teams and utilizing the Evaluation and Quality Improvement Programme as the management framework to co-ordinate all the above.

Theoretical Studies Relating to the Interaction of Radiation with Matter: Atomic Collision Processes Occurring in the Presence of Radiation Fields.

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-10-01

34normal" or the interaction of a nonuniform relative velocity distribution into the representation, oing to condition (21. average over 0, but the results...the Oi-dei of 10"i see ) inn this of tile integrals :rppra-inij~g in Eq’(. (i3. I) and,(in ase, a lair !’ anneunlt of vnigCy Joel, collisijon totecniin

A multistage gene normalization system integrating multiple effective methods.

PubMed

Li, Lishuang; Liu, Shanshan; Li, Lihua; Fan, Wenting; Huang, Degen; Zhou, Huiwei

2013-01-01

Gene/protein recognition and normalization is an important preliminary step for many biological text mining tasks. In this paper, we present a multistage gene normalization system which consists of four major subtasks: pre-processing, dictionary matching, ambiguity resolution and filtering. For the first subtask, we apply the gene mention tagger developed in our earlier work, which achieves an F-score of 88.42% on the BioCreative II GM testing set. In the stage of dictionary matching, the exact matching and approximate matching between gene names and the EntrezGene lexicon have been combined. For the ambiguity resolution subtask, we propose a semantic similarity disambiguation method based on Munkres' Assignment Algorithm. At the last step, a filter based on Wikipedia has been built to remove the false positives. Experimental results show that the presented system can achieve an F-score of 90.1%, outperforming most of the state-of-the-art systems.

Intra- and interpattern relations in letter recognition.

PubMed

Sanocki, T

1991-11-01

Strings of 4 unrelated letters were backward masked at varying durations to examine 3 major issues. (a) One issue concerned relational features. Letters with abnormal relations but normal elements were created by interchanging elements between large and small normal letters. Overall accuracy was higher for letters with normal relations, consistent with the idea that relational features are important in recognition. (b) Interpattern relations were examined by mixing large and small letters within strings. Relative to pure strings, accuracy was reduced, but only for small letters and only when in mixed strings. This effect can be attributed to attentional priority for larger forms over smaller forms, which also explains global precedence with hierarchical forms. (c) Forced-choice alternatives were manipulated in Experiments 2 and 3 to test feature integration theory. Relational information was found to be processed at least as early as feature presence or absence.

Nuclear plants gain integrated information systems

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Villavicencio-Ramirez, A.; Rodriquez-Alvarez, J.M.

1994-10-01

With the objective of simplifying the complex mesh of computing devices employed within nuclear power plants, modern technology and integration techniques are being used to form centralized (but backed up) databases and distributed processing and display networks. Benefits are immediate as a result of the integration and the use of standards. The use of a unique data acquisition and database subsystem optimizes the high costs of engineering, as this task is done only once for the life span of the system. This also contributes towards a uniform user interface and allows for graceful expansion and maintenance. This article features anmore » integrated information system, Sistema Integral de Informacion de Proceso (SIIP). The development of this system enabled the Laguna Verde Nuclear Power plant to fully use the already existing universe of signals and its related engineering during all plant conditions, namely, start up, normal operation, transient analysis, and emergency operation. Integrated systems offer many advantages over segregated systems, and this experience should benefit similar development efforts in other electric power utilities, not only for nuclear but also for other types of generating plants.« less

Zeolite based microconcentrators for volatile organic compounds sensing at trace-level: fabrication and performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Almazán, Fernando; Pellejero, Ismael; Morales, Alberto; Urbiztondo, Miguel A.; Sesé, Javier; Pina, M. Pilar; Santamaría, Jesús

2016-08-01

A novel 6-step microfabrication process is proposed in this work to prepare microfluidic devices with integrated zeolite layers. In particular, microfabricated preconcentrators designed for volatile organic compounds (VOC) sensing applications are fully described. The main novelty of this work is the integration of the pure siliceous MFI type zeolite (silicalite-1) polycrystalline layer, i.e. 4.0  ±  0.5 μm thick, as active phase, within the microfabrication process just before the anodic bonding step. Following this new procedure, Si microdevices with an excellent distribution of the adsorbent material, integrated resistive heaters and Pyrex caps have been obtained. Firstly, the microconcentrator performance has been assessed by means of the normal hexane breakthrough curves as a function of sampling and desorption flowrates, temperature and micropreconcentrator design. In a step further, the best preconcentrator device has been tested in combination with downstream Si based microcantilevers deployed as VOC detectors. Thus, a preliminar evaluation of the improvement on detection sensitivity by silicalite-1 based microconcentrators is presented.

Impaired integration of object knowledge and visual input in a case of ventral simultanagnosia with bilateral damage to area V4.

PubMed

Leek, E Charles; d'Avossa, Giovanni; Tainturier, Marie-Josèphe; Roberts, Daniel J; Yuen, Sung Lai; Hu, Mo; Rafal, Robert

2012-01-01

This study examines how brain damage can affect the cognitive processes that support the integration of sensory input and prior knowledge during shape perception. It is based on the first detailed study of acquired ventral simultanagnosia, which was found in a patient (M.T.) with posterior occipitotemporal lesions encompassing V4 bilaterally. Despite showing normal object recognition for single items in both accuracy and response times (RTs), and intact low-level vision assessed across an extensive battery of tests, M.T. was impaired in object identification with overlapping figures displays. Task performance was modulated by familiarity: Unlike controls, M.T. was faster with overlapping displays of abstract shapes than with overlapping displays of common objects. His performance with overlapping common object displays was also influenced by both the semantic relatedness and visual similarity of the display items. These findings challenge claims that visual perception is driven solely by feedforward mechanisms and show how brain damage can selectively impair high-level perceptual processes supporting the integration of stored knowledge and visual sensory input.

Choquet integral as an alternative aggregation method to measure the overall academic performance of primary school students: A case study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kasim, Maznah Mat; Abdullah, Siti Rohana Goh

2014-07-01

Many average methods are available to aggregate a set of numbers to become single number. However these methods do not consider the interdependencies between the criteria of the related numbers. This paper is highlighting the Choquet Integral method as an alternative aggregation method where the interdependency estimates between the criteria are comprised in the aggregation process. The interdependency values can be estimated by using lambda fuzzy measure method. By considering the interdependencies or interaction between the criteria, the resulted aggregated values are more meaningful as compared to the ones obtained by normal average methods. The application of the Choquet Integral is illustrated in a case study of finding the overall academic achievement of year six pupils in a selected primary school in a northern state of Malaysia.

Understanding Kidney Disease: Toward the Integration of Regulatory Networks Across Species

PubMed Central

Ju, Wenjun; Brosius, Frank C.

2010-01-01

Animal models have long been useful in investigating both normal and abnormal human physiology. Systems biology provides a relatively new set of approaches to identify similarities and differences between animal models and humans that may lead to a more comprehensive understanding of human kidney pathophysiology. In this review, we briefly describe how genome-wide analyses of mouse models have helped elucidate features of human kidney diseases, discuss strategies to achieve effective network integration, and summarize currently available web-based tools that may facilitate integration of data across species. The rapid progress in systems biology and orthology, as well as the advent of web-based tools to facilitate these processes, now make it possible to take advantage of knowledge from distant animal species in targeted identification of regulatory networks that may have clinical relevance for human kidney diseases. PMID:21044762

Single-use thermoplastic microfluidic burst valves enabling on-chip reagent storage

PubMed Central

Rahmanian, Omid D.

2014-01-01

A simple and reliable method for fabricating single-use normally closed burst valves in thermoplastic microfluidic devices is presented, using a process flow that is readily integrated into established workflows for the fabrication of thermoplastic microfluidics. An experimental study of valve performance reveals the relationships between valve geometry and burst pressure. The technology is demonstrated in a device employing multiple valves engineered to actuate at different inlet pressures that can be generated using integrated screw pumps. On-chip storage and reconstitution of fluorescein salt sealed within defined reagent chambers are demonstrated. By taking advantage of the low gas and water permeability of cyclic olefin copolymer, the robust burst valves allow on-chip hermetic storage of reagents, making the technology well suited for the development of integrated and disposable assays for use at the point of care. PMID:25972774

Robust Foot Clearance Estimation Based on the Integration of Foot-Mounted IMU Acceleration Data

PubMed Central

Benoussaad, Mourad; Sijobert, Benoît; Mombaur, Katja; Azevedo Coste, Christine

2015-01-01

This paper introduces a method for the robust estimation of foot clearance during walking, using a single inertial measurement unit (IMU) placed on the subject’s foot. The proposed solution is based on double integration and drift cancellation of foot acceleration signals. The method is insensitive to misalignment of IMU axes with respect to foot axes. Details are provided regarding calibration and signal processing procedures. Experimental validation was performed on 10 healthy subjects under three walking conditions: normal, fast and with obstacles. Foot clearance estimation results were compared to measurements from an optical motion capture system. The mean error between them is significantly less than 15% under the various walking conditions. PMID:26703622

Reconsideration of the training of psychiatrists and mental health professionals: helping to make soup.

PubMed Central

Edwards, Christopher L.; Primm, Annelle; Johnson, Stephanie; Feliu, Miriam; O'Garo, Keisha; Bennett, Gary G.; Robinson, Elwood; McDougald, Camela; Byrd, Goldie; Harrison, Ojinga; Whitfield, Keith; Killough, Alvin L.

2006-01-01

For many years, we have known of deficits in our system of training mental health professionals, particularly in recognizing and integrating diversity. Recently, we have begun to understand that our literature must more authentically reflect the experiences of all people that we serve. The current paper suggests that a comprehensive biopsychosocial conceptualization of normal and abnormal behavior for all individuals is necessary to truly begin to reduce mental health disparities. The authors argue that factors such as racial, ethnic and cultural differences must be integrated into research before the literature will begin to change in a fashion that is beneficial to the mental health training process. PMID:17019918

Afferent specific role of NMDA receptors for the circuit integration of hippocampal neurogliaform cells.

PubMed

Chittajallu, R; Wester, J C; Craig, M T; Barksdale, E; Yuan, X Q; Akgül, G; Fang, C; Collins, D; Hunt, S; Pelkey, K A; McBain, C J

2017-07-28

Appropriate integration of GABAergic interneurons into nascent cortical circuits is critical for ensuring normal information processing within the brain. Network and cognitive deficits associated with neurological disorders, such as schizophrenia, that result from NMDA receptor-hypofunction have been mainly attributed to dysfunction of parvalbumin-expressing interneurons that paradoxically express low levels of synaptic NMDA receptors. Here, we reveal that throughout postnatal development, thalamic, and entorhinal cortical inputs onto hippocampal neurogliaform cells are characterized by a large NMDA receptor-mediated component. This NMDA receptor-signaling is prerequisite for developmental programs ultimately responsible for the appropriate long-range AMPAR-mediated recruitment of neurogliaform cells. In contrast, AMPAR-mediated input at local Schaffer-collateral synapses on neurogliaform cells remains normal following NMDA receptor-ablation. These afferent specific deficits potentially impact neurogliaform cell mediated inhibition within the hippocampus and our findings reveal circuit loci implicating this relatively understudied interneuron subtype in the etiology of neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by NMDA receptor-hypofunction.Proper brain function depends on the correct assembly of excitatory and inhibitory neurons into neural circuits. Here the authors show that during early postnatal development in mice, NMDAR signaling via activity of long-range synaptic inputs onto neurogliaform cells is required for their appropriate integration into the hippocampal circuitry.

Adenosine Receptors in Developing and Adult Mouse Neuromuscular Junctions and Functional Links With Other Metabotropic Receptor Pathways

PubMed Central

Tomàs, Josep; Garcia, Neus; Lanuza, Maria A.; Santafé, Manel M.; Tomàs, Marta; Nadal, Laura; Hurtado, Erica; Simó-Ollé, Anna; Cilleros-Mañé, Víctor; Just-Borràs, Laia

2018-01-01

In the last few years, we have studied the presence and involvement in synaptogenesis and mature transmitter release of the adenosine autoreceptors (AR) in the mammalian neuromuscular junction (NMJ). Here, we review and bring together the previously published data to emphasize the relevance of these receptors for developmental axonal competition, synaptic loss and mature NMJ functional modulation. However, in addition to AR, activity-dependent mediators originating from any of the three cells that make the synapse (nerve, muscle, and glial cells) cross the extracellular cleft to generate signals in target metabotropic receptors. Thus, the integrated interpretation of the complementary function of all these receptors is needed. We previously studied, in the NMJ, the links of AR with mAChR and the neurotrophin receptor TrkB in the control of synapse elimination and transmitter release. We conclude that AR cooperate with these receptors through synergistic and antagonistic effects in the developmental synapse elimination process. In the adult NMJ, this cooperation is manifested so as that the functional integrity of a given receptor group depends on the other receptors operating normally (i.e., the functional integrity of mAChR depends on AR operating normally). These observations underlie the relevance of AR in the NMJ function. PMID:29740322

Adenosine Receptors in Developing and Adult Mouse Neuromuscular Junctions and Functional Links With Other Metabotropic Receptor Pathways.

PubMed

Tomàs, Josep; Garcia, Neus; Lanuza, Maria A; Santafé, Manel M; Tomàs, Marta; Nadal, Laura; Hurtado, Erica; Simó-Ollé, Anna; Cilleros-Mañé, Víctor; Just-Borràs, Laia

2018-01-01

In the last few years, we have studied the presence and involvement in synaptogenesis and mature transmitter release of the adenosine autoreceptors (AR) in the mammalian neuromuscular junction (NMJ). Here, we review and bring together the previously published data to emphasize the relevance of these receptors for developmental axonal competition, synaptic loss and mature NMJ functional modulation. However, in addition to AR, activity-dependent mediators originating from any of the three cells that make the synapse (nerve, muscle, and glial cells) cross the extracellular cleft to generate signals in target metabotropic receptors. Thus, the integrated interpretation of the complementary function of all these receptors is needed. We previously studied, in the NMJ, the links of AR with mAChR and the neurotrophin receptor TrkB in the control of synapse elimination and transmitter release. We conclude that AR cooperate with these receptors through synergistic and antagonistic effects in the developmental synapse elimination process. In the adult NMJ, this cooperation is manifested so as that the functional integrity of a given receptor group depends on the other receptors operating normally (i.e., the functional integrity of mAChR depends on AR operating normally). These observations underlie the relevance of AR in the NMJ function.

Beyond accuracy: creating interoperable and scalable text-mining web services.

PubMed

Wei, Chih-Hsuan; Leaman, Robert; Lu, Zhiyong

2016-06-15

The biomedical literature is a knowledge-rich resource and an important foundation for future research. With over 24 million articles in PubMed and an increasing growth rate, research in automated text processing is becoming increasingly important. We report here our recently developed web-based text mining services for biomedical concept recognition and normalization. Unlike most text-mining software tools, our web services integrate several state-of-the-art entity tagging systems (DNorm, GNormPlus, SR4GN, tmChem and tmVar) and offer a batch-processing mode able to process arbitrary text input (e.g. scholarly publications, patents and medical records) in multiple formats (e.g. BioC). We support multiple standards to make our service interoperable and allow simpler integration with other text-processing pipelines. To maximize scalability, we have preprocessed all PubMed articles, and use a computer cluster for processing large requests of arbitrary text. Our text-mining web service is freely available at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/CBBresearch/Lu/Demo/tmTools/#curl : Zhiyong.Lu@nih.gov. Published by Oxford University Press 2016. This work is written by US Government employees and is in the public domain in the US.

Normalized value coding explains dynamic adaptation in the human valuation process.

PubMed

Khaw, Mel W; Glimcher, Paul W; Louie, Kenway

2017-11-28

The notion of subjective value is central to choice theories in ecology, economics, and psychology, serving as an integrated decision variable by which options are compared. Subjective value is often assumed to be an absolute quantity, determined in a static manner by the properties of an individual option. Recent neurobiological studies, however, have shown that neural value coding dynamically adapts to the statistics of the recent reward environment, introducing an intrinsic temporal context dependence into the neural representation of value. Whether valuation exhibits this kind of dynamic adaptation at the behavioral level is unknown. Here, we show that the valuation process in human subjects adapts to the history of previous values, with current valuations varying inversely with the average value of recently observed items. The dynamics of this adaptive valuation are captured by divisive normalization, linking these temporal context effects to spatial context effects in decision making as well as spatial and temporal context effects in perception. These findings suggest that adaptation is a universal feature of neural information processing and offer a unifying explanation for contextual phenomena in fields ranging from visual psychophysics to economic choice.

Kalman/Map filtering-aided fast normalized cross correlation-based Wi-Fi fingerprinting location sensing.

PubMed

Sun, Yongliang; Xu, Yubin; Li, Cheng; Ma, Lin

2013-11-13

A Kalman/map filtering (KMF)-aided fast normalized cross correlation (FNCC)-based Wi-Fi fingerprinting location sensing system is proposed in this paper. Compared with conventional neighbor selection algorithms that calculate localization results with received signal strength (RSS) mean samples, the proposed FNCC algorithm makes use of all the on-line RSS samples and reference point RSS variations to achieve higher fingerprinting accuracy. The FNCC computes efficiently while maintaining the same accuracy as the basic normalized cross correlation. Additionally, a KMF is also proposed to process fingerprinting localization results. It employs a new map matching algorithm to nonlinearize the linear location prediction process of Kalman filtering (KF) that takes advantage of spatial proximities of consecutive localization results. With a calibration model integrated into an indoor map, the map matching algorithm corrects unreasonable prediction locations of the KF according to the building interior structure. Thus, more accurate prediction locations are obtained. Using these locations, the KMF considerably improves fingerprinting algorithm performance. Experimental results demonstrate that the FNCC algorithm with reduced computational complexity outperforms other neighbor selection algorithms and the KMF effectively improves location sensing accuracy by using indoor map information and spatial proximities of consecutive localization results.

Kalman/Map Filtering-Aided Fast Normalized Cross Correlation-Based Wi-Fi Fingerprinting Location Sensing

PubMed Central

Sun, Yongliang; Xu, Yubin; Li, Cheng; Ma, Lin

2013-01-01

A Kalman/map filtering (KMF)-aided fast normalized cross correlation (FNCC)-based Wi-Fi fingerprinting location sensing system is proposed in this paper. Compared with conventional neighbor selection algorithms that calculate localization results with received signal strength (RSS) mean samples, the proposed FNCC algorithm makes use of all the on-line RSS samples and reference point RSS variations to achieve higher fingerprinting accuracy. The FNCC computes efficiently while maintaining the same accuracy as the basic normalized cross correlation. Additionally, a KMF is also proposed to process fingerprinting localization results. It employs a new map matching algorithm to nonlinearize the linear location prediction process of Kalman filtering (KF) that takes advantage of spatial proximities of consecutive localization results. With a calibration model integrated into an indoor map, the map matching algorithm corrects unreasonable prediction locations of the KF according to the building interior structure. Thus, more accurate prediction locations are obtained. Using these locations, the KMF considerably improves fingerprinting algorithm performance. Experimental results demonstrate that the FNCC algorithm with reduced computational complexity outperforms other neighbor selection algorithms and the KMF effectively improves location sensing accuracy by using indoor map information and spatial proximities of consecutive localization results. PMID:24233027

A Dry-Etch Process for Low Temperature Superconducting Transition Edge Sensors for Far Infrared Bolometer Arrays

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Allen, Christine A.; Chervenak, James A.; Hsieh, Wen-Ting; McClanahan, Richard A.; Miller, Timothy M.; Mitchell, Robert; Moseley, S. Harvey; Staguhn, Johannes; Stevenson, Thomas R.

2003-01-01

The next generation of ultra-low power bolometer arrays, with applications in far infrared imaging, spectroscopy and polarimetry, utilizes a superconducting bilayer as the sensing element to enable SQUID multiplexed readout. Superconducting transition edge sensors (TES s) are being produced with dual metal systems of superconductinghormal bilayers. The transition temperature (Tc) is tuned by altering the relative thickness of the superconductor with respect to the normal layer. We are currently investigating MoAu and MoCu bilayers. We have developed a dry-etching process for MoAu TES s with integrated molybdenum leads, and are working on adapting the process to MoCu. Dry etching has the advantage over wet etching in the MoAu system in that one can achieve a high degree of selectivity, greater than 10, using argon ME, or argon ion milling, for patterning gold on molybdenum. Molybdenum leads are subsequently patterned using fluorine plasma.. The dry-etch technique results in a smooth, featureless TES with sharp sidewalls, no undercutting of the Mo beneath the normal metal, and Mo leads with high critical current. The effects of individual processing parameters on the characteristics of the transition will be reported.

On the Risk Management and Auditing of SOA Based Business Processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Orriens, Bart; Heuvel, Willem-Jan V./D.; Papazoglou, Mike

SOA-enabled business processes stretch across many cooperating and coordinated systems, possibly crossing organizational boundaries, and technologies like XML and Web services are used for making system-to-system interactions commonplace. Business processes form the foundation for all organizations, and as such, are impacted by industry regulations. This requires organizations to review their business processes and ensure that they meet the compliance standards set forth in legislation. In this paper we sketch a SOA-based service risk management and auditing methodology including a compliance enforcement and verification system that assures verifiable business process compliance. This is done on the basis of a knowledge-based system that allows integration of internal control systems into business processes conform pre-defined compliance rules, monitor both the normal process behavior and those of the control systems during process execution, and log these behaviors to facilitate retrospective auditing.

Indicator system for advanced nuclear plant control complex

DOEpatents

Scarola, Kenneth; Jamison, David S.; Manazir, Richard M.; Rescorl, Robert L.; Harmon, Daryl L.

1993-01-01

An advanced control room complex for a nuclear power plant, including a discrete indicator and alarm system (72) which is nuclear qualified for rapid response to changes in plant parameters and a component control system (64) which together provide a discrete monitoring and control capability at a panel (14-22, 26, 28) in the control room (10). A separate data processing system (70), which need not be nuclear qualified, provides integrated and overview information to the control room and to each panel, through CRTs (84) and a large, overhead integrated process status overview board (24). The discrete indicator and alarm system (72) and the data processing system (70) receive inputs from common plant sensors and validate the sensor outputs to arrive at a representative value of the parameter for use by the operator during both normal and accident conditions, thereby avoiding the need for him to assimilate data from each sensor individually. The integrated process status board (24) is at the apex of an information hierarchy that extends through four levels and provides access at each panel to the full display hierarchy. The control room panels are preferably of a modular construction, permitting the definition of inputs and outputs, the man machine interface, and the plant specific algorithms, to proceed in parallel with the fabrication of the panels, the installation of the equipment and the generic testing thereof.

Console for a nuclear control complex

DOEpatents

Scarola, Kenneth; Jamison, David S.; Manazir, Richard M.; Rescorl, Robert L.; Harmon, Daryl L.

1993-01-01

An advanced control room complex for a nuclear power plant, including a discrete indicator and alarm system (72) which is nuclear qualified for rapid response to changes in plant parameters and a component control system (64) which together provide a discrete monitoring and control capability at a panel (14-22, 26, 28) in the control room (10). A separate data processing system (70), which need not be nuclear qualified, provides integrated and overview information to the control room and to each panel, through CRTs (84) and a large, overhead integrated process status overview board (24). The discrete indicator and alarm system (72) and the data processing system (70) receive inputs from common plant sensors and validate the sensor outputs to arrive at a representative value of the parameter for use by the operator during both normal and accident conditions, thereby avoiding the need for him to assimilate data from each sensor individually. The integrated process status board (24) is at the apex of an information hierarchy that extends through four levels and provides access at each panel to the full display hierarchy. The control room panels are preferably of a modular construction, permitting the definition of inputs and outputs, the man machine interface, and the plant specific algorithms, to proceed in parallel with the fabrication of the panels, the installation of the equipment and the generic testing thereof.

Alarm system for a nuclear control complex

DOEpatents

Scarola, Kenneth; Jamison, David S.; Manazir, Richard M.; Rescorl, Robert L.; Harmon, Daryl L.

1994-01-01

An advanced control room complex for a nuclear power plant, including a discrete indicator and alarm system (72) which is nuclear qualified for rapid response to changes in plant parameters and a component control system (64) which together provide a discrete monitoring and control capability at a panel (14-22, 26, 28) in the control room (10). A separate data processing system (70), which need not be nuclear qualified, provides integrated and overview information to the control room and to each panel, through CRTs (84) and a large, overhead integrated process status overview board (24). The discrete indicator and alarm system (72) and the data processing system (70) receive inputs from common plant sensors and validate the sensor outputs to arrive at a representative value of the parameter for use by the operator during both normal and accident conditions, thereby avoiding the need for him to assimilate data from each sensor individually. The integrated process status board (24) is at the apex of an information hierarchy that extends through four levels and provides access at each panel to the full display hierarchy. The control room panels are preferably of a modular construction, permitting the definition of inputs and outputs, the man machine interface, and the plant specific algorithms, to proceed in parallel with the fabrication of the panels, the installation of the equipment and the generic testing thereof.

Method of installing a control room console in a nuclear power plant

DOEpatents

Scarola, Kenneth; Jamison, David S.; Manazir, Richard M.; Rescorl, Robert L.; Harmon, Daryl L.

1994-01-01

An advanced control room complex for a nuclear power plant, including a discrete indicator and alarm system (72) which is nuclear qualified for rapid response to changes in plant parameters and a component control system (64) which together provide a discrete monitoring and control capability at a panel (14-22, 26, 28) in the control room (10). A separate data processing system (70), which need not be nuclear qualified, provides integrated and overview information to the control room and to each panel, through CRTs (84) and a large, overhead integrated process status overview board (24). The discrete indicator and alarm system (72) and the data processing system (70) receive inputs from common plant sensors and validate the sensor outputs to arrive at a representative value of the parameter for use by the operator during both normal and accident conditions, thereby avoiding the need for him to assimilate data from each sensor individually. The integrated process status board (24) is at the apex of an information hierarchy that extends through four levels and provides access at each panel to the full display hierarchy. The control room panels are preferably of a modular construction, permitting the definition of inputs and outputs, the man machine interface, and the plant specific algorithms, to proceed in parallel with the fabrication of the panels, the installation of the equipment and the generic testing thereof.

Advanced nuclear plant control complex

DOEpatents

Scarola, Kenneth; Jamison, David S.; Manazir, Richard M.; Rescorl, Robert L.; Harmon, Daryl L.

1993-01-01

An advanced control room complex for a nuclear power plant, including a discrete indicator and alarm system (72) which is nuclear qualified for rapid response to changes in plant parameters and a component control system (64) which together provide a discrete monitoring and control capability at a panel (14-22, 26, 28) in the control room (10). A separate data processing system (70), which need not be nuclear qualified, provides integrated and overview information to the control room and to each panel, through CRTs (84) and a large, overhead integrated process status overview board (24). The discrete indicator and alarm system (72) and the data processing system (70) receive inputs from common plant sensors and validate the sensor outputs to arrive at a representative value of the parameter for use by the operator during both normal and accident conditions, thereby avoiding the need for him to assimilate data from each sensor individually. The integrated process status board (24) is at the apex of an information hierarchy that extends through four levels and provides access at each panel to the full display hierarchy. The control room panels are preferably of a modular construction, permitting the definition of inputs and outputs, the man machine interface, and the plant specific algorithms, to proceed in parallel with the fabrication of the panels, the installation of the equipment and the generic testing thereof.

Advanced nuclear plant control room complex

DOEpatents

Scarola, Kenneth; Jamison, David S.; Manazir, Richard M.; Rescorl, Robert L.; Harmon, Daryl L.

1993-01-01

An advanced control room complex for a nuclear power plant, including a discrete indicator and alarm system (72) which is nuclear qualified for rapid response to changes in plant parameters and a component control system (64) which together provide a discrete monitoring and control capability at a panel (14-22, 26, 28) in the control room (10). A separate data processing system (70), which need not be nuclear qualified, provides integrated and overview information to the control room and to each panel, through CRTs (84) and a large, overhead integrated process status overview board (24). The discrete indicator and alarm system (72) and the data processing system (70) receive inputs from common plant sensors and validate the sensor outputs to arrive at a representative value of the parameter for use by the operator during both normal and accident conditions, thereby avoiding the need for him to assimilate data from each sensor individually. The integrated process status board (24) is at the apex of an information hierarchy that extends through four levels and provides access at each panel to the full display hierarchy. The control room panels are preferably of a modular construction, permitting the definition of inputs and outputs, the man machine interface, and the plant specific algorithms, to proceed in parallel with the fabrication of the panels, the installation of the equipment and the generic testing thereof.

Developmental visual perception deficits with no indications of prosopagnosia in a child with abnormal eye movements.

PubMed

Gilaie-Dotan, Sharon; Doron, Ravid

2017-06-01

Visual categories are associated with eccentricity biases in high-order visual cortex: Faces and reading with foveally-biased regions, while common objects and space with mid- and peripherally-biased regions. As face perception and reading are among the most challenging human visual skills, and are often regarded as the peak achievements of a distributed neural network supporting common objects perception, it is unclear why objects, which also rely on foveal vision to be processed, are associated with mid-peripheral rather than with a foveal bias. Here, we studied BN, a 9 y.o. boy who has normal basic-level vision, abnormal (limited) oculomotor pursuit and saccades, and shows developmental object and contour integration deficits but with no indication of prosopagnosia. Although we cannot infer causation from the data presented here, we suggest that normal pursuit and saccades could be critical for the development of contour integration and object perception. While faces and perhaps reading, when fixated upon, take up a small portion of central visual field and require only small eye movements to be properly processed, common objects typically prevail in mid-peripheral visual field and rely on longer-distance voluntary eye movements as saccades to be brought to fixation. While retinal information feeds into early visual cortex in an eccentricity orderly manner, we hypothesize that propagation of non-foveal information to mid and high-order visual cortex critically relies on circuitry involving eye movements. Limited or atypical eye movements, as in the case of BN, may hinder normal information flow to mid-eccentricity biased high-order visual cortex, adversely affecting its development and consequently inducing visual perceptual deficits predominantly for categories associated with these regions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

CONFIG - Adapting qualitative modeling and discrete event simulation for design of fault management systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Malin, Jane T.; Basham, Bryan D.

1989-01-01

CONFIG is a modeling and simulation tool prototype for analyzing the normal and faulty qualitative behaviors of engineered systems. Qualitative modeling and discrete-event simulation have been adapted and integrated, to support early development, during system design, of software and procedures for management of failures, especially in diagnostic expert systems. Qualitative component models are defined in terms of normal and faulty modes and processes, which are defined by invocation statements and effect statements with time delays. System models are constructed graphically by using instances of components and relations from object-oriented hierarchical model libraries. Extension and reuse of CONFIG models and analysis capabilities in hybrid rule- and model-based expert fault-management support systems are discussed.

An Integrated Approach for RNA-seq Data Normalization.

PubMed

Yang, Shengping; Mercante, Donald E; Zhang, Kun; Fang, Zhide

2016-01-01

DNA copy number alteration is common in many cancers. Studies have shown that insertion or deletion of DNA sequences can directly alter gene expression, and significant correlation exists between DNA copy number and gene expression. Data normalization is a critical step in the analysis of gene expression generated by RNA-seq technology. Successful normalization reduces/removes unwanted nonbiological variations in the data, while keeping meaningful information intact. However, as far as we know, no attempt has been made to adjust for the variation due to DNA copy number changes in RNA-seq data normalization. In this article, we propose an integrated approach for RNA-seq data normalization. Comparisons show that the proposed normalization can improve power for downstream differentially expressed gene detection and generate more biologically meaningful results in gene profiling. In addition, our findings show that due to the effects of copy number changes, some housekeeping genes are not always suitable internal controls for studying gene expression. Using information from DNA copy number, integrated approach is successful in reducing noises due to both biological and nonbiological causes in RNA-seq data, thus increasing the accuracy of gene profiling.

TU-C-17A-03: An Integrated Contour Evaluation Software Tool Using Supervised Pattern Recognition for Radiotherapy

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chen, H; Tan, J; Kavanaugh, J

Purpose: Radiotherapy (RT) contours delineated either manually or semiautomatically require verification before clinical usage. Manual evaluation is very time consuming. A new integrated software tool using supervised pattern contour recognition was thus developed to facilitate this process. Methods: The contouring tool was developed using an object-oriented programming language C# and application programming interfaces, e.g. visualization toolkit (VTK). The C# language served as the tool design basis. The Accord.Net scientific computing libraries were utilized for the required statistical data processing and pattern recognition, while the VTK was used to build and render 3-D mesh models from critical RT structures in real-timemore » and 360° visualization. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used for system self-updating geometry variations of normal structures based on physician-approved RT contours as a training dataset. The inhouse design of supervised PCA-based contour recognition method was used for automatically evaluating contour normality/abnormality. The function for reporting the contour evaluation results was implemented by using C# and Windows Form Designer. Results: The software input was RT simulation images and RT structures from commercial clinical treatment planning systems. Several abilities were demonstrated: automatic assessment of RT contours, file loading/saving of various modality medical images and RT contours, and generation/visualization of 3-D images and anatomical models. Moreover, it supported the 360° rendering of the RT structures in a multi-slice view, which allows physicians to visually check and edit abnormally contoured structures. Conclusion: This new software integrates the supervised learning framework with image processing and graphical visualization modules for RT contour verification. This tool has great potential for facilitating treatment planning with the assistance of an automatic contour evaluation module in avoiding unnecessary manual verification for physicians/dosimetrists. In addition, its nature as a compact and stand-alone tool allows for future extensibility to include additional functions for physicians’ clinical needs.« less

Modality-specific selective attention attenuates multisensory integration.

PubMed

Mozolic, Jennifer L; Hugenschmidt, Christina E; Peiffer, Ann M; Laurienti, Paul J

2008-01-01

Stimuli occurring in multiple sensory modalities that are temporally synchronous or spatially coincident can be integrated together to enhance perception. Additionally, the semantic content or meaning of a stimulus can influence cross-modal interactions, improving task performance when these stimuli convey semantically congruent or matching information, but impairing performance when they contain non-matching or distracting information. Attention is one mechanism that is known to alter processing of sensory stimuli by enhancing perception of task-relevant information and suppressing perception of task-irrelevant stimuli. It is not known, however, to what extent attention to a single sensory modality can minimize the impact of stimuli in the unattended sensory modality and reduce the integration of stimuli across multiple sensory modalities. Our hypothesis was that modality-specific selective attention would limit processing of stimuli in the unattended sensory modality, resulting in a reduction of performance enhancements produced by semantically matching multisensory stimuli, and a reduction in performance decrements produced by semantically non-matching multisensory stimuli. The results from two experiments utilizing a cued discrimination task demonstrate that selective attention to a single sensory modality prevents the integration of matching multisensory stimuli that is normally observed when attention is divided between sensory modalities. Attention did not reliably alter the amount of distraction caused by non-matching multisensory stimuli on this task; however, these findings highlight a critical role for modality-specific selective attention in modulating multisensory integration.

Functional integration of automated system databases by means of artificial intelligence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dubovoi, Volodymyr M.; Nikitenko, Olena D.; Kalimoldayev, Maksat; Kotyra, Andrzej; Gromaszek, Konrad; Iskakova, Aigul

2017-08-01

The paper presents approaches for functional integration of automated system databases by means of artificial intelligence. The peculiarities of turning to account the database in the systems with the usage of a fuzzy implementation of functions were analyzed. Requirements for the normalization of such databases were defined. The question of data equivalence in conditions of uncertainty and collisions in the presence of the databases functional integration is considered and the model to reveal their possible occurrence is devised. The paper also presents evaluation method of standardization of integrated database normalization.

Tubular Obstruction Leads to Progressive Proximal Tubular Injury and Atubular Glomeruli in Polycystic Kidney Disease

PubMed Central

Galarreta, Carolina I.; Grantham, Jared J.; Forbes, Michael S.; Maser, Robin L.; Wallace, Darren P.; Chevalier, Robert L.

2015-01-01

In polycystic kidney disease (PKD), renal parenchyma is destroyed by cysts, hypothesized to obstruct nephrons. A signature of unilateral ureteral obstruction, proximal tubular atrophy leads to formation of atubular glomeruli. To determine whether this process occurs in PKD, kidneys from pcy mice (moderately progressive PKD), kidneys from cpk mice (rapidly progressive PKD), and human autosomal dominant PKD were examined in early and late stages. Integrity of the glomerulotubular junction and proximal tubular mass were determined in sections stained with Lotus tetragonolobus lectin. Development of proximal tubular atrophy and atubular glomeruli was determined in serial sections of individual glomeruli. In pcy mice, most glomerulotubular junctions were normal at 20 weeks, but by 30 weeks, 56% were atrophic and 25% of glomeruli were atubular; glomerulotubular junction integrity decreased with increasing cyst area (r = 0.83, P < 0.05). In cpk mice, all glomerulotubular junctions were normal at 10 days, but by 19 days, 26% had become abnormal. In early-stage autosomal dominant PKD kidneys, 50% of glomeruli were atubular or attached to atrophic tubules; in advanced disease, 100% were abnormal. Thus, proximal tubular injury in cystic kidneys closely parallels that observed with ureteral obstruction. These findings support the hypothesis that, in renal cystic disorders, cyst-dependent obstruction of medullary and cortical tubules initiates a process culminating in widespread destruction of proximal convoluted tubules at the glomerulotubular junction. PMID:24815352

Role of contextual cues on the perception of spectrally reduced interrupted speech.

PubMed

Patro, Chhayakanta; Mendel, Lisa Lucks

2016-08-01

Understanding speech within an auditory scene is constantly challenged by interfering noise in suboptimal listening environments when noise hinders the continuity of the speech stream. In such instances, a typical auditory-cognitive system perceptually integrates available speech information and "fills in" missing information in the light of semantic context. However, individuals with cochlear implants (CIs) find it difficult and effortful to understand interrupted speech compared to their normal hearing counterparts. This inefficiency in perceptual integration of speech could be attributed to further degradations in the spectral-temporal domain imposed by CIs making it difficult to utilize the contextual evidence effectively. To address these issues, 20 normal hearing adults listened to speech that was spectrally reduced and spectrally reduced interrupted in a manner similar to CI processing. The Revised Speech Perception in Noise test, which includes contextually rich and contextually poor sentences, was used to evaluate the influence of semantic context on speech perception. Results indicated that listeners benefited more from semantic context when they listened to spectrally reduced speech alone. For the spectrally reduced interrupted speech, contextual information was not as helpful under significant spectral reductions, but became beneficial as the spectral resolution improved. These results suggest top-down processing facilitates speech perception up to a point, and it fails to facilitate speech understanding when the speech signals are significantly degraded.

Lesion registration for longitudinal disease tracking in an imaging informatics-based multiple sclerosis eFolder

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ma, Kevin; Liu, Joseph; Zhang, Xuejun; Lerner, Alex; Shiroishi, Mark; Amezcua, Lilyana; Liu, Brent

2016-03-01

We have designed and developed a multiple sclerosis eFolder system for patient data storage, image viewing, and automatic lesion quantification results stored in DICOM-SR format. The web-based system aims to be integrated in DICOM-compliant clinical and research environments to aid clinicians in patient treatments and data analysis. The system needs to quantify lesion volumes, identify and register lesion locations to track shifts in volume and quantity of lesions in a longitudinal study. In order to perform lesion registration, we have developed a brain warping and normalizing methodology using Statistical Parametric Mapping (SPM) MATLAB toolkit for brain MRI. Patients' brain MR images are processed via SPM's normalization processes, and the brain images are analyzed and warped according to the tissue probability map. Lesion identification and contouring are completed by neuroradiologists, and lesion volume quantification is completed by the eFolder's CAD program. Lesion comparison results in longitudinal studies show key growth and active regions. The results display successful lesion registration and tracking over a longitudinal study. Lesion change results are graphically represented in the web-based user interface, and users are able to correlate patient progress and changes in the MRI images. The completed lesion and disease tracking tool would enable the eFolder to provide complete patient profiles, improve the efficiency of patient care, and perform comprehensive data analysis through an integrated imaging informatics system.

Gene ARMADA: an integrated multi-analysis platform for microarray data implemented in MATLAB.

PubMed

Chatziioannou, Aristotelis; Moulos, Panagiotis; Kolisis, Fragiskos N

2009-10-27

The microarray data analysis realm is ever growing through the development of various tools, open source and commercial. However there is absence of predefined rational algorithmic analysis workflows or batch standardized processing to incorporate all steps, from raw data import up to the derivation of significantly differentially expressed gene lists. This absence obfuscates the analytical procedure and obstructs the massive comparative processing of genomic microarray datasets. Moreover, the solutions provided, heavily depend on the programming skills of the user, whereas in the case of GUI embedded solutions, they do not provide direct support of various raw image analysis formats or a versatile and simultaneously flexible combination of signal processing methods. We describe here Gene ARMADA (Automated Robust MicroArray Data Analysis), a MATLAB implemented platform with a Graphical User Interface. This suite integrates all steps of microarray data analysis including automated data import, noise correction and filtering, normalization, statistical selection of differentially expressed genes, clustering, classification and annotation. In its current version, Gene ARMADA fully supports 2 coloured cDNA and Affymetrix oligonucleotide arrays, plus custom arrays for which experimental details are given in tabular form (Excel spreadsheet, comma separated values, tab-delimited text formats). It also supports the analysis of already processed results through its versatile import editor. Besides being fully automated, Gene ARMADA incorporates numerous functionalities of the Statistics and Bioinformatics Toolboxes of MATLAB. In addition, it provides numerous visualization and exploration tools plus customizable export data formats for seamless integration by other analysis tools or MATLAB, for further processing. Gene ARMADA requires MATLAB 7.4 (R2007a) or higher and is also distributed as a stand-alone application with MATLAB Component Runtime. Gene ARMADA provides a highly adaptable, integrative, yet flexible tool which can be used for automated quality control, analysis, annotation and visualization of microarray data, constituting a starting point for further data interpretation and integration with numerous other tools.

Audio-visual speech processing in age-related hearing loss: Stronger integration and increased frontal lobe recruitment.

PubMed

Rosemann, Stephanie; Thiel, Christiane M

2018-07-15

Hearing loss is associated with difficulties in understanding speech, especially under adverse listening conditions. In these situations, seeing the speaker improves speech intelligibility in hearing-impaired participants. On the neuronal level, previous research has shown cross-modal plastic reorganization in the auditory cortex following hearing loss leading to altered processing of auditory, visual and audio-visual information. However, how reduced auditory input effects audio-visual speech perception in hearing-impaired subjects is largely unknown. We here investigated the impact of mild to moderate age-related hearing loss on processing audio-visual speech using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Normal-hearing and hearing-impaired participants performed two audio-visual speech integration tasks: a sentence detection task inside the scanner and the McGurk illusion outside the scanner. Both tasks consisted of congruent and incongruent audio-visual conditions, as well as auditory-only and visual-only conditions. We found a significantly stronger McGurk illusion in the hearing-impaired participants, which indicates stronger audio-visual integration. Neurally, hearing loss was associated with an increased recruitment of frontal brain areas when processing incongruent audio-visual, auditory and also visual speech stimuli, which may reflect the increased effort to perform the task. Hearing loss modulated both the audio-visual integration strength measured with the McGurk illusion and brain activation in frontal areas in the sentence task, showing stronger integration and higher brain activation with increasing hearing loss. Incongruent compared to congruent audio-visual speech revealed an opposite brain activation pattern in left ventral postcentral gyrus in both groups, with higher activation in hearing-impaired participants in the incongruent condition. Our results indicate that already mild to moderate hearing loss impacts audio-visual speech processing accompanied by changes in brain activation particularly involving frontal areas. These changes are modulated by the extent of hearing loss. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Retention of membrane charge attributes by cryopreserved-thawed sperm and zeta selection.

PubMed

Kam, Tricia L; Jacobson, John D; Patton, William C; Corselli, Johannah U; Chan, Philip J

2007-09-01

Mature sperm can be selected based on their negative zeta electrokinetic potential. The zeta selection of cryopreserved sperm is unknown. The objective was to study the effect of zeta processing on the morphology and kinematic parameters of cryopreserved-thawed sperm. Colloid-washed sperm (N = 9 cases) were cryopreserved for 24 h, thawed and diluted in serum-free medium in positive-charged tubes. After centrifugation, the tubes were decanted, serum-supplemented medium was added and the resuspended sperm were analyzed. Untreated sperm and fresh sperm served as the controls. There were improvements in strict normal morphology in fresh (11.8 +/- 0.3 versus control 8.8 +/- 0.3 %, mean +/- SEM) and thawed (8.7 +/- 0.2 versus control 5.4 +/- 0.2%) sperm after zeta processing. Percent sperm necrosis was reduced after zeta processing (66.0 +/- 0.6 versus unprocessed 74.6 +/- 0.3%). Progression decreased by 50% but not total motility after zeta processing of thawed sperm. The results suggested that the cryopreservation process did not impact the sperm membrane net zeta potential and higher percentages of sperm with normal strict morphology, acrosome integrity and reduced necrosis were recovered. The zeta method was simple and improved the selection of quality sperm after cryopreservation but more studies would be needed before routine clinical application.

Integrated High Resolution Digital Color Light Sensor in 130 nm CMOS Technology.

PubMed

Strle, Drago; Nahtigal, Uroš; Batistell, Graciele; Zhang, Vincent Chi; Ofner, Erwin; Fant, Andrea; Sturm, Johannes

2015-07-22

This article presents a color light detection system integrated in 130 nm CMOS technology. The sensors and corresponding electronics detect light in a CIE XYZ color luminosity space using on-chip integrated sensors without any additional process steps, high-resolution analog-to-digital converter, and dedicated DSP algorithm. The sensor consists of a set of laterally arranged integrated photodiodes that are partly covered by metal, where color separation between the photodiodes is achieved by lateral carrier diffusion together with wavelength-dependent absorption. A high resolution, hybrid, ∑∆ ADC converts each photo diode's current into a 22-bit digital result, canceling the dark current of the photo diodes. The digital results are further processed by the DSP, which calculates normalized XYZ or RGB color and intensity parameters using linear transformations of the three photo diode responses by multiplication of the data with a transformation matrix, where the coefficients are extracted by training in combination with a pseudo-inverse operation and the least-mean square approximation. The sensor system detects the color light parameters with 22-bit accuracy, consumes less than 60 μA on average at 10 readings per second, and occupies approx. 0.8 mm(2) of silicon area (including three photodiodes and the analog part of the ADC). The DSP is currently implemented on FPGA.

Deficit in visual temporal integration in autism spectrum disorders.

PubMed

Nakano, Tamami; Ota, Haruhisa; Kato, Nobumasa; Kitazawa, Shigeru

2010-04-07

Individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are superior in processing local features. Frith and Happe conceptualize this cognitive bias as 'weak central coherence', implying that a local enhancement derives from a weakness in integrating local elements into a coherent whole. The suggested deficit has been challenged, however, because individuals with ASD were not found to be inferior to normal controls in holistic perception. In these opposing studies, however, subjects were encouraged to ignore local features and attend to the whole. Therefore, no one has directly tested whether individuals with ASD are able to integrate local elements over time into a whole image. Here, we report a weakness of individuals with ASD in naming familiar objects moved behind a narrow slit, which was worsened by the absence of local salient features. The results indicate that individuals with ASD have a clear deficit in integrating local visual information over time into a global whole, providing direct evidence for the weak central coherence hypothesis.

Integrative Mechanisms of Oriented Neuronal Migration in the Developing Brain

PubMed Central

Evsyukova, Irina; Plestant, Charlotte; Anton, E.S.

2014-01-01

The emergence of functional neuronal connectivity in the developing cerebral cortex depends on neuronal migration. This process enables appropriate positioning of neurons and the emergence of neuronal identity so that the correct patterns of functional synaptic connectivity between the right types and numbers of neurons can emerge. Delineating the complexities of neuronal migration is critical to our understanding of normal cerebral cortical formation and neurodevelopmental disorders resulting from neuronal migration defects. For the most part, the integrated cell biological basis of the complex behavior of oriented neuronal migration within the developing mammalian cerebral cortex remains an enigma. This review aims to analyze the integrative mechanisms that enable neurons to sense environmental guidance cues and translate them into oriented patterns of migration toward defined areas of the cerebral cortex. We discuss how signals emanating from different domains of neurons get integrated to control distinct aspects of migratory behavior and how different types of cortical neurons coordinate their migratory activities within the developing cerebral cortex to produce functionally critical laminar organization. PMID:23937349

Vertical electro-absorption modulator design and its integration in a VCSEL

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marigo-Lombart, L.; Calvez, S.; Arnoult, A.; Thienpont, H.; Almuneau, G.; Panajotov, K.

2018-04-01

Electro-absorption modulators, either embedded in CMOS technology or integrated with a semiconductor laser, are of high interest for many applications such as optical communications, signal processing and 3D imaging. Recently, the integration of a surface-normal electro-absorption modulator into a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser has been considered. In this paper we implement a simple quantum well electro-absorption model and design and optimize an asymmetric Fabry-Pérot semiconductor modulator while considering all physical properties within figures of merit. We also extend this model to account for the impact of temperature on the different parameters involved in the calculation of the absorption, such as refractive indices and exciton transition broadening. Two types of vertical modulator structures have been fabricated and experimentally characterized by reflectivity and photocurrent measurements demonstrating a very good agreement with our model. Finally, preliminary results of an electro-absorption modulator vertically integrated with a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser device are presented, showing good modulation performances required for high speed communications.

Myers-Briggs typology and Jungian individuation.

PubMed

Myers, Steve

2016-06-01

Myers-Briggs typology is widely seen as equivalent to and representative of Jungian theory by the users of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and similar questionnaires. However, the omission of the transcendent function from the theory, and the use of typological functions as its foundation, has resulted in an inadvertent reframing of the process of individuation. This is despite some attempts to integrate individuation and typology, and reintroduce the transcendent function into Myers-Briggs theory. This paper examines the differing views of individuation in Myers-Briggs and Jungian theory, and some of the challenges of reconciling those differences, particularly in the context of normality. It proposes eight principles, drawn mainly from Jungian and classical post-Jungian work, that show how individuation as a process can be integrated with contemporary Myers-Briggs typology. These principles show individuation as being a natural process that can be encouraged outside of the analytic process. They make use of a wide range of opposites as well as typological functions, whilst being centred on the transcendent function. Central to the process is the alchemical image of the caduceus and a practical interpretation of the axiom of Maria, both of which Jung used to illustrate the process of individuation. © 2016, The Society of Analytical Psychology.

Cross-sensor comparisons between Landsat 5 TM and IRS-P6 AWiFS and disturbance detection using integrated Landsat and AWiFS time-series images

USGS Publications Warehouse

Chen, Xuexia; Vogelmann, James E.; Chander, Gyanesh; Ji, Lei; Tolk, Brian; Huang, Chengquan; Rollins, Matthew

2013-01-01

Routine acquisition of Landsat 5 Thematic Mapper (TM) data was discontinued recently and Landsat 7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) has an ongoing problem with the scan line corrector (SLC), thereby creating spatial gaps when covering images obtained during the process. Since temporal and spatial discontinuities of Landsat data are now imminent, it is therefore important to investigate other potential satellite data that can be used to replace Landsat data. We thus cross-compared two near-simultaneous images obtained from Landsat 5 TM and the Indian Remote Sensing (IRS)-P6 Advanced Wide Field Sensor (AWiFS), both captured on 29 May 2007 over Los Angeles, CA. TM and AWiFS reflectances were compared for the green, red, near-infrared (NIR), and shortwave infrared (SWIR) bands, as well as the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) based on manually selected polygons in homogeneous areas. All R2 values of linear regressions were found to be higher than 0.99. The temporally invariant cluster (TIC) method was used to calculate the NDVI correlation between the TM and AWiFS images. The NDVI regression line derived from selected polygons passed through several invariant cluster centres of the TIC density maps and demonstrated that both the scene-dependent polygon regression method and TIC method can generate accurate radiometric normalization. A scene-independent normalization method was also used to normalize the AWiFS data. Image agreement assessment demonstrated that the scene-dependent normalization using homogeneous polygons provided slightly higher accuracy values than those obtained by the scene-independent method. Finally, the non-normalized and relatively normalized ‘Landsat-like’ AWiFS 2007 images were integrated into 1984 to 2010 Landsat time-series stacks (LTSS) for disturbance detection using the Vegetation Change Tracker (VCT) model. Both scene-dependent and scene-independent normalized AWiFS data sets could generate disturbance maps similar to what were generated using the LTSS data set, and their kappa coefficients were higher than 0.97. These results indicate that AWiFS can be used instead of Landsat data to detect multitemporal disturbance in the event of Landsat data discontinuity.

Integrated design and manufacturing for the high speed civil transport (a combined aerodynamics/propulsion optimization study)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baecher, Juergen; Bandte, Oliver; DeLaurentis, Dan; Lewis, Kemper; Sicilia, Jose; Soboleski, Craig

1995-01-01

This report documents the efforts of a Georgia Tech High Speed Civil Transport (HSCT) aerospace student design team in completing a design methodology demonstration under NASA's Advanced Design Program (ADP). Aerodynamic and propulsion analyses are integrated into the synthesis code FLOPS in order to improve its prediction accuracy. Executing the integrated product and process development (IPPD) methodology proposed at the Aerospace Systems Design Laboratory (ASDL), an improved sizing process is described followed by a combined aero-propulsion optimization, where the objective function, average yield per revenue passenger mile ($/RPM), is constrained by flight stability, noise, approach speed, and field length restrictions. Primary goals include successful demonstration of the application of the response surface methodolgy (RSM) to parameter design, introduction to higher fidelity disciplinary analysis than normally feasible at the conceptual and early preliminary level, and investigations of relationships between aerodynamic and propulsion design parameters and their effect on the objective function, $/RPM. A unique approach to aircraft synthesis is developed in which statistical methods, specifically design of experiments and the RSM, are used to more efficiently search the design space for optimum configurations. In particular, two uses of these techniques are demonstrated. First, response model equations are formed which represent complex analysis in the form of a regression polynomial. Next, a second regression equation is constructed, not for modeling purposes, but instead for the purpose of optimization at the system level. Such an optimization problem with the given tools normally would be difficult due to the need for hard connections between the various complex codes involved. The statistical methodology presents an alternative and is demonstrated via an example of aerodynamic modeling and planform optimization for a HSCT.

Cognitive processing of orientation discrimination in anisometropic amblyopia.

PubMed

Wang, Jianglan; Zhao, Jiao; Wang, Shoujing; Gong, Rui; Zheng, Zhong; Liu, Longqian

2017-01-01

Cognition is very important in our daily life. However, amblyopia has abnormal visual cognition. Physiological changes of the brain during processes of cognition could be reflected with ERPs. So the purpose of this study was to investigate the speed and the capacity of resource allocation in visual cognitive processing in orientation discrimination task during monocular and binocular viewing conditions of amblyopia and normal control as well as the corresponding eyes of the two groups with ERPs. We also sought to investigate whether the speed and the capacity of resource allocation in visual cognitive processing vary with target stimuli at different spatial frequencies (3, 6 and 9 cpd) in amblyopia and normal control as well as between the corresponding eyes of the two groups. Fifteen mild to moderate anisometropic amblyopes and ten normal controls were recruited. Three-stimulus oddball paradigms of three different spatial frequency orientation discrimination tasks were used in monocular and binocular conditions in amblyopes and normal controls to elicit event-related potentials (ERPs). Accuracy (ACC), reaction time (RT), the latency of novelty P300 and P3b, and the amplitude of novelty P300 and P3b were measured. Results showed that RT was longer in the amblyopic eye than in both eyes of amblyopia and non-dominant eye in control. Novelty P300 amplitude was largest in the amblyopic eye, followed by the fellow eye, and smallest in both eyes of amblyopia. Novelty P300 amplitude was larger in the amblyopic eye than non-dominant eye and was larger in fellow eye than dominant eye. P3b latency was longer in the amblyopic eye than in the fellow eye, both eyes of amblyopia and non-dominant eye of control. P3b latency was not associated with RT in amblyopia. Neural responses of the amblyopic eye are abnormal at the middle and late stages of cognitive processing, indicating that the amblyopic eye needs to spend more time or integrate more resources to process the same visual task. Fellow eye and both eyes in amblyopia are slightly different from the dominant eye and both eyes in normal control at the middle and late stages of cognitive processing. Meanwhile, abnormal extents of amblyopic eye do not vary with three different spatial frequencies used in our study.

Cognitive processing of orientation discrimination in anisometropic amblyopia

PubMed Central

Wang, Jianglan; Zhao, Jiao; Wang, Shoujing; Gong, Rui; Zheng, Zhong; Liu, Longqian

2017-01-01

Cognition is very important in our daily life. However, amblyopia has abnormal visual cognition. Physiological changes of the brain during processes of cognition could be reflected with ERPs. So the purpose of this study was to investigate the speed and the capacity of resource allocation in visual cognitive processing in orientation discrimination task during monocular and binocular viewing conditions of amblyopia and normal control as well as the corresponding eyes of the two groups with ERPs. We also sought to investigate whether the speed and the capacity of resource allocation in visual cognitive processing vary with target stimuli at different spatial frequencies (3, 6 and 9 cpd) in amblyopia and normal control as well as between the corresponding eyes of the two groups. Fifteen mild to moderate anisometropic amblyopes and ten normal controls were recruited. Three-stimulus oddball paradigms of three different spatial frequency orientation discrimination tasks were used in monocular and binocular conditions in amblyopes and normal controls to elicit event-related potentials (ERPs). Accuracy (ACC), reaction time (RT), the latency of novelty P300 and P3b, and the amplitude of novelty P300 and P3b were measured. Results showed that RT was longer in the amblyopic eye than in both eyes of amblyopia and non-dominant eye in control. Novelty P300 amplitude was largest in the amblyopic eye, followed by the fellow eye, and smallest in both eyes of amblyopia. Novelty P300 amplitude was larger in the amblyopic eye than non-dominant eye and was larger in fellow eye than dominant eye. P3b latency was longer in the amblyopic eye than in the fellow eye, both eyes of amblyopia and non-dominant eye of control. P3b latency was not associated with RT in amblyopia. Neural responses of the amblyopic eye are abnormal at the middle and late stages of cognitive processing, indicating that the amblyopic eye needs to spend more time or integrate more resources to process the same visual task. Fellow eye and both eyes in amblyopia are slightly different from the dominant eye and both eyes in normal control at the middle and late stages of cognitive processing. Meanwhile, abnormal extents of amblyopic eye do not vary with three different spatial frequencies used in our study. PMID:29023501

Mesothelial cells in tissue repair and fibrosis.

PubMed

Mutsaers, Steven E; Birnie, Kimberly; Lansley, Sally; Herrick, Sarah E; Lim, Chuan-Bian; Prêle, Cecilia M

2015-01-01

Mesothelial cells are fundamental to the maintenance of serosal integrity and homeostasis and play a critical role in normal serosal repair following injury. However, when normal repair mechanisms breakdown, mesothelial cells take on a profibrotic role, secreting inflammatory, and profibrotic mediators, differentiating and migrating into the injured tissues where they contribute to fibrogenesis. The development of new molecular and cell tracking techniques has made it possible to examine the origin of fibrotic cells within damaged tissues and to elucidate the roles they play in inflammation and fibrosis. In addition to secreting proinflammatory mediators and contributing to both coagulation and fibrinolysis, mesothelial cells undergo mesothelial-to-mesenchymal transition, a process analogous to epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, and become fibrogenic cells. Fibrogenic mesothelial cells have now been identified in tissues where they have not previously been thought to occur, such as within the parenchyma of the fibrotic lung. These findings show a direct role for mesothelial cells in fibrogenesis and open therapeutic strategies to prevent or reverse the fibrotic process.

Corticocortical feedback increases the spatial extent of normalization.

PubMed

Nassi, Jonathan J; Gómez-Laberge, Camille; Kreiman, Gabriel; Born, Richard T

2014-01-01

Normalization has been proposed as a canonical computation operating across different brain regions, sensory modalities, and species. It provides a good phenomenological description of non-linear response properties in primary visual cortex (V1), including the contrast response function and surround suppression. Despite its widespread application throughout the visual system, the underlying neural mechanisms remain largely unknown. We recently observed that corticocortical feedback contributes to surround suppression in V1, raising the possibility that feedback acts through normalization. To test this idea, we characterized area summation and contrast response properties in V1 with and without feedback from V2 and V3 in alert macaques and applied a standard normalization model to the data. Area summation properties were well explained by a form of divisive normalization, which computes the ratio between a neuron's driving input and the spatially integrated activity of a "normalization pool." Feedback inactivation reduced surround suppression by shrinking the spatial extent of the normalization pool. This effect was independent of the gain modulation thought to mediate the influence of contrast on area summation, which remained intact during feedback inactivation. Contrast sensitivity within the receptive field center was also unaffected by feedback inactivation, providing further evidence that feedback participates in normalization independent of the circuit mechanisms involved in modulating contrast gain and saturation. These results suggest that corticocortical feedback contributes to surround suppression by increasing the visuotopic extent of normalization and, via this mechanism, feedback can play a critical role in contextual information processing.

Corticocortical feedback increases the spatial extent of normalization

PubMed Central

Nassi, Jonathan J.; Gómez-Laberge, Camille; Kreiman, Gabriel; Born, Richard T.

2014-01-01

Normalization has been proposed as a canonical computation operating across different brain regions, sensory modalities, and species. It provides a good phenomenological description of non-linear response properties in primary visual cortex (V1), including the contrast response function and surround suppression. Despite its widespread application throughout the visual system, the underlying neural mechanisms remain largely unknown. We recently observed that corticocortical feedback contributes to surround suppression in V1, raising the possibility that feedback acts through normalization. To test this idea, we characterized area summation and contrast response properties in V1 with and without feedback from V2 and V3 in alert macaques and applied a standard normalization model to the data. Area summation properties were well explained by a form of divisive normalization, which computes the ratio between a neuron's driving input and the spatially integrated activity of a “normalization pool.” Feedback inactivation reduced surround suppression by shrinking the spatial extent of the normalization pool. This effect was independent of the gain modulation thought to mediate the influence of contrast on area summation, which remained intact during feedback inactivation. Contrast sensitivity within the receptive field center was also unaffected by feedback inactivation, providing further evidence that feedback participates in normalization independent of the circuit mechanisms involved in modulating contrast gain and saturation. These results suggest that corticocortical feedback contributes to surround suppression by increasing the visuotopic extent of normalization and, via this mechanism, feedback can play a critical role in contextual information processing. PMID:24910596

Calculation of grain boundary normals directly from 3D microstructure images

DOE PAGES

Lieberman, E. J.; Rollett, A. D.; Lebensohn, R. A.; ...

2015-03-11

The determination of grain boundary normals is an integral part of the characterization of grain boundaries in polycrystalline materials. These normal vectors are difficult to quantify due to the discretized nature of available microstructure characterization techniques. The most common method to determine grain boundary normals is by generating a surface mesh from an image of the microstructure, but this process can be slow, and is subject to smoothing issues. A new technique is proposed, utilizing first order Cartesian moments of binary indicator functions, to determine grain boundary normals directly from a voxelized microstructure image. In order to validate the accuracymore » of this technique, the surface normals obtained by the proposed method are compared to those generated by a surface meshing algorithm. Specifically, the local divergence between the surface normals obtained by different variants of the proposed technique and those generated from a surface mesh of a synthetic microstructure constructed using a marching cubes algorithm followed by Laplacian smoothing is quantified. Next, surface normals obtained with the proposed method from a measured 3D microstructure image of a Ni polycrystal are used to generate grain boundary character distributions (GBCD) for Σ3 and Σ9 boundaries, and compared to the GBCD generated using a surface mesh obtained from the same image. Finally, the results show that the proposed technique is an efficient and accurate method to determine voxelized fields of grain boundary normals.« less

PROCESS FOR COLORING DIAMONDS

DOEpatents

Dugdale, R.A.

1960-07-19

A process is given for coloring substantially colorless diamonds in the blue to blue-green range and comprises the steps of irradiating the colorless diamonds with electrons having an energy within the range 0.5 to 2 Mev to obtain an integrated electron flux of between 1 and 2 x 10/sup 18/ thc diamonds may be irradiated 1 hr when they take on a blue color with a slight green tint: After being heated at about 500 deg C for half an hour they become pure blue. Electrons within this energy range contam sufficient energy to displace the diamond atoms from their normal lattice sites into interstitial sites, thereby causing the color changes.

An architecture for a brain-image database

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Herskovits, E. H.

2000-01-01

The widespread availability of methods for noninvasive assessment of brain structure has enabled researchers to investigate neuroimaging correlates of normal aging, cerebrovascular disease, and other processes; we designate such studies as image-based clinical trials (IBCTs). We propose an architecture for a brain-image database, which integrates image processing and statistical operators, and thus supports the implementation and analysis of IBCTs. The implementation of this architecture is described and results from the analysis of image and clinical data from two IBCTs are presented. We expect that systems such as this will play a central role in the management and analysis of complex research data sets.

System-in Package of Integrated Humidity Sensor Using CMOS-MEMS Technology.

PubMed

Lee, Sung Pil

2015-10-01

Temperature/humidity microchips with micropump were fabricated using a CMOS-MEMS process and combined with ZigBee modules to implement a sensor system in package (SIP) for a ubiquitous sensor network (USN) and/or a wireless communication system. The current of a diode temperature sensor to temperature and a normalized current of FET humidity sensor to relative humidity showed linear characteristics, respectively, and the use of the micropump has enabled a faster response. A wireless reception module using the same protocol as that in transmission systems processed the received data within 10 m and showed temperature and humidity values in the display.

Fibrocytes: Bringing New Insights Into Mechanisms of Inflammation and Fibrosis

PubMed Central

Keeley, Ellen C.; Mehrad, Borna; Strieter, Robert M.

2009-01-01

Regeneration and fibrosis are integral parts of the recovery process following tissue injury, and impaired regulation of these mechanisms is a hallmark of many chronic diseases. A population of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal progenitor cells known as fibrocytes, play an important role in tissue remodeling and fibrosis in both physiologic and pathologic settings. In this review we summarize the key concepts regarding the pathophysiology of wound healing and fibrosis, and present data to support the contention that circulating fibrocytes are important in both normal repair process and aberrant healing and fibrotic damage associated with a diverse set of disease states. PMID:19850147

[Overall design and proof-test of an integrated environmental control and life support system (ECLSS) for demonstration and verification].

PubMed

Rui, Jia-bai; Zheng, Chuan-xian; Zeng, Qing-tang

2002-12-01

Objective. To test and demonstrate embryonic form of our future space station ECLSS, which will also form an advanced research and test ground facility. Method. The following functions of the system were tested and demonstrated: integrated solid amine CO2 collection and concentration, Sabatier CO2 reduction, urine processing thermoelectric integrated membrane evaporation, solid polymer water electrolysis O2 generation, concentrated ventilation, temperature and humidity control, the measurement and control system, and other non-regenerative techniques. All of these were demonstrated in a sealed adiabatic module, and passed the proof-tests. Result. The principal technical requirements of the system and each regenerative subsystem were met. The integration of system general and each subsystem was successful, and the partial closed loop of the system's integration has been realized basically. Conclusion. The reasonableness of the project design was verified, and the major system technical requirements were satisfied. The suitability and harmonization among system general and each subsystem were good, the system operated normally, and the parameters measured were correct.

Differential gene expression analysis in glioblastoma cells and normal human brain cells based on GEO database.

PubMed

Wang, Anping; Zhang, Guibin

2017-11-01

The differentially expressed genes between glioblastoma (GBM) cells and normal human brain cells were investigated to performed pathway analysis and protein interaction network analysis for the differentially expressed genes. GSE12657 and GSE42656 gene chips, which contain gene expression profile of GBM were obtained from Gene Expression Omniub (GEO) database of National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). The 'limma' data packet in 'R' software was used to analyze the differentially expressed genes in the two gene chips, and gene integration was performed using 'RobustRankAggreg' package. Finally, pheatmap software was used for heatmap analysis and Cytoscape, DAVID, STRING and KOBAS were used for protein-protein interaction, Gene Ontology (GO) and KEGG analyses. As results: i) 702 differentially expressed genes were identified in GSE12657, among those genes, 548 were significantly upregulated and 154 were significantly downregulated (p<0.01, fold-change >1), and 1,854 differentially expressed genes were identified in GSE42656, among the genes, 1,068 were significantly upregulated and 786 were significantly downregulated (p<0.01, fold-change >1). A total of 167 differentially expressed genes including 100 upregulated genes and 67 downregulated genes were identified after gene integration, and the genes showed significantly different expression levels in GBM compared with normal human brain cells (p<0.05). ii) Interactions between the protein products of 101 differentially expressed genes were identified using STRING and expression network was established. A key gene, called CALM3, was identified by Cytoscape software. iii) GO enrichment analysis showed that differentially expressed genes were mainly enriched in 'neurotransmitter:sodium symporter activity' and 'neurotransmitter transporter activity', which can affect the activity of neurotransmitter transportation. KEGG pathway analysis showed that the differentially expressed genes were mainly enriched in 'protein processing in endoplasmic reticulum', which can affect protein processing in endoplasmic reticulum. The results showed that: i) 167 differentially expressed genes were identified from two gene chips after integration; and ii) protein interaction network was established, and GO and KEGG pathway analyses were successfully performed to identify and annotate the key gene, which provide new insights for the studies on GBN at gene level.

Large space structures fabrication experiment. [on-orbit fabrication of graphite/thermoplastic beams

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1978-01-01

The fabrication machine used for the rolltrusion and on-orbit forming of graphite thermoplastic (CTP) strip material into structural sections is described. The basic process was analytically developed parallel with, and integrated into the conceptual design of, a flight experiment machine for producing a continuous triangular cross section truss. The machine and its associated ancillary equipment are mounted on a Space Lab pallet. Power, thermal control, and instrumentation connections are made during ground installation. Observation, monitoring, caution and warning, and control panels and displays are installed at the payload specialist station in the orbiter. The machine is primed before flight by initiation of beam forming, to include attachment of the first set of cross members and anchoring of the diagonal cords. Control of the experiment will be from the orbiter mission specialist station. Normal operation is by automatic processing control software. Machine operating data are displayed and recorded on the ground. Data is processed and formatted to show progress of the major experiment parameters including stable operation, physical symmetry, joint integrity, and structural properties.

Energetic investigation of the adsorption process of CH4, C2H6 and N2 on activated carbon: Numerical and statistical physics treatment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ben Torkia, Yosra; Ben Yahia, Manel; Khalfaoui, Mohamed; Al-Muhtaseb, Shaheen A.; Ben Lamine, Abdelmottaleb

2014-01-01

The adsorption energy distribution (AED) function of a commercial activated carbon (BDH-activated carbon) was investigated. For this purpose, the integral equation is derived by using a purely analytical statistical physics treatment. The description of the heterogeneity of the adsorbent is significantly clarified by defining the parameter N(E). This parameter represents the energetic density of the spatial density of the effectively occupied sites. To solve the integral equation, a numerical method was used based on an adequate algorithm. The Langmuir model was adopted as a local adsorption isotherm. This model is developed by using the grand canonical ensemble, which allows defining the physico-chemical parameters involved in the adsorption process. The AED function is estimated by a normal Gaussian function. This method is applied to the adsorption isotherms of nitrogen, methane and ethane at different temperatures. The development of the AED using a statistical physics treatment provides an explanation of the gas molecules behaviour during the adsorption process and gives new physical interpretations at microscopic levels.

Matrix Metalloproteinases and Neurotrauma: Evolving Roles in Injury and Reparative Processes

PubMed Central

Zhang, Haoqian; Adwanikar, Hita; Werb, Zena; Noble-Haeusslein, Linda J.

2010-01-01

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are involved in a wide range of proteolytic events in fetal development and normal tissue remodeling as well as wound healing and inflammation. In the CNS, they have been implicated in a variety of neurodegenerative diseases ranging from multiple sclerosis to Alzheimer disease and are integral to stroke-related cell damage. Although studies implicate increased activity of MMPs in pathogenesis in the CNS, there is also a growing literature to support their participation in events that support recovery processes. Here the authors provide a brief overview of MMPs and their regulation, address their complex roles following traumatic injuries to the adult and developing CNS, and consider their time- and context-dependent signatures that influence both injury and reparative processes. PMID:20400713

In silico analysis of stomach lineage specific gene set expression pattern in gastric cancer.

PubMed

Pandi, Narayanan Sathiya; Suganya, Sivagurunathan; Rajendran, Suriliyandi

2013-10-04

Stomach lineage specific gene products act as a protective barrier in the normal stomach and their expression maintains the normal physiological processes, cellular integrity and morphology of the gastric wall. However, the regulation of stomach lineage specific genes in gastric cancer (GC) is far less clear. In the present study, we sought to investigate the role and regulation of stomach lineage specific gene set (SLSGS) in GC. SLSGS was identified by comparing the mRNA expression profiles of normal stomach tissue with other organ tissue. The obtained SLSGS was found to be under expressed in gastric tumors. Functional annotation analysis revealed that the SLSGS was enriched for digestive function and gastric epithelial maintenance. Employing a single sample prediction method across GC mRNA expression profiles identified the under expression of SLSGS in proliferative type and invasive type gastric tumors compared to the metabolic type gastric tumors. Integrative pathway activation prediction analysis revealed a close association between estrogen-α signaling and SLSGS expression pattern in GC. Elevated expression of SLSGS in GC is associated with an overall increase in the survival of GC patients. In conclusion, our results highlight that estrogen mediated regulation of SLSGS in gastric tumor is a molecular predictor of metabolic type GC and prognostic factor in GC. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Perturbative description of the fermionic projector: Normalization, causality, and Furry's theorem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Finster, Felix; Tolksdorf, Jürgen

2014-05-01

The causal perturbation expansion of the fermionic projector is performed with a contour integral method. Different normalization conditions are analyzed. It is shown that the corresponding light-cone expansions are causal in the sense that they only involve bounded line integrals. For the resulting loop diagrams we prove a generalized Furry theorem.

Sensitivity to synchronicity of biological motion in normal and amblyopic vision

PubMed Central

Luu, Jennifer Y.; Levi, Dennis M.

2017-01-01

Amblyopia is a developmental disorder of spatial vision that results from abnormal early visual experience usually due to the presence of strabismus, anisometropia, or both strabismus and anisometropia. Amblyopia results in a range of visual deficits that cannot be corrected by optics because the deficits reflect neural abnormalities. Biological motion refers to the motion patterns of living organisms, and is normally displayed as points of lights positioned at the major joints of the body. In this experiment, our goal was twofold. We wished to examine whether the human visual system in people with amblyopia retained the higher-level processing capabilities to extract visual information from the synchronized actions of others, therefore retaining the ability to detect biological motion. Specifically, we wanted to determine if the synchronized interaction of two agents performing a dancing routine allowed the amblyopic observer to use the actions of one agent to predict the expected actions of a second agent. We also wished to establish whether synchronicity sensitivity (detection of synchronized versus desynchronized interactions) is impaired in amblyopic observers relative to normal observers. The two aims are differentiated in that the first aim looks at whether synchronized actions result in improved expected action predictions while the second aim quantitatively compares synchronicity sensitivity, or the ratio of desynchronized to synchronized detection sensitivities, to determine if there is a difference between normal and amblyopic observers. Our results show that the ability to detect biological motion requires more samples in both eyes of amblyopes than in normal control observers. The increased sample threshold is not the result of low-level losses but may reflect losses in feature integration due to undersampling in the amblyopic visual system. However, like normal observers, amblyopes are more sensitive to synchronized versus desynchronized interactions, indicating that higher-level processing of biological motion remains intact. We also found no impairment in synchronicity sensitivity in the amblyopic visual system relative to the normal visual system. Since there is no impairment in synchronicity sensitivity in either the nonamblyopic or amblyopic eye of amblyopes, our results suggest that the higher order processing of biological motion is intact. PMID:23474301

Edgeworth expansions of stochastic trading time

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Decamps, Marc; De Schepper, Ann

2010-08-01

Under most local and stochastic volatility models the underlying forward is assumed to be a positive function of a time-changed Brownian motion. It relates nicely the implied volatility smile to the so-called activity rate in the market. Following Young and DeWitt-Morette (1986) [8], we propose to apply the Duru-Kleinert process-cum-time transformation in path integral to formulate the transition density of the forward. The method leads to asymptotic expansions of the transition density around a Gaussian kernel corresponding to the average activity in the market conditional on the forward value. The approximation is numerically illustrated for pricing vanilla options under the CEV model and the popular normal SABR model. The asymptotics can also be used for Monte Carlo simulations or backward integration schemes.

Cumulative lactate and hospital mortality in ICU patients

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Both hyperlactatemia and persistence of hyperlactatemia have been associated with bad outcome. We compared lactate and lactate-derived variables in outcome prediction. Methods Retrospective observational study. Case records from 2,251 consecutive intensive care unit (ICU) patients admitted between 2001 and 2007 were analyzed. Baseline characteristics, all lactate measurements, and in-hospital mortality were recorded. The time integral of arterial blood lactate levels above the upper normal threshold of 2.2 mmol/L (lactate-time-integral), maximum lactate (max-lactate), and time-to-first-normalization were calculated. Survivors and nonsurvivors were compared and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis were applied. Results A total of 20,755 lactate measurements were analyzed. Data are srpehown as median [interquartile range]. In nonsurvivors (n = 405) lactate-time-integral (192 [0–1881] min·mmol/L) and time-to-first normalization (44.0 [0–427] min) were higher than in hospital survivors (n = 1846; 0 [0–134] min·mmol/L and 0 [0–75] min, respectively; all p < 0.001). Normalization of lactate <6 hours after ICU admission revealed better survival compared with normalization of lactate >6 hours (mortality 16.6% vs. 24.4%; p < 0.001). AUC of ROC curves to predict in-hospital mortality was the largest for max-lactate, whereas it was not different among all other lactate derived variables (all p > 0.05). The area under the ROC curves for admission lactate and lactate-time-integral was not different (p = 0.36). Conclusions Hyperlactatemia is associated with in-hospital mortality in a heterogeneous ICU population. In our patients, lactate peak values predicted in-hospital mortality equally well as lactate-time-integral of arterial blood lactate levels above the upper normal threshold. PMID:23446002

Heat shock proteins and proteasomal degradation in normal and tumor cells.

PubMed

Karademir, Betul; Bozaykut, Perinur; Kartal Ozer, Nesrin

2014-10-01

Proteasomal degradation of oxidized proteins is a crucial mechanism to prevent the accumulation of cellular damage. The removal of the damage is generally a required process for healthy organisms to keep the integrity while in cancer cells the situation may be different. In normal conditions, cancer cells have higher proteasome activity compared to normal cells. During cancer treatment, cellular damage by chemotherapy is an expected process to be able to kill the tumor cells. And the accumulation of this damage accompanied by the decrease in protein repair and removal systems may increase the efficacy of the cancer therapy. Heat shock proteins (Hsp) as molecular chaperones are involved in the folding, activation and assembly of a variety of proteins. Among these Hsp40, Hsp70 and Hsp90 are believed to act as a chaperone system to regulate the proteasomal degradation. In this study, we tested the role of heat stress response on the proteasomal degradation of oxidized proteins. We used two different cell lines to observe the difference in normal and tumor cells. First the effect of heat stress (42°C, 1h) were tested in terms of protein oxidation tested by protein carbonyl formation and proteasomal degradation. The results were extremely different in normal fibroblast cells and hippocampal tumor cells. In the same direction, the expressions of Hsp40, Hsp70 and Hsp90 were affected in a different manner in two cell lines, will be discussed in detail. Supported by TUBITAK COST-CM1001-110S281. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Visual-auditory integration during speech imitation in autism.

PubMed

Williams, Justin H G; Massaro, Dominic W; Peel, Natalie J; Bosseler, Alexis; Suddendorf, Thomas

2004-01-01

Children with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) may have poor audio-visual integration, possibly reflecting dysfunctional 'mirror neuron' systems which have been hypothesised to be at the core of the condition. In the present study, a computer program, utilizing speech synthesizer software and a 'virtual' head (Baldi), delivered speech stimuli for identification in auditory, visual or bimodal conditions. Children with ASD were poorer than controls at recognizing stimuli in the unimodal conditions, but once performance on this measure was controlled for, no group difference was found in the bimodal condition. A group of participants with ASD were also trained to develop their speech-reading ability. Training improved visual accuracy and this also improved the children's ability to utilize visual information in their processing of speech. Overall results were compared to predictions from mathematical models based on integration and non-integration, and were most consistent with the integration model. We conclude that, whilst they are less accurate in recognizing stimuli in the unimodal condition, children with ASD show normal integration of visual and auditory speech stimuli. Given that training in recognition of visual speech was effective, children with ASD may benefit from multi-modal approaches in imitative therapy and language training.

Relationship of 24-hour urinary free cortisol to 4-hour salivary morning and afternoon cortisol and cortisone as measured by a time-integrated oral diffusion sink.

PubMed

Kathol, R G; Poland, R E; Stokes, P E; Wade, S

1995-05-01

The relationship between salivary corticosteroids integrated over 4-hour periods and urinary free cortisol collected over 24 hours was investigated in normal controls. Twenty-one normal volunteers wore "oral diffusion sink" sampling devices in their mouths for two 4-hour periods (08:00-12:00 hours and 13:00-17:00 hours) and on the same day collected a 24-hour urine specimen. Time-integrated salivary corticosteroid concentrations were determined from the sample devices and urinary free cortisol was measured. Salivary corticosteroids were not consistently higher in the morning than in the afternoon period and did not differ between men and women. Urinary free cortisol levels were higher in women. No salivary corticosteroids measure was significantly correlated with urinary free cortisol. We conclude that time-integrated salivary corticosteroids do not reflect urinary free cortisol levels in normal controls.

Extending BPM Environments of Your Choice with Performance Related Decision Support

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fritzsche, Mathias; Picht, Michael; Gilani, Wasif; Spence, Ivor; Brown, John; Kilpatrick, Peter

What-if Simulations have been identified as one solution for business performance related decision support. Such support is especially useful in cases where it can be automatically generated out of Business Process Management (BPM) Environments from the existing business process models and performance parameters monitored from the executed business process instances. Currently, some of the available BPM Environments offer basic-level performance prediction capabilities. However, these functionalities are normally too limited to be generally useful for performance related decision support at business process level. In this paper, an approach is presented which allows the non-intrusive integration of sophisticated tooling for what-if simulations, analytic performance prediction tools, process optimizations or a combination of such solutions into already existing BPM environments. The approach abstracts from process modelling techniques which enable automatic decision support spanning processes across numerous BPM Environments. For instance, this enables end-to-end decision support for composite processes modelled with the Business Process Modelling Notation (BPMN) on top of existing Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) processes modelled with proprietary languages.

Batch process fault detection and identification based on discriminant global preserving kernel slow feature analysis.

PubMed

Zhang, Hanyuan; Tian, Xuemin; Deng, Xiaogang; Cao, Yuping

2018-05-16

As an attractive nonlinear dynamic data analysis tool, global preserving kernel slow feature analysis (GKSFA) has achieved great success in extracting the high nonlinearity and inherently time-varying dynamics of batch process. However, GKSFA is an unsupervised feature extraction method and lacks the ability to utilize batch process class label information, which may not offer the most effective means for dealing with batch process monitoring. To overcome this problem, we propose a novel batch process monitoring method based on the modified GKSFA, referred to as discriminant global preserving kernel slow feature analysis (DGKSFA), by closely integrating discriminant analysis and GKSFA. The proposed DGKSFA method can extract discriminant feature of batch process as well as preserve global and local geometrical structure information of observed data. For the purpose of fault detection, a monitoring statistic is constructed based on the distance between the optimal kernel feature vectors of test data and normal data. To tackle the challenging issue of nonlinear fault variable identification, a new nonlinear contribution plot method is also developed to help identifying the fault variable after a fault is detected, which is derived from the idea of variable pseudo-sample trajectory projection in DGKSFA nonlinear biplot. Simulation results conducted on a numerical nonlinear dynamic system and the benchmark fed-batch penicillin fermentation process demonstrate that the proposed process monitoring and fault diagnosis approach can effectively detect fault and distinguish fault variables from normal variables. Copyright © 2018 ISA. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Bone marrow invasion in multiple myeloma and metastatic disease.

PubMed

Vilanova, J C; Luna, A

2016-04-01

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the spine is the imaging study of choice for the management of bone marrow disease. MRI sequences enable us to integrate structural and functional information for detecting, staging, and monitoring the response the treatment of multiple myeloma and bone metastases in the spine. Whole-body MRI has been incorporated into different guidelines as the technique of choice for managing multiple myeloma and metastatic bone disease. Normal physiological changes in the yellow and red bone marrow represent a challenge in analyses to differentiate clinically significant findings from those that are not clinically significant. This article describes the findings for normal bone marrow, variants, and invasive processes in multiple myeloma and bone metastases. Copyright © 2015 SERAM. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Bioresonance information laser therapy of diabetes miellitus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramdawon, Pretidev

2002-10-01

Following the ethio-pathogenetic approach in the therapeutic management of any pathological process, and being armed with the latest information and practical experience in the newly-developing and very promising field of bioresonance information laser medicine, thereby arose the obvious aim to elaborate a highly effective method of treatment for insulin-dependent diabetes (IDD) or Type I diabetes and non-insulin-dependent diabetes (NIDD) or Type II diabetes with the application of bioresonance information laser method of treatment, which involves the complex integrative use of low-level laser irradiation (LLLI), microwave resonance puncture (MRP) and light-emitting diode chromatotherapy (LEDCT) that would free diabetic patients from life-long insulin injections or hypoglycemic tables and enable them to lead a normal life with a normal or not severely restrained diet.

Parietal disruption alters audiovisual binding in the sound-induced flash illusion.

PubMed

Kamke, Marc R; Vieth, Harrison E; Cottrell, David; Mattingley, Jason B

2012-09-01

Selective attention and multisensory integration are fundamental to perception, but little is known about whether, or under what circumstances, these processes interact to shape conscious awareness. Here, we used transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to investigate the causal role of attention-related brain networks in multisensory integration between visual and auditory stimuli in the sound-induced flash illusion. The flash illusion is a widely studied multisensory phenomenon in which a single flash of light is falsely perceived as multiple flashes in the presence of irrelevant sounds. We investigated the hypothesis that extrastriate regions involved in selective attention, specifically within the right parietal cortex, exert an influence on the multisensory integrative processes that cause the flash illusion. We found that disruption of the right angular gyrus, but not of the adjacent supramarginal gyrus or of a sensory control site, enhanced participants' veridical perception of the multisensory events, thereby reducing their susceptibility to the illusion. Our findings suggest that the same parietal networks that normally act to enhance perception of attended events also play a role in the binding of auditory and visual stimuli in the sound-induced flash illusion. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Hybrid Electron Microscopy Normal Mode Analysis graphical interface and protocol.

PubMed

Sorzano, Carlos Oscar S; de la Rosa-Trevín, José Miguel; Tama, Florence; Jonić, Slavica

2014-11-01

This article presents an integral graphical interface to the Hybrid Electron Microscopy Normal Mode Analysis (HEMNMA) approach that was developed for capturing continuous motions of large macromolecular complexes from single-particle EM images. HEMNMA was shown to be a good approach to analyze multiple conformations of a macromolecular complex but it could not be widely used in the EM field due to a lack of an integral interface. In particular, its use required switching among different software sources as well as selecting modes for image analysis was difficult without the graphical interface. The graphical interface was thus developed to simplify the practical use of HEMNMA. It is implemented in the open-source software package Xmipp 3.1 (http://xmipp.cnb.csic.es) and only a small part of it relies on MATLAB that is accessible through the main interface. Such integration provides the user with an easy way to perform the analysis of macromolecular dynamics and forms a direct connection to the single-particle reconstruction process. A step-by-step HEMNMA protocol with the graphical interface is given in full details in Supplementary material. The graphical interface will be useful to experimentalists who are interested in studies of continuous conformational changes of macromolecular complexes beyond the modeling of continuous heterogeneity in single particle reconstruction. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

"Walking" through the sensory, cognitive, and temporal degradations of healthy aging.

PubMed

Paraskevoudi, Nadia; Balcı, Fuat; Vatakis, Argiro

2018-05-09

As we age, there is a wide range of changes in motor, sensory, cognitive, and temporal processing due to alterations in the functioning of the central nervous and musculoskeletal systems. Specifically, aging is associated with degradations in gait; altered processing of the individual sensory systems; modifications in executive control, memory, and attention; and changes in temporal processing. These age-related alterations are often inter-related and have been suggested to result from shared neural substrates. Additionally, the overlap between these brain areas and those controlling walking raises the possibility of facilitating performance in several tasks by introducing protocols that can efficiently target all four domains. Attempts to counteract these negative effects of normal aging have been focusing on research to prevent falls and/or enhance cognitive processes, while ignoring the potential multisensory benefits accompanying old age. Research shows that the aging brain tends to increasingly rely on multisensory integration to compensate for degradations in individual sensory systems and for altered neural functioning. This review covers the age-related changes in the above-mentioned domains and the potential to exploit the benefits associated with multisensory integration in aging so as to improve one's mobility and enhance sensory, cognitive, and temporal processing. © 2018 New York Academy of Sciences.

Implementation of secondary fracture prevention services after hip fracture: a qualitative study using extended Normalization Process Theory.

PubMed

Drew, Sarah; Judge, Andrew; May, Carl; Farmer, Andrew; Cooper, Cyrus; Javaid, M Kassim; Gooberman-Hill, Rachael

2015-04-23

National and international guidance emphasizes the need for hospitals to have effective secondary fracture prevention services, to reduce the risk of future fractures in hip fracture patients. Variation exists in how hospitals organize these services, and there remain significant gaps in care. No research has systematically explored reasons for this to understand how to successfully implement these services. The objective of this study was to use extended Normalization Process Theory to understand how secondary fracture prevention services can be successfully implemented. Forty-three semi-structured interviews were conducted with healthcare professionals involved in delivering secondary fracture prevention within 11 hospitals that receive patients with acute hip fracture in one region in England. These included orthogeriatricians, fracture prevention nurses and service managers. Extended Normalization Process Theory was used to inform study design and analysis. Extended Normalization Process Theory specifies four constructs relating to collective action in service implementation: capacity, potential, capability and contribution. The capacity of healthcare professionals to co-operate and co-ordinate their actions was achieved using dedicated fracture prevention co-ordinators to organize important processes of care. However, participants described effective communication with GPs as challenging. Individual potential and commitment to operationalize services was generally high. Shared commitments were promoted through multi-disciplinary team working, facilitated by fracture prevention co-ordinators. Healthcare professionals had capacity to deliver multiple components of services when co-ordinators 'freed up' time. As key agents in its intervention, fracture prevention coordinators were therefore indispensable to effective implementation. Aside from difficulty of co-ordination with primary care, the intervention was highly workable and easily integrated into practice. Nevertheless, implementation was threatened by under-staffed and under-resourced services, lack of capacity to administer scans and poor patient access. To ensure ongoing service delivery, the contributions of healthcare professionals were shaped by planning, in multi-disciplinary team meetings, the use of clinical databases to identify patients and define the composition of clinical work and monitoring to improve clinical practice. Findings identify and describe elements needed to implement secondary fracture prevention services successfully. The study highlights the value of Normalization Process Theory to achieve comprehensive understanding of healthcare professionals' experiences in enacting a complex intervention.

Developing a Cognitive Training Strategy for First-Episode Schizophrenia: Integrating Bottom-Up and Top-Down Approaches

PubMed Central

Nuechterlein, Keith H.; Ventura, Joseph; Subotnik, Kenneth L.; Hayata, Jacqueline N.; Medalia, Alice; Bell, Morris D.

2014-01-01

It is clear that people with schizophrenia typically have cognitive problems in multiple domains as part of their illness. The cognitive deficits are among the main contributors to limitations in their everyday functioning, including their work recovery. Cognitive remediation has been applied successfully to help people with long-term, persistent schizophrenia to improve their cognitive functioning, but it is only beginning to be applied with individuals who have recently had a first episode of psychosis. Several different approaches to cognitive training have been developed. Some approaches emphasize extensive systematic practice with lower-level cognitive processes and building toward higher-level processes (“bottom-up”), while others emphasize greater focus on high-level cognitive processes that normally integrate and organize lower-level processes (“top-down”). Each approach has advantages and disadvantages for a disorder like schizophrenia, with its multiple levels of cognitive dysfunction. In addition, approaches to cognitive remediation differ in the extent to which they systematically facilitate transfer of learning to everyday functioning. We describe in this article the cognitive training approach that was developed for a UCLA study of people with a recent first episode of schizophrenia, a group that may benefit greatly from early intervention that focuses on cognition and recovery of work functioning. This approach integrated bottom-up and top-down computerized cognitive training and incorporated an additional weekly group session to bridge between computerized training and application to everyday work and school functioning. PMID:25489275

Computational aspects of the nonlinear normal mode initialization of the GLAS 4th order GCM

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Navon, I. M.; Bloom, S. C.; Takacs, L.

1984-01-01

Using the normal modes of the GLAS 4th Order Model, a Machenhauer nonlinear normal mode initialization (NLNMI) was carried out for the external vertical mode using the GLAS 4th Order shallow water equations model for an equivalent depth corresponding to that associated with the external vertical mode. A simple procedure was devised which was directed at identifying computational modes by following the rate of increase of BAL sub M, the partial (with respect to the zonal wavenumber m) sum of squares of the time change of the normal mode coefficients (for fixed vertical mode index) varying over the latitude index L of symmetric or antisymmetric gravity waves. A working algorithm is presented which speeds up the convergence of the iterative Machenhauer NLNMI. A 24 h integration using the NLNMI state was carried out using both Matsuno and leap-frog time-integration schemes; these runs were then compared to a 24 h integration starting from a non-initialized state. The maximal impact of the nonlinear normal mode initialization was found to occur 6-10 hours after the initial time.

On the way toward systems biology of Aspergillus fumigatus infection.

PubMed

Albrecht, Daniela; Kniemeyer, Olaf; Mech, Franziska; Gunzer, Matthias; Brakhage, Axel; Guthke, Reinhard

2011-06-01

Pathogenicity of Aspergillus fumigatus is multifactorial. Thus, global studies are essential for the understanding of the infection process. Therefore, a data warehouse was established where genome sequence, transcriptome and proteome data are stored. These data are analyzed for the elucidation of virulence determinants. The data analysis workflow starts with pre-processing including imputing of missing values and normalization. Last step is the identification of differentially expressed genes/proteins as interesting candidates for further analysis, in particular for functional categorization and correlation studies. Sequence data and other prior knowledge extracted from databases are integrated to support the inference of gene regulatory networks associated with pathogenicity. This knowledge-assisted data analysis aims at establishing mathematical models with predictive strength to assist further experimental work. Recently, first steps were done to extend the integrative data analysis and computational modeling by evaluating spatio-temporal data (movies) that monitor interactions of A. fumigatus morphotypes (e.g. conidia) with host immune cells. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

First Experiences with the New Senhance® Telerobotic System in Visceral Surgery.

PubMed

Stephan, Dietmar; Sälzer, Heike; Willeke, Frank

2018-02-01

Until recently, robotic-assisted surgery has exclusively been connected to the name DaVinci®. In 2016, a second robotic system, the Senhance®, became available. To introduce the new robotic system into clinical routine, detailed team training and an integration program were useful. Within the first 6 months, 116 cases were performed with this system. The integration program intended to start with simple and well-standardized clinical cases. We chose inguinal hernia repair using the TAPP (transabdominal preperitoneal) technique as the starting procedure. Subsequently, we added upper gastrointestinal surgery and cholecystectomies, and colorectal procedures have since also been included. Initial experience with the Senhance system as the first installation in Germany shows that it is suitable for surgery in general and for visceral surgery in particular. The application is safe due to the unproblematically quick changeover to normal laparoscopy and easy to integrate due to the very short system integration times (docking times). Since it is a laparoscopic-based system, following an integration program will enable experienced laparoscopic surgeons to very quickly manage more complex procedures. Due to lower costs, introducing robotic surgery starting with simple and standardized procedures is more feasible. After the establishment of this second robotic system, future studies will have to specifically look at differences in surgical results and basic conditions of different robotic-assisted systems. This paper documents the decision-making process of a hospital towards the integration of a robotic system and the selection criteria used while also demonstrating the planning and execution process during the introduction of the system into clinical routine.

The EUCLID/V1 Integrated Code for Safety Assessment of Liquid Metal Cooled Fast Reactors. Part 1: Basic Models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mosunova, N. A.

2018-05-01

The article describes the basic models included in the EUCLID/V1 integrated code intended for safety analysis of liquid metal (sodium, lead, and lead-bismuth) cooled fast reactors using fuel rods with a gas gap and pellet dioxide, mixed oxide or nitride uranium-plutonium fuel under normal operation, under anticipated operational occurrences and accident conditions by carrying out interconnected thermal-hydraulic, neutronics, and thermal-mechanical calculations. Information about the Russian and foreign analogs of the EUCLID/V1 integrated code is given. Modeled objects, equation systems in differential form solved in each module of the EUCLID/V1 integrated code (the thermal-hydraulic, neutronics, fuel rod analysis module, and the burnup and decay heat calculation modules), the main calculated quantities, and also the limitations on application of the code are presented. The article also gives data on the scope of functions performed by the integrated code's thermal-hydraulic module, using which it is possible to describe both one- and twophase processes occurring in the coolant. It is shown that, owing to the availability of the fuel rod analysis module in the integrated code, it becomes possible to estimate the performance of fuel rods in different regimes of the reactor operation. It is also shown that the models implemented in the code for calculating neutron-physical processes make it possible to take into account the neutron field distribution over the fuel assembly cross section as well as other features important for the safety assessment of fast reactors.

Visual attention to food cues in obesity: an eye-tracking study.

PubMed

Doolan, Katy J; Breslin, Gavin; Hanna, Donncha; Murphy, Kate; Gallagher, Alison M

2014-12-01

Based on the theory of incentive sensitization, the aim of this study was to investigate differences in attentional processing of food-related visual cues between normal-weight and overweight/obese males and females. Twenty-six normal-weight (14M, 12F) and 26 overweight/obese (14M, 12F) adults completed a visual probe task and an eye-tracking paradigm. Reaction times and eye movements to food and control images were collected during both a fasted and fed condition in a counterbalanced design. Participants had greater visual attention towards high-energy-density food images compared to low-energy-density food images regardless of hunger condition. This was most pronounced in overweight/obese males who had significantly greater maintained attention towards high-energy-density food images when compared with their normal-weight counterparts however no between weight group differences were observed for female participants. High-energy-density food images appear to capture visual attention more readily than low-energy-density food images. Results also suggest the possibility of an altered visual food cue-associated reward system in overweight/obese males. Attentional processing of food cues may play a role in eating behaviors thus should be taken into consideration as part of an integrated approach to curbing obesity. © 2014 The Obesity Society.

Dentist phobia.

PubMed

Schroeder, H E; Schroeder, U; Santibánez-H, G

1986-01-01

This study analyzes so-called hopeless gaggers, i.e., patients in whom dental treatment and wearing of a prosthesis produced a retching or vomiting reaction, in order to investigate the sources and properties of this pathologic reaction. In 35 patients, an anamnestic inquiry, a determination of the reflexogenic zone, a recording of the peripheral pattern of the pathologic reflex, and extinction training were performed. A group of six normal persons served as a comparison group. It was shown that patients, in comparison with normals, had an enlarged receptive field, were sensitive to a broader population of stimuli, and showed precursors and aftereffects of the retching-vomiting not found in normals. This pathologic reaction was the symptom of different psychopathologic processes, such as specific fear, repugnance-fear-based disturbances, diffuse anxiety, goal-directed behavior, depressive states and, at least in one case, visceral pathology. The various patients differed with respect to properties of the reaction as well as in the sensitivity to the extinction procedure. It is discussed that different integrative nervous processes play a role in the origin and development of the syndrome: activation of unconditional reflexes, activation of classic and instrumental conditional reflexes, activation of such reflexes by an increase of the reactivity level of specific and unspecific structures of the brain, generalization of stimuli, etc.

Detecting Anomalies in Process Control Networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rrushi, Julian; Kang, Kyoung-Don

This paper presents the estimation-inspection algorithm, a statistical algorithm for anomaly detection in process control networks. The algorithm determines if the payload of a network packet that is about to be processed by a control system is normal or abnormal based on the effect that the packet will have on a variable stored in control system memory. The estimation part of the algorithm uses logistic regression integrated with maximum likelihood estimation in an inductive machine learning process to estimate a series of statistical parameters; these parameters are used in conjunction with logistic regression formulas to form a probability mass function for each variable stored in control system memory. The inspection part of the algorithm uses the probability mass functions to estimate the normalcy probability of a specific value that a network packet writes to a variable. Experimental results demonstrate that the algorithm is very effective at detecting anomalies in process control networks.

PI2GIS: processing image to geographical information systems, a learning tool for QGIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Correia, R.; Teodoro, A.; Duarte, L.

2017-10-01

To perform an accurate interpretation of remote sensing images, it is necessary to extract information using different image processing techniques. Nowadays, it became usual to use image processing plugins to add new capabilities/functionalities integrated in Geographical Information System (GIS) software. The aim of this work was to develop an open source application to automatically process and classify remote sensing images from a set of satellite input data. The application was integrated in a GIS software (QGIS), automating several image processing steps. The use of QGIS for this purpose is justified since it is easy and quick to develop new plugins, using Python language. This plugin is inspired in the Semi-Automatic Classification Plugin (SCP) developed by Luca Congedo. SCP allows the supervised classification of remote sensing images, the calculation of vegetation indices such as NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) and EVI (Enhanced Vegetation Index) and other image processing operations. When analysing SCP, it was realized that a set of operations, that are very useful in teaching classes of remote sensing and image processing tasks, were lacking, such as the visualization of histograms, the application of filters, different image corrections, unsupervised classification and several environmental indices computation. The new set of operations included in the PI2GIS plugin can be divided into three groups: pre-processing, processing, and classification procedures. The application was tested consider an image from Landsat 8 OLI from a North area of Portugal.

Age-related white matter microstructural differences partly mediate age-related decline in processing speed but not cognition.

PubMed

Salami, Alireza; Eriksson, Johan; Nilsson, Lars-Göran; Nyberg, Lars

2012-03-01

Aging is associated with declining cognitive performance as well as structural changes in brain gray and white matter (WM). The WM deterioration contributes to a disconnection among distributed brain networks and may thus mediate age-related cognitive decline. The present diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) study investigated age-related differences in WM microstructure and their relation to cognition (episodic memory, visuospatial processing, fluency, and speed) in a large group of healthy subjects (n=287) covering 6 decades of the human life span. Age related decreases in fractional anisotropy (FA) and increases in mean diffusivity (MD) were observed across the entire WM skeleton as well as in specific WM tracts, supporting the WM degeneration hypothesis. The anterior section of the corpus callosum was more susceptible to aging compared to the posterior section, lending support to the anterior-posterior gradient of WM integrity in the corpus callosum. Finally, and of critical interest, WM integrity differences were found to mediate age-related reductions in processing speed but no significant mediation was found for episodic memory, visuospatial ability, or fluency. These findings suggest that compromised WM integrity is not a major contributing factor to declining cognitive performance in normal aging. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Imaging Brain Aging and Neurodegenerative disease. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Technical Challenges and Opportunities of Centralizing Space Science Mission Operations (SSMO) at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ido, Haisam; Burns, Rich

2015-01-01

The NASA Goddard Space Science Mission Operations project (SSMO) is performing a technical cost-benefit analysis for centralizing and consolidating operations of a diverse set of missions into a unified and integrated technical infrastructure. The presentation will focus on the notion of normalizing spacecraft operations processes, workflows, and tools. It will also show the processes of creating a standardized open architecture, creating common security models and implementations, interfaces, services, automations, notifications, alerts, logging, publish, subscribe and middleware capabilities. The presentation will also discuss how to leverage traditional capabilities, along with virtualization, cloud computing services, control groups and containers, and possibly Big Data concepts.

Thought disorder in schizophrenia: impairment in contextual processing via integrative failures in cognition.

PubMed

Patniyot, Nicholas S

2011-10-01

Formal thought disorder is a critical dysfunction in schizophrenia whose cause remains uncertain, but whose explanation may greatly further our understanding of the disease. Thought disorder in patients with schizophrenia has been hypothesized to involve a disturbance in the internal representation of context. Positive symptoms of schizophrenia attributable to thought disorder display a lack of organization that may be accounted for by an absence of normal contextual processing occurring within the operations of the executive system. But the precise nature and pervasiveness of the deficient cognitive operation remain undistinguished. It is proposed here that the assimilatory functions of the brain appear to lack the ability to perform a particular type of integrative operation when presented with heterogeneous information. This deficit involves committing cognitive misattributions through a confusion of mental terms via a process in thought analogous to a linguistic failure to correctly interpret deictic referents. Both proposed deficits in mental deixis and analogous "metarepresentational" deficits in schizophrenia potentially involve a failure to draw information for a conclusion from a separate framework of relations in integrative fashion. These deficits appear to involve a failure to take an interpreted piece of information as an output from a particular mental task and incorporate it into a new operational scheme, and a central attribute to the deficit is that there is a loss of an effective or adequate integration of separate strata of information. Potential neurobiological correlates to such a system based on current knowledge about schizophrenia neurocircuitry, as well as implications for testing, are also discussed. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Neuronal Spike Timing Adaptation Described with a Fractional Leaky Integrate-and-Fire Model

PubMed Central

Teka, Wondimu; Marinov, Toma M.; Santamaria, Fidel

2014-01-01

The voltage trace of neuronal activities can follow multiple timescale dynamics that arise from correlated membrane conductances. Such processes can result in power-law behavior in which the membrane voltage cannot be characterized with a single time constant. The emergent effect of these membrane correlations is a non-Markovian process that can be modeled with a fractional derivative. A fractional derivative is a non-local process in which the value of the variable is determined by integrating a temporal weighted voltage trace, also called the memory trace. Here we developed and analyzed a fractional leaky integrate-and-fire model in which the exponent of the fractional derivative can vary from 0 to 1, with 1 representing the normal derivative. As the exponent of the fractional derivative decreases, the weights of the voltage trace increase. Thus, the value of the voltage is increasingly correlated with the trajectory of the voltage in the past. By varying only the fractional exponent, our model can reproduce upward and downward spike adaptations found experimentally in neocortical pyramidal cells and tectal neurons in vitro. The model also produces spikes with longer first-spike latency and high inter-spike variability with power-law distribution. We further analyze spike adaptation and the responses to noisy and oscillatory input. The fractional model generates reliable spike patterns in response to noisy input. Overall, the spiking activity of the fractional leaky integrate-and-fire model deviates from the spiking activity of the Markovian model and reflects the temporal accumulated intrinsic membrane dynamics that affect the response of the neuron to external stimulation. PMID:24675903

Integrating cognitive and peripheral factors in predicting hearing-aid processing effectiveness

PubMed Central

Kates, James M.; Arehart, Kathryn H.; Souza, Pamela E.

2013-01-01

Individual factors beyond the audiogram, such as age and cognitive abilities, can influence speech intelligibility and speech quality judgments. This paper develops a neural network framework for combining multiple subject factors into a single model that predicts speech intelligibility and quality for a nonlinear hearing-aid processing strategy. The nonlinear processing approach used in the paper is frequency compression, which is intended to improve the audibility of high-frequency speech sounds by shifting them to lower frequency regions where listeners with high-frequency loss have better hearing thresholds. An ensemble averaging approach is used for the neural network to avoid the problems associated with overfitting. Models are developed for two subject groups, one having nearly normal hearing and the other mild-to-moderate sloping losses. PMID:25669257

Integrated High Resolution Digital Color Light Sensor in 130 nm CMOS Technology

PubMed Central

Strle, Drago; Nahtigal, Uroš; Batistell, Graciele; Zhang, Vincent Chi; Ofner, Erwin; Fant, Andrea; Sturm, Johannes

2015-01-01

This article presents a color light detection system integrated in 130 nm CMOS technology. The sensors and corresponding electronics detect light in a CIE XYZ color luminosity space using on-chip integrated sensors without any additional process steps, high-resolution analog-to-digital converter, and dedicated DSP algorithm. The sensor consists of a set of laterally arranged integrated photodiodes that are partly covered by metal, where color separation between the photodiodes is achieved by lateral carrier diffusion together with wavelength-dependent absorption. A high resolution, hybrid, ∑∆ ADC converts each photo diode’s current into a 22-bit digital result, canceling the dark current of the photo diodes. The digital results are further processed by the DSP, which calculates normalized XYZ or RGB color and intensity parameters using linear transformations of the three photo diode responses by multiplication of the data with a transformation matrix, where the coefficients are extracted by training in combination with a pseudo-inverse operation and the least-mean square approximation. The sensor system detects the color light parameters with 22-bit accuracy, consumes less than 60 μA on average at 10 readings per second, and occupies approx. 0.8 mm2 of silicon area (including three photodiodes and the analog part of the ADC). The DSP is currently implemented on FPGA. PMID:26205275

SU-E-T-331: Dosimetric Impact of Multileaf Collimator Leaf Width On Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS) RapidArc Treatment Plans for Single and Multiple Brain Metastases

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hossain, S; Keeling, V; Ahmad, S

Purpose: To determine the effects of multileaf collimator (MLC) leaf width on normal-brain-tissue doses and dose conformity of SRS RapidArc treatment plans for brain tumors. Methods: Ten patients with 24 intracranial tumors (seven with 1–2 and three with 4–6 lesions) were planned using RapidArc for both Varian Millennium 120 MLC (5 mm leaf width) and high definition (HD) MLC (2.5 mm leaf width). Between 2 and 8 arcs were used with two full coplanar arcs and the rest non-coplanar half arcs. 6 MV beams were used and plans were optimized with a high priority to the Normal Tissue Objective (tomore » achieve dose conformity and sharp dose fall-off) and normal brain tissue. Calculation was done using AAA on a 1 mm grid size. The prescription dose ranged from 14–22 Gy. Plans were normalized such that 99% of the target received the prescription dose. Identical beam geometries, optimizations, calculations, and normalizations were used for both plans. Paddick Conformity Index (PCI), V4, V8 and V12 Gy for normal brain tissue and Integral Dose were used for analysis. Results: In all cases, HD MLC plans performed better in sparing normal brain tissue, achieving a higher PCI with a lower Integral Dose. The average PCI for all 24 targets was 0.75±0.23 and 0.70±0.23 (p ≤0.0015) for HD MLC and Millennium MLC plans, respectively. The average ratio of normal brain doses for Millennium MLC to HD MLC plans was 1.30±0.16, 1.27±0.15, and 1.31±0.18 for the V4, V8, and V12, respectively. The differences in normal brain dose for all criteria were statistically significant with p-value < 0.02. On average Millennium MLC plans had a 16% higher integral dose than HD MLC plans. Conclusion: Significantly better dose conformity with reduced volume of normal brain tissue and integral dose was achieved with HD MLC plans compared to Millennium MLC plans.« less

Breast histopathology image segmentation using spatio-colour-texture based graph partition method.

PubMed

Belsare, A D; Mushrif, M M; Pangarkar, M A; Meshram, N

2016-06-01

This paper proposes a novel integrated spatio-colour-texture based graph partitioning method for segmentation of nuclear arrangement in tubules with a lumen or in solid islands without a lumen from digitized Hematoxylin-Eosin stained breast histology images, in order to automate the process of histology breast image analysis to assist the pathologists. We propose a new similarity based super pixel generation method and integrate it with texton representation to form spatio-colour-texture map of Breast Histology Image. Then a new weighted distance based similarity measure is used for generation of graph and final segmentation using normalized cuts method is obtained. The extensive experiments carried shows that the proposed algorithm can segment nuclear arrangement in normal as well as malignant duct in breast histology tissue image. For evaluation of the proposed method the ground-truth image database of 100 malignant and nonmalignant breast histology images is created with the help of two expert pathologists and the quantitative evaluation of proposed breast histology image segmentation has been performed. It shows that the proposed method outperforms over other methods. © 2015 The Authors Journal of Microscopy © 2015 Royal Microscopical Society.

A young infant with musicogenic epilepsy.

PubMed

Lin, Kuang-Lin; Wang, Huei-Shyong; Kao, Pan-Fu

2003-05-01

Musicogenic epilepsy is a relatively rare form of epilepsy. In its pure form, it is characterized by epileptic seizures that are provoked exclusively by listening to music. The usual type of seizure is partial complex or generalized tonic-clonic. Precipitating factors are quite specific, such as listening to only one composition or the actual playing of music on an instrument. However, simple sound also can be a trigger. We report a 6-month-old infant with musicogenic epilepsy. She manifested right-sided focal seizures with occasional generalization. The seizures were frequently triggered by loud music, especially that by the Beatles. The interictal electroencephalography results were normal. Ictal spikes were present throughout the left temporal area during continuous electroencephalograpic monitoring. Brain magnetic resonance imaging results were normal, whereas single-photon emission computed tomography of the brain revealed hypoperfusion of the left temporal area. The young age and epileptogenic left temporal lobe lesion in this patient with musicogenic epilepsy were unusual characteristics. Theoretically, three levels of integration are involved in music processing in the brain. The involved integration of this infant's brain may be the sensory level rather than the emotional level. Nevertheless, the personal musicality and musical style of the Beatles might play an important role in this patient's epilepsy.

From the left to the right: How the brain compensates progressive loss of language function.

PubMed

Thiel, Alexander; Habedank, Birgit; Herholz, Karl; Kessler, Josef; Winhuisen, Lutz; Haupt, Walter F; Heiss, Wolf-Dieter

2006-07-01

In normal right-handed subjects language production usually is a function oft the left brain hemisphere. Patients with aphasia following brain damage to the left hemisphere have a considerable potential to compensate for the loss of this function. Sometimes, but not always, areas of the right hemisphere which are homologous to language areas of the left hemisphere in normal subjects are successfully employed for compensation but this integration process may need time to develop. We investigated right-handed patients with left hemisphere brain tumors as a model of continuously progressive brain damage to left hemisphere language areas using functional neuroimaging and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to identify factors which determine successful compensation of lost language function. Only patients with slowly progressing brain lesions recovered right-sided language function as detected by TMS. In patients with rapidly progressive lesions no right-sided language function was found and language performance was linearly correlated with the lateralization of language related brain activation to the left hemisphere. It can thus be concluded that time is the factor which determines successful integration of the right hemisphere into the language network for compensation of lost left hemisphere language function.

Reconstruction of instantaneous surface normal velocity of a vibrating structure using interpolated time-domain equivalent source method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geng, Lin; Bi, Chuan-Xing; Xie, Feng; Zhang, Xiao-Zheng

2018-07-01

Interpolated time-domain equivalent source method is extended to reconstruct the instantaneous surface normal velocity of a vibrating structure by using the time-evolving particle velocity as the input, which provides a non-contact way to overall understand the instantaneous vibration behavior of the structure. In this method, the time-evolving particle velocity in the near field is first modeled by a set of equivalent sources positioned inside the vibrating structure, and then the integrals of equivalent source strengths are solved by an iterative solving process and are further used to calculate the instantaneous surface normal velocity. An experiment of a semi-cylindrical steel plate impacted by a steel ball is investigated to examine the ability of the extended method, where the time-evolving normal particle velocity and pressure on the hologram surface measured by a Microflown pressure-velocity probe are used as the inputs of the extended method and the method based on pressure measurements, respectively, and the instantaneous surface normal velocity of the plate measured by a laser Doppler vibrometry is used as the reference for comparison. The experimental results demonstrate that the extended method is a powerful tool to visualize the instantaneous surface normal velocity of a vibrating structure in both time and space domains and can obtain more accurate results than that of the method based on pressure measurements.

Altered blood-brain barrier permeability in rats with prehepatic portal hypertension turns to normal when portal pressure is lowered

PubMed Central

Eizayaga, Francisco; Scorticati, Camila; Prestifilippo, Juan P; Romay, Salvador; Fernandez, Maria A; Castro, José L; Lemberg, Abraham; Perazzo, Juan C

2006-01-01

AIM: To study the blood-brain barrier integrity in prehepatic portal hypertensive rats induced by partial portal vein ligation, at 14 and 40 d after ligation when portal pressure is spontaneously normalized. METHODS: Adult male Wistar rats were divided into four groups: Group I: Sham14d , sham operated; Group II: PH14d , portal vein stenosis; (both groups were used 14 days after surgery); Group III: Sham40d, Sham operated and Group IV: PH40d Portal vein stenosis (Groups II and IV used 40 d after surgery). Plasma ammonia, plasma and cerebrospinal fluid protein and liver enzymes concentrations were determined. Trypan and Evans blue dyes, systemically injected, were investigated in hippocampus to study blood-brain barrier integrity. Portal pressure was periodically recorded. RESULTS: Forty days after stricture, portal pressure was normalized, plasma ammonia was moderately high, and both dyes were absent in central nervous system parenchyma. All other parameters were reestablished. When portal pressure was normalized and ammonia level was lowered, but not normal, the altered integrity of blood-brain barrier becomes reestablished. CONCLUSION: The impairment of blood-brain barrier and subsequent normalization could be a mechanism involved in hepatic encephalopathy reversibility. Hemodynamic changes and ammonia could trigger blood-brain barrier alterations and its reestablishment. PMID:16552803

Orientation perception in Williams Syndrome: discrimination and integration

PubMed Central

Palomares, Melanie; Landau, Barbara; Egeth, Howard

2009-01-01

Williams Syndrome (WS) is a rare neurodevelopmental disorder, which stems from a genetic deletion on chromosome 7 that causes a profound weakness in visuospatial cognition. Our current study explores how orientation perception may contribute to the visuospatial deficits in WS. In Experiment 1, we found that WS individuals and normal 3-4 year olds had similar orientation discrimination thresholds and had similar prevalence of mirror-reversal errors for diagonal targets (±45 deg). In Experiment 2, we asked whether this immaturity in orientation discrimination would also be reflected in a task requiring integration of oriented elements. We found that sensitivities of WS individuals for detecting orientation-defined contours were higher than sensitivities of normal 3-4 year olds, and were not significantly different from sensitivities of normal adults. Together, these results suggest that orientation discrimination and orientation integration have different maturational trajectories in normal development and different susceptibilities to damage in WS, which may reflect largely separate visuospatial mechanisms. PMID:19231058

Effects of photooxidation on membrane integrity in Salix nigra seeds

PubMed Central

Roqueiro, Gonzalo; Facorro, Graciela B.; Huarte, Mónica G.; Rubín de Celis, Emilio; García, Fernando; Maldonado, Sara; Maroder, Horacio

2010-01-01

Background and Aims Salix nigra seeds are desiccation-tolerant, as are orthodox seeds, although in contrast to other orthodox seeds they lose viability in a few weeks at room temperature. They also differ in that the chloroplasts of the embryo tissues conserve their chlorophyll and endomembranes. The aim of this paper was to investigate the role of chlorophyll in seed deterioration. Methods Seeds were aged at different light intensities and atmospheric conditions. Mean germination time and normal and total germination were evaluated. The formation of free radicals was assessed using electronic spin resonance spectroscopy, and changes in the fatty acid composition from phospholipids, galactolipids and triglycerides using gas–liquid chromatography. Membrane integrity was studied with electronic spin resonance spin probe techniques, electrolyte leakage and transmission electron microscopy. Key Results Light and oxygen played an important role in free-radical generation, causing a decrease in normal germination and an increase in mean germination time. Both indices were associated with a decrease in polyunsaturated fatty acids derived from membrane lipids as phospholipids and galactolipids. The detection of damage in thylakoid membranes and an increase in plasmalemma permeability were consistent with the decrease in both types of lipids. Triglycerides remained unchanged. Light-induced damage began in outermost tissues and spread inwards, decreasing normal germination. Conclusions Salix nigra seeds were very susceptible to photooxidation. The thylakoid membranes appeared to be the first target of the photooxidative process since there were large decreases in galactolipids and both these lipids and the activated chlorophyll are contiguous in the structure of that membrane. Changes in normal germination and mean germination time could be explained by the deteriorative effects of oxidation. PMID:20338949

The exocrine pancreas: the acinar-ductal tango in physiology and pathophysiology.

PubMed

Hegyi, Peter; Petersen, Ole H

2013-01-01

There are many reviews of pancreatic acinar cell function and also of pancreatic duct function, but there is an almost total absence of synthetic reviews bringing the integrated functions of these two vitally and mutually interdependent cells together. This is what we have attempted to do in this chapter. In the first part, we review the normal integrated function of the acinar-ductal system, with particular emphasis on how regulation of one type of cell also influences the other cell type. In the second part, we review a range of pathological processes, particularly those involved in acute pancreatitis (AP), an often-fatal human disease in which the pancreas digests itself, in order to explore how malfunction of one of the cell types adversely affects the function of the other.

Neurostimulation and neuromodulation: a guide to selecting the right urologic patient.

PubMed

Schmidt, R A; Doggweiler, R

1998-01-01

Sensory input has an important influence on the integrity of neural circuitry. Central nervous system circuitry is programmed and reinforced by everyday experience. Even the simplest of behaviors participate in this process. A balance between inhibition and facilitation must be maintained for the CNS to function normally. For example, the bladder stores urine because of the inhibition from a closed sphincter, and relaxation of the sphincter disinhibits the bladder to permit voiding. This synergistic 'seesaw' in reflex neural activity preserves the functional and anatomical integrity of the lower urinary tract. Dysfunction and anatomical change results when an unnatural bias develops between inhibitory and facilitatory neural activity. Neurostimulation has an inherent conditioning effect on neural excitability and can restore the neural equilibrium. Voiding diaries are very useful in documenting these changes.

Bluetooth-based sensor networks for remotely monitoring the physiological signals of a patient.

PubMed

Zhang, Ying; Xiao, Hannan

2009-11-01

Integrating intelligent medical microsensors into a wireless communication network makes it possible to remotely collect physiological signals of a patient, release the patient from being tethered to monitoring medical instrumentations, and facilitate the patient's early hospital discharge. This can further improve life quality by providing continuous observation without the need of disrupting the patient's normal life, thus reducing the risk of infection significantly, and decreasing the cost of the hospital and the patient. This paper discusses the implementation issues, and describes the overall system architecture of our developed Bluetooth sensor network for patient monitoring and the corresponding heart activity sensors. It also presents our approach to developing the intelligent physiological sensor nodes involving integration of Bluetooth radio technology, hardware and software organization, and our solutions for onboard signal processing.

Inverse design of near unity efficiency perfectly vertical grating couplers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Michaels, Andrew; Yablonovitch, Eli

2018-02-01

Efficient coupling between integrated optical waveguides and optical fibers is essential to the success of integrated photonics. While many solutions exist, perfectly vertical grating couplers which scatter light out of a waveguide in the direction normal to the waveguide's top surface are an ideal candidate due to their potential to reduce packaging complexity. Designing such couplers with high efficiency, however, has proven difficult. In this paper, we use electromagnetic inverse design techniques to optimize a high efficiency two-layer perfectly vertical silicon grating coupler. Our base design achieves a chip-to-fiber coupling efficiency of over 99% (-0.04 dB) at 1550 nm. Using this base design, we apply subsequent constrained optimizations to achieve vertical couplers with over 96% efficiency which are fabricable using a 65 nm process.

Integrating Fundamental Concepts of Obesity and Eating Disorders: Implications for the Obesity Epidemic

PubMed Central

2015-01-01

Physiological mechanisms promote weight gain after famine. Because eating disorders, obesity, and dieting limit food intake, they are famine-like experiences. The development of the concept of meeting an ideal weight was the beginning of increasing obesity. Weight stigma, the perception of being fat, lack of understanding of normal growth and development, and increased concern about obesity on the part of health providers, parents, and caregivers have reinforced each other to promote dieting. Because weight suppression and disinhibition provoke long-term weight increase, dieting is a major factor producing the obesity epidemic. The integrated eating disorder–obesity theory included in this article emphasizes that, contrary to dieters, lifetime weight maintainers depend on physiological processes to control weight and experience minimal weight change. PMID:25713933

Service Management Database for DSN Equipment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zendejas, Silvino; Bui, Tung; Bui, Bach; Malhotra, Shantanu; Chen, Fannie; Wolgast, Paul; Allen, Christopher; Luong, Ivy; Chang, George; Sadaqathulla, Syed

2009-01-01

This data- and event-driven persistent storage system leverages the use of commercial software provided by Oracle for portability, ease of maintenance, scalability, and ease of integration with embedded, client-server, and multi-tiered applications. In this role, the Service Management Database (SMDB) is a key component of the overall end-to-end process involved in the scheduling, preparation, and configuration of the Deep Space Network (DSN) equipment needed to perform the various telecommunication services the DSN provides to its customers worldwide. SMDB makes efficient use of triggers, stored procedures, queuing functions, e-mail capabilities, data management, and Java integration features provided by the Oracle relational database management system. SMDB uses a third normal form schema design that allows for simple data maintenance procedures and thin layers of integration with client applications. The software provides an integrated event logging system with ability to publish events to a JMS messaging system for synchronous and asynchronous delivery to subscribed applications. It provides a structured classification of events and application-level messages stored in database tables that are accessible by monitoring applications for real-time monitoring or for troubleshooting and analysis over historical archives.

Dynamics of normalization underlying masking in human visual cortex.

PubMed

Tsai, Jeffrey J; Wade, Alex R; Norcia, Anthony M

2012-02-22

Stimulus visibility can be reduced by other stimuli that overlap the same region of visual space, a process known as masking. Here we studied the neural mechanisms of masking in humans using source-imaged steady state visual evoked potentials and frequency-domain analysis over a wide range of relative stimulus strengths of test and mask stimuli. Test and mask stimuli were tagged with distinct temporal frequencies and we quantified spectral response components associated with the individual stimuli (self terms) and responses due to interaction between stimuli (intermodulation terms). In early visual cortex, masking alters the self terms in a manner consistent with a reduction of input contrast. We also identify a novel signature of masking: a robust intermodulation term that peaks when the test and mask stimuli have equal contrast and disappears when they are widely different. We fit all of our data simultaneously with family of a divisive gain control models that differed only in their dynamics. Models with either very short or very long temporal integration constants for the gain pool performed worse than a model with an integration time of ∼30 ms. Finally, the absolute magnitudes of the response were controlled by the ratio of the stimulus contrasts, not their absolute values. This contrast-contrast invariance suggests that many neurons in early visual cortex code relative rather than absolute contrast. Together, these results provide a more complete description of masking within the normalization framework of contrast gain control and suggest that contrast normalization accomplishes multiple functional goals.

Tomato Expression Database (TED): a suite of data presentation and analysis tools

PubMed Central

Fei, Zhangjun; Tang, Xuemei; Alba, Rob; Giovannoni, James

2006-01-01

The Tomato Expression Database (TED) includes three integrated components. The Tomato Microarray Data Warehouse serves as a central repository for raw gene expression data derived from the public tomato cDNA microarray. In addition to expression data, TED stores experimental design and array information in compliance with the MIAME guidelines and provides web interfaces for researchers to retrieve data for their own analysis and use. The Tomato Microarray Expression Database contains normalized and processed microarray data for ten time points with nine pair-wise comparisons during fruit development and ripening in a normal tomato variety and nearly isogenic single gene mutants impacting fruit development and ripening. Finally, the Tomato Digital Expression Database contains raw and normalized digital expression (EST abundance) data derived from analysis of the complete public tomato EST collection containing >150 000 ESTs derived from 27 different non-normalized EST libraries. This last component also includes tools for the comparison of tomato and Arabidopsis digital expression data. A set of query interfaces and analysis, and visualization tools have been developed and incorporated into TED, which aid users in identifying and deciphering biologically important information from our datasets. TED can be accessed at . PMID:16381976

Tomato Expression Database (TED): a suite of data presentation and analysis tools.

PubMed

Fei, Zhangjun; Tang, Xuemei; Alba, Rob; Giovannoni, James

2006-01-01

The Tomato Expression Database (TED) includes three integrated components. The Tomato Microarray Data Warehouse serves as a central repository for raw gene expression data derived from the public tomato cDNA microarray. In addition to expression data, TED stores experimental design and array information in compliance with the MIAME guidelines and provides web interfaces for researchers to retrieve data for their own analysis and use. The Tomato Microarray Expression Database contains normalized and processed microarray data for ten time points with nine pair-wise comparisons during fruit development and ripening in a normal tomato variety and nearly isogenic single gene mutants impacting fruit development and ripening. Finally, the Tomato Digital Expression Database contains raw and normalized digital expression (EST abundance) data derived from analysis of the complete public tomato EST collection containing >150,000 ESTs derived from 27 different non-normalized EST libraries. This last component also includes tools for the comparison of tomato and Arabidopsis digital expression data. A set of query interfaces and analysis, and visualization tools have been developed and incorporated into TED, which aid users in identifying and deciphering biologically important information from our datasets. TED can be accessed at http://ted.bti.cornell.edu.

[Reason and emotion: integration of cognitive-behavioural and experiential interventions in the treatment of long evolution food disorders].

PubMed

Vilariño Besteiro, M P; Pérez Franco, C; Gallego Morales, L; Calvo Sagardoy, R; García de Lorenzo, A

2009-01-01

This paper intends to show the combination of therapeutical strategies in the treatment of long evolution food disorders. This fashion of work entitled "Modelo Santa Cristina" is based on several theoretical paradigms: Enabling Model, Action Control Model, Change Process Transtheoretical Model and Cognitive-Behavioural Model (Cognitive Restructuring and Learning Theories). Furthermore, Gestalt, Systemic and Psychodrama Orientation Techniques. The purpose of the treatment is both the normalization of food patterns and the increase in self-knowledge, self-acceptance and self-efficacy of patients. The exploration of ambivalence to change, the discovery of the functions of symptoms and the search for alternative behaviours, the normalization of food patterns, bodily image, cognitive restructuring, decision taking, communication skills and elaboration of traumatic experiences are among the main areas of intervention.

Integrating normal and abnormal personality structure: a proposal for DSM-V.

PubMed

Widiger, Thomas A

2011-06-01

The personality disorders section of the American Psychiatric Association's fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V) is currently being developed. The purpose of the current paper is to encourage the authors of DSM-V to integrate normal and abnormal personality structure within a common, integrative model, and to suggest that the optimal choice for such an integration would be the five-factor model (FFM) of general personality structure. A proposal for the classification of personality disorder from the perspective of the FFM is provided. Discussed as well are implications and issues associated with an FFM of personality disorder, including validity, coverage, feasibility, clinical utility, and treatment implications.

The Dirac equation and the normalization of its solutions in a closed Friedmann- Robertson-Walker universe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Finster, Felix; Reintjes, Moritz

2009-05-01

We set up the Dirac equation in a Friedmann-Robertson-Walker geometry and separate the spatial and time variables. In the case of a closed universe, the spatial dependence is solved explicitly, giving rise to a discrete set of solutions. We compute the probability integral and analyze a spacetime normalization integral. This analysis allows us to introduce the fermionic projector in a closed Friedmann-Robertson-Walker geometry and to specify its global normalization as well as its local form. First author supported in part by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft.

SDF1 regulates leading process branching and speed of migrating interneurons

PubMed Central

Lysko, Daniel E.; Putt, Mary; Golden, Jeffrey A.

2011-01-01

Cell migration is required for normal embryonic development, yet how cells navigate complex paths while integrating multiple guidance cues remains poorly understood. During brain development, interneurons migrate from the ventral ganglionic eminence to the cerebral cortex within several migratory streams. They must exit these streams to invade the cortical plate. While SDF1-signaling is necessary for normal interneuron stream migration, how they switch from tangential stream migration to invade the cortical plate is unknown. Here we demonstrate that SDF1-signaling reduces interneuron branching frequency by reducing cAMP levels via a Gi-signaling pathway using an in vitro mouse explant system, resulting in the maintenance of stream migration. Blocking SDF1-signaling, or increasing branching frequency, results in stream exit and cortical plate invasion in mouse brain slices. These data support a novel model to understand how migrating interneurons switch from tangential migration to invade the cortical plate in which reducing SDF1-signaling increases leading process branching and slows the migration rate, permitting migrating interneurons to sense cortically directed guidance cues. PMID:21289183

Cellulose biogenesis: Polymerization and crystallization are coupled processes in Acetobacter xylinum.

PubMed

Benziman, M; Haigler, C H; Brown, R M; White, A R; Cooper, K M

1980-11-01

Calcofluor White ST, stilbene derivative used commerically as an optical brightener for cellulose, increased the rate of glucose polymerization into cellulose by resting cells of the gram-negative bacterium Acetobacter xylinum. This bacterium normally produces a ribbon of cellulose that is a composite of crystalline microfibrils. In concentrations above 0.1 mM, Calcofluor disrupts the assembly of crystalline cellulose I microfibrils and their integration into a composite ribbon by stoichiometric binding to glucose residues of newly polymerized glucan chains. Under these conditions, the rate of glucose polymerization increases up to 4 times the control rate, whereas oxygen uptake increases only 10-15%. These observed effects are readily reversible. If free Calcofluor is washed away or depleted below the threshold value by binding to cellulose as polymerization continues, ribbon production and the normal rate of polymerization resume. It is concluded that polymerization and crystallization are cell-directed, coupled processes and that the rate of crystallization determines the rate of polymerization. It is suggested that coupling must be maintained for biogenesis of crystalline cellulose I.

Intelligent tuning method of PID parameters based on iterative learning control for atomic force microscopy.

PubMed

Liu, Hui; Li, Yingzi; Zhang, Yingxu; Chen, Yifu; Song, Zihang; Wang, Zhenyu; Zhang, Suoxin; Qian, Jianqiang

2018-01-01

Proportional-integral-derivative (PID) parameters play a vital role in the imaging process of an atomic force microscope (AFM). Traditional parameter tuning methods require a lot of manpower and it is difficult to set PID parameters in unattended working environments. In this manuscript, an intelligent tuning method of PID parameters based on iterative learning control is proposed to self-adjust PID parameters of the AFM according to the sample topography. This method gets enough information about the output signals of PID controller and tracking error, which will be used to calculate the proper PID parameters, by repeated line scanning until convergence before normal scanning to learn the topography. Subsequently, the appropriate PID parameters are obtained by fitting method and then applied to the normal scanning process. The feasibility of the method is demonstrated by the convergence analysis. Simulations and experimental results indicate that the proposed method can intelligently tune PID parameters of the AFM for imaging different topographies and thus achieve good tracking performance. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Poly(A)-tag deep sequencing data processing to extract poly(A) sites.

PubMed

Wu, Xiaohui; Ji, Guoli; Li, Qingshun Quinn

2015-01-01

Polyadenylation [poly(A)] is an essential posttranscriptional processing step in the maturation of eukaryotic mRNA. The advent of next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology has offered feasible means to generate large-scale data and new opportunities for intensive study of polyadenylation, particularly deep sequencing of the transcriptome targeting the junction of 3'-UTR and the poly(A) tail of the transcript. To take advantage of this unprecedented amount of data, we present an automated workflow to identify polyadenylation sites by integrating NGS data cleaning, processing, mapping, normalizing, and clustering. In this pipeline, a series of Perl scripts are seamlessly integrated to iteratively map the single- or paired-end sequences to the reference genome. After mapping, the poly(A) tags (PATs) at the same genome coordinate are grouped into one cleavage site, and the internal priming artifacts removed. Then the ambiguous region is introduced to parse the genome annotation for cleavage site clustering. Finally, cleavage sites within a close range of 24 nucleotides and from different samples can be clustered into poly(A) clusters. This procedure could be used to identify thousands of reliable poly(A) clusters from millions of NGS sequences in different tissues or treatments.

Matching health information seekers' queries to medical terms

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background The Internet is a major source of health information but most seekers are not familiar with medical vocabularies. Hence, their searches fail due to bad query formulation. Several methods have been proposed to improve information retrieval: query expansion, syntactic and semantic techniques or knowledge-based methods. However, it would be useful to clean those queries which are misspelled. In this paper, we propose a simple yet efficient method in order to correct misspellings of queries submitted by health information seekers to a medical online search tool. Methods In addition to query normalizations and exact phonetic term matching, we tested two approximate string comparators: the similarity score function of Stoilos and the normalized Levenshtein edit distance. We propose here to combine them to increase the number of matched medical terms in French. We first took a sample of query logs to determine the thresholds and processing times. In the second run, at a greater scale we tested different combinations of query normalizations before or after misspelling correction with the retained thresholds in the first run. Results According to the total number of suggestions (around 163, the number of the first sample of queries), at a threshold comparator score of 0.3, the normalized Levenshtein edit distance gave the highest F-Measure (88.15%) and at a threshold comparator score of 0.7, the Stoilos function gave the highest F-Measure (84.31%). By combining Levenshtein and Stoilos, the highest F-Measure (80.28%) is obtained with 0.2 and 0.7 thresholds respectively. However, queries are composed by several terms that may be combination of medical terms. The process of query normalization and segmentation is thus required. The highest F-Measure (64.18%) is obtained when this process is realized before spelling-correction. Conclusions Despite the widely known high performance of the normalized edit distance of Levenshtein, we show in this paper that its combination with the Stoilos algorithm improved the results for misspelling correction of user queries. Accuracy is improved by combining spelling, phoneme-based information and string normalizations and segmentations into medical terms. These encouraging results have enabled the integration of this method into two projects funded by the French National Research Agency-Technologies for Health Care. The first aims to facilitate the coding process of clinical free texts contained in Electronic Health Records and discharge summaries, whereas the second aims at improving information retrieval through Electronic Health Records. PMID:23095521

Development of an Integrated Modeling Framework for Simulations of Coastal Processes in Deltaic Environments Using High-Performance Computing

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-01-01

exceeds the local water depth. The approximation eliminates the vertical dimension of the elliptic equation that is normally required for the fully non...used for vertical resolution. The shallow water equations (SWE) are a set of non-linear hyperbolic equations. As the equations are derived under...linear standing wave with a wavelength of 10 m in a square 10 m by 10 m basin. The still water depth is 0.5 m. In order to compare with the analytical

Biology and therapy of fibromyalgia. Functional magnetic resonance imaging findings in fibromyalgia

PubMed Central

Williams, David A; Gracely, Richard H

2006-01-01

Techniques in neuroimaging such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) have helped to provide insights into the role of supraspinal mechanisms in pain perception. This review focuses on studies that have applied fMRI in an attempt to gain a better understanding of the mechanisms involved in the processing of pain associated with fibromyalgia. This article provides an overview of the nociceptive system as it functions normally, reviews functional brain imaging methods, and integrates the existing literature utilizing fMRI to study central pain mechanisms in fibromyalgia. PMID:17254318

The 3-Second Rule in Hereditary Pure Cerebellar Ataxia: A Synchronized Tapping Study

PubMed Central

Matsuda, Shunichi; Matsumoto, Hideyuki; Furubayashi, Toshiaki; Hanajima, Ritsuko; Tsuji, Shoji; Ugawa, Yoshikazu; Terao, Yasuo

2015-01-01

The ‘3-second rule’ has been proposed based on miscellaneous observations that a time period of around 3 seconds constitutes the fundamental unit of time related to the neuro-cognitive machinery in normal humans. The aim of paper was to investigate the temporal processing in patients with spinocerebellar ataxia type 6 (SCA6) and SCA31, pure cerebellar types of spinocerebellar degeneration, using a synchronized tapping task. Seventeen SCA patients (11 SCA6, 6 SCA31) and 17 normal age-matched volunteers participated. The task required subjects to tap a keyboard in synchrony with sequences of auditory stimuli presented at fixed interstimulus intervals (ISIs) between 200 and 4800 ms. In this task, the subjects required non-motor components to estimate the time of forthcoming tone in addition to motor components to tap. Normal subjects synchronized their taps to the presented tones at shorter ISIs, whereas as the ISI became longer, the normal subjects displayed greater latency between the tone and the tapping (transition zone). After the transition zone, normal subjects pressed the button delayed relative to the tone. On the other hand, SCA patients could not synchronize their tapping with the tone even at shorter ISIs, although they pressed the button delayed relative to the tone earlier than normal subjects did. The earliest time of delayed tapping appearance after the transition zone was 4800 ms in normal subjects but 1800 ms in SCA patients. The span of temporal integration in SCA patients is shortened compared to that in normal subjects. This could represent non-motor cerebellar dysfunction in SCA patients. PMID:25706752

Implicit integration in a case of integrative visual agnosia.

PubMed

Aviezer, Hillel; Landau, Ayelet N; Robertson, Lynn C; Peterson, Mary A; Soroker, Nachum; Sacher, Yaron; Bonneh, Yoram; Bentin, Shlomo

2007-05-15

We present a case (SE) with integrative visual agnosia following ischemic stroke affecting the right dorsal and the left ventral pathways of the visual system. Despite his inability to identify global hierarchical letters [Navon, D. (1977). Forest before trees: The precedence of global features in visual perception. Cognitive Psychology, 9, 353-383], and his dense object agnosia, SE showed normal global-to-local interference when responding to local letters in Navon hierarchical stimuli and significant picture-word identity priming in a semantic decision task for words. Since priming was absent if these features were scrambled, it stands to reason that these effects were not due to priming by distinctive features. The contrast between priming effects induced by coherent and scrambled stimuli is consistent with implicit but not explicit integration of features into a unified whole. We went on to show that possible/impossible object decisions were facilitated by words in a word-picture priming task, suggesting that prompts could activate perceptually integrated images in a backward fashion. We conclude that the absence of SE's ability to identify visual objects except through tedious serial construction reflects a deficit in accessing an integrated visual representation through bottom-up visual processing alone. However, top-down generated images can help activate these visual representations through semantic links.

Thalamic structures and associated cognitive functions: Relations with age and aging.

PubMed

Fama, Rosemary; Sullivan, Edith V

2015-07-01

The thalamus, with its cortical, subcortical, and cerebellar connections, is a critical node in networks supporting cognitive functions known to decline in normal aging, including component processes of memory and executive functions of attention and information processing. The macrostructure, microstructure, and neural connectivity of the thalamus changes across the adult lifespan. Structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) have demonstrated, regional thalamic volume shrinkage and microstructural degradation, with anterior regions generally more compromised than posterior regions. The integrity of selective thalamic nuclei and projections decline with advancing age, particularly those in thalamofrontal, thalamoparietal, and thalamolimbic networks. This review presents studies that assess the relations between age and aging and the structure, function, and connectivity of the thalamus and associated neural networks and focuses on their relations with processes of attention, speed of information processing, and working and episodic memory. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fundamental understanding of distracted oxygen delignification efficiency by dissolved lignin during biorefinery process of eucalyptus.

PubMed

Zhao, Huifang; Li, Jing; Zhang, Xuejin

2018-06-01

In this work, a fundamental understanding of oxygen delignification distracted by dissolved lignin was investigated. In the new biorefinery model of shortening kraft pulping integrated with extended oxygen delignification process, increasing content of residual lignin in the original pulp could result in enhanced delignification efficiency, higher pulp viscosity and less carbonyl groups. However, the invalid oxygen consumption by dissolved lignin could be increased with the increase of process temperature and alkali dosage. The normalized ultraviolet absorbance (divided by absorbance at 280 nm) also showed that the content of chromophoric group in dissolved lignin decreased with oxygen delignification proceeded, both of which indicated that dissolved lignin could enhance the invalid oxygen consumption. Therefore, a conclusion that replacement of the liquor at the initial phase of oxygen delignification process would balance the enhancement of delignification efficiency and invalid oxygen consumption was achieved. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A novel computational model to probe visual search deficits during motor performance

PubMed Central

Singh, Tarkeshwar; Fridriksson, Julius; Perry, Christopher M.; Tryon, Sarah C.; Ross, Angela; Fritz, Stacy

2016-01-01

Successful execution of many motor skills relies on well-organized visual search (voluntary eye movements that actively scan the environment for task-relevant information). Although impairments of visual search that result from brain injuries are linked to diminished motor performance, the neural processes that guide visual search within this context remain largely unknown. The first objective of this study was to examine how visual search in healthy adults and stroke survivors is used to guide hand movements during the Trail Making Test (TMT), a neuropsychological task that is a strong predictor of visuomotor and cognitive deficits. Our second objective was to develop a novel computational model to investigate combinatorial interactions between three underlying processes of visual search (spatial planning, working memory, and peripheral visual processing). We predicted that stroke survivors would exhibit deficits in integrating the three underlying processes, resulting in deteriorated overall task performance. We found that normal TMT performance is associated with patterns of visual search that primarily rely on spatial planning and/or working memory (but not peripheral visual processing). Our computational model suggested that abnormal TMT performance following stroke is associated with impairments of visual search that are characterized by deficits integrating spatial planning and working memory. This innovative methodology provides a novel framework for studying how the neural processes underlying visual search interact combinatorially to guide motor performance. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Visual search has traditionally been studied in cognitive and perceptual paradigms, but little is known about how it contributes to visuomotor performance. We have developed a novel computational model to examine how three underlying processes of visual search (spatial planning, working memory, and peripheral visual processing) contribute to visual search during a visuomotor task. We show that deficits integrating spatial planning and working memory underlie abnormal performance in stroke survivors with frontoparietal damage. PMID:27733596

Modeling integrated cellular machinery using hybrid Petri-Boolean networks.

PubMed

Berestovsky, Natalie; Zhou, Wanding; Nagrath, Deepak; Nakhleh, Luay

2013-01-01

The behavior and phenotypic changes of cells are governed by a cellular circuitry that represents a set of biochemical reactions. Based on biological functions, this circuitry is divided into three types of networks, each encoding for a major biological process: signal transduction, transcription regulation, and metabolism. This division has generally enabled taming computational complexity dealing with the entire system, allowed for using modeling techniques that are specific to each of the components, and achieved separation of the different time scales at which reactions in each of the three networks occur. Nonetheless, with this division comes loss of information and power needed to elucidate certain cellular phenomena. Within the cell, these three types of networks work in tandem, and each produces signals and/or substances that are used by the others to process information and operate normally. Therefore, computational techniques for modeling integrated cellular machinery are needed. In this work, we propose an integrated hybrid model (IHM) that combines Petri nets and Boolean networks to model integrated cellular networks. Coupled with a stochastic simulation mechanism, the model simulates the dynamics of the integrated network, and can be perturbed to generate testable hypotheses. Our model is qualitative and is mostly built upon knowledge from the literature and requires fine-tuning of very few parameters. We validated our model on two systems: the transcriptional regulation of glucose metabolism in human cells, and cellular osmoregulation in S. cerevisiae. The model produced results that are in very good agreement with experimental data, and produces valid hypotheses. The abstract nature of our model and the ease of its construction makes it a very good candidate for modeling integrated networks from qualitative data. The results it produces can guide the practitioner to zoom into components and interconnections and investigate them using such more detailed mathematical models.

Modeling Integrated Cellular Machinery Using Hybrid Petri-Boolean Networks

PubMed Central

Berestovsky, Natalie; Zhou, Wanding; Nagrath, Deepak; Nakhleh, Luay

2013-01-01

The behavior and phenotypic changes of cells are governed by a cellular circuitry that represents a set of biochemical reactions. Based on biological functions, this circuitry is divided into three types of networks, each encoding for a major biological process: signal transduction, transcription regulation, and metabolism. This division has generally enabled taming computational complexity dealing with the entire system, allowed for using modeling techniques that are specific to each of the components, and achieved separation of the different time scales at which reactions in each of the three networks occur. Nonetheless, with this division comes loss of information and power needed to elucidate certain cellular phenomena. Within the cell, these three types of networks work in tandem, and each produces signals and/or substances that are used by the others to process information and operate normally. Therefore, computational techniques for modeling integrated cellular machinery are needed. In this work, we propose an integrated hybrid model (IHM) that combines Petri nets and Boolean networks to model integrated cellular networks. Coupled with a stochastic simulation mechanism, the model simulates the dynamics of the integrated network, and can be perturbed to generate testable hypotheses. Our model is qualitative and is mostly built upon knowledge from the literature and requires fine-tuning of very few parameters. We validated our model on two systems: the transcriptional regulation of glucose metabolism in human cells, and cellular osmoregulation in S. cerevisiae. The model produced results that are in very good agreement with experimental data, and produces valid hypotheses. The abstract nature of our model and the ease of its construction makes it a very good candidate for modeling integrated networks from qualitative data. The results it produces can guide the practitioner to zoom into components and interconnections and investigate them using such more detailed mathematical models. PMID:24244124

Susan Loucks-Horsley learning model in light pollution theme: based on a new taxonomy for science education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liliawati, W.; Utama, J. A.; Fauziah, H.

2016-08-01

The curriculum in Indonesia recommended that science teachers in the elementary and intermediate schools should have interdisciplinary ability in science. However, integrated learning still has not been implemented optimally. This research is designing and applying integrated learning with Susan Loucks-Horsley model in light pollution theme. It can be showed how the student's achievements based on new taxonomy of science education with five domains: knowing & understanding, science process skill, creativity, attitudinal and connecting & applying. This research use mixed methods with concurrent embedded design. The subject is grade 8 of junior high school students in Bandung as many as 27 students. The Instrument have been employed has 28 questions test mastery of concepts, observations sheet and moral dilemma test. The result shows that integrated learning with model Susan Loucks-Horsley is able to increase student's achievement and positive characters on light pollution theme. As the results are the average normalized gain of knowing and understanding domain reach in lower category, the average percentage of science process skill domain reach in good category, the average percentage of creativity and connecting domain reach respectively in good category and attitudinal domain the average percentage is over 75% in moral knowing and moral feeling.

Solving the hypersingular boundary integral equation for the Burton and Miller formulation.

PubMed

Langrenne, Christophe; Garcia, Alexandre; Bonnet, Marc

2015-11-01

This paper presents an easy numerical implementation of the Burton and Miller (BM) formulation, where the hypersingular Helmholtz integral is regularized by identities from the associated Laplace equation and thus needing only the evaluation of weakly singular integrals. The Helmholtz equation and its normal derivative are combined directly with combinations at edge or corner collocation nodes not used when the surface is not smooth. The hypersingular operators arising in this process are regularized and then evaluated by an indirect procedure based on discretized versions of the Calderón identities linking the integral operators for associated Laplace problems. The method is valid for acoustic radiation and scattering problems involving arbitrarily shaped three-dimensional bodies. Unlike other approaches using direct evaluation of hypersingular integrals, collocation points still coincide with mesh nodes, as is usual when using conforming elements. Using higher-order shape functions (with the boundary element method model size kept fixed) reduces the overall numerical integration effort while increasing the solution accuracy. To reduce the condition number of the resulting BM formulation at low frequencies, a regularized version α = ik/(k(2 )+ λ) of the classical BM coupling factor α = i/k is proposed. Comparisons with the combined Helmholtz integral equation Formulation method of Schenck are made for four example configurations, two of them featuring non-smooth surfaces.

Real-time physiological monitoring with distributed networks of sensors and object-oriented programming techniques

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wiesmann, William P.; Pranger, L. Alex; Bogucki, Mary S.

1998-05-01

Remote monitoring of physiologic data from individual high- risk workers distributed over time and space is a considerable challenge. This is often due to an inadequate capability to accurately integrate large amounts of data into usable information in real time. In this report, we have used the vertical and horizontal organization of the 'fireground' as a framework to design a distributed network of sensors. In this system, sensor output is linked through a hierarchical object oriented programing process to accurately interpret physiological data, incorporate these data into a synchronous model and relay processed data, trends and predictions to members of the fire incident command structure. There are several unique aspects to this approach. The first includes a process to account for variability in vital parameter values for each individual's normal physiologic response by including an adaptive network in each data process. This information is used by the model in an iterative process to baseline a 'normal' physiologic response to a given stress for each individual and to detect deviations that indicate dysfunction or a significant insult. The second unique capability of the system orders the information for each user including the subject, local company officers, medical personnel and the incident commanders. Information can be retrieved and used for training exercises and after action analysis. Finally this system can easily be adapted to existing communication and processing links along with incorporating the best parts of current models through the use of object oriented programming techniques. These modern software techniques are well suited to handling multiple data processes independently over time in a distributed network.

Disturbed holistic processing in autism spectrum disorders verified by two cognitive tasks requiring perception of complex visual stimuli.

PubMed

Nakahachi, Takayuki; Yamashita, Ko; Iwase, Masao; Ishigami, Wataru; Tanaka, Chitaru; Toyonaga, Koji; Maeda, Shizuyo; Hirotsune, Hideto; Tei, Yosyo; Yokoi, Koichi; Okajima, Shoji; Shimizu, Akira; Takeda, Masatoshi

2008-06-30

Central coherence is a key concept in research on autism spectrum disorders (ASD). It refers to the process in which diverse information is integrated and higher meaning is constructed in context. A malfunction in this process could result in abnormal attention to partial information in preference to the whole. To verify this hypothesis, we studied the performance of two visual tasks by 10 patients with autistic disorder or Asperger's disorder and by 26 (experiment 1) or 25 (experiment 2) normal subjects. In experiment 1, the subjects memorized pictures, some pictures with a change related to the main theme (D1) and others with a change not related to the main theme (D2); then the same pictures were randomly presented to the subjects who were asked to find the change. In experiment 2, the subjects were presented pictures of a normal (N) or a Thatcherized (T) face arranged side by side inversely (I) or uprightly (U) and to judge them as the same or different. In experiment 1, ASD subjects exhibited significantly lower rates of correct responses in D1 but not in D2. In experiment 2, ASD subjects exhibited significantly longer response times in NT-U but not in TN-I. These results showed a deficit in holistic processing, which is consistent with weak central coherence in ASD.

Lateral Entorhinal Cortex is Critical for Novel Object-Context Recognition

PubMed Central

Wilson, David IG; Langston, Rosamund F; Schlesiger, Magdalene I; Wagner, Monica; Watanabe, Sakurako; Ainge, James A

2013-01-01

Episodic memory incorporates information about specific events or occasions including spatial locations and the contextual features of the environment in which the event took place. It has been modeled in rats using spontaneous exploration of novel configurations of objects, their locations, and the contexts in which they are presented. While we have a detailed understanding of how spatial location is processed in the brain relatively little is known about where the nonspatial contextual components of episodic memory are processed. Initial experiments measured c-fos expression during an object-context recognition (OCR) task to examine which networks within the brain process contextual features of an event. Increased c-fos expression was found in the lateral entorhinal cortex (LEC; a major hippocampal afferent) during OCR relative to control conditions. In a subsequent experiment it was demonstrated that rats with lesions of LEC were unable to recognize object-context associations yet showed normal object recognition and normal context recognition. These data suggest that contextual features of the environment are integrated with object identity in LEC and demonstrate that recognition of such object-context associations requires the LEC. This is consistent with the suggestion that contextual features of an event are processed in LEC and that this information is combined with spatial information from medial entorhinal cortex to form episodic memory in the hippocampus. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. PMID:23389958

Tissue multifractality and hidden Markov model based integrated framework for optimum precancer detection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mukhopadhyay, Sabyasachi; Das, Nandan K.; Kurmi, Indrajit; Pradhan, Asima; Ghosh, Nirmalya; Panigrahi, Prasanta K.

2017-10-01

We report the application of a hidden Markov model (HMM) on multifractal tissue optical properties derived via the Born approximation-based inverse light scattering method for effective discrimination of precancerous human cervical tissue sites from the normal ones. Two global fractal parameters, generalized Hurst exponent and the corresponding singularity spectrum width, computed by multifractal detrended fluctuation analysis (MFDFA), are used here as potential biomarkers. We develop a methodology that makes use of these multifractal parameters by integrating with different statistical classifiers like the HMM and support vector machine (SVM). It is shown that the MFDFA-HMM integrated model achieves significantly better discrimination between normal and different grades of cancer as compared to the MFDFA-SVM integrated model.

Pre-Flight Radiometric Model of Linear Imager on LAPAN-IPB Satellite

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hadi Syafrudin, A.; Salaswati, Sartika; Hasbi, Wahyudi

2018-05-01

LAPAN-IPB Satellite is Microsatellite class with mission of remote sensing experiment. This satellite carrying Multispectral Line Imager for captured of radiometric reflectance value from earth to space. Radiometric quality of image is important factor to classification object on remote sensing process. Before satellite launch in orbit or pre-flight, Line Imager have been tested by Monochromator and integrating sphere to get spectral and every pixel radiometric response characteristic. Pre-flight test data with variety setting of line imager instrument used to see correlation radiance input and digital number of images output. Output input correlation is described by the radiance conversion model with imager setting and radiometric characteristics. Modelling process from hardware level until normalize radiance formula are presented and discussed in this paper.

Cognitive and neuropathologic correlates of Stroop Color-Word Test performance in Alzheimer's disease.

PubMed

Bondi, Mark W; Serody, Adam B; Chan, Agnes S; Eberson-Shumate, Sonja C; Delis, Dean C; Hansen, Lawrence A; Salmon, David P

2002-07-01

The Stroop Color-Word Test (SCWT; C. Golden, 1978) was examined in 59 patients with probable Alzheimer's disease (AD) and in 51 demographically comparable normal control (NC) participants. AD patients produced significantly larger Stroop interference effects than NC participants, and level of dementia severity significantly influenced SCWT performance. Principal-components analyses demonstrated a dissociation in the factor structure of the Stroop trials between NC participants and AD patients, suggesting that disruption of semantic knowledge and speeded verbal processing in AD may be a major contributor to impairment on the incongruent trial. Results of clinicopathologic correlations in an autopsy-confirmed AD subgroup further suggest the invocation of a broad network of integrated cortical regions and executive and language processes underlying successful SCWT performance.

Hybrid quantum and classical methods for computing kinetic isotope effects of chemical reactions in solutions and in enzymes.

PubMed

Gao, Jiali; Major, Dan T; Fan, Yao; Lin, Yen-Lin; Ma, Shuhua; Wong, Kin-Yiu

2008-01-01

A method for incorporating quantum mechanics into enzyme kinetics modeling is presented. Three aspects are emphasized: 1) combined quantum mechanical and molecular mechanical methods are used to represent the potential energy surface for modeling bond forming and breaking processes, 2) instantaneous normal mode analyses are used to incorporate quantum vibrational free energies to the classical potential of mean force, and 3) multidimensional tunneling methods are used to estimate quantum effects on the reaction coordinate motion. Centroid path integral simulations are described to make quantum corrections to the classical potential of mean force. In this method, the nuclear quantum vibrational and tunneling contributions are not separable. An integrated centroid path integral-free energy perturbation and umbrella sampling (PI-FEP/UM) method along with a bisection sampling procedure was summarized, which provides an accurate, easily convergent method for computing kinetic isotope effects for chemical reactions in solution and in enzymes. In the ensemble-averaged variational transition state theory with multidimensional tunneling (EA-VTST/MT), these three aspects of quantum mechanical effects can be individually treated, providing useful insights into the mechanism of enzymatic reactions. These methods are illustrated by applications to a model process in the gas phase, the decarboxylation reaction of N-methyl picolinate in water, and the proton abstraction and reprotonation process catalyzed by alanine racemase. These examples show that the incorporation of quantum mechanical effects is essential for enzyme kinetics simulations.

Video integrated measurement system. [Diagnostic display devices

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Spector, B.; Eilbert, L.; Finando, S.

A Video Integrated Measurement (VIM) System is described which incorporates the use of various noninvasive diagnostic procedures (moire contourography, electromyography, posturometry, infrared thermography, etc.), used individually or in combination, for the evaluation of neuromusculoskeletal and other disorders and their management with biofeedback and other therapeutic procedures. The system provides for measuring individual diagnostic and therapeutic modes, or multiple modes by split screen superimposition, of real time (actual) images of the patient and idealized (ideal-normal) models on a video monitor, along with analog and digital data, graphics, color, and other transduced symbolic information. It is concluded that this system provides anmore » innovative and efficient method by which the therapist and patient can interact in biofeedback training/learning processes and holds considerable promise for more effective measurement and treatment of a wide variety of physical and behavioral disorders.« less

The struggle towards 'the New Normal': a qualitative insight into psychosexual adjustment to prostate cancer.

PubMed

Hanly, Narelle; Mireskandari, Shab; Juraskova, Ilona

2014-07-30

Despite the growing body of literature which highlights the potential for significant and enduring side-effects of prostate cancer treatment, there is limited research exploring the experience of living with the treatment-induced side-effects such as sexual dysfunction, and their repercussions for men and their partners. The aim of this qualitative study was to explore factors influencing psychosexual adjustment, self-perception, and unmet information and support needs of prostate cancer patients and their partners. Twenty-one men, recruited via a prostate cancer support group newsletter, participated in face-to-face semi-structured interviews, which were subjected to thematic analysis. The qualitative analysis revealed three inter-connected main themes which contributed to men's psychosexual adjustment: i) Psychosexual impact, ii) Communication and support, and iii) Integration process. Men reported distressing sexual and urinary difficulties, tainted self-perception and altered intimate relationships. Receiving adequate information and support, and having good communication with their doctors and partners facilitated better adjustment to prostate cancer treatment. Coming to terms with the significant impact of treatment had involved making lifestyle changes, coping with emotional struggles and striving to accept and integrate their post-treatment "new normal" self and sexual life. The importance of adequate communication with health professionals and partners, especially regarding treatment effects on sexual function and rehabilitation options, was highlighted as a key factor facilitating the adjustment process. Prostate cancer patients would benefit from improved access to timely and tailored information and decision-making resources, ongoing multidisciplinary care, and support groups, as well as appropriate referrals for sexual and psychological counselling.

Microsoft C#.NET program and electromagnetic depth sounding for large loop source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prabhakar Rao, K.; Ashok Babu, G.

2009-07-01

A program, in the C# (C Sharp) language with Microsoft.NET Framework, is developed to compute the normalized vertical magnetic field of a horizontal rectangular loop source placed on the surface of an n-layered earth. The field can be calculated either inside or outside the loop. Five C# classes with member functions in each class are, designed to compute the kernel, Hankel transform integral, coefficients for cubic spline interpolation between computed values and the normalized vertical magnetic field. The program computes the vertical magnetic field in the frequency domain using the integral expressions evaluated by a combination of straightforward numerical integration and the digital filter technique. The code utilizes different object-oriented programming (OOP) features. It finally computes the amplitude and phase of the normalized vertical magnetic field. The computed results are presented for geometric and parametric soundings. The code is developed in Microsoft.NET visual studio 2003 and uses various system class libraries.

Elasticity Solution of an Adhesively Bonded Cover Plate of Various Geometries

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Aksel, G. N.; Erdogan, F.

1985-01-01

The plane strain of adhesively bonded structures consisting of two different isotropic adherends is considered. By expressing the x-y components of the displacements in terms of Fourier integrals and using the corresponding boundary and continuity conditions, the integral equations for the general problem are obtained and solved numerically by applying Gauss-Chebyshev integration scheme. The shear and the normal stresses in the adhesive are calculated for various geometries and material properties for a stiffened plate under uniaxial tension. Numerical results involving the stress intensity factors and the strain energy release rate are presented. The closed-form expressions for the Fredholm kernels are provided to obtain the solution for an arbitrary geometry and material properties. For the general geometry, the contribution of the normal stress is quite significant, while for symmetric geometries, the shear stress is dominant, the normal stress vanishes if the adherends are of the same material and the same thickness.

High-frequency Born synthetic seismograms based on coupled normal modes

USGS Publications Warehouse

Pollitz, Fred F.

2011-01-01

High-frequency and full waveform synthetic seismograms on a 3-D laterally heterogeneous earth model are simulated using the theory of coupled normal modes. The set of coupled integral equations that describe the 3-D response are simplified into a set of uncoupled integral equations by using the Born approximation to calculate scattered wavefields and the pure-path approximation to modulate the phase of incident and scattered wavefields. This depends upon a decomposition of the aspherical structure into smooth and rough components. The uncoupled integral equations are discretized and solved in the frequency domain, and time domain results are obtained by inverse Fourier transform. Examples show the utility of the normal mode approach to synthesize the seismic wavefields resulting from interaction with a combination of rough and smooth structural heterogeneities. This approach is applied to an ∼4 Hz shallow crustal wave propagation around the site of the San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth (SAFOD).

Mass tracking and material accounting in the integral fast reactor (IFR)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Orechwa, Y.; Adams, C.H.; White, A.M.

1991-01-01

This paper reports on the Integral Fast Reactor (IFR) which is a generic advanced liquid metal cooled reactor concept being developed at Argonne National Laboratory. There are a number of technical features of the IFR which contribute to its potential as a next-generation reactor. These are associated with large safety margins with regard to off-normal events involving the heat transport system, and the use of metallic fuel which makes possible the utilization of innovative fuel cycle processes. The latter feature permits fuel cycle closure with compact, low-cost reprocessing facilities, collocated with the reactor plant. These primary features are being demonstratedmore » in the facilities at ANL-West, utilizing Experimental Breeder Reactor II and the associated Fuel Cycle Facility (FCF) as an IFR prototype. The demonstration of this IFR prototype includes the design and implementation of the Mass-tracking System (MTG). In this system, data from the operations of the FCF, including weights and batch-process parameters, are collected and maintained by the MTG running on distributed workstations.« less

Laminin and biomimetic extracellular elasticity enhance functional differentiation in mammary epithelia

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Alcaraz, Jordi; Xu, Ren; Mori, Hidetoshi

2008-10-20

In the mammary gland, epithelial cells are embedded in a 'soft' environment and become functionally differentiated in culture when exposed to a laminin-rich extracellular matrix gel. Here, we define the processes by which mammary epithelial cells integrate biochemical and mechanical extracellular cues to maintain their differentiated phenotype. We used single cells cultured on top of gels in conditions permissive for {beta}-casein expression using atomic force microscopy to measure the elasticity of the cells and their underlying substrata. We found that maintenance of {beta}-casein expression required both laminin signalling and a 'soft' extracellular matrix, as is the case in normal tissuesmore » in vivo, and biomimetic intracellular elasticity, as is the case in primary mammary epithelial organoids. Conversely, two hallmarks of breast cancer development, stiffening of the extracellular matrix and loss of laminin signalling, led to the loss of {beta}-casein expression and non-biomimetic intracellular elasticity. Our data indicate that tissue-specific gene expression is controlled by both the tissues unique biochemical milieu and mechanical properties, processes involved in maintenance of tissue integrity and protection against tumorigenesis.« less

Integration of human sleep-wake regulation and circadian rhythmicity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dijk, Derk-Jan; Lockley, Steven W.

2002-01-01

The human sleep-wake cycle is generated by a circadian process, originating from the suprachiasmatic nuclei, in interaction with a separate oscillatory process: the sleep homeostat. The sleep-wake cycle is normally timed to occur at a specific phase relative to the external cycle of light-dark exposure. It is also timed at a specific phase relative to internal circadian rhythms, such as the pineal melatonin rhythm, the circadian sleep-wake propensity rhythm, and the rhythm of responsiveness of the circadian pacemaker to light. Variations in these internal and external phase relationships, such as those that occur in blindness, aging, morning and evening, and advanced and delayed sleep-phase syndrome, lead to sleep disruptions and complaints. Changes in ocular circadian photoreception, interindividual variation in the near-24-h intrinsic period of the circadian pacemaker, and sleep homeostasis can contribute to variations in external and internal phase. Recent findings on the physiological and molecular-genetic correlates of circadian sleep disorders suggest that the timing of the sleep-wake cycle and circadian rhythms is closely integrated but is, in part, regulated differentially.

Viruses Associated with Human Cancer

PubMed Central

McLaughlin-Drubin, Margaret E.; Munger, Karl

2008-01-01

It is estimated that viral infections contribute to 15–20% of all human cancers. As obligatory intracellular parasites, viruses encode proteins that reprogram host cellular signaling pathways that control proliferation, differentiation, cell death, genomic integrity, and recognition by the immune system. These cellular processes are governed by complex and redundant regulatory networks and are surveyed by sentinel mechanisms that ensure that aberrant cells are removed from the proliferative pool. Given that the genome size of a virus is highly restricted to ensure packaging within an infectious structure, viruses must target cellular regulatory nodes with limited redundancy and need to inactivate surveillance mechanisms that would normally recognize and extinguish such abnormal cells. In many cases, key proteins in these same regulatory networks are subject to mutation in non-virally associated diseases and cancers. Oncogenic viruses have thus served as important experimental models to identify and molecularly investigate such cellular networks. These include the discovery of oncogenes and tumor suppressors, identification of regulatory networks that are critical for maintenance of genomic integrity, and processes that govern immune surveillance. PMID:18201576

Optimal filtering and Bayesian detection for friction-based diagnostics in machines.

PubMed

Ray, L R; Townsend, J R; Ramasubramanian, A

2001-01-01

Non-model-based diagnostic methods typically rely on measured signals that must be empirically related to process behavior or incipient faults. The difficulty in interpreting a signal that is indirectly related to the fundamental process behavior is significant. This paper presents an integrated non-model and model-based approach to detecting when process behavior varies from a proposed model. The method, which is based on nonlinear filtering combined with maximum likelihood hypothesis testing, is applicable to dynamic systems whose constitutive model is well known, and whose process inputs are poorly known. Here, the method is applied to friction estimation and diagnosis during motion control in a rotating machine. A nonlinear observer estimates friction torque in a machine from shaft angular position measurements and the known input voltage to the motor. The resulting friction torque estimate can be analyzed directly for statistical abnormalities, or it can be directly compared to friction torque outputs of an applicable friction process model in order to diagnose faults or model variations. Nonlinear estimation of friction torque provides a variable on which to apply diagnostic methods that is directly related to model variations or faults. The method is evaluated experimentally by its ability to detect normal load variations in a closed-loop controlled motor driven inertia with bearing friction and an artificially-induced external line contact. Results show an ability to detect statistically significant changes in friction characteristics induced by normal load variations over a wide range of underlying friction behaviors.

The Complexity of Integrity Culture Change: A Case Study of a Liberal Arts College

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bertram Gallant, Tricia

2007-01-01

The concept of academic integrity has been resurrected in both literature and practice in response to a perceived problem of student academic dishonesty. Most specifically, academic integrity advocates suggest changing the student academic culture to normalize academic integrity and reduce occurrences of academic dishonesty. Theories of…

The SARVIEWS Project: Automated SAR Processing in Support of Operational Near Real-time Volcano Monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meyer, F. J.; Webley, P. W.; Dehn, J.; Arko, S. A.; McAlpin, D. B.; Gong, W.

2016-12-01

Volcanic eruptions are among the most significant hazards to human society, capable of triggering natural disasters on regional to global scales. In the last decade, remote sensing has become established in operational volcano monitoring. Centers like the Alaska Volcano Observatory rely heavily on remote sensing data from optical and thermal sensors to provide time-critical hazard information. Despite this high use of remote sensing data, the presence of clouds and a dependence on solar illumination often limit their impact on decision making. Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) systems are widely considered superior to optical sensors in operational monitoring situations, due to their weather and illumination independence. Still, the contribution of SAR to operational volcano monitoring has been limited in the past due to high data costs, long processing times, and low temporal sampling rates of most SAR systems. In this study, we introduce the automatic SAR processing system SARVIEWS, whose advanced data analysis and data integration techniques allow, for the first time, a meaningful integration of SAR into operational monitoring systems. We will introduce the SARVIEWS database interface that allows for automatic, rapid, and seamless access to the data holdings of the Alaska Satellite Facility. We will also present a set of processing techniques designed to automatically generate a set of SAR-based hazard products (e.g. change detection maps, interferograms, geocoded images). The techniques take advantage of modern signal processing and radiometric normalization schemes, enabling the combination of data from different geometries. Finally, we will show how SAR-based hazard information is integrated in existing multi-sensor decision support tools to enable joint hazard analysis with data from optical and thermal sensors. We will showcase the SAR processing system using a set of recent natural disasters (both earthquakes and volcanic eruptions) to demonstrate its robustness. We will also show the benefit of integrating SAR with data from other sensors to support volcano monitoring. For historic eruptions at Okmok and Augustine volcano, both located in the North Pacific, we will demonstrate that the addition of SAR can lead to a significant improvement in activity detection and eruption forecasting.

Calbindin D-28k and parvalbumin immunoreactivity in the frontal cortex in patients with frontal lobe dementia of non-Alzheimer type associated with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

PubMed Central

Ferrer, I; Tuñón, T; Serrano, M T; Casas, R; Alcántara, S; Zújar, M J; Rivera, R M

1993-01-01

The morphology and distribution of local-circuit neurons (interneurons) were examined, by calbindin D-28k and parvalbumin immunocytochemistry, in the frontal cortex (area 8) in two patients with frontal lobe dementia of non-Alzheimer type associated with classical amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and in seven normal cases. The density of calbindin D-28k immunoreactive cells was dramatically reduced in ALS patients, but the density of parvalbumin-immunoreactive neurons was preserved. Decreased density of calbindin D-28k-immunoreactive neurons, which are mainly located in the upper cortical layers, may interfere with the normal processing of cortico-cortical connections, whereas integrity of parvalbumin-immunoreactive cells may be associated with the preservation of the major inhibitory intracortical circuits in patients with frontal lobe dementia. Images PMID:8459241

Anxiety, social skills, friendship quality, and peer victimization: an integrated model.

PubMed

Crawford, A Melissa; Manassis, Katharina

2011-10-01

This cross-sectional study investigated whether anxiety and social functioning interact in their prediction of peer victimization. A structural equation model linking anxiety, social skills, and friendship quality to victimization was tested separately for children with anxiety disorders and normal comparison children to explore whether the processes involved in victimization differ for these groups. Participants were 8-14 year old children: 55 (34 boys, 21 girls) diagnosed with an anxiety disorder and 85 (37 boys, 48 girls) normal comparison children. The final models for both groups yielded two independent pathways to victimization: (a) anxiety independently predicted being victimized; and (b) poor social skills predicted lower friendship quality, which in turn, placed a child at risk for victimization. These findings have important implications for the treatment of childhood anxiety disorders and for school-based anti-bullying interventions, but replication with larger samples is indicated. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A concept for canceling the leakage field inside the stored beam chamber of a septum magnet

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Abliz, M.; Jaski, M.; Xiao, A.

Here, the Advanced Photon Source is in the process of upgrading its storage ring from a double-bend to a multi-bend lattice as part of the APS Upgrade Project (APS-U). A swap-out injection scheme is planned for the APS-U to keep a constant beam current and to enable a small dynamic aperture. A novel concept that cancels out the effect of leakage field inside the stored beam chamber was introduced in the design of the septum magnet. As a result, the horizontal deflecting angle of the stored beam was reduced to below 1 µrad with a 2 mm septum thickness andmore » 1.06 T normal injection field. The concept helped to minimize the integrated skew quadrupole field and normal sextupole fields inside stored beam chamber as well.« less

Dynamic calibration of fast-response probes in low-pressure shock tubes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Persico, G.; Gaetani, P.; Guardone, A.

2005-09-01

Shock tube flows resulting from the incomplete burst of the diaphragm are investigated in connection with the dynamic calibration of fast-response pressure probes. As a result of the partial opening of the diaphragm, pressure disturbances are observed past the shock wave and the measured total pressure profile deviates from the envisaged step signal required by the calibration process. Pressure oscillations are generated as the initially normal shock wave diffracts from the diaphragm's orifice and reflects on the shock tube walls, with the lowest local frequency roughly equal to the ratio of the sound speed in the perturbed region to the shock tube diameter. The energy integral of the perturbations decreases with increasing distance from the diaphragm, as the diffracted leading shock and downwind reflections coalesce into a single normal shock. A procedure is proposed to calibrate fast-response pressure probes downwind of a partially opened shock tube diaphragm.

Intestinal "bioavailability" of solutes and water: we know how but not why.

PubMed Central

Charney, A. N.

1996-01-01

Only minimal quantities of ingested and normally secreted solutes and water are excreted in the stool. This near 100% bioavailability means that the diet and kidneys are relatively more important determinants of solute, water and acid-base balance than the intestine. Intestinal bioavailability is based on excess transport capacity under normal conditions and the ability to adapt to altered or abnormal conditions. Indeed, the regulatory system of the intestine is as complex, segmented and multi factorial as in the kidney. Alterations in the rate and intestinal site of absorption reflect this regulation, and the diagnosis and treatment of various clinical abnormalities depend on the integrity of intestinal absorptive processes. However, the basis for this regulation an bioavailability are uncertain. Perhaps they had survival value for mammals, a phylogenic class that faced the twin threats of intestinal pathogens and shortages of solutes and water. PMID:9273987

Analysis of Realized Volatility for Nikkei Stock Average on the Tokyo Stock Exchange

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Takaishi, Tetsuya; Watanabe, Toshiaki

2016-04-01

We calculate realized volatility of the Nikkei Stock Average (Nikkei225) Index on the Tokyo Stock Exchange and investigate the return dynamics. To avoid the bias on the realized volatility from the non-trading hours issue we calculate realized volatility separately in the two trading sessions, i.e. morning and afternoon, of the Tokyo Stock Exchange and find that the microstructure noise decreases the realized volatility at small sampling frequency. Using realized volatility as a proxy of the integrated volatility we standardize returns in the morning and afternoon sessions and investigate the normality of the standardized returns by calculating variance, kurtosis and 6th moment. We find that variance, kurtosis and 6th moment are consistent with those of the standard normal distribution, which indicates that the return dynamics of the Nikkei Stock Average are well described by a Gaussian random process with time-varying volatility.

Weighting Statistical Inputs for Data Used to Support Effective Decision Making During Severe Emergency Weather and Environmental Events

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gardner, Adrian

2010-01-01

National Aeronautical and Space Administration (NASA) weather and atmospheric environmental organizations are insatiable consumers of geophysical, hydrometeorological and solar weather statistics. The expanding array of internet-worked sensors producing targeted physical measurements has generated an almost factorial explosion of near real-time inputs to topical statistical datasets. Normalizing and value-based parsing of such statistical datasets in support of time-constrained weather and environmental alerts and warnings is essential, even with dedicated high-performance computational capabilities. What are the optimal indicators for advanced decision making? How do we recognize the line between sufficient statistical sampling and excessive, mission destructive sampling ? How do we assure that the normalization and parsing process, when interpolated through numerical models, yields accurate and actionable alerts and warnings? This presentation will address the integrated means and methods to achieve desired outputs for NASA and consumers of its data.

A concept for canceling the leakage field inside the stored beam chamber of a septum magnet

DOE PAGES

Abliz, M.; Jaski, M.; Xiao, A.; ...

2017-12-20

Here, the Advanced Photon Source is in the process of upgrading its storage ring from a double-bend to a multi-bend lattice as part of the APS Upgrade Project (APS-U). A swap-out injection scheme is planned for the APS-U to keep a constant beam current and to enable a small dynamic aperture. A novel concept that cancels out the effect of leakage field inside the stored beam chamber was introduced in the design of the septum magnet. As a result, the horizontal deflecting angle of the stored beam was reduced to below 1 µrad with a 2 mm septum thickness andmore » 1.06 T normal injection field. The concept helped to minimize the integrated skew quadrupole field and normal sextupole fields inside stored beam chamber as well.« less

Successful implementation of an enhanced recovery after surgery programme for elective colorectal surgery: a process evaluation of champions' experiences.

PubMed

Gotlib Conn, Lesley; McKenzie, Marg; Pearsall, Emily A; McLeod, Robin S

2015-07-17

Enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) is a multimodal evidence-based approach to patient care that has become the standard in elective colorectal surgery. Implemented globally, ERAS programmes represent a considerable change in practice for many surgical care providers. Our current understanding of specific implementation and sustainability challenges is limited. In January 2013, we began a 2-year ERAS implementation for elective colorectal surgery in 15 academic hospitals in Ontario. The purpose of this study was to understand the process enablers and barriers that influenced the success of ERAS implementation in these centres with a view towards supporting sustainable change. A qualitative process evaluation was conducted from June to September 2014. Semi-structured interviews with implementation champions were completed, and an iterative inductive thematic analysis was conducted. Following a data-driven analysis, the Normalization Process Theory (NPT) was used as an analytic framework to understand the impact of various implementation processes. The NPT constructs were used as sensitizing concepts, reviewed against existing data categories for alignment and fit. Fifty-eight participants were included: 15 surgeons, 14 anaesthesiologists, 15 nurses, and 14 project coordinators. A number of process-related implementation enablers were identified: champions' belief in the value of the programme, the fit and cohesion of champions and their teams locally and provincially, a bottom-up approach to stakeholder engagement targeting organizational relationship-building, receptivity and support of division leaders, and the normalization of ERAS as everyday practice. Technical enablers identified included effective integration with existing clinical systems and using audit and feedback to report to hospital stakeholders. There was an overall optimism that ERAS implementation would be sustained, accompanied by concern about long-term organizational support. Successful ERAS implementation is achieved by a complex series of cognitive and social processes which previously have not been well described. Using the Normalization Process Theory as a framework, this analysis demonstrates the importance of champion coherence, external and internal relationship building, and the strategic management of a project's organization-level visibility as important to ERAS uptake and sustainability.

A CMOS smart temperature and humidity sensor with combined readout.

PubMed

Eder, Clemens; Valente, Virgilio; Donaldson, Nick; Demosthenous, Andreas

2014-09-16

A fully-integrated complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) sensor for combined temperature and humidity measurements is presented. The main purpose of the device is to monitor the hermeticity of micro-packages for implanted integrated circuits and to ensure their safe operation by monitoring the operating temperature and humidity on-chip. The smart sensor has two modes of operation, in which either the temperature or humidity is converted into a digital code representing a frequency ratio between two oscillators. This ratio is determined by the ratios of the timing capacitances and bias currents in both oscillators. The reference oscillator is biased by a current whose temperature dependency is complementary to the proportional to absolute temperature (PTAT) current. For the temperature measurement, this results in an exceptional normalized sensitivity of about 0.77%/°C at the accepted expense of reduced linearity. The humidity sensor is a capacitor, whose value varies linearly with relative humidity (RH) with a normalized sensitivity of 0.055%/% RH. For comparison, two versions of the humidity sensor with an area of either 0.2 mm2 or 1.2 mm2 were fabricated in a commercial 0.18 μm CMOS process. The on-chip readout electronics operate from a 5 V power supply and consume a current of approximately 85 µA.

The Brain as a Mixer, II. A Pilot Study of Central Auditory Integration Abilities of Normal and Retarded Children. Studies in Language and Language Behavior, Progress Report Number VII.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Semmel, Melvyn I.; And Others

To explore the binaural integration abilities of six educable mentally retarded boys (ages 8 to 13) and six normal boys (ages 7 to 12) to detect possible brain inju"y, an adaptation of Matzker's (1958) technique involving separating words into high and low frequencies was used. One frequency filter system presented frequencies from 425 to 1275…

Data preprocessing methods of FT-NIR spectral data for the classification cooking oil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ruah, Mas Ezatul Nadia Mohd; Rasaruddin, Nor Fazila; Fong, Sim Siong; Jaafar, Mohd Zuli

2014-12-01

This recent work describes the data pre-processing method of FT-NIR spectroscopy datasets of cooking oil and its quality parameters with chemometrics method. Pre-processing of near-infrared (NIR) spectral data has become an integral part of chemometrics modelling. Hence, this work is dedicated to investigate the utility and effectiveness of pre-processing algorithms namely row scaling, column scaling and single scaling process with Standard Normal Variate (SNV). The combinations of these scaling methods have impact on exploratory analysis and classification via Principle Component Analysis plot (PCA). The samples were divided into palm oil and non-palm cooking oil. The classification model was build using FT-NIR cooking oil spectra datasets in absorbance mode at the range of 4000cm-1-14000cm-1. Savitzky Golay derivative was applied before developing the classification model. Then, the data was separated into two sets which were training set and test set by using Duplex method. The number of each class was kept equal to 2/3 of the class that has the minimum number of sample. Then, the sample was employed t-statistic as variable selection method in order to select which variable is significant towards the classification models. The evaluation of data pre-processing were looking at value of modified silhouette width (mSW), PCA and also Percentage Correctly Classified (%CC). The results show that different data processing strategies resulting to substantial amount of model performances quality. The effects of several data pre-processing i.e. row scaling, column standardisation and single scaling process with Standard Normal Variate indicated by mSW and %CC. At two PCs model, all five classifier gave high %CC except Quadratic Distance Analysis.

Directional templates for real-time detection of coronal axis rotated faces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perez, Claudio A.; Estevez, Pablo A.; Garate, Patricio

2004-10-01

Real-time face and iris detection on video images has gained renewed attention because of multiple possible applications in studying eye function, drowsiness detection, virtual keyboard interfaces, face recognition, video processing and multimedia retrieval. In this paper, a study is presented on using directional templates in the detection of faces rotated in the coronal axis. The templates are built by extracting the directional image information from the regions of the eyes, nose and mouth. The face position is determined by computing a line integral using the templates over the face directional image. The line integral reaches a maximum when it coincides with the face position. It is shown an improvement in localization selectivity by the increased value in the line integral computed with the directional template. Besides, improvements in the line integral value for face size and face rotation angle was also found through the computation of the line integral using the directional template. Based on these results the new templates should improve selectivity and hence provide the means to restrict computations to a fewer number of templates and restrict the region of search during the face and eye tracking procedure. The proposed method is real time, completely non invasive and was applied with no background limitation and normal illumination conditions in an indoor environment.

Integration of gene normalization stages and co-reference resolution using a Markov logic network.

PubMed

Dai, Hong-Jie; Chang, Yen-Ching; Tsai, Richard Tzong-Han; Hsu, Wen-Lian

2011-09-15

Gene normalization (GN) is the task of normalizing a textual gene mention to a unique gene database ID. Traditional top performing GN systems usually need to consider several constraints to make decisions in the normalization process, including filtering out false positives, or disambiguating an ambiguous gene mention, to improve system performance. However, these constraints are usually executed in several separate stages and cannot use each other's input/output interactively. In this article, we propose a novel approach that employs a Markov logic network (MLN) to model the constraints used in the GN task. Firstly, we show how various constraints can be formulated and combined in an MLN. Secondly, we are the first to apply the two main concepts of co-reference resolution-discourse salience in centering theory and transitivity-to GN models. Furthermore, to make our results more relevant to developers of information extraction applications, we adopt the instance-based precision/recall/F-measure (PRF) in addition to the article-wide PRF to assess system performance. Experimental results show that our system outperforms baseline and state-of-the-art systems under two evaluation schemes. Through further analysis, we have found several unexplored challenges in the GN task. hongjie@iis.sinica.edu.tw Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

Computational Study of Thrombus Formation and Clotting Factor Effects under Venous Flow Conditions

PubMed Central

Govindarajan, Vijay; Rakesh, Vineet; Reifman, Jaques; Mitrophanov, Alexander Y.

2016-01-01

A comprehensive understanding of thrombus formation as a physicochemical process that has evolved to protect the integrity of the human vasculature is critical to our ability to predict and control pathological states caused by a malfunctioning blood coagulation system. Despite numerous investigations, the spatial and temporal details of thrombus growth as a multicomponent process are not fully understood. Here, we used computational modeling to investigate the temporal changes in the spatial distributions of the key enzymatic (i.e., thrombin) and structural (i.e., platelets and fibrin) components within a growing thrombus. Moreover, we investigated the interplay between clot structure and its mechanical properties, such as hydraulic resistance to flow. Our model relied on the coupling of computational fluid dynamics and biochemical kinetics, and was validated using flow-chamber data from a previous experimental study. The model allowed us to identify the distinct patterns characterizing the spatial distributions of thrombin, platelets, and fibrin accumulating within a thrombus. Our modeling results suggested that under the simulated conditions, thrombin kinetics was determined predominantly by prothrombinase. Furthermore, our simulations showed that thrombus resistance imparted by fibrin was ∼30-fold higher than that imparted by platelets. Yet, thrombus-mediated bloodflow occlusion was driven primarily by the platelet deposition process, because the height of the platelet accumulation domain was approximately twice that of the fibrin accumulation domain. Fibrinogen supplementation in normal blood resulted in a nonlinear increase in thrombus resistance, and for a supplemented fibrinogen level of 48%, the thrombus resistance increased by ∼2.7-fold. Finally, our model predicted that restoring the normal levels of clotting factors II, IX, and X while simultaneously restoring fibrinogen (to 88% of its normal level) in diluted blood can restore fibrin generation to ∼78% of its normal level and hence improve clot formation under dilution. PMID:27119646

The Assessment of Postural Control, Reflex Integration, and Bilateral Motor Coordination of Young Handicapped Children. Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DeGangi, Georgia; Larsen, Lawrence A.

A measurement device, Assessment of Sensorimotor Integration in Preschool Children, was developed to assess postural control, reflex integration and bilateral motor integration in developmentally delayed children (3 to 5 years old). The test was administered to 113 normal children and results were compared with data collected on 23 developmentally…

Dynamic load simulator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Joncas, K. P.

1972-01-01

Concepts and techniques for identifying and simulating both the steady state and dynamic characteristics of electrical loads for use during integrated system test and evaluation are discussed. The investigations showed that it is feasible to design and develop interrogation and simulation equipment to perform the desired functions. During the evaluation, actual spacecraft loads were interrogated by stimulating the loads with their normal input voltage and measuring the resultant voltage and current time histories. Elements of the circuits were optimized by an iterative process of selecting element values and comparing the time-domain response of the model with those obtained from the real equipment during interrogation.

Optical characterization of pancreatic normal and tumor tissues with double integrating sphere system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kiris, Tugba; Akbulut, Saadet; Kiris, Aysenur; Gucin, Zuhal; Karatepe, Oguzhan; Bölükbasi Ates, Gamze; Tabakoǧlu, Haşim Özgür

2015-03-01

In order to develop minimally invasive, fast and precise diagnostic and therapeutic methods in medicine by using optical methods, first step is to examine how the light propagates, scatters and transmitted through medium. So as to find out appropriate wavelengths, it is required to correctly determine the optical properties of tissues. The aim of this study is to measure the optical properties of both cancerous and normal ex-vivo pancreatic tissues. Results will be compared to detect how cancerous and normal tissues respond to different wavelengths. Double-integrating-sphere system and computational technique inverse adding doubling method (IAD) were used in the study. Absorption and reduced scattering coefficients of normal and cancerous pancreatic tissues have been measured within the range of 500-650 nm. Statistical significant differences between cancerous and normal tissues have been obtained at 550 nm and 630 nm for absorption coefficients. On the other hand; there were no statistical difference found for scattering coefficients at any wavelength.

Mechanisms for Rapid Adaptive Control of Motion Processing in Macaque Visual Cortex.

PubMed

McLelland, Douglas; Baker, Pamela M; Ahmed, Bashir; Kohn, Adam; Bair, Wyeth

2015-07-15

A key feature of neural networks is their ability to rapidly adjust their function, including signal gain and temporal dynamics, in response to changes in sensory inputs. These adjustments are thought to be important for optimizing the sensitivity of the system, yet their mechanisms remain poorly understood. We studied adaptive changes in temporal integration in direction-selective cells in macaque primary visual cortex, where specific hypotheses have been proposed to account for rapid adaptation. By independently stimulating direction-specific channels, we found that the control of temporal integration of motion at one direction was independent of motion signals driven at the orthogonal direction. We also found that individual neurons can simultaneously support two different profiles of temporal integration for motion in orthogonal directions. These findings rule out a broad range of adaptive mechanisms as being key to the control of temporal integration, including untuned normalization and nonlinearities of spike generation and somatic adaptation in the recorded direction-selective cells. Such mechanisms are too broadly tuned, or occur too far downstream, to explain the channel-specific and multiplexed temporal integration that we observe in single neurons. Instead, we are compelled to conclude that parallel processing pathways are involved, and we demonstrate one such circuit using a computer model. This solution allows processing in different direction/orientation channels to be separately optimized and is sensible given that, under typical motion conditions (e.g., translation or looming), speed on the retina is a function of the orientation of image components. Many neurons in visual cortex are understood in terms of their spatial and temporal receptive fields. It is now known that the spatiotemporal integration underlying visual responses is not fixed but depends on the visual input. For example, neurons that respond selectively to motion direction integrate signals over a shorter time window when visual motion is fast and a longer window when motion is slow. We investigated the mechanisms underlying this useful adaptation by recording from neurons as they responded to stimuli moving in two different directions at different speeds. Computer simulations of our results enabled us to rule out several candidate theories in favor of a model that integrates across multiple parallel channels that operate at different time scales. Copyright © 2015 the authors 0270-6474/15/3510268-13$15.00/0.

Multi-tasking arbitration and behaviour design for human-interactive robots

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kobayashi, Yuichi; Onishi, Masaki; Hosoe, Shigeyuki; Luo, Zhiwei

2013-05-01

Robots that interact with humans in household environments are required to handle multiple real-time tasks simultaneously, such as carrying objects, collision avoidance and conversation with human. This article presents a design framework for the control and recognition processes to meet these requirements taking into account stochastic human behaviour. The proposed design method first introduces a Petri net for synchronisation of multiple tasks. The Petri net formulation is converted to Markov decision processes and processed in an optimal control framework. Three tasks (safety confirmation, object conveyance and conversation) interact and are expressed by the Petri net. Using the proposed framework, tasks that normally tend to be designed by integrating many if-then rules can be designed in a systematic manner in a state estimation and optimisation framework from the viewpoint of the shortest time optimal control. The proposed arbitration method was verified by simulations and experiments using RI-MAN, which was developed for interactive tasks with humans.

Evaluation of Mean and Variance Integrals without Integration

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Joarder, A. H.; Omar, M. H.

2007-01-01

The mean and variance of some continuous distributions, in particular the exponentially decreasing probability distribution and the normal distribution, are considered. Since they involve integration by parts, many students do not feel comfortable. In this note, a technique is demonstrated for deriving mean and variance through differential…

Integrated model-based retargeting and optical proximity correction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Agarwal, Kanak B.; Banerjee, Shayak

2011-04-01

Conventional resolution enhancement techniques (RET) are becoming increasingly inadequate at addressing the challenges of subwavelength lithography. In particular, features show high sensitivity to process variation in low-k1 lithography. Process variation aware RETs such as process-window OPC are becoming increasingly important to guarantee high lithographic yield, but such techniques suffer from high runtime impact. An alternative to PWOPC is to perform retargeting, which is a rule-assisted modification of target layout shapes to improve their process window. However, rule-based retargeting is not a scalable technique since rules cannot cover the entire search space of two-dimensional shape configurations, especially with technology scaling. In this paper, we propose to integrate the processes of retargeting and optical proximity correction (OPC). We utilize the normalized image log slope (NILS) metric, which is available at no extra computational cost during OPC. We use NILS to guide dynamic target modification between iterations of OPC. We utilize the NILS tagging capabilities of Calibre TCL scripting to identify fragments with low NILS. We then perform NILS binning to assign different magnitude of retargeting to different NILS bins. NILS is determined both for width, to identify regions of pinching, and space, to locate regions of potential bridging. We develop an integrated flow for 1x metal lines (M1) which exhibits lesser lithographic hotspots compared to a flow with just OPC and no retargeting. We also observe cases where hotspots that existed in the rule-based retargeting flow are fixed using our methodology. We finally also demonstrate that such a retargeting methodology does not significantly alter design properties by electrically simulating a latch layout before and after retargeting. We observe less than 1% impact on latch Clk-Q and D-Q delays post-retargeting, which makes this methodology an attractive one for use in improving shape process windows without perturbing designed values.

SUPERPOSITION OF POLYTROPES IN THE INNER HELIOSHEATH

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Livadiotis, G., E-mail: glivadiotis@swri.edu

2016-03-15

This paper presents a possible generalization of the equation of state and Bernoulli's integral when a superposition of polytropic processes applies in space and astrophysical plasmas. The theory of polytropic thermodynamic processes for a fixed polytropic index is extended for a superposition of polytropic indices. In general, the superposition may be described by any distribution of polytropic indices, but emphasis is placed on a Gaussian distribution. The polytropic density–temperature relation has been used in numerous analyses of space plasma data. This linear relation on a log–log scale is now generalized to a concave-downward parabola that is able to describe themore » observations better. The model of the Gaussian superposition of polytropes is successfully applied in the proton plasma of the inner heliosheath. The estimated mean polytropic index is near zero, indicating the dominance of isobaric thermodynamic processes in the sheath, similar to other previously published analyses. By computing Bernoulli's integral and applying its conservation along the equator of the inner heliosheath, the magnetic field in the inner heliosheath is estimated, B ∼ 2.29 ± 0.16 μG. The constructed normalized histogram of the values of the magnetic field is similar to that derived from a different method that uses the concept of large-scale quantization, bringing incredible insights to this novel theory.« less

Superposition of Polytropes in the Inner Heliosheath

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Livadiotis, G.

2016-03-01

This paper presents a possible generalization of the equation of state and Bernoulli's integral when a superposition of polytropic processes applies in space and astrophysical plasmas. The theory of polytropic thermodynamic processes for a fixed polytropic index is extended for a superposition of polytropic indices. In general, the superposition may be described by any distribution of polytropic indices, but emphasis is placed on a Gaussian distribution. The polytropic density-temperature relation has been used in numerous analyses of space plasma data. This linear relation on a log-log scale is now generalized to a concave-downward parabola that is able to describe the observations better. The model of the Gaussian superposition of polytropes is successfully applied in the proton plasma of the inner heliosheath. The estimated mean polytropic index is near zero, indicating the dominance of isobaric thermodynamic processes in the sheath, similar to other previously published analyses. By computing Bernoulli's integral and applying its conservation along the equator of the inner heliosheath, the magnetic field in the inner heliosheath is estimated, B ˜ 2.29 ± 0.16 μG. The constructed normalized histogram of the values of the magnetic field is similar to that derived from a different method that uses the concept of large-scale quantization, bringing incredible insights to this novel theory.

Degradation of labial information modifies audiovisual speech perception in cochlear-implanted children.

PubMed

Huyse, Aurélie; Berthommier, Frédéric; Leybaert, Jacqueline

2013-01-01

The aim of the present study was to examine audiovisual speech integration in cochlear-implanted children and in normally hearing children exposed to degraded auditory stimuli. Previous studies have shown that speech perception in cochlear-implanted users is biased toward the visual modality when audition and vision provide conflicting information. Our main question was whether an experimentally designed degradation of the visual speech cue would increase the importance of audition in the response pattern. The impact of auditory proficiency was also investigated. A group of 31 children with cochlear implants and a group of 31 normally hearing children matched for chronological age were recruited. All children with cochlear implants had profound congenital deafness and had used their implants for at least 2 years. Participants had to perform an /aCa/ consonant-identification task in which stimuli were presented randomly in three conditions: auditory only, visual only, and audiovisual (congruent and incongruent McGurk stimuli). In half of the experiment, the visual speech cue was normal; in the other half (visual reduction) a degraded visual signal was presented, aimed at preventing lipreading of good quality. The normally hearing children received a spectrally reduced speech signal (simulating the input delivered by the cochlear implant). First, performance in visual-only and in congruent audiovisual modalities were decreased, showing that the visual reduction technique used here was efficient at degrading lipreading. Second, in the incongruent audiovisual trials, visual reduction led to a major increase in the number of auditory based responses in both groups. Differences between proficient and nonproficient children were found in both groups, with nonproficient children's responses being more visual and less auditory than those of proficient children. Further analysis revealed that differences between visually clear and visually reduced conditions and between groups were not only because of differences in unisensory perception but also because of differences in the process of audiovisual integration per se. Visual reduction led to an increase in the weight of audition, even in cochlear-implanted children, whose perception is generally dominated by vision. This result suggests that the natural bias in favor of vision is not immutable. Audiovisual speech integration partly depends on the experimental situation, which modulates the informational content of the sensory channels and the weight that is awarded to each of them. Consequently, participants, whether deaf with cochlear implants or having normal hearing, not only base their perception on the most reliable modality but also award it an additional weight.

Do bodily expressions compete with facial expressions? Time course of integration of emotional signals from the face and the body.

PubMed

Gu, Yuanyuan; Mai, Xiaoqin; Luo, Yue-jia

2013-01-01

The decoding of social signals from nonverbal cues plays a vital role in the social interactions of socially gregarious animals such as humans. Because nonverbal emotional signals from the face and body are normally seen together, it is important to investigate the mechanism underlying the integration of emotional signals from these two sources. We conducted a study in which the time course of the integration of facial and bodily expressions was examined via analysis of event-related potentials (ERPs) while the focus of attention was manipulated. Distinctive integrating features were found during multiple stages of processing. In the first stage, threatening information from the body was extracted automatically and rapidly, as evidenced by enhanced P1 amplitudes when the subjects viewed compound face-body images with fearful bodies compared with happy bodies. In the second stage, incongruency between emotional information from the face and the body was detected and captured by N2. Incongruent compound images elicited larger N2s than did congruent compound images. The focus of attention modulated the third stage of integration. When the subjects' attention was focused on the face, images with congruent emotional signals elicited larger P3s than did images with incongruent signals, suggesting more sustained attention and elaboration of congruent emotional information extracted from the face and body. On the other hand, when the subjects' attention was focused on the body, images with fearful bodies elicited larger P3s than did images with happy bodies, indicating more sustained attention and elaboration of threatening information from the body during evaluative processes.

Do Bodily Expressions Compete with Facial Expressions? Time Course of Integration of Emotional Signals from the Face and the Body

PubMed Central

Gu, Yuanyuan; Mai, Xiaoqin; Luo, Yue-jia

2013-01-01

The decoding of social signals from nonverbal cues plays a vital role in the social interactions of socially gregarious animals such as humans. Because nonverbal emotional signals from the face and body are normally seen together, it is important to investigate the mechanism underlying the integration of emotional signals from these two sources. We conducted a study in which the time course of the integration of facial and bodily expressions was examined via analysis of event-related potentials (ERPs) while the focus of attention was manipulated. Distinctive integrating features were found during multiple stages of processing. In the first stage, threatening information from the body was extracted automatically and rapidly, as evidenced by enhanced P1 amplitudes when the subjects viewed compound face-body images with fearful bodies compared with happy bodies. In the second stage, incongruency between emotional information from the face and the body was detected and captured by N2. Incongruent compound images elicited larger N2s than did congruent compound images. The focus of attention modulated the third stage of integration. When the subjects' attention was focused on the face, images with congruent emotional signals elicited larger P3s than did images with incongruent signals, suggesting more sustained attention and elaboration of congruent emotional information extracted from the face and body. On the other hand, when the subjects' attention was focused on the body, images with fearful bodies elicited larger P3s than did images with happy bodies, indicating more sustained attention and elaboration of threatening information from the body during evaluative processes. PMID:23935825

Integrating telecare for chronic disease management in the community: What needs to be done?

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background Telecare could greatly facilitate chronic disease management in the community, but despite government promotion and positive demonstrations its implementation has been limited. This study aimed to identify factors inhibiting the implementation and integration of telecare systems for chronic disease management in the community. Methods Large scale comparative study employing qualitative data collection techniques: semi-structured interviews with key informants, task-groups, and workshops; framework analysis of qualitative data informed by Normalization Process Theory. Drawn from telecare services in community and domestic settings in England and Scotland, 221 participants were included, consisting of health professionals and managers; patients and carers; social care professionals and managers; and service suppliers and manufacturers. Results Key barriers to telecare integration were uncertainties about coherent and sustainable service and business models; lack of coordination across social and primary care boundaries, lack of financial or other incentives to include telecare within primary care services; a lack of a sense of continuity with previous service provision and self-care work undertaken by patients; and general uncertainty about the adequacy of telecare systems. These problems led to poor integration of policy and practice. Conclusion Telecare services may offer a cost effective and safe form of care for some people living with chronic illness. Slow and uneven implementation and integration do not stem from problems of adoption. They result from incomplete understanding of the role of telecare systems and subsequent adaption and embeddedness to context, and uncertainties about the best way to develop, coordinate, and sustain services that assist with chronic disease management. Interventions are therefore needed that (i) reduce uncertainty about the ownership of implementation processes and that lock together health and social care agencies; and (ii) ensure user centred rather than biomedical/service-centred models of care. PMID:21619596

Integrating telecare for chronic disease management in the community: what needs to be done?

PubMed

May, Carl R; Finch, Tracy L; Cornford, James; Exley, Catherine; Gately, Claire; Kirk, Sue; Jenkings, K Neil; Osbourne, Janice; Robinson, A Louise; Rogers, Anne; Wilson, Robert; Mair, Frances S

2011-05-27

Telecare could greatly facilitate chronic disease management in the community, but despite government promotion and positive demonstrations its implementation has been limited. This study aimed to identify factors inhibiting the implementation and integration of telecare systems for chronic disease management in the community. Large scale comparative study employing qualitative data collection techniques: semi-structured interviews with key informants, task-groups, and workshops; framework analysis of qualitative data informed by Normalization Process Theory. Drawn from telecare services in community and domestic settings in England and Scotland, 221 participants were included, consisting of health professionals and managers; patients and carers; social care professionals and managers; and service suppliers and manufacturers. Key barriers to telecare integration were uncertainties about coherent and sustainable service and business models; lack of coordination across social and primary care boundaries, lack of financial or other incentives to include telecare within primary care services; a lack of a sense of continuity with previous service provision and self-care work undertaken by patients; and general uncertainty about the adequacy of telecare systems. These problems led to poor integration of policy and practice. Telecare services may offer a cost effective and safe form of care for some people living with chronic illness. Slow and uneven implementation and integration do not stem from problems of adoption. They result from incomplete understanding of the role of telecare systems and subsequent adaption and embeddedness to context, and uncertainties about the best way to develop, coordinate, and sustain services that assist with chronic disease management. Interventions are therefore needed that (i) reduce uncertainty about the ownership of implementation processes and that lock together health and social care agencies; and (ii) ensure user centred rather than biomedical/service-centred models of care.

PIMS sequencing extension: a laboratory information management system for DNA sequencing facilities.

PubMed

Troshin, Peter V; Postis, Vincent Lg; Ashworth, Denise; Baldwin, Stephen A; McPherson, Michael J; Barton, Geoffrey J

2011-03-07

Facilities that provide a service for DNA sequencing typically support large numbers of users and experiment types. The cost of services is often reduced by the use of liquid handling robots but the efficiency of such facilities is hampered because the software for such robots does not usually integrate well with the systems that run the sequencing machines. Accordingly, there is a need for software systems capable of integrating different robotic systems and managing sample information for DNA sequencing services. In this paper, we describe an extension to the Protein Information Management System (PIMS) that is designed for DNA sequencing facilities. The new version of PIMS has a user-friendly web interface and integrates all aspects of the sequencing process, including sample submission, handling and tracking, together with capture and management of the data. The PIMS sequencing extension has been in production since July 2009 at the University of Leeds DNA Sequencing Facility. It has completely replaced manual data handling and simplified the tasks of data management and user communication. Samples from 45 groups have been processed with an average throughput of 10000 samples per month. The current version of the PIMS sequencing extension works with Applied Biosystems 3130XL 96-well plate sequencer and MWG 4204 or Aviso Theonyx liquid handling robots, but is readily adaptable for use with other combinations of robots. PIMS has been extended to provide a user-friendly and integrated data management solution for DNA sequencing facilities that is accessed through a normal web browser and allows simultaneous access by multiple users as well as facility managers. The system integrates sequencing and liquid handling robots, manages the data flow, and provides remote access to the sequencing results. The software is freely available, for academic users, from http://www.pims-lims.org/.

Normalizing suffering: A meta-synthesis of experiences of and perspectives on pain and pain management in nursing homes.

PubMed

Vaismoradi, Mojtaba; Skär, Lisa; Söderberg, Siv; Bondas, Terese E

2016-01-01

Older people who live in nursing homes commonly suffer from pain. Therefore, relieving suffering among older people that stems from pain demands knowledge improvement through an integration of international knowledge. This study aimed to integrate current international findings and strengthen the understanding of older people's experiences of and perspectives on pain and pain management in nursing homes. A meta-synthesis study using Noblit and Hare's interpretative meta-ethnography approach was conducted. Empirical research papers from journals were collected from various databases. The search process and appraisal determined six articles for inclusion. Two studies were conducted in the US and one each in Iceland, Norway, the UK, and Australia. The older people's experiences of pain as well as perspectives on pain management from all involved (older people, their family members, and healthcare staff) were integrated into a theoretical model using three themes of "identity of pain," "recognition of pain," and "response to pain." The metaphor of "normalizing suffering" was devised to illustrate the meaning of pain experiences and pain management in nursing homes. Society's common attitude that pain is unavoidable and therefore acceptable in old age in society-among older people themselves as well as those who are responsible for reporting, acknowledging, and relieving pain-must change. The article emphasizes that pain as a primary source of suffering can be relieved, provided that older people are encouraged to report their pain. In addition, healthcare staff require sufficient training to take a person-centered approach towards assessment and management of pain that considers all elements of pain.

Integrate Thermal Modules for Cooling Silicon and Silicon Carbide Power Modules

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-06-01

currently valid OMB control number. 1 . REPORT DATE 11 JUN 2007 2 . REPORT TYPE N/A 3. DATES COVERED - 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Integrate Thermal...vehicle operation as follows: 1 ) Normal Operation at High Speed 2 ) Normal Operation at Low Speed 3) Acceleration at High Speed 4) Acceleration at Low...diodes. For a basis of comparing the performance of the ITMs, we are using the Semikron 100 kW SKAI inverter (fig 1 ) to quantify and generate

Integrated NDVI images for Niger 1986-1987. [Normalized Difference Vegetation Index

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Harrington, John A., Jr.; Wylie, Bruce K.; Tucker, Compton J.

1988-01-01

Two NOAA AVHRR images are presented which provide a comparison of the geographic distribution of an integration of the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) for the Sahel zone in Niger for the growing seasons of 1986 and 1987. The production of the images and the application of the images for resource management are discussed. Daily large area coverage with a spatial resolution of 1.1 km at nadir were transformed to the NDVI and geographically registered to produce the images.

Entrapment and Structure of an Extrahelical Guanine Attempting to Enter the Active Site of a Bacterial DNA Glycosylase, MutM

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Qi, Yan; Spong, Marie C.; Nam, Kwangho

2010-09-21

MutM, a bacterial DNA glycosylase, protects genome integrity by catalyzing glycosidic bond cleavage of 8-oxoguanine (oxoG) lesions, thereby initiating base excision DNA repair. The process of searching for and locating oxoG lesions is especially challenging, because of the close structural resemblance of oxoG to its million-fold more abundant progenitor, G. Extrusion of the target nucleobase from the DNA double helix to an extrahelical position is an essential step in lesion recognition and catalysis by MutM. Although the interactions between the extruded oxoG and the active site of MutM have been well characterized, little is known in structural detail regarding themore » interrogation of extruded normal DNA bases by MutM. Here we report the capture and structural elucidation of a complex in which MutM is attempting to present an undamaged G to its active site. The structure of this MutM-extrahelical G complex provides insights into the mechanism MutM employs to discriminate against extrahelical normal DNA bases and into the base extrusion process in general.« less

The desmoplakin–intermediate filament linkage regulates cell mechanics

PubMed Central

Broussard, Joshua A.; Yang, Ruiguo; Huang, Changjin; Nathamgari, S. Shiva P.; Beese, Allison M.; Godsel, Lisa M.; Hegazy, Marihan H.; Lee, Sherry; Zhou, Fan; Sniadecki, Nathan J.; Green, Kathleen J.; Espinosa, Horacio D.

2017-01-01

The translation of mechanical forces into biochemical signals plays a central role in guiding normal physiological processes during tissue development and homeostasis. Interfering with this process contributes to cardiovascular disease, cancer progression, and inherited disorders. The actin-based cytoskeleton and its associated adherens junctions are well-established contributors to mechanosensing and transduction machinery; however, the role of the desmosome–intermediate filament (DSM–IF) network is poorly understood in this context. Because a force balance among different cytoskeletal systems is important to maintain normal tissue function, knowing the relative contributions of these structurally integrated systems to cell mechanics is critical. Here we modulated the interaction between DSMs and IFs using mutant forms of desmoplakin, the protein bridging these structures. Using micropillar arrays and atomic force microscopy, we demonstrate that strengthening the DSM–IF interaction increases cell–substrate and cell–cell forces and cell stiffness both in cell pairs and sheets of cells. In contrast, disrupting the interaction leads to a decrease in these forces. These alterations in cell mechanics are abrogated when the actin cytoskeleton is dismantled. These data suggest that the tissue-specific variability in DSM–IF network composition provides an opportunity to differentially regulate tissue mechanics by balancing and tuning forces among cytoskeletal systems. PMID:28495795

The healthy learner model for student chronic condition management--part I.

PubMed

Erickson, Cecelia DuPlessis; Splett, Patricia L; Mullett, Sara Stoltzfus; Heiman, Mary Bielski

2006-12-01

A significant number of children have chronic health conditions that interfere with normal activities, including school attendance and active participation in the learning process. Management of students' chronic conditions is complex and requires an integrated system. Models to improve chronic disease management have been developed for the medical system and public health. Programs that address specific chronic disease management or coordinate school health services have been implemented in schools. Lacking is a comprehensive, integrated model that links schools, students, parents, health care, and other community providers. The Healthy Learner Model for chronic condition management identifies seven elements for creating, implementing, and sustaining an efficient and effective, comprehensive community-based system for improving the management of chronic conditions for school children. It has provided the framework for successful chronic condition management in an urban school district and is proposed for replication in other districts and communities.

Tuning rules for robust FOPID controllers based on multi-objective optimization with FOPDT models.

PubMed

Sánchez, Helem Sabina; Padula, Fabrizio; Visioli, Antonio; Vilanova, Ramon

2017-01-01

In this paper a set of optimally balanced tuning rules for fractional-order proportional-integral-derivative controllers is proposed. The control problem of minimizing at once the integrated absolute error for both the set-point and the load disturbance responses is addressed. The control problem is stated as a multi-objective optimization problem where a first-order-plus-dead-time process model subject to a robustness, maximum sensitivity based, constraint has been considered. A set of Pareto optimal solutions is obtained for different normalized dead times and then the optimal balance between the competing objectives is obtained by choosing the Nash solution among the Pareto-optimal ones. A curve fitting procedure has then been applied in order to generate suitable tuning rules. Several simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed approach. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Integrated test system of infrared and laser data based on USB 3.0

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fu, Hui Quan; Tang, Lin Bo; Zhang, Chao; Zhao, Bao Jun; Li, Mao Wen

2017-07-01

Based on USB3.0, this paper presents the design method of an integrated test system for both infrared image data and laser signal data processing module. The core of the design is FPGA logic control, the design uses dual-chip DDR3 SDRAM to achieve high-speed laser data cache, and receive parallel LVDS image data through serial-to-parallel conversion chip, and it achieves high-speed data communication between the system and host computer through the USB3.0 bus. The experimental results show that the developed PC software realizes the real-time display of 14-bit LVDS original image after 14-to-8 bit conversion and JPEG2000 compressed image after decompression in software, and can realize the real-time display of the acquired laser signal data. The correctness of the test system design is verified, indicating that the interface link is normal.

Chinese medicine and biomodulation in cancer patients—Part one

PubMed Central

Sagar, S.M.; Wong, R.K.

2008-01-01

Traditional Chinese Medicine (tcm) may be integrated with conventional Western medicine to enhance the care of patients with cancer. Although tcm is normally implemented as a whole system, recent reductionist research suggests mechanisms for the effects of acupuncture, herbs, and nutrition within the scientific model of biomedicine. The health model of Chinese medicine accommodates physical and pharmacologic interventions within the framework of a body–mind network. A Cartesian split does not occur within this model, but to allow for scientific exploration within the restrictions of positivism, reductionism, and controls for confounding factors, the components must necessarily be separated. Still, whole-systems research is important to evaluate effectiveness when applying the full model in clinical practice. Scientific analysis provides a mechanistic understanding of the processes that will improve the design of clinical studies and enhance safety. Enough preliminary evidence is available to encourage quality clinical trials to evaluate the efficacy of integrating tcm into Western cancer care. PMID:18317584

An integrated control scheme for space robot after capturing non-cooperative target

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Mingming; Luo, Jianjun; Yuan, Jianping; Walter, Ulrich

2018-06-01

How to identify the mass properties and eliminate the unknown angular momentum of space robotic system after capturing a non-cooperative target is of great challenge. This paper focuses on designing an integrated control framework which includes detumbling strategy, coordination control and parameter identification. Firstly, inverted and forward chain approaches are synthesized for space robot to obtain dynamic equation in operational space. Secondly, a detumbling strategy is introduced using elementary functions with normalized time, while the imposed end-effector constraints are considered. Next, a coordination control scheme for stabilizing both base and end-effector based on impedance control is implemented with the target's parameter uncertainty. With the measurements of the forces and torques exerted on the target, its mass properties are estimated during the detumbling process accordingly. Simulation results are presented using a 7 degree-of-freedom kinematically redundant space manipulator, which verifies the performance and effectiveness of the proposed method.

A Mechanics-Based Framework Leading to Improved Diagnosis and Treatment of Hydrocephalus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cohen, Benjamin; Soren, Vedels; Wagshul, Mark; Egnor, Michael; Voorhees, Abram; Wei, Timothy

2007-11-01

Hydrocephalus is defined as an accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the cranium, at the expense of brain tissue. The result is a disruption of the normal pressure and/or flow dynamics of the intracranial blood and CSF. We seek to introduce integral control volume analysis to the study of hydrocephalus. The goal is to provide a first principles framework to integrate a broad spectrum of sometimes disparate investigations into a highly complex, multidisciplinary problem. The general technique for the implementation of control volumes to hydrocephalus will be presented. This includes factors faced in choosing control volumes and making the required measurements to evaluate mass and momentum conservation. In addition, the use of our Digital Particle Image Velocimetry (DPIV) processing program has been extended to measure the displacement of the ventricles' walls from Magnetic Resonance (MR) images. This is done to determine the volume change of the intracranial fluid spaces.

Convergent paradigms for visual neuroscience and dissociative identity disorder.

PubMed

Manning, Mark L; Manning, Rana L

2009-01-01

Although dissociative identity disorder, a condition in which multiple individuals appear to inhabit a single body, is a recognized psychiatric disorder, patients may yet encounter health professionals who declare that they simply "do not believe in multiple personalities." This article explores the proposal that resistance to the disorder represents a failure to apply an appropriate paradigm from which the disorder should be interpreted. Trauma and sociocognitive explanations of dissociative identity disorder are contrasted. The trauma hypothesis is further differentiated into paradigms in which trauma affects a defense mechanism, and one in which trauma serves to inhibit the normal integration sequence of parallel processes of the self in childhood. This latter paradigm is shown to be broadly consistent with current models of cortical processing in another system, the cortical visual system.

A back-illuminated megapixel CMOS image sensor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pain, Bedabrata; Cunningham, Thomas; Nikzad, Shouleh; Hoenk, Michael; Jones, Todd; Wrigley, Chris; Hancock, Bruce

2005-01-01

In this paper, we present the test and characterization results for a back-illuminated megapixel CMOS imager. The imager pixel consists of a standard junction photodiode coupled to a three transistor-per-pixel switched source-follower readout [1]. The imager also consists of integrated timing and control and bias generation circuits, and provides analog output. The analog column-scan circuits were implemented in such a way that the imager could be configured to run in off-chip correlated double-sampling (CDS) mode. The imager was originally designed for normal front-illuminated operation, and was fabricated in a commercially available 0.5 pn triple-metal CMOS-imager compatible process. For backside illumination, the imager was thinned by etching away the substrate was etched away in a post-fabrication processing step.

Aluminum U-groove weld enhancement based on experimental stress analyses

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Verderaime, V.; Vaughan, R.

1995-01-01

Though butt-welds are among the most preferred joining methods in aerostructures because of their sealing and assembly integrity and general elastic performance; their inelastic mechanics are generally the least understood. This study investigated experimental strain distributions across a thick aluminum U-grooved weld and identified two weld process considerations for improving the multipass weld strength. The extreme thermal expansion and contraction gradient of the fusion heat input across the tab thickness between the grooves produce severe peaking, which induces bending moment under uniaxial loading. The filler strain hardening decreased with increasing filler pass sequence. These combined effects reduce the weld strength, and a depeaking index model was developed to select filler pass thicknesses, pass numbers, and sequences to improve the welding process results over the current normal weld schedule.

Impact of obesity on body image dissatisfaction and social integration difficulty in adolescent and young adult burn injury survivors

PubMed Central

Chondronikola, Maria; Sidossis, Labros S.; Richardson, Lisa M.; Temple, Jeff R.; van den Berg, Patricia A.; Herndon, David N.; Meyer, Walter J.

2012-01-01

Objective Burn injury deformities and obesity have been associated with social integration difficulty and body image dissatisfaction. However, the combined effects of obesity and burn injury in social integration difficulty and body image dissatisfaction are unknown. Methods Adolescent and young adults burn injury survivors were categorized as normal weight (n=47) or overweight and obese (n=21). Burn-related and anthropometric information was obtained from patients' medical records, while validated questionnaires were used to assess the main outcomes and possible confounders. Analysis of covariance and multiple linear regressions were performed to evaluate the objectives of this study. Results Obese and overweight burn injury survivors did not experience increased body image dissatisfaction (12 ± 4.3 vs 13.1 ± 4.4, p = 0.57) or social integration difficulty (17.5 ± 6.9 vs 15.5 ± 5.7, p=0.16) compared to normal weight burn injury survivors. Weight status was not a significant predictor of social integration difficulty or body image dissatisfaction (p=0.19 and p=0.24, respectively). However, mobility limitations predicted greater social integration difficulty (p=0.005) and body image dissatisfaction (p<0.001), while higher weight status at burn was a borderline significant predictor of body image dissatisfaction (p=0.05). Conclusions Obese and overweight adolescents and young adults, who sustained a major burn injury as children, do not experience greater social integration difficulty and body image dissatisfaction compared to normal weight burn injury survivors. Mobility limitations and higher weight status at burn are likely more important factors affecting the long-term social integration difficulty and body image dissatisfaction of these young people. PMID:23292577

Community Integration for Disabled People. A New Approach to Their Vocational Training and Employment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Momm, Willi; Koenig, Andreas

1989-01-01

Community-based rehabilitation for disabled people has proved to have serious shortcomings, especially in terms of vocational training. The broader concept of community integration programs involves disabled people and local institutions in training and employment efforts to integrate the disabled into normal community life. (SK)

Why do adults with dyslexia have poor global motion sensitivity?

PubMed

Conlon, Elizabeth G; Lilleskaret, Gry; Wright, Craig M; Stuksrud, Anne

2013-01-01

Two experiments aimed to determine why adults with dyslexia have higher global motion thresholds than typically reading controls. In Experiment 1, the dot density and number of animation frames presented in the dot stimulus were manipulated because of findings that use of a high dot density can normalize coherence thresholds in individuals with dyslexia. Dot densities were 14.15 and 3.54 dots/deg(2). These were presented for five (84 ms) or eight (134 ms) frames. The dyslexia group had higher coherence thresholds in all conditions than controls. However, in the high dot density, long duration condition, both reader groups had the lowest thresholds indicating normal temporal recruitment. These results indicated that the dyslexia group could sample the additional signals dots over space and then integrate these with the same efficiency as controls. In Experiment 2, we determined whether briefly presenting a fully coherent prime moving in either the same or opposite direction of motion to a partially coherent test stimulus would systematically increase and decrease global motion thresholds in the reader groups. When the direction of motion in the prime and test was the same, global motion thresholds increased for both reader groups. The increase in coherence thresholds was significantly greater for the dyslexia group. When the motion of the prime and test were presented in opposite directions, coherence thresholds were reduced in both groups. No group threshold differences were found. We concluded that the global motion processing deficit found in adults with dyslexia can be explained by undersampling of the target motion signals. This might occur because of difficulties directing attention to the relevant motion signals in the random dot pattern, and not a specific difficulty integrating global motion signals. These effects are most likely to occur in the group with dyslexia when more complex computational processes are required to process global motion.

Why do adults with dyslexia have poor global motion sensitivity?

PubMed Central

Conlon, Elizabeth G.; Lilleskaret, Gry; Wright, Craig M.; Stuksrud, Anne

2013-01-01

Two experiments aimed to determine why adults with dyslexia have higher global motion thresholds than typically reading controls. In Experiment 1, the dot density and number of animation frames presented in the dot stimulus were manipulated because of findings that use of a high dot density can normalize coherence thresholds in individuals with dyslexia. Dot densities were 14.15 and 3.54 dots/deg2. These were presented for five (84 ms) or eight (134 ms) frames. The dyslexia group had higher coherence thresholds in all conditions than controls. However, in the high dot density, long duration condition, both reader groups had the lowest thresholds indicating normal temporal recruitment. These results indicated that the dyslexia group could sample the additional signals dots over space and then integrate these with the same efficiency as controls. In Experiment 2, we determined whether briefly presenting a fully coherent prime moving in either the same or opposite direction of motion to a partially coherent test stimulus would systematically increase and decrease global motion thresholds in the reader groups. When the direction of motion in the prime and test was the same, global motion thresholds increased for both reader groups. The increase in coherence thresholds was significantly greater for the dyslexia group. When the motion of the prime and test were presented in opposite directions, coherence thresholds were reduced in both groups. No group threshold differences were found. We concluded that the global motion processing deficit found in adults with dyslexia can be explained by undersampling of the target motion signals. This might occur because of difficulties directing attention to the relevant motion signals in the random dot pattern, and not a specific difficulty integrating global motion signals. These effects are most likely to occur in the group with dyslexia when more complex computational processes are required to process global motion. PMID:24376414

Desmin Is Essential for the Tensile Strength and Integrity of Myofibrils but Not for Myogenic Commitment, Differentiation, and Fusion of Skeletal Muscle

PubMed Central

Li, Zhenlin; Mericskay, Mathias; Agbulut, Onnik; Butler-Browne, Gillian; Carlsson, Lena; Thornell, Lars-Eric; Babinet, Charles; Paulin, Denise

1997-01-01

A null mutation was introduced into the mouse desmin gene by homologous recombination. The desmin knockout mice (Des −/−) develop normally and are fertile. However, defects were observed after birth in skeletal, smooth, and cardiac muscles (Li, Z., E. Colucci-Guyon, M. Pincon-Raymond, M. Mericskay, S. Pournin, D. Paulin, and C. Babinet. 1996. Dev. Biol. 175:362–366; Milner, D.J., G. Weitzer, D. Tran, A. Bradley, and Y. Capetanaki. 1996. J. Cell Biol. 134:1255– 1270). In the present study we have carried out a detailed analysis of somitogenesis, muscle formation, maturation, degeneration, and regeneration in Des −/− mice. Our results demonstrate that all early stages of muscle differentiation and cell fusion occur normally. However, after birth, modifications were observed essentially in weight-bearing muscles such as the soleus or continually used muscles such as the diaphragm and the heart. In the absence of desmin, mice were weaker and fatigued more easily. The lack of desmin renders these fibers more susceptible to damage during contraction. We observed a process of degeneration of myofibers, accompanied by macrophage infiltration, and followed by a process of regeneration. These cycles of degeneration and regeneration resulted in a relative increase in slow myosin heavy chain (MHC) and decrease in fast MHC. Interestingly, this second wave of myofibrillogenesis during regeneration was often aberrant and showed signs of disorganization. Subsarcolemmal accumulation of mitochondria were also observed in these muscles. The lack of desmin was not compensated by an upregulation of vimentin in these mice either during development or regeneration. Absence of desmin filaments within the sarcomere does not interfere with primary muscle formation or regeneration. However, myofibrillogenesis in regenerating fibers is often abortive, indicating that desmin may be implicated in this repair process. The results presented here show that desmin is essential to maintain the structural integrity of highly solicited skeletal muscle. PMID:9314534

Integrating and analyzing medical and environmental data using ETL and Business Intelligence tools.

PubMed

Villar, Alejandro; Zarrabeitia, María T; Fdez-Arroyabe, Pablo; Santurtún, Ana

2018-06-01

Processing data that originates from different sources (such as environmental and medical data) can prove to be a difficult task, due to the heterogeneity of variables, storage systems, and file formats that can be used. Moreover, once the amount of data reaches a certain threshold, conventional mining methods (based on spreadsheets or statistical software) become cumbersome or even impossible to apply. Data Extract, Transform, and Load (ETL) solutions provide a framework to normalize and integrate heterogeneous data into a local data store. Additionally, the application of Online Analytical Processing (OLAP), a set of Business Intelligence (BI) methodologies and practices for multidimensional data analysis, can be an invaluable tool for its examination and mining. In this article, we describe a solution based on an ETL + OLAP tandem used for the on-the-fly analysis of tens of millions of individual medical, meteorological, and air quality observations from 16 provinces in Spain provided by 20 different national and regional entities in a diverse array for file types and formats, with the intention of evaluating the effect of several environmental variables on human health in future studies. Our work shows how a sizable amount of data, spread across a wide range of file formats and structures, and originating from a number of different sources belonging to various business domains, can be integrated in a single system that researchers can use for global data analysis and mining.

Integrating and analyzing medical and environmental data using ETL and Business Intelligence tools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Villar, Alejandro; Zarrabeitia, María T.; Fdez-Arroyabe, Pablo; Santurtún, Ana

2018-03-01

Processing data that originates from different sources (such as environmental and medical data) can prove to be a difficult task, due to the heterogeneity of variables, storage systems, and file formats that can be used. Moreover, once the amount of data reaches a certain threshold, conventional mining methods (based on spreadsheets or statistical software) become cumbersome or even impossible to apply. Data Extract, Transform, and Load (ETL) solutions provide a framework to normalize and integrate heterogeneous data into a local data store. Additionally, the application of Online Analytical Processing (OLAP), a set of Business Intelligence (BI) methodologies and practices for multidimensional data analysis, can be an invaluable tool for its examination and mining. In this article, we describe a solution based on an ETL + OLAP tandem used for the on-the-fly analysis of tens of millions of individual medical, meteorological, and air quality observations from 16 provinces in Spain provided by 20 different national and regional entities in a diverse array for file types and formats, with the intention of evaluating the effect of several environmental variables on human health in future studies. Our work shows how a sizable amount of data, spread across a wide range of file formats and structures, and originating from a number of different sources belonging to various business domains, can be integrated in a single system that researchers can use for global data analysis and mining.

Integrating and analyzing medical and environmental data using ETL and Business Intelligence tools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Villar, Alejandro; Zarrabeitia, María T.; Fdez-Arroyabe, Pablo; Santurtún, Ana

2018-06-01

Processing data that originates from different sources (such as environmental and medical data) can prove to be a difficult task, due to the heterogeneity of variables, storage systems, and file formats that can be used. Moreover, once the amount of data reaches a certain threshold, conventional mining methods (based on spreadsheets or statistical software) become cumbersome or even impossible to apply. Data Extract, Transform, and Load (ETL) solutions provide a framework to normalize and integrate heterogeneous data into a local data store. Additionally, the application of Online Analytical Processing (OLAP), a set of Business Intelligence (BI) methodologies and practices for multidimensional data analysis, can be an invaluable tool for its examination and mining. In this article, we describe a solution based on an ETL + OLAP tandem used for the on-the-fly analysis of tens of millions of individual medical, meteorological, and air quality observations from 16 provinces in Spain provided by 20 different national and regional entities in a diverse array for file types and formats, with the intention of evaluating the effect of several environmental variables on human health in future studies. Our work shows how a sizable amount of data, spread across a wide range of file formats and structures, and originating from a number of different sources belonging to various business domains, can be integrated in a single system that researchers can use for global data analysis and mining.

Nucleation and kinematic rupture of the 2017 Mw 8.2 Chiapas Mexico earthquake

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meng, L.; Huang, H.; Xie, Y.; Feng, T.; Dominguez, L. A.; Han, J.; Davis, P. M.

2017-12-01

Integrated geophysical observations from the 2017 Mw 8.2 Oaxaca, Mexico earthquake allow the exploration of one of the largest recorded normal faulting events inside a subducting slab. In this study, we collect seismic data from regional and teleseismic stations, and regional tsunami recordings to better understand the preparation and rupture processes. The mainshock occurred on the steeply dipping plane of a mega-normal fault, confirmed by time reversal analysis of tsunami waves. We utilize a template matching approach to detect possible missing earthquakes within a 2-month period before the Oaxaca mainshock. The seismicity rate (M > 3.7) shows an abrupt increase in the last day within 30 km around the mainshock hypocenter. The largest one is a M 4.6 event with similar normal faulting as the mainshock located at about 18 km updip from the hypocenter. The waveforms of the subsequent foreshocks are not similar, supporting the diversity of their locations or focal mechanisms. The nucleation process can be explained by a cascading process which eventually triggers the mainshock. Back-projection using the USArray network in Alaska reveals that the mainshock rupture propagated northwestward unilaterally at a speed of 3.1 km/s, for about 200 km and terminated near the Tehuantepec Fracture Zone. We also document the tectonic fabric of bending related faulting of the incoming Cocos plate. The mainshock is likely a reactivation of subducted outer rise faults, supported by the similarity of the strike angle between the mainshock and the outer rise faults. The surprisingly large magnitude is consistent with the exceedingly large dimensions of outer rise faulting in this particular segment of the central Mexican trench.

Using Normalization Process Theory in feasibility studies and process evaluations of complex healthcare interventions: a systematic review.

PubMed

May, Carl R; Cummings, Amanda; Girling, Melissa; Bracher, Mike; Mair, Frances S; May, Christine M; Murray, Elizabeth; Myall, Michelle; Rapley, Tim; Finch, Tracy

2018-06-07

Normalization Process Theory (NPT) identifies, characterises and explains key mechanisms that promote and inhibit the implementation, embedding and integration of new health techniques, technologies and other complex interventions. A large body of literature that employs NPT to inform feasibility studies and process evaluations of complex healthcare interventions has now emerged. The aims of this review were to review this literature; to identify and characterise the uses and limits of NPT in research on the implementation and integration of healthcare interventions; and to explore NPT's contribution to understanding the dynamics of these processes. A qualitative systematic review was conducted. We searched Web of Science, Scopus and Google Scholar for articles with empirical data in peer-reviewed journals that cited either key papers presenting and developing NPT, or the NPT Online Toolkit ( www.normalizationprocess.org ). We included in the review only articles that used NPT as the primary approach to collection, analysis or reporting of data in studies of the implementation of healthcare techniques, technologies or other interventions. A structured data extraction instrument was used, and data were analysed qualitatively. Searches revealed 3322 citations. We show that after eliminating 2337 duplicates and broken or junk URLs, 985 were screened as titles and abstracts. Of these, 101 were excluded because they did not fit the inclusion criteria for the review. This left 884 articles for full-text screening. Of these, 754 did not fit the inclusion criteria for the review. This left 130 papers presenting results from 108 identifiable studies to be included in the review. NPT appears to provide researchers and practitioners with a conceptual vocabulary for rigorous studies of implementation processes. It identifies, characterises and explains empirically identifiable mechanisms that motivate and shape implementation processes. Taken together, these mean that analyses using NPT can effectively assist in the explanation of the success or failure of specific implementation projects. Ten percent of papers included critiques of some aspect of NPT, with those that did mainly focusing on its terminology. However, two studies critiqued NPT emphasis on agency, and one study critiqued NPT for its normative focus. This review demonstrates that researchers found NPT useful and applied it across a wide range of interventions. It has been effectively used to aid intervention development and implementation planning as well as evaluating and understanding implementation processes themselves. In particular, NPT appears to have offered a valuable set of conceptual tools to aid understanding of implementation as a dynamic process.

The influence of culture of honor and emotional intelligence in the acculturation of Moroccan immigrant women.

PubMed

Lopez-Zafra, Esther; El Ghoudani, Karima

2014-01-01

Migration is a normal process of people seeking new opportunities, work, or leisure in societies. The way people adapt to a new country (acculturation) is a complex process in which immigrants' evaluations about the culture of origin and their perceptions of the host country interact. The combination of these two factors produces four types of acculturation: separation, assimilation, integration, and marginalization. Several variables, such as personality, attitudes, and emotional intelligence, have been studied to help explain this process. However, the impact of a culture of honor and its interaction with other variables remains an open question that may help to explain how migrants can better adjust to their host culture. In this study, we examine the influence of the culture of honor (social) and emotional intelligence (individual) on acculturation. In a sample of 129 Moroccan women (mean age = 29, SD = 9.40) immigrants in Spain (mean time in Spain = 6 years, SD = 3.60), we investigated the relations among the variables of interest. Our results show that no significant differences emerged in the scores given for culture of honor (CH) and the acculturation strategies of the Moroccan immigrant women F(3, 99) = .233; p = .87. However women who preferred the integration strategy scored highest on emotional intelligence (EI), whereas the assimilated immigrants showed the lowest scores for EI F(3, 92) = 4.63; p = .005. Additionally, only in the case of integration does EI mediate between CH and the value given to the immigrant's own and host cultures (p <.001).

High-frequency Born synthetic seismograms based on coupled normal modes

USGS Publications Warehouse

Pollitz, F.

2011-01-01

High-frequency and full waveform synthetic seismograms on a 3-D laterally heterogeneous earth model are simulated using the theory of coupled normal modes. The set of coupled integral equations that describe the 3-D response are simplified into a set of uncoupled integral equations by using the Born approximation to calculate scattered wavefields and the pure-path approximation to modulate the phase of incident and scattered wavefields. This depends upon a decomposition of the aspherical structure into smooth and rough components. The uncoupled integral equations are discretized and solved in the frequency domain, and time domain results are obtained by inverse Fourier transform. Examples show the utility of the normal mode approach to synthesize the seismic wavefields resulting from interaction with a combination of rough and smooth structural heterogeneities. This approach is applied to an ~4 Hz shallow crustal wave propagation around the site of the San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth (SAFOD). ?? The Author Geophysical Journal International ?? 2011 RAS.

A method for modifying two-dimensional adaptive wind-tunnel walls including analytical and experimental verification

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Everhart, J. L.

1983-01-01

The theoretical development of a simple and consistent method for removing the interference in adaptive-wall wind tunnels is reported. A Cauchy integral formulation of the velocities in an imaginary infinite extension of the real wind-tunnel flow is obtained and evaluated on a closed contour dividing the real and imaginary flow. The contour consists of the upper and lower effective wind-tunnel walls (wall plus boundary-layer displacement thickness) and upstream and downstream boundaries perpendicular to the axial tunnel flow. The resulting integral expressions for the streamwise and normal perturbation velocities on the contour are integrated by assuming a linear variation of the velocities between data-measurement stations along the contour. In an iterative process, the velocity components calculated on the upper and lower boundaries are then used to correct the shape of the wall to remove the interference. Convergence of the technique is shown numerically for the cases of a circular cylinder and a lifting and nonlifting NACA 0012 airfoil in incompressible flow. Experimental convergence at a transonic Mach number is demonstrated by using an NACA 0012 airfoil at zero lift.

Visual search for feature and conjunction targets with an attention deficit.

PubMed

Arguin, M; Joanette, Y; Cavanagh, P

1993-01-01

Abstract Brain-damaged subjects who had previously been identified as suffering from a visual attention deficit for contralesional stimulation were tested on a series of visual search tasks. The experiments examined the hypothesis that the processing of single features is preattentive but that feature integration, necessary for the correct perception of conjunctions of features, requires attention (Treisman & Gelade, 1980 Treisman & Sato, 1990). Subjects searched for a feature target (orientation or color) or for a conjunction target (orientation and color) in unilateral displays in which the number of items presented was variable. Ocular fixation was controlled so that trials on which eye movements occurred were cancelled. While brain-damaged subjects with a visual attention disorder (VAD subjects) performed similarly to normal controls in feature search tasks, they showed a marked deficit in conjunction search. Specifically, VAD subjects exhibited an important reduction of their serial search rates for a conjunction target with contralesional displays. In support of Treisman's feature integration theory, a visual attention deficit leads to a marked impairment in feature integration whereas it does not appear to affect feature encoding.

Loop Shaping Control Design for a Supersonic Propulsion System Model Using Quantitative Feedback Theory (QFT) Specifications and Bounds

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Connolly, Joseph W.; Kopasakis, George

2010-01-01

This paper covers the propulsion system component modeling and controls development of an integrated mixed compression inlet and turbojet engine that will be used for an overall vehicle Aero-Propulso-Servo-Elastic (APSE) model. Using previously created nonlinear component-level propulsion system models, a linear integrated propulsion system model and loop shaping control design have been developed. The design includes both inlet normal shock position control and jet engine rotor speed control for a potential supersonic commercial transport. A preliminary investigation of the impacts of the aero-elastic effects on the incoming flow field to the propulsion system are discussed, however, the focus here is on developing a methodology for the propulsion controls design that prevents unstart in the inlet and minimizes the thrust oscillation experienced by the vehicle. Quantitative Feedback Theory (QFT) specifications and bounds, and aspects of classical loop shaping are used in the control design process. Model uncertainty is incorporated in the design to address possible error in the system identification mapping of the nonlinear component models into the integrated linear model.

A collaborative vendor-buyer production-inventory systems with imperfect quality items, inspection errors, and stochastic demand under budget capacity constraint: a Karush-Kuhn-Tucker conditions approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kurdhi, N. A.; Nurhayati, R. A.; Wiyono, S. B.; Handajani, S. S.; Martini, T. S.

2017-01-01

In this paper, we develop an integrated inventory model considering the imperfect quality items, inspection error, controllable lead time, and budget capacity constraint. The imperfect items were uniformly distributed and detected on the screening process. However there are two types of possibilities. The first is type I of inspection error (when a non-defective item classified as defective) and the second is type II of inspection error (when a defective item classified as non-defective). The demand during the lead time is unknown, and it follows the normal distribution. The lead time can be controlled by adding the crashing cost. Furthermore, the existence of the budget capacity constraint is caused by the limited purchasing cost. The purposes of this research are: to modify the integrated vendor and buyer inventory model, to establish the optimal solution using Kuhn-Tucker’s conditions, and to apply the models. Based on the result of application and the sensitivity analysis, it can be obtained minimum integrated inventory total cost rather than separated inventory.

Genome-wide screen identifies a novel prognostic signature for breast cancer survival

DOE PAGES

Mao, Xuan Y.; Lee, Matthew J.; Zhu, Jeffrey; ...

2017-01-21

Large genomic datasets in combination with clinical data can be used as an unbiased tool to identify genes important in patient survival and discover potential therapeutic targets. We used a genome-wide screen to identify 587 genes significantly and robustly deregulated across four independent breast cancer (BC) datasets compared to normal breast tissue. Gene expression of 381 genes was significantly associated with relapse-free survival (RFS) in BC patients. We used a gene co-expression network approach to visualize the genetic architecture in normal breast and BCs. In normal breast tissue, co-expression cliques were identified enriched for cell cycle, gene transcription, cell adhesion,more » cytoskeletal organization and metabolism. In contrast, in BC, only two major co-expression cliques were identified enriched for cell cycle-related processes or blood vessel development, cell adhesion and mammary gland development processes. Interestingly, gene expression levels of 7 genes were found to be negatively correlated with many cell cycle related genes, highlighting these genes as potential tumor suppressors and novel therapeutic targets. A forward-conditional Cox regression analysis was used to identify a 12-gene signature associated with RFS. A prognostic scoring system was created based on the 12-gene signature. This scoring system robustly predicted BC patient RFS in 60 sampling test sets and was further validated in TCGA and METABRIC BC data. Our integrated study identified a 12-gene prognostic signature that could guide adjuvant therapy for BC patients and includes novel potential molecular targets for therapy.« less

Genome-wide screen identifies a novel prognostic signature for breast cancer survival

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mao, Xuan Y.; Lee, Matthew J.; Zhu, Jeffrey

Large genomic datasets in combination with clinical data can be used as an unbiased tool to identify genes important in patient survival and discover potential therapeutic targets. We used a genome-wide screen to identify 587 genes significantly and robustly deregulated across four independent breast cancer (BC) datasets compared to normal breast tissue. Gene expression of 381 genes was significantly associated with relapse-free survival (RFS) in BC patients. We used a gene co-expression network approach to visualize the genetic architecture in normal breast and BCs. In normal breast tissue, co-expression cliques were identified enriched for cell cycle, gene transcription, cell adhesion,more » cytoskeletal organization and metabolism. In contrast, in BC, only two major co-expression cliques were identified enriched for cell cycle-related processes or blood vessel development, cell adhesion and mammary gland development processes. Interestingly, gene expression levels of 7 genes were found to be negatively correlated with many cell cycle related genes, highlighting these genes as potential tumor suppressors and novel therapeutic targets. A forward-conditional Cox regression analysis was used to identify a 12-gene signature associated with RFS. A prognostic scoring system was created based on the 12-gene signature. This scoring system robustly predicted BC patient RFS in 60 sampling test sets and was further validated in TCGA and METABRIC BC data. Our integrated study identified a 12-gene prognostic signature that could guide adjuvant therapy for BC patients and includes novel potential molecular targets for therapy.« less

Determining the Uncertainty of X-Ray Absorption Measurements

PubMed Central

Wojcik, Gary S.

2004-01-01

X-ray absorption (or more properly, x-ray attenuation) techniques have been applied to study the moisture movement in and moisture content of materials like cement paste, mortar, and wood. An increase in the number of x-ray counts with time at a location in a specimen may indicate a decrease in moisture content. The uncertainty of measurements from an x-ray absorption system, which must be known to properly interpret the data, is often assumed to be the square root of the number of counts, as in a Poisson process. No detailed studies have heretofore been conducted to determine the uncertainty of x-ray absorption measurements or the effect of averaging data on the uncertainty. In this study, the Poisson estimate was found to adequately approximate normalized root mean square errors (a measure of uncertainty) of counts for point measurements and profile measurements of water specimens. The Poisson estimate, however, was not reliable in approximating the magnitude of the uncertainty when averaging data from paste and mortar specimens. Changes in uncertainty from differing averaging procedures were well-approximated by a Poisson process. The normalized root mean square errors decreased when the x-ray source intensity, integration time, collimator size, and number of scanning repetitions increased. Uncertainties in mean paste and mortar count profiles were kept below 2 % by averaging vertical profiles at horizontal spacings of 1 mm or larger with counts per point above 4000. Maximum normalized root mean square errors did not exceed 10 % in any of the tests conducted. PMID:27366627

An open-source framework for large-scale, flexible evaluation of biomedical text mining systems.

PubMed

Baumgartner, William A; Cohen, K Bretonnel; Hunter, Lawrence

2008-01-29

Improved evaluation methodologies have been identified as a necessary prerequisite to the improvement of text mining theory and practice. This paper presents a publicly available framework that facilitates thorough, structured, and large-scale evaluations of text mining technologies. The extensibility of this framework and its ability to uncover system-wide characteristics by analyzing component parts as well as its usefulness for facilitating third-party application integration are demonstrated through examples in the biomedical domain. Our evaluation framework was assembled using the Unstructured Information Management Architecture. It was used to analyze a set of gene mention identification systems involving 225 combinations of system, evaluation corpus, and correctness measure. Interactions between all three were found to affect the relative rankings of the systems. A second experiment evaluated gene normalization system performance using as input 4,097 combinations of gene mention systems and gene mention system-combining strategies. Gene mention system recall is shown to affect gene normalization system performance much more than does gene mention system precision, and high gene normalization performance is shown to be achievable with remarkably low levels of gene mention system precision. The software presented in this paper demonstrates the potential for novel discovery resulting from the structured evaluation of biomedical language processing systems, as well as the usefulness of such an evaluation framework for promoting collaboration between developers of biomedical language processing technologies. The code base is available as part of the BioNLP UIMA Component Repository on SourceForge.net.

An open-source framework for large-scale, flexible evaluation of biomedical text mining systems

PubMed Central

Baumgartner, William A; Cohen, K Bretonnel; Hunter, Lawrence

2008-01-01

Background Improved evaluation methodologies have been identified as a necessary prerequisite to the improvement of text mining theory and practice. This paper presents a publicly available framework that facilitates thorough, structured, and large-scale evaluations of text mining technologies. The extensibility of this framework and its ability to uncover system-wide characteristics by analyzing component parts as well as its usefulness for facilitating third-party application integration are demonstrated through examples in the biomedical domain. Results Our evaluation framework was assembled using the Unstructured Information Management Architecture. It was used to analyze a set of gene mention identification systems involving 225 combinations of system, evaluation corpus, and correctness measure. Interactions between all three were found to affect the relative rankings of the systems. A second experiment evaluated gene normalization system performance using as input 4,097 combinations of gene mention systems and gene mention system-combining strategies. Gene mention system recall is shown to affect gene normalization system performance much more than does gene mention system precision, and high gene normalization performance is shown to be achievable with remarkably low levels of gene mention system precision. Conclusion The software presented in this paper demonstrates the potential for novel discovery resulting from the structured evaluation of biomedical language processing systems, as well as the usefulness of such an evaluation framework for promoting collaboration between developers of biomedical language processing technologies. The code base is available as part of the BioNLP UIMA Component Repository on SourceForge.net. PMID:18230184

Whole Brain Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopic Determinants of Functional Outcomes in Pediatric Moderate/Severe Traumatic Brain Injury.

PubMed

Babikian, Talin; Alger, Jeffry R; Ellis-Blied, Monica U; Giza, Christopher C; Dennis, Emily; Olsen, Alexander; Mink, Richard; Babbitt, Christopher; Johnson, Jeff; Thompson, Paul M; Asarnow, Robert F

2018-05-18

Diffuse axonal injury contributes to the long-term functional morbidity observed after pediatric moderate/severe traumatic brain injury (msTBI). Whole-brain proton magnetic resonance echo-planar spectroscopic imaging was used to measure the neurometabolite levels in the brain to delineate the course of disruption/repair during the first year post-msTBI. The association between metabolite biomarkers and functional measures (cognitive functioning and corpus callosum [CC] function assessed by interhemispheric transfer time [IHTT] using an event related potential paradigm) was also explored. Pediatric patients with msTBI underwent assessments at two times (post-acutely at a mean of three months post-injury, n = 31, and chronically at a mean of 16 months post-injury, n = 24). Healthy controls also underwent two evaluations, approximately 12 months apart. Post-acutely, in patients with msTBI, there were elevations in choline (Cho; marker for inflammation and/or altered membrane metabolism) in all four brain lobes and the CC and decreases in N-acetylaspartate (NAA; marker for neuronal and axonal integrity) in the CC compared with controls, all of which normalized by the chronic time point. Subgroups of TBI showed variable patterns chronically. Patients with slow IHTT had lower lobar Cho chronically than those with normal IHTT; they also did not show normalization in CC NAA whereas those with normal IHTT showed significantly higher levels of CC NAA relative to controls. In the normal IHTT group only, chronic CC Cho and NAA together explained 70% of the variance in long-term cognitive functioning. MR based whole brain metabolic evaluations show different patterns of neurochemistry after msTBI in two subgroups with different outcomes. There is a dynamic relationship between prolonged inflammatory responses to brain damage, reparative processes/remyelination, and subsequent neurobehavioral outcomes. Multimodal studies allow us to test hypotheses about degenerative and reparative processes in patient groups that have divergent functional outcome, with the ultimate goal of developing targeted therapeutic agents.

Modes of uncontrolled rotational motion of the Progress M-29M spacecraft

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Belyaev, M. Yu.; Matveeva, T. V.; Monakhov, M. I.; Rulev, D. N.; Sazonov, V. V.

2018-01-01

We have reconstructed the uncontrolled rotational motion of the Progress M-29M transport cargo spacecraft in the single-axis solar orientation mode (the so-called sunward spin) and in the mode of the gravitational orientation of a rotating satellite. The modes were implemented on April 3-7, 2016 as a part of preparation for experiments with the DAKON convection sensor onboard the Progress spacecraft. The reconstruction was performed by integral statistical techniques using the measurements of the spacecraft's angular velocity and electric current from its solar arrays. The measurement data obtained in a certain time interval have been jointly processed using the least-squares method by integrating the equations of the spacecraft's motion relative to the center of mass. As a result of processing, the initial conditions of motion and parameters of the mathematical model have been estimated. The motion in the sunward spin mode is the rotation of the spacecraft with an angular velocity of 2.2 deg/s about the normal to the plane of solar arrays; the normal is oriented toward the Sun or forms a small angle with this direction. The duration of the mode is several orbit passes. The reconstruction has been performed over time intervals of up to 1 h. As a result, the actual rotational motion of the spacecraft relative to the Earth-Sun direction was obtained. In the gravitational orientation mode, the spacecraft was rotated about its longitudinal axis with an angular velocity of 0.1-0.2 deg/s; the longitudinal axis executed small oscillated relative to the local vertical. The reconstruction of motion relative to the orbital coordinate system was performed in time intervals of up to 7 h using only the angularvelocity measurements. The measurements of the electric current from solar arrays were used for verification.

An informatics approach to integrating genetic and neurological data in speech and language neuroscience.

PubMed

Bohland, Jason W; Myers, Emma M; Kim, Esther

2014-01-01

A number of heritable disorders impair the normal development of speech and language processes and occur in large numbers within the general population. While candidate genes and loci have been identified, the gap between genotype and phenotype is vast, limiting current understanding of the biology of normal and disordered processes. This gap exists not only in our scientific knowledge, but also in our research communities, where genetics researchers and speech, language, and cognitive scientists tend to operate independently. Here we describe a web-based, domain-specific, curated database that represents information about genotype-phenotype relations specific to speech and language disorders, as well as neuroimaging results demonstrating focal brain differences in relevant patients versus controls. Bringing these two distinct data types into a common database ( http://neurospeech.org/sldb ) is a first step toward bringing molecular level information into cognitive and computational theories of speech and language function. One bridge between these data types is provided by densely sampled profiles of gene expression in the brain, such as those provided by the Allen Brain Atlases. Here we present results from exploratory analyses of human brain gene expression profiles for genes implicated in speech and language disorders, which are annotated in our database. We then discuss how such datasets can be useful in the development of computational models that bridge levels of analysis, necessary to provide a mechanistic understanding of heritable language disorders. We further describe our general approach to information integration, discuss important caveats and considerations, and offer a specific but speculative example based on genes implicated in stuttering and basal ganglia function in speech motor control.

Evolution of crossmodal reorganization of the voice area in cochlear-implanted deaf patients.

PubMed

Rouger, Julien; Lagleyre, Sébastien; Démonet, Jean-François; Fraysse, Bernard; Deguine, Olivier; Barone, Pascal

2012-08-01

Psychophysical and neuroimaging studies in both animal and human subjects have clearly demonstrated that cortical plasticity following sensory deprivation leads to a brain functional reorganization that favors the spared modalities. In postlingually deaf patients, the use of a cochlear implant (CI) allows a recovery of the auditory function, which will probably counteract the cortical crossmodal reorganization induced by hearing loss. To study the dynamics of such reversed crossmodal plasticity, we designed a longitudinal neuroimaging study involving the follow-up of 10 postlingually deaf adult CI users engaged in a visual speechreading task. While speechreading activates Broca's area in normally hearing subjects (NHS), the activity level elicited in this region in CI patients is abnormally low and increases progressively with post-implantation time. Furthermore, speechreading in CI patients induces abnormal crossmodal activations in right anterior regions of the superior temporal cortex normally devoted to processing human voice stimuli (temporal voice-sensitive areas-TVA). These abnormal activity levels diminish with post-implantation time and tend towards the levels observed in NHS. First, our study revealed that the neuroplasticity after cochlear implantation involves not only auditory but also visual and audiovisual speech processing networks. Second, our results suggest that during deafness, the functional links between cortical regions specialized in face and voice processing are reallocated to support speech-related visual processing through cross-modal reorganization. Such reorganization allows a more efficient audiovisual integration of speech after cochlear implantation. These compensatory sensory strategies are later completed by the progressive restoration of the visuo-audio-motor speech processing loop, including Broca's area. Copyright © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Integrating experimental and numerical methods for a scenario-based quantitative assessment of subsurface energy storage options

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kabuth, Alina; Dahmke, Andreas; Hagrey, Said Attia al; Berta, Márton; Dörr, Cordula; Koproch, Nicolas; Köber, Ralf; Köhn, Daniel; Nolde, Michael; Tilmann Pfeiffer, Wolf; Popp, Steffi; Schwanebeck, Malte; Bauer, Sebastian

2016-04-01

Within the framework of the transition to renewable energy sources ("Energiewende"), the German government defined the target of producing 60 % of the final energy consumption from renewable energy sources by the year 2050. However, renewable energies are subject to natural fluctuations. Energy storage can help to buffer the resulting time shifts between production and demand. Subsurface geological structures provide large potential capacities for energy stored in the form of heat or gas on daily to seasonal time scales. In order to explore this potential sustainably, the possible induced effects of energy storage operations have to be quantified for both specified normal operation and events of failure. The ANGUS+ project therefore integrates experimental laboratory studies with numerical approaches to assess subsurface energy storage scenarios and monitoring methods. Subsurface storage options for gas, i.e. hydrogen, synthetic methane and compressed air in salt caverns or porous structures, as well as subsurface heat storage are investigated with respect to site prerequisites, storage dimensions, induced effects, monitoring methods and integration into spatial planning schemes. The conceptual interdisciplinary approach of the ANGUS+ project towards the integration of subsurface energy storage into a sustainable subsurface planning scheme is presented here, and this approach is then demonstrated using the examples of two selected energy storage options: Firstly, the option of seasonal heat storage in a shallow aquifer is presented. Coupled thermal and hydraulic processes induced by periodic heat injection and extraction were simulated in the open-source numerical modelling package OpenGeoSys. Situations of specified normal operation as well as cases of failure in operational storage with leaking heat transfer fluid are considered. Bench-scale experiments provided parameterisations of temperature dependent changes in shallow groundwater hydrogeochemistry. As a second example, the option of seasonal hydrogen storage in a deep saline aquifer is considered. The induced thermal and hydraulic multiphase flow processes were simulated. Also, an integrative approach towards geophysical monitoring of gas presence was evaluated by synthetically applying these monitoring methods to the synthetic, however realistically defined numerical storage scenarios. Laboratory experiments provided parameterisations of geochemical effects caused by storage gas leakage into shallow aquifers in cases of sealing failure. Ultimately, the analysis of realistically defined scenarios of subsurface energy storage within the ANGUS+ project allows a quantification of the subsurface space claimed by a storage operation and its induced effects. Acknowledgments: This work is part of the ANGUS+ project (www.angusplus.de) and funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) as part of the energy storage initiative "Energiespeicher".

Normalized Temperature Contrast Processing in Infrared Flash Thermography

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Koshti, Ajay M.

2016-01-01

The paper presents further development in normalized contrast processing used in flash infrared thermography method. Method of computing normalized image or pixel intensity contrast, and normalized temperature contrast are provided. Methods of converting image contrast to temperature contrast and vice versa are provided. Normalized contrast processing in flash thermography is useful in quantitative analysis of flash thermography data including flaw characterization and comparison of experimental results with simulation. Computation of normalized temperature contrast involves use of flash thermography data acquisition set-up with high reflectivity foil and high emissivity tape such that the foil, tape and test object are imaged simultaneously. Methods of assessing other quantitative parameters such as emissivity of object, afterglow heat flux, reflection temperature change and surface temperature during flash thermography are also provided. Temperature imaging and normalized temperature contrast processing provide certain advantages over normalized image contrast processing by reducing effect of reflected energy in images and measurements, therefore providing better quantitative data. Examples of incorporating afterglow heat-flux and reflection temperature evolution in flash thermography simulation are also discussed.

Trojan dynamics well approximated by a new Hamiltonian normal form

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Páez, Rocío Isabel; Locatelli, Ugo

2015-10-01

We revisit a classical perturbative approach to the Hamiltonian related to the motions of Trojan bodies, in the framework of the planar circular restricted three-body problem, by introducing a number of key new ideas in the formulation. In some sense, we adapt the approach of Garfinkel to the context of the normal form theory and its modern techniques. First, we make use of Delaunay variables for a physically accurate representation of the system. Therefore, we introduce a novel manipulation of the variables so as to respect the natural behaviour of the model. We develop a normalization procedure over the fast angle which exploits the fact that singularities in this model are essentially related to the slow angle. Thus, we produce a new normal form, i.e. an integrable approximation to the Hamiltonian. We emphasize some practical examples of the applicability of our normalizing scheme, e.g. the estimation of the stable libration region. Finally, we compare the level curves produced by our normal form with surfaces of section provided by the integration of the non-normalized Hamiltonian, with very good agreement. Further precision tests are also provided. In addition, we give a step-by-step description of the algorithm, allowing for extensions to more complicated models.

In silico analysis of stomach lineage specific gene set expression pattern in gastric cancer

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pandi, Narayanan Sathiya, E-mail: sathiyapandi@gmail.com; Suganya, Sivagurunathan; Rajendran, Suriliyandi

Highlights: •Identified stomach lineage specific gene set (SLSGS) was found to be under expressed in gastric tumors. •Elevated expression of SLSGS in gastric tumor is a molecular predictor of metabolic type gastric cancer. •In silico pathway scanning identified estrogen-α signaling is a putative regulator of SLSGS in gastric cancer. •Elevated expression of SLSGS in GC is associated with an overall increase in the survival of GC patients. -- Abstract: Stomach lineage specific gene products act as a protective barrier in the normal stomach and their expression maintains the normal physiological processes, cellular integrity and morphology of the gastric wall. However,more » the regulation of stomach lineage specific genes in gastric cancer (GC) is far less clear. In the present study, we sought to investigate the role and regulation of stomach lineage specific gene set (SLSGS) in GC. SLSGS was identified by comparing the mRNA expression profiles of normal stomach tissue with other organ tissue. The obtained SLSGS was found to be under expressed in gastric tumors. Functional annotation analysis revealed that the SLSGS was enriched for digestive function and gastric epithelial maintenance. Employing a single sample prediction method across GC mRNA expression profiles identified the under expression of SLSGS in proliferative type and invasive type gastric tumors compared to the metabolic type gastric tumors. Integrative pathway activation prediction analysis revealed a close association between estrogen-α signaling and SLSGS expression pattern in GC. Elevated expression of SLSGS in GC is associated with an overall increase in the survival of GC patients. In conclusion, our results highlight that estrogen mediated regulation of SLSGS in gastric tumor is a molecular predictor of metabolic type GC and prognostic factor in GC.« less

Aquaporin-0 Targets Interlocking Domains to Control the Integrity and Transparency of the Eye Lens

PubMed Central

Lo, Woo-Kuen; Biswas, Sondip K.; Brako, Lawrence; Shiels, Alan; Gu, Sumin; Jiang, Jean X.

2014-01-01

Purpose. Lens fiber cell membranes contain aquaporin-0 (AQP0), which constitutes approximately 50% of the total fiber cell membrane proteins and has a dual function as a water channel protein and an adhesion molecule. Fiber cell membranes also develop an elaborate interlocking system that is required for maintaining structural order, stability, and lens transparency. Herein, we used an AQP0-deficient mouse model to investigate an unconventional adhesion role of AQP0 in maintaining a normal structure of lens interlocking protrusions. Methods. The loss of AQP0 in AQP0−/− lens fibers was verified by Western blot and immunofluorescence analyses. Changes in membrane surface structures of wild-type and AQP0−/− lenses at age 3 to 12 weeks were examined with scanning electron microscopy. Preferential distribution of AQP0 in wild-type fiber cell membranes was analyzed with immunofluorescence and immunogold labeling using freeze-fracturing transmission electron microscopy. Results. Interlocking protrusions in young differentiating fiber cells developed normally but showed minor abnormalities at approximately 50 μm deep in the absence of AQP0 in all ages studied. Strikingly, protrusions in maturing fiber cells specifically underwent uncontrolled elongation, deformation, and fragmentation, while cells still retained their overall shape. Later in the process, these changes eventually resulted in fiber cell separation, breakdown, and cataract formation in the lens core. Immunolabeling at the light microscopy and transmission electron microscopy levels demonstrated that AQP0 was particularly enriched in interlocking protrusions in wild-type lenses. Conclusions. This study suggests that AQP0 exerts its primary adhesion or suppression role specifically to maintain the normal structure of interlocking protrusions that is critical to the integrity and transparency of the lens. PMID:24458158

The contribution of visual information to the perception of speech in noise with and without informative temporal fine structure

PubMed Central

Stacey, Paula C.; Kitterick, Pádraig T.; Morris, Saffron D.; Sumner, Christian J.

2017-01-01

Understanding what is said in demanding listening situations is assisted greatly by looking at the face of a talker. Previous studies have observed that normal-hearing listeners can benefit from this visual information when a talker's voice is presented in background noise. These benefits have also been observed in quiet listening conditions in cochlear-implant users, whose device does not convey the informative temporal fine structure cues in speech, and when normal-hearing individuals listen to speech processed to remove these informative temporal fine structure cues. The current study (1) characterised the benefits of visual information when listening in background noise; and (2) used sine-wave vocoding to compare the size of the visual benefit when speech is presented with or without informative temporal fine structure. The accuracy with which normal-hearing individuals reported words in spoken sentences was assessed across three experiments. The availability of visual information and informative temporal fine structure cues was varied within and across the experiments. The results showed that visual benefit was observed using open- and closed-set tests of speech perception. The size of the benefit increased when informative temporal fine structure cues were removed. This finding suggests that visual information may play an important role in the ability of cochlear-implant users to understand speech in many everyday situations. Models of audio-visual integration were able to account for the additional benefit of visual information when speech was degraded and suggested that auditory and visual information was being integrated in a similar way in all conditions. The modelling results were consistent with the notion that audio-visual benefit is derived from the optimal combination of auditory and visual sensory cues. PMID:27085797

Bio-inspired multi-mode optic flow sensors for micro air vehicles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, Seokjun; Choi, Jaehyuk; Cho, Jihyun; Yoon, Euisik

2013-06-01

Monitoring wide-field surrounding information is essential for vision-based autonomous navigation in micro-air-vehicles (MAV). Our image-cube (iCube) module, which consists of multiple sensors that are facing different angles in 3-D space, can be applied to the wide-field of view optic flows estimation (μ-Compound eyes) and to attitude control (μ- Ocelli) in the Micro Autonomous Systems and Technology (MAST) platforms. In this paper, we report an analog/digital (A/D) mixed-mode optic-flow sensor, which generates both optic flows and normal images in different modes for μ- Compound eyes and μ-Ocelli applications. The sensor employs a time-stamp based optic flow algorithm which is modified from the conventional EMD (Elementary Motion Detector) algorithm to give an optimum partitioning of hardware blocks in analog and digital domains as well as adequate allocation of pixel-level, column-parallel, and chip-level signal processing. Temporal filtering, which may require huge hardware resources if implemented in digital domain, is remained in a pixel-level analog processing unit. The rest of the blocks, including feature detection and timestamp latching, are implemented using digital circuits in a column-parallel processing unit. Finally, time-stamp information is decoded into velocity from look-up tables, multiplications, and simple subtraction circuits in a chip-level processing unit, thus significantly reducing core digital processing power consumption. In the normal image mode, the sensor generates 8-b digital images using single slope ADCs in the column unit. In the optic flow mode, the sensor estimates 8-b 1-D optic flows from the integrated mixed-mode algorithm core and 2-D optic flows with an external timestamp processing, respectively.

National standards in pathology education: developing competencies for integrated medical school curricula.

PubMed

Sadofsky, Moshe; Knollmann-Ritschel, Barbara; Conran, Richard M; Prystowsky, Michael B

2014-03-01

Medical school education has evolved from department-specific memorization of facts to an integrated curriculum presenting knowledge in a contextual manner across traditional disciplines, integrating information, improving retention, and facilitating application to clinical practice. Integration occurs throughout medical school using live data-sharing technologies, thereby providing the student with a framework for lifelong active learning. Incorporation of educational teams during medical school prepares students for team-based patient care, which is also required for pay-for-performance models used in accountable care organizations. To develop learning objectives for teaching pathology to medical students. Given the rapid expansion of basic science knowledge of human development, normal function, and pathobiology, it is neither possible nor desirable for faculty to teach, and students to retain, this vast amount of information. Courses teaching the essentials in context and engaging students in the learning process enable them to become lifelong learners. An appreciation of pathobiology and the role of laboratory medicine underlies the modern practice of medicine. As such, all medical students need to acquire 3 basic competencies in pathology: an understanding of disease mechanisms, integration of mechanisms into organ system pathology, and application of pathobiology to diagnostic medicine. We propose the development of 3 specific competencies in pathology to be implemented nationwide, aimed at disease mechanisms/processes, organ system pathology, and application to diagnostic medicine. Each competency will include learning objectives and a means to assess acquisition, integration, and application of knowledge. The learning objectives are designed to be a living document managed (curated) by a group of pathologists representing Liaison Committee on Medical Education-accredited medical schools nationally. Development of a coherent set of learning objectives will assist medical students nationally to gain the basic competencies in pathology necessary for clinical practice. Having national standards for competencies preserves schools' independence in specific curriculum design while assuring all students meet the evolving needs of medical practice.

Optical clock distribution in supercomputers using polyimide-based waveguides

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bihari, Bipin; Gan, Jianhua; Wu, Linghui; Liu, Yujie; Tang, Suning; Chen, Ray T.

1999-04-01

Guided-wave optics is a promising way to deliver high-speed clock-signal in supercomputer with minimized clock-skew. Si- CMOS compatible polymer-based waveguides for optoelectronic interconnects and packaging have been fabricated and characterized. A 1-to-48 fanout optoelectronic interconnection layer (OIL) structure based on Ultradel 9120/9020 for the high-speed massive clock signal distribution for a Cray T-90 supercomputer board has been constructed. The OIL employs multimode polymeric channel waveguides in conjunction with surface-normal waveguide output coupler and 1-to-2 splitters. Surface-normal couplers can couple the optical clock signals into and out from the H-tree polyimide waveguides surface-normally, which facilitates the integration of photodetectors to convert optical-signal to electrical-signal. A 45-degree surface- normal couplers has been integrated at each output end. The measured output coupling efficiency is nearly 100 percent. The output profile from 45-degree surface-normal coupler were calculated using Fresnel approximation. the theoretical result is in good agreement with experimental result. A total insertion loss of 7.98 dB at 850 nm was measured experimentally.

[Inheritable phenotypic normalization of rodent cells transformed by simian adenovirus SA7 E1 oncogenes by singled-stranded oligonucleotides complementary to a long region of integrated oncogenes].

PubMed

Grineva, N I; Borovkova, T V; Sats, N V; Kurabekova, R M; Rozhitskaia, O S; Solov'ev, G Ia; Pantin, V I

1995-08-01

G11 mouse cells and SH2 rat cells transformed with simian adenovirus SA7 DNA showed inheritable oncogen-specific phenotypic normalization when treated with sense and antisense oligonucleotides complementary to long RNA sequences, plus or minus strands of the integrated adenovirus oncogenes E1A and E1B. Transitory treatment of the cells with the oligonucleotides in the absence of serum was shown to cause the appearance of normalized cell lines with fibroblastlike morphology, slower cell proliferation, and lack of ability to form colonies in soft agar. Proliferative activity and adhesion of the normalized cells that established cell lines were found to depend on the concentration of growth factors in the cultural medium. In some of the cell lines, an inhibition of transcription of the E1 oncogenes was observed. The normalization also produced cells that divided 2 - 5 times and died and cells that reverted to a transformed phenotype in 2 - 10 days. The latter appeared predominantly upon the action of the antisense oligonucleotides.

Does C₁ fracture displacement correlate with transverse ligament integrity?

PubMed

Radcliff, Kristen E; Sonagli, Marcos A; Rodrigues, Luciano M; Sidhu, Gursukhman S; Albert, Todd J; Vaccaro, Alexander R

2013-05-01

The Rule of Spence states that displacement of the C₁ lateral masses by >6.9-8.1 mm suggests loss of transverse ligament integrity. The purpose of this study was to establish the thresholds of C₁ displacement on CT scans that correspond to transverse ligament disruption. Over four years, consecutive patients with acute C₁ fractures with at least three fracture lines were analyzed. CT measurements and MRI were assessed by blinded observers for bony displacement in the axial (internal and external lateral mass separation), coronal and sagittal planes and transverse ligament integrity. Eighteen patients were studied. Mean CT bony measurements were as follows: internal border lateral mass separation (ILM) 23.3 ± 3.4 mm, external border lateral mass separation (ELM) 50.3 ± 4.3 mm, total C₁ lateral mass overhang over the C₂ superior process (LMO) 5.4 ± 1.3 mm. Twelve patients were identified as having intact transverse ligament and six had transverse ligament disruption. There was no difference in mean normalized ILM, ELM, or LMO between patients with or without transverse ligament integrity (P > 0.05). There was no correlation between bony displacement and transverse ligament integrity. CT scans post-injury may not show the position of maximal displacement. If there is clinical concern about a possible transverse ligament injury, MRI should be performed. © 2013 Chinese Orthopaedic Association and Wiley Publishing Asia Pty Ltd.

From multisensory integration in peripersonal space to bodily self-consciousness: from statistical regularities to statistical inference.

PubMed

Noel, Jean-Paul; Blanke, Olaf; Serino, Andrea

2018-06-06

Integrating information across sensory systems is a critical step toward building a cohesive representation of the environment and one's body, and as illustrated by numerous illusions, scaffolds subjective experience of the world and self. In the last years, classic principles of multisensory integration elucidated in the subcortex have been translated into the language of statistical inference understood by the neocortical mantle. Most importantly, a mechanistic systems-level description of multisensory computations via probabilistic population coding and divisive normalization is actively being put forward. In parallel, by describing and understanding bodily illusions, researchers have suggested multisensory integration of bodily inputs within the peripersonal space as a key mechanism in bodily self-consciousness. Importantly, certain aspects of bodily self-consciousness, although still very much a minority, have been recently casted under the light of modern computational understandings of multisensory integration. In doing so, we argue, the field of bodily self-consciousness may borrow mechanistic descriptions regarding the neural implementation of inference computations outlined by the multisensory field. This computational approach, leveraged on the understanding of multisensory processes generally, promises to advance scientific comprehension regarding one of the most mysterious questions puzzling humankind, that is, how our brain creates the experience of a self in interaction with the environment. © 2018 The Authors. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of New York Academy of Sciences.

High-efficiency non-uniformity correction for wide dynamic linear infrared radiometry system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Zhou; Yu, Yi; Tian, Qi-Jie; Chang, Song-Tao; He, Feng-Yun; Yin, Yan-He; Qiao, Yan-Feng

2017-09-01

Several different integration times are always set for a wide dynamic linear and continuous variable integration time infrared radiometry system, therefore, traditional calibration-based non-uniformity correction (NUC) are usually conducted one by one, and furthermore, several calibration sources required, consequently makes calibration and process of NUC time-consuming. In this paper, the difference of NUC coefficients between different integration times have been discussed, and then a novel NUC method called high-efficiency NUC, which combines the traditional calibration-based non-uniformity correction, has been proposed. It obtains the correction coefficients of all integration times in whole linear dynamic rangesonly by recording three different images of a standard blackbody. Firstly, mathematical procedure of the proposed non-uniformity correction method is validated and then its performance is demonstrated by a 400 mm diameter ground-based infrared radiometry system. Experimental results show that the mean value of Normalized Root Mean Square (NRMS) is reduced from 3.78% to 0.24% by the proposed method. In addition, the results at 4 ms and 70 °C prove that this method has a higher accuracy compared with traditional calibration-based NUC. In the meantime, at other integration time and temperature there is still a good correction effect. Moreover, it greatly reduces the number of correction time and temperature sampling point, and is characterized by good real-time performance and suitable for field measurement.

In situ stress conditions at IODP Site C0002 reflecting the tectonic evolution of the sedimentary system near the seaward edge of the Kumano basin, offshore from SW Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Insun; Chang, Chandong

2017-05-01

This paper presents a complete set of in situ stress calculations for depths of 200-1400 meters below seafloor at Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) Site C0002, near the seaward margin of the Kumano fore-arc basin, offshore from southwest Japan. The vertical stress component was obtained by integrating bulk density calculations from moisture and density logging data, and the two horizontal components were stochastically optimized by minimizing misfits between a probabilistic model and measured breakout widths for every 30 m vertical segment of the wellbore. Our stochastic optimization process reveals that the in situ stress regime is decoupled across an unconformity between an accretionary complex and the overlying Kumano fore-arc basin. The stress condition above the unconformity is close to the critical condition for normal faulting, while below the unconformity the geologic system is stable in a normal to strike-slip fault stress regime. The critical state of stress demonstrates that the tectonic evolution of the sedimentary system has been achieved mainly by the regionally continuous action of a major out-of-sequence thrust fault during sedimentation in the fore-arc basin. The stable stress condition in the accretionary prism is interpreted to have resulted from mechanical decoupling by the accommodation of large displacement along the megasplay fault.

Integration deficiencies associated with continuous limb movement sequences in Parkinson's disease.

PubMed

Park, Jin-Hoon; Stelmach, George E

2009-11-01

The present study examined the extent to which Parkinson's disease (PD) influences integration of continuous limb movement sequences. Eight patients with idiopathic PD and 8 age-matched normal subjects were instructed to perform repetitive sequential aiming movements to specified targets under three-accuracy constraints: 1) low accuracy (W = 7 cm) - minimal accuracy constraint, 2) high accuracy (W = 0.64 cm) - maximum accuracy constraint, and 3) mixed accuracy constraint - one target of high accuracy and another target of low accuracy. The characteristic of sequential movements in the low accuracy condition was mostly cyclical, whereas in the high accuracy condition it was discrete in both groups. When the accuracy constraint was mixed, the sequential movements were executed by assembling discrete and cyclical movements in both groups, suggesting that for PD patients the capability to combine discrete and cyclical movements to meet a task requirement appears to be intact. However, such functional linkage was not as pronounced as was in normal subjects. Close examination of movement from the mixed accuracy condition revealed marked movement hesitations in the vicinity of the large target in PD patients, resulting in a bias toward discrete movement. These results suggest that PD patients may have deficits in ongoing planning and organizing processes during movement execution when the tasks require to assemble various accuracy requirements into more complex movement sequences.

A systematic evaluation of expression of HERV-W elements; influence of genomic context, viral structure and orientation

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background One member of the W family of human endogenous retroviruses (HERV) appears to have been functionally adopted by the human host. Nevertheless, a highly diversified and regulated transcription from a range of HERV-W elements has been observed in human tissues and cells. Aberrant expression of members of this family has also been associated with human disease such as multiple sclerosis (MS) and schizophrenia. It is not known whether this broad expression of HERV-W elements represents transcriptional leakage or specific transcription initiated from the retroviral promoter in the long terminal repeat (LTR) region. Therefore, potential influences of genomic context, structure and orientation on the expression levels of individual HERV-W elements in normal human tissues were systematically investigated. Results Whereas intronic HERV-W elements with a pseudogene structure exhibited a strong anti-sense orientation bias, intronic elements with a proviral structure and solo LTRs did not. Although a highly variable expression across tissues and elements was observed, systematic effects of context, structure and orientation were also observed. Elements located in intronic regions appeared to be expressed at higher levels than elements located in intergenic regions. Intronic elements with proviral structures were expressed at higher levels than those elements bearing hallmarks of processed pseudogenes or solo LTRs. Relative to their corresponding genes, intronic elements integrated on the sense strand appeared to be transcribed at higher levels than those integrated on the anti-sense strand. Moreover, the expression of proviral elements appeared to be independent from that of their corresponding genes. Conclusions Intronic HERV-W provirus integrations on the sense strand appear to have elicited a weaker negative selection than pseudogene integrations of transcripts from such elements. Our current findings suggest that the previously observed diversified and tissue-specific expression of elements in the HERV-W family is the result of both directed transcription (involving both the LTR and internal sequence) and leaky transcription of HERV-W elements in normal human tissues. PMID:21226900

Performance of the hybrid MLPNN based VE (hMLPNN-VE) for the nonlinear PMR channels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wongsathan, Rati; Phakphisut, Watid; Supnithi, Pornchai

2018-05-01

This paper proposes a hybrid of multilayer perceptron neural network (MLPNN) and Volterra equalizer (VE) denoted hMLPNN-VE in nonlinear perpendicular magnetic recording (PMR) channels. The proposed detector integrates the nonlinear product terms of the delayed readback signals generated from the VE into the nonlinear processing of the MLPNN. The detection performance comparison is evaluated in terms of the tradeoff between the bit error rate (BER), complexity and reliability for a nonlinear Volterra channel at high normalized recording density. The proposed hMLPNN-VE outperforms MLPNN based equalizer (MLPNNE), VE and the conventional partial response maximum likelihood (PRML) detector.

The Repeat Expansion Diseases: the dark side of DNA repair?

PubMed Central

Zhao, Xiao-Nan; Usdin, Karen

2015-01-01

DNA repair normally protects the genome against mutations that threaten genome integrity and thus cell viability. However, growing evidence suggests that in the case of the Repeat Expansion Diseases, disorders that result from an increase in the size of a disease-specific microsatellite, the disease-causing mutation is actually the result of aberrant DNA repair. A variety of proteins from different DNA repair pathways have thus far been implicated in this process. This review will summarize recent findings from patients and from mouse models of these diseases that shed light on how these pathways may interact to cause repeat expansion. PMID:26002199

Top-down modulation: the crossroads of perception, attention and memory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gazzaley, Adam

2010-02-01

Research in our laboratory focuses on understanding the neural mechanisms that serve at the crossroads of perception, memory and attention, specifically exploring how brain region interactions underlie these abilities. To accomplish this, we study top-down modulation, the process by which we enhance neural activity associated with relevant information and suppress activity for irrelevant information, thus establishing a neural basis for all higher-order cognitive operations. We also study alterations in top-down modulation that occur with normal aging. Our experiments are performed on human participants, using a multimodal approach that integrates functional MRI (fMRI), transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and electroencephalography (EEG).

FIBER AND INTEGRATED OPTICS: Noncollinear geometry for highly efficient excitation of a corrugated waveguide

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klimov, M. S.; Sychugov, V. A.; Tishchenko, A. V.

1992-02-01

An analysis is made of the process of light emission from a corrugated waveguide into air and into a substrate in a noncollinear geometry, i.e., when the direction along which the waveguide mode propagates does not coincide with the plane in which the emitted wave lies. Calculations show that when a TE mode is excited in a corrugated waveguide by a light beam with the TM polarization incident from air on the waveguide at a grazing angle, one can achieve a high waveguide excitation efficiency (~ 60%) if the waveguide mode propagates along the normal to the plane of incidence.

Tissue-specific expression of transgenic secreted ACE in vasculature can restore normal kidney functions, but not blood pressure, of Ace-/- mice.

PubMed

Chattopadhyay, Saurabh; Kessler, Sean P; Colucci, Juliana Almada; Yamashita, Michifumi; Senanayake, Preenie deS; Sen, Ganes C

2014-01-01

Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) regulates normal blood pressure and fluid homeostasis through its action in the renin-angiotensin-system (RAS). Ace-/- mice are smaller in size, have low blood pressure and defective kidney structure and functions. All of these defects are cured by transgenic expression of somatic ACE (sACE) in vascular endothelial cells of Ace-/- mice. sACE is expressed on the surface of vascular endothelial cells and undergoes a natural cleavage secretion process to generate a soluble form in the body fluids. Both the tissue-bound and the soluble forms of ACE are enzymatically active, and generate the vasoactive octapeptide Angiotensin II (Ang II) with equal efficiency. To assess the relative physiological roles of the secreted and the cell-bound forms of ACE, we expressed, in the vascular endothelial cells of Ace-/- mice, the ectodomain of sACE, which corresponded to only the secreted form of ACE. Our results demonstrated that the secreted form of ACE could normalize kidney functions and RAS integrity, growth and development of Ace-/- mice, but not their blood pressure. This study clearly demonstrates that the secreted form of ACE cannot replace the tissue-bound ACE for maintaining normal blood pressure; a suitable balance between the tissue-bound and the soluble forms of ACE is essential for maintaining all physiological functions of ACE.

Tissue-Specific Expression of Transgenic Secreted ACE in Vasculature Can Restore Normal Kidney Functions, but Not Blood Pressure, of Ace-/- Mice

PubMed Central

Chattopadhyay, Saurabh; Kessler, Sean P.; Colucci, Juliana Almada; Yamashita, Michifumi; Senanayake, Preenie deS; Sen, Ganes C.

2014-01-01

Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) regulates normal blood pressure and fluid homeostasis through its action in the renin-angiotensin-system (RAS). Ace-/- mice are smaller in size, have low blood pressure and defective kidney structure and functions. All of these defects are cured by transgenic expression of somatic ACE (sACE) in vascular endothelial cells of Ace-/- mice. sACE is expressed on the surface of vascular endothelial cells and undergoes a natural cleavage secretion process to generate a soluble form in the body fluids. Both the tissue-bound and the soluble forms of ACE are enzymatically active, and generate the vasoactive octapeptide Angiotensin II (Ang II) with equal efficiency. To assess the relative physiological roles of the secreted and the cell-bound forms of ACE, we expressed, in the vascular endothelial cells of Ace-/- mice, the ectodomain of sACE, which corresponded to only the secreted form of ACE. Our results demonstrated that the secreted form of ACE could normalize kidney functions and RAS integrity, growth and development of Ace-/- mice, but not their blood pressure. This study clearly demonstrates that the secreted form of ACE cannot replace the tissue-bound ACE for maintaining normal blood pressure; a suitable balance between the tissue-bound and the soluble forms of ACE is essential for maintaining all physiological functions of ACE. PMID:24475296

Virtual interface substructure synthesis method for normal mode analysis of super-large molecular complexes at atomic resolution.

PubMed

Chen, Xuehui; Sun, Yunxiang; An, Xiongbo; Ming, Dengming

2011-10-14

Normal mode analysis of large biomolecular complexes at atomic resolution remains challenging in computational structure biology due to the requirement of large amount of memory space and central processing unit time. In this paper, we present a method called virtual interface substructure synthesis method or VISSM to calculate approximate normal modes of large biomolecular complexes at atomic resolution. VISSM introduces the subunit interfaces as independent substructures that join contacting molecules so as to keep the integrity of the system. Compared with other approximate methods, VISSM delivers atomic modes with no need of a coarse-graining-then-projection procedure. The method was examined for 54 protein-complexes with the conventional all-atom normal mode analysis using CHARMM simulation program and the overlap of the first 100 low-frequency modes is greater than 0.7 for 49 complexes, indicating its accuracy and reliability. We then applied VISSM to the satellite panicum mosaic virus (SPMV, 78,300 atoms) and to F-actin filament structures of up to 39-mer, 228,813 atoms and found that VISSM calculations capture functionally important conformational changes accessible to these structures at atomic resolution. Our results support the idea that the dynamics of a large biomolecular complex might be understood based on the motions of its component subunits and the way in which subunits bind one another. © 2011 American Institute of Physics

Stationary light pulse in solids with long-lived spin coherence

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhang Xiaojun; Wang Haihua; Wang Lei

We present a detailed analysis of stationary light pulses (SLP's) for the case of inhomogeneous broadening in both optical and spin transitions, which is normally found in solid materials with long-lived spin coherence. By solving the Langevin equations of motion for the density matrix elements under the integral over the entire range of the inhomogeneous broadenings, the necessary conditions for creating the SLP in a solid are obtained. Then the decay and diffusion processes that the SLP undergoes are analyzed. The characteristics of such processes are studied based on the analytic solution of the SLP with a slowly varying envelope.more » The dependence of SLP lifetime on inhomogeneous broadenings of spin and optical transitions, which can be regarded as the laser linewidth in the repump scheme, has been discussed.« less

Oxytocin and Social Adaptation: Insights from Neuroimaging Studies of Healthy and Clinical Populations.

PubMed

Ma, Yina; Shamay-Tsoory, Simone; Han, Shihui; Zink, Caroline F

2016-02-01

Adaptation to the social environment is critical for human survival. The neuropeptide oxytocin (OT), implicated in social cognition and emotions pivotal to sociality and well-being, is a promising pharmacological target for social and emotional dysfunction. We suggest here that the multifaceted role of OT in socio-affective processes improves the capability for social adaptation. We review OT effects on socio-affective processes, with a focus on OT-neuroimaging studies, to elucidate neuropsychological mechanisms through which OT promotes social adaptation. We also review OT-neuroimaging studies of individuals with social deficits and suggest that OT ameliorates impaired social adaptation by normalizing hyper- or hypo-brain activity. The social adaption model (SAM) provides an integrative understanding of discrepant OT effects and the modulations of OT action by personal milieu and context. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Application of continuous substrate feeding to the ABE fermentation: Relief of product inhibition using extraction, perstraction, stripping, and pervaporation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Qureshi, N.; Maddox, I.S.; Friedl, A.

1992-09-01

The technique of continuous substrate feeding has been applied to the batch fermentation process using freely suspended cells, for ABE (acetone-butanol-ethanol) production. To avoid the product inhibition which normally restricts ABE production to less than 20 g/L and sugar utilization to 60 g/L, a product removal technique has been integrated into the fermentation process. The techniques investigated were liquid-liquid extraction, perstraction, gas-stripping, and pervaporation. By using a substrate of whey permeate, the reactor productivity has been improved over that observed in a traditional batch fermentation, while equivalent lactose utilization and ABE production values of 180 g and 69 g, respectively,more » have been achieved in a 1-L culture volume. 17 refs., 14 figs., 5 tabs.« less

A spiking neural integrator model of the adaptive control of action by the medial prefrontal cortex.

PubMed

Bekolay, Trevor; Laubach, Mark; Eliasmith, Chris

2014-01-29

Subjects performing simple reaction-time tasks can improve reaction times by learning the expected timing of action-imperative stimuli and preparing movements in advance. Success or failure on the previous trial is often an important factor for determining whether a subject will attempt to time the stimulus or wait for it to occur before initiating action. The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) has been implicated in enabling the top-down control of action depending on the outcome of the previous trial. Analysis of spike activity from the rat mPFC suggests that neural integration is a key mechanism for adaptive control in precisely timed tasks. We show through simulation that a spiking neural network consisting of coupled neural integrators captures the neural dynamics of the experimentally recorded mPFC. Errors lead to deviations in the normal dynamics of the system, a process that could enable learning from past mistakes. We expand on this coupled integrator network to construct a spiking neural network that performs a reaction-time task by following either a cue-response or timing strategy, and show that it performs the task with similar reaction times as experimental subjects while maintaining the same spiking dynamics as the experimentally recorded mPFC.

Audio-visual integration during speech perception in prelingually deafened Japanese children revealed by the McGurk effect.

PubMed

Tona, Risa; Naito, Yasushi; Moroto, Saburo; Yamamoto, Rinko; Fujiwara, Keizo; Yamazaki, Hiroshi; Shinohara, Shogo; Kikuchi, Masahiro

2015-12-01

To investigate the McGurk effect in profoundly deafened Japanese children with cochlear implants (CI) and in normal-hearing children. This was done to identify how children with profound deafness using CI established audiovisual integration during the speech acquisition period. Twenty-four prelingually deafened children with CI and 12 age-matched normal-hearing children participated in this study. Responses to audiovisual stimuli were compared between deafened and normal-hearing controls. Additionally, responses of the children with CI younger than 6 years of age were compared with those of the children with CI at least 6 years of age at the time of the test. Responses to stimuli combining auditory labials and visual non-labials were significantly different between deafened children with CI and normal-hearing controls (p<0.05). Additionally, the McGurk effect tended to be more induced in deafened children older than 6 years of age than in their younger counterparts. The McGurk effect was more significantly induced in prelingually deafened Japanese children with CI than in normal-hearing, age-matched Japanese children. Despite having good speech-perception skills and auditory input through their CI, from early childhood, deafened children may use more visual information in speech perception than normal-hearing children. As children using CI need to communicate based on insufficient speech signals coded by CI, additional activities of higher-order brain function may be necessary to compensate for the incomplete auditory input. This study provided information on the influence of deafness on the development of audiovisual integration related to speech, which could contribute to our further understanding of the strategies used in spoken language communication by prelingually deafened children. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Tailoring the graphene/silicon carbide interface for monolithic wafer-scale electronics.

PubMed

Hertel, S; Waldmann, D; Jobst, J; Albert, A; Albrecht, M; Reshanov, S; Schöner, A; Krieger, M; Weber, H B

2012-07-17

Graphene is an outstanding electronic material, predicted to have a role in post-silicon electronics. However, owing to the absence of an electronic bandgap, graphene switching devices with high on/off ratio are still lacking. Here in the search for a comprehensive concept for wafer-scale graphene electronics, we present a monolithic transistor that uses the entire material system epitaxial graphene on silicon carbide (0001). This system consists of the graphene layer with its vanishing energy gap, the underlying semiconductor and their common interface. The graphene/semiconductor interfaces are tailor-made for ohmic as well as for Schottky contacts side-by-side on the same chip. We demonstrate normally on and normally off operation of a single transistor with on/off ratios exceeding 10(4) and no damping at megahertz frequencies. In its simplest realization, the fabrication process requires only one lithography step to build transistors, diodes, resistors and eventually integrated circuits without the need of metallic interconnects.

Immunometabolism in systemic lupus erythematosus.

PubMed

Morel, Laurence

2017-05-01

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease mediated by pathogenic autoantibodies directed against nucleoprotein complexes. Beyond the activation of autoreactive B cells, this process involves dysregulation in many other types of immune cells, including CD4 + T cells, dendritic cells, macrophages and neutrophils. Metabolic substrate utilization and integration of cues from energy sensors are critical checkpoints of effector functions in the immune system, with common as well as cell-specific programmes. Patients with SLE and lupus-prone mice present with activated metabolism of CD4 + T cells, and the use of metabolic inhibitors to normalize these features is associated with therapeutic effects. Far less is known about the metabolic requirements of B cells and myeloid cells in SLE. This article reviews current knowledge of the alterations in metabolism of immune cells in patients with SLE and mouse models of lupus in the context of what is known about the metabolic regulation of these cells during normal immune responses. How these alterations might contribute to lupus pathogenesis and how they can be targeted therapeutically are also discussed.

The Brain/MINDS 3D digital marmoset brain atlas

PubMed Central

Woodward, Alexander; Hashikawa, Tsutomu; Maeda, Masahide; Kaneko, Takaaki; Hikishima, Keigo; Iriki, Atsushi; Okano, Hideyuki; Yamaguchi, Yoko

2018-01-01

We present a new 3D digital brain atlas of the non-human primate, common marmoset monkey (Callithrix jacchus), with MRI and coregistered Nissl histology data. To the best of our knowledge this is the first comprehensive digital 3D brain atlas of the common marmoset having normalized multi-modal data, cortical and sub-cortical segmentation, and in a common file format (NIfTI). The atlas can be registered to new data, is useful for connectomics, functional studies, simulation and as a reference. The atlas was based on previously published work but we provide several critical improvements to make this release valuable for researchers. Nissl histology images were processed to remove illumination and shape artifacts and then normalized to the MRI data. Brain region segmentation is provided for both hemispheres. The data is in the NIfTI format making it easy to integrate into neuroscience pipelines, whereas the previous atlas was in an inaccessible file format. We also provide cortical, mid-cortical and white matter boundary segmentations useful for visualization and analysis. PMID:29437168

[Research progress on free radicals in human body].

PubMed

Wang, Q B; Xu, F P; Wei, C X; Peng, J; Dong, X D

2016-08-10

Free radicals are the intermediates of metabolism, widely exist in the human bodies. Under normal circumstances, the free radicals play an important role in the metabolic process on human body, cell signal pathway, gene regulation, induction of cell proliferation and apoptosis, so as to maintain the normal growth and development of human body and to inhibit the growth of bacteria, virus and cancer. However, when organic lesion occurs affected by external factors or when equilibrium of the free radicals is tipped in the human body, the free radicals will respond integratedly with lipids, protein or nucleic acid which may jeopardize the health of human bodies. This paper summarizes the research progress of the free radicals conducted in recent years, in relations to the perspective of the types, origins, test methods of the free radicals and their relationship with human's health. In addition, the possible mechanisms of environmental pollutants (such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) mediating oxidative stress and free radicals scavenging in the body were also summarized.

Weak Responses to Auditory Feedback Perturbation during Articulation in Persons Who Stutter: Evidence for Abnormal Auditory-Motor Transformation

PubMed Central

Cai, Shanqing; Beal, Deryk S.; Ghosh, Satrajit S.; Tiede, Mark K.; Guenther, Frank H.; Perkell, Joseph S.

2012-01-01

Previous empirical observations have led researchers to propose that auditory feedback (the auditory perception of self-produced sounds when speaking) functions abnormally in the speech motor systems of persons who stutter (PWS). Researchers have theorized that an important neural basis of stuttering is the aberrant integration of auditory information into incipient speech motor commands. Because of the circumstantial support for these hypotheses and the differences and contradictions between them, there is a need for carefully designed experiments that directly examine auditory-motor integration during speech production in PWS. In the current study, we used real-time manipulation of auditory feedback to directly investigate whether the speech motor system of PWS utilizes auditory feedback abnormally during articulation and to characterize potential deficits of this auditory-motor integration. Twenty-one PWS and 18 fluent control participants were recruited. Using a short-latency formant-perturbation system, we examined participants’ compensatory responses to unanticipated perturbation of auditory feedback of the first formant frequency during the production of the monophthong [ε]. The PWS showed compensatory responses that were qualitatively similar to the controls’ and had close-to-normal latencies (∼150 ms), but the magnitudes of their responses were substantially and significantly smaller than those of the control participants (by 47% on average, p<0.05). Measurements of auditory acuity indicate that the weaker-than-normal compensatory responses in PWS were not attributable to a deficit in low-level auditory processing. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that stuttering is associated with functional defects in the inverse models responsible for the transformation from the domain of auditory targets and auditory error information into the domain of speech motor commands. PMID:22911857

Normalizing suffering: A meta-synthesis of experiences of and perspectives on pain and pain management in nursing homes

PubMed Central

Vaismoradi, Mojtaba; Skär, Lisa; Söderberg, Siv; Bondas, Terese E.

2016-01-01

Older people who live in nursing homes commonly suffer from pain. Therefore, relieving suffering among older people that stems from pain demands knowledge improvement through an integration of international knowledge. This study aimed to integrate current international findings and strengthen the understanding of older people's experiences of and perspectives on pain and pain management in nursing homes. A meta-synthesis study using Noblit and Hare's interpretative meta-ethnography approach was conducted. Empirical research papers from journals were collected from various databases. The search process and appraisal determined six articles for inclusion. Two studies were conducted in the US and one each in Iceland, Norway, the UK, and Australia. The older people's experiences of pain as well as perspectives on pain management from all involved (older people, their family members, and healthcare staff) were integrated into a theoretical model using three themes of “identity of pain,” “recognition of pain,” and “response to pain.” The metaphor of “normalizing suffering” was devised to illustrate the meaning of pain experiences and pain management in nursing homes. Society's common attitude that pain is unavoidable and therefore acceptable in old age in society—among older people themselves as well as those who are responsible for reporting, acknowledging, and relieving pain—must change. The article emphasizes that pain as a primary source of suffering can be relieved, provided that older people are encouraged to report their pain. In addition, healthcare staff require sufficient training to take a person-centered approach towards assessment and management of pain that considers all elements of pain. PMID:27173102

Diagnostic Validity of an Automated Probabilistic Tractography in Amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment

PubMed Central

Jung, Won Sang; Um, Yoo Hyun; Kang, Dong Woo; Lee, Chang Uk; Woo, Young Sup; Bahk, Won-Myong

2018-01-01

Objective Although several prior works showed the white matter (WM) integrity changes in amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) and Alzheimer’s disease, it is still unclear the diagnostic accuracy of the WM integrity measurements using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) in discriminating aMCI from normal controls. The aim of this study is to explore diagnostic validity of whole brain automated probabilistic tractography in discriminating aMCI from normal controls. Methods One hundred-two subjects (50 aMCI and 52 normal controls) were included and underwent DTI scans. Whole brain WM tracts were reconstructed with automated probabilistic tractography. Fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) values of the memory related WM tracts were measured and compared between the aMCI and the normal control groups. In addition, the diagnostic validities of these WM tracts were evaluated. Results Decreased FA and increased MD values of memory related WM tracts were observed in the aMCI group compared with the control group. Among FA and MD value of each tract, the FA value of left cingulum angular bundle showed the highest area under the curve (AUC) of 0.85 with a sensitivity of 88.2%, a specificity of 76.9% in differentiating MCI patients from control subjects. Furthermore, the combination FA values of WM integrity measures of memory related WM tracts showed AUC value of 0.98, a sensitivity of 96%, a specificity of 94.2%. Conclusion Our results with good diagnostic validity of WM integrity measurements suggest DTI might be promising neuroimaging tool for early detection of aMCI and AD patients. PMID:29739127

Gelingende Integration? Anmerkungen zur Studie von D. Katzenbach u.a. uber den Hamburger Schulversuch "Integrative Grundschule" in ZfPad. 45 (1999), S. 567-590 (Successful Integration? Remarks on the Study by D. Katzenbach et al. on the Hamburg School Experiment "Integrative Elementary School" in ZfPad. 45 (1999), S. 567-590).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roeder, Peter Martin

1999-01-01

Critiques two normative premises that guide the researchers' interpretation of results from the Hamburg School Experiment, an empirical study that focused on mainstreaming elementary students diagnosed as needing special education: (1) integrating these children in normal classrooms is legitimated; and (2) social integration should not preclude…

Preattentive visual search and perceptual grouping in schizophrenia.

PubMed

Carr, V J; Dewis, S A; Lewin, T J

1998-06-15

To help determine whether patients with schizophrenia show deficits in the stimulus-based aspects of preattentive processing, we undertook a series of experiments within the framework of feature integration theory. Thirty subjects with a DSM-III-R diagnosis of schizophrenia and 30 age-, gender-, and education-matched normal control subjects completed two computerized experimental tasks, a visual search task assessing parallel and serial information processing (Experiment 1) and a task which examined the effects of perceptual grouping on visual search strategies (Experiment 2). We also assessed current symptomatology and its relationship to task performance. While the schizophrenia subjects had longer reaction times in Experiment 1, their overall pattern of performance across both experimental tasks was similar to that of the control subjects, and generally unrelated to current symptomatology. Predictions from feature integration theory about the impact of varying display size (Experiment 1) and number of perceptual groups (Experiment 2) on the detection of feature and conjunction targets were strongly supported. This study revealed no firm evidence that schizophrenia is associated with a preattentive abnormality in visual search using stimuli that differ on the basis of physical characteristics. While subject and task characteristics may partially account for differences between this and previous studies, it is more likely that preattentive processing abnormalities in schizophrenia may occur only under conditions involving selected 'top-down' factors such as context and meaning.

Telomerase-mediated life-span extension of human primary fibroblasts by human artificial chromosome (HAC) vector

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Shitara, Shingo; Kakeda, Minoru; Nagata, Keiko

2008-05-09

Telomerase-mediated life-span extension enables the expansion of normal cells without malignant transformation, and thus has been thought to be useful in cell therapies. Currently, integrating vectors including the retrovirus are used for human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT)-mediated expansion of normal cells; however, the use of these vectors potentially causes unexpected insertional mutagenesis and/or activation of oncogenes. Here, we established normal human fibroblast (hPF) clones retaining non-integrating human artificial chromosome (HAC) vectors harboring the hTERT expression cassette. In hTERT-HAC/hPF clones, we observed the telomerase activity and the suppression of senescent-associated SA-{beta}-galactosidase activity. Furthermore, the hTERT-HAC/hPF clones continued growing beyond 120 daysmore » after cloning, whereas the hPF clones retaining the silent hTERT-HAC senesced within 70 days. Thus, hTERT-HAC-mediated episomal expression of hTERT allows the extension of the life-span of human primary cells, implying that gene delivery by non-integrating HAC vectors can be used to control cellular proliferative capacity of primary cultured cells.« less

A Novel Multisensory Integration Task Reveals Robust Deficits in Rodent Models of Schizophrenia: Converging Evidence for Remediation via Nicotinic Receptor Stimulation of Inhibitory Transmission in the Prefrontal Cortex.

PubMed

Cloke, Jacob M; Nguyen, Robin; Chung, Beryl Y T; Wasserman, David I; De Lisio, Stephanie; Kim, Jun Chul; Bailey, Craig D C; Winters, Boyer D

2016-12-14

Atypical multisensory integration is an understudied cognitive symptom in schizophrenia. Procedures to evaluate multisensory integration in rodent models are lacking. We developed a novel multisensory object oddity (MSO) task to assess multisensory integration in ketamine-treated rats, a well established model of schizophrenia. Ketamine-treated rats displayed a selective MSO task impairment with tactile-visual and olfactory-visual sensory combinations, whereas basic unisensory perception was unaffected. Orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) administration of nicotine or ABT-418, an α 4 β 2 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) agonist, normalized MSO task performance in ketamine-treated rats and this effect was blocked by GABA A receptor antagonism. GABAergic currents were also decreased in OFC of ketamine-treated rats and were normalized by activation of α 4 β 2 nAChRs. Furthermore, parvalbumin (PV) immunoreactivity was decreased in the OFC of ketamine-treated rats. Accordingly, silencing of PV interneurons in OFC of PV-Cre mice using DREADDs (Designer Receptors Exclusively Activated by Designer Drugs) selectively impaired MSO task performance and this was reversed by ABT-418. Likewise, clozapine-N-oxide-induced inhibition of PV interneurons in brain slices was reversed by activation of α 4 β 2 nAChRs. These findings strongly imply a role for prefrontal GABAergic transmission in the integration of multisensory object features, a cognitive process with relevance to schizophrenia. Accordingly, nAChR agonism, which improves various facets of cognition in schizophrenia, reversed the severe MSO task impairment in this study and appears to do so via a GABAergic mechanism. Interactions between GABAergic and nAChR receptor systems warrant further investigation for potential therapeutic applications. The novel behavioral procedure introduced in the current study is acutely sensitive to schizophrenia-relevant cognitive impairment and should prove highly valuable for such research. Adaptive behaviors are driven by integration of information from different sensory modalities. Multisensory integration is disrupted in patients with schizophrenia, but little is known about the neural basis of this cognitive symptom. Development and validation of multisensory integration tasks for animal models is essential given the strong link between functional outcome and cognitive impairment in schizophrenia. We present a novel multisensory object oddity procedure that detects selective multisensory integration deficits in a rat model of schizophrenia using various combinations of sensory modalities. Moreover, converging data are consistent with a nicotinic-GABAergic mechanism of multisensory integration in the prefrontal cortex, results with strong clinical relevance to the study of cognitive impairment and treatment in schizophrenia. Copyright © 2016 the authors 0270-6474/16/3612571-16$15.00/0.

On-line Meteorology-Chemistry/Aerosols Modelling and Integration for Risk Assessment: Case Studies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bostanbekov, Kairat; Mahura, Alexander; Nuterman, Roman; Nurseitov, Daniyar; Zakarin, Edige; Baklanov, Alexander

2016-04-01

On regional level, and especially in areas with potential diverse sources of industrial pollutants, the risk assessment of impact on environment and population is critically important. During normal operations, the risk is minimal. However, during accidental situations, the risk is increased due to releases of harmful pollutants into different environments such as water, soil, and atmosphere where it is following processes of continuous transformation and transport. In this study, the Enviro-HIRLAM (Environment High Resolution Limited Area Model) was adapted and employed for assessment of scenarios with accidental and continuous emissions of sulphur dioxide (SO2) for selected case studies during January of 2010. The following scenarios were considered: (i) control reference run; (ii) accidental release (due to short-term 1 day fire at oil storage facility) occurred at city of Atyrau (Kazakhstan) near the northern part of the Caspian Sea; and (iii) doubling of original continuous emissions from three locations of metallurgical enterprises on the Kola Peninsula (Russia). The implemented aerosol microphysics module M7 uses 5 types - sulphates, sea salt, dust, black and organic carbon; as well as distributed in 7 size modes. Removal processes of aerosols include gravitational settling and wet deposition. As the Enviro-HIRLAM model is the on-line integrated model, both meteorological and chemical processes are simultaneously modelled at each time step. The modelled spatio-temporal variations for meteorological and chemical patterns are analyzed for both European and Kazakhstan regions domains. The results of evaluation of sulphur dioxide concentration and deposition on main populated cities, selected regions, countries are presented employing GIS tools. As outcome, the results of Enviro-HIRLAM modelling for accidental release near the Caspian Sea are integrated into the RANDOM (Risk Assessment of Nature Detriment due to Oil spill Migration) system.

Fluvial Connectivity and Sediment Dispersal within Continental Extensional Basins; Assessment of Controlling Factors using Numerical Modelling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geurts, A., Jr.; Cowie, P. A.; Gawthorpe, R.; Huismans, R. S.; Pedersen, V. K.

2017-12-01

Progressive integration of drainage networks has been documented in many regional-scale studies of extensional continental systems. While endorheic drainage and lake sedimentation are common features observed in basin stratigraphy, they often disappear from the record due to the development of a through-going river network. Because changes in the fluvial connectivity of extensional basins have profound impact on erosion and sediment dispersal, and thus the feedback between surface processes and tectonics, it is of great importance to understand what controls them. Headward erosion (also called headward capture or river piracy) is often suggested to be the main mechanism causing basins to become interconnected over time with one another and with the regional/coastal drainage network. We show that overspill mechanisms (basin over-filling or lake over-spilling) play a key role in the actively extending central Italian Apennines, even though this area is theoretically favorable for headward erosion (short distances to the coast in combination with rapid surface uplift). In other tectonic settings (e.g. contractional basins and high plateaux) the role of headward erosion in transverse drainage development and integrating endorheic basins has also been increasingly questioned. These two mechanisms predict very different spatio-temporal patterns of sediment dispersal and thus timing of sediment loading (or erosional unloading) along active normal faults, which in turn may influence the locus of subsequent extensional deformation. By means of surface process modelling we develop a process-based understanding of the controls on fluvial connectivity between extensional basins in the central Italian Apennines. We focus on which conditions (tectonic and erosional) favour headward erosion versus overspill and compare our model results with published field evidence for drainage integration and the timing of basin sedimentation/incision.

Design of a multi-axis implantable MEMS sensor for intraosseous bone stress monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alfaro, Fernando; Weiss, Lee; Campbell, Phil; Miller, Mark; Fedder, Gary K.

2009-08-01

The capability to assess the biomechanical properties of living bone is important for basic research as well as the clinical management of skeletal trauma and disease. Even though radiodensitometric imaging is commonly used to infer bone quality, bone strength does not necessarily correlate well with these non-invasive measurements. This paper reports on the design, fabrication and initial testing of an implantable ultra-miniature multi-axis sensor for directly measuring bone stresses at a micro-scale. The device, which is fabricated with CMOS-MEMS processes, is intended to be permanently implanted within open fractures, or embedded in bone grafts, or placed on implants at the interfaces between bone and prosthetics. The stress sensor comprises an array of piezoresistive pixels to detect a stress tensor at the interfacial area between the MEMS chip and bone, with a resolution to 100 Pa, in 1 s averaging. The sensor system design and manufacture is also compatible with the integration of wireless RF telemetry, for power and data retrieval, all within a 3 mm × 3 mm × 0.3 mm footprint. The piezoresistive elements are integrated within a textured surface to enhance sensor integration with bone. Finite element analysis led to a sensor design for normal and shear stress detection. A wired sensor was fabricated in the Jazz 0.35 µm BiCMOS process and then embedded in mock bone material to characterize its response to tensile and bending loads up to 250 kPa.

Engineering survey planning for the alignment of a particle accelerator: part I. Proposition of an assessment method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Junqueira Leão, Rodrigo; Raffaelo Baldo, Crhistian; Collucci da Costa Reis, Maria Luisa; Alves Trabanco, Jorge Luiz

2018-03-01

The performance of particle accelerators depends highly on the relative alignment between their components. The position and orientation of the magnetic lenses that form the trajectory of the charged beam is kept to micrometric tolerances in a range of hundreds of meters of the length of the machines. Therefore, the alignment problem is fundamentally of a dimensional metrology nature. There is no common way of expressing these tolerances in terms of terminology and alignment concept. The alignment needs for a certain machine is normally given in terms of deviations between the position of any magnet in the accelerator and the fitted line that relates the actual position of the magnets’ assembly. Root mean square errors and standard deviations are normally used interchangeably and measurement uncertainty is often neglected. Although some solutions have been employed successfully in several accelerators, there is no off-the-shelf solution to perform the alignment. Also, each alignment campaign makes use of different measuring instruments to achieve the desired results, which makes the alignment process a complex measurement chain. This paper explores these issues by reviewing the tolerances specified for the alignment of particle accelerators, and proposes a metric to assess the quality of the alignment. The metric has the advantage of fully integrating the measurement uncertainty in the process.

Are metastable, precrystallisation, density-fluctuations a universal phenomena?

PubMed

Heeley, Ellen L; Poh, C Kit; Li, Wu; Maidens, Anna; Bras, Wim; Dolbnya, Igor P; Gleeson, Anthony J; Terrill, Nicolas J; Fairclough, J Patrick A; Olmsted, Peter D; Ristic, Rile I; Hounslow, Micheal J; Ryan, Anthony J

2003-01-01

In-situ observations of crystallisation in minerals and organic polymers have been made by simultaneous, time-resolved small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and wide angle X-ray scattering (WAXS) techniques. In isotactic polypropylene slow quiescent crystallisation shows the onset of large scale ordering prior to crystal growth. Rapid crystallisations studied by melt extrusion indicate the development of well resolved oriented SAXS patterns associated with long range order before the development of crystalline peaks in the WAXS region. Block copolymers self-assemble into mesophases in polymer melts above a critical chain length (or above a critical temperature) and this self-assembly process is shown to be susceptible to an incipient crystallisation. Mesophase formation is observed at anomalously high temperatures in ethylene-oxide containing block copolymers below the normal melting point of the polyoxy ethylene chains. Formation of calcium carbonate from aqueous solutions of sodium carbonate and calcium nitrate is observed to be a two-stage process and precipitation proceeds by the production of an amorphous metastable phase. This phase grows until it is volume filling and leads to the formation of the two polymorphs Calcite and Vaterite. These three sets of results suggest pre-nucleation density fluctuations, leading to a metastable phase, play an integral role in all three classes of crystallisation. In due course, this phase undergoes transformation to "normal" crystals.

Pathway to a Phenocopy: Heat Stress Effects in Early Embryogenesis

PubMed Central

Crews, Sarah M.; McCleery, W. Tyler; Hutson, M. Shane

2015-01-01

Background Heat shocks applied at the onset of gastrulation in early Drosophila embryos frequently lead to phenocopies of U-shaped mutants – having characteristic failures in the late morphogenetic processes of germband retraction and dorsal closure. The pathway from non-specific heat stress to phenocopied abnormalities is unknown. Results Drosophila embryos subjected to 30-min, 38-°C heat shocks at gastrulation appear to recover and restart morphogenesis. Post-heat-shock development appears normal, albeit slower, until a large fraction of embryos develop amnioserosa holes (diameters > 100 μm). These holes are positively correlated with terminal U-shaped phenocopies. They initiate between amnioserosa cells and open over tens of minutes by evading normal wound healing responses. They are not caused by tissue-wide increases in mechanical stress or decreases in cell-cell adhesion, but instead appear to initiate from isolated apoptosis of amnioserosa cells. Conclusions The pathway from heat shock to U-shaped phenocopies involves the opening of one or more large holes in the amnioserosa that compromise its structural integrity and lead to failures in morphogenetic processes that rely on amnioserosa-generated tensile forces. The proposed mechanism by which heat shock leads to hole initiation and expansion is heterochonicity – i.e., disruption of morphogenetic coordination between embryonic and extra-embryonic cell types. PMID:26498920

Feeling safe in the plane: neural mechanisms underlying superior action control in airplane pilot trainees--a combined EEG/MRS study.

PubMed

Yildiz, Ali; Quetscher, Clara; Dharmadhikari, Shalmali; Chmielewski, Witold; Glaubitz, Benjamin; Schmidt-Wilcke, Tobias; Edden, Richard; Dydak, Ulrike; Beste, Christian

2014-10-01

In day-to-day life, we need to apply strategies to cascade different actions for efficient unfolding of behavior. While deficits in action cascading are examined extensively, almost nothing is known about the neuronal mechanisms mediating superior performance above the normal level. To examine this question, we investigate action control in airplane pilot trainees. We use a stop-change paradigm that is able to estimate the efficiency of action cascading on the basis of mathematical constraints. Behavioral and EEG data is analyzed along these constraints and integrated with neurochemical data obtained using Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (MRS) from the striatal gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) -ergic system. We show that high performance in action cascading, as exemplified in airplane pilot trainees, can be driven by intensified attentional processes, circumventing response selection processes. The results indicate that the efficiency of action cascading and hence the speed of responding as well as attentional gating functions are modulated by striatal GABA and Glutamate + Glutamine concentrations. In superior performance in action cascading similar increases in the concentrations of GABA and Glutamate + Glutamine lead to stronger neurophysiological and behavioral effects as compared to subjects with normal performance in action cascading. Copyright © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Imaging denatured collagen strands in vivo and ex vivo via photo-triggered hybridization of caged collagen mimetic peptides.

PubMed

Li, Yang; Foss, Catherine A; Pomper, Martin G; Yu, S Michael

2014-01-31

Collagen is a major structural component of the extracellular matrix that supports tissue formation and maintenance. Although collagen remodeling is an integral part of normal tissue renewal, excessive amount of remodeling activity is involved in tumors, arthritis, and many other pathological conditions. During collagen remodeling, the triple helical structure of collagen molecules is disrupted by proteases in the extracellular environment. In addition, collagens present in many histological tissue samples are partially denatured by the fixation and preservation processes. Therefore, these denatured collagen strands can serve as effective targets for biological imaging. We previously developed a caged collagen mimetic peptide (CMP) that can be photo-triggered to hybridize with denatured collagen strands by forming triple helical structure, which is unique to collagens. The overall goals of this procedure are i) to image denatured collagen strands resulting from normal remodeling activities in vivo, and ii) to visualize collagens in ex vivo tissue sections using the photo-triggered caged CMPs. To achieve effective hybridization and successful in vivo and ex vivo imaging, fluorescently labeled caged CMPs are either photo-activated immediately before intravenous injection, or are directly activated on tissue sections. Normal skeletal collagen remolding in nude mice and collagens in prefixed mouse cornea tissue sections are imaged in this procedure. The imaging method based on the CMP-collagen hybridization technology presented here could lead to deeper understanding of the tissue remodeling process, as well as allow development of new diagnostics for diseases associated with high collagen remodeling activity.

Knowledge-based tracking algorithm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Corbeil, Allan F.; Hawkins, Linda J.; Gilgallon, Paul F.

1990-10-01

This paper describes the Knowledge-Based Tracking (KBT) algorithm for which a real-time flight test demonstration was recently conducted at Rome Air Development Center (RADC). In KBT processing, the radar signal in each resolution cell is thresholded at a lower than normal setting to detect low RCS targets. This lower threshold produces a larger than normal false alarm rate. Therefore, additional signal processing including spectral filtering, CFAR and knowledge-based acceptance testing are performed to eliminate some of the false alarms. TSC's knowledge-based Track-Before-Detect (TBD) algorithm is then applied to the data from each azimuth sector to detect target tracks. In this algorithm, tentative track templates are formed for each threshold crossing and knowledge-based association rules are applied to the range, Doppler, and azimuth measurements from successive scans. Lastly, an M-association out of N-scan rule is used to declare a detection. This scan-to-scan integration enhances the probability of target detection while maintaining an acceptably low output false alarm rate. For a real-time demonstration of the KBT algorithm, the L-band radar in the Surveillance Laboratory (SL) at RADC was used to illuminate a small Cessna 310 test aircraft. The received radar signal wa digitized and processed by a ST-100 Array Processor and VAX computer network in the lab. The ST-100 performed all of the radar signal processing functions, including Moving Target Indicator (MTI) pulse cancelling, FFT Doppler filtering, and CFAR detection. The VAX computers performed the remaining range-Doppler clustering, beamsplitting and TBD processing functions. The KBT algorithm provided a 9.5 dB improvement relative to single scan performance with a nominal real time delay of less than one second between illumination and display.

Regenerative Engineering and Bionic Limbs.

PubMed

James, Roshan; Laurencin, Cato T

2015-03-01

Amputations of the upper extremity are severely debilitating, current treatments support very basic limb movement, and patients undergo extensive physiotherapy and psychological counselling. There is no prosthesis that allows the amputees near-normal function. With increasing number of amputees due to injuries sustained in accidents, natural calamities and international conflicts, there is a growing requirement for novel strategies and new discoveries. Advances have been made in technological, material and in prosthesis integration where researchers are now exploring artificial prosthesis that integrate with the residual tissues and function based on signal impulses received from the residual nerves. Efforts are focused on challenging experts in different disciplines to integrate ideas and technologies to allow for the regeneration of injured tissues, recording on tissue signals and feed-back to facilitate responsive movements and gradations of muscle force. A fully functional replacement and regenerative or integrated prosthesis will rely on interface of biological process with robotic systems to allow individual control of movement such as at the elbow, forearm, digits and thumb in the upper extremity. Regenerative engineering focused on the regeneration of complex tissue and organ systems will be realized by the cross-fertilization of advances over the past thirty years in the fields of tissue engineering, nanotechnology, stem cell science, and developmental biology. The convergence of toolboxes crated within each discipline will allow interdisciplinary teams from engineering, science, and medicine to realize new strategies, mergers of disparate technologies, such as biophysics, smart bionics, and the healing power of the mind. Tackling the clinical challenges, interfacing the biological process with bionic technologies, engineering biological control of the electronic systems, and feed-back will be the important goals in regenerative engineering over the next two decades.

Regenerative Engineering and Bionic Limbs

PubMed Central

James, Roshan; Laurencin, Cato T.

2015-01-01

Amputations of the upper extremity are severely debilitating, current treatments support very basic limb movement, and patients undergo extensive physiotherapy and psychological counselling. There is no prosthesis that allows the amputees near-normal function. With increasing number of amputees due to injuries sustained in accidents, natural calamities and international conflicts, there is a growing requirement for novel strategies and new discoveries. Advances have been made in technological, material and in prosthesis integration where researchers are now exploring artificial prosthesis that integrate with the residual tissues and function based on signal impulses received from the residual nerves. Efforts are focused on challenging experts in different disciplines to integrate ideas and technologies to allow for the regeneration of injured tissues, recording on tissue signals and feed-back to facilitate responsive movements and gradations of muscle force. A fully functional replacement and regenerative or integrated prosthesis will rely on interface of biological process with robotic systems to allow individual control of movement such as at the elbow, forearm, digits and thumb in the upper extremity. Regenerative engineering focused on the regeneration of complex tissue and organ systems will be realized by the cross-fertilization of advances over the past thirty years in the fields of tissue engineering, nanotechnology, stem cell science, and developmental biology. The convergence of toolboxes crated within each discipline will allow interdisciplinary teams from engineering, science, and medicine to realize new strategies, mergers of disparate technologies, such as biophysics, smart bionics, and the healing power of the mind. Tackling the clinical challenges, interfacing the biological process with bionic technologies, engineering biological control of the electronic systems, and feed-back will be the important goals in regenerative engineering over the next two decades. PMID:25983525

Contact problem on indentation of an elastic half-plane with an inhomogeneous coating by a flat punch in the presence of tangential stresses on a surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Volkov, Sergei S.; Vasiliev, Andrey S.; Aizikovich, Sergei M.; Sadyrin, Evgeniy V.

2018-05-01

Indentation of an elastic half-space with functionally graded coating by a rigid flat punch is studied. The half-plane is additionally subjected to distributed tangential stresses. Tangential stresses are represented in a form of Fourier series. The problem is reduced to the solution of two dual integral equations over even and odd functions describing distribution of unknown normal contact stresses. The solutions of these dual integral equations are constructed by the bilateral asymptotic method. Approximated analytical expressions for contact normal stresses are provided.

Integrated Planning for Telepresence with Time Delays

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnston, Mark D.; Rabe, Kenneth J.

2006-01-01

Integrated planning and execution of teleoperations in space with time delays is shown. The topics include: 1) The Problem; 2) Future Robot Surgery? 3) Approach Overview; 4) Robonaut; 5) Normal Planning and Execution; 6) Planner Context; 7) Implementation; 8) Use of JSHOP2; 9) Monitoring and Testing GUI; 10) Normal sequence: first the supervisor acts; 11) then the robot; 12) Robot might be late; 13) Supervisor can work ahead; 14) Deviations from Plan; 15) Robot State Change Example; 16) Accomplished goals skipped in replan; 17) Planning continuity; 18) Supervisor Deviation From Plan; 19) Intentional Deviation; and 20) Infeasible states.

The distribution of the intervals between neural impulses in the maintained discharges of retinal ganglion cells.

PubMed

Levine, M W

1991-01-01

Simulated neural impulse trains were generated by a digital realization of the integrate-and-fire model. The variability in these impulse trains had as its origin a random noise of specified distribution. Three different distributions were used: the normal (Gaussian) distribution (no skew, normokurtic), a first-order gamma distribution (positive skew, leptokurtic), and a uniform distribution (no skew, platykurtic). Despite these differences in the distribution of the variability, the distributions of the intervals between impulses were nearly indistinguishable. These inter-impulse distributions were better fit with a hyperbolic gamma distribution than a hyperbolic normal distribution, although one might expect a better approximation for normally distributed inverse intervals. Consideration of why the inter-impulse distribution is independent of the distribution of the causative noise suggests two putative interval distributions that do not depend on the assumed noise distribution: the log normal distribution, which is predicated on the assumption that long intervals occur with the joint probability of small input values, and the random walk equation, which is the diffusion equation applied to a random walk model of the impulse generating process. Either of these equations provides a more satisfactory fit to the simulated impulse trains than the hyperbolic normal or hyperbolic gamma distributions. These equations also provide better fits to impulse trains derived from the maintained discharges of ganglion cells in the retinae of cats or goldfish. It is noted that both equations are free from the constraint that the coefficient of variation (CV) have a maximum of unity.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Normalized Temperature Contrast Processing in Flash Infrared Thermography

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Koshti, Ajay M.

2016-01-01

The paper presents further development in normalized contrast processing of flash infrared thermography method by the author given in US 8,577,120 B1. The method of computing normalized image or pixel intensity contrast, and normalized temperature contrast are provided, including converting one from the other. Methods of assessing emissivity of the object, afterglow heat flux, reflection temperature change and temperature video imaging during flash thermography are provided. Temperature imaging and normalized temperature contrast imaging provide certain advantages over pixel intensity normalized contrast processing by reducing effect of reflected energy in images and measurements, providing better quantitative data. The subject matter for this paper mostly comes from US 9,066,028 B1 by the author. Examples of normalized image processing video images and normalized temperature processing video images are provided. Examples of surface temperature video images, surface temperature rise video images and simple contrast video images area also provided. Temperature video imaging in flash infrared thermography allows better comparison with flash thermography simulation using commercial software which provides temperature video as the output. Temperature imaging also allows easy comparison of surface temperature change to camera temperature sensitivity or noise equivalent temperature difference (NETD) to assess probability of detecting (POD) anomalies.

78 FR 1835 - Hand Trucks and Certain Parts Thereof From the People's Republic of China: Preliminary Results of...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-01-09

... Integration (Xiamen) Co., Ltd. (New-Tec) were below normal value (NV). In addition, we are not rescinding this... November 30, 2011: Weighted- Manufacturer/exporter average margin (percent) New-Tec Integration (Xiamen) Co...

Linear topology in amorphous metal oxide electrochromic networks obtained via low-temperature solution processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Llordés, Anna; Wang, Yang; Fernandez-Martinez, Alejandro; Xiao, Penghao; Lee, Tom; Poulain, Agnieszka; Zandi, Omid; Saez Cabezas, Camila A.; Henkelman, Graeme; Milliron, Delia J.

2016-12-01

Amorphous transition metal oxides are recognized as leading candidates for electrochromic window coatings that can dynamically modulate solar irradiation and improve building energy efficiency. However, their thin films are normally prepared by energy-intensive sputtering techniques or high-temperature solution methods, which increase manufacturing cost and complexity. Here, we report on a room-temperature solution process to fabricate electrochromic films of niobium oxide glass (NbOx) and `nanocrystal-in-glass’ composites (that is, tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) nanocrystals embedded in NbOx glass) via acid-catalysed condensation of polyniobate clusters. A combination of X-ray scattering and spectroscopic characterization with complementary simulations reveals that this strategy leads to a unique one-dimensional chain-like NbOx structure, which significantly enhances the electrochromic performance, compared to a typical three-dimensional NbOx network obtained from conventional high-temperature thermal processing. In addition, we show how self-assembled ITO-in-NbOx composite films can be successfully integrated into high-performance flexible electrochromic devices.

Neural-Net Processed Characteristic Patterns for Measurement of Structural Integrity of Pressure Cycled Components

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Decker, A. J.

2001-01-01

A neural-net inspection process has been combined with a bootstrap training procedure and electronic holography to detect changes or damage in a pressure-cycled International Space Station cold plate to be used for cooling instrumentation. The cold plate was excited to vibrate in a normal mode at low amplitude, and the neural net was trained by example to flag small changes in the mode shape. The NDE (nondestructive-evaluation) technique is straightforward but in its infancy; its applications are ad-hoc and uncalibrated. Nevertheless previous research has shown that the neural net can detect displacement changes to better than 1/100 the maximum displacement amplitude. Development efforts that support the NDE technique are mentioned briefly, followed by descriptions of electronic holography and neural-net processing. The bootstrap training procedure and its application to detection of damage in a pressure-cycled cold plate are discussed. Suggestions for calibrating and quantifying the NDE procedure are presented.

Emerging Roles for the Lysosome in Lipid Metabolism.

PubMed

Thelen, Ashley M; Zoncu, Roberto

2017-11-01

Precise regulation of lipid biosynthesis, transport, and storage is key to the homeostasis of cells and organisms. Cells rely on a sophisticated but poorly understood network of vesicular and nonvesicular transport mechanisms to ensure efficient delivery of lipids to target organelles. The lysosome stands at the crossroads of this network due to its ability to process and sort exogenous and endogenous lipids. The lipid-sorting function of the lysosome is intimately connected to its recently discovered role as a metabolic command-and-control center, which relays multiple nutrient cues to the master growth regulator, mechanistic target of rapamycin complex (mTORC)1 kinase. In turn, mTORC1 potently drives anabolic processes, including de novo lipid synthesis, while inhibiting lipid catabolism. Here, we describe the dual role of the lysosome in lipid transport and biogenesis, and we discuss how integration of these two processes may play important roles both in normal physiology and in disease. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Assessing the potential for AAV vector genotoxicity in a murine model

PubMed Central

Li, Hojun; Malani, Nirav; Hamilton, Shari R.; Schlachterman, Alexander; Bussadori, Giulio; Edmonson, Shyrie E.; Shah, Rachel; Arruda, Valder R.; Mingozzi, Federico; Fraser Wright, J.; Bushman, Frederic D.

2011-01-01

Gene transfer using adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors has great potential for treating human disease. Recently, questions have arisen about the safety of AAV vectors, specifically, whether integration of vector DNA in transduced cell genomes promotes tumor formation. This study addresses these questions with high-dose liver-directed AAV-mediated gene transfer in the adult mouse as a model (80 AAV-injected mice and 52 controls). After 18 months of follow-up, AAV-injected mice did not show a significantly higher rate of hepatocellular carcinoma compared with controls. Tumors in mice treated with AAV vectors did not have significantly different amounts of vector DNA compared with adjacent normal tissue. A novel high-throughput method for identifying AAV vector integration sites was developed and used to clone 1029 integrants. Integration patterns in tumor tissue and adjacent normal tissue were similar to each other, showing preferences for active genes, cytosine-phosphate-guanosine islands, and guanosine/cysteine-rich regions. Gene expression data showed that genes near integration sites did not show significant changes in expression patterns compared with genes more distal to integration sites. No integration events were identified as causing increased oncogene expression. Thus, we did not find evidence that AAV vectors cause insertional activation of oncogenes and subsequent tumor formation. PMID:21106988

Optomotor behaviour in Xenopus laevis tadpoles as a measure of the effect of gravity on visual and vestibular neural integration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pronych, S. P.; Souza, K. A.; Neff, A. W.; Wassersug, R. J.

1996-01-01

The ability of aquatic vertebrates to maintain their position requires integration of visual and vestibular sensory information. To understand better how aquatic animals integrate such information, we measured the optomotor behaviour of Xenopus laevis tadpoles raised in growth chambers in microgravity (< 10(-3)g), normal gravity (1 g), hypergravity (3 g) and on a slowly rotating clinostat (simulated microgravity). The goal of this research was to determine how development in an altered gravitational force field affects the visual- and vestibular-dependent behaviour of tadpoles. This research represents the first time that the optomotor behaviour of an organism raised from fertilization in microgravity has been tested. Significant differences were observed in the optomotor behaviour among the four gravity treatments. When first exposed to normal gravity, the microgravity-raised tadpoles exhibited the strongest (or most positive) optomotor behaviour, while the 3 g centrifuge tadpoles showed no optomotor response. Some abnormal behaviours (such as erratic swimming, lying motionless and abnormal swimming posture) were observed in the tadpoles raised in altered gravity on the initial day of testing. One day later, the tadpoles raised in hypergravity did not differ significantly in their optomotor behaviour from control tadpoles raised in normal gravity. However, tadpoles raised in microgravity still displayed an exaggerated optomotor response. One week after the tadpoles had been introduced to normal gravity, there was no longer a significant difference in optomotor behaviour among the different gravity treatments. This convergence of optomotor behaviour by tadpoles from the different treatment reflects the acclimation of their vestibular systems to normal gravity.

Integrating SAR with Optical and Thermal Remote Sensing for Operational Near Real-Time Volcano Monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meyer, F. J.; Webley, P.; Dehn, J.; Arko, S. A.; McAlpin, D. B.

2013-12-01

Volcanic eruptions are among the most significant hazards to human society, capable of triggering natural disasters on regional to global scales. In the last decade, remote sensing techniques have become established in operational forecasting, monitoring, and managing of volcanic hazards. Monitoring organizations, like the Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO), are nowadays heavily relying on remote sensing data from a variety of optical and thermal sensors to provide time-critical hazard information. Despite the high utilization of these remote sensing data to detect and monitor volcanic eruptions, the presence of clouds and a dependence on solar illumination often limit their impact on decision making processes. Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) systems are widely believed to be superior to optical sensors in operational monitoring situations, due to the weather and illumination independence of their observations and the sensitivity of SAR to surface changes and deformation. Despite these benefits, the contributions of SAR to operational volcano monitoring have been limited in the past due to (1) high SAR data costs, (2) traditionally long data processing times, and (3) the low temporal sampling frequencies inherent to most SAR systems. In this study, we present improved data access, data processing, and data integration techniques that mitigate some of the above mentioned limitations and allow, for the first time, a meaningful integration of SAR into operational volcano monitoring systems. We will introduce a new database interface that was developed in cooperation with the Alaska Satellite Facility (ASF) and allows for rapid and seamless data access to all of ASF's SAR data holdings. We will also present processing techniques that improve the temporal frequency with which hazard-related products can be produced. These techniques take advantage of modern signal processing technology as well as new radiometric normalization schemes, both enabling the combination of multiple observation geometries in change detection procedures. Additionally, it will be shown how SAR-based hazard information can be integrated with data from optical satellites, thermal sensors, webcams and models to create near-real time volcano hazard information. We will introduce a prototype monitoring system that integrates SAR-based hazard information into the near real-time volcano hazard monitoring system of the Alaska Volcano Observatory. This prototype system was applied to historic eruptions of the volcanoes Okmok and Augustine, both located in the North Pacific. We will show that for these historic eruptions, the addition of SAR data lead to a significant improvement in activity detection and eruption monitoring, and improved the accuracy and timeliness of eruption alerts.

Low-loss, compact, and fabrication-tolerant Si-wire 90° waveguide bend using clothoid and normal curves for large scale photonic integrated circuits.

PubMed

Fujisawa, Takeshi; Makino, Shuntaro; Sato, Takanori; Saitoh, Kunimasa

2017-04-17

Ultimately low-loss 90° waveguide bend composed of clothoid and normal curves is proposed for dense optical interconnect photonic integrated circuits. By using clothoid curves at the input and output of 90° waveguide bend, straight and bent waveguides are smoothly connected without increasing the footprint. We found that there is an optimum ratio of clothoid curves in the bend and the bending loss can be significantly reduced compared with normal bend. 90% reduction of the bending loss for the bending radius of 4 μm is experimentally demonstrated with excellent agreement between theory and experiment. The performance is compared with the waveguide bend with offset, and the proposed bend is superior to the waveguide bend with offset in terms of fabrication tolerance.

Comparison of Cryopreserved Human Sperm between Ultra Rapid Freezing and Slow Programmable Freezing: Effect on Motility, Morphology and DNA Integrity.

PubMed

Tongdee, Pattama; Sukprasert, Matchuporn; Satirapod, Chonticha; Wongkularb, Anna; Choktanasiri, Wicham

2015-05-01

Cryopreservation of sperm is common methods to preserve male fertility. Sperm freezing, suggest slow programmable freezing caused lower change of sperm morphology than sperm freezing in vapor of liquid nitrogen. Ultra rapid freezing is easy to be worked on, less time, low cost and does not need high experience. To compare the effect on sperm motility, morphology and DNA integrity of post-thawed sperm after ultra rapid freezing and slow programmable freezing methods. Experimental study at laboratory of infertility unit, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine Ramathibodi Hospital. Thirty-seven semen samples with normal semen analysis according to World Health Organization (WHO) 1999 [normal sperm volume ( 2 ml) and normal sperm concentration (≥ 20 x10(6)/ml) and sperm motility (≥ 50%)]. Semen samples were washed. Then each semen sample was divided into six cryovials. Two cryovials, 0.5 ml each, were cryopreserved by slow programmable freezing. Four 0.25 ml containing cryovials, were cryopreserved by ultra rapidfreezing method. After cryopreservationfor 1 month, thawedprocess was carried out at room temperature. Main outcomes are sperm motility was determined by Computer-Assisted Semen Analysis (CASA), sperm morphology was determined by eosin-methylene blue staining and sperm DNA integrity was assessed by TUNEL assay. Sperm motility was reduced significantly by both methods, from 70.4 (9.0)% to 29.1 (12.3)% in slowprogrammable freezing and to 19.7 (9.8)% in ultra rapid freezing (p < 0.05). Sperm motility decreased significantly more by ultra rapid freezing (p < 0.001). The percentage of normal sperm morphology and DNA integrity were also reduced significantly by both methods. However, no significant difference between the two methods was found (p > 0.05). Cryopreservation of human sperm for 1 month significantly decreased sperm motility, morphology and DNA integrity in both methods. However sperm motility was decreased more by ultra rapid freezing.

Integrating protein structural dynamics and evolutionary analysis with Bio3D.

PubMed

Skjærven, Lars; Yao, Xin-Qiu; Scarabelli, Guido; Grant, Barry J

2014-12-10

Popular bioinformatics approaches for studying protein functional dynamics include comparisons of crystallographic structures, molecular dynamics simulations and normal mode analysis. However, determining how observed displacements and predicted motions from these traditionally separate analyses relate to each other, as well as to the evolution of sequence, structure and function within large protein families, remains a considerable challenge. This is in part due to the general lack of tools that integrate information of molecular structure, dynamics and evolution. Here, we describe the integration of new methodologies for evolutionary sequence, structure and simulation analysis into the Bio3D package. This major update includes unique high-throughput normal mode analysis for examining and contrasting the dynamics of related proteins with non-identical sequences and structures, as well as new methods for quantifying dynamical couplings and their residue-wise dissection from correlation network analysis. These new methodologies are integrated with major biomolecular databases as well as established methods for evolutionary sequence and comparative structural analysis. New functionality for directly comparing results derived from normal modes, molecular dynamics and principal component analysis of heterogeneous experimental structure distributions is also included. We demonstrate these integrated capabilities with example applications to dihydrofolate reductase and heterotrimeric G-protein families along with a discussion of the mechanistic insight provided in each case. The integration of structural dynamics and evolutionary analysis in Bio3D enables researchers to go beyond a prediction of single protein dynamics to investigate dynamical features across large protein families. The Bio3D package is distributed with full source code and extensive documentation as a platform independent R package under a GPL2 license from http://thegrantlab.org/bio3d/ .

SPAIDE: A Real-time Research Platform for the Clarion CII/90K Cochlear Implant

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Van Immerseel, L.; Peeters, S.; Dykmans, P.; Vanpoucke, F.; Bracke, P.

2005-12-01

SPAIDE ( sound-processing algorithm integrated development environment) is a real-time platform of Advanced Bionics Corporation (Sylmar, Calif, USA) to facilitate advanced research on sound-processing and electrical-stimulation strategies with the Clarion CII and 90K implants. The platform is meant for testing in the laboratory. SPAIDE is conceptually based on a clear separation of the sound-processing and stimulation strategies, and, in specific, on the distinction between sound-processing and stimulation channels and electrode contacts. The development environment has a user-friendly interface to specify sound-processing and stimulation strategies, and includes the possibility to simulate the electrical stimulation. SPAIDE allows for real-time sound capturing from file or audio input on PC, sound processing and application of the stimulation strategy, and streaming the results to the implant. The platform is able to cover a broad range of research applications; from noise reduction and mimicking of normal hearing, over complex (simultaneous) stimulation strategies, to psychophysics. The hardware setup consists of a personal computer, an interface board, and a speech processor. The software is both expandable and to a great extent reusable in other applications.

Illusory conjunctions and perceptual grouping in a visual search task in schizophrenia.

PubMed

Carr, V J; Dewis, S A; Lewin, T J

1998-07-27

This report describes part of a series of experiments, conducted within the framework of feature integration theory, to determine whether patients with schizophrenia show deficits in preattentive processing. Thirty subjects with a DSM-III-R diagnosis of schizophrenia and 30 age-, gender-, and education-matched normal control subjects completed two computerized experimental tasks, a visual search task assessing the frequency of illusory conjunctions (i.e. false perceptions) under conditions of divided attention (Experiment 3) and a task which examined the effects of perceptual grouping on illusory conjunctions (Experiment 4). We also assessed current symptomatology and its relationship to task performance. Contrary to our hypotheses, schizophrenia subjects did not show higher rates of illusory conjunctions, and the influence of perceptual grouping on the frequency of illusory conjunctions was similar for schizophrenia and control subjects. Nonetheless, specific predictions from feature integration theory about the impact of different target types (Experiment 3) and perceptual groups (Experiment 4) on the likelihood of forming an illusory conjunction were strongly supported, thereby confirming the integrity of the experimental procedures. Overall, these studies revealed no firm evidence that schizophrenia is associated with a preattentive abnormality in visual search using stimuli that differ on the basis of physical characteristics.

Crowding, feature integration, and two kinds of "attention".

PubMed

Põder, Endel

2006-02-21

In a recent article, Pelli, Palomares, and Majaj (2004) suggested that feature binding is mediated by hard-wired integration fields instead of a spotlight of spatial attention (as assumed by Treisman & Gelade, 1980). Consequently, the correct conjoining of visual features can be guaranteed only when there are no other competing features within a circle with a radius of approximately 0.5E (E = eccentricity of the target object). This claim seems contradicted by an observation that we can easily see--for example, the orientation of a single blue bar within a dense array of randomly oriented red bars. In the present study, possible determinants of the extent of crowding (or feature integration) zones were analyzed with feature (color) singletons as targets. It was found that the number of distractors has a dramatic effect on crowding. With a few distractors, a normal crowding effect was observed. However, by increasing the number of distractors, the crowding effect was remarkably reduced. Similar results were observed when the target and distractors were of the same color and when only a differently colored circle indicated the target location. The results can be explained by bottom-up "attention" that facilitates the processing of information from salient locations in the visual field.

An integrated healthcare information system for end-to-end standardized exchange and homogeneous management of digital ECG formats.

PubMed

Trigo, Jesús Daniel; Martínez, Ignacio; Alesanco, Alvaro; Kollmann, Alexander; Escayola, Javier; Hayn, Dieter; Schreier, Günter; García, José

2012-07-01

This paper investigates the application of the enterprise information system (EIS) paradigm to standardized cardiovascular condition monitoring. There are many specifications in cardiology, particularly in the ECG standardization arena. The existence of ECG formats, however, does not guarantee the implementation of homogeneous, standardized solutions for ECG management. In fact, hospital management services need to cope with various ECG formats and, moreover, several different visualization applications. This heterogeneity hampers the normalization of integrated, standardized healthcare information systems, hence the need for finding an appropriate combination of ECG formats and a suitable EIS-based software architecture that enables standardized exchange and homogeneous management of ECG formats. Determining such a combination is one objective of this paper. The second aim is to design and develop the integrated healthcare information system that satisfies the requirements posed by the previous determination. The ECG formats selected include ISO/IEEE11073, Standard Communications Protocol for Computer-Assisted Electrocardiography, and an ECG ontology. The EIS-enabling techniques and technologies selected include web services, simple object access protocol, extensible markup language, or business process execution language. Such a selection ensures the standardized exchange of ECGs within, or across, healthcare information systems while providing modularity and accessibility.

Multisensory integration: flexible use of general operations

PubMed Central

van Atteveldt, Nienke; Murray, Micah M.; Thut, Gregor; Schroeder, Charles

2014-01-01

Research into the anatomical substrates and “principles” for integrating inputs from separate sensory surfaces has yielded divergent findings. This suggests that multisensory integration is flexible and context-dependent, and underlines the need for dynamically adaptive neuronal integration mechanisms. We propose that flexible multisensory integration can be explained by a combination of canonical, population-level integrative operations, such as oscillatory phase-resetting and divisive normalization. These canonical operations subsume multisensory integration into a fundamental set of principles as to how the brain integrates all sorts of information, and they are being used proactively and adaptively. We illustrate this proposition by unifying recent findings from different research themes such as timing, behavioral goal and experience-related differences in integration. PMID:24656248

Discrepancy-based error estimates for Quasi-Monte Carlo III. Error distributions and central limits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hoogland, Jiri; Kleiss, Ronald

1997-04-01

In Quasi-Monte Carlo integration, the integration error is believed to be generally smaller than in classical Monte Carlo with the same number of integration points. Using an appropriate definition of an ensemble of quasi-random point sets, we derive various results on the probability distribution of the integration error, which can be compared to the standard Central Limit Theorem for normal stochastic sampling. In many cases, a Gaussian error distribution is obtained.

Neural plasticity and its initiating conditions in tinnitus.

PubMed

Roberts, L E

2018-03-01

Deafferentation caused by cochlear pathology (which can be hidden from the audiogram) activates forms of neural plasticity in auditory pathways, generating tinnitus and its associated conditions including hyperacusis. This article discusses tinnitus mechanisms and suggests how these mechanisms may relate to those involved in normal auditory information processing. Research findings from animal models of tinnitus and from electromagnetic imaging of tinnitus patients are reviewed which pertain to the role of deafferentation and neural plasticity in tinnitus and hyperacusis. Auditory neurons compensate for deafferentation by increasing their input/output functions (gain) at multiple levels of the auditory system. Forms of homeostatic plasticity are believed to be responsible for this neural change, which increases the spontaneous and driven activity of neurons in central auditory structures in animals expressing behavioral evidence of tinnitus. Another tinnitus correlate, increased neural synchrony among the affected neurons, is forged by spike-timing-dependent neural plasticity in auditory pathways. Slow oscillations generated by bursting thalamic neurons verified in tinnitus animals appear to modulate neural plasticity in the cortex, integrating tinnitus neural activity with information in brain regions supporting memory, emotion, and consciousness which exhibit increased metabolic activity in tinnitus patients. The latter process may be induced by transient auditory events in normal processing but it persists in tinnitus, driven by phantom signals from the auditory pathway. Several tinnitus therapies attempt to suppress tinnitus through plasticity, but repeated sessions will likely be needed to prevent tinnitus activity from returning owing to deafferentation as its initiating condition.

Bayesian soft X-ray tomography using non-stationary Gaussian Processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Dong; Svensson, J.; Thomsen, H.; Medina, F.; Werner, A.; Wolf, R.

2013-08-01

In this study, a Bayesian based non-stationary Gaussian Process (GP) method for the inference of soft X-ray emissivity distribution along with its associated uncertainties has been developed. For the investigation of equilibrium condition and fast magnetohydrodynamic behaviors in nuclear fusion plasmas, it is of importance to infer, especially in the plasma center, spatially resolved soft X-ray profiles from a limited number of noisy line integral measurements. For this ill-posed inversion problem, Bayesian probability theory can provide a posterior probability distribution over all possible solutions under given model assumptions. Specifically, the use of a non-stationary GP to model the emission allows the model to adapt to the varying length scales of the underlying diffusion process. In contrast to other conventional methods, the prior regularization is realized in a probability form which enhances the capability of uncertainty analysis, in consequence, scientists who concern the reliability of their results will benefit from it. Under the assumption of normally distributed noise, the posterior distribution evaluated at a discrete number of points becomes a multivariate normal distribution whose mean and covariance are analytically available, making inversions and calculation of uncertainty fast. Additionally, the hyper-parameters embedded in the model assumption can be optimized through a Bayesian Occam's Razor formalism and thereby automatically adjust the model complexity. This method is shown to produce convincing reconstructions and good agreements with independently calculated results from the Maximum Entropy and Equilibrium-Based Iterative Tomography Algorithm methods.

Bayesian soft X-ray tomography using non-stationary Gaussian Processes.

PubMed

Li, Dong; Svensson, J; Thomsen, H; Medina, F; Werner, A; Wolf, R

2013-08-01

In this study, a Bayesian based non-stationary Gaussian Process (GP) method for the inference of soft X-ray emissivity distribution along with its associated uncertainties has been developed. For the investigation of equilibrium condition and fast magnetohydrodynamic behaviors in nuclear fusion plasmas, it is of importance to infer, especially in the plasma center, spatially resolved soft X-ray profiles from a limited number of noisy line integral measurements. For this ill-posed inversion problem, Bayesian probability theory can provide a posterior probability distribution over all possible solutions under given model assumptions. Specifically, the use of a non-stationary GP to model the emission allows the model to adapt to the varying length scales of the underlying diffusion process. In contrast to other conventional methods, the prior regularization is realized in a probability form which enhances the capability of uncertainty analysis, in consequence, scientists who concern the reliability of their results will benefit from it. Under the assumption of normally distributed noise, the posterior distribution evaluated at a discrete number of points becomes a multivariate normal distribution whose mean and covariance are analytically available, making inversions and calculation of uncertainty fast. Additionally, the hyper-parameters embedded in the model assumption can be optimized through a Bayesian Occam's Razor formalism and thereby automatically adjust the model complexity. This method is shown to produce convincing reconstructions and good agreements with independently calculated results from the Maximum Entropy and Equilibrium-Based Iterative Tomography Algorithm methods.

Integration of zebrafish fin regeneration genes with expression data of human tumors in silico uncovers potential novel melanoma markers.

PubMed

Hagedorn, Martin; Siegfried, Géraldine; Hooks, Katarzyna B; Khatib, Abdel-Majid

2016-11-01

Tissue regeneration requires expression of a large, unknown number of genes to initiate and maintain cellular processes such as proliferation, extracellular matrix synthesis, differentiation and migration. A unique model to simulate this process in a controlled manner is the re-growth of the caudal fin of zebrafish after amputation. Within this tissue stem cells differentiate into fibroblasts, epithelial and endothelial cells as well as melanocytes. Many genes implicated in the regeneration process are deregulated in cancer. We therefore undertook a systematic gene expression study to identify genes upregulated during the re-growth of caudal fin tissue. By applying a high stringency cut-off value of 4-fold change, we identified 54 annotated genes significantly overexpressed in regenerating blastema. Further bioinformatics data mining studies showed that 22 out of the 54 regeneration genes where overexpressed in melanoma compared to normal skin or other cancers. Whereas the role of TNC (tenascin C) and FN1 (fibronectin 1) in melanoma development is well documented, implication of MARCKS, RCN3, BAMBI, PEA3/ETV4 and the FK506 family members FKBP7, FKBP10 and FKBP11 in melanoma progression is unclear. Corresponding proteins were detected in melanoma tissue but not in normal skin. High expression of FKBP7, DPYSL5 and MDK was significantly associated with poor survival. We discuss a potential role of these novel melanoma genes, which have promising potential as new therapeutic targets or diagnostic markers.

Neuro-transmitters in the central nervous system & their implication in learning and memory processes.

PubMed

Reis, Helton J; Guatimosim, Cristina; Paquet, Maryse; Santos, Magda; Ribeiro, Fabíola M; Kummer, Arthur; Schenatto, Grace; Salgado, João V; Vieira, Luciene B; Teixeira, Antônio L; Palotás, András

2009-01-01

This review article gives an overview of a number of central neuro-transmitters, which are essential for integrating many functions in the central nervous system (CNS), such as learning, memory, sleep cycle, body movement, hormone regulation and many others. Neurons use neuro-transmitters to communicate, and a great variety of molecules are known to fit the criteria to be classified as such. A process shared by all neuro-transmitters is their release by excocytosis, and we give an outline of the molecular events and protein complexes involved in this mechanism. Synthesis, transport, inactivation, and cellular signaling can be very diverse when different neuro-transmitters are compared, and these processes are described separately for each neuro-transmitter system. Here we focus on the most well known neuro-transmitters: acetyl-choline, catechol-amines (dopamine and nor-adrenalin), indole-amine (serotonin), glutamate, and gamma-amino-butyric acid (GABA). Glutamate is the major excitatory neuro-transmitter in the brain and its actions are counter-balanced by GABA, which is the major inhibitory substance in the CNS. A balance of neuronal transmission between these two neuro-transmitters is essential to normal brain function. Acetyl-choline, serotonin and catechol-amines have a more modulatory function in the brain, being involved in many neuronal circuits. Apart from summarizing the current knowledge about the synthesis, release and receptor signaling of these transmitters, some disease states due to alteration of their normal neuro-transmission are also described.

Integrated β-catenin, BMP, PTEN, and Notch signalling patterns the nephron.

PubMed

Lindström, Nils O; Lawrence, Melanie L; Burn, Sally F; Johansson, Jeanette A; Bakker, Elvira R M; Ridgway, Rachel A; Chang, C-Hong; Karolak, Michele J; Oxburgh, Leif; Headon, Denis J; Sansom, Owen J; Smits, Ron; Davies, Jamie A; Hohenstein, Peter

2015-02-03

The different segments of the nephron and glomerulus in the kidney balance the processes of water homeostasis, solute recovery, blood filtration, and metabolite excretion. When segment function is disrupted, a range of pathological features are presented. Little is known about nephron patterning during embryogenesis. In this study, we demonstrate that the early nephron is patterned by a gradient in β-catenin activity along the axis of the nephron tubule. By modifying β-catenin activity, we force cells within nephrons to differentiate according to the imposed β-catenin activity level, thereby causing spatial shifts in nephron segments. The β-catenin signalling gradient interacts with the BMP pathway which, through PTEN/PI3K/AKT signalling, antagonises β-catenin activity and promotes segment identities associated with low β-catenin activity. β-catenin activity and PI3K signalling also integrate with Notch signalling to control segmentation: modulating β-catenin activity or PI3K rescues segment identities normally lost by inhibition of Notch. Our data therefore identifies a molecular network for nephron patterning.

Integrating the Learning of Mathematics and Science Using Interactive Teaching and Learning Strategies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Holmes, Mark H.

2006-10-01

To help students grasp the intimate connections that exist between mathematics and its applications in other disciplines a library of interactive learning modules was developed. This library covers the mathematical areas normally studied by undergraduate students and is used in science courses at all levels. Moreover, the library is designed not just to provide critical connections across disciplines but to also provide longitudinal subject reinforcement as students progress in their studies. In the process of developing the modules a complete editing and publishing system was constructed that is optimized for automated maintenance and upgradeability of materials. The result is a single integrated production system for web-based educational materials. Included in this is a rigorous assessment program, involving both internal and external evaluations of each module. As will be seen, the formative evaluation obtained during the development of the library resulted in the modules successfully bridging multiple disciplines and breaking down the disciplinary barriers commonly found in their math and non-math courses.

Nonlinear Dynamic Modeling and Controls Development for Supersonic Propulsion System Research

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Connolly, Joseph W.; Kopasakis, George; Paxson, Daniel E.; Stuber, Eric; Woolwine, Kyle

2012-01-01

This paper covers the propulsion system component modeling and controls development of an integrated nonlinear dynamic simulation for an inlet and engine that can be used for an overall vehicle (APSE) model. The focus here is on developing a methodology for the propulsion model integration, which allows for controls design that prevents inlet instabilities and minimizes the thrust oscillation experienced by the vehicle. Limiting thrust oscillations will be critical to avoid exciting vehicle aeroelastic modes. Model development includes both inlet normal shock position control and engine rotor speed control for a potential supersonic commercial transport. A loop shaping control design process is used that has previously been developed for the engine and verified on linear models, while a simpler approach is used for the inlet control design. Verification of the modeling approach is conducted by simulating a two-dimensional bifurcated inlet and a representative J-85 jet engine previously used in a NASA supersonics project. Preliminary results are presented for the current supersonics project concept variable cycle turbofan engine design.

Raf kinase inhibitory protein: a signal transduction modulator and metastasis suppressor.

PubMed

Granovsky, Alexey E; Rosner, Marsha Rich

2008-04-01

Cells have a multitude of controls to maintain their integrity and prevent random switching from one biological state to another. Raf Kinase Inhibitory Protein (RKIP), a member of the phosphatidylethanolamine binding protein (PEBP) family, is representative of a new class of modulators of signaling cascades that function to maintain the "yin yang" or balance of biological systems. RKIP inhibits MAP kinase (Raf-MEK-ERK), G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) kinase and NFkappaB signaling cascades. Because RKIP targets different kinases dependent upon its state of phosphorylation, RKIP also acts to integrate crosstalk initiated by multiple environmental stimuli. Loss or depletion of RKIP results in disruption of the normal cellular stasis and can lead to chromosomal abnormalities and disease states such as cancer. Since RKIP and the PEBP family have been reviewed previously, the goal of this analysis is to provide an update and highlight some of the unique features of RKIP that make it a critical player in the regulation of cellular signaling processes.

MathWorks Simulink and C++ integration with the new VLT PLC-based standard development platform for instrument control systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kiekebusch, Mario J.; Di Lieto, Nicola; Sandrock, Stefan; Popovic, Dan; Chiozzi, Gianluca

2014-07-01

ESO is in the process of implementing a new development platform, based on PLCs, for upcoming VLT control systems (new instruments and refurbishing of existing systems to manage obsolescence issues). In this context, we have evaluated the integration and reuse of existing C++ libraries and Simulink models into the real-time environment of BECKHOFF Embedded PCs using the capabilities of the latest version of TwinCAT software and MathWorks Embedded Coder. While doing so the aim was to minimize the impact of the new platform by adopting fully tested solutions implemented in C++. This allows us to reuse the in house expertise, as well as extending the normal capabilities of the traditional PLC programming environments. We present the progress of this work and its application in two concrete cases: 1) field rotation compensation for instrument tracking devices like derotators, 2) the ESO standard axis controller (ESTAC), a generic model-based controller implemented in Simulink and used for the control of telescope main axes.

Extended Occupational Therapy Reintegration Strategies for a Woman With Guillain-Barré Syndrome: Case Report.

PubMed

Tomita, Machiko R; Buckner, Kathryn; Saharan, Sumandeep; Persons, Kimberley; Liao, Sheng Hui

2016-01-01

This case report describes a unique long-term functional recovery process to promote successful community reintegration for a woman with Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), a rare autoimmune disease. Her main symptoms were very limited mobility and depressive symptoms due to the unknown cause of and cure for the illness. Holistic occupational strategies helped the client stabilize her emotional state, create a safe home environment, improve a communication method, increase physical activity, and promote social participation. Participation in a fall prevention clinical trial lowered her risk of falling; at 9 mo, she reached 75% of the maximum Social Integration score; at 13 mo, she reached near-normal level for activities of daily living (ADLs) and her fastest time for the Timed Up and Go test; and at 2 yr, she achieved a 100% score in instrumental ADLs. For community integration of clients with GBS, a comprehensive strategic self-management approach should be prescribed for long-term recovery. Copyright © 2016 by the American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.

Botswana water and surface energy balance research program. Part 2: Large scale moisture and passive microwaves

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vandegriend, A. A.; Owe, M.; Chang, A. T. C.

1992-01-01

The Botswana water and surface energy balance research program was developed to study and evaluate the integrated use of multispectral satellite remote sensing for monitoring the hydrological status of the Earth's surface. The research program consisted of two major, mutually related components: a surface energy balance modeling component, built around an extensive field campaign; and a passive microwave research component which consisted of a retrospective study of large scale moisture conditions and Nimbus scanning multichannel microwave radiometer microwave signatures. The integrated approach of both components are explained in general and activities performed within the passive microwave research component are summarized. The microwave theory is discussed taking into account: soil dielectric constant, emissivity, soil roughness effects, vegetation effects, optical depth, single scattering albedo, and wavelength effects. The study site is described. The soil moisture data and its processing are considered. The relation between observed large scale soil moisture and normalized brightness temperatures is discussed. Vegetation characteristics and inverse modeling of soil emissivity is considered.

Word Recognition and Basic Cognitive Processes among Reading-Disabled and Normal Readers in Arabic.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abu-Rabia, Salim; Share, David; Mansour, Maysaloon Said

2003-01-01

Investigates word identification in Arabic and basic cognitive processes in reading-disabled (RD) and normal level readers of the same chronological age, and in younger normal readers at the same reading level. Indicates significant deficiencies in morphology, working memory, and syntactic and visual processing, with the most severe deficiencies…

Thinking graphically: Connecting vision and cognition during graph comprehension.

PubMed

Ratwani, Raj M; Trafton, J Gregory; Boehm-Davis, Deborah A

2008-03-01

Task analytic theories of graph comprehension account for the perceptual and conceptual processes required to extract specific information from graphs. Comparatively, the processes underlying information integration have received less attention. We propose a new framework for information integration that highlights visual integration and cognitive integration. During visual integration, pattern recognition processes are used to form visual clusters of information; these visual clusters are then used to reason about the graph during cognitive integration. In 3 experiments, the processes required to extract specific information and to integrate information were examined by collecting verbal protocol and eye movement data. Results supported the task analytic theories for specific information extraction and the processes of visual and cognitive integration for integrative questions. Further, the integrative processes scaled up as graph complexity increased, highlighting the importance of these processes for integration in more complex graphs. Finally, based on this framework, design principles to improve both visual and cognitive integration are described. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2008 APA, all rights reserved

Superior pattern processing is the essence of the evolved human brain

PubMed Central

Mattson, Mark P.

2014-01-01

Humans have long pondered the nature of their mind/brain and, particularly why its capacities for reasoning, communication and abstract thought are far superior to other species, including closely related anthropoids. This article considers superior pattern processing (SPP) as the fundamental basis of most, if not all, unique features of the human brain including intelligence, language, imagination, invention, and the belief in imaginary entities such as ghosts and gods. SPP involves the electrochemical, neuronal network-based, encoding, integration, and transfer to other individuals of perceived or mentally-fabricated patterns. During human evolution, pattern processing capabilities became increasingly sophisticated as the result of expansion of the cerebral cortex, particularly the prefrontal cortex and regions involved in processing of images. Specific patterns, real or imagined, are reinforced by emotional experiences, indoctrination and even psychedelic drugs. Impaired or dysregulated SPP is fundamental to cognitive and psychiatric disorders. A broader understanding of SPP mechanisms, and their roles in normal and abnormal function of the human brain, may enable the development of interventions that reduce irrational decisions and destructive behaviors. PMID:25202234

Development and validation of the Hogan Grief Reaction Checklist.

PubMed

Hogan, N S; Greenfield, D B; Schmidt, L A

2001-01-01

The purpose of this article is to provide data on a recently developed instrument to measure the multidimensional nature of the bereavement process. In contrast to widely used grief instruments that have been developed using rational methods of instrument construction, the Hogan Grief Reaction Checklist (HGRC) was developed empirically from data collected from bereaved adults who had experienced the death of a loved one. Factor analysis of the HGRC revealed 6 factors in the normal trajectory of the grieving process: Despair, Panic Behavior, Blame and Anger, Detachment, Disorganization, and Personal Growth. Additional data are provided that support reliability and validity of the HGRC as well as its ability to discriminate variability in the grieving process as a function of cause of death and time lapsed since death. Empirical support is also provided for Personal Growth as an integral component of the bereavement process. The article concludes by considering the substantive as well as psychometric findings of this research for such issues as traumatic grief, anticipatory grief, change in the bereaved person's self-schema, and spiritual and existential growth.

Analysis of Electronic Densities and Integrated Doses in Multiform Glioblastomas Stereotactic Radiotherapy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barón-Aznar, C.; Moreno-Jiménez, S.; Celis, M. A.; Lárraga-Gutiérrez, J. M.; Ballesteros-Zebadúa, P.

2008-08-01

Integrated dose is the total energy delivered in a radiotherapy target. This physical parameter could be a predictor for complications such as brain edema and radionecrosis after stereotactic radiotherapy treatments for brain tumors. Integrated Dose depends on the tissue density and volume. Using CT patients images from the National Institute of Neurology and Neurosurgery and BrainScansoftware, this work presents the mean density of 21 multiform glioblastomas, comparative results for normal tissue and estimated integrated dose for each case. The relationship between integrated dose and the probability of complications is discussed.

PIMS sequencing extension: a laboratory information management system for DNA sequencing facilities

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background Facilities that provide a service for DNA sequencing typically support large numbers of users and experiment types. The cost of services is often reduced by the use of liquid handling robots but the efficiency of such facilities is hampered because the software for such robots does not usually integrate well with the systems that run the sequencing machines. Accordingly, there is a need for software systems capable of integrating different robotic systems and managing sample information for DNA sequencing services. In this paper, we describe an extension to the Protein Information Management System (PIMS) that is designed for DNA sequencing facilities. The new version of PIMS has a user-friendly web interface and integrates all aspects of the sequencing process, including sample submission, handling and tracking, together with capture and management of the data. Results The PIMS sequencing extension has been in production since July 2009 at the University of Leeds DNA Sequencing Facility. It has completely replaced manual data handling and simplified the tasks of data management and user communication. Samples from 45 groups have been processed with an average throughput of 10000 samples per month. The current version of the PIMS sequencing extension works with Applied Biosystems 3130XL 96-well plate sequencer and MWG 4204 or Aviso Theonyx liquid handling robots, but is readily adaptable for use with other combinations of robots. Conclusions PIMS has been extended to provide a user-friendly and integrated data management solution for DNA sequencing facilities that is accessed through a normal web browser and allows simultaneous access by multiple users as well as facility managers. The system integrates sequencing and liquid handling robots, manages the data flow, and provides remote access to the sequencing results. The software is freely available, for academic users, from http://www.pims-lims.org/. PMID:21385349

A Method to Measure and Estimate Normalized Contrast in Infrared Flash Thermography

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Koshti, Ajay M.

2016-01-01

The paper presents further development in normalized contrast processing used in flash infrared thermography method. Method of computing normalized image or pixel intensity contrast, and normalized temperature contrast are provided. Methods of converting image contrast to temperature contrast and vice versa are provided. Normalized contrast processing in flash thermography is useful in quantitative analysis of flash thermography data including flaw characterization and comparison of experimental results with simulation. Computation of normalized temperature contrast involves use of flash thermography data acquisition set-up with high reflectivity foil and high emissivity tape such that the foil, tape and test object are imaged simultaneously. Methods of assessing other quantitative parameters such as emissivity of object, afterglow heat flux, reflection temperature change and surface temperature during flash thermography are also provided. Temperature imaging and normalized temperature contrast processing provide certain advantages over normalized image contrast processing by reducing effect of reflected energy in images and measurements, therefore providing better quantitative data. Examples of incorporating afterglow heat-flux and reflection temperature evolution in flash thermography simulation are also discussed.

Preliminary magnetostratigraphy and environmental magnetism of the Lower Cretaceous from the Italian Dolomites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Savian, J. F.; Jovane, L.; Florindo, F.; Lukeneder, A.

2011-12-01

The Lower Cretaceous (~146 to 100 Ma) represents an enigmatic time interval for paleoclimatic, paleogeography and paleomagnetic evolution of the Earth's history. The climatic changes include global oceanic anoxic events (OAEs), biotic changes, global excursions of carbon and strontium isotopes, rises in eustatic sea level and paleotemperature. Paleoceanography was marked by a rapid rate of ocean spreading in the Atlantic. The opening of the Atlantic Ocean was wide enough to allow significant circulation of masses of waters across the equator. This period is furthermore important for the oceanographic events occurring at the base of the Aptian (Selli Level). This period also present one of the most intriguing geomagnetic events: the long normal Cretaceous superchron, lasted for almost 40 million years. We study here the lower Cretaceous deposits of the Puez section in the Dolomites (northern Italy) which represents a continuous section during this period. The samples collected represent marine sedimentary materials of the Biancone and Puez formations. The Puez section consists essentially of green-grey to red limestones and calcareous marls. We present preliminary results of integrated magnetostratigraphic analysis, including a detailed lithostratigraphy and environmental magnetism. We recognize magnetic behavior that are relative to normal polarity (the normal Cretaceous superchron), with a short reverse interval that might represent the M-1r event. We also recognize a series of normal and reverse polarities (below the normal Cretaceous superchron) which can be referred to the magnetozones M1/M5. The environmental magnetic data consists of magnetic susceptibility (χ), natural remanent magnetization (NRM), anhysteretic remanent magnetization (ARM), isothermal remanent magnetization (IRM) at 900 mT and backfield isothermal remanent magnetization (BIRM) at 100 mT and 300 mT. Derived parameters, such as S-ratio (S300=BIRM300/IRM900) and hard isothermal remanent magnetization (HIRM=[IRM900+BIRM300]/2), both were used to investigate the magnetic coercivity of the magnetic carriers. The integrated records indicate that the magnetic mineral assemblage is dominated by low-coercivity minerals, probably magnetite and/or low-titanium titanomagnetite for the upper part of the section. There is a mixture of low and high-coercivity materials in the lower part of the section sections, probably magnetite and hematite. The new magnetostratigraphy allows to constrain the age of the sediments and the environmental magnetism provide information that will be helpful to understand the sedimentation processes.

Knowledge-based image processing for on-off type DNA microarray

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Jong D.; Kim, Seo K.; Cho, Jeong S.; Kim, Jongwon

2002-06-01

This paper addresses the image processing technique for discriminating whether the probes are hybrized with target DNA in the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) DNA Chip designed for genotyping HPV. In addition to the probes, the HPV DNA chip has markers that always react with the sample DNA. The positions of probe-dots in the final scanned image are fixed relative to the marker-dot locations with a small variation according to the accuracy of the dotter and the scanner. The probes are duplicated 4 times for the diagnostic stability. The prior knowledges such as the maker relative distance and the duplication information of probes is integrated into the template matching technique with the normalized correlation measure. Results show that the employment of both of the prior knowledges is to simply average the template matching measures over the positions of the markers and probes. The eventual proposed scheme yields stable marker locating and probe classification.

Combined metabolome and proteome analysis of the mantle tissue from Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas exposed to elevated pCO2.

PubMed

Wei, Lei; Wang, Qing; Ning, Xuanxuan; Mu, Changkao; Wang, Chunlin; Cao, Ruiwen; Wu, Huifeng; Cong, Ming; Li, Fei; Ji, Chenglong; Zhao, Jianmin

2015-03-01

Ocean acidification (OA) has been found to affect an array of normal physiological processes in mollusks, especially posing a significant threat to the fabrication process of mollusk shell. In the current study, the impact of exposure to elevated pCO2 condition was investigated in mantle tissue of Crassostrea gigas by an integrated metabolomic and proteomic approach. Analysis of metabolome and proteome revealed that elevated pCO2 could affect energy metabolism in oyster C. gigas, marked by differentially altered ATP, succinate, MDH, PEPCK and ALDH levels. Moreover, the up-regulated calponin-2, tropomyosins and myosin light chains indicated that elevated pCO2 probably caused disturbances in cytoskeleton structure in mantle tissue of oyster C. gigas. This work demonstrated that a combination of proteomics and metabolomics could provide important insights into the effects of OA at molecular levels. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Convergence and Extrusion Are Required for Normal Fusion of the Mammalian Secondary Palate

PubMed Central

Kim, Seungil; Lewis, Ace E.; Singh, Vivek; Ma, Xuefei; Adelstein, Robert; Bush, Jeffrey O.

2015-01-01

The fusion of two distinct prominences into one continuous structure is common during development and typically requires integration of two epithelia and subsequent removal of that intervening epithelium. Using confocal live imaging, we directly observed the cellular processes underlying tissue fusion, using the secondary palatal shelves as a model. We find that convergence of a multi-layered epithelium into a single-layer epithelium is an essential early step, driven by cell intercalation, and is concurrent to orthogonal cell displacement and epithelial cell extrusion. Functional studies in mice indicate that this process requires an actomyosin contractility pathway involving Rho kinase (ROCK) and myosin light chain kinase (MLCK), culminating in the activation of non-muscle myosin IIA (NMIIA). Together, these data indicate that actomyosin contractility drives cell intercalation and cell extrusion during palate fusion and suggest a general mechanism for tissue fusion in development. PMID:25848986

A method of producing high quality oxide and related films on surfaces

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ruckman, Mark W.; Strongin, Myron; Gao, Yongli

1991-01-01

Aluminum oxide or aluminum nitride films were deposited on molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) grown GaAS(100) using a novel cryogenic-based reactive thin film deposition technique. The process involves the condensation of molecular oxygen, ammonia, or other gases normally used for reactive thin film deposition on the substrate before the metal is deposited. The metal vapor is deposited into this layer and reacts with the molecular solid to form the desired compound or a precursor that can be thermally decomposed to generate the desired compound. The films produced by this method are free of impurities, and the low temperatures can be used to control the film and interfacial structure. The process can be easily integrated with existing MBE systems. Ongoing research using the same apparatus suggests that photon or electron irradiation could be used to promote the reactions needed to produce the intended material.

FancJ regulates interstrand crosslinker induced centrosome amplification through the activation of polo-like kinase 1

PubMed Central

Zou, Jianqiu; Tian, Fen; Li, Ji; Pickner, Wyatt; Long, Molly; Rezvani, Khosrow; Wang, Hongmin; Zhang, Dong

2013-01-01

Summary DNA damage response (DDR) and the centrosome cycle are two of the most critical processes for maintaining a stable genome in animals. Sporadic evidence suggests a connection between these two processes. Here, we report our findings that six Fanconi Anemia (FA) proteins, including FancI and FancJ, localize to the centrosome. Intriguingly, we found that the localization of FancJ to the mother centrosome is stimulated by a DNA interstrand crosslinker, Mitomycin C (MMC). We further show that, in addition to its role in interstrand crosslinking (ICL) repair, FancJ also regulates the normal centrosome cycle as well as ICL induced centrosome amplification by activating the polo-like kinase 1 (PLK1). We have uncovered a novel function of FancJ in centrosome biogenesis and established centrosome amplification as an integral part of the ICL response. PMID:24167712

Effects of bioleaching on the mechanical and chemical properties of waste rocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yin, Sheng-Hua; Wu, Ai-Xiang; Wang, Shao-Yong; Ai, Chun-Ming

2012-01-01

Bioleaching processes cause dramatic changes in the mechanical and chemical properties of waste rocks, and play an important role in metal recovery and dump stability. This study focused on the characteristics of waste rocks subjected to bioleaching. A series of experiments were conducted to investigate the evolution of rock properties during the bioleaching process. Mechanical behaviors of the leached waste rocks, such as failure patterns, normal stress, shear strength, and cohesion were determined through mechanical tests. The results of SEM imaging show considerable differences in the surface morphology of leached rocks located at different parts of the dump. The mineralogical content of the leached rocks reflects the extent of dissolution and precipitation during bioleaching. The dump porosity and rock size change under the effect of dissolution, precipitation, and clay transportation. The particle size of the leached rocks decreased due to the loss of rock integrity and the conversion of dry precipitation into fine particles.

The Effect of Normalization in Violence Video Classification Performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ali, Ashikin; Senan, Norhalina

2017-08-01

Basically, data pre-processing is an important part of data mining. Normalization is a pre-processing stage for any type of problem statement, especially in video classification. Challenging problems that arises in video classification is because of the heterogeneous content, large variations in video quality and complex semantic meanings of the concepts involved. Therefore, to regularize this problem, it is thoughtful to ensure normalization or basically involvement of thorough pre-processing stage aids the robustness of classification performance. This process is to scale all the numeric variables into certain range to make it more meaningful for further phases in available data mining techniques. Thus, this paper attempts to examine the effect of 2 normalization techniques namely Min-max normalization and Z-score in violence video classifications towards the performance of classification rate using Multi-layer perceptron (MLP) classifier. Using Min-Max Normalization range of [0,1] the result shows almost 98% of accuracy, meanwhile Min-Max Normalization range of [-1,1] accuracy is 59% and for Z-score the accuracy is 50%.

A finite element formulation for supersonic flows around complex configurations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morino, L.

1974-01-01

The problem of small perturbation potential supersonic flow around complex configurations is considered. This problem requires the solution of an integral equation relating the values of the potential on the surface of the body to the values of the normal derivative, which is known from the small perturbation boundary conditions. The surface of the body is divided into small (hyperboloidal quadrilateral) surface elements which are described in terms of the Cartesian components of the four corner points. The values of the potential (and its normal derivative) within each element are assumed to be constant and equal to its value at the centroid of the element. This yields a set of linear algebraic equations whose coefficients are given by source and doublet integrals over the surface elements. Closed form evaluations of the integrals are presented.

BloodChIP: a database of comparative genome-wide transcription factor binding profiles in human blood cells.

PubMed

Chacon, Diego; Beck, Dominik; Perera, Dilmi; Wong, Jason W H; Pimanda, John E

2014-01-01

The BloodChIP database (http://www.med.unsw.edu.au/CRCWeb.nsf/page/BloodChIP) supports exploration and visualization of combinatorial transcription factor (TF) binding at a particular locus in human CD34-positive and other normal and leukaemic cells or retrieval of target gene sets for user-defined combinations of TFs across one or more cell types. Increasing numbers of genome-wide TF binding profiles are being added to public repositories, and this trend is likely to continue. For the power of these data sets to be fully harnessed by experimental scientists, there is a need for these data to be placed in context and easily accessible for downstream applications. To this end, we have built a user-friendly database that has at its core the genome-wide binding profiles of seven key haematopoietic TFs in human stem/progenitor cells. These binding profiles are compared with binding profiles in normal differentiated and leukaemic cells. We have integrated these TF binding profiles with chromatin marks and expression data in normal and leukaemic cell fractions. All queries can be exported into external sites to construct TF-gene and protein-protein networks and to evaluate the association of genes with cellular processes and tissue expression.

Dysfunctional whole brain networks in mild cognitive impairment patients: an fMRI study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Zhenyu; Bai, Lijun; Dai, Ruwei; Zhong, Chongguang; Xue, Ting; You, Youbo; Tian, Jie

2012-03-01

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) was recognized as the prodromal stage of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Recent researches have shown that cognitive and memory decline in AD patients is coupled with losses of small-world attributes. However, few studies pay attention to the characteristics of the whole brain networks in MCI patients. In the present study, we investigated the topological properties of the whole brain networks utilizing graph theoretical approaches in 16 MCI patients, compared with 18 age-matched healthy subjects as a control. Both MCI patients and normal controls showed small-world architectures, with large clustering coefficients and short characteristic path lengths. We detected significantly longer characteristic path length in MCI patients compared with normal controls at the low sparsity. The longer characteristic path lengths in MCI indicated disrupted information processing among distant brain regions. Compared with normal controls, MCI patients showed decreased nodal centrality in the brain areas of the angular gyrus, heschl gyrus, hippocampus and superior parietal gyrus, while increased nodal centrality in the calcarine, inferior occipital gyrus and superior frontal gyrus. These changes in nodal centrality suggested a widespread rewiring in MCI patients, which may be an integrated reflection of reorganization of the brain networks accompanied with the cognitive decline. Our findings may be helpful for further understanding the pathological mechanisms of MCI.

'Executive' functions and normal aging: selective impairment in conditional exclusion compared to abstraction and inhibition.

PubMed

Silver, Henry; Goodman, Craig; Gur, Ruben C; Gur, Raquel E; Bilker, Warren B

2011-01-01

Some executive functions may be selectively impaired in normal aging over and above the general cognitive decline. We examined the performance of healthy high functioning young (n = 77) and older (n = 57) individuals on three 'executive' tests: conditional exclusion, abstraction, and inhibition of prepotent responses. We compared their relationships to each other and to other cognitive functions including attention, psychomotor speed and working memory. Conditional exclusion was significantly more impaired than abstraction or inhibition in the elderly compared to the younger group and unlike them, showed a nonlinear relationship with age. These findings were independent of other cognitive functions. Analysis of PCET performance characteristics showed that older individuals were particularly impaired in attaining the last of the three achievable categories, were slower, and had fewer error monitoring resources compared to the younger group. Conditional exclusion shows an age-related pattern of impairment distinct from inhibition and abstraction. We propose that in healthy well-functioning individuals, it taps processes integrating task set establishment and shifting in context of accumulating information. It may thus be useful as a specific marker of complex cognitive functions in studies of normal cognitive aging and in early detection of cognitive dysfunction. Copyright © 2010 S. Karger AG, Basel.

RhoG protein regulates platelet granule secretion and thrombus formation in mice.

PubMed

Goggs, Robert; Harper, Matthew T; Pope, Robert J; Savage, Joshua S; Williams, Christopher M; Mundell, Stuart J; Heesom, Kate J; Bass, Mark; Mellor, Harry; Poole, Alastair W

2013-11-22

Rho GTPases such as Rac, RhoA, and Cdc42 are vital for normal platelet function, but the role of RhoG in platelets has not been studied. In other cells, RhoG orchestrates processes integral to platelet function, including actin cytoskeletal rearrangement and membrane trafficking. We therefore hypothesized that RhoG would play a critical role in platelets. Here, we show that RhoG is expressed in human and mouse platelets and is activated by both collagen-related peptide (CRP) and thrombin stimulation. We used RhoG(-/-) mice to study the function of RhoG in platelets. Integrin activation and aggregation were reduced in RhoG(-/-) platelets stimulated by CRP, but responses to thrombin were normal. The central defect in RhoG(-/-) platelets was reduced secretion from α-granules, dense granules, and lysosomes following CRP stimulation. The integrin activation and aggregation defects could be rescued by ADP co-stimulation, indicating that they are a consequence of diminished dense granule secretion. Defective dense granule secretion in RhoG(-/-) platelets limited recruitment of additional platelets to growing thrombi in flowing blood in vitro and translated into reduced thrombus formation in vivo. Interestingly, tail bleeding times were normal in RhoG(-/-) mice, suggesting that the functions of RhoG in platelets are particularly relevant to thrombotic disorders.

Optimal Audiovisual Integration in the Ventriloquism Effect But Pervasive Deficits in Unisensory Spatial Localization in Amblyopia.

PubMed

Richards, Michael D; Goltz, Herbert C; Wong, Agnes M F

2018-01-01

Classically understood as a deficit in spatial vision, amblyopia is increasingly recognized to also impair audiovisual multisensory processing. Studies to date, however, have not determined whether the audiovisual abnormalities reflect a failure of multisensory integration, or an optimal strategy in the face of unisensory impairment. We use the ventriloquism effect and the maximum-likelihood estimation (MLE) model of optimal integration to investigate integration of audiovisual spatial information in amblyopia. Participants with unilateral amblyopia (n = 14; mean age 28.8 years; 7 anisometropic, 3 strabismic, 4 mixed mechanism) and visually normal controls (n = 16, mean age 29.2 years) localized brief unimodal auditory, unimodal visual, and bimodal (audiovisual) stimuli during binocular viewing using a location discrimination task. A subset of bimodal trials involved the ventriloquism effect, an illusion in which auditory and visual stimuli originating from different locations are perceived as originating from a single location. Localization precision and bias were determined by psychometric curve fitting, and the observed parameters were compared with predictions from the MLE model. Spatial localization precision was significantly reduced in the amblyopia group compared with the control group for unimodal visual, unimodal auditory, and bimodal stimuli. Analyses of localization precision and bias for bimodal stimuli showed no significant deviations from the MLE model in either the amblyopia group or the control group. Despite pervasive deficits in localization precision for visual, auditory, and audiovisual stimuli, audiovisual integration remains intact and optimal in unilateral amblyopia.

Transcallosal transfer of information and functional asymmetry of the human brain.

PubMed

Nowicka, Anna; Tacikowski, Pawel

2011-01-01

The corpus callosum is the largest commissure in the brain and acts as a "bridge" of nerve fibres connecting the two cerebral hemispheres. It plays a crucial role in interhemispheric integration and is responsible for normal communication and cooperation between the two hemispheres. Evolutionary pressures guiding brain size are accompanied by reduced interhemispheric and enhanced intrahemispheric connectivity. Some lines of evidence suggest that the speed of transcallosal conduction is limited in large brains (e.g., in humans), thus favouring intrahemispheric processing and brain lateralisation. Patterns of directional symmetry/asymmetry of transcallosal transfer time may be related to the degree of brain lateralisation. Neural network modelling and electrophysiological studies on interhemispheric transmission provide data supporting this supposition.

Precise Synaptic Efficacy Alignment Suggests Potentiation Dominated Learning.

PubMed

Hartmann, Christoph; Miner, Daniel C; Triesch, Jochen

2015-01-01

Recent evidence suggests that parallel synapses from the same axonal branch onto the same dendritic branch have almost identical strength. It has been proposed that this alignment is only possible through learning rules that integrate activity over long time spans. However, learning mechanisms such as spike-timing-dependent plasticity (STDP) are commonly assumed to be temporally local. Here, we propose that the combination of temporally local STDP and a multiplicative synaptic normalization mechanism is sufficient to explain the alignment of parallel synapses. To address this issue, we introduce three increasingly complex models: First, we model the idealized interaction of STDP and synaptic normalization in a single neuron as a simple stochastic process and derive analytically that the alignment effect can be described by a so-called Kesten process. From this we can derive that synaptic efficacy alignment requires potentiation-dominated learning regimes. We verify these conditions in a single-neuron model with independent spiking activities but more realistic synapses. As expected, we only observe synaptic efficacy alignment for long-term potentiation-biased STDP. Finally, we explore how well the findings transfer to recurrent neural networks where the learning mechanisms interact with the correlated activity of the network. We find that due to the self-reinforcing correlations in recurrent circuits under STDP, alignment occurs for both long-term potentiation- and depression-biased STDP, because the learning will be potentiation dominated in both cases due to the potentiating events induced by correlated activity. This is in line with recent results demonstrating a dominance of potentiation over depression during waking and normalization during sleep. This leads us to predict that individual spine pairs will be more similar after sleep compared to after sleep deprivation. In conclusion, we show that synaptic normalization in conjunction with coordinated potentiation--in this case, from STDP in the presence of correlated pre- and post-synaptic activity--naturally leads to an alignment of parallel synapses.

Using Solar Radio Burst Integrated Fluxes to Predict Energetic Proton Flux Increases.

DTIC Science & Technology

1982-08-31

Energy Density, ET, of the radio burst, an integration across the frequency interval of the time-integrated radio fluxes at each frequency, was found to...integrated flux or energy at five frequencies in the 600- to 8800-MHz frequency interval and related them to the peak proton flux of the associated... energy of the burst normalized to its peak flux. One other characteristic of the radio burst to which Croom 13 referred was the total energy density, ET

Functional classification of skeletal muscle networks. I. Normal physiology

PubMed Central

Wang, Yu; Winters, Jack

2012-01-01

Extensive measurements of the parts list of human skeletal muscle through transcriptomics and other phenotypic assays offer the opportunity to reconstruct detailed functional models. Through integration of vast amounts of data present in databases and extant knowledge of muscle function combined with robust analyses that include a clustering approach, we present both a protein parts list and network models for skeletal muscle function. The model comprises the four key functional family networks that coexist within a functional space; namely, excitation-activation family (forward pathways that transmit a motoneuronal command signal into the spatial volume of the cell and then use Ca2+ fluxes to bind Ca2+ to troponin C sites on F-actin filaments, plus transmembrane pumps that maintain transmission capacity); mechanical transmission family (a sophisticated three-dimensional mechanical apparatus that bidirectionally couples the millions of actin-myosin nanomotors with external axial tensile forces at insertion sites); metabolic and bioenergetics family (pathways that supply energy for the skeletal muscle function under widely varying demands and provide for other cellular processes); and signaling-production family (which represents various sensing, signal transduction, and nuclear infrastructure that controls the turn over and structural integrity and regulates the maintenance, regeneration, and remodeling of the muscle). Within each family, we identify subfamilies that function as a unit through analysis of large-scale transcription profiles of muscle and other tissues. This comprehensive network model provides a framework for exploring functional mechanisms of the skeletal muscle in normal and pathophysiology, as well as for quantitative modeling. PMID:23085959

Amygdalo-cortical sprouting continues into early adulthood: implications for the development of normal and abnormal function during adolescence.

PubMed

Cunningham, Miles Gregory; Bhattacharyya, Sujoy; Benes, Francine Mary

2002-11-11

Adolescence is a critical stage for the development of emotional maturity and diverse forms of psychopathology. The posterior basolateral nucleus of the amygdala is known to mediate fear and anxiety and is important in assigning emotional valence to cognitive processes. The medial prefrontal cortex, a homologue of the human anterior cingulate cortex, mediates emotional, attentional, and motivational behaviors at the cortical level. We postulate that the development of connectivity between these two corticolimbic regions contributes to an enhanced integration of emotion and cognition during the postnatal period. In order to characterize the development of this relay, injections of the anterograde tracer biocytin were stereotaxically placed within the posterior basolateral nucleus of the amygdala of rats at successive postnatal time points (postnatal days 6-120). Labeled fibers in the medial prefrontal cortex were evaluated using a combination of brightfield, confocal, and electron microscopy. We found that the density of labeled fibers originating from the posterior basolateral nucleus shows a sharp curvilinear increase within layers II and V of the anterior cingulate cortex and the infralimbic subdivisions of medial prefrontal cortex during the late postweanling period. This increase was paralleled by a linear rise in the number of axospinous and axodendritic synapses present in the neuropil. Based on these results, we propose that late maturation of amygdalo-cortical connectivity may provide an anatomical basis for the development and integration of normal and possibly abnormal emotional behavior during adolescence and early adulthood. Copyright 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Evaluation of the deformation and corresponding dosimetric implications in prostate cancer treatment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wen, Ning; Glide-Hurst, Carri; Nurushev, Teamour; Xing, Lei; Kim, Jinkoo; Zhong, Hualiang; Liu, Dezhi; Liu, Manju; Burmeister, Jay; Movsas, Benjamin; Chetty, Indrin J.

2012-09-01

The cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) imaging modality is an integral component of image-guided adaptive radiation therapy (IGART), which uses patient-specific dynamic/temporal information for potential treatment plan modification. In this study, an offline process for the integral component IGART framework has been implemented that consists of deformable image registration (DIR) and its validation, dose reconstruction, dose accumulation and dose verification. This study compares the differences between planned and estimated delivered doses under an IGART framework of five patients undergoing prostate cancer radiation therapy. The dose calculation accuracy on CBCT was verified by measurements made in a Rando pelvic phantom. The accuracy of DIR on patient image sets was evaluated in three ways: landmark matching with fiducial markers, visual image evaluation and unbalanced energy (UE); UE has been previously demonstrated to be a feasible method for the validation of DIR accuracy at a voxel level. The dose calculated on each CBCT image set was reconstructed and accumulated over all fractions to reflect the ‘actual dose’ delivered to the patient. The deformably accumulated (delivered) plans were then compared to the original (static) plans to evaluate tumor and normal tissue dose discrepancies. The results support the utility of adaptive planning, which can be used to fully elucidate the dosimetric impact based on the simulated delivered dose to achieve the desired tumor control and normal tissue sparing, which may be of particular importance in the context of hypofractionated radiotherapy regimens.

First Zenith Total Delay and Integrated Water Vapour Estimates from the Near Real-Time GNSS Data Processing Systems at the University of Luxembourg

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ahmed, F.; Teferle, F. N.; Bingley, R. M.

2012-04-01

Since September 2011 the University of Luxembourg in collaboration with the University of Nottingham has been setting up two near real-time processing systems for ground-based GNSS data for the provision of zenith total delay (ZTD) and integrated water vapour (IWV) estimates. Both systems are based on Bernese v5.0, use the double-differenced network processing strategy and operate with a 1-hour (NRT1h) and 15-minutes (NRT15m) update cycle. Furthermore, the systems follow the approach of the E-GVAP METO and IES2 systems in that the normal equations for the latest data are combined with those from the previous four updates during the estimation of the ZTDs. NRT1h currently takes the hourly data from over 130 GNSS stations in Europe whereas NRT15m is primarily using the real-time streams of EUREF-IP. Both networks include additional GNSS stations in Luxembourg, Belgium and France. The a priori station coordinates for all of these stem from a moving average computed over the last 20 to 50 days and are based on the precise point positioning processing strategy. In this study we present the first ZTD and IWV estimates obtained from the NRT1h and NRT15m systems in development at the University of Luxembourg. In a preliminary evaluation we compare their performance to the IES2 system at the University of Nottingham and find the IWV estimates to agree at the sub-millimetre level.

Human and Rodent Homologies in Action Control: Corticostriatal Determinants of Goal-Directed and Habitual Action

PubMed Central

Balleine, Bernard W; O'Doherty, John P

2010-01-01

Recent behavioral studies in both humans and rodents have found evidence that performance in decision-making tasks depends on two different learning processes; one encoding the relationship between actions and their consequences and a second involving the formation of stimulus–response associations. These learning processes are thought to govern goal-directed and habitual actions, respectively, and have been found to depend on homologous corticostriatal networks in these species. Thus, recent research using comparable behavioral tasks in both humans and rats has implicated homologous regions of cortex (medial prefrontal cortex/medial orbital cortex in humans and prelimbic cortex in rats) and of dorsal striatum (anterior caudate in humans and dorsomedial striatum in rats) in goal-directed action and in the control of habitual actions (posterior lateral putamen in humans and dorsolateral striatum in rats). These learning processes have been argued to be antagonistic or competing because their control over performance appears to be all or none. Nevertheless, evidence has started to accumulate suggesting that they may at times compete and at others cooperate in the selection and subsequent evaluation of actions necessary for normal choice performance. It appears likely that cooperation or competition between these sources of action control depends not only on local interactions in dorsal striatum but also on the cortico-basal ganglia network within which the striatum is embedded and that mediates the integration of learning with basic motivational and emotional processes. The neural basis of the integration of learning and motivation in choice and decision-making is still controversial and we review some recent hypotheses relating to this issue. PMID:19776734

Sample preservation, transport and processing strategies for honeybee RNA extraction: Influence on RNA yield, quality, target quantification and data normalization.

PubMed

Forsgren, Eva; Locke, Barbara; Semberg, Emilia; Laugen, Ane T; Miranda, Joachim R de

2017-08-01

Viral infections in managed honey bees are numerous, and most of them are caused by viruses with an RNA genome. Since RNA degrades rapidly, appropriate sample management and RNA extraction methods are imperative to get high quality RNA for downstream assays. This study evaluated the effect of various sampling-transport scenarios (combinations of temperature, RNA stabilizers, and duration) of transport on six RNA quality parameters; yield, purity, integrity, cDNA synthesis efficiency, target detection and quantification. The use of water and extraction buffer were also compared for a primary bee tissue homogenate prior to RNA extraction. The strategy least affected by time was preservation of samples at -80°C. All other regimens turned out to be poor alternatives unless the samples were frozen or processed within 24h. Chemical stabilizers have the greatest impact on RNA quality and adding an extra homogenization step (a QIAshredder™ homogenizer) to the extraction protocol significantly improves the RNA yield and chemical purity. This study confirms that RIN values (RNA Integrity Number), should be used cautiously with bee RNA. Using water for the primary homogenate has no negative effect on RNA quality as long as this step is no longer than 15min. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Empirically based Suggested Insights into the Concept of False-Self Defense: Contributions From a Study on Normalization of Children With Disabilities.

PubMed

Eichengreen, Adva; Hoofien, Dan; Bachar, Eytan

2016-02-01

The concept of the false self has been used widely in psychoanalytic theory and practice but seldom in empirical research. In this empirically based study, elevated features of false-self defense were hypothetically associated with risk factors attendant on processes of rehabilitation and integration of children with disabilities, processes that encourage adaptation of the child to the able-bodied environment. Self-report questionnaires and in-depth interviews were conducted with 88 deaf and hard-of-hearing students and a comparison group of 88 hearing counterparts. Results demonstrate that despite the important contribution of rehabilitation and integration to the well-being of these children, these efforts may put the child at risk of increased use of the false-self defense. The empirical findings suggest two general theoretical conclusions: (1) The Winnicottian concept of the environment, usually confined to the parent-child relationship, can be understood more broadly as including cultural, social, and rehabilitational variables that both influence the parent-child relationship and operate independently of it. (2) The monolithic conceptualization of the false self may be more accurately unpacked to reveal two distinct subtypes: the compliant and the split false self. © 2016 by the American Psychoanalytic Association.

Pressure driven digital logic in PDMS based microfluidic devices fabricated by multilayer soft lithography.

PubMed

Devaraju, Naga Sai Gopi K; Unger, Marc A

2012-11-21

Advances in microfluidics now allow an unprecedented level of parallelization and integration of biochemical reactions. However, one challenge still faced by the field has been the complexity and cost of the control hardware: one external pressure signal has been required for each independently actuated set of valves on chip. Using a simple post-modification to the multilayer soft lithography fabrication process, we present a new implementation of digital fluidic logic fully analogous to electronic logic with significant performance advances over the previous implementations. We demonstrate a novel normally closed static gain valve capable of modulating pressure signals in a fashion analogous to an electronic transistor. We utilize these valves to build complex fluidic logic circuits capable of arbitrary control of flows by processing binary input signals (pressure (1) and atmosphere (0)). We demonstrate logic gates and devices including NOT, NAND and NOR gates, bi-stable flip-flops, gated flip-flops (latches), oscillators, self-driven peristaltic pumps, delay flip-flops, and a 12-bit shift register built using static gain valves. This fluidic logic shows cascade-ability, feedback, programmability, bi-stability, and autonomous control capability. This implementation of fluidic logic yields significantly smaller devices, higher clock rates, simple designs, easy fabrication, and integration into MSL microfluidics.

Deep Learning Role in Early Diagnosis of Prostate Cancer

PubMed Central

Reda, Islam; Khalil, Ashraf; Elmogy, Mohammed; Abou El-Fetouh, Ahmed; Shalaby, Ahmed; Abou El-Ghar, Mohamed; Elmaghraby, Adel; Ghazal, Mohammed; El-Baz, Ayman

2018-01-01

The objective of this work is to develop a computer-aided diagnostic system for early diagnosis of prostate cancer. The presented system integrates both clinical biomarkers (prostate-specific antigen) and extracted features from diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging collected at multiple b values. The presented system performs 3 major processing steps. First, prostate delineation using a hybrid approach that combines a level-set model with nonnegative matrix factorization. Second, estimation and normalization of diffusion parameters, which are the apparent diffusion coefficients of the delineated prostate volumes at different b values followed by refinement of those apparent diffusion coefficients using a generalized Gaussian Markov random field model. Then, construction of the cumulative distribution functions of the processed apparent diffusion coefficients at multiple b values. In parallel, a K-nearest neighbor classifier is employed to transform the prostate-specific antigen results into diagnostic probabilities. Finally, those prostate-specific antigen–based probabilities are integrated with the initial diagnostic probabilities obtained using stacked nonnegativity constraint sparse autoencoders that employ apparent diffusion coefficient–cumulative distribution functions for better diagnostic accuracy. Experiments conducted on 18 diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging data sets achieved 94.4% diagnosis accuracy (sensitivity = 88.9% and specificity = 100%), which indicate the promising results of the presented computer-aided diagnostic system. PMID:29804518

Selfishness, warfare, and economics; or integration, cooperation, and biology

PubMed Central

Salvucci, Emiliano

2012-01-01

The acceptance of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection is not complete and it has been pointed out its limitation to explain the complex processes that constitute the transformation of species. It is necessary to discuss the explaining power of the dominant paradigm. It is common that new discoveries bring about contradictions that are intended to be overcome by adjusting results to the dominant reductionist paradigm using all sorts of gradations and combinations that are admitted for each case. In addition to the discussion on the validity of natural selection, modern findings represent a challenge to the interpretation of the observations with the Darwinian view of competition and struggle for life as theoretical basis. New holistic interpretations are emerging related to the Net of Life, in which the interconnection of ecosystems constitutes a dynamic and self-regulating biosphere: viruses are recognized as a macroorganism with a huge collection of genes, most unknown that constitute the major planet's gene pool. They play a fundamental role in evolution since their sequences are capable of integrating into the genomes in an “infective” way and become an essential part of multicellular organisms. They have content with “biological sense” i.e., they appear as part of normal life processes and have a serious role as carrier elements of complex genetic information. Antibiotics are cell signals with main effects on general metabolism and transcription on bacterial cells and communities. The hologenome theory considers an organism and all of its associated symbiotic microbes (parasites, mutualists, synergists, amensalists) as a result of symbiopoiesis. Microbes, helmints, that are normally understood as parasites are cohabitants and they have cohabited with their host and drive the evolution and existence of the partners. Each organism is the result of integration of complex systems. The eukaryotic organism is the result of combination of bacterial, virus, and eukaryotic DNA and it is the result of the interaction of its own genome with the genome of its microbiota, and their metabolism are intertwined (as a “superorganism”) along evolution. The darwinian paradigm had its origin in the free market theories and concepts of Malthus and Spencer. Then, nature was explained on the basis of market theories moving away from an accurate explanation of natural phenomena. It is necessary to acknowledge the limitations of the dominant dogma. These new interpretations about biological processes, molecules, roles of viruses in nature, and microbial interactions are remarkable points to be considered in order to construct a solid theory adjusted to the facts and with less speculations and tortuous semantic traps. PMID:22919645

Selfishness, warfare, and economics; or integration, cooperation, and biology.

PubMed

Salvucci, Emiliano

2012-01-01

The acceptance of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection is not complete and it has been pointed out its limitation to explain the complex processes that constitute the transformation of species. It is necessary to discuss the explaining power of the dominant paradigm. It is common that new discoveries bring about contradictions that are intended to be overcome by adjusting results to the dominant reductionist paradigm using all sorts of gradations and combinations that are admitted for each case. In addition to the discussion on the validity of natural selection, modern findings represent a challenge to the interpretation of the observations with the Darwinian view of competition and struggle for life as theoretical basis. New holistic interpretations are emerging related to the Net of Life, in which the interconnection of ecosystems constitutes a dynamic and self-regulating biosphere: viruses are recognized as a macroorganism with a huge collection of genes, most unknown that constitute the major planet's gene pool. They play a fundamental role in evolution since their sequences are capable of integrating into the genomes in an "infective" way and become an essential part of multicellular organisms. They have content with "biological sense" i.e., they appear as part of normal life processes and have a serious role as carrier elements of complex genetic information. Antibiotics are cell signals with main effects on general metabolism and transcription on bacterial cells and communities. The hologenome theory considers an organism and all of its associated symbiotic microbes (parasites, mutualists, synergists, amensalists) as a result of symbiopoiesis. Microbes, helmints, that are normally understood as parasites are cohabitants and they have cohabited with their host and drive the evolution and existence of the partners. Each organism is the result of integration of complex systems. The eukaryotic organism is the result of combination of bacterial, virus, and eukaryotic DNA and it is the result of the interaction of its own genome with the genome of its microbiota, and their metabolism are intertwined (as a "superorganism") along evolution. The darwinian paradigm had its origin in the free market theories and concepts of Malthus and Spencer. Then, nature was explained on the basis of market theories moving away from an accurate explanation of natural phenomena. It is necessary to acknowledge the limitations of the dominant dogma. These new interpretations about biological processes, molecules, roles of viruses in nature, and microbial interactions are remarkable points to be considered in order to construct a solid theory adjusted to the facts and with less speculations and tortuous semantic traps.

Modifying Science Grammatically and Conceptually

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kelly, B. P.

2017-12-01

Many adjectives—including normal, traditional, incremental, natural, social, system, actionable, and Arctic—are employed to distinguish types of science. How useful are those modifiers? For example, how is "Arctic" research different from other varieties? What conjunctions are useful among these types of research? In other words, do we benefit from "normal science" and "actionable science" or must we choose between them? Clarity about how we talk about science has substantial implications for how we think about science, how we integrate science with other epistemologies, and how science is regarded among policy makers. The importance of actionable science was highlighted during the last International Polar Year, and the Study of Environmental Arctic Change and others have taken up the challenge. As we make our knowledge actionable, however, we must remain clear about the essential nature of what Thomas Kuhn called normal science. Being clear about how science progresses would seem a prerequisite to the elusive challenge of integration with other ways of knowing.

A DOUBLE-PEAKED OUTBURST OF A 0535+26 OBSERVED WITH INTEGRAL, RXTE, AND SUZAKU

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Caballero, I.; Pottschmidt, K.; Marcu, D. M.

2013-02-20

The Be/X-ray binary A 0535+26 showed a normal (type I) outburst in 2009 August. It is the fourth in a series of normal outbursts associated with the periastron, but is unusual because it presented a double-peaked light curve. The two peaks reached a flux of {approx}450 mCrab in the 15-50 keV range. We present results of the timing and spectral analysis of INTEGRAL, RXTE, and Suzaku observations of the outburst. The energy-dependent pulse profiles and their evolution during the outburst are studied. No significant differences with respect to other normal outbursts are observed. The centroid energy of the fundamental cyclotronmore » line shows no significant variation during the outburst. A spectral hardening with increasing luminosity is observed. We conclude that the source is accreting in the sub-critical regime. We discuss possible explanations for the double-peaked outburst.« less

The clinical relevance of neuroplasticity in corticostriatal networks during operant learning

PubMed Central

Andrzejewski, Matthew E.; McKee, Brenda L.; Baldwin, Anne E.; Burns, Lindsay; Hernandez, Pepe

2013-01-01

Dopamine and glutamate serve crucial functions in neural plasticity, learning and memory, and addiction. Contemporary theories contend that these two, widely-distributed neurotransmitter systems play an integrative role in motivational and associative information processing. Combined signaling of these systems, particularly through the dopamine (DA) D1 and glutamate (Glu) N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDAR), triggers critical intracellular signaling cascades that lead to changes in chromatin structure, gene expression, synaptic plasticity, and ultimately behavior. Addictive drugs also induce long-term neuroadaptations at the molecular and genomic levels causing structural changes that alter basic connectivity. Indeed, evidence that drugs of abuse engage D1- and NMDA-mediated neuronal cascades shared with normal reward learning provides one of the most important insights from contemporary studies on the neurobiology of addiction. Such drug-induced neuroadaptations likely contribute to abnormal information processing and behavior, resulting in the poor decision-making, loss of control, and compulsivity that characterize addiction. Such features are also common to many other neuropsychiatric disorders. Behavior problems, construed as difficulties associated with operant learning and behavior, present compelling challenges and unique opportunities for their treatment that require further study. The present review highlights the integrative work of Ann E. Kelley and colleagues, demonstrating a critical role not only for NMDAR, D1 receptors (D1R), and their associated signaling cascades, but also for other Glu receptors and protein synthesis in operant learning throughout a cortico-striatal-limbic network. Recent work has extended the impact of appetitive learning to epigenetic processes. A better understanding of these processes will likely assist in discovering therapeutics to engage neural plasticity-related processes and promote functional behavioral adaptations. PMID:23567518

What work has to be done to implement collaborative care for depression? Process evaluation of a trial utilizing the Normalization Process Model

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background There is a considerable evidence base for 'collaborative care' as a method to improve quality of care for depression, but an acknowledged gap between efficacy and implementation. This study utilises the Normalisation Process Model (NPM) to inform the process of implementation of collaborative care in both a future full-scale trial, and the wider health economy. Methods Application of the NPM to qualitative data collected in both focus groups and one-to-one interviews before and after an exploratory randomised controlled trial of a collaborative model of care for depression. Results Findings are presented as they relate to the four factors of the NPM (interactional workability, relational integration, skill-set workability, and contextual integration) and a number of necessary tasks are identified. Using the model, it was possible to observe that predictions about necessary work to implement collaborative care that could be made from analysis of the pre-trial data relating to the four different factors of the NPM were indeed borne out in the post-trial data. However, additional insights were gained from the post-trial interview participants who, unlike those interviewed before the trial, had direct experience of a novel intervention. The professional freedom enjoyed by more senior mental health workers may work both for and against normalisation of collaborative care as those who wish to adopt new ways of working have the freedom to change their practice but are not obliged to do so. Conclusions The NPM provides a useful structure for both guiding and analysing the process by which an intervention is optimized for testing in a larger scale trial or for subsequent full-scale implementation. PMID:20181163

Genetic influences on functional connectivity associated with feedback processing and prediction error: Phase coupling of theta-band oscillations in twins.

PubMed

Demiral, Şükrü Barış; Golosheykin, Simon; Anokhin, Andrey P

2017-05-01

Detection and evaluation of the mismatch between the intended and actually obtained result of an action (reward prediction error) is an integral component of adaptive self-regulation of behavior. Extensive human and animal research has shown that evaluation of action outcome is supported by a distributed network of brain regions in which the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) plays a central role, and the integration of distant brain regions into a unified feedback-processing network is enabled by long-range phase synchronization of cortical oscillations in the theta band. Neural correlates of feedback processing are associated with individual differences in normal and abnormal behavior, however, little is known about the role of genetic factors in the cerebral mechanisms of feedback processing. Here we examined genetic influences on functional cortical connectivity related to prediction error in young adult twins (age 18, n=399) using event-related EEG phase coherence analysis in a monetary gambling task. To identify prediction error-specific connectivity pattern, we compared responses to loss and gain feedback. Monetary loss produced a significant increase of theta-band synchronization between the frontal midline region and widespread areas of the scalp, particularly parietal areas, whereas gain resulted in increased synchrony primarily within the posterior regions. Genetic analyses showed significant heritability of frontoparietal theta phase synchronization (24 to 46%), suggesting that individual differences in large-scale network dynamics are under substantial genetic control. We conclude that theta-band synchronization of brain oscillations related to negative feedback reflects genetically transmitted differences in the neural mechanisms of feedback processing. To our knowledge, this is the first evidence for genetic influences on task-related functional brain connectivity assessed using direct real-time measures of neuronal synchronization. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.