Multimodal fusion of brain signals for robust prediction of psychosis transition.

The prospective study of youths at clinical high risk (CHR) for psychosis, including neuroimaging, can identify neural signatures predictive of psychosis outcomes using algorithms that integrate complex information. Here, to identify risk and psychosis conversion, we implemented multiple kernel learning (MKL), a multimodal machine learning approach allowing patterns from each modality to inform each other. Baseline multimodal scans (n = 74, 11 converters) included structural, resting-state functional imaging, and diffusion-weighted data. Multimodal MKL outperformed unimodal models (AUC = 0.73 vs. 0.66 in predicting conversion). Moreover, patterns learned by MKL were robust to training set variations, suggesting it can identify cross-modality redundancies and synergies to stabilize the predictive pattern. We identified many predictors consistent with the literature, including frontal cortices, cingulate, thalamus, and striatum. This highlights the advantage of methods that leverage the complex pathophysiology of psychosis.

Fusion of biomedical imaging studies for increased sample size and diversity: a case study of brain MRI.

Data collection, curation, and cleaning constitute a crucial phase in Machine Learning (ML) projects. In biomedical ML, it is often desirable to leverage multiple datasets to increase sample size and diversity, but this poses unique challenges, which arise from heterogeneity in study design, data descriptors, file system organization, and metadata. In this study, we present an approach to the integration of multiple brain MRI datasets with a focus on homogenization of their organization and preprocessing for ML. We use our own fusion example (approximately 84,000 images from 54,000 subjects, 12 studies, and 88 individual scanners) to illustrate and discuss the issues faced by study fusion efforts, and we examine key decisions necessary during dataset homogenization, presenting in detail a database structure flexible enough to accommodate multiple observational MRI datasets. We believe our approach can provide a basis for future similarly-minded biomedical ML projects.

The S1 subunits of SARS-CoV-2 variants differentially trigger the IL-6 signaling pathway in human brain endothelial cells and downstream impact on microglia activation.

Objectives: Cerebrovascular complications are prevalent in COVID-19 infection and post-COVID conditions; therefore, interactions of SARS-CoV-2 with cerebral microvascular cells became an emerging concern. Methods: We examined the inflammatory responses of human brain microvascular endothelial cells (HBMEC), the main structural element of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), following exposure to the S1 subunit of the spike protein of different SARS-CoV-2 variants. Specifically, we used the S1 subunit derived from the D614 variant of SARS-CoV-2, which started widely circulating in March of 2020, and from the Delta variant, which started widely circulating in early 2021. We then further examined the impact of the HBMEC secretome, produced in response to the S1 exposure, on microglial proinflammatory responses. Results: Treatment with S1 derived from the D614 variant and from the Delta variant resulted in differential alterations of the IL-6 signaling pathway. Moreover, the HBMEC secretome obtained after exposure to the S1 subunit of the D614 variant activated STAT3 in microglial cells, indicating that proinflammatory signals from endothelial cells can propagate to other cells of the neurovascular unit. Overall, these results indicate the potential for different SARS-CoV-2 variants to induce unique cellular signatures and warrant individualized treatment strategies. The findings from this study also bring further awareness to proinflammatory responses involving brain microvasculature in COVID-19 and demonstrate how the surrounding microglia react to each unique variant derived response.

Spatial Survival Model for COVID-19 in México.

A spatial survival analysis was performed to identify some of the factors that influence the survival of patients with COVID-19 in the states of Guerrero, México, and Chihuahua. The data that we analyzed correspond to the period from 28 February 2020 to 24 November 2021. A Cox proportional hazards frailty model and a Cox proportional hazards model were fitted. For both models, the estimation of the parameters was carried out using the Bayesian approach. According to the DIC, WAIC, and LPML criteria, the spatial model was better. The analysis showed that the spatial effect influences the survival times of patients with COVID-19. The spatial survival analysis also revealed that age, gender, and the presence of comorbidities, which vary between states, and the development of pneumonia increase the risk of death from COVID-19.

Critical Phase Dualities in 1D Exactly Solvable Quasiperiodic Models.

We propose a solvable class of 1D quasiperiodic tight-binding models encompassing extended, localized, and critical phases, separated by nontrivial mobility edges. Limiting cases include the Aubry-André model and the models of Sriram Ganeshan, J. H. Pixley, and S. Das Sarma [Phys. Rev. Lett. 114, 146601 (2015)PRLTAO0031-900710.1103/PhysRevLett.114.146601] and J. Biddle and S. Das Sarma [Phys. Rev. Lett. 104, 070601 (2010)PRLTAO0031-900710.1103/PhysRevLett.104.070601]. The analytical treatment follows from recognizing these models as a novel type of fixed points of the renormalization group procedure recently proposed in Phys. Rev. B 108, L100201 (2023)10.1103/PhysRevB.108.L100201 for characterizing phases of quasiperiodic structures. Beyond known limits, the proposed class of models extends previously encountered localized-delocalized duality transformations to points within multifractal critical phases. Besides an experimental confirmation of multifractal duality, realizing the proposed class of models in optical lattices allows stabilizing multifractal critical phases and nontrivial mobility edges in an undriven system without the need for the unbounded potentials required by previous proposals.

Development of bioenergy technologies: A scientometric analysis.

Bioenergy has the potential to substitute the current demand for fossil fuels in various applications. Recovering energy from bio-based materials due to environmental considerations has been adopted as a policy objective by governments and international organizations, which led to both vast financial investment and scientific research, especially in the last two decades. So far, various feedstocks and technologies have been scrutinised by the research community, although not all of them are commercially adopted due to sustainability considerations. This study employs scientometric analysis to survey the progress of scientific development in the field of bioenergy from 1966 to 2022, using ten parameters including publication year, type of document, categories, countries, affiliations, document citations, co-authorship, author citation networks, journal citation networks, and keywords. A total of 51,905 scientific documents were collected from the Web of Science, involving more than 96,000 authors from 162 countries. The dispersion of studies followed an ascending distribution with a sharp increase in the second half of the 2000s. The evolution of keywords in terms of burst strength confirmed the advancements of technologies from primary first-generation to advanced fourth-generation bioenergies. Based on the evolution of science in this area, it is concluded that integrated sustainability assessment studies, covering technical, economical, environmental, and social aspects, are needed to bridge the gap between abundant theoretical endeavours and limited commercial use of this energy source.

Effect of Tooth Brushing Cycles and Dentifrice Fluoride Concentration on a Glazed CAD/CAM Ceramic.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the effect of tooth brushing and dentifrice fluoride (F-) concentration on changes in color and translucency (ΔE00 and ΔT00, respectively), surface gloss (GS), surface roughness (Sa), and microstructure of a glazed CAD/CAM ceramic. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ceramic blocks (e.max/CAD) were sectioned into rectangular plates (14 x 12 x 1 mm), and one surface of each sample was glazed. Samples were divided into three groups according to the F- concentration in the dentifrice (0, 1,100, and 5,000 µg/g) and were then subjected to 60,000 tooth brushing cycles. Luminosity and color were measured using a spectrophotometer at baseline and after every 20,000 cycles to obtain their ΔE00 and ΔT00 values. Another set of samples was prepared to measure the GS with a gloss meter and the Sa with a confocal laser microscope. The GS and Sa results were subjected to analysis of variance, Tukey test, and Dunnett test (α = .05). RESULTS: After 60,000 tooth brushing cycles, all of the variables were clinically acceptable, and there were no significant differences in the ΔE00, ΔT00, GS, or Sa among the fluoridated dentifrices. The GS values decreased significantly as the number of tooth brushing cycles increased. CONCLUSION: The ΔE00, ΔT00, GS, and Sa values were all clinically acceptable after the glazed e.max/CAD ceramic had been subjected to 60,000 tooth brushing cycles with dentifrices containing up to 5,000 µg/g of F-.

Improved Pathologic response to chemoradiation in MGMT methylated locally advanced rectal cancer.

Background and Purpose: With the growing interest in total neoadjuvant treatment for locally advanced rectal adenocarcinoma (LARC) there is an urgent unmet need to identify predictive markers of response to long-course neoadjuvant concurrent chemoradiotherapy (LCRT). O6-Methylguanine (O6-MG)-DNA-methyltransferase (MGMT) gene methylation has been associated in some malignancies with response to concurrent chemoradiotherapy. We attempted to find if pathologic response to LCRT was associated with MGMT promoter hypermethylation (MGMTh). Materials and Methods: Patients were identified with LARC, available pre-treatment biopsy specimens, and at least 1 year of follow-up who received LCRT followed by surgical resection within 6 months. Biopsies were tested for MGMTh using a Qiagen pyrosequencing kit (Catalog number 970061). The primary outcome of LCRT responsiveness was based on tumor regression grade (TRG), with grades of 0-1 considered to have excellent response and grades of 2-3 considered to be non-responders. Secondary outcomes included overall survival (OS) and recurrence free survival (RFS). Results: Of 96 patients who met inclusion criteria, 76 had samples which produced reliable assay results. MGMTh corresponded with higher grade and age of the biopsy specimen. The percentage of responders to LCRT was higher amongst the MGMTh patients than the MGMTn patients (60.0% vs 27.5%, p value = 0.0061). MGMTh was not significantly associated with improved OS (2-year OS of 96.0% vs 98.0%, p = 0.8102) but there was a trend for improved RFS (2-year RFS of 87.6% vs 74.2%, p = 0.0903). Conclusion: Significantly greater tumor regression following LCRT was seen in MGMTh LARC. Methylation status may help identify good candidates for close observation without surgery following LCRT.

Effect of build orientation in gloss, roughness and color of 3D-printed resins for provisional indirect restorations.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of build orientation of 3D-printed provisional resins (3DRs) on gloss (Gs), surface roughness (Sa), maximum profile valley depth (Rv), and color difference (∆E00). METHODS: PMMA CAD/CAM blocks (Vita Temp/Vita) were sectioned and served as a Control. Four 3DRs (Cosmos-SLA/Yller, Cosmos-DLP/Yller, PriZma-Bioprov/Makertech, Nanolab/Wilcos) were obtained as discs (15-mm diameter, 2.5-mm thickness) in three orientations (0°, 45°, and 90°) using different 3D printers (Form 2/Formlabs, P30/Straumann, Hunter/Flashforge, W3D/Wilcos, respectively). Samples were then cleaned with isopropyl alcohol prior to post-curing in specific post-curing units. Half of the samples' surface was covered with an adhesive tape and submitted to 10,000 toothbrushing (TB) cycles. The Gs and Sa at the brushed and not brushed surfaces were evaluated with a glossmeter (Novo-curve) and a laser confocal microscope (OLS5000) (n = 10), which also obtained the Rv and 3D representative images of the interface between not brushed and brushed surfaces. Electron microscopy images of the surface of some samples was also performed (n = 3). On another set of samples (n = 5), the coordinates of luminosity and color were obtained with a spectrophotometer (Easyshade V) at baseline and after 16.7 h and 200 h of UVB aging, to calculate the ∆E00 using CIEDE:2000 formula. Additionally, 3DRs photoinitiators were identified using a minispectrometer (USB2000 +) (n = 5). Data of Gs and Sa were submitted to three-way-, Rv to two-way-, and ∆E00 to mixed-ANOVA tests, followed by Tukey's test (α = 0.05). For all variables, results from experimental groups were compared to control using Dunnett's test (α = 0.05). Student's t-test was used to compare the control at different TB cycles (Gs, Sa) or aging periods (∆E00) (α = 0.05). RESULTS: Build orientation of 3DRs did not influence any of the variables studied. The 10,000 TB cycles resulted in a decrease in Gs and increase in Sa for all resins tested. The control showed higher Gs after 10,000 TB cycles than Cosmos-SLA and Nanolab resins. Compared to all 3DRs, Control presented lower ∆E00 after 200 h of UVB aging. All 3DRs presented higher ∆E00 than the clinically acceptable after 200 h of UVB aging. Lucirin® TPO was identified in all 3DRs, although PriZma might also present other photoinitiators and Nanolab might present Irgacure 369. SIGNIFICANCE: Alterations in build orientation are very useful and frequently performed in the day-today of 3D-printing, thus its effect in the optical properties and in the topography of 3D-printed restorations is very relevant. For the evaluated 3D-printed provisional resins, build orientation did not influence any of the variables studied (Gs, Sa, Rv, and ∆E00), even after toothbrushing cycles and UVB aging.

Assessment of virus concentration methods for detecting SARS-CoV-2 IN wastewater.

Wastewater-based epidemiology has been described as a valuable tool for monitoring the spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in a community. However, there is no consensus on the best concentration method to allow reliable detection of SARS-CoV-2 in this matrix, considering different laboratory facilities. This study compares two viral concentration methods, ultracentrifugation (ULT) and skimmed-milk flocculation (SMF), for detecting SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater samples. The analytical sensitivity (limits of detection and quantification [LoD/LoQ]) of both methods was evaluated using a bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV) as a surrogate. Three different approaches were conducted to establish LoD of each method based on the assays on the standard curve (ALoDsc), on the dilution of internal control (ALoDiC), and the processing steps (PLoD). For PLoD, ULT method had the lowest value (1.86 × 103 genome copy/microliter [GC/µL]) when compared to the SMF method (1.26 × 107 GC/µL). The LoQ determination showed a mean value of 1.55 × 105 GC/µL and 3.56 × 108 GC/µL to ULT and SMF, respectively. The detection of SARSCoV-2 in naturally contaminated wastewater revealed 100% (12/12) and 25% (3/12) of detection using ULT and SMF with quantification ranging from 5.2 to 7.2 log10 genome copy/liter (GC/L) and 5.06 to 5.46 log10 GC/L, respectively. The detection success rate of BRSV used as an internal control process was 100% (12/12) for ULT and 67% (8/12) for SMF, with an efficiency recovery rate ranging from 12 to 38% and 0.1 to 5%, respectively. Our data consolidates the importance of assessing the methods used; however, further analysis should be carried out to improve low-cost concentration methodologies, essential for use in low-income and developing countries.

Understanding livelihood changes in the charcoal and baobab value chains during Covid-19 in rural Mozambique: The role of power, risk and civic-based stakeholder conventions.

Non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) to reduce the transmission of Covid-19 had different repercussions for domestic, regional and global value chains, but empirical data are sparse on specific dynamics, particularly on their implications for value-chain stakeholders' local livelihoods. Through research including weekly phone interviews (n = 273 from May to July 2020) with panellists in six Mozambican communities, our research traced firstly how the baobab and charcoal value chains were affected by Covid NPIs, particularly in terms of producers' livelihoods. Secondly, we ask how our findings advance our understanding of the role of civic-based stakeholder conventions and different types of power in building viable local livelihoods. Our conceptual lens is based on a synthesis of value-chain and production-network analysis, convention theory and livelihood resilience focusing on power and risk. We found that Covid trading and transport restrictions considerably re-shaped value chains, albeit in different ways in each value chain. The global baobab value chain continued to provide earnings particularly to women, when other income sources were eliminated, with socially oriented stakeholders altering their operations to accommodate pandemic restrictions. By contrast, producers involved in the domestic, solely market-oriented charcoal value chain saw their selling opportunities and incomes reduced, with hunger rising in charcoal-dependent communities. Our paper argues that local livelihoods were more resilient under Covid NPIs if civic-based conventions and collective, social power were present.

Polymorphisms in TPT1 Pathways in Pediatric Astrocytomas.

Central nervous system tumors, especially astrocytomas, are the solid neoplasms with the highest incidence and mortality rates in childhood. The diagnosis is based on histopathological characteristics, but molecular methods have been increasingly used. Translationally controlled tumor protein (TCTP) protein, encoded by the tumor protein, translationally controlled 1 (TPT1) gene, is a multifunctional protein with an important physiological role in the cell cycle. Expression of this protein has been associated with several neoplasms, including astrocytomas in adults. However, the role of this protein in pediatric astrocytomas is largely unknown. We aim to evaluate in cases of pediatric astrocytomas, the frequency of polymorphisms in the TPT1 gene and other genes associated with its molecular pathways, such as MTOR, MDM2, TP53, and CDKN1A, correlating it with protein expression and clinical variables, in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) samples. These samples were submitted to genotyping and immunohistochemistry analyses. The most revealing results refer to the MDM2 gene, rs117039649 [G/C], in which C polymorphic allele was observed only in the glioblastomas (p = .028). The CDKN1A gene, rs3176334 [T/C] presented a homozygous polymorphic genotype only in high-grade astrocytomas, when infiltrating tumors were compared (p = .039). The immunohistochemical expression of cytoplasmic MDM2 correlated with better survival rates in patients with glioblastoma (p = .018). The presence of polymorphisms in the MDM2 and CDKN1A genes, as well as a specific correlation between MDM2 expression, suggests a likely association with risk in pediatric astrocytomas. This study sought the probable role involved in the TCTP pathway, and associated proteins, in the tumorigenesis of pediatric astrocytomas, and some could have potential impact as prognostic markers in these patients.

Fill in the blank for fashion complementary outfit product Retrieval: VISUM summer school competition.

Every year, the VISion Understanding and Machine intelligence (VISUM) summer school runs a competition where participants can learn and share knowledge about Computer Vision and Machine Learning in a vibrant environment. 2021 VISUM's focused on applying those methodologies in fashion. Recently, there has been an increase of interest within the scientific community in applying computer vision methodologies to the fashion domain. That is highly motivated by fashion being one of the world's largest industries presenting a rapid development in e-commerce mainly since the COVID-19 pandemic. Computer Vision for Fashion enables a wide range of innovations, from personalized recommendations to outfit matching. The competition enabled students to apply the knowledge acquired in the summer school to a real-world problem. The ambition was to foster research and development in fashion outfit complementary product retrieval by leveraging vast visual and textual data with domain knowledge. For this, a new fashion outfit dataset (acquired and curated by FARFETCH) for research and benchmark purposes is introduced. Additionally, a competitive baseline with an original negative sampling process for triplet mining was implemented and served as a starting point for participants. The top 3 performing methods are described in this paper since they constitute the reference state-of-the-art for this particular problem. To our knowledge, this is the first challenge in fashion outfit complementary product retrieval. Moreover, this joint project between academia and industry brings several relevant contributions to disseminating science and technology, promoting economic and social development, and helping to connect early-career researchers to real-world industry challenges.

Physiological, epigenetic, and proteomic responses in Pfaffia glomerata growth in vitro under salt stress and 5-azacytidine.

Plants adjust their complex molecular, biochemical, and metabolic processes to overcome salt stress. Here, we investigated the proteomic and epigenetic alterations involved in the morphophysiological responses of Pfaffia glomerata, a medicinal plant, to salt stress and the demethylating agent 5-azacytidine (5-azaC). Moreover, we investigated how these changes affected the biosynthesis of 20-hydroxyecdysone (20-E), a pharmacologically important specialized metabolite. Plants were cultivated in vitro for 40 days in Murashige and Skoog medium supplemented with NaCl (50 mM), 5-azaC (25 µM), and NaCl + 5-azaC. Compared with the control (medium only), the treatments reduced growth, photosynthetic rates, and photosynthetic pigment content, with increase in sucrose, total amino acids, and proline contents, but a reduction in starch and protein. Comparative proteomic analysis revealed 282 common differentially accumulated proteins involved in 87 metabolic pathways, most of them related to amino acid and carbohydrate metabolism, and specialized metabolism. 5-azaC and NaCl + 5-azaC lowered global DNA methylation levels and 20-E content, suggesting that 20-E biosynthesis may be regulated by epigenetic mechanisms. Moreover, downregulation of a key protein in jasmonate biosynthesis indicates the fundamental role of this hormone in the 20-E biosynthesis. Taken together, our results highlight possible regulatory proteins and epigenetic changes related to salt stress tolerance and 20-E biosynthesis in P. glomerata, paving the way for future studies of the mechanisms involved in this regulation.

Effect of thickness of CAD/CAM materials on light transmission and resin cement polymerization using a blue light-emitting diode light-curing unit.

OBJECTIVE: Evaluate the effect of thickness of high-translucency (HT) CAD/CAM materials on irradiance and beam profile from a blue light-emitting diode light-curing unit (LCU) and on the degree of conversion (DC) and maximum polymerization rate (Rpmax ) of a light-cured resin cement (LCC). MATERIAL AND METHODS: The direct output from the LCU, the light transmission and irradiance ratio (IR) through one conventional composite and nine HT CAD/CAM materials (0.5, 1.0, 1.5, or 2.0-mm thick; n = 5) were measured with a integrating sphere coupled to a spectrometer. The light beam was assessed with a beam profiler camera. The DC at 600 s and the Rpmax of one LCC was determined using a Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (n = 5). Data were analyzed by ANOVA followed by Tukey's tests, and Dunnett's test was also used for irradiance data (α = 0.05). RESULTS: A significant decrease in irradiance through all materials occurred as thickness increased. Thin CAD/CAM materials improved light homogeneity, which decreased with the increase in thickness. The DC of the LCC directly exposed to light was the same as when exposed to 45%, 25%, 15%, or 5% IRs. Rpmax decreased with the decrease in IR. CONCLUSIONS: Although the HT CAD/CAM materials reduced the irradiance from the LCU, minor effects were observed in the LCC's DC. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Despite the light attenuation of blue light through different CAD/CAM materials that were up to 2-mm thick, the degree of conversion of one brand of light-cured resin cement was clinically acceptable when the LCU was used for 30 s.

Symmetry-based regularization in deep breast cancer screening.

Breast cancer is the most common and lethal form of cancer in women. Recent efforts have focused on developing accurate neural network-based computer-aided diagnosis systems for screening to help anticipate this disease. The ultimate goal is to reduce mortality and improve quality of life after treatment. Due to the difficulty in collecting and annotating data in this domain, data scarcity is - and will continue to be - a limiting factor. In this work, we present a unified view of different regularization methods that incorporate domain-known symmetries in the model. Three general strategies were followed: (i) data augmentation, (ii) invariance promotion in the loss function, and (iii) the use of equivariant architectures. Each of these strategies encodes different priors on the functions learned by the model and can be readily introduced in most settings. Empirically we show that the proposed symmetry-based regularization procedures improve generalization to unseen examples. This advantage is verified in different scenarios, datasets and model architectures. We hope that both the principle of symmetry-based regularization and the concrete methods presented can guide development towards more data-efficient methods for breast cancer screening as well as other medical imaging domains.

Doppler echocardiography in a healthy, non-sedated Southern Sea Lion (Otaria flavescens) - a preliminary approach about the feasibility and clinical utility.

Echocardiography is commonly used in veterinary clinical practice for many species but is not as easily applied in non-sedated marine mammals. Additionally, Doppler echocardiography provides further information on hemodynamics, estimation of cardiac output, characterization of flow patterns, and diastolic function. However, its applications in marine mammals have not been as widely explored either. The present report aimed to characterize the left ventricle structure and function of the Southern Sea Lion (Otaria flavescens) through a Doppler echocardiography study. Data were obtained from a healthy animal trained for different veterinary examination routines. This communication constitutes the first report of Doppler echocardiography with stroke volume, and cardiac output measurement in pinnipeds, and the first report of measurement of myocardial performance index in aquatic mammals. This data brought initial information about in vivo structure and function of the heart of the Southern Sea Lion that can be safely and effectively evaluated with the use of transthoracic Doppler echocardiography. Our data have both clinical and research implications for future studies evaluating diseases of the cardiopulmonary system in pinnipeds, and cardiovascular physiology investigation in diving mammals.