Locality Preservation for Unsupervised Multimodal Change Detection in Remote Sensing Imagery.

Multimodal change detection (MCD) is a topic of increasing interest in remote sensing. Due to different imaging mechanisms, the multimodal images cannot be directly compared to detect the changes. In this article, we explore the topological structure of multimodal images and construct the links between class relationships (same/different) and change labels (changed/unchanged) of pairwise superpixels, which are imaging modality-invariant. With these links, we formulate the MCD problem within a mathematical framework termed the locality-preserving energy model (LPEM), which is used to maintain the local consistency constraints embedded in the links: the structure consistency based on feature similarity and the label consistency based on spatial continuity. Because the foundation of LPEM, i.e., the links, is intuitively explainable and universal, the proposed method is very robust across different MCD situations. Noteworthy, LPEM is built directly on the label of each superpixel, so it is a paradigm that outputs the change map (CM) directly without the need to generate intermediate difference image (DI) as most previous algorithms have done. Experiments on different real datasets demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method. Source code of the proposed method is made available at https://github.com/yulisun/LPEM.

Image Regression With Structure Cycle Consistency for Heterogeneous Change Detection.

Change detection (CD) between heterogeneous images is an increasingly interesting topic in remote sensing. The different imaging mechanisms lead to the failure of homogeneous CD methods on heterogeneous images. To address this challenge, we propose a structure cycle consistency-based image regression method, which consists of two components: the exploration of structure representation and the structure-based regression. We first construct a similarity relationship-based graph to capture the structure information of image; here, a k -selection strategy and an adaptive-weighted distance metric are employed to connect each node with its truly similar neighbors. Then, we conduct the structure-based regression with this adaptively learned graph. More specifically, we transform one image to the domain of the other image via the structure cycle consistency, which yields three types of constraints: forward transformation term, cycle transformation term, and sparse regularization term. Noteworthy, it is not a traditional pixel value-based image regression, but an image structure regression, i.e., it requires the transformed image to have the same structure as the original image. Finally, change extraction can be achieved accurately by directly comparing the transformed and original images. Experiments conducted on different real datasets show the excellent performance of the proposed method. The source code of the proposed method will be made available at https://github.com/yulisun/AGSCC.

Iterative Robust Graph for Unsupervised Change Detection of Heterogeneous Remote Sensing Images.

This work presents a robust graph mapping approach for the unsupervised heterogeneous change detection problem in remote sensing imagery. To address the challenge that heterogeneous images cannot be directly compared due to different imaging mechanisms, we take advantage of the fact that the heterogeneous images share the same structure information for the same ground object, which is imaging modality-invariant. The proposed method first constructs a robust K -nearest neighbor graph to represent the structure of each image, and then compares the graphs within the same image domain by means of graph mapping to calculate the forward and backward difference images, which can avoid the confusion of heterogeneous data. Finally, it detects the changes through a Markovian co-segmentation model that can fuse the forward and backward difference images in the segmentation process, which can be solved by the co-graph cut. Once the changed areas are detected by the Markovian co-segmentation, they will be propagated back into the graph construction process to reduce the influence of changed neighbors. This iterative framework makes the graph more robust and thus improves the final detection performance. Experimental results on different data sets confirm the effectiveness of the proposed method. Source code of the proposed method is made available at https://github.com/yulisun/IRG-McS.

Resistance to bevacizumab in ovarian cancer SKOV3 xenograft due to EphB4 overexpression.

AIM OF STUDY: Bevacizumab (BV) is broadly used to treat a number of cancers; however, BV resistance mechanisms and strategies to overcome this resistance are yet to be determined. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, we used ovarian xenograft model to evaluate the underlying resistance mechanisms of BV in ovarian cancer treatment. RESULTS: Our results showed that EphB4 was overexpressed in BV-resistant xenograft models instead of other common receptor tyrosine kinases. In addition, when coadministrated with EphB4 blocker NVP-BHG712, the antitumor effect of BV was significantly enhanced in the resistant model, further confirmed the role of EphB4 in BV-resistant ovarian cancer. These results indicate that NVP-BHG712 reverses EphB4 overexpression-mediated resistance to BV. CONCLUSION: These findings represent a guide for the design of future medication strategy and may be useful in guiding the use of BV in combination with NVP-BHG712 in patients with resistance or intolerance ovarian cancer.

Suppressive efficiency of RASSF1A in endometrial carcinoma via inhabiting estrogen receptor alpha expression and ERK pathway activation.

INTRODUCTION: Known as a tumor suppressor, the Ras association domain family 1 isoform A (RASSF1A) is implicated in many human cancers, such as endometrial carcinoma. There is little known about the tumor inhibitive effects of RASSF1A on endometrial carcinoma. The present study was designed to investigate the role of RASSF1A in HEC-1-A cells and to explore its potential mechanisms. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, overexpression of RASSF1A was established by transfection the recombinant adenoviral RASSF1A in HEC-1-A cells. Cells viability was assessed by MTT assay and the apoptosis was analyzed using flow cytometry. Cell migration and invasion were measured in Transwell assay. The levels of ERα and PELP1 protein and extracellular regulated protein kinase (ERK) pathway activation were detected by Western blot. RESULTS: RASSF1A over-expression could significantly inhibit the proliferation, migration and invasion of the HEC-1-A cells in transfection with RASSF1A group compared to that in transfection with control group, also induced apoptosis and suppressed the tumor growth after injection in nude mice. Moreover, overexpression of RASSF1A could inhibit the ERK signal pathway activation and decrease the ERα and PELP1 expression. CONCLUSION: Tumor suppressive efficiency of RASSF1A is exerted through the regulation of ERK pathway activation, ERα and PELP1 expression.

Acquired uterine arteriovenous fistula due to a previous cornual pregnancy with placenta accreta: A case report.

The present report describes a case of an acquired uterine arteriovenous fistula, which, following surgery and postoperative pathological analysis, was confirmed as a previous cornual pregnancy with placenta accreta. The patient was a 37-year-old woman (gravida 3; para 2) who had previously delivered two children via cesarean section (in 2004 and 2010, respectively) and also had a spontaneous abortion (2008). She had experienced continuous menstrual bleeding for ~20 days and had a history of prolonged (~30 days) vaginal bleeding 13 months earlier. Other pregnancy-related diseases were excluded following a negative serum human chorionic gonadotropin test, and the diagnosis was confirmed by Doppler ultrasonography. An emergency hysterectomy was subsequently performed due to the large amount of vaginal bleeding. Postoperative pathology confirmed the uterine arteriovenous malformation and demonstrated that the cause was a previous cornual pregnancy with placental implantation. The patient successfully recovered following the surgery.

5-Aminolevulinic acid photodynamic therapy in human cervical cancer via the activation of microRNA-143 and suppression of the Bcl-2/Bax signaling pathway.

5-Aminolevulinic acid photodynamic therapy (ALA­PDT) is a method using a photosensitizer and light radiation for disease treatment, and is currently used for the treatment of skin cancers, precancerous lesions and viral warts. The present study aimed to investigate the effect of ALA­PDT on human cervical cancer through the regulation of microRNA­143 (miR­143) and the Bcl-2/Bax signaling pathway. The results demonstrated that ALA­PDT reduced proliferation, increased cytotoxicity and induced apoptosis in HeLa human cervical carcinoma cells. Reverse transcription­quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis demonstrated that the expression levels of miR­143 were increased following ALA­PDT treatment. Western blotting indicated that the expression levels of Bcl­2 and Bax were significantly reduced and increased, respectively, by ALA­PDT treatment. In addition, upregulation of miR­143 expression reduced Bcl­2 expression and increased Bax expression in HeLa cells. However, downregulation of miR­143 expression inhibited the effect of ALA­PDT on Bcl-2/Bax protein expression. In conclusion, the current study demonstrated that ALA­PDT affected human cervical cancer via the activation of miR-143 and the suppression of the Bcl-2/Bax signaling pathway.

Angelica sinensis reduced Aß-induced memory impairment in rats.

BACKGROUND: Studies have shown that Angelica sinensis (JiLin AoDong Medicine Industry Groups Co., Ltd., Jilin, China) root (AS) ameliorates various diseases, although its effects in Alzheimer's disease (AD) have not been elucidated. PURPOSE: The present study examined the effects of AS in a rat model of AD. METHODS: Positional Aß injections were administered to rats. The behavioral effects of AS administration were examined using the Morris water maze, and the molecular effects on gene and protein expression, and apoptosis, were determined. RESULTS: AS reversed the social behavioral impairments observed in this rat model of Aß-induced memory impairment. Western blot analysis also revealed lower hippocampal levels of Aß and ß-site amyloid precursor protein-cleaving enzyme. Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferased UTP nick end labeling indicated that AS significantly inhibited apoptosis via effects on nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) signaling. Real-time PCR, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and immunohistochemical staining indicated that AS effectively inhibited inflammation and upregulated expression of glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in the hippocampus of this rat AD model. DISCUSSION: AS effectively rescued the symptoms of AD in a rat model by inhibiting inflammation, apoptosis, and NF-κB signaling pathway. CONCLUSION: These findings suggested that AS could provide a potential drug for the treatment of AD.

Extracellular ATP: a potential regulator of plant cell death.

Adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) has been regarded as an intracellular energy currency molecule for many years. In recent decades, it has been determined that ATP is released into the extracellular milieu by animal, plant and microbial cells. In animal cells, this extracellular ATP (eATP) functions as a signalling compound to mediate many cellular processes through its interaction with membrane-associated receptor proteins. It has also been reported that eATP is a signalling molecule required for the regulation of plant growth, development and responses to environmental stimuli. Recently, the first plant receptor for eATP was identified in Arabidopsis thaliana. Interestingly, some studies have shown that eATP is of particular importance in the control of plant cell death. In this review article, we summarize and discuss the theoretical and experimental advances that have been made with regard to the roles and mechanisms of eATP in plant cell death. We also make an attempt to address some speculative aspects to help develop and expand future research in this area.

Expression and signal regulation of the alternative oxidase genes under abiotic stresses.

Plants in their natural environment frequently face various abiotic stresses, such as drought, high salinity, and chilling. Plant mitochondria contain an alternative oxidase (AOX), which is encoded by a small family of nuclear genes. AOX genes have been shown to be highly responsive to abiotic stresses. Using transgenic plants with varying levels of AOX expression, it has been confirmed that AOX genes are important for abiotic stress tolerance. Although the roles of AOX under abiotic stresses have been extensively studied and there are several excellent reviews on this topic, the differential expression patterns of the AOX gene family members and the signal regulation of AOX gene(s) under abiotic stresses have not been extensively summarized. Here, we review and discuss the current progress of these two important issues.