Noise Reduction for a Virtual Grid Using a Generative Adversarial Network in Breast X-ray Images.

In this study, we aimed to address the issue of noise amplification after scatter correction when using a virtual grid in breast X-ray images. To achieve this, we suggested an algorithm for estimating noise level and developed a noise reduction algorithm based on generative adversarial networks (GANs). Synthetic scatter in breast X-ray images were collected using Sizgraphy equipment and scatter correction was performed using dedicated software. After scatter correction, we determined the level of noise using noise-level function plots and trained a GAN using 42 noise combinations. Subsequently, we obtained the resulting images and quantitatively evaluated their quality by measuring the contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR), coefficient of variance (COV), and normalized noise-power spectrum (NNPS). The evaluation revealed an improvement in the CNR by approximately 2.80%, an enhancement in the COV by 12.50%, and an overall improvement in the NNPS across all frequency ranges. In conclusion, the application of our GAN-based noise reduction algorithm effectively reduced noise and demonstrated the acquisition of improved-quality breast X-ray images.

App-Based Interventions for Moderate to Severe Depression: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Importance: Mobile mental health applications (apps) for moderate to severe depression are proliferating, likely owing to their capacity to overcome the limitations of conventional psychotherapy, but research on the potential moderators of treatment efficacy is lacking. Objective: To examine the treatment efficacy associated with mobile app interventions for moderate to severe depression and identify the potential moderators associated with better treatment outcomes. Data Sources: PubMed, Embase, and PsycINFO were searched from their inception to January 22, 2023. Study Selection: Only randomized clinical trials evaluating mobile app treatments in adults with moderate to severe depression that published their results in English were included in the analysis. Data Extraction and Synthesis: Three independent researchers extracted and assessed relevant studies, their risk of bias, the characteristics of the population and study design, and the components of the intervention program following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses reporting guidelines. A fixed-effects model was used for data analysis, and exploratory post hoc meta-regression and subgroup analyses were also conducted. Data were analyzed from February 16 to March 25, 2023. Main Outcomes and Measures: The main outcome was changes in depression symptom severity from before to after treatment, measured by standardized depression assessment instruments. Secondary outcomes included study-, intervention-, and patient-level factors associated with app efficacy. Results: Of 2128 studies identified, 13 studies evaluating 16 intervention apps with 1470 participants with moderate to severe depression were included in the analysis. The overall pooled effect size of mobile app interventions vs both active and inactive control groups was 0.50 (95% CI, 0.40 to 0.61). Interventions with in-app notifications were associated with significantly lower treatment outcomes (standardized mean difference [SMD], 0.45; 95% CI, 0.29-0.60) than interventions without (SMD, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.54-0.87; P = .02). In addition, app interventions delivered for less than 8 weeks were associated with a significantly greater effect size (SMD, 0.77; 95% CI, 0.59-0.96) than interventions delivered for 8 weeks or longer (SMD, 0.43; 95% CI, 0.30-0.57; P = .004). Conclusions and Relevance: In this systematic review and meta-analysis, the feasibility and efficacy of mobile app interventions were supported in treating moderate and severe depression, and practical implications were also provided for developing effective app-based interventions in clinical practice.

Decreased gray matter volume in regions associated with affective pain processing in unmedicated individuals with nonsuicidal self-injury.

Nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) has been consistently associated with a reduced aversion to physical pain. Yet, little research has been done to investigate the brain structures related to pain in individuals with NSSI. This study examined gray matter volume patterns of pain processing regions in participants engaging in NSSI (n = 63) and age-, sex-, and handedness-matched healthy controls (n = 63). Voxel-based morphometry was performed to explore gray matter volume in regions of interest (ROIs) and partial correlation analyses were conducted to identify their associations with the frequency, versatility, duration, functions, and pain intensity of self-injury. As a result, significant volume decreases were found in the right anterior insula, bilateral secondary somatosensory cortex (SII), and left inferior frontal gyrus. Moreover, individuals with smaller anterior insula and SII volume showed a higher likelihood of endorsing affect-regulation and sensation-seeking functions of NSSI, as well as engaging in self-injury with a greater perceived intensity of pain. Our results provide the first empirical evidence that individuals with NSSI may exhibit distinct characteristics in brain regions associated with the affective component of pain processing. These neurobiological changes may be associated with their maladaptive response to noxious and painful NSSI experiences.

Effect of Chitosan Coating for Efficient Encapsulation and Improved Stability under Loading Preparation and Storage Conditions of Bacillus Lipopeptides.

This study aims to evaluate the effect of chitosan coating on the formation and properties of Bacillus cyclic lipopeptide (CLP)-loaded liposomes. A nanoencapsulation strategy for a chitosan-coated liposomal system using lecithin phospholipids for the entrapment of antibiotic CLP prepared from Bacillus subtilis KB21 was developed. The produced chitosan-coated CLP liposome had mean size in the range of 118.47-121.67 nm. Transmission electron microscopy showed the spherical-shaped vesicles. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy findings indicated the successful coating of the produced CLP-loaded liposomes by the used chitosan. Liposomes coated with 0.2% and 0.5% chitosan concentration decreased the surface tension by 7.3-12.1%, respectively, and increased the CLP content by 15.1-27.0%, respectively, compared to the uncoating liposomes. The coated concentration of chitosan influenced their CLP loading encapsulation efficiency and release kinetics. The physicochemical results of the dynamic light scattering, CLP capture efficiency and long-term storage capacity of nanocapsules increased with chitosan coating concentration. Furthermore, the chitosan-coated liposomes exhibited a significant enhancement in the stability of CLP loading liposomes. These results may suggest the potential application of chitosan-coated liposomes as a carrier of antibiotics in the development of the functional platform.

Virtual Reality-Based Psychotherapy in Social Anxiety Disorder: fMRI Study Using a Self-Referential Task.

BACKGROUND: Although it has been well demonstrated that the efficacy of virtual reality therapy for social anxiety disorder is comparable to that of traditional cognitive behavioral therapy, little is known about the effect of virtual reality on pathological self-referential processes in individuals with social anxiety disorder. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to determine changes in self-referential processing and their neural mechanisms following virtual reality treatment. METHODS: We recruited participants with and without a primary diagnosis of social anxiety disorder to undergo clinical assessments (Social Phobia Scale and Post-Event Rumination Scale) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans. Participants with social anxiety disorder received virtual reality-based exposure treatment for 6 sessions starting immediately after baseline testing. After the sixth session, participants with social anxiety disorder completed follow-up scans during which they were asked to judge whether a series of words (positive, negative, neutral) was relevant to them. RESULTS: Of 25 individuals with social anxiety disorder who participated in the study, 21 completed the sessions and follow-up; 22 control individuals also participated. There were no significant differences in age (P=.36), sex (P=.71), or handedness (P=.51) between the groups. Whole-brain analysis revealed that participants in the social anxiety disorder group had increased neural responses during positive self-referential processing in the medial temporal and frontal cortexes compared with those in the control group. Participants in the social anxiety disorder group also showed increased left insular activation and decreased right middle frontal gyrus activation during negative self-referential processing. After undergoing virtual reality-based therapy, overall symptoms of the participants with social anxiety disorder were reduced, and these participants exhibited greater activity in a brain regions responsible for self-referential and autobiographical memory processes while viewing positive words during postintervention fMRI scans. Interestingly, the greater the blood oxygen level dependent changes related to positive self-referential processing, the lower the tendency to ruminate on the negative events and the lower the social anxiety following the virtual reality session. Compared with that at baseline, higher activation was also found within broad somatosensory areas in individuals with social anxiety disorder during negative self-referential processing following virtual reality therapy. CONCLUSIONS: These fMRI findings might reflect the enhanced physiological and cognitive processing in individuals with social anxiety disorder in response to self-referential information. They also provide neural evidence of the effect of virtual reality exposure therapy on social anxiety and self-derogation.

Enhanced Photocatalytic Performance Depending on Morphology of Bismuth Vanadate Thin Film Synthesized by Pulsed Laser Deposition.

We have fabricated high quality bismuth vanadate (BiVO4) polycrystalline thin films as photoanodes by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) without a postannealing process. The structure of the grown films is the photocatalytically active phase of scheelite-monoclinic BiVO4 which was obtained by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. The change of surface morphology for the BIVO4 thin films depending on growth temperature during synthesis has been observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and its influence on water splitting performance was investigated. The current density of the BiVO4 film grown on a glass substrate covered with fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) at 230 °C was as high as 3.0 mA/cm2 at 1.23 V versus the potential of the reversible hydrogen electrode (VRHE) under AM 1.5G illumination, which is the highest value so far in previously reported BiVO4 films grown by physical vapor deposition (PVD) methods. We expect that doping of transition metal or decoration of oxygen evolution catalyst (OEC) in our BiVO4 film might further enhance the performance.

Peptoid helicity modulation: precise control of peptoid secondary structures via position-specific placement of chiral monomers.

The degree of peptoid helicity can be effectively modulated by position-specific incorporation of α-chiral aromatic monomers. In this study, we report the structural role of each monomer position collected from 30 comprehensive model peptoid oligomers demonstrating a meticulous manner to fine-tune peptoid secondary structures.

Characterization of crystalline structure and morphology of NiO thin films.

We investigated the relation of sputtering powers with structural and morphological properties of nickel oxide (NiO) thin films. NiO thin films were fabricated by using an rf-reactive sputtering method on Si(100) substrates with a Ni target in a partial pressure of oxygen and argon. The films were deposited by various rf-sputtering powers from 100 to 200 W at room temperature. The phases and crystalline structures of the deposited films were investigated by using grazing incident X-ray diffraction (XRD). The thickness and surface morphology of the films were investigated by using a field emission-scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM). The different sputtering conditions drastically affected the crystallinity and the surface morphology of NiO thin films. A combined analysis of the data obtained from X-ray diffraction and SEM images demonstrates that the preferred orientation of NiO films tends to grow from (111) to (200) direction as increasing the sputtering power, which can be explained by in terms of the surface energy along the indexing plane in an fcc structure. As increasing the rf power, lattice constants decreased from 4.26 to 4.20 angstroms and samples became high-quality crystals. Under our experimental condition, NiO films prepared at 150 W with 20% partial pressure of oxygen and 7 cm distance from the sample to the target show the best quality of the crystal.

Structural and magnetic properties of TiZrNi thin films prepared by magnetron sputtering and thermal annealing.

Distinctive thin layers of TiZr and Ni were deposited by using a magnetron sputtering method and a thermal annealing was applied to discover metallic films of quasicrystals. After a heat treatment in vacuum, 70 nm thick deposited layers were well mixed with nominal compositions of 49.7, 29.3 and 21.0 for Ti, Zr and Ni, respectively, which is very close with the one forming a quasicrystalline phase. The magnetization values were significantly decreased from 0.286 to 0.142 emu/mm3 at 2000 Oe, after annealing, while a shape of magnetic hysteresis was maintained. It is believed that a different magnetic behavior after thermal annealing is due to the homogeneous mixing of atomic elements and possible existence of a metastable phase.