Monovarietal extra-virgin olive oil classification: a fusion of human sensory attributes and an electronic tongue

Olive oil quality grading is traditionally assessed by human sensory evaluation of positive and negative attributes (olfactory, gustatory, and final olfactorygustatory sensations). However, it is not guaranteed that trained panelist can correctly classify monovarietal extra-virgin olive oils according to olive cultivar. In this work, the potential application of human (sensory panelists) and artificial (electronic tongue) sensory evaluation of olive oils was studied aiming to discriminate eight single-cultivar extra-virgin olive oils. Linear discriminant, partial least square discriminant, and sparse partial least square discriminant analyses were evaluated. The best predictive classification was obtained using linear discriminant analysis with simulated annealing selection algorithm. A low-level data fusion approach (18 electronic tongue signals and nine sensory attributes) enabled 100 % leave-one-out cross-validation correct classification, improving the discrimination capability of the individual use of sensor profiles or sensory attributes (70 and 57 % leave-one-out correct classifications, respectively). So, human sensory evaluation and electronic tongue analysis may be used as complementary tools allowing successful monovarietal olive oil discrimination.

Detection and Grading of Prostate Cancer in Temporal Enhanced Ultrasound using Convolutional Neural Networks

Prostate cancer is the most common non-dermatological cancer amongst men in the developed world. The current definitive diagnosis is core needle biopsy guided by transrectal ultrasound. However, this method suffers from low sensitivity and specificity in detecting cancer. Recently, a new ultrasound based tissue typing approach has been proposed, known as temporal enhanced ultrasound (TeUS). In this approach, a set of temporal ultrasound frames is collected from a stationary tissue location without any intentional mechanical excitation. The main aim of this thesis is to implement a deep learning-based solution for prostate cancer detection and grading using TeUS data. In the proposed solution, convolutional neural networks are trained to extract high-level features from time domain TeUS data in temporally and spatially adjacent frames in nine in vivo prostatectomy cases. This approach avoids information loss due to feature extraction and also improves cancer detection rate. The output likelihoods of two TeUS arrangements are then combined to form our novel decision support system. This deep learning-based approach results in the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of 0.80 and 0.73 for prostate cancer detection and grading, respectively, in leave-one-patient-out cross-validation. Recently, multi-parametric magnetic resonance imaging (mp-MRI) has been utilized to improve detection rate of aggressive prostate cancer. In this thesis, for the first time, we present the fusion of mp-MRI and TeUS for characterization of prostate cancer to compensates the deficiencies of each image modalities and improve cancer detection rate. The results obtained using TeUS are fused with those attained using consolidated mp-MRI maps from multiple MR modalities and cancer delineations on those by multiple clinicians. The proposed fusion approach yields the AUC of 0.86 in prostate cancer detection. The outcomes of this thesis emphasize the viable potential of TeUS as a tissue typing method. Employing this ultrasound-based intervention, which is non-invasive and inexpensive, can be a valuable and practical addition to enhance the current prostate cancer detection.

The Value Of The 2005 International Society Of Urological Pathology (isup) Modified Gleason Grading System As A Predictor Of Biochemical Recurrence After Radical Prostatectomy.

To compare time and risk to biochemical recurrence (BR) after radical prostatectomy of two chronologically different groups of patients using the standard and the modified Gleason system (MGS). Cohort 1 comprised biopsies of 197 patients graded according to the standard Gleason system (SGS) in the period 1997/2004, and cohort 2, 176 biopsies graded according to the modified system in the period 2005/2011. Time to BR was analyzed with the Kaplan-Meier product-limit analysis and prediction of shorter time to recurrence using univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazards model. Patients in cohort 2 reflected time-related changes: striking increase in clinical stage T1c, systematic use of extended biopsies, and lower percentage of total length of cancer in millimeter in all cores. The MGS used in cohort 2 showed fewer biopsies with Gleason score ≤ 6 and more biopsies of the intermediate Gleason score 7. Time to BR using the Kaplan-Meier curves showed statistical significance using the MGS in cohort 2, but not the SGS in cohort 1. Only the MGS predicted shorter time to BR on univariate analysis and on multivariate analysis was an independent predictor. The results favor that the 2005 International Society of Urological Pathology modified system is a refinement of the Gleason grading and valuable for contemporary clinical practice.

Histologic grading and nucleolar organizer regions in oral squamous cell carcinomas

OBJECTIVE: The purposes of this study were to histologically assess different types of oral squamous cell carcinoma and the silver-binding nucleolar organizer region (AgNOR) morphology in neoplastic cells, as well as to quantify the number of AgNORs in each type of carcinoma in order to relate AgNOR count and histologic grading. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Twenty-eight cases of oral squamous cell carcinoma were divided into 4 groups, namely well-differentiated, moderately differentiated, poorly differentiated, and undifferentiated. For NOR study, 3-µm-thick sections were stained with 50% aqueous silver nitrate solution. The predominant microscopic pattern of NORs was determined. Quantitative analyses of NORs were obtained of all cells present on each histological field using a 0.025 mm² eyepiece graticule. Different histological fields were analyzed until the total number of NORs was 120 cells for each tumor. Kruskall-Wallis test was applied to compare the groups of sample data at a significance level of p=0.05. RESULTS: The mean number of AgNORs per nucleus was 3.20 for the well-differentiated group, 5.33 for the moderately differentiated one, 8.27 for the poorly differentiated one, and 10.08 for the undifferentiated one. AgNOR count was significantly different (p<0.05) among all of the studied groups. CONCLUSION: AgNOR staining technique seems to be a useful diagnostic tool since differences in AgNOR numeric values can be identified in the different types of oral squamous cell carcinoma. This technique is easy to handle and inexpensive, thus justifying its large use in histopathology.

Developmental Potential of Bovine Hand-Made Clone Embryos Reconstructed by Aggregation or Fusion with Distinct Cytoplasmic Volumes

Animal cloning has been associated with developmental abnormalities, with the level of heteroplasmy caused by the procedure being one of its potential limiting factors. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of the fusion of hemicytoplasts or aggregation of hemiembryos, varying the final cytoplasmic volume, on development and cell density of embryos produced by hand-made cloning (HMC), parthenogenesis or by in vitro fertilization (IVF). One or two enucleated hemicytoplasts were paired and fused with one skin somatic cell. Activated clone and zona-free parthenote embryos and hemiembryos were in vitro cultured in the well-of-the-well (WOW) system, being allocated to one of six experimental groups, on a per WOW basis: single clone or parthenote hemiembryos (1 x 50%); aggregation of two (2 x 50%), three (3 x 50%), or four (4 x 50%) clone or parthenote hemiembryos; single clone or parthenote embryos (1 x 100%); or aggregation of two clone or parthenote embryos (2 x 100%). Control zona-intact parthenote or IVF embryos were in vitro cultured in four-well dishes. Results indicated that the increase in the number of aggregated structures within each WOW was followed by a linear increase in cleavage, blastocyst rate, and cell density. The increase in cytoplasmic volume, either by fusion or by aggregation, had a positive effect on embryo development, supporting the establishment of pregnancies and the birth of a viable clone calf after transfer to recipients. However, embryo aggregation did not improve development on a hemicytoplast basis, except for the aggregation of two clone embryos.

Near-Barrier Fusion of the (8)B+(58)Ni Proton-Halo System

Fusion cross sections were measured for the exotic proton-halo nucleus (8)B incident on a (58)Ni target at several energies near the Coulomb barrier. This is the first experiment to report on the fusion of a protonhalo nucleus. The resulting excitation function shows a striking enhancement with respect to expectations for normal projectiles. Evidence is presented that the sum of the fusion and breakup yields saturates the total reaction cross section.

Human gait recognition using extraction and fusion of global motion features

This paper proposes a novel computer vision approach that processes video sequences of people walking and then recognises those people by their gait. Human motion carries different information that can be analysed in various ways. The skeleton carries motion information about human joints, and the silhouette carries information about boundary motion of the human body. Moreover, binary and gray-level images contain different information about human movements. This work proposes to recover these different kinds of information to interpret the global motion of the human body based on four different segmented image models, using a fusion model to improve classification. Our proposed method considers the set of the segmented frames of each individual as a distinct class and each frame as an object of this class. The methodology applies background extraction using the Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM), a scale reduction based on the Wavelet Transform (WT) and feature extraction by Principal Component Analysis (PCA). We propose four new schemas for motion information capture: the Silhouette-Gray-Wavelet model (SGW) captures motion based on grey level variations; the Silhouette-Binary-Wavelet model (SBW) captures motion based on binary information; the Silhouette-Edge-Binary model (SEW) captures motion based on edge information and the Silhouette Skeleton Wavelet model (SSW) captures motion based on skeleton movement. The classification rates obtained separately from these four different models are then merged using a new proposed fusion technique. The results suggest excellent performance in terms of recognising people by their gait.

Influence of aggregates grading and water/cement ratio in workability and hardened properties of mortars

Mortar is the material responsible for the distribution of stresses in masonry structures. The knowledge about the fresh and hardened properties of mortar is fundamental to ensure a good performance of masonry walls. Water/cement ratio and aggregates grading are among several variables that influence physical and mechanical behaviour of mortars. An experimental program is presented in order to evaluate the influence of aggregates grading and water/cement ratio in workability and hardened properties of mortars. Eighteen compositions of mortar are prepared using three relations cement:lime:sand, two types of sand and three water/cement ratios. Specimens are analyzed through flow table test, compressive and flexural strength tests. Results indicate that the increase of water/cement ratio reduces the values of hardened properties and increases the workability. Besides, sands grading has no influence in compressive strength. On the other hand, significant differences in deformation capacity of mortars were verified with the variation of the type of sand. Finally, some correlations are presented among hardened properties and the compressive strength. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Evolutionary conservation of the membrane fusion machine

Recent structural studies of proteins mediating membrane fusion reveal intriguing similarities between diverse viral and mammalian systems. Particularly striking is the close similarity between the transmembrane envelope glycoproteins from the retrovirus HTLV-1 and the filovirus Ebola. These similarities suggest similar mechanisms of membrane fusion. The model that fits most currently available data suggests fusion activation in viral systems is driven by a symmetrical conformational change triggered by an activation event such as receptor binding or a pH change. The mammalian vesicle fusion mediated by the SNARE protein complex most likely occurs by a similar mechanism but without symmetry constraints.

Dermaseptins from Phyllomedusa oreades and Phyllomedusa distincta: Liposomes fusion and/or lysis investigated by fluorescence and atomic force microscopy

Three dermaseptins, DS 01, DD K, and DD L, were compared with respect to their structural features and interactions with liposomes. Circular dichroic spectra at alcohols of different chain lengths revealed that DS 01 has the higher helicogenic potential in hydrophobic media. Binding of DS 01, DD K, and DD L to liposomes induced significant blue shifts of the emission spectra of the single tryptophan located at position 3 of all sequences indicating association of the peptides with bilayers. Kinetics evaluation of atomic force microscopy images evidenced the strong fusogenic activity of DS 01 whereas DD K and DD L showed increased lytic activities. (C) 2007 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Inactivation of a c-Myb/estrogen receptor fusion protein in transformed primary cells leads to granulocyte/macrophage differentiation and down regulation of c-kit but not c-myc or cdc2

Primary murine fetal hemopoietic cells were transformed with a fusion protein consisting of the ligand-binding domain of the estrogen receptor and a carboxyl-terminally truncated c-Myb protein (ERMYB), The ERMYB-transformed hemopoietic cells exhibit an immature myeloid phenotype when grown in the presence of beta-estradiol. Upon removal of beta-estradiol, the ERMYB cells display increased adherence, decreased clonogenicity and differentiate to cells exhibiting granulocyte or macrophage morphology, The expression of the c-myc, c-kit, cdc2 and bcl-2 genes, which are putatively regulated by Myb, was investigated in ERMYB cells grown in the presence or absence of beta-estradiol. Neither c-myc nor cdc2 expression was down-regulated after removal of beta-estradiol demonstrating that differentiation is not a consequence of decreased transactivation of these genes by ERMYB. While bcl-2 expression was reduced by 50% in ERMYB cells grown in the absence of beta-estradiol, there was no increase in DNA laddering, suggesting that Myb was not protecting ERMYB cells from apoptosis, In contrast, a substantial (200-fold) decrease in c-kit mRNA level was observed following differentiation of ERMYB cells, and c-kit mRNA could be partially re-induced by the re-addition of beta-estradiol. Furthermore, a reporter construct containing the c-kit promoter was activated when cotransfected with a Myb expression vector, providing further evidence of a role for Myb in the regulation of c-kit.

Early Complication Rates in a Single-Surgeon Series of 2500 Robotic-Assisted Radical Prostatectomies: Report Applying a Standardized Grading System

Background: Perioperative complications following robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) have been previously reported in recent series. Few studies, however, have used standardized systems to classify surgical complications, and that inconsistency has hampered accurate comparisons between different series or surgical approaches. Objective: To assess trends in the incidence and to classify perioperative surgical complications following RARP in 2500 consecutive patients. Design, setting, and participants: We analyzed 2500 patients who underwent RARP for treatment of clinically localized prostate cancer (PCa) from August 2002 to February 2009. Data were prospectively collected in a customized database and retrospectively analyzed. Intervention: All patients underwent RARP performed by a single surgeon. Measurements: The data were collected prospectively in a customized database. Complications were classified using the Clavien grading system. To evaluate trends regarding complications and radiologic anastomotic leaks, we compared eight groups of 300 patients each, categorized according the surgeon`s experience (number of cases). Results and limitations: Our median operative time was 90 min (interquartile range [IQR]: 75-100 min). The median estimated blood loss was 100 ml (IQR: 100-150 ml). Our conversion rate was 0.08%, comprising two procedures converted to standard laparoscopy due to robot malfunction. One hundred and forty complications were observed in 127 patients (5.08%). The following percentages of patients presented graded complications: grade 1, 2.24%; grade 2, 1.8%; grade 3a, 0.08%; grade 3b, 0.48%; grade 4a, 0.40%. There were no cases of multiple organ dysfunction or death (grades 4b and 5). There were significant decreases in the overall complication rates (p = 0.0034) and in the number of anastomotic leaks (p < 0.001) as the surgeon`s experience increased. Conclusions: RARP is a safe option for treatment of clinically localized PCa, presenting low complication rates in experienced hands. Although the robotic system provides the surgeon with enhanced vision and dexterity, proficiency is only accomplished with consistent surgical volume; complication rates demonstrated a tendency to decrease as the surgeon`s experience increased. (C) 2010 European Association of Urology. Published by Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.

Inter-rater reliability study of the modified Oxford Grading Scale and the Peritron manometer

Objective To evaluate the inter-rater reliability of the modified Oxford Grading Scale and the Peritron manometer. Design All participants were evaluated twice, first by one examiner and 30 days later by a second examiner. Measurements of vaginal squeeze pressure were compared with the results from the palpation test. Participants Nineteen women with a mean age of 23.7 years (range 21 to 28 years). Results Inter-rater reliability for vaginal palpation was fair (kappa = 0.33, 95% confidence interval 0.09 to 0.57). Using the Peritron manometer, the difference between examiners was less than 10 cmH(2)O in 11 of the 19 (58%) cases. The palpation test did not differentiate between weak, moderate, good and strong muscle contractions. This study found fair inter-rater reliability for the modified Oxford Grading Scale and moderate inter-rater reliability for the Peritron manometer. Conclusions The inter-rater reliability of vaginal squeeze pressure measurement using the Peritron manometer is acceptable and can be used in re-evaluations performed by different examiners in clinical practice. However, for research purposes, the ideal situation would be for a single examiner to assess and re-assess the subject. Vaginal palpation is important in the clinical assessment of correctness of a pelvic floor muscle contraction, but this study does not support the use of the modified Oxford Grading Scale as a reliable and valid method to measure and differentiate pelvic floor muscle strength. (C) 2010 Chartered Society of Physiotherapy. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cryptic SYT/SXX1 fusion gene in high-grade biphasic synovial sarcoma with unique complex rearrangement and extensive BCL2 overexpression

Synovial sarcomas are high-grade malignant mesenchymal tumors that account for 10% of all soft-tissue sarcomas. Almost 95% of these tumors are characterized by a nonrandom chromosomal abnormality, t(X;18)(p11.2;q11.2), that is observed in both biphasic and monophasic variants. In this article, we present the case of a 57-year-old woman diagnosed with high-grade biphasic synovial sarcoma in which conventional cytogenetic analysis revealed the constant presence of a unique t(18;22)(q12;q13), in addition to trisomy 8. The rearrangement was confirmed by fluorescence in situ hybridization. The use of the whole chromosome painting probes WCPX did not detect any rearrangements involving chromosome X, although reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis demonstrated the conspicuous presence of a SYT/SXX1 fusion gene. Spectral karyotyping (SKY) was also performed and revealed an insertion of material from chromosome 18 into one of the X chromosomes at position Xp11.2. Thus, the karyotype was subsequently interpreted as 47,X,der(X)ins(X;18) (p11.2;q11.2q11.2),der(18)del(18)(q11.2q11.2)t(18;22)(q12;q13),der(22)t(18;22). Real-time PCR analysis of BCL2 expression in the tumor sample showed a 433-fold increase. This rare finding exemplifies that thorough molecular-cytogenetic analyses are required to elucidate complex and/or cryptic tumor-specific translocations. (C) 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.