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The skin is the largest organ of the human body, and many visceral diseases will be directly reflected on the skin, so it is of great clinical significance to accurately segment the skin lesion images. To address the characteristics of complex color, blurred boundaries, and uneven scale information, a skin lesion image segmentation method based on dense atrous spatial pyramid pooling (DenseASPP) and attention mechanism is proposed. The method is based on the U-shaped network (U-Net). Firstly, a new encoder is redesigned to replace the ordinary convolutional stacking with a large number of residual connections, which can effectively retain key features even after expanding the network depth. Secondly, channel attention is fused with spatial attention, and residual connections are added so that the network can adaptively learn channel and spatial features of images. Finally, the DenseASPP module is introduced and redesigned to expand the perceptual field size and obtain multi-scale feature information. The algorithm proposed in this paper has obtained satisfactory results in the official public dataset of the International Skin Imaging Collaboration (ISIC 2016). The mean Intersection over Union (mIOU), sensitivity (SE), precision (PC), accuracy (ACC), and Dice coefficient (Dice) are 0.901 8, 0.945 9, 0.948 7, 0.968 1, 0.947 3, respectively. The experimental results demonstrate that the method in this paper can improve the segmentation effect of skin lesion images, and is expected to provide an auxiliary diagnosis for professional dermatologists.
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Humans , Skin/diagnostic imaging , Algorithms , Clinical Relevance , Learning , Image Processing, Computer-AssistedABSTRACT
Objective@#To establish a critical segmental bone defect model in a rabbit ulna.@*Methods@#Twenty male New Zealand white rabbits were randomly assigned into 5 groups according to the digital table, and then 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18mm segmental defects(contained periosteum) were created in the middle part of ulna on both sides, respectively.At 6 and 12 weeks after surgery, the repair of segmental bone defects was evaluated by naked eyes, X-ray and histological examination.@*Results@#At 12 weeks after surgery, all of the segmental defects with the length of 14 and 15mm were completely repaired.But none of the defects with the length of 16, 17 and 18mm was repaired.@*Conclusion@#The length of critical segmental bone defect in rabbit ulna was 16 mm.
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Objective To establish a critical segmental bone defect model in a rabbit ulna.Methods Twenty male New Zealand white rabbits were randomly assigned into 5 groups according to the digital table,and then 14,15,16,17 and 18mm segmental defects (contained periosteum) were created in the middle part of ulna on both sides,respectively.At 6 and 12 weeks after surgery,the repair of segmental bone defects was evaluated by na ked eyes,X-ray and histological examination.Results At 12 weeks after surgery,all of the segmental defects with the length of 14 and 15mm were completely repaired.But none of the defects with the length of 16,17 and 18mm was repaired.Conclusion The length of critical segmental bone defect in rabbit ulna was 16 mm.
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Astrocytes are closely associated with Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, their precise roles in AD pathogenesis remain controversial. One of the reasons behind the different results reported by different groups might be that astrocytes were targeted at different stages of disease progression. In this study, by crossing hAPP (human amyloid precursor protein)-J20 mice with a line of GFAP-TK mice, we found that astrocytes were activated specifically at an early stage of AD before the occurrence of amyloid plaques, while microglia were not affected by this crossing. Activation of astrocytes at the age of 3-5 months did not affect the proteolytic processing of hAPP and amyloid plaque loads in the brains of hAPP-J20 mice. Our data suggest that early activation of astrocytes does not affect the deposition of amyloid β in an animal model of AD.
Subject(s)
Animals , Humans , Mice , Aldehyde Dehydrogenase , Metabolism , Alzheimer Disease , Genetics , Metabolism , Pathology , Amyloid beta-Peptides , Metabolism , Amyloid beta-Protein Precursor , Genetics , Metabolism , Astrocytes , Metabolism , Brain , Pathology , Calcium-Binding Proteins , Metabolism , Cell Proliferation , Disease Models, Animal , Gene Expression Regulation , Genetics , Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein , Glutamine , Metabolism , Green Fluorescent Proteins , Genetics , Metabolism , Ki-67 Antigen , Metabolism , Mice, Transgenic , Microfilament Proteins , Metabolism , Mutation , Genetics , Nerve Tissue Proteins , MetabolismABSTRACT
In this paper, a new probe is proposed for the dielectric measurement of anisotropic tissue in radio frequency band, which could accomplish the dielectric measurement in perpendicular directions by one operation. The simulative studies are performed in the frequency range from 1-1 000 MHz in order to investigate the influence of probe dimension on the energy coupling and sensitivity of measurement. The suitable probe is designed and validated for the actual measurement in this frequency band. According to the simulation results, the energy coupling of the probe could be kept below -12 dB in the frequency range from 200-400 MHz with high sensitivity of measurement for the dielectric properties of anisotropic tissue. That indicates the new type of probe has the potential to achieve the dielectric measurement of anisotropic tissue in radio frequency band and could avoid the measurement error by multi-operations in the conventional method. This new type of probe could provide a new method for the dielectric measurement of anisotropic tissue in radio frequency band.
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Objective To investigate the relationship between preoperative prognostic nutritional index(PNI) and prognosis in elderly patients with gastric cancer.Methods The clinical data of 62 patients over age 65 with gastric cancer who underwent radical gastrectomy for gastric cancer were retrospectively analyzed.PNI values were calculated and the relationship between PNI and untoward reactions and prognosis were discussed.Results PNI value is closely related with patient age(t=5.576,P<0.001),tumor size(x2=4.846,P=0.033),lymphatic metastasis(x2=13.742,P<0.001),preoperative CEA level(t=5.226,P<0.001).Among the 62 patients,12 cases with high-PNI had recurrence and 5 patients died during the follow-up period, while 11 case in low-PNI had a recurrence and 7 patients died.The recurrent rate(x2=4.055,P=0.044) and mortality rate(x2=4.630,P=0.043) of the high-PNI group were significantly lower than the low-PNI group.Conclusion PNI is a simple and useful marker for predicting the long-term outcomes of elderly gastric cancer patients, which should be included in the routine assessment of gastric cancer patients.
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Objective To investigate the genetic stability, immunogenicity and protective efficacy of AdC68-rab. gp, a novel rabies vaccine based on the replication-defective chimpanzee adenoviral vector AdC68-ept. Methods The recombinant adenovirus AdC68-rab. gp expressing the glycoprotein of rabies vi-rus ERA strain was constructed. Genomes of the AdC68-rab. gp of different generations were extracted and analyzed. HEK293 and Huh7 cells were infected with the AdC68-rab. gp of different generations. ICR mice were immunized with the AdC68-rab. gp and blood samples were collected 4 weeks or 6 months after immuni-zation. Rapid fluorescent focus inhibition test ( RFFIT) was performed to detect the neutralizing antibody against rabies virus in mice serum samples. ICR mice were challenged with lethal dose of rabies virus 4 weeks after the immunization with AdC68-rab. gp to evaluate the protective efficacy of AdC68-rab. gp. Re-sults The genome of AdC68-rab. gp was stable after 15 passages, which was identical to that of the 5th and 1st generations. High levels of neutralizing antibody against rabies virus in serum samples were detected in mice immunized with AdC68-rab. gp and maintained for a long period of time. Immunization mice with one dose of AdC68-rab. gp could protect all mice from the lethal dose challenge of rabies virus. Conclusion The novel AdC68-rab. gp was characterized by good genetic stability and ideal protective effi-cacy. The adenoviral vector based vaccine could be further developed as a potential candidate for the substi-tute of current rabies vaccine.
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Objective To investigate the changes of follicular helper T cells (Tfh cells) and Tfh cells associated molecules in the peripheral blood (PB) of patients with malignant lymphoid diseases (MLD) dynamically, and explore their roles on pathogenesis of the diseases. Methods Fifty-five patients with MLD were enrolled in this study,including 9 patients with acute lymphocyte leukemia (ALL), 30 patients with non-Hodgkin lymophoma (NHL) and 16 patients with multiple myeloma (MM), and 10 healthy controls (NC) of similar age were also enrolled. The percentage of CD4+CXCR5+cells (Tfh cells) and expression of ICOS+, PD1+among the T cells were detected by flow cytometry (FCM), while the levels of interleukin 21 (IL-21) in plasma were detected by ELISA tests. Results The percentage of Tfh cells and expression of ICOS and/or PD-1 in PB of all untreated patients were significantly higher than those of NC (all P 0.05), and apparently lower than those who achieved PR (P 0.05), and much higher than NC (P< 0.01). The concentration of IL-21 in patients were much higher than that in NC [(326.56±32.44) pg/ml] (P<0.01), and MM group
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Relapse/refractory multiple myeloma must be the main tough for the current clinical therapy,thus at the 56th American Society of Hematology annual meeting the latest treatment studies for the disease in 2014 were described in detail,including the joint application of drugs,the new drug clinical research,the safety and efficacy that could be inspiring.This chapter shows the mechanism of these new drug action,as well as the methods and side effects.
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BACKGROUND:Tumor necrosis factor-α-induced protein-8 like-2 (TIPE2), an anti-inflammatory protein, through the T cel receptor (TCR) and TOLL-like receptor signaling pathway, implements negative regulation of adaptive immunity and innate immunity, and thus effectively maintains the stable internal environment of the body. OBJECTIVE:To construct a recombinant adenovirus that can overexpress rat TIPE2 gene. METHODS:TIPE2 cDNA target gene was amplified from rat’s lymphocytes using RT-PCR, cloned into shuttle plasmid pShuttle-clontech, and then subcloned into artificial adenovirus vector AdC68. Hereafter, HEK 293 cel s were transfected to generate a recombinant adenovirus. HEK293A cel s were infected using this recombinant adenovirus, and then TIPE2 gene level was tested by western blot method. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Based on results of PCR, digestion identification and sequencing, the obtained cDNA was the coding sequence region of TIPE2. Western blot findings showed that the recombinant adenovirus could overexpress TIPE2 gene. These findings indicate that the recombinant adenovirus is constructed successful y and can express TIPE2 gene stably.
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Objective To obtain the short peptides mimicking antigenic epitopes of Trichinella spiralis ( T/^ ), and explore their cross protective immunity against Schistosoma japonicum ( S^j. ) in mice. Methods IgG antibodies were purified from sera of mice infected with T/^ . The purified IgG was used to immunoscreen a phage random peptide library of 7 amino\|acid residues displayed as a fusion to protein of filamentous phage. Positive clones were obtained by affinity selection, the reactivity of each clone binding to specific IgG was detected by ELISA. Kunming mice were immunized subcutaneously three times with mixed phage clones. The mice were sacrificed 45 days after challenge. The worms and the liver eggs were counted. Results After three rounds of panning, the relevant phages had been enriched approximately 150 times in production as compared to those from the first round. Of 24 phage clones randomly selected from the third round biopanning, 21 clones were shown to actually bind to the specific IgG. As compared with the control group, the worm and the liver egg reduction rates in vaccination group were 42^8% and 66^3% ( P