Society of Toxicologic Pathology Digital Pathology and Image Analysis Special Interest Group Article*: Opinion on the Application of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to Digital Toxicologic Pathology.

Toxicologic pathology is transitioning from analog to digital methods. This transition seems inevitable due to a host of ongoing social and medical technological forces. Of these, artificial intelligence (AI) and in particular machine learning (ML) are globally disruptive, rapidly growing sectors of technology whose impact on the long-established field of histopathology is quickly being realized. The development of increasing numbers of algorithms, peering ever deeper into the histopathological space, has demonstrated to the scientific community that AI pathology platforms are now poised to truly impact the future of precision and personalized medicine. However, as with all great technological advances, there are implementation and adoption challenges. This review aims to define common and relevant AI and ML terminology, describe data generation and interpretation, outline current and potential future business cases, discuss validation and regulatory hurdles, and most importantly, propose how overcoming the challenges of this burgeoning technology may shape toxicologic pathology for years to come, enabling pathologists to contribute even more effectively to answering scientific questions and solving global health issues. [Box: see text].

A panel of urinary biomarkers to monitor reversibility of renal injury and a serum marker with improved potential to assess renal function.

The Predictive Safety Testing Consortium's first regulatory submission to qualify kidney safety biomarkers revealed two deficiencies. To address the need for biomarkers that monitor recovery from agent-induced renal damage, we scored changes in the levels of urinary biomarkers in rats during recovery from renal injury induced by exposure to carbapenem A or gentamicin. All biomarkers responded to histologic tubular toxicities to varied degrees and with different kinetics. After a recovery period, all biomarkers returned to levels approaching those observed in uninjured animals. We next addressed the need for a serum biomarker that reflects general kidney function regardless of the exact site of renal injury. Our assay for serum cystatin C is more sensitive and specific than serum creatinine (SCr) or blood urea nitrogen (BUN) in monitoring generalized renal function after exposure of rats to eight nephrotoxicants and two hepatotoxicants. This sensitive serum biomarker will enable testing of renal function in animal studies that do not involve urine collection.

Inter- and intraexaminer reliability of the Blair protractoview method: examination of a chiropractic radiographic technique.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the inter- and intraexaminer reliability of the Blair protractoview radiographic method. METHODS: This retrospective study evaluated 25 participants attending a Blair technique seminar. Participants included chiropractic students and doctors of chiropractic with more than 11 years of experience. Participants evaluated 100 Blair protractoview radiographs (oblique nasium). A κ analysis was used to determine the inter- and intraexaminer reliability because of the nominal categorical value of the variables. For the interexaminer reliability, a κ score was given for each examiner combination. The scores were then averaged to give the total interexaminer reliability. RESULTS: The overall interexaminer reliability showed substantial reliability at 0.62. Within-group κ values were as follows: no certification = 0.61, proficiency = 0.66, primary level = 0.61, and advanced level = 0.74. The overall intraexaminer reliability showed outstanding reliability at 0.81. Within-group κ values were as follows: no certification = 0.76, proficiency = 0.84, primary level = 0.82, and advanced level = 0.92. All κ values had a P value < .001. CONCLUSION: The participants in this study showed good inter- and intraexaminer reliability using the Blair protractoview radiographic method.

US3 of herpes simplex virus type 1 encodes a promiscuous protein kinase that phosphorylates and alters localization of lamin A/C in infected cells.

The herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) US3 gene encodes a serine/threonine kinase that, when inactivated, causes capsids to aggregate aberrantly between the inner and outer nuclear membranes (INM and ONM, respectively) within evaginations/extensions of the perinuclear space. In both Hep2 cells and an engineered cell line derived from Hep2 cells expressing lamin A/C fused to enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP-lamin A/C), lamin A/C localized mostly in a reticular pattern with small regions of the INM devoid of eGFP-lamin A/C when they were either mock infected or infected with wild-type HSV-1(F). Cells infected with HSV-1(F) also contained some larger diffuse regions lacking lamin A/C. Proteins UL31 and UL34, markers of potential envelopment sites at the INM and perinuclear virions, localized within the regions devoid of lamin A/C and also in regions containing lamin A/C. Similar to previous observations with Vero cells (S. L. Bjerke and R. J. Roller, Virology 347:261-276, 2006), the proteins UL34 and UL31 localized exclusively in very discrete regions of the nuclear lamina lacking lamin A/C in the absence of US3 kinase activity. To determine how US3 alters lamin A/C distribution, US3 was purified and shown to phosphorylate lamin A/C at multiple sites in vitro, despite the presence of only one putative US3 kinase consensus site in the lamin A/C sequence. US3 kinase activity was also sufficient to invoke partial solubilization of lamin A/C from permeabilized Hep2 cell nuclei in an ATP-dependent manner. Two-dimensional electrophoretic analyses of lamin A/C revealed that lamin A/C is phosphorylated in HSV-infected cells, and the full spectrum of phosphorylation requires US3 kinase activity. These data suggest that US3 kinase activity regulates HSV-1 capsid nuclear egress at least in part by phosphorylation of lamin A/C.