Deep Learning-Based Feature Extraction of Acoustic Emission Signals for Monitoring Wear of Grinding Wheels.

Tool wear monitoring is a critical issue in advanced manufacturing systems. In the search for sensing devices that can provide information about the grinding process, Acoustic Emission (AE) appears to be a promising technology. The present paper presents a novel deep learning-based proposal for grinding wheel wear status monitoring using an AE sensor. The most relevant finding is the possibility of efficient feature extraction form frequency plots using CNNs. Feature extraction from FFT plots requires sound domain-expert knowledge, and thus we present a new approach to automated feature extraction using a pre-trained CNN. Using the features extracted for different industrial grinding conditions, t-SNE and PCA clustering algorithms were tested for wheel wear state identification. Results are compared for different industrial grinding conditions. The initial state of the wheel, resulting from the dressing operation, is clearly identified for all the experiments carried out. This is a very important finding, since dressing strongly affects operation performance. When grinding parameters produce acute wear of the wheel, the algorithms show very good clustering performance using the features extracted by the CNN. Performance of both t-SNE and PCA was very much the same, thus confirming the excellent efficiency of the pre-trained CNN for automated feature extraction from FFT plots.

Ecografía tridimensional en la evaluación de los tumores de ovario / Three-dimensional ultrasound in ovarian tumors

El diagnóstico diferencial de los tumores de ovario sigue siendo unreto importante para el ginecólogo. Un diagnóstico preciso es desuma importancia para una correcta planificación de la conducta aseguir. Dicho diagnóstico diferencial se basa en los datos clínicos dela paciente, la sintomatología que presenta, la exploración física y,fundamentalmente, en la ecografía bidimensional. Recientemente seha incorporado una nueva tecnología: la ecografía tridimensional.Esta técnica permite una mejor evaluación morfológica y un análisismás detallado de la vascularización tumoral. En el presente artículose revisan las indicaciones que puede tener la ecografía tridimensionalen la evaluación de los tumores de ovario

The differential diagnosis of ovarian tumors still represents a clinicalchallenge. A precise diagnosis is essential to select the best managementoption for the patients. Such a diagnosis is based on clinical data,physical examination and image techniques, especially two-dimensionalultrasound. Recently, three-dimensional ultrasound has becomeavailable. This technique allows a more detailed morphologic andvascular analysis of ovarian tumors. In this article current indicationsfor three-dimensional ultrasound in ovarian tumors will be review

Papel de la ecografía tridimensional en obstetricia / Three-dimensional ultrasound: role in obstetrics

La evaluación del estado fetal mediante ecografía se considera fundamentalen la práctica de la Obstetricia. Esta técnica ha venido arevolucionar el estudio del feto debido a su inocuidad y a la grancantidad de información útil que proporciona. En la década de losnoventa se introdujo la ecografía tridimensional y, más recientemente,la ecografía “en cuatro dimensiones”. En el presente artículo serevisan las indicaciones que puede tener la ecografía tridimensionalen la evaluación fetal y placentaria

Fetal evaluation by ultrasound is considered as essential in Obstetrics.This technique has dramatically improved our ability for fetalassessment. During the 90's three-dimensional ultrasound, and morerecently “four-dimensional” ultrasound, became available. In this articlecurrent state-of-the-art on the use of three-dimensional and fourdimensionalultrasound in Obstetrics will be reviewed

Association between bone mineral density and polymorphisms of the VDR, ERalpha, COL1A1 and CTR genes in Spanish postmenopausal women.

Bone mineral density (BMD), the major determinant of osteoporotic fracture risk, has a strong genetic component, and several candidate gene polymorphisms have been implicated in the regulation of this process. In view of the reported associations between the BMD and polymorphisms in the collagen type I alpha 1 gene (COL1A1), vitamin D receptor (VDR), estrogen receptor (ER)alpha and calcitonin receptor (CTR) genes, an association study was performed between VDR, COL1A1, CTR and ER genotypes and lumbar spine, femoral neck and Ward's triangle BMD in postmenopausal Spanish women. We statistically controlled for many confounding factors, such as height, weight, age, years since menopause, use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT), tobacco consumption, use of oral contraceptives, calcium dietary intake or exercise practice. No association between COL1A1 or ER genotypes and BMD was detected. However, we described a statistically significant association between a personal history of fractures and COL1A1 genotype. The ss genotype was found to be over-represented between those women who had a personal history of fractures. The analyses of the VDR polymorphisms showed that FF subjects reached the highest values of BMD at the three measured sites, whereas Ff individuals had an intermediate BMD and ff women had the lowest values. However, the VDR-BsmI gene polymorphism was not found to be associated with adjusted BMD. For the CTR polymorphisms, our study showed that women with the aa genotype had a lower adjusted BMD at the femoral neck. In conclusion, in our postmenopausal Spanish women cohort we found a statistically significant association beteween the VDR and CTR gene polymorphisms and the BMD. However, we did not find any association between the ER and COL1A1 gene and the BMD. The COL1A1 gene was found to be associated with the prevalence of osteoporotic fractures. Of all the studied gene polymorphisms, the FokI VDR gene polymorphism seems to be the strongest BMD genetic determinant of postmenopausal Spanish women.

Hipertiroidismo neonatal en gestante previamente tiroidectomizada por enfermedad de Graves-Basedow / Neonatal hyperthyroidism in a pregnant woman with prior thyroidectomy due to Graves-Basedow disease

Se presenta un caso de hipertiroidismo neonatal en una gestante previamente tiroidectomizada por enfermedad de Graves-Basedow. La paciente estaba asintomática y eutiroidea, con tratamiento sustitutivo. Los valores elevados de autoanticuerpos tiroideos en sangre materna y la taquicardia fetal (> 160 lat/min) después de la semana 22 deben hacer sospechar un posible hipertiroidismo fetal, por el paso transplacentario de autoanticuerpos estimuladores del tiroides. (AU)

Nuevo sistema de puntuación ecográfico para el diagnóstico diferencial de las tumoraciones anexiales / New ultrasonographic score for the differential diagnosis of annexal tumors

Objetivo: Diseñar y evaluar una nueva puntuación ecográfica para predecir malignidad en tumores anexiales. Métodos: En este estudio se usaron los datos ecográficos y Doppler de 705 tumores anexiales (141 malignos y 564 benignos) evaluados entre enero de 1995 y julio 2001 para diseñar una puntuación ecográfica. Los datos analizados fueron edad, volumen tumoral, grosor de pared, presencia de septos gruesos, presencia de papilas gruesas, presencia de áreas sólidas, ecogenicidad, presencia de flujo, localización del flujo, cantidad de flujo y velocimetría que se introdujeron en un análisis de regresión logística multivariante. Resultados: En el análisis de regresión sólo quedaron retenidos los siguientes parámetros: presencia de papilas gruesas (odds ratio [OR] = 1,9), áreas sólidas (OR = 8,6), flujo central (OR = 15,5) y velocimetría de alta velocidad-baja resistencia (OR = 5,3). Mediante curva ROC se determinó que el mejor punto de corte era 6 (sensibilidad del 90 per cent; falsos positivos del 7,6 per cent). Conclusiones: La nueva puntuación propuesta es sencilla, basada en un análisis de regresión logística y ofrece un alto rendimiento diagnóstico. (AU)

Síndrome de Meigs asociado a tumor paraovárico / Meigs' syndrome associated with paraovarian tumor

Se presentan dos casos de síndrome de Meigs caracterizado por la asociación de tumor ovárico (fibroma, tecoma, tumor de células de la granulosa, tumor de Brenner) con ascitis e hidrotórax. Ambos casos mostraron elevación de CA-125. Se destaca la importancia de considerar la naturaleza benigna del proceso cuando la tomografía computarizada muestra ausencia de implantes peritoneales. (AU)

IgE receptor type I-dependent regulation of a Rab3D-associated kinase: a possible link in the calcium-dependent assembly of SNARE complexes.

Following activation through high affinity IgE receptors (FcepsilonRI), mast cells release, within a few minutes, their granule content of inflammatory and allergic mediators. FcepsilonRI-induced degranulation is a SNARE (soluble N-ethylmaleimide attachment protein receptors)-dependent fusion process. It is regulated by Rab3D, a subfamily member of Rab GTPases. Evidence exists showing that Rab3 action is calcium-regulated although the molecular mechanisms remain unclear. To obtain an understanding of Rab3D function we have searched for Rab3D-associated effectors that respond to allergic triggering through FcepsilonRI. Using the RBL-2H3 mast cell line we detected a Ser/Thr kinase activity, termed here Rak3D (from Rab3D-associated kinase), because it was specifically co-immunoprecipitated with anti-Rab3D antibody. Rak3D activity, as measured by its auto- or transphosphorylation, was maximal in resting cells and decreased upon stimulation. The down-regulation of the observed activity was blocked with EGTA, but not with other degranulation inhibitors, suggesting that its activity functions downstream of calcium influx. We found that Rak3D phosphorylates the NH(2)-terminal regulatory domain of the t-SNARE syntaxin 4, but not syntaxin 2 or 3. The phosphorylation of syntaxin 4 decreased its binding to its partner SNAP23. Thus, we propose a novel phosphorylation-dependent mechanism by which Rab3D controls SNARE assembly in a calcium-dependent manner.

Immunologic stimulation of mast cells leads to the reversible exposure of phosphatidylserine in the absence of apoptosis.

BACKGROUND: Loss of phospholipid asymmetry represents one of the hallmarks of apoptosis and results in the surface exposure of phosphatidylserine (PS) which can be indirectly monitored by the calcium-dependent binding of annexin V. METHODS AND RESULTS: Here, we provide evidence that the IgE-dependent stimulation of a rat mast cell line, as well as murine and human nontransformed mast cells, leads to the exposure of PS at the plasma membrane. The appearance of PS was quantitatively related to allergic mediator release. Pharmacological agents that prevent stimulus-secretion coupling blocked PS cell surface exposure and calcium ionophore-induced PS appearance, suggesting that it is a direct consequence of exocytosis rather than early signaling events initiated by the aggregation of the high-affinity IgE receptor (FcepsilonRI). The surface exposure of PS in mast cells was reversible even in the continuous presence of stimulus and was not associated with the appearance of apoptotic nuclei, demonstrating that it was independent of physiological cell death. CONCLUSIONS: In addition to providing a means of monitoring exocytosis at the single cell level, our results indicate that PS externalization in mast cells is not necessarily related to apoptosis but could be an important feature of the degranulation process.