Impact of intelligent virtual and AI-based automated collimation functionalities on the efficiency of radiographic acquisitions.

INTRODUCTION: Intelligent virtual and AI-based collimation functionalities have the potential to enable an efficient workflow for radiographers, but the specific impact on clinical routines is still unknown. This study analyzes primarily the influence of intelligent collimation functionalities on the examination time and the number of needed interactions with the radiography system. METHODS: An observational study was conducted on the use of three camera-based intelligent features at five clinical sites in Europe and the USA: AI-based auto thorax collimation (ATC), smart virtual ortho (SVO) collimation for stitched long-leg and full-spine examinations, and virtual collimation (VC) at the radiography system workstation. Two people conducted semi-structured observations during routine examinations to collect data with the functionalities either activated or deactivated. RESULTS: Median exam duration was 31 vs. 45 s (p < 0.0001) for 95 thorax examinations with ATC and 94 without ATC. For stitched orthopedic examinations, 34 were performed with SVO and 40 without SVO, and the median exam duration was 62 vs. 82 s (p < 0.0001). The median time for setting the ortho range - i.e., the time between setting the upper and the lower limits of the collimation field - was 7 vs. 16 s for 39 examinations with SVO and 43 without SVO (p < 0.0001). In 109 thorax examinations with ATC and 112 without ATC, the median number of system interactions was 1 vs. 2 (p < 0.0001). VC was used to collimate in 2.4% and to check the collimation field in 68.5% of 292 observed chest and other examinations. CONCLUSION: ATC and SVO enable the radiographer to save time during chest or stitched examinations. Additionally, ATC reduces machine interactions during chest examinations. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: System and artificial intelligence can support the radiographer during the image acquisition by providing a more efficient workflow.

ToxDB: pathway-level interpretation of drug-treatment data.

MOTIVATION: Extensive drug treatment gene expression data have been generated in order to identify biomarkers that are predictive for toxicity or to classify compounds. However, such patterns are often highly variable across compounds and lack robustness. We and others have previously shown that supervised expression patterns based on pathway concepts rather than unsupervised patterns are more robust and can be used to assess toxicity for entire classes of drugs more reliably. RESULTS: We have developed a database, ToxDB, for the analysis of the functional consequences of drug treatment at the pathway level. We have collected 2694 pathway concepts and computed numerical response scores of these pathways for 437 drugs and chemicals and 7464 different experimental conditions. ToxDB provides functionalities for exploring these pathway responses by offering tools for visualization and differential analysis allowing for comparisons of different treatment parameters and for linking this data with toxicity annotation and chemical information.Database URL:http://toxdb.molgen.mpg.de.

Diet-induced gene expression of isolated pancreatic islets from a polygenic mouse model of the metabolic syndrome.

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: Numerous new genes have recently been identified in genome-wide association studies for type 2 diabetes. Most are highly expressed in beta cells and presumably play important roles in their function. However, these genes account for only a small proportion of total risk and there are likely to be additional candidate genes not detected by current methodology. We therefore investigated islets from the polygenic New Zealand mouse (NZL) model of diet-induced beta cell dysfunction to identify novel genes and pathways that may play a role in the pathogenesis of diabetes. METHODS: NZL mice were fed a diabetogenic high-fat diet (HF) or a diabetes-protective carbohydrate-free HF diet (CHF). Pancreatic islets were isolated by laser capture microdissection (LCM) and subjected to genome-wide transcriptome analyses. RESULTS: In the prediabetic state, 2,109 islet transcripts were differentially regulated (>1.5-fold) between HF and CHF diets. Of the genes identified, 39 (e.g. Cacna1d, Chd2, Clip2, Igf2bp2, Dach1, Tspan8) correlated with data from the Diabetes Genetics Initiative and Wellcome Trust Case Control Consortium genome-wide scans for type 2 diabetes, thus validating our approach. HF diet induced early changes in gene expression associated with increased cell-cycle progression, proliferation and differentiation of islet cells, and oxidative stress (e.g. Cdkn1b, Tmem27, Pax6, Cat, Prdx4 and Txnip). In addition, pathway analysis identified oxidative phosphorylation as the predominant gene-set that was significantly upregulated in response to the diabetogenic HF diet. CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION: We demonstrated that LCM of pancreatic islet cells in combination with transcriptional profiling can be successfully used to identify novel candidate genes for diabetes. Our data strongly implicate glucose-induced oxidative stress in disease progression.

[Experimental conditions for the reproduction of a submucous steal phenomenon in the dog stomach]. / Experimentelle Bedingungen zur Reproduktion eines submucösen Steal-Phänomens am Hundemagen.

The influence of pentagastrin on gastric blood flow has been investigated using 9 mu-microspheres in dogs. As soon as 6 min after the onset of a pentagastrin infusion blood flow rises in all gastric probes in fasted animals. In dogs, fed two hours previously, such a response can only be seen in the corpus-mucosa areas. Blood flow in the antrum mucosa specimen falls beneath its initial value. This gastric steal-phenomenon takes place at the level of the submucous plexus, as has been shown earlier.

[Determination of the optimal L-thyroxine dosage for treating nontoxic goiter]. / Ermittlung der optimalen L-Thyroxin-Dosis zur Behandlung der blanden Struma.

303 patients with non-toxic goitre (aged 14-85 years) were studied to determine the extent to which the level of thyroid-hormone dosage until a negative TRH test is reached can be defined in terms of age, body surface area and goitre size. In all instances detailed examination had determined regular hormone intake. The required L-thyroxine dose (until negative TRH test) was 100 micrograms/d in 75.6% of cases, 125 micrograms/d in 9.2% and 150 micrograms/d in 8.6% of cases. In 2.6% of cases was a satisfactory suppression reached at 50 microgram/d and in 4% at 75 micrograms/d. There was no correlation of the level of L-thyroxine dose to body surface area, age, T3 level, delta-TSH or goitre size. There was a slight correlation between T4 level and optimal L-thyroxine dose, but not significant because of the wide range of normal. The results indicate that the only way to obtain optimal L-thyroxine dosage in the treatment of goitre is by doing a TRH test in the given patient.

[A humoral transfer factor preventing rejection of allotransplanted rat liver? (author's transl)]. / Ist der humorale Transferfaktor für die Reaktionslosigkeit von Rattenleberallotransplantaten verantwortlich?

We grafted orthotopically 11 DA and 20 WiS-livers into LEW. The recipients of DA-livers survived 10.5 +/- 4.3 days; of the 20 recipients of WiS-liver, however, nine survived 18-37 days, and the other 11 survived indefinitely. The cells of recipients who survived more than 4 months showed GvHR of grade III, and their transfer showed no significant immunosuppressive effect. The indefinitely surviving liver recipients could accept specific skin grafts, but normally rejected third party skin. The serum of these recipients was able to prolong the survival of kidney grafts. This transfer factor is in our estimation responsible for the prolonged survival of rats with liver grafts.

Contingent negative variation and alpha attenuation responses in children with different abilities to concentrate.

In three paralleled groups, each of seven children (age, 11 years) with reliable high, average and low ability to concentrate, measured by psychological tests, the contingent negative variation (CNV) and the concomitant alpha attenuation responses were studied in warned reaction time experiments. Stimuli were tone (S1) and patterned light (S2). In half of the trials, S2 was a square, in the other half a triagle, stimuli being projected in random order onto the fixation point. In two experiments the children had to react (a) to each type of S2, and (b) selectively to one type of S2. Significant group differences were found. In comparison to the children with low ability to concentrate, the children with average and especially those with high ability to concentrate showed: (1) stronger central occipital alpha attenuation responses to the warning stimulus, but no differences in the early CNVs; (2) more occipital alpha reduction and enhanced development of central negativity before the imperative stimulus; (3) task-specific modulation of these responses, i.e. larger pre-S2 rise in negativity in the simple reaction task, and stronger pre-S2 reduction of alpha amplitudes in the discriminative reaction task.

Hyperactive behavior and EEG arousal reactions in children.

EEG arousal reactions and parameters of spontaneous EEG activity were studied in two extreme groups of behavior problem children (11 hyperactives and 11 non-hyperactives), selected on the basis of a rating of motor restlessness the core symptom of the "hyperactivity syndrome". The EEG was recorded in three reaction time experiments: a tone light conditioning paradigm and two series with random stimulation. An automatic analysis of EEG parameters was employed to describe the time functions of alpha amplitudes in the single trial. The main findings are: 1. In periods free from stimulation, hyperactive children have higher alpha and beta amplitudes, more alpha waves and a smaller amount of beta waves. This indicates a lower state of EEG arousal in the hyperactives. 2. The amplitude reduction to tone (in the single trial) develops more slowly in the hyperactive group. This group difference increases over the experimental situations. 3. The arousal responses to tone, in terms of the level of maximum amplitude reduction, become comparably weaker in the hyperactives across the experiments. 4. Under all experimental conditions the hyperactives exhibit shorter arousal responses to the light stimulus than the non-hyperactive children. 5. Reaction time performance of the groups is clearly different, hyperactives showing the longer latencies. 6. Although conditional changes in the arousal reactions to both stimuli are reliably demonstrable in all children, the groups show no difference in the corresponding measures. These findings are discussed under the aspects of activation and of attention behavior of the subjects.