ABSTRACT
ATTR-CA is an under-reported cause of congestive heart failure (CHF) and cardiac arrhythmias. Heightened clinical suspicion along with a multimodal investigative approach is often required ...in diagnosing this potentially fatal condition. Tafamidis and inotersen have shown promising results in terms of progression-free survival by ameliorating CHF symptoms and peripheral neuropathies in clinical trials.
In this case series of five patients, we present three wild-type cardiac amyloidosis (ATTRwt-CA), one familial cardiac amyloidosis (ATTRm-CA) and one primary cardiac (AL-CA). The diagnostic modality was different for each patient. ATTRwt-CA, ATTRm-CA and AL-CA patients received tafamidis, inotersen and chemotherapy with bone marrow stem-cell transplantation, respectively.
Guest editors Claudia Mello-Thoms, Craig Abbey, and Elizabeth A. Krupinski introduce the Special Series on 2D and 3D Imaging: Perspectives in Human and Model Observer Performance.
Group decisions and even aggregation of multiple opinions lead to greater decision accuracy, a phenomenon known as collective wisdom. Little is known about the neural basis of collective wisdom and ...whether its benefits arise in late decision stages or in early sensory coding. Here, we use electroencephalography and multi-brain computing with twenty humans making perceptual decisions to show that combining neural activity across brains increases decision accuracy paralleling the improvements shown by aggregating the observers' opinions. Although the largest gains result from an optimal linear combination of neural decision variables across brains, a simpler neural majority decision rule, ubiquitous in human behavior, results in substantial benefits. In contrast, an extreme neural response rule, akin to a group following the most extreme opinion, results in the least improvement with group size. Analyses controlling for number of electrodes and time-points while increasing number of brains demonstrate unique benefits arising from integrating neural activity across different brains. The benefits of multi-brain integration are present in neural activity as early as 200ms after stimulus presentation in lateral occipital sites and no additional benefits arise in decision related neural activity. Sensory-related neural activity can predict collective choices reached by aggregating individual opinions, voting results, and decision confidence as accurately as neural activity related to decision components. Estimation of the potential for the collective to execute fast decisions by combining information across numerous brains, a strategy prevalent in many animals, shows large time-savings. Together, the findings suggest that for perceptual decisions the neural activity supporting collective wisdom and decisions arises in early sensory stages and that many properties of collective cognition are explainable by the neural coding of information across multiple brains. Finally, our methods highlight the potential of multi-brain computing as a technique to rapidly and in parallel gather increased information about the environment as well as to access collective perceptual/cognitive choices and mental states.
► The benefits of collective perceptual decisions arise in sensory processing. ► Sensory activity can reliably predict group voting outcome and decision confidence. ► Collective neural integration shows surprisingly large decision time-savings. ► A neural majority rule, prevalent in behavior, leads to significant benefits. ► Behavioral performance of groups can be ranked from the integrated neural activity.
AVATAR therapy represents an effective new way of working with distressing voices based on face-to-face dialogue between the person and a digital representation (avatar) of their persecutory voice. ...To date, there has been no complete account of AVATAR therapy delivery. This article presents, for the first time, the full range of therapeutic targets along with information on acceptability and potential side effects. Interest in the approach is growing rapidly and this report acts as a necessary touchstone for future development.
Understanding multicomponent diffusion in polymers on the molecular-scale could lead to optimization of many practical processes. One important example is the removal of a toxic chemical (penetrant) ...from polyurethanes, which serve as the binder in many coatings technologies. This work is an equilibrium molecular dynamics (MD) study to characterize the molecular-scale hydrogen bonding (H-bonding) interactions in ternary penetrant, solvent, and polyurethane systems, and how these H-bonds influence the corresponding diffusivities. Homomorphic series of penetrant and solvent species in which molecular size and shape are kept constant while varying polarity or number of H-bonding sites are used to study the influence of hydrogen bond probability and strength on diffusivity. It is found that H-bonding between all species in the ternary mixture as well as penetrant-solvent collisions play a role in determining penetrant diffusivity. The findings provide insight into solvent selection criteria to increase the diffusivity of H-bonding penetrants that are absorbed in polyurethanes for extraction and decontamination applications.
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•MD study of H-bonding influence on diffusivity in penetrant-solvent-polymer systems.•Higher polarity solvents displace penetrants on polymer H-bonding sites.•Less penetrant-polymer H-bonding does not lead to increased diffusivity.•Penetrant-solvent interactions are also critical in determining penetrant mobility.•Three body polymer-solvent-penetrant interactions observed in some cases.
Radiologists face the visually challenging task of detecting suspicious features within the complex and noisy backgrounds characteristic of medical images. We used a search task to examine whether ...the salience of target features in x-ray mammograms could be enhanced by prior adaptation to the spatial structure of the images. The observers were not radiologists, and thus had no diagnostic training with the images. The stimuli were randomly selected sections from normal mammograms previously classified with BIRADS Density scores of “fatty” versus “dense,” corresponding to differences in the relative quantities of fat versus fibroglandular tissue. These categories reflect conspicuous differences in visual texture, with dense tissue being more likely to obscure lesion detection. The targets were simulated masses corresponding to bright Gaussian spots, superimposed by adding the luminance to the background. A single target was randomly added to each image, with contrast varied over five levels so that they varied from
difficult
to
easy
to detect. Reaction times were measured for detecting the target location, before or after adapting to a gray field or to random sequences of a different set of dense or fatty images. Observers were faster at detecting the targets in either dense or fatty images after adapting to the specific background type (dense or fatty) that they were searching within. Thus, the adaptation led to a facilitation of search performance that was selective for the background texture. Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that adaptation allows observers to more effectively suppress the specific structure of the background, thereby heightening visual salience and search efficiency.
Intimal hyperplasia is the cause of the recurrent occlusive vascular disease (restenosis). Drugs currently used to treat restenosis effectively inhibit smooth muscle cell (SMC) proliferation, but ...also inhibit the growth of the protective luminal endothelial cell (EC) lining, leading to thrombosis. To identify compounds that selectively inhibit SMC versus EC proliferation, we have developed a high-throughput screening (HTS) format using human cells and have employed this to screen a multiple compound collection (NIH Clinical Collection). We developed an automated, accurate proliferation assay in 96-well plates using human aortic SMCs and ECs. Using this HTS format we screened a 447-drug NIH Clinical Library. We identified 11 compounds that inhibited SMC proliferation greater than 50%, among which idarubicin exhibited a unique feature of preferentially inhibiting SMC versus EC proliferation. Concentration-response analysis revealed this differential effect most evident over an ∼10 nM-5 µM window. In vivo testing of idarubicin in a rat carotid injury model at 14 days revealed an 80% reduction of intimal hyperplasia and a 45% increase of lumen size with no significant effect on re-endothelialization. Taken together, we have established a HTS assay of human vascular cell proliferation, and identified idarubicin as a selective inhibitor of SMC versus EC proliferation both in vitro and in vivo. Screening of larger and more diverse compound libraries may lead to the discovery of next-generation therapeutics that can inhibit intima hyperplasia without impairing re-endothelialization.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
To estimate the prevalence of dementia and its clinical subtypes among Chamorros on Guam aged 65 years or older and to examine associations with age, gender, education, and APOE genotype.
Chamorros, ...the indigenous people of Guam, had a high incidence of ALS and parkinsonism-dementia complex (PDC), in the 1950s. Over the next 50 years, ALS incidence declined markedly, but PDC only slightly. The prevalence of late life dementia in Chamorros and its relationship to ALS/PDC are unknown.
Island-wide population-based survey of Chamorros aged 65 years or older as of January 1, 2003. Two-stage assessment: cognitive and motor screening, followed by neurologic and psychometric evaluation. Data were reviewed at consensus conference to make clinical diagnoses.
Of 2,789 Chamorros aged 65 years or older, 73% were enrolled; 27% declined participation, died before contact or screening, or moved off Guam. The point prevalence of all-cause dementia on February 1, 2004, was 12.2%. Prevalence data for subtypes were as follows: Guam dementia (clinically equivalent to AD), 8.8%; PDC, 1.5%; pure vascular dementia, 1.3%; other, 0.6%. The prevalence of dementia rose exponentially with age. Low education was significantly associated with dementia, but gender was not. There was a trend toward higher PDC prevalence among men. The APOE epsilon4 allele was not associated with dementia.
The prevalence of dementia among elderly Chamorros is relatively high. Guam dementia is the most common diagnosis and exceeds parkinsonism-dementia complex. Age and low education are strongly associated with dementia, but gender and APOE epsilon4 are not. Incidence studies will allow risk factors for dementia to be clarified.
Abstract
Behavioural syndromes are composed of correlated suites of personality traits and can include traits related to the behaviour and ecology of free-ranging animals. We used captive little ...brown bats (Myotis lucifugus) to test the hypothesis that behaviours measured in standardized tests reflect personality traits and form behavioural syndromes with roosting behaviours. We predicted: (1) measured behaviours would be repeatable; (2) personality traits and roosting behaviours would form behavioural syndromes; and (3) individuals with similar personality scores would associate more strongly. We observed repeatability for some traits and evidence of behavioural syndromes. Activity was strongly repeatable across time and contexts. More central individuals roosted in larger groups, while individuals with high roost-fidelity roosted in larger groups. Individuals with similar activity scores were also more likely to associate in day roosts, suggesting some behavioural assortment. Our results have implications for how behavioural variation might influence transmission of white-nose syndrome.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
BFBNIB, DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NMLJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
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