Purpose:
To evaluate the reproducibility of point quantification elastography (PQE) in assessing liver elasticity (LE) in healthy volunteers (hvs) comparing three operators with different expertise.
...Material and methods:
Between September and March 2013, 42 hvs (16 males, 26 females), mean age 35 (range 25 – 66), BMI 23.3 ± 3.2 were enrolled and submitted to PQ elastography (iU22 Philips, Bothell, WA, USA) by three operators in the same day: two US and elastography providers (one expert and one intermediate), one transient elastography (TE) (Fibroscan) operator with no expertise in US. 10 examinations have been performed by each operator on the right lobe of the liver (V, VI and VIIs). Intraobserver and interobserver agreement were assessed by intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC).
Results:
Intraobserver agreement among all the 10 measurements performed in the same subject showed an ICC of 0.63 (95% c.i. 0.52 – 0.74) for LE in the expert operator, with a mean value of 3.62 kPa (± 0.81); an ICC of 0.53 (95% c.i. 0.41 – 0.66) for LE in the intermediate operator, with a mean value of 3.61 kPa (± 0.71); an ICC of 0.44 (95% c.i. 0.33 – 0.58) for LE in the fibroscan operator, with a mean value of 3.70 kPa (± 0.69). Interobserver agreement among the three different operators was 0.72 (95% c.i. 0.6 – 0.83), between the expert and the intermediate providers was 0.8 (95% c.i. 0.64 – 0.88).
Conclusion:
PQE is a reliable and reproducible non invasive method for the assessment of LE, and can be performed also by a non US-provider TE operator. The non optimal ICC of intraobserver agreement is influenced by low numeric values of LE in healthy pts; thus even operators with expertise have to register 10 measurements to reach a reproducible result.
Purpose:
To evaluate the accuracy and reproducibility of shear wave elastography (SWE) in assessing liver stiffness (LS) in a cohort of patients with chronic liver diseases (CLD) and healthy ...subjects.
Material and methods:
10 patients with CLD mean age: 57 ± 20 years; BMI: 27 ± 5 refered for liver biopsy, 10 patients with histological proven cirrhosis mean age: 57 ± 8 years; BMI: 26 ± 3 and 19 healthy volunteers as controls mean age: 39 ± 15 years; BMI: 22 ± 4. SWE (Aixplorer, Supersonic) was performed using four different transducer positions: intercostally with upper edge of the SWE box placed 1.5 – 2 cm from Glisson's capsule (as standardized for Transient Elastography); intercostally at 6 cm; subcostally at 2 cm; and left liver lobe at 2 cm. Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was used to assess the correlation between histological findings of fibrosis and LS measurements assessed by SWE. Intraobserver agreement was assessed by intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC).
Results:
The correlation strength of SWE measurements and liver biopsy was highest (0.835, p < 0.01) for the intercostal 2 cm approach. With this approach, in 30/39 (77%) patients the fibrosis stages have been correctly classified, in particular in 10/11 patients (90%) the histologic stage 4 was correctly classified. The AUC in distinguishing significative fibrosis (F≥2) was 0.981. ICC was highest for the intercostal 2 cm and subcostal 2 cm approach (0.89, 0.92).
Conclusion:
SWE is a novel, noninvasive, accurate and reproducible technique. SWE correlates with the fibrosis stages.
Triticales (x Triticosecale Wittmack) y tricepiros (x Triticosecale Witt. X x
Agrotricum A. Camus) se mejoran con la finalidad de obtener cultivares de doble propósito (forraje y grano). Para su ...utilización en consumo humano, la calidad de las harinas de triticales es frecuentemente evaluada midiendo el diámetro y factor de expansión de las galletitas horneadas. Estos indicadores están fuertemente relacionados al contenido de almidón dañado, proteína y polisacáridos no amiláceos de la harina que determinan sus propiedades de absorción de agua. Se evaluaron 25 líneas experimentales, ocho cultivares de triticale y uno de tricepiro en Santa Rosa, La Pampa, Argentina, durante 2012, mediante análisis de correlación simple y de conglomerados. Se observaron correlaciones positivas entre los valores de la capacidad de retención del solvente agua, carbonato de sodio, ácido láctico y sacarosa, índice de retención de agua alcalina, pentosanos solubles y almidón dañado. La caracterización de las harinas y la separación en grupos según sus propiedades fisicoquímicas permitieron la selección de genotipos con diferentes propiedades funcionales. En el análisis de conglomerados, el cluster 1 agrupó los materiales con mejores
características fisicoquímicas de las harinas, lo cual aumenta las posibilidades de su empleo en la alimentación humana.
Se evaluó una metodología de cultivo in vitro tendiente a mejorar la regeneración de plantas de maíz por organogénesis directa, con el objetivo de lograr múltiples vástagos genéticamente homogéneos. ...La misma consiste en la utilización del meristema apical como explanto y el agregado de 2 mg/l de benziladenina (BA) al medio de cultivo Murashige y Skoog (MS). Se utilizaron dos líneas experimentales de maíces forrajeros. En éstos se evaluaron dos frecuencias de subcultivos (cada 15 ó 30 días) en la línea L.850 y 1 frecuencia (cada 30 días) para la línea L.769. La línea L.850 alcanzó su máxima tasa de regeneración en el segundo repique (1,8 plantas) con subcultivos cada 30 días, y en el quinto subcultivo (1,8 plantas) con sub-cultivos cada 15 días. La línea L.769 alcanzó la máxima tasa de regeneración en el cuarto subcultivo (1,7 plantas). Los valores mencionados son bajos comparados con embriogénesis somática, pero no se detectaron variaciones somaclonales en los fenotipos de las plantas a campo; se observó una acentuada uniformidad dentro de las líneas.
An optimized methodology for improving regeneration of maize plants by direct organogenesis was evaluated. Our objective was to obtain genetically homogeneous plants through in vitro methods to regenera-te clumps of multiple shoots from shoot tips at high frequency. Cultures were initiated from shoot tips of experimental lines of maize on a Murashige & Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with 2 mg/l benziladenine. Two experimental forage maize lines were used, in which two frequencies of subcultu-res were evaluated, namely line L. 850 (every 15 or 30 days) and line L.769 (every 30 days). It was observed that the highest rate of regeneration in line L.850 was reached in the second subculture (1.8 plants) with subculture every 30 days, and in the fifth subculture (1.8 plants) with subculture every 15 days. In line L.769, the highest frequency of regeneration was reached in the fourth subculture (1.7 plants). Regeneration rates were low compared with somatic embryogenesis, but no somaclonal variations were detected in field plant phe-notypes; a marked uniformity was detected within lines.
The purpose of this paper is to present a project in order to verify —without the need of knowing the distance CERN-Gran Sasso— the discovery made by the OPERA Collaboration concerning the speed of ...the CERN neutrinos. The project consists of two parts. A simple one and a less simple one. Both have the great advantage of being totally independent of the knowledge of the distance, ≃ 732 km, between the two Labs, CERN and LNGS, where the neutrinos are produced and detected, respectively. The “simple” version of this project is based on the high-energy horizontal cosmic muons, which traverse LVD and OPERA detectors, thus allowing to cross-calibrate the timing systems of both experiments in a way which is totally independent of the TOF measurements of CNGS. This component of the project is being studied in collaboration with the OPERA group, as the time stabilities of both experiments are needed. In fact it is since a long time that the two groups are engaged with this problem. In this paper we will present and discuss the “less simple” part which allows to establish, at the highest possible level of accuracy, if (
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