Neural computations occurring simultaneously in multiple cerebral cortical regions are critical for mediating behaviors. Progress has been made in understanding how neural activity in specific ...cortical regions contributes to behavior. However, there is a lack of tools that allow simultaneous monitoring and perturbing neural activity from multiple cortical regions. We engineered 'See-Shells'-digitally designed, morphologically realistic, transparent polymer skulls that allow long-term (>300 days) optical access to 45 mm
of the dorsal cerebral cortex in the mouse. We demonstrate the ability to perform mesoscopic imaging, as well as cellular and subcellular resolution two-photon imaging of neural structures up to 600 µm deep. See-Shells allow calcium imaging from multiple, non-contiguous regions across the cortex. Perforated See-Shells enable introducing penetrating neural probes to perturb or record neural activity simultaneously with whole cortex imaging. See-Shells are constructed using common desktop fabrication tools, providing a powerful tool for investigating brain structure and function.
When it comes to international development, and more specifically rural development, effective partnership is of the utmost importance. The procedure for effective partnership should be streamlined, ...and should be aimed at involving and engaging the community partnership regardless of what service is being provided. From recent projects in various countries in Engineers Without Borders, I have compiled a series of vital lessons relating to developing and maintaining effective partnership with our most important stakeholders - the community in question. First, the community must have trust and a direct stake in the project’s success to ensure longevity. Second, the scope ought to be carefully set via a rigorous baseline study and managed through effective communication. Finally, an effective communication strategy must be constructed that adequately manages the community’s technological limitations, and cultural and language barriers.
Renewable energy plays a vital role in energy management and hence resultant sus-tainable development. The uncertainty of its availability is the point of concern. Hence the optimal usage and ...prediction of its availability become very critical. Several methods of wind energy forecasting at any given location are available in the literature. In this article, a machine learning-based wind energy forecasting method is suggested. The wind data and related parameters at Satara district of Maharashtra state in India are obtained. ANN (Artificial Neural Network) model is developed, trained, tested, and validated for the available data. The results obtained for future wind energy predicted approximately match the actual values.
A bidirectional dc–dc converter is used to match the voltage levels between a low-voltage battery and a high-voltage traction machine in an electric vehicle. Using a conventional bidirectional ...converter with a standard voltage range, there is a limitation to the fine variation in the electric vehicle speed. During the regenerative braking process, when the speed decreases below a certain value, the generated voltage is insufficient to charge the battery, hence the regenerated energy cannot be stored. This paper proposes a novel bidirectional converter featuring three distinct operational modes: boost, buck and buck-boost. In the normal driving mode, it operates as a boost converter, providing double gain and accommodating a wide voltage range. During regenerative braking, the proposed converter switches to the buck or buck-boost mode based on the control algorithm. This adaptation is intended to either decrease the generated voltage to charge the battery effectively or to raise the voltage if it is insufficient for charging the battery. This configuration provides voltage stress of half the dc link voltage on the switches. This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the proposed circuit, a detailed description of the control strategy with pulse generation logic for all switches and a mode transition algorithm. The simulation results of a circuit operating at a 1500 W power level are presented and compared with those of a standard bidirectional converter.
Background: Personnel deployed at an altitude ranging from 9000 ft to 23,000 ft are exposed to sub-zero temperatures up to −40°C. These conditions lead to the development of various cold injuries ...which presents in varying grades and severity. Aim: The aim of this study is to study the epidemiological trends and assess risk factors/conditions those are contributing to the development of cold weather injuries (CWI) at extreme cold climate in high altitude areas. Methodology: This is a retrospective, observational study on cold injury cases evacuated from the northern glaciers of India. The data were collected and tabulated in MS-Excel sheets, and analysis was done using percentage, mean, median, linear regression, and P value calculation. SPSS statistical analysis software version 23 was employed for generating the results. P < 0.05 was considered for statistically significant. Results: The annual incidence of cold injuries calculated for troops deployed at high altitude (>9000 feet) with extreme cold climate is 6.4/1000/year. The average duration of exposure for the development of CWI was found to be 4.85 h with a standard deviation = 2.88 h. Statistically significant association was found between the median temperatures and number of cold injury cases evacuated monthly with a strong negative coefficient of correlation (Pearson's) value r = −0.8214, and P = 0.001063. No correlation was found between the severity of frostbites and duration of exposure as the coefficient of correlation r (Pearson's) was weakly positive with a value of 0.19 and statistically not significant with P = 0.127. Conclusion: This study highlights the magnitude of problem, high risk zones, and predisposing activities. Statistical association has been drawn between altitude, temperature and duration of exposure with burden of cold injury. This study provides an insight with respect to associations and risk factors for the development of CWI, in Indian perspective and may be beneficial for better planning and preventive measures to reduce burden of CWI.
Gliomas, tumors of the central nervous system, are classically diagnosed through invasive surgical biopsy and subsequent histopathological study. Innovations in ultra-high field (UHF) imaging, namely ...7-Tesla magnetic resonance imaging (7T MRI) are advancing preoperative tumor grading, visualization of intratumoral structures, and appreciation of small brain structures and lesions.
Summarize current innovative uses of UHF imaging techniques in glioma diagnostics and treatment.
A systematic review in accordance with PRISMA guidelines was performed utilizing PubMed. Case reports and series, observational clinical trials, and randomized clinical trials written in English were included. After removing unrelated studies and those with non-human subjects, only those related to 7T MRI were independently reviewed and summarized for data extraction. Some preclinical animal models are briefly described to demonstrate future usages of ultra-high-field imaging.
We reviewed 46 studies (43 human and 3 animal models) which reported clinical usages of UHF MRI in the diagnosis and management of gliomas. Current literature generally supports greater resolution imaging from 7T compared to 1.5T or 3T MRI, improving visualization of cerebral microbleeds and white and gray matter, and providing more precise localization for radiotherapy targeting. Additionally, studies found that diffusion or susceptibility-weighted imaging techniques applied to 7T MRI, may be used to predict tumor grade, reveal intratumoral structures such as neovasculature and microstructures like axons, and indicate isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 mutation status in preoperative imaging. Similarly, newer imaging techniques such as magnetic resonance spectroscopy and chemical exchange saturation transfer imaging can be performed on 7T MRI to predict tumor grading and treatment efficacy. Geometrical distortion, a known challenge of 7T MRI, was at a tolerable level in all included studies.
UHF imaging has the potential to preoperatively and non-invasively grade gliomas, provide precise therapy target areas, and visualize lesions not seen on conventional MRI.
OBJECTIVES/GOALS: While the evolving treatment paradigm for Glioblastoma (GBM) leverages different modalities to improve outcomes, treatment access might be limited by cost and disparities. This ...study explores the influence of race and social determinants of health (SDoH) on healthcare access and outcomes of GBM patients in a large metropolitan area over a decade. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: Our institution’s tumor registry (2009-2019) was queried to identify our GBM cohort. Data were supplemented by electronic health records to include demographics, outcome, NCI Comorbidity Index, and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) socioeconomic status (SES) index. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Of the 559 GBM records, 361 unique patients met the inclusion criteria, and 43% were Non-White. Non-White patients predominantly comprised the lowest AHRQ SES index quartile and had longer hospital stays (LOS; p<0.001). White patients accounted for 61% of privately insured patients (p<0.001). Private insurance (p= 0.02) and age < 65 years (p= 0.039) were associated with a higher rate of home discharge. Patients diagnosed with GBM in the emergency department were more likely to be discharged to acute rehab than home (p<0.001). At 2 years, privately insured patients had longer OS (HR= 1.46; p= 0.04). DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE: In contrast to previous studies, the study demonstrates that GBM affected a higher proportion of Non-White patients. Our data show that SDoH influences multiple outcomes in GBM patients. Efforts to identify and correct these barriers are needed to improve the care of all GBM patients.
IntroductionCortical spreading depolarisation (CSD) is characterised by a near-complete loss of the ionic membrane potential of cortical neurons and glia propagating across the cerebral cortex, which ...generates a transient suppression of spontaneous neuronal activity. CSDs have become a recognised phenomenon that imparts ongoing secondary insults after brain injury. Studies delineating CSD generation and propagation in humans after traumatic brain injury (TBI) are lacking. Therefore, this study aims to determine the feasibility of using a multistrip electrode array to identify CSDs and characterise their propagation in space and time after TBI.Methods and analysisThis pilot, prospective observational study will enrol patients with TBI requiring therapeutic craniotomy or craniectomy. Subdural electrodes will be placed for continuous electrocorticography monitoring for seizures and CSDs as a research procedure, with surrogate informed consent obtained preoperatively. The propagation of CSDs relative to structural brain pathology will be mapped using reconstructed CT and electrophysiological cross-correlations. The novel use of multiple subdural strip electrodes in conjunction with brain morphometric segmentation is hypothesised to provide sufficient spatial information to characterise CSD propagation across the cerebral cortex and identify cortical foci giving rise to CSDs.Ethics and disseminationEthical approval for the study was obtained from the Hennepin Healthcare Research Institute’s ethics committee, HSR 17-4400, 25 October 2017 to present. Study findings will be submitted for publication in peer-reviewed journals and presented at scientific conferences.Trial registration numberNCT03321370.
•The top three countries made up 56.7% of the total open-access (OA) contributions.•Low and lower-middle-income countries are less than 8% of the total OA publications.•There is a disparity in ...academic voice in the neurosurgical literature.•Disparities potentially affect neurosurgery practice and knowledge dissemination.
: Patients with supratentorial cavernous malformations (SCMs) commonly present with seizures. First-line treatments for cavernoma-related epilepsy (CRE) include conservative management (antiepileptic ...drugs (AEDs)) and surgery. We compared seizure outcomes of CRE patients after early (≤6 months) vs. delayed (>6 months) surgery.
: We compared outcomes of CRE patients with SCMs surgically treated at our large-volume cerebrovascular center (1 January 2010-31 July 2020). Patients with 1 sporadic SCM and ≥1-year follow-up were included. Primary outcomes were International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) class 1 seizure freedom and AED independence.
: Of 63 CRE patients (26 women, 37 men; mean ± SD age, 36.1 ± 14.6 years), 48 (76%) vs. 15 (24%) underwent early (mean ± SD, 2.1 ± 1.7 months) vs. delayed (mean ± SD, 6.2 ± 7.1 years) surgery. Most (32 (67%)) with early surgery presented after 1 seizure; all with delayed surgery had ≥2 seizures. Seven (47%) with delayed surgery had drug-resistant epilepsy. At follow-up (mean ± SD, 5.4 ± 3.3 years), CRE patients with early surgery were more likely to have ILAE class 1 seizure freedom and AED independence than those with delayed surgery (92% (44/48) vs. 53% (8/15),
= 0.002; and 65% (31/48) vs. 33% (5/15),
= 0.03, respectively).
: Early CRE surgery demonstrated better seizure outcomes than delayed surgery. Multicenter prospective studies are needed to validate these findings.
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