Multilevel Societies in Primates and Other Mammals: Introduction to the Special Issue

# The Author(s) 2012. This article is published with open access at Springerlink.co

Noise Analysis on Integrated Multisensor Microsystems.

This paper presents an analysis of the noise propagated across the substrate and the electromagnetic contamination in a control chip for a wireless Lab-in-a-Pill. This chip integrates analogue, digital and radio frequency circuits monolithically to reduce the physical size, power consumption and packaging cost of the capsule. Several approaches to minimise noise e#ects were proposed and incorporated in a recently fabricated chip. Despite the presence of high frequency noise, the experimental results revealed that 8-b A/D conversion of the sensory signals was possible with a 3V power supply

Where Are We Now and Where Might We Be Headed in Understanding and Managing Brain Metastases in Colorectal Cancer Patients?

Compared to liver and lung metastases, brain metastases (BMs) from colorectal cancer (CRC) are rare and remain poorly investigated despite the anticipated rise in their incidence. CRC patients bearing BM have a dismal prognosis with a median survival of 3-6 months, significantly lower than that of patients with BM from other primary tumors, and of those with metastatic CRC manifesting extracranially. While liver and lung metastases from CRC have more codified treatment strategies, there is no consensus regarding the treatment of BM in CRC, and their management follows the approaches of BM from other solid tumors. Therapeutic strategies are driven by the number and localisation of the lesion, consisting in local treatments such as surgery, stereotactic radiosurgery, or whole-brain radiotherapy. Novel treatment modalities are slowly finding their way into this shy unconsented armatorium including immunotherapy, monoclonal antibodies, tyrosine kinase inhibitors, or a combination of those, among others.This article reviews the pioneering strategies aiming at understanding, diagnosing, and managing this disease, and discusses future directions, challenges, and potential innovations in each of these domains. • With the increasing survival in CRC, brain and other rare/late-onset metastases are rising. • Distal colon/rectal primary location, long-standing progressive lung metastases, and longer survival are risk factors for BM development in CRC. • Late diagnosis and lack of consensus treatment strategies make BM-CRC diagnosis very dismal. • Liquid biopsies using circulating tumor cells might offer excellent opportunities in the early diagnosis of BM-CRC and the search for therapeutic options. • Multi-modality treatment including surgical metastatic resection, postoperative SRS with/without WBRT, and chemotherapy is the best current treatment option. • Recent mid-sized clinical trials, case reports, and preclinical models show the potential of unconventional therapeutic approaches as monoclonal antibodies, targeted therapies, and immunotherapy. Graphical abstract

La biopsie liquide, une nouvelle opportunité pour l’oncologie personnalisée [Liquid biopsy, a new opportunity for personalized oncology]

Knowledge about cancer biology is extending and has meaningful repercussions on patients' care. Therefore, there is a growing need to assess tumor biology not only at diagnosis, but also throughout the course of management. Tumor tissue biopsies are particularly useful, but are not convenient for repetitive analyses because of the need for invasive procedures. Advances in biotechnology allow currently getting more and more information from liquid biopsies, based on small amounts of tumor material released for instance into the peripheral blood. Already used in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancers, these new techniques represent more generally an important step forward for personalized oncology

State of the art and future prospects of nanotechnologies in the field of brain-computer interfaces

Neuroprosthetic control by individuals suffering from tetraplegia has already been demonstrated using implanted microelectrode arrays over the patients’ motor cortex. Based on the state of the art of such micro & nano-scale technologies, we review current trends and future prospects for the implementation of nanotechnologies in the field of Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs), with brief mention of current clinical applications. Micro- and Nano-Electromechanical Systems (MEMS, NEMS) and micro-Electrocorticography now belong to the mainstay of neurophysiology, producing promising results in BCI applications, neurophysiological recordings and research. The miniaturization of recording and stimulation systems and the improvement of reliability and durability, decrease of neural tissue reactivity to implants, as well as increased fidelity of said systems are the current foci of this technology. Novel concepts have also begun to emerge such as nanoscale integrated circuits that communicate with the macroscopic environment, neuronal pattern nano-promotion, multiple biosensors that have been “wired” with piezoelectric nanomechanical resonators, or even “neural dust” consisting of 10-100μm scale independent floating low-powered sensors. Problems that such technologies have to bypass include a minimum size threshold and the increase in power to maintain a high signal-to-noise-ratio. Physiological matters such as immunological reactions, neurogloia or neuronal population loss should also be taken into consideration. Progress in scaling down of injectable interfaces to the muscles and peripheral nerves is expected to result in less invasive BCI-controlled actuators (neuroprosthetics in the micro and nano scale). The state-of-the-art of current microtechnologies demonstrate a maturing level of clinical relevance and promising results in terms of neural recording and stimulation. New MEMS and NEMS fabrication techniques and novel design and application concepts hold promise to address current problems with these technologies and lead to less invasive, longer lasting and more reliable BCI systems in the near future

The use of earth observation and decision support systems for the restoration of open-cast nickel mines in Evia, central Greece

We have developed a decision support system (DSS) for open mining areas which reflects and simulates the major decision steps of a mining expert (engineer, manager) during the formulation of a restoration plan. The software supports the mining expert to structure the various restoration alternatives and to explore both environmental and economic effects of the different measures. As key information layers we have included thematic maps derived from Earth observation (EO) data. The LARCO ferro-nickel mining area in Evia (central Greece) has been chosen as test site. EO can be used in the decision process by providing land cover and elevation information about the mine at various stages during its operation. © 2004 Taylor and Francis Ltd