Analyzing Shape Context Using the Hamiltonian Cycle

Shape matching plays important roles in many fields such as object recognition, image retrieval,etc. Belongie, et.al.recently proposed a novel shape matching algorithm utilizing the shape context as a shape descriptor and the magnitude of the aligning two shape contexts as a distance measure. It was claimed to be an information rich descriptor that is invariant to translation, scale and rotation. We examine the limitation of the algorithm using graph theory and present several geometrically different shapes that are considered identical by the shape context algorithm. Theoretical contributions pertain to linking shape context and the Hamiltonian cycle.

Obstetricians and Violence against Women

I argue that the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), as an organization and through its individual members, can and should be a far greater ally in the prevention of violence against women. Specifically, I argue that we need to pay attention to obstetrical practices that inadvertently contribute to the problem of violence against women. While intimate partner violence is a complex phenomenon, I focus on the coercive control of women and adherence to oppressive gender norms. Using physician response to alcohol use during pregnancy and court-ordered medical treatment as examples, I show how some obstetrical practices mirror the attitudes of abusive men insofar as they try to coercively control women\u27s behavior through manipulation and violence. To be greater allies in the prevention of violence against women, obstetricians should stop participating in practices that inadvertently perpetuate violence against women

Macrophage transcriptional responses following in vitro infection with a highly virulent African swine fever virus isolate

We used a porcine microarray containing 2,880 cDNAs to investigate the response of macrophages to infection by a virulent African swine fever virus (ASFV) isolate, Malawi LIL20/1. One hundred twenty-five targets were found to be significantly altered at either or both 4 h and 16 h postinfection compared with targets after mock infection. These targets were assigned into three groups according to their temporal expression profiles. Eighty-six targets showed increased expression levels at 4 h postinfection but returned to expression levels similar to those in mock-infected cells at 16 h postinfection. These encoded several proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines, surface proteins, and proteins involved in cell signaling and trafficking pathways. Thirty-four targets showed increased expression levels at 16 h postinfection compared to levels at 4 h postinfection and in mock-infected cells. One host gene showed increased expression levels at both 4 and 16 h postinfection compared to levels in mock-infected cells. The microarray results were validated for 12 selected genes by quantitative real-time PCR. Levels of protein expression and secretion were measured for two proinflammatory cytokines, interleukin 1β and tumor necrosis factor alpha, during a time course of infection with either the virulent Malawi LIL20/1 isolate or the OUR T88/3 nonpathogenic isolate. The results revealed differences between these two ASFV isolates in the amounts of these cytokines secreted from infected cells

Population genetic estimation of the loss of genetic diversity during horizontal transmission of HIV-1

BACKGROUND: Genetic diversity of the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) population within an individual is lost during transmission to a new host. The demography of transmission is an important determinant of evolutionary dynamics, particularly the relative impact of natural selection and genetic drift immediately following HIV-1 infection. Despite this, the magnitude of this population bottleneck is unclear. RESULTS: We use coalescent methods to quantify the bottleneck in a single case of homosexual transmission and find that over 99% of the env and gag diversity present in the donor is lost. This was consistent with the diversity present at seroconversion in nine other horizontally infected individuals. Furthermore, we estimated viral diversity at birth in 27 infants infected through vertical transmission and found there to be no difference between the two modes of transmission. CONCLUSION: Assuming the bottleneck at transmission is selectively neutral, such a severe reduction in genetic diversity has important implications for adaptation in HIV-1, since beneficial mutations have a reduced chance of transmission

National Athletic Trainers\u27 Association Position Statement: Evaluation, Management, and Outcomes of and Return-to-Play Criteria for Overhead Athletes With Superior Labral Anterior-Posterior Injuries

Objective: To present recommendations for the diagnosis, management, outcomes, and return to play of athletes with superior labral anterior-posterior (SLAP) injuries. Background: In overhead athletes, SLAP tears are common as either acute or chronic injuries. The clinical guidelines presented here were developed based on a systematic review of the current evidence and the consensus of the writing panel. Clinicians can use these guidelines to inform decision making regarding the diagnosis, acute and long-term conservative and surgical treatment, and expected outcomes of and return-to-play guidelines for athletes with SLAP injuries. Recommendations: Physical examination tests may aid diagnosis; 6 tests are recommended for confirming and 1 test is recommended for ruling out a SLAP lesion. Combinations of tests may be helpful to diagnose SLAP lesions. Clinical trials directly comparing outcomes between surgical and nonoperative management are absent; however, in cohort trials, the reports of function and return-to-sport outcomes are similar for each management approach. Nonoperative management that includes rehabilitation, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and corticosteroid injections is recommended as the first line of treatment. Rehabilitation should address deficits in shoulder internal rotation, total arc of motion, and horizontal-adduction motion, as well as periscapular and glenohumeral muscle strength, endurance, and neuromuscular control. Most researchers have examined the outcomes of surgical management and found high levels of satisfaction and return of shoulder function, but the ability to return to sport varied widely, with 20% to 94% of patients returning to their sport after surgical or nonoperative management. On average, 55% of athletes returned to full participation in prior sports, but overhead athletes had a lower average return of 45%. Additional work is needed to define the criteria for diagnosing and guiding clinical decision making to optimize outcomes and return to play

Real-Time Increased Detection of Neoplastic Tissue in Barrett’s Esophagus with Probe-Based Confocal Laser Endomicroscopy: Final Results of an International Multicenter, Prospective, Randomized, Controlled Trial

BACKGROUND: Probe-based confocal laser endomicroscopy (pCLE) allows real-time detection of neoplastic Barrett's esophagus (BE) tissue. However, the accuracy of pCLE in real time has not yet been extensively evaluated. OBJECTIVE: To compare the sensitivity and specificity of pCLE in addition to high-definition white-light endoscopy (HD-WLE) with HD-WLE alone for the detection of high-grade dysplasia (HGD) and early carcinoma (EC) in BE. DESIGN: International, prospective, multicenter, randomized, controlled trial. SETTING: Five tertiary referral centers. PATIENTS: A total of 101 consecutive BE patients presenting for surveillance or endoscopic treatment of HGD/EC. INTERVENTIONS: All patients were examined by HD-WLE, narrow-band imaging (NBI), and pCLE, and the findings were recorded before biopsy samples were obtained. The order of HD-WLE and NBI was randomized and performed by 2 independent, blinded endoscopists. All suspicious lesions on HD-WLE or NBI and 4-quadrant random locations were documented. These locations were examined by pCLE, and a presumptive diagnosis of benign or neoplastic (HGD/EC) tissue was made in real time. Finally, biopsies were taken from all locations and were reviewed by a central pathologist, blinded to endoscopic and pCLE data. MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS: Diagnostic characteristics of pCLE. RESULTS: The sensitivity and specificity for HD-WLE were 34.2% and 92.7%, respectively, compared with 68.3% and 87.8%, respectively, for HD-WLE or pCLE (P = .002 and P < .001, respectively). The sensitivity and specificity for HD-WLE or NBI were 45.0% and 88.2%, respectively, compared with 75.8% and 84.2%, respectively, for HD-WLE, NBI, or pCLE (P = .01 and P = .02, respectively). Use of pCLE in conjunction with HD-WLE and NBI enabled the identification of 2 and 1 additional HGD/EC patients compared with HD-WLE and HD-WLE or NBI, respectively, resulting in detection of all HGD/EC patients, although not statistically significant. LIMITATIONS: Academic centers with enriched population. CONCLUSIONS: pCLE combined with HD-WLE significantly improved the ability to detect neoplasia in BE patients compared with HD-WLE. This may allow better informed decisions to be made for the management and subsequent treatment of BE patients. (Clinical trial registration number: NCT00795184.)

Lost in reviews:Looking for the involvement of stakeholders, patients, public and other non-researcher contributors in realist reviews

The involvement of non‐researcher contributors (eg, stakeholders, patients and the public, decision and policy makers, experts, lay contributors) has taken a variety of forms within evidence syntheses. Realist reviews are a form of evidence synthesis that involves non‐researcher contributors yet this practice has received little attention. In particular, the role of patient and public involvement (PPI) has not been clearly documented. This review of reviews describes the ways in which contributor involvement, including PPI, is documented within healthcare realist reviews published over the last five years. A total of 448 papers published between 2014 and 2019 were screened, yielding 71 full‐text papers included in this review. Statements about contributor involvement were synthesized across each review using framework analysis. Three themes are described in this article including nomenclature, nature of involvement, and reporting impact.Papers indicate that contributor involvement in realist reviews refers to stakeholders, experts, or advisory groups (ie, professionals, clinicians, or academics). Patients and the public are occasionally subsumed into these groups and in doing so, the nature and impact of their involvement become challenging to identify and at times, is lost completely. Our review findings indicate a need for the realist review community to develop guidance to support researchers in their future collaboration with contributors, including patients and the public

To what extent is behaviour a problem in English schools?:Exploring the scale and prevalence of deficits in classroom climate

The working atmosphere in the classroom is an important variable in the process of education in schools, with several studies suggesting that classroom climate is an important influence on pupil attainment. There are wide differences in the extent to which classroom climate is considered to be a problem in English schools. Some ‘official’ reports suggest that behaviour in schools is ‘satisfactory or better’ in the vast majority of schools; other sources have pointed to behaviour being a serious and widespread problem. The paper details four studies conducted over the past decade which aimed to explore these disparities. The aim of the research was to gain a more accurate insight into the extent to which deficits in classroom climate limit educational attainment and equality of educational opportunity in English schools. The findings question the suggestion that behaviour is satisfactory or better in 99.7% of English schools and the concluding section suggests ways in which deficits in classroom climate might be addressed. Although the study is limited to classrooms in England, OECD studies suggest that deficits in the working atmosphere in classrooms occur in many countries. The study therefore has potential relevance for education systems in other countries

Bile acid and inflammation activate gastric cardia stem cells in a mouse model of barrett-like metaplasia

Esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) arises from Barrett esophagus (BE), intestinal-like columnar metaplasia linked to reflux esophagitis. In a transgenic mouse model of BE, esophageal overexpression of interleukin-1β phenocopies human pathology with evolution of esophagitis, Barrett-like metaplasia and EAC. Histopathology and gene signatures closely resembled human BE, with upregulation of TFF2, Bmp4, Cdx2, Notch1, and IL-6. The development of BE and EAC was accelerated by exposure to bile acids and/or nitrosamines, and inhibited by IL-6 deficiency. Lgr5+ gastric cardia stem cells present in BE were able to lineage trace the early BE lesion. Our data suggest that BE and EAC arise from gastric progenitors due to a tumor-promoting IL-1β-IL-6 signaling cascade and Dll1-dependent Notch signaling. © 2012 Elsevier Inc