The use of neural network algorithms for the classification of undifferentiated arthritis by synovial histopathology

C

Embedding real-time in stochastic process algebras

We present a stochastic process algebra including immediate actions, deadlock and termination, and explicit stochastic delays, in the setting of weak choice between immediate actions and passage of time. The operational semantics is a spent time semantics, avoiding explicit clocks. We discuss the embedding of weak-choice real-time process theories and analyze the behavior of parallel composition in the weak choice framework

Staged Mucosal Advancement Flap versus Staged Fibrin Sealant in the Treatment of Complex Perianal Fistulas

Background. In this prospective randomised study, the staged mucosal advancement flap is compared with staged fibrin sealant application in the treatment of perianal fistulas. Methods. All patients with high complex cryptoglandular fistulas were randomised to closure of the internal opening by a mucosal advancement flap (MF) or injection with fibrin sealant (FS) after treatment with setons. Recurrence rate and incontinence disorders were explored. Results. The MF group (5 females and 10 males) with a median age of 51 years and a median followup of 52 months. The FS group (4 females and 11 males) with a median age of 45 years and a median followup of 49 months. Three (20%) patients of the MF group had a recurrent fistula compared to 9 (60%) of the FS group (P = 0.03). No new continence disorders developed. Conclusion. Staged FS injection has a much lower success rate compared to MF

The diagnostic value of synovial histopathology in undifferentiated inflammatory arthritis: a prospective study in 154 consecutive patients

C

Galaxy Zoo Builder: Four-component Photometric Decomposition of Spiral Galaxies Guided by Citizen Science

Multicomponent modeling of galaxies is a valuable tool in the effort to quantitatively understand galaxy evolution, yet the use of the technique is plagued by issues of convergence, model selection, and parameter degeneracies. These issues limit its application over large samples to the simplest models, with complex models being applied only to very small samples. We attempt to resolve this dilemma of "quantity or quality"by developing a novel framework, built inside the Zooniverse citizen-science platform, to enable the crowdsourcing of model creation for Sloan Digital Sky Survey galaxies. We have applied the method, including a final algorithmic optimization step, on a test sample of 198 galaxies, and examine the robustness of this new method. We also compare it to automated fitting pipelines, demonstrating that it is possible to consistently recover accurate models that either show good agreement with, or improve on, prior work. We conclude that citizen science is a promising technique for modeling images of complex galaxies, and release our catalog of models

The liver X receptor pathway is highly upregulated in rheumatoid arthritis synovial macrophages and potentiates TLR-driven cytokine release

<p>Objectives: Macrophages are central to the inflammatory processes driving rheumatoid arthritis (RA) synovitis. The molecular pathways that are induced in synovial macrophages and thereby promote RA disease pathology remain poorly understood.</p> <p>Methods: We used microarray to characterise the transcriptome of synovial fluid (SF) macrophages compared with matched peripheral blood monocytes from patients with RA (n=8).</p> <p>Results: Using in silico pathway mapping, we found that pathways downstream of the cholesterol activated liver X receptors (LXRs) and those associated with Toll-like receptor (TLR) signalling were upregulated in SF macrophages. Macrophage differentiation and tumour necrosis factor α promoted the expression of LXRα. Furthermore, in functional studies we demonstrated that activation of LXRs significantly augmented TLR-driven cytokine and chemokine secretion.</p> <p>Conclusions: The LXR pathway is the most upregulated pathway in RA synovial macrophages and activation of LXRs by ligands present within SF augments TLR-driven cytokine secretion. Since the natural agonists of LXRs arise from cholesterol metabolism, this provides a novel mechanism that can promote RA synovitis.</p&gt

Conditional Bigraphs

Bigraphs are a universal graph based model, designed for analysing reactive systems that include spatial and non-spatial (e.g. communication) relationships. Bigraphs evolve over time using a rewriting framework that finds instances of a (sub)-bigraph, and substitutes a new bigraph. In standard bigraphs, the applicability of a rewrite rule is determined completely by a local match and does not allow any non-local reasoning, i.e. contextual conditions. We introduce conditional bigraphs that add conditions to rules and show how these fit into the matching framework for standard bigraphs. An implementation is provided, along with a set of examples. Finally, we discuss the limits of application conditions within the existing matching framework and present ways to extend the range of conditions that may be expressed

Effect of Body Mass Index on pregnancy outcomes in nulliparous women delivering singleton babies

Peer reviewedPublisher PD