Video Tracking for Animal Behavior Analysis

A procedure for rats behavior analysis using image and video processing methods is proposed. The analyzed scene consists of a plastic box split into three chambers by two walls. Two cages are placed in box marginal areas. Each cage can be populated or not by a rat. A free rat explores all three environment components. The proposed method determines the parameters necessary for overall motion analysis: entries number in each area and visit time. The algorithm consists of two steps. First, the moving rats are tracked and their trajectories are stored. In the final step, trajectories offline analysis is performed

Evaluation of MMR Status and PD-L1 Expression Using Specimens Obtained by EUS-FNB in Patients with Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma (PDAC)

Deficient DNA mismatch repair status (dMMR)/high microsatellite instability have been shown to be predictive biomarkers for immune checkpoint inhibitor drugs which block the programmed death protein-1/programmed death ligand-1 (PD-1/PD-L1) interaction between tumor cells and activated T cells. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of MMR status and quantification of PD-L1 expression in pancreatic endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle biopsy (EUS FNB) specimens. Immunochemistry (IHC) was performed on consecutive archived treatment-naïve formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded EUS-FNB samples. The specimens were considered to have PD-L1 expression if PD-L1 was expressed in ≥1% of tumor cells and a high level of expression if ≥50%. Tumors with absent nuclear staining of DNA mismatch repair proteins (MLH1, MSH2, MSH6, or PMS2) were classified as dMMR. A total of 28 treatment-naïve patients who underwent EUS-FNB and had a final diagnosis of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) were included in the study. All the EUS-FNB samples were adequate for the evaluation of MMR and PD-L1 expression. None of the patients with PDAC included in the study had a dMMR tumor. PD-L1 expression was identified in 39% of the cohort (n = 11). Expression thresholds of ≥1%, ≥10%, and ≥50% in tumor cells were identified in 11 (39%), 4 (14%), and 1 (4%) patients, respectively. The evaluation of MMR status and PD-L1 can be successfully performed on EUS-FNB pancreatic specimens. Furthermore, MMR expression failed to show utility in recognizing immunotherapy vulnerability in pancreatic cancer; the only recommendation for testing remains for patients with heritable cancers. Meanwhile high PD-L1 expression was correlated with poor prognosis. This association may identify a subgroup of patients where immune checkpoints inhibitors could provide therapeutic benefits, spotlighting the role of EUS-FNB in the field of immune-oncology

Technical Performance, Overall Accuracy and Complications of EUS-Guided Interventional Procedures: A Dynamic Landscape

Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) gained wide acceptance as the diagnostic and minimally invasive therapeutic approach for intra-luminal and extraluminal gastrointestinal, as well as various non-gastrointestinal lesions. Since its introduction, EUS has undergone substantial technological advances. This multi-centric study is a retrospective analysis of a prospectively maintained database of patients who underwent EUS for the evaluation of lesions located within the gastrointestinal tract and the proximal organs. It aimed to extensively assess in dynamic the dual-center EUS experience over the course of the past 20 years. Hence, we performed a population study and an overall assessment of the EUS procedures. The performance of EUS-FNA/FNB in diagnosing pancreatic neoplasms was evaluated. We also investigated the contribution of associating contrast-enhanced ultrasound imaging (CE-EUS) with EUS-FNA/FNB for differentiating solid pancreatic lesions or cystic pancreatic lesions. A total of 2935 patients undergoing EUS between 2002–2021 were included, out of which 1880 were diagnostic EUS and 1052 EUS-FNA/FNB (80% FNA and 20% FNB). Therapeutic procedures performed included endoscopic transmural drainage of pancreatic fluid collections, celiac plexus block and neurolysis, while diagnostic EUS-like CE-EUS (20%) and real-time elastography (12%) were also conducted. Most complications occurred during the first 7 days after EUS-FNA/FNB or pseudocyst drainage. EUS and the additional tools have high technical success rates and low rates of complications. The EUS methods are safe, cost effective and indispensable for the diagnostic or therapeutic management in gastroenterological everyday practice

Siponimod versus placebo in secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (EXPAND): a double-blind, randomised, phase 3 study

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