Coloring Deep CNN Layers with Activation Hue Loss

This paper proposes a novel hue-like angular parameter to model the structure of deep convolutional neural network (CNN) activation space, referred to as the {\em activation hue}, for the purpose of regularizing models for more effective learning. The activation hue generalizes the notion of color hue angle in standard 3-channel RGB intensity space to $N$-channel activation space. A series of observations based on nearest neighbor indexing of activation vectors with pre-trained networks indicate that class-informative activations are concentrated about an angle $\theta$ in both the $(x,y)$ image plane and in multi-channel activation space. A regularization term in the form of hue-like angular $\theta$ labels is proposed to complement standard one-hot loss. Training from scratch using combined one-hot + activation hue loss improves classification performance modestly for a wide variety of classification tasks, including ImageNet

One-Year Safety Analysis of the COMPARE-AMI Trial: Comparison of Intracoronary Injection of CD133+ Bone Marrow Stem Cells to Placebo in Patients after Acute Myocardial Infarction and Left Ventricular Dysfunction

Bone marrow stem cell therapy has emerged as a promising approach to improve healing of the infarcted myocardium. Despite initial excitement, recent clinical trials using non-homogenous stem cells preparations showed variable and mixed results. Selected CD133+ hematopoietic stem cells are candidate cells with high potential. Herein, we report the one-year safety analysis on the initial 20 patients enrolled in the COMPARE-AMI trial, the first double-blind randomized controlled trial comparing the safety, efficacy, and functional effect of intracoronary injection of selected CD133+ cells to placebo following acute myocardial infarction with persistent left ventricular dysfunction. At one year, there is no protocol-related complication to report such as death, myocardial infarction, stroke, or sustained ventricular arrhythmia. In addition, the left ventricular ejection fraction significantly improved at four months as compared to baseline and remained significantly higher at one year. These data indicate that in the setting of the COMPARE-AMI trial, the intracoronary injection of selected CD133+ stem cells is secure and feasible in patients with left ventricle dysfunction following acute myocardial infarction

The Relation Between Depressive Symptoms and Semantic Memory in Amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment and in Late-Life Depression

Semantic deficits have been documented in the prodromal phase of Alzheimer’s disease, but it is unclear whether these deficits are associated with non-cognitive manifestations. For instance, recent evidence indicates that cognitive deficits in elders with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) are modulated by concomitant depressive symptoms. The purposes of this study were to (i) investigate if semantic memory impairment in aMCI is modulated according to the presence (aMCI-D group) or absence (aMCI group) of depressive symptoms, and (ii) compare semantic memory performance of aMCI and aMCI-D groups to that of patients with late-life depression (LLD). Seventeen aMCI, 16 aMCI-D, 15 LLD, and 26 healthy control participants were administered a semantic questionnaire assessing famous person knowledge. Results showed that performance of aMCI-D patients was impaired compared to the control and LLD groups. However, in the aMCI group performance was comparable to that of all other groups. Overall, these findings suggest that semantic deficits in aMCI are somewhat associated with the presence of concomitant depressive symptoms. However, depression alone cannot account solely for the semantic deficits since LLD patients showed no semantic memory impairment in this study. Future studies should aim at clarifying the association between depression and semantic deficits in older adults meeting aMCI criteria.Instituts de recherche en santé du Canada (IRSC) IAO-8467

Trends in SAVR with biological vs. mechanical valves in middle-aged patients: results from a French large multi-centric survey

Background/introductionCurrently, despite continued issues with durability ( 1), biological prosthetic valves are increasingly chosen over mechanical valves for surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) in adult patients of all ages, at least in Western countries. For younger patients, this choice means assuming the risks associated with a redo SAVR or valve-in-valve procedure.PurposeTo assess the use of mechanical vs. biological valve prostheses for SAVR relative to patient's age and implant time in a large population extracted from the French National Database EPICARD.MethodsPatients in EPICARD undergoing SAVR from 2007 to 2022 were included from 22 participating public or private centers chosen to represent a balanced representation of centre sizes and geographical discrepancies. Patients with associated pathology of the aorta (aneurysm or dissection) and requiring a vascular aortic prosthesis were excluded. Comparisons were made amongst centers, valve choice, implant date range, and patient age.ResultsWe considered 101,070 valvular heart disease patients and included 72,375 SAVR (mean age 71.4 ± 12.2 years). We observed a mechanical vs. biological prosthesis ratio (MBPR) of 0.14 for the overall population. Before 50 years old (y-o), MBPR was >1.3 (p < 0.001) while patients above 60 years-old received principally biological SAVR (p < 0.0001). Concerning patients between 50 and 60 years-old patients, MPVR was 1.04 (p = 0.03). Patients 50–60 years-old from the first and second study duration quartile (before August 2015) received preferentially mechanical SAVR (p < 0.001). We observed a shift towards more biological SAVR (p < 0.001) for patients from the third and fourth quartile to reach a MBPR at 0.43 during the last years of the series. Incidentally, simultaneous mitral valve replacement were more common in case of mechanical SAVR (p < 0.0001), while associated CABGs were more frequent in case of biological SAVR (p < 0.0001).ConclusionIn a large contemporary French patient population, real world practice showed a recent shift towards a lower age-threshold for biological SAVR as compared to what would suggest contemporary guidelines

Global fine-resolution data on springtail abundance and community structure

Springtails (Collembola) inhabit soils from the Arctic to the Antarctic and comprise an estimated ~32% of all terrestrial arthropods on Earth. Here, we present a global, spatially-explicit database on springtail communities that includes 249,912 occurrences from 44,999 samples and 2,990 sites. These data are mainly raw sample-level records at the species level collected predominantly from private archives of the authors that were quality-controlled and taxonomically-standardised. Despite covering all continents, most of the sample-level data come from the European continent (82.5% of all samples) and represent four habitats: woodlands (57.4%), grasslands (14.0%), agrosystems (13.7%) and scrublands (9.0%). We included sampling by soil layers, and across seasons and years, representing temporal and spatial within-site variation in springtail communities. We also provided data use and sharing guidelines and R code to facilitate the use of the database by other researchers. This data paper describes a static version of the database at the publication date, but the database will be further expanded to include underrepresented regions and linked with trait data.</p

New genetic loci link adipose and insulin biology to body fat distribution.

Body fat distribution is a heritable trait and a well-established predictor of adverse metabolic outcomes, independent of overall adiposity. To increase our understanding of the genetic basis of body fat distribution and its molecular links to cardiometabolic traits, here we conduct genome-wide association meta-analyses of traits related to waist and hip circumferences in up to 224,459 individuals. We identify 49 loci (33 new) associated with waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for body mass index (BMI), and an additional 19 loci newly associated with related waist and hip circumference measures (P < 5 × 10(-8)). In total, 20 of the 49 waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for BMI loci show significant sexual dimorphism, 19 of which display a stronger effect in women. The identified loci were enriched for genes expressed in adipose tissue and for putative regulatory elements in adipocytes. Pathway analyses implicated adipogenesis, angiogenesis, transcriptional regulation and insulin resistance as processes affecting fat distribution, providing insight into potential pathophysiological mechanisms

ARIA digital anamorphosis: Digital transformation of health and care in airway diseases from research to practice

Digital anamorphosis is used to define a distorted image of health and care that may be viewed correctly using digital tools and strategies. MASK digital anamorphosis represents the process used by MASK to develop the digital transformation of health and care in rhinitis. It strengthens the ARIA change management strategy in the prevention and management of airway disease. The MASK strategy is based on validated digital tools. Using the MASK digital tool and the CARAT online enhanced clinical framework, solutions for practical steps of digital enhancement of care are proposed

Improving the growth of oak plantations using controlled mycorrhizrtion: Results from 12 experiments in north-erstern France

The growth of bare-root oak seedlings (Quercus petraea and Quercus robur), mycorrhized with Thelephora terrestris or four other fungi by means of nursery inoculation, was compared after outplanting in 12 clear-cut forest sites in North-Eastern France. Some strains of Paxillus involutus and Laccaria bicolor proved to be good candidates for routine inoculation in oak nurseries, compared to Thelephora terrestris, which is the dominant fungal symbiont, associated with commercial oak planting stock in France. They provide significant extra growth, resulting in reduced competition from the vegetation. However, the effect is nil if seedlings are planted in a grassy meadow.La croissance de semis de Chêne (Quercus petraea et Quercus robur) à racines nues, mycorhizés par Thelephora terrestris ou quatre autres champignons par inoculation en pépinière, a été comparée après plantation dans 12 parcelles forestières coupées à blanc dans le Nord-Est de la France. Certaines souches de Paxillus involutus et de Laccaria bicolor se sont révélées être de bonnes candidates pour l’inoculation en routine des pépinières de Chêne, par rapport à Thelephora terrestris qui est le principal symbionte fongique associé aux plants commerciaux de Chêne en France. Elles procurent un gain de croissance significatif, avec comme résultat une moindre compétition de la part de la végétation. Cependant, l’effet est nul si les semis sont plantés dans une prairie de graminées