CG-fusion CAM: Online segmentation of laser-induced damage on large-aperture optics

Online segmentation of laser-induced damage on large-aperture optics in high-power laser facilities is challenged by complicated damage morphology, uneven illumination and stray light interference. Fully supervised semantic segmentation algorithms have achieved state-of-the-art performance, but rely on plenty of pixel-level labels, which are time-consuming and labor-consuming to produce. LayerCAM, an advanced weakly supervised semantic segmentation algorithm, can generate pixel-accurate results using only image-level labels, but its scattered and partially under-activated class activation regions degrade segmentation performance. In this paper, we propose a weakly supervised semantic segmentation method with Continuous Gradient CAM and its nonlinear multi-scale fusion (CG-fusion CAM). The method redesigns the way of back-propagating gradients and non-linearly activates the multi-scale fused heatmaps to generate more fine-grained class activation maps with appropriate activation degree for different sizes of damage sites. Experiments on our dataset show that the proposed method can achieve segmentation performance comparable to that of fully supervised algorithms

Can oblique lateral interbody fusion (OLIF) create more lumbosacral lordosis in lumbar spine surgery than minimally invasive transforaminal interbody fusion (MIS-TLIF)?

ObjectiveTo compare the differences in the correction effect for lumbosacral lordosis and clinical outcomes between OLIF with/without posterior pedicle screw fixation (PSF) and MIS-TLIF through a retrospective cohort study.MethodThere were 98 consecutive patients originally enrolled for the study, but 15 patients were excluded due to intraoperative endplate injury or osteotomy performed for severe spinal deformity. Thus, 83 patients included in this study (36 males and 47 females, mean age 65.8 years) underwent single to three-segment OLIF (including OLIF + PSF and OLIF Standalone) or MIS-TLIF surgery from 2016 to 2018. The operation time, bleeding and blood transfusion, fusion rate, complication, pre-and postoperative visual analogue scale (VAS), Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) were evaluated. In addition, radiological parameters including lumbosacral lordosis (LL), fused segment lordosis (FSL), anterior disc height (ADH) and posterior disc height (PDH) were measured. The clinical outcomes, LL, FSL, ADH and PDH restored and were compared between the OLIF group, OLIF subgroups and MIS-TLIF group.ResultsThe average operation time and intraoperative bleeding were significantly less in the OLIF group than in the MIS-TLIF group (163 ± 68 vs. 233 ± 79 min, 116 ± 148 vs. 434 ± 201 ml, P < 0.001). There was no statistically significant difference between the OLIF group and the MIS-TLIF group in VAS and ODI improvements, fusion rate, complication, LL and FSL correction (P > 0.05). The ADH and PDH increases in the OLIF group were more than that in MIS-TLIF group (P < 0.001). The correction of LL was significantly more in the OLIF + PSF group than in the MIS-TLIF group (9.9 ± 11.1 vs. 4.2 ± 6.1deg, P = 0.034).ConclusionOLIF and MIS-TLIF are both safe and effective procedures, capable of restoring lumbosacral lordosis and disc height partly. Combined with PSF, OLIF can achieve a better correction effect of lumbosacral lordosis than MIS-TLIF

Effect of symmetric and asymmetric field ratios for polarization gating on high-order harmonic generation

We simulate the high-order harmonic and attosecond pulse generation from the polarization gating pulse with equal and unequal ratios between the amplitudes of the two counter-rotation circular polarized pulses by using strong field approximation calculation and solving a 3D propagation equation. It is found that, when we keep the ionization probabilities at the end of the polarization gate the same, the effect of the field asymmetry is observed on the high-order harmonic cutoff in the frequency domain and the attosecond pulse duration in the time domain. When the harmonic chirp is compensated with help of a thin zirconium filter, our simulation demonstrates an isolated 61-as pulse can be generated from the polarization gating method with the asymmetric field ratio

Role of Blimp-1 in CD4 T cell exhaustion in cancer

Abstract Cancer is the second leading cause of death (8.8 million) globally according to the data published by World Health Organization (WHO) in 2015. Although treatments including surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy have been used clinically, these methods still have huge limitations in either curing the disease or prolonging patients’ life with good quality. Recently, highly promising therapies targeting immune checkpoint inhibitors such as programmed cell death protein 1 (PD1) pathway blockade have been brought forward. Nevertheless, with an increasing number of resistance from these therapies that have been observed, treatments do not work as effective as they should be in theory. Thus, it is important to have a closer look on the exact inhibitory mechanisms in tumor microenvironment. CD4 and CD8 T lymphocyte cells play critical roles in human cell-mediated immune response to cancer. However, due to over expression of inhibitory receptors, T cells ultimately lose their functionality which is manifested by decrease in their cytokine producing ability and other effector mechanisms. This stage is referred to as “state of T cell exhaustion”, and it results in the decreased host ability to prevent tumor growth, which leads to the failure of cancer elimination. In a melanoma cancer model, in depth analysis by 12-color flow cytometry showed increased expression of inhibitory markers PD1, 2B4, Tim3, and LAG3 on T cells in tumor bearing mice. However, the levels of inhibitory marker expression were different between CD8 and CD4 T cells. Similarly, cells from lymph nodes (LNs) and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) exhibited different inhibitory receptor expression patterns. By gating on antigen specific CD8 T cells using a surrogate marker strategy, CD44hiCD11ahi CD8 from TILs showed higher expression of all inhibitory markers as compared to the cells from LNs. Furthermore, SPICE analysis revealed that a greater proportion of TILs exhibited concomitant expression of three or more inhibitory markers when compared to CD8 T cells from the LNs. Antigen specific CD4 TILs (CD11ahiCD49dhi) exhibited a prominent increase in PD1 and LAG3 expression compared to LNs, but interestingly, 2B4 and Tim3 expression were similar to antigen specific CD4 T cells from the LNs. The expression of Blimp-1, a transcription factor associated with T cell exhaustion, was elevated in T cells that have the most concomitant increased expressions of several inhibitory markers. This is an agreement with published results from our laboratory which showed that high expression of Blimp-1 by CD4 T cells leads to their dysfunction during chronic toxoplasmosis

Association between Modic changes and endplate sclerosis: Evidence from a clinical radiology study and a rabbit model

Purpose: To analyse the presence of endplate sclerosis in patients with various types of Modic changes (MCs) and to confirm the results using a rabbit model. Methods: Participants in the clinical study included 1023 consecutive inpatients with lumbar degenerative disease who attended the Department of Orthopaedics between August 2011 and August 2015. All patients underwent computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging of the lumbar spine. In those patients with MCs, endplate sclerosis was evaluated from sagittally reconstructed CT images. In addition to the clinical study, MCs type I, II and III were initiated using a previously developed rabbit model of MCs. Specimens of MCs type I, II and III and normal endplates were harvested, bone mineral density and bone volume/tissue volume of “treated” vertebrae were evaluated using μCT and osteogenic protein expressions of runt-related transcription factor 2 and osteocalcin were assessed using immunohistochemical staining. Measurements were compared between vertebrae with normal endplates and those with different types of MCs. Results: Of 1023 patients, 214 (20.9%) had MCs in one or more endplates; these changes affected 1044 (10.2%) of 10230 endplates. Type I, II and III MCs were seen in 164 (1.6%), 838(8.2%) and 40 (0.4%) endplates, respectively. Of 1044 endplates with MCs, 274 (26.2%) showed evidence of sclerosis on CT images including: 26/164 endplates (15.8%) with type I MCs, 208/838 (24.8%) with type II and 40/40 (100%) with type III. HU (CT value) ratios for sclerotic and nonsclerotic endplates with MCs were 2.0 ± 0.3 and 1.1 ± 0.1, respectively. In the animal study, the bone mineral density, bone volume/tissue volume and expression of runt-related transcription factor 2 and osteocalcin of endplates with type I and II MCs were higher than those of normal endplates and lower than those of endplates with type III MCs. Conclusion: Sclerosis can occur in endplates with any type of MCs. However, the clinical and animal study suggests that sclerosis is greatest in endplates showing type III MCs. The translational potential of this article: The study showed that sclerosis can occur in endplates with MCs type I, II and III. In patients with endplate sclerosis on plain radiographs or CT scans, the endplate can still represent an inflammatory process associated with chronic lower back pain. Keywords: Computed tomography, Endplate sclerosis, Magnetic resonance imaging, Modic change

Histone Deacetylase 11 (HDAC11) Plays as a Novel Transcriptional Regulator in Hematopoiesis under Pathological Conditions

During hematopoiesis, multilineage progenitor cells and the precursors are committed to individual hematopoietic lineages. In normal myelopoiesis, the immature myeloid cells (IMCs) differentiate into macrophages, neutrophils or dendritic cells. However, under tumor burden, these IMCs differentiate into myeloid derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) result in an upregulation of immune suppressive factors1. The development of normal or malignant is tightly controlled by endogenous signals such as transcription factors and epigenetic regulations. HDAC11 is the newest identified members of the histone deacetylase (HDAC) family. Previous study in our group had identified HDAC11 as a negative regulator of interleukin 10 (IL-10) production in antigen-presenting cells(APCs). However, the mechanisms of HDAC11 in normal and malignant hematopoiesis remains unclear. We have uncovered for the first time that in the absence of HDAC11, upon LPS stimulation, neutrophils isolated form mice displays an overproduction of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-alpha and IL-6 using both mRNA and protein analysis. Strikingly, these HDAC11 KO neutrophils showed a significantly higher migratory and phagocytosis activity, resulting from an overexpression of the migratory receptor and cytokine CXCR/L2. We have performed Chromatin Immunoprecipitation (ChIP) analysis on the neutrophils and discovered that HDAC11 was recruited to the promoter regulatory region of these genes we have identified. Not only does HDAC11 plays a crucial role in the neutrophil function, our group have also found out that lacking of HDAC11 increase the suppressive activity of Myeloid-drived Suppressor Cells (MDSCs). The previous publication of our group had shown that the tumor bearing mice experienced a much more aggressive growth pattern in the HDAC11 KO mice compare with C57BL/6 wild type control. We observed a markedly higher expression of the lineage-specific transcription factor C/EBP-β mRNA in the CD11b+/Ly6G+ granulocytic compartment the CD11b+/Ly6C+ monocytic compartments of HDAC11KO mice relative to control mice. C/EBP-β has been proved to play a crucial role in the MDSCs generation and function2. To explore the mechanism we found out that HDAC11 was recruited to the promoter region of C/EBP-β of the primary myeloid cells. Taken together, we have uncovered a previously unknown role for HDAC11 as a transcriptional regulator in neutrophils and MDSCs function. In the absence of HDAC11, neutrophils function more pro-inflammatory upon infection. And interestingly, HDAC11 may function as an epigenetic checkpoint of C/EBP-β gene expression in the MDSCs under tumor condition. Our findings will lead to a better understanding of this novel role of HDAC11 in myeloid biology under different pathological conditions

ZnO nanoflowers modified with RuO2 for enhancing acetone sensing performance

Surface modification is a simple and effective means to promote the sensing performance of metal oxide semiconductor-based gas sensors. Marigold-shaped ZnO nanoflowers are fabricated via a simple precipitation reaction and subsequently catalytically modified with RuO2 on the surface through an ethylene glycol solvothermal treatment. The experimental results have proven that a very low content of Ru on the surface of ZnO exists in an oxidized state. However, the gas response of the sensor based on RuO2-modified ZnO is remarkably improved by 17 times to 100 ppm acetone with the decrease of optimal operating temperature from 219 degrees C-172 degrees C and reduction in recovery time from 79-52 s. The sensing enhancement mechanism of surface modification can be attributed to the formation of massive small heterostructure between p-type RuO2 ultrasmall nanoparticles and n-type ZnO as well as the catalytic effect of Ru4+ and a rougher surface

Comparison of modic changes in the lumbar and cervical spine, in 3167 patients with and without spinal pain.

There are few comparisons of Modic changes (MCs) in the lumbar and cervical spine.Compare the prevalence of MCs in the lumbar and cervical spine, and determine how MC prevalence depends on spinal pain, age, disc degeneration, spinal level, and the presence or absence of kyphosis.Retrospective clinical survey.Magnetic resonance images (MRIs) were compared from five patient groups: 1. 1223 patients with low-back pain/radiculopathy only; 2. 1023 patients with neck pain/radiculopathy only; 3. 497 patients with concurrent low-back and neck symptoms; 4. 304 asymptomatic subjects with lumbar MRIs; and 5. 120 asymptomatic subjects with cervical MRIs.The prevalence of MCs was higher in those with spinal pain than in those without, both in the lumbar spine (21.0% vs 10.5%) and cervical spine (8.8% vs 3.3%). Type II MCs were most common and Type III were least common in all groups. The prevalence of lumbar MCs in people with back pain was little affected by the presence of concurrent neck pain, and the same was true for the prevalence of cervical MCs in people with neck pain with or without concurrent back pain. When symptomatic patients were reclassified into two groups (back pain, neck pain), the prevalence of lumbar MCs in people with back pain was greater than that of cervical MCs in people with neck pain. The prevalence of lumbar and cervical MCs increased with age, disc degeneration, (descending) spinal level, and increased kyphosis.There is a significantly higher prevalence of MCs in patients with back and neck pain. The reported association with increased kyphosis (flat back) is novel