New records of lichens and allied fungi from the Leningrad Region, Russia. III

Eight species of lichen-forming, eight lichenicolous and three non-lichenized fungi are reported from the Leningrad Region. Arthonia caerulescens, A. ligniaria, Hawksworthiana peltigericola, Micarea pycnidiophora and Trichonectria rubefaciens are new to Russia; Micarea lutulata, Protoparmelia oleagina and Stictis radiata are new to the North-Western European Russia; Lichenoconium lecanorae, Phaeocalicium populneum, Phaeosporobolus usneae, Ramboldia cinnabarina, Stictis brunnescens and Strigula stigmatella are new to the Leningrad Region. Most noteworthy records are briefly discussed.

Monitoring Breast Cancer Response to Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy Using Ultrasound Strain Elastography

© 2019 The Authors Strain elastography was used to monitor response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) in 92 patients with biopsy-proven, locally advanced breast cancer. Strain elastography data were collected before, during, and after NAC. Relative changes in tumor strain ratio (SR) were calculated over time, and responder status was classified according to tumor size changes. Statistical analyses determined the significance of changes in SR over time and between response groups. Machine learning techniques, such as a naïve Bayes classifier, were used to evaluate the performance of the SR as a marker for Miller-Payne pathological endpoints. With pathological complete response (pCR) as an endpoint, a significant difference (P < .01) in the SR was observed between response groups as early as 2 weeks into NAC. Naïve Bayes classifiers predicted pCR with a sensitivity of 84%, specificity of 85%, and area under the curve of 81% at the preoperative scan. This study demonstrates that strain elastography may be predictive of NAC response in locally advanced breast cancer as early as 2 weeks into treatment, with high sensitivity and specificity, granting it the potential to be used for active monitoring of tumor response to chemotherapy

Overview of Therapeutic Ultrasound Applications and Safety Considerations

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/135598/1/jum2012314623.pd

Lithospheric architecture and mantle metasomatism linked to iron oxide Cu-Au ore formation: multidisciplinary evidence from the Olympic Dam region, South Australia

The role of lithospheric architecture and the mantle in the genesis of iron oxide copper‐gold (IOCG) deposits is controversial. Using the example of the Precambrian Gawler Craton (South Australia), which hosts the giant Olympic Dam IOCG deposit, we integrate geophysical data (seismic tomography and magnetotellurics) with geological and geochemical data to develop a new interpretation of the lithospheric setting of these deposits. Spatially, IOCG deposits are located above the margin of a mantle lithospheric zone with anomalously high electrical conductivities (resistivity 1.80). The high conductivity cannot be explained by water‐bearing olivine‐rich rock alone. Relatively fertile and metasomatized peridotitic mantle with additional high‐Vp/Vs phases, for example, clinohumite, hydrous garnet, and/or phlogopite, could explain the anomalous velocity and conductivity. The top of this high‐Vp/Vsh zone marks a midlithospheric discontinuity at ~100–130 km depth that is interpreted to reflect locally orthopyroxene‐rich mantle. A sub‐Moho zone with high Vp/Vsh at ~40–80 km depth correlates spatially with primitive Nd isotope signatures and arc‐related ~1,620–1,610 Ma magmatism and is interpreted as the eclogitic root of a magmatic arc. Mafic volcanics contemporaneous with ~1,590 Ma IOCG mineralization have geochemistry suggesting derivation from subduction‐modified lithospheric mantle. We suggest that Olympic Dam formed inboard of a continental margin in a postsubduction setting, related to foundering of previously refertilized and metasomatized lithospheric mantle. Deposits formed during the switch from compression to extension, following delamination‐related uplift and exhumation.R.G. Skirrow, S.E. van der Wielen, D.C. Champion, K. Czarnota, and S. Thie

Subshell-selective x-ray studies of radiative recombination of U92+{\mathrm{U}}^{92+} ions with electrons for very low relative energies

Radiative recombination (RR) into the K shell and L subshells of U92+ ions interacting with cooling electrons has been studied in an x-ray RR experiment at the electron cooler of the Experimental Storage Ring at GSI. The measured radiative recombination rate coefficients for electron-ion relative energies in the range 0–1000 meV demonstrate the importance of relativistic effects. The observed asymmetry of the measured K-RR x-ray emission with respect to the cooling energy, i.e., zero average relative velocity (⟨vrel⟩=0), are explained by fully relativistic RR calculations. With our new approach, we show that the study of the angular distribution of RR photons for different relative energies opens new perspectives for detailed understanding of the RR of ions with cooling electrons in cold magnetized plasma

Chemical exchange saturation transfer MRI in central nervous system tumours on a 1.5 T MR-Linac

Purpose: To describe the implementation and initial results of using Chemical Exchange Saturation Transfer (CEST) for monitoring patients with central nervous system (CNS) tumours treated using a 1.5 tesla MR-guided radiotherapy system. Methods: CNS patients were treated with up to 30 fractions (total dose up to 60 Gy) using a 1.5 T Elekta Unity MR-Linac. CEST scans were obtained in 54 subjects at one or more time points during treatment. CEST metrics, including the amide magnetization transfer ratio (MTRAmide), nuclear Overhauser effect (NOE) MTR (MTRNOE) and asymmetry, were quantified in phantoms and CNS patients. The signal was investigated between tumour and white matter, across time, and across disease categories including high- and low-grade tumours. Results: The gross tumour volume (GTV) exhibited lower MTRAmide and MTRNOE and higher asymmetry compared to contralateral normal appearing white matter. Signal changes in the GTV during fractionated radiotherapy were observed. There were differences between high- and low-grade tumours, with higher CEST asymmetry associated with higher grade disease. Conclusion: CEST MRI using a 1.5 T MR-Linac was demonstrated to be feasible for in vivo imaging of CNS tumours. CEST images showed tumour/white-matter contrast, temporal CEST signal changes, and associations with tumour grade. These results show promise for the eventual goal of using metabolic imaging to inform the design of adaptive radiotherapy protocols

Zinc on the edge—isotopic and geophysical evidence that cratonic edges control world-class shale-hosted zinc-lead deposits

The North Australian Zinc Belt is the largest zinc-lead province in the world, containing three of the ten largest known individual deposits (HYC, Hilton-George Fisher, and Mount Isa). The Northern Cordillera in North America is the second largest zinc-lead province, containing a further two of the world’s top ten deposits (Red Dog and Howards Pass). Despite this world-class endowment, exploration in both mineral provinces during the past 2 decades has not been particularly successful, yielding only two significant discoveries (Teena, Australia, and Boundary, Canada). One of the most important aspects of exploration is to choose mineral provinces and districts within geological belts that have the greatest potential for discovery. Here, we present results from these two zinc belts that highlight previously unused datasets for area selection and targeting. Lead isotope mapping using analyses of mineralized material has identified gradients in μ (238U/204Pb) that coincide closely with many major deposits. Locations of these deposits also coincide with a gradient in the depth of the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary determined from calibrated surface wave tomography models converted to temperature. Furthermore, gradients in upward-continued gravity anomalies and a step in Moho depth correspond to a pre-existing major crustal boundary in both zinc belts. A spatial association of deposits with a linear mid- to lower-crustal resistivity anomaly from magnetotelluric data is also observed in the North Australian Zinc Belt. The change from thicker to thinner lithosphere is interpreted to localize prospective basins for zinc-lead mineralization and to control the gradient in lead isotope and geophysical data. These data, when combined with data indicative of paleoenvironment and changes in plate motion at the time of mineralization, provide new exploration criteria that can be used to identify prospective mineralized basins and define the most favorable parts of these basins

Analysis of Environmental Chemical Mixtures and Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Risk in the NCI-SEER NHL Study

Background: There are several suspected environmental risk factors for non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). The associations between NHL and environmental chemical exposures have typically been evaluated for individual chemicals (i.e., one-by-one). Objectives: We determined the association between a mixture of 27 correlated chemicals measured in house dust and NHL risk. Methods: We conducted a population-based case–control study of NHL in four National Cancer Institute–Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results centers—Detroit, Michigan; Iowa; Los Angeles County, California; and Seattle, Washington—from 1998 to 2000. We used weighted quantile sum (WQS) regression to model the association of a mixture of chemicals and risk of NHL. The WQS index was a sum of weighted quartiles for 5 polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), 7 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and 15 pesticides. We estimated chemical mixture weights and effects for study sites combined and for each site individually, and also for histologic subtypes of NHL. Results: The WQS index was statistically significantly associated with NHL overall [odds ratio (OR) = 1.30; 95% CI: 1.08, 1.56; p = 0.006; for one quartile increase] and in the study sites of Detroit (OR = 1.71; 95% CI: 1.02, 2.92; p = 0.045), Los Angeles (OR = 1.44; 95% CI: 1.00, 2.08; p = 0.049), and Iowa (OR = 1.76; 95% CI: 1.23, 2.53; p = 0.002). The index was marginally statistically significant in Seattle (OR = 1.39; 95% CI: 0.97, 1.99; p = 0.071). The most highly weighted chemicals for predicting risk overall were PCB congener 180 and propoxur. Highly weighted chemicals varied by study site; PCBs were more highly weighted in Detroit, and pesticides were more highly weighted in Iowa. Conclusions: An index of chemical mixtures was significantly associated with NHL. Our results show the importance of evaluating chemical mixtures when studying cancer risk

Predicting Breast Cancer Response to Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy Using Pretreatment Diffuse Optical Spectroscopic-Texture Analysis

Purpose: Diffuse optical spectroscopy (DOS) has been demonstrated capable of monitoring response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) in locally advanced breast cancer (LABC) patients. In this study, we evaluate texture features of pre-treatment DOS functional maps for predicting LABC response to NAC. Methods: LABC patients (n = 37) underwent DOS-breast imaging before starting neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Breast-tissue parametric maps were constructed and texture analyses were performed based on grey level co-occurrence matrices (GLCM) for feature extraction. Ground-truth labels as responders (R) or non-responders (NR) were assigned to patients based on Miller-Payne pathological response criteria. The capability of DOS-textural features computed on volumetric tumour data before the start of treatment (i.e. “pre-treatment”) to predict patient responses to NAC was evaluated using a leave-one-out validation scheme at subject level. Data were analysed using a logistic regression, naïve Bayes, and k-nearest neighbour (k-NN) classifiers. Results: Data indicated that textural characteristics of pre-treatment DOS parametric maps can differentiate between treatment response outcomes. The HbO2-homogeneity resulted in the highest accuracy amongst univariate parameters in predicting response to chemotherapy: sensitivity (%Sn) and specificity (%Sp) were 86.5 and 89.0%, respectively and accuracy was 87.8%. The highest predictors using multivariate (binary) combination features were the Hb-Contrast + HbO2-Homogeneity which resulted in a %Sn/%Sp = 78.0/81.0% and an accuracy of 79.5%. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that pre-treatment tumour DOS-texture features can predict breast cancer response to NAC and potentially guide treatments