Memetic electromagnetism algorithm for surface reconstruction with rational bivariate Bernstein basis functions

Surface reconstruction is a very important issue with outstanding applications in fields such as medical imaging (computer tomography, magnetic resonance), biomedical engineering (customized prosthesis and medical implants), computer-aided design and manufacturing (reverse engineering for the automotive, aerospace and shipbuilding industries), rapid prototyping (scale models of physical parts from CAD data), computer animation and film industry (motion capture, character modeling), archaeology (digital representation and storage of archaeological sites and assets), virtual/augmented reality, and many others. In this paper we address the surface reconstruction problem by using rational Bézier surfaces. This problem is by far more complex than the case for curves we solved in a previous paper. In addition, we deal with data points subjected to measurement noise and irregular sampling, replicating the usual conditions of real-world applications. Our method is based on a memetic approach combining a powerful metaheuristic method for global optimization (the electromagnetism algorithm) with a local search method. This method is applied to a benchmark of five illustrative examples exhibiting challenging features. Our experimental results show that the method performs very well, and it can recover the underlying shape of surfaces with very good accuracy.This research is kindly supported by the Computer Science National Program of the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, Project #TIN2012-30768, Toho University, and the University of Cantabria. The authors are particularly grateful to the Department of Information Science of Toho University for all the facilities given to carry out this work. We also thank the Editor and the two anonymous reviewers who helped us to improve our paper with several constructive comments and suggestions

Soft tissue and visceral sarcomas: ESMO-EURACAN-GENTURIS Clinical Practice Guidelines for diagnosis, treatment and follow-up

Soft tissue sarcomas (STSs) comprise ∼80 entities defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) classification based on a combination of distinctive morphological, immunohistochemical and molecular features.1 These ESMO–EURACAN–GENTURIS (European Society for Medical Oncology; European Reference Network for Rare Adult Solid Cancers; European Reference Network for Genetic Tumour Risk Syndromes) Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPGs) will cover STSs, with the exception of gastrointestinal stromal tumours (GISTs) that are covered in the ESMO–EURACAN–GENTURIS GIST CPGs.2 EURACAN and GENTURIS are the European Reference Networks connecting European institutions, appointed by their governments, to cover rare adult solid cancers and genetic cancer risk syndromes, respectively. Extraskeletal Ewing sarcoma, round cell sarcoma with EWSR1-non-ETS fusion and sarcomas with CIC rearrangements and BCOR genetic alterations are covered by the ESMO–EURACAN–GENTURIS–ERN PaedCan (European Reference Network for Paediatric Oncology) bone sarcomas CPG.3 Kaposi's sarcoma, embryonal and alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma are not discussed in this manuscript, while pleomorphic rhabdomyosarcoma is viewed as a high-grade, adult-type STS. Finally, extraskeletal osteosarcoma is also a considered a high-grade STS, whose clinical resemblance with osteosarcoma of bone is doubtful. The methodology followed during the consensus meeting is specified at the end of the manuscript in a dedicated paragraph

Virus Identification in Unknown Tropical Febrile Illness Cases Using Deep Sequencing

Dengue virus is an emerging infectious agent that infects an estimated 50–100 million people annually worldwide, yet current diagnostic practices cannot detect an etiologic pathogen in ∼40% of dengue-like illnesses. Metagenomic approaches to pathogen detection, such as viral microarrays and deep sequencing, are promising tools to address emerging and non-diagnosable disease challenges. In this study, we used the Virochip microarray and deep sequencing to characterize the spectrum of viruses present in human sera from 123 Nicaraguan patients presenting with dengue-like symptoms but testing negative for dengue virus. We utilized a barcoding strategy to simultaneously deep sequence multiple serum specimens, generating on average over 1 million reads per sample. We then implemented a stepwise bioinformatic filtering pipeline to remove the majority of human and low-quality sequences to improve the speed and accuracy of subsequent unbiased database searches. By deep sequencing, we were able to detect virus sequence in 37% (45/123) of previously negative cases. These included 13 cases with Human Herpesvirus 6 sequences. Other samples contained sequences with similarity to sequences from viruses in the Herpesviridae, Flaviviridae, Circoviridae, Anelloviridae, Asfarviridae, and Parvoviridae families. In some cases, the putative viral sequences were virtually identical to known viruses, and in others they diverged, suggesting that they may derive from novel viruses. These results demonstrate the utility of unbiased metagenomic approaches in the detection of known and divergent viruses in the study of tropical febrile illness

Bone sarcomas: ESMO-EURACAN-GENTURIS-ERN PaedCan Clinical Practice Guideline for diagnosis, treatment and follow-up

This Clinical Practice Guideline provides key recommendations on the management of bone sarcomas. // Recommendations have been agreed following a consensus meeting of representatives from ESMO, EURACAN, GENTURIS and ERNPaedCan. // Authorship includes a multidisciplinary group of experts from different institutions and countries worldwide

Deficiências de kacronutrientes e de boro em seringueira (Hevea brasiliensis L.)

In order to obtain: a) a clear picture of the deficiencies symptoms of N, P, K, Ca, Mg, S and B; b) the lack of the elements on the dry matter production; c) concentration of the macro and micronutrients on the leaves, stems and roots. Young rubber plants (Hevea brasiliensis L.), were cultivated in nutrients solutions, in which one the following elements were omitted at once: N, P, K, Ca, Mg, S and B. Clear out symptoms were obtained for all macronutrients and boron. The growth rate of the rubber plants were drastically affected by lack of N, K followed by other nutrients. The omission of P from the nutrient solution did not affected the growth of the plants. The levels detected by chemical analysis of the leaves from with symptoms of deficiency and without symptoms of deficiency plants were: N% = 1.94 and 3.40: P% =0.14 and 0.25; K% = 0.79 and 2.22; Ca% = 0.59 and 1.28; Mg% = 0.26 and 0.50; S% = 0.10 and 0.10; B ppm = 31-3 and 171.8.Plantas de seringueira (Hevea brasiliensis L.) foram cultivadas em casa de vegetação, em quartzo moído, irrigado com soluções nutritivas, e submetidas aos seguintes tratamentos: completo, omissão de N, omissão de P, omissão de Ca, omissão de Mg, omissão de S e omissão de B, com o objetivo de: (a) obter sintomas de deficiências de macronutrientes e de boro; (b) analisar o crescimento das plantas através da produção de matéria seca; (c) determinar a concentração de macro e micronutrientes nas folhas, caule e raízes das plantas cultivadas nos diversos tratamentos. Os sintomas visuais de deficiência foram identificados e descritos. As plantas foram coletadas e separadas em raiz, caule e folhas, e determinaram-se os teores de macro e micronutrientes . Os resultados mostraram: - foram identificados sintomas de deficiências para todos os tratamentos com omissão de nutrientes (N, P, K, Ca, Mg, S e B); - a omissão de N, K, Mg ou B da solução nutritiva diminuiu o crescimento das plantas; - as concentrações dos elementos nas folhas de plantas com sintomas e sem sintomas de deficiência foram, respectivamente: N% = 1,94 e 3,40; P% = 0,14 e 0,25; K% = 0,79 e 2,22; Ca% = 0,59e 1,28; Mg% = 0,26 e 0,50; S% = 0,10 e 0,10; Bppm = 31 ,3 e 171,8

The sacral chordoma margin

[Objective]: Aim of the manuscript is to discuss how to improve margins in sacral chordoma. [Background]: Chordoma is a rare neoplasm, arising in half cases from the sacrum, with reported local failure in >50% after surgery. [Methods]: A multidisciplinary meeting of the “Chordoma Global Consensus Group” was held in Milan in 2017, focusing on challenges in defining and achieving optimal margins in chordoma with respect to surgery, definitive particle radiation therapy (RT) and medical therapies. This review aims to report on the outcome of the consensus meeting and to provide a summary of the most recent evidence in this field. Possible new ways forward, including on-going international clinical studies, are discussed. [Results]: En-bloc tumor-sacrum resection is the cornerstone of treatment of primary sacral chordoma, aiming to achieve negative microscopic margins. Radical definitive particle therapy seems to offer a similar outcome compared to surgery, although confirmation in comparative trials is lacking; besides there is still a certain degree of technical variability across institutions, corresponding to different fields of treatment and different tumor coverage. To address some of these questions, a prospective, randomized international study comparing surgery versus definitive high-dose RT is ongoing. Available data do not support the routine use of any medical therapy as (neo)adjuvant/cytoreductive treatment. [Conclusion]: Given the significant influence of margins status on local control in patients with primary localized sacral chordoma, the clear definition of adequate margins and a standard local approach across institutions for both surgery and particle RT is vital for improving the management of these patients

Bone sarcomas: ESMO–EURACAN–GENTURIS–ERN PaedCan Clinical Practice Guideline for diagnosis, treatment and follow-up

Production costs have been covered by ESMO from central funds

Silver diagnosis in neuropathology: principles, practice and revised interpretation

Silver-staining methods are helpful for histological identification of pathological deposits. In spite of some ambiguities regarding their mechanism and interpretation, they are widely used for histopathological diagnosis. In this review, four major silver-staining methods, modified Bielschowsky, Bodian, Gallyas (GAL) and Campbell–Switzer (CS) methods, are outlined with respect to their principles, basic protocols and interpretations, thereby providing neuropathologists, technicians and neuroscientists with a common basis for comparing findings and identifying the issues that still need to be clarified. Some consider “argyrophilia” to be a homogeneous phenomenon irrespective of the lesion and the method. Thus, they seek to explain the differences among the methods by pointing to their different sensitivities in detecting lesions (quantitative difference). Comparative studies, however, have demonstrated that argyrophilia is heterogeneous and dependent not only on the method but also on the lesion (qualitative difference). Each staining method has its own lesion-dependent specificity and, within this specificity, its own sensitivity. This “method- and lesion-dependent” nature of argyrophilia enables operational sorting of disease-specific lesions based on their silver-staining profiles, which may potentially represent some disease-specific aspects. Furthermore, comparisons between immunohistochemical and biochemical data have revealed an empirical correlation between GAL+/CS-deposits and 4-repeat (4R) tau (corticobasal degeneration, progressive supranuclear palsy and argyrophilic grains) and its complementary reversal between GAL-/CS+deposits and 3-repeat (3R) tau (Pick bodies). Deposits containing both 3R and 4R tau (neurofibrillary tangles of Alzheimer type) are GAL+/CS+. Although no molecular explanations, other than these empiric correlations, are currently available, these distinctive features, especially when combined with immunohistochemistry, are useful because silver-staining methods and immunoreactions are complementary to each other