AMR Normalization for Fairer Evaluation

Meaning Representation (AMR; Banarescu et al., 2013) encodes the meaning of sentences as a directed graph and Smatch (Cai and Knight, 2013) is the primary metric for evaluating AMR graphs. Smatch, however, is unaware of some meaning-equivalent variations in graph structure allowed by the AMR Specification and gives different scores for AMRs exhibiting these variations. In this paper I propose four normalization methods for helping to ensure that conceptually equivalent AMRs are evaluated as equivalent. Equivalent AMRs with and without normalization can look quite different---comparing a gold corpus to itself with relation reification alone yields a difference of 25 Smatch points, suggesting that the outputs of two systems may not be directly comparable without normalization. The algorithms described in this paper are implemented on top of an existing open-source Python toolkit for AMR and will be released under the same license.Comment: Updates: fixed errors in Figs 5--7; adjusted Fig 6 for clarity; added software version numbers; added acknowledgments; fix typo in bibliograph

From IGT to precision grammar: French verbal morphology

No abstract

D-cycloserine augmentation of exposure-based cognitive behavior therapy for anxiety, obsessive-compulsive, and posttraumatic stress disorders: a systematic review and meta-analysis of individual participant data

Importance: Whether and under which conditions D-cycloserine (DCS) augments the effects of exposure-based cognitive behavior therapy for anxiety, obsessive-compulsive, and posttraumatic stress disorders is unclear. Objective: To clarify whether DCS is superior to placebo in augmenting the effects of cognitive behavior therapy for anxiety, obsessive-compulsive, and posttraumatic stress disorders and to evaluate whether antidepressants interact with DCS and the effect of potential moderating variables. Data Sources: PubMed, EMBASE, and PsycINFO were searched from inception to February 10, 2016. Reference lists of previous reviews and meta-analyses and reports of randomized clinical trials were also checked. Study Selection: Studies were eligible for inclusion if they were (1) double-blind randomized clinical trials of DCS as an augmentation strategy for exposure-based cognitive behavior therapy and (2) conducted in humans diagnosed as having specific phobia, social anxiety disorder, panic disorder with or without agoraphobia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, or posttraumatic stress disorder. Data Extraction and Synthesis: Raw data were obtained from the authors and quality controlled. Data were ranked to ensure a consistent metric across studies (score range, 0-100). We used a 3-level multilevel model nesting repeated measures of outcomes within participants, who were nested within studies. Results: Individual participant data were obtained for 21 of 22 eligible trials, representing 1047 of 1073 eligible participants. When controlling for antidepressant use, participants receiving DCS showed greater improvement from pretreatment to posttreatment (mean difference, -3.62; 95% CI, -0.81 to -6.43; P = .01; d = -0.25) but not from pretreatment to midtreatment (mean difference, -1.66; 95% CI, -4.92 to 1.60; P = .32; d = -0.14) or from pretreatment to follow-up (mean difference, -2.98, 95% CI, -5.99 to 0.03; P = .05; d = -0.19). Additional analyses showed that participants assigned to DCS were associated with lower symptom severity than those assigned to placebo at posttreatment and at follow-up. Antidepressants did not moderate the effects of DCS. None of the prespecified patient-level or study-level moderators was associated with outcomes. Conclusions and Relevance: D-cycloserine is associated with a small augmentation effect on exposure-based therapy. This effect is not moderated by the concurrent use of antidepressants. Further research is needed to identify patient and/or therapy characteristics associated with DCS response.2018-05-0

3B11-N, a monoclonal antibody against MERS-CoV, reduces lung pathology in rhesus monkeys following intratracheal inoculation of MERS-CoV Jordan-n3/2012

Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) was identified in 2012 as the causative agent of a severe, lethal respiratory disease occurring across several countries in the Middle East. To date there have been over 1,600 laboratory confirmed cases of MERS-CoV in 26 countries with a case fatality rate of 36%. Given the endemic region, it is possible that MERS-CoV could spread during the annual Hajj pilgrimage, necessitating countermeasure development. In this report, we describe the clinical and radiographic changes of rhesus monkeys following infection with 5×106 PFU MERS-CoV Jordan-n3/2012. Two groups of NHPs were treated with either a human anti-MERS monoclonal antibody 3B11-N or E410-N, an anti-HIV antibody. MERS-CoV Jordan-n3/2012 infection resulted in quantifiable changes by computed tomography, but limited other clinical signs of disease. 3B11-N treated subjects developed significantly reduced lung pathology when compared to infected, untreated subjects, indicating that this antibody may be a suitable MERS-CoV treatment

The Case for Adaptive Neuromodulation to Treat Severe Intractable Mental Disorders

Mental disorders are a leading cause of disability worldwide, and available treatments have limited efficacy for severe cases unresponsive to conventional therapies. Neurosurgical interventions, such as lesioning procedures, have shown success in treating refractory cases of mental illness, but may have irreversible side effects. Neuromodulation therapies, specifically Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS), may offer similar therapeutic benefits using a reversible (explantable) and adjustable platform. Early DBS trials have been promising, however, pivotal clinical trials have failed to date. These failures may be attributed to targeting, patient selection, or the “open-loop” nature of DBS, where stimulation parameters are chosen ad hoc during infrequent visits to the clinician’s office that take place weeks to months apart. Further, the tonic continuous stimulation fails to address the dynamic nature of mental illness; symptoms often fluctuate over minutes to days. Additionally, stimulation-based interventions can cause undesirable effects if applied when not needed. A responsive, adaptive DBS (aDBS) system may improve efficacy by titrating stimulation parameters in response to neural signatures (i.e., biomarkers) related to symptoms and side effects. Here, we present rationale for the development of a responsive DBS system for treatment of refractory mental illness, detail a strategic approach for identification of electrophysiological and behavioral biomarkers of mental illness, and discuss opportunities for future technological developments that may harness aDBS to deliver improved therapy

Proceedings of the Third Annual Deep Brain Stimulation Think Tank: A Review of Emerging Issues and Technologies

The proceedings of the 3rd Annual Deep Brain Stimulation Think Tank summarize the most contemporary clinical, electrophysiological, imaging, and computational work on DBS for the treatment of neurological and neuropsychiatric disease. Significant innovations of the past year are emphasized. The Think Tank\u27s contributors represent a unique multidisciplinary ensemble of expert neurologists, neurosurgeons, neuropsychologists, psychiatrists, scientists, engineers, and members of industry. Presentations and discussions covered a broad range of topics, including policy and advocacy considerations for the future of DBS, connectomic approaches to DBS targeting, developments in electrophysiology and related strides toward responsive DBS systems, and recent developments in sensor and device technologies