3DQ: Compact Quantized Neural Networks for Volumetric Whole Brain Segmentation

Model architectures have been dramatically increasing in size, improving performance at the cost of resource requirements. In this paper we propose 3DQ, a ternary quantization method, applied for the first time to 3D Fully Convolutional Neural Networks (F-CNNs), enabling 16x model compression while maintaining performance on par with full precision models. We extensively evaluate 3DQ on two datasets for the challenging task of whole brain segmentation. Additionally, we showcase our method's ability to generalize on two common 3D architectures, namely 3D U-Net and V-Net. Outperforming a variety of baselines, the proposed method is capable of compressing large 3D models to a few MBytes, alleviating the storage needs in space critical applications.Comment: Accepted to MICCAI 201

Characterizing normal crossing hypersurfaces

The objective of this article is to give an effective algebraic characterization of normal crossing hypersurfaces in complex manifolds. It is shown that a hypersurface has normal crossings if and only if it is a free divisor, has a radical Jacobian ideal and a smooth normalization. Using K. Saito's theory of free divisors, also a characterization in terms of logarithmic differential forms and vector fields is found and and finally another one in terms of the logarithmic residue using recent results of M. Granger and M. Schulze.Comment: v2: typos fixed, final version to appear in Math. Ann.; 24 pages, 2 figure

Non-invasive imaging of subsurface paint layers with optical coherence tomography

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) systems are fast scanning infrared Michelson interferometers designed for the non-invasive examination of the interiors of the eye and subsurface structures of biological tissues. OCT has recently been applied to the non-invasive examinations of the stratigraphy of paintings and museum artefacts. So far this is the only technique capable of imaging non-invasively the subsurface structure of paintings and painted objects. Unlike the traditional method of paint cross-section examination where sampling is required, the non-invasive and non-contact nature of the technique enables the examination of the paint cross-section anywhere on a painting, as there is no longer an issue with conservation ethics regarding the taking of samples from historical artefacts. A range of applications of the technique including the imaging of stratigraphy of paintings and painted artefacts, the imaging of underdrawings to the analysis of the optical properties of paint and varnish layers is presented. Future projects on the application of OCT to art conservation are discussed

Optical interferometry- from astronomy to art

After more than a century, Michelson’s interferometer is still at the forefront of scientific investigation. While the first application was in astronomy, it is now used as a novel technique in a wide range of subjects, notably in the form of Optical Coherence Tomography used primarily for biomedical applications. This paper will introduce a new application of the interferometer for the examination of art for conservation purposes

Development and application of two novel monoclonal antibodies against overexpressed CD26 and integrin α3 in human pancreatic cancer.

Monoclonal antibody (mAb) technology is an excellent tool for the discovery of overexpressed cell surface tumour antigens and the development of targeting agents. Here, we report the development of two novel mAbs against CFPAC-1 human pancreatic cancer cells. Using ELISA, flow cytometry, immunoprecipitation, mass spectrometry, Western blot and immunohistochemistry, we found that the target antigens recognised by the two novel mAbs KU44.22B and KU44.13A, are integrin α3 and CD26 respectively, with high levels of expression in human pancreatic and other cancer cell lines and human pancreatic cancer tissue microarrays. Treatment with naked anti-CD26 mAb KU44.13A did not have any effect on the growth and migration of cancer cells nor did it induce receptor downregulation. In contrast, treatment with anti-integrin α3 mAb KU44.22B inhibited growth in vitro of Capan-2 cells, increased migration of BxPC-3 and CFPAC-1 cells and induced antibody internalisation. Both novel mAbs are capable of detecting their target antigens by immunohistochemistry but not by Western blot. These antibodies are excellent tools for studying the role of integrin α3 and CD26 in the complex biology of pancreatic cancer, their prognostic and predictive values and the therapeutic potential of their humanised and/or conjugated versions in patients whose tumours overexpress integrin α3 or CD26

Multimodal imagery in music: Active ingredients and mechanisms underlying musical engagement

Clinicians and researchers have provided strong evidence for the efficacy of Guided Imagery and Music (GIM) and similar therapies across a wide range of clinical conditions. What is still lacking is a theoretical framework that would allow identification of the ‘active ingredients’ in this process. This paper seeks to introduce a new systemic framework for investigating such therapies by examining the biological roots as well as the role of music in the regulation of individual and social life to maintain homeostasis via multimodality by means of arousal, imagery, attentional engagement, emotion, memory and analogous processes. Taking the work of Edelman, Damasio and other leaders of modern neuroscience as a point of departure, homeostasis and multimodality are presented as essential not only to the human life process in terms of our active mental life but also to the fullness of Edelman's "primary consciousness" and Damasio's "core self." The implications of these intricate cross-connections are considered as well as the unique propensity for music to spontaneously and multimodally engage these connections. Proposals to evaluate these ideas and stimulate further research in both basic science and clinical practice are made

Transcriptome-Wide Association Supplements Genome-Wide Association in Zea mays.

Modern improvement of complex traits in agricultural species relies on successful associations of heritable molecular variation with observable phenotypes. Historically, this pursuit has primarily been based on easily measurable genetic markers. The recent advent of new technologies allows assaying and quantifying biological intermediates (hereafter endophenotypes) which are now readily measurable at a large scale across diverse individuals. The usefulness of endophenotypes for delineating the regulatory landscape of the genome and genetic dissection of complex trait variation remains underexplored in plants. The work presented here illustrated the utility of a large-scale (299-genotype and seven-tissue) gene expression resource to dissect traits across multiple levels of biological organization. Using single-tissue- and multi-tissue-based transcriptome-wide association studies (TWAS), we revealed that about half of the functional variation acts through altered transcript abundance for maize kernel traits, including 30 grain carotenoid abundance traits, 20 grain tocochromanol abundance traits, and 22 field-measured agronomic traits. Comparing the efficacy of TWAS with genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and an ensemble approach that combines both GWAS and TWAS, we demonstrated that results of TWAS in combination with GWAS increase the power to detect known genes and aid in prioritizing likely causal genes. Using a variance partitioning approach in the largely independent maize Nested Association Mapping (NAM) population, we also showed that the most strongly associated genes identified by combining GWAS and TWAS explain more heritable variance for a majority of traits than the heritability captured by the random genes and the genes identified by GWAS or TWAS alone. This not only improves the ability to link genes to phenotypes, but also highlights the phenotypic consequences of regulatory variation in plants

Efficient design and evaluation of countermeasures against fault attacks using formal verification

This paper presents a formal verification framework and tool that evaluates the robustness of software countermeasures against fault-injection attacks. By modeling reference assembly code and its protected variant as automata, the framework can generate a set of equations for an SMT solver, the solutions of which represent possible attack paths. Using the tool we developed, we evaluated the robustness of state-of-the-art countermeasures against fault injection attacks. Based on insights gathered from this evaluation, we analyze any remaining weaknesses and propose applications of these countermeasures that are more robust

Detection of T cell cytokine production as a tool for monitoring immunotherapy

There are many complex relationships between tu- mour cells and effector cells in the immune system. These interactions are controlled predominantly by cy- tokines, either within the tumour environment, or sys- temically where the effector cells may be stimulated as a response to the presence of the tumour. Favourable clinical responses in cancer patients have been shown to be associated with enhanced cell-mediated immunity as well as T cell infiltration in tumours. This status is controlled in part by a predominantly Th1 cytokine profile e.g. IFN γ , TNF α and IL-12. Conversely, pa- tients with advancing cancer may have impaired cell- mediated immunity as a result of an imbalance of Th1 and Th2 cytokines e.g. IL-4 and IL-10 [6,9,15]. Whilst cytokines have long been known to orchestrate the im- mune system by allowing communication between reg- ulatory and effector cells, the pleiotropic nature of these molecules results in a very complex environment in which to study any single molecule’s properties. Several in vitro protocols have been developed,which aim to closely reflect cytokine production and T cell function in vivo. However, these assays have been developed in artificial settings and as such only allow conclusions to be drawn within a defined context [11]. The aim of this report is to outline the basic proto-cols and applications for the detection of intracellular cytokines by flow cytometry, in the context of disease monitoring

Pengembangan Kurikulum Program Khusus Pengembangan Bahasa Arab Berparadigma Fakultatif

Learning Arabic is not that simply for the importance of getting language skill including istima\u27 skill (observing), kalam (speaking), qira\u27ah (reading) and kitabah (writing). But then it is for the importance of studying Islamic knowledge and even knowledge developed by faculty in UIN Maliki Malang. Up till now, curriculum in PKPBA UIN Maliki tended to have the quality subject-centered designs so it occurred discrepancy between the real need of students in that program inside of Arabic lesson. Curriculum design having facultative paradigm become one of the need to be formed in framework of establishing the purpose of developing PKPBA