Bestimmung der Wuchshöhe von Kleegrasflächen mittels drohnenbasierten Oberflächenmodellen

Due to the rapid development and falling prices of drones (or unmanned aerial vehicles UAVs), new areas of application arise. UAVs are increasingly being used in agriculture, whether for the precise delivery of pesticides or for the large-scale monitoring of fields in the area of precision farming. In this thesis it has been investigated whether the height growth of clover grass surfaces can be monitored by means of drone-based surface models. From an experimental area, a terrain model and then at intervals of one month, three surface models were created over the growing season. The surface models were created using three different types of drones (eBee, eBee Plus and Phantom 4) as well as three different spatial resolutions (1cm / pixel, 3cm / pixel and 6cm / pixel). After each exposure of the vegetation surface, the height of the vegetation was measured by hand to obtain reference heights that were compared with the heights of the surface models.Durch die rasante Entwicklung und die sinkenden Preise von Drohnen (oder Unmanned Aerial Vehicles UAVs) ergeben sich neue Einsatzgebiete. UAVs werden immer mehr in der Landwirtschaft eingesetzt, sei es für die präzise Abgabe von Pestiziden oder für das grossflächige Monitoring der Felder, im Gebiet des “Precision Farming“. In dieser Bachelorarbeit wurde untersucht, ob sich das Höhenwachstum von Kleegrasflächen mittels drohnenbasierten Oberflächenmodellen überwachen lässt. Von einem Versuchsfeld wurden über die Vegetationsperiode ein Geländemodell und anschliessend im Abstand von je einem Monat, drei Oberflächenmodelle erstellt. Die Oberflächenmodelle wurden mit drei unterschiedlichen Drohnenty-pen (eBee, eBee Plus und Phantom 4) sowie drei verschiedenen räumlichen Bildauflösungen (1cm/Pixel, 3cm/Pixel und 6cm/Pixel) erstellt. Nach jeder Aufnahme der Vegetationsoberfläche wurde die Höhe der Vegetation von Hand gemessen, um Referenzhöhen zu erhalten, die mit den Höhen der Oberflächenmodellen verglichen werden konnten

A survey study of index food‐related allergic reactions and anaphylaxis management

Background:  Initial food‐allergic reactions are often poorly recognized and under‐treated. Methods:  Parents of food‐allergic children were invited to complete an online questionnaire, designed with Kids with Food Allergies Foundation , about their children’s first food‐allergic reactions resulting in urgent medical evaluation. Results:  Among 1361 reactions, 76% (95% CI 74–79%) were highly likely to represent anaphylaxis based on NIAID/FAAN criteria. Only 34% (95% CI 31–37%) of these were administered epinephrine. In 56% of these, epinephrine was administered by emergency departments; 20% by parents; 9% by paramedics; 8% by primary care physicians; and 6% by urgent care centers. In 26% of these, epinephrine was given within 15 min of the onset of symptoms; 54% within 30 min; 82% within 1 h; and 93% within 2 h. Factors associated with a decreased likelihood of receiving epinephrine for anaphylaxis included age <12 months, milk and egg triggers, and symptoms of abdominal pain and/or diarrhea. Epinephrine was more likely to be given to asthmatic children and children with peanut or tree nut ingestion prior to event. Post‐treatment, 42% of reactions likely to represent anaphylaxis were referred to allergists, 34% prescribed and/or given epinephrine auto‐injectors, 17% trained to use epinephrine auto‐injectors, and 19% given emergency action plans. Of patients treated with epinephrine, only half (47%) were prescribed epinephrine auto‐injectors. Conclusions:  Only one‐third of initial food‐allergic reactions with symptoms of anaphylaxis were recognized and treated with epinephrine. Fewer than half of patients were referred to allergists. There is still a need to increase education and awareness about food‐induced anaphylaxis.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/93515/1/pai1315.pd

High-level real-time programming in Java

Real-time systems have reached a level of complexity beyond the scaling capability of the low-level or restricted languages traditionally used for real-time programming. While Metronome garbage collection has made it practical to use Java to implement real-time systems, many challenges remain for the construction of complex real-time systems, some specic to the use of Java and others simply due to the change in scale of such systems. The goal of our research is the creation of a comprehensive Java-based programming environment and methodology for the creation of complex real-time systems. Our goals include construction of a provably correct real-time garbage collec-tor capable of providing worst case latencies of 100 s, capa-ble of scaling from sensor nodes up to large multiprocessors; specialized programming constructs that retain the safety and simplicity of Java, and yet provide sub-microsecond la-tencies; the extension of Java&apos;s \write once, run anywhere&quot; principle from functional correctness to timing behavior; on-line analysis and visualization that aids in the understanding of complex behaviors; and a principled probabilistic analy-sis methodology for bounding the behavior of the resulting systems. While much remains to be done, this paper describes the progress we have made towards these goals

Retrospective Analysis of Emotional Burden and the Need for Support of Patients and Their Informal Caregivers after Palliative Radiation Treatment for Brain Metastases

Cancer burdens not only the patients themselves but also their personal environment. A few studies have already focused on the mental health and personal needs of caregivers of patients. The purpose of this retrospective analysis was to further assess the emotional burden and unmet needs for support of caregivers in a population of brain metastasis patients. In the time period 2013-2020, we identified 42 informal caregivers of their respective patients after palliative radiation treatment for brain metastases. The caregivers completed two standardized questionnaires about different treatment aspects, their emotional burden, and unmet needs for support. Involvement of psycho-oncology and palliative care was examined in a chart review. The majority of the caregivers (71.4%, n = 30) suffered from high emotional burden during cancer treatment of their relatives and showed unmet needs for emotional and psychosocial support, mostly referring to information needs and the involvement in the patient's treatment decisions. Other unmet needs referred to handling personal needs and fears of dealing with the sick cancer patient in terms of practical care tasks and appropriate communication. Palliative care was involved in 30 cases and psycho-oncology in 12 cases. There is a high need for emotional and psychosocial support in informal caregivers of cancer patients. There might still be room for an improvement of psychosocial and psycho-oncological support. Care planning should cater to the emotional burden and unmet needs of informal caregivers as well. Further prospective studies in larger samples should be performed in order to confirm this analysis

Results at 2 Years after Gene Therapy for RPE65-Deficient Leber Congenital Amaurosis and Severe Early-Childhood–Onset Retinal Dystrophy

PurposeTo provide an initial assessment of the safety of a recombinant adeno-associated virus vector expressing RPE65 (rAAV2-CB-hRPE65) in adults and children with retinal degeneration caused by RPE65 mutations.DesignNonrandomized, multicenter clinical trial.ParticipantsEight adults and 4 children, 6 to 39 years of age, with Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA) or severe early-childhood–onset retinal degeneration (SECORD).MethodsPatients received a subretinal injection of rAAV2-CB-hRPE65 in the poorer-seeing eye, at either of 2 dose levels, and were followed up for 2 years after treatment.Main Outcome MeasuresThe primary safety measures were ocular and nonocular adverse events. Exploratory efficacy measures included changes in best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), static perimetry central 30° visual field hill of vision (V30) and total visual field hill of vision (VTOT), kinetic perimetry visual field area, and responses to a quality-of-life questionnaire.ResultsAll patients tolerated subretinal injections and there were no treatment-related serious adverse events. Common adverse events were those associated with the surgical procedure and included subconjunctival hemorrhage in 8 patients and ocular hyperemia in 5 patients. In the treated eye, BCVA increased in 5 patients, V30 increased in 6 patients, VTOT increased in 5 patients, and kinetic visual field area improved in 3 patients. One subject showed a decrease in BCVA and 2 patients showed a decrease in kinetic visual field area.ConclusionsTreatment with rAAV2-CB-hRPE65 was not associated with serious adverse events, and improvement in 1 or more measures of visual function was observed in 9 of 12 patients. The greatest improvements in visual acuity were observed in younger patients with better baseline visual acuity. Evaluation of more patients and a longer duration of follow-up will be needed to determine the rate of uncommon or rare side effects or safety concerns

Canine and Human Visual Cortex Intact and Responsive Despite Early Retinal Blindness from \u3cem\u3eRPE65\u3c/em\u3e Mutation

Background RPE65 is an essential molecule in the retinoid-visual cycle, and RPE65 gene mutations cause the congenital human blindness known as Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA). Somatic gene therapy delivered to the retina of blind dogs with an RPE65 mutation dramatically restores retinal physiology and has sparked international interest in human treatment trials for this incurable disease. An unanswered question is how the visual cortex responds after prolonged sensory deprivation from retinal dysfunction. We therefore studied the cortex of RPE65-mutant dogs before and after retinal gene therapy. Then, we inquired whether there is visual pathway integrity and responsivity in adult humans with LCA due to RPE65 mutations (RPE65-LCA). Methods and Findings RPE65-mutant dogs were studied with fMRI. Prior to therapy, retinal and subcortical responses to light were markedly diminished, and there were minimal cortical responses within the primary visual areas of the lateral gyrus (activation amplitude mean ± standard deviation [SD] = 0.07% ± 0.06% and volume = 1.3 ± 0.6 cm3). Following therapy, retinal and subcortical response restoration was accompanied by increased amplitude (0.18% ± 0.06%) and volume (8.2 ± 0.8 cm3) of activation within the lateral gyrus (p \u3c 0.005 for both). Cortical recovery occurred rapidly (within a month of treatment) and was persistent (as long as 2.5 y after treatment). Recovery was present even when treatment was provided as late as 1–4 y of age. Human RPE65-LCA patients (ages 18–23 y) were studied with structural magnetic resonance imaging. Optic nerve diameter (3.2 ± 0.5 mm) was within the normal range (3.2 ± 0.3 mm), and occipital cortical white matter density as judged by voxel-based morphometry was slightly but significantly altered (1.3 SD below control average, p = 0.005). Functional magnetic resonance imaging in human RPE65-LCA patients revealed cortical responses with a markedly diminished activation volume (8.8 ± 1.2 cm3) compared to controls (29.7 ± 8.3 cm3, p \u3c 0.001) when stimulated with lower intensity light. Unexpectedly, cortical response volume (41.2 ± 11.1 cm3) was comparable to normal (48.8 ± 3.1 cm3, p = 0.2) with higher intensity light stimulation. Conclusions Visual cortical responses dramatically improve after retinal gene therapy in the canine model of RPE65-LCA. Human RPE65-LCA patients have preserved visual pathway anatomy and detectable cortical activation despite limited visual experience. Taken together, the results support the potential for human visual benefit from retinal therapies currently being aimed at restoring vision to the congenitally blind with genetic retinal disease

Canine and Human Visual Cortex Intact and Responsive Despite Early Retinal Blindness from RPE65 Mutation

The study by Samuel Jacobson and colleagues suggests that retinal gene therapy can improve retinal, visual pathway, and visual cortex responses to light stimulation, even after prolonged periods of blindness and in congenitally blind patients

The SSN ontology of the W3C semantic sensor network incubator group

The W3C Semantic Sensor Network Incubator group (the SSN-XG) produced an OWL 2 ontology to describe sensors and observations ? the SSN ontology, available at http://purl.oclc.org/NET/ssnx/ssn. The SSN ontology can describe sensors in terms of capabilities, measurement processes, observations and deployments. This article describes the SSN ontology. It further gives an example and describes the use of the ontology in recent research projects

Caspase Inhibition with XIAP as an Adjunct to AAV Vector Gene-Replacement Therapy: Improving Efficacy and Prolonging the Treatment Window

AAV-mediated gene therapy in the rd10 mouse, with retinal degeneration caused by mutation in the rod cyclic guanosine monophosphate phosphodiesterase β-subunit (PDEβ) gene, produces significant, but transient, rescue of photoreceptor structure and function. This study evaluates the ability of AAV-mediated delivery of X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis (XIAP) to enhance and prolong the efficacy of PDEβ gene-replacement therapy.Rd10 mice were bred and housed in darkness. Two groups of animals were generated: Group 1 received sub-retinal AAV5-XIAP or AAV5-GFP at postnatal age (P) 4 or 21 days; Group 2 received sub-retinal AAV5-XIAP plus AAV5- PDEβ, AAV5-GFP plus AAV5- PDEβ, or AAV- PDEβ alone at age P4 or P21. Animals were maintained for an additional 4 weeks in darkness before being moved to a cyclic-light environment. A subset of animals from Group 1 received a second sub-retinal injection of AAV8-733-PDEβ two weeks after being moved to the light. Histology, immunohistochemistry, Western blots, and electroretinograms were performed at different times after moving to the light.Injection of AAV5-XIAP alone at P4 and 21 resulted in significant slowing of light-induced retinal degeneration, as measured by outer nuclear thickness and cell counts, but did not result in improved outer segment structure and rhodopsin localization. In contrast, co-injection of AAV5-XIAP and AAV5-PDEβ resulted in increased levels of rescue and decreased rates of retinal degeneration compared to treatment with AAV5-PDEβ alone. Mice treated with AAV5-XIAP at P4, but not P21, remained responsive to subsequent rescue by AAV8-733-PDEβ when injected two weeks after moving to a light-cycling environment.Adjunctive treatment with the anti-apoptotic gene XIAP confers additive protective effect to gene-replacement therapy with AAV5-PDEβ in the rd10 mouse. In addition, AAV5-XIAP, when given early, can increase the age at which gene-replacement therapy remains effective, thus effectively prolonging the window of opportunity for therapeutic intervention

Long-term retinal PEDF overexpression prevents neovascularization in a murine adult model of retinopathy

Neovascularization associated with diabetic retinopathy (DR) and other ocular disorders is a leading cause of visual impairment and adult-onset blindness. Currently available treatments are merely palliative and offer temporary solutions. Here, we tested the efficacy of antiangiogenic gene transfer in an animal model that mimics the chronic progression of human DR. Adeno-associated viral (AAV) vectors of serotype 2 coding for antiangiogenic Pigment Epithelium Derived Factor (PEDF) were injected in the vitreous of a 1.5 month-old transgenic model of retinopathy that develops progressive neovascularization. A single intravitreal injection led to long-term production of PEDF and to a striking inhibition of intravitreal neovascularization, normalization of retinal capillary density, and prevention of retinal detachment. This was parallel to a reduction in the intraocular levels of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF). Normalization of VEGF was consistent with a downregulation of downstream effectors of angiogenesis, such as the activity of Matrix Metalloproteinases (MMP) 2 and 9 and the content of Connective Tissue Growth Factor (CTGF). These results demonstrate long-term efficacy of AAV-mediated PEDF overexpression in counteracting retinal neovascularization in a relevant animal model, and provides evidence towards the use of this strategy to treat angiogenesis in DR and other chronic proliferative retinal disorders