Context-dependent substroke model for HMM-based on-line handwriting recognition

Describes context-dependent substroke hidden Markov models (HMMs)for on-line handwritten recognition of cursive Kanji and Hiragana characters. In order to tackle this problem, we have proposed the substroke HMM approach where a modeling unit "substroke" that is much smaller than a whole character is employed and each character is modeled as a concatenation of only 25 kinds of substroke HMMs. One of the drawbacks of this approach is that the recognition accuracy deteriorates in the case of scribbled characters, and characters where the shape of the substrokes varies a lot. We show that the context-dependent substroke modeling which depends on how the substroke connects to the adjacent substrokes is effective for achieving robust recognition of low quality characters, The successive state splitting algorithm which was mainly developed for speech recognition is employed to construct the context dependent substroke HMMs. Experimental results show that the correct recognition rate improved from 88% to 92% for cursive Kanji handwriting and from 90% to 98% for Hiragana handwriting

Evaluation of Disambiguity for Kana-Kanji Transformation of Non-Segmented Japanese Kana Sentences by Markov Model

In this paper，we describe a method of disambiguity for kana-kanji transformation of non-segmented Japanese kana sentences by 2nd-order markov model. The experimental results using the newspaper articles show that this method is useful for disambibuity of the kana-kanji string candidates transformed from non-segmented kana bunsetsus，in case of bunsetsus being correct kana strings and ambiguous kalla strings

シンケイ センイショウ 1ガタ ノ セキチュウ ヘンケイ ニ トモナウ ロッコツ ズ ノ セキチュウカン ナイ ダッキュウ

2006 年4 月～2010 年3 月の神経線維腫症1 型に伴う脊柱変形手術例10 例中3 例に肋骨頭の脊柱管内脱臼がみられた.症例1 は6 歳の男児でT4-8:74°,T8-11:72° の側弯があり,左第4 と第5 肋骨頭の脊柱管内への陥入を認めた.症例2 は11 歳の男児でT3-7:100° の側弯とT3-T9:90° の後弯があり,左第6 肋骨頭が脊柱管内へ脱臼し,脊髄を圧排していた.症例3 は27 歳の女性でT6～9:73°,T9～12:68° の側弯とT6-10:91°の後弯を認め,右第7 肋骨頭の脊柱管内脱臼がみられた.本病態の報告例は少ないが,決して希な病態ではなくdystrophic change を伴う脊柱変形においては,肋骨頭の脊柱管内脱臼による潜在的リスクに注意する必要があると考える.Spinal deformities are common features in neurofibromatosistype-1( NF-1). Several types of deformities have been reported, however, intraspinal rib head dislocation (IRD)due to dystrophic change is very rare and not well understood. Between April 2006 and March 2010, we experienced3 patients with IRD out of 10 consecutive patients who underwent surgical treatment for dystrophic spinal deformities in NF-1. Case 1:A 6-year-old boy who had 74 ° short angular scoliosis at T4-8 and 72 ° at T8-11 underwent surgery in our institute. CT myelography demonstrated dystrophic changes with for aminal enlargement, vertebral body scalloping, rib penciling and mild IRD. He underwent the Growing Rod techniques and finally underwent posterior spinal fusion (PSF) from T1 to L2 combined with prophylactic rib head resection followed by anterior spinal fusion(ASF) with autologous fibular strut graft. No neurological complications were observed postoperatively and complete bony fusions were achieved. Case 2:Neurologically intact11-year-old boy presented with spinal deformity and caféau-lait spots. Radiography showed 100 ° scoliosis at T3-7and 72 ° at T3-9. CT myelography demonstrated dystrophic changes and IRD and impingement of spinal cord. He underwent PSF with removal of the T6 rib head followed by ASF. Case 3:A 27-year-old woman presented with back pain and spinal deformities. Radiography showed 73 °scoliosis at T6-9 and 91 ° at T9-12. CT myelography demonstrated dystrophic changes and IRD. She also underwentPSF with removal of T7 rib head followed by ASF. AllIRDs were observed at the apex of the convex side of scoliosis.It has a potential risk of spinal cord compression and may cause paraplegia or paraparesis. Therefore, high degree of suspicion is warranted for the treatments of scoliosis with intraspinal rib displacement in NF-1

Evidence of causality of low body mass index on risk of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis: a Mendelian randomization study

IntroductionAdolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) is a disorder with a three-dimensional spinal deformity and is a common disease affecting 1-5% of adolescents. AIS is also known as a complex disease involved in environmental and genetic factors. A relation between AIS and body mass index (BMI) has been epidemiologically and genetically suggested. However, the causal relationship between AIS and BMI remains to be elucidated.Material and methodsMendelian randomization (MR) analysis was performed using summary statistics from genome-wide association studies (GWASs) of AIS (Japanese cohort, 5,327 cases, 73,884 controls; US cohort: 1,468 cases, 20,158 controls) and BMI (Biobank Japan: 173430 individual; meta-analysis of genetic investigation of anthropometric traits and UK Biobank: 806334 individuals; European Children cohort: 39620 individuals; Population Architecture using Genomics and Epidemiology: 49335 individuals). In MR analyses evaluating the effect of BMI on AIS, the association between BMI and AIS summary statistics was evaluated using the inverse-variance weighted (IVW) method, weighted median method, and Egger regression (MR-Egger) methods in Japanese.ResultsSignificant causality of genetically decreased BMI on risk of AIS was estimated: IVW method (Estimate (beta) [SE] = -0.56 [0.16], p = 1.8 × 10-3), weighted median method (beta = -0.56 [0.18], p = 8.5 × 10-3) and MR-Egger method (beta = -1.50 [0.43], p = 4.7 × 10-3), respectively. Consistent results were also observed when using the US AIS summary statistic in three MR methods; however, no significant causality was observed when evaluating the effect of AIS on BMI.ConclusionsOur Mendelian randomization analysis using large studies of AIS and GWAS for BMI summary statistics revealed that genetic variants contributing to low BMI have a causal effect on the onset of AIS. This result was consistent with those of epidemiological studies and would contribute to the early detection of AIS

ATP as a Pathophysiologic Mediator of Bacteria-Host Crosstalk in the Gastrointestinal Tract

Extracellular nucleotides, such as adenosine triphosphate (ATP), are released from host cells including nerve termini, immune cells, injured or dead cells, and the commensal bacteria that reside in the gut lumen. Extracellular ATP interacts with the host through purinergic receptors, and promotes intercellular and bacteria-host communication to maintain the tissue homeostasis. However, the release of massive concentrations of ATP into extracellular compartments initiates acute and chronic inflammatory responses through the activation of immunocompetent cells (e.g., T cells, macrophages, and mast cells). In this review, we focus on the functions of ATP as a pathophysiologic mediator that is required for the induction and resolution of inflammation and inter-species communication