876 research outputs found
An immunohistochemical study of the pancreatic endocrine cells of the ddN mouse.
The regional distribution and frequency of the pancreatic endocrine cells in the ddN mouse were studied using specific antisera against insulin, glucagon, somatostatin and human pancreatic polypeptide (hPP). In the pancreatic islets, most of insulin-immunoreactive (IR) cells were located in the central region, and glucagon-, somatostatin and hPP-IR cells were located in the peripheral region regardless of the lobe. In the splenic part, glucagon-IR cells were also located in the central regions, and more numerous somatostatin-IR cells were detected in the central regions as compared with the duo-denal part. hPP-IR cells were restricted to the peripheral regions in both lobes but more numerous cells were detected in the duodenal portion. In the exocrine parenchyma of the splenic lobe, only insulin- and glucagon-IR cells were detected but all four kinds of IR cells were observed in the duodenal portion. In addition, insulin and hPP-IR cells were also demonstrated in the pancreatic duct regions. In conclusion, some strain-dependent characteristic distributional patterns of pancreatic endocrine cells were found in the ddN mouse with somewhat different distributional patterns between the two pancreatic lobes
SSASS: Semi-Supervised Approach for Stenosis Segmentation
Coronary artery stenosis is a critical health risk, and its precise
identification in Coronary Angiography (CAG) can significantly aid medical
practitioners in accurately evaluating the severity of a patient's condition.
The complexity of coronary artery structures combined with the inherent noise
in X-ray images poses a considerable challenge to this task. To tackle these
obstacles, we introduce a semi-supervised approach for cardiovascular stenosis
segmentation. Our strategy begins with data augmentation, specifically tailored
to replicate the structural characteristics of coronary arteries. We then apply
a pseudo-label-based semi-supervised learning technique that leverages the data
generated through our augmentation process. Impressively, our approach
demonstrated an exceptional performance in the Automatic Region-based Coronary
Artery Disease diagnostics using x-ray angiography imagEs (ARCADE) Stenosis
Detection Algorithm challenge by utilizing a single model instead of relying on
an ensemble of multiple models. This success emphasizes our method's capability
and efficiency in providing an automated solution for accurately assessing
stenosis severity from medical imaging data.Comment: MICCAI 2023 Conference ARCADE Challeng
MPSeg : Multi-Phase strategy for coronary artery Segmentation
Accurate segmentation of coronary arteries is a pivotal process in assessing
cardiovascular diseases. However, the intricate structure of the cardiovascular
system presents significant challenges for automatic segmentation, especially
when utilizing methodologies like the SYNTAX Score, which relies extensively on
detailed structural information for precise risk stratification. To address
these difficulties and cater to this need, we present MPSeg, an innovative
multi-phase strategy designed for coronary artery segmentation. Our approach
specifically accommodates these structural complexities and adheres to the
principles of the SYNTAX Score. Initially, our method segregates vessels into
two categories based on their unique morphological characteristics: Left
Coronary Artery (LCA) and Right Coronary Artery (RCA). Specialized ensemble
models are then deployed for each category to execute the challenging
segmentation task. Due to LCA's higher complexity over RCA, a refinement model
is utilized to scrutinize and correct initial class predictions on segmented
areas. Notably, our approach demonstrated exceptional effectiveness when
evaluated in the Automatic Region-based Coronary Artery Disease diagnostics
using x-ray angiography imagEs (ARCADE) Segmentation Detection Algorithm
challenge at MICCAI 2023.Comment: MICCAI 2023 Conference ARCADE Challeng
Nanopores of carbon nanotubes as practical hydrogen storage media
We report on hydrogen desorption mechanisms in the nanopores of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). The as-grown MWCNTs show continuous walls that do not provide sites for hydrogen storage under ambient conditions. However, after treating the nanotubes with oxygen plasma to create nanopores in the MWCNTs, we observed the appearance of a new hydrogen desorption peak in the 300ā350 K range. Furthermore, the calculations of density functional theory and molecular dynamics simulations confirmed that this peak could be attributed to the hydrogen that is physically adsorbed inside nanopores whose diameter is approximately 1 nm. Thus, we demonstrated that 1 nm nanopores in MWCNTs offer a promising route to hydrogen storage media for onboard practical applications
In vitro antioxidant and anti-adipogenic effects of slendesta, standard potato extracts containing 5% protease inhibitor II
Background: The objective of the present study is to observe the anti-adipogenic effects of Slendesta (SLD), a standard potatoĀ protein extracts containing 5% potato protease inhibitor II (PI2) on the 3T3-L1 preadipocytes which are able to differentiate intoĀ mature adipocytes and accumulate lipids, as an obesity model with cytotoxicity and antioxidant effects.Materials and Methods: The cytotoxicity of SLD was observed against 3T3-L1 preadipocyte cell line by MTT assay, and also antiadipogenicĀ effects were observed through lipid accumulation assay during 3T3-L1 differentiation as comparing with N-Acetyl-LcysteineĀ (NAC). In addition, antioxidant effects of SLD were detected by free radical scavenging capacity and superoxide dismutaseĀ (SOD)-like activity as comparing with ascorbic acid.Results: The SLD showed obvious cytotoxicity against 3T3-L1 pre-adipocyte cell line at higher concentrations, from 1.5 mg/ml forĀ 72 h treatment, and the cytotoxic IC50 of SLD after 24, 48 and 72 h treatment times were detected as 10.11 Ā± 0.67, 5.71 Ā± 0.37 andĀ 5.34 Ā± 0.21 mg/ml, respectively. The SLD also concentration-dependently inhibited the lipid accumulations formatted during 3T3-L1Ā cell differentiations. The adipogenic specific genes including PPARĪ³, C/EBPĪ±, C/EBPĪ² and leptin were found to be reduced in SLDĀ and NAC-treated cells compared to control cells. Furthermore, the SLD effectively showed DPPH radical scavenging activity (IC50 =Ā 161.98 Ā± 64.65 Ī¼g/ml) and SOD-like effects (IC50 = 284.54 Ā± 54.47 Ī¼g/ml), and the cellular ROS was significantly inhibited in theĀ SLD-treated cells compared to control cells.Conclusion: The results suggest that SLD effectively inhibit the differentiations of 3T3-L1 preadipose cell probably throughĀ antioxidant activities and direct cytotoxicity in case of higher concentration, along with satiety effects mediated by increases ofĀ circulating cholecystokinin. These findings are considered as direct evidences that SLD may serve as a predictable functionalĀ ingredient for obesity as an alternative therapy.Key words: Slendesta, potato protease inhibitor II, 3T3-L1 cell, cytotoxicity, anti-adipogenic effects, antioxidant effects
Phylogenetic analysis and characterization of Korean orf virus from dairy goats: case report
An outbreak of orf virus infection in dairy goats in Korea was investigated. Suspected samples of the skin and lip of affected goats were sent to the laboratory for more exact diagnosis. Orf virus was detected by electron microscopy and viral DNA was identified by PCR. To reveal the genetic characteristics of the Korean strain (ORF/09/Korea), the sequences of the major envelope protein (B2L) and orf virus interferon resistance (VIR) genes were determined and then compared with published reference sequences. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the ORF/09/Korea strain was closest to the isolates (Taiping) from Taiwan. This is believed to be the first report on the molecular characterization of orf virus in Korea
Coupled CFD/CSD Analysis of a Hovering Rotor Using High Fidelity Unsteady Aerodynamics and a Geometrically Exact Rotor Blade Analysis
This paper presents a combination of a computational structural dynamics (CSD) and high fidelity unsteady computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis. Regarding a helicopter in hover, aerodynamic loads are computed from the three-dimensional Navier-Stokes solver in overlapped grids, and blade motions are obtained from the geometrically exact rotor beam analysis. To couple those analyses, a loose coupling method is adopted and the results are validated regarding a civil transport helicopter.This study was supported by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute under Korean Helicopter
Program Dual-Use Component Development Project, which is further funded by the Korean
Ministry of Knowledge and Economics. And this research has also been supported by the
Institute of Advanced Aerospace Technology in Seoul National University, Korea
Penetration Pathways Induced by Low-Frequency Sonophoresis with Physical and Chemical Enhancers: Iron Oxide Nanoparticles versus Lanthanum Nitrates
Low-frequency sonophoresis (LFS) has been shown to disrupt the structure of stratum corneum (SC) lipid bilayers and enhance SC permeability. In this study, we examined the penetration pathway of lanthanum nitrate (LaNO3) tracer in viable epidermis after combined treatment of LFS and tape stripping (TS), as a physical enhancer, or oleic acid (OA) application, as a chemical enhancer, using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). As a positive control, we visualized the passive diffusion pathway of LaNO3 and iron oxide (Fe3O4) nanoparticles after the incision of hairless mouse skin. Next, we applied LFS immediately after TS or OA application and visualized the penetration pathway of LaNO3. Each treatment showed restricted penetration to the SCāstratum granulosum (SG) interface or upper SG layer. However, the additional application of LFS induced diffuse intracellular distribution of LaNO3 throughout the viable epidermis. Quantitative analysis also revealed that combined treatment significantly increases LaNO3 penetration into viable epidermis when compared with each treatment. Our ultrastructural findings show the synergistic effect of LFS and TS or OA application on transdermal drug delivery. We also found that this combined treatment enhances the penetration of LaNO3 through the viable epidermis through an intracellular pathway
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