Decision Making in Reinforcement Learning Using a Modified Learning Space Based on the Importance of Sensors

Many studies have been conducted on the application of reinforcement learning (RL) to robots. A robot which is made for general purpose has redundant sensors or actuators because it is difficult to assume an environment that the robot will face and a task that the robot must execute. In this case, Q-space on RL contains redundancy so that the robot must take much time to learn a given task. In this study, we focus on the importance of sensors with regard to a robot\u27s performance of a particular task. The sensors that are applicable to a task differ according to the task. By using the importance of the sensors, we try to adjust the state number of the sensors and to reduce the size of Q-space. In this paper, we define the measure of importance of a sensor for a task with the correlation between the value of each sensor and reward. A robot calculates the importance of the sensors and makes the size of Q-space smaller. We propose the method which reduces learning space and construct the learning system by putting it in RL. In this paper, we confirm the effectiveness of our proposed system with an experimental robot

Intrinsic Promoter Activities of Primary DNA Sequences in the Human Genome

In order to understand an overview of promoter activities intrinsic to primary DNA sequences in the human genome within a particular cell type, we carried out systematic quantitative luciferase assays of DNA fragments corresponding to putative promoters for 472 human genes which are expressed in HEK (human embryonic kidney epithelial) 293 cells. We observed the promoter activities of them were distributed in a bimodal manner; putative promoters belonging to the first group (with strong promoter activities) were designated as P1 and the latter (with weak promoter activities) as P2. The frequencies of the TATA-boxes, the CpG islands, and the overall G + C-contents were significantly different between these two populations, indicating there are two separate groups of promoters. Interestingly, similar analysis using 251 randomly isolated genomic DNA fragments showed that P2-type promoter occasionally occurs within the human genome. Furthermore, 35 DNA fragments corresponding to putative promoters of non-protein-coding transcripts (ncRNAs) shared similar features with the P2 in both promoter activities and sequence compositions. At least, a part of ncRNAs, which have been massively identified by full-length cDNA projects with no functional relevance inferred, may have originated from those sporadic promoter activities of primary DNA sequences inherent to the human genome

One-Step Detection of the 2009 Pandemic Influenza A(H1N1) Virus by the RT-SmartAmp Assay and Its Clinical Validation

<div><h3>Background</h3><p>In 2009, a pandemic (pdm) influenza A(H1N1) virus infection quickly circulated globally resulting in about 18,000 deaths around the world. In Japan, infected patients accounted for 16% of the total population. The possibility of human-to-human transmission of highly pathogenic novel influenza viruses is becoming a fear for human health and society.</p> <h3>Methodology</h3><p>To address the clinical need for rapid diagnosis, we have developed a new method, the “RT-SmartAmp assay”, to rapidly detect the 2009 pandemic influenza A(H1N1) virus from patient swab samples. The RT-SmartAmp assay comprises both reverse transcriptase (RT) and isothermal DNA amplification reactions in one step, where RNA extraction and PCR reaction are not required. We used an exciton-controlled hybridization-sensitive fluorescent primer to specifically detect the HA segment of the 2009 pdm influenza A(H1N1) virus within 40 minutes without cross-reacting with the seasonal A(H1N1), A(H3N2), or B-type (Victoria) viruses.</p> <h3>Results and Conclusions</h3><p>We evaluated the RT-SmartAmp method in clinical research carried out in Japan during a pandemic period of October 2009 to January 2010. A total of 255 swab samples were collected from outpatients with influenza-like illness at three hospitals and eleven clinics located in the Tokyo and Chiba areas in Japan. The 2009 pdm influenza A(H1N1) virus was detected by the RT-SmartAmp assay, and the detection results were subsequently compared with data of current influenza diagnostic tests (lateral flow immuno-chromatographic tests) and viral genome sequence analysis. In conclusion, by the RT-SmartAmp assay we could detect the 2009 pdm influenza A(H1N1) virus in patients' swab samples even in early stages after the initial onset of influenza symptoms. Thus, the RT-SmartAmp assay is considered to provide a simple and practical tool to rapidly detect the 2009 pdm influenza A(H1N1) virus.</p> </div

Integrative Annotation of 21,037 Human Genes Validated by Full-Length cDNA Clones

The human genome sequence defines our inherent biological potential; the realization of the biology encoded therein requires knowledge of the function of each gene. Currently, our knowledge in this area is still limited. Several lines of investigation have been used to elucidate the structure and function of the genes in the human genome. Even so, gene prediction remains a difficult task, as the varieties of transcripts of a gene may vary to a great extent. We thus performed an exhaustive integrative characterization of 41,118 full-length cDNAs that capture the gene transcripts as complete functional cassettes, providing an unequivocal report of structural and functional diversity at the gene level. Our international collaboration has validated 21,037 human gene candidates by analysis of high-quality full-length cDNA clones through curation using unified criteria. This led to the identification of 5,155 new gene candidates. It also manifested the most reliable way to control the quality of the cDNA clones. We have developed a human gene database, called the H-Invitational Database (H-InvDB; http://www.h-invitational.jp/). It provides the following: integrative annotation of human genes, description of gene structures, details of novel alternative splicing isoforms, non-protein-coding RNAs, functional domains, subcellular localizations, metabolic pathways, predictions of protein three-dimensional structure, mapping of known single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), identification of polymorphic microsatellite repeats within human genes, and comparative results with mouse full-length cDNAs. The H-InvDB analysis has shown that up to 4% of the human genome sequence (National Center for Biotechnology Information build 34 assembly) may contain misassembled or missing regions. We found that 6.5% of the human gene candidates (1,377 loci) did not have a good protein-coding open reading frame, of which 296 loci are strong candidates for non-protein-coding RNA genes. In addition, among 72,027 uniquely mapped SNPs and insertions/deletions localized within human genes, 13,215 nonsynonymous SNPs, 315 nonsense SNPs, and 452 indels occurred in coding regions. Together with 25 polymorphic microsatellite repeats present in coding regions, they may alter protein structure, causing phenotypic effects or resulting in disease. The H-InvDB platform represents a substantial contribution to resources needed for the exploration of human biology and pathology

Integrative annotation of 21,037 human genes validated by full-length cDNA clones.

publication en ligne. Article dans revue scientifique avec comité de lecture. nationale.National audienceThe human genome sequence defines our inherent biological potential; the realization of the biology encoded therein requires knowledge of the function of each gene. Currently, our knowledge in this area is still limited. Several lines of investigation have been used to elucidate the structure and function of the genes in the human genome. Even so, gene prediction remains a difficult task, as the varieties of transcripts of a gene may vary to a great extent. We thus performed an exhaustive integrative characterization of 41,118 full-length cDNAs that capture the gene transcripts as complete functional cassettes, providing an unequivocal report of structural and functional diversity at the gene level. Our international collaboration has validated 21,037 human gene candidates by analysis of high-quality full-length cDNA clones through curation using unified criteria. This led to the identification of 5,155 new gene candidates. It also manifested the most reliable way to control the quality of the cDNA clones. We have developed a human gene database, called the H-Invitational Database (H-InvDB; http://www.h-invitational.jp/). It provides the following: integrative annotation of human genes, description of gene structures, details of novel alternative splicing isoforms, non-protein-coding RNAs, functional domains, subcellular localizations, metabolic pathways, predictions of protein three-dimensional structure, mapping of known single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), identification of polymorphic microsatellite repeats within human genes, and comparative results with mouse full-length cDNAs. The H-InvDB analysis has shown that up to 4% of the human genome sequence (National Center for Biotechnology Information build 34 assembly) may contain misassembled or missing regions. We found that 6.5% of the human gene candidates (1,377 loci) did not have a good protein-coding open reading frame, of which 296 loci are strong candidates for non-protein-coding RNA genes. In addition, among 72,027 uniquely mapped SNPs and insertions/deletions localized within human genes, 13,215 nonsynonymous SNPs, 315 nonsense SNPs, and 452 indels occurred in coding regions. Together with 25 polymorphic microsatellite repeats present in coding regions, they may alter protein structure, causing phenotypic effects or resulting in disease. The H-InvDB platform represents a substantial contribution to resources needed for the exploration of human biology and pathology

Decision Making in Reinforcement Learning Using a Modified Learning Space Based on the Importance of Sensors

Many studies have been conducted on the application of reinforcement learning (RL) to robots. A robot which is made for general purpose has redundant sensors or actuators because it is difficult to assume an environment that the robot will face and a task that the robot must execute. In this case, -space on RL contains redundancy so that the robot must take much time to learn a given task. In this study, we focus on the importance of sensors with regard to a robot’s performance of a particular task. The sensors that are applicable to a task differ according to the task. By using the importance of the sensors, we try to adjust the state number of the sensors and to reduce the size of -space. In this paper, we define the measure of importance of a sensor for a task with the correlation between the value of each sensor and reward. A robot calculates the importance of the sensors and makes the size of -space smaller. We propose the method which reduces learning space and construct the learning system by putting it in RL. In this paper, we confirm the effectiveness of our proposed system with an experimental robot

Sympathetic overactivityを伴った重症破傷風の2例

破傷風は,Clostridium tetaniの産生毒素tetanospasminに起因する神経系疾患である.今日我が国では,予防接種の普及等により稀となった反面,軽微な外傷でも発症する本疾患は,外傷領域においては常に念頭に置くべき疾患である.その治療管理において痙攣,sympathetic overactivityに対する対処が重要となる.今回我々はsympathetic overactivityを伴った重症破傷風の2例を経験した.1例に対してはphenobartital,diazepam持続投与下の管理を約15日間要し,また他の1例はpancuronium bromide, midazolamを使用すると共に,循環動態安定のためfentanyl citrateを追加し,人工呼吸器管理期間は約28日を要した.いずれも軽快退院したものの,抗痙攣療法後の回復期に,筋力低下によるリハビリテーション,あるいはせん妄・自殺企図がみられ精神科的治療を要した.呼吸管理の進歩により生命予後は改善されたものの,抗痙攣療法後にも注意すべき合併症があり,全経過を通じ慎重な全身管理が必要である.Tetanus is a nervous system disease caused by tetanospasmin, a toxin produced by Clostridium tetani. In Japan, tetanus, which occurs in association with even a slight injury, should always be taken into consideration in the traumatology field, although there are rare cases of tetanus owing to the spread of vaccination, etc. Treatment of spasm and sympathetic overactivity plays an important role in the therapeutic control of this disease. We had an experience of treating two patients suffering from severe tetanus with sympathetic overactivity. For one patient, it took about 15 days to control the disease by continuous administration of phenobartital and diazepam. For the other patient, pancuronium bromide and midazolam were used and fentanyl citrate was added for circulatory dynamic stabilization, and control with a ventilator required about 28 days. Although both patients were cured from the tetanus and discharged, reduced myodynamia required rehabilitation, and delirium and suicide attempts required psychiatric treatment during the recovery period following the anti-spasm therapy. Careful systemic control of tetanus patients is necessary throughout the course of disease as complications to be watched may occur following the anti-spasm therapy as well, although the progress in respiratory control has contributed to the improvement in prognosis of tetanus patients