Group B: Polar Coordinate Whiteboard Writer

From the initial funding of $250.00, our group attempted to make a polar coordinate whiteboard writer that was to be used in educational settings. Market for polar coordinate whiteboard writer is a blue ocean. Having a successful prototype will allow us to find a niche place in a market that shares border with the global education market

Membrane-Bound Methyltransferase Complex VapA-VipC-VapB Guides Epigenetic Control of Fungal Development

Epigenetic and transcriptional control of gene expression must be coordinated in response to external signals to promote alternative multicellular developmental programs. The membrane-associated trimeric complex VapA-VipC-VapB controls a signal transduction pathway for fungal differentiation. The VipC-VapB methyltransferases are tethered to the membrane by the FYVE-like zinc finger protein VapA, allowing the nuclear VelB-VeA-LaeA complex to activate transcription for sexual development. Once the release from VapA is triggered, VipCVapB is transported into the nucleus. VipC-VapB physically interacts with VeA and reduces its nuclear import and protein stability, thereby reducing the nuclear VelB-VeA-LaeA complex. Nuclear VapB methyltransferase diminishes the establishment of facultative heterochromatin by decreasing histone 3 lysine 9 trimethylation (H3K9me3). This favors activation of the regulatory genes brlA and abaA, which promote the asexual program. The VapA-VipCVapB methyltransferase pathway combines control of nuclear import and stability of transcription factors with histone modification to foster appropriate differentiation responses

A Korean boy with atypical X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy confirmed by an unpublished mutation of

X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (X-ALD) is a rare peroxisomal disorder, that is rapidly progressive, neurodegenerative, and recessive, and characteristically primary affects the central nervous system white matter and the adrenal cortex. X-ALD is diagnosed basaed on clinical, radiological, and serological parameters, including elevated plasma levels of very long chain fatty acids (VLCFA), such as C24:0 and C26:0, and high C24:0/C22:0 and C26:0/C22:0 ratios. These tests are complemented with genetic analyses. A 7.5-year-old boy was admitted to Department of Pediatrics, Chungnam National University Hospital with progressive weakness of the bilateral lower extremities. Brain magnetic resonance imaging confirmed clinically suspected ALD. A low dose adrenocorticotropic hormone stimulation test revealed parital adrenal insufficiency. His fasting plasma levels of VLCFA showed that his C24:0/C22:0 and C26:0/C22:0 ratios were significantly elevated to 1.609 (normal, 0-1.390) and 0.075 (normal, 0-0.023), respectively. Genomic DNA was extracted from peripheral whole blood samples collected from the patient and his family. All exons of ABCD1 gene were amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using specific primers. Amplified PCR products were sequenced using the same primer pairs according to the manufacturer's instructions. We identified a missense mutation (p.Arg163Leu) in the ABCD1 gene of the proband caused by the nucleotide change 488G>T in exon 1. His asymptomatic mother carried the same mutation. We have reported an unpublished mutation in the ABCD1 gene in a patient with X-ALD, who showed increased ratio of C24:0/C22:0 and C26:0/C22:0, despite a normal VLCFA concentrations

Quantitative Measurement of Muscle Atrophy and Fat Infiltration of the Supraspinatus Muscle Using Ultrasonography After Arthroscopic Rotator Cuff Repair

ObjectiveTo investigate the utility of ultrasonography to objectively examine morphological changes (i.e., muscle atrophy and fatty infiltration) of the supraspinatus muscle.MethodsThirty-four patients were prospectively enrolled in this study. The degrees of muscle atrophy and fat infiltration were measured using ultrasonography 3–4 months after arthroscopic supraspinatus tendon repair. Shoulder function (i.e., shoulder active range of motion, visual analogue scale, and constant score) was examined. Using the symmetricity of the muscles in the human body, the degrees of morphological changes of the supraspinatus muscle were quantitatively measured. The associations between the morphological changes of the supraspinatus muscle and shoulder function were identified.ResultsThere were statistically significant differences in the cross-sectional area (CSA) and echogenicity between the surgery and non-surgery sides (p<0.001). The CSA ratio, which represents the degree of muscle atrophy, was associated with shoulder forward flexion, external rotation, and constant score; however, the echogenicity ratio, which represents the degree of fat infiltration, was not associated with shoulder function after surgery.ConclusionThis study demonstrated that shoulder function could be predicted by evaluating the morphological changes of the supraspinatus muscle using ultrasonography and that objective evaluation is possible through quantitative measurement using the symmetricity of the human body

Anesthetic management of penetrating neck injury patient with embedded knife -A case report-

Penetrating neck injuries can be a fatal event and they are difficult to manage for both surgeons and anesthesiologists. So, adequate preoperative evaluation is important to improve the patients' outcomes, but this can not be done for hemodynamically unstable or uncooperative patient. Here we present our clinical experience with a patient with a penetrating neck injury and who was hemodynamically stable, but she was uncooperative and the knife was still embedded in her neck. The surgical exploration and bronchoscopic examination were successfully done under monitored anesthesia care

Scabies mimicking graft versus host disease in a hematopoietic cell transplant recipient

Scabies is a highly contagious skin infestation caused by the mite, Sarcoptes scabiei var. hominis. Complex responses to scabies mites in the innate, humoral, and cellular immune systems can cause skin inflammation and pruritus. Diagnosis can be challenging because scabies resembles other common skin conditions. We report the first Korean case of scabies in a hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT) recipient, initially suspected of skin graft versus host disease (GVHD). A T-cell acute lymphocytic leukemia patient underwent a sibling-matched allogeneic HCT and developed pruritus after cell engraftment. Treatment for GVHD did not improve the symptoms. He was diagnosed with scabies 30 days after the onset of symptoms

A multicenter phase II study of everolimus in patients with progressive unresectable adenoid cystic carcinoma

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to examine the efficacy and safety of everolimus in patients with progressive unresectable adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC). METHODS: Histologically confirmed ACC patients with documented disease progression within 12 months prior to the study entry were eligible. Everolimus was given at a dose of 10 mg daily until progression or occurrence of unacceptable toxicities. The primary endpoint was a 4-month progression-free survival (PFS). RESULTS: A total of 34 patients were enrolled. The 4-month PFS probability was 65.5% (95% one-sided confidence interval [CI], 47.7 to infinity). Median PFS duration was 11.2 months (95% CI, 3.6 to 15.8). Complete or partial response was not achieved. Twenty-seven (79.4%, 95% CI, 63.2 to 89.6) patients showed stable disease (SD). Tumor shrinkage within SD criteria was observed in 15 patients (44.1%) and SD lasting 6 months was observed in 13 patients (38.2%). Four patients had disease progression. Among the 18 patients with both pre- and post-treatment (at 8 weeks) FDG-PET scans available, 8 patients (44.4%) showed a partial metabolic response, defined as a ≥25% reduction in maximum standardized uptake values (SUVmax). The most common adverse events were stomatitis, anemia, asthenia, and leukopenia. No unexpected everolimus related toxicities were reported. CONCLUSIONS: Everolimus showed promising efficacy and good tolerability in progressive unresectable ACC. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier, NCT0115284

Structures of three ependymin-related proteins suggest their function as a hydrophobic molecule binder

Ependymin was first discovered as a predominant protein in brain extracellular fluid in fish and was suggested to be involved in functions mostly related to learning and memory. Orthologous proteins to ependymin called ependymin-related proteins (EPDRs) have been found to exist in various tissues from sea urchins to humans, yet their functional role remains to be revealed. In this study, the structures of EPDR1 from frog, mouse and human were determined and analyzed. All of the EPDR1s fold into a dimer using a monomeric subunit that is mostly made up of two stacking antiparallel beta-sheets with a curvature on one side, resulting in the formation of a deep hydrophobic pocket. All six of the cysteine residues in the monomeric subunit participate in the formation of three intramolecular disulfide bonds. Other interesting features of EPDR1 include two asparagine residues with glycosylation and a Ca2+-binding site. The EPDR1 fold is very similar to the folds of bacterial VioE and LolA/LolB, which also use a similar hydrophobic pocket for their respective functions as a hydrophobic substrate-binding enzyme and a lipoprotein carrier, respectively. A further fatty-acid binding assay using EPDR1 suggests that it indeed binds to fatty acids, presumably via this pocket. Additional interactome analysis of EPDR1 showed that EPDR1 interacts with insulin-like growth factor 2 receptor and flotillin proteins, which are known to be involved in protein and vesicle translocation

Strengthening deep-learning models for intracranial hemorrhage detection: strongly annotated computed tomography images and model ensembles

Background and purposeMultiple attempts at intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) detection using deep-learning techniques have been plagued by clinical failures. We aimed to compare the performance of a deep-learning algorithm for ICH detection trained on strongly and weakly annotated datasets, and to assess whether a weighted ensemble model that integrates separate models trained using datasets with different ICH improves performance.MethodsWe used brain CT scans from the Radiological Society of North America (27,861 CT scans, 3,528 ICHs) and AI-Hub (53,045 CT scans, 7,013 ICHs) for training. DenseNet121, InceptionResNetV2, MobileNetV2, and VGG19 were trained on strongly and weakly annotated datasets and compared using independent external test datasets. We then developed a weighted ensemble model combining separate models trained on all ICH, subdural hemorrhage (SDH), subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), and small-lesion ICH cases. The final weighted ensemble model was compared to four well-known deep-learning models. After external testing, six neurologists reviewed 91 ICH cases difficult for AI and humans.ResultsInceptionResNetV2, MobileNetV2, and VGG19 models outperformed when trained on strongly annotated datasets. A weighted ensemble model combining models trained on SDH, SAH, and small-lesion ICH had a higher AUC, compared with a model trained on all ICH cases only. This model outperformed four deep-learning models (AUC [95% C.I.]: Ensemble model, 0.953[0.938–0.965]; InceptionResNetV2, 0.852[0.828–0.873]; DenseNet121, 0.875[0.852–0.895]; VGG19, 0.796[0.770–0.821]; MobileNetV2, 0.650[0.620–0.680]; p &lt; 0.0001). In addition, the case review showed that a better understanding and management of difficult cases may facilitate clinical use of ICH detection algorithms.ConclusionWe propose a weighted ensemble model for ICH detection, trained on large-scale, strongly annotated CT scans, as no model can capture all aspects of complex tasks