MotionBERT: A Unified Perspective on Learning Human Motion Representations

We present a unified perspective on tackling various human-centric video tasks by learning human motion representations from large-scale and heterogeneous data resources. Specifically, we propose a pretraining stage in which a motion encoder is trained to recover the underlying 3D motion from noisy partial 2D observations. The motion representations acquired in this way incorporate geometric, kinematic, and physical knowledge about human motion, which can be easily transferred to multiple downstream tasks. We implement the motion encoder with a Dual-stream Spatio-temporal Transformer (DSTformer) neural network. It could capture long-range spatio-temporal relationships among the skeletal joints comprehensively and adaptively, exemplified by the lowest 3D pose estimation error so far when trained from scratch. Furthermore, our proposed framework achieves state-of-the-art performance on all three downstream tasks by simply finetuning the pretrained motion encoder with a simple regression head (1-2 layers), which demonstrates the versatility of the learned motion representations. Code and models are available at https://motionbert.github.io/Comment: ICCV 2023 Camera Read

Molecular and functional analysis of the XPBC/ERCC-3 promoter: Transcription activity is dependent on the integrity of an Sp1 binding element.

The human XPBC/ERCC-3 gene, which corrects the excision-repair defect in xeroderma pigmentosum group B cells and the UV-sensitive CHO mutant 27-1 cells, appears to be expressed constitutively in various cell types and tissues. We have analysed the structure and functionality of the XPBC/ERCC-3 promoter. Transcription of the XPBC/ERCC-3 gene is initiated from heterogeneous sites, with a major startpoint mapped at position -54 (relative to the translation start codon ATG). The promoter region does not possess classical TATA and CAAT elements, but it is GC-rich and contains three putative Sp1-binding sites. In addition, there are two elements related to the cyclic AMP (cAMP)-response element (CRE) and the 12-O-tetradecanoyl phorbol-13-acetate-response element (TRE) in the 5'-flanking reg

Erratum to: Genetic diversity and population structure of the primary malaria vector Anopheles sinensis (Diptera: Culicidae) in China inferred by cox1 gene

Graphs of the mismatch distributions analysis for total populations of Anopheles sinensis using DnaSP 5.10. The X axis shows the observed distribution of pairwise nucleotide differences and the Y axis shows the frequencies. The dotted lines represent the observed frequency of pairwise differences, and the solid lines show the expected values under the sudden population expansion model. (TIF 8 kb

Opioid use and opioid use disorder in mono and dual-system users of veteran affairs medical centers

IntroductionEfforts to achieve opioid guideline concordant care may be undermined when patients access multiple opioid prescription sources. Limited data are available on the impact of dual-system sources of care on receipt of opioid medications.ObjectiveWe examined whether dual-system use was associated with increased rates of new opioid prescriptions, continued opioid prescriptions and diagnoses of opioid use disorder (OUD). We hypothesized that dual-system use would be associated with increased odds for each outcome.MethodsThis retrospective cohort study was conducted using Veterans Administration (VA) data from two facilities from 2015 to 2019, and included active patients, defined as Veterans who had at least one encounter in a calendar year (2015–2019). Dual-system use was defined as receipt of VA care as well as VA payment for community care (non-VA) services. Mono users were defined as those who only received VA services. There were 77,225 dual-system users, and 442,824 mono users. Outcomes were three binary measures: new opioid prescription, continued opioid prescription (i.e., received an additional opioid prescription), and OUD diagnosis (during the calendar year). We conducted a multivariate logistic regression accounting for the repeated observations on patient and intra-class correlations within patients.ResultsDual-system users were significantly younger than mono users, more likely to be women, and less likely to report white race. In adjusted models, dual-system users were significantly more likely to receive a new opioid prescription during the observation period [Odds ratio (OR) = 1.85, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.76–1.93], continue prescriptions (OR = 1.24, CI 1.22–1.27), and to receive an OUD diagnosis (OR = 1.20, CI 1.14–1.27).DiscussionThe prevalence of opioid prescriptions has been declining in the US healthcare systems including VA, yet the prevalence of OUD has not been declining at the same rate. One potential problem is that detailed notes from non-VA visits are not immediately available to VA clinicians, and information about VA care is not readily available to non-VA sources. One implication of our findings is that better health system coordination is needed. Even though care was paid for by the VA and presumably closely monitored, dual-system users were more likely to have new and continued opioid prescriptions

Three-dimension structure of ventricular myocardial fibers after myocardial infarction

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>To explore the pathological changes of three-dimension structure of ventricular myocardial fibers after anterior myocardial infarction in dog heart.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Fourteen acute anterior myocardial infarction models were made from healthy dogs (mean weight 17.6 ± 2.5 kg). Six out of 14 dogs with old myocardial infarction were sacrificed, and their hearts were harvested after they survived the acute anterior myocardial infarction for 3 months. Each heart was dissected into ventricular myocardial band (VMB), morphological characters in infarction region were observed, and infarct size percents in descending segment and ascending segment were calculated.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Six dog hearts were successfully dissected into VMB. Uncorresponding damages in myocardial fibers of descending segment and ascending segment were found in apical circle in anterior wall infarction. Infarct size percent in the ascending segment was significantly larger than that in the descending segment (23.36 ± 3.15 (SD) vs 30.69 ± 2.40%, P = 0.0033); the long axis of infarction area was perpendicular to the orientation of myocardial fibers in ascending segment; however, the long axis of the infarction area was parallel with the orientation of myocardial fibers in descending segment.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We found that damages were different in both morphology and size in ascending segment and descending segment in heart with myocardial infarction. This may provide an important insight for us to understand the mechanism of heart failure following coronary artery diseases.</p

Treatment-Mediated Alterations in HIV Fitness Preserve CD4+ T Cell Counts but Have Minimal Effects on Viral Load

For most HIV-infected patients, antiretroviral therapy controls viral replication. However, in some patients drug resistance can cause therapy to fail. Nonetheless, continued therapy with a failing regimen can preserve or even lead to increases in CD4+ T cell counts. To understand the biological basis of these observations, we used mathematical models to explain observations made in patients with drug-resistant HIV treated with enfuvirtide (ENF/T-20), an HIV-1 fusion inhibitor. Due to resistance emergence, ENF was removed from the drug regimen, drug-sensitive virus regrown, and ENF was re-administered. We used our model to study the dynamics of plasma-viral RNA and CD4+ T cell levels, and the competition between drug-sensitive and resistant viruses during therapy interruption and re-administration. Focusing on resistant viruses carrying the V38A mutation in gp41, we found ENF-resistant virus to be 17±3% less fit than ENF-sensitive virus in the absence of the drug, and that the loss of resistant virus during therapy interruption was primarily due to this fitness cost. Using viral dynamic parameters estimated from these patients, we show that although re-administration of ENF cannot suppress viral load, it can, in the presence of resistant virus, increase CD4+ T cell counts, which should yield clinical benefits. This study provides a framework to investigate HIV and T cell dynamics in patients who develop drug resistance to other antiretroviral agents and may help to develop more effective strategies for treatment

Anthropogenic Aerosols Cause Recent Pronounced Weakening of Asian Summer Monsoon Relative to Last Four Centuries

The Asian Summer Monsoon (ASM) affects ecosystems, biodiversity, and food security of billions of people. In recent decades, ASM strength (as represented by precipitation) has been decreasing, but instrumental measurements span only a short period of time. The initiation and the dynamics of the recent trend are unclear. Here for the first time, we use an ensemble of 10 tree ring-width chronologies from the west-central margin of ASM to reconstruct detail of ASM variability back to 1566 CE. The reconstruction captures weak/strong ASM events and also reflects major locust plagues. Notably, we found an unprecedented 80-year trend of decreasing ASM strength within the context of the 448-year reconstruction, which is contrary to what is expected from greenhouse warming. Our coupled climate model shows that increasing anthropogenic sulfate aerosol emissions over the Northern Hemisphere could be the dominant factor contributing to the ASM decrease. Plan Language Summary Monsoonal rainfall has a certain influence on agriculture and industry in the regions of Asian Summer Monsoon (ASM). An understanding of the spatial-temporal variability of the ASM and the associated dynamics is vital for terrestrial ecosystems, water resources, forests, and landscapes. We have developed a 448-year ASM reconstruction back to 1566 CE using 10 tree ring chronologies from the margin region of ASM. We find that historical severe droughts and locust plague disasters during weak ASM events. The recent decreasing ASM trend persisting for over 80 years is unprecedented over the past 448 years. Coupled climate models show that increasing anthropogenic aerosol emissions are the dominant underlying factor. Our aim is that the time series will find a wide range of utility for understanding past climate variability and for predicting future climate change.National Natural Science Foundation of China [41630531]; National Research Program for Key Issues in Air Pollution Control [DQGG0104]; Chinese Academy of Sciences [QYZDJ-SSW-DQC021, XDPB05, GJHZ1777]; Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences; State Key Laboratory of Loess and Quaternary Geology6 month embargo; first published: 09 April 2019This item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at [email protected]

Triple Combination Antiviral Drug (TCAD) Composed of Amantadine, Oseltamivir, and Ribavirin Impedes the Selection of Drug-Resistant Influenza A Virus

Widespread resistance among circulating influenza A strains to at least one of the anti-influenza drugs is a major public health concern. A triple combination antiviral drug (TCAD) regimen comprised of amantadine, oseltamivir, and ribavirin has been shown to have synergistic and broad spectrum activity against influenza A strains, including drug resistant strains. Here, we used mathematical modeling along with three different experimental approaches to understand the effects of single agents, double combinations, and the TCAD regimen on resistance in influenza in vitro, including: 1) serial passage at constant drug concentrations, 2) serial passage at escalating drug concentrations, and 3) evaluation of the contribution of each component of the TCAD regimen to the suppression of resistance. Consistent with the modeling which demonstrated that three drugs were required to suppress the emergence of resistance in influenza A, treatment with the TCAD regimen resulted in the sustained suppression of drug resistant viruses, whereas treatment with amantadine alone or the amantadine-oseltamivir double combination led to the rapid selection of resistant variants which comprised ∼100% of the population. Furthermore, the TCAD regimen imposed a high genetic barrier to resistance, requiring multiple mutations in order to escape the effects of all the drugs in the regimen. Finally, we demonstrate that each drug in the TCAD regimen made a significant contribution to the suppression of virus breakthrough and resistance at clinically achievable concentrations. Taken together, these data demonstrate that the TCAD regimen was superior to double combinations and single agents at suppressing resistance, and that three drugs at a minimum were required to impede the selection of drug resistant variants in influenza A virus. The use of mathematical modeling with multiple experimental designs and molecular readouts to evaluate and optimize combination drug regimens for the suppression of resistance may be broadly applicable to other infectious diseases

Treatment-associated polymorphisms in protease are significantly associated with higher viral load and lower CD4 count in newly diagnosed drug-naive HIV-1 infected patients

Peer reviewe