Anatomical Global Spatial Normalization

Anatomical global spatial normalization (aGSN) is presented as a method to scale high-resolution brain images to control for variability in brain size without altering the mean size of other brain structures. Two types of mean preserving scaling methods were investigated, “shape preserving” and “shape standardizing”. aGSN was tested by examining 56 brain structures from an adult brain atlas of 40 individuals (LPBA40) before and after normalization, with detailed analyses of cerebral hemispheres, all gyri collectively, cerebellum, brainstem, and left and right caudate, putamen, and hippocampus. Mean sizes of brain structures as measured by volume, distance, and area were preserved and variance reduced for both types of scale factors. An interesting finding was that scale factors derived from each of the ten brain structures were also mean preserving. However, variance was best reduced using whole brain hemispheres as the reference structure, and this reduction was related to its high average correlation with other brain structures. The fractional reduction in variance of structure volumes was directly related to ρ2, the square of the reference-to-structure correlation coefficient. The average reduction in variance in volumes by aGSN with whole brain hemispheres as the reference structure was approximately 32%. An analytical method was provided to directly convert between conventional and aGSN scale factors to support adaptation of aGSN to popular spatial normalization software packages

Science Forum: Consensus-based guidance for conducting and reporting multi-analyst studies

Any large dataset can be analyzed in a number of ways, and it is possible that the use of different analysis strategies will lead to different results and conclusions. One way to assess whether the results obtained depend on the analysis strategy chosen is to employ multiple analysts and leave each of them free to follow their own approach. Here, we present consensus-based guidance for conducting and reporting such multi-analyst studies, and we discuss how broader adoption of the multi-analyst approach has the potential to strengthen the robustness of results and conclusions obtained from analyses of datasets in basic and applied research

Consensus-based guidance for conducting and reporting multi-analyst studies

International audienceAny large dataset can be analyzed in a number of ways, and it is possible that the use of different analysis strategies will lead to different results and conclusions. One way to assess whether the results obtained depend on the analysis strategy chosen is to employ multiple analysts and leave each of them free to follow their own approach. Here, we present consensus-based guidance for conducting and reporting such multi-analyst studies, and we discuss how broader adoption of the multi-analyst approach has the potential to strengthen the robustness of results and conclusions obtained from analyses of datasets in basic and applied research

Persistent frequent attenders in primary care: costs, reasons for attendance, organisation of care and potential for cognitive behavioural therapeutic intervention

<p><b>Abstract</b></p> <p>Background</p> <p>The top 3% of frequent attendance in primary care is associated with 15% of all appointments in primary care, a fivefold increase in hospital expenditure, and more mental disorder and functional somatic symptoms compared to normal attendance. Although often temporary if these rates of attendance last more than two years, they may become persistent (persistent frequent or regular attendance). However, there is no long-term study of the economic impact or clinical characteristics of regular attendance in primary care. Cognitive behaviour formulation and treatment (CBT) for regular attendance as a motivated behaviour may offer an understanding of the development, maintenance and treatment of regular attendance in the context of their health problems, cognitive processes and social context.</p> <p>Methods/design</p> <p>A case control design will compare the clinical characteristics, patterns of health care use and economic costs over the last 10 years of 100 regular attenders (≥30 appointments with general practitioner [GP] over 2 years) with 100 normal attenders (6–22 appointments with GP over 2 years), from purposefully selected primary care practices with differing organisation of care and patient demographics. Qualitative interviews with regular attending patients and practice staff will explore patient barriers, drivers and experiences of consultation, and organisation of care by practices with its challenges. Cognitive behaviour formulation analysed thematically will explore the development, maintenance and therapeutic opportunities for management in regular attenders. The feasibility, acceptability and utility of CBT for regular attendance will be examined.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>The health care costs, clinical needs, patient motivation for consultation and organisation of care for persistent frequent or regular attendance in primary care will be explored to develop training and policies for service providers. CBT for regular attendance will be piloted with a view to developing this approach as part of a multifaceted intervention.</p

Com o diabo no corpo: os terríveis papagaios do Brasil colônia

Desde a Antiguidade, papagaios, periquitos e afins (Psittacidae) fascinaram os europeus por seu vivo colorido e uma notável capacidade de interação com seres humanos. A descoberta do Novo Mundo nada faria além de acrescentar novos elementos ao tráfico de animais exóticos há muito estabelecido pelos europeus com a África e o Oriente. Sem possuir grandes mamíferos, a América tropical participaria desse comércio com o que tinha de mais atrativo, essencialmente felinos, primatas e aves - em particular os papagaios, os quais eram embarcados em bom número. Contudo, a julgar pelos documentos do Brasil colônia, esses voláteis podiam inspirar muito pouca simpatia, pois nenhum outro animal - exceto as formigas - foi tantas vezes mencionado como praga para a agricultura. Além disso, alguns psitácidas mostravam-se tão loquazes que inspiravam a séria desconfiança de serem animais demoníacos ou possessos, pois só três classes de entidades - anjos, homens e demônios - possuíam o dom da palavra. Nos dias de hoje, vários representantes dos Psittacidae ainda constituem uma ameaça para a agricultura, enquanto os indivíduos muito faladores continuam despertando a suspeita de estarem possuídos pelo demônio. Transcendendo a mera curiosidade, essa crença exemplifica o quão intrincadas podem ser as relações do homem com o chamado “mundo natural”, revelando um universo mais amplo e multifacetado do que se poderia supor a princípio. Nesse sentido, a existência de aves capazes de falar torna essa relação ainda mais complexa e evidencia que as dificuldades de estabelecer o limite entre o animal e o humano se estendem além dos primatas e envolvem as mais inusitadas espécies zoológicas.Since ancient times, parrots and their allies (Psittacidae) have fascinated Europeans by their striking colors and notable ability to interact with human beings. The discovery of the New World added new species to the international exotic animal trade, which for many centuries had brought beasts to Europe from Africa and the Orient. Lacking large mammals, tropical America participated in this trade with its most appealing species, essentially felines, primates and birds - especially parrots - which were shipped in large numbers. It should be noted, however, that at times these birds were not well liked. In fact, according to documents from colonial Brazil, only the ants rank higher than parrots as the animals most often mentioned as agricultural pests. On the other hand, some of these birds were so chatty that people suspected them to be demonic or possessed animals, since only three classes of beings - angels, men and demons - have the ability to speak. Nowadays, several Psittacidae still constitute a threat to agriculture, and the suspicion that extremely talkative birds were demon possessed has also survived. More than a joke or a mere curiosity, this belief exemplifies how intricate man’s relationships with the “natural world” may be. In this sense, the existence of birds that are able to speak adds a further twist to these relationships, demonstrating that the problem of establishing a boundary between the animal and the human does not only involve primates, but also includes some unusual zoological species

31st Annual Meeting and Associated Programs of the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC 2016) : part two

Background The immunological escape of tumors represents one of the main ob- stacles to the treatment of malignancies. The blockade of PD-1 or CTLA-4 receptors represented a milestone in the history of immunotherapy. However, immune checkpoint inhibitors seem to be effective in specific cohorts of patients. It has been proposed that their efficacy relies on the presence of an immunological response. Thus, we hypothesized that disruption of the PD-L1/PD-1 axis would synergize with our oncolytic vaccine platform PeptiCRAd. Methods We used murine B16OVA in vivo tumor models and flow cytometry analysis to investigate the immunological background. Results First, we found that high-burden B16OVA tumors were refractory to combination immunotherapy. However, with a more aggressive schedule, tumors with a lower burden were more susceptible to the combination of PeptiCRAd and PD-L1 blockade. The therapy signifi- cantly increased the median survival of mice (Fig. 7). Interestingly, the reduced growth of contralaterally injected B16F10 cells sug- gested the presence of a long lasting immunological memory also against non-targeted antigens. Concerning the functional state of tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), we found that all the immune therapies would enhance the percentage of activated (PD-1pos TIM- 3neg) T lymphocytes and reduce the amount of exhausted (PD-1pos TIM-3pos) cells compared to placebo. As expected, we found that PeptiCRAd monotherapy could increase the number of antigen spe- cific CD8+ T cells compared to other treatments. However, only the combination with PD-L1 blockade could significantly increase the ra- tio between activated and exhausted pentamer positive cells (p= 0.0058), suggesting that by disrupting the PD-1/PD-L1 axis we could decrease the amount of dysfunctional antigen specific T cells. We ob- served that the anatomical location deeply influenced the state of CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocytes. In fact, TIM-3 expression was in- creased by 2 fold on TILs compared to splenic and lymphoid T cells. In the CD8+ compartment, the expression of PD-1 on the surface seemed to be restricted to the tumor micro-environment, while CD4 + T cells had a high expression of PD-1 also in lymphoid organs. Interestingly, we found that the levels of PD-1 were significantly higher on CD8+ T cells than on CD4+ T cells into the tumor micro- environment (p < 0.0001). Conclusions In conclusion, we demonstrated that the efficacy of immune check- point inhibitors might be strongly enhanced by their combination with cancer vaccines. PeptiCRAd was able to increase the number of antigen-specific T cells and PD-L1 blockade prevented their exhaus- tion, resulting in long-lasting immunological memory and increased median survival

Subsurface Imaging of a Late Woodland Effigy Mound Site : Lake Koshkonong Effigy Mounds, Wisconsin

Color poster with text, maps, and graphs.The preservation for Effigy Mound sites continues to be a concern. These landscape monuments and sacred sites remain poorly understood and require innovative, noninvasive, and nondestructive techniques for archaeological investigations. A collaborative study of a Late Woodland (ca. A.D. 700 - 1100) effigy mound site on the east shore of Lake Koshkonong was undertaken. The site, protected from excavation by Wisconsin State law, is within Jefferson County, southeastern Wisconsin. Previous geophysical tools (resistivity, EM) were employed to assess the site. Ground penetrating radar (GPR) transects were collected using a pulseEKKO 1000 unit with two antennae frequencies: 225 MHz (0.5 m antennae separation/step size of 0.1m) and 450 MHz (0.25 m antennae separation/step size of 0.05 m). The surveys were conducted along the length and width of several mounds with topographic data being collected with a Topcon laser level to geometrically correct the data. After data processing and using radar stratigraphic principles on the reflection patterns, internal stratigraphy within the mounds were observed. Together with the previous geophysical surveys, the results reveal a complex natural and cultural stratigraphy both within the mound features and between the mounds.University of Wisconsin--Eau Claire Office of Research and Sponsored Program

Investigating the Algodones Dune Field of Southern California II : Using Geospatial Techniques

Color poster with text, images, and photographsThe Eastern Algodones Dunes, located in the Sonoran Desert, Imperial county, Southern California, stretch 72 kilometers and are 9.7 kilometers in width. The dunes were hypothesized to be a result of sediment blown from ancient Lake Cahuilla and are characterized by distinct regions: Glamis Beach, Gordon's Well, Buttercup, Midway, and Patton's Valley. The purpose of the research was to create a digital elevation model (DEM) of the sand starved dune complex by collecting aerial imagery using a DJI Phantom-4PG UAV. To improve overlap and tie points, the aerial imagery has a 75% front lap and a 65% side lap. The flight was flown at 50 meters above ground level and took 20 swaths overhead. To enhance the accuracy of the DEM, ten ground control points (GCPs) were collected using a REACH RS+ RTK GNSS receiver. In addition, a topographic survey was conducted using a TopCon laser leveler to more accurately geometrically correct the collected ground penetrating radar transects.University of Wisconsin--Eau Claire Office of Research and Sponsored Program

Algodones Dune Migration and Stratigraphic Analysis Using Ground Penetrating Radar, Southern California

Color poster with text, images, charts, photographs, and graphs.The Algodones dune field, is located south-east of the Salton Sea in Southern California. The dune field is divided into two sections composed of a protected wilderness area (north) and a larger area of public land (south), which is managed by the Bureau of Land Management. The Algodones Dune field is a highly complex geomorphic and spatially diverse dune system. Dune sediments in the region are derived from aeolian (wind) processes and are remnant sediments from Ancient Lake Cahuilla. On March 5th, a ground penetrating radar (GPR) grid was shot consisting of horizontal and vertical lines on the Eastern Crescentic dune region located in the northeastern portion of the Algodones dune field. Two GPR systems were used in collaboration with San Diego State University.University of Wisconsin--Eau Claire Office of Research and Sponsored Program