Use of Remote Camera Traps to Evaluate Animal-Based Welfare Indicators in Individual Free-Roaming Wild Horses

We previously developed a Ten-Stage Protocol for scientifically assessing the welfare of individual free-roaming wild animals using the Five Domains Model. The protocol includes developing methods for measuring or observing welfare indices. In this study, we assessed the use of remote camera traps to evaluate an extensive range of welfare indicators in individual free-roaming wild horses. Still images and videos were collected and analysed to assess whether horses could be detected and identified individually, which welfare indicators could be reliably evaluated, and whether behaviour could be quantitatively assessed. Remote camera trapping was successful in detecting and identifying horses (75% on still images and 72% on video observation events), across a range of habitats including woodlands where horses could not be directly observed. Twelve indicators of welfare across the Five Domains were assessed with equal frequency on both still images and video, with those most frequently assessable being body condition score (73% and 79% of observation events, respectively), body posture (76% for both), coat condition (42% and 52%, respectively), and whether or not the horse was sweating excessively (42% and 45%, respectively). An additional five indicators could only be assessed on video; those most frequently observable being presence or absence of weakness (66%), qualitative behavioural assessment (60%), presence or absence of shivering (51%), and gait at walk (50%). Specific behaviours were identified in 93% of still images and 84% of video events, and proportions of time different behaviours were captured could be calculated. Most social behaviours were rarely observed, but close spatial proximity to other horses, as an indicator of social bonds, was recorded in 36% of still images, and 29% of video observation events. This is the first study that describes detailed methodology for these purposes. The results of this study can also form the basis of application to other species, which could contribute significantly to advancing the field of wild animal welfare

Skin Lesion Analyser: An Efficient Seven-Way Multi-Class Skin Cancer Classification Using MobileNet

Skin cancer, a major form of cancer, is a critical public health problem with 123,000 newly diagnosed melanoma cases and between 2 and 3 million non-melanoma cases worldwide each year. The leading cause of skin cancer is high exposure of skin cells to UV radiation, which can damage the DNA inside skin cells leading to uncontrolled growth of skin cells. Skin cancer is primarily diagnosed visually employing clinical screening, a biopsy, dermoscopic analysis, and histopathological examination. It has been demonstrated that the dermoscopic analysis in the hands of inexperienced dermatologists may cause a reduction in diagnostic accuracy. Early detection and screening of skin cancer have the potential to reduce mortality and morbidity. Previous studies have shown Deep Learning ability to perform better than human experts in several visual recognition tasks. In this paper, we propose an efficient seven-way automated multi-class skin cancer classification system having performance comparable with expert dermatologists. We used a pretrained MobileNet model to train over HAM10000 dataset using transfer learning. The model classifies skin lesion image with a categorical accuracy of 83.1 percent, top2 accuracy of 91.36 percent and top3 accuracy of 95.34 percent. The weighted average of precision, recall, and f1-score were found to be 0.89, 0.83, and 0.83 respectively. The model has been deployed as a web application for public use at (https://saketchaturvedi.github.io). This fast, expansible method holds the potential for substantial clinical impact, including broadening the scope of primary care practice and augmenting clinical decision-making for dermatology specialists.Comment: This is a pre-copyedited version of a contribution published in Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, Hassanien A., Bhatnagar R., Darwish A. (eds) published by Chaturvedi S.S., Gupta K., Prasad P.S. The definitive authentication version is available online via https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-3383-9_1

Adjuvant therapy with high dose vitamin D following primary treatment of melanoma at high risk of recurrence: A placebo controlled randomised phase II trial (ANZMTG 02.09 Mel-D)

Patients with primary cutaneous melanomas that are ulcerated and >2 mm in thickness, >4 mm in thickness and those with nodal micrometastases at diagnosis, have few options for adjuvant treatment. Recent studies have suggested a role for vitamin D to delay melanoma recurrence and improve overall prognosis

Period Increase and Amplitude Distribution of Kink Oscillation of Coronal Loop

Coronal loops exist ubiquitously in the solar atmosphere. These loops puzzle astronomers over half a century. Solar magneto-seismology (SMS) provides a unique way to constrain the physical parameters of coronal loops. Here, we study the evolution of oscillations of a coronal loop observed by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA). We measure geometric and physical parameters of the loop oscillations. In particular, we find that the mean period of the oscillations increased from 1048 to 1264 s during three oscillatory cycles. We employ the differential emission measure method and apply the tools of SMS. The evolution of densities inside and outside the loop is analyzed. We found that an increase of density inside the loop and decrease of the magnetic field strength along the loop are the main reasons for the increase in the period during the oscillations. Besides, we also found that the amplitude profile of the loop is different from a profile would it be a homogeneous loop. It is proposed that the distribution of magnetic strength along the loop rather than density stratification is responsible for this deviation. The variation in period and distribution of amplitude provide, in terms of SMS, a new and unprecedented insight into coronal loop diagnostics

Extracellular Administration of BCL2 Protein Reduces Apoptosis and Improves Survival in a Murine Model of Sepsis

Severe sepsis and septic shock are major causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. In experimental sepsis there is prominent apoptosis of various cell types, and genetic manipulation of death and survival pathways has been shown to modulate organ injury and survival.We investigated the effect of extracellular administration of two anti-apoptotic members of the BCL2 (B-cell lymphoma 2) family of intracellular regulators of cell death in a murine model of sepsis induced by cecal ligation and puncture (CLP). We show that intraperitoneal injection of picomole range doses of recombinant human (rh) BCL2 or rhBCL2A1 protein markedly improved survival as assessed by surrogate markers of death. Treatment with rhBCL2 or rhBCL2A1 protein significantly reduced the number of apoptotic cells in the intestine and heart following CLP, and this was accompanied by increased expression of endogenous mouse BCL2 protein. Further, mice treated with rhBCL2A1 protein showed an increase in the total number of neutrophils in the peritoneum following CLP with reduced neutrophil apoptosis. Finally, although neither BCL2 nor BCL2A1 are a direct TLR2 ligand, TLR2-null mice were not protected by rhBCL2A1 protein, indicating that TLR2 signaling was required for the protective activity of extracellularly adminsitered BCL2A1 protein in vivo.Treatment with rhBCL2A1 or rhBCL2 protein protects mice from sepsis by reducing apoptosis in multiple target tissues, demonstrating an unexpected, potent activity of extracellularly administered BCL2 BH4-domain proteins

Brazilian gamma detection device for sentinel lymph node biopsy

OBJECTIVE: To test the effectiveness of an intra-operative gamma detection Brazilian device (IPEN) on sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) procedures. METHODS: Forty melanoma or breast cancer patients with indication for undergoing SLNB were studied. Lymphoscintigraphy was done 2 to 24 hours prior to surgery. Lymphatic mapping with vital dye and gamma detection were performed intraoperatively. For gamma detection Neoprobe ® 1500 was used followed by IPEN (equipment under test) in the first 20 patients and for the remaining half IPEN was used first to verify its ability to locate the sentinel node (SN). Measurements were taken from the radiopharmaceutical product injection site, from SN (in vivo and ex vivo) and from background. It was recorded if the SN was stained or not and if it was found easily by surgeon. RESULTS: There were 33 (82.5%) breast cancer and 7 (17.5%) melanoma patients. Ages varied from 21 to 68 year-old (median age of 46). Sex distribution was 35 (87.5%) women and 5 (12.5%) men. Sentinel node was found in all but one patient. There was no statistical difference between the reasons ex vivo/ background obtained with the measures of both equipments (p=0, 2583-ns). The SN was easily found by the surgeon with both devices. CONCLUSION: The SLNB was successfully performed using either equipment. It was possible to do SLNB with the Brazilian device developed by IPEN without prejudice for the patient.OBJETIVO: Testar a eficácia de equipamento de detecção gama intra-operatória (DGI) desenvolvido pelo IPEN (Brasil), em procedimentos de biópsia de linfonodo sentinela (BLS) no melanoma e no câncer de mama. MÉTODOS: Foram estudados 40 pacientes portadores de melanoma ou câncer de mama com indicação para realização de BLS.Todos pacientes foram submetidos à linfocintilografia e a BLS ocorreu entre 2 a 24 horas após a mesma. Concomitantemente à DGI, realizou-se o mapeamento linfático com corante vital. Foram feitas leituras com o equipamento convencional Neoprobe® 1500 e com o equipamento em teste (IPEN) dos valores de captação do sítio de injeção do radiofármaco, do LS in vivo e ex vivo e da captação de fundo. Foi registrado se o LS estava corado e se o cirurgião teve facilidade para encontrá-lo. Nos primeiros 20 pacientes utilizou-se o equipamento convencional e depois o de teste; nos outros 20, utilizou-se primeiro o equipamento em teste, com objetivo de verificar se o mesmo identificava primariamente o LS. RESULTADOS: Dos quarenta pacientes, 33 eram portadores de tumor de mama e sete de melanoma cutâneo; variação da idade: 21 a 68 anos (mediana= 46 anos); 35 mulheres e 5 homens. Em apenas um paciente o LS não foi encontrado, nem pela DGI nem pelo corante vital. Não houve diferença estatística entre as razões ex vivo/fundo obtidas com os dois equipamentos (p=0, 2583-ns). CONCLUSÃO: É possível realizar o procedimento de BLS com o equipamento brasileiro desenvolvido pelo IPEN, com facilidade e sem prejuízo para o paciente.Hospital Israelita Albert EinsteinIPENUniversidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP)Faculdade de Medicina Anhembi-MorumbiUNIFESPSciEL

Turbulent ‘stopping plumes’ and plume pinch-off in uniform surroundings

Observations of turbulent convection in the environment are of variously sus- tained plume-like flows or intermittent thermal-like flows. At different times of the day the prevailing conditions may change and consequently the observed flow regimes may change. Understanding the link between these flows is of practical importance meteorologically, and here we focus our interest upon plume-like regimes that break up to form thermal-like regimes. It has been shown that when a plume rises from a boundary with low conductivity, such as arable land, the inability to maintain a rapid enough supply of buoyancy to the plume source can result in the turbulent base of the plume separating and rising away from the source. This plume ‘pinch-off’ marks the onset of the intermittent thermal-like behavior. The dynamics of turbulent plumes in a uniform environment are explored in order to investigate the phenomenon of plume pinch-off. The special case of a turbulent plume having its source completely removed, a ‘stopping plume’, is considered in particular. The effects of forcing a plume to pinch-off, by rapidly reducing the source buoyancy flux to zero, are shown experi- mentally. We release saline solution into a tank filled with fresh water generating downward propagating steady turbulent plumes. By rapidly closing the plume nozzle, the plumes are forced to pinch-off. The plumes are then observed to detach from the source and descend into the ambient. The unsteady buoyant region produced after pinch-off, cannot be described by the power-law behavior of either classical plumes or thermals, and so the terminology ‘stopping plume’ (analogous to a ‘starting plume’) is adopted for this type of flow. The propagation of the stopping plume is shown to be approximately linearly dependent on time, and we speculate therefore that the closure of the nozzle introduces some vorticity into the ambient, that may roll up to form a vortex ring dominating the dynamics of the base of a stopping plume