Monitoring Quality of Life Indicators at Home from Sparse and Low-Cost Sensor Data.

Supporting older people, many of whom live with chronic conditions or cognitive and physical impairments, to live independently at home is of increasing importance due to ageing demographics. To aid independent living at home, much effort is being directed at reliably detecting activities from sensor data to monitor people’s quality of life or to enhance self-management of their own health. Current efforts typically leverage smart homes which have large numbers of sensors installed to overcome challenges in the accurate detection of activities. In this work, we report on the results of machine learning models based on data collected with a small number of low-cost, off-the-shelf passive sensors that were retrofitted in real homes, some with more than a single occupant. Models were developed from the sensor data collected to recognize activities of daily living, such as eating and dressing as well as meaningful activities, such as reading a book and socializing. We evaluated five algorithms and found that a Recurrent Neural Network was most accurate in recognizing activities. However, many activities remain difficult to detect, in particular meaningful activities, which are characterized by high levels of individual personalization. Our work contributes to applying smart healthcare technology in real-world home settings

Monitoring meaningful activities using small low-cost devices in a smart home

A challenge associated with an ageing population is increased demand on health and social care, creating a greater need to enable persons to live independently in their own homes. Ambient assistant living technology aims to address this by monitoring occupants’ ‘activities of daily living’ using smart home sensors to alert caregivers to abnormalities in routine tasks and deteriorations in a person’s ability to care for themselves. However, there has been less focus on using sensing technology to monitor a broader scope of so-called ‘meaningful activities’, which promote a person’s emotional, creative, intellectual, and spiritual needs. In this paper, we describe the development of a toolkit comprised of off-the-shelf, affordable sensors to allow persons with dementia and Parkinson’s disease to monitor meaningful activities as well as activities of daily living in order to self-manage their life and well-being. We describe two evaluations of the toolkit, firstly a lab-based study to test the installation of the system including the acuity and placement of sensors and secondly, an in-the-wild study where subjects who were not target users of the toolkit, but who identified as technology enthusiasts evaluated the feasibility of the toolkit to monitor activities in and around real homes. Subjects from the in-the-wild study reported minimal obstructions to installation and were able to carry out and enjoy activities without obstruction from the sensors, revealing that meaningful activities may be monitored remotely using affordable, passive sensors. We propose that our toolkit may enhance assistive living systems by monitoring a wider range of activities than activities of daily living

Whole Genome Association Analysis of Idiopathic Eosinophilic Enteritis in Brown Egg Layers

Idiopathic Eosinophilic Enteritis (IEE) is an intestine disease that affects absorption of nutrients and performance. Hens of a commercial breeding layer line and its two reciprocal crosses with another line were recorded for IEE related traits and genotyped for over 40,000 genetic markers across the genome. Whole genome association analysis was performed on 288 daughters from high and low incidence sire families. Single marker association analyses of IEE incidence in separate lines showed consistent significant regions on chromosomes 4 and 5 (p\u3c0.001). Simultaneous analyses of all SNPs in all 3 lines using Bayesian whole genome selection methods indicated evidence of associations on chromosomes 1, 2 and 4 for additive effects and on chromosome 5 for dominance effects. Line specific regions also appeared on chromosome Z. With further investigation, these results can be used to develop genetic markers to select against this disease and to understand its genetic basis

Privileged Structure: Novel Indane Scaffolds as Potential Anticancer and Anti-Inflammatory Agents

The identification and use of “privileged structures” can increase the reliability and shorten the process in the drug discovery and drug design (a-b). Indane scaffolds occur in various natural products and they constitute the privileged structure that is ubiquitous in many biologically and pharmaceutically active molecules (c-e). Our research group has been working on the synthesis and pharmacological activity of nature identical and synthetically modified indanes and indanones for 20 years. In the current study, the molecular design is centred on elaboration of a fern derived bioactive pharmacophore. The fern is used in traditional Taiwanese medicine to treat inflammation, allergy, stomach cramps and fever (f). Using a synthetic approach we have designed a novel chemical scaffold which can be modified to inhibit angiogenesis and 5-lipoxygenase activity. The parent scaffold and a number of strategically modified derivatives were initially screened using the Zebra fish (Danio rerio) model of tumour angiogenesis (g). This screen led to the identification of two lead molecules, which were then further evaluated in in vitro cell lines and colorectal explants. Results from these experiments establish that the lead compounds affect inter-segmental vessel formation. These molecules also inhibit cell invasion and tube formation. When evaluated in ex vivo colorectal cancer explants where the molecules significantly affected angiogenic and inflammatory protein secretions. These small molecules also alter gene expression. Modification of the scaffold can inhibit 5-lipoxygenase activity. These data suggest that the new scaffold may have significant potential in the treatment of angiogenesis and inflammatory related diseases

Outcomes of the 2019 GRAPPA workshop on continuous composite indices for the assessment of psoriatic arthritis and membership-recommended next steps

OBJECTIVE: Improving the assessment of psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a key purpose of the Group for Research and Assessment of Psoriasis and PsA (GRAPPA). Herein, we report the proceedings of the GRAPPA composites workshop at the 2019 GRAPPA annual meeting and the membership\u27s recommended next steps. METHODS: A review of continuous composite measures was conducted in an introductory workshop, followed by 10 breakout group sessions and a final plenary session for feedback and voting. RESULTS: Participants included 154 members: 87 rheumatologists, 18 dermatologists, 2 rheumatologist/dermatologists, 12 patient research partners, 14 academics, 1 methodologist, and 20 industry members. Of voting members, 88.8% agreed a need exists for a continuous composite measure for routine practice, but only 62% were currently using a composite measure. Of these, 27% were using the 28-joint count Disease Activity Score (DAS), which is not a PsA-specific measure; 20% were using a PsA-specific measure such as PsA DAS (PASDAS), Composite Psoriatic Disease Activity Index (CPDAI), or Disease Activity Index for PsA (DAPSA). Members agreed that the existing measures were not feasible in their current forms (CPDAI 83%, PASDAS 82%, and DAPSA 47%) and that modification should be tested. The majority (76%) agreed that disease effect should be measured separately from disease activity. CONCLUSION: The GRAPPA membership supports the need for a continuous composite measure of disease activity for use in routine clinical care, the separate measurement of disease effect and activity, and the testing of modifications to candidate instruments rather than the development of new measures

Plant-Symbiotic Fungi as Chemical Engineers: Multi-Genome Analysis of the Clavicipitaceae Reveals Dynamics of Alkaloid Loci

The fungal family Clavicipitaceae includes plant symbionts and parasites that produce several psychoactive and bioprotective alkaloids. The family includes grass symbionts in the epichloae clade (Epichloë and Neotyphodium species), which are extraordinarily diverse both in their host interactions and in their alkaloid profiles. Epichloae produce alkaloids of four distinct classes, all of which deter insects, and some—including the infamous ergot alkaloids—have potent effects on mammals. The exceptional chemotypic diversity of the epichloae may relate to their broad range of host interactions, whereby some are pathogenic and contagious, others are mutualistic and vertically transmitted (seed-borne), and still others vary in pathogenic or mutualistic behavior. We profiled the alkaloids and sequenced the genomes of 10 epichloae, three ergot fungi (Claviceps species), a morning-glory symbiont (Periglandula ipomoeae), and a bamboo pathogen (Aciculosporium take), and compared the gene clusters for four classes of alkaloids. Results indicated a strong tendency for alkaloid loci to have conserved cores that specify the skeleton structures and peripheral genes that determine chemical variations that are known to affect their pharmacological specificities. Generally, gene locations in cluster peripheries positioned them near to transposon-derived, AT-rich repeat blocks, which were probably involved in gene losses, duplications, and neofunctionalizations. The alkaloid loci in the epichloae had unusual structures riddled with large, complex, and dynamic repeat blocks. This feature was not reflective of overall differences in repeat contents in the genomes, nor was it characteristic of most other specialized metabolism loci. The organization and dynamics of alkaloid loci and abundant repeat blocks in the epichloae suggested that these fungi are under selection for alkaloid diversification. We suggest that such selection is related to the variable life histories of the epichloae, their protective roles as symbionts, and their associations with the highly speciose and ecologically diverse cool-season grasses

Diving into the vertical dimension of elasmobranch movement ecology

Knowledge of the three-dimensional movement patterns of elasmobranchs is vital to understand their ecological roles and exposure to anthropogenic pressures. To date, comparative studies among species at global scales have mostly focused on horizontal movements. Our study addresses the knowledge gap of vertical movements by compiling the first global synthesis of vertical habitat use by elasmobranchs from data obtained by deployment of 989 biotelemetry tags on 38 elasmobranch species. Elasmobranchs displayed high intra- and interspecific variability in vertical movement patterns. Substantial vertical overlap was observed for many epipelagic elasmobranchs, indicating an increased likelihood to display spatial overlap, biologically interact, and share similar risk to anthropogenic threats that vary on a vertical gradient. We highlight the critical next steps toward incorporating vertical movement into global management and monitoring strategies for elasmobranchs, emphasizing the need to address geographic and taxonomic biases in deployments and to concurrently consider both horizontal and vertical movements