Diagnostic Accuracy of Confocal Laser Endomicroscopy for the Diagnosis of Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Published: 25 November 2021Background: Advances in treatment approaches for patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) have been unsuccessful in preventing frequent recurrences and distant metastases, leading to a poor prognosis. Early detection and prevention enable an improved 5-year survival and better prognosis. Confocal Laser Endomicroscopy (CLE) is a non-invasive imaging instrument that could enable an earlier diagnosis and possibly help in reducing unnecessary invasive surgical procedures. Objective: To present an up to date systematic review and meta-analysis assessing the diagnostic accuracy of CLE in diagnosing OSCC. Materials and Methods. PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases were explored up to 30 June 2021, to collect articles concerning the diagnosis of OSCC through CLE. Screening: data extraction and appraisal was done by two reviewers. The quality of the methodology followed by the studies included in this review was assessed using the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies-2 (QUADAS-2) tool. A random effects model was used for the meta-analysis. Results: Six studies were included, leading to a total number of 361 lesions in 213 patients. The pooled sensitivity and specificity were 95% (95% CI, 92–97%; I2 = 77.5%) and 93% (95% CI, 90–95%; I2 = 68.6%); the pooled positive likelihood ratios and negative likelihood ratios were 10.85 (95% CI, 5.4–21.7; I2 = 55.9%) and 0.08 (95% CI, 0.03–0.2; I2 = 83.5%); and the pooled diagnostic odds ratio was 174.45 (95% CI, 34.51–881.69; I2 = 73.6%). Although risk of bias and heterogeneity is observed, this study validates that CLE may have a noteworthy clinical influence on the diagnosis of OSCC, through its high sensitivity and specificity. Conclusions: This review indicates an exceptionally high sensitivity and specificity of CLE for diagnosing OSCC. Whilst it is a promising diagnostic instrument, the limited number of existing studies and potential risk of bias of included studies does not allow us to draw firm conclusions. A conclusive inference can be drawn when more studies, possibly with homogeneous methodological approach, are performed.Sneha Sethi, Xiangqun Ju, Richard M. Logan, Paul Sambrook, Robert A. McLaughlin and Lisa M. Jamieso

Kondo effect induced by a magnetic field

We study peculiarities of transport through a Coulomb blockade system tuned to the vicinity of the spin transition in its ground state. Such transitions can be induced in practice by application of a magnetic field. Tunneling of electrons between the dot and leads mixes the states belonging to the ground state manifold of the dot. Remarkably, both the orbital and spin degrees of freedom of the electrons are engaged in the mixing at the singlet-triplet transition point. We present a model which provides an adequate theoretical description of recent experiments with semiconductor quantum dots and carbon nanotubes

National Register Testing At Sites 41BP585, 41BP594, And 41BP595 Three Oaks Mine, Bastrop County, Texas

Between October 2012 and July 2013, Atkins conducted National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) eligibility testing at historic sites 41BP585 and 41BP594 and prehistoric site 41BP595, located within the Three Oaks Mine in Bastrop County, Texas, which is owned and operated by Luminant. Impacts to all three sites are anticipated as a result of planned mine development. This work was conducted under the direction of Principal Investigator David L. Sherman. This report of investigations was written at Atkins and is being finalized by Blanton & Associates, with David L. Sherman remaining as the Principal Investigator. This work demonstrated that significant archeological deposits that may contribute to the overall NRHP eligibility statuses of the two historic sites are absent at both sites. Standing architecture at 41BP594, however, has previously been determined to be eligible for listing on the NRHP (Martin 2001). Archival research conducted as part of the current investigation into the histories of the historic sites remains inconclusive with respect to the identity of their 1870s and earlier occupants. Testing at prehistoric site 41BP595 indicated it resulted from multiple occupational episodes during the period from the late Paleoindian to the Late Prehistoric. Shovel testing and mechanical trenching revealed the presence of an expansive buried anthrogenic A soil horizon, or midden, replete with preserved subsistence remains. Mechanical trenching also exposed a variety of burned rock cooking facilities partially surrounding the midden area. Radiocarbon assays of burned nut shells recovered from feature contexts, along with the assemblage of diagnostic lithic artifacts, suggest the site was most intensively occupied from the Late Archaic to the early Late Prehistoric. A suite of special studies was conducted on burned rock samples recovered from four of the better-preserved burned rock features. These studies, which include residue, starch, and phytolith analysis, suggest that the burned rock features were used in part to process tubers/roots and grass seeds for subsistence. Macrobotanical analysis of flotation samples recovered from feature contexts identified spent fuel remains including oak and hickory wood and subsistence remains including oak, hickory, black walnut, and acorn burned nut shells. A small amount of burned bulb, possibly representing wild onion, was also recovered through flotation. These findings suggest that significant archeological deposits important to understanding the Late Archaic to early Late Prehistoric period have been preserved at 41BP595

Kondo effect in coupled quantum dots: a Non-crossing approximation study

The out-of-equilibrium transport properties of a double quantum dot system in the Kondo regime are studied theoretically by means of a two-impurity Anderson Hamiltonian with inter-impurity hopping. The Hamiltonian, formulated in slave-boson language, is solved by means of a generalization of the non-crossing approximation (NCA) to the present problem. We provide benchmark calculations of the predictions of the NCA for the linear and nonlinear transport properties of coupled quantum dots in the Kondo regime. We give a series of predictions that can be observed experimentally in linear and nonlinear transport measurements through coupled quantum dots. Importantly, it is demonstrated that measurements of the differential conductance ${\cal G}=dI/dV$, for the appropriate values of voltages and inter-dot tunneling couplings, can give a direct observation of the coherent superposition between the many-body Kondo states of each dot. This coherence can be also detected in the linear transport through the system: the curve linear conductance vs temperature is non-monotonic, with a maximum at a temperature $T^*$ characterizing quantum coherence between both Kondo states.Comment: 20 pages, 17 figure

Analysis of LIGO data for gravitational waves from binary neutron stars

We report on a search for gravitational waves from coalescing compact binary systems in the Milky Way and the Magellanic Clouds. The analysis uses data taken by two of the three LIGO interferometers during the first LIGO science run and illustrates a method of setting upper limits on inspiral event rates using interferometer data. The analysis pipeline is described with particular attention to data selection and coincidence between the two interferometers. We establish an observational upper limit of $\mathcal{R}<$1.7 \times 10^{2}$per year per Milky Way Equivalent Galaxy (MWEG), with 90coalescence rate of binary systems in which each component has a mass in the range 1--3$M_\odot$.Comment: 17 pages, 9 figure

Rolled-Up Nanotech: Illumination-Controlled Hydrofluoric Acid Etching of AlAs Sacrificial Layers

<p>Abstract</p> <p>The effect of illumination on the hydrofluoric acid etching of AlAs sacrificial layers with systematically varied thicknesses in order to release and roll up InGaAs/GaAs bilayers was studied. For thicknesses of AlAs below 10 nm, there were two etching regimes for the area under illumination: one at low illumination intensities, in which the etching and releasing proceeds as expected and one at higher intensities in which the etching and any releasing are completely suppressed. The &#8220;etch suppression&#8221; area is well defined by the illumination spot, a feature that can be used to create heterogeneously etched regions with a high degree of control, shown here on patterned samples. Together with the studied self-limitation effect, the technique offers a way to determine the position of rolled-up micro- and nanotubes independently from the predefined lithographic pattern.</p

Best practices for addressing missing data through multiple imputation

A common challenge in developmental research is the amount of incomplete and missing data that occurs from respondents failing to complete tasks or questionnaires, as well as from disengaging from the study (i.e., attrition). This missingness can lead to biases in parameter estimates and, hence, in the interpretation of findings. These biases can be addressed through statistical techniques that adjust for missing data, such as multiple imputation. Although multiple imputation is highly effective, it has not been widely adopted by developmental scientists given barriers such as lack of training or misconceptions about imputation methods. Utilizing default methods within statistical software programs like listwise deletion is common but may introduce additional bias. This manuscript is intended to provide practical guidelines for developmental researchers to follow when examining their data for missingness, making decisions about how to handle that missingness and reporting the extent of missing data biases and specific multiple imputation procedures in publications

Dynamic redox conditions control late Ediacaran metazoan ecosystems in the Nama Group, Namibia

The first appearance of skeletal metazoans in the late Ediacaran (~550 million years ago; Ma) has been linked to the widespread development of oxygenated oceanic conditions, but a precise spatial and temporal reconstruction of their evolution has not been resolved. Here we consider the evolution of ocean chemistry from ~550 to ~541. Ma across shelf-to-basin transects in the Zaris and Witputs Sub-Basins of the Nama Group, Namibia. New carbon isotope data capture the final stages of the Shuram/Wonoka deep negative C-isotope excursion, and these are complemented with a reconstruction of water column redox dynamics utilising Fe-S-C systematics and the distribution of skeletal and soft-bodied metazoans. Combined, these inter-basinal datasets provide insight into the potential role of ocean redox chemistry during this pivotal interval of major biological innovation.The strongly negative δ13C values in the lower parts of the sections reflect both a secular, global change in the C-isotopic composition of Ediacaran seawater, as well as the influence of 'local' basinal effects as shown by the most negative δ13C values occurring in the transition from distal to proximal ramp settings. Critical, though, is that the transition to positive δ13C values postdates the appearance of calcified metazoans, indicating that the onset of biomineralization did not occur under post-excursion conditions.Significantly, we find that anoxic and ferruginous deeper water column conditions were prevalent during and after the transition to positive δ13C that marks the end of the Shuram/Wonoka excursion. Thus, if the C isotope trend reflects the transition to global-scale oxygenation in the aftermath of the oxidation of a large-scale, isotopically light organic carbon pool, it was not sufficient to fully oxygenate the deep ocean.Both sub-basins reveal highly dynamic redox structures, where shallow, inner ramp settings experienced transient oxygenation. Anoxic conditions were caused either by episodic upwelling of deeper anoxic waters or higher rates of productivity. These settings supported short-lived and monospecific skeletal metazoan communities. By contrast, microbial (thrombolite) reefs, found in deeper inner- and mid-ramp settings, supported more biodiverse communities with complex ecologies and large skeletal metazoans. These long-lived reef communities, as well as Ediacaran soft-bodied biotas, are found particularly within transgressive systems, where oxygenation was persistent. We suggest that a mid-ramp position enabled physical ventilation mechanisms for shallow water column oxygenation to operate during flooding and transgressive sea-level rise. Our data support a prominent role for oxygen, and for stable oxygenated conditions in particular, in controlling both the distribution and ecology of Ediacaran skeletal metazoan communities