Haplotype-sharing analysis using Mantel statistics for combined genetic effects

We applied a new approach based on Mantel statistics to analyze the Genetic Analysis Workshop 14 simulated data with prior knowledge of the answers. The method was developed in order to improve the power of a haplotype sharing analysis for gene mapping in complex disease. The new statistic correlates genetic similarity and phenotypic similarity across pairs of haplotypes from case-control studies. The genetic similarity is measured as the shared length between haplotype pairs around a genetic marker. The phenotypic similarity is measured as the mean corrected cross-product based on the respective phenotypes. Cases with phenotype P1 and unrelated controls were drawn from the population of Danacaa. Power to detect main effects was compared to the X(2)-test for association based on 3-marker haplotypes and a global permutation test for haplotype association to test for main effects. Power to detect gene × gene interaction was compared to unconditional logistic regression. The results suggest that the Mantel statistics might be more powerful than alternative tests

Nanomateriales para terapia e imagen en el infrarrojo

Tesis Doctoral inédita leída en la Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Facultad de Ciencias, Departamento de Física de Materiales. Fecha de lectura: 20-01-201

Efficient Multi-Task Scene Analysis with RGB-D Transformers

Scene analysis is essential for enabling autonomous systems, such as mobile robots, to operate in real-world environments. However, obtaining a comprehensive understanding of the scene requires solving multiple tasks, such as panoptic segmentation, instance orientation estimation, and scene classification. Solving these tasks given limited computing and battery capabilities on mobile platforms is challenging. To address this challenge, we introduce an efficient multi-task scene analysis approach, called EMSAFormer, that uses an RGB-D Transformer-based encoder to simultaneously perform the aforementioned tasks. Our approach builds upon the previously published EMSANet. However, we show that the dual CNN-based encoder of EMSANet can be replaced with a single Transformer-based encoder. To achieve this, we investigate how information from both RGB and depth data can be effectively incorporated in a single encoder. To accelerate inference on robotic hardware, we provide a custom NVIDIA TensorRT extension enabling highly optimization for our EMSAFormer approach. Through extensive experiments on the commonly used indoor datasets NYUv2, SUNRGB-D, and ScanNet, we show that our approach achieves state-of-the-art performance while still enabling inference with up to 39.1 FPS on an NVIDIA Jetson AGX Orin 32 GB.Comment: To be published in IEEE International Joint Conference on Neural Networks (IJCNN) 202

Bronquiolitis grave por virus respiratorios emergentes y desarrollo posterior de sibilancias recurrentes

Tesis doctoral inédita leída en la Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Facultad de Medicina, Departamento de Pediatría. Fecha de lectura: 18 de Diciembre de 201

Waveguiding microstructures in Nd:YAG with cladding and inner dual-line configuration produced by femtosecond laser inscription

We demonstrate a new design of waveguiding microstructure, which contains both cladding and inner dual-line configurations, in Nd:YAG laser crystals inscribed by femtosecond laser processing. Based on this prototype, a few “cladding + dual-line” hybrid structures with different parameters have been successfully manufactured in Nd:YAG. The waveguide lasing at 1.06 μm has been realized in the hybrid structures under 808-nm optical pump. Compared to the single dual-line waveguides, the dual-line core in hybrid configuration benefits from the large-area pump from the external cladding, reaching an enhancement of 26% on the maximum output power and of 24% on the slope efficiency of the waveguide lasing. In addition, the symmetric stress field of external cladding structure produces anisotropic stress field in the inner cores, supporting guidance along both TE and TM polarizations, thus differing significantly from the single dual-line waveguides.The work is supported by the Specialized Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education of China (No.20130131130001) and Junta de Castilla y León under Project SA086A12-2. Support from the Centro de Láseres Pulsados (CLPU) is also acknowledged

PanopticNDT: Efficient and Robust Panoptic Mapping

As the application scenarios of mobile robots are getting more complex and challenging, scene understanding becomes increasingly crucial. A mobile robot that is supposed to operate autonomously in indoor environments must have precise knowledge about what objects are present, where they are, what their spatial extent is, and how they can be reached; i.e., information about free space is also crucial. Panoptic mapping is a powerful instrument providing such information. However, building 3D panoptic maps with high spatial resolution is challenging on mobile robots, given their limited computing capabilities. In this paper, we propose PanopticNDT - an efficient and robust panoptic mapping approach based on occupancy normal distribution transform (NDT) mapping. We evaluate our approach on the publicly available datasets Hypersim and ScanNetV2. The results reveal that our approach can represent panoptic information at a higher level of detail than other state-of-the-art approaches while enabling real-time panoptic mapping on mobile robots. Finally, we prove the real-world applicability of PanopticNDT with qualitative results in a domestic application.Comment: IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS), 202

Noise Levels and Sleep in a Surgical ICU

Noise; Perioperative care; SleepRuido; Cuidado perioperatorio; SueñoSoroll; Cura perioperatòria; SonSleep is disturbed in critically ill patients and is a frequently overlooked complication. The aim of our study is to evaluate the impact of sound levels in our surgical ICU on our patients’ sleep on the first night of admission. The study was performed in a tertiary care university hospital, in a 12-bed surgical ICU. Over a 6-week period, a total of 148 adult, non-intubated and non-sedated patients completed the study. During this six-week period, sound levels were continuously measured using a type II sound level meter. Sleep quality was evaluated using the Richards–Campbell Sleep Questionnaire (RCSQ), which was completed both by patients and nurses on the first morning after admission. A non-significant correlation was found between night sound levels and sleep quality in the overall sample (r = −1.83, 95% CI; −4.54 to 0.88, p = 0.19). After multivariable analysis, a correlation was found between higher sound levels at night and lower RCSQ evaluations (r = −3.92, 95% CI; −7.57 to −0.27, p = 0.04). We found a significant correlation between lower sound levels at night and a better quality of sleep in our patients; for each 1 dBA increase in LAFeq sound levels at night, patients scored 3.92 points lower on the sleep questionnaire

Continuous-wave lasing at 1.06μm in femtosecond laser written Nd:KGW waveguides

We report on the buried channel waveguide laser at 1065 nm in Nd:KGW waveguides fabricated by femtosecond laser writing with dual-line approach. A relatively high scanning speed of 0.5 mm/s enables acceptable propagation loss less than 2 dB/cm. The fluorescence emission spectra of Nd3+ ions measured shows that the fluorescence properties were well preserved in the waveguide region. A stable continuous wave laser at 1065 nm has been obtained at room temperature in the buried channel waveguides by optical pumping at 808 nm. A maximum output power of 33 mW and a slope efficiency of 52.3% were achieved in the Nd:KGW waveguide laser system.The work is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 11274203), the Specialized Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education of China (No. 20130131130001) and Junta de Castilla y León under project SA086A12-2. Support from the Centro de Láseres Pulsados (CLPU) is also acknowledged

Factors controlling the geochemical composition of Limnopolar Lake sediments (Byers Peninsula, Livingston Island, South Shetland Island, Antarctica) during the last ca. 1600 years

We sampled a short (57 cm) sediment core in Limnopolar Lake (Byers Peninsula, Livingston Island, South Shetland Islands), which spans the last ca. 1600 years. The core was sectioned at high resolution and analyzed for elemental and mineralogical composition, and scanning electron microscope and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (SEM-EDS) analysis of glass mineral particles in selected samples. The chemical record was characterized by a contrasted pattern of layers with high Ca, Ti, Zr, and Sr concentrations and layers with higher concentrations of K and Rb. The former were also enriched in plagioclase and, occasionally, in zeolites, while the latter were relatively enriched in 2 : 1 phyllosilicates and quartz. This was interpreted as reflecting the abundance of volcaniclastic material (Ca rich) versus Jurassic–Lower Cretaceous marine sediments (K rich) – the dominant geological material in the lake catchment. SEM-EDS analysis revealed the presence of abundant volcanic shards in the Ca-rich layers, pointing to tephras most probably related to the activity of Deception Island volcano (located 30 km to the SE). The ages of four main peaks of volcanic-rich material (AD ca. 1840–1860 for L1, AD ca. 1570–1650 for L2, AD ca. 1450–1470 for L3, and AD ca. 1300 for L4) matched reasonably well the age of tephra layers (AP1 to AP3) previously identified in lakes of Byers Peninsula. Some of the analyzed metals (Fe, Mn, Cu, and Cr) showed enrichments in the most recent tephra layer (L1), suggesting relative changes in the composition of the tephras as found in previous investigations. No evidence of significant human impact on the cycles of most trace metals (Cu, Zn, Pb) was found, probably due to the remote location of Livingston Island and the modest research infrastructures; local contamination was found by other researchers in soils, waters and marine sediments on areas with large, permanent research stations. Chromium is the only metal showing a steady enrichment in the last 200 years, but this cannot be directly attributed to anthropogenic pollution since recent research supports the interpretation that climatic variability (reduced moisture content and increased wind intensity) may have resulted in enhanced fluxes of mineral dust and trace elements (Cr among them) to Antarctica. At the same time, some features of the chemical record suggest that climate may have also played a role in the cycling of the elements, but further research is needed to identify the underlying mechanisms.This work was partially supported by projects CGL2010-20672 and REN2000-0345-ANT (Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación), POL2006-06635/CGL (Spanish Ministerio de Educación y Cultura), and 10PXIB200182PR (Dirección Xeral de I+D, Xunta de Galicia).Peer reviewe