Three-dimensional laser surface imaging and geometric morphometrics resolve frontonasal dysmorphology in schizophrenia.

BACKGROUND: Although a role for early developmental disturbance(s) in schizophrenia is postulated, it has proved difficult to identify hard, biological evidence. The brain and face emerge in embryologic intimacy, such that in neurodevelopmental disorders, brain dysmorphogenesis is accompanied by facial dysmorphogenesis. METHODS: Three-dimensional (3D) laser surface imaging was used to capture the facial surface of patients and control subjects in 37 male and 32 female patients who satisfied DSM-IV criteria for schizophrenia in comparison with 58 male and 34 female control subjects. Surface images were analyzed using geometric morphometrics and 3D visualizations to identify domains of facial shape that distinguish patients from control subjects. RESULTS: Both male and, particularly, female patients evidenced significant facial dysmorphology. There was narrowing and reduction of the mid to lower face and frontonasal prominences, including reduced width and posterior displacement of the mouth, lips, and chin; increased width of the upper face, mandible, and skull base, with lateral displacement of the cheeks, eyes, and orbits; and anterior displacement of the superior margins of the orbits. CONCLUSIONS: The frontonasal prominence, which enjoys the most intimate embryologic relationship with the anterior brain and also orchestrates aspects of development in maxillary and mandibular domains, evidences a characteristic topography of dysmorphogenesis in schizophrenia

Non-Deterministic Kleene Coalgebras

In this paper, we present a systematic way of deriving (1) languages of (generalised) regular expressions, and (2) sound and complete axiomatizations thereof, for a wide variety of systems. This generalizes both the results of Kleene (on regular languages and deterministic finite automata) and Milner (on regular behaviours and finite labelled transition systems), and includes many other systems such as Mealy and Moore machines

The Ghost of Sagittarius and Lumps in the Halo of the Milky Way

We identify new structures in the halo of the Milky Way Galaxy from positions, colors and magnitudes of five million stars detected in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Most of these stars are within 1.26 degrees of the celestial equator. We present color-magnitude diagrams (CMDs) for stars in two previously discovered, tidally disrupted structures. The CMDs and turnoff colors are consistent with those of the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy, as had been predicted. In one direction, we are even able to detect a clump of red stars, similar to that of the Sagittarius dwarf, from stars spread across 110 square degrees of sky. Focusing on stars with the colors of F turnoff objects, we identify at least five additional overdensities of stars. Four of these may be pieces of the same halo structure, which would cover a region of the sky at least 40 degrees in diameter, at a distance of 11 kpc from the Sun (18 kpc from the center of the Galaxy). The turnoff is significantly bluer than that of thick disk stars, and closer to the Galactic plane than a power-law spheroid. We suggest two models to explain this new structure. One possibility is that this new structure could be a new dwarf satellite of the Milky Way, hidden in the Galactic plane, and in the process of being tidally disrupted. The other possibility is that it could be part of a disk-like distribution of stars which is metal-poor, with a scale height of approximately 2 kpc and a scale length of approximately 10 kpc. The fifth overdensity, which is 20 kpc away, is some distance from the Sagittarius dwarf streamer orbit and is not associated with any known structure in the Galactic plane. It is likely that there are many smaller streams of stars in the Galactic halo.Comment: ApJ, in press; 26 figures including several in colo

Human Perception of Fear in Dogs Varies According to Experience with Dogs

To investigate the role of experience in humans’ perception of emotion using canine visual signals, we asked adults with various levels of dog experience to interpret the emotions of dogs displayed in videos. The video stimuli had been pre-categorized by an expert panel of dog behavior professionals as showing examples of happy or fearful dog behavior. In a sample of 2,163 participants, the level of dog experience strongly predicted identification of fearful, but not of happy, emotional examples. The probability of selecting the “fearful” category to describe fearful examples increased with experience and ranged from.30 among those who had never lived with a dog to greater than.70 among dog professionals. In contrast, the probability of selecting the “happy” category to describe happy emotional examples varied little by experience, ranging from.90 to.93. In addition, the number of physical features of the dog that participants reported using for emotional interpretations increased with experience, and in particular, more-experienced respondents were more likely to attend to the ears. Lastly, more-experienced respondents provided lower difficulty and higher accuracy self-ratings than less-experienced respondents when interpreting both happy and fearful emotional examples. The human perception of emotion in other humans has previously been shown to be sensitive to individual differences in social experience, and the results of the current study extend the notion of experience-dependent processes from the intraspecific to the interspecific domain

A survey of foot orthoses prescription habits amongst podiatrists in the UK, Australia and New Zealand

Background: Foot orthoses are frequently used but little is known about which types are used in contemporary practice. This study aimed to explore the types of foot orthoses currently used by podiatrists and the prescription variations in a range of conditions. Methods: A web-based, cross-sectional survey was distributed through professional bodies in the United Kingdom (UK), Australia, and New Zealand. Questions focussed on foot orthosis prescription habits in relation to 26 conditions affecting the back and lower limb. Results: Two hundred and sixty-four podiatrists practising in 19 different countries completed the survey; the majority practised in the UK (47%, n=124), Australia (30%, n=79) and New Zealand (12%, n=32). Respondents qualified between 1968 and 2016, and 147 (56%) were female. Respondents worked in different healthcare sectors and this varied between countries: 42 (34%) respondents in the UK worked solely in the public sector, compared to 3 (4%) in Australia and 2 (6%) in New Zealand. Forty-four (35%) respondents in the UK worked solely in private practice, compared to 64 (81%) in Australia and 14 (44%) in New Zealand. UK respondents prescribed more prefabricated orthoses per week (mean 5.5 pairs) than simple insole-type devices (±2.7) and customised devices (±2.9). Similarly, respondents in New Zealand prescribed more prefabricated orthoses per week (±7.7) than simple (±1.4) and customised (±2.8) devices. In contrast, those in Australia prescribed more customised orthoses per week (±4.4) than simple (±0.8) and prefabricated (±1.9) orthoses. Differences in the types of orthoses prescribed were observed between country of practice, working sector, and the condition targeted. Generally, prefabricated orthoses were commonly prescribed for the 26 highlighted conditions in the UK and New Zealand. Australian podiatrists prescribed far fewer devices overall, but when they did prescribe, they were more likely to prescribe custom devices. Respondents in all three countries were more likely to prescribe customised orthoses for people with diabetes complicated by peripheral neuropathy than for diabetes without this complication. Conclusions: Foot orthosis prescription habits vary between countries. Prefabricated orthoses were frequently prescribed in the UK and New Zealand, and customised orthoses in Australia. Prescriptions for people with diabetes differed depending on the presence of neuropathy, despite a lack of robust evidence supporting these decisions. This study provides new insight into contemporary practice

COVID-19 symptoms at hospital admission vary with age and sex: results from the ISARIC prospective multinational observational study

Background: The ISARIC prospective multinational observational study is the largest cohort of hospitalized patients with COVID-19. We present relationships of age, sex, and nationality to presenting symptoms. Methods: International, prospective observational study of 60 109 hospitalized symptomatic patients with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 recruited from 43 countries between 30 January and 3 August 2020. Logistic regression was performed to evaluate relationships of age and sex to published COVID-19 case definitions and the most commonly reported symptoms. Results: ‘Typical’ symptoms of fever (69%), cough (68%) and shortness of breath (66%) were the most commonly reported. 92% of patients experienced at least one of these. Prevalence of typical symptoms was greatest in 30- to 60-year-olds (respectively 80, 79, 69%; at least one 95%). They were reported less frequently in children (≤ 18 years: 69, 48, 23; 85%), older adults (≥ 70 years: 61, 62, 65; 90%), and women (66, 66, 64; 90%; vs. men 71, 70, 67; 93%, each P < 0.001). The most common atypical presentations under 60 years of age were nausea and vomiting and abdominal pain, and over 60 years was confusion. Regression models showed significant differences in symptoms with sex, age and country. Interpretation: This international collaboration has allowed us to report reliable symptom data from the largest cohort of patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19. Adults over 60 and children admitted to hospital with COVID-19 are less likely to present with typical symptoms. Nausea and vomiting are common atypical presentations under 30 years. Confusion is a frequent atypical presentation of COVID-19 in adults over 60 years. Women are less likely to experience typical symptoms than men

Refining the resolution of craniofacial dysmorphology in bipolar disorder as an index of brain dysmorphogenesis

As understanding of the genetics of bipolar disorder increases, controversy endures regarding whether the origins of this illness include early maldevelopment. Clarification would be facilitated by a ‘hard’ biological index of fetal developmental abnormality, among which craniofacial dysmorphology bears the closest embry- ological relationship to brain dysmorphogenesis. Therefore, 3D laser surface imaging was used to capture the facial surface of 21 patients with bipolar disorder and 45 control subjects; 21 patients with schizophrenia were also studied. Surface images were subjected to geometric morphometric analysis in non-affine space for more incisive resolution of subtle, localised dysmorphologies that might distinguish patients from controls. Complex and more biologically informative, non-linear changes distinguished bipolar patients from control subjects. On a background of minor dysmorphology of the upper face, maxilla, midface and periorbital regions, bipolar dis- order was characterised primarily by the following dysmorphologies: (a) retrusion and shortening of the pre- maxilla, nose, philtrum, lips and mouth (the frontonasal prominences), with (b) some protrusion and widening of the mandible-chin. The topography of facial dysmorphology in bipolar disorder indicates disruption to early development in the frontonasal process and, on embryological grounds, cerebral dysmorphogenesis in the forebrain, most likely between the 10th and 15th week of fetal lif

Frontonasal dysmorphology in bipolar disorder by 3D laser surface imaging and geometric morphometrics: Comparisons with schizophrenia

Any developmental relationship between bipolar disorder and schizophrenia engenders continuing debate. As the brain and face emerge in embryological intimacy, brain dysmorphogenesis is accompanied by facial dysmorphogenesis. 3D laser surface imaging was used to capture the facial surface of 13 male and 14 female patients with bipolar disorder in comparison with 61 male and 75 female control subjects and with 37 male and 32 female patients with schizophrenia. Surface images were analysed using geometric morphometrics and 3D visualisations to identify domains of facial shape that distinguish bipolar patients from controls and bipolar patients from those with schizophrenia. Both male and female bipolar patients evidenced significant facial dysmorphology: common to male and female patients was overall facial widening, increased width of nose, narrowing of mouth and upward displacement of the chin; dysmorphology differed between male and female patients for nose length, lip thickness and tragion height. There were few morphological differences in comparison with schizophrenia patients. That dysmorphology of the frontonasal prominences and related facial regions in bipolar disorder is more similar to than different from that found in schizophrenia indicates some common dysmorphogenesis. Bipolar disorder and schizophrenia might reflect similar insult(s) acting over slightly differing time-frames or slightly differing insult(s) acting over a similar time-frame