Perivascular Spaces Segmentation in Brain MRI Using Optimal 3D Filtering

Perivascular Spaces (PVS) are a recently recognised feature of Small Vessel Disease (SVD), also indicating neuroinflammation, and are an important part of the brain's circulation and glymphatic drainage system. Quantitative analysis of PVS on Magnetic Resonance Images (MRI) is important for understanding their relationship with neurological diseases. In this work, we propose a segmentation technique based on the 3D Frangi filtering for extraction of PVS from MRI. Based on prior knowledge from neuroradiological ratings of PVS, we used ordered logit models to optimise Frangi filter parameters in response to the variability in the scanner's parameters and study protocols. We optimized and validated our proposed models on two independent cohorts, a dementia sample (N=20) and patients who previously had mild to moderate stroke (N=48). Results demonstrate the robustness and generalisability of our segmentation method. Segmentation-based PVS burden estimates correlated with neuroradiological assessments (Spearman's $\rho$ = 0.74, p $<$ 0.001), suggesting the great potential of our proposed metho

Selective Enrichment Media Bias the Types of Salmonella enterica Strains Isolated from Mixed Strain Cultures and Complex Enrichment Broths

For foodborne outbreak investigations it can be difficult to isolate the relevant strain from food and/or environmental sources. If the sample is contaminated by more than one strain of the pathogen the relevant strain might be missed. In this study mixed cultures of Salmonella enterica were grown in one set of standard enrichment media to see if culture bias patterns emerged. Nineteen strains representing four serogroups and ten serotypes were compared in four-strain mixtures in Salmonella-only and in cattle fecal culture enrichment backgrounds using Salmonella enrichment media. One or more strain(s) emerged as dominant in each mixture. No serotype was most fit, but strains of serogroups C2 and E were more likely to dominate enrichment culture mixtures than strains of serogroups B or C1. Different versions of Rappaport-Vassiliadis (RV) medium gave different patterns of strain dominance in both Salmonella-only and fecal enrichment culture backgrounds. The fittest strains belonged to serogroups C1, C2, and E, and included strains of S. Infantis, S. Thompson S. Newport, S. 6,8:d:-, and S. Give. Strains of serogroup B, which included serotypes often seen in outbreaks such as S. Typhimurium, S. Saintpaul, and S. Schwarzengrund were less likely to emerge as dominant strains in the mixtures when using standard RV as part of the enrichment. Using a more nutrient-rich version of RV as part of the protocol led to a different pattern of strains emerging, however some were still present in very low numbers in the resulting population. These results indicate that outbreak investigations of food and/or other environmental samples should include multiple enrichment protocols to ensure isolation of target strains of Salmonella

Computational Fluid Dynamics of Catalytic Reactors

Today, the challenge in chemical and material synthesis is not only the development of new catalysts and supports to synthesize a desired product, but also the understanding of the interaction of the catalyst with the surrounding flow field. Computational Fluid Dynamics or CFD is the analysis of fluid flow, heat and mass transfer and chemical reactions by means of computer-based numerical simulations. CFD has matured into a powerful tool with a wide range of applications in industry and academia. From a reaction engineering perspective, main advantages are reduction of time and costs for reactor design and optimization, and the ability to study systems where experiments can hardly be performed, e.g., hazardous conditions or beyond normal operation limits. However, the simulation results will always remain a reflection of the uncertainty in the underlying models and physicochemical parameters so that in general a careful experimental validation is required. This chapter introduces the application of CFD simulations in heterogeneous catalysis. Catalytic reactors can be classified by the geometrical design of the catalyst material (e.g. monoliths, particles, pellets, washcoats). Approaches for modeling and numerical simulation of the various catalyst types are presented. Focus is put on the principal concepts for coupling the physical and chemical processes on different levels of details, and on illustrative applications. Models for surface reaction kinetics and turbulence are described and an overview on available numerical methods and computational tools is provided