3D Face Reconstruction from Light Field Images: A Model-free Approach

Reconstructing 3D facial geometry from a single RGB image has recently instigated wide research interest. However, it is still an ill-posed problem and most methods rely on prior models hence undermining the accuracy of the recovered 3D faces. In this paper, we exploit the Epipolar Plane Images (EPI) obtained from light field cameras and learn CNN models that recover horizontal and vertical 3D facial curves from the respective horizontal and vertical EPIs. Our 3D face reconstruction network (FaceLFnet) comprises a densely connected architecture to learn accurate 3D facial curves from low resolution EPIs. To train the proposed FaceLFnets from scratch, we synthesize photo-realistic light field images from 3D facial scans. The curve by curve 3D face estimation approach allows the networks to learn from only 14K images of 80 identities, which still comprises over 11 Million EPIs/curves. The estimated facial curves are merged into a single pointcloud to which a surface is fitted to get the final 3D face. Our method is model-free, requires only a few training samples to learn FaceLFnet and can reconstruct 3D faces with high accuracy from single light field images under varying poses, expressions and lighting conditions. Comparison on the BU-3DFE and BU-4DFE datasets show that our method reduces reconstruction errors by over 20% compared to recent state of the art

The influences of Taiwan's generic grouping price policy on drug prices and expenditures: Evidence from analysing the consumption of the three most-used classes of cardiovascular drugs

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Controlling the growth of pharmaceutical expenditures is a major global challenge. Promotion of generic drug prescriptions or use is gaining increased support. There are substantial contextual differences in international experiences of implementing pharmaceutical policies related to generic drugs. Reporting these experiences from varied perspectives can inform future policy making. This study describes an experience of Taiwan, where patients with chronic (long-term) conditions are usually managed in hospitals and drugs are provided in this setting with costs reimbursed through the National Health Insurance (NHI). It investigates the effects of Taiwan's reimbursement rate adjustment based on chemical generic grouping in 2001. This research also demonstrates the use of micro-level longitudinal data to generate policy-relevant information. The research can be used to improve efficiency of health care resource use.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We chose the three most-used classes of cardiovascular drugs for this investigation: beta blocking agents, calcium channel blockers mainly with vascular effects, and plain ACE inhibitors. For each drug class, we investigated changes in daily expense, consumption volume, and total expenditures from a pre-action period to a corresponding post-action period. We compared an exposure or "intervention" group of patients targeted by the action with a comparisonor "control" group of patients not targeted by the action. The data sources are a longitudinal database for 200,000 NHI enrolees, corresponding NHI registration data of health care facilities, and an archive recording all historical data on the reimbursement rates of drugs covered by the NHI. We adopted a fixed effects linear regression model to control for unobserved heterogeneity among patient-hospital groups. Additional descriptive statistics were applied to examine whether any inappropriate consumption of drugs in the three classes existed.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The daily drug expense significantly decreased from the pre-action period to the post-action period for the exposure group. The average magnitudes of the decreases for the three classes of drugs mentioned above were 14.8%, 5.8% and 5.8%, respectively. In contrast, there was no reduction for the comparison group. The number of days of the prescription increased significantly from the pre- to the post-action period for both exposure and comparison groups. The total expense also significantly increased for both patient groups. For the exposure group, the average magnitudes of the growth in the total expenditure for the three classes of drugs were 47.7%, 60.0% and 55.3%, respectively. For the comparison group, they were 91.6%, 91.6% and 63.2%, respectively. After the action, approximately 50% of patients obtained more than 180 days of prescription drugs for a six-month period.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The 2001 price adjustment action, based on generic grouping, significantly reduced the daily expense of each of the three classes of cardiovascular drugs. However, in response to this policy change, hospitals in Taiwan tended to greatly expand the volume of drugs prescribed for their regular patients. Consequently, the total expenditures for the three classes of drugs grew substantially after the action. These knock-on effects weakened the capability of the price adjustment action to control total pharmaceutical expenditures. This means that no saved resources were available for other health care uses. Such expansion of pharmaceutical consumption might also lead to inefficient use of the three drug classes: a large proportion of patients obtained more than one day of drugs per day in the post-action period, suggesting manipulation to increase reimbursement and offset price controls. We recommend that Taiwan's government use the NHI data to establish a monitoring system to detect inappropriate prescription patterns before implementing future policy changes. Such a monitoring system could then be used to deter hospitals from abusing their prescription volumes, making it possible to more effectively save health care resources by reducing drug reimbursement rates.</p

Novel phytoandrogens and lipidic augmenters from Eucommia ulmoides

BACKGROUND: Plants containing compounds such as the isoflavonoids, with female hormone-like effects that bind to human estrogen receptors, are known. But none has been previously shown to have corresponding male hormone-like effects that interact with the human androgen receptor. Here, we report that the tree bark (cortex) of the Gutta-Percha tree Eucommia ulmoides possesses bimodal phytoandrogenic and hormone potentiating effects by lipidic components. METHODS: The extracts of E. ulmoides were tested using in-vitro reporter gene bioassays and in-vivo animal studies. Key compounds responsible for the steroidogenic effects were isolated and identified using solid phase extraction (SPE), high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), thin layer chromatography (TLC), gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy (GC-MS), electron spray ionisation-mass spectroscopy (ESI-MS) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). RESULTS: The following bioactivities of E. ulmoides were found: (1) a phenomenal tripartite synergism exists between the sex steroid receptors (androgen and estrogen receptors), their cognate steroidal ligands and lipidic augmenters isolated from E. ulmoides, (2) phytoandrogenic activity of E. ulmoides was mediated by plant triterpenoids binding cognately to the androgen receptor (AR) ligand binding domain. CONCLUSION: In addition to well-known phytoestrogens, the existence of phytoandrogens is reported in this study. Furthermore, a form of tripartite synergism between sex steroid receptors, sex hormones and plant-derived lipids is described for the first time. This could have contrasting clinical applications for hypogonadal- and hyperlipidaemic-related disorders

PPAR? Downregulation by TGF in Fibroblast and Impaired Expression and Function in Systemic Sclerosis: A Novel Mechanism for Progressive Fibrogenesis

The nuclear orphan receptor peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPAR-γ) is expressed in multiple cell types in addition to adipocytes. Upon its activation by natural ligands such as fatty acids and eicosanoids, or by synthetic agonists such as rosiglitazone, PPAR-γ regulates adipogenesis, glucose uptake and inflammatory responses. Recent studies establish a novel role for PPAR-γ signaling as an endogenous mechanism for regulating transforming growth factor-ß (TGF-ß)- dependent fibrogenesis. Here, we sought to characterize PPAR-γ function in the prototypic fibrosing disorder systemic sclerosis (SSc), and delineate the factors governing PPAR-γ expression. We report that PPAR-γ levels were markedly diminished in skin and lung biopsies from patients with SSc, and in fibroblasts explanted from the lesional skin. In normal fibroblasts, treatment with TGF-ß resulted in a time- and dose-dependent down-regulation of PPAR-γ expression. Inhibition occurred at the transcriptional level and was mediated via canonical Smad signal transduction. Genome-wide expression profiling of SSc skin biopsies revealed a marked attenuation of PPAR-γ levels and transcriptional activity in a subset of patients with diffuse cutaneous SSc, which was correlated with the presence of a ''TGF-ß responsive gene signature'' in these biopsies. Together, these results demonstrate that the expression and function of PPAR-γ are impaired in SSc, and reveal the existence of a reciprocal inhibitory cross-talk between TGF-ß activation and PPAR-γ signaling in the context of fibrogenesis. In light of the potent anti-fibrotic effects attributed to PPAR-γ, these observations lead us to propose that excessive TGF-ß activity in SSc accounts for impaired PPAR-γ function, which in turn contributes to unchecked fibroblast activation and progressive fibrosis. © 2010 Wei et al

Surfactant protein D modulates HIV infection of both T-cells and dendritic cells

Surfactant Protein D (SP-D) is an oligomerized C-type lectin molecule with immunomodulatory properties and involvement in lung surfactant homeostasis in the respiratory tract. SP-D binds to the enveloped viruses, influenza A virus and respiratory syncytial virus and inhibits their replication in vitro and in vivo. SP-D has been shown to bind to HIV via the HIV envelope protein gp120 and inhibit infectivity in vitro. Here we show that SP-D binds to different strains of HIV (BaL and IIIB) and the binding occurs at both pH 7.4 and 5.0 resembling physiological relevant pH values found in the body and the female urogenital tract, respectively. The binding of SP-D to HIV particles and gp120 was inhibited by the presence of several hexoses with mannose found to be the strongest inhibitor. Competition studies showed that soluble CD4 and CVN did not interfere with the interaction between SP-D and gp120. However, soluble recombinant DC-SIGN was shown to inhibit the binding between SP-D and gp120. SP-D agglutinated HIV and gp120 in a calcium dependent manner. SP-D inhibited the infectivity of HIV strains at both pH values of 7.4 and 5.0 in a concentration dependent manner. The inhibition of the infectivity was abolished by the presence of mannose. SP-D enhanced the binding of HIV to immature monocyte derived dendritic cells (iMDDCs) and was also found to enhance HIV capture and transfer to the T-cell like line PM1. These results suggest that SP-D can bind to and inhibit direct infection of T-cells by HIV but also enhance the transfer of infectious HIV particles from DCs to T-cells in vivo

EFFECTS OF LOW-DOSE-GAMMA RAYS ON THE IMMUNE SYSTEM OF DIFFERENT ANIMAL MODELS OF DISEASE

We reviewed the beneficial or harmful effects of low-dose ionizing radiation on several diseases based on a search of the literature. The attenuation of autoimmune manifestations in animal disease models irradiated with low-dose γ-rays was previously reported by several research groups, whereas the exacerbation of allergic manifestations was described by others. Based on a detailed examination of the literature, we divided animal disease models into two groups: one group consisting of collagen-induced arthritis (CIA), experimental encephalomyelitis (EAE), and systemic lupus erythematosus, the pathologies of which were attenuated by low-dose irradiation, and another group consisting of atopic dermatitis, asthma, and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, the pathologies of which were exacerbated by low-dose irradiation. The same biological indicators, such as cytokine levels and Tcell subpopulations, were examined in these studies. Low-dose irradiation reduced interferon (IFN)-gamma (γ) and interleukin (IL)-6 levels and increased IL-5 levels and the percentage of CD4+CD25+Foxp3+Treg cells in almost all immunological disease cases examined. Variations in these biological indicators were attributed to the attenuation or exacerbation of the disease’s manifestation. We concluded that autoimmune diseases caused by autoantibodies were attenuated by low-dose irradiation, whereas diseases caused by antibodies against external antigens, such as atopic dermatitis, were exacerbated

The Simultaneous Formation of Massive Stars and Stellar Clusters

We show that massive stars and stellar clusters are formed simultaneously, the global evolution of the forming cluster is what allows the central stars to become massive. We predict that massive star forming clumps, such as those observed in Motte et al. 2007, contract and grow in mass leading to the formation of massive stars. This occurs as mass is continually channeled from large radii onto the central proto-stars, which can become massive through accretion. Using SPH simulations of massive star forming clumps in a Giant Molecular Cloud, we show that clumps are initially diffuse and filamentary, and become more concentrated as they collapse. Simulated interferometry observations of our data provide an explanation as to why young massive star forming regions show more substructure than older ones. The most massive stars in our model are found within the most bound cluster. Most of the mass accreted by the massive stars was originally distributed throughout the clump at low densities, and was later funneled to the star due to global in-fall. Even with radiative feedback no massive pre-stellar cores are formed. The original cores are of intermediate mass and gain their additional mass in the proto-stellar stage. We also find that cores which form low mass stars exist within the volume from which the high mass stars accrete, but are largely unaffected by this process.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS. 11 pages, 9 figures and 3 table

Observation of CR Anisotropy with ARGO-YBJ

The measurement of the anisotropies of cosmic ray arrival direction provides important informations on the propagation mechanisms and on the identification of their sources. In this paper we report the observation of anisotropy regions at different angular scales. In particular, the observation of a possible anisotropy on scales between $\sim$ 10 $^{\circ}$ and $\sim$ 30 $^{\circ}$ suggests the presence of unknown features of the magnetic fields the charged cosmic rays propagate through, as well as potential contributions of nearby sources to the total flux of cosmic rays. Evidence of new weaker few-degree excesses throughout the sky region $195^{\circ}\leq$ R.A. $\leq 315^{\circ}$ is reported for the first time.Comment: Talk given at 12th TAUP Conference 2011, 5-9 September 2011, Munich, German

The altered expression of α1 and β3 subunits of the gamma-aminobutyric acid A receptor is related to the hepatitis C virus infection

The modulation of the gamma-aminobutyric acid type A (GABA A) receptors activity was observed in several chronic hepatitis failures, including hepatitis C. The expression of GABA A receptor subunits α1 and β3 was detected in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) originated from healthy donors. The aim of the study was to evaluate if GABA A α1 and β3 expression can also be observed in PBMCs from chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients and to evaluate a possible association between their expression and the course of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. GABA A α1- and β3-specific mRNAs presence and a protein expression in PBMCs from healthy donors and CHC patients were screened by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and Western blot, respectively. In patients, HCV RNA was determined in sera and PBMCs. It was shown that GABA A α1 and β3 expression was significantly different in PBMCs from CHC patients and healthy donors. In comparison to healthy donors, CHC patients were found to present an increase in the expression of GABA A α1 subunit and a decrease in the expression of β3 subunit in their PBMCs. The modulation of α1 and β3 GABA A receptors subunits expression in PBMCs may be associated with ongoing or past HCV infection

Invasive lobular carcinoma with extracellular mucin production and HER-2 overexpression: a case report and further case studies

Invasive lobular carcinomas (ILC) of breast typically demonstrate intracytoplasmic mucin. We present a unique case of classical type ILC with abundant extracellular mucin and strong ERBB2 (HER2/neu) expression confirmed by immunohistochemistry and fluorescent in situ hybridization. Dual E-cadherin/p120 immunohistochemical stain demonstrated complete loss of membranous E-cadherin and the presence of diffuse cytoplasmic p120 staining, confirming the lobular phenotype. The tumor cells showed ductal-like cytoplasmic MUC1 staining, but were negative for MUC2 and other mucin gene markers. In addition, studies of tissue microarrays of 80 breast carcinomas with mucinous differentiation revealed 4 pure mucinous carcinomas showing significantly reduced E-cadherin staining without redistribution of p120 into cytoplasm. The findings suggest that the presence of extracellular mucin does not exclude a diagnosis of lobular carcinoma, and the morphologic and molecular characteristics of lobular and ductal carcinomas are more complex than previously appreciated