SRU-NET: SOBEL RESIDUAL U-NET FOR IMAGE MANIPULATION DETECTION

Recently, most successful image manipulation detection methods have been based on convolutional neural networks (CNNs). Nevertheless, Existing CNN methods have limited abilities. CNN-based detection networks tend to extract signal features strongly related to content. However, image manipulation detection tends to extract weak signal features that are weakly related to content. To address this issue, We propose a novel Sobel residual neural network with adaptive central difference convolution, an extension of the classical U-Net architecture, for image manipulation detection. Adaptive central differential convolution can capture the essential attributes of an image by gathering intensity and gradient information. Sobel residual gradient block can capture forgery edge discriminative details. Extensive experimental results show that our method can significantly improve the accuracy of localising the forged region compared with the state-of-the-art methods

Disinfection efficacy of green synthesized gold nanoparticles for medical disinfection applications

Background: In recent times, biosyntheses of metal nanoparticles were used for several life rescue applications. In this study, Dillenia indica leaf aqueous extract was utilized for the synthesis of gold nanoparticles.Objective: To test anti-microbial properties of biologically fabricated gold nanoparticles.Methods: Gold nanoparticles were efficiently prepared by making use of aqueous leaf extract of Dillenia indica. The excitation of formed AuNPs was confirmed using UV–Vis spectrophotometer. In particular, absorption spectra of AuNPs exhibited a well-defined SPR band centered at around 530 nm.Results: The high-resolution Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) results of the obtained AuNPs confirmed the formation of particles with a size range of 5–50 nm. The ultra-high resolution TEM (UHRTEM) images displayed clear lattice fringes on the particle surfaces. Single crystalline nature of the biosynthesized AuNPs was represented by means of selected-area electron diffraction pattern.Conclusion: The antibacterial activity of AuNPs revealed significant activity towards both gram negative and gram positive bacteria signifying their potential disinfection related applications in medicine and biology.Keywords: Dillenia indica leaves, disinfection, AuNPs

Subduction Dynamics at the Northwestern Pacific Slab Edge: Constraints of Tomography in Kamchatka

Kamchatka is located at the northwestern edge of the Pacific plate. The Pacific slab is subducting into the mantle along the Kamchatka trench. Are there any differences in subduction features near the edge? To answer this question, seismic tomography was applied to 77,141 P-wave arrival times of 2239 local earthquakes and 75 teleseismic events recorded at 76 permanent stations to study the three-dimensional velocity structure to a depth of 700 km below Kamchatka. A clear high-velocity anomaly was evident beneath the study region, which is consistent with the distribution of intermediate-depth and deep-focus earthquakes. This high-velocity anomaly was interpreted as the subducting Pacific slab with its subduction angle and depth gradually increasing from the north to south along the Kamchatka trench. Another high-velocity anomaly appeared in the mantle transition zone and the uppermost lower mantle, which may reflect a piece of detached oceanic lithosphere due to melting of the subducting slab near the slab edge. Two slab windows were also found, through which hot mantle materials flowed from the subslab to the upper-mantle wedge. Large-scale low-velocity anomalies exist under the volcanic front, which reflect hot and wet upwelling flow in the mantle wedge due to the slab dehydration

Dynamical beats of short pulses in waveguide QED

We study temporal oscillations, known as dynamical beats, developed by a propagating pulse due to its interaction with a near-resonant collective medium of $^{133}$Cs atoms randomly captured by a nanofiber-based optical lattice. A phenomenological theory provides an intuitive explanation and quantitative predictions, which are improved by an input-output theory considering multiple-scattering between the atoms. The results deepen our understanding of light propagation in waveguide QED, essential in time-frequency analysis and light engineering for probing, manipulating, and exploiting many-body quantum systems

An In Vivo Screen Identifies PYGO2 as a Driver for Metastatic Prostate Cancer

Advanced prostate cancer displays conspicuous chromosomal instability and rampant copy number aberrations, yet the identity of functional drivers resident in many amplicons remain elusive. Here, we implemented a functional genomics approach to identify new oncogenes involved in prostate cancer progression. Through integrated analyses of focal amplicons in large prostate cancer genomic and transcriptomic datasets as well as genes upregulated in metastasis, 276 putative oncogenes were enlisted into an in vivo gain-of-function tumorigenesis screen. Among the top positive hits, we conducted an in-depth functional analysis on Pygopus family PHD finger 2 (PYGO2), located in the amplicon at 1q21.3. PYGO2 overexpression enhances primary tumor growth and local invasion to draining lymph nodes. Conversely, PYGO2 depletion inhibits prostate cancer cell invasion in vitro and progression of primary tumor and metastasis in vivo In clinical samples, PYGO2 upregulation associated with higher Gleason score and metastasis to lymph nodes and bone. Silencing PYGO2 expression in patient-derived xenograft models impairs tumor progression. Finally, PYGO2 is necessary to enhance the transcriptional activation in response to ligand-induced Wnt/β-catenin signaling. Together, our results indicate that PYGO2 functions as a driver oncogene in the 1q21.3 amplicon and may serve as a potential prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target for metastatic prostate cancer.Significance: Amplification/overexpression of PYGO2 may serve as a biomarker for prostate cancer progression and metastasis. Cancer Res; 78(14); 3823-33. ©2018 AACR

High-free Fatty Acid Treatment Induced Anti-inflammatory Changes in a Natural Killer (NK) Cell Line

Background: Natural killer (NK) cells play a role in the pathogenesis of various metabolic diseases related to obesity. While our initial findings have indicated a potential involvement of NK cells in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes mellitus, the precise mechanism underlying NK cell-mediated development of this form of diabetes remains inadequately comprehended.Objective: To investigate the impact and the underlying mechanism of high glucose and elevated levels of free fatty acids (FFAs) on immune and inflammatory responses and oxidative stress in NK92 cells.Methods: In this experiment, the CCK8 cytotoxicity assay was used to select the 44.4 mM and 1.5 mM concentrations of high glucose and high FFAs, respectively, to treat NK92 cells for 4 days. The concentrations of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione (GSH) were determined using a biochemical analyzer. Intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels, cytokines concentrations (TNF-α, IFN-γ, IL-6, and IL-10), and the expression levels of intracellular molecules (perforin and granzyme B) were assessed by flow cytometry.Results: The number of NK92 cell clumps was significantly reduced in the high-FFA (HF) group. In addition, the production of ROS and levels of cytokines (TNF-α, IFN-γ, IL-6, and IL-10) significantly decreased in the HF group but showed no significant change in the high-glucose (HG) group. This observation was consistent with the expression levels of perforin and granzyme B that decreased in the HF group.Conclusion: High FFAs induced morphological changes and serious damage to oxidative stress and inflammatory response in NK92 cells

Disinfection efficacy of green synthesized gold nanoparticles for medical disinfection applications

Background: In recent times, biosyntheses of metal nanoparticles were used for several life rescue applications. In this study, Dillenia indica leaf aqueous extract was utilized for the synthesis of gold nanoparticles. Objective: To test anti-microbial properties of biologically fabricated gold nanoparticles. Methods: Gold nanoparticles were efficiently prepared by making use of aqueous leaf extract of Dillenia indica. The excitation of formed AuNPs was confirmed using UV\u2013Vis spectrophotometer. In particular, absorption spectra of AuNPs exhibited a well-defined SPR band centered at around 530 nm. Results: The high-resolution Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) results of the obtained AuNPs confirmed the formation of particles with a size range of 5\u201350 nm. The ultra-high resolution TEM (UHRTEM) images displayed clear lattice fringes on the particle surfaces. Single crystalline nature of the biosynthesized AuNPs was represented by means of selected-area electron diffraction pattern. Conclusion: The antibacterial activity of AuNPs revealed significant activity towards both gram negative and gram positive bacteria signifying their potential disinfection related applications in medicine and biology. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/ahs.v19i1.17 Cite as: Huang Q, Luo A, Jiang L, Zhou Y, Yang Y, Liu Q, et al. Disinfection efficacy of green synthesized gold nanoparticles for medical disinfection applications. Afri Health Sci. 2019;19(1). 1441-1458. https://dx.doi. org/10.4314/ahs.v19i1.1

Suicide rates among patients with first and second primary cancer

Abstract Aims With advancements in cancer treatments, the survival rates of patients with their first primary cancer (FPC) have increased, resulting in a rise in the number of patients with second primary cancer (SPC). However, there has been no assessment on the incidence of suicide among patients with SPC. This study assessed the occurrence of suicide among patients with SPC and compared them with that in patients with FPC. Methods This was a retrospective, population-based cohort study that followed patients with FPC and SPC diagnosed from the National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) 17 registries database between 1 January 2000 and 31 December 2019. Results For patients with SPC, an age of 85+ years at diagnosis was associated with a higher incidence of suicide death (HR, 1.727; 95% CI, 1.075–2.774), while the suicide death was not considerably different in the chemotherapy group (P > 0.05). Female genital system cancers (HR, 3.042; 95% CI, 1.819–6.361) accounted for the highest suicide death among patients with SPC. The suicide death distribution of patients with SPC over time indicated that suicide events mainly occurred within 5 to 15 years of diagnosis. Compared with patients with FPC, patients with SPC in general had a lower risk of suicide, but increased year by year. Conclusion The risk of suicide was reduced in patients with SPC compared with patients with FPC, but increased year by year. Therefore, oncologists and related health professionals need to provide continuous psychological support to reduce the incidence of suicide. The highest suicide death was found among patients with female genital system cancer

Human airway organoids as 3D in vitro models for a toxicity assessment of emerging inhaled pollutants: Tire wear particles

Three-dimensional (3D) structured organoids have become increasingly promising and effective in vitro models, and there is an urgent need for reliable models to assess health effects of inhaled pollutants on the human airway. In our study, we conducted a toxicity assessment of human airway organoids (hAOs) for tire wear particles (TWPs) as an emerging inhaled pollutant. We induced primary human bronchial epithelial cells (HBECs) to generated human airway organoids, which recapitulated the key features of human airway epithelial cells including basal cells, ciliated cells, goblet cells, and club cells. TWPs generated from the wearing of tire treads were considered a major source of emerging inhaled road traffic-derived non-exhaust particles, but their health effect on the lungs is poorly understood. We used human airway organoids to assess the toxicology of tire wear particles on the human airway. In an exposure study, the inhibitory effect of TWPs on the growth of human airway organoids was observed. TWPs induced significant cell apoptosis and oxidative stress in a dose-dependent manner. From the qPCR analysis, TWPs significantly up-regulated the expression pf genes involved in the inflammation response. Additionally, the exposure of TWPs reduced SCGB1A1 gene expression associated with the function of the club cell and KRT5 gene expression related to the function of basal cells. In conclusion, this was first study using human airway organoids for a toxicological assessment of TWPs, and our findings revealed that human airway organoids provide an evaluation model of inhaled pollutants potentially affecting the lungs

Antimicrobial peptide temporin derivatives inhibit biofilm formation and virulence factor expression of Streptococcus mutans

IntroductionTemporin-GHa obtained from the frog Hylarana guentheri showed bactericidal efficacy against Streptococcus mutans. To enhance its antibacterial activity, the derived peptides GHaR and GHa11R were designed, and their antibacterial performance, antibiofilm efficacy and potential in the inhibition of dental caries were evaluated.MethodsBacterial survival assay, fluorescent staining assay and transmission electron microscopy observation were applied to explore how the peptides inhibited and killed S. mutans. The antibiofilm efficacy was assayed by examining exopolysaccharide (EPS) and lactic acid production, bacterial adhesion and cell surface hydrophobicity. The gene expression level of virulence factors of S. mutans was detected by qRT-PCR. Finally, the impact of the peptides on the caries induced ability of S. mutans was measured using a rat caries model.ResultsIt has been shown that the peptides inhibited biofilm rapid accumulation by weakening the initial adhesion of S. mutans and reducing the production of EPS. Meanwhile, they also decreased bacterial acidogenicity and aciduricity, and ultimately prevented caries development in vivo.ConclusionGHaR and GHa11R might be promising candidates for controlling S. mutans infections