A model-based method with joint sparsity constant for direct diffusion tensor estimation

Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) has been widely used for nondestructive characterization of microstructures of myocardium or brain connectivity. It requires repeated acquisition with different diffusion gradients. The long acquisition time greatly limits the clinical application of DTI. In this paper, a novel method, named model-based method with joint sparsity constraint (MB-JSC), effectively incorporates the prior information on the joint sparsity of different diffusion-weighted images in direct estimation of the diffusion tensor from highly undersampled k-space data. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method is able to estimate the diffusion tensors more accurately than the existing method when a high net reduction factor is used.published_or_final_versionThe 9th IEEE International Symposium on Biomedical Imaging (ISBI 2012), Barcelona, Spain, 2-5 May 2012. In Proceedings of the 9th ISBI, 2012, p. 510-51

Puerariae radix isoflavones and their metabolites inhibit growth and induce apoptosis in breast cancer cells

[[abstract]]Puerariae radix (PR) is a popular natural herb and a traditional food in Asia, which has antithrombotic and anti-allergic properties and stimulates estrogenic activity. In the present study, we investigated the effects of the PR isoflavones puerarin, daidzein. and genistein on the growth of breast cancer cells. Our data revealed that after treatment with PR isoflavones, a dose-dependent inhibition of cell growth occurred in HS578T, MDA-MB-231, and MCF-7 cell lines. Results from cell cycle distribution and apoptosis assays revealed that PR isoflavones induced cell apoptosis through a caspase-3-dependent pathway and mediated cell cycle arrest in the G2/M phase. Furthermore, we observed that the serum metabolites of PR (daidzein sulfates/glucuronides) inhibited proliferation of the breast cancer cells at a 50;K cell growth inhibition (GI(50)) concentration of 2.35 mu M. These results indicate that the daidzein constituent of PR can be metabolized to daidzein sulfates or daidzein glucuronides that exhibit anticancer activities. The protein expression levels of the active forms of caspase-9 and Bax in breast cancer cells were significantly increased by treatment with PR metabolites. These metabolites also increased the protein expression levels of p53 and p21. We therefore suggest that PR may act as a chemopreventive and/or chemotherapeutic agent against breast cancer by reducing cell viability and inducing apoptosis

G/T polymorphism in the interleukin-2 exon 1 region among Han Chinese systemic lupus erythematosus patients in Taiwan

[[abstract]]Interleukin-2 (IL-2), one of the crucial immunoregulatory cytokines required for T lymphocyte activation, plays an important role in autoimmune diseases. An IL-2 genetic G/T polymorphism (rs2069763) has been linked with multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. We tested a hypothesis that this polymorphism confers systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) susceptibility. Study participants were Han Chinese SLE patients and a healthy control group in Taiwan. Our results indicate (a) a significantly higher G allele frequency in SLE patients (P = 1.91 × 10− 14; OR = 3.94; 95% CI = 2.74–5.66), (b) a significantly higher G allele frequency in SLE patients with antinuclear antibodies (ANA) (P = 0.033; OR = 4.21; 95% CI = 1.01–17.51) and (c) a significantly lower G allele frequency in SLE patients with discoid rash (P = 0.019; OR = 0.41; 95% CI = 0.19–0.88). Our results suggest that this polymorphism may be involved in the genetic background of Taiwanese SLE

Maximizing lifetime of range-adjustable wireless sensor networks: a neighborhood-based estimation of distribution algorithm

Sensor activity scheduling is critical for prolonging the lifetime of wireless sensor networks (WSNs). However, most existing methods assume sensors to have one fixed sensing range. Prevalence of sensors with adjustable sensing ranges posts two new challenges to the topic: 1) expanded search space, due to the rise in the number of possible activation modes and 2) more complex energy allocation, as the sensors differ in the energy consumption rate when using different sensing ranges. These two challenges make it hard to directly solve the lifetime maximization problem of WSNs with range-adjustable sensors (LM-RASs). This article proposes a neighborhood-based estimation of distribution algorithm (NEDA) to address it in a recursive manner. In NEDA, each individual represents a coverage scheme in which the sensors are selectively activated to monitor all the targets. A linear programming (LP) model is built to assign activation time to the schemes in the population so that their sum, the network lifetime, can be maximized conditioned on the current population. Using the activation time derived from LP as individual fitness, the NEDA is driven to seek coverage schemes promising for prolonging the network lifetime. The network lifetime is thus optimized by repeating the steps of the coverage scheme evolution and LP model solving. To encourage the search for diverse coverage schemes, a neighborhood sampling strategy is introduced. Besides, a heuristic repair strategy is designed to fine-tune the existing schemes for further improving the search efficiency. Experimental results on WSNs of different scales show that NEDA outperforms state-of-the-art approaches. It is also expected that NEDA can serve as a potential framework for solving other flexible LP problems that share the same structure with LM-RAS

Psychoimmunological effects of dioscorea in ovariectomized rats: role of anxiety level

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Anxiety levels in rats are correlated with interleukin-2 (IL-2) levels in the brain. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of dioscorea (wild yam), a Chinese medicine, on emotional behavior and IL-2 levels in the brain of ovariectomized (OVX) rats.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>One month after ovariectomy, female Wistar rats were screened in the elevated plus-maze (EPM) test to measure anxiety levels and divided into low anxiety (LA) and high anxiety (HA) groups, which were then given dioscorea (250, 750, or 1500 mg/kg/day) by oral gavage for 27 days and were tested in the EPM on day 23 of administration and in the forced swim test (FST) on days 24 and 25, then 3 days later, the brain was removed and IL-2 levels measured.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Compared to sham-operated rats, anxiety behavior in the EPM was increased in half of the OVX rats. After chronic dioscorea treatment, a decrease in anxiety and IL-2 levels was observed in the HA OVX rats. Despair behavior in the FST was inhibited by the highest dosage of dioscorea.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These results show that OVX-induced anxiety and changes in neuroimmunological function in the cortex are reversed by dioscorea treatment. Furthermore, individual differences need to be taken into account when psychoneuroimmunological issues are measured and the EPM is a useful tool for determining anxiety levels when examining anxiety-related issues.</p

Improved Measurements of Partial Rate Asymmetry in B -> h h Decays

We report improved measurements of the partial rate asymmetry (Acp) in B -> h h decays with 140fb^-1 of data collected with the Belle detector at the KEKB e+e- collider. Here h stands for a charged or neutral pion or kaon and in total five decay modes are included: K-+ pi+-, K0s pi-+, K-+ pi0, pi-+ pi0 and K0s pi0. The flavor of the last decay mode is determined from the accompanying B meson. Using a data sample 4.7 times larger than that of our previous measurement, we find Acp(K-+ pi+-) -0.088+-0.035+-0.013, 2.4 sigma from zero. Results for other decay modes are also presented.Comment: 9 pages, 1 figur

The Dog Mite, Demodex canis: Prevalence, Fungal Co-Infection, Reactions to Light, and Hair Follicle Apoptosis

Infection rate, reaction to light, and hair follicle apoptosis are examined in the dogmite, Demodex canis Leydig (Prostigmata: Demodicidae), in dogs from the northern area of Taiwan. An analysis of relevant samples revealed 7.2% (73/1013) prevalence of D. canis infection. Infection during the investigation peaked each winter, with an average prevalence of 12.5% (32/255). The infection rates significantly varied in accordance with month, sex, age, and breed (p < 0.05). Most of the lesions were discovered on the backs of the infected animals, where the infection rate was 52.1% (38/73) (P < 0.05). The epidemiologic analysis of infection based on landscape area factor, found that employing a map-overlapping method showed a higher infection rate in the eastern distribution of Taiwan's northern area than other areas. Isolation tests for Microsporum canis Bodin (Onygenales: Arthrodermataceae) and Trichophyton mentagrophyte Robin (Blanchard) on the D. canis infected dogs revealed prevalence rates of 4.4% (2/45) and 2.2% (1/45), respectively. Observations demonstrated that D. canis slowly moved from a light area to a dark area. Skin samples were examined for cellular apoptosis by activated caspase3 immunohistochemical staining. Cells that surrounded the infected hair follicles were activated caspase3-positive, revealing cell apoptosis in infected follicles via the activation of caspase3

Search for CP violation in the decay B0->D*+-D-+

We report a search for CP-violating asymmetry in B0 -> D*+- D-+ decays. The analysis employs two methods of B0 reconstruction: full and partial. In the full reconstruction method all daughter particles of the B0 are required to be detected; the partial reconstruction technique requires a fully reconstructed D- and only a slow pion from the D*+ -> D0 pi_slow+ decay. From a fit to the distribution of the time interval corresponding to the distance between two B meson decay points we calculate the CP-violating parameters and find the significance of nonzero CP asymmetry to be 2.7 standard deviations.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure