DataDAM: Efficient Dataset Distillation with Attention Matching

Researchers have long tried to minimize training costs in deep learning while maintaining strong generalization across diverse datasets. Emerging research on dataset distillation aims to reduce training costs by creating a small synthetic set that contains the information of a larger real dataset and ultimately achieves test accuracy equivalent to a model trained on the whole dataset. Unfortunately, the synthetic data generated by previous methods are not guaranteed to distribute and discriminate as well as the original training data, and they incur significant computational costs. Despite promising results, there still exists a significant performance gap between models trained on condensed synthetic sets and those trained on the whole dataset. In this paper, we address these challenges using efficient Dataset Distillation with Attention Matching (DataDAM), achieving state-of-the-art performance while reducing training costs. Specifically, we learn synthetic images by matching the spatial attention maps of real and synthetic data generated by different layers within a family of randomly initialized neural networks. Our method outperforms the prior methods on several datasets, including CIFAR10/100, TinyImageNet, ImageNet-1K, and subsets of ImageNet-1K across most of the settings, and achieves improvements of up to 6.5% and 4.1% on CIFAR100 and ImageNet-1K, respectively. We also show that our high-quality distilled images have practical benefits for downstream applications, such as continual learning and neural architecture search.Comment: Accepted in International Conference in Computer Vision (ICCV) 202

Utilization of COVID-19 Treatments and Clinical Outcomes among Patients with Cancer: A COVID-19 and Cancer Consortium (CCC19) Cohort Study.

Among 2,186 U.S. adults with invasive cancer and laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection, we examined the association of COVID-19 treatments with 30-day all-cause mortality and factors associated with treatment. Logistic regression with multiple adjustments (e.g., comorbidities, cancer status, baseline COVID-19 severity) was performed. Hydroxychloroquine with any other drug was associated with increased mortality versus treatment with any COVID-19 treatment other than hydroxychloroquine or untreated controls; this association was not present with hydroxychloroquine alone. Remdesivir had numerically reduced mortality versus untreated controls that did not reach statistical significance. Baseline COVID-19 severity was strongly associated with receipt of any treatment. Black patients were approximately half as likely to receive remdesivir as white patients. Although observational studies can be limited by potential unmeasured confounding, our findings add to the emerging understanding of patterns of care for patients with cancer and COVID-19 and support evaluation of emerging treatments through inclusive prospective controlled trials. SIGNIFICANCE: Evaluating the potential role of COVID-19 treatments in patients with cancer in a large observational study, there was no statistically significant 30-day all-cause mortality benefit with hydroxychloroquine or high-dose corticosteroids alone or in combination; remdesivir showed potential benefit. Treatment receipt reflects clinical decision-making and suggests disparities in medication access.This article is highlighted in the In This Issue feature, p. 1426

Effect of Xpert MTB/RIF on clinical outcomes in routine care settings: individual patient data meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Xpert MTB/RIF, the most widely used automated nucleic acid amplification test for tuberculosis, is available in more than 130 countries. Although diagnostic accuracy is well documented, anticipated improvements in patient outcomes have not been clearly identified. We performed an individual patient data meta-analysis to examine improvements in patient outcomes associated with Xpert MTB/RIF. METHODS: We searched PubMed, Embase, ClinicalTrials.gov, and the Pan African Clinical Trials Registry from inception to Feb 1, 2018, for randomised controlled trials (RCTs) comparing the use of Xpert MTB/RIF with sputum smear microscopy as tests for tuberculosis diagnosis in adults (aged 18 years or older). We excluded studies of patients with extrapulmonary tuberculosis, and studies in which mortality was not assessed. We used a two-stage approach for our primary analysis and a one-stage approach for the sensitivity analysis. To assess the primary outcome of cumulative 6-month all-cause mortality, we first performed logistic regression models (random effects for cluster randomised trials, with robust SEs for multicentre studies) for each trial, and then pooled the odds ratio (OR) estimates by a fixed-effects (inverse variance) or random-effects (Der Simonian Laird) meta-analysis. We adjusted for age and gender, and stratified by HIV status and previous tuberculosis-treatment history. The study protocol has been registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42014013394. FINDINGS: Our search identified 387 studies, of which five RCTs were eligible for analysis. 8567 adult clinic attendees (4490 [63·5%] of 7074 participants for whom data were available were HIV-positive) were tested for tuberculosis with Xpert MTB/RIF (Xpert group) versus sputum smear microscopy (sputum smear group), across five low-income and middle-income countries (South Africa, Brazil, Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Tanzania). The primary outcome (reported in three studies) occurred in 182 (4·5%) of 4050 patients in the Xpert group and 217 (5·3%) of 4093 patients in the smear group (pooled adjusted OR 0·88, 95% CI 0·68-1·14 [p=0·34]; for HIV-positive individuals OR 0·83, 0·65-1·05 [p=0·12]). Kaplan-Meier estimates showed a lower rate of death (12·73 per 100 person-years in the Xpert group vs 16·38 per 100 person-years in the sputum smear group) for HIV-positive patients (hazard ratio 0·76, 95% CI 0·60-0·97; p=0·03). The risk of bias was assessed as reasonable and the statistical heterogeneity across studies was low (I2<20% for the primary outcome). INTERPRETATION: Despite individual patient data analysis from five RCTs, we were unable to confidently rule in nor rule out an Xpert MTB/RIF-associated reduction in mortality among outpatients tested for tuberculosis. Reduction in mortality among HIV-positive patients in a secondary analysis suggests the possibility of population-level impact. FUNDING: US National Institutes of Health

Zahra Khaki - Thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the degree of Doctor of Clinical Psychology (DClinPsy)

Systematic Review Abstract There is long-standing evidence that bullying victimisation is associated with higher rates of self-harm and suicide. However, there is little evidence clarifying why some adolescents engage in these harmful behaviours and others do not. A systematic review of the moderators and mediators of these associations was conducted to understand the factors it may be useful to focus on in interventions with victimised adolescents. A search was performed on PsycINFO, MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL and ERIC. Two independent researchers assessed fulfilment of eligibility criteria and methodological quality. Thirty-one studies were identified which studied 27 moderators and 13 mediators. Only two studies had high methodological quality and, except for depression and social support, no variables were moderators or mediators in more than one study. It is concluded that the evidence is not robust enough to draw conclusions about these variables as mechanisms, although depression and social support deserve further study. This is an emerging field of research and further work is recommended before any definite conclusions can be drawn. Service Improvement Project Abstract Background: There are many mental health sequelae of domestic abuse (DA), such as depression and anxiety disorders. There has been research on help-seeking behaviours of the general population in seeking support for their mental health, but we have little understanding of the factors impacting this for DA victims. The present study aimed to identify the barriers and facilitators to accessing DA mental health support, as well as what may help to keep victims engaged in this support. Participants: Twelve individual interviews were conducted. Six of these were with victims who had accessed support and six were with members of staff from organisations supporting DA victims. Recruitment took place through a DA mental health service in Berkshire. Methods: The 12 interviews were transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis. Themes related to barriers and facilitators across the 12 interviews were developed. Findings: In total, five main themes (with 10 sub-themes) relating to barriers and four main themes (with 11 sub-themes) relating to facilitators were found. Barriers included victims’ perceptions of themselves and others, ideas and attitudes about professional support and organisation constraints. Facilitators included positive ideas about accessing support, supportive relationships and organisations placing importance on mental heatth. Major Implications: The findings of the study have implications across all professionals who work with DA victims, due to multiple professionals usually being involved when a DA victim tries to access any kind of support at any point in their journey. Recommendations are also reported which have direct relevance to mental health services working with DA victims, such as educating wider professional networks on DA and its mental health sequelae as well as highlighting the importance of wider marketing and tailoring Victim-facing materials to address their concerns and fears. Main Research Project Abstract Objective: There is ample research about the negative effects social media can have on those with eating disorders. However, little is known about its potential positive effects. The following study aimed to explore the impact of pro-recovery Instagram posts on self-efficacy related to recovery, with self-esteem and hope being explored as secondary aims. Method: Participants were 60 females with an average age of 22.02. 92% were white-British. Two mock-Instagram feeds were developed: one included pro-recovery posts and another included more generic posts. Participants were randomly allocated to one of these two groups. All completed measures of self-efficacy (Eating Disorder Recovery Self-Efficacy Questionnaire), self-esteem (State Self-Esteem Scale) and hope (State Hope Scale) both before and after looking at the Instagram feed for 15 minutes. Qualitative data was also collected. Results: The pro-recovery feed had a significant large positive effect on self-efficacy as compared to the control feed). A similar effect was found for self-esteem, but not for hope. Themes emerging from qualitative data suggested more positive effects of looking at the pro-recovery feed compared to the control feed. Discussion: The findings suggest that, for patients who use social media, it may be more beneficial to look at pro-recovery posts than other posts on the platform. Since this is a preliminary finding, more research needs to be conducted in this area to determine whether pro-recovery social media could aid in one’s recovery journey. Ideas for future research are also discussed. </p

Application of micro agglutination test in detecting serovars of leptospira

Background and Objective: Leptospirosis is an infectious and zoonosis disease, which is caused by leptospira and is transmitted from animal to human. The rapid diagnosis can control the disease, therefore this study was carried out to determine the prevalent serovars of leptospira using micro agglutination test (MAT) in human and cattles. Method: In this descriptive study, 175 cattles and 67 suspected human serum samples were tested in five provinces in Iran during 2011-12. Serum samples tested by micro agglutination test using 20 live leptospira serogroup. Results: Ninty nine out of 175 (56.5%) cattle serum samples and 31 out of 67 (46.2%) human samples were positive against leptospira antigen. The most prevalent leptospira serovar in cattles and human were Serjoe hardjo (61.9%) and Serjoe serjoe (23%), respectively. The most frequent titer in positive samples was equal to be 1/400. Fifty percent of human positive samples belong to farmers between 20-40 years old. The common contaminations belong to polluted water (61.1%) and infected blood (28.3%), respectively. Conclusion: Using micro agglutination test, the most prevalent leptospira serovar in cattles was Serjoe hardjo and in human was Serjoe serjoe

Metaplastic breast carcinoma: a rare case in young breast feeding female with review of literature

Objective: Metaplastic Breast Carcinoma (MBC) is a rare subtype of breast cancer which often involves women in the fifth and sixth decades. Herein, we report a rare case of MBC with squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) morphology, presented in a young breast-feeding woman with recurrence and metastasis. Patients and Methods: A 29-year-old female was admitted with left breast mass unresponsive to chemo-radiation for mastectomy. The mass was noticed by the patient starting from 10 months before, during breast feeding. First surgery at the same time confirmed MBC with squamous cell carcinoma morphology. Second surgery one month later showed involvement of two out of six axillary lymph nodes. Results: Immunohistochemistry was done with the following results: estrogen, progesterone, androgen receptors, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) and P53 negative. Ki-67 was present in 30% of tumor cells. Third surgery was consisted of mastectomy and lymph node dissection which confirmed remnants of malignancy but free lymph nodes. Four months later on follow-up, imaging findings suggested metastasis to lungs and kidneys. Conclusions: We reported a rare case of breast carcinoma with pure SCC morphology which presented at a young age (less than 30 years in spite of more than 50 years in the usual presentation) and the relatively rare occurrence of lymph node involvement in this subtyp

Hematologic and Clinical Aspects of Experimental Ovine Anaplasmosis Caused by Anaplasma Ovis in Iran

Background: Anaplasma ovis infections can cause clinical symptoms in acute phase and lead to huge economic losses in flocks. The aim of the present study was to investigate the hematological and parasito­logical changes in experimental anaplasmosis in sheep with Iranian strain of A. ovis.Method: Five male sheep without any blood parasite infection were selected. One hundred ml hepari­nized blood was collected from splenectomised sheep that showed 6% A. ovis parasitemia. Inocu­lums of 20 ml blood were administered intravenously to each test animal. Hematological, parasito­logical and clinical changes of experimental anaplasmosis were studied in 0-38 days post infec­tion.Result: Parasitemia was detected 3 days post infection and reached its maximum level on the day 12 of experiment in test animals. Then the parasitemia was declined, but the organism could be found persistently until the last day of study. The red cell counts, packed cell volume and hemoglobin concentra­tion were decreased and mean corpuscular volume was increased significantly during the infection period. Reticulocytosis and basophilic stippling were also detected. No significant changes were observed in total and differential leukocyte count and animal body temperature.Conclusion: Experimental A. ovis infection in sheep resulted in marked normocytic normochromic anemia at the beginning of the infection which became macrocytic normochromic by the develop­ment of the disease. There were negative correlations between parasitemia and RBC, PCV and Hb values, therefore hematological assessment can be considered as a practical diagnostic tool in ovine anaplasmosis

Cerium oxide NPs mitigate the amyloid formation of α-synuclein and associated cytotoxicity

Aim: Among therapeutic proposals for amyloid-associated disorders, special attention has been given to the exploitation of nanoparticles (NPs) as promising agents against aggregation. Methods: In this paper, the inhibitory effect of cerium oxide (CeO2) NPs against a- synuclein (a-syn) amyloid formation was explored by different methods such as Thioflavin T (ThT) and 8-anilinonaphthalene-1-sulfonic acid (ANS) fluorescence spectroscopy, Congo red adsorption assay, circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and bioinformatical approaches. Also, the cytotoxicity of a-syn amyloid either alone or with CeO2 NPs against neuron-like cells (SH-SY5Y) was examined using 3-(4,5- dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT), flow cytometry, and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (Bax and Bcl-2 gene expression) assays. Results: ThT and ANS fluorescence assays indicated that CeO2 NPs inhibit the formation of aggregated species and hydrophobic patches of a-syn in amyloidogenic conditions, respectively. Congo red and CD assays demonstrated that CeO2 NPs reduce the formation of amyloid species and ?-sheets structures of a-syn molecules, respectively. TEM investigation also confirmed that CeO2 NPs limited the formation of well-defined fibrillary structures of a- syn molecules. Molecular docking and dynamic studies revealed that CeO2 NPs could bind with different affinities to a-syn monomer and amyloid species and fibrillar structure of a-syn is disaggregated in the presence of CeO2 NPs. Moreover, cellular assays depicted that CeO2 NPs mitigate the cell mortality, apoptosis, and the ratio of Bax/Bcl-2 gene expression associated with a-syn amyloids. Conclusion: It may be concluded that CeO2 NPs can be used as therapeutic agents to reduce the aggregation of proteins and mitigate the occurrence of neurodegenerative diseases.Scopu