Towards a Strawberry Harvest Prediction System Using Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition

Farmers require advance notice when a harvest is approaching, so they can allocate resources and hire workers as efficiently as possible. Existing methods are subjective and labor intensive, and require the expertise of a professional forecaster. Cal Poly’s EE department has been collaborating with the Cal Poly Strawberry Center to investigate the potential in using digital imaging processing to predict harvests more reliably. This paper shows the progress of that ongoing project, as well as what aspects could still be improved. Three main blocks comprise this system: data acquisition, which obtains and catalogues images of the strawberry plants; computer vision, which extracts information from the images and constructs a time-series model of the field as a whole; and prediction, which uses the field’s history to guess when the most likely harvest window will be. The best method of data acquisition is determined through a decision matrix to be a small autonomous rover. Several challenges specific to images captured via drone, such as fisheye distortion and dirt masking, are examined and mitigated. Using thresholding, the nRGB color space is shown to be the most promising for image segmentation of red strawberries. Data from field 25 at the Cal Poly Strawberry Center is tabulated, analyzed, and compared against industry trends across California. Ultimately, this work serves as a strong benchmark towards a full strawberry yield prediction system

In-vitro-Untersuchungen zur Bildung individualspezifischer Schmelzpellikel

Das Ziel der vorliegenden In-vitro-Studie war es, den Einfluss der individuellen Speichelzusammensetzung auf die Pellikel qualitativ und quantitativ zu untersuchen. Dabei wurde zunächst der Untersuchung individueller Variationen der Speichelproteine nachgegangen und ein geeignetes Modell zur In-vitro-Pellikelbildung mit synthetischem Hydroxylapatit erstellt. Die Frage nach der Selektivität bzw. der Individualität der Pellikel sollte anschließend mit diesem Vorgehen bearbeitet werden. In die Untersuchung zur individuellen Speichelqualität gingen Proben unstimulierten und stimulierten Mischspeichels sowie Parotisspeichels von 11 Probanden ein. Der Gesamtproteingehalt, die Proteinzusammensetzung des Speichels und die an synthetischem Hydroxylapatit gebildete Pellikel wurde mit einer Hochdruckflüssigkeitschromatographie (HPLC) an einer hydrophoben C8-(Zorbax)-Säule und mit einem Wasser/Acetonitrilgradienten analysiert. Um den Einfluss der Dauer der Speichelexposition auf die Pellikelzusammensetzung zu beurteilen, wurden 2 Versuchsregime mit einmaliger oder viermaliger Speichelerneuerung in einer Stunde mit den Proben von 11 Probanden untersucht. Die Speichelproteine ließen sich in 9 Peaks, die von A bis I bezeichnet wurden, reproduzierbar trennen; ihre Identifikation konnte mit Referenzproteinen bzw. über massenspektrometrische Bewertung der Hauptbestand-teile vorgenommen werden. Die quantitative Bewertung erfolgte mit einem BSA-Standard. Stimulierter Mischspeichel wies den höchsten Proteingehalt (2674 µg/ml) gegenüber dem un-stimulierten Mischsekret (1830 µg/ml) auf und wurde deshalb zum Studium der In-vitro-Pellikelbildung ausgewählt. Intraindividuell bestand eine geringere Variabilität im Proteinspektrum als interindividuell. Die als Histatine (Peak A) und PRP (Peak D) bezeichneten Fraktionen nahmen den größten Anteil der Speichelproteine ein, deren Mengen mit 1190 bzw. 456 µg/ml berechnet wurden. 10 mg Hydroxylapatit (Fluka, Fast Flow) adsorbierten in vitro in einer Stunde 330-340 µg Protein aus einem Milliliter Speichel. Wenn in dieser Zeit Speichel mehrfach angeboten wurde, beinhaltete die artifizielle Pellikel 440 – 450 µg Protein und wies auf die Reifung der Pellikel hin, wie sie auch in vivo beschrieben ist. Am Apatit wurden von den 9 Fraktionen nur fünf (B, C, D, E und I) gebunden. Eine besondere Anreicherung erfolgte für die Fraktion E (Statherin). Die Korrelationsanalyse zwischen Ausgangsspeichel und artifizieller Pellikel zeigte, dass die Fraktionen C, D, E und I selektiv in der Pellikel gebunden wurden. Qualitative Unterschiede im Proteinmuster des Speichels deuteten sich in massenspektrometrisch separierbaren polymorphen Molekülspezies der PRP an, die ihren Niederschlag auch in der Pellikel fanden. Die vorliegende Studie ließ quantitative und qualitative individuelle Unterschiede im Speichel- und Pellikelproteinmuster erkennen, so dass die differente Speichelzusammensetzung einen Einfluss auf die protektiven Eigenschaften der Pellikel haben könnte, und somit der Pellikeleinfluss und seine präventive Steuerung weiterhin eine Zielrichtung kariologischer Forschung darstellen sollte

Uncertainty-Aware Organ Classification for Surgical Data Science Applications in Laparoscopy

Objective: Surgical data science is evolving into a research field that aims to observe everything occurring within and around the treatment process to provide situation-aware data-driven assistance. In the context of endoscopic video analysis, the accurate classification of organs in the field of view of the camera proffers a technical challenge. Herein, we propose a new approach to anatomical structure classification and image tagging that features an intrinsic measure of confidence to estimate its own performance with high reliability and which can be applied to both RGB and multispectral imaging (MI) data. Methods: Organ recognition is performed using a superpixel classification strategy based on textural and reflectance information. Classification confidence is estimated by analyzing the dispersion of class probabilities. Assessment of the proposed technology is performed through a comprehensive in vivo study with seven pigs. Results: When applied to image tagging, mean accuracy in our experiments increased from 65% (RGB) and 80% (MI) to 90% (RGB) and 96% (MI) with the confidence measure. Conclusion: Results showed that the confidence measure had a significant influence on the classification accuracy, and MI data are better suited for anatomical structure labeling than RGB data. Significance: This work significantly enhances the state of art in automatic labeling of endoscopic videos by introducing the use of the confidence metric, and by being the first study to use MI data for in vivo laparoscopic tissue classification. The data of our experiments will be released as the first in vivo MI dataset upon publication of this paper.Comment: 7 pages, 6 images, 2 table

Theta-alpha oscillations bind the hippocampus, prefrontal cortex, and striatum during recollection: Evidence from simultaneous EEG-fMRI

Recollection of contextual information represents the core of human recognition memory. It has been associated with theta (4-8 Hz) power in electrophysiological recordings and, independently, with BOLD effects in a network including the hippocampus and frontal cortex. Although the notion of the hippocampus coordinating neocortical activity by synchronization in the theta range is common among theoretical models of recollection, direct evidence supporting this hypothesis is scarce. To address this apparent gap in our understanding of memory processes, we combined EEG and fMRI during a remember/know recognition task. We can show that recollection-specific theta-alpha (4-13Hz) effects are correlated with increases in hippocampal connectivity with the prefrontal cortex and, importantly, the striatum, areas that have repeatedly been linked to retrieval success. Taken together, our results provide compelling evidence that low frequency oscillations in the theta and alpha range provide a mechanism to functionally bind the hippocampus, prefrontal cortex and striatum during successful recollection

Nationwide Survey Reveals High Prevalence of Non-Swimmers among Children with Congenital Heart Defects

Background: Physical activity is important for children with congenital heart defects (CHD), not only for somatic health, but also for neurologic, emotional, and psychosocial development. Swimming is a popular endurance sport which is in general suitable for most children with CHD. Since we have previously shown that children with CHD are less frequently physically active than their healthy peers, we hypothesized that the prevalence of non-swimmers is higher in CHD patients than in healthy children. Methods: To obtain representative data, we performed a nationwide survey in collaboration with the German National Register of Congenital Heart Defects (NRCHD) and the Institute for Sport Sciences of the Karlsruhe Institute for Technology (KIT). The questionnaire included questions capturing the prevalence of swimming skills and the timing of swim learning and was part of the “Motorik-Modul” (MoMo) from the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS). A representative age-matched subset of 4569 participants of the MoMo wave two study served as a healthy control group. Results: From 894 CHD-patients (mean age of 12.5 ± 3.1 years), the proportion of non-swimmers in children with CHD was significantly higher (16% versus 4.3%; p < 0.001) compared to healthy children and was dependent on CHD severity: Children with complex CHD had an almost five-fold increased risk (20.4%) of being unable to swim, whereas in children with simple CHD, the ability to swim did not differ significantly from their healthy reference group (5.6% vs. 4.3% non-swimmers (p = not significant). Conclusions: According to our results, one in five patients with complex CHD are non-swimmers, a situation that is concerning in regard of motoric development, inclusion and integration, as well as prevention of drowning accidents. Implementation of swim learning interventions for children with CHD would be a reasonable approach

Physical Self-Concept and Physical Activity in Children with Congenital Heart Defects—Can We Point Out Differences to Healthy Children to Promote Physical Activity?

Objective: Children with congenital heart defects (CHD) are at high risk for cardiovascular disease in addition to their congenital disease, so it is important to motivate this group of patients to live a physically active lifestyle. A potential influencing determinant of younger children’s physical performance is the physical self-concept. The objective of the present study was first to evaluate the correlation between the physical self-concept (PSC) and the participation in physical activities (PA) of a representative group of children with congenital heart disease (CHD), and second to point out differences in comparison to their healthy peer group. Methods: Using the database of PA of the S-BAHn-Study we focused on physical self-concept assessed by the German version of the Physical Self-Description Questionnaire. We compare the obtained data of children with CHD to a representative age-matched sample of 3.385 participants of the Motorik Modul Study. Results: N = 1.198 complete datasets could be included in the analyses. The mean age of patients was 11.6 ± 3.1 years. For the total cohort of patients with CHD and the reference group, PA correlated significantly with a positive PSC (p 0.24). Conclusions: According to this representative survey, there is a clear relation between PA and PSC in the cohort of healthy children and the group of children with CHD throughout the severity of their heart defects. Although PSC did not differ in patients with simple CHD and their healthy peer group, PA was significantly reduced. This gap invites us to reflect on how we could break new ground to promote a physically active lifestyle in children with CHD regardless of the severity of their cardiac defects

Genetic testing and blood biomarkers in paediatric pulmonary hypertension. Expert consensus statement on the diagnosis and treatment of paediatric pulmonary hypertension. The European Paediatric Pulmonary Vascular Disease Network, endorsed by ISHLT and DGPK

Childhood-onset pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is considered complex and multifactorial, with relatively poor estimates of the natural history of the disease. Strategies allowing earlier detection, establishment of disease aetiology together with more accurate and sensitive biomarkers could enable better estimates of prognosis and individualise therapeutic strategies. Evidence is accumulating that genetic defects play an important role in the pathogenesis of idiopathic and hereditary forms of PAH. Altogether nine genes have been reported so far to be associated with childhood onset PAH suggesting that comprehensive multigene diagnostics can be useful in the assessment. Identification of disease-causing mutations allows estimates of prognosis and forms the most effective way for risk stratification in the family. In addition to genetic determinants the analysis of blood biomarkers are increasingly used in clinical practice to evaluate disease severity and treatment responses. As in genetic diagnostics, a multiplex approach can be helpful, as a single biomarker for PAH is unlikely to meet all requirements. This consensus statement reviews the current evidence for the use of genetic diagnostics and use of blood biomarkers in the assessment of paediatric patients with PAH

Heart Rate Response During Treadmill Exercise Test in Children and Adolescents With Congenital Heart Disease

Background: Impaired exercise capacity is a common feature of congenital heart disease (CHD). In adults with CHD, it has been shown that impaired heart rate response during exercise may contribute to exercise limitation. Systematic data in children and adolescents on this topic is limited. We therefore purposed to assess heart rate response during treadmill exercise testing in children and adolescents with CHD compared to healthy controls.Methods: One hundred and sixty three children and adolescents (103 with CHD, median age 15 years and 60 age-matched controls) performed cardiopulmonary exercise testing and were included in this study. Beyond peak oxygen consumption, increase in heart rate from resting level to peak exercise (heart rate reserve) and decrease of heart rate after peak exercise (heart rate recovery) were measured. Chronotropic index was defined as percentage of age predicted maximal heart rate reserve. According to data from adults on bicycle exercise, chronotropic incompetence was assumed for chronotropic index below 0.8.Results: While resting heart rate was similar between both groups, peak heart rate, heart rate reserve as well as chronotropic index were lower in the CHD group than in controls. Chronotropic index was lowest in patients with single ventricle hemodynamics and correlated with peak oxygen consumption. Heart rate recovery was impaired in the CHD group 1 and 2 min after peak exercise compared to controls and correlated with peak oxygen consumption. Chronotropic index below 0.8 was a relatively frequent finding even in the control group suggesting that the threshold of 0.8 appears inadequate for the identification of chronotropic incompetence using treadmill exercise testing in children. After normalizing to the 2.5th chronotropic index percentile of the control group we obtained a chronotropic incompetence threshold of 0.69.Conclusion: As an adjunct to measurement of peak oxygen consumption, heart rate response to exercise appears to be a physiologically important diagnostic parameter in children and adolescents with CHD. However, interpretation of heart rate response needs to consider specific age characteristics and the mode of exercise test. Our data may help future studies on chronotropic incompetence using treadmill ergometer protocols in children and adolescents

Purification and partial characterization of draculin, the anticoagulant factor present in the saliva of vampire bats (<i>Desmodus rotundus</i>)

From the saliva of the vampire bat Desmodus rotundus, we isolated an unknown anticoagulant protein which we have named draculin. Its molecular mass as determined by non-reduced SDS-PAGE is about 83 kDa. The reduced polypeptide shows a slower migration. HPLC in a molecular sieve matrix yields a single, symmetrical peak corresponding to 88.5 kDa. Isoelectric focusing shows an acidic protein with pI = 4.1–4.2. Aminoacid analysis is compatible with a single chain polypeptide of about 80 kDa. Cyanogen bromide cleavage yields a single 16-aminoacid peptide, corresponding to the amino-terminus of the native molecule. Draculin inhibits the activated form of coagulation factors IX and X. It does not act on thrombin, trypsin, chymotrypsin and does not express fibrinolytic activity. The inhibition is immediate and not readily reversible, with a stoichiometry of about two molecules of draculin per molecule of factor IXa or Xa. Surprisingly, the inhibitory activity against either factor is not affected by the presence of the other. Draculin binds quantitatively to either immobilised factor Xa or factor IXa. Our preliminary interpretation is that there are two forms of draculin that hardly differ in structure. Both bind to factor Xa and to factor IXa but one form inhibits factor Xa and the other inhibits factor IXa. When added to plasma, draculin increases the lag phase as well as the height of the peak of thrombin generation