Integrating Terminology Extraction and Word Embedding for Unsupervised Aspect Based Sentiment Analysis

In this paper we explore the advantages that unsupervised terminology extraction can bring to unsupervised Aspect Based Sentiment Analysis methods based on word embedding expansion techniques. We prove that the gain in terms of F-measure is in the order of 3%.Nel presente articolo analizziamo l’interazione tra syistemi di estrazione “classica” terminologica e systemi basati su techniche di “word embedding” nel contesto dell’analisi delle opinioni. Domostreremo che l’integrazione di terminogie porta un guadagno in F-measure pari al 3% sul dataset francese di Semeval 2016

Proceedings of the Fifth Italian Conference on Computational Linguistics CLiC-it 2018

On behalf of the Program Committee, a very warm welcome to the Fifth Italian Conference on Computational Linguistics (CLiC-­‐it 2018). This edition of the conference is held in Torino. The conference is locally organised by the University of Torino and hosted into its prestigious main lecture hall “Cavallerizza Reale”. The CLiC-­‐it conference series is an initiative of the Italian Association for Computational Linguistics (AILC) which, after five years of activity, has clearly established itself as the premier national forum for research and development in the fields of Computational Linguistics and Natural Language Processing, where leading researchers and practitioners from academia and industry meet to share their research results, experiences, and challenges

Sybille : anatomie d’un système automatique d’extraction de termes de sentiment

Nous présentons ici trois méthodes différentes pour effectuer une classification automatique de textes d’opinion. La première méthode est symbolique, la seconde statistique et la dernière, hybride, est une combinaison des deux premières. Nous montrons comment la combinaison des méthodes symbolique et statistique permet de tirer parti des avantages des deux méthodes, à savoir la robustesse de l’apprentissage automatique statistique et la possibilité de configuration manuelle offerte par la méthode symbolique, permettant une utilisation dans des applications réelles. Les textes classés par ces méthodes viennent de sources informationnelles non structurées de type forum sur Internet.We present three different methods to perform an automatic classification of texts which include opinions. The first method is symbolic, the second statistical and the last, hybrid, is a combination of the first two. We will show how the combination makes it possible to exploit the advantages of both methods, namely the robustness of statistical machine learning and the possibility of a manual configuration given by the symbolic method allowing the use of real-life applications. The classified texts by these methods come from non structured information sources such as internet forums

Persistently high-level polyomavirus BK replication in the absence of renal function abnormalities in a kidney transplant recipient

Polyomavirus-associated nephropathy is an important cause of allograft dysfunction and graft loss after kidney transplantation. Even if histological evaluation is the gold standard for graft study and diagnosis of polyomavirus-associated nephropathy, K-DIGO guidelines suggest performing an indication biopsy in selected patient’s clinical conditions or laboratory parameters. The practice of protocol biopsy is still controversial. We report the management of a case of presumptive polyomavirus-associated nephropathy in a 53-year-old kidney transplant recipient affected by type 1 hyperoxaluria with persistent high levels of viruria and sustained levels of polyomavirus BK viremia. The presence of a presumptive polyomavirus-associated nephropathy, even if never confirmed by biopsy, never compromised his clinical condition and allograft function. As a result of an immunosuppression-sparing policy and use of mTOR inhibitor, the polyomavirus BK viremia was successfully controlled with an observation time >5 years. The decision to perform or not a graft biopsy was the main question in the management of this case. We opted for a non-invasive approach because of the high risk of biopsy with macrohematuria on earlier biopsy in a dual kidney transplant and patient’s unwillingness for the procedure. The replication level of polyomavirus BK was significantly reduced by the decrease of immunosuppression on the basis of a close nucleic acid testing monitoring. The strategy we adopted could be considered in cases when renal biopsy is contraindicated or considered to be high risk

Evaluation of Two Different Preparation Protocols for MALDI-TOF MS Nontuberculous Mycobacteria Identification from Liquid and Solid Media

Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) identification is essential for establishing the relevance of the isolate and for appropriate antimicrobial therapy. Traditionally, NTM identification is performed by using Line Probe Assays (LPA), a costly and time-consuming technique requiring trained personnel. MALDI-TOF MS is a promising tool for NTM identification, and its use is rapidly growing. We evaluated the newly introduced MBT Mycobacteria kit (MBT) and the MycoEx preparation protocol (Bruker Daltonics, Germany) for NTM MALDI-TOF MS identification using LPA results as a reference. Fifty NTM grown on 7H11 agar and MGIT broth were analyzed with both protocols using the Bruker Microflex® LT MALDI-TOF MS (Bruker Daltonics) instrument. MBT and MycoEx provided identification results in 97.0% and 95.0% of the cases, respectively. With both protocols, 100% of the provided results agreed with LPA with no registered mismatch. MBT achieved an elevated number of highly probable identifications (88.0% vs. 83.0%) and a higher reproducibility rate of correct results (86.6% vs. 75.8%) in comparison to MycoEx. This study provides results about MBT performance for liquid and solid media, underlining the strengths and weakness under different conditions. Our results suggest that MALDI-TOF MS could provide a great advantage for timely and cost-saving NTM identification with potential implications for patient outcome

Evaluation of HCMV on transbronchial biopsies in lung transplant recipients

Introduction. Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) can cause direct and indirect effects in lung transplant recipients. Virological monitoring is usually performed by evaluation of viral load on bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL). However, few centers perform surveillance bronchoscopies with transbronchial biopsy (TBB) for investigating the occurrence of HCMV infection/disease, in addition to rejection. In this study, prevalence and clinical role of HCMV quantification on TBB have been studied. Methods. HCMV has been quantified by real-time PCR on 87 serial TBB specimens from 30 lung transplant recipients (all receiving anti-HCMV prophylaxis) and on the corresponding BAL and whole blood specimens. Results have been related to available histopathological features (including pneumonia, acute rejection, chronic rejection) and immunohistochemistry. Results. HCMV has been detected in 8%, 32.2%, and 16.7% of TBB, BAL, and whole blood specimens, respectively. Interstitial pneumonia has been diagnosed in 14.9% of cases, with a significant association to HCMV positivity on TBB (viral load 103-104 copies/104 cells), but not on BAL and whole blood. No significant association between HCMV positivity on TBB and acute or chronic rejection has been found, although previous episodes of HCMV pneumonia had occurred in two patients with chronic rejection. Conclusions. Evaluation of HCMV on TBB could be useful to identify episodes of local reactivation with subsequent organ disease. Although sampling errors on TBB must always be considered, this could allow to overcome problems in BAL dilution. Surveillance TBB in lung transplant recipients allows for early identification of rejection episodes or HCMV reactivation, thus suggesting the initiation of antiviral therapy and optimizing clinical management

Semantic access to multilingual legal information

Today, search engines for legal information retrieval do not include legal knowledge into their search strategies. Thes