Algorithms for outerplanar graph roots and graph roots of pathwidth at most 2

Deciding whether a given graph has a square root is a classical problem that has been studied extensively both from graph theoretic and from algorithmic perspectives. The problem is NP-complete in general, and consequently substantial effort has been dedicated to deciding whether a given graph has a square root that belongs to a particular graph class. There are both polynomial-time solvable and NP-complete cases, depending on the graph class. We contribute with new results in this direction. Given an arbitrary input graph G, we give polynomial-time algorithms to decide whether G has an outerplanar square root, and whether G has a square root that is of pathwidth at most 2

Digital restoration of colour cinematic films using imaging spectroscopy and machine learning

Digital restoration is a rapidly growing methodology within the field of heritage conservation, especially for early cinematic films which have intrinsically unstable dye colourants that suffer from irreversible colour fading. Although numerous techniques to restore film digitally have emerged recently, complex degradation remains a challenging problem. This paper proposes a novel vector quantization (VQ) algorithm for restoring movie frames based on the acquisition of spectroscopic data with a custom-made push-broom VNIR hyperspectral camera (380–780 nm). The VQ algorithm utilizes what we call a multi-codebook that correlates degraded areas with corresponding non-degraded ones selected from reference frames. The spectral-codebook was compared with a professional commercially available film restoration software (DaVinci Resolve 17) tested both on RGB and on hyperspectral providing better results in terms of colour reconstruction

Rapidly evolving Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in COVID-19: from early status epilepticus to fatal outcome

We report the case of a 70-year-old man coming to our attention for new onset refractory status epilepticus (NORSE) in a rapidly evolving CJD during SARS-CoV-2 co-infection. Our case report describes a fulminant CJD evolution associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection, which led to patient death after 15 days from admission. First EEG presented continuous diffuse spikes, sharp waves and sharp-and-slow wave complexes, pattern consistent with a non-convulsive status epilepticus (NORSE). Our case supports how CJD with SARS-CoV-2 co-infection could be characterized by an accelerated evolution, as already hypothesize for others microorganism infections, and how the diagnosis might be more challenging due to its uncommon presentations, such as NORSE

Maximum independent sets in graphs of low degree

Lozin VV, Milanic M. Maximum independent sets in graphs of low degree. In: Proc. 18th Annual ACM-SIAM Symposium on Discrete Algorithms (SODA 2007). 2007: 874-880

Recent Developments on Graphs of Bounded Clique-width

Kaminski M, Lozin VV, Milanic M. Recent Developments on Graphs of Bounded Clique-width. Rutgers Center for Operations Research, Rutgers University, NJ; 2007

Tree-width and Optimization in Bounded Degree Graphs

Lozin VV, Milanic M. Tree-width and Optimization in Bounded Degree Graphs. In: Brandstädt A, ed. Proc. 33rd International Workshop on Graph-Theoretic Concepts in Computer Science (WG 2007). Lecture notes in computer science. Vol 4769. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg; 2007: 45-54

Selecting optimal detector for temperature profiling in human skin using pulsed photothermal radiometry

We simulate temperature depth profiling in human skin using pulsed photothermal radiometry (PPTR). By taking into account blackbody emission characteristics, spectral variation of human skin IR absorption coefficient, detectivity of available radiation detectors, and shot noise, we compute realistic PPTR signals for a test temperature profile, representing a subsurface vascular lesion. Analysis of the reconstructed temperature profiles enables a performance comparison of quantum IR detectors utilizing different spectral acquisition bands. The results suggest that HgCdTe detector used in 6–10 $\mu$m spectral band performs better than an InSb detector used at 4–5 $\mu$m

Plasma neurofilament light (NfL) in patients affected by niemann–pick type C disease (NPCD)

(1) Background: Niemann–Pick type C disease (NPCD) is an autosomal recessive lysoso-mal storage disorder caused by mutations in the NPC1 or NPC2 genes. The clinical presentation is characterized by visceral and neurological involvement. Apart from a small group of patients pre-senting a severe perinatal form, all patients develop progressive and fatal neurological disease with an extremely variable age of onset. Different biomarkers have been identified; however, they poorly correlate with neurological disease. In this study we assessed the possible role of plasma NfL as a neurological disease-associated biomarker in NPCD. (2) Methods: Plasma NfL levels were measured in 75 healthy controls and 26 patients affected by NPCD (24 NPC1 and 2 NPC2; 39 samples). (3) Results: Plasma NfL levels in healthy controls correlated with age and were significantly lower in pediatric patients as compared to adult subjects (p = 0.0017). In both pediatric and adult NPCD patients, the plasma levels of NfL were significantly higher than in age-matched controls (p < 0.0001). Most importantly, plasma NfL levels in NPCD patients with neurological involvement were significantly higher than the levels found in patients free of neurological signs at the time of sam-pling, both in the pediatric and the adult group (p = 0.0076; p = 0.0032, respectively). Furthermore, in adults the NfL levels in non-neurological patients were comparable with those found in age-matched controls. No correlations between plasma NfL levels and NPCD patient age at sampling or plasma levels of cholestan 3β-5α-6β-triol were found. (4) Conclusions: These data suggest a promising role of plasma NfL as a possible neurological disease-associated biomarker in NPCD