A Bayesian approach for energy-based estimation of acoustic aberrations in high intensity focused ultrasound treatment

High intensity focused ultrasound is a non-invasive method for treatment of diseased tissue that uses a beam of ultrasound to generate heat within a small volume. A common challenge in application of this technique is that heterogeneity of the biological medium can defocus the ultrasound beam. Here we reduce the problem of refocusing the beam to the inverse problem of estimating the acoustic aberration due to the biological tissue from acoustic radiative force imaging data. We solve this inverse problem using a Bayesian framework with a hierarchical prior and solve the inverse problem using a Metropolis-within-Gibbs algorithm. The framework is tested using both synthetic and experimental datasets. We demonstrate that our approach has the ability to estimate the aberrations using small datasets, as little as 32 sonication tests, which can lead to significant speedup in the treatment process. Furthermore, our approach is compatible with a wide range of sonication tests and can be applied to other energy-based measurement techniques

First Results from the rapid-response spectrophotometric characterization of Near-Earth Objects

As part of our multi-observatory, multi-filter campaign, we present \rmi color observations of 82 Near-Earth Objects (NEOs) obtained with the RATIR instrument on the 1.5m robotic telescope at the San Pedro Martir's National Observatory in Mexico. Our project is particularly focused on rapid response observations of small ($\lesssim 850$ m) NEOs. The rapid response and the use of spectrophotometry allows us to constrain the taxonomic classification of NEOs with high efficiency. Here we present the methodology of our observations and our result, suggesting that the ratio of C-type to S-type asteroids in a size range of $\sim$30-850m is 1.1, which is in accordance with our previous results. We also find that 10$\%$ of all NEOs in our sample are neither C- nor S-type asteroidsComment: 31 pages, 4 tables, 10 figure

Frecuencia del síndrome metabólico en pacientes que asistieron a la consulta externa del servicio de medicina interna, Hospital regional "Santiago", Jinotepe, primer semestre 2009

Tesis (Doctor en Medicina y Cirugia)--Universidad Americana, Managua, 2010El siguiente documento es una investigación acerca de la frecuencia del síndrome Metabólico en los pacientes de consulta externa del servicio de medicina interna en el Hospital Regional Santiago, Jinotepe, durante el 2009. Surge ante la necesidad de información a la que hace referencia el crecimiento del número de pacientes que lo sufren alrededor del mundo, además de ser un síndrome relativamente nuevo, puesto que pocos saben no se trata de una única enfermedad, sino de una asociación de problemas de salud que pueden aparecer de forma simultánea o secuencial en un mismo individuo, causados por la combinación de factores genéticos y ambientales asociados al estilo de vida, en los que la Resistencia a la Insulina se considera el componente patogénico fundamental, por consecuencia el Síndrome Metabólico es un tema actual y de debate en la comunidad médica

Desarrollo de Aplicación Educativa Móvil para la Asignatura de Historia

El presente estudio corresponde a una investigación donde el objetivo principal es la elaboración de una Aplicación Educativa para dispositivos móviles, que sirva como herramienta de apoyo al proceso de aprendizaje de los estudiantes de noveno grado en la asignatura de Historia en el contenido de edad de los metales de la quinta unidad: evolución de los seres humanos. Se procedió a la documentación necesaria (marco teórico, diseño metodológico, etc.) que sustentara de forma científica y teórica la investigación. Se aplicaron instrumentos de recolección de datos tales como, entrevista al encargado del aula digital móvil, entrevista al docente de la asignatura de Historia, y a especialista en diseño y desarrollo. Se procedió al diseño y desarrollo de la aplicación educativa, la cual tiene por nombre Edad de los metales, esta Aplicación Educativa se desarrolló utilizando la herramienta Android Studio (IDE oficial de Google), el cual integra el kit de desarrollo de Java (SDK) y soporta lenguaje de marcado extendido (XML) para un manejo independiente del diseño y la programación de la aplicación.Por último se aborda la respectiva integración curricular de la aplicación educativa Edad de los metales en la cual se sugiere al docente actividades de aprendizaje enfocada en el uso de la aplicación educativa como una herramienta de aprendizaje para los estudiantes. Se pretende que con esta aplicación los estudiantes mejoren sus conocimientos en el contenido de edad de los metales de la quinta unidad: evolución de los seres humanos de la asignatura de historia, de igual manera el docente contará con una herramienta pedagógica, interactiva que le brindará dinamismo al proceso de transmisión de conocimiento

Desarrollo de Aplicación Educativa Móvil para la Asignatura de Historia

El presente estudio corresponde a una investigación donde el objetivo principal es la elaboración de una Aplicación Educativa para dispositivos móviles, que sirva como herramienta de apoyo al proceso de aprendizaje de los estudiantes de noveno grado en la asignatura de Historia en el contenido de edad de los metales de la quinta unidad: evolución de los seres humanos. Se procedió a la documentación necesaria (marco teórico, diseño metodológico, etc.) que sustentara de forma científica y teórica la investigación. Se aplicaron instrumentos de recolección de datos tales como, entrevista al encargado del aula digital móvil, entrevista al docente de la asignatura de Historia, y a especialista en diseño y desarrollo. Se procedió al diseño y desarrollo de la aplicación educativa, la cual tiene por nombre Edad de los metales, esta Aplicación Educativa se desarrolló utilizando la herramienta Android Studio, el cual integra el kit de desarrollo de Java (SDK) y soporta lenguaje de marcado extendido (XML) para un manejo independiente del diseño y la programación de la aplicación. Por último se aborda la respectiva integración curricular de la aplicación educativa Edad de los metales en la cual se sugiere al docente actividades de aprendizaje enfocada en el uso de la aplicación educativa como una herramienta de aprendizaje para los estudiante

A Bayesian Approach for Energy-Based Estimation of Acoustic Aberrations in High Intensity Focused Ultrasound Treatment

High intensity focused ultrasound is a non-invasive method for treatment of diseased tissue that uses a beam of ultrasound to generate heat within a small volume. A common challenge in application of this technique is that heterogeneity of the biological medium can defocus the ultrasound beam. Here we reduce the problem of refocusing the beam to the inverse problem of estimating the acoustic aberration due to the biological tissue from acoustic radiative force imaging data. We solve this inverse problem using a Bayesian framework with a hierarchical prior and solve the inverse problem using a Metropolis-within-Gibbs algorithm. The framework is tested using both synthetic and experimental datasets. We demonstrate that our approach has the ability to estimate the aberrations using small datasets, as little as 32 sonication tests, which can lead to significant speedup in the treatment process. Furthermore, our approach is compatible with a wide range of sonication tests and can be applied to other energy-based measurement techniques

Memoria del segundo simposium sobre historia, sociedad y cultura de México y América Latina

La presente obra reúne 20 ponencias de las 27 que se presentaron en el “Segundo simposium sobre historia, sociedad y cultura de México y América Latina”, realizado el 8 y 9 de noviembre de 2006, en el Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Sociales y Humanidades (CICSyH) de la Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México (UAEM), en Toluca, Estado de México

Syrian Hamster as an Animal Model for the Study on Infectious Diseases

Infectious diseases still remain one of the biggest challenges for human health. In order to gain a better understanding of the pathogenesis of infectious diseases and develop effective diagnostic tools, therapeutic agents, and preventive vaccines, a suitable animal model which can represent the characteristics of infectious is required. The Syrian hamster immune responses to infectious pathogens are similar to humans and as such, this model is advantageous for studying pathogenesis of infection including post-bacterial, viral and parasitic pathogens, along with assessing the efficacy and interactions of medications and vaccines for those pathogens. This review summarizes the current status of Syrian hamster models and their use for understanding the underlying mechanisms of pathogen infection, in addition to their use as a drug discovery platform and provides a strong rationale for the selection of Syrian hamster as animal models in biomedical research. The challenges of using Syrian hamster as an alternative animal model for the research of infectious diseases are also addressed. Keywords: infectious diseases, Syrian hamster, drug discovery, infection mechanism, biomedical researc

Height and body-mass index trajectories of school-aged children and adolescents from 1985 to 2019 in 200 countries and territories: a pooled analysis of 2181 population-based studies with 65 million participants

Summary Background Comparable global data on health and nutrition of school-aged children and adolescents are scarce. We aimed to estimate age trajectories and time trends in mean height and mean body-mass index (BMI), which measures weight gain beyond what is expected from height gain, for school-aged children and adolescents. Methods For this pooled analysis, we used a database of cardiometabolic risk factors collated by the Non-Communicable Disease Risk Factor Collaboration. We applied a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate trends from 1985 to 2019 in mean height and mean BMI in 1-year age groups for ages 5–19 years. The model allowed for non-linear changes over time in mean height and mean BMI and for non-linear changes with age of children and adolescents, including periods of rapid growth during adolescence. Findings We pooled data from 2181 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight in 65 million participants in 200 countries and territories. In 2019, we estimated a difference of 20 cm or higher in mean height of 19-year-old adolescents between countries with the tallest populations (the Netherlands, Montenegro, Estonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina for boys; and the Netherlands, Montenegro, Denmark, and Iceland for girls) and those with the shortest populations (Timor-Leste, Laos, Solomon Islands, and Papua New Guinea for boys; and Guatemala, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Timor-Leste for girls). In the same year, the difference between the highest mean BMI (in Pacific island countries, Kuwait, Bahrain, The Bahamas, Chile, the USA, and New Zealand for both boys and girls and in South Africa for girls) and lowest mean BMI (in India, Bangladesh, Timor-Leste, Ethiopia, and Chad for boys and girls; and in Japan and Romania for girls) was approximately 9–10 kg/m2. In some countries, children aged 5 years started with healthier height or BMI than the global median and, in some cases, as healthy as the best performing countries, but they became progressively less healthy compared with their comparators as they grew older by not growing as tall (eg, boys in Austria and Barbados, and girls in Belgium and Puerto Rico) or gaining too much weight for their height (eg, girls and boys in Kuwait, Bahrain, Fiji, Jamaica, and Mexico; and girls in South Africa and New Zealand). In other countries, growing children overtook the height of their comparators (eg, Latvia, Czech Republic, Morocco, and Iran) or curbed their weight gain (eg, Italy, France, and Croatia) in late childhood and adolescence. When changes in both height and BMI were considered, girls in South Korea, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and some central Asian countries (eg, Armenia and Azerbaijan), and boys in central and western Europe (eg, Portugal, Denmark, Poland, and Montenegro) had the healthiest changes in anthropometric status over the past 3·5 decades because, compared with children and adolescents in other countries, they had a much larger gain in height than they did in BMI. The unhealthiest changes—gaining too little height, too much weight for their height compared with children in other countries, or both—occurred in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, New Zealand, and the USA for boys and girls; in Malaysia and some Pacific island nations for boys; and in Mexico for girls. Interpretation The height and BMI trajectories over age and time of school-aged children and adolescents are highly variable across countries, which indicates heterogeneous nutritional quality and lifelong health advantages and risks