An Extended Virtual Aperture Imaging Model for Through-the-wall Sensing and Its Environmental Parameters Estimation

Through-the-wall imaging (TWI) radar has been given increasing attention in recent years. However, prior knowledge about environmental parameters, such as wall thickness and dielectric constant, and the standoff distance between an array and a wall, is generally unavailable in real applications. Thus, targets behind the wall suffer from defocusing and displacement under the conventional imag¬ing operations. To solve this problem, in this paper, we first set up an extended imaging model of a virtual aperture obtained by a multiple-input-multiple-output array, which considers the array position to the wall and thus is more applicable for real situations. Then, we present a method to estimate the environmental parameters to calibrate the TWI, without multiple measurements or dominant scatter¬ers behind-the-wall to assist. Simulation and field experi¬ments were performed to illustrate the validity of the pro¬posed imaging model and the environmental parameters estimation method

A Photovoltaic Solar Tracking System with Bidirectional Sliding Axle for Building Integration

AbstractA new single-axis solar tracking device is designed and explored, which is able to lift and lower the photovoltaic panels. The photovoltaic panels can be tilted to east-west directions in the process of tracking the sun. In windy weather, the solar panels can be placed close to horizontal rail by using stent, which can minimize the frontal area. What's more, the mechanical strength of this device is better than traditional single-axis solar tracking system, so as to enhance wind resistance in windy weather. The device in this paper is suitable for PV power plants on building roofs because it can meet the strict requirements of wind resistance capacity and safety

Imatinib plus Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor in Chronic Myeloid Leukemia Patients Who Have Achieved Partial or Complete Cytogenetic Response while on Imatinib

Background: The BCR/ABL tyrosine kinase inhibitor imatinib is highly effective in the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) but fails to eliminate all leukemia cells. In this study, we investigated whether the addition of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) could reduce the level of residual disease in patients with Ph-positive CML who appeared to have achieved a suboptimal response to imatinib alone. Methods: Eleven patients with CML who had achieved ≧35% Ph-negativity on imatinib were enrolled. The starting dose of imatinib was 400 mg or 600 mg orally daily, and of G-CSF 5 µg/kg s.c. daily. The administration of G-CSF was postponed or interrupted in the event of leukocytosis (≧30 ×109 leukocytes/l) until the white blood cell count fell below 20 × 109/l. Efficacy was assessed by serial monitoring of blood levels of BCR-ABL transcripts. Results: Of 11 evaluable patients, 9 had an appreciable decline in BCR-ABL transcript levels; in 7 cases the reduction was greater than 1 log. Conclusions: We conclude that the addition of G-CSF should be considered for patients on imatinib who fail to obtain optimal response to imatinib alone and that this approach deserves further evaluation as frontline therapy for newly diagnosed CML.Baijun Fang and Ling Mai are equal contributors

Attitude Determination Method by Fusing Single Antenna GPS and Low Cost MEMS Sensors Using Intelligent Kalman Filter Algorithm

For meeting the demands of cost and size for micronavigation system, a combined attitude determination approach with sensor fusion algorithm and intelligent Kalman filter (IKF) on low cost Micro-Electro-Mechanical System (MEMS) gyroscope, accelerometer, and magnetometer and single antenna Global Positioning System (GPS) is proposed. The effective calibration method is performed to compensate the effect of errors in low cost MEMS Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU). The different control strategies fusing the MEMS multisensors are designed. The yaw angle fusing gyroscope, accelerometer, and magnetometer algorithm is estimated accurately under GPS failure and unavailable sideslip situations. For resolving robust control and characters of the uncertain noise statistics influence, the high gain scale of IKF is adjusted by fuzzy controller in the transition process and steady state to achieve faster convergence and accurate estimation. The experiments comparing different MEMS sensors and fusion algorithms are implemented to verify the validity of the proposed approach

TextDiff: Mask-Guided Residual Diffusion Models for Scene Text Image Super-Resolution

The goal of scene text image super-resolution is to reconstruct high-resolution text-line images from unrecognizable low-resolution inputs. The existing methods relying on the optimization of pixel-level loss tend to yield text edges that exhibit a notable degree of blurring, thereby exerting a substantial impact on both the readability and recognizability of the text. To address these issues, we propose TextDiff, the first diffusion-based framework tailored for scene text image super-resolution. It contains two modules: the Text Enhancement Module (TEM) and the Mask-Guided Residual Diffusion Module (MRD). The TEM generates an initial deblurred text image and a mask that encodes the spatial location of the text. The MRD is responsible for effectively sharpening the text edge by modeling the residuals between the ground-truth images and the initial deblurred images. Extensive experiments demonstrate that our TextDiff achieves state-of-the-art (SOTA) performance on public benchmark datasets and can improve the readability of scene text images. Moreover, our proposed MRD module is plug-and-play that effectively sharpens the text edges produced by SOTA methods. This enhancement not only improves the readability and recognizability of the results generated by SOTA methods but also does not require any additional joint training. Available Codes:https://github.com/Lenubolim/TextDiff

Advances in targeted therapy for acute myeloid leukemia.

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a clonal malignancy characterized by genetic heterogeneity due to recurrent gene mutations. Treatment with cytotoxic chemotherapy has been the standard of care for more than half of a century. Although much progress has been made toward improving treatment related mortality rate in the past few decades, long term overall survival has stagnated. Exciting developments of gene mutation-targeted therapeutic agents are now changing the landscape in AML treatment. New agents offer more clinical options for patients and also confer a more promising outcome. Since Midostaurin, a FLT3 inhibitor, was first approved by US FDA in 2017 as the first gene mutation-targeted therapeutic agent, an array of new gene mutation-targeted agents are now available for AML treatment. In this review, we will summarize the recent advances in gene mutation-targeted therapies for patients with AML

The Application Value of the Central Lymph Node Metastasis Risk Assessment Model in Papillary Thyroid Microcarcinoma of Stage cN0: A Study of 828 Patients

BackgroundThe aim of this study is to build a risk assessment system for central lymph node metastasis (CLNM) in papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC) of stage cN0 and to explore its application value in clinical practice.MethodsA total of 500 patients with PTMC who underwent thyroid operation from 2013 to 2015 in Ningbo First Hospital were selected as the model group. Independent risk factors related to CLNM in PTMC were analyzed and determined, and a risk assessment system for CLNM was preliminarily established. Furthermore, the clinicopathological data from 328 PTMC patients with the same conditions as the model group from 2016 to 2017 were further collected as the validation group to verify the diagnostic value of the risk assessment system.ResultsThe risk assessment system was based on the score rating (score ≤ 5 was classified as low risk, 6–8 was classified as medium risk, and ≥9 was classified as high-risk). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) was 0.687 (95% CI: 0.635–0.783). According to the risk assessment system, 328 PTMC patients in the validation group were scored. Among the low-risk group, the moderate-risk group, and the high-group, 96.8%, 58.1%, and 43.2% were the CLNM (-) patients, and 3.1%, 41.9%, and 65.8% were CLNM (+) patients, respectively. The area under ROC was 0.837 (95% CI: 0.778–0.869).ConclusionsThe risk assessment system in this study is of diagnostic value and can provide a theoretical foundation for intraoperative decision-making of prophylactic central neck dissection (pCND)

Generation of Human Epidermis-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cell-like Pluripotent Cells and their reprogramming in mouse chimeras

Stem cells can be derived from the embryo (embryonic stem cells, ESCs), from adult tissues (adult stem cells, ASCs), and by induction of fibroblasts (induced pluripotent stem cells, iPSs). Ethical problems, immunological rejection, and difficulties in obtaining human tissues limit the use of ESCs in clinical medicine. Induced pluripotent stem cells are difficult to maintain in vitro and carry a greater risk of tumor formation. Furthermore, the complexity of maintenance and propagation is especially difficult in the clinic. Adult stem cells can be isolated from several adult tissues and present the possibility of self-transplantation for the clinical treatment of a variety of human diseases. Recently, several ASCs have been successfully isolated and cultured in vitro, including hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) , mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), epidermis stem cells, neural stem cells (NSCs), adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs), islet stem cells, and germ line stem cells. Human mesenchymal stem cells originate mainly from bone marrow, cord blood, and placenta, but epidermis-derived MSCs have not yet been isolated. We isolated small spindle-shaped cells with strong proliferative potential during the culture of human epidermis cells and designed a medium to isolate and propagate these cells. They resembled MSCs morphologically and demonstrated pluripotency in vivo; thus, we defined these cells as human epidermis-derived mesenchymal stem cell-like pluripotent cells (hEMSCPCs). These hEMSCPCs present a possible new cell resource for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine

The specification and use of 18F-FES PET in breast cancer

Estrogen receptor (ER) is overexpressed in approximately 2/3 of breast cancer patients’ lesions. Noninvasive detection of ER in vivo and dynamic monitoring of ER are crucial for individualized treatment decision-making. 16α-18F-17β-fluoroestradiol (18F-FES) positron emission tomography (PET) has been used in a variety of preclinical and clinical studies to detect ER expression. However, there is still a lack of technical specifications in China. This technical specification was jointly written by domestic experts who had experience of 18F-FES PET imaging and was formed through consultation based on their own experience and research progress in this field both domestically and internationally. This technical specification introduced the synthesis method and quality control requirements of 18F-FES, recommended its clinical application scenarios, and classified them. In addition, experts’ suggestions were provided throughout the entire process systemically and detailly, including pre-imaging preparation, imaging process, image analysis (normal biological distribution, determination of ER positive and negative, lesion detection, influencing factors, false negative and false positive, report requirements), and the limitations of this imaging technique were proposed. The future application prospects were also discussed. This specification aimed to promote the standardized application of 18F-FES PET in China, achieve repeatability and comparability, and provide important molecular imaging technical support for accurate diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer