High space-bandwidth in quantitative phase imaging using partially spatially coherent optical coherence microscopy and deep neural network

Quantitative phase microscopy (QPM) is a label-free technique that enables to monitor morphological changes at subcellular level. The performance of the QPM system in terms of spatial sensitivity and resolution depends on the coherence properties of the light source and the numerical aperture (NA) of objective lenses. Here, we propose high space-bandwidth QPM using partially spatially coherent optical coherence microscopy (PSC-OCM) assisted with deep neural network. The PSC source synthesized to improve the spatial sensitivity of the reconstructed phase map from the interferometric images. Further, compatible generative adversarial network (GAN) is used and trained with paired low-resolution (LR) and high-resolution (HR) datasets acquired from PSC-OCM system. The training of the network is performed on two different types of samples i.e. mostly homogenous human red blood cells (RBC) and on highly heterogenous macrophages. The performance is evaluated by predicting the HR images from the datasets captured with low NA lens and compared with the actual HR phase images. An improvement of 9 times in space-bandwidth product is demonstrated for both RBC and macrophages datasets. We believe that the PSC-OCM+GAN approach would be applicable in single-shot label free tissue imaging, disease classification and other high-resolution tomography applications by utilizing the longitudinal spatial coherence properties of the light source

Infant and Child Mortality in India in the Last Two Decades: A Geospatial Analysis

Studies examining the intricate interplay between poverty, female literacy, child malnutrition, and child mortality are rare in demographic literature. Given the recent focus on Millennium Development Goals 4 (child survival) and 5 (maternal health), we explored whether the geographic regions that were underprivileged in terms of wealth, female literacy, child nutrition, or safe delivery were also grappling with the elevated risk of child mortality; whether there were any spatial outliers; whether these relationships have undergone any significant change over historical time periods.The present paper attempted to investigate these critical questions using data from household surveys like NFHS 1992-1993, NFHS 1998-1999 and DLHS 2002-2004. For the first time, we employed geo-spatial techniques like Moran's-I, univariate LISA, bivariate LISA, spatial error regression, and spatiotemporal regression to address the research problem. For carrying out the geospatial analysis, we classified India into 76 natural regions based on the agro-climatic scheme proposed by Bhat and Zavier (1999) following the Census of India Study and all estimates were generated for each of the geographic regions.This study brings out the stark intra-state and inter-regional disparities in infant and under-five mortality in India over the past two decades. It further reveals, for the first time, that geographic regions that were underprivileged in child nutrition or wealth or female literacy were also likely to be disadvantaged in terms of infant and child survival irrespective of the state to which they belong. While the role of economic status in explaining child malnutrition and child survival has weakened, the effect of mother's education has actually become stronger over time

Robot-assisted radical nephroureterectomy with extended template lymphadenectomy for upper tract urothelial carcinoma: An outcome analysis

Introduction: Robot-assisted radical nephroureterectomy (RANU) with extended template lymphadenectomy (E-LND) is the leading treatment option for nonmetastatic upper tract urothelial carcinoma. Due to the rarity of this disease, there is a lack of consensus regarding the best approach and the extent of lymphadenectomy. We report our technique and its initial outcomes from the retrospective evaluation of a prospectively maintained database of 11 consecutive cases of RANU + E-LND. To the best of our knowledge, our series represents the first published experience of this procedure from India. Materials and Methods: RANU was performed in 11 patients (including two patients with simultaneous radical cystectomy) with the da Vinci Xi system. Pelvic and upper ureteric tumors were operated without re-docking or repositioning, using the port hopping feature. For the lower ureteric tumors, the patient was repositioned and the robot was re-docked to ensure completeness of pelvic lymphadenectomy. E-LND was performed in all the patients as per the templates described in previous studies. Results: Median age was 67.5 years (range 52–71). Median console time and blood loss were 170 min (range 156–270) and 150 cc (range 25–500), respectively. Median hospital stay was 3 days (range 2–8). One patient developed paralytic ileus in the postoperative period (Clavien Dindo Grade 1). None had a positive surgical margin and the median lymph node yield was 22.5 (range 7–47). Median follow-up was 9 months during which one patient developed metastatic systemic recurrence. All other patients were disease free at the last follow-up. Conclusions: A robotic approach to radical nephroureterectomy with E-LND is feasible and safe and does not appear to compromise the short-term oncological outcomes as defined by lymph node yields and margin positivity. At the same time, it offers the benefits of minimal invasion and results in swifter patient recovery from this extensive surgery

A study of alcohol dehydrogenase

The thermostability of pure yeast alcohol dehydrogenase has been investigated at various temperatures (50–70 °C) in the presence and absence of sucrose [0, 44.44%(w/w)] by both activity assay and differential scanning calorimetry. The thermal inactivation exhibited non-linear biphasic behavior. The thermal inactivation rate constants and the magnitude of the heat-stable and heat-labile fractions of the enzyme were quantified. The values of the denaturation temperature (Td) were experimentally measured by differential scanning calorimetry. A Td of 63 °C was obtained for the pure alcohol dehydrogenase in the absence of sucrose. Addition of 44.44%(w/w) sucrose yielded a higher denaturation temperature (70 °C). It was found that although activity assay and calorimetry are based on different principles (kinetic in the former case as opposed to thermodynamic in the latter), they yield results that agree well with each other. These results are discussed in the light of both series and parallel enzyme inactivation model

Parent Attitudes Regarding Orthodontists’ Role as Potential Administrators of Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) Vaccines

OBJECTIVE: To assess parent attitudes regarding orthodontists' role as potential administrators of human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccines. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 275 parents of adolescents, aged 11–17, who attended the orthodontic clinic at an American university for orthodontic adjustment visits and met inclusion criteria were given information about HPV and HPV vaccines. A paper questionnaire was administered to assess comfort level with orthodontists as HPV vaccinators. Demographic and other potential explanatory characteristics were collected. Descriptive, bivariate, and multivariate ordinal logistic regression analyses were performed with SPSS statistical software v25. RESULTS: The majority of participants were between 31 and 40 years old, with 79.6% identifying as female. 54.3% of the subjects' children identified as female. Although 71.3% of participants identified as Hispanic, 55.3% of the total participants chose to respond to the questionnaire in Spanish. 66.7% of the participants reported education level as high school degree or less. Overall, 52.4% of parents responded that they would be comfortable with orthodontists administering HPV vaccines to their children. Bivariate analysis suggested a significant association (p < 0.05) of parents taking the survey in Spanish and parents' educational attainment with HPV vaccine administration comfort level. Multivariate ordinal logistic regression indicates that parents taking survey in Spanish (adjusted OR: 2.42, 95% CI: 1.24–4.72; p < .01) and parents of male children (adjusted OR: 1.66, 95% CI: 1.01–2.73; p < 047) were comfortable with orthodontists administering the HPV vaccine. CONCLUSIONS: The language of the survey influenced parents' comfort level with orthodontists as HPV vaccinators, with Spanish having a positive correlation to comfort level. Parents of male children were more comfortable with orthodontists as HPV vaccinator

Thermal stability of alcohol dehydrogenase enzyme determined by activity assay and calorimetry

The thermostability of pure yeast alcohol dehydrogenase was investigated at various temperatures, in the presence and absence of sucrose, by both activity assay and differential scanning calorimetry. The thermal inactivation exhibited nonlinear biphasic behavior. The thermal inactivation rate constants and the magnitude of the heat-stable and heat-labile fractions of the enzyme were quantified. The values of the denaturation temperature were experimentally measured by calorimetry. It was found that although activity assay and calorimetry are based on different principles, they yield results that agree well with each other. However, each technique provides unique data (e.g. enzyme activity vis-a-vis basic thermodynamic properties, such as the denaturation enthalpy) and the two techniques may be considered complementary to each other