Lidar-Based Relative Position Estimation and Tracking for Multi-Robot Systems

Relative positioning systems play a vital role in current multi-robot systems. We present a self-contained detection and tracking approach, where a robot estimates a distance (range) and an angle (bearing) to another robot using measurements extracted from the raw data provided by two laser range finders. We propose a method based on the detection of circular features with least-squares fitting and filtering out outliers using a map-based selection. We improve the estimate of the relative robot position and reduce its uncertainty by feeding measurements into a Kalman filter, resulting in an accurate tracking system. We evaluate the performance of the algorithm in a realistic indoor environment to demonstrate its robustness and reliability

A randomised controlled non-inferiority trial of primary care-based facilitated access to an alcohol reduction website (EFAR Spain): The study protocol

ABSTRACT Introduction: Early identification (EI) and brief interventions (BIs) for risky drinkers are effective tools in primary care. Lack of time in daily practice has been identified as one of the main barriers to implementation of BI. There is growing evidence that facilitated access by primary healthcare professionals (PHCPs) to a webbased BI can be a time-saving alternative to standard face-to-face BIs, but there is as yet no evidence about the effectiveness of this approach relative to conventional BI. The main aim of this study is to test non-inferiority of facilitation to a web-based BI for risky drinkers delivered by PHCP against face-to-face BI. Method and analysis: A randomised controlled noninferiority trial comparing both interventions will be performed in primary care health centres in Catalonia, Spain. Unselected adult patients attending participating centres will be given a leaflet inviting them to log on to a website to complete the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT-C) alcohol screening questionnaire. Participants with positive results will be requested online to complete a trial module including consent, baseline assessment and randomisation to either face-to-face BI by the practitioner or BI via the alcohol reduction website. Follow-up assessment of risky drinking will be undertaken online at 3 months and 1 year using the full AUDIT and D5-EQD5 scale. Proportions of risky drinkers in each group will be calculated and non-inferiority assessed against a specified margin of 10%. Assuming reduction of 30% of risky drinkers receiving standard intervention, 1000 patients will be required to give 90% power to reject the null hypothesis. Ethics and dissemination: The protocol was approved by the Ethics Commmittee of IDIAP Jordi Gol i Gurina P14/028. The findings of the trial will be disseminated through peer-reviewed journals, national and international conference presentation

The marine activities performed within the TOMO-ETNA experiment

The TOMO-ETNA experiment was planned in order to obtain a detailed geological and structural model of the continental and oceanic crust beneath Mt. Etna volcano and northeastern Sicily up to the Aeolian Islands (southern Italy), by integrating data from active and passive refraction and reflection seismic methodologies, magnetic and gravity surveys. This paper focuses on the marine activities performed within the experiment, which have been carried out in the Ionian and Tyrrhenian Seas, during three multidisciplinary oceanographic cruises, involving three research vessels (\u201cSarmiento de Gamboa\u201d, \u201cGalatea\u201d and \u201cAegaeo\u201d) belonging to different countries and institutions. During the offshore surveys about 9700 air-gun shots were produced to achieve a high-resolution seismic tomography through the wide-angle seismic refraction method, covering a total of nearly 2650 km of shooting tracks. To register ground motion, 27 ocean bottom seismometers were deployed, extending the inland seismic permanent network of the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV) and a temporary network installed for the experiment. A total of 1410 km of multi-channel seismic reflection profiles were acquired to image the subsurface of the area and to achieve a 2D velocity model for each profile. Multibeam sonar and sub bottom profiler data were also collected. Moreover, a total of 2020 km of magnetic and 680 km of gravity track lines were acquired to compile magnetic and gravity anomaly maps offshore Mt. Etna volcano. Here, high-resolution images of the seafloor, as well as sediment and rock samples, were also collected using a remotely operated vehicle

Genetic heterogeneity and actionable mutations in HER2-positive primary breast cancers and their brain metastases

Brain metastases constitute a challenge in the management of patients with HER2- positive breast cancer treated with anti-HER2 systemic therapies. Here we sought to define the repertoire of mutations private to or enriched for in HER2-positive brain metastases. Massively parallel sequencing targeting all exons of 254 genes frequently mutated in breast cancers and/or related to DNA repair was used to characterize the spatial and temporal heterogeneity of HER2-positive breast cancers and their brain metastases in six patients. Data were analyzed with state-of-the-art bioinformatics algorithms and selected mutations were validated with orthogonal methods. Spatial and temporal inter-lesion genetic heterogeneity was observed in the HER2-positive brain metastases from an index patient subjected to a rapid autopsy. Genetic alterations restricted to the brain metastases included mutations in cancer genes FGFR2, PIK3CA and ATR, homozygous deletion in CDKN2A and amplification in KRAS. Shifts in clonal composition and the acquisition of additional mutations in the progression from primary HER2-positive breast cancer to brain metastases following anti-HER2 therapy were investigated in additional five patients. Likely pathogenic mutations private to or enriched in the brain lesions affected cancer and clinically actionable genes, including ATR, BRAF, FGFR2, MAP2K4, PIK3CA, RAF1 and TP53. Changes in clonal composition and the acquisition of additional mutations in brain metastases may affect potentially actionable genes in HER2-positive breast cancers. Our observations have potential clinical implications, given that treatment decisions for patients with brain metastatic disease are still mainly based on biomarkers assessed in the primary tumor

Effects of ocean acidification on skeletal characteristics of a temperate coral at a CO2 vent system

Ocean Acidification (OA) is predicted to have profound impacts on marine ecosystems because carbonate ions are an essential substrate for the biomineralization of shells and skeletons of calcifying marine organisms, from phytoplankton and corals to fishes1,2,3. Volcanic CO2 vent systems, where seawater is naturally acidified, offer a unique opportunity to investigate the response of benthic organisms and habitats to OA. The Ischia Island (Tyrrhenian Sea, Italy) offers a natural laboratory for OA studies, allowing us to investigate how a suite of habitats and species responds to acidification. A. calycularis is a Mediterranean endemic azooxanthellate coral. It is long-lived species and commonly found in dim light shallow rocky habitats of the south-western Mediterranean Sea4. It broods its larvae5 and thus has relatively low dispersal capacities and high potential for local adaptation. This coral is reported as vulnerable in the IUCN red list6. There is one population of A. calycularis that naturally occurs in a semi-submersed cave (Grotta del Mago) affected by CO2 venting, where is highly abundant (70% cover at 1 m depth). Here, we assess population structure and the skeletal characteristics of A. calycularis originating from different sites (naturally acidified and ambient pH sites) along the coast of Ischia Island . We hypothesize that the population thriving under naturally acidified conditions shows higher population dynamics and differences in biomineralization process than the populations studied from other reference sites with ambient pH.Colonies in the Grotta del Mago have encrusting morphology, with smaller size and consequent, lower weight and lower number of polyps compared to conspecifics from sites at normal pH conditions. With increasing acidification (lower pH), the skeletal porosity decreased while the bulk and micro- density increased. Given the reduced calcification rate that may be expected in acidified waters, the observed increase in skeletal density may be counterbalanced by a strong decrease in linear extension rate

Targeting PD-1/PD-L1 in lung cancer: current perspectives

María González-Cao,1 Niki Karachaliou,1 Santiago Viteri,1 Daniela Morales-Espinosa,1 Cristina Teixidó,2 Jesús Sánchez Ruiz,3 Miquel Ángel Molina-Vila,2 Mariacarmela Santarpia,4 Rafael Rosell1,2,5,61Translational Cancer Research Unit, Instituto Oncológico Dr Rosell, Quirón Dexeus University Hospital, Barcelona, Spain; 2Pangaea Biotech SL, Barcelona, Spain; 3Centro Nacional de Investigación Oncología (CNIO), Madrid, Spain; 4Medical Oncology Unit, Human Pathology Department, University of Messina, Messina, Italy; 5Cancer Biology and Precision Medicine Program, Catalan Institute of Oncology, Germans Trias i Pujol Health Sciences Institute and Hospital, Campus Can Ruti, Badalona, Barcelona, Spain; 6Fundación Molecular Oncology Research, Barcelona, SpainAbstract: Increased understanding of tumor immunology has led to the development of effective immunotherapy treatments. One of the most important advances in this field has been due to pharmacological design of antibodies against immune checkpoint inhibitors. Anti-PD-1/PD-L1 antibodies are currently in advanced phases of clinical development for several tumors, including lung cancer. Results from Phase I–III trials with anti-PD-1/PD-L1 antibodies in non-small-cell lung cancer have demonstrated response rates of around 20% (range, 16%–50%). More importantly, responses are long-lasting (median duration of response, 18 months) and fast (50% of responses are detected at time of first tumor evaluation) with very low grade 3–4 toxicity (less than 5%). Recently, the anti-PD-1 antibody pembrolizumab received US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) breakthrough therapy designation for treatment of non-small-cell lung cancer, supported by data from a Phase Ib trial. Another anti-PD-1 antibody, nivolumab, has also been approved for lung cancer based on survival advantage demonstrated in recently released data from a Phase III trial in squamous cell lung cancer.Keywords: immunotherapy, immunoncology, cancer, checkpoint inhibitor

Other targeted drugs in melanoma

Targeted therapy drugs are developed against specific molecular alterations on cancer cells. Because they are "targeted" to the tumor, these therapies are more effective and better tolerated than conventional therapies such as chemotherapy. In the last decade, great advances have been made in understanding of melanoma biology and identification of molecular mechanisms involved in malignant transformation of cells. The identification of oncogenic mutated kinases involved in this process provides an opportunity for development of new target therapies. The dependence of melanoma on BRAF-mutant kinase has provided an opportunity for development of mutation-specific inhibitors with high activity and excellent tolerance that are now being used in clinical practice. This marked a new era in the treatment of metastatic melanoma and much research is now ongoing to identify other "druggable" kinases and transduction signaling networking. It is expected that in the near future the spectrum of target drugs for melanoma treatment will increase. Herein, we review the most relevant potential novel drugs for melanoma treatment based on preclinical data and the results of early clinical trials

Melanoma: oncogenic drivers and the immune system

Advances and in-depth understanding of the biology of melanoma over the past 30 years have contributed to a change in the consideration of melanoma as one of the most therapy-resistant malignancies. The finding that oncogenic BRAF mutations drive tumor growth in up to 50% of melanomas led to a molecular therapy revolution for unresectable and metastatic disease. Moving beyond BRAF, inactivation of immune regulatory checkpoints that limit T cell responses to melanoma has provided targets for cancer immunotherapy. In this review, we discuss the molecular biology of melanoma and we focus on the recent advances of molecularly targeted and immunotherapeutic approaches