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This study develops an improved Feldkamp-Davis-Kress (FDK) reconstruction algorithm using non-local total variation (NLTV) denoising and a cubic B-spline interpolation-based backprojector to enhance the image quality of low-dose cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT). The NLTV objective function is minimized on all log-transformed projections using steepest gradient descent optimization with an adaptive control of the step size to augment the difference between a real structure and noise. The proposed algorithm was evaluated using a phantom data set acquired from a low-dose protocol with lower milliampere-seconds (mAs).The combination of NLTV minimization and cubic B-spline interpolation rendered the enhanced reconstruction images with significantly reduced noise compared to conventional FDK and local total variation with anisotropic penalty. selleck chemicals llc The artifacts were remarkably suppressed in the reconstructed images. Quantitative analysis of reconstruction images using low-dose projections acquired from low mAs showed a contrast-to-noise ratio with spatial resolution comparable to images reconstructed using projections acquired from high mAs. The proposed approach produced the lowest RMSE and the highest correlation. These results indicate that the proposed algorithm enables application of the conventional FDK algorithm for low mAs image reconstruction in low-dose CBCT imaging, thereby eliminating the need for more computationally demanding algorithms. The substantial reductions in radiation exposure associated with the low mAs projection acquisition may facilitate wider practical applications of daily online CBCT imaging.Both non-small-cell lung cancer cases in never-smokers and nonmedullary thyroid cancer cases have been increasing in developed countries. Some studies have shown an excess of co-occurrence of non-small-cell lung cancer and nonmedullary thyroid cancer. We aimed to clarify the underlying genetic factors that contribute to the occurrence of these two malignancies. We performed germline exome sequencing in a cohort of 9 patients with the two malignancies. In terms of candidate genes, we performed target resequencing, immunohistochemistry, and microsatellite instability testing on another cohort. Two rare missense heterozygous variants in MSH6 were identified and verified by Sanger sequencing. One available tumour specimen showed heterogeneous MSH6 status in immunohistochemistry. Further exploration with different cohorts (a total of 8 patients with the two malignancies) demonstrated that 2 out of 8 patients had a germline missense or promotor variant of MLH1 and four out of 10 tumour specimens revealed heterogeneous immunohistochemistry staining in any of the four mismatch repair proteins MLH1, PMS2, MSH2 and MSH6. Although our cohort showed a different disease profile than Lynch syndrome, this study suggests causal roles of impaired DNA mismatch repair capacity in non-small-cell lung cancer and nonmedullary thyroid cancer.Myelomeningocele (MMC) affects one in 1000 newborns annually worldwide and each surviving child faces tremendous lifetime medical and caregiving burdens. Both genetic and environmental factors contribute to disease risk but the mechanism is unclear. This study examined 506 MMC subjects for ultra-rare deleterious variants (URDVs, absent in gnomAD v2.1.1 controls that have Combined Annotation Dependent Depletion score ≥ 20) in candidate genes either known to cause abnormal neural tube closure in animals or previously associated with human MMC in the current study cohort. Approximately 70% of the study subjects carried one to nine URDVs among 302 candidate genes. Half of the study subjects carried heterozygous URDVs in multiple genes involved in the structure and/or function of cilium, cytoskeleton, extracellular matrix, WNT signaling, and/or cell migration. Another 20% of the study subjects carried heterozygous URDVs in candidate genes associated with gene transcription regulation, folate metabolism, or glucose metabolism. Presence of URDVs in the candidate genes involving these biological function groups may elevate the risk of developing myelomeningocele in the study cohort.The incidence of light on the edge of a glass coverslip for a microscope slide, deposited with a thin film on both faces, permits exciting two resonances in each polarisation state of the input light, TE and TM. This dually nanocoated waveguide can be used for detecting simultaneously two different parameters on the basis of a further deposition of suitable materials on each face. As an example, the possibility of detecting temperature and humidity by using polydimethylsiloxane and agarose coatings, respectively, was demonstrated, which opens the path for the development of other dual-parameter sensors, and for even more parameters in cases in which each face of the coverslip is patterned. Moreover, the device was optimised in order to position two resonances in the near infrared (NIR) and two resonances in the visible region, with sensitivities of 0.34 nm/°C and 0.23 nm/%RH in the visible region and 1.16 nm/°C and 0.34 nm/%RH in the NIR, respectively, demonstrating the possibility of using the device in both spectral ranges and opening the path for the development of sensors based on multiple resonances, each one related to a different parameter to be detected.Encouraging people to vaccinate is a challenging endeavor, but one which has tremendous public health benefits. Doing so requires overcoming barriers of awareness, availability, and (sometimes) vaccine hesitancy. Here we focus on nudging people to vaccinate through online advertising. We conducted a pre-registered online ads campaign encouraging people to vaccinate against three diseases influenza, human papillomavirus, and herpes zoster. Ads were shown to ~69,000 people and were compared to similar ads shown to 8.6 million people. Outcome measures were clicks on ads and future searches for relevant terms. We find that ads have two main effects First, a congruence effect whereby ads increase the likelihood of clicks and future searches by up to 116% in people who express an interest in the disease or the vaccine. Most commercial vaccine advertising is aimed entirely at this population. Second, we observed a priming effect, where ads shown to people who were searching for terms unrelated to the vaccine could be encouraged to click on them (odds ratios of 7.5-33.0) and, more often, search for the vaccine later (hazard ratios of 6.9-157.3). We provide analysis for optimizing vaccine advertising campaign budgets to balance the two populations. These findings demonstrate that digital advertising campaigns should consider not just advertising to direct keywords or to individuals that look exactly like existing customers, but consider tangential keywords that draw a wider target population who are likely earlier in their conversion funnel, thus increasing the number of people who vaccinate and maximizing vaccines uptake.Gastric ulcer or peptic ulcer is a common disease worldwide. Basically, it develops when there is an imbalance between the protective and aggressive factors, especially at the luminal surface of epithelial cells. Thus, there is a constant interest in research new drugs for treatment of gastric ulcer. The snail secretion is a dense mucous, that covers the external surface of the snails, with important functions for the survival of snails. The biological proprieties of snail Helix Aspersa Muller mucus it has been known for centuries to treat human disorders in particular for skin disease. Recently the use of snail mucus has seen a worldwide increase, as a component in cosmetic product and it has been used in particular for the management of wound and skin disorders. In this study we use a murine model of ethanol intragastric administration which has been widely used to test the drugs efficacies and to explore the underlying mechanism for gastric ulcer development. The intragastric ethanol administration causes several mucosal damages and an induction of a severe inflammatory response. Our results show a significant protective effect of snail secretion filtrate in reducing macroscopic and histological lesions, as well the protective effect on mucus content, oxidative stress and inflammatory response. In conclusion this study demonstrate the protective effect of intragastrical snail secretion filtrate, in a model of ethanol-induced gastric ulcer in mice, suggesting its possible useful use in the treatment or prevention of gastric ulcer.Natural and medical radiation are the most frequent sources of daily low-dose radiation exposure for the general public, but these radiation levels are generally acceptable. Among various occupations, aviation crew members and medical workers are exposed to high levels of radiation from scattered rays. This study focused on developing clothing for shielding aviation crew members from natural radiation during air travel. Materials were selected considering their radiation-shielding properties. A tungsten double-layered composite yarn and a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fiber fabric containing BaSO4 were manufactured. The characteristics and shielding performances of the products were analyzed. Prototypes of a protective scarf (for shielding the thyroid gland) and apron (for shielding the torso) for flight attendants were produced. A lightweight fabric was produced that neither restricts the movement of the wearer nor causes them skin discomfort. The shielding performances of the tungsten composite and PET fiber fabrics containing BaSO4 were 0.018 mmPb and 0.03 mmPb, respectively, demonstrating low-dose shielding that may be useful for protecting aviation crew members from scattered rays. The characteristics of the developed fibers are comparable to those of materials used in clothing production; therefore, low-dose radiation-shielding clothing could be manufactured for use in aviation, medical, and other industries.Wave breaking is an important process for energy dissipation in the open ocean and coastal seas. It drives beach morphodynamics, controls air-sea interactions, determines when ship and offshore structure operations can occur safely, and influences on the retrieval of ocean properties from satellites. Still, wave breaking lacks a proper physical understanding mainly due to scarce observational field data. Consequently, new methods and data are required to improve our current understanding of this process. In this paper we present a novel machine learning method to detect active wave breaking, that is, waves that are actively generating visible bubble entrainment in video imagery data. The present method is based on classical machine learning and deep learning techniques and is made freely available to the community alongside this publication. The results indicate that our best performing model had a balanced classification accuracy score of [Formula see text] 90% when classifying active wave breaking in the test dataset. An example of a direct application of the method includes a statistical description of geometrical and kinematic properties of breaking waves. We expect that the present method and the associated dataset will be crucial for future research related to wave breaking in several areas of research, which include but are not limited to improving operational forecast models, developing risk assessment and coastal management tools, and refining the retrieval of remotely sensed ocean properties.