Casual 6-DoF: Free-Viewpoint Panorama Using a Handheld 360° Camera.

Six degrees-of-freedom (6-DoF) video provides telepresence by enabling users to move around in the captured scene with a wide field of regard. Compared to methods requiring sophisticated camera setups, the image-based rendering method based on photogrammetry can work with images captured with any poses, which is more suitable for casual users. However, existing image-based rendering methods are based on perspective images.

Adaptive Light Estimation using Dynamic Filtering for Diverse Lighting Conditions.

High dynamic range (HDR) panoramic environment maps are widely used to illuminate virtual objects to blend with real-world scenes. However, in common applications for augmented and mixed-reality (AR/MR), capturing 360° surroundings to obtain an HDR environment map is often not possible using consumer-level devices. We present a novel light estimation method to predict 360° HDR environment maps from a single photograph with a limited field-of-view (FOV).

Review of Wearable and Portable Sensors for Monitoring Personal Solar UV Exposure.

Sunlight is one of the main environmental resources that keeps all the organisms alive on earth. The ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun is essential for vitamin D synthesis in the human body, which is crucial for bone and muscle health. In addition, sun exposure also helps to reduce the risk of some cardiovascular diseases and cancers.

The Antibody Society's antibody validation webinar series.

In the wake of the reproducibility crisis and numerous discussions on how commercially available antibodies as research tool contribute to it, The Antibody Society developed a series of 10 webinars to address the issues involved. The webinars were delivered by speakers with both academic and commercial backgrounds. This report highlights the problems, and offers solutions to help the scientific community appropriately identify the right antibodies and to validate them for their research and development projects.

Reconstructing Reflection Maps Using a Stacked-CNN for Mixed Reality Rendering.

Corresponding lighting and reflectance between real and virtual objects is important for spatial presence in augmented and mixed reality (AR and MR) applications. We present a method to reconstruct real-world environmental lighting, encoded as a reflection map (RM), from a conventional photograph. To achieve this, we propose a stacked convolutional neural network (SCNN) that predicts high dynamic range (HDR) 360 RMs with varying roughness from a limited field of view, low dynamic range photograph.

Effect of hair removal on solar UV transmission into skin and implications for melanoma skin cancer development.

Melanoma is the severest type of skin cancer. As distinct from many other cancer types, the incidence of melanoma has been increasing steadily over the last century. Discovering new risk factors of melanoma will not only raise public awareness but also potentially contribute to the improvement of skin cancer protection in the future.

Augmented Virtual Teleportation for High-Fidelity Telecollaboration.

Telecollaboration involves the teleportation of a remote collaborator to another real-world environment where their partner is located. The fidelity of the environment plays an important role for allowing corresponding spatial references in remote collaboration. We present a novel asymmetric platform, Augmented Virtual Teleportation (AVT), which provides high-fidelity telepresence of a remote VR user (VR-Traveler) into a real-world collaboration space to interact with a local AR user (AR-Host).

Optimization of LED Lighting for Clinical Settings.

The advent of the LED light source has promoted the concept of human-centric lighting (HCL). The LED has also been responsible for increases in the electrical efficiency of lighting systems, coupled with recent improvements in their colour properties. We have found that it is also possible to create a lit environment with enhanced clinical attributes by providing a source spectrum that meets the requirements of the Cyanosis Observation Index (COI).

Contribution of Human Hair in Solar UV Transmission in Skin: Implications for Melanoma Development.

Melanoma is the deadliest type of skin cancer with its prevalence on the rise. Recently, the melanocyte stem cells in hair follicles have been identified as the possible origin of melanoma upon exposure to ultraviolet radiation (UVR) through skin. It is hypothesized that colourless vellus hair (predominant in childhood) can serve as an alternative pathway in transmitting these ultraviolet (UV) photons to the stem cells.

Simulation of UV power absorbed by follicular stem cells during sun exposure and possible implications for melanoma development.

The incidence of melanoma in children is extremely rare. However, there is convincing evidence supporting a higher risk of developing melanoma in individuals who have experienced excessive sun exposure during their childhood. A possible explanation for this phenomenon is that prior to puberty, the melanocyte stem cells in the bulge region of hair follicles are much shallower in the dermis, resulting in their increased vulnerability to sun exposure.

Review of human hair optical properties in possible relation to melanoma development.

Immigration and epidemiological studies provide evidence indicating the correlation of high ultraviolet exposure during childhood and increased risks of melanoma in later life. While the explanation of this phenomenon has not been found in the skin, a class of hair has been hypothesized to be involved in this process by transmitting sufficient ultraviolet rays along the hair shaft to possibly cause damage to the stem cells in the hair follicle, ultimately resulting in melanoma in later life. First, the anatomy of hair and its possible contribution to melanoma development, and the tissue optical properties are briefly introduced to provide the necessary background.

Cell surface dynamics and cellular distribution of endogenous FcRn.

A major role for FcRn is the salvage of pinocytosed IgG and albumin from a degradative fate in lysosomes. FcRn achieves this by binding IgG in a pH-dependent manner in acidic endosomes and recycling it to the plasma membrane to be released at neutral pH. This is important in maintaining high serum IgG and albumin levels and has the potential to be exploited to modulate the pharmacokinetics of antibody-based therapeutics.

A subset of high Gleason grade prostate carcinomas contain a large burden of prostate cancer syndecan-1 positive stromal cells.

Background: There is a pressing need to identify prognostic and predictive biomarkers for prostate cancer to aid treatment decisions in both early and advanced disease settings. Syndecan-1, a heparan sulfate proteoglycan, has been previously identified as a potential prognostic biomarker by multiple studies at the tissue and serum level. However, other studies have questioned its utility.

MR360: Mixed Reality Rendering for 360° Panoramic Videos.

This paper presents a novel immersive system called MR360 that provides interactive mixed reality (MR) experiences using a conventional low dynamic range (LDR) 360° panoramic video (360-video) shown in head mounted displays (HMDs). MR360 seamlessly composites 3D virtual objects into a live 360-video using the input panoramic video as the lighting source to illuminate the virtual objects. Image based lighting (IBL) is perceptually optimized to provide fast and believable results using the LDR 360-video as the lighting source.

Truncated RASSF7 promotes centrosomal defects and cell death.

RASSF7 protein localises to the centrosome and plays a key role in mitosis. Its expression is also increased in a range of tumour types. However, little is known about the molecular basis of RASSF7's function and it is not clear if it acts as an oncogene in the cancers where its levels are elevated.

The F1000Research Antibody Validation Article Collection.

Well validated antibodies are crucial to progress in a wide range of life science disciplines, but validating an antibody is a complex and ongoing process. Antibody validation is often carried out as preliminary work to a larger study so the validation data may go unpublished and needless duplication of efforts can occur. This collection of articles in F1000Research provides a home for papers describing antibody validation studies.

Formation of a polarised primitive endoderm layer in embryoid bodies requires fgfr/erk signalling.

The primitive endoderm arises from the inner cell mass during mammalian pre-implantation development. It faces the blastocoel cavity and later gives rise to the extraembryonic parietal and visceral endoderm. Here, we investigate a key step in primitive endoderm development, the acquisition of apico-basolateral polarity and epithelial characteristics by the non-epithelial inner cell mass cells.

CiteAb: a searchable antibody database that ranks antibodies by the number of times they have been cited.

Background: Research antibodies are used by thousands of scientists working in diverse disciplines, but it is common to hear concerns about antibody quality. This means that researchers need to carefully choose the antibodies they use to avoid wasting time and money. A well accepted way of selecting a research antibody is to identify one which has been used previously, where the associated data has been peer-reviewed and the results published.

Reporting research antibody use: how to increase experimental reproducibility.

Research antibodies are used in a wide range of bioscience disciplines, yet it is common to hear dissatisfaction amongst researchers with respect to their quality. Although blame is often attributed to the manufacturers, scientists are not doing all they can to help themselves. One example of this is in the reporting of research antibody use.

Searching for prostate cancer stem cells: markers and methods.

The cancer stem cell hypothesis postulates that a single stem-like cancer cell is able to produce all cancer cell types found in a tumor. These cells are also thought to be the causative agents of relapse following therapy. In order to confirm the importance of cancer stem cells in tumor formation and patient prognosis, their role in prostate cancer must be comprehensively studied.

A dual role for the βPS integrin myospheroid in mediating Drosophila embryonic macrophage migration.

Throughout embryonic development, macrophages not only act as the first line of defence against infection but also help to sculpt organs and tissues of the embryo by removing dead cells and secreting extracellular matrix components. Key to their function is the ability of embryonic macrophages to migrate and disperse throughout the embryo. Despite these important developmental functions, little is known about the molecular mechanisms underlying embryonic macrophage migration in vivo.

Optimization of laser-based white light illuminants.

The authors build on previous experience in the optimization of white-light sources based on combinations of narrow-band spectra. They extend those concepts by using delta-function spectra to study the prospects of future optimal laser-based sources. The optimization process is based on a trade-off between the color rendering properties and the luminous efficacy of the radiation.

Continuous endocytic recycling of tight junction proteins: how and why?

Tight junctions consist of many proteins, including transmembrane and associated cytoplasmic proteins, which act to provide a barrier regulating transport across epithelial and endothelial tissues. These junctions are dynamic structures that are able to maintain barrier function during tissue remodelling and rapidly alter it in response to extracellular signals. Individual components of tight junctions also show dynamic behaviour, including migration within the junction and exchange in and out of the junctions.

The PIKfyve inhibitor YM201636 blocks the continuous recycling of the tight junction proteins claudin-1 and claudin-2 in MDCK cells.

Tight junctions mediate the intercellular diffusion barrier found in epithelial tissues but they are not static complexes; instead there is rapid movement of individual proteins within the junctions. In addition some tight junction proteins are continuously being endocytosed and recycled back to the plasma membrane. Understanding the dynamic behaviour of tight junctions is important as they are altered in a range of pathological conditions including cancer and inflammatory bowel disease.