Attractive deep morphology-aware active contour network for vertebral body contour extraction with extensions to heterogeneous and semi-supervised scenarios.

Automatic vertebral body contour extraction (AVBCE) from heterogeneous spinal MRI is indispensable for the comprehensive diagnosis and treatment of spinal diseases. However, AVBCE is challenging due to data heterogeneity, image characteristics complexity, and vertebral body morphology variations, which may cause morphology errors in semantic segmentation. Deep active contour-based (deep ACM-based) methods provide a promising complement for tackling morphology errors by directly parameterizing the contour coordinates.

Lacticaseibacillus paracasei K56 Attenuates High-Fat Diet-Induced Obesity by Modulating the Gut Microbiota in Mice.

This study investigated the effects of Lacticaseibacillus paracasei K56 (L. paracasei K56) on body weight, body composition, and glycolipid metabolism in mice with high-fat diet-induced obesity and explored the underlying mechanisms. Male C57BL/6J mice were fed a high-fat diet for 8 weeks to induce obesity; then, the obese mice were gavaged with or without L.

BL-99 protects mice with osteoporosis caused by colitis gut inflammation and gut microbiota regulation.

Patients diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease or related conditions also frequently suffer from osteoporosis as a consequence of changes in the intestinal microenvironment and consequent dysbiosis. We hypothesized that anti-inflammatory probiotic treatment would be sufficient to alleviate intestinal inflammation and thereby prevent the development of osteoporosis. To that end, the ability of BL-99 administration to protect against bone loss in an experimental model of dextran sodium sulfate-induced ulcerative colitis (UC) was analyzed, and the underlying molecular mechanisms were interrogated in detail.