Impact of intensity standardisation and ComBat batch size on clinical-radiomic prognostic models performance in a multi-centre study of patients with glioblastoma.

Purpose: To assess the effect of different intensity standardisation techniques (ISTs) and ComBat batch sizes on radiomics survival model performance and stability in a heterogenous, multi-centre cohort of patients with glioblastoma (GBM).

Methods: Multi-centre pre-operative MRI acquired between 2014 and 2020 in patients with IDH-wildtype unifocal WHO grade 4 GBM were retrospectively evaluated. WhiteStripe (WS), Nyul histogram matching (HM), and Z-score (ZS) ISTs were applied before radiomic feature (RF) extraction.

Combined Oxygen-Enhanced MRI and Perfusion Imaging Detect Hypoxia Modification from Banoxantrone and Atovaquone and Track Their Differential Mechanisms of Action.

Oxygen-enhanced MRI (OE-MRI) has shown promise for quantifying and spatially mapping tumor hypoxia, either alone or in combination with perfusion imaging. Previous studies have validated the technique in mouse models and in patients with cancer. Here, we report the first evidence that OE-MRI can track change in tumor oxygenation induced by two drugs designed to modify hypoxia.

Distinct vibrational motions promote disparate excited-state decay pathways in cofacial perylenediimide dimers.

A complex interplay of structural, electronic, and vibrational degrees of freedom underpins the fate of molecular excited states. Organic assemblies exhibit a myriad of excited-state decay processes, such as symmetry-breaking charge separation (SB-CS), excimer (EX) formation, singlet fission, and energy transfer. Recent studies of cofacial and slip-stacked perylene-3,4:9,10-bis(dicarboximide) (PDI) multimers demonstrate that slight variations in core substituents and H- or J-type aggregation can determine whether the system follows an SB-CS pathway or an EX one.

Measuring repeatability of dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI biomarkers improves evaluation of biological response to radiotherapy in lung cancer.

Objectives: To measure dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE-MRI) biomarker repeatability in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). To use these statistics to identify which individual target lesions show early biological response.

Materials And Methods: A single-centre, prospective DCE-MRI study was performed between September 2015 and April 2017.

Bilateral Inguinal Hernias Masking Cryptorchidism: A Case Report.

This case report discusses the uncommon occurrence of bilateral inguinal hernias masking cryptorchidism in a 47-year-old male, emphasizing the complexities and nuances of diagnosing and managing undescended testes in adults. Cryptorchidism is most often identified and treated during infancy; however, its rare adult manifestation presents significant diagnostic challenges and is fraught with serious implications for fertility and malignancy if left untreated. The subject presented with long-standing bilateral groin discomfort and was initially evaluated using clinical examination and CT imaging, which diagnosed bilateral inguinal hernias but did not initially detect cryptorchidism.

From Species to Genes: A New Diagnostic Paradigm.

Molecular diagnostics has the potential to revolutionise the field of clinical microbiology. Microbial identification and nomenclature have, for too long, been restricted to phenotypic characterisation. However, this species-level view fails to wholly account for genetic heterogeneity, a result of lateral gene transfer, mediated primarily by mobile genetic elements.

Epistatic Features and Machine Learning Improve Alzheimer's Disease Risk Prediction Over Polygenic Risk Scores.

Background: Polygenic risk scores (PRS) are linear combinations of genetic markers weighted by effect size that are commonly used to predict disease risk. For complex heritable diseases such as late-onset Alzheimer's disease (LOAD), PRS models fail to capture much of the heritability. Additionally, PRS models are highly dependent on the population structure of the data on which effect sizes are assessed and have poor generalizability to new data.

Tumour Size and Overall Survival in a Cohort of Patients with Unifocal Glioblastoma: A Uni- and Multivariable Prognostic Modelling and Resampling Study.

Published models inconsistently associate glioblastoma size with overall survival (OS). This study aimed to investigate the prognostic effect of tumour size in a large cohort of patients diagnosed with GBM and interrogate how sample size and non-linear transformations may impact on the likelihood of finding a prognostic effect. In total, 279 patients with a IDH-wildtype unifocal WHO grade 4 GBM between 2014 and 2020 from a retrospective cohort were included.

After wounding, a G-protein coupled receptor promotes the restoration of tension in epithelial cells.

The maintenance of epithelial barrier function involves cellular tension, with cells pulling on their neighbors to maintain epithelial integrity. Wounding interrupts cellular tension, which may serve as an early signal to initiate epithelial repair. To characterize how wounds alter cellular tension we used a laser-recoil assay to map cortical tension around wounds in the epithelial monolayer of the pupal notum.

Characterisation and agronomic evaluation of acidified food waste anaerobic digestate products.

Raw liquid anaerobic digestate was synthesised into nutrient-dense solid digestates via acidification and evaporation. Acidification retained ammonium in the digestate whilst also donating the anion to free ammonium to form an ammonium salt. Digestate was treated with the addition of sulphuric, nitric, and phosphoric acid resulting in the formation of ammonium sulphate, ammonium nitrate and ammonium phosphate, respectively then evaporated into a solid fertiliser product.

Ultrafast Charge Transfer Dynamics in a Slip-Stacked Donor-Acceptor-Acceptor System.

Photoexcitation of molecular electron donor and/or acceptor chromophore aggregates can greatly affect their charge-transfer dynamics. Excitonic coupling not only alters the energy landscape in the excited state but may also open new photophysical pathways, such as symmetry-breaking charge separation (SB-CS). Here, we investigate the impact of excitonic coupling on a covalent donor-acceptor-acceptor system comprising a perylene donor (Per) and two perylenediimide (PDI) acceptor chromophores in which the three components are π-stacked in a geometry that is slipped along their long axes ().

Feasibility of dynamic T *-based oxygen-enhanced lung MRI at 3T.

Purpose: To demonstrate proof-of-concept of a T *-sensitized oxygen-enhanced MRI (OE-MRI) method at 3T by assessing signal characteristics, repeatability, and reproducibility of dynamic lung OE-MRI metrics in healthy volunteers.

Methods: We performed sequence-specific simulations for protocol optimisation and acquired free-breathing OE-MRI data from 16 healthy subjects using a dual-echo RF-spoiled gradient echo approach at 3T across two institutions. Non-linear registration and tissue density correction were applied.

Independent component analysis (ICA) applied to dynamic oxygen-enhanced MRI (OE-MRI) for robust functional lung imaging at 3 T.

Purpose: Dynamic lung oxygen-enhanced MRI (OE-MRI) is challenging due to the presence of confounding signals and poor signal-to-noise ratio, particularly at 3 T. We have created a robust pipeline utilizing independent component analysis (ICA) to automatically extract the oxygen-induced signal change from confounding factors to improve the accuracy and sensitivity of lung OE-MRI.

Methods: Dynamic OE-MRI was performed on healthy participants using a dual-echo multi-slice spoiled gradient echo sequence at 3 T and cyclical gas delivery.

Local density dependent potentials for an underlying van der Waals equation of state: A simulation and density functional theory analysis.

There is an ever increasing use of local density dependent potentials in the mesoscale modeling of complex fluids. Questions remain, though, about the dependence of the thermodynamic and structural properties of such systems on the cutoff distance used to calculate these local densities. These questions are particularly acute when it comes to the stability and structure of the vapor/liquid interface.

Tracheobronchomalacia: an unusual cause of debilitating dyspnoea and its surgical management.

Tracheobronchomalacia (TBM) is a progressive weakening of the airways, leading to collapse and dyspnoea. TBM can be misdiagnosed when multiple chronic conditions accompany it. Tracheobronchoplasty (TBP) is indicated for severe symptomatic TBM, diagnosed by bronchoscopy and CT thorax.

Enhancing nutrient recovery from food waste anaerobic digestate.

The study synthesised the raw liquid fraction of digestate into a nutrient rich solid digestate through acidification whilst preventing nitrogen loss through ammonium volatilisation during evaporation. To stabilise ammonium in the digestate, it was acidified with sulphuric, nitric, and phosphoric acid to produce solid digestate with ammonium sulphate, ammonium nitrate and ammonium phosphate, respectively. These treatments were compared against urea ammonium nitrate, raw digestate, and unacidified solid digestate.

After wounding, a G-protein coupled receptor promotes the restoration of tension in epithelial cells.

The maintenance of epithelial barrier function involves cellular tension, with cells pulling on their neighbors to maintain epithelial integrity. Wounding interrupts cellular tension, which may serve as an early signal to initiate epithelial repair. To characterize how wounds alter cellular tension, we used a laser-recoil assay to map cortical tension around wounds in the epithelial monolayer of the pupal notum.

Development of a controlled release fertilizer by incorporating lauric acid into microalgal biomass: Dynamics on soil biological processes for efficient utilisation of waste resources.

Utilisation of microalgae to extract nutrients from the effluent of anaerobic digestion of food waste is an emerging technology. A by-product of this process is the microalgal biomass which has potential to be used as an organic bio-fertilizer. However, microalgal biomass are rapidly mineralized when applied to soil which may result in N loss.

A Rare Injury to the Ascending Aorta After Blunt Trauma.

Blunt aortic injuries are life-threatening and overwhelmingly occur in the proximal descending aorta. On the contrary, injury to the ascending aorta after blunt trauma is rare. We report a case of a circumferential ascending aortic injury in a previously healthy 57-year-old man involved in a motor vehicle collision.

Operative Management of Aerodigestive Injuries: Improved Survival Over two Decades.

Introduction: Non-iatrogenic aerodigestive injuries are infrequent but potentially fatal. We hypothesize that advances in management and adoption of innovative therapies resulted in improved survival.

Methods: Trauma registry review at a university Level 1 center from 2000 to 2020 that identified adults with aerodigestive injuries requiring operative or endoluminal intervention.