Publications by authors named "Laura Faulconer"

Article Synopsis
  • Conventional mammography struggles to differentiate between different types of x-rays, necessitating breast compression to improve image clarity and separate overlapping structures.
  • The study evaluates the efficacy of diffraction-enhanced imaging (DEI) at varying levels of breast compression, using 11 tissue specimens and assessing lesion visibility as scored by five radiologists.
  • Results indicate that while fully compressed DEI images showed no significant difference in visibility compared to images with a 25% reduction in compression, there was a notable difference when comparing fully compressed images with those having a 50% reduction, particularly in scoring benign lesions, suggesting potential benefits in patient comfort and imaging accuracy.
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Rationale And Objectives: Conventional mammographic image contrast is derived from x-ray absorption, resulting in breast structure visualization due to density gradients that attenuate radiation without distinction between transmitted, scattered, or refracted x-rays. Diffraction-enhanced imaging (DEI) allows for increased contrast with decreased radiation dose compared to conventional mammographic imaging because of monochromatic x-rays, its unique refraction-based contrast mechanism, and excellent scatter rejection. However, a lingering drawback to the clinical translation of DEI has been the requirement for synchrotron radiation.

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The current study investigated the effect of tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) on the ability of staphylococcal enterotoxin A (SEA)-primed T cells to divide by dual-labeling the cells with 5,6-carboxyfluorescein diacetate succinimidyl ester (CFSE) and antibodies against the specific T cell receptors. C57BL/6 wild-type mice were injected ip with TCDD (10 microg/kg body weight) followed by hind footpad injections of SEA (10 microg/footpad). The draining popliteal lymph nodes (PLN) were harvested 1-4 days posttreatment, labeled with CFSE and cultured for 1-4 days without further stimulation or in the presence of the recall antigen.

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