Brain structure ages-A new biomarker for multi-disease classification.

Age is an important variable to describe the expected brain's anatomy status across the normal aging trajectory. The deviation from that normative aging trajectory may provide some insights into neurological diseases. In neuroimaging, predicted brain age is widely used to analyze different diseases.

Deep grading for MRI-based differential diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease and Frontotemporal dementia.

Alzheimer's disease and Frontotemporal dementia are common forms of neurodegenerative dementia. Behavioral alterations and cognitive impairments are found in the clinical courses of both diseases, and their differential diagnosis can sometimes pose challenges for physicians. Therefore, an accurate tool dedicated to this diagnostic challenge can be valuable in clinical practice.

Towards better interpretable and generalizable AD detection using collective artificial intelligence.

Alzheimer's Disease is the most common cause of dementia. Accurate diagnosis and prognosis of this disease are essential to design an appropriate treatment plan, increasing the life expectancy of the patient. Intense research has been conducted on the use of machine learning to identify Alzheimer's Disease from neuroimaging data, such as structural magnetic resonance imaging.

AssemblyNet: A large ensemble of CNNs for 3D whole brain MRI segmentation.

Whole brain segmentation of fine-grained structures using deep learning (DL) is a very challenging task since the number of anatomical labels is very high compared to the number of available training images. To address this problem, previous DL methods proposed to use a single convolution neural network (CNN) or few independent CNNs. In this paper, we present a novel ensemble method based on a large number of CNNs processing different overlapping brain areas.

How effective and efficient are different exercise patterns in reducing back pain?

Background: Exercise is considered an effective intervention to relieve chronic back pain. However, it is still unknown whether specific exercise patterns vary in terms of their efficiency and effectiveness.

Aim: To investigate the differential health and economic effects of intensity, specificity and degree of subjective perceived physical exertion across five exercise patterns (endurance, gymnastics, fitness, back gymnastics, multimodal back exercise) in adults with back pain.

Therapeutic and economic effects of multimodal back exercise: A controlled multicentre study.

To compare the cost-effectiveness of a multimodal back exercise programme for non-specific back pain with that of standard treatment. Medical costs were measured in euros (EUR) and effectiveness was measured using Graded Chronic Pain Status (GCPS). A controlled multicentre study (39 sites) with a 6-month intervention phase and follow-up at 6, 12 and 18 months.

Directional Enlacement Histograms for the Description of Complex Spatial Configurations between Objects.

The analysis of spatial relations between objects in digital images plays a crucial role in various application domains related to pattern recognition and computer vision. Classical models for the evaluation of such relations are usually sufficient for the handling of simple objects, but can lead to ambiguous results in more complex situations. In this article, we investigate the modeling of spatial configurations where the objects can be imbricated in each other.

Cyclic adenosine monophosphate differentiated beta-endorphin neurons promote immune function and prevent prostate cancer growth.

Pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating peptide (PACAP), a cAMP-activating agent, is highly expressed in the hypothalamus during the period when many neuroendocrine cells become differentiated from the neural stem cells (NSCs). Activation of the cAMP system in rat hypothalamic NSCs differentiated these cells into beta-endorphin (BEP)-producing neurons in culture. When these in vitro differentiated neurons were transplanted into the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus of an adult rat, they integrated well with the surrounding cells and produced BEP and its precursor gene product, proopiomelanocortin (POMC).

Evidence of recycling of lead battery waste into highly leaded jewelry.

Inexpensive highly leaded jewelry, much of it imported from China, remains widely available in the United States. The source materials for these items are unknown. Due to the low cost of much of this trinket jewelry, it seems likely that scrap materials may be used in their manufacture.

Leaded electronic waste is a possible source material for lead-contaminated jewelry.

Highly leaded jewelry, often imported from China, remains widely available in the United States. Leaded electronic waste is exported from the United States to several Asian countries where solder is recovered and circuit boards are stripped of parts in small workshops. To assess whether electronic waste is being recycled into the jewelry, lead, tin and copper content of highly leaded jewelry samples were determined by atomic absorption spectrometry.

Widespread lead contamination of imported low-cost jewelry in the US.

Recent recalls of lead-contaminated jewelry and the death of a Minnesota child by lead poisoning after swallowing a jewelry charm have highlighted the hazards of leaded jewelry to children. We sought to determine the extent of lead contamination in inexpensive, imported jewelry available in United States retail stores. A total of 139 jewelry items were purchased from ten retail store chains in five different geographic locations.