Framing Apache Spark in life sciences.

Advances in high-throughput and digital technologies have required the adoption of big data for handling complex tasks in life sciences. However, the drift to big data led researchers to face technical and infrastructural challenges for storing, sharing, and analysing them. In fact, this kind of tasks requires distributed computing systems and algorithms able to ensure efficient processing.

Empowering spot detection in 2DE images by wavelet denoising.

Typical high-abundant proteins, including albumin, IgG, IgA and others, are the target of depletion methods usually applied to two-dimensional electrophoresis (2DE) of human biological fluids like serum and plasma. Detection of low-abundant proteins is of interest with regard to biomarkers for disease when being studied by 2DE or liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC/MS). After depletion of very abundant proteins, serum samples consist of an enriched pool of low-abundant proteins that can be further studied without significant interferences, thus allowing for a full identification of the low abundant proteins, whose spots become now more visible.

Vascular changes in placentae from cases of materno-fetal rhesus incompatibility.

Three placentae from cases of materno-fetal Rhesus incompatibility have been studied electron microscopically. An abnormal villous vascular arrangement with dilated capillaries and newly formed vessels and stromal edema were the most characteristic findings. Syncytiotrophoblastic trophic changes and focal thickening of the trophoblast basement membrane were also found.