Stereo reconstruction from microscopic images for computer-assisted ophthalmic surgery.

Purpose: This work presents a novel platform for stereo reconstruction in anterior segment ophthalmic surgery to enable enhanced scene understanding, especially depth perception, for advanced computer-assisted eye surgery by effectively addressing the lack of texture and corneal distortions artifacts in the surgical scene.

Methods: The proposed platform for stereo reconstruction uses a two-step approach: generating a sparse 3D point cloud from microscopic images, deriving a dense 3D representation by fitting surfaces onto the point cloud, and considering geometrical priors of the eye anatomy. We incorporate a pre-processing step to rectify distortion artifacts induced by the cornea's high refractive power, achieved by aligning a 3D phenotypical cornea geometry model to the images and computing a distortion map using ray tracing.

Antimicrobial Resistance Profiles of Multidrug-Resistant Enterobacteria Isolated from Feces of Weaned Piglets.

Nosocomial infections caused by multidrug-resistant enterobacteria have become a major challenge in global public health. Previous studies have indicated that use of antibiotics in livestock production chains is linked to the rising threat of antibiotic resistance in humans. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the distribution of genes encoding resistance to tetracycline, β-lactams, and colistin in multidrug-resistant enterobacteria isolated from feces of weaned pigs.

Selection of Multidrug-Resistant Enterobacteria in Weaned Pigs and Its Association With In-feed Subtherapeutic Combination of Colistin and Tylosin.

In-feed antibiotics are administered to piglets to improve performance and production efficiency. However, the use of growth promoters in the swine industry can select for multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria. Here, we evaluate the resistance profile of enterobacteria isolated from fecal samples of weaned pigs (21-35 days) fed or not with antibiotics (colistin and tylosin) and investigated the piglets gut microbiota in both groups.

Whole-Genome Sequencing and Comparative Genomic Analysis of Antimicrobial Producing from the Rumen.

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) can efficiently control different microbial pathogens and show the potential to be applied in clinical practice and livestock production. In this work, the aim was to isolate AMP-producing ruminal streptococci and to characterize their genetic features through whole-genome sequencing. We cultured 463 bacterial isolates from the rumen of Nelore bulls, 81 of which were phenotypically classified as being .

A Toolbox to Study Tissue Mechanics In Vivo and Ex Vivo.

During vertebrate embryogenesis, tissues interact and influence each other's development to shape an embryo. While communication by molecular components has been extensively explored, the role of mechanical interaction between tissues during embryogenesis is just starting to be revealed. Addressing mechanical involvement in morphogenesis has traditionally been challenging mainly due to the lack of proper tools to measure and modify mechanical environments of cells in vivo.

Plateau Waves of Intracranial Pressure: Methods for Automatic Detection and Prediction.

Plateau waves are recurrent phenomena observed in traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients, characterised by an increase in intracranial pressure (ICP) above 40 mmHg combined with an almost zero arterial blood pressure (ABP) variation and, hence, a decrease in cerebral perfusion pressure (CPP). A raised ICP for a long period of time, namely plateau waves, can lead to a secondary brain injury. Due to the impaired cerebral autoregulation mechanism these TBI patients present, they are admitted to neurocritical care units (NCCUs) to be under continuous multimodal monitoring, which allows a correct diagnosis for each patient.

Screening Unveil the Great Potential of Ruminal Bacteria Synthesizing Lasso Peptides.

Studies of rumen microbial ecology suggest that the capacity to produce antimicrobial peptides could be a useful trait in species competing for ecological niches in the ruminal ecosystem. However, little is known about the synthesis of lasso peptides by ruminal microorganisms. Here we analyzed the distribution and diversity of lasso peptide gene clusters in 425 bacterial genomes from the rumen ecosystem.

Stimulation of Bovicin HC5 Production and Selection of Improved Bacteriocin-Producing Streptococcus equinus HC5 Variants.

Bovicin HC5 is a peptide that has inhibitory activity against various pathogenic microorganisms and food spoilage bacteria. Aiming to improve the productivity of this bacteriocin, we evaluated several potential factors that could stimulate the synthesis of bovicin HC5 and selected variants of Streptococcus equinus (Streptococcus bovis) HC5 with enhanced bacteriocin production by adaptive laboratory evolution (ALE). The highest production of the bacteriocin (1.

Lgl cortical dynamics are independent of binding to the Scrib-Dlg complex but require Dlg-dependent restriction of aPKC.

Apical-basal polarity underpins the formation of epithelial barriers that are crucial for metazoan physiology. Although apical-basal polarity is long known to require the basolateral determinants Lethal Giant Larvae (Lgl), Discs Large (Dlg) and Scribble (Scrib), mechanistic understanding of their function is limited. Lgl plays a role as an aPKC inhibitor, but it remains unclear whether Lgl also forms complexes with Dlg or Scrib.

Genomic and gene expression evidence of nonribosomal peptide and polyketide production among ruminal bacteria: a potential role in niche colonization?

Genomic and transcriptomic analyses were performed to investigate nonribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPS) and polyketide synthases (PKS) in 310 genomes of ruminal/fecal microorganisms. A total of 119 biosynthetic genes potentially encoding distinct nonribosomal peptides (NRPs) and polyketides (PKs) were predicted in the ruminal microbial genomes and functional annotation separated these genes into 19 functional categories. The phylogenetic reconstruction of the 16S rRNA sequences coupled to the distribution of the three 'backbone' genes involved in NRPS and PKS biosyntheses suggested that these genes were not acquired through horizontal gene transfer.

PP1-Mediated Dephosphorylation of Lgl Controls Apical-basal Polarity.

Apical-basal polarity is a common trait that underlies epithelial function. Although the asymmetric distribution of cortical polarity proteins works in a functioning equilibrium, it also retains plasticity to accommodate cell division, during which the basolateral determinant Lgl is released from the cortex. Here, we investigated how Lgl restores its cortical localization to maintain the integrity of dividing epithelia.

Spatiotemporal phosphoregulation of Lgl: Finding meaning in multiple on/off buttons.

Intracellular asymmetries, often termed cell polarity, determine how cells organize and divide to ultimately control cell fate and shape animal tissues. The tumor suppressor Lethal giant larvae (Lgl) functions at the core of the evolutionarily conserved cell polarity machinery that controls apico-basal polarization. This function relies on its restricted basolateral localization via phosphorylation by aPKC.

Aurora A triggers Lgl cortical release during symmetric division to control planar spindle orientation.

Mitotic spindle orientation is essential to control cell-fate specification and epithelial architecture. The tumor suppressor Lgl localizes to the basolateral cortex of epithelial cells, where it acts together with Dlg and Scrib to organize apicobasal polarity. Dlg and Scrib also control planar spindle orientation, but how the organization of polarity complexes is adjusted to control symmetric division is largely unknown.

The Arabidopsis HP6 gene is expressed in Medicago truncatula lateral roots and root nodule primordia.

Expression patterns of orthologous genes can be similar between distantly related species, suggesting that developmental programs can be conserved between organisms. Here, we show that the promoter of AHP6, a gene which is involved in Arabidopsis lateral root development, also drives the expression of the reporter GUS gene in lateral roots of Medicago truncatula suggesting that similar regulatory elements are involved in lateral root organogenesis in these species. Interestingly, the AHP6 promoter was able to drive GUS expression in root nodules and nodule primordia, structures that are absent in Arabidopsis.

AHP6 inhibits cytokinin signaling to regulate the orientation of pericycle cell division during lateral root initiation.

In Arabidopsis thaliana, lateral roots (LRs) initiate from anticlinal cell divisions of pericycle founder cells. The formation of LR primordia is regulated antagonistically by the phytohormones cytokinin and auxin. It has previously been shown that cytokinin has an inhibitory effect on the patterning events occurring during LR formation.