Total Pixels Research Articles

Image De-noising By Decision Based Expanded Window Median Filter Using Multiple Scanning

This paper proposes a new filter for noisy imagescorrupted with salt and pepper noise which are caused due to flaws in sensor, transmission. Proposed algorithm (Decision Based Expanded Window Median Filters (DBEWMF) with multiple scanning) works on noisy pixel and noise free pixel left unchanged. Filteruses an expanded window, where processed pixel is a central pixel follows with multiple scanning of same image. Filter Expands the window size (up to 7 x 7), if window contains noisy pixels equal to or more than three forth of total pixels in orderto find more noise free pixels if still window has more noisy pixels than it will place as it is in de-noise image in first and second scanning but in third scanning replacement of processed pixel with mean value of window else window contains less than three forth noisy pixels than processed pixel is replaced using median value of window. The Proposed scheme shows better quantitatively and qualitatively in the image than standard and other algorithm.

Depth Resolution Analysis of Axially Distributed Stereo Camera Systems under Fixed Constrained Resources

In this paper, we propose a novel framework to evaluate the depth resolution of axially distributed stereo sensing (ADSS) under fixed resource constraints. The proposed framework can evaluate the performance of ADSS systems based on various sensing parameters such as the number of cameras, the number of total pixels, pixel size and so on. The Monte Carlo simulations for the proposed framework are performed and the evaluation results are presented.

Conventional digital cameras as a tool for assessing leaf area index and biomass for cereal breeding

Affordable and easy-to-use methods for assessing biomass and leaf area index (LAI) would be of interest in most breeding programs. Here, we describe the evaluation of a protocol for photographic sampling and image analysis aimed at providing low-labor yet robust indicators of biomass and LAI. In this trial, two genotypes of triticale, two of bread wheat, and four of tritordeum were studied. At six dates during the growing cycle, biomass and LAI were measured destructively, and digital photography was taken on the same dates. Several vegetation indices were calculated from each image. The results showed that repeatable and consistent values of the indices were obtained in consecutive photographic samplings on the same plots. The photographic indices were highly correlated with the destructive measurements, though the magnitude of the correlation was lower after anthesis. This work shows that photographic assessment of biomass and LAI can be fast, affordable, have good repeatability, and can be used under bright and overcast skies. A practical vegetation index derived from pictures is the fraction of green pixels over the total pixels of the image, and as it shows good correlations with all biomass variables, is the most robust to lighting conditions and has easy interpretation.

A 252-${\rm V/lux}{\cdot}{\rm s}$, 16.7-Million-Frames-Per-Second 312-kpixel Back-Side-Illuminated Ultrahigh-Speed Charge-Coupled Device

We developed a 312-kpixel back-side-illuminated ultrahigh-speed charge-coupled device (CCD) that has a sensitivity of 252 V/lux · s and is capable of operating at 16.7 Mfps. The potential profile of the pixel was designed by using a 3-D semiconductor device simulator. The high sensitivity results from the unit having fill factor and time aperture ratios of 100% and a high optical utilization ratio. Its sensitivity is 12.7 times that of a front-side-illuminated image sensor. Ultrahigh-speed shooting was enabled by an in situ storage image sensor. By reducing the wiring resistance and dividing the image area into eight blocks, a maximum frame rate of 16.7 Mfps was attained. The total pixel count is 760 horizontally and 411 vertically. The burst capturing speed is thus 5.2 Tpixel/s, making it the fastest imaging device to date.

Development of Multispectral Algorithm for Detection of Cracked Tomatoes

<abstract><title><italic>Abstract.</italic></title> <bold> </bold>Tomato cracks present a potential food safety risk by allowing internalization of pathogens. This article reports a first-step study for the development and evaluation of a simple multispectral algorithm for the detection of defect cracked tomatoes. Analysis of hyperspectral visible/near-infrared tomato images identified two wavebands, 749 nm and 887 nm, for computation of two decision functions to detect defect cracked tomatoes and to differentiate them from normal tomatoes. Detection of defect cracked tomatoes was based on spectral identification of non-skin pixels coupled with quantitative evaluation of the number of non-skin pixels compared to the total image pixels for each tomato. The algorithm successfully classified 94% of the normal tomatoes and 99% of the defect tomatoes used in this study. The results suggest that this multispectral spectral imaging-based method has potential for implementation in line-scan imaging systems as a tool for rapid food inspection on high-speed tomato processing lines.

Upgrading the ATLAS silicon tracking for the HL-LHC

After successful operation of the LHC at a centre-of-mass energy of 8TeV in 2012, the energy is expected to go up to 14TeV in the next few years. A total integrated luminosity of up to 300fb−1 is foreseen to be reached by 2022. At that time, the LHC will undergo a major upgrade to the High Luminosity LHC (HL-LHC), which is designed to deliver of order five times the LHC nominal instantaneous luminosity along with luminosity leveling. The final goal is to extend the data set to 3000fb−1 by around 2030. Current planning in ATLAS involves significant upgrades to the detector during the consolidation of the LHC to reach full energy and further upgrades to accommodate running already beyond nominal luminosity this decade. The challenge of coping with HL-LHC instantaneous and integrated luminosity, along with the associated radiation levels, requires further major changes to the ATLAS detector. The designs are developing rapidly for an all-new inner-tracker, significant upgrades in the calorimeter and muon systems, as well as improved triggers and data acquisition. These proceedings concentrate on the HL-LHC upgrade of the ATLAS Inner Tracker (ITK), which consist of replacing the entire current Inner Detector (silicon pixels, silicon strips and transition radiation tracker) with a completely new silicon-only system. This new ITK will be made from several pixel and strip layers, and is designed to withstand the extreme radiation environment in close proximity to the HL-LHC interaction point which broadly speaking means an order of magnitude higher radiation hardness than the existing ID. At the same time, the radiation length should be kept to the level of the present system or below. In the current planning, the pixel system involves 4 barrel layers and 6 disks on each side for a total pixel area of 7m2 and 400 million channels. The strip system will contain 5 barrel layers and 7 end-cap disks, covering 200m2 of silicon and 45 million channels.

COLIBRI: partial camera readout and sliding trigger for the Cherenkov Telescope Array CTA

Plans for the future Cherenkov telescope array CTAinclude replacing the monolithic camera designs used in H.E.S.S. and MAGIC-I by one that is built up from a number of identical segments. These so-called clusters will be relatively autonomous, each containing its own triggering and readout hardware. While this choice was made for reasons of flexibility and ease of manufacture and maintenance, such a concept with semi-independent sub-units lends itself quite naturally to the possibility of new, and more flexible, readout modes. In all previously-used concepts, triggering and readout of the camera is centralised, with a single camera trigger per event that starts the readout of all pixels in the camera at the same time and within the same integration time window. The limitations of such a trigger system can reduce the performance of a large array such as CTA, due to the huge amount of useless data created by night-sky background if trigger thresholds are set low enough to achieve the desired 20 GeV energy threshold, and to image losses at high energies due to the rigid readout window.In this study, an alternative concept (``COLIBRI'' = Concept for an Optimised Local Image Building and Readout Infrastructure) is presented, where only those parts of the camera which are likely to actually contain image data (usually a small percentage of the total pixels) are read out. This leads to a significant reduction of the expected data rate and the dead-times incurred in the camera. Furthermore, the quasi-independence of the individual clusters can be used to read different parts of the camera at slightly different times, thus allowing the readout to follow the slow development of the shower image across the camera field of view. This concept of flexible, partial camera readout is presented in the following, together with a description of Monte-Carlo studies performed to evaluate its performance as well as a hardware implementation proposed for CTA.

Use of Color Doppler Ultrasonography to Measure Thyroid Blood Flow and Differentiate Graves' Disease from Painless Thyroiditis

Backgrounds: Color Doppler ultrasonography (CDU) has not yet been established as a method to investigate the pathogenesis of thyrotoxicosis. Objectives: Our first objective was to determine whether the measurement of peak systolic blood-flow velocity in the superior thyroid artery (STV) and thyroid tissue blood flow (TBF) using CDU could differentiate Graves' disease (GD) from painless thyroiditis (PT). The second objective was to examine the factors mediating increased blood flow to the thyroid gland in GD. Methods: Recruited patients had untreated GD or PT and visited the Department of Internal Medicine (I), Osaka Medical College, between April 1, 2006 and May 31, 2010. Age, gender, blood pressure, pulse rate, thyroid-stimulating hormone, free thyroxine, tri-iodothyronine, TSH receptor antibody and thyroid volume were evaluated in patients. In addition, bilateral measurements of STV, TBF and peak systolic velocity in the common carotid artery (CCV) were also performed. TBF was quantified by calculating the ratio of blood-flow pixels to total pixels in the region of interest using sagittal section images of the thyroid gland. Receiver-operating characteristic curve analysis was performed to determine the ability of STV and TBF measurements to differentiate GD from PT. Results: For the average of STV measured on both sides, the area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve (AUC) was 0.956. For the average of TBF measured on both sides, the AUC was 0.920. At an average STV cut-off value of 43 cm/s, the sensitivity to discriminate GD from PT was 0.87 and the specificity was 1.00. At an average TBF cut-off value of 3.8%, the sensitivity was 0.71 and the specificity was 1.00. In the GD group, neither blood pressure nor pulse rate correlated with the average STV or TBF. Moreover, there was no correlation between STV and CCV or between TBF and CCV on either side. However, STV was correlated with TBF (right side: R = 0.47; left side: R = 0.52). Conclusions: The results demonstrate that STV and TBF are useful for differentiating GD from PT. Furthermore, the increased STV and TBF found in GD are not related to hyperthyroidism-induced increases in systolic blood pressure, pulse rate or CCV.

Development of an objective fabric pilling evaluation method. I. Characterization of pilling using image analysis

An objective evaluation method for woven fabric pilling has been developed using image processing and statistical analysis. Five ASTM photographic standard images were analyzed to determine a characterization method for fabric pilling. Images were filtered by various image analysis techniques such as fast Fourier transformation (FFT) and fast wavelet transformation (FWT). Three parameters including the number of pills, the total pixel area of pilling, and the sum of the gray values of pill images have been defined and extracted automatically from the images. Finally, the relationship between pilling grade and those parameters has been established by a series of statistical analyses.

Interferon α impairs survival and function of circulating angiogenic cells in vitro: a model of failed endothelial repair in systemic lupus erythematosus

BackgroundPatients with systemic lupus erythematosus have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Interferon α may impair endothelial repair mechanisms in lupus. Patients with systemic lupus erythematosus have fewer circulating angiogenic cells (CAC) and endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs). Mixed EPC and CAC populations have been shown to be sensitive to interferon α (IFNα). We aimed to investigate the effects of IFNα2b on an in-vitro model of angiogenesis and vascular repair. MethodsPeripheral blood mononuclear cells from healthy individuals were cultured on human fibronectin for 7 days. CAC phenotype was confirmed by low-density lipoprotein (LDL) uptake, lectin binding, and cell surface marker expression by RT-PCR. Cell survival in response to IFNα2b (0·01–10 ng/mL) was determined by the number of LDL-uptake-positive cells. To study CAC function, supernatant from CACs in the presence or absence of 10ng/mL IFNα2b was added to human aortic endothelial cells on Matrigel. Tubule formation was assessed at 14 h. FindingsCACs expressed markers of endothelial (CD31) and myeloid lineage (CD14, CD45), and strongly expressed the markers CD68, CD163, and CD206 suggesting an alternatively activated (M2) macrophage phenotype. IFNα2b significantly reduced the number of CACs at day 7 in a dose-dependent manner (r2= −0·769, p<0·0001). In co-culture with endothelial cells on Matrigel, CACs co-localised to the endothelial tubules but did not form tubule networks alone. CAC supernatant significantly increased tubule network density in terms of total pixel area (mean 27 781 [SE 1469] vs 36 283 [1804], p=0·0065), number of branches (340·2 [11·0] vs 510·6 [70·2], p=0·0434), junctions (162·4 [5·9 vs 241·1 [28·0], p=0·0104), and closed loops (21·8 [1·9] vs 38·3 [2·2], p=0·005). IFNα2b significantly reduced the number of closed loops (38·2 [2·2] vs 24·1 [3·5], p=0·0094). All other network parameters were reduced by IFNα2b but did not reach statistical significance. InterpretationCACs are of myeloid lineage, and CAC supernatant contains potent angiogenic factors which augment endothelial tubule networks. IFNα2b dramatically reduces the survival of CACs in vitro, resulting in reduced tubule network formation and may be a mechanism by which IFNα promotes vascular damage in systemic lupus erythematosus. FundingNorth West England Medical Research Council Fellowship Scheme in Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics.

A study to compare the efficiency of different instrumentation systems for cleaning oval-shaped root canals (An in vitro study)

Proper cleaning and shaping of the whole root canal space have been recognized as a real challenge, particularly in oval-shaped canals.This in vitro study was conducted to evaluate and compare the efficiency of different instrumentation systems in removing of dentin debris at three thirds of oval-shaped root canals and to compare the percentage of remaining dentin debris among the three thirds for each instrumentation system. Materials and methods: Fifty freshly extracted human mandibular molars with single straight oval-shaped distal root canals were randomly divided into five groups of ten teeth each. Group One: instrumentation with ProTaper Universal hand instruments, Group Two: instrumentation with ProTaper Universal rotary instruments, Group Three: instrumentation with Revo-Srotary instruments, Group Four: instrumentation withTwisted rotary files and Group Five: instrumentation with Self-Adjusting Files (SAF). Sodium hypochlorite (3%) was used as an irrigant for all groups. After canals preparation, the roots were split longitudinally and photographed with a professional digital camera. The images of root sections were then magnified to 100x and the percentage of remaining dentin debris calculated for the apical, middle and coronal thirds by dividing the pixels occupied by debris at each third by the total pixels representing the entire area of the canal using Adobe Photoshop CS6. Data were analyzed statistically by ANOVA and LSD at 1% and 5% significant levels. Results: Both ProTaper hand and ProTaper rotary files resulted in significantly cleaner canals than Revo-S and Twisted rotary files at the middle and coronal thirds. The Self-Adjusting Files produced significantly cleaner canals at the three thirds than all the other groups. The coronal and middle thirds showed a greater amount of remaining dentin debris than the apical third for all groups except a non-significant difference found between the apical and middle thirds in SAF group. Conclusion: The Self-Adjusting Files allowed more efficient cleaning of oval-shaped root canals than hand and rotary instruments.

Promotion of Transplanted Bone Marrow-derived Cell Migration into the Periodontal Tissues due to Orthodontic Mechanical Stress

Background: Bone marrow-derived cells (BMCs) have abilities of cell migration and differentiation into tissues/organs in the body and related with the differentiation of teeth or periodontal tissue including fibroblasts. Then, we examined the effect of orthodontic mechanical stress to the transplanted BMC migration into periodontal tissues using BMC transplantation model.Material and Method: BMC from green fluorescence protein (GFP) transgenic mice were transplanted into 8-week-old female C57BL/6 immunocompromised recipient mice, which had undergone 10 Gy of lethal whole-body-irradiation. Five mice as experimental group were received orthodontic mechanical stress using separator between first molar (M1) and second molar (M2) 1 time per week for 5 weeks and 5 mice as control group were not received mechanical stress. The maxilla with M1 and M2 was removed and was immunohistochemically analyzed using a Dako Envision + Kit-K4006 and a primary anti-GFP-polyclonal rabbit antibody. Immunohistochemically stained was defined as positive area and the pixel number of positive area in the periodontal tissue was compared with the previously calculated total pixel number of the periodontal tissue.Results: The immunohistochemistry revealed that GFP positive cells were detected in the periodontal tissues, both in the experimental and control specimens. The ratio of pixel number in the examination group showed 5.77 ± 3.24 % (mean ± SD); and that in the control group, 0.71±0.45 % (mean ± SD). The examination group was significantly greater than that of control group (Mann-Whitney U test: p<0.001).Conclusion: These results suggest that orthodontic mechanical stress accelerates transplanted BMC migration into periodontal tissues.

Landslide susceptibility mapping using LiDAR and DMC data: a case study in the Three Gorges area, China

The objective of this study is to map landslide susceptibility in Zigui segment of the Yangtze Three Gorges area that is known as one of the most landslide-prone areas in China by using data from light detection and ranging (LiDAR) and digital mapping camera (DMC). The likelihood ratio (LR) and logistic regression model (LRM) were used in this study. The work is divided into three phases. The first phase consists of data processing and analysis. In this phase, LiDAR and DMC data and geological maps were processed, and the landslide-controlling factors were derived such as landslide density, digital elevation model (DEM), slope angle, aspect, lithology, land use and distance from drainage. Among these, the landslide inventories, land use and drainage were constructed with both LiDAR and DMC data; DEM, slope angle and aspect were constructed with LiDAR data; lithology was taken from the 1:250,000 scale geological maps. The second phase is the logistic regression analysis. In this phase, the LR was applied to find the correlation between the landslide locations and the landslide-controlling factors, whereas the LRM was used to predict the occurrence of landslides based on six factors. To calculate the coefficients of LRM, 13,290,553 pixels was used, 29.5 % of the total pixels. The logical regression coefficients of landslide-controlling factors were obtained by logical regression analysis with SPSS 17.0 software. The accuracy of the LRM was 88.8 % on the whole. The third phase is landslide susceptibility mapping and verification. The mapping result was verified using the landslide location data, and 64.4 % landslide pixels distributed in “extremely high” zone and “high” zone; in addition, verification was performed using a success rate curve. The verification result show clearly that landslide susceptibility zones were in close agreement with actual landslide areas in the field. It is also shown that the factors that were applied in this study are appropriate; lithology, elevation and distance from drainage are primary factors for the landslide susceptibility mapping in the area, while slope angle, aspect and land use are secondary.

Transplanted Bone Marrow-Derived Cell Migration Into Periodontal Tissues Induced by Orthodontic Mechanical Stress

Aim: Bone marrow-derived cells have abilities of cell migration and differentiation into teeth and related tissues/organs, especially into periodontal ligament fibroblast cells (Tsujigiwa T. et al. J Hard Tissue Biol 20: 147-52, 2011; Muraoka R. et al. J Hard Tissue Biol 20: 301-6, 2011). In this examination using a bone marrow transplantation model, we examined the effect of orthodontic mechanical stress to the transplanted bone marrow-derived cell migration into periodontal tissues. Methods: Bone marrow derived cells from green fluorescence protein (GFP) transgenic mice were transplanted into 8 week-old female C57BL/6 immunocompromised recipient mice (n=10), which had undergone 10 Gy of lethal whole-body irradiation. After successful transplantation (about one month period), 5 mice received orthodontic mechanical stress using the Waldo method 5 times in 5 weeks; and 5 mice were compared as control without receiving orthodontic mechanical stress (Waldo CM. J Dent Res 32: 690-1, 1953). After that, the regional tissues were removed and fixed in formalin fixative. Paraffin-embedded sections were immunohistochemically analyzed using a Dako Envision + Kit-K4006 (Dako, Glostrup, Denmark) and a primary anti-GFP-polyclonal rabbit antibody (#598; 1/500; MBL, Nagoya, Japan). For semiquantitative evaluation of immunohistochemical staining, the following procedures were performed. First immunohistochemical images with same magnification from the periodontal tissues were prepared and pixel density was counted for each image. Then typical immunohistochemically positive staining part was defined as positive area. The pixel number of positive area in the periodontal tissue was compared with the previously calculated total pixel number of the periodontal tissue and the ratio was obtained. Results and discussion: We examined the transplanted bone marrow-derived cell migration into periodontal tissues. The immunohistochemistry revealed that GFP-positive cells were detected in the periodontal tissues, both in the experimental and control specimens. The GFP-positive cells histopathologically differentiated into some cell types. The fluorescence IHC and TRAP staining techniques demonstrated these cells were detected as osteoclasts and macrophages. Furthermore, GFP-positive cells gathered adjacent blood vessels. The data suggest that GFP-positive bone marrow-derived cell migrate into periodontal tissues and differentiate periodontal tissue component-cells. In the experimental group, there were numerous GFP-positive cells appearing in the experimental periodontal tissues which received intermittent stimulation of orthodontic mechanical stress, but there were few GFP-positive cells in the control specimens. As a results of the examination group specimens and control group, the ratio of pixel number in the examination group showed 5.77 ± 3.24 % (mean ± SD); and that in the control group, 0.71±0.45 % (mean ± SD). The examination group was significantly greater than that of control group (Mann-Whitney U test: p< 0.001). Thus, these data indicated that orthodontic mechanical stress acts as a possible promoting factor of transplanted bone marrow-derived cell migration into periodontal tissues, and of differentiation to fibroblasts. Conclusions: These results suggest that orthodontic mechanical stress induces transplanted bone marrow-derived cell migration and differentiation into periodontal tissue.

동질성 문턱 값 기반 영상분할에서 과분할 영역 축소 방법

본 논문에서는 영상의 동질성 문턱 값(Homogeneity Threshold:<TEX>$H_T$</TEX>)을 이용한 영상분할방법에서 영상의 과분할 발생을 해결하기 위한 개선된 영상분할 방법을 제안한다. <TEX>$H_T$</TEX>을 기반으로 한 영역성장(Region Growth) 알고리듬은 선택된 윈도우의 중심화소만을 사용하기 때문에 과 분할이 발생하였으나, 제안한 방법에서는 선택된 윈도우에 대한 동질성 여부를 조사하여 동질성을 만족할 경우 선택된 윈도우 화소전체를 영역병합에 사용하고 선택 윈도우가 동질성 윈도우를 만족하지 않을 때에는 윈도우의 중심화소를 사용함으로써 영역의 과 분할을 현저하게 줄일 수 있었다. 제안한 방법의 타당성을 보이기 위하여 기존방법과 동일한 영상을 동일한 조건으로 실험하였으며, 그 결과 제안한 방법은 기존 방법에 비해 영역의 개수를 40% 이상 줄이면서도 시각적으로 영상의 품질에 차이가 없음을 볼 수 있었다. 특히 분할된 영역의 크기순으로 결합한 영상을 가지고 비교 했을 때, 기존방법에서는 분할된 영역의 큰 영역으로부터 1,000개 이상의 영역을 결합하여도 어떠한 영상인지 구분하기가 힘들었으나, 제안한 방법에서는 10개 내외의 영역만 결합하여도 어떠한 이미지인지 식별할 수 있음을 확인할 수 있었다. 따라서 제안한 방법은 특정 영상으로부터의 객체 추출이나 정보검색 혹은 해부학이나 생물학 분야의 연구 및 영상 시각화와 애니메이션 등 다양한 분야에서 활용될 수 있을 것으로 기대한다. In this paper, we propose a novel method to solve the problem of excessive segmentation out of the method of segmenting regions from an image using Homogeneity Threshold(<TEX>$H_T$</TEX>). The algorithm of the previous image segmentation based on <TEX>$H_T$</TEX> was carried out region growth by using only the center pixel of selected window. Therefore it was caused resulting in excessive segmented regions. However, before carrying region growth, the proposed method first of all finds out whether the selected window is homogeneity or not. Subsequently, if the selected window is homogeneity it carries out region growth using the total pixels of selected window. But if the selected window is not homogeneity, it carries out region growth using only the center pixel of selected window. So, the method can reduce remarkably the number of excessive segmented regions of image segmentation based on <TEX>$H_T$</TEX>. In order to show the validity of the proposed method, we carried out multiple experiments to compare the proposed method with previous method in same environment and conditions. As the results, the proposed method can reduce the number of segmented regions above 40% and doesn't make any difference in the quality of visual image when we compare with previous method. Especially, when we compare the image united with regions of descending order by size of segmented regions in experimentation with the previous method, even though the united image has regions more than 1,000, we can't recognize what the image means. However, in the proposed method, even though image is united by segmented regions less than 10, we can recognize what the image is. For these reason, we expect that the proposed method will be utilized in various fields, such as the extraction of objects, the retrieval of informations from the image, research for anatomy, biology, image visualization, and animation and so on.

Effects of Copper Tripeptide on Healing Irradiated Tissues

Objective: To evaluate clinical and immunohistochemical effects of topical copper tripeptide (GHK-Cu) on wound healing in an in vivo irradiated rat model. Method: After dorsal radiation to a human-equivalent-dose of 66.67 gray and a recovery period, 2x8-cm cranially based dorsal flaps were created. Twice daily GHK-Cu (test) or Eucerin (control) was applied for 10 days. Animals were euthanized, digital images of flaps were taken, and harvested tissues were stained for vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Results: Thirteen test and 10 control animals were included. Photographs were converted to binary to calculate total pixels within the necrotic region and area of ischemia. The mean ischemic areas were 5.0 cm2 (standard deviation 0.9) for tests and 3.8 cm2 (1.1) for controls, which were significantly different ( P = .01). Digitized slides allowed for calculation of the percent of pixels reaching specific brown calorimetric thresholds and for an intensity staining score with higher scores indicating more intense staining. The VEGF mean intensity scores were 0.34 (0.19) for tests and 0.54 (0.41) for controls, which were not significantly different. Unpaired t tests were utilized for statistical analyses. Conclusion: In this study, irradiated soft tissue flaps treated with topical GHK-Cu demonstrated a greater amount of flap ischemia and no difference in VEGF production compared to controls. These findings contrast prior studies suggesting a favorable growth factor environment and an improvement in wound healing with GHK-Cu treatment.

Effects of FSH and LH on ovarian and follicular blood flow, follicular growth and oocyte developmental competence in young and old mares

Objectives of the experiment were to determine the effects of mare age and gonadotropin treatments on dominant follicle vascularity, ovarian blood flow and dominant follicle growth and to associate follicular vascularity with oocyte developmental capacity. Growing follicles >30mm from young (4–9 years) and old (>20 years) mares were assessed for blood flow using color Doppler ultrasonography before maturation induction with recombinant equine LH (eLH) and immediately prior to oocyte collection at 20–24h after eLH. Pulsed Doppler was used to obtain resistance indices of ovarian arteries ipsilateral to preovulatory follicles. For eFSH-treated estrous cycles, eFSH administration was started after detection of a cohort of follicles ≥20 to <25mm and continued until a follicle >30mm. Oocytes were harvested using transvaginal, ultrasonic-guided aspirations and cultured and injected with sperm at 40±1h after eLH. Presumptive zygotes were incubated, and rates of cleavage (≥2 cells) and blastocyst formation were obtained. Embryos were transferred nonsurgically into recipients’ uteri, and pregnancy rates were assessed. Vascularity (number of color pixels per total pixels) was higher (P=0.003) in the follicles of old compared to young mares, with no significant interaction of eFSH or eLH. Effects of eFSH and time from eLH on follicle vascularity were not significant. The vascularity of follicles associated with oocytes that did compared to those that did not form blastocysts was greater (P=0.048), although follicular vascularity was less (P=0.02) for follicles associated with oocytes that did compared to those that did not develop into pregnancies. Resistance indices were not different for age, eFSH treatment, time after eLH administration and oocyte developmental potential. Growth of the dominant follicle was not associated with vascularity, although advanced age tended (P=0.09) to have a negative effect on follicle growth.

SU-E-I-11: A Novel High Resolution CT Imager for a Breast SPECT-CT System.

To evaluate the intrinsic characteristics of a new high resolution, large area, small bezel, digital imager developed for a dedicated SPECT-CT system for fully-3D mammotomographic imaging applications. A new flat panel digital imager was developed having 127μm pixels (identical to those in the Paxscan 2520) with an active 40×30cm area and 3200×2304 total pixels, which is well suited for pendant breast imaging close to the chest wall. The readout and driver ASIC TAB bonding pads were arranged on only two sides of the imager plate, to eliminate dead edge spacing. A special housing was developed to accommodate this imaging plate providing very narrow 8mm edges (bezels) on two orthogonal sides The TFT array imager was coated with 600μm thick micro-columnar CsI, which provides >90% absorption in the breast CT (60-80kVp) x-ray energy range. It provides better than 70% absorption for RQA5 (70kVp 21mm Al filter) x- ray radiation. The readout ASICs are connected to 14 bit A/D converters, and special readout ASICs with gain switching feature, which provide an additional 4bit virtual (2-3 effective) dynamic range. The MTF is ∼7.5% at the 3.9 lp/mm Nyquist frequency. The NPS curves continuously decrease with increasing spatial frequencies, characteristic of scintillator based imagers. The excellent DQE (0) measured at RQA5 is ∼75% in the 0.1-1mR dose range and ∼10% at the Nyquist frequency. The imager has excellent linearity over the full dynamic range, and high contrast images are readily acquired. The new 4030 flat panel imager is a high resolution, state of the art detector, ideal for breast imaging and other applications. This detector is included in the SPECT-CT device in development.

Mechanism of Evenness Interrupted (Evi)-Exosome Release at Synaptic Boutons

Wnt signaling plays critical roles during synaptic development and plasticity. However, the mechanisms by which Wnts are released and travel to target cells are unresolved. During synaptic development, the secretion of Drosophila Wnt1, Wingless, requires the function of Evenness Interrupted (Evi)/Wls, a Wingless-binding protein that is secreted along with Wingless at the neuromuscular junction. Given that Evi is a transmembrane protein, these studies suggested the presence of a novel vesicular mechanism of trans-synaptic communication, potentially in the form of exosomes. To establish the mechanisms for the release of Evi vesicles, we used a dsRNA assay in cultured cells to screen for genes that when down-regulated prevent the release of Evi vesicles. We identified two proteins, Rab11 and Syntaxin 1A (Syx1A), that were required for Evi vesicle release. To determine whether the same mechanisms were used in vivo at the neuromuscular junction, we altered the activity of Rab11 and Syx1A in motoneurons and determined the impact on Evi release. We found that Syx1A, Rab11, and its effector Myosin5 were required for proper Evi vesicle release. Furthermore, ultrastructural analysis of synaptic boutons demonstrated the presence of multivesicular bodies, organelles involved in the production and release of exosomes, and these multivesicular bodies contained Evi. We also used mass spectrometry, electron microscopy, and biochemical techniques to characterize the exosome fraction from cultured cells. Our studies revealed that secreted Evi vesicles show remarkable conservation with exosomes in other systems. In summary, our observations unravel some of the in vivo mechanisms required for Evi vesicle release.

Ovarian steroids increase spinogenetic proteins in the macaque dorsal raphe

Dendritic spines are the basic structural units of neuronal plasticity. Intracellular signaling cascades that promote spinogenesis have centered on RhoGTPases. We found that ovarian steroids increase gene expression of RhoGTPases [Ras homolog gene family member A (RhoA), cell division control protein 42 homolog (Cdc42), and ras-related C3 botulinum toxin substrate (Rac)] in laser-captured serotonin neurons. We sought to confirm that the increases observed in gene expression translate to the protein level. In addition, a preliminary study was conducted to determine whether an increase in spines occurs via detection of the spine marker protein, postsynaptic density-95 (PSD-95). Adult ovariectomized (Ovx) monkeys were treated with estradiol (E), progesterone (P), or E+P for 1 month. Sections through the dorsal raphe nucleus were immunostained for RhoA and Cdc42 (n=3–4/group). The number and positive pixel area of RhoA-positive cells and the positive pixel area of Cdc42-positive fibers were determined. On combining E- and E+P-treated groups, there was a significant increase in the average and total cell number and positive pixel area of RhoA-positive cells. E, P, and E+P treatments, individually or combined, also increased the average and total positive pixel area of Cdc42-positive fibers. With remaining sections from two animals in each group, we conducted a preliminary examination of the regulation of PSD-95 protein expression. PSD-95, a postsynaptic scaffold protein, was examined with immunogold silver staining (n=2/group), and the total number of PSD-95-positive puncta was determined with stereology across four levels of the dorsal raphe. E, P, and E+P treatment significantly increased the total number of PSD-95-positive puncta. Together, these findings indicate that ovarian steroids act to increase gene and protein expression of two pivotal RhoGTPases involved in spinogenesis and preliminarily indicate that an increased number of spines and/or synapses result from this action. Increased spinogenesis on serotonin dendrites would facilitate excitatory glutamatergic input and in turn, increase serotonin neuronal activity throughout the brain.