1. |
- Beal, Jacob, et al.
(författare)
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Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density
- 2020
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Ingår i: Communications Biology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2399-3642. ; 3:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals <1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data.
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2. |
- Kristan, Matej, et al.
(författare)
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The Ninth Visual Object Tracking VOT2021 Challenge Results
- 2021
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Ingår i: 2021 IEEE/CVF INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON COMPUTER VISION WORKSHOPS (ICCVW 2021). - : IEEE COMPUTER SOC. - 9781665401913 ; , s. 2711-2738
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Visual Object Tracking challenge VOT2021 is the ninth annual tracker benchmarking activity organized by the VOT initiative. Results of 71 trackers are presented; many are state-of-the-art trackers published at major computer vision conferences or in journals in recent years. The VOT2021 challenge was composed of four sub-challenges focusing on different tracking domains: (i) VOT-ST2021 challenge focused on short-term tracking in RGB, (ii) VOT-RT2021 challenge focused on "real-time" short-term tracking in RGB, (iii) VOT-LT2021 focused on long-term tracking, namely coping with target disappearance and reappearance and (iv) VOT-RGBD2021 challenge focused on long-term tracking in RGB and depth imagery. The VOT-ST2021 dataset was refreshed, while VOT-RGBD2021 introduces a training dataset and sequestered dataset for winner identification. The source code for most of the trackers, the datasets, the evaluation kit and the results along with the source code for most trackers are publicly available at the challenge website(1).
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3. |
- Kristan, Matej, et al.
(författare)
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The first visual object tracking segmentation VOTS2023 challenge results
- 2023
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Ingår i: 2023 IEEE/CVF International conference on computer vision workshops (ICCVW). - : Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.. - 9798350307443 - 9798350307450 ; , s. 1788-1810
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Visual Object Tracking Segmentation VOTS2023 challenge is the eleventh annual tracker benchmarking activity of the VOT initiative. This challenge is the first to merge short-term and long-term as well as single-target and multiple-target tracking with segmentation masks as the only target location specification. A new dataset was created; the ground truth has been withheld to prevent overfitting. New performance measures and evaluation protocols have been created along with a new toolkit and an evaluation server. Results of the presented 47 trackers indicate that modern tracking frameworks are well-suited to deal with convergence of short-term and long-term tracking and that multiple and single target tracking can be considered a single problem. A leaderboard, with participating trackers details, the source code, the datasets, and the evaluation kit are publicly available at the challenge website1
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4. |
- Jin, Ying-Hui, et al.
(författare)
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Chemoprophylaxis, diagnosis, treatments, and discharge management of COVID-19 : An evidence-based clinical practice guideline (updated version)
- 2020
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Ingår i: Military Medical Research. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2054-9369. ; 7:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the cause of a rapidly spreading illness, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), affecting more than seventeen million people around the world. Diagnosis and treatment guidelines for clinicians caring for patients are needed. In the early stage, we have issued "A rapid advice guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) infected pneumonia (standard version)"; now there are many direct evidences emerged and may change some of previous recommendations and it is ripe for develop an evidence-based guideline. We formed a working group of clinical experts and methodologists. The steering group members proposed 29 questions that are relevant to the management of COVID-19 covering the following areas: chemoprophylaxis, diagnosis, treatments, and discharge management. We searched the literature for direct evidence on the management of COVID-19, and assessed its certainty generated recommendations using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach. Recommendations were either strong or weak, or in the form of ungraded consensus-based statement. Finally, we issued 34 statements. Among them, 6 were strong recommendations for, 14 were weak recommendations for, 3 were weak recommendations against and 11 were ungraded consensus-based statement. They covered topics of chemoprophylaxis (including agents and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) agents), diagnosis (including clinical manifestations, reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), respiratory tract specimens, IgM and IgG antibody tests, chest computed tomography, chest x-ray, and CT features of asymptomatic infections), treatments (including lopinavir-ritonavir, umifenovir, favipiravir, interferon, remdesivir, combination of antiviral drugs, hydroxychloroquine/chloroquine, interleukin-6 inhibitors, interleukin-1 inhibitors, glucocorticoid, qingfei paidu decoction, lianhua qingwen granules/capsules, convalescent plasma, lung transplantation, invasive or noninvasive ventilation, and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO)), and discharge management (including discharge criteria and management plan in patients whose RT-PCR retesting shows SARS-CoV-2 positive after discharge). We also created two figures of these recommendations for the implementation purpose. We hope these recommendations can help support healthcare workers caring for COVID-19 patients.
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5. |
- Xie, Yuan, et al.
(författare)
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Wnt signaling regulates MFSD2A-dependent drug delivery through endothelial transcytosis in glioma
- 2023
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Ingår i: Neuro-Oncology. - : Oxford University Press. - 1522-8517 .- 1523-5866. ; 25:6, s. 1073-1084
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Systemic delivery of anti-tumor therapeutic agents to brain tumors is thwarted by the blood-brain barrier (BBB), an organotypic specialization of brain endothelial cells (ECs). A failure of pharmacological compounds to cross BBB is one culprit for the dismal prognosis of glioblastoma (GBM) patients. Identification of novel vascular targets to overcome the challenges posed by the BBB in tumors for GBM treatment is urgently needed.Methods: Temozolomide (TMZ) delivery was investigated in CT2A and PDGFB-driven RCAS/tv-a orthotopic glioma models. Transcriptome analysis was performed on ECs from murine gliomas. Mfsd2a deficient, Cav1 deficient, and Mfsd2a EC-specific inducible mice were developed to study the underlying molecular mechanisms.Results: We demonstrated that inhibiting Wnt signaling by LGK974 could increase TMZ delivery and sensitize glioma to chemotherapy in both murine glioma models. Transcriptome analysis of ECs from murine gliomas revealed that Wnt signaling inhibition enhanced vascular transcytosis as indicated by the upregulation of PLVAP and downregulation of MFSD2A. Mfsd2a deficiency in mice enhances TMZ delivery in tumors, whereas constitutive expression of Mfsd2a in ECs suppresses the enhanced TMZ delivery induced by Wnt pathway inhibition in murine glioma. In addition, Wnt signaling inhibition enhanced caveolin-1 (Cav1)-positive caveolae-mediated transcytosis in tumor ECs. Moreover, Wnt signaling inhibitor or Mfsd2a deficiency fails to enhance TMZ penetration in tumors from Cav1-deficient mice.Conclusions: These results demonstrated that Wnt signaling regulates MFSD2A-dependent TMZ delivery through a caveolae-mediated EC transcytosis pathway. Our findings identify Wnt signaling as a promising therapeutic target to improve drug delivery for GBM treatment.
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6. |
- Chen, Yi-Jing, et al.
(författare)
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Molecular Engineering of Perylene Diimide Polymers with a Robust Built-in Electric Field for Enhanced Solar-Driven Water Splitting
- 2023
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Ingår i: Angewandte Chemie International Edition. - : WILEY-V C H VERLAG GMBH. - 1433-7851 .- 1521-3773.
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The built-in electric field of the polymer semiconductors could be regulated by the dipole moment of its building blocks, thereby promoting the separation of photogenerated carriers and achieving efficient solar-driven water splitting. Herein, three perylene diimide (PDI) polymers, namely oPDI, mPDI and pPDI, are synthesized with different phenylenediamine linkers. Notably, the energy level structure, light-harvesting efficiency, and photogenerated carrier separation and migration of polymers are regulated by the orientation of PDI unit. Among them, oPDI enables a large dipole moment and robust built-in electric field, resulting in enhanced solar-driven water splitting performance. Under simulated sunlight irradiation, oPDI exhibits the highest photocurrent of 115.1 mu A cm-2 for photoelectrochemical oxygen evolution, which is 11.5 times that of mPDI, 26.8 times that of pPDI and 104.6 times that of its counterparts PDI monomer at the same conditions. This work provides a strategy for designing polymers by regulating the orientation of structural units to construct efficient solar energy conversion systems. Three perylene diimide (PDI) polymers were designed and synthesized such that the molecular orientation of the PDI units was regulated to create and modulate their built-in electric fields. Due to the large dipole moment and interfacial electric field, oPDI enables an extraordinary photocurrent density of 115.1 mu A & sdot; cm-2, which is 11.5 and 26.8 times that of mPDI and pPDI, respectively.image
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7. |
- He, Li, et al.
(författare)
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Evolutionary origin and establishment of a dioecious diploid-tetraploid complex
- 2023
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Ingår i: Molecular Ecology. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0962-1083 .- 1365-294X. ; 32:11, s. 2732-2749
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Polyploids recurrently emerge in angiosperms, but most polyploids are likely to go extinct before establishment due to minority cytotype exclusion, which may be specifically a constraint for dioecious plants. Here we test the hypothesis that a stable sex-determination system and spatial/ecological isolation facilitate the establishment of dioecious polyploids. We determined the ploidy levels of 351 individuals from 28 populations of the dioecious species Salix polyclona, and resequenced 190 individuals of S. polyclona and related taxa for genomic diversity analyses. The ploidy survey revealed a frequency 52% of tetraploids in S. polyclona, and genomic k-mer spectra analyses suggested an autopolyploid origin for them. Comparisons of diploid male and female genomes identified a female heterogametic sex-determining factor on chromosome 15, which probably also acts in the dioecious tetraploids. Phylogenetic analyses revealed two diploid clades and a separate clade/grade of tetraploids with a distinct geographic distribution confined to western and central China, where complex mountain systems create higher levels of environmental heterogeneity. Fossil-calibrated phylogenies showed that the polyploids emerged during 7.6–2.3 million years ago, and population demographic histories largely matched the geological and climatic history of the region. Our results suggest that inheritance of the sex-determining system from the diploid progenitor as intrinsic factor and spatial isolation as extrinsic factor may have facilitated the preservation and establishment of polyploid dioecious populations.
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8. |
- Jiang, Jingjing, et al.
(författare)
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Sino-European Differences in the Genetic Landscape and Clinical Presentation of Pheochromocytoma and Paraganglioma
- 2020
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Ingår i: Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism. - : The Endocrine Society. - 0021-972X .- 1945-7197. ; 105:10
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context: Pheochromocytomas and paragangliomas (PPGLs) are characterized by distinct genotype-phenotype relationships according to studies largely restricted to Caucasian populations.Objective: To assess for possible differences in genetic landscapes and genotype-phenotype relationships of PPGLs in Chinese versus European populations.Design: Cross-sectional study.Setting: 2 tertiary-care centers in China and 9 in Europe.Participants: Patients with pathologically confirmed diagnosis of PPGL, including 719 Chinese and 919 Europeans.Main Outcome Measures: Next-generation sequencing performed in tumor specimens with mutations confirmed by Sanger sequencing and tested in peripheral blood if available. Frequencies of mutations were examined according to tumor location and catecholamine biochemical phenotypes.Results: Among all patients, higher frequencies of HRAS, FGFR1, and EPAS1 mutations were observed in Chinese than Europeans, whereas the reverse was observed for NF1, VHL, RET, and SDHx. Among patients with apparently sporadic PPGLs, the most frequently mutated genes in Chinese were HRAS (16.5% [13.6-19.3] vs 9.8% [7.6-12.1]) and FGFR1 (9.8% [7.6-12.11 vs 2.2% [1.1-3.3]), whereas among Europeans the most frequently mutated genes were NF1 (15.9% [13.2-18.6) vs 6.6% [4.7-8.5)) and SDHx (10.7% [8.4-13.0] vs 4.2% [2.6-5.7]). Among Europeans, almost all paragangliomas lacked appreciable production of epinephrine and identified gene mutations were largely restricted to those leading to stabilization of hypoxia inducible factors. In contrast, among Chinese there was a larger proportion of epinephrine-producing paragangliomas, mostly due to HRAS and FGFR1 mutations.Conclusions: This study establishes Sino-European differences in the genetic landscape and presentation of PPGLs, including ethnic differences in genotype-phenotype relationships indicating a paradigm shift in our understanding of the biology of these tumors.
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9. |
- Liu, Hui, et al.
(författare)
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Centromere-Specific Retrotransposons and Very-Long-Chain Fatty Acid Biosynthesis in the Genome of Yellowhorn (Xanthoceras sorbifolium, Sapindaceae), an Oil-Producing Tree With Significant Drought Resistance
- 2021
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Ingår i: Frontiers in Plant Science. - : Frontiers Media S.A.. - 1664-462X. ; 12
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In-depth genome characterization is still lacking for most of biofuel crops, especially for centromeres, which play a fundamental role during nuclear division and in the maintenance of genome stability. This study applied long-read sequencing technologies to assemble a highly contiguous genome for yellowhorn (Xanthoceras sorbifolium), an oil-producing tree, and conducted extensive comparative analyses to understand centromere structure and evolution, and fatty acid biosynthesis. We produced a reference-level genome of yellowhorn, ∼470 Mb in length with ∼95% of contigs anchored onto 15 chromosomes. Genome annotation identified 22,049 protein-coding genes and 65.7% of the genome sequence as repetitive elements. Long terminal repeat retrotransposons (LTR-RTs) account for ∼30% of the yellowhorn genome, which is maintained by a moderate birth rate and a low removal rate. We identified the centromeric regions on each chromosome and found enrichment of centromere-specific retrotransposons of LINE1 and Gypsy in these regions, which have evolved recently (∼0.7 MYA). We compared the genomes of three cultivars and found frequent inversions. We analyzed the transcriptomes from different tissues and identified the candidate genes involved in very-long-chain fatty acid biosynthesis and their expression profiles. Collinear block analysis showed that yellowhorn shared the gamma (γ) hexaploidy event with Vitis vinifera but did not undergo any further whole-genome duplication. This study provides excellent genomic resources for understanding centromere structure and evolution and for functional studies in this important oil-producing plant.
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10. |
- Lu, Chan, et al.
(författare)
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Long-term exposure to mould/damp stains and mouldy odour increases low birth weight
- 2022
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Ingår i: Building and Environment. - : Elsevier. - 0360-1323 .- 1873-684X. ; 222
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Low birth weight (LBW), as a major concern in public health, is now increasing worldwide, but its main indoor environmental factors remain unclear.Objective: We examined whether LBW including term-LBW (T-LBW) and preterm-LBW (P-LBW) was associated with maternal exposure to indoor environmental factors, with a purpose to identify the key indoor environmental factor(s) contributing to LBW.Methods: A nationwide retrospective cohort study of 30,735 pre-schoolers in six Chinese cities was performed from 2010 to 2012. One questionnaire survey was conducted to collect information on the pre-schoolers' birth outcomes and their maternal exposure of indoor environmental factors including new furniture, house redecoration, cooking fuels, mould/damp stains, and mouldy odour during pregnancy. Maternal exposure of trafficrelated air pollutant (NO2), industrial pollutant (SO2), and inhalable particulate matter (PM10), as well as meteorological parameters, was estimated in pregnancy. Associations of LBW, T-LBW and P-LBW with indoor environmental factors were evaluated by two-level (city-child) logistic regression models with an odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI).Results: We found that P-LBW (1.0%) and T-LBW (1.4%) prevalence were respectively associated with persistent mould/damp stains and mouldy odour exposure in utero, ORs = 1.81 (95% CI: 1.01-3.24) and 1.49 (95% CI: 1.01-2.21). Exposure to high temperature and PM2.5 in pregnancy significantly enhanced the effect of persistent mould/damp stains and/or mouldy odour on P-LBW and LBW, ORs (95% CI) = 2.92 (1.40-6.07) and 1.78 (1.00-3.15) with significant interaction p values of 0.067 and 0.094 respectively. Sensitivity analysis suggested that raising cats and dogs significantly increased LBW risk of persistent mould/damp stains and mouldy odour exposure.
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