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- Temmink, R. J. M., et al.
(author)
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Mimicry of emergent traits amplifies coastal restoration success
- 2020
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In: Nature Communications. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2041-1723. ; 11:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Restoration is becoming a vital tool to counteract coastal ecosystem degradation. Modifying transplant designs of habitat-forming organisms from dispersed to clumped can amplify coastal restoration yields as it generates self-facilitation from emergent traits, i.e. traits not expressed by individuals or small clones, but that emerge in clumped individuals or large clones. Here, we advance restoration science by mimicking key emergent traits that locally suppress physical stress using biodegradable establishment structures. Experiments across (sub)tropical and temperate seagrass and salt marsh systems demonstrate greatly enhanced yields when individuals are transplanted within structures mimicking emergent traits that suppress waves or sediment mobility. Specifically, belowground mimics of dense root mats most facilitate seagrasses via sediment stabilization, while mimics of aboveground plant structures most facilitate marsh grasses by reducing stem movement. Mimicking key emergent traits may allow upscaling of restoration in many ecosystems that depend on self-facilitation for persistence, by constraining biological material requirements and implementation costs.
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| 2. |
- Yaakub, S. N., et al.
(author)
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On brain atlas choice and automatic segmentation methods: a comparison of MAPER & FreeSurfer using three atlas databases
- 2020
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In: Scientific Reports. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2045-2322. ; 10:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Several automatic image segmentation methods and few atlas databases exist for analysing structural T1-weighted magnetic resonance brain images. The impact of choosing a combination has not hitherto been described but may bias comparisons across studies. We evaluated two segmentation methods (MAPER and FreeSurfer), using three publicly available atlas databases (Hammers_mith, Desikan-Killiany-Tourville, and MICCAI 2012 Grand Challenge). For each combination of atlas and method, we conducted a leave-one-out cross-comparison to estimate the segmentation accuracy of FreeSurfer and MAPER. We also used each possible combination to segment two datasets of patients with known structural abnormalities (Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and mesial temporal lobe epilepsy with hippocampal sclerosis (HS)) and their matched healthy controls. MAPER was better than FreeSurfer at modelling manual segmentations in the healthy control leave-one-out analyses in two of the three atlas databases, and the Hammers_mith atlas database transferred to new datasets best regardless of segmentation method. Both segmentation methods reliably identified known abnormalities in each patient group. Better separation was seen for FreeSurfer in the AD and left-HS datasets, and for MAPER in the right-HS dataset. We provide detailed quantitative comparisons for multiple anatomical regions, thus enabling researchers to make evidence-based decisions on their choice of atlas and segmentation method. © 2020, The Author(s).
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| 3. |
- Steinbart, David, et al.
(author)
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Automatic and manual segmentation of the piriform cortex: Method development and validation in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy and Alzheimer's disease.
- 2023
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In: Human brain mapping. - 1065-9471 .- 1097-0193. ; 44:8, s. 3196-3209
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The piriform cortex (PC) is located at the junction of the temporal and frontal lobes. It is involved physiologically in olfaction as well as memory and plays an important role in epilepsy. Its study at scale is held back by the absence of automatic segmentation methods on MRI. We devised a manual segmentation protocol for PC volumes, integrated those manually derived images into the Hammers Atlas Database (n=30) and used an extensively validated method (multi-atlas propagation with enhanced registration, MAPER) for automatic PC segmentation. We applied automated PC volumetry to patients with unilateral temporal lobe epilepsy with hippocampal sclerosis (TLE; n=174 including n=58 controls) and to the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative cohort (ADNI; n=151, of whom with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), n=71; Alzheimer's disease (AD), n=33; controls, n=47). In controls, mean PC volume was 485mm3 on the right and 461mm3 on the left. Automatic and manual segmentations overlapped with a Jaccard coefficient (intersection/union) of ~0.5 and a mean absolute volume difference of ~22mm3 in healthy controls, ~0.40/ ~28mm3 in patients with TLE, and~0.34/~29mm3 in patients with AD. In patients with TLE, PC atrophy lateralised to the side of hippocampal sclerosis (p<.001). In patients with MCI and AD, PC volumes were lower than those of controls bilaterally (p<.001). Overall, we have validated automatic PC volumetry in healthy controls and two types of pathology. The novel finding of early atrophy of PC at the stage of MCI possibly adds a novel biomarker. PC volumetry can now be applied at scale.
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| 4. |
- McGinnity, Colm J, et al.
(author)
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Αlpha 5 subunit-containing GABAA receptors in temporal lobe epilepsy with normal MRI.
- 2021
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In: Brain communications. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 2632-1297. ; 3:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- GABAA receptors containing the α5 subunit mediate tonic inhibition and are widely expressed in the limbic system. In animals, activation of α5-containing receptors impairs hippocampus-dependent memory. Temporal lobe epilepsy is associated with memory impairments related to neuron loss and other changes. The less selective PET ligand [11C]flumazenil has revealed reductions in GABAA receptors. The hypothesis that α5 subunit receptor alterations are present in temporal lobe epilepsy and could contribute to impaired memory is untested. We compared α5 subunit availability between individuals with temporal lobe epilepsy and normal structural MRI ('MRI-negative') and healthy controls, and interrogated the relationship between α5 subunit availability and episodic memory performance, in a cross-sectional study. Twenty-three healthy male controls (median ± interquartile age 49±13years) and 11 individuals with MRI-negative temporal lobe epilepsy (seven males; 40±8) had a 90-min PET scan after bolus injection of [11C]Ro15-4513, with arterial blood sampling and metabolite correction. All those with epilepsy and six controls completed the Adult Memory and Information Processing Battery on the scanning day. 'Bandpass' exponential spectral analyses were used to calculate volumes of distribution separately for the fast component [VF; dominated by signal from α1 (α2, α3)-containing receptors] and the slow component (VS; dominated by signal from α5-containing receptors). We made voxel-by-voxel comparisons between: the epilepsy and control groups; each individual case versus the controls. We obtained parametric maps of VF and VS measures from a single bolus injection of [11C]Ro15-4513. The epilepsy group had higher VS in anterior medial and lateral aspects of the temporal lobes, the anterior cingulate gyri, the presumed area tempestas (piriform cortex) and the insulae, in addition to increases of ∼24% and ∼26% in the ipsilateral and contralateral hippocampal areas (P<0.004). This was associated with reduced VF:VS ratios within the same areas (P<0.009). Comparisons of VS for each individual with epilepsy versus controls did not consistently lateralize the epileptogenic lobe. Memory scores were significantly lower in the epilepsy group than in controls (mean ± standard deviation -0.4±1.0 versus 0.7±0.3; P=0.02). In individuals with epilepsy, hippocampal VS did not correlate with memory performance on the Adult Memory and Information Processing Battery. They had reduced VF in the hippocampal area, which was significant ipsilaterally (P=0.03), as expected from [11C]flumazenil studies. We found increased tonic inhibitory neurotransmission in our cohort of MRI-negative temporal lobe epilepsy who also had co-morbid memory impairments. Our findings are consistent with a subunit shift from α1/2/3 to α5 in MRI-negative temporal lobe epilepsy.
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