Search results for "Atom"

2017

Functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a promising neuroimaging method for investigating networks of cortical regions over time. We propose a directed effective connectivity method (TPDC) allowing the capture of both time and frequency evolution of the brain’s networks using fNIRS data acquired from healthy subjects performing a continuous finger-tapping task. Using this method we show the directed connectivity patterns among cortical motor regions involved in the task and their significant variations in the strength of information flow exchanges. Intra and inter-hemispheric connections during the motor task with their temporal evolution are also provided. Characterisation of the …

Deep learning network for exploiting positional information in nucleosome related sequences

2017

A nucleosome is a DNA-histone complex, wrapping about 150 pairs of double-stranded DNA. The role of nucleosomes is to pack the DNA into the nucleus of the Eukaryote cells to form the Chromatin. Nucleosome positioning genome wide play an important role in the regulation of cell type-specific gene activities. Several biological studies have shown sequence specificity of nucleosome presence, clearly underlined by the organization of precise nucleotides substrings. Taking into consideration such advances, the identification of nucleosomes on a genomic scale has been successfully performed by DNA sequence features representation and classical supervised classification methods such as Support Vec…

Topographic Independent Component Analysis reveals random scrambling of orientation in visual space

2017

Neurons at primary visual cortex (V1) in humans and other species are edge filters organized in orientation maps. In these maps, neurons with similar orientation preference are clustered together in iso-orientation domains. These maps have two fundamental properties: (1) retinotopy, i.e. correspondence between displacements at the image space and displacements at the cortical surface, and (2) a trade-off between good coverage of the visual field with all orientations and continuity of iso-orientation domains in the cortical space. There is an active debate on the origin of these locally continuous maps. While most of the existing descriptions take purely geometric/mechanistic approaches whi…

Evaluation of the position of the posterior superior alveolar artery in relation to the maxillary sinus using the Cone-Beam computed tomography scans

2017

Background The aim of the present study was to evaluate the diameter, relationship and position of the posterior superior alveolar artery and its relationship with the alveolar ridge, the medial wall of the maxillary sinus, the prevalence of pathologic conditions and the maxillary sinus septa on CBCT images. Material and Methods A total of 200 CBCT images (400 maxillary sinuses) of patients over 20 years of age were evaluated. The distances between the lower border of the artery and the alveolar crest and between the artery and the medial wall of the sinus and the diameter of the artery were measured. The position of the artery, the presence of pathologic conditions and septa were recorded …

Tooth abnormalities in individuals with unilateral alveolar clefts : a comparison between sides using cone-beam computed tomography

2017

Background: Tooth abnormalities are most often present in individuals with oral clefts than general population, and lead to a long-term impact on facial anatomy and self-esteem. The purpose of this study was to compare the proportion of dental anomalies between the cleft side and non-cleft side in individuals with non-syndromic unilateral alveolar clefts (AC). Material and Methods: Twenty cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) scans were converted into threedimensional (3D) virtual models. The dental anomalies considered were: tooth agenesis; supernumerary teeth; giroversion; and microdontia. Statistical analysis was performed using the McNemar?s test and Fisher?s exact test ( p < 0.05). Resu…

Surgically-oriented anatomical study of mandibular premolars: A CBCT study

2019

Background The knowledge of root canal anatomy and of the anatomical relationship should be considered mandatory when planning surgical endodontics. The aim of the study was to investigate the anatomical features of mandibular premolars, evaluating their relationship with mental nerve. Material and methods CBCT scans were evaluated recording the number of roots, root canal configuration and the relationship with mental nerve of 100 mandibular premolars. After simulating a resection of 3 mm of the root, the shape and the number of canals, and the distance to the buccal and lingual bone plate and to the mental foramen was evaluated. Results The one root - one canal configuration was the most …

Analysis of Microstructure of the Cardiac Conduction System Based on Three-Dimensional Confocal Microscopy

2016

The specialised conducting tissues present in the ventricles are responsible for the fast distribution of the electrical impulse from the atrio-ventricular node to regions in the subendocardial myocardium. Characterisation of anatomical features of the specialised conducting tissues in the ventricles is highly challenging, in particular its most distal section, which is connected to the working myocardium via Purkinje-myocardial junctions. The goal of this work is to characterise the architecture of the distal section of the Purkinje network by differentiating Purkinje cells from surrounding tissue, performing a segmentation of Purkinje fibres at cellular scale, and mathematically describin…

The Binding Mechanism of Epolactaene to Hsp60 Unveiled by in Silico Modelling

2016

Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations and DFT/MM calculations were performed in order to rationalize available experimental results and to provide structural details on the binding mechanism of Epolactaene (EPO) to the 60 KDa Heat Shock Protein (Hsp60). The available crystal structure of Hsp60 represents the last step of the chaperone folding cycle, while the Hsp60-EPO complex was obtained by using a homology model of Hsp60, in order to simulate a state related to the beginning of the folding cycle (Rs1). The results of MD simulations point out that EPO shows the highest binding affinity for the empty ATP binding site. The presence of ATP opens a channel that allows the entrance of both EPO d…

Hyperosmolarity and Benzalkonium Chloride Differently Stimulate Inflammatory Markers in Conjunctiva-Derived Epithelial Cells in vitro

2017

Tear hyperosmolarity is known to cause ocular surface inflammation in dry eye syndrome. Benzalkonium chloride (BAK), an eyedrop preservative, is known to induce dry eye in long-term-treated patients. Analyzing the modulation of the proinflammatory potential of hyperosmolarity in the presence of BAK on the conjunctiva could give new insights into the effect of this preservative on the disease. In a hyperosmolar model on a conjunctiva-derived cell line, and in the presence of BAK, we evaluated key inflammatory markers [CCL2, IL-8, IL-6, macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) and intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-1] as well as the osmoprotectant element nuclear factor of activated T…

Vascular pathology: Cause or effect in Alzheimer disease?

2018

Introduction: Alzheimer disease (AD) is the main cortical neurodegenerative disease. The incidence of this disease increases with age, causing significant medical, social and economic problems, especially in countries with ageing populations. Objective: This review aims to highlight existing evidence of how vascular dysfunction may contribute to cognitive impairment in AD, as well as the therapeutic possibilities that might arise from this evidence. Development: The vascular hypothesis emerged as an alternative to the amyloid cascade hypothesis as an explanation for the pathophysiology of AD. This hypothesis locates blood vessels as the origin for a variety of pathogenic pathways that lead …