Search results for "imaging [Stars]"
showing 10 items of 415 documents
Visualizing the spatiotemporal map of Rac activation in bovine aortic endothelial cells under laminar and disturbed flows.
2017
Disturbed flow can eliminate the alignment of endothelial cells in the direction of laminar flow, and significantly impacts on atherosclerosis in collateral arteries near the bifurcation and high curvature regions. While shear stress induced Rac polarity has been shown to play crucial roles in cell polarity and migration, little is known about the spatiotemporal map of Rac under disturbed flow, and the mechanism of flow-induced cell polarity still needs to be elucidated. In this paper, disturbed flow or laminar flow with 15 dyn/cm2 of average shear stress was applied on bovine aortic endothelial cells (BAECs) for 30 minutes. A genetically-encoded PAK-PBD-GFP reporter was transfected into BA…
Prevalence and severity of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease by transient elastography: Genetic and metabolic risk factors in a general population.
2017
BACKGROUND & AIMS The worldwide spread of obesity is leading to a dramatic increase in the prevalence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and its complications. We aimed to evaluate both prevalence and factors associated with NAFLD in a general population in a Mediterranean area. METHODS We considered 890 consecutive individuals included in the community-based ABCD (Alimentazione, Benessere Cardiovascolare e Diabete) study (ISRCTN15840340). Controlled attenuation parameter (CAP) and liver stiffness measurement (LSM) were measured with FibroScan. Participants were genotyped for PNPLA3 rs738409 and TM6SF2 rs58542926 variants. RESULTS The prevalence of NAFLD in the cohort was 48%. NAFL…
Objective Assessment of Nuclear and Cortical Cataracts through Scheimpflug Images: Agreement with the LOCS III Scale.
2016
Purpose To assess nuclear and cortical opacities through the objective analysis of Scheimpflug images, and to check the correlation with the Lens Opacity Classification System III (LOCS III). Methods Nuclear and cortical opacities were graded according to the LOCS III rules after pupil dilation. The maximum and average pixel intensity values along an elliptical mask within the lens nucleus were taken to analyse nuclear cataracts. A new metric based on the percentage of opaque pixels within a region of interest was used to analyse cortical cataracts. The percentage of opaque pixels was also calculated for half, third and quarter areas from the region of interest’s periphery. Results The maxi…
Simple Muscle Architecture Analysis (SMA): An ImageJ macro tool to automate measurements in B-mode ultrasound scans
2020
In vivo measurements of muscle architecture (i.e. the spatial arrangement of muscle fascicles) are routinely included in research and clinical settings to monitor muscle structure, function and plasticity. However, in most cases such measurements are performed manually, and more reliable and time-efficient automated methods are either lacking completely, or are inaccessible to those without expertise in image analysis. In this work, we propose an ImageJ script to automate the entire analysis process of muscle architecture in ultrasound images: Simple Muscle Architecture Analysis (SMA). Images are filtered in the spatial and frequency domains with built-in commands and external plugins to hi…
Three-dimensional multiple-particle tracking with nanometric precision over tunable axial ranges
2017
The precise localization of nanometric objects in three dimensions is essential to identify functional diffusion mechanisms in complex systems at the cellular or molecular level. However, most optical methods can achieve high temporal resolution and high localization precision only in two dimensions or over a limited axial (z) range. Here we develop a novel wide-field detection system based on an electrically tunable lens that can track multiple individual nanoscale emitters in three dimensions over a tunable axial range with nanometric localization precision. The optical principle of the technique is based on the simultaneous acquisition of two images with an extended depth of field while …
Evaluation of Mucociliary Clearance by Three Dimension Micro-CT-SPECT in Guinea Pig: Role of Bitter Taste Agonists
2016
Different image techniques have been used to analyze mucociliary clearance (MCC) in humans, but current small animal MCC analysis using in vivo imaging has not been well defined. Bitter taste receptor (T2R) agonists increase ciliary beat frequency (CBF) and cause bronchodilation but their effects in vivo are not well understood. This work analyzes in vivo nasal and bronchial MCC in guinea pig animals using three dimension (3D) microCT-SPECT images and evaluates the effect of T2R agonists. Intranasal macroaggreggates of albumin-Technetium 99 metastable (MAA-Tc99m) and lung nebulized Tc99m albumin nanocolloids were used to analyze the effect of T2R agonists on nasal and bronchial MCC respecti…
Generation of an inducible RPE-specific Cre transgenic-mouse line.
2018
The retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) is an epithelial monolayer in the back of the vertebrate eye. RPE dysfunction is associated with retinal degeneration and blindness. In order to fully understand how dysregulation affects visual function, RPE-specific gene knockouts are indispensable. Since the currently available RPE-specific Cre recombinases show lack of specificity or poor recombination, we sought to generate an alternative. We generated a tamoxifen-inducible RPE-specific Cre transgenic mouse line under transcriptional control of an RPE-specific Tyrosinase enhancer. We characterized the Cre-mediated recombinant expression by crossing our RPE-Tyrosinase-CreErT2 mouse line with the tdTo…
A Genome-Wide Association Study of Attention Function in a Population-Based Sample of Children
2016
BACKGROUND: Attention function filters and selects behaviorally relevant information. This capacity is impaired in some psychiatric disorders and has been proposed as an endophenotype for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder; however, its genetic basis remains largely unknown. This study aimed to identify single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) associated with attention function. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The discovery sample included 1655 children (7-12 years) and the replication sample included 546 children (5-8 years). Five attention outcomes were assessed using the computerized Attentional Network Test (ANT): alerting, orienting, executive attention, Hit Reaction time (HRT) and the stand…
Music style not only modulates the auditory cortex, but also motor related areas
2021
The neuroscience of music has recently attracted significant attention, but the effect of music style on the activation of auditory-motor regions has not been explored. The aim of the present study is to analyze the differences in brain activity during passive listening to non-vocal excerpts of four different music genres (classical, reggaeton, electronic and folk). A functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) experiment was performed. Twenty-eight participants with no musical training were included in the study. They had to passively listen to music excerpts of the above genres during fMRI acquisition. Imaging analysis was performed at the whole-brain-level and in auditory-motor regions …
Modulating disease-relevant tau oligomeric strains by small molecules
2020
The pathological aggregation of tau plays an important role in Alzheimer's disease and many other related neurodegenerative diseases, collectively referred to as tauopathies. Recent evidence has demonstrated that tau oligomers, small and soluble prefibrillar aggregates, are highly toxic due to their strong ability to seed tau misfolding and propagate the pathology seen across different neurodegenerative diseases. We previously showed that novel curcumin derivatives affect preformed tau oligomer aggregation pathways by promoting the formation of more aggregated and nontoxic tau aggregates. To further investigate their therapeutic potential, we have extended our studies o disease-relevant bra…