A review of the use of terrestrial laser scanning application for change detection and deformation monitoring of structures

Change detection and deformation monitoring is an active area of research within the field of engineering surveying as well as overlapping areas such as structural and civil engineering. The application of Terrestrial Laser Scanning (TLS) techniques for change detection and deformation monitoring of concrete structures has increased over the years as illustrated in the past studies. This paper presents a review of literature on TLS application in the monitoring of structures and discusses registration and georeferencing of TLS point cloud data as a critical issue in the process chain of accurate deformation analysis. Past TLS research work has shown some trends in addressing issues such as accurate registration and georeferencing of the scans and the need of a stable reference frame, TLS error modelling and reduction, point cloud processing techniques for deformation analysis, scanner calibration issues and assessing the potential of TLS in detecting sub-centimetre and millimetre deformations. However, several issues are still open to investigation as far as TLS is concerned in change detection and deformation monitoring studies such as rigorous and efficient workflow methodology of point cloud processing for change detection and deformation analysis, incorporation of measurement geometry in deformation measurements of high-rise structures, design of data acquisition and quality assessment for precise measurements and modelling the environmental effects on the performance of laser scanning. Even though some studies have attempted to address these issues, some gaps exist as information is still limited. Some methods reviewed in the case studies have been applied in landslide monitoring and they seem promising to be applied in engineering surveying to monitor structures. Hence the proposal of a three-stage process model for deformation analysis is presented. Furthermore, with technological advancements new TLS instruments with better accuracy are being developed necessitating more research for precise measurements in the monitoring of structures

Dasatinib impairs long-term expansion of leukemic progenitors in a subset of acute myeloid leukemia cases

A number of signaling pathways might be frequently disrupted in acute myeloid leukemia (AML). We questioned whether the dual SRC/ABL kinase inhibitor dasatinib can affect AML cells and whether differences can be observed with normal CD34+ cells. First, we demonstrated that normal cord blood (CB) CD34+ cells were unaffected by dasatinib at a low concentration (0.5 nM) in the long-term culture on MS5 stromal cells. No changes were observed in proliferation, differentiation, and colony formation. In a subset of AML cases (3/15), a distinct reduction in cell proliferation was observed, ranging from 48% to 91% inhibition at 0.5 nM of dasatinib, in particular, those characterized by BCR–ABL or KIT mutations. Moreover, the inhibitory effects of dasatinib were cytokine specific. Stem cell factor-mediated proliferation was significantly impaired, associated with a reduced phosphorylation of ERK1/2 and STAT5, whereas no effect was observed on interleukin-3 and thrombopoietin-mediated signaling despite SRC activation. In conclusion, this study demonstrates that dasatinib is a potential inhibitor in a subgroup of AML, especially those that express BCR–ABL or KIT mutations

Establishing human leukemia xenograft mouse models by implanting human bone marrow-like scaffold-based niches

To begin to understand the mechanisms that regulate self-renewal, differentiation, and transformation of human hematopoietic stem cells or to evaluate the efficacy of novel treatment modalities, stem cells need to be studied in their own species-specific microenvironment. By implanting ceramic scaffolds coated with human mesenchymal stromal cells into immune-deficient mice, we were able to mimic the human bone marrow niche. Thus, we have established a human leukemia xenograft mouse model in which a large cohort of patient samples successfully engrafted, which covered all of the important genetic and risk subgroups. We found that by providing a humanized environment, stem cell self-renewal properties were better maintained as determined by serial transplantation assays and genome-wide transcriptome studies, and less clonal drift was observed as determined by exome sequencing. The human leukemia xenograft mouse models that we have established here will serve as an excellent resource for future studies aimed at exploring novel therapeutic approaches

Improving maritime situational awareness by fusing sensor information and intelligence

In present-day military security operations threats are more difficult to reveal than in conventional warfare theatres, since they take place during the course of normal life. These maritime missions often take place in littoral environments, where acts of piracy, drug trafficking and other threatening events become obscured in the crowd of everyday fisheries, cargo traders, ferries and pleasure cruises, hindering situation awareness. We aim to improve situation awareness and threat detection capabilities in maritime scenarios by combining sensor-based information with context information and intelligence from various sources. The fusion and analysis in order to reveal suspect from normal behavior is based on domain ontologies. A test bed allows the study of various exploitation and assessments techniques applied to these domain ontologies. Using an appropriate scenario we have simulated suspect and normal behaviour to test the applicability of the various techniques. © 2011 IEEE

The effect of the implementation of a clinical decision support (CDS) tool on the percentage of adequately prescribed LMWH-thromboprophylaxis

The effect of the implementation of a clinical decision support (CDS) tool on the percentage of adequately prescribed LMWH-thromboprophylaxis Background Non-surgical patients have an increased risk of developing a venous thromboembolism (VTE) during hospital admission. This risk can be reduced by thrombo-prophylaxis with low molecular weight heparins (LMWHs). In thromboprophylaxis guidelines the Padua Prediction Score (PPS) has been suggested as the best available model to assess the risk of VTE in these patients, but adherence to these guidelines is known to be low. Objective To increase the percentage of adequately prescribed thromboprophylaxis with a LMWH in patients with a high VTE risk by implementation of an intervention consisting of a clinical decision support (CDS) tool in the electronic health record. Secondary specificity and sensitivity of the CDS tool were determined. Design and methods Data on the PPS and thromboprophylaxis in non-surgical patients (&gt; 18 years) were prospectively collected for a total of ten time points before and after the implementation of the intervention. Patients who recently (&lt; 1 week) underwent a percutaneous coronary intervention, and palliative patients were excluded. A time series analysis was performed using an autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) model to examine the effect of the intervention on the percentage of adequately prescribed LMWH thromboprophylaxis. Results 400 patients were included, 200 patients pre- and 200 patients post-intervention. Assuming a direct effect of the intervention on the percentage of adequately prescribed LMWH thromboprophylaxis a level effect of 7.5% was calculated, this level effect was not significant (P = 0.19). The CDS tool had a sensitivity of 92% and a specificity of 68%. Conclusion The implementation of a CDS tool had no significant effect on the percentage of patients adequately treated with thromboprophylaxis in an interrupted time series analysis. The CDS tool was able to successfully identify patients with a high risk of developing a VTE.</p

The effect of the implementation of a clinical decision support (CDS) tool on the percentage of adequately prescribed LMWH-thromboprophylaxis

The effect of the implementation of a clinical decision support (CDS) tool on the percentage of adequately prescribed LMWH-thromboprophylaxis Background Non-surgical patients have an increased risk of developing a venous thromboembolism (VTE) during hospital admission. This risk can be reduced by thrombo-prophylaxis with low molecular weight heparins (LMWHs). In thromboprophylaxis guidelines the Padua Prediction Score (PPS) has been suggested as the best available model to assess the risk of VTE in these patients, but adherence to these guidelines is known to be low. Objective To increase the percentage of adequately prescribed thromboprophylaxis with a LMWH in patients with a high VTE risk by implementation of an intervention consisting of a clinical decision support (CDS) tool in the electronic health record. Secondary specificity and sensitivity of the CDS tool were determined. Design and methods Data on the PPS and thromboprophylaxis in non-surgical patients (&gt; 18 years) were prospectively collected for a total of ten time points before and after the implementation of the intervention. Patients who recently (&lt; 1 week) underwent a percutaneous coronary intervention, and palliative patients were excluded. A time series analysis was performed using an autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) model to examine the effect of the intervention on the percentage of adequately prescribed LMWH thromboprophylaxis. Results 400 patients were included, 200 patients pre- and 200 patients post-intervention. Assuming a direct effect of the intervention on the percentage of adequately prescribed LMWH thromboprophylaxis a level effect of 7.5% was calculated, this level effect was not significant (P = 0.19). The CDS tool had a sensitivity of 92% and a specificity of 68%. Conclusion The implementation of a CDS tool had no significant effect on the percentage of patients adequately treated with thromboprophylaxis in an interrupted time series analysis. The CDS tool was able to successfully identify patients with a high risk of developing a VTE.</p

Active cytomegalovirus replication in patients with coronary disease

Objectives. To study the prevalence of active cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection in patients with stable and unstable conditions of coronary artery disease (CAD). Design. Forty patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS), 50 patients with stable angina and angiographically verified CAD (SA) and 50 clinically healthy controls were included. Monocytes were isolated from peripheral blood and CMV-RNA expression was determined by a nested RT-PCR assay. CMV IgM and IgG antibodies, interleukin-(IL)-6, IL-10 and CRP were measured in serum. Results. The prevalence of active CMV infection was significantly higher in patients with ACS (15%) and in patients with SA (10%) compared with controls (2%) (p < 0.001). The presence of an active CMV infection was associated with increased serum concentrations of IL-6. Conclusions. Active CMV infection was found to a larger extent in CAD patients than in healthy controls. The data indicate that CAD patients are more susceptible to reactivation of CMV and put new focus on the role of CMV in atherosclerosis.</p