Automatic brain tissue segmentation in MR images using hybrid atlas forest based on confidence-weighted probability matrix

The segmentation of specific tissues in an MR brain image for quantitative analysis can assist the disease diagnosis and medical research. Therefore, a robust and accurate method for automatic segmentation is necessary. Atlas-based-method is a common and effective method of automatic segmentation where an atlas refers to a pair of image consist of an intensity image and its corresponding label image. Apart from the general multi-atlas-based methods, which propagate labels through the single atlas then fuse them, we proposed a hybrid atlas forest based on confidence-weighted probability matrix to consider the atlases set as a whole and treat each voxel differently. In the framework, we first register the atlas to the image space of target and calculate the confidence of voxels in the registered atlas. Then, a confidence-weighted probability matrix is generated and it augments to the intensity image of the atlas or target for providing spatial information of the target tissue. Third, a hybrid atlas forest is trained to gather the features and correlation information among the atlases in the dataset. Finally, the segmentation of the target tissues is predicted by the trained hybrid atlas forest. The segment performance and the components efficiency of the proposed method are evaluated on the two public datasets. Based on the experiment results and quantitative comparisons, our method can gather spatial information and correlation among the atlases to obtain an accurate segmentation.     

Application of a Technofunctional Caseinate Hydrolysate to Replace Surfactants in Ice Cream

There is a demand for a clean label of ice cream in the food industry. To meet this requirement, alternative surfactants and hydrocolloids without an additive number have to be found. Here, a caseinate hydrolysate with improved interfacial properties was investigated as such an additive. Replacing only the surfactant resulted in ice cream characteristics, comparable to using a commercial emulsifier (INS 472b). Thus, a clean labeling of the surfactant using this hydrolysate is possible. By contrast, replacing the hydrocolloid additionally led to an unfavorable ice cream texture and stability.     

Effects of different nutrition labels on visual attention and accuracy of nutritional quality perception – Results of an experimental eye-tracking study

Front-of-Pack (FoP) nutrition labels are emerging as a prominent public policy tool for promoting healthy eating. In this study, we question how different FoP nutrition labels ranging from more directive (Nutriscore, NS), to semi-directive (monochromatic Guided Daily Amount, GDA) and non-directive (multiple-traffic lights, MTL), affect perceived visual attention and nutritional quality perception. The visual attention was measured by eye-tracing measures, and nutritional quality by healthiness perception and recommended frequency of consumption. Seventy-six participants (N = 76) were randomly assigned in one of three experimental conditions, where they were asked to give estimates on eight different chocolate snack bars. To test whether participants estimates were accurate, we surveyed fifty-six (N = 56) nutritionists and asked for their assessments of the same group of products. The results showed that Nutriscore required least visual attention in terms of dwell-time, number of fixations, and average fixation duration, followed by MTL and GDA. Participants in NS and MTL condition gave significantly higher estimates of nutritional quality compared to experts' estimates. Most accurate estimates came from products with GDA label. Color-coded fields (MTL) required less visual attention, compared to GDA, without adding to visual efficiency. More directive FoP nutrition labels require less visual attention but lead to inflated estimates of products' nutrition quality in the category of less healthy products. In creating public policies, removing the possibility for consumers to process nutritional information and absolute estimates of products' nutrition quality should not be disregarded.     

常压室温等离子体诱变选育高产油脂皮状丝孢酵母的研究

研究了常压室温等离子体(ARTP)诱变时间对皮状丝孢酵母(Trichosporon cutaneum)致死率的影响,考察了不同质量浓度芝麻酚对皮状丝孢酵母生长的抑制程度,建立了一种快速高效选育高产油脂菌株的方法。结果表明:经过ARTP的40 s诱变后,接种到质量浓度为0. 15 mg/m L的芝麻酚培养基中28℃培养2 d,筛选出生长旺盛的菌株,然后接种到48孔液体培养基培养,并利用96孔板尼罗红荧光染色对培养菌株进行高通量筛选,选育出一株高产油脂菌株Trichosporon cutaneum A1。该菌株较原始菌株的生物量、油脂产量、油脂含量分别提高了41. 6%、123. 1%、57. 4%,且具有较好的遗传稳定性;通过气相色谱分析,其油脂脂肪酸组成与原始菌株相同,均为十六烷酸、硬脂酸、油酸、亚油酸。说明建立的芝麻酚抗性筛选和荧光标记高通量筛选相结合的ARTP选育方法是可行的,为其他产油脂菌株的筛选提供重要参考。     

我国预包装食品致敏原声称情况调查

目的 了解我国预包装食品标签中致敏原声称的使用情况,为修订《预包装食品标签通则》提供建议。方法 在全国各地大中型超市进行采样或拍照,收集预包装食品致敏原标签声称信息并录入Excel,对各类食品的致敏原声称使用情况进行统计。结果 共采集8 694份样品,致敏原标签的总体标识率为21.58%(1 876/8 694),其中焙烤食品含有致敏原声称的标识率最高(65.73%, 468/712)。各致敏原成分中,关于乳及乳制品致敏原的声称率最高(17.09%,1 486/8 694),使用“可能含有”“本生产线也生产”“本加工设备也生产”“本生产工厂也加工”等常用于表明存在交叉接触的预防性致敏原声称的频率较高,主要集中在焙烤食品、膨化食品、谷物及其制品等3类食品中。结论 我国预包装食品中使用食品致敏原声称的食品种类较多,致敏原声称的使用缺乏规范,个别食品类别使用预防性致敏原声称的频率较高。致敏原声称在食品产品中广泛使用,应将其作为我国致敏原标识管理的重点。     

Experimental methods in chemical engineering: Electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy-EPR/ESR

Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy, also known as electron spin resonance spectroscopy (ESR), utilizes absorption of microwave radiation by unpaired electrons in a magnetic field. The interaction between the unpaired electron(s) and nearby magnetic nuclei helps identify paramagnetic species and can provide information about the motion of the molecule and the local polarity, pH, viscosity, concentration, and accessibility to other paramagnetic species. This mini-review discusses the fundamental underpinnings of EPR needed to correctly interpret EPR spectra. We describe various types of EPR spectra encountered by chemical engineers, and use application examples drawn from the chemical engineering literature to illustrate the information available from the technique. Few chemical engineering departments or even chemistry departments have EPR instruments, which contributes to the significant barrier that prevents this being adopted as a routine measurement technique. However, in 2016 and 2017, Web of Science indexed 7000 articles that applied EPR spectroscopy. A bibliometric map categorized the keywords in four categories based on co-occurrences: magnetic properties, films, and luminescence; crystal structure, complexes, and ligands; nanoparticles, oxidation, and degradation; and, systems, radicals, and H₂ O₂ .     

融合语义标签和噪声先验的图像生成

针对现有生成模型难以直接从复杂语义标签生成高分辨率图像的问题,提出了融合语义标签和噪声先验的生成对抗网络(SLNP-GAN)。首先,直接输入语义标签(包含形状、位置和类别等信息),使用全局生成器对其进行编码,并结合噪声先验来学习粗粒度的全局属性,初步合成低分辨率图像;然后,基于注意力机制,使用局部细化生成器来查询低分辨率图像子区域对应的高分辨率子标签,获取细粒度信息,从而生成纹理清晰的复杂图像;最后,采用改进的引入动量的Adam算法(AMM)算法来优化对抗训练。实验结果表明,与现有方法text2img相比,所提方法的像素精确度(PA)在COCO_Stuff和ADE20K数据集上分别提高了23.73%和11.09%;相较于Adam算法,AMM算法收敛速度提升了约一倍,且损失值波幅较小。可见,SLNP-GAN能高效地获取全局特征和局部纹理,生成细粒度、高质量的图像。     

The effect of the nutri-score label on consumer’s attitudes,taste perception and purchase intention: An experimental pilot study

A large number of studies has emerged on the environmental impacts of diets, with most studies concluding that a diet rich in plant-based foods, that are low in salt, sugar, and fat, and score high in nutritional values, confers both improved health and environmental benefits. Currently, new interventions are being implemented to improve people’s eating behavior, because most people overconsume unhealthy snacks, containing high proportions of salt, sugar and fat. The purpose of the current pilot study was to investigate the effects of the Nutri-Score label on three different snack bars on consumers’ attitudes, taste perception, and purchase intention towards these food products. An experimental study was conducted with a between subject design (food packaging with Nutri-Score label versus without) among 192 participants (M_age 31.7 years, SD 14.3 years; 63% female). Results showed that there were no effects found for the effect of the Nutri- Score label on consumers’ attitudes, taste perception and purchase intention. Bayesian analyses support the conclusion that the null hypothesis is accepted. These findings show that integrating the Nutri-Score label on food packages did not modify cognitive responses of consumers towards these food products. Changing consumption behaviors is challenging and more empirical and theoretical understanding is needed.