Rapid real-time generation of super-resolution hyperspectral images through compressive sensing and GPU

Recently, compressive sensing (CS) has offered a new framework whereby a signal can be recovered from a small number of noisy non-adaptive samples. This is now an active area of research in many image-processing applications, especially super-resolution. CS algorithms are widely known to be computationally expensive. This paper studies a real time super-resolution reconstruction method based on the compressive sampling matching pursuit (CoSaMP) algorithm for hyperspectral images. CoSaMP is an iterative compressive sensing method based on the orthogonal matching pursuit (OMP). Multi-spectral images record enormous volumes of data that are required in practical modern remote-sensing applications. A proposed implementation based on the graphical processing unit (GPU) has been developed for CoSaMP using computed unified device architecture (CUDA) and the cuBLAS library. The CoSaMP algorithm is divided into interdependent parts with respect to complexity and potential for parallelization. The proposed implementation is evaluated in terms of reconstruction error for different state-of-the-art super-resolution methods. Various experiments were conducted using real hyperspectral images collected by Earth Observing-1 (EO-1), and experimental results demonstrate the speeding up of the proposed GPU implementation and compare it to the sequential CPU implementation and state-of-the-art techniques. The speeding up of the GPU-based implementation is up to approximately 70 times faster than the corresponding optimized CPU.     

Use of polymeric materials as a solid phase for radioimmunoassay and immunoradiometric assay techniques

Poly(acrylamide-acrylic acid-acrylonitrile)-ferrous sulfate, p(AM-AA-AN)-FeSO₄·7H₂O, resin was used as a solid phase for estimation of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) by radioimmunoassay (RIA) and immunoradiometric assay (IRMA) techniques. Comparison with cellulose particles as a known polymer solid phase was made. The tracers for RIA and IRMA were prepared by radioiodination of TSH antigen and TSH monoclonal antibody, respectively, using Iodogen as oxidizing agent. The tracers were purified by gel chromatography on Sephadex G-25 column. The polyclonal anti-TSH antibody was prepared via immunization of three white New Zealand rabbits with highly purified TSH antigen. The polymer was prepared by addition of aqueous solution of comonomer (AA-AN) and FeSO₄ as cross-linker to polyacrylamide p(AM) and irradiation of the mixture at ambient temperature in a ⁶⁰Co γ-cell. The polymer prepared and cellulose particles were activated using 1,1-carbonyldiimidazole, and these activated particles were coupled with the polyclonal TSH antibody. Optimization and validation of the RIA and IRMA techniques were made.     

Insulin, glucagon, portal systemic shunting, and hepatic failure in the dog

The cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) composition was studied in 54 premature infants. The pregnancy was normal and the delivery normal and non traumatic in all of them, and the 5 minutes Apgar score ranged from 6 to 9. No abnormalities were found on physical examination including neurological examination. Blood cell countings and blood gasometry were normal. CSF composition was studied as to: total cell count and total protein, glucose, bilirrubin and hemoglobin concentrations. Data found permit to stablish as physiologic the following values: leucocytes, until 16 per cumm; erithrocytes, until 1,280 per cumm; total protein content until 300 mgm/100 ml; bilirrubin until 80 micrometer/1; hemoglobin until 8 micrometer/1; glucose, two thirds of the concentration found in the blood. Protein, bilirrubin and hemoglobin are significantly increased as compared to values found for the CSF of 79 fullterm normal newborn babies evaluated previously. Hemoglobin was not detected in the CSF of any full term newborn baby. The differences found are probably due to a less efficient blood-CSF barrier in premature infants as compared to full-term newborn babies.     

Evaluation of 3 esterase tests for the diagnosis of subclinical mastitis at dry-off and freshening in dairy cattle

Subclinical mastitis (SCM) and intramammary infection (IMI) increase esterase activity in the glandular secretions of dairy cattle. Our objective was to evaluate the clinical performance of 3 commercially available esterase tests for diagnosing SCM and IMI. Foremilk samples were collected from 380 quarters (96 cows) at dry-off and from 329 quarters (83 cows) within 4 to 7 d after calving. Quarter somatic cell count (SCC) was measured using the reference method (DeLaval cell counter; De Laval International AB, Tumba, Sweden) with SCM defined as SCC >200,000 cells/mL. Bacterial culture of foremilk samples was used to diagnose IMI based on the growth of ≥100 cfu/mL. The SCC was estimated using 3 PortaSCC tests (PortaCheck, Moorestown, NJ) from the measured esterase activity and the California Mastitis Test (CMT). Clinical performance was evaluated using logistic regression to determine the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) and identify test sensitivity (Se) and specificity (Sp) at the optimal cut-point for diagnosing SCM and IMI. Test agreement was also evaluated using the kappa coefficient (κ) and weighted κ. The PortaSCC color test was the best-performing PortaSCC test for diagnosing SCM at dry-off (AUC = 0.90, Se = 0.91, Sp = 0.81, κ = 0.71) and at freshening (AUC = 0.86, Se = 0.74, Sp = 0.95, κ = 0.72), at an optimal cut-point of ≥250,000 cells/mL but required 45 min to produce a result. For comparison, the CMT required 2 min to produce a result and a CMT score of trace or higher was superior to the PortaSCC color test for diagnosing SCM at dry-off (AUC = 0.95, Se = 0.95, Sp = 0.86, κ = 0.81) and freshening (AUC = 0.88, Se = 0.79, Sp = 0.95, κ = 0.76). The PortaSCC quick test was the best-performing PortaSCC test for diagnosing IMI at dry-off (AUC = 0.81, Se = 0.81, Sp = 0.78 κ = 0.40) and required 5 min to produce a result, whereas the PortaSCC color test was the best performing PortaSCC test for diagnosing IMI at freshening (AUC = 0.80, Se = 0.75, Sp = 0.79 κ = 0.38). For comparison, the CMT was inferior to the PortaSCC quick test for diagnosing IMI at dry-off (AUC = 0.73, Se = 0.76, Sp = 0.60, κ = 0.20) but was equivalent to the PortaSCC color test at freshening (AUC = 0.79, Se = 0.58, Sp = 0.93, κ = 0.50). The PortaSCC color and quick tests and CMT were considered good tests for diagnosing SCM and IMI because clinically useful tests typically have an AUC >0.80 and κ >0.6. Based on the test sensitivity, cost, and analysis time, there does not appear to be a persuasive reason to select the PortaSCC tests over the traditional CMT for diagnosing SCM and IMI.     

Robust palm and knuckle ROI extraction in unconstrained environment

Pattern Analysis and Applications - Palm and knuckle prints can be extracted from a hand using a low-cost camera in a contactless manner. This makes the process of palm and knuckle recognition fast...     

Effect of cimetidine, bicarbonate and glucose on the bioavailability of different formulations of praziquantel

The effects of cimetidine, bicarbonate and glucose on the bioavailability of the two brands of praziquantel (CAS 55268-74-1) available in Egypt were studied in normal healthy volunteers. Brand 1 when coadministered with cimetidine showed elevated concentration of the drug at all time intervals. The difference was statistically significant at 3, 4, 6 and 8 h following treatment. On the other hand coadministration of cimetidine with brand 2 (Distocide) showed elevated concentration of the drug 1 h post treatment. Analysis of the pharmacokinetic parameters revealed insignificant difference comparing brand 1 versus brand 1 plus cimetidine. Significant differences were observed between the elimination rate constant Ke (h-1) for brand 2 (0.017 +/- 0.004) alone versus brand 2 plus cimetidine (0.006 +/- 0.001). Coadministration of bicarbonate or glucose with either brand 2 or brand 1 tended to depress the serum concentration of praziquantel. Possible explanations of these findings are discussed.     

Beneficial effect of air-electrolyte mixtures in stationary electrochemical machining

Stationary machining is suitable for deburring, embossing, finishing of dies with intricate profiles for forging, pressure-casting and extrusion processes. This paper is a comparative studyof stationary electrochemical machining performance with and without pressurised air in the electrolyte under various working conditions. The mixture was shown to improve the accuracy and surface finish, while diminishing sparking and formation of striations and smuts     

Effect of hybrid electrochemical smoothing–roller burnishing process parameters on roundness error and micro-hardness

In this paper, a novel finishing process, which integrates the merits of electrochemical smoothing (ECS) and roller burnishing (RB) for minimizing the roundness error and increasing surface micro-hardness of cylindrical parts, is proposed. Through simple equipment attachments, electrochemical smoothing–roller burnishing (ECS–RB) can follow the turning process on the same machine. To explore the optimum combinations of the ECS–RB process parameters in an efficient and quantitative manner, the experiments were designed on the basis of the response surface methodology technique. The effect of ECS–RB parameters, namely, burnishing force, applied voltage, inter-electrode gap, and workpiece rotational speed on the roundness error and surface micro-hardness was studied. From the multi-objective optimization, the optimal combination of parameter settings are burnishing force of 350 N, applied voltage of 8.2 V, inter-electrode gap of 2.75 mm, and rotational speed of 970 rpm for achieving the required lower roundness error and higher surface micro-hardness. Surface micro-hardness considerably increases about 31.5% compared to the initial surface micro-hardness, and about 2.32 μm roundness error can be achieved using the optimum combination of process parameters. Therefore, the combination of ECS and RB is a feasible process by which it potentially reduces roundness error and surface micro-hardness of axis-symmetric parts improving their reliability and wear resistance.     

Radiolabeling of alpha-fetoprotein monoclonal antibody for detection of liver tumor

Radiolabeling of alpha-fetoprotein monoclonal antibody (AFP-MoAb) with ¹³¹I for detection of liver tumor was performed. Liver tumor in Japanese quails was induced by aflatoxin B₁, which is potent carcinogen to animals and birds. The labeling of AFP-MoAb was carried out using chloramine-T as oxidizing agent. The effect of the oxidizing agent amount, substrate amount, reaction time, and pH of the reaction medium on the product yield was studied. The labeled compound was quantitatively separated and purified by HPLC. The biodistribution of ¹³¹I-AFP-MoAb was studied upon oral administration of the tracer in both normal and tumor-bearing Japanese quails. Localization of ¹³¹I-AFP-MoAb in liver tumor indicates that this labeled compound can be used for radioimmunodetection of liver tumor.