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OBJECTIVE: The thyroid hormone has been demonstrated to be associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in different populations. However, the relationship between thyroid hormone and the degree of liver steatosis in overweight/obese subjects is still unclear. Liver ultra-sound attenuation (LiSA) is a newly developed ultrasound attenuation parameter for the analysis of hepatic steatosis. The study aimed to characterize the relationship between thyroid hormone and LiSA in overweight/obese participants. METHODS: This case-control study was performed in Ningbo First Hospital, China. A total of 24 lean, 66 overweight and 49 obese participants were consecutively recruited from January 2021 to May 2021. Thyroid hormone and other clinical features were measured. LiSA was acquired by using a Hepatus ultrasound machine. Multiple linear regression analyses were performed to examine associations of LiSA and clinic indices. RESULTS: Obese subjects had higher LiSA, fT3 and TSH levels than lean participants of similar age and sex (P < 0.05). LiSA was positively associated with the fT3 level. The multiple linear regression analyses showed that fT3 (ß = 0.353, P < 0.001) was independently associated with LiSA in overweight/obese participants. CONCLUSION: The fT3 level was independently associated with the degree of liver steatosis among the overweight/obese participants.

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of acellular collagen scaffold (ACS) in combination with basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) for the repair of traumatic tympanic membrane (TM) perforation in a rat model. Study Design: A prospective controlled animal study in a rat model of traumatic TM perforation. Setting(s): Tertiary medical center. Subjects and Methods: Sprague-Dawley rats (N = 84) with unilateral traumatic perforation of the right TMs were randomized to receive ACS, bFGF, ACS in combination with bFGF (ACS/bFGF), or nothing (spontaneous healing without any interventions as a control group). The healing outcomes were evaluated by otoscopy, optical coherence tomography, histology, and transmission electron microscopy at 1, 2, and 4 weeks postoperatively. The hearing outcomes were assessed with auditory brainstem response testing. Result(s): ACS/bFGF resulted in higher perforation closure rates at an earlier stage than spontaneous healing, ACS, and bFGF. Based on histology, optical coherence tomography, and transmission electron microscopy, a trilaminar structure and uniform thickness with mature, densely packed collagen fibers were seen in the ACS/bFGF group. Auditory brainstem response evaluation also showed that ACS/bFGF treatment promoted faster functional hearing recovery as compared with the control group. Conclusion(s): ACS is an effective TM scaffold and a carrier for bFGF. ACS/bFGF improves the TM closure rate, results in better-reconstructed TMs, and improves hearing. ACS/bFGF serves as a potential substitute for TM perforations in clinical settings.Copyright © American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation 2020.

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of acellular collagen scaffold (ACS) in combination with basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) for the repair of traumatic tympanic membrane (TM) perforation in a rat model. Study Design: A prospective controlled animal study in a rat model of traumatic TM perforation. Setting(s): Tertiary medical center. Subjects and Methods: Sprague-Dawley rats (N = 84) with unilateral traumatic perforation of the right TMs were randomized to receive ACS, bFGF, ACS in combination with bFGF (ACS/bFGF), or nothing (spontaneous healing without any interventions as a control group). The healing outcomes were evaluated by otoscopy, optical coherence tomography, histology, and transmission electron microscopy at 1, 2, and 4 weeks postoperatively. The hearing outcomes were assessed with auditory brainstem response testing. Result(s): ACS/bFGF resulted in higher perforation closure rates at an earlier stage than spontaneous healing, ACS, and bFGF. Based on histology, optical coherence tomography, and transmission electron microscopy, a trilaminar structure and uniform thickness with mature, densely packed collagen fibers were seen in the ACS/bFGF group. Auditory brainstem response evaluation also showed that ACS/bFGF treatment promoted faster functional hearing recovery as compared with the control group. Conclusion(s): ACS is an effective TM scaffold and a carrier for bFGF. ACS/bFGF improves the TM closure rate, results in better-reconstructed TMs, and improves hearing. ACS/bFGF serves as a potential substitute for TM perforations in clinical settings.Copyright © American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation 2020.

3D models of humans are commonly used within computer graphics and vision, and so the ability to distinguish between body shapes is an important shape retrieval problem. We extend our recent paper which provided a benchmark for testing non-rigid 3D shape retrieval algorithms on 3D human models. This benchmark provided a far stricter challenge than previous shape benchmarks. We have added 145 new models for use as a separate training set, in order to standardise the training data used and provide a fairer comparison. We have also included experiments with the FAUST dataset of human scans. All participants of the previous benchmark study have taken part in the new tests reported here, many providing updated results using the new data. In addition, further participants have also taken part, and we provide extra analysis of the retrieval results. A total of 25 different shape retrieval methods., Comment: International Journal of Computer Vision, 2016

Coordinated multi-point (CoMP) is a promising technique in next generation cellular networks. Compared with traditional mobile networks, one of the important design problems in CoMP is clustering, which decides how the base stations cooperate with each other. Channel state information (CSI) is needed in clustering decisions in CoMP. Most previous works assume that perfect CSI is available. However, practical systems suffer from constraints imposed by backhaul networks, which are used for CSI exchange. In this paper, we study the clustering and rate allocation problem in CoMP with delayed CSI. We present a decision theoretic approach to this problem. Specifically, we model such a system in the framework of networked Markov decision process (networked-MDP) with delays, which is equivalent to a partial observable Markov decision process (POMDP). We derive an optimal policy for such POMDP with low computation complexity. Simulation results are provided to show promising gain achieved in the proposed scheme over existing schemes especially when the delay is large and the channel coherence time is small. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science

Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science

We have created a new benchmarking dataset for testing non-rigid 3D shape retrieval algorithms, one that is much more challenging than existing datasets. Our dataset features exclusively human models, in a variety of body shapes and poses. 3D models of humans are commonly used within computer graphics and vision, and so the ability to distinguish between body shapes is an important shape retrieval problem. In this track nine groups have submitted the results of a total of 22 different methods which have been tested on our new dataset.