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The modular aerial camera system (MACS) is a development platform for optical remote sensing concepts, algorithms and special environments. For real-time services for maritime security (EMSec joint project), a new multi-sensor configuration MACS-Mar was realized. It consists of four co-aligned sensor heads in the visible RGB, near infrared (NIR, 700–950 nm), hyperspectral (HS, 450–900 nm) and thermal infrared (TIR, 7.5–14 µm) spectral range, a mid-cost navigation system, a processing unit and two data links. On-board image projection, cropping of redundant data and compression enable the instant generation of direct-georeferenced high-resolution image mosaics, automatic object detection, vectorization and annotation of floating objects on the water surface. The results were transmitted over a distance up to 50 km in real-time via narrow and broadband data links and were visualized in a maritime situation awareness system. For the automatic onboard detection of floating objects, a segmentation and classification workflow based on RGB, IR and TIR information was developed and tested. The completeness of the object detection in the experiment resulted in 95%, the correctness in 53%. Mostly, bright backwash of ships lead to an overestimation of the number of objects, further refinement using water homogeneity in the TIR, as implemented in the workflow, couldn’t be carried out due to problems with the TIR sensor, else distinctly better results could have been expected. The absolute positional accuracy of the projected real-time imagery resulted in 2 m without postprocessing of images or navigation data, the relative measurement accuracy of distances is in the range of the image resolution, which is about 12 cm for RGB imagery in the EMSec experiment.

In this paper we propose a new algorithm for digital terrain (DTM) model reconstruction from very high spatial resolution digital surface models (DSMs). It represents a combination of multi-directional filtering with a new metric which we call normalized volume above ground to create an above-ground mask containing buildings and elevated vegetation. This mask can be used to interpolate a ground-only DTM. The presented algorithm works fully automatically, requiring only the processing parameters minimum height and maximum width in metric units. Since slope and breaklines are not decisive criteria, low and smooth and even very extensive flat objects are recognized and masked. The algorithm was developed with the goal to generate the normalized DSM for automatic 3D building reconstruction and works reliably also in environments with distinct hillsides or terrace-shaped terrain where conventional methods would fail. A quantitative comparison with the ISPRS data sets Potsdam and Vaihingen show that 98-99% of all building data points are identified and can be removed, while enough ground data points (~66%) are kept to be able to reconstruct the ground surface. Additionally, we discuss the concept of size dependent height thresholds and present an efficient scheme for pyramidal processing of data sets reducing time complexity to linear to the number of pixels, O(WH).

Natural disasters as well as major man made incidents are an increasingly serious threat for civil society. Effective, fast and coordinated disaster management crucially depends on the availability of a real-time situation picture of the affected area. However, in situ situation assessment from the ground is usually time-consuming and of limited effect, especially when dealing with large or inaccessible areas. A rapid mapping system based on aerial images can enable fast and effective assessment and analysis of medium to large scale disaster situations. This paper presents an integrated rapid mapping system that is particularly designed for real-time applications, where comparatively large areas have to be recorded in short time. The system includes a lightweight camera system suitable for UAV applications and a software tool for generating aerial maps from recorded sensor data within minutes after landing. The paper describes in particular which sensors are applied and how they are operated. Furthermore it outlines the procedure, how the aerial map is generated from image and additional gathered sensor data.

Lung cancer histologic diagnosis is clinically relevant because there are histology-specific treatment indications and contraindications. Histologic diagnosis can be challenging owing to tumor characteristics, and it has been shown to have less-than-ideal agreement among pathologists reviewing the same specimens. Microarray profiling studies using frozen specimens have shown that histologies exhibit different gene expression trends; however, frozen specimens are not amenable to routine clinical application. Herein, we developed a gene expression–based predictor of lung cancer histology for FFPE specimens, which are routinely available in clinical settings. Genes predictive of lung cancer histologies were derived from published cohorts that had been profiled by microarrays. Expression of these genes was measured by quantitative RT-PCR (RT-qPCR) in a cohort of patients with FFPE lung cancer. A histology expression predictor (HEP) was developed using RT-qPCR expression data for adenocarcinoma, carcinoid, small cell carcinoma, and squamous cell carcinoma. In cross-validation, the HEP exhibited mean accuracy of 84% and κ = 0.77. In separate independent validation sets, the HEP was compared with pathologist diagnoses on the same tumor block specimens, and the HEP yielded similar accuracy and precision as the pathologists. The HEP also exhibited good performance in specimens with low tumor cellularity. Therefore, RT-qPCR gene expression from FFPE specimens can be effectively used to predict lung cancer histology.

Objectives: Type VIII superior labrum anterior posterior (SLAP) tears - described as SLAP II injuries with posterior extension of the labral tear to the 6 o’clock aspect of the glenoid - have been shown in short-term outcome work to be a source of noted shoulder instability, pain, and reduced function/range of motion in both throwing and non-throwing athletes. Limiting our evaluation and effective treatment of these injuries in both the professional athlete and weekend warrior is our lack of mid- and long-term post-operative outcomes after surgical repair. It is hypothesized that Type VIII SLAP repairs would fare poorly, particularly in the throwing cohort, at mid- to long-term follow-up. Methods: With a minimum 4-year follow-up after Type VIII SLAP repair by a single surgeon, return to sport, KJOC, ASES, stability, range of motion, and pain were compared between throwers, contact, and non-contact athletes. Results: With an average follow-up of 6.2 years, 34 athletes (19 throwers, 5 contact athletes, 10 non-contact athletes), with a mean age of 24.4 years were evaluated. Significant (p < .0001) improvements were observed between pre- and post-operative pain, range of motion, and ASES total and functional scores in throwers and non-throwers. Stability improved but was not significant (Table 1). There were no post-operative differences between throwers and non-throwers (Table 2). Pre-operative ASES functional score was significantly lower in contact athletes than in throwers and non-contact athletes (p < .01), but post-operatively improved significantly with no difference between groups (Table 3, 4). Overall, there was no difference in return to sport between groups as 73.7% of throwers and 93.3% of non-throwers returned (Table 4) and 62.5% of throwers and 57.9% of non-throwers (p = .73) returned to the same level. Further, 89.5% of throwers and 100% of non-throwers (p = .49) said that their surgery was worthwhile. Conclusion: Given the paucity of literature, current surgical outcomes of athletes who have undergone Type VIII SLAP repairs is limited, particularly in mid- and long-term function and return to sport. The current findings suggest that surgical repair of Type VIII SLAP lesions contributes to significant improvements in pain, function, and shoulder range of motion that persists >4 years after repair. However, stability changes after injury appear more chronic in nature. Further, thrower and non-throwers appear to have similar outcomes, which has not previously been seen in short term studies. Table 1: Cohort Pain, Stability, and Functional Outcomes Pre-Op Post-Op P-value Stability 5.7 ± 3.6 4.5 ± 3.7 .23 Pain 8.0 ± 1.5 1.3 ± 1.7 *** < .0001 ROM .76 ± .9 2.3 ± .5 *** < .0001 ASESFunctionalScore 15.0 ± 4.0 27.6 ± 3.5 *** < .0001 ASES Total 34.9 ± 12.1 90.1 ± 12.7 *** < .0001 Table 2: Thrower vs. Non-Thrower Post-Operative Outcomes Thrower Non-Thrower P-value Stability 3.7 ± 3.6 5.5 ± 3.7 .15 Pain 1.3 ± 1.8 1.2 ± 1.6 .83 ROM 2.3 ± .6 2.3 ± .5 .70 ASES Functional Score 27.4 ± 4.0 27.9 ± 2.7 .68 ASES Total 88.9 ± 14.0 91.6 ± 11.2 .54 Kerlan Jobe Score 66.0 ± 28.3 75.0 ± 28.7 .19 Table 3: Thrower vs. Contact/Non-Contact Athletes – Patient Characteristics and Pre-Operative Pain, Function, and Range of Motion Thrower Contact Non-Contact P-value Age at OR 22.9 ± 8.2 21.4 ± 5.8 28.9 ± 12.6 .21 Age at Follow-Up 29.1 ± 9.3 27.6 ± 5.9 34.9 ± 11.4 .24 Post-Op Follow-Up 6.3 ± 1.9 6.2 ± 1.8 6.0 ± 2.0 .95 # Anchors 4.6 ± 1.3 5.4 ± 1.3 5.5 ± .9 .22 Stability 5.7 ± 3.5 4 ± 4.4 6.3 ± 4.0 .67 Pain 7.9 ± 1.3 8.7 ± 1.2 8.0 ± 2.0 .74 ROM .5 ± .4 .3 ±.6 1 ± .6 .39 ASES Functional Score 14.8 ± 3.1 9.3 ± 5.5 17.7 ± 3.0 ** < .01 ASES Total 35.0 ± 9.9 23.8 ± 14.0 39.4 ± 14.5 .18 Table 4: Thrower vs. Contact/Non-Contact Athletes – Post-Operative Pain, Function, and Range of Motion Thrower (n=17) Contact (n=5) Non-Contact (n=10) P-value Stability 3.7 ± 3.6 4.2 ± 4.1 6.3 ± 3.6 .23 Pain 1.3 ±1.8 .8 ± 1.8 1.4 ± 1.6 .22 ROM 2.3 ± .6 2.6 ± .5 2.3 ± .5 .47 ASESFunctionalScore 27.4 ± 4.0 27.6 ± 4.3 28 ± 1.8 .90 ASES Total 88.9 ± 14.0 91.8 ± 16.0 91.5 ± 8.9 .83

Background: Microarray studies have identified different molecular subtypes of breast cancer with prognostic significance. To transition these classifications into the clinical laboratory, we have developed a real-time quantitative reverse transcription (qRT)-PCR assay to diagnose the biological subtypes of breast cancer from fresh-frozen (FF) and formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissues. Methods: We used microarray data from 124 breast samples as a training set for classifying tumors into 4 previously defined molecular subtypes: Luminal, HER2+/ER−, basal-like, and normal-like. We used the training set data in 2 different centroid-based algorithms to predict sample class on 35 breast tumors (test set) procured as FF and FFPE tissues (70 samples). We classified samples on the basis of large and minimized gene sets. We used the minimized gene set in a real-time qRT-PCR assay to predict sample subtype from the FF and FFPE tissues. We evaluated primer set performance between procurement methods by use of several measures of agreement. Results: The centroid-based algorithms were in complete agreement in classification from FFPE tissues by use of qRT-PCR and the minimized “intrinsic” gene set (40 classifiers). There was 94% (33 of 35) concordance between the diagnostic algorithms when comparing subtype classification from FF tissue by use of microarray (large and minimized gene set) and qRT-PCR data. We found that the ratio of the diagonal SD to the dynamic range was the best method for assessing agreement on a gene-by-gene basis. Conclusions: Centroid-based algorithms are robust classifiers for breast cancer subtype assignment across platforms and procurement conditions.

The development of automatic extraction methods for urban building and vegetation objects and the realization on a large urban data set have been accomplished within the project ‘Derivation of Building- and Vegetation Heights and Structures in Berlin’. This project was executed on behalf of the Senate Department for Urban Development and Environment of the City of Berlin. As input an UltraCamX dataset consisting of the true ortho mosaic with four spectral channels and the normalized digital surface model (nDSM) with 30 cm resolution were used. The size of the area adds up to about 450 km 2 . For the delineation of roof tiles additional slope and aspect layers were created. The workflow was developed in eCognition for automatic extraction of elevated urban objects and their height structures. Additionally we used focal statistics in ArcGIS to extend the workflow for the extraction of single tree crowns, since detailed information about the correct position and number of urban trees is relevant and completes the urban geo database. In this way a unique, complete and extensive workflow for an automatic urban objects extraction arises. Within the project methods for robust extraction of buildings with roof tiles as well as vegetation were applied. Greened roofs are automatically extracted and assigned to the class buildings. Furthermore building tiles which are located under trees are extracted by the intersection with the cadastral building data. For the transferability of the complete rule set a multi-layered workflow consisting of automated data import and export, iterating segmentation methods and fuzzy classification as well as object reshaping was developed and applied. The methods are transferable and effectively operate on large data sets. As results complete layers with building and vegetation shapes including single tree tops and crown outlines with comprehensive attributes like height and area are derived. The accuracies are in the range of 85% (trees) to 95 % (buildings). The shapes primarily serve as input for a complex urban-specific climate model, which also takes the morphology of hinterlands into account. In addition this data can be used as a basis for a variety of urban planning tasks e.g. for modeling of noise pollution, estimation of urban structure types, for town- or green space planning. They are a suitable basis for supplementing and upgrading of the official cadastral database, even though certain restrictions concerning the accuracies exist. Furthermore the object shapes are suitable for visualization tasks.

A critical step in positional cloning is the identification of candidate genes from a large, genetically defined region. Candidate gene isolation by hybrid selection, genomic sequencing, and direct cDNA library screening identified 45 candidate gene fragments (CGFs) from a 600 kb genomic region that contains the BRCA1 gene. These CGFs define a minimum of 15 genes, six of which are newly localized to the BRCA1 region. We present an analysis of the efficiency and the sequences generated for each of these methods. We also compare our CGF set to those reported for the BRCA1 region by three other groups, revealing a surprising lack of overlap among the sets.

A strong candidate for the 17q-linked BRCA1 gene, which influences susceptibility to breast and ovarian cancer, has been identified by positional cloning methods. Probable predisposing mutations have been detected in five of eight kindreds presumed to segregate BRCA1 susceptibility alleles. The mutations include an 11-base pair deletion, a 1-base pair insertion, a stop codon, a missense substitution, and an inferred regulatory mutation. The BRCA1 gene is expressed in numerous tissues, including breast and ovary, and encodes a predicted protein of 1863 amino acids. This protein contains a zinc finger domain in its amino-terminal region, but is otherwise unrelated to previously described proteins. Identification of BRCA1 should facilitate early diagnosis of breast and ovarian cancer susceptibility in some individuals as well as a better understanding of breast cancer biology.