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At present deforestation in Sri Lanka increases rapidly and therefore, extreme attention should be given to finding different alternatives to prevent the destruction of forests for timber. Treated timber is one of the best solutions for increasing the durability. Boron treatment and Copper Chrome Boron (CCB) treatment methods are usually used to treat timber in Sri Lanka. Those two treatment methods have some critical issues such as the leaching of chemicals and risk to both human beings and the environment. Therefore, Alkaline Copper Quaternary (ACQ) treatment which is used pressure impregnation method has been introduced to overcome those issues. It is important to build timber classifications according to their treatability and application method. Hence, the present study was carried out to identify the relationship between ACQ treatability with anatomical characteristics of timber and classify timber according to their treatability via pressure impregnation method at A Wood Lanka Company at Kottawa, Sri Lanka. For this study, mostly used fourteen local and six imported timber species were selected and each sample was 30cmx10cmx5.5cm in size. The solution strength of ACQ was 4% and the treatability of ACQ was measured using chemical retention which was measured by the weight difference before and after the treatment. Chemical penetration depth was observed by using Chrome Azurol S. According to the results, timber species were classified into four classes "very difficult to treat", "moderately difficult to treat", "easy to treat" and "very easy to treat". The most effective timber species for ACQ treatment was Rubber. The relationship between treatability and total ray area was positive while the relationship between treatability and total vessel area was negative. But both showed weak relationships. Timber species were also categorized into four classes "fully penetrated", "partially penetrated, "penetrated up to 5mm" and "low penetrated" according to their penetration depth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurate identification and precise classification of freshwater mussel species that are among the most threatened freshwater taxa in the world, play a crucial role in informing conservation and management efforts for these organisms. However, due to the variability in shell morphology, relying solely on shell characteristics for species taxonomy poses significant challenges, thereby impeding effective conservation planning and management. The freshwater mussel genus Ptychorhynchus Simpson, 1900 is one such group in need of study. We integrate molecular phylogeny, shell morphology and soft-body anatomy to examine the classification of Ptychorhynchus denserugata (Haas, 1910) and Ptychorhynchus resupinatus (von Martens, 1902). The COI barcoding data support the clustering of P. denserugata and Nodularia douglasiae within a single clade, and P. denserugata shares the diagnostic feature of the genus Nodularia , i.e. knobs or bumps on the inner mantle surface in the excurrent aperture. Therefore, by integrating molecular data and anatomical characteristics, we confirm that the nominal species P. denserugata syn. nov. is a new synonym for N. douglasiae. The multi-locus (COI + ND1 + 16S rRNA + 18S rRNA + 28S rRNA) phylogeny and mitochondrial phylogenomics support the transfer of P. resupinatus from Ptychorhynchus to the newly elevated genus Cosmopseudodon stat. rev., as Cosmopseudodon resupinatus stat. rev. that is still considered the designated type species. We also describe a new species based on integrative taxonomy, i.e. Cosmopseudodon wenshanensis sp. nov. The comprehensive understanding of the taxonomy and diversity of the revised Cosmopseudodon species, and shell heteromorphism of N. douglasiae (= P. denserugata syn. nov.), will serve as a crucial foundation for further scientific assessment and conservation strategies pertaining to these taxa. ZooBank: Ptychorhynchus resupinatus is transferred from Ptychorhynchus to a newly elevated genus Cosmopseudodon stat. rev., as Cosmopseudodon resupinatus stat. rev. Ptychorhynchus denserugata syn. nov. is confirmed as a new synonym for Nodularia douglasiae. A new species, Cosmopseudodon wenshanensis sp. nov., is described based on integrative taxonomy. (Image credit: Ruiwen Wu.) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Myrciinae, one of the nine subtribes of Myrteae, is a monophyletic group and only includes Myrcia. Phylogenetic studies have culminated in the establishment of sections in this genus supported by floral morphological traits. The anatomy of reproductive organs in Myrteae has proven to be important for understanding the evolution in subtribes. We described the floral anatomy of 12 species of Myrcia in eight of the nine sections to identify characteristics that may be useful for species or section delimitation. Herbarium samples and freshly collected material were processed using standard anatomical techniques. Anatomical aspects in all floral whorls that were similar between the species studied, but may occur in species in other subtribes of Myrteae, are the monocyclic pattern of ovarian vascularization, an outer, median and inner parenchymatic ovarian mesophyll, homogeneous mesophyll in the sepal, and campylotropous ovule. Spongy parenchyma in the petal seems to be the most common pattern for Myrteae, but in Pliniinae, a sister subtribe of Myciinae, homogeneous mesophyll is the most frequent type. The discrete differences observed that should be further explored in the subtribe Myrciinae are the presence or absence of unicellular, non-glandular trichomes in the indumentum of the pedicel, gynoecium, hypanthium, sepal, and petal.

The anatomical characteristics are highlighted for Entandrophragma cylindricum, Entandrophragma utile, and Entandrophragma angolense. Wood samples, which were previously obtained from commercial timber industries in the Marmara region of Türkiye and used as course materials, were used. Qualitative and quantitative anatomical characteristics were determined. Qualitatively, characters such as distinct growth rings, diffuse-porous wood, deposits in vessel elements, simple perforation plates, alternate intervessel pits, heterogeneous ray type, and septate fibres, were common to all species. The quantitative evaluation showed that there were differences between species. Entandrophragma species differ in some wood characteristics such as the tangential diameter of the vessel, ray height, ray width, and fibre lumen diameter. E. utile had higher values of the mean tangential vessel diameter (180 μm) and fiber lumen diameter (18.4 μm) than the other two species. It is possible to say that the anatomical features of E. cylindricum differ from that of other species and that it will be easier to diagnose among other species. E. cylindricum had the lowest values of the mean tangential vessel diameter (147 μm) and ray height (361 μm). Distinctive characters for E. utile and E. angolense are tangential vessel diameter, vessel length, ray height, ray width, and all fibre dimensions.

This study aimed to determine the longitudinal-radial (LR) and longitudinal-tangential (LT) shear strength properties (fvLR, and fvLT) for three wood species (Hymenolobium petraeum, Erisma uncinatum and Couratari sp) as a way to correlate the strength between planes through the evaluation by analysis of variance and validation tests. Shear strength, compressive strength and anatomical characterization tests were carried out to support the evaluation of correlations. The results revealed that the shear strength was statistically different (p-value

The genus Tamarix has about 60 species growing mainly in saline areas of deserts and semi-deserts in Asia, Europe, northeastern and southwestern Africa. Thirty-five species of Tamarix are grown in Iran, which have been used in fields to prevent deforestation, control soil erosion or for ornamental purposes. We have limited information on anatomical features of these species. We used 15 anatomical characters for our investigation in 10 species. PCoA ordination of the studied species based on anatomical data separated some of these species from the others. We identified 5 species that were well delimited by anatomical analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Cervical cancer (CC) is the second most common cancer in women worldwide. Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) plays an important role in the diagnosis of CC, but the conventional techniques are affected by many factors. Purpose: To compare reduced-field-of-view (r-FOV) and full-field-of-view (f-FOV) DWI in the diagnosis of CC. Material and Methods: Preoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with r-FOV and f-FOV DWI images were collected. Two radiologists reviewed the images using a subjective 4-point scale for anatomical features, magnetic susceptibility artifacts, visual distortion, and overall diagnostic confidence for r-FOV and f-FOV DWI. The objective features included the region of interest (ROI) signal intensity of the cervical lesion (SIlesion) and gluteus maximus muscle (SIgluteus), standard deviation of the background noise (SDbackground), signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR). The differences of measured apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values between the two examinations in pathological grades and FIGO tumor stages were compared. Results: A total of 200 patients were included (170 with squamous cell carcinoma and 30 with adenocarcinoma). The scores of anatomical features, magnetic susceptibility artifacts, visual distortion, and overall diagnostic confidence for r-FOV DWI were significantly higher than those for f-FOV DWI. There was no difference in SNR and CNR between r-FOV DWI and f-FOV DWI. There were significant differences in ADC values between the two groups in all comparisons (P < 0.05). Conclusion: Compared with f-FOV DWI, r-FOV DWI might provide clearer imaging, fewer artifacts, less distortion, and higher image quality for the diagnosis of CC and might assist in the detection of CC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Saponaria sicula Raf. grows in Sicily, Sardinia, and Algeria on limestone cliffs and volcanic sands 1300–2500 m above sea level. The aim of the present study was to investigate how the pedo-climatic conditions influence the micromorphological, phytochemical, and biological properties of Sicilian S. sicula leaves collected in the Madonie Mountains (SsM) and on Etna Mt (SsE). Micromorphological investigations revealed that leaves from SsM had a higher amount of calcium oxalate druses in the mesophyll and a more intense blue–green staining with Toluidine blue O, indicating a higher content of polyphenols. These data were confirmed by phytochemical analyses carried out on hydroalcoholic extracts, which showed a higher content of total phenols (8.56 ± 0.57 g GAE/100 g DE) and flavonoids (6.09 ± 0.17 g RE/100 g DE) in SsM. Sixty-four compounds were identified by LC-DAD-ESI-MS analysis with propelargonidin dimer as the most abundant compound (10.49% and 10.19% in SsM and SsE, respectively). The higher polyphenol content of SsM leaves matches also with their biological activity, identifying SsM extract as the strongest plant complex (IC50 2.75–477.30 µg/mL). In conclusion, the present study experimentally demonstrates that not only climatic differences but also soil characteristics affect the micromorphological, phytochemical, and biological features of this plant species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the anatomical features of Anacardiaceae from Malaysia. A total of 31 species from 13 genera of the family Anacardiaceae in Malaysia were obtained from Kepong Xylarium (KEPw), Forest Research Institute Malaysia. The genera in Anacardiaceae were distinguished based on anatomical features. The diagnostic anatomical features that were used to separate the genera are scalariform perforations plates present in Campnosperma, larger rays in Pentaspadon and Spondias, and radial canals in some genera. Mineral inclusion, i.e., crystals and silica also could be diagnostic features to distinguish the genera in Malaysian Anacardiaceae; silica was observed in Gluta, Parishia, and Swintonia. Anatomical features could be used as indicators to the other wood properties and lead to potential usage of timber in Anacardiaceae. However, the presence of druses in individual Toxicodendron succedaneum indicated its adaptation to the local microclimatic conditions.

Current investigation was conducted to comprehend the girth increment and axial variation impact on the anatomical behavior of wood. To determine the intended uses, it is important to investigate the anatomical features of the wood. For this study, wood was removed from seeds origin Pterygota alata which were farm grown in Pollachi, Tamil Nadu, India. And from that 2×2×2 cm dimension samples were collected from four different girth classes (30-45, 45-90, 120-150, and 150-180 cm) and three axial positions (25%, 50% and 75% of the tree height). The samples were then subjected to microtomy, maceration, and optical measurements. The vessel, fibre, and ray anatomy were studied in this investigation. A log-linear model was used to examine the combined impact of girth increment, axial positions and their interaction. Fibre length, fibre diameter, fibre wall thickness, vessel length, ray height, ray width, and ray frequency were decreased towards the top, whereas fibre lumen width, vessel diameter, and vessel area were significantly increased towards the top. Growth of the girth had a positive influence on fibre length, fibre diameter, fibre lumen width, fibre wall thickness, vessel length, ray height, ray width and ray frequency. In contrast, vessel frequency decreased with the girth increment. Fibre and ray of the Pterygota alata were more than or near 1000 µm and vessels were diffuse porous among all the axial positions and girth classes. The anatomical characteristics of the Pterygota alata are similar to those of wood species used to make pulp and paper, so it could be a potential species to use in pulp production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Leaf anatomical features are widely used to better understand angiosperm taxonomy. However, such information is scarce for the family Myrtaceae. Aiming to fill this knowledge gap, we studied anatomical and micromorphological leaf characters of ten species of Psidium: P. cattleyanum, P. cauliflorum, P. corynanthum, P. guajava, P. guineense, P. macahense, P. myrtoides, P. oligospermum, P. ovale and P. sartorianum. Uniseriate epidermis, paracytic stomata, secretory cavities, and adaxial hypodermis are common among the studied species and are typical characteristics of Myrtaceae. The presence of three or more layers of palisade parenchyma and the absence of sclerenchyma are diagnostic characters of P. guajava. The abaxial epidermis of Psidium cattleyanum and P. macahense possess curved walls. Psidium corynanthum and P. macahense are the only species with sinuous anticlinal walls on both sides of the epidermis, with all other species having straight or curved walls. Open bicollateral vascular bundles are present in all the studied species except P. guineense. With the exception of P. cauliflorum, all the studied species possess druses. The absence of collenchyma in the adaxial face is exclusive to P. ovale. The leaf anatomy of P. macahense, P. corynanthum, P. oligospermum and P. ovale are described for the first time here.

The study was conducted at the Forest College and Research Institute, Mettupalayam, during 2019-2022, to explore new alternative pulpwood species with good paper-making potential. The samples were collected from seeds origin Pterygota alata which were farm grown in Pollachi, India. A total of 12 trees were removed with a specification of four different girth classes (30-45, 45-90, 120-150, 150-180 cm), from that 6 samples were collected from three different radial positions (pith, middle, and periphery) with the dimension of 2x2x2 cm³. Then samples were subjected to microtomy, maceration, and optical analysis. Fibre, vessel, and ray anatomy were studied in the current investigation. Results revealed that the maximum value of fibre length (1458.96 ±3.47 μm), fibre diameter (25.50±1.29 μm), vessel diameter (74.94±0.13 μm), vessels area (47723.47±359.67 μm²), ray height (1731.89±46.89 μm) ray width (165.07±1.41 μm) and ray frequency (5.51±0.02 ray/mm²) were identified at the peripheral region at the girth of 150-180 and 120-150 cm. The study suggested that Pterygota alata could be the prominent alternate species for pulp and paper production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Leaf anatomical features are widely used to better understand angiosperm taxonomy. However, such information is scarce for the family Myrtaceae. Aiming to fill this knowledge gap, we studied anatomical and micromorphological leaf characters of ten species of Psidium: P. cattleyanum, P. cauliflorum, P. corynanthum, P. guajava, P. guineense, P. macahense, P. myrtoides, P. oligospermum, P. ovale and P. sartorianum. Uniseriate epidermis, paracytic stomata, secretory cavities, and adaxial hypodermis are common among the studied species and are typical characteristics of Myrtaceae. The presence of three or more layers of palisade parenchyma and the absence of sclerenchyma are diagnostic characters of P. guajava. The abaxial epidermis of Psidium cattleyanum and P. macahense possess curved walls. Psidium corynanthum and P. macahense are the only species with sinuous anticlinal walls on both sides of the epidermis, with all other species having straight or curved walls. Open bicollateral vascular bundles are present in all the studied species except P. guineense. With the exception of P. cauliflorum, all the studied species possess druses. The absence of collenchyma in the adaxial face is exclusive to P. ovale. The leaf anatomy of P. macahense, P. corynanthum, P. oligospermum and P. ovale are described for the first time here. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Primary angle-closure glaucoma(PACG)is the most common type of glaucoma in clinical. It is characterized by progressive and irreversible development with high global incidence and high possibility of blindness. The pathogenesis of PACG is complicated. It is not only associated with the abnormality of the ocular anatomy, such as the small cornea, short eye axis and shallow anterior chamber, but also found that the abnormality of the lens, iris, ciliary body and choroid are related to the pathogenesis of PACG in recent years. Moreover, the occurrence of PACG is also closely related to genetic and psychological stress factors. Our study summarized some literatures and made a brief discussion on the pathogenesis of PACG from the three aspects of anatomical characteristics, genetic factors, and psychological stress. We hope to provide useful theoretical support for the early diagnosis and treatment of glaucoma.

Hippoboscid flies (Diptera: Hippoboscidae) are obligate bloodsucking ectoparasites of animals. In Europe, limited research has been conducted on this family until the recent introduction of the deer ked Lipoptena fortisetosa Maa, 1965. A new species of the genus Lipoptena, Lipoptena andaluciensis sp. nov., was found in southern Spain after extensive sampling with carbon-dioxide baited suction traps. A total of 52 females and 32 males were collected at 29 out of 476 sites examined over eight months in 2023. Lipoptena andaluciensis sp. nov. was characterized morphologically and molecularly. The new Lipoptena species can be differentiated from the closely related L. fortisetosa by size, chaetotaxy of the dorsal and ventral thorax, abdominal plates, and genitalia. Based on DNA-barcoding, our specimens showed the highest similarity with Melophagus ovinus (Linnaeus, 1758) (88.4 %) and with L. fortisetosa (86–88 %). Individual screening of Lipoptena specimens (n = 76) for seven important zoonotic pathogens such as bacteria (Anaplasmataceae family: Bartonella spp., Borrelia spp., Coxiella burnetii and Rickettsia spp.) and protozoans (Babesia spp. and Theileria spp.) by conventional PCR and RT-PCR was performed. DNA of C. burnetii was detected in one specimen, while two other specimens harboured Anaplasmataceae (Wolbachia spp., 100 % homology and another endosymbiont probably related to Arsenophonus sp., 95.3 % homology, respectively), all representing the first records of these bacteria in the Lipoptena spp. from Europe. Carbon dioxide traps probed its effectiveness as a reliable passive method for keds surveillance. Our study highlights the existence of a new Lipoptena species, presumably widely distributed in southern Spain. The role of this species in the transmission cycle of pathogens of medical-veterinary relevance needs to be considered in the area. [Display omitted] • Lipoptena andaluciensis sp. nov. was discovered in southern Spain. • Lipoptena andaluciensis sp. nov. was morphologically and molecularly characterized. • DNA of Coxiella burnetii and two Anaplasmataceae bacteria were detected in keds. • Carbon dioxide traps proved effective for monitoring Lipoptena species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Estimating human pose from images is the key to enabling machines to understand human actions. Existing works on human pose estimation mainly focus on designing more resultful deep neural networks to regress the locations of human joints. Although the human pose is obedient to anatomy and shows rich anatomical features, reasoning human body structure by machine in a complex environment is still an open problem. This paper proposes AnatPose which can effectively capture the structural dependency among human body parts by both deep neural network architecture and learning objectives: (1) For the deep neural network architecture, a bidirectional learning paradigm is proposed to learn body-part proportions and dependencies by organizing human body parts as sequential data. This innovation enables the messages to pass in a bidirectional way and makes the human body exchange information about each part deeper during training. (2) For the learning objective, the proposed AnatPose learns a probabilistic representation of multi-scale anatomical features, including keypoint heatmaps, bone heatmaps, and symmetry heatmaps. This innovation enables the multi-scale anatomical features to successfully capture the structural dependency at both low-level joints and high-level associations from the anatomical priors of the human body. Extensive experimental results demonstrate that the proposed AnatPose shows state-of-the-art performance on three challenging datasets. It achieves a PCK@0.2 detection rate of 95.2% on the LSP dataset, a PCKh@0.5 detection rate of 92.9% on the MPII dataset, and an mAP of 76.6% on the Microsoft COCO dataset. Benefiting from its state-of-the-art accuracy, the proposed approach is expected to be widely used in various human pose estimation-driven applications. • AnatPose organizes human body parts as anatomically sequential data. • AnatPose learns the anatomical properties by a bidirectional recurrent neural network. • An anatomically significant objective is designed for optimizing the neural network. • Extensive results show superior performance on human pose estimation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Takayasu arteritis (TA) is a difficult disease to deal with because there are neither reliable clinical signs, laboratory biomarkers, nor a single noninvasive imaging technique that can be used for early diagnosis and disease activity monitoring. Knowledge of aortic hemodynamics in TA is lacking. This study aimed to fill this gap by assessing hemodynamics in patients with TA using image-based computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. Methods: Eleven patients with TA were included in the present study. Patient-specific geometries were reconstructed from either clinical aortic computed tomography angiography or magnetic resonance angiography studies and coupled with physiological boundary conditions for CFD simulations. Key anatomical and hemodynamic parameters were compared with a control group consisting of 18 age- and sex-matched adults without TA who had healthy aortas. Results: Compared with controls, patients with TA had significantly higher aortic velocities (0.9 m/s [0.7, 1.1 m/s] vs 0.6 m/s [0.5, 0.7 m/s]; P = .002), maximum time-averaged wall shear stress (14.2 Pa [9.8, 20.9 Pa] vs 8.0 Pa [6.2, 10.3 Pa]; P = .004), and maximum pressure drops between the ascending and descending aorta (36.9 mm Hg [29.0, 49.3 mm Hg] vs 28.5 mm Hg [25.8, 31.5 mm Hg]; P = .004). These significant hemodynamic alterations in patients with TA might result from abnormal anatomical features including smaller arch diameter (20.0 mm [13.8, 23.3 mm] vs 25.2 mm [23.3, 26.8 mm]; P = .003), supra-aortic branch diameters (21.9 mm [18.5, 24.6 mm] vs 25.7 mm [24.3, 28.3 mm]; P = .003) and descending aorta diameter (14.7 mm [12.2, 16.8 mm] vs 22.5 mm [19.8, 24.0 mm]; P < .001). Conclusions: CFD analysis reveals hemodynamic changes in the aorta of patients with TA. The applicability of CFD technique coupled with standard imaging assessments in predicting disease progression of such patients will be explored in future studies. Future large cohort study with outcome correlation is also warranted. Clinical Relevance: Based on patient-specific computational fluid dynamics simulations, the present retrospective study revealed significant difference in aortic hemodynamics between the patients with and without Takayasu arteritis (TA). To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to evaluate hemodynamic conditions within TA, demonstrating the potential of computational flow modeling in capturing abnormal hemodynamic forces, such as high wall shear stress, resulted from irregular morphological changes. In the future, assessing the hemodynamic parameters within patients with TA during the prestenotic period, together with longitudinal computational fluid dynamics studies may allow better monitoring and management of TA.

Dwarf bamboo (Indocalamus decorus) is an O 3 -tolerant plant species. To identify the possible mechanism and response of leaf morphological, antioxidant, and anatomical characteristics to elevated atmospheric O 3 (EO 3) concentrations, we exposed three-year-old I. decorus seedlings to three O 3 levels (low O 3 -LO: ambient air; medium O 3 -MO: Ambient air+70 ppb high O 3 –HO: Ambient air+140 ppb O 3) over a growing season using open-top chambers. Leaf shape and stomatal characteristics, and leaf microscopic structure of I. decorus were examined. The results indicated that 1) the stomata O 3 flux (F st) of HO decreased more rapidly under EO 3 as the exposure time increased. The foliar O 3 injury of HO and MO occurred when AOT40 was 26.62 ppm h and 33.20 ppm h, respectively, 2) under EO 3 , leaf number, leaf mass per area, leaf area, and stomata length/width all decreased, while leaf thickness, stomatal density, width, and area increased compared to the control, 3) MDA and total soluble protein contents all showed significantly increase under HO (36.57% and 32.77%) and MO(31.91% and 19.52%) while proline contents only increased under HO(33.27%). 4) MO and HO increased bulliform cells numbers in the leaves by 6.28% and 23.01%, respectively. HO reduced the transverse area of bulliform cells by 13.73%, while MO treatments had no effect, and 5) the number of fusoid cells interspace, the transverse area of fusoid cells interspace, and mesophyll thickness of HO significantly increased by 11.16%, 28.58%, and 13.42%, respectively. In conclusion, I. decorus exhibits strong O 3 tolerance characteristics, which stem from adaptions in the leaf's morphological, structural, antioxidant, and anatomical features. One critical attribute was the enlargement of the bulliform cell transverse area and the transverse area of fusoid cells interspace that drove this resistance to O 3. Local bamboo species with high resistance to O 3 pollution thus need to be promoted for sustained productivity and ecosystem services in areas with high O 3 pollution. [Display omitted] • decorus has a high O3 threshold of foliar visible O3 injury. • Leaf thickness, LMA and stomatal density increased under high O3 exposure. • Bulliform cells numbers, interspaces of fusiod cells increased under high O3 exposure. • Mesophyll thickness increased under high O3 exposure. • The morphological and biochemical changes increased defense to O3 exposure stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Migraine is more common in Meniere's disease patients, who have some certain anatomical variations. But there are limited studies focusing on the anatomical variations in patients with Meniere's disease and migraine. OBJECTIVE: To explore the clinical and anatomical features in Meniere's disease patients with and without migraine, determining whether the coexistence of migraine can be used as a basis for clinical subtyping of Meniere's disease. METHODS: Ninety-five Meniere's disease patients and ninety-five healthy subjects matched with age, sex were selected. A detailed questionnaire based on the diagnosis criteria of Meniere's disease and migraine was designed. According to the CT scan, we divided the mastoid cell system of all the subjects into two types: well-pneumatization type and poor-pneumatization type. Meanwhile, the shortest distance between the sigmoid sinus and the posterior wall of the external acoustic canal was measured. RESULTS: Compared with those without migraine, Meniere's disease patients with migraine had a higher female comorbidity, poorer mastoid pneumatization, shorter distance between the sigmoid sinus and posterior wall of the external acoustic canal, longer history, higher frequency of vertigo attacks and better average hearing threshold. CONCLUSIONS: In our study, anatomical features as well as several clinical manifestations were proved to differ significantly between Meniere's disease patients with and without migraine, indicating the coexistence of migraine may be one standard for the clinical subtyping of Meniere's disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the number of dislocations and anatomical parameters after bipolar hemiarthroplasty (BHA) in femoral neck fracture (FNF) treatment. A total of 240 consecutive patients (157 females, 83 males) with FNFs who were treated with BHA were evaluated retrospectively. Of these 24 patients with dislocations divided into two main groups according to the number of dislocations: Single-dislocation (Group 1, n=15) and multiple-dislocation groups (Group 2, n=9). Surgery-related and anatomical morphologic features as well as patient factors and clinical outcomes were comparatively analyzed between the groups. Pre and postoperative standard anteroposterior (AP) and lateral radiographs were used to evaluate for surgical and anatomical parameters. Harris and Modified Harris Scores were used to evaluate postoperative clinical outcomes. The mean follow-up period was 30.2±11.7 months (range, 12-56 months). Mean age was 80.1±6.4 years (range, 71-98 years). Dislocation incidence was 10.0% (24/240). Mean time to first dislocation was 2.3±1.4 months (range, 1-6 months). Mean number of dislocations was 2.1±1.0 (range, 1-4). There was significant difference in surgical factors and anatomical parameters between groups including nonoperated side offset (ON), nonoperated side femoral offset (FO), residual femoral neck length (RFNL), major trochanter upper end and femoral head center distance (TEFHCD) of nonoperated side, height of hip center (HHC) of operated and nonoperated side, femoral neck-shaft angle (FNSA) of operated side and pelvic obliqity (PO) between the groups (p0.05). Surgery-related and anatomical morphologic features were found to be effective in the number of dislocations (re-dislocation) after BHA. Patients who experienced the first-time dislocation after BHA with anatomical and surgical risk factors should be carefully monitored and more controlled physiotherapy may be recommended in terms of re-dislocation risk. [Med-Science 2020; 9(3.000): 535-40]

In the southern tip of the Urals, late spring frosts, which regularly damage the leaves of the common oak (Quercus robur L.), are reflected in the formation of a specific anatomical structure of annual rings. The identification of calendar years with damage to oak leaves by late spring frosts, carried out on the basis of the known and revealed features of the anatomical structure of wood in annual rings of oak, showed that over the past 250 years, damage to leaves by frost most often occurred in the southern part of the Zilair plateau. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background Despite increasing clinical data suggest that internal mammary node (IMN) irradiation would improve local-regional control and overall survival in breast cancer, its role remains controversial due to increased risk of cardiac and pulmonary toxicity. The current study aims to determine the high risk areas of IMN metastases by collecting and analyzing the axial imaging of IMN involvement, in order to optimize IMN delineation for breast cancer. Methods Breast cancer patients with IMN involvement were retrospectively identified from single-center database. All available imaging modalities including thoracic CT, breast MRI, ultrasound and PET/CT were used to diagnose IMN metastases. Anatomical characteristics from axial imaging, including distribution of involved ribs and distance from the internal mammary vessels (IMV), were collected for each metastatic IMN. What’s more,the natural infiltration tendency of IMNs from IMV was calculated in this study. Results In total, 83 metastatic IMNs from 70 breast cancer patients (initial diagnosed:34 and recurrence: 36) were located from axial CT image in this study. The second intercostal space was the most likely involved in patients with single(n = 35, 53.0%) and multiple intercostal space (n = 31, 47.0%) involvement. The percentage of including IMN with a 5 mm, 6 mm and 7 mm medial/lateral distance to the IMV were 75.9% (63/83), 89.2.6% (74/83) and 92.3% (77/83) respectively. While in maximal dorsal/ventral distance, nearly 95% of the nodes were encompassed into 6 mm depth to the IMV. Over 65% of IMN adenopathy (32/49,65.3%) were found to have a growth direction close to the sternum. By retrospective reviewing diagnostic reports, MRI demonstrated a high diagnostic performance in diagnosis of IMN disease (90.3%, 28/31), while CT had a higher misdiagnosis rate (22/63, 34.9%). The diagnostic efficiency of IMN could be improved if different methods were combined. Conclusions For patients with indications of prophylactic IMN irradiation, a 7 mm medial and 6 mm dorsal distance to the IMV on axial CT would be optimal to cover the clinical volume of IMN; and it would be reasonable to extend clinical tumor volume (CTV) coverage towards sternum for patients with evident IMN disease. Multi-imaging modalities are recommended to improve the diagnostic specificity and sensitivity of IMN metastases.

The greatest challenge in engineering of human mandible implants lies in its customization for each patient individually, by adapting them to the patient’s anatomical, morphological and physiological characteristics. This customization maximizes the efficiency of the patient‘s health recovery process. The application of anatomically shaped and personalized bone endoprosthesis, fixation plate and scaffold models bring great improvement to the clinical practice in maxillofacial surgery. It ensures that implant meets the biomechanical and dentofacial aesthetic requirements and, ultimately, reduces complications during recovery. In order to create such implants, novel procedure based on personalized models of mandible and its parts, and also plates and scaffold implants is presented in this paper. Design procedures for the creation of the personalized models are based on the application of Method of Anatomical Features, which has been already applied for the creation of geometrical models of human bones. This procedure improves pre-surgical planning, enables better execution of surgical intervention, and as a consequence improves patient recovery processes.

Background and Aims Root sprouting (RS), i.e. the ability to form adventitious buds on roots, is an important form of clonal growth in a number of species, and serves as both a survival strategy and a means of spatial expansion, particularly in plants growing in severely and recurrently disturbed habitats. Occurrence and/or success of plants in severely and recurrently disturbed habitats are determined by two components, namely the ability to produce adventitious buds on roots and the vigour of their production. As mechanisms behind different magnitudes of RS remain unclear, our study investigates: (1) whether the presence or absence of specific tissues in roots can promote or limit RS; and (2) whether there is some relationship between RS ability, RS vigour and species niche. Methods We studied RS ability together with RS vigour in 182 Central European herbaceous species under controlled experimental conditions. We used phylogenetic logistic regressions to model the presence of RS, RS vigour, the relationship between RS and anatomical traits and the relationship between RS and parameters of species niches. Key Results A quarter of herbs examined were able to produce adventitious buds on roots. They were characterized by their preference for open dry habitats, the presence of secondary root thickening and the occurrence of sclerified cortical cells in roots. Root sprouting vigour was not associated with any specific anatomical pattern, but was correlated with the environmental niches of different species, indicating that preferred disturbed and dry habitats might represent a selection pressure for more vigorous root sprouters than undisturbed and wet habitats. Conclusions Our study shows that sprouting from roots is quite common in temperate dicotyledonous herbs. Two components of RS – ability and vigour – should be considered separately in future studies. We would also like to focus more attention on RS in herbs from other regions as well as on external forces and internal mechanisms regulating evolution and the functions of RS in both disturbed and undisturbed habitats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was conducted to provide foundational anatomical information of three infrequently used wood species growing in tropical areas. Three species of the genus Syzygium, namely the clove tree, kupa, and spicate eugenia, were selected. The representative anatomical features of these species were classified using the International Association of Wood Anatomists (IAWA) anatomical feature list. The representative anatomical features of the clove tree included the distribution of small vessels with tangential diameters of approximately 60 µm in cross-surface, a dense spacing of vessels, the axial parenchyma in narrow bands or lines up to three cells wide, and the body ray cells procumbent with over four rows of upright and/or square marginal cells. The kupa showed axial parenchyma confluent and the body ray cells were procumbent with over four rows of upright and/or square marginal cells. In the spicate eugenia, the axial parenchyma was diffused in aggregate with exclusively uniseriate rays and the body ray cells were procumbent with one row of upright and/or square marginal cells. These three species were easily identified by optical microscopy via the anatomical features of the woods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The investigation of gross anatomical features of the gastro - intestinal tract (GIT) of the guinea pig (Cavia porcellus, Linnaeu-1758) was carried out. The aim of the study was to describe the gross anatomical anatomical features of the gastro - intestinal tract (GIT) of the guinea pig (Cavia porcellus, Linnaeus-1758). Fifteen healthy adult guinea pigs of both sexes were purchased from Samaru market in Zaria. The animals were anaesthetized and sacrificed, with the oesophagus, tongue, stomach, small and large intestines, liver, and gall bladder dissected. The tissue samples were immediately fixed by complete immersion in 10 % normal formalin, labeled and fixed. The various segments of the GIT were weighed, measured and photographs were taken. The results of the morphologic studies showed that the oesophagus was a direct continuation of the pharynx, extending from the pharynx to the cardia of the stomach. The oesophagus lay dorsal to the trachea throughout its length until it entered the stomach. The stomach showed three regions, namely; cardia, fundus and pylorus, while the small intestine showed also three regions, namely; the duodenum, the jejunum and the ileum. The large intestine had three distinct regions; the caecum, the colon and the rectum. The liver was divided into four lobes, namely: the right, the left, the intermediate and the accessory lobes. The gall bladder was observed as a sac-like structure, with a light yellowish green colouration. The tongue was observed as a mass of striated muscle fibers covered by a mucous membrane. This work concluded that the gastrointestinal tract of guinea pig was similar to those of other rodents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The aim of this study was to identify, anatomically characterize, and determine some of the physical properties of wood species that are used for boat production in the southeast region of the state of Pará in Brazil. The samples were collected during visits to shipyards in the region, then it was identified at the specie level and technologically characterized. Eight species belonging to four distinct botanical families were identified. All identified species had presented some type of deposition in its vessels and 87% of them had had medium density (0.40 to 0.75 g.cm-3). The species with higher frequency of occurrence and that had more parts used for boat production were Caryocar villosum and Apuleia leiocarpa. It was observed two different group arrangements of species, “piquiá” (Caryocar villosum and Alexa grandiflora) and “tatajuba” (Bagassa guianensis and Enterolobium schomburgkii). It was also identified the illegal commercialization of “castanheira’s” wood (Bertholletia excelsa). The results can indicate anatomical and physical similarities in woods used in boat production and can contribute as a component of a database in wood anatomy of specie used for boat production in the Amazon region, besides to subside practices that contribute to an effective supervision of the logging market in the region.

The objective of the study is to clarify the topographic and anatomical features of the most common perforating veins of the lower extremities.Material and methods. 70 lower extremities (sectional material) without signs of chronic venous diseases and 1700 patients. Research methods: anatomical dissection and ultrasound examination of the venous system of the lower extremities (duplex ultrasound scanning).Results. 4 to 6 perforants were found on the medial surface of the foot. They directly connected the medial boundary of the vein and vv. plantaris medialis. They are located along the medial intermuscular septum at the subfascial level; have subcutaneous tributaries from the medial surface of the foot at the epifascial level. The most constant localization of perforating veins on the ankle was the distal part of the medial surface of the ankle. On the ana to mic preparations they were the main draining vessels of this area. All perforating veins of the ankle (direct and indirect) and foot are the part of the neurovascular bundle, and at the subfascial level of the perforating veins 2, are located on the sides of the artery, next to the nerve branch. Rare incidence of perforating veins of the popliteal region, combining with the lack of typical saphenopopliteal anastomosis, allows relating them to the atypical PV. Among all of the perforating veins of the thigh, the highest frequency of incidence was in the lower third. These veins connected the great saphenous vein, and the femoral vein in 55.6 %. They passed along the medial intermuscular septum and had a long subfascial course. In all cases there is nearby arterial twig.Conclusion. Perforating veins in different areas of the lower extremities have their features of structure. General is that perforating veins mostly are the neurovascular bundles (vein – artery – nerve).

Background: Since its inception, the erector spinae plane block has been used for a variety of truncal surgeries with success in both adults and children. However, the anatomical features, route of spread, and dermatomal coverage are still not fully understood in a pediatric population. Objectives: To identify the anatomical features of the erector spinae fascial plane space by replicating an erector spinae plane block in a fresh neonatal cadaveric sample. The primary aim was to determine the spread of the dye within the fascial plane, while the secondary aims were to determine whether the needle direction or entry site affected the spread. Methods: The block was replicated bilaterally using 0.1 mL/kg of iodinated contrast dye in nine fresh unembalmed preterm neonatal cadavers. The dye was introduced under ultrasound guidance at vertebral level T5 and T8. Additionally, the needle was oriented cranial‐caudal vs caudal‐cranial to determine if the needle orientation influenced the spread of dye. The block was also replicated midway between the adjacent transverse processes as opposed to the lateral tip of the transverse process to determine the spread. Results: From the total sample size, 14 "blocks" were successfully replicated, while 4 "blocks" were either incomplete or failed blocks. Contrast dye was found in the paravertebral, intercostal, and epidural spaces, including posteriorly over the neural foramina. Results revealed that the needle direction or entry site did not influence the spread within the fascial plane. Conclusion: Contrast material was found in the paravertebral, epidural, and intercostal spaces over an average of 5 vertebral levels when using 0.1 mL/kg. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We compared the anatomical characteristics of vegetative organs, peduncle and mycorrhizal morphology of the two known species of Sirhookera (Epidendroideae, Orchidaceae) to identify anatomical markers for identification and the ecological adaptations of these species. The leaves are hypostomatic bearing tetracytic stomata and the walls of subsidiary cells are smooth in Sirhookera lanceolata and undulate in Sirhookera latifolia. On the adaxial and abaxial surfaces the leaves are covered by a thick cuticle. The hypodermis is dimorphic and present on both sides of the leaf; chlorenchyma is homogenous and the vascular bundles are collateral. The rhizome of Sirhookera possesses a single-layered epidermis, thick cuticle, thin-walled parenchymatous ground tissue containing starch grains and scattered collateral vascular bundles. A thick-walled sclerenchymatous band separates the cortex from the parenchymatous ground tissue comprising of banded cells in the peduncle. Starch grains are present in the ground tissue of the S. latifolia peduncle. The roots consist of the velamen, n-thickened exodermis, thin-walled cortex consisting of water-storage cells, O-thickened endodermis and a vascular cylinder with parenchymatous pith. Starch grains are present in the root cortical cells of S. lanceolata but absent in S. latifolia. Fungal pelotons that aids in nutrient acquisition were observed in the root cortical region of both species. The study revealed significant differences between the anatomical characteristics of the two species and that most of the anatomical features of Sirhookera relate to their ecological adaptations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Schizolobium parahyba var. amazonicum (paricá) has been demonstrating good silvicultural performance when cultivated in Agroforestry systems in the Amazon. However, the effects of this cultivation system on wood properties is unknown. The objectives of this research are to understand the effects of the cultivation system on the anatomical characteristics, and physical and mechanical properties of paricá wood. The material used in this study was obtained from an experiment in the southwest region of the state of Pará, Brazil. The treatments included an agroforestry system (AFS) of paricá in consortium with soy (Glycine max), in the first year, corn (Zea mays) in the second and a monoculture only with the studied species. Our results demonstrated significant differences in soil chemical attributes among treatments: the soil in the AFS showed higher levels of phosphorus (P), calcium (C) and copper (Cu) than the soil of the monoculture system. The wood produced in the AFS is significantly different in relation to the monoculture system: wood density and the resistance to compression parallel to fibers being lower in AFS. Furthermore, the AFS presented significant statistical effects on some anatomical characteristics of the wood. Higher values for tangential diameter of vessel lumina and for ray frequency were found. The alterations in wood properties were mainly related to the high concentration of phosphorus in the AFS soil, which can affect the tree growth rates and cambial activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mangrove species are a group of trees, shrubs or herbs that grow in tropical and subtropical intertidal zones. They are usually divided into true mangrove and semi-mangrove speices according to their distribution; the former is confined to intertidal zones with relatively high salinity, but the latter can grow in both intertidal and upland zones. Intertidal zones are generally characterized by high salinity, high sunlight and hypoxia. In such hostile environments, how true mangrove and semi-mangrove speices differ in their ecological adaptation strategies has not been well elucidated. In order to explore the differences of ecological adaptation strategies of true mangrove and semi-mangrove speices on high salinity, high light and hypoxia in intertidal zones, we compared the leaf anatomical and functional traits of five true mangrove and four semi-mangrove speices that were widely distributed in south subtropical zones. We selected the five true mangrove species(Acrostichum aureum, Aegiceras corniculatum, Acanthus ilicifolius, Bruguiera gymnorr-hiza, Kandelia candel)and the four semi-mangrove speices(Heritiera littoralis, Hibiscus tiliaceus, Pongamia pinnata, Thespesia populnea)at Mangrove Natural Reserve of Qi'ao Island of Zhuhai City, Guangdong Province, China. We observed leaf anatomical structures including leaf epidermis and ancillary structure, hypodermis, palisade tissue, spongy tissue and stomata, and then measured stomatal density and leaf thickness under a JSM-6360LV scanning electron microscope. We measured leaf functional traits including specific leaf area, leaf mass per area, leaf water content, and leaf fresh/dry weight ratio according to a published standar-dized protocol. The results were as follows:(1)Leaves of all the nine mangrove species had common anatomical characteristics such as epidermis covered by horny layers, palisade and spongy tissues that differentiated in the mesophyll, and sunken stomata.(2)Leaves of the true mangrove species had waxy layers and hypodermis, but had no foliar trichomes, and their stomata were only distributed in the lower epidermis; however, leaves of semi-mangrove speices had less wax layers, some of them had foliar trichomes but no hypodermis, and distribution of stomata in either upper or lower epidermis was not consistent.(3)Stomatal density and specific leaf area of true mangrove species were significantly lower than those of semi-mangrove speices(P<0.05), while leaf thickness, leaf water content, specific leaf mass and leaf fresh/dry weight ratio were significantly higher than those of semi-mangrove speices(P<0.05). These results indicate that leaves of true mangrove species have more advantages in maintaining salinity balance and water conservation than semi-mangrove speices, and thus can better adapt to high salinity in intertidal environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of this study was to develop a semi-automated prediction approach of target shifts using machine learning architecture (MLA) with anatomical features for prostate radiotherapy. Our hypothesis was that anatomical features between planning computed tomography (pCT) and pretreatment cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) images could be used to predict the target, i.e. clinical target volume (CTV) shifts, with small errors. The pCT and daily CBCT images of 20 patients with prostate cancer were selected. The first 10 patients were employed for the development, and the second 10 patients for a validation test. The CTV position errors between the pCT and CBCT images were determined as reference CTV shifts (teacher data) after an automated bone-based registration. The anatomical features associated with rectum, bladder and prostate were calculated from the pCT and CBCT images. The features were fed as the input with the teacher data into five MLAs, i.e. three types of artificial neural networks, support vector regression (SVR) and random forests. Since the CTV shifts along the left–right direction were negligible, the MLAs were developed along the superior–inferior and anterior–posterior directions. The proposed framework was evaluated from the residual errors between the reference and predicted CTV shifts. In the validation test, the mean residual error with its standard deviation was 1.01 ± 1.09 mm in SVR using only one feature (one click), which was associated with positional difference of the upper rectal wall. The results suggested that MLAs with anatomical features could be useful in prediction of CTV shifts for prostate radiotherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: 2D/3D medical image registration is one of the key technologies for surgical navigation systems to perform pose estimation and achieve accurate positioning, which still remains challenging. The purpose of this study is to introduce a new method for X-ray to CT 2D/3D registration and conduct a feasibility study., Methods: In this study, a 2D/3D affine registration method based on feature point detection is investigated. It combines the morphological and edge features of spinal images to accurately extract feature points from the images, and uses graph neural networks to aggregate anatomical features of different points to increase the local detail information. Meanwhile, global and positional information are extracted by the Swin Transformer., Results: The results indicate that the proposed method has shown improvements in both accuracy and success ratio compared with other methods. The mean target registration error value reached up to 0.31 mm; meanwhile, the runtime overhead was much lower, achieving an average runtime of about 0.6 s. This ultimately improves the registration accuracy and efficiency, demonstrating the effectiveness of the proposed method., Conclusions: The proposed method can provide more comprehensive image information and shows good prospects for pose estimation and achieving accurate positioning in surgical navigation systems., (© 2023 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Currently, significant progress has been made in predicting brain age from structural Magnetic Resonance Imaging (sMRI) data using deep learning techniques. However, despite the valuable structural information they contain, the traditional engineering features known as anatomical features have been largely overlooked in this context. To address this issue, we propose an attention-based network design that integrates anatomical and deep convolutional features, leveraging an anatomical feature attention (AFA) module to effectively capture salient anatomical features. In addition, we introduce a fully convolutional network, which simplifies the extraction of deep convolutional features and overcomes the high computational memory requirements associated with deep learning. Our approach outperforms several widely-used models on eight publicly available datasets (n = 2501), with a mean absolute error (MAE) of 2.20 years in predicting brain age. Comparisons with deep learning models lacking the AFA module demonstrate that our fusion model effectively improves overall performance. These findings provide a promising approach for combining anatomical and deep convolutional features from sMRI data to predict brain age, with potential applications in clinical diagnosis and treatment, particularly for populations with age-related cognitive decline or neurological disorders., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest We declare that there are no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this paper, and the manuscript is approved by all authors for publication., (Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Two pot experiments were carried out during two summer seasons of 2015 and 2016 in the screen house, Faculty of Agriculture, Zagazig University, Sharkia Governorate, Egypt to study the effect of foliar spraying with unihumic and/or aminomore on growth, certain physiological aspects, as well as yield and its components. Leaf anatomical features of Tepa cowpea cultivar grown under 20%, 40% and 60% water holding capacity (WHC) were also evaluated. The results revealed that drought stress at either 40% or 20% of WHC significantly decreased all growth characters studied [plant height (cm), leaf area (cm2), number of branches/plant and dry weight of whole plant (g)]. Photosynthetic pigments and carbohydrate fractions in the leaves, as well as yield and its components [number of pods/plant, number of seeds/pod, 100-seed weight, seed weight/plant (g) and carbohydrate fractions as well as protein in seeds] were also decreased. Spraying of unihumic and/or aminomore significantly increased all these parameters. With respect to leaf anatomical features, results indicated that drought stress at either 40% or 20% of WHC reduced lamina thickness of leaflet blade, thickness of palisade tissue, spongy tissue, upper and lower epidermis, size of midvein bundle (in length and in width), number of xylem vessels/midvein bundle and the mean diameter of vessel. However, foliar spraying with unihumic and/or aminomore enhanced leaf anatomical features, except slight reduction in thickness of lamina, palisade tissue and lower epidermis. The best result was attained when cowpea plants were grown under 60% of WHC and sprayed with the combination of both unihumic and aminomore. Foliar spraying of unihumic or aminomore alleviated the adverse effect of drought. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The anatomical description of vegetative parts of Taberenaemontana alternifolia L. belonging to the family Apocynaceae was investigated in the present study. The leaves of T. alternifolia is hypostomatic with paracytic stomata, uniseriate epidermis made up of thin-walled parenchymatous cells covered by thin cuticle on both adaxial and abaxial surfaces. The hypodermis comprises of angular collenchyma cells. Mesophyll is dorsiventral containing silica bodies and vascular bundles are bicollateral. The petiole is flattened adaxially and arch-shaped abaxially with a uniseriate epidermis covered by a thin cuticle. The hypodermis is 7-8 layered angular collenchyma cells consisting of laticifers and parenchymatic, cortical layers consisting of silica bodies and thick-walled fibers and U-shaped bicollateral vascular bundles. Secondary growth in stems is characterized by the formation of periderm and thick-walled fibers in the vascular tissues. Bicollateral vascular bundles are covered by sclerenchymatous patches, parenchymatous cortex and pith consist of fibers, laticifers and silica bodies. The root possess unicellular root hairs, compactly arranged thin-walled uniseriate epidermis, 16-18 layered cortex containing silica bodies and fibers, indistinct endodermis, radially arranged vascular bundles and 14-16 arched xylem. Pitted water-storage cells are present in the conjunctive tissue. Lignin deposition was observed in the root stelar region and pith is absent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate the anatomical features related to the failure of cryoballoon (CB) ablation for atrial fibrillation (AF) on pre-procedural CT images. We retrospectively analyzed CT images of 100 patients with AF who had undergone a first CB ablation at our institution between June 2016 and April 2017. We measured the angle, short- and long axis length, and the area and ovality of 4 major pulmonary vein (PV) ostium on CT images. We performed logistic regression analysis to analyze the anatomical features related to the failure (incomplete CB ablation) of PV isolation. We also performed a receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis to identify an appropriate cut-off value for anatomical features significantly associated with incomplete CB ablation. We analyzed 400 PVs in 100 patients [aged 64 (range, 27–82) years, 59% male]. The rate of incomplete CB ablation was significantly higher for right-than left-sided PVs (p < 0.001). The anatomical feature significantly associated with incomplete CB ablation was the angle at the right inferior PV (RIPV) (AOR: 1.17; 95% CI: 1.09–1.27, p < 0.001) and the right superior PV (RSPV) (AOR: 1.12; 95% CI: 1.01–1.23; p = 0.014). In the ROC analysis, the optimal cut-off value for RIPV and RSPV angle to discriminate an incomplete CB ablation were 40.1° and 79.7°, respectively. Our findings may help to select the appropriate ablation strategy to treat patients with AF. We show that the angle is an anatomical feature significantly related to failed CB ablation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To enhance effective wood utilization, knowledge of the anatomical features that impact its service behavior is indispensable. The anatomical features of branchwood and stemwood of Betula costata Trautv. from natural secondary forests in central (Muzhaling mountain) and northeast (Maoershan mountain) China were studied to provide adequate information to enhance their efficient utilization, especially branchwood, whose use could widen the raw material base of the timber industry. Microtomed sections were employed to determine the tissue dimensions and proportions. Analyses of variance were used to test the anatomical feature differences between the two different sites, between the stemwood and branchwood, and between the heartwood and sapwood. The results showed that B. costata wood is diffuse-porous with more but narrower vessels located in the branch than in the stem. The branchwood also had a significantly higher fiber proportion than the stemwood. The sapwood exhibited significantly longer fibers than the heartwood. B. costata from Maoershan had significantly longer fibers, lower fiber proportions, larger fiber lumen diameter, and higher vessel density than that from Muzhaling. The results suggested that B. costata branchwood from Maoershan is suitable for papermaking and glued plates, while stemwood can be used for light construction purposes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Non-timber forest products are sources of income for rural populations. This is the case in Burundi for bamboo and until a few years ago for rattan. The latter is threatened by clearing of its habitats for agricultural purposes. This study presents an overview of rattan in Burundi. A mapping of the sites still hosting rattan and hosted it some six to thirty years ago was carried out and the areas covered were measured. In total, rattan covered, in 2015, an area of 1.04 ha on various sites in southern Burundi and mainly in the Kigwena Forest Natural Reserve. The analysis of the anatomical features of rattan stems from this forest confirmed that the species present in Burundi is Eremospatha haullevilleana De Wild. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Salt stress is considered one of the most serious problems reducing the agricultural productivity. This experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of foliar treatment of trehalose either separately or in combinations with salt stress on growth, grain yield and some biochemical constituents of four wheat cultivars (Giza 168, Gemiza-10, sids-12 and Sakha- 94). Results revealed that, irrigation of wheat plants with sodium chloride (200 Mm) caused reduction in all growth parameters, yield components and some anatomical features of the leaves, particularly in the most sensitive cultivars (Giza 168 & Sads 12) but these parameters were non significantly effect in the other cultivars (Gemiza 10 & Sakha 94) which considered tolerant cultivars. In addition, amino acid and sugar fraction of the shoots of wheat cultivars showed significantly increased in all cultivars under salt stress. The most pronounced increases were recorded in the tolerant cultivars (Gemiza 10 & Sakha 94). Also, total carbohydrates and total soluble protein contents of the yielded grains were significantly decreased, but endogenous trehalose content was significantly increased under salt stress particularly in the sensitive cultivars. Treating wheat plants with 10 mM trehalsoe mitigate the adverse effect of salt stress and led to obvious increases in all the mentioned parameters, either in non stressed and salt stressed plants as compared with control plants. Based on the obtained results, trehalose can be used as effective osmportectant in alleviating the deleterious effect of salt stress in wheat plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The clinical presentation and diagnostic workup in pediatric cervical spine injuries (CSI) are different from adults owing to the unique anatomy and relative immaturity. The current article reviews the existing literature regarding the uniqueness of these injuries and discusses the current guidelines of radiological evaluation. A PubMed search was conducted using keywords "paediatric cervical spine injuries" or "paediatric cervical spine trauma." Six hundred and ninety two articles were available in total. Three hundred and forty three articles were considered for the review after eliminating unrelated and duplicate articles. Further screening was performed and 67 articles (original articles and review articles only) related to pediatric CSI were finally included. All articles were reviewed for details regarding epidemiology, injury patterns, anatomic considerations, clinical, and radiological evaluation protocols. CSIs are the most common level (60%-80%) for pediatric Spinal Injuries (SI). Children suffer from atlantoaxial injuries 2.5 times more often than adults. Children's unique anatomical features (large head size and highly flexible spine) predispose them to such a peculiar presentation. The role of National Emergency X-Ray Utilization Study, United State (NEXUS) and Canadian Cervical Spine Rule criteria in excluding pediatric cervical injury is questionable but cannot be ruled out completely. The minimum radiological examination includes 2- or 3-view cervical X-rays (anteroposterior, lateral ± open-mouth odontoid views). Additional radiological evaluations, including computerized tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are obtained in situations of abnormal physical examination, abnormal X-rays, inability to obtain adequate X-rays, or to assess cord/soft-tissue status. The clinical criteria for cervical spine injury clearance can generally be applied to children older than 2 years of age. Nevertheless, adequate caution should be exercised before applying these rules in younger children. Initial radiographic investigation should be always adequate plain radiographs of cervical spine. CT and MRI scans should only be performed in an appropriate group of pediatric patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An investigation was carried out to understand the mechanism(s) underlying enhanced Fe or Zn uptake in low Fe-Zn accumulator wheat genotype 4HPYT-414, due to inoculation of siderophore-producing and zinc-solubilizing endophytes—Arthrobacter sulfonivorans DS-68 and Arthrobacter sp. DS-179. Root anatomical features, using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), qualitative and quantitative aspects of production of organic acids and sugars in root exudates, and expression of TaZIP genes were analysed to relate to endophyte-mediated higher concentrations of Fe and Zn in the roots and shoots of wheat plants. TEM studies revealed that the endodermis, cortical region, root hair extension, xylem and xylem vessels, pericycle and vascular bundles were more pronounced and thicker in inoculated treatments, as compared to control. The organic acid profile of root exudates revealed five types of organic acids, with citric acid being predominant. Inoculation of A. sulfonivorans and Arthrobacter sp. brought about 5- and eightfold increases in the amounts of acids, respectively, as compared to control, particularly citric acid, succinic acid and acetic acid. Among the four TaZIP genes targeted, expression was achieved only for TaZIP3 and TaZIP7 genes, which showed 1-2 fold increases in the inoculated treatments. The results clearly indicated that the endophyte-mediated overexpression of TaZIP3 and TaZIP7 genes in roots and shoots, and the observed anatomical and exudate changes were acting synergistically in facilitating higher Fe and Zn translocation in roots and shoots. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Morphological, anatomical and chromosome studies of Hyophila crenulata C, Mull. Ex Dus, Thuidium gratum (P. Beauv) Jaeg., Barbula lambarenensis P. Vard., Stereophyllum nitense Mitt. and Bryum coronatum Schwaegr from Nigeria, were carried out with a view to bridging some knowledge gaps that exist in their characterization and providing insightful information that could be useful in elucidating their taxonomic status. The morphological and anatomical studies revealed several gametophytic and sporophytic attributes which have not been previously reported and which were diagnostic for the moss species studied. The chromosome studies revealed the chromosome numbers to be Hyophila crenulata n = 4; Thuidium gratum n = 12(10+2 m); Barbula lambarenensis n=3; Stereophyllum nitense n = 9; and Bryum coronatum n = 10. From the results of the study, it could be concluded that the details of the morphological and anatomical descriptions as well as the chromosome numbers being reported for the first time in this study for the moss species studied could be very useful in their identification and taxonomic delimitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To estimate the lung tumor position from multiple anatomical features on four-dimensional computed tomography (4D- CT) data sets using single regression analysis ( SRA) and multiple regression analysis ( MRA) approach and evaluate an impact of the approach on internal target volume ( ITV) for stereotactic body radiotherapy ( SBRT) of the lung. Eleven consecutive lung cancer patients (12 cases) underwent 4D- CT scanning. The three-dimensional (3D) lung tumor motion exceeded 5 mm. The 3D tumor position and anatomical features, including lung volume, diaphragm, abdominal wall, and chest wall positions, were measured on 4D- CT images. The tumor position was estimated by SRA using each anatomical feature and MRA using all anatomical features. The difference between the actual and estimated tumor positions was defined as the root-mean-square error ( RMSE). A standard partial regression coefficient for the MRA was evaluated. The 3D lung tumor position showed a high correlation with the lung volume (R = 0.92 ± 0.10). Additionally, ITVs derived from SRA and MRA approaches were compared with ITV derived from contouring gross tumor volumes on all 10 phases of the 4D- CT (conventional ITV). The RMSE of the SRA was within 3.7 mm in all directions. Also, the RMSE of the MRA was within 1.6 mm in all directions. The standard partial regression coefficient for the lung volume was the largest and had the most influence on the estimated tumor position. Compared with conventional ITV, average percentage decrease of ITV were 31.9% and 38.3% using SRA and MRA approaches, respectively. The estimation accuracy of lung tumor position was improved by the MRA approach, which provided smaller ITV than conventional ITV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]