Videometer (Denmark)

Quantifying anisotropy in a turbid medium is critical for applications ranging from biomedical diagnostics to food quality assessment. Using a polarization camera and irradiation by a linearly polarized beam, we present a noninvasive method for estimating material anisotropy by analyzing depolarization ratios. To validate our approach, we perform a 3D microstructural analysis of mozzarella cheese samples to obtain ground-truth anisotropy levels using a metric based on structure tensor scale-space analysis of computed tomography (CT) scans. Our experiments with mozzarella samples of different anisotropy levels demonstrate a stronger correlation with CT-derived anisotropy and greater robustness as compared with oblique incidence reflectometry, which is limited by surface artifacts and sensitivity to sample orientation. Our method maintains high accuracy with simpler instrumentation and without sample rotation even when samples exhibit surface variations (non-flatness or texture). This establishes polarization imaging as a robust platform for noninvasive anisotropy characterization with potential applications in industrial quality control and biomedical diagnostics.

Study Design:Survey.Objectives:To investigate the needs and priorities of people with spinal cord injury for managing neurogenic bladder and bowel function and to determine their willingness to adopt neuromodulation interventions for these functions.Methods:Anonymous online survey. It was advertised by word-of-mouth by community influencers and social media, and by advertisement in newsletters of advocacy groups.Results:Responses from 370 individuals (27% female, 73% male) were included. Bladder emptying without catheters was the top priority for restoring bladder function, and maintaining fecal continence was the top priority for restoring bowel function. The biggest concerns regarding external stimulation systems were wearing a device with wires connecting to electrodes on the skin and having to don and doff the system daily as needed. The biggest concerns for implanted systems were the chances of experiencing problems with the implant that required a revision surgery or surgical removal of the whole system. Respondents were willing to accept an external (61%) or implanted (41%) device to achieve improved bladder or bowel function.Conclusions:Bladder and bowel dysfunction remain important unmet challenges for individuals living with SCI who answered our survey. These individuals are willing to accept some potential risks of nerve stimulation approaches given potential benefits. Additional consumer input is critical for guiding both research and translation to clinical use and personalized medicine.

Working with usability and UX design in an agile development context such as Scrum has been found challenging. Not all companies have the need or resources for a team of dedicated UX specialists. In other cases the UX team is perceived as a bottleneck. We therefore set out to investigate; how companies can perform UX tasks, when no or little UX expertise exists in the organization; if it is possible to perform this work in line with the Scrum sprints and how such work should be facilitated. To do this and since the Scrum framework states that every team member should be able to perform every work task, we trained software developers in three different companies to perform certain selected UX methods. The training was done as 1-day training sessions. The developers were provided with materials describing UX methods modified to be used in an agile, industrial environment. These consisted of guidelines, templates and cheat sheets. These materials were refined throughout the training sessions based on observations and feedback from the developers. We found that especially the templates were highly valued by the developers. The templates provided a quick overview of the method, guided them in the work and gave them security and confidence in conducting this type of work independently of the researchers. The templates described in the paper have been made publicly available and may be used freely.

The gene, flaA, encoding the flagellin protein of Listeria monocytogenes (strain 12067) has been isolated from an expression library in Escherichia coli using a flagellin-specific monoclonal antibody. DNA sequence analysis of a positive clone revealed the presence of an open reading frame of 287 amino acid residues with a calculated molecular mass of 30.4 kDa. Comparison of this sequence with flagellins from other bacteria showed a significant degree of homology in both the N- and C-terminal parts of the protein. The flagellin mRNA was determined to be 1 kb in size, which is the expected size for a monocistronic mRNA, and the temperature-dependent expression of flagellin was found to be regulated at the transcriptional level. Southern blot analysis, using the flagellin gene as probe, indicated that L. monocytogenes can be divided into two groups. These groups correspond to the flagellar antigens AB and ABC, respectively, as well as to the two types of L. monocytogenes based on the DNA sequence of the listeriolysin gene.

The use of heparin in a liquid form to measure ionized calcium (Ca++) in plasma or whole blood can induce preanalytical errors by dilution and by changing the original Ca++ value by binding or by re-equilibration with calcium in the anticoagulant solution. To quantify these errors, Ca++ was measured on serum pools under different sampling conditions. Incomplete syringe filling and specimen volume/syringe nominal volume ratio effects were tested. Syringes were rinsed with saline to yield pure dilution effects, with sodium heparinate to study binding and with calcium-titrated heparinate to evaluate 'calcium-distortion'. Detailed tables provide percentage error values for all sampling conditions. Dilution errors could reach -5% and binding was always important (-14 to -50%). Distortion was minimal around 1.25 mmol/L but could reach -4% for high and +8% for low Ca++ values. Errors increased when syringes were not filled to their nominal volume, especially with small-sized specimens.

A modern blood gas analyzer such as the ABL300 directly accepts samples from syringes or capillary tubing. The ABL300 measures pH, carbon dioxide tension, and oxygen tension on 85-microliters samples by using specific electrodes, and estimates hemoglobin concentration from the optical density of a nonhemolyzed sample. From these it calculates bicarbonate, standard bicarbonate, total carbon dioxide, base excess, standard base excess, and oxygen saturation and content. The electrodes are automatically calibrated by pumping bicarbonate/phosphate buffer solutions, gas-equilibrated within the thermostatic chamber, into the measuring cuvettes. Samples are preheated in metal tubing before being pumped automatically into the measuring chamber. An open liquid junction to a half-saturated potassium chloride solution is renewed with each sample to complete the pH circuit. The electrodes are housed in a 37 degrees C circulated-air thermostat, which also contains the equilibrators for the calibration solutions. Two known carbon dioxide mixtures are made from pure carbon dioxide by dilution with room air, which is compressed continuously, avoiding the use of premixed calibration gases. The computer determines the derived variables and can correct pH, carbon dioxide tension, and oxygen tension values to a user-defined body temperature. Corrections are made for predicted discrepancy between the measured and true value caused by the small sample size. The corrections depend on the difference in gas tension between sample and rinse solution.

The recent renewed interest in using hemoglobin oxygen saturation (sO2) as an alternative to oxygen tension (pO2) in arterial blood has been largely stimulated by the advent of the pulse oximeter for in vivo sO2 measurement. This has also extended to monitoring newborn premature infants with respiratory insufficiency. Two problems confronting clinicians and manufacturers are discussed here on the basis of measurements made on sick newborn premature infants. 1. Confusion overthe definition of sO2 and allied quantities. Here there is a need for clear internationally agreed definitions and symbols. 2. Difficulties in establishing reference/alarm limits for sO2 in newborn infants, with regard to detecting both hypoxemia and hyperoxemia. It is concluded that (a) the position of the hemoglobin-oxygen dissociation curve should be established in each individual before setting an sO2limit for hypoxemia, and (b) very high accuracy in sO2 measurements are required to detect hyperoxemia. Though in vivo calibration ma...