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Background P53 mutation status is a pivotal biomarker for gliomas. Here, we developed a machine-learning model to predict p53 status in lower-grade gliomas based on radiomic features extracted from conventional magnetic resonance (MR) images. Methods Preoperative MR images were retrospectively obtained from 272 patients with primary grade II/III gliomas. The patients were randomly allocated in a 2:1 ratio to a training (n = 180) or validation (n = 92) set. A total of 431 radiomic features were extracted from each patient. The lest absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) method was used for feature selection and radiomic signature construction. Subsequently, a machine-learning model to predict p53 status was established using the selected features and a Support Vector Machine classifier. The predictive performance of all individual features and the model was calculated using receiver operating characteristic curves in both the training and validation sets. Results The p53-related radiomic signature was built using the LASSO algorithm; this procedure consisted of four first-order statistics or related wavelet features (including Maximum, Median, Minimum, and Uniformity), a shape and size-based feature (Spherical Disproportion), and ten textural features or related wavelet features (including Correlation, Run Percentage, and Sum Entropy). The prediction accuracies based on the area under the curve were 89.6% in the training set and 76.3% in the validation set, which were better than individual features. Conclusions These results demonstrate that MR image texture features are predictive of p53 mutation status in lower-grade gliomas. Thus, our procedure can be conveniently used to facilitate presurgical molecular pathological diagnosis., Highlights • We established a p53-related radiomic signature in lower-grade gliomas based on LASSO algorithm. • We developed a machine-learning model using the radiomic signature and a support vector machine. • P53 mutation status of lower-grade gliomas was predicted effectively based on our machine-learning model.

To investigate the radiomic features associated with Ki-67 expression in lower grade gliomas and assess the prognostic values of these features. Patients with lower grade gliomas (n = 117) were randomly assigned into the training (n = 78) and validation (n = 39) sets. A total of 431 radiological features were extracted from each patient. Differential radiological features between the low and high Ki-67 expression groups were screened by significance analysis of microarrays. Then, generalized linear analysis was performed to select features that could predict the Ki-67 expression level. Predictive efficiencies were further evaluated in the validation set. Cox regression analysis was performed to investigate the prognostic values of Ki-67 expression level and Ki-67-related radiological features. A group of nine radiological features were screened for prediction of Ki-67 expression status; these achieved accuracies of 83.3% and 88.6% (areas under the curves, 0.91 and 0.93) in the training and validation sets, respectively. Of these features, only spherical disproportion (SD) was found to be a prognostic factor. Patients in the high SD group exhibited worse outcomes in the whole cohort (overall survival, p

Introduction: Accumulating recent evidence demonstrated that even low-grade gliomas consist of heterogeneous cell populations and that recurrent tumors often demonstrated further complex clonal evolution, which lead to marked intratumoral heterogeneity. Due to such heterogeneity, the emergence of malignant clones resistant to therapy can occur easily. Therefore, understanding of the changes of the molecular profile during tumor progression is important to develop a proper treatment strategy. To this end, we performed comparative gene profile analysis between primary low-grade and recurrent gliomas. Methods: Multi “omics” analysis was performed in a large number of glioma samples that includes 26 paired samples of primary and recurrent astrocytic tumors. For “omics” analysis, we performed exome sequencing and RNA-sequencing using Illumina HiSeq, as well as epigenomic profile analysis using an Illumina Infinium 450K methylation chip. Results: By comparing somatic non-synonymous mutations of tumor samples, we observed that only a limited number of crucial driver mutations were retained in recurrent tumors in most cases, and that recurrent tumors gained many new mutations, indicating significant temporal heterogeneity. Interestingly, low-grade glioma treated by temozolomide - a common chemotherapeutic agent for glioma - acquired numerous de novo mutations accompanying mutations in mismatch repair genes and showed a “hypermutator phenotype”. Genome-wide DNA methylation analysis revealed characteristic DNA demethylation during malignant progression in a subset of IDH1/2 mutant astrocytic tumors, which initially showed the glioma CpG island methylator phenotype (G-CIMP). We labeled these tumors as “G-CIMP-demethylated”. Most demethylated loci were located outside of the CpG island. DNA demethylation accompanied the upregulation of mitosis related genes, which are considered to be related to the enhanced tumor growth of these G-CIMP-demethylated tumors. Integrated multi “omics” analysis demonstrated that G-CIMP-demethylated gliomas frequently harbor the RB pathway alterations. Conclusions: Recurrent tumors had a markedly different molecular profile from their primary tumor. The characteristic changes observed in the recurrent tumors are expected to be a future therapeutic target.

A multimodal treatment has been applied for patients with rectal gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) that represents 5% of the total localization. Meanwhile, transanal endoscopic microsurgery (TEM) offers a minimally invasive method for full-thickness tumor excision with negative margins and low morbidity. We report the single most extensive analysis of data from China to evaluate the feasibility and safety of the procedure combined with neoadjuvant imatinib therapy to treat patients with rectal GISTs.All the clinical data were obtained for patients who underwent the procedure in our hospital from February 2008 to May 2015, and the data were retrospectively analyzed.Full-thickness excision by TEM was performed on 25 patients with rectal GIST by using primary surgical excision, 8 of whom had received perioperative chemotherapy after histopathological confirmation under the care of medical oncologists. No obvious postoperative complications were observed. The average tumor downsizing ratio was 14.5%, which apparently enabled oversized tumors to be resected by TEM. The comparative risk did not increase during or after the procedure. We did not observe recurrence or metastasis in any of the 25 patients during the median 3-year follow-up period after the procedures.The perioperative imatinib treatment effectively allowed oversized rectal GIST tumors to be resected by TEM, and the procedures did not exhibit an increased risk. Exclusively, the TEM procedure with alternative neoadjuvant imatinib therapy is a feasible and safe modality for treating patients with rectal GISTs.

Recent studies showed that genomic analysis of lower grade gliomas can be very effective for stratification of patients into groups with different prognosis and proposed specific genomic classifications. In this study, we explore the association of one of those genomic classifications with imaging parameters to determine whether imaging could serve a similar role to genomics in cancer patient treatment. Specifically, we analyzed imaging and genomics data for 110 patients from 5 institutions from The Cancer Genome Atlas and The Cancer Imaging Archive datasets. The analyzed imaging data contained preoperative FLAIR sequence for each patient. The images were analyzed using the in-house algorithms which quantify 2D and 3D aspects of the tumor shape. Genomic data consisted of a cluster of clusters classification proposed in a very recent and leading publication in the field of lower grade glioma genomics. Our statistical analysis showed that there is a strong association between the tumor cluster-of-clusters subtype and two imaging features: bounding ellipsoid volume ratio and angular standard deviation. This result shows high promise for the potential use of imaging as a surrogate measure for genomics in the decision process regarding treatment of lower grade glioma patients.

Introduction: Invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC) is the second most common type of breast cancer accounting for 5%–15% of all the breast cancer cases. The present study was performed on 171 breast cancer patients from Balochistan registered in CENAR (Center for Nuclear Medicine and Radiotherapy), Quetta. Materials and Methods: Written consent was obtained from the patients. The history of the disease was taken from the patients, and the patients' enrollment files were retrieved. Results: Of the 171 patients, 5 (2.96%) were diagnosed with ILC with tumor Grade II, and stage of the cancer reported was Grade III in all the 5 patients affected with ILC. Conclusion: ILC is the second most common type of breast cancer diagnosed with comparatively lower grade but almost reported infiltrating.

Much of the literature on the consequences of natural disasters has focused on their physical and psychological ramifications. Few researchers have considered how the impacts of a natural disaster can influence academic achievement. This study analyses data collected from nearly 300 students at a mid-sized, private university in the northeast United States to determine if the effects of Cyclone Sandy in 2012 are associated with measures of academic achievement. The findings reveal that experiencing headaches after the event resulted in a higher likelihood of students suffering a loss of academic motivation. In addition, experiencing headaches and a loss of academic motivation were correlated with a lower grade point average (GPA) during the semester in which Sandy made landfall. However, the more direct effects of the superstorm, including displacement and a loss of power, did not have a significant bearing on academic achievement. Lastly, the paper examines the implications for higher education policy and future research.

This article underlines the most important aspects of the integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) power plants used in conjunction with carbon capture and storage technologies. The distinct advantages of IGCC power plants with carbon capture are briefly presented through illustrative and quantifiable examples, for example, ability to process lower grade coals (more available and cheaper than the high-grade coals), gasification optimization by fuel blending, assessing various carbon capture methods (e.g., gas–liquid absorption, and chemical looping), reducing the energy and cost penalty for carbon capture by precombustion CO 2 capture, and multifuel multiproduct operation scenario of gasification plants for energy vectors polygeneration.

In 2009, the post-9/11 GI bill went into effect, broadly expanding higher education benefits to military service members and veterans in proportion to their time served since September 10, 2001. Since then, hundreds of thousands of troops have returned to the United States from the wars in the Middle East and have chosen to use their earned benefits to attend college. As of 2012 at least one-half million veterans have used their post-9/11 GI bill benefits (Sander, 2012) and these numbers are expected to increase as the United States continues to draw down its forces in Afghanistan. However, a fair number of students who matriculate into higher education postmilitary service are suffering from unhealed wounds of war, both physical and mental (Church, 2009). In addition, 30–40% of student veterans do not complete their postsecondary programs (Cate, 2013), and they tend to have lower grade point averages (GPAs) than their nonveteran student counterparts (Durdella & Kim, 2012). A growing number of articles (e.g., Ackerman, DiRamio, & Mitchell, 2009) and reports (e.g., American Council on Education, 2013; DiRamio & Jarvis, 2011; Steele, Salcedo, & Coley, 2010) in the academic literature examine the transition from military service to school. Nonetheless, more research is needed to document the problems that student veterans report having on campus, and to examine how these problems might be influenced by their military experiences and its consequences. The objective of this study is to investigate what predicts student veterans’ frequent reports of troubling experiences on campus such as feeling unfairly judged by their professors or sensing that they do not fit in (Elliott, Gonzalez, & Larsen, 2012), problems that could impede academic success. According to Astin (1993)

Protection of environment, conservation of natural aggregate resources, and sustainable constructions are the three important essences of any modern development. The utilization of recycled aggregate (RA) in concrete is one such attempt. Generally, use of RA is restricted to lower grade applications because of its strength and durability problems. The use can be extended to high-strength concrete with suitable processing and improved mixing techniques. In the present paper, the influence of processing of RA, on compressive strength and durability properties (water absorption, sorptivity, chloride ion penetration, drying shrinkage, and abrasion resistance) for high-strength concrete is reported. From the experimental results, it was concluded that the ‘processed recycled aggregate’ enhanced the strength and durability properties of recycled aggregate concrete (RAC), when compared with unprocessed RA. The degree and extent of processing influence the properties of RAC. After processing, recycled aggregate c...

Waldorf education, an independent alternative to public schooling, aims to produce holistically healthy graduates in a formulation that rejects the conventional distinction between education and health. Also striving to bridge that divide, this article characterizes the pedagogically salutogenic techniques Waldorf teachers use in pre-kindergarten (pre-K) and lower grade classes and explicates the ethnomedical understandings underlying them. Waldorf teachers position children as budding participants in a unified field of spiritual and other forces, prioritizing whole-child activities that keep these forces healthfully motile. Their work entails a critique not only of mainstream public schooling's ostensibly pathogenic "head-to-head" focus, but also of the biomedical approach to pediatric health. My analysis of this conjoined critique takes into account the cultural, structural, and existential realities within which Waldorf education's salutary pedagogy is daily framed and fabricated. Further, it explores the implications for anthropology of attending to movement as a key feature of healthful human experience.

A PubMed review was conducted for papers reporting on attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in postsecondary students. The review was performed in order to determine the prevalence and symptomatology of ADHD in postsecondary students, to examine its effects on academic achievement, and discuss appropriate management. The prevalence of ADHD symptoms among postsecondary students ranges from 2% to 12%. Students with ADHD have lower grade point averages and are more likely to withdraw from courses, to indulge in risky behaviors, and to have other psychiatric comorbidities than their non-ADHD peers. Ensuring that students with ADHD receive appropriate support requires documented evidence of impairment to academic and day-to-day functioning. In adults with ADHD, stimulants improve concentration and attention, although improved academic productivity remains to be demonstrated. ADHD negatively impacts academic performance in students and increases the likelihood of drug and alcohol problems. Affected students may therefore benefit from disability support services, academic accommodations, and pharmacological treatment.

Using a dataset containing nearly 500,000 courses taken by over 40,000 community and technical college students in Washington State, this study examines the performance gap between online and face-to-face courses and how the size of that gap differs across student subgroups and academic subject areas. While all types of students in the study suffered decrements in performance in online courses, those with the strongest declines were males, younger students, Black students, and students with lower grade point averages. Online performance gaps were also wider in some academic subject areas than others. After controlling for individual and peer effects, the social sciences and the applied professions (e.g., business, law, and nursing) showed the strongest online performance gaps.

Introduction Understanding the characteristics of experimental smoking among youth is critical for designing prevention programs. This study examined which student- and school-level factors differentiated experimental smokers from never smokers in a nationally representative sample of Canadian students in grades 9 to 12. Methods School-level data from the 2006 Canadian Census and one built environment characteristic (tobacco retailer density) were linked with data from secondary school students from the 2008–2009 Canadian Youth Smoking Survey and examined using multilevel logistic regression analyses. Results Experimental smoking rates varied across schools (p $lt; .001). The location (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 0.66, 95% CI: 0.49–0.89) of the school (urban vs. rural) was associated with the odds of a student being an experimental smoker versus a never smoker when adjusting for student characteristics. Students were more likely to be experimental smokers if they were in a lower grade, reported low school connectedness, used alcohol or marijuana, believed that smoking can help people relax, received pocket money each week and had a family member or close friend who smoked cigarettes. Conclusion School-based tobacco prevention programs need to be grade-sensitive and comprehensive in scope; include strategies that can increase students' attachment to their school; and address multi-substance use, tobacco-related beliefs and the use of pocket money. These programs should also reach out to students who have smoking friends and family members. Schools located in rural settings may require additional resources.

In this study, the assessment scheme has been developed to evaluate the ecological function of rivers which were changed by the river improvement project. The evaluating factors are composed of physical structure in river channels and ecological connectivity in river areas, and each value of the factors is quantified based on 4 and 2 variables, respectably. This scheme was applied to past (1918, before artificial river improvement) and present Mankyung River area. A GIS model was adopted for calculating, analysing, and presenting river ecological conditions using the 204 grids and 7 reaches in study area. Comparison results show that the evaluation grade was decreased in both factors after river improvement. The main causes of lower grade (from II to IV) for physical structure are the river straightening and crossing structures. The reduction (from II to III) in ecological connectivity grade effected by linear fragmentation due to roads and rails is found to be greater than areal fragmentation due to land-use. In particular, it is also found that a high degree of ecological connectivity in 1918 was distributed along the river, but that one in 2007 showed a tendency to scatter because of the construction of levee and increase of urbanized area.

As living standards around the world improve and metal consumption increases, extracting raw materials will likely become more challenging in the future. Although already part of the general metal supply stream, metal recycling has to increase if we are to build a more sustainable society. With the recent widespread adoption of a range of consumer and industrial electronics, the recycling of the so-called electronic scrap (“e-scrap”) has also increased in importance. One of the leading technologies for the recycling of e-scrap and copper scrap is the ISASMELT™ Top Submerged Lance technology. This article describes new opportunities for the U.S. recycling industry to yield full value from collected, sorted, and separated waste metals, in particular, e-scrap and lower grade copper scrap by the use of ISASMELT™ technology. The article includes the description of a case study example of a regional, compact ISASMELT™ plant in the United States treating a blend of e-scrap and copper scrap, having a total feed capacity of 75000 t/year of feed. Plants of higher or lower capacity are also discussed.

A method has been developed in which laboratory batch flotation test results can be used in conjunction with mineralogical analysis to determine whether an ore is amenable to successful recovery via the flash flotation processing route. In the original development work, using a high grade refractory gold ore, a direct correlation was found with the particle properties of the plant flash flotation cell concentrate and a concentrate produced by a targeted laboratory batch flotation test. The respective concentrates were observed to have nearly identical distributions of the target elements (Au, S and Fe) by size as well as almost identical liberation characteristics of the key mineral (pyrite) for flotation. A second ore from the same mine, but of significantly lower grade and different grinding characteristics has now been tested to determine if the same correlations exist that were observed with the previous work and to provide further insight into the differences between laboratory and plant response in order to potentially refine the procedure further and enhance its usability as a predictive tool. Testing of the second ore confirmed the original findings that a targeted laboratory batch flotation test can produce a concentrate with a target mineral (pyrite) distribution by size and liberation that matches the concentrate produced by the industrial scale flash flotation cell whilst treating the same feed material. Further to this, grades of the intermediate size classes in the laboratory concentrates were found to be similar to those of the plant flash cleaner cells. From the correlations in performance observed with both ore types in the laboratory batch cell and plant flash flotation cell, methodologies are proposed that can be used to determine: • whether a new ore could be treated by flash flotation in a plant with an existing flash flotation circuit; • whether a plant operating without an existing flash flotation circuit could benefit from installing one; and • the amenability of an ore to the flash flotation process for greenfield flow sheet development. A step wise approach is given for each to allow the method to be applied to and adapted for other ores and valuable mineral types. The advantage of following this methodology exists in that no specialised equipment or analysis methods are required to perform the test. Standard laboratory equipment has been used throughout the test-work and mineralogical analysis performed via commercially available MLA. The procedure is kept as basic as possible to allow for maximum usability on sites where only essential laboratory equipment exists.

The technology of zinc distillation at three large-scale production sites in Chongqing, southwest China, dated to the Ming Dynasty (AD 1368-1644), has recently been reconstructed from the analysis of production remains (Zhou et al. 2012). This paper presents the study by OM and SEM-EDS of zinc production remains from the later site of Dafengmen, in the same region, dated to the Qing Dynasty (AD 1644 1912). The main aims are to add to our characterisation of the Chinese technological tradition of zinc distillation, and to use a comparative approach to explore adaptations to different geological and sociopolitical contexts. The results reveal that at Dafengmen zinc-makers employed a broadly similar technology to those at the Ming sites, based on distillation by ascending in ceramic retorts, but they used lower grade oxidic zinc ores, a lower proportion of reducing agents, and elongated retorts of inferior performance, leading to greater losses of zinc. This is in spite of Dafengmen's ideal location near the necessary raw materials. The reasons for the lower technical efficiency at the later site are explained in terms of different social, political and economic constraints. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Utilization of recycled aggregates (RAs) derived from construction and demolition wastes has gained interest due to scarcity of natural aggregates, shortage of landfills, and environmental issues. But, RA is restricted only to lower grade applications because of strength and durability problems. In order to overcome these difficulties, two-stage mixing approach (TSMA) is a good tool to enhance the properties of RA concrete when compared with normal mixing approach (NMA). The present study examined the influence of different mixing techniques with reference to sequence of addition of materials, on compressive strength and durability properties of high-strength concrete made with processed RA, replacing virgin coarse aggregate. The percentage replacement ranged from 0 to 100%, with increments of 10%. From the experimental results, it was concluded that the modified TSMAs enhanced the strength and durability properties of RA concrete, when compared to NMA.

A new approach to reinforce glulam timber beams has been developed by using compressed wood (CW) which is made of a lower grade wood through densification processes. In the reinforcing practice, compressed wood blocks are inserted into pre-cut holes on the top of glulam beams to produce pre-camber and to generate initial tensile and compressive stresses on the top and the bottom extreme fibre of the glulam beam. In order to optimize the size, the number and the location of CW blocks, 3-D finite element models have been developed. 3D non-linear finite element models have been developed to simulate the pre-camber of Glulam beams locally reinforced by compressed wood blocks. The models developed have also produced the initial tensile and compressive stresses at the top and bottom extreme fibres with building-up moisture-dependent swelling on the CW blocks. With the pre-camber and the initial stress state that cancel out proportions of working deflection and stresses.

Median polish is a simple and robust method in exploratory data analysis. Median polish is resistant to holes in the table, that is, cells that have no values, but it may require a lot of iterations through the data. This paper describes a technique that uses median polish to observe the relationship between students’ attendance in classes with their performance in the final exam. We found that different attendance percentage in classes can lead to different effect on student’s final exam grades. A student with lower attendance percent age shall get a lower grade in final exam, for overall.

Osteosarcoma of the cranio-facial structures and skull is rare. In children, only 5.6% of cases are localized in these areas. It is claimed that the mean age at presentation is at least 10-15 years higher than for osteosarcomas in other parts of the body. However these reports are based on data from single institutions or compiled from several registries. It is further claimed that tumours in the mandible and maxilla are less malignant, as based on observations of a better prognosis and lower incidence of metastatic spread as compared with osteosarcomas arising elsewhere. We report all histologically proven cranio-facial osteosarcomas in The Netherlands occurring over a 20-year period, based on the national registration covering all Dutch pathology laboratories (PALGA). The age-corrected incidence of primary osteosarcoma ranged from 0.33 to 0.41 per million across the age ranges. The mandible was the most frequent site of involvement. Only 61% had a high malignant histological grading. Our data indicate that the age-corrected incidence of primary osteosarcomas is similar across all age ranges. In respect to histology, a lower grade of malignancy is more frequent. Maxillary lesions significantly more often have a lower histological grade of malignancy.

Introduction: Traditional dose-limiting toxicity (DLT) definition, which uses grade (G) 3-4 toxicity data from cycle 1 (C1) only, may not be appropriate for molecularly targeted agents (MTAs) of prolonged administration, for which late or lower grade toxicities also deserve attention. Patients and methods: In collaboration with pharmaceutical companies and academia, an European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC)-led initiative, Dose-Limiting Toxicity and Toxicity Assessment Recommendation Group for Early Trials of Targeted therapies (DLT-TARGETT); collected data from completed phase 1 trials evaluating MTAs as monotherapy. All toxicities at least possibly related to the study drugs that occurred during C1-6, their type, grade (CTCAEv3.0), and duration as well as patients' relative dose-intensity (RDI), were recorded. Results: The 54 eligible trials enrolled 2084 evaluable adult patients with solid tumours between 1999 and 2013, and evaluated small molecules (40), antibodies (seven), recombinant peptides (five) and antisense oligodeoxynucleotides (two). A maximum tolerated dose was set in 43 trials. Fifteen percent of the patients received = 3 toxicities was recorded in Cl and after Cl (936 and 1087 toxicities, respectively), with the first G 3 toxicity occurring after Cl in 18.6% of patients. Conclusion: Although protocol-defined DLT period is traditionally limited to Cl, almost 20% of patients present significant reductions in RDI at any time in phase 1 trials of MTAs. Recommended phase 2 dose assessment should incorporate all available information from any cycle (notably lower grade toxicities leading to such RDI decrease), and be based on achieving >75% RDI. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Integrative analysis based on quantitative representation of whole slide images (WSIs) in a large histology cohort may provide predictive models of clinical outcome. On one hand, the efficiency and effectiveness of such representation is hindered as a result of large technical variations (e.g., fixation, staining) and biological heterogeneities (e.g., cell type, cell state) that are always present in a large cohort. On the other hand, perceptual interpretation/validation of important multi-variate phenotypic signatures are often difficult due to the loss of visual information during feature transformation in hyperspace. To address these issues, we propose a novel approach for integrative analysis based on cellular morphometric context, which is a robust representation of WSI, with the emphasis on tumor architecture and tumor heterogeneity, built upon cellular level morphometric features within the spatial pyramid matching (SPM) framework. The proposed approach is applied to The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) lower grade glioma (LGG) cohort, where experimental results (i) reveal several clinically relevant cellular morphometric types, which enables both perceptual interpretation/validation and further investigation through gene set enrichment analysis; and (ii) indicate the significantly increased survival rates in one of the cellular morphometric context subtypes derived from the cellular morphometric context.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to develop a radiomics signature for prediction of progression-free survival (PFS) in lower-grade gliomas and to investigate the genetic background behind the radiomics signature. METHODS: In this retrospective study, training (n = 216) and validation (n = 84) cohorts were collected from the Cancer Genome Atlas and Chinese Glioma Genome Atlas, respectively. For each patient, a total of 431 radiomics features were extracted from preoperative T2-weighted magnetic resonance images. A radiomics signature was generated in the training cohort, and its prognostic value was evaluated in both the training and validation cohorts. The genetic characteristics of the group with high-risk scores were identified by radiogenomic analysis, and a nomogram was established for prediction of PFS. RESULTS: There was a significant association between the radiomics signature (including 9 screened radiomics features) and PFS, which was independent of other clinicopathologic factors in both the training (P < 0.001, multivariate Cox regression) and validation (P = 0.025, multivariate Cox regression) cohorts. Radiogenomic analysis revealed that the radiomics signature was associated with the immune response, programmed cell death, cell proliferation, and vasculature development. A nomogram established using the radiomics signature and clinicopathologic risk factors demonstrated high accuracy and good calibration for prediction of PFS in both the training (C-index, 0.69) and validation (C-index, 0.87) cohorts. CONCLUSIONS: PFS can be predicted non-invasively in patients with LGGs by a group of radiomics features that could reflect the biological processes of these tumors.

Primary brain tumors are serious and life-threatening; thus, accurate histopathologic diagnosis is critical for determining the proper clinical treatment regimen. Grade II/III gliomas (lower grade gliomas, or LGGs), including astrocytomas and oligodendrogliomas, are heterogeneous and potentially contain low- and high-grade areas within the same tumor. Therefore, it is critical to target biopsies to the most aggressive portion of the tumor to avoid tumor under-grading and under-treatment. While glioblastomas are typically targeted based on contrast-enhanced MRI, LGGs have little contrast enhancement to define targets for biopsy treatment guidance. Spectroscopic MRI (sMRI) is a high-resolution MRI imaging method which allows for detection of metabolic abnormalities such as choline and NAA in the entire brain without injection of a contrast agent. We have previously evaluated the relationship between sMRI Cho/NAA ratios and tumor infiltration in surgical specimens from high grade gliomas, demonstrating a strong correlation between sMRI results and glioma infiltration. We also used the location information to correlate sMRI data to genetic and histologic biomarkers (such as 1p19q, IDH, and MGMT). An IRB-approved pilot study to obtain sMRI prior to stereotactic biopsy has been done in 20 non-enhancing LGG cases. Patients with a suspected LGG diagnosis underwent sMRI at the time of their surgical planning MRI. sMRI images were then registered to the T1w-CE and T2/FLAIR images and imported into the Stealth neuronavigation system for biopsy planning. We found that all astrocytomas (regardless of grades) showed strongly elevated Cho/NAA, while the LGGs were hardly delineated on T1w and T2/FLAIR. We found that pathology-confirmed grade II oligodendroglioma do not have choline elevation; however, NAA was mildly decreased, myo-inositol was elevated, and creatine (Cr) was mildly elevated. sMRI is a useful tool to improve biopsy targeting in LGG patients by ensuring that the highest risk regions are sampled.

BACKGROUND Patients with lower grade glioma (LGG) (i.e., grade II or III) have limited treatment options. After surgical resection of their tumor, patients will undergo either a period of expectant management (watch and wait) or treatment with adjuvant chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy. Approximately 80% of patients with LGG have an isocitrate dehydrogenase mutation, which is a viable target for molecular therapy. This offers a therapeutic intervention that could potentially delay the need for chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy in select patients. Several prognostic and patient-specific factors contribute to the decision to recommend expectant management, including concerns about the side effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy. The aim of this project was to understand patients’ signs and symptoms during the expectant management period and how LGG impacts their lives. METHODS Concept elicitation interviews were conducted in the US with patients with LGG as well as key opinion leaders (KOLs) with experience treating patients with LGG. Interview data were analyzed using Atlas.ti, and patient data were reviewed against KOL data. RESULTS Seven patients with ≥ 3 months of expectant management experience and three KOLs were interviewed. During their expectant management periods, patients reported 12 signs/symptoms, mostly related to deficits in cognition. Patients reported 16 impacts across four categories, with a substantial proportion of the impacts identified as negatively affecting emotional function. The signs/symptoms and impacts reported by patients were generally also reported by KOLs. During expectant management, patients typically resume their original quality of life post-surgery, but may also experience anxiety. Patients and KOLs indicated a preference for expectant management and delaying chemotherapy or radiotherapy. CONCLUSIONS Patient and KOL interviews characterized the LGG experience and indicated a preference for expectant management, which may be supported by therapies that delay the initiation of chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy.

Background Regorafenib 160 mg/day 3 weeks on/1 week off (1 cycle) significantly improved overall survival (OS) in patients with refractory metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) compared to placebo. While most common regorafenib-related toxicities, i.e. hypertension, diarrhea, fatigue, and HFSR can be managed by dose modifications, there is a need to explore alternative dosing regimens during the first cycle to improve tolerability in clinical practice. Methods The relationship between dose, regorafenib plasma concentration, OS, and time-to-first grade 3 HFSR event were analyzed using dose-exposure-time-to-event modelling, considering the effect of preselected baseline covariates and dose modifications. The OS analysis included 957 mCRC patients whereas HFSR included 1722 mCRC, HCC, and GIST patients from four phase-3 trials. The number of patients alive not having grade 3 HFSR or dose modifications over three cycles were simulated with the developed models for the following scenarios: 80 or 120mg/day for 3 cycles or 80 mg/day on week 1, escalated to 120 mg/day week 2, and 160 mg/day on week 3 followed by either 120 or 160 mg/day in cycles 2 and 3 compared to the standard 160 mg/day regimen. The observed lower drop-out due to disease progression in regorafenib-treated patients was accounted for. Results Maximal OS was reached in most patients with 160 mg/day, as regorafenib concentrations were >10 times the concentration associated with a 50% decrease in the hazard of death compared to placebo. After 160 mg/day maximal OS was reached at ∼6 times lower concentrations than the maximal hazard of grade 3 HSFR, demonstrating a clear benefit-risk profile. While all other schedules showed a lower grade 3 HFSR incidence with reduced OS compared to 160 mg/day, a considerable overlap in grade 3 HFSR incidence and OS among the regimens was predicted. The largest numerical difference was between 80 and 160 mg/day. Conclusions Exploration of alternative dosing regimens by modeling and simulation indicates a numerically lower incidence of grade 3 HFSR and lower OS for a starting dose of 80 mg/day versus 160 mg/day. A starting dose of 80 mg/day might result in reduced efficacy if not escalated to either 120 or 160 mg/day. Clinical trial identification NCT01103323, EudraCT: 2009-012787-14 GRID, 14874, NCT01271712, EudraCT: 2009-017957-37 CONCUR, 15808, NCT01584830 RESORCE, 15982, NCT01774344, EudraCT: 2012-003649-14. Legal entity responsible for the study Bayer AG. Funding Bayer AG. Disclosure A. Grothey: Advisory / Consultancy, Travel / Accommodation / Expenses: Amgen; Advisory / Consultancy: Array BioPharma; Advisory / Consultancy, Research grant / Funding (institution), Travel / Accommodation / Expenses: Bayer; Advisory / Consultancy, Research grant / Funding (institution), Travel / Accommodation / Expenses: Boston Biomedical; Advisory / Consultancy, Travel / Accommodation / Expenses: Bristol-Myers Squibb; Advisory / Consultancy, Research grant / Funding (institution), Travel / Accommodation / Expenses: Genentech/Roche; Advisory / Consultancy: Guardant Health; Advisory / Consultancy, Research grant / Funding (institution): Lilly; Research grant / Funding (institution): Pfizer; Research grant / Funding (institution): Sanofi; Research grant / Funding (institution): Eisai; Research grant / Funding (institution), Travel / Accommodation / Expenses: Boehringer Ingelheim; Travel / Accommodation / Expenses: Merck Sharp & Dohme. S. Hoefman: Advisory / Consultancy: Bayer AG. M. Ruppert: Advisory / Consultancy: Bayer AG. P. Vis: Advisory / Consultancy: Bayer AG. J. Zisowsky: Full / Part-time employment: Bayer AG. S. Fiala-Buskies: Full / Part-time employment: Bayer AG. E. Van Cutsem: Advisory / Consultancy, Research grant / Funding (institution): Bayer; Advisory / Consultancy, Research grant / Funding (institution): Lilly; Advisory / Consultancy, Research grant / Funding (institution): Roche; Advisory / Consultancy, Research grant / Funding (institution): Servier; Research grant / Funding (institution): Amgen; Research grant / Funding (institution): Boehringer Ingelheim; Research grant / Funding (institution): Celgene; Research grant / Funding (institution): Ipsen; Research grant / Funding (institution): Merck; Research grant / Funding (institution): Merck KGaA; Research grant / Funding (institution): Novartis; Research grant / Funding (institution): Sanofi. E. Dochy: Full / Part-time employment: Bayer AG; Shareholder / Stockholder / Stock options: Sanofi. A. Cleton: Shareholder / Stockholder / Stock options, Full / Part-time employment: Bayer AG. B.A. Ploeger: Shareholder / Stockholder / Stock options, Full / Part-time employment: Bayer AG.

Background Immune therapies targeting the programmed cell death receptor (ligand) 1 (PD-1/PD-L1) axis have shown remarkable activity in a variety of solid tumors. While substantial responses were observed in asymptomatic patients with brain metastases (BM), their clinical activity in primary brain tumors remains limited. In a cohort of adult brain tumor patients, we aimed to analyze soluble PD-L1 (sPD-L1) levels in patient plasma as a systemic marker of tumor - immune system interactions. Methods We obtained EDTA plasma from 55 glioblastoma, 26 lower-grade (WHO grade II - III) glioma (LGG), 17 meningioma and 43 BM patients (29/43 lung cancer, 6/43 renal cell carcinoma, 4/43 breast cancer, 4/43 melanoma) as well as 25 controls. sPD-L1 concentrations were measured by a sandwich ELISA using an anti-PD-L1/CD274 antibody (Millipore ABF133) as capture antibody and a non-commercial anti-PD-L1 antibody (clone 5H1) as detection antibody. The lower detection limit as determined by serial dilutions of recombinant human PD-L1 was 0.050 ng/ml. Results sPD-L1 was identified in 41/81 (50.6%) glioma, 5/17 (29.4%) meningioma and 6/43 (14.0%) BM patient samples and in 9/25 (36.0%) controls (p = 0.001, Chi-square), with a median concentration of 0.415 ng/ml (range: 0.050 – 42.150 ng/ml). sPD-L1 concentrations were significantly lower in BM as compared to glioma patients (p Conclusions Circulating PD-L1 levels differ between patients with distinct CNS malignancies, suggesting diverse tumor - immune system interactions between primary and secondary brain tumors. Moreover, our results indicate a differential prognostic impact of sPD-L1 in glioma which should be further studied. Legal entity responsible for the study The authors. Funding Medical University of Vienna. Disclosure A. Ilhan-Mutlu: Advisory / Consultancy: MSD; Advisory / Consultancy: Servier. M. Preusser: Research grant / Funding (self): Boehringer Ingelheim; Honoraria (self), Advisory / Consultancy, Research grant / Funding (self): GlaxoSmithKline; Honoraria (self), Advisory / Consultancy, Research grant / Funding (self): MSD; Honoraria (self), Advisory / Consultancy, Research grant / Funding (self): Roche; Honoraria (self), Advisory / Consultancy: Bristol-Myers Squibb; Honoraria (self), Advisory / Consultancy: Novartis; Honoraria (self), Advisory / Consultancy: Gerson Lehrman Group (GLG); Honoraria (self), Advisory / Consultancy: CMC Contrast; Honoraria (self), Advisory / Consultancy: Mundipharma; Honoraria (self), Advisory / Consultancy: AstraZeneca; Honoraria (self), Advisory / Consultancy: AbbVie; Honoraria (self), Advisory / Consultancy: Lilly; Honoraria (self), Advisory / Consultancy: Medahead; Honoraria (self), Advisory / Consultancy: Daiichi Sankyo. A.S. Berghoff: Honoraria (self), Advisory / Consultancy, Research grant / Funding (self): Daiichi Sankyo; Honoraria (self), Advisory / Consultancy, Research grant / Funding (self), Travel / Accommodation / Expenses: Roche; Honoraria (self), Advisory / Consultancy: Bristol-Myers Squibb; Honoraria (self), Advisory / Consultancy: Merck; Travel / Accommodation / Expenses: Amgen; Travel / Accommodation / Expenses: AbbVie. All other authors have declared no conflicts of interest.

Miniaturization of analytical technology has paved the way for in-situ screening of foods. In the current study, the spectral features of olive oils are examined by handheld near-infrared spectroscopy to explore the technology's capabilities to distinguish extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) from lower grade oils. Eighty EVOO, forty refined olive oil (ROO), and ten pomace olive oil (POO) samples are analysed for their spectral and compositional features. The latter included analysis of the fatty acids (FAs), the chlorophylls and carotenoids, chromatic coordinates and moisture contents. The 1350–1570 nm wavelength range appeared most suitable for distinction of the oils. One-class classification models with three different classifiers are subsequently estimated using this range, and their quantitative performance is assessed from probabilistic data. Soft independent modeling of class analogies models appears to predict the identity of the oils with a high success rate. Compared to the other oils, POO comprises a significantly higher and lower proportion of polyunsaturated and monounsaturated FAs, respectively. Higher contents of chlorophylls, carotenoids, and moisture are noted for EVOO. The relevant spectral information for distinction of the oils correlates strongly with the degree of unsaturation of the oils as well as their levels of chlorophylls, carotenoids, and moisture. Practical Applications: The findings of this study demonstrate that the handheld NIRS technique is promising for future rapid screening of olive oil grades. The statistical methods used and the robust validation procedure will help potential users to select the optimal strategy for multivariate data analysis. In addition, the exploration of correlations with compositional characteristics provides insight into the handheld NIRS working mechanism in regard to EVOO authentication.

The subject matter of this research is the representation of ecological contents in teaching in junior primary school and not only does it have practical application, but also theoretical. The ecological contents of teaching in junior primary school are directed towards the education of students and their development for the improvement of their immediate environment. In order to successfully approach the improvement in teaching lower grade students in primary school, regarding ecological contents, it is necessary first to examine and determine how many of our schools are represented. The aim and task of the research was to point out the importance of ecological contents and their representation in teaching in junior primary school. Accordingly, the paper presents a part of the research that shows what teachers think about the representation of ecological contents in the classroom. The research has shown that this is a very important topic.

BACKGROUND Immune modulating therapies are a promising treatment approach in patients with primary brain tumors, however their clinical efficacy is still under investigation as the systemic inflammatory responses are potentially challenged by the brain’s tight immune regulatory mechanisms. Here, we aimed to investigate soluble PD-L1 (sPD-L1) in the plasma of recurrent glioblastoma (GBM) and recurrent WHO grade II - III glioma (LGG) patients over their course of disease. MATERIAL AND METHODS 30 patients with recurrent GBM and 10 patients with recurrent LGG were treated with bevacizumab (400mg, q14 days) as a salvage therapy at the Medical University of Vienna. EDTA plasma samples were drawn prior to each treatment cycle. sPD-L1 was analyzed using a sandwich ELISA (Millipore ABF133 and clone 5H1). The lower limit of detection was 0.050 ng/ml as determined by serial dilutions of recombinant human PD-L1. RESULTS sPD-L1 values could be retrieved in a median of 6 timepoints per patient (range: 2 - 24). No significant difference in sPD-L1 concentrations between GBM and LGG patients was present at baseline (p > 0.05). After 2 weeks of bevacizumab treatment, LGG patients presented with statistically significant lower sPD-L1 concentrations as compared to baseline (p = 0.036, Wilcoxon signed rank test), while no difference in sPD-L1 concentration was observed in GBM patients. Significantly higher sPD-L1 intra-patient variability was evident in LGG patients compared to GBM patients (p = 0.012, Mann-Whitney-U). In LGG patients, sPD-L1 correlated with leukocyte count (Spearman’s r = 0.397, p = 0.001) as well as with C-reactive protein level (Spearman’s r = -0.424, p = 0.001), while in GBM patients no correlation of sPD-L1 and systemic markers of inflammation was evident (-0.3 < Spearman’s r < 0.3). CONCLUSION sPD-L1 as a systemic marker of inflammation was lower in recurrent LGG patients compared to recurrent GBM patients after bevacizumab-based treatment, arguing that the glioma-immune system interactions differ between LGG and GBM. SUPPORT/DISCLOSURE This project was funded by the research budget of the Medical University of Vienna.

BACKGROUND Lower-grade gliomas (LGG) are divided into three histo-molecular groups: i) IDH-wildtype, ii) IDH mutant and 1p19q intact and iii) IDH mutant and 1p19q co-deleted. The current classification has improved the clinical stratification and its reproducibility. However, LGGs are still associated with an important degree of clinical heterogeneity. We sought to analyze the cross-talk between the spatial distribution and the quantitative imaging features (radiomics) with the clinical evolution and their molecular background (radiogenomics). MATERIAL AND METHODS We performed a retrospective multicentric study from 4 cohorts of high-grades gliomas (POLA Network, TCGA, REMBRANDT and LGG-1p19q), totaling 900 gliomas. We performed N4 and WhiteStripe imaging corrections to standardize MRI intensities. We used ITK-SNAP to obtain a mask of the different habitats of the tumor. Then we used PyRadiomics to obtain 2616 radiomic features per sample. We used plsRcox for fitting several Cox model in high-dimensional settings. We assessed the performance of the difference Cox model with the Harrel’s concordance index. We used a Sparse Canonical Correlation analysis to analyze the spatial distribution of the tumors. RESULTS Radiomics features allow identification in an unsupervised manner IDH-mutant gliomas with a median AUC of 0.96 [0.92–0.98]. Interestingly, in the analysis of survival, radiomics features provided additional information to clinical or genetics covariates and the model with only radiomics features obtained a C-Index of 0.78 [0.72–0.82]. In addition, survival model with the best performance in the prediction of overall survival was the one combining radiomics, clinics and genetics features with a C-Index 0.85 [0.82–0.92] and was validated in the other cohorts. The analysis of spatial distribution showed a very strong distribution of 1p19q co-deleted oligodendrogliomas in the frontal lobes. CONCLUSION Radiomics features may provide additional relevant clinical information by improving the prognosis of LGG. Radiomics allow non-invasive prediction of the most relevant molecular alterations of LGG.

Comprehensive and integrative characterizations of genomic analysis including somatic alterations and molecular subtypes of glioma have been established. However, diffuse gliomas (World Health Organization grades II and III, hereafter referred to collectively as lower-grade gliomas,LGG) consist of highly variable clinical behaviors, leading to emerging studies to identify prognostic factors. Through comparative analyses of 516 cases of primary LGG patients from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) dataset, we reported that the expression level and methylation level of SSBP2 (encoding single stranded DNA-binding protein 2) gene vary among LGG patients and SSBP2 expression or gene body methylation can be served as prognostic biomarkers for LGG survival. Cox regression results confirmed that SSBP2 as an independent predictor of survival in LGG, with a cox coefficient of 0.534 indicating a worse prognosis. Furthermore, lower-grade glioma was statistically ranked first among 21 different cancer types according to the FDR correction. We further investigated the combination of SSBP2 with other known genetic prognostic factors(IDH mutation and 1p19q co-deletion) of LGG. By matching gene expression profile of LGG patients, IDH-mutant gliomas had decreased expression of SSBP2 compared with IDH-wildtype gliomas and 1p19q intact gliomas had increased expression of SSBP2 compared with 1p19q codeletion gliomas. Moreover, we found that the combination of IDH or 1p19q status with SSBP2 identified LGG subsets with significantly diverse survival effects. Patients with low SSBP2 expression had significantly better 5-, 10-, and 15-year OS in IDH wild type, but not in the cohorts of IDH mutant. Our findings offer an explanation for the specificity of SSBP2 effect on survival rate in IDH wild type LGG patients.

This study analyzed the effect of information acceptance on the information use performance for the vulnerable groups. The sample group was classified into general public group and vulnerable groups residing in Korea, and the vulnerable groups were divided into the disabled, the low - income group, the elderly group and the farmers. The characteristics of the vulnerable groups were selected by the competence level, use motive, and use attitudes and the correlation between each factor and use utilization was analyzed. In all groups, the use motive and the use attitude showed a strong positive correlation with the use performance of .682. In particular, the information use attitude and the information use performance were closely related. The correlation between the use attitude and use performance of the vulnerable groups were investigated in the order of lower grade (.695), farmers & fishermen (.688), elderly (.674), and disabled (.672). In conclusion, this study shows that if use attitude is high, use performance is high. Therefore, in order to expand the acceptance of information on vulnerable groups, various programs that can increase the use attitude of information should be introduced. Through this, it was found that the vulnera-ble groups could induce the use attitude of information and the satisfaction of the use performance, and ultimately the digital information divide could be reduced by improving the information acceptance of the vulnerable groups. This study has limitations in securing various contents of inquiry based on questionnaire survey. It is necessary to analyze various factors besides factors selected as environmental fac-tors of information acceptance as characteristics of vulnerable groups.

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Objective To assess whether radiomics features derived from multiparametric MRI can predict the tumor grade of lower-grade gliomas (LGGs; World Health Organization grade II and grade III) and the nonenhancing LGG subgroup. Materials and methods Two-hundred four patients with LGGs from our institutional cohort were allocated to training (n = 136) and test (n = 68) sets. Postcontrast T1-weighted images, T2-weighted images, and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery images were analyzed to extract 250 radiomics features. Various machine learning classifiers were trained using the radiomics features to predict the glioma grade. The trained classifiers were internally validated on the institutional test set and externally validated on a separate cohort (n = 99) from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). Classifier performance was assessed by determining the area under the curve (AUC) from receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. An identical process was performed in the nonenhancing LGG subgroup (institutional training set, n = 73; institutional test set, n = 37; and TCGA cohort, n = 37) to predict the glioma grade. Results The performance of the best classifier was good in the internal validation set (AUC, 0.85) and fair in the external validation set (AUC, 0.72) to predict the LGG grade. For the nonenhancing LGG subgroup, the performance of the best classifier was good in the internal validation set (AUC, 0.82), but poor in the external validation set (AUC, 0.68). Conclusion Radiomics feature-based classifiers may be useful to predict LGG grades. However, radiomics classifiers may have a limited value when applied to the nonenhancing LGG subgroup in a TCGA cohort.

With the rapid development of the times and science and technology, the quality-oriented education changes emerge as the times require. Whether teaching content or teaching form and teaching means are constantly changing, the purpose is to achieve effective teaching within a limited time, to provide targeted teaching for each student to promote student development, at the same time, let students learn how to learn on the basis of learning knowledge, learn to gain. Based on the teaching practice in the classroom, this paper attempts to explore the construction of the primary school language wisdom classroom from the scientific and technological means and methods used in the teaching and learning process, so as to help teachers and students carry out effective teaching and learning in the limited curriculum, develop together and achieve win-win situation.

Fish harvesting and processing is a significant economic force in remote and rural coastal communities across Canada. The sustainability of this industry is governed by the ability maximize product utilization while mitigating environmental impacts. In this study, the feasibility of using oil derived from fish processing waste as a biofuel for on-site application in lower grade fuel applications (e.g. heating oil) was analyzed. The effluent quality, recoverable/quality of oil, and further processing required were assessed. Effluents from farmed Atlantic salmon viscera were used due to high triacylglycerides of 40–70% and monounsaturated fatty acids of 47% in lipids. However, the presence of polar and other lipid impurities (e.g. phospholipids) indicate further processing may be required prior to use as a fuel. A modified fishmeal process recovered 17.8 wt.% oil from the effluent, with 57–66% TAG, 0.6–1.5% straight chain hydrocarbons, 29–35% polar and other impurities, and high MUFA (47.3) in lipids. The oil had viscosity (29 cP), density (913 kg/m3), specific heat capacity (1.72 kJ/kg °C), and cold flow properties similar to No. 6 fuel oil and marine vessel fuels, and sulphur (

Purpose: This study was conducted to investigate the level of interpersonal attachment styles and love styles and to identify the differences of love styles according to interpersonal attachment styles among nursing students. Methods: Data were collected from 510 nursing students using a self-report questionnaire and analyzed by frequencies, Fisher`s exact test, t-test, and ANOVA using the SPSS program. Results: In terms of interpersonal attachment styles, secure style was the most prevalent, and fearful style was the second highest in nursing students. There were significant differences in interpersonal attachment styles between upper and lower level nursing students, indicating the highest rate of secure style in the lower grade and the highest rate of fearful style in the upper grade. In love styles, the mean scores for eros and pragma style in nursing students were significantly higher in the upper grade than the lower grade. Love styles according to interpersonal attachment styles showed a significant difference for eros style. Conclusion: Our results might help nursing educators increase their understanding of interpersonal attachment styles and love styles in nursing students and counsel nursing students in interpersonal and romantic relationships. In addition, educational programs addressing interpersonal attachment styles should be developed and applied to nursing students.

The purpose of the study aims to develop comprehensive modeling alternatives for intraproduct line pricing effect and compare the explanation power among them. The researchers want to include the highest explanation power model for Shipment Timing Support System for stored apple. Five intra-apple pricing models were developed and applied to the wholesale price data with four graded Fuji apple announced by SAMPC in Korea. Five intra-apple pricing model divided into three dichotomies: the first model for price level effect with proportional response, the second and third models for price gap effect with proportional response, and the fourth and fifth models for price gap effect with non-proportional response. The result showed that the modeling of the price gap between excellent grade and three lower grade apples with proportional response showed the highest adjusted R2 among five models. This result implies that the interdependency among apple grades has the proportional response to price difference instead of non-proportional response to price difference among apple grade.

Variation function as a main analytical tool is used for geological statistic study on grade variation characteristics of different segments in ore body 1 of the Macheng iron deposit (MID). The results indicate that the main ore body is bounded with-500m elevation, the upper grade change meets void effect, the lower grade change accords with the characteristics of spheroidal variation function and the upper change is smaller than the lower one in the general grade change. Based on fitting the variation functions of separate grade changes in different areas, the upper area and the lower area, and combined with the parameter values of each variation function, it is thought that production exploration distances that are suitable for the upper and lower ore bodies are respectively 35m and 30m in the vertical direction.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW With graft survival rates steadily improving during the recent years, there is debate whether donor kidneys should still be allocated according to compatibility for human leukocyte antigens (HLA). RECENT FINDINGS Recent studies argue for continued kidney exchange efforts for achieving better HLA compatibility. In this modern era of immunosuppression, better HLA matching is associated not only with better graft survival, but also with the administration of lower dosages of immunosuppressive agents, a lower incidence of side-effects of immunosuppression such as non-Hodgkin lymphoma, hip fractures, and death from infection, and a lower grade of sensitization if a patient has lost a kidney graft and is relisted for a retransplant. SUMMARY Despite the overall improved graft survival rates in the recent years, the data continue to support organ sharing based on HLA matching in kidney transplantation.

Present paper reports a simple and eco-friendly physical separation process for the recycling of metallic values from PCBs. The separation of material is based on distribution of metallic and non-metallic constituents in different size fractions depending on their liberation size due to their malleable or ductile nature. The studies showed the enrichment of metals in coarser particles (−1000 + 150 μm) and non-metals in the finer particles −150 μm following pneumatic separation and froth flotation process. A grade of 88% with 75% recovery was achieved by froth flotation, but lower grade of ∼75% with ∼65% recovery were obtained by pneumatic separation with −1500 μm powder. Overall grade of metals was achieved up to 88% by controlling the feed and air flow rates during pneumatic separation. Using this beneficiation technique, the concentration of rare metals in the different fractions varying from 1.88% to 4.18% was enriched up to 9%.