Michael Chan - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Michael Chan
Proceedings of 12th International Conference on Pattern Recognition
We present a new technique for tracking 3 0 objects in 2 0 image sequences. We assume that object... more We present a new technique for tracking 3 0 objects in 2 0 image sequences. We assume that objects are constructed from a class of volumetric part primitives. The models are initially recovered using a qualitative shape recovery process. We subsequently track the objects using local forces computed from image potentials. Therefore we avoid the expensive computation of image features. By integrating measurements from stereo images, 30 positions {as well as other model parameters) of the objects can be continuously updated using an extended Kalman jiltel: Our model-based approach can handle occlusions in scenes with multiple moving objects by predicting their occurrences. To handle severe or unexpected occlusion we use a feedback mechanism between the quantitative and qualitative shape estimation systems. We demonstrate our technique in experiments involving image sequences from complex motions of objects.
Journal of Biblical Literature, 2009
Methods and Techniques for Quality & Authenticity, 2014
Proceedings of the second ACM SIGCOMM workshop on Virtualized infrastructure systems and architectures, 2010
In the past couple of years we've seen quite a change in the wireless industry: Handsets have bec... more In the past couple of years we've seen quite a change in the wireless industry: Handsets have become mobile computers running user-contributed applications on (potentially) open operating systems. It seems we are on a path towards a more open ecosystem; one that has been previously closed and proprietary. The biggest winners are the users, who will have more choice among competing, innovative ideas. The same cannot be said for the wireless network infrastructure, which remains closed and (mostly) proprietary, and where innovation is bogged down by a glacial standards process. Yet as users, we are surrounded by abundant wireless capacity and multiple wireless networks (WiFi and cellular), with most of the capacity off-limits to us. It seems industry has little incentive to change, preferring to hold onto control as long as possible, keeping an inefficient and closed system in place. This paper is a "call to arms" to the research community to help move the network forward on a path to greater openness. We envision a world in which users can move freely between any wireless infrastructure, while providing payment to infrastructure owners, encouraging continued investment. We think the best path to get there is to separate the network service from the underlying physical infrastructure, and allow rapid innovation of network services, contributed by researchers, network operators, equipment vendors and third party developers. We propose to build and deploy an open-but backward compatible-wireless network infrastructure that can be easily deployed on college campuses worldwide. Through virtualization, we allow researchers to experiment with new network services directly in their production network.
Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 1998
The introduction of new communication and information technologies in work communities have prima... more The introduction of new communication and information technologies in work communities have primarily been used to create new channels of communication and/or reduce the cost of communication among members in the workplace. Ironically, the pervasiveness of electronic communication media in virtual work communities make it increasingly difficult for individuals to discern social structures. Fortunately, information technologies that are responsible for triggering this problem can also be used to overcome these obstacles. Because information transacted over electronic media such as the Web can be stored in digital form, a new generation of software called "collaborative filters" or "communityware" (Contractor, O'Keefe, & Jones, 1997; Kautz, Selman, & Shah, 1997) can be used to make visible the work communities' virtual social structure. One such tool, IKNOW (Inquiring Knowledge Networks On the Web; http://iknow.spcomm.uiuc.edu/), has been designed by a team of UIUC researchers to assist individuals to search the organization's databases to automatically answer questions about the organization's knowledge network, that is, "Who knows what?" as well as questions about the organization's cognitive knowledge networks, that is, "Who knows who knows what?" within the organization. Unlike traditional web search engines that help an individual search for content on the web, tools such as IKNOW search for content and contacts (direct and indirect). In addition to being instantly beneficial to users, they also provide the researcher with an opportunity to unobtrusively and reliably study the influence of Communityware on the co-evolution of knowledge networks.
Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 2008
Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 2014
The Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are critical components of the innate immune system that regulate ... more The Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are critical components of the innate immune system that regulate immune recognition in part through NF-κB activation. A human cell-based high throughput screen (HTS) revealed substituted 4-aminoquinazolines to be small molecular weight activators of NF-κB. The most potent hit compound predominantly stimulated through the human TLR4/MD2 complex, and had less activity with the mouse TLR4/MD2. There was no activity with other TLRs and the TLR4 activation was MD-2 dependent and CD14 independent. Synthetic modifications of the quinazoline scaffold at the 2 and 4 positions revealed trends in structure-activity relationships with respect to TLR dependent production of the NF-κB associated cytokine IL-8 in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells, as well as IL-6 in mouse antigen presenting cells. Furthermore, the hit compound in this series also activated the interferon signaling pathway resulting in type I interferon production. Substitution at the O-phenyl...
2007 Asia and South Pacific Design Automation Conference, 2007
This paper presents a simulation tool targeted specifically at bang-bang type phase locked loop s... more This paper presents a simulation tool targeted specifically at bang-bang type phase locked loop systems. The aim of this simulator is to quickly and accurately predict important PLL transient characteristics such as capture range, locking time, and jitter. We present a behavioral model for bang-bang type PLLs, and show how the application of this model in a simulator can speed up simulation time by four to five orders of magnitude. With this performance, Monte-Carlo simulation techniques become not only feasible, but convenient. The simulator also models the major non-idealities typical of phase locked loop systems. The accuracy of the simulator is confirmed via detailed analysis and comparison with Matlab Simulink based models.
2006 49th IEEE International Midwest Symposium on Circuits and Systems, 2006
This paper presents a bang-bang PLL architecture that employs two discrete loop gains depending o... more This paper presents a bang-bang PLL architecture that employs two discrete loop gains depending on whether the magnitude of the PLL's phase error is less than or greater than π/2. The advantage of this architecture is that the two loop gains can be used to independently optimize both pull-in range and jitter characteristics. A conservative expression to calculate pull-in range is derived and it is shown that pull-in range depends mainly on the PLL's outer loop gain, thus freeing inner loop gain to control PLL dynamics when in lock.
We introduce a Web De-Compiler (WDC) that extracts web design information for re-use. Given a web... more We introduce a Web De-Compiler (WDC) that extracts web design information for re-use. Given a web site, the system extracts design knowledge at several levels: site organization and navigation, page layout, and objects. Objects are regular structures within a page ...
Surgical Neurology, 2007
Background: Astroblastoma is one of the most unusual types of tumors whose histogenesis has been ... more Background: Astroblastoma is one of the most unusual types of tumors whose histogenesis has been recently clarified. It occurs mainly among children and young adults. It is grossly well demarcated and shows histologically characteristic perivascular pseudorosettes with frequent vascular hyalinization. Immunohistochemically, the tumor cells show diffuse strong positivity for GFAP, S-100 protein, vimentin, as well as neuron-specific enolase and focal positivity for EMA. Case Description: Our patient is a 33-year-old gentleman who presented with intraparenchymal hemorrhage in the left temporal lobe. A 4-vessel cerebral angiogram revealed a dural AVF in the left posterior temporal area. The lesion was resected, and pathology showed a GFAP-positive lesion with prominent astroblastoma rosettes. There was abundant hemosiderin consistent with a prior hemorrhage. Because of its high degree of proliferation, the presence of astroblastic pseudorosettes, prominent perivascular hyalinization, regional hyaline changes, and pushing borders with regard to the adjacent brain, the tumor was considered anaplastic. Conclusions: Astroblastoma is a rare pure pathologic entity-a distinct form of astrocytic gliomas. The diagnosis of astroblastoma is often difficult because of the astroblastic aspects that can be found in astrocytic tumors, in ependymomas, and in nonneuroepithelial tumors. The natural history seems to be between astrocytomas and glioblastomas. Total resection and radiation therapy seem to be the advisable treatments.
Pharmaceutical Research, 2010
Purpose Doxorubicin (DOX) is a very effective anticancer agent. However, in its pure form, its ap... more Purpose Doxorubicin (DOX) is a very effective anticancer agent. However, in its pure form, its application is limited by significant cardiotoxic side effects. The purpose of this study was to develop a controllably activatable chemotherapy prodrug of DOX created by blocking its free amine group with a biotinylated photocleavable blocking group (PCB). Methods An n-hydroxy succunamide protecting group on the PCB allowed selective binding at the DOX active amine group. The PCB included an ortho-nitrophenyl group for photo cleavability and a water-soluble glycol spacer arm ending in a biotin group for enhanced membrane interaction. Results This novel DOX-PCB prodrug had a 200-fold decrease in cytotoxicity compared to free DOX and could release active DOX upon exposure to UV light at 350 nm. Unlike DOX, DOX-PCB stayed in the cell cytoplasm, did not enter the nucleus, and did not stain the exposed DNA during mitosis. Human liver microsome incubation with DOX-PCB indicated stability against liver metabolic breakdown. Conclusions The development of the DOX-PCB prodrug demonstrates the possibility of using light as a method of prodrug activation in deep internal tissues without relying on inherent physical or biochemical differences between the tumor and healthy tissue for use as the trigger.
Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 2012
Background: Patients with chronic heart failure (HF) are at increased risk of hospitalization and... more Background: Patients with chronic heart failure (HF) are at increased risk of hospitalization and death. Large randomized clinical trials have shown clinical benefit in selected populations of HF patients. However, effective drugs may have different utilization and outcomes in the 'real world' that includes older and more fragile patients.
Australian Journal of Physiotherapy, 1990
A pedal goniometer was designed to measure the range of inversion of the ankle joint in 42 degree... more A pedal goniometer was designed to measure the range of inversion of the ankle joint in 42 degrees of plantarflexion about anaxis aligning more closely to that of the subtalar joint. The reliability of this instrument in assessing ankle inversion was examined. Repeated measurements of the full active range•ofmovement of ankle inversion were made on 30 subjects. The values of the Pearson Correlation Coefficient fori ntra-tester andinter~teste r reIiabilitywere r=O.96 and f=0.91 respectively. The high reli.. ability demonstrated by this pedal goniometer will allow its use in areas such as assessment of joint position sense and evaluation of the effects of treatment modaIities in rehabiIitation. [Chan MDY, GhuMYW, Wong SCK 8t al: Relability of a pedal goniometer for the assessment of ankle inversion in the plantarflexed position.
Journal of Neuro-Oncology, 2012
Novel therapeutic options for patients with recurrent primary central nervous system lymphoma (RP... more Novel therapeutic options for patients with recurrent primary central nervous system lymphoma (RPCNSL) are needed. Bendamustine, a bifunctional purine analog/alkylating agent, is approved for use in patients with progressive systemic indolent non-Hodgkin's B-cell lymphomas. Limited data suggests that bendamustine may partition into the brain in the setting of a disrupted blood-brain barrier. This report describes the first known experience of patients with RPCNSL treated with bendamustine. Therapy was well-tolerated and best response was noted as stable disease after eight cycles of bendamustine followed by a subsequent local systemic recurrence found at five months follow-up. CNS involvement in this patient remained stable 20 + months post-bendamustine treatment. Based on our observations, further neuropharmacokinetic and efficacy studies with bendamustine may be warranted in this patient population.
![Research paper thumbnail of Identification of Substituted Pyrimido[5,4-b]indoles as Selective Toll-Like Receptor 4 Ligands](https://attachments.academia-assets.com/97663603/thumbnails/1.jpg)
](Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, 2013
A cell-based high-throughput screen to identify small molecular weight stimulators of the innate ... more A cell-based high-throughput screen to identify small molecular weight stimulators of the innate immune system revealed substituted pyrimido[5,4-b]indoles as potent NFκB activators. The most potent hit compound selectively stimulated Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) in human and mouse cells. Synthetic modifications of the pyrimido[5,4-b]indole scaffold at the carboxamide, N-3, and N-5 positions revealed differential TLR4 dependent production of NFκB and type I interferon associated cytokines, IL-6 and interferon γ-induced protein 10 (IP-10) respectively. Specifically, a subset of compounds bearing phenyl and substituted phenyl carboxamides induced lower IL-6 release while maintaining higher IP-10 production, skewing toward the type I interferon pathway. Substitution at N-5 with short alkyl substituents reduced the cytotoxicity of the leading hit compound. Computational studies supported that active compounds appeared to bind primarily to MD-2 in the TLR4/MD-2 complex. These small molecules, which stimulate innate immune cells with minimal toxicity, could potentially be used as adjuvants or immune modulators.
Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 2013
Drawing from social psychology perspectives of intergroup relations, including the common in-grou... more Drawing from social psychology perspectives of intergroup relations, including the common in-group identity model, mutual intergroup differentiation model, and optimal distinctiveness theory, this study proposes a theoretical framework of news analysis that accounts for the socially structured and hierarchical nature of international relations. The coverage of the territorially disputed Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands by the China Daily from 2002 to 2011 serves as the context for the framework. Integrated content, discourse, and concordance analyses showed that despite the local nature of the dispute that invokes clear in-group/out-group categorizations, the majority of the articles in the newspaper discursively recategorize intergroup relations, including the assimilation of Japan under a superordinate “Asian” identity and the categorization of the United States as the “outsider” purposefully interfering in China–Japan relations. The findings provide important ideological insights of the ru...
Journal of Interventional Cardiology, 2008
Percutaneous treatment of coronary bifurcation lesions remains a challenging aspect of interventi... more Percutaneous treatment of coronary bifurcation lesions remains a challenging aspect of interventional cardiology, but the approach to trifurcation and quadrifurcation lesions can be considered "double jeopardy." We describe two cases of trifurcation and one case of quadrifurcation that were treated percutaneously using a "minimal protrusion balloon crush technique." Immediate and long-term results were favorable with this approach.
The Journal of Comparative Neurology, 2003
Studies of sensory pathways in several species indicate that the extent and form of reorganizatio... more Studies of sensory pathways in several species indicate that the extent and form of reorganization resulting from deafferentation early in life vs. adulthood are not the same. The reasons for such differences are not well understood. To gain further insight into age-dependent mechanisms of reorganization, this study compared the consequences of neonatal vs. adult forelimb amputation in rats at multiple levels of the sensory pathway, including primary somatosensory cortex, brainstem, and dorsal root ganglia. At the cortical level, the average area of the functional forelimb-stump representation from rats amputated as adults was significantly smaller (P Ͻ 0.05) than that of neonatally amputated rats (4.3 Ϯ 1.3 mm 2 vs. 6.6 Ϯ 1.5 mm 2 , respectively). At the brainstem level, neonatally amputated rat cuneate neurons possessed the following responsivities: 20% stump responsive, 40% responsive to both stump and hindlimb, 30% responsive to another body region, and 10% unresponsive. In contrast, cuneate neurons of adult amputated rats were 70% stump responsive, 2% responsive to both stump and hindlimb, and 30% unresponsive. A significantly (P Ͻ 0.001) greater percentage of the C 6-C 8 dorsal root ganglia neurons of adult amputated rats were unresponsive to peripheral stimulation vs. neurons from neonatally amputated rats (48% vs. 16%, respectively). These results indicate that the reorganization that occurs in response to forelimb amputation at birth vs. adulthood is distinctly different at each of these levels of the dorsal column-medial lemniscal pathway. Possible mechanisms to account for these differences are considered.
Journal of Cardiac Failure, 2011
Proceedings of 12th International Conference on Pattern Recognition
We present a new technique for tracking 3 0 objects in 2 0 image sequences. We assume that object... more We present a new technique for tracking 3 0 objects in 2 0 image sequences. We assume that objects are constructed from a class of volumetric part primitives. The models are initially recovered using a qualitative shape recovery process. We subsequently track the objects using local forces computed from image potentials. Therefore we avoid the expensive computation of image features. By integrating measurements from stereo images, 30 positions {as well as other model parameters) of the objects can be continuously updated using an extended Kalman jiltel: Our model-based approach can handle occlusions in scenes with multiple moving objects by predicting their occurrences. To handle severe or unexpected occlusion we use a feedback mechanism between the quantitative and qualitative shape estimation systems. We demonstrate our technique in experiments involving image sequences from complex motions of objects.
Journal of Biblical Literature, 2009
Methods and Techniques for Quality & Authenticity, 2014
Proceedings of the second ACM SIGCOMM workshop on Virtualized infrastructure systems and architectures, 2010
In the past couple of years we've seen quite a change in the wireless industry: Handsets have bec... more In the past couple of years we've seen quite a change in the wireless industry: Handsets have become mobile computers running user-contributed applications on (potentially) open operating systems. It seems we are on a path towards a more open ecosystem; one that has been previously closed and proprietary. The biggest winners are the users, who will have more choice among competing, innovative ideas. The same cannot be said for the wireless network infrastructure, which remains closed and (mostly) proprietary, and where innovation is bogged down by a glacial standards process. Yet as users, we are surrounded by abundant wireless capacity and multiple wireless networks (WiFi and cellular), with most of the capacity off-limits to us. It seems industry has little incentive to change, preferring to hold onto control as long as possible, keeping an inefficient and closed system in place. This paper is a "call to arms" to the research community to help move the network forward on a path to greater openness. We envision a world in which users can move freely between any wireless infrastructure, while providing payment to infrastructure owners, encouraging continued investment. We think the best path to get there is to separate the network service from the underlying physical infrastructure, and allow rapid innovation of network services, contributed by researchers, network operators, equipment vendors and third party developers. We propose to build and deploy an open-but backward compatible-wireless network infrastructure that can be easily deployed on college campuses worldwide. Through virtualization, we allow researchers to experiment with new network services directly in their production network.
Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 1998
The introduction of new communication and information technologies in work communities have prima... more The introduction of new communication and information technologies in work communities have primarily been used to create new channels of communication and/or reduce the cost of communication among members in the workplace. Ironically, the pervasiveness of electronic communication media in virtual work communities make it increasingly difficult for individuals to discern social structures. Fortunately, information technologies that are responsible for triggering this problem can also be used to overcome these obstacles. Because information transacted over electronic media such as the Web can be stored in digital form, a new generation of software called "collaborative filters" or "communityware" (Contractor, O'Keefe, & Jones, 1997; Kautz, Selman, & Shah, 1997) can be used to make visible the work communities' virtual social structure. One such tool, IKNOW (Inquiring Knowledge Networks On the Web; http://iknow.spcomm.uiuc.edu/), has been designed by a team of UIUC researchers to assist individuals to search the organization's databases to automatically answer questions about the organization's knowledge network, that is, "Who knows what?" as well as questions about the organization's cognitive knowledge networks, that is, "Who knows who knows what?" within the organization. Unlike traditional web search engines that help an individual search for content on the web, tools such as IKNOW search for content and contacts (direct and indirect). In addition to being instantly beneficial to users, they also provide the researcher with an opportunity to unobtrusively and reliably study the influence of Communityware on the co-evolution of knowledge networks.
Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 2008
Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 2014
The Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are critical components of the innate immune system that regulate ... more The Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are critical components of the innate immune system that regulate immune recognition in part through NF-κB activation. A human cell-based high throughput screen (HTS) revealed substituted 4-aminoquinazolines to be small molecular weight activators of NF-κB. The most potent hit compound predominantly stimulated through the human TLR4/MD2 complex, and had less activity with the mouse TLR4/MD2. There was no activity with other TLRs and the TLR4 activation was MD-2 dependent and CD14 independent. Synthetic modifications of the quinazoline scaffold at the 2 and 4 positions revealed trends in structure-activity relationships with respect to TLR dependent production of the NF-κB associated cytokine IL-8 in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells, as well as IL-6 in mouse antigen presenting cells. Furthermore, the hit compound in this series also activated the interferon signaling pathway resulting in type I interferon production. Substitution at the O-phenyl...
2007 Asia and South Pacific Design Automation Conference, 2007
This paper presents a simulation tool targeted specifically at bang-bang type phase locked loop s... more This paper presents a simulation tool targeted specifically at bang-bang type phase locked loop systems. The aim of this simulator is to quickly and accurately predict important PLL transient characteristics such as capture range, locking time, and jitter. We present a behavioral model for bang-bang type PLLs, and show how the application of this model in a simulator can speed up simulation time by four to five orders of magnitude. With this performance, Monte-Carlo simulation techniques become not only feasible, but convenient. The simulator also models the major non-idealities typical of phase locked loop systems. The accuracy of the simulator is confirmed via detailed analysis and comparison with Matlab Simulink based models.
2006 49th IEEE International Midwest Symposium on Circuits and Systems, 2006
This paper presents a bang-bang PLL architecture that employs two discrete loop gains depending o... more This paper presents a bang-bang PLL architecture that employs two discrete loop gains depending on whether the magnitude of the PLL's phase error is less than or greater than π/2. The advantage of this architecture is that the two loop gains can be used to independently optimize both pull-in range and jitter characteristics. A conservative expression to calculate pull-in range is derived and it is shown that pull-in range depends mainly on the PLL's outer loop gain, thus freeing inner loop gain to control PLL dynamics when in lock.
We introduce a Web De-Compiler (WDC) that extracts web design information for re-use. Given a web... more We introduce a Web De-Compiler (WDC) that extracts web design information for re-use. Given a web site, the system extracts design knowledge at several levels: site organization and navigation, page layout, and objects. Objects are regular structures within a page ...
Surgical Neurology, 2007
Background: Astroblastoma is one of the most unusual types of tumors whose histogenesis has been ... more Background: Astroblastoma is one of the most unusual types of tumors whose histogenesis has been recently clarified. It occurs mainly among children and young adults. It is grossly well demarcated and shows histologically characteristic perivascular pseudorosettes with frequent vascular hyalinization. Immunohistochemically, the tumor cells show diffuse strong positivity for GFAP, S-100 protein, vimentin, as well as neuron-specific enolase and focal positivity for EMA. Case Description: Our patient is a 33-year-old gentleman who presented with intraparenchymal hemorrhage in the left temporal lobe. A 4-vessel cerebral angiogram revealed a dural AVF in the left posterior temporal area. The lesion was resected, and pathology showed a GFAP-positive lesion with prominent astroblastoma rosettes. There was abundant hemosiderin consistent with a prior hemorrhage. Because of its high degree of proliferation, the presence of astroblastic pseudorosettes, prominent perivascular hyalinization, regional hyaline changes, and pushing borders with regard to the adjacent brain, the tumor was considered anaplastic. Conclusions: Astroblastoma is a rare pure pathologic entity-a distinct form of astrocytic gliomas. The diagnosis of astroblastoma is often difficult because of the astroblastic aspects that can be found in astrocytic tumors, in ependymomas, and in nonneuroepithelial tumors. The natural history seems to be between astrocytomas and glioblastomas. Total resection and radiation therapy seem to be the advisable treatments.
Pharmaceutical Research, 2010
Purpose Doxorubicin (DOX) is a very effective anticancer agent. However, in its pure form, its ap... more Purpose Doxorubicin (DOX) is a very effective anticancer agent. However, in its pure form, its application is limited by significant cardiotoxic side effects. The purpose of this study was to develop a controllably activatable chemotherapy prodrug of DOX created by blocking its free amine group with a biotinylated photocleavable blocking group (PCB). Methods An n-hydroxy succunamide protecting group on the PCB allowed selective binding at the DOX active amine group. The PCB included an ortho-nitrophenyl group for photo cleavability and a water-soluble glycol spacer arm ending in a biotin group for enhanced membrane interaction. Results This novel DOX-PCB prodrug had a 200-fold decrease in cytotoxicity compared to free DOX and could release active DOX upon exposure to UV light at 350 nm. Unlike DOX, DOX-PCB stayed in the cell cytoplasm, did not enter the nucleus, and did not stain the exposed DNA during mitosis. Human liver microsome incubation with DOX-PCB indicated stability against liver metabolic breakdown. Conclusions The development of the DOX-PCB prodrug demonstrates the possibility of using light as a method of prodrug activation in deep internal tissues without relying on inherent physical or biochemical differences between the tumor and healthy tissue for use as the trigger.
Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 2012
Background: Patients with chronic heart failure (HF) are at increased risk of hospitalization and... more Background: Patients with chronic heart failure (HF) are at increased risk of hospitalization and death. Large randomized clinical trials have shown clinical benefit in selected populations of HF patients. However, effective drugs may have different utilization and outcomes in the 'real world' that includes older and more fragile patients.
Australian Journal of Physiotherapy, 1990
A pedal goniometer was designed to measure the range of inversion of the ankle joint in 42 degree... more A pedal goniometer was designed to measure the range of inversion of the ankle joint in 42 degrees of plantarflexion about anaxis aligning more closely to that of the subtalar joint. The reliability of this instrument in assessing ankle inversion was examined. Repeated measurements of the full active range•ofmovement of ankle inversion were made on 30 subjects. The values of the Pearson Correlation Coefficient fori ntra-tester andinter~teste r reIiabilitywere r=O.96 and f=0.91 respectively. The high reli.. ability demonstrated by this pedal goniometer will allow its use in areas such as assessment of joint position sense and evaluation of the effects of treatment modaIities in rehabiIitation. [Chan MDY, GhuMYW, Wong SCK 8t al: Relability of a pedal goniometer for the assessment of ankle inversion in the plantarflexed position.
Journal of Neuro-Oncology, 2012
Novel therapeutic options for patients with recurrent primary central nervous system lymphoma (RP... more Novel therapeutic options for patients with recurrent primary central nervous system lymphoma (RPCNSL) are needed. Bendamustine, a bifunctional purine analog/alkylating agent, is approved for use in patients with progressive systemic indolent non-Hodgkin's B-cell lymphomas. Limited data suggests that bendamustine may partition into the brain in the setting of a disrupted blood-brain barrier. This report describes the first known experience of patients with RPCNSL treated with bendamustine. Therapy was well-tolerated and best response was noted as stable disease after eight cycles of bendamustine followed by a subsequent local systemic recurrence found at five months follow-up. CNS involvement in this patient remained stable 20 + months post-bendamustine treatment. Based on our observations, further neuropharmacokinetic and efficacy studies with bendamustine may be warranted in this patient population.
Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, 2013
A cell-based high-throughput screen to identify small molecular weight stimulators of the innate ... more A cell-based high-throughput screen to identify small molecular weight stimulators of the innate immune system revealed substituted pyrimido[5,4-b]indoles as potent NFκB activators. The most potent hit compound selectively stimulated Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) in human and mouse cells. Synthetic modifications of the pyrimido[5,4-b]indole scaffold at the carboxamide, N-3, and N-5 positions revealed differential TLR4 dependent production of NFκB and type I interferon associated cytokines, IL-6 and interferon γ-induced protein 10 (IP-10) respectively. Specifically, a subset of compounds bearing phenyl and substituted phenyl carboxamides induced lower IL-6 release while maintaining higher IP-10 production, skewing toward the type I interferon pathway. Substitution at N-5 with short alkyl substituents reduced the cytotoxicity of the leading hit compound. Computational studies supported that active compounds appeared to bind primarily to MD-2 in the TLR4/MD-2 complex. These small molecules, which stimulate innate immune cells with minimal toxicity, could potentially be used as adjuvants or immune modulators.
Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 2013
Drawing from social psychology perspectives of intergroup relations, including the common in-grou... more Drawing from social psychology perspectives of intergroup relations, including the common in-group identity model, mutual intergroup differentiation model, and optimal distinctiveness theory, this study proposes a theoretical framework of news analysis that accounts for the socially structured and hierarchical nature of international relations. The coverage of the territorially disputed Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands by the China Daily from 2002 to 2011 serves as the context for the framework. Integrated content, discourse, and concordance analyses showed that despite the local nature of the dispute that invokes clear in-group/out-group categorizations, the majority of the articles in the newspaper discursively recategorize intergroup relations, including the assimilation of Japan under a superordinate “Asian” identity and the categorization of the United States as the “outsider” purposefully interfering in China–Japan relations. The findings provide important ideological insights of the ru...
Journal of Interventional Cardiology, 2008
Percutaneous treatment of coronary bifurcation lesions remains a challenging aspect of interventi... more Percutaneous treatment of coronary bifurcation lesions remains a challenging aspect of interventional cardiology, but the approach to trifurcation and quadrifurcation lesions can be considered "double jeopardy." We describe two cases of trifurcation and one case of quadrifurcation that were treated percutaneously using a "minimal protrusion balloon crush technique." Immediate and long-term results were favorable with this approach.
The Journal of Comparative Neurology, 2003
Studies of sensory pathways in several species indicate that the extent and form of reorganizatio... more Studies of sensory pathways in several species indicate that the extent and form of reorganization resulting from deafferentation early in life vs. adulthood are not the same. The reasons for such differences are not well understood. To gain further insight into age-dependent mechanisms of reorganization, this study compared the consequences of neonatal vs. adult forelimb amputation in rats at multiple levels of the sensory pathway, including primary somatosensory cortex, brainstem, and dorsal root ganglia. At the cortical level, the average area of the functional forelimb-stump representation from rats amputated as adults was significantly smaller (P Ͻ 0.05) than that of neonatally amputated rats (4.3 Ϯ 1.3 mm 2 vs. 6.6 Ϯ 1.5 mm 2 , respectively). At the brainstem level, neonatally amputated rat cuneate neurons possessed the following responsivities: 20% stump responsive, 40% responsive to both stump and hindlimb, 30% responsive to another body region, and 10% unresponsive. In contrast, cuneate neurons of adult amputated rats were 70% stump responsive, 2% responsive to both stump and hindlimb, and 30% unresponsive. A significantly (P Ͻ 0.001) greater percentage of the C 6-C 8 dorsal root ganglia neurons of adult amputated rats were unresponsive to peripheral stimulation vs. neurons from neonatally amputated rats (48% vs. 16%, respectively). These results indicate that the reorganization that occurs in response to forelimb amputation at birth vs. adulthood is distinctly different at each of these levels of the dorsal column-medial lemniscal pathway. Possible mechanisms to account for these differences are considered.
Journal of Cardiac Failure, 2011