Fluorescence microscopy image noise reduction using a stochastically-connected random field model

Fluorescence microscopy is an essential part of a biologist’s toolkit, allowing assaying of many parameters like subcellular localization of proteins, changes in cytoskeletal dynamics, protein-protein interactions, and the concentration of specific cellular ions. A fundamental challenge with using fluorescence microscopy is the presence of noise. This study introduces a novel approach to reducing noise in fluorescence microscopy images. The noise reduction problem is posed as a Maximum A Posteriori estimation problem, and solved using a novel random field model called stochastically-connected random field (SRF), which combines random graph and field theory. Experimental results using synthetic and real fluorescence microscopy data show the proposed approach achieving strong noise reduction performance when compared to several other noise reduction algorithms, using quantitative metrics. The proposed SRF approach was able to achieve strong performance in terms of signal-to-noise ratio in the synthetic results, high signal to noise ratio and contrast to noise ratio in the real fluorescence microscopy data results, and was able to maintain cell structure and subtle details while reducing background and intra-cellular noise.

Effects of auditory stimuli on intracranial pressure and cerebral perfusion pressure in traumatic brain injury

The primary goal of medical and nursing management in the traumatic brain-injured patient is to decrease intracranial pressure (ICP) and maintain adequate cerebral perfusion pressure (CPP). Little is known about what effect, if any, auditory stimulation has on these parameters. Therefore, an experimental study was conducted to examine the effects of various auditory stimuli on intracranial pressure (ICP) and cerebral perfusion pressure (CPP) in traumatic brain-injured patients. A convenience sample of fifteen participants with admitting Glasgow Coma Scale scores between 3 and 8 was studied. Three types of auditory stimuli: earplugs, a music tape and a tape of ICU environmental noise were applied to patients in a computer-generated random order. The tapes delivered sound at 70 decibels. Each intervention lasted 15 minutes. ICP and CPP were recorded at a 30 second resolution time through a bedside computer. Data were analyzed using analysis of variance for a cross over design. Results showed no statistically significant change in ICP or CPP during the study period. Further studies are needed to examine the effects of auditory stimuli on ICP and CPP in traumatic brain-injured patients.