bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Representing arbitrary acoustic source and sensor distributions in Fourier collocation methods
Authors: Wise Elliott S. , Cox B. T. , Jaros Jiri , Treeby Bradley E.
Published: July 2019

Accurately representing acoustic source distributions is an important part of ultrasound simulation. This is challenging for grid-based collocation methods when such distributions do not coincide with the grid points, for instance when the source is a curved, two-dimensional surface embedded in a three-dimensional domain. Typically, grid points close to the source surface are defined as source points, but this can result in “staircasing” and substantial errors in the resulting acoustic fields. This paper describes a technique for accurately representing arbitrary source distributions within Fourier collocation methods. The method works by applying a discrete, band-limiting convolution operator to the continuous source distribution, after which source grid weights can be generated. This allows arbitrarily shaped sources, for example, focused bowls and circular pistons, to be defined on the grid without staircasing errors. The technique is examined through simulations of a range of ultrasound sources, and comparisons with analytical solutions show excellent accuracy and convergence rates. Extensions of the technique are also discussed, including application to initial value problems, distributed sensors, and moving sources.
Single-Center Investigation of the Pharmacokinetics of WCK 4282 (Cefepime-Tazobactam Combination) in Renal Impairment
Authors: Preston Richard A. , Mamikonyan Grigor , Mastim Mushtaque , Garg Dyal , Kemper Christopher J. , Xu Allan , Yeole Ravindra , Chavan Rajesh , Friedland H. David , Bhatia Ashima
Published: July 2019

WCK 4282 is a combination product of cefepime (FEP) and tazobactam (TAZ) in a 1:1 ratio currently under development for the treatment of multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacterial infections. We investigated the effect of renal impairment on the pharmacokinetics (PK) and safety of WCK 4282 in 48 subjects with various degrees of renal function. Subjects were categorized on the basis of their Cockcroft-Gault equation-estimated creatinine clearance (CL
CR
).
Cerebral autosomal dominant arteriopathy with subcortical infarcts and leucoencephalopathy (CADASIL) presenting with stroke in a young man
Authors: Dunphy Louise , Rani Amir , Duodu Yaw , Behnam Yousef
Published: July 2019

Cerebral autosomal dominant arteriopathy with subcortical infarcts and leucoencephalopathy (CADASIL) is caused by mutations in theNOTCH3gene which maps to the short arm of chromosome 19 and encodes the NOTCH3 receptor protein, predominantly expressed in adults by vascular smooth muscle cells and pericytes. The receptor has a large extracellular domain with 34 epidermal growth factor-like repeats encoded by exons 2–24, the site at which CADASIL mutations are most commonly found. Migraine with aura is often the earliest feature of the disease, with an increased susceptibility to cortical spreading depression suggested as a possible aetiological mechanism. Stroke, acute encephalopathy and cognitive impairment can also occur. Hypertension and smoking are associated with early age of onset of stroke. It diffusely affects white matter, with distinct findings on T2- weighted MRI, involving the external capsule, anterior poles of the temporal lobe and superior frontal gyri, displaying a characteristic pattern of leucoencephalopathy. Affected individuals have a reduced life expectancy. An effective treatment for CADASIL is not available. The authors describe a 35-year-old manwith an unremarkable medical history, presenting to the emergency department with slurred speech and increased confusion 3 days following a fall. He was a smoker and consumed 16 units of alcohol weekly. He was hypertensive and tachycardic. Physical examination confirmed increased tone in his lower limbs and dysarthria. His CT head showed severe cerebral atrophy, multiple small old infarcts and moderate background microvascular disease. Further investigation with an MRI head confirmed multiple white matter abnormalities with microhaemorrhages. The possibility of a hereditary vasculopathy was rendered as the appearances were thought consistent with a diagnosis of CADASIL. Genetic testing identified theNOTCH3gene thus confirming the diagnosis. This paper provides an overview of the aetiology, clinical presentation, pathogenesis, investigations and management of CADASIL.
Association study of a functional variant of TNF-α gene and serum TNF-α level with the susceptibility of congenital heart disease in a Chinese population
Authors: Pan Jun , Hu Jiang , Qi Xusheng , Xu Liqin
Published: July 2019

Background

Congenital heart disease (CHD) is among the leading causes of infant death worldwide. Although shortage of folate has been found potentially to contribute to CHD in the embryo, the aetiology of CHD was not completely understood. Inflammation and altered immune processes are involved in all forms of cardiac malformation, including CHD. Tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), was involved in the pathogenesis of multiple kinds of heart diseases. However, no studies have systematically evaluated the associations of genetic variants of TNF-α with susceptibility of CHD.

Methods

A case-control study was conducted to evaluate the associations between tagSNPs of TNF-α and CHD susceptibility. Serum level of TNF-α was assessed using ELISA. The dual luciferase reporter assay was used to evaluate the functional significance of variant rs1800629 on TNF-α transcriptional activity.

Results

We found rs1800629 was significantly correlated with increased CHD susceptibility (OR: 1.72, 95% CI 1.26 to 2.36, p=0.001). Serum levels of TNF-α were significantly higher in CHD group (9.09±1.90 pg/mL) than that in control group (6.12±1.56 pg/mL, p<0.001). The AA genotype and AG genotype of rs1800629 was associated with higher serum TNF-α level, compared with GG genotype. The dual luciferase reporter assay showed that promoter activity was significantly increased by 57% and 76% for plasmids containing the minor A allele compared with the major G allele in H9c2 and HEK 293T, respectively.

Conclusion

These results indicate that higher level of serum TNF-α increases risk of CHD, while TNF-α rs1800629 A allele might contribute to higher risk for CHD due to the increase in TNF-α expression.
Comparison of e-cigarette marketing and availability in tobacco retail outlets among diverse low-income communities in California
Authors: Escobedo Patricia , Garcia Robert , Soto Claradina , Rodriguez Yaneth , Barahona Rosa , Baezconde-Garbanati Lourdes
Published: July 2019

Objective

Research examining marketing and availability of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) within tobacco retail stores is limited, especially among vulnerable communities. However, tobacco retailers tend to be the first point of access to e-cigarette exposure, especially among youth. In response, store observations were conducted among tobacco retailers across five ethnically diverse, low-income communities.

Design

Trained community health workers recorded the presence of e-cigarette products, marketing, self-service displays, product pricing and product placement in the tobacco retail environment across American–Indian Tribal lands in California (n=96) and low-income African–American, Hispanic/Latino (HL), Korean–American (KA) and Non-Hispanic White (NHW) communities in Southern California (n=679) from January 2016 to January 2017. Store characteristics and pricing were analysed by ethnic community.

Results

Compared with retailers in NHW communities, retailers across all other communities were less likely to sell e-cigarette and flavoured e-cigarette products and were less likely to have self-service displays. Compared with retailers in NHW communities, retailers across all other communities were less likely to have e-cigarettes placed near youth-friendly items, while retailers in KA and HL communities were less likely to have exterior advertising compared with retailers in NHW communities.

Conclusions

Findings indicate differences in e-cigarette availability and marketing by ethnic community. In addition, placement of products and marketing that expose youth to e-cigarette and other tobacco products within the retail environment should be restricted and regulated by policymakers and tobacco regulatory agencies to reduce the burden of tobacco-related diseases among vulnerable populations.
Chirped optical solitons for Triki–Biswas equation
Authors: Rizvi Syed Tahir Raza , Afzal Insibat , Ali Kashif
Published: July 2019

This paper retrieves chirped sub-pico optical pulses for Triki–Biswas equation with the help of two integration architectonics. This model discusses ultrashort pulses propagation in optical fiber in the presence of non-Kerr dispersion term and group velocity dispersion. We will obtain bright, dark and dark singular combo-optical solitons under some constraint conditions.
Linear Predictive Coefficients-Based Feature to Identify Top-Seven Spoken Languages
Authors: Mukherjee Himadri , Dhar Ankita , Obaidullah Sk. Md. , Santosh K. C. , Phadikar Santanu , Roy Kaushik
Published: July 2019

Speech recognition in multilingual scenario is not trivial in the case when multiple languages are used in one conversation. Language must be identified before we process speech recognition as such tools are language-dependent. We present a language identification system (or AI tool) to distinguish top-seven world languages namely Chinese, Spanish, English, Hindi, Arabic, Bangla and Portuguese [G. F. Simons and C. D. Fennig (eds.), Ethnologue: Laguage of the Americas and the Pacific, Twentieth Edn. (SIL Internatinal, 2017)]. The system uses linear predictive coefficients-based feature, i.e. the line spectral pair–grade ratio (LSP–GR) feature, and ensemble learning for classification. Experiments were performed on more than 200[Formula: see text]h of real-world YouTube data and the highest possible accuracy of 96.95% was received. The results can be compared with other machine learning classifiers.
Simulation of the Field Emission from a Hemisphere-on-Post Nanowire: Revision of the Fowler–Nordheim Formula in Terms of Nonuniformity and Resistance
Authors: Wei Jindi , Zhang Gengmin , Xing Yingjie , Yang Jin , Zhou Wensheng
Published: July 2019

The electric field on a hemisphere-on-post nanowire is numerically calculated using the finite element method (FEM). The FEM calculation results show that the field is sufficiently strong for extracting a significant field emission current only in a small area at the top of the hemisphere, while the contribution to the field emission from the other part of the hemisphere and the flank side of the cylinder is negligible owing to the rapid drop of the electric field. Both the local current density at the top of the hemisphere ([Formula: see text]) and the average current density across the nanowire cross-section ([Formula: see text]) are calculated and the [Formula: see text]-to-[Formula: see text] ratio ([Formula: see text]) is introduced to reflect the nonuniformity of the field emission. An empirical formula with proper parameters that can best fit the simulation results is derived for describing the dependence of [Formula: see text] on the macroscopic electric field ([Formula: see text]). As a result, the [Formula: see text]–[Formula: see text] relationship is attained and the revision to the traditional Fowler–Nordheim (FN) formula caused by the nonuniformity of field distribution is found in both the pre-exponent part and the exponent part, so that the deviation of the FN plots from linearity often observed in experiments is partly accounted for. Moreover, the resistance at the emitter-substrate interface is shown to cause saturation in the field emission current and a downward bending of the FN plot in the high-field region.
Diameter-Selective Synthesis of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes on Supported Cobalt Catalysts
Authors: Wang Hong , Yang Lian , Chen Pingting , Tang Xiaodong , Yang Jin , Zhu Sha , Liao Yuanyi
Published: July 2019

Supported Co catalysts were prepared by impregnating the support (MgO, SiO2 and Al2O[Formula: see text] with Co(acac)2 solution, and diameter-selective growth of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) by ethanol chemical vapor deposition has been assessed on these Co catalysts. In contrast to Co/SiO2 and Co/Al2O3 catalysts with relatively high surface areas, Co/MgO catalyst with a low surface area demonstrates the best performances in the diameter-selective growth of SWCNTs under an optimal growth condition. Multiple characterizations on catalysts and SWCNTs revealed that Co(acac)2 was absorbed on MgO by ligand exchange and anhydrous solvent CH2Cl2 strengthened the anchoring of Co(acac)2 on the MgO surface, which resulted in well-dispersed Co species upon calcination in air. Under a modest reduction temperature, the reduction of Co oxides provided Co clusters, which were anchored by the unreacted Co ions in the interior of MgO support, leading to the synthesis of SWCNTs with a narrow diameter distribution.
Repopulation of intrahepatic bile ducts in engineered rat liver grafts
Authors: Chen Yibin , Devalliere Julie , Bulutoglu Beyza , Yarmush Martin L. , Uygun Basak E.
Published: July 2019

Engineered liver grafts for transplantation with sufficient hepatic function have been developed both in small and large animal models using the whole liver engineering approach. However, repopulation of the bile ducts in the whole liver scaffolds has not been addressed yet. In this study, we show the feasibility of repopulating the bile ducts in decellularized rat livers. Biliary epithelial cells were introduced into the bile ducts of the decellularized liver scaffolds with or without hepatocytes in the parenchymal space. The recellularized grafts were cultured under perfusion for up to 2 days and histological analysis revealed that the biliary epithelial cells formed duct-like structures, with the viable hepatocyte mass residing in the parenchymal space, in an arrangement highly comparable to the native tissue. The grafts were viable and functional as confirmed by both albumin and urea assay results and the gene expression analysis of biliary epithelial cells in recellularized liver grafts. This study provides the proof-of-concept results for rat liver grafts co-populated with parenchymal and biliary epithelial cells.
Automated N-way Program Merging for Facilitating Family-based Analyses of Variant-rich Software
Authors: Reuling Dennis , Kelter Udo , Bürdek Johannes , Lochau Malte
Published: July 2019

Nowadays software tends to come in many different, yet similar variants, often derived from a common code base via clone-and-own. Family-based-analysis strategies have recently shown very promising potential for improving efficiency in applying quality-assurance techniques to such variant-rich programs, as compared to variant-by-variant approaches. Unfortunately, these strategies require a single program representation superimposing all program variants in a syntactically well-formed, semantically sound, and variant-preserving manner, which is usually not available and manually hard to obtain in practice. In this article, we present a novel methodology, called S
i
MPOSE, for automatically generating superimpositions of existing program variants to facilitate family-based analyses of variant-rich software. To this end, we propose a novel N-way model-merging methodology to integrate the control-flow automaton (CFA) representations of N given variants of a C program into one unified CFA representation. CFA constitute a unified program abstraction used by many recent software-analysis tools for automated quality assurance. To cope with the inherent complexity of N-way model-merging, our approach (1) utilizes principles of similarity-propagation to reduce the number of potential N-way matches, and (2) enables us to decompose a set of N variants into arbitrary subsets and to incrementally derive an N-way superimposition from partial superimpositions. We apply our tool implementation of S
i
MPOSE to a selection of realistic C programs, frequently considered for experimental evaluation of program-analysis techniques. In particular, we investigate applicability and efficiency/effectiveness trade-offs of our approach by applying S
i
MPOSE in the context of family-based unit-test generation as well as model-checking as sample program-analysis techniques. Our experimental results reveal very impressive efficiency improvements by an average factor of up to 2.6 for test-generation and up to 2.4 for model-checking under stable effectiveness, as compared to variant-by-variant approaches, thus amortizing the additional effort required for merging. In addition, our results show that merging all
N
variants at once produces, in almost all cases, clearly more precise results than incremental step-wise 2-way merging. Finally, our comparison with major existing N-way merging techniques shows that S
i
MPOSE constitutes, in most cases, the best efficiency/effectiveness trade-off.
Morphable DRAM Cache Design for Hybrid Memory Systems
Authors: Cha Sanghoon , Kim Bokyeong , Park Chang Hyun , Huh Jaehyuk
Published: July 2019

DRAM caches have emerged as an efficient new layer in the memory hierarchy to address the increasing diversity of memory components. When a small amount of fast memory is combined with slow but large memory, the cache-based organization of the fast memory can provide a SW-transparent solution for the hybrid memory systems. In such DRAM cache designs, their effectiveness is affected by the bandwidth and latency of both fast and slow memory. To quantitatively assess the effect of memory configurations and application patterns on the DRAM cache designs, this article first investigates how three prior approaches perform with six hybrid memory scenarios. From the investigation, we observe no single DRAM cache organization always outperforms the other organizations across the diverse hybrid memory configurations and memory access patterns. Based on this observation, this article proposes a reconfigurable DRAM cache design that can adapt to different hybrid memory combinations and workload patterns. Unlike the fixed tag and data arrays of conventional on-chip SRAM caches, this study advocates to exploit the flexibility of DRAM caches, which can store tags and data to DRAM in any arbitrary way. Using a sample-based mechanism, the proposed DRAM cache controller dynamically finds the best organization from three candidates and applies the best one by reconfiguring the tags and data layout in the DRAM cache. Our evaluation shows that the proposed morphable DRAM cache can outperform the fixed DRAM configurations across six hybrid memory configurations.
NOTCH signaling promotes the survival of irradiated basal airway stem cells
Authors: Giuranno Lorena , Wansleeben Carolien , Iannone Raffaella , Arathoon Louise , Hounjet Judith , Groot Arjan J. , Vooijs Marc
Published: July 2019

Radiation-induced lung injury to normal airway epithelium is a frequent side-effect and dose-limiting factor in radiotherapy of tumors in the thoracic cavity. NOTCH signaling plays key roles in self-renewal and differentiation of upper airway basal lung stem cells during development, and the NOTCH pathway is frequently deregulated in lung cancer. In preclinical lung cancer models, NOTCH inhibition was shown to improve the radiotherapy response by targeting tumor stem cells, but the effects in combination with irradiation on normal lung stem cells are unknown. NOTCH/γ-secretase inhibitors are potent clinical candidates to block NOTCH function in tumors, but their clinical implementation has been hampered by normal tissue side-effects. Here we show that NOTCH signaling is active in primary human- and murine-derived airway epithelial stem cell models and when combined with radiation NOTCH inhibition provokes a decrease in S-phase and increase in G1-phase arrest. We show that NOTCH inhibition in irradiated lung basal stem cells leads to a more potent activation of the DNA damage checkpoint kinases pATM and pCHK2 and results in an increased level of residual 53BP1 foci in irradiated lung basal stem cells reducing their capacity for self-renewal. The effects are recapitulated in ex vivo cultured lung basal stem cells after in vivo whole thorax irradiation and NOTCH inhibition. These results highlight the importance of studying normal tissue effects that may counteract the therapeutic benefit in the use of NOTCH/γ-secretase inhibitors in combination with radiation for antitumor treatment.
A midiatização de um juízo político
Authors: Hartmann Camila , Silveira Ada Cristina Machado da
Published: July 2019

O artigo analisa os discursos jornalísticos produzidos sobre o juízo político da presidente Dilma Rousseff em capas de revista semanais de circulação nacional em um contexto de midiatização da sociedade. Como objeto empírico de análise, elegeu-se três capas veiculadas individualmente por CartaCapital, IstoÉ e Veja em uma mesma data, que sucedeu o processo de votação do juízo político na Câmara dos Deputados. Questiona-se a ação das revistas semanais nas capas elaboradas quando do juízo político de Dilma Rousseff, considerandose a responsabilidade editorial das peças jornalístico-promocionais.
Sobre paisagens conhecidas e corpos anônimos
Authors: Santos Ana Carolina Lima , Teixeira Rafael Tassi
Published: July 2019

Nos últimos trinta anos, uma série de fotografias jornalísticas que retrata o drama de africanos e médio-orientais tentando (e quase sempre fracassando em) cruzar o Mediterrâneo tem produzido memórias sobre a questão migratória. Este artigo parte da análise de algumas dessas imagens a fim de discutir de que modo a construção memorialística, conformada a partir de certa política do testemunho, pode ser capaz de entrelaçar dever de memória e dever civil de ação. Trabalha-se com imagens que estabelecem relação entre as paisagens conhecidas (do mar e da praia) e os corpos anônimos (de imigrantes cujas identidades e trajetórias permanecem indefinidas) que parecem desestabilizá-las, uma relação marcada pela noção de fronteira – a qual, ao mesmo tempo que serve para separar, abre uma possibilidade de unir o familiar e o estranho.
Ancoragem e circulação crítica na reconstituição do espaço público em Terremoto santo
Authors: Sousa Eduardo Paschoal de
Published: July 2019

Este artigo se propõe analisar as interpretações do curta-metragem Terremoto santo (Bárbara Wagner e Benjamin de Burca, 2017) ao longo de suas inúmeras esferas de recepção – como o circuito de festivais, a crítica institucionalizada, as redes sociais e as narrativas da própria produção, confrontada com determinadas formas de olhar para o filme. Refletimos, assim, sobre como a obra realiza uma ancoragem em sua circulação, a partir desse complexo crítico, ao recompor suas leituras possíveis, ampliando seu espaço público de circulação e remontando as narrativas que se formaram e que estão à disposição do espectador no momento de sua deliberação.
Is It Safe for Patients With Cardiac Channelopathies to Undergo Routine Dental Care? Experience From a Single‐Center Study
Authors: Oliveira Ana Carolina Guimarães , Neves Itamara Lucia Itagiba , Sacilotto Luciana , Olivetti Natália Quintella Sangiorgi , Santos‐Paul Marcela Alves dos , Montano Tânia Cristina Pedroso , Carvalho Cíntia Maria Alencar , Wu Tan Chen , Grupi Cesar José , Barbosa Sílvio Alves , Pastore Carlos Alberto , Samesima Nelson , Hachul Denise Tessariol , Scanavacca Maurício Ibrahim , Neves Ricardo Simões , Darrieux Francisco Carlos Costa
Published: July 2019

Background

Brugada syndrome and long‐QT syndrome may account for at least one third of unexplained sudden cardiac deaths. Dental care in patients with cardiac channelopathies is challenging because of the potential risk of life‐threatening events. We hypothesized that the use of local dental anesthesia with lidocaine with and without epinephrine is safe and does not result in life‐threatening arrhythmias in patients with channelopathies.

Methods and Results

We performed a randomized, double‐blind pilot trial comparing the use of 2% lidocaine without a vasoconstrictor and with 1:100 000 epinephrine in 2 sessions of restorative dental treatment with a washout period of 7 days (crossover trial). Twenty‐eight–hour Holter monitoring was performed, and 12‐lead electrocardiography, digital sphygmomanometry, and anxiety scale assessments were also conducted at 3 time points. Fifty‐six dental procedures were performed in 28 patients (18 women, 10 men) with cardiac channelopathies: 16 (57.1%) had long‐QT syndrome, and 12 (42.9%) had Brugada syndrome; 11 (39.3%) of patients had an implantable defibrillator. The mean age was 45.9±15.9 years. The maximum heart rate increased after the use of epinephrine during the anesthesia period from 82.1 to 85.8 beats per minute (
P
=0.008). In patients with long‐QT syndrome, the median corrected QT was higher, from 450.1 to 465.4 ms (
P
=0.009) at the end of anesthesia in patients in whom epinephrine was used. The other measurements showed no statistically significant differences. No life‐threatening arrhythmias occurred during dental treatment.

Conclusions

The use of local dental anesthesia with lidocaine, regardless of the use of a vasoconstrictor, did not result in life‐threatening arrhythmias and appears to be safe in stable patients with cardiac channelopathies.

Clinical Trial Registration

URL:
http://www.clinicaltrials.gov
. Unique identifier: NCT03182777.
Modulating the Use of Multiple Memory Systems in Value-based Decisions with Contextual Novelty
Authors: Duncan Katherine , Semmler Annika , Shohamy Daphna
Published: July 2019

With multiple learning and memory systems at its disposal, the human brain can represent the past in many ways, from extracting regularities across similar experiences (incremental learning) to storing rich, idiosyncratic details of individual events (episodic memory). The unique information carried by these neurologically distinct forms of memory can bias our behavior in different directions, raising crucial questions about how these memory systems interact to guide choice and the factors that cause one to dominate. Here, we devised a new approach to estimate how decisions are independently influenced by episodic memories and incremental learning. Furthermore, we identified a biologically motivated factor that biases the use of different memory types—the detection of novelty versus familiarity. Consistent with computational models of cholinergic memory modulation, we find that choices are more influenced by episodic memories following the recognition of an unrelated familiar image but more influenced by incrementally learned values after the detection of a novel image. Together this work provides a new behavioral tool enabling the disambiguation of key memory behaviors thought to be supported by distinct neural systems while also identifying a theoretically important and broadly applicable manipulation to bias the arbitration between these two sources of memories.
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation over the Prefrontal Cortex Alters Encoding and Judgments of Learning Based on Fluency
Authors: Gaynor Alexandra M. , Chua Elizabeth F.
Published: July 2019

Past research has shown that judgments of learning (JOLs), subjective confidence judgments made at study about later memorability, are inferential in nature and based on cues available during encoding. Participants tend to use fluency as a cue and give higher JOLs to more fluently encoded items, despite having better recognition memory for disfluently encoded items, which leads to poor JOL accuracy. Research has implicated the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and anterior prefrontal cortex (aPFC) in JOL and encoding processes, but no studies to date have tested how the roles of these regions vary with the information on which JOLs are based. We used high-definition transcranial direct current stimulation to test the causal roles of DLPFC and aPFC in encoding success, JOL ratings, and JOL accuracy. Participants studied and made JOLs about words that varied in fluency (i.e., frequency and orientation). High-definition transcranial direct current stimulation over the DLPFC impaired encoding, as evidenced by an increase in subsequent false alarms. For words that were less fluently encoded, aPFC stimulation improved JOL accuracy, perhaps making participants more aware of encoding failures under conditions of disfluency. Conversely, DLPFC and aPFC stimulation decreased JOL accuracy for high-frequency words, suggesting the roles of these regions in JOLs vary with the cognitive bases of the judgments. These results contribute to our understanding of the causal roles of prefrontal regions in objective and subjective memory processes and how their contributions to metamemory accuracy vary with information on which subjective assessments are based.
Turtles in Temple Ponds in Thailand: Species, Abundance, and Health Issues
Authors: Khudamrongsawat Jenjit , Meetan Dhanyaporn , Chansue Nantarika
Published: July 2019

The traditional practice of releasing turtles into temple ponds in Thailand, believed to benefit releasers, likely affects turtles’ welfare and impacts wild populations. We examined the species, abundance, and health of turtles in six temple ponds. Seven native turtle species and two exotic species were recorded. Most common were the yellow-headed temple turtle (Heosemys annandalii), a legally protected species, and the exotic red-eared slider (Trachemys scripta elegans). Almost all examined turtles showed signs of illness, the most common being shell lesions and excessive algal growth on shells. Poor sanitation and food quality, and limited space to bask, observed in all ponds, contributed to turtles’ poor health. We recommend using better-managed temple ponds as temporary rehabilitation centers and returning healthy native turtles to natural areas, while encouraging people to provide funds to support the turtles and discouraging the release of new turtles.
Altitudinal implications in organ size in the Andrew’s toad (Bufo andrewsi)
Authors: Zhao Li , Mai Chun Lan , Liu Guo Hou , Liao Wen Bo
Published: July 2019

Phenotypic flexibility of morphological and physiological traits within species is a common phenomenon across animal taxa. Hesse’s rule predicts that the size of an organ should exhibit an increase with increasing altitude along environmental gradients due to changes in oxygen supply and energy demands. Here, we test the prediction of Hesse’s rule by investigating geographical variation in the relative size of organs (i.e., heart, lungs, liver, and kidneys) across ten populations of Bufo andrewsi along an environmental gradient. We found that the relative size of these four specific organs did not increase with altitude or latitude across all populations. We also did not find that the relative size of the organs increased with increasing altitude among six populations located at a similar latitude and longitude, which is inconsistent with Hesse’s rule. Our findings suggest that oxygen supply and energy demands do not necessarily affect variation in organ size among populations.
Long-Lead Statistical Forecasts of the Indian Summer Monsoon Rainfall Based on Causal Precursors
Authors: Di Capua G. , Kretschmer M. , Runge J. , Alessandri A. , Donner R. V. , van den Hurk B. , Vellore R. , Krishnan R. , Coumou D.
Published: July 2019

Skillful forecasts of the Indian summer monsoon rainfall (ISMR) at long lead times (4–5 months in advance) pose great challenges due to strong internal variability of the monsoon system and nonstationarity of climatic drivers. Here, we use an advanced causal discovery algorithm coupled with a response-guided detection step to detect low-frequency, remote processes that provide sources of predictability for the ISMR. The algorithm identifies causal precursors without any a priori assumptions, apart from the selected variables and lead times. Using these causal precursors, a statistical hindcast model is formulated to predict seasonal ISMR that yields valuable skill with correlation coefficient (CC) ~0.8 at a 4-month lead time. The causal precursors identified are generally in agreement with statistical predictors conventionally used by the India Meteorological Department (IMD); however, our methodology provides precursors that are automatically updated, providing emerging new patterns. Analyzing ENSO-positive and ENSO-negative years separately helps to identify the different mechanisms at play during different years and may help to understand the strong nonstationarity of ISMR precursors over time. We construct operational forecasts for both shorter (2-month) and longer (4-month) lead times and show significant skill over the 1981–2004 period (CC ~0.4) for both lead times, comparable with that of IMD predictions (CC ~0.3). Our method is objective and automatized and can be trained for specific regions and time scales that are of interest to stakeholders, providing the potential to improve seasonal ISMR forecasts.
Eculizumab for rescue of thrombotic microangiopathy in PM-Scl antibody-positive autoimmune overlap syndrome
Authors: Thomas Christie P. , Nester Carla M. , Phan Andrew C. , Sharma Manisha , Steele Amanda L. , Lenert Petar S.
Published: July 2019

A 46-year-old female with interstitial lung disease presented with proximal muscle weakness, worsening hypertension, microangiopathic hemolysis, thrombocytopenia and deteriorating renal function. She had no sclerodactyly, but had abnormal capillaroscopy. She tested positive for PM-Scl antibodies, and a renal biopsy showed an acute thrombotic microangiopathy consistent with scleroderma renal crisis (SRC). She failed to respond to corticosteroids, plasmapheresis and renin-angiotensin pathway inhibitors. She recovered quickly with the anti-C5 antibody, eculizumab. She had no genetic abnormalities associated with atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome except a DNA variant of unknown significance in C3. This case suggests that eculizumab may be effective for SRC.
Problems in Public Health Encountered in a New Area
Authors: Thomas E. W. Caryl
Published: July 2019

Development of Becontree Estate.—

Population.—Determination of population. Age distribution of population. Some effects of unusual age distribution.

General problems in connection with development.

(I) Those arising through rapid growth without preliminary preparation. Resulting difficulties in regard to: ( a) Transport; ( b) General sanitation, house refuse disposal, sewagedisposal, water supply; ( c) Educational facilities; ( d) General health services:—(1) Isolation hospital; comparison of home and hospital treatment in relation to spread of infection; (2) General hospitals; (3) Nursing in the home; ( e) Itinerant vendors, etc.

(II) Those peculiar to this estate; but either avoidable in general or not necessarily occurring in the case of estates attached to stable communities. Shopping centre not provided. Doctors, clergymen, charged economic rent. No provision for growing families.

Behaviour of infectious diseases on the estate.—Measles: Absence of evidence of immunizing effect, on susceptibles, of exposure to infection. Tuberculosis: Consideration of benefits to be derived from satisfactory housing. Limitation of use of known statistics for comparative purposes. Presumptive evidence of incidence of tuberculosis in locality being higher than the rate holding for the country as a whole. Scarlet fever and diphtheria: Course of curve of relative incidence of infection in under-15 population over a number of years; demonstration of relatively high incidence of infection over a period. Consideration of possible explanation of high incidence: ( a) effect of schools; ( b) absence of isolation hospital accommodation resulting in secondary infection; ( c) coincidence of occurrence of large population at susceptible ages with epidemic prevalence of infection; ( d) immunity index of population rising to limiting figure; ( e) alteration in immunity of members of population, due to loss of previously acquired immunity, this loss being due to relative deficiency of immune carriers in the population. Use of Schick reactions to show: (1) slight effect of occurrence of case of diphtheria in house on Schick reaction of remaining occupants; (2) relation between number of immunes in house and Schick reaction of remaining members.

General conclusions on effect on health of residence on estate.
The Ventilation, Heating and Lighting of Hospital Wards
Authors: Watt James
Published: July 2019

History of ventilation in last 100 years, showing reversal of ideas and influence of sanatorium idea.

Physiology of cool moving air. How it affects metabolism, heat-loss and heat-production. Relation to sunlight. Reactive capacity of the individual.

Practice of these teachings, as illustrated by sanatorium treatment of tuberculosis and by open-air schools. Exposure to cooling air a powerful therapeutic agent. Infrequent occurrence in sanatoria of diseases or complications often ascribed to cold. Dilution of infection. Applicability to diseases other than tuberculosis. Shock and old age.

Perflation and diffusion, their relative values. Uniformity or variability of effect desirable? Incompatibility of good ventilation and ordinary standards of heating. Former the more important. Conclusion that ward temperatures may be lowered without harm. Measures necessary to compensate, clothing, classification of patients, small wards. Changing standards of comfort. Psychological effects.

Systems of ventilation in hospital wards. Mechanical by propulsion or extraction being displaced by natural system, usually by cross-window ventilation. Supplementary ventilators. Objection to heating of incoming air. Fallibility of human factor in management. Sash versus casement windows. Hoppers. Austral window. Orientation and exposure of wards. Ventilation of small wards. Proportion of window space to solid wall. Balconies. Floor space.

Heating of wards. Heating of air or floor or walls. Open fires. Value of radiant heat. Steam or water under low or high pressure. Radiators or pipes.

Lighting. Avoidance of glare from windows. Arrangement of beds in wards. Colour of walls. Blinds and curtains. Artificial lighting.
Ovarian and Uterine Grafts
Authors: Cheval Max
Published: July 2019

Recent experience has convinced the author of the value of ovarian grafting. He gives the histories of a number of women upon whom he made implants of their own ovarian tissue in the course of operations for double oöphorectomy. The subsequent state of these patients is contrasted with that of women after castration without grafting. When the uterus was left in position menstruation was re-established in over 80% of the grafted cases.

The author and his co-workers maintain that the vitality of autogenous grafts of ovarian substance is enhanced by hormones produced by the uterine mucosa. He therefore advocates that grafts of uterus be made in conjunction with ovarian implants whenever possible. Experiments carried out on animals have proved the correctness of this opinion.

The results of a series of cases of combined ovarian and uterine graftings are recorded, and the technique of uterine mucosa implants is described.
Pituitary Cachexia with Disturbance of Circulatory Regulation. Result of Treatment with Prolan
Authors: Hicks C. Stanton , Hone F. Sandiland
Published: July 2019

A case of extreme wasting associated with amenorrhœa for eighteen months. On finding that the subject showed a fall of blood-pressure with unaltered pulse-rate on sitting up, anterior pituitary dysfunction (Simmonds' syndrome (?)) was diagnosed and prolan (Bayer) was administered. Following 100 units intramuscularly administered, the circulatory response became normal in twenty-four hours. The pulse rapidly improved in strength and all circulatory symptoms disappeared within a week. Weight increased at first rapidly, and the nutrition, skin and hair improved remarkably. Metabolism of sugar, as shown by glucose tolerance tests, became normal, and evidence for improvement in fat metabolism is brought forward.

The study of the case goes to support the conclusion of Schellong that a function of the anterior pituitary is to influence the circulatory response to muscular effort. That hypotonia of itself is not responsible for the circulatory symptoms is shown by the failure of ephedrine (which raised the blood-pressure) to remove the circulatory symptoms.

Contrary to some accepted beliefs, prolan, which is prepared from urine of pregnant mares, has a profound metabolic effect, as well as an effect on the ovary. The diagnostic value of the circulatory response in doubtful cases is discussed.
Discussion on Short-Distance Low-Voltage X-Ray Therapy
Authors: Chaoul H.
Published: July 2019

Short distance X-ray therapy is characterized by the application of a very high dose to the diseased area only; the surrounding and underlying healthy tissue, being spared irradiation, is therefore able to assist the process of repair. Distribution of the dose is obtained by providing for a steep energy gradient within the tissue and by using metal applicators with fields of entry from 9 to 25 sq. cm. The short focal distance required is made possible by a monopolar X-ray tube of unusual design run at a constant potential of 60 kv., the total filtration amounting to 0.2 mm. of copper.

Doses of 300 to 500 “r” are administered every day for from two to four minutes. The total dose applied to the patient during two to four weeks is from 5,000 to 10,000 “r”. From these data it is apparent that the new X-ray therapy has many features in common with ordinary radium therapy.

Up to the end of 1935 231 cases had been treated by this method, the time of observation extending up to four years. The statistics include cases of cancer of the lips, the oral cavity, the eyelids, forehead, nose and ear, and on the surface of the trunk and limbs.

The possibilities of the method are, however, by no means restricted to tumours located on, or near, the surface of the body or in body cavities. Recently its scope has been extended to the treatment of deep-seated tumours, notably tumours of the rectum, made accessible by surgical operation. The results obtained in these cases are very encouraging. For instance, the first patient treated by this method two years ago has enjoyed perfect health and is pursuing his normal occupation.

In the case of tumours of large size or with many metastases, or having previously undergone intensive X-ray or radium treatment, the method is contra-indicated.
The Epidemiology of Weil's Disease
Authors: Alston J. M. , Brown H. C.
Published: July 2019

Adolf Weil defined the disease as a clinical entity in 1886, and Leptospira ictero-hæmorrhagiæ was found to be the causative organism in 1915 by Inada et al. in Japan, and confirmed by Hübener and Reiter in Germany. The infection has been found in most countries, and recently there has been a great increase in the number of instances reported.

In most parts of the world rats and other small rodents harbour the organism and excrete it in the urine. This is almost always the direct or indirect source of infection of man, but natural infection of dogs and foxes takes place, and is at least a potential danger to human beings. Infection is usually related to occupation in coal-mines, field work of all sorts, sewers, fish-cleaning, and to bathing in fresh water.

The organism quickly dies in an acid medium, in strong sunlight and in salt water. These facts accord with the presence of the disease in certain situations.

The route of infection of man is usually by contact of the abraded or sodden skin with infected mud or water, but it may be by inhalation of water and by bites of rats, dogs, and ferrets.

Men are much more exposed to infection than women, but in fish-cleaners the incidence is equal in the sexes. Children are sometimes infected by bathing and in houses.

The incubation time may be four to nineteen days, and is usually seven to thirteen days.

By serological methods many unjaundiced and subclinical infections can be detected among people who are often at risk, and these correct the rather high fatality rates which are derived from jaundiced cases only.

During the last three and a half years 142 authenticated instances of the disease in an obvious clinical form have been reported in the British Isles. Twenty-one occupations or circumstances were involved, and the case fatality rate was 15 per cent.
The Toxicity of Sterile Filtrate from Parodontal Pockets
Authors: Graham J. Wallace
Published: July 2019

The local effect of the absorption of toxic material from pyorrhœa pockets on the hard and soft tissues around the teeth is well known. In this experiment an attempt was made to study the toxic effect on remote structures by injecting the sterile filtrate fresh from pyorrhœa pockets into various animals.

The filtrate was obtained from patients with chronic pyorrhœa by removing the contents from parodontal pockets and passing them through a Seitz filter. The sterile filtrate obtained was then injected into cats, guinea-pigs, rabbits, and rats, in varying amounts.

In the group of four cats, all showed fatty degeneration of the liver and two showed extreme fatty degeneration of the kidney tubules.

Five guinea-pigs receiving one injection of ½ c.c. of filtrate showed no pathological change in the liver or kidney. One out of three guinea-pigs receiving two injections of filtrate showed fatty degeneration of the liver, while five out of six pigs receiving one injection of 1 c.c.,—i.e. double the quantity—showed definite fatty degeneration of the liver. One out of two rabbits showed similar changes and of six rats injected, all died in from five to seven days.

The experiment suggests that substances are elaborated in parodontal pockets which are highly toxic and tend to injure the liver and kidney of animals in the process of their elimination. Such toxic material proved fatal in fifteen of the twenty-five animals injected.
The Treatment of the Incompletely Descended Testis
Authors: Wilson D. S. Poole
Published: July 2019

Under three years of age the diagnosis of the incompletely descended testis is uncertain. The policy of awaiting spontaneous descent may be pursued until 10 years of age but, unless the testis lies in the superior scrotal position, this policy should not be persisted in thereafter. Hormonal therapy may be employed before operative treatment as a means of determining testes which will descend spontaneously. It should only be used in the prepuberty period. Operative treatment may be safely carried out at any age after 3 years and should be completed before puberty. The optimum period is between 8 and 11 years. The Bevan operation may be successful when the testis is very mobile but the most consistent results are obtained by the septal transposition or Keetley-Torek operations.