cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The ringed esophagus: histological features of GERD

Abstract OBJECTIVE: The “ringed” or “corrugated” esophagus is a cause of chronic dysphagia and recurrent food impactions in young men. It was previously believed to be a congenital condition, but recent case series have documented histological esophagitis in these patients. We have treated 19 patients with a ringed esophagus and are impressed that this represents an acquired condition with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) as its etiology. Our goals are to present the largest case series to date of ringed esophagus, discuss the evidence for GERD, and suggest a strategy for its diagnosis and management. METHODS: The charts of 19 patients with a ringed esophagus were reviewed. A single pathologist interpreted all available esophageal biopsy specimens and graded them for the presence of GERD-related abnormalities. Phone interviews were conducted to assess response to therapy and confirm historical features obtained from medical records. RESULTS: The typical patient is a young man (median age 35, M:F 17:2) with long-standing dysphagia and multiple food impactions. Endoscopy revealed multiple concentric rings that persisted despite air insufflation and caused significant stenosis. Of the 11 patients with available histology, all had basal cell hyperplasia, papillomatosis, and an increased number of intraepithelial eosinophils. Other clinical features of GERD such as heartburn, endoscopic esophagitis, and hiatal hernia were often absent. Response to dilation and acid suppression was good. CONCLUSIONS: The uniform presence of histological esophagitis with intraepithelial eosinophils, basal cell hyperplasia, and papillary lengthening strongly implicates GERD in the pathogenesis of the adult ringed esophagus. In addition to a series of gradual esophageal dilations, we suggest using a proton pump inhibitor to provide acid suppression.
Enhanced dichloroethene biodegradation in fractured rock under biostimulated and bioaugmented conditions

Significant microbial reductive dechlorination of [1,2 14C] cis-dichloroethene (DCE) was observed in anoxic microcosms prepared with unamended, fractured rock aquifer materials, which were colonized in situ at multiple depths in two boreholes at the Naval Air Warfare Center (NAWC) in West Trenton, New Jersey. The lack of significant reductive dechlorination in corresponding water-only treatments indicated that chlororespiration activity in unamended, fractured rock treatments was primarily associated with colonized core material. In these unamended fractured rock microcosms, activity was highest in the shallow zones and generally decreased with increasing depth. Electron-donor amendment (biostimulation) enhanced chlororespiration in some but not all treatments. In contrast, combining electron-donor amendment with KB1 amendment (bioaugmentation) enhanced chlororespiration in all treatments and substantially reduced the variability in chlororespiration activity both within and between treatments. These results indicate (1) that a potential for chlororespiration-based bioremediation exists at NAWC Trenton but is limited under nonengineered conditions, (2) that the limitation on chlororespiration activity is not entirely due to electron-donor availability, and (3) that a bioaugmentation approach can substantially enhance in situ bioremediation if the requisite amendments can be adequately distributed throughout the fractured rock matrix. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.*
Cadherins and Pak1 Control Contact Inhibition of Proliferation by Pak1-βPIX-GIT Complex-Dependent Regulation of Cell-Matrix Signaling

It is crucial for organ homeostasis that epithelia have effective mechanisms to restrict motility and cell proliferation in order to maintain tissue architecture. On the other hand, epithelial cells need to rapidly and transiently acquire a more mesenchymal phenotype, with high levels of cell motility and proliferation, in order to repair epithelia upon injury. Cross talk between cell-cell and cell-matrix signaling is crucial for regulating these transitions. The Pak1-βPIX-GIT complex is an effector complex downstream of the small GTPase Rac1. We previously showed that translocation of this complex from cell-matrix to cell-cell adhesion sites was required for the establishment of contact inhibition of proliferation. In this study, we provide evidence that this translocation depends on cadherin function. Cadherins do not recruit the complex by direct interaction. Rather, we found that inhibition of the normal function of cadherin or Pak1 leads to defects in focal adhesion turnover and to increased signaling by phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase. We propose that cadherins are involved in regulation of contact inhibition by controlling the function of the Pak1-βPIX-GIT complex at focal contacts.
Juvenile hormone titer and morph-specific reproduction in the wing-polymorphic cricket, Gryllus firmus.

Juvenile hormone titers and reproductive characteristics were measured in adult wing and flight-muscle morphs of the wing-polymorphic cricket, Gryllus firmus , during the first week of adulthood. This species has three morphs: one flight capable morph with fully-developed wings and fully-developed flight muscles [LW(F)], one flightless morph with fullydeveloped wings and histolyzed (non-functional) flight muscles [LW(H)], and another flightless morph with underde veloped (short) wings and underdeveloped flight muscles (SW). Both flightless morphs [LW(H) and SW] had larger ovaries which contained a greater number of postvitellogenic eggs compared with the flight capable [LW(F)] morph. The juvenile hormone titer was significantly higher in SW compared with LW(F) females on days 3–7 of adulthood. On these days, the JH titer also was significantly higher in the other flightless morph, LW(H), compared with flight-capa ble [LW(F)] females as determined by one statistical test, but did not differ significantly by another test. The JH titer was positively correlated with ovarian mass or terminal oocyte length, but not with the number of post-vitellogenic eggs. This study is the first direct comparison of juvenile hormone titers in adult wing morphs of a wing-polymorphic insect. Results indicate that an elevated juvenile hormone titer may be at least partly responsible for one of the most distinctive features of wing-polymorphic species, the increased early fecundity of flightless females.
Zygomatic augmentation with hydroxylapatite: A preliminary report

This paper describes the use of hydroxylapatite in combination with microfibrillar collagen and blood to yield a cohesive mixture that can be sculptured to correct symmetry over the zygomatic bones. Eleven cases were studied retrospectively, and the augmentation was found to remain stable and esthetically pleasing.
Flexible Low Power Probability Density Estimation Unit For Speech Recognition

This paper describes the hardware architecture for a flexible probability density estimation unit to be used in a large vocabulary speech recognition system, and targeted for mobile platforms. The speech recognition system is based on hidden Markov models and consists of two computationally intensive parts - the probability density estimation using Gaussian distributions, and the Viterbi decoding. The power hungry nature of these computations prevents porting the application successfully to mobile devices. We have designed a flexible probability estimation unit that is both power efficient and meets real time requirements while being flexible enough to handle emerging speech recognition techniques. The flexible nature of the design allows it to utilize emerging power and computation reduction techniques (at the algorithm level) to achieve up to an 80% power reduction as compared to conventional designs
Intraruminal rehydration of ovine fetuses.

During oral rehydration of adult mammals, oropharyngeal stimulation, the act of swallowing, and/or gastric factors contribute to a rapid decrease in plasma arginine vasopressin (AVP) that precedes plasma osmolality changes. To determine whether similar mechanisms are present in the developing fetus, six chronically prepared ovine fetuses were rehydrated with intraruminal (IR) distilled water infusions (1 ml.kg-1.min-1 for 60 min) after 43 +/- 3 h of maternal water deprivation. In response to maternal dehydration, significant increases were noted in maternal and fetal mean plasma osmolalities, sodium and AVP concentrations, and fetal urine osmolality. As estimated by hematocrit, fetal intravascular volume decreased by 11%. Fetal rehydration via IR distilled water infusion evoked a significant decrease in fetal plasma osmolality but no change in urine osmolality. Unexpectedly, fetal arterial blood pressure increased and arterial PO2 decreased while fetal hematocrit indicated a further 7% decrease in intravascular volume after the IR infusion. There was a nonsignificant trend toward increased fetal glomerular filtration rate, urine volume, and plasma AVP concentrations. Identical IR water infusions to five euhydrated fetuses resulted in significant decreases in fetal plasma osmolality and increases in glomerular filtration rate, urine flow, and osmolar excretion. The euhydrated fetuses also exhibited significant increases in mean arterial blood pressure and hematocrit and decreased fetal arterial PO2. These results indicate that IR water does not suppress AVP secretion in the dehydrated ovine fetus. Rather, both euhydrated and dehydrated fetuses exhibit an idiosyncratic vasoconstrictive response to IR water.
Maritime Labor Market Demand and Career Path in Latvia

Seafaring profession has traditionally been considered a romantic profession among young people, but in today’s labour market has dramatically changed priorities of career choices. At present, the maritime industry has more than 40 thousand vacancies, in addition to the growing trend - the shipping officers with University level are particularly difficult to recruit for crew shipping companies. The methodology: an analysis of policy documents, statistical data analysis, a secondary analysis of previous research, database analysis, surveys. The motives of choosing profession of young people were determined by economical (good salary, possibility to maintain family welfare, career possibilities and etc.), social (wish to acquire education, seafarers are valuated as specialists, and etc.) and psychological (seafarer’s work seemed to be very interesting, dream to become a captain, and etc.) factors. Both external and internal factors predetermine the choice of seafarer’s profession. The conclusion can be done that maritime education and training institutions have to explain young people all merits of maritime profession and show possibility for them to find emotional attractiveness and realization of their interests if they choose maritime professions.
A medium for rapid identification and enumeration of Aspergillus flavus and related organisms.

The research reported in this note was prompted by a chance observation during a study of Clostridium perfringens (Veillon & Zuber) Holland in corn and milled corn products on Sulfide Polymyxin Sulfadiazine (SPS) agar (Difco 1 0845). Plates of this complex medium, allowed to sit on the bench during examination of corn samples, became contaminated with a fungus, later identified as A. flavus, that produced a persistent bright yellow-orange pigment, near Cadmium Yellow 2 (P1. III, Ridgway, 1912), under nonsporulating colonies. Both the pigmentation and lack of sporulation were considered desirable attributes: While the former would permit easy detection, the latter would prevent development of secondary colonies with resultant inaccuracies in counts. Experimentation showed that a simplified medium consisting of 1.5% tryptone, 1.0% yeast extract, 0.05% ferric citrate, and 1.5% agar (Aspergillus differential medium, ADM) could be substituted for SPS without changing the reverse pigmentation or inducing sporulation of the isolate. The ferric ion was found to be essential for pigment production.
HPLC Determination of n-propyl-4-hydroxybenzoate and Aspartame

Objective The methyl-P-hydroxybenzoate,n-propyl-4-hydroxybenzoate,and aspartame in liquid and soluble solid foods were simultaneously determined. Method HPLC was applied. Result The RSD was less than 3% and the recovery rate was 91%～104.3%. Conclusion HPLC method is simple and convenient,and the results are satisfactory.
Adverse events following immunization surveillance in Guangdong Province,2011-2012

Objective To analyze occurrence features of adverse events following immunization( AEFI) and evaluate the operating quality of AEFI information management system and the immunization safety in Guangdong Province during 2011- 2012. Methods AEFI data reported from January 1,2011 to December 31,2012 were collected through the National AEFI Information Management System. Records of vaccination in the same period were sourced from the monthly vaccination reporting system of Guangdong Province. The descriptive method was used to analyze the AEFI occurrence features. Results A total of 9 753 AEFI cases were reported( reported incidence rate,89. 77 per million doses),of which 60. 96%( 5 945/9 753) were males and 39. 04%( 3 808/9 753) were females,65. 75%( 6 413/9 753) were aged one year and under and 32. 29%( 3 149 /9 753) were aged 2- 7 years. Of all the AEFIs,63. 68%( 6 211/9 753) were general reactions( mean reported incidence rate,57. 17 per million doses),30. 44%( 2 969/9 753) were abnormal reactions( mean reported incidence rate,27. 33 per million doses),and 1. 98%( 193 /9 753) were serious abnormal reactions( mean reported incidence rate,1. 79 per million doses). Symptoms of general reactions were mainly fever,redness and swelling,or indurations. Anaphylactic rash( 2 399 cases),angioedema( 125 cases),and lymphadenitis of Bacilli Calmette-Guerin vaccine( BCG)( 137 cases) accounted for 89. 63%( 2 661/2 969) of all the abnormal reactions. Anaphylactic shock( 57 cases),thrombocytopenic purpura( 20 cases),and allergic purpura( 16 cases) accounted for 48. 19%( 93 /193) of serious abnormal reactions. Of all the AEFIs,87. 41%( 8 525 /9 753) occurred within 1 day after vaccination,and 97. 75%( 9 534 /9 753) were cured or improved. Of all the diagnostic conclusions of abnormal reactions,92. 49%( 2 746 /2 969) were provided by investigation teams of institutions for disease control and prevention,89. 59% were provided by institutions for disease control and prevention at county level. Conclusion The sensitivity of AEFI surveillance in Guangdong was high. AEFIs often occurred among young group,within 1 day after vaccination,and with favourable prognosis.
Pretty as a Princess: Longitudinal Effects of Engagement With Disney Princesses on Gender Stereotypes, Body Esteem, and Prosocial Behavior in Children

This study examined level of engagement with Disney Princess media/products as it relates to gender-stereotypical behavior, body esteem (i.e. body image), and prosocial behavior during early childhood. Participants consisted of 198 children (Mage = 58 months), who were tested at two time points (approximately 1 year apart). Data consisted of parent and teacher reports, and child observations in a toy preference task. Longitudinal results revealed that Disney Princess engagement was associated with more female gender-stereotypical behavior 1 year later, even after controlling for initial levels of gender-stereotypical behavior. Parental mediation strengthened associations between princess engagement and adherence to female gender-stereotypical behavior for both girls and boys, and for body esteem and prosocial behavior for boys only.
TU-H-BRC-05: Stereotactic Radiosurgery Optimized with Orthovoltage Beams

Purpose: To achieve improved stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) dose distributions using orthovoltage energy fluence modulation with inverse planning optimization techniques. Methods: A pencil beam model was used to calculate dose distributions from the institution's orthovoltage unit at 250 kVp. Kernels for the model were derived using Monte Carlo methods as well as measurements with radiochromic film. The orthovoltage photon spectra, modulated by varying thicknesses of attenuating material, were approximated using open-source software. A genetic algorithm search heuristic routine was used to optimize added tungsten filtration thicknesses to approach rectangular function dose distributions at depth. Optimizations were performed for depths of 2.5, 5.0, and 7.5 cm, with cone sizes of 8, 10, and 12 mm. Results: Circularly-symmetric tungsten filters were designed based on the results of the optimization, to modulate the orthovoltage beam across the aperture of an SRS cone collimator. For each depth and cone size combination examined, the beam flatness and 80–20% and 90–10% penumbrae were calculated for both standard, open cone-collimated beams as well as for the optimized, filtered beams. For all configurations tested, the modulated beams were able to achieve improved penumbra widths and flatness statistics at depth, with flatness improving between 33 and 52%, and penumbrae improving between 18 and 25% for the modulated beams compared to the unmodulated beams. Conclusion: A methodology has been described that may be used to optimize the spatial distribution of added filtration material in an orthovoltage SRS beam to result in dose distributions at depth with improved flatness and penumbrae compared to standard open cones. This work provides the mathematical foundation for a novel, orthovoltage energy fluence-modulated SRS system.
EQUINE THERMOREGULATORY RESPONSES DURING SUMMERTIME ROAD TRANSPORT AND STALL CONFINEMENT

Thermoregulatory responses of horses subjected to summer-time road transport and stall confinement were investigated in this study. Six mature geldings were transported 168 km in a 4-horse trailer and were monitored while tethered in their stalls, on alternate days. Core body temperature (GT) demonstrated negligible response during transport, but GT following transport was higher than GT for non-transport. GT tended to increase with increased temperature humidity index (THI). THI within the trailer was greatest for positions near the front, and was influenced by daily weather which varied over experiment days from heat stress conditions to moderate discomfort.
Sensor and information fusion improved vision-based vehicle guidance

Sensor fusion is an important area of automated highways and intelligent vehicles research. This article discusses sensor fusion's role in vehicle guidance, general methods for fusing data, and how to organize sensor-fusion activities within a hybrid deliberative-reactive robot architecture.
Hematopoietic Stem Cells Regulate Niche Development.

Events localized to endosteal surfaces are critical for the maintenance of hematopoetic stem cells (HSCs). Here we explored whether HSCs themselves regulate their microenvironment directly by regulating cytokine expression by osteoblasts (OBs) in response to physiologic demands, or influence the developmental pattern of mesenchymal lineages and thereby indirectly modulate cytokine expression. To test the these possibilities, marrow was isolated from mice 48h after stressing the animals with a single acute bleed (removing 30% of the calculated blood volume by jugular vein venipucture) and in a second control group of non-stressed (puncture only) animals. The Sca-1(+) hematopoietic cells were co-cultured with confluent murine bone marrow stromal (BMSC) and calvarial digested OBs. The presence of HSCs stimulated the basal production of IL-6, SDF-1 and osteoclacin by OBs and BMSCs as determined by ELISA. Co-cultures of HSCs derived from the stressed group produced more IL-6, SDF-1 and osteocalcin relative to the non-stressed group. Newborn dermal fibroblasts did not respond in a similar fashion. To determine if HSCs influence the developmental pattern of the marrow, HSCs derived from stressed and non-stressed animals were separated from either murine OBs or BMSCs using Transwell R membranes and the ability of target cells to differentiate along the osteoblastic lineage was evaluated. A significant proportion of the colonies established from calvarial-derived OB cultures were able to mineralize their extracellular matrix relative whole BMSC population (CFU-OB). In the presence of HSCs, the proportion of non-mineralized (CFU-F) and mineralized colonies from the OB populations significantly increased. Further enhancement of both colony types were induced by the HSCs derived from stressed and non-stressed animals. Adherent cells derived from mixed BMSCs also responded to the presence of HSCs by increasing the generation of CFU-F and OBs relative to the No HSC groups. HSCs derived from stressed vs. the non-stressed groups of animals were better able to induce CFU-OB differentiation. Microarray of HSCs derived from stressed vs. the non-stressed groups, and Q RT-PCR of highly purified HSCs (CD150(+), CD48(−), CD41(−), Sca-1(+), cKit(+)) suggested that BMP-2 and BMP-6 were responsible for the activities. Antibody neutralization studies confirmed these observations that BMP-2 and BMP-6 derived from the HSCs themselves alters the developmental pattern of the marrow microenvironment. In conclusion, cross-talk between HSCs-OBs is essential for the development of both cellular populations. These studies demonstrate that at least 2 mechanisms whereby HSCs might set up a paracrine loop with OBs to establish the HSC niche; (i) HSCs directly regulate cytokine expression by OBs in response to physiologic demands or, (ii) HSCs may influence the developmental pattern of mesenchymal lineages and thereby indirectly modulate cytokine expression in the marrow.
Influence of flow-induced bend–twist coupling on the natural vibration responses of flexible hydrofoils

Abstract For flexible hydrofoils, the natural flow-induced bending and twisting deformations are coupled if the center of lift is away from the elastic axis; this coupling may be influenced by viscous effects due to movement in the center of lift. The objective of this work is to investigate the role of flow-induced bend–twist coupling effects, as well as their dependence on the reduced velocity and solid-to-fluid added mass ratio. A secondary objective is to compare inviscid and viscous fluid–structure interaction (FSI) simulations of the natural flow-induced vibration responses of flexible cantilevered hydrofoils in water. The focus is on attached flow conditions in fully turbulent regimes at low angles of attack, where inviscid FSI method should be relatively accurate, and the foil response should be dominated by the foil's natural frequencies. The viscous FSI model is formulated by coupling a two-dimensional (2D) unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (URANS) model with a two-degrees-of-freedom (2-DOF) model representing the spanwise tip bending and twisting deformations. The results show that the flow-induced bend–twist coupling terms are important for accurate prediction of the natural vibration frequencies and damping characteristics, particularly for the twisting motion, and their relative importance grows when the relative velocity increases and the solid-to-fluid added mass ratio decreases.
Upper Paleolithic Hunter-Gatherers in the Wadi Feiran, Southern Sinai

We are addressing the problem of how we, as archaeologists, can approach hunter-gatherer adaptation strategies and mobility systems in a more constructive manner than has previously been attempted. Our goal for this chapter is to cogently present our models, to succinctly address the problems they raise, and to test them against a particular case in the archaeological record—one we feel can be instructive for archaeological hunter-gatherer studies.
Postsocialism and the Tech Boom 2.0: techno-utopics of racial/spatial dispossession

ABSTRACTThis paper portrays spatial and racial San Francisco Bay Area enactments of dispossession emergent in the wake of the ‘Tech Boom 2.0’, offering a contextual Cold War and postsocialist genealogy. Both the Dot Com Boom and its contemporary successor, I argue, are events only made possible by the cessation of the Cold War, which incited new consumer-driven Silicon Valley models. This facilitated Silicon Valley temporal penetration both into its peripheral urbanities and into formerly Communist space, gentrifying non-Silicon Valley Time and social/political worlds. Such Bay Area urban disruptions have fomented new forms of resistance, despair, and nihilism, all countering techno-utopics of the Tech Boom 2.0. These protests and affective worlds too are haunted by the ghosts of futures past, harkening to futurities beyond narratives of techno-utopic inevitability, globality, and liberalism. Therefore, the oppositional worlds responsive to techno-utopic dissemination too are situated within a postsociali...
Dorsal and Lateral Column Degeneration Causing Progressive Myelopathy in a Case of Leber’s Hereditary Optic Neuropathy (P4.267)

Objective: To describe a case of Leber’s Hereditary Optic Neuropathy (LHON) with progressive myelopathy secondary to dorsal and lateral column degeneration Background: LHON is a mitochondrial disease characterized by progressive, bilateral, painless vision loss due to degeneration of retinal ganglion cells. LHON can be complicated by other neurologic sequelae with such cases being referred to as Lebers “Plus.” Lebers Plus can mimic other neurologic disorders such as multiple sclerosis (referred to as Harding Syndrome), neuromyelitis optica (NMO) or Leigh Syndrome. Myelopathy is a common feature of Lebers Plus and has been described in Harding Syndrome, comorbid NMO, and tractopathy. Clinical, radiographic and pathologic evidence of spinal cord involvement has been reported with multiple cases revealing evidence of predominantly dorsal column degeneration and inflammation. Methods: Our patient was observed over a two year period. Paraclinical data included MRI, spinal fluid analysis, and nerve conduction with electromyography. Results: A 61 year old male presented with five years of progressive neurologic symptoms that began with ascending bilateral lower extremity numbness and early motor fatigue. He developed dysesthesias and spasticity followed by subacute, bilateral, painless vision loss. After an extensive workup he was found to have the 14484 mutation for LHON. He continued to decline leaving him wheelchair bound and without any useful vision. MRI spine revealed T2 hyperintensities extending throughout the dorsal column and right lateral column. Conclusions: We present a case of LHON with progressive myelopathy prior to onset of visual symptoms and MRI evidence of long tract degeneration. This is the first case to demonstrate clinical and radiographic evidence of lateral and dorsal column degeneration in LHON. As our patient had signs and symptoms of myelopathy for 3 years before developing visual symptoms, LHON should be considered in myelopathy with tract specific changes or a negative workup. Disclosure: Dr. Gettings has nothing to disclose. Dr. Royal has received personal compensation for activities with MedImpact Healthcare Systems, Inc.
A Flocking Model of Human Organizing: Leadership Implications

This study uses flock modeling to advance understanding of emergent collective behavior in contexts of human organizing. Collective capacities emerge from interactions between individuals. An agent...
The 9th International Countercurrent Chromatography Conference held at Dominican University, Chicago, USA, August 1-3, 2016.

The 9th International Countercurrent Chromatography Conference (CCC 2016) was held at Dominican University near Chicago, IL (USA), from August 1st–3rd, 2016. The biennial CCC 20XX conferences provide an opportunity for countercurrent chromatography and centrifugal partition chromatography (CCC/CPC) manufactures, marketers, theorists, and research scientists to gather together socially, learn from each other, and advance countercurrent separation technology. A synopsis of the conference proceedings as well as a series of short reviews of the special edition articles is included in this document. Many productive discussions and collegial conversation at CCC 2016 attested to the liveliness, connectivity, and productivity of the global countercurrent research community and bodes well for the success of the 10th conference at the University of Braunschweig, Germany on August 1–3, 2018.
Recent advances in the diagnosis of soft tissue tumours.

Summary Soft tissue tumours are relatively rare, but are diagnostically challenging as they comprise a large spectrum of diagnostic entities. Substantial advances have been made in recent years in identifying the underlying recurrent chromosomal and genomic alterations in a significant subset of soft tissue tumours, and this continues to enrich our understanding of the biological mechanisms of tumour development and progression. Ongoing validation and integration of these findings into existing pathological-diagnostic algorithms has led to re- or subclassification of diagnostic categories and will continue to shape a more nuanced (and hopefully clinically relevant) tumour classification system in the future. This review provides a selective overview of recent diagnostic or conceptual advances in the categories of peripheral nerve sheath tumours, vascular and adipocytic tumours, round cell and myogenic sarcomas, and gastrointestinal stromal tumours, as well as their underlying molecular mechanisms, some of which have been translated successfully into useful immunohistochemical stains. A thorough and critical validation of newly identified diagnostic markers—acknowledging the fact that some genetic alterations may not necessarily be tumour-specific—and ongoing correlation with clinical and prognostic implications will be necessary in this regard.
Unique sperm haplotypes are associated with phenotypically different sperm subpopulations in Astyanax fish

The phenotypes of sperm are generally believed to be under the control of the diploid genotype of the male producing them rather than their own haploid genotypes, because developing spermatids share cytoplasm through intercellular bridges. This sharing is believed to homogenize their content of gene products. However, not all developing spermatids have identical gene products and estimates are that alleles at numerous gene loci are unequally expressed in sperm. This provides scope for the hypothesis that sperm phenotypes might be influenced by their unique haplotypes. Here we test a key prediction of this hypothesis. The haploid hypothesis predicts that phenotypically different sperm subpopulations should be genetically distinct. We tested this by genotyping different sperm subpopulations that were generated by exposing sperm to a chemical dye challenge (Hoechst 33342). Dye treatment caused the cells to swell and tend to clump together. The three subpopulations of sperm we distinguished in flow cytometry corresponded to single cells, and clumps of two or three. Cell clumping in the presence of the dye may reflect variation in cell adhesivity. We found that allelic contents differed among the three populations. Importantly, the subpopulations with clumped sperm cells were significantly enriched in allelic combinations that had previously been observed to have significantly lower transmission success. We show that at least one sperm phenotype is correlated with its haploid genotype. This supports a broader hypothesis that the haploid genotypes of sperm cells may influence their fitness, with potentially significant implications for the transmission of deleterious alleles or combinations of alleles to their offspring.
Leptospirosis with acute liver injury

A 61-year-old man with no significant medical history presented with fever, muscle pain, and weakness. He was found to be in multiorgan failure due to leptospirosis, a condition known as Weil's disease. A timely workup, combined with early initiation of antibiotics, led to effective treatment for this patient.
Mud Island and Mud Diapir Motion Hazards

In addition to the major hazards developed in the preceding chapters, there are also less frequently occurring (or less often recorded!) hazards associated with mud islands and diapirs. Historically people have observed that some of the islands in the Caspian Sea suddenly disappeared, or appeared again. Many islands appeared for a couple of weeks, or even days, and then were “washed out” by waves. Later people noticed that, most of the time, the appearance of new islands was associated with offshore eruptions. Therefore it was the opinion, for a long time, that the appearance of those islands was due to erupted mud, which constituted the islands. Probably in some of the cases this phenomena really did occur. But analysis of the observations shows that other processes take place as well. The appearance and disappearance of islands can be due to mud diapiric motion.
Intraocular lens implantation versus no intraocular lens implantation in patients with chronic iridocyclitis and pars planitis : a randomized prospective study

Purpose: The authors studied the safety of intraocular lens (IOL) implantation in patients with uveitis. Methods: The authors prospectively randomized 26 patients with chronic iridocyclitis (22 patients) or pars planitis (4 patients) to undergo IOL implantation or no IOL implantation at the time of cataract surgery. Results: There was no statistical difference in visual acuity results at 1 year between the two groups. There was a trend toward better visual acuity in patients with chronic iridocyclitis without IOLs. Cocoon-like dense fibrous membranes enveloped the IOL in two patients. Conclusions: The authors conclude that IOLs are relatively safe in patients with chronic iridocyclitis but that only a much larger study could determine if the trend toward better visual acuity without an IOL was real.
Acetonitrile Synthesis from CO, H2 and NH3 Over Fe/C and K,Fe/C

Abstract Acetonitrile synthesis from CO, H 2 and NH 3 has been studied on Fe/C and K,Fe/C catalysts. The reaction conditions were 698–723 K and atmospheric pressure in a mixture of 1:2:1 CO:H 2 :NH 3 . The CH 3 CN/CH 4 ratio is almost 3 times higher on promoted catalysts than on unpromoted catalysts, due to suppression of methane and higher hydrocarbons on promoted catalysts. In situ Mossbauer spectroscopic studies of unpromoted Fe/C catalysts indicate that e′-Fe 2.2 C is the active phase. For both types of catalysts, large e′-Fe 2.2 C particles formed from Fe 0 are thermally unstable and convert to form χ and θ carbides. In doing so they lose carbon from the lattice, which contributes to the carbon overlayers on the surface of the catalyst, leading to loss in activity.
A Street View of Property

Parking on public streets is scarce. The current allocation system for parking spots based on rule of capture coupled with low parking fees creates a tragedy of the commons scenario. The misallocation of parking has consequences for commerce, for access to public spaces, and for pollution and congestion. Municipalities have not widely adopted the solution that economists propose to solve this scarcity problem: increase the price. Politics aside, the reluctance of municipalities to do so may be explained by the unique nature of public property as reflected in well-rooted legal and societal constraints. This unique nature helps explain, for example, municipalities’ ban of software applications (apps) allowing occupants of curbside parking to “sell” their spots to would-be occupants in Boston or San Francisco. While the ban may be justified, the unique nature of public property is not incompatible with some well-designed, efficiency-oriented policies, as this paper will put forward. This article distills the legal constraints on curbside parking and any other public property management by drawing on case law regarding parking meters, case law on public resources managed in trust for the public, and decisions by municipalities regarding parking apps and privatization of parking meters. These constraints include, among others, that public property shall not be used to raise revenue, although placing a price on it may pursue other regulatory aims consistent with public use, or that municipalities shall not lose control of the public spaces dedicated to curbside parking. At a normative level, the above constraints provide a framework for assessing policies regarding curbside parking and, by extension the management of any other public property resources. At a positive level, the article proposes ways to make efficiency compatible with the principles guiding the management of public property. It analyzes to what extent the efficiency oriented policies that would translate into a price increase—variable pricing, tradable property rights, and privatization—clash with those principles constraining the monetization of public property. In addition, the article concludes by pointing to other situations where its analytical framework could be extended, such as other uses of public streets (for instance, use of public bus stops by shuttle-buses of private companies) or existing practices in connection to public resources of a similar nature (for instance, semi-privatization of beaches by surfers).
What Small Businesses Want

Where is the gap in access to credit for small businesses? The biggest credit shortage is for small loans, those under $250,000, and especially under $100,000. Unfortunately, this is the size loan that most—over 75 percent—small businesses want. The problem is greatest for the youngest and smallest firms, which are less likely to possess the information lenders need to establish creditworthiness. Moreover, the standard bank loan application process is long and tedious, and small businesses are notoriously strapped for time. This chapter explores why small businesses need capital, what they are seeking from their financial services providers, and how to achieve the right customer—product fit. It also discusses the lack of innovation by banks in the small business customer experience, and how early fintechs began to change the game.
Controlled ATRP Synthesis of Novel Linear-Dendritic Block Copolymers and Their Directed Self-Assembly in Breath Figure Arrays.

Herein, we report the formation and characterization of novel amphiphilic linear-dendritic block copolymers (LDBCs) composed of hydrophilic dendritic poly(ether-ester), PEE, blocks and hydrophobic linear poly(styrene), PSt. The LDBCs are synthesized via controlled atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) initiated by a PEE macroinitiator. The copolymers formed have narrow molecular mass distributions and are designated as LGn-PSt Mn, in which LG represents the PEE fragment, n denotes the generation of the dendron (n = 1–3), and Mn refers to the average molecular mass of the LDBC (Mn = 3.5–68 kDa). The obtained LDBCs are utilized to fabricate honeycomb films by a static “breath figure” (BF) technique. The copolymer composition strongly affects the film morphology. LDBCs bearing acetonide dendron end groups produce honeycomb films when the PEE fraction is lower than 20%. Pore uniformity increases as the PEE content decreases. For LDBCs with hydroxyl end groups, only the first generation LDBCs yield BF films, but with a significantly smaller pore size (0.23 μm vs. 1–2 μm, respectively). Although higher generation LDBCs with free hydroxyl end groups fail to generate honeycomb films by themselves, the use of a cosolvent or addition of homo PSt leads to BF films with a controllable pore size (3.7–0.42 μm), depending on the LDBC content. Palladium complexes within the two triazole groups in each of the dendron’s branching moieties can also fine-tune the morphology of the BF films.
Targeting histone deacetylase in lung cancer for early diagnosis: (18)F-FAHA PET/CT imaging of NNK-treated A/J mice model.

Elevated levels of histone deacetylases (HDACs) have been indicated in the development of some cancers. HDAC has been imaged using 18F-FAHA and may serve as a marker to study epigenetics. We report evaluation of 18F-FAHA as a probe in the early diagnosis of lung cancer using 18F-FAHA PET/CT studies of A/J mice treated with NNK. 18F-FAHA radiosynthesis was carried out in specific activity of ~2 Ci/μmol. A/J mice were divided into 2 groups: 1. Controls; 2. NNK treatment group with NNK (100 mg/kg, ip, weekly for 4 wks). Mice were injected 100-200 μCi i.v. 18F-FAHA and then scanned in Inveon PET/CT under anesthesia using 2.0% isoflurane. Midbrain, cerebellum and brainstem uptake of 18F-FAHA was displaced by the known HDAC inhibitor, suberanilohydroxamic acid (SAHA) with less than 10% activity remaining. CT revealed presence of lung nodules in 8 to 10-month old NNK mice while control mice were free of tumors. Little uptake of 18F-FAHA was observed in the control mice lungs while significant 18F-FAHA uptake occurred in the lungs of NNK-treated mice with tumor/nontumor >2.0. Ex vivo scans of the excised NNK and control mice lungs confirmed presence of extensive amounts of lung nodules seen by CT and confirmed by 18F-FAHA in the NNK mice with tumor/nontumor >6.0. Our preliminary imaging studies with A/J mice lung cancer model suggest 18F-FAHA PET may allow the study of epigenetic mechanisms involved in NNK-induced tumorigenesis in the lungs.
Preliminary Account of the Anthicidae (Coleoptera) of New Caledonia

An account of the Anthicidae (ant-like flower beetles) of New Caledonia is presented for the first time. Seventeen species are confirmed for this archipelago, including five new to science: Sapintus (s. str.) monochromussp. nov., Trichananca cheesmanaesp. nov., T. novacaledonicasp. nov., Macratria lipsbergisp. nov. and M. manfredjaechisp. nov. One new combination is made, Sapintus wiesneri (Uhmann, 1993) comb. nov. At least one anthicid species appears to have been introduced by human activities. As a result of the present study, confirmed endemism rate in New Caledonian Anthicidae is about 71%.
School-based caries prevention and longitudinal trends in untreated decay: an updated analysis with Markov chains

Dental caries (tooth decay) is the most prevalent childhood disease in the world. A school-based program for the prevention of dental caries providing bi-annual sealants, interim therapeutic restorations, and fluoride varnish to children aged 5–12 years was previously associated with a significant reduction in the prevalence of untreated tooth decay over time. The objective of this study was to explore potential nonlinear change in the risk of untreated decay in children receiving caries prevention. Across all study participants, there was a significant increase in the odds of untreated tooth decay over time (OR = 1.90, 95% CI 1.51, 2.39), but the rate of this risk rapidly decreased with each observational visit (OR = 0.87, 95% CI 0.93, 0.91). Overall effects substantially depended on the oral health status of participants at baseline: for children with untreated decay at their first observation, the odds of untreated decay over time was 0.39 (95% CI 0.27, 0.55). A quadratic change for this subpopulation showed that the per-visit decrease in decay was attenuated with each subsequent observation (OR = 1.12, 95% CI 1.04, 1.20).
GENETIC SELECTIONS AND THE CLONING OF PROKARYOTIC AND EUKARYOTIC GENES

ABSTRACT We have constructed pools of viable hybrids of bacteriophage λ and DNA sequences from the enteric bacteria Klebsiella aerogenes, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Escherichia coli , and the eukaryote Saccharomyces cerevisiae (yeast). Various genetic selections depending upon functional genetic selection of the foreign DNA were developed to isolate specific hybrids from the pools. The genes for DNA polymerase I were isolated from both species of Klebsiella and several genes in the aromatic biosynthetic pathway were isolated from these three bacteria. In all cases, these bacterial genes are functionally expressed in E. coli . We have also isolated a segment of DNA from yeast which, when integrated into the chromosome of an E. coli histidine auxotroph, allows this bacterium to grow in the absence of histidine. From genetic experiments, we conclude that genetic expression of the segment of yeast DNA results in the production of a diffusible substance, and that transcription necessary for the complementation is most likely initiated from the segment of eukaryotic DNA.
Discussion of “Transparency in Structural Research” by Isaiah Andrews, Matthew Gentzkow, and Jesse Shapiro

It is a pleasure to discuss this article. In two previous articles (Andrews, Gentzkow, and Shapiro 2017, 2019) and in this one, the authors propose tools to facilitate the interpretation of structu...
Spitzer 24 Micron Observations of Open Cluster IC 2391 and Debris Disk Evolution of FGK Stars

We present 24 micron Spitzer/MIPS photometric observations of the ~50 Myr open cluster IC 2391. Thirty-four cluster members ranging in spectral type from B3-M5 were observed in the central square degree of the cluster. Excesses indicative of debris disks were discovered around 1 A star, 6 FGK stars, and possibly 1 M dwarf. For the cluster members observed to their photospheric limit, we find a debris disk frequency of 10 (-3,+17)% for B-A stars and 31 (-9,+13)% for FGK stars using a 15% relative excess threshold. Relative to a model of decaying excess frequency, the frequency of debris disks around A-type stars appears marginally low for the cluster's age while that of FGK stars appears consistent. Scenarios that may qualitatively explain this result are examined. We conclude that planetesimal activity in the terrestrial region of FGK stars is common in the first ~50 Myr and decays on timescales of ~100 Myr. Despite luminosity differences, debris disk evolution does not appear to depend strongly on stellar mass.
Preclinical postoperative pain trajectories: impact of experimental predictors on recovery

This study examined the contribution of experimental predictors to aspects of postoperative pain trajectories in rats following surgery. We conducted Linear Mixed Effects (LME) growth curve modeling of longitudinal mechanical paw withdrawal thresholds (PWTs) in 164 Sprague Dawley rats from 7 independent cohorts that underwent partial L5 spinal nerve ligation. The dependent variable of LME was the PWTs response value in log-transformed form and the fixed effects included baseline PWTs, interested internal factors and linear time as a continuous variable, while setting subject IDs as random intercepts and linear time as random slopes. Mechanical PWTs increased over 10 weeks in a curvilinear fashion for the entire group of rats with significant inter-individual variability in intercept or initial hypersensitivity and slope of recovery. We examined the influence of several internal experimental predictors including surgeon, preoperative stress exposure, daily running wheel exposure, age at time of surgery and housing facility to model fit and trajectory parameters using both univariate and multivariate LME models. We found that surgeon (p
Learned discretizations for passive scalar advection in a two-dimensional turbulent flow

Calculating the evolution of a passive scalar in a turbulent flow requires resolving the intricate stretching and folding of the scalar field. Traditionally, this requires that the computational mesh is much smaller than the smallest scale of the concentration field. Here we demonstrate the use of machine learning to learn discretizations of the governing equation that give accurate computations with a coarser mesh. The model learns the universal small scale structures of the concentration field stretching, allowing it to accurately interpolate with less information.