cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effects of added lard fed to broiler chickens during the starter phase. 1. Body and selected organ weights, feed conversion, hematology, and serum glucose

Abstract The effects of added lard in starter diets on BW, selected organ weights, feed conversion, hematological indices, and serum glucose were determined weekly in broiler chickens between 14 and 42 d of age. Nonisocaloric starter diets were formulated to contain either 0, 3, or 7% added lard, where the megacaloric percentages of all major nutrients were held constant. Broiler chickens received either 0, 3, or 7% added lard in starter diets through 10 d of age (S1), followed by either 3 or 7% added dietary lard through 21 d of age (S2). All possible combinations of the three S1 diets and two S2 diets yielded six total dietary treatments. A common grower diet was provided after 21 d. Body weight was not affected by diet and feed conversion did not increase between 21 and 42 d when birds were fed 3 or 7% added lard in the S1 diet. The effects of the S1 and S2 diets on relative liver weight were inconsistent over time and were not influenced by sex. Hematocrits were increased across time in birds fed 3% S1 diets and plasma protein concentrations were increased at 14 d in birds fed 7% S1 diets. It was concluded that the response of broiler chickens between 14 and 42 d to different levels of dietary lard was influenced by age of feeding during the starter period.
Social Emergence: Societies As Complex Systems

Can we understand important social issues by studying individual personalities and decisions? Or are societies somehow more than the people in them? Sociologists have long believed that psychology can't explain what happens when people work together in complex modern societies. In contrast, most psychologists and economists believe that if we have an accurate theory of how individuals make choices and act on them, we can explain pretty much everything about social life. Social Emergence takes a new approach to these longstanding questions. Sawyer argues that societies are complex dynamical systems, and that the best way to resolve these debates is by developing the concept of emergence, focusing on multiple levels of analysis - individuals, interactions, and groups - and with a dynamic focus on how social group phenomena emerge from communication processes among individual members. This book makes a unique contribution not only to complex systems research but also to social theory.
Immunotherapy of SARS based on combinations of neutralizing human monoclonal antibodies

Evaluation of: Coughlin MM, Babcook J, Prabhakar BS: Human monoclonal antibodies to SARS-coronavirus inhibit infection by different mechanisms. Virology 394(1), 39-46 (2009). This work discusses passive immunotherapy based on neutralizing human monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) with different mechanisms of action. The authors have demonstrated that combining such mAbs, which target distinct epitopes, may greatly increase inhibition of virus infection and suppress the generation of neutralization escape mutants. The inhibition of human mAbs to SARS-coronavirus (CoV) may also act through different mechanisms of action, depending on their target epitopes or regions. Therefore, this approach could provide fast and effective prophylaxis and treatment of SARS-CoV infection during a SARS outbreak. Specifically, Coughlin et al. have indicated that most of the tested anti-S1 mAbs recognized epitopes within the receptor-binding domain and blocked virus attachment to its cellular receptor. These findings could provide a further step in understanding the mechanism of these mAbs in the prevention of SARS-CoV infection, as well as an insight into the design and development of novel therapeutic treatments.
Identifying genetic interactions associated with late-onset Alzheimer’s disease

Identifying genetic interactions in data obtained from genome-wide association studies (GWASs) can help in understanding the genetic basis of complex diseases. The large number of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in GWASs however makes the identification of genetic interactions computationally challenging. We developed the Bayesian Combinatorial Method (BCM) that can identify pairs of SNPs that in combination have high statistical association with disease. We applied BCM to two late-onset Alzheimer’s disease (LOAD) GWAS datasets to identify SNPs that interact with known Alzheimer associated SNPs. We also compared BCM with logistic regression that is implemented in PLINK. Gene Ontology analysis of genes from the top 200 dataset SNPs for both GWAS datasets showed overrepresentation of LOAD-related terms. Four genes were common to both datasets: APOE and APOC1, which have well established associations with LOAD, and CAMK1D and FBXL13, not previously linked to LOAD but having evidence of involvement in LOAD. Supporting evidence was also found for additional genes from the top 30 dataset SNPs. BCM performed well in identifying several SNPs having evidence of involvement in the pathogenesis of LOAD that would not have been identified by univariate analysis due to small main effect. These results provide support for applying BCM to identify potential genetic variants such as SNPs from high dimensional GWAS datasets.
Robust output feedback stabilization of discrete-time uncertain dynamical systems

The authors address the problem of stabilizing a certain class of discrete-time uncertain dynamical systems. The approach used requires no prior statistical information about such uncertainties, except that closed and bounded sets that they belong to. An output feedback controller that guarantees uniform boundedness and uniform ultimate boundedness of the solution of the system in question is derived. >
Middle-Range Theory in Paleolithic Archaeology: The Past and the Present

Middle-range theory (MRT), as the concept of intermediate theory between observed empirical data and general theories, was first formulated by the sociologist R.K. Merton in the context of the positivist waves of the 1960s as a reaction to the doctrinaire and descriptive paradigms of previous decades. Among the first archaeologists to employ this concept was L.R. Binford, whose work was particularly influential in the subsequent development of MRT in archaeology. Understanding site formation processes and the mechanisms responsible for generating, modifying and destroying traces of the past has been equated with MRT, particularly in Paleolithic archaeology. The development of MRT has played a crucial role in the formation and elaboration of field techniques, research designs, and new methodologies and, as such, has stimulated new directions and new questions in Paleolithic archaeology. This paper elaborates the definition of middle-range theory and discusses its development and application by archaeologists. Relevant components of MRT such as ethnographic analogy, ethnoarchaeology, experimental archaeology, taphonomy, and uniformitarianism are addressed, and some representative case studies are presented.
Aircraft Valuation In Dynamic Air Transport Industry

Aircraft valuation and the projection of its future price is an intricate process. This paper provides a comprehensive review of aircraft valuation. It presents a methodology that will more accurately measure return on investment, improve the efficiency of managing operating costs, and more effectively determine yield analysis. The value of an aircraft depends on internal factors that are directly related to the aircraft’s documentation and specifications. Some examples of these are age, aircraft size, seat capacity, fuel efficiency, and technical status. In addition, the aircraft price depends on the external factors, such as market demand and its elasticity, fuel cost, and environmental regulations. The external factors are extremely important because they indicate where in the aviation industry cycle the aircraft is and this, in turn, has the greatest impact on aircraft value. The theoretical value calculated in this paper is highly responsive to the assumptions underlying the valuation model.
Appraisal of Architectural Records in Practice: The Northwest Architectural Archives

The Northwest Architectural Archives was established in 1972 as a comprehensive regional repository to acquire and preserve architectural records of building and landscape architects, engineers, contractors, interior designers, and other professional organizations in architectural fields. The appraisal of records by the Northwest Architectural Archives is based in part on its comprehensive collections development strategy as well as criteria regarding the record creators, completeness, age, current and potential users, subject matter, and how such material fits with existing collections. Underlying most appraisal decisions is the expert knowledge of the curatorial staff regarding architectural records. Preservation and conservation actions are based on condition and value of the materials. The Northwest Architectural Archives' appraisal of the contents of the Minneapolis Plan Vault demonstrates some of the factors that influence appraisal decisions. However, architectural records have their own unique app...
The Problem with the Lieutenant Governor: A Legislative or Executive Position Under the Separation of Power Clause

The separation of powers doctrine was designed to prevent one individual from both creating and executing the law. Currently, forty-three states utilize a lieutenant governor position within their executive branch of government. The primary purpose of the lieutenant governor is to ensure the continuity of the executive branch. However, some lieutenant governors simultaneously exercise legislative power as the president of the senate or members of senate committees. Little scholarly work and few state supreme courts have specifically addressed this issue. This Comment surveys the office of the lieutenant governor among the states within both the executive and the legislative branches. Instead of applying an unwieldy “one-size-fits-all” separation of powers test to each of the fifty states opposed to each state’s needs, constitution, and case law, this Comment proposes three possible solutions for a state to remedy a separation of powers violation: 1) amend the state constitution, 2) strike down the statute as unconstitutional, or 3) remove the separation of powers clause from the state constitution.
The Extant Botanical Collections and Nomenclatural Types of Agustín Stahl, Puerto Rican Botanist

Abstract. The extant original material that Agustin Stahl used for describing five new species in his Estudios sobre (para) la flora de Puerto Rico was studied. Lectotypes are designated for Hibiscus tomentosus Stahl, Marialva elliptica Stahl, Byrsonima portoricensis Stahl, and Clusia gundlachii Stahl. His known extant plant collections are cited in an appendix with reference to the herbaria where they are deposited.
The influence of seasonal to interannual nearshore profile variability on extreme water levels: Modeling wave runup on dissipative beaches

Abstract Wave runup, an important contributor to storm-induced extreme water levels, is commonly predicted via empirical formulations that parameterize coastal morphology using simple metrics such as the foreshore beach slope. However, spatially and temporally complex nearshore morphology, such as subtidal sandbars, have the potential to alter surf zone wave dissipation patterns and therefore influence setup, swash, and runup levels observed at the shoreline. In this study, a suite of numerical experiments using XBeach demonstrate reasonable skill in reproducing wave runup observations in dissipative settings, explore the relative influence of seasonal to interannual variability in nearshore morphology on runup and its constitutive components, and illustrate differences between empirical and numerically modeled estimates of runup. The numerical model results show that interannual variability in sandbar configuration, associated with net offshore sandbar migration, has a larger influence on wave runup than does seasonal sandbar variability. Although the particular configuration of sandbars was estimated to influence runup by as much as 0.18 m during storm conditions, natural variability in subaerial beach topography has a stronger influence on runup than subtidal morphology. XBeach demonstrates that both wave setup and infragravity swash have morphologic controls. In experiments simulating storm conditions in which both nearshore and beach morphology was varied, natural interannual variability in beach topography explained about 80% of the variance in runup and its constituents. While XBeach predictions of setup, swash, and runup compare favorably with empirical predictors for low wave conditions, the numerical model predicts higher runup levels for storm-conditions on dissipative beaches raising potential concerns about coastal hazards assessments that use these empirical models to estimate extreme total water levels.
Reflex regulation of renal nerve activity in cardiac failure

Efferent renal sympathetic nerve activity (ERSNA) is increased in the rat with low-cardiac-output congestive heart failure (CHF; myocardial infarction). Arterial and cardiopulmonary baroreflex control of ERSNA in CHF and control rats was examined. Cardiac index and arterial pressure were lower and total peripheral resistance index, left ventricular end-diastolic pressure, and heart-to-body weight ratio were higher in CHF than in control rats. Increases in left ventricular end diastolic pressure produced by intravenous volume loading failed to increase cardiac index in CHF rats as it did in control rats. Single-unit analysis of aortic baroreceptor nerve activity showed that CHF rats had higher pressure threshold, lower frequency at pressure threshold, and lower gain than control rats. Arterial baroreflex control of ERSNA was attenuated; this was due to diminished gain of the afferent limb while the gain of the central portion of the reflex was normal. Single-unit analysis of vagal nerve activity showed that CHF rats had higher pressure threshold, lower frequency at saturation, and lower gain than control rats. Cardiopulmonary baroreflex control of ERSNA was attenuated; this was due to diminished gain of the afferent limb while the gain of the central portion of the reflex was normal. In the CHF rat, arterial and cardiopulmonary baroreflex control of ERSNA is markedly attenuated because of abnormalities in the periphery at the level of the aortic and cardiopulmonary receptors, respectively, and not in the central nervous system.
NaCl intake and preference threshold of spontaneously hypertensive rats.

SummaryBoth male and female spontaneously hypertensive (SH) rats have an appetite for NaCl solution. The appetite is present when a choice is offered between distilled water and either isotonic or hypertonic (0.25 M) NaCl solution to drink. Total fluid intake (water plus NaCl solution) was greater for SH rats than for controls while food intakes (g/100 g body wt/day) of SH rats were not different from controls. Mean body weight of SH rats was always less than that of controls. The appetite for NaCl solution was accompanied by a significant reduction in preference (detection) threshold. SH rats could detect the difference between distilled water and NaCl solution when the concentration of the latter was 12 mEq/liter compared to a control threshold of 30 mEq/liter. The NaCl appetite and reduced NaCl preference threshold induced by spontaneous hypertension is in marked contrast to the NaCl aversion induced by other types of experimentally induced hypertension in rats. The mechanism or mechanisms responsible ...
Brain Subarachnoid Space Architecture: Histological Approach

Human brain is suspended in the skull through three fibrous tissue layers, dura mater, arachnoid and pia mater, known as the meninges layer. The space between the arachnoid and pia mater is known as subarachnoid space (SAS). SAS consists of arachnoid trabeculae and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), which stabilizes the shape and the position of the brain during head movements. Through solid-fluid interaction, it has been shown that subarachnoid space (SAS) trabeculae plays an important role in damping and reducing the relative movement of the brain with respect to the skull, thereby reducing traumatic brain injuries (TBI), (Zoghi and Sadegh 2010). While the functionality of the SAS is understood, the architecture, the histology and biomechanics of this important region has not been fully investigated. In their modeling of the head, previous investigators have over simplified this important region. This is due to the trabeculae’s complex geometry, abundance of trabeculae and lack of the material properties. These simplifications could lead to inaccurate results of finite element head studies. Killer HE, et al, (2003) investigated the trabecular histology of optical nerves and Alcoldo, et al (1986) used Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) to study the arachnid mater of the SAS. The result of these studies reveal that the arachnoid is a thin vascular layer composed of fibroblast cells interspersed with bundles of collagen and the trabecula is also a collagen based structure. However, the brain SAS trabecular architecture and histology has not been fully investigated. The goal of this study is to investigate the mechanotransduction of the head impacts to the brain with the emphasis on the role of material modeling and architecture of the subarachnoid space as it relates to Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI). This goal was accomplished through three aims including experimental studies, material modeling and a 3D finite element model. In this paper, to present a global view of this investigation, brief descriptions of each aim are presented. It was concluded that the trabeculae contain collagen Type I with tree-shaped architecture and the validated material properties of SAS is approximately E = 1000 Pa.© 2011 ASME
Diagnosis of Retroperitoneal Fluid Collections by Ultrasonography: A Series of Surgically Proved Cases

Herein are presented 18 patients with a variety of retroperitoneal fluid collections. Etiologic factors and culture results are discussed. Ultrasound was the single most valuable diagnostic study. Because of its accuracy and non-invasiveness it should be used early in the diagnostic study of a patient with a suspected retroperitoneal fluid collection.
Survey of HBsAg Carriage Among People Engaged in Public Service in Area Under Jurisdiction of Chengdu Railway Bureau

Objective To understand the HBV infection status among the people engaged in public service in area under jurisdiction of Chengdu Railway Bureau.Methods A total of 47 105 people engaged in public service in jurisdiction area of Chengdu Railway Bureau were recruited in the study from 2003 to 2008,and HBsAg detection was conducted among them.Results Totally 1 344 people were detected to be HBsAg positive,the positive rate was 2.9%,which was highest in 2004(4.0%) and lowest in 2007(1.9%).The differences on positive rates between different years were statistical significant(P0.01).The HBsAg positive rates in people worked in Chengdu area,along Baoji-Chengdu railway line and along Chengdu-Chongqing railway line were 3.0%,2.2% and 3.9% respectively,the differences on positive rates between 3 areas had statistical significance(P0.01).The HBsAg positive rates in people engaged in catering service and in public place service were 2.8% and 3.0% respectively,the differences between different years had no statistical significance(P0.05).The differences on positive rates in different age groups of males and females in different years were statistical significant(P0.05),and the positive rates were highest in age group under 20 years old(6.8% in males,4.8% in females).The positive rate in age group of 40-50 was relatively low.Conclusion The HBsAg positive rate in people engaged in public service in jurisdiction area of Chengdu Railway Bureau was low from 2003 to 2008.The positive rate was higher in males than in females,in younger age group than in older age group and in area along Chengdu-Chongqing railway line than in other areas.
Biogeography of Interactions

Interactions between taxa can be studied from a biogeographic perspective, just as individual taxa can. The biogeography of interactions encompasses both historical biogeographic approaches which seek to understand changes in interactions over evolutionary time, as well as ecological biogeographic approaches which seek to understand variation in interactions between species across geographic gradients today. Finally, much coevolutionary theory explicitly incorporates geography.
Microscale deformation behavior of bicrystal boundaries in pure tin (Sn) using micropillar compression

Abstract Uniaxial compression experiments on micron-sized bicrystalline and single-crystalline pillars in tin (Sn) using a flat punch nanoindenter tip, have enabled us to quantify the difference in stress-strain behavior associated with grain boundaries in tin. It was found that bicrystalline micropillars containing a twin boundary nearly parallel to the loading axis were characterized by numerous strain bursts and a yield stress either lower than or comparable to its single-crystalline counterparts. Transmission electron microscopy on the deformed micropillar revealed that the twin boundary migration is associated with partial dislocation activity. The slip systems interacting with the boundary have also been identified using stereographic projections. Micropillar compression indicated different findings for bicrystalline pillars containing random angle grain boundaries, which displayed strengthening by acting as a barrier to dislocation glide. These results indicate that the grain boundary character plays a very crucial role in controlling the mechanical response of Sn-rich solder joints and provide insights into the deformations mechanisms occurring at different boundaries.
Aspects of early Afro-American material culture: Artifacts from the slave quarters at Garrison Plantation, Maryland

The 1964–65 excavation of the slave quarters at Garrison Plantation near Baltimore, Maryland, yielded groups of objects that display certain ‘Africanisms.’ The groups of objects are proposed elements of early Afro-American material culture and are compared to items from similar sites in the mid-Atlantic region.
Self-aligned bipolar npn transistor with 60 nm epitaxial base

A self-aligned double-poly bipolar transistor with a low-temperature epitaxial base is presented. Selective epitaxy emitter window technology (SEEW) is used to demonstrate the leverage of an epitaxial base technology by achieving 60-nm basewidth, an 7.5-k Omega /sq. intrinsic base sheet resistance, a peak current gain up to 115, and a C-B breakdown voltage of 7.5 V. Despite the low intrinsic base sheet resistance, a peak transit frequency of 30 GHz has been calculated for the transistor. Further, the advantages of SEEW technology for submicron emitters and very thin base formation are explained. >
What is a Learning Community?: Toward a Comprehensive Model:

Learning communities are too valuable, argue the authors, to let them become just another buzzword. It's time to look closely at what they are, to determine what they aren't, and to set forth speci...
Revisiting Epidermal Melanocytes: Regulation of Their Survival, Proliferation, and Function in Human Skin

Melanocytes are cells specialized in the synthesis of the pigment melanin, in the form of eumelanin, the brown/black, and pheomelanin, the red/yellow pigment (Ito and Wakamatsu 2003). Melanocytes reside in the cutaneous epidermis, within hair follicles, in the eye, the leptomeninges, the inner ear, and in the heart (Brito and Kos 2008; Goldgeier et al. 1984; Tachibana 1999; Yajima and Larue 2008). Melanin produced by melanocytes provides the skin, hair, and eyes with their distinctive coloration. In this chapter, we focus on epidermal melanocytes, since they have been the most thoroughly investigated due to their importance in photoprotection against sun-induced skin cancers, and for being the precursors for cutaneous melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, and their involvement in pigmentary disorders, such as albinism and vitiligo. We, hereby, provide a brief summary of the properties of melanocytes, review how cutaneous pigmentation is regulated, and discuss the significance of paracrine and autocrine factors and their signaling pathways in modulating the survival, proliferation, and function of melanocytes, constitutively, and in response to solar ultraviolet radiation (UV), a major environmental stressor and etiological factor for skin cancers, including melanoma (Gilchrest et al. 1999). We end by briefly describing how the knowledge gained about the regulation of melanocytes can be translated into preventative and therapeutic strategies for melanoma.
Change of state in Kinyarwanda: A study in root meaning

I investigate the paradigms of change of state verb roots in Kinyarwanda, comparing the simple state, inchoative, causative, and result state members of 81 root paradigms. I show that the morphological shape of the causative/inchoative members of the paradigm and whether there is a simple state term are both contingent upon root semantics. Certain change of state roots in Kinyarwanda lack simple state meanings and always give rise to change entailments; this correlates with the lack of the simple state in the paradigm. I further show that verb meaning also partially determines which of several derivational strategies are used by a given change of state paradigm.Â
Multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) MRI: An efficient pulse design algorithm to combine parallel excitation and parallel imaging

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) plays a critical role in medicine today. Over the last few years, there has been an interest in techniques that use multiple coils on one side of the imaging system such as parallel excitation or parallel imaging to improve performance in high-field MRI. In this paper, we explore the use of multiple coils at both the transmit and receive sides for enhanced imaging. We term this a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) MRI system. We use tools from the well-developed MIMO communication models and propose a novel radio-frequency (RF) pulse design method for multiple coils. We show that our MIMO MRI techniques can provide an improved signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) in the reconstructed image.
TS-Bat: Leveraging Temporal-Spatial Batching for Data Center Energy Optimization

Data centers that run latency-critical workloads are typically provisioned for peak load even when they are operating at low levels of system utilization. Optimizing energy in data centers with Quality of Service (QoS) constraints is challenging since variabilities exist in job sizes, system utilization, and server configurations. Therefore, it is impractical to have a single configuration for energy management that works well across various scenarios. In this paper, we propose TS-Bat, a new data center energy optimization framework that judiciously integrates spatial and temporal job batching while meeting QoS constraints. TS-Bat works on commodity server platforms and comprises two major components: a temporal batching engine that batches the incoming jobs and creates opportunities for the processor to enter low power modes, and a spatial batching engine that schedules the batched jobs on to a server that is estimated to be idle. We implement a prototype of TS-Bat on a testbed with a cluster of servers, and evaluate TS-Bat on a variety of workloads. Our results show that pure temporal batching achieves 49% savings in CPU energy compared to a baseline configuration without batching. Through combining temporal and spatial batching, TS-Bat increases the energy savings by up to 68%.
Mortality from Spontaneous Bacterial Peritonitis Among Hospitalized Patients in the USA

Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP) is a serious complication of cirrhosis and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. In this study, we examined the clinical characteristics and risk factors associated with mortality in hospitalized patients presenting with SBP. The Nationwide Inpatient Sample was queried for all hospitalizations involving SBP from 2006 to 2014 using the International Classification of Disease-9-CM Code. Logistic regression was performed to evaluate the association between SBP mortality and factors such as age, gender, race/ethnicity, and concomitant medical conditions at presentation (e.g., variceal hemorrhage, hepatic encephalopathy, acute renal failure, coagulopathy, and other infections including pneumonia). The lengths of stay (LOS) and total charges were also examined. From 2006 to 2014, there were 88,167 SBP hospitalizations with 29,963 deaths (17.6% in-hospital mortality). The mean age of patients who died in the hospital was higher (58.2 years vs. 55.8, p < 0.01) than those who survived the admission. Acute alcoholic hepatitis was noted among a higher proportion of patients who died (7.0 vs. 5.9%, p < 0.01), who were also likely to have more medical comorbidities. In multivariable analysis, older age, female gender, hepatic encephalopathy, coagulopathy, variceal hemorrhage, sepsis, pneumonia, and acute kidney injury were associated with increased in-hospital mortality. This group also had longer LOS (11.6 days vs. 9.1, p < 0.01) and higher total charges ($138,273 vs. $73,533, p < 0.01). SBP is associated with significant in-hospital mortality, especially in patients with concurrent risk factors. SBP remains a significant burden to the healthcare system.
Contracts for intimate relationships

This paper analyzes the extent to which intimate relationships established by contract differ from, and are more egalitarian than, those established by traditional legal marriage. Three types of intimate contracts are examined: contracts between legally married spouses, contracts written as a prelude to legal marriage, and contracts written by unmarried cohabitors as an alternative to legal marriage. The paper addresses two major questions: (1) To what extent do the relationships established by contract differ from those established by legal marriage? (2) To what extent do these contracts support more egalitarian family forms? While considerable variation by type of relationship was found, with the cohabitors departing the most from the traditional legal model, even the married couples wrote contracts that were significantly different from the model imposed by law. They were much more likely to structure their relationship as a partnership rather than as a hierarchy, and to hold their income and property as community property. Further, they were more likely to share the responsibilities for both economic support and homemaking tasks (in contrast to the legal assignment of these duties on the basis of sex). Thus, when compared to the relationships established by law, the 50 intimate contracts in this sample seemed to support more egalitarian family forms.
Bioactive Peptide Inhibitors and An Endogenous Parietal Cell Protein: Interactions With the Gastric H + /K + ATPase

The gastric H+/K+ ATPase is responsible for HC1 secretion by the parietal cell. A variety of amphipathic polypeptide inhibitors of the gastric H+/K+ ATPase, including melittin from Apis mellifera, mastoparan from Vespula lewisii, and synthetic model polypeptides have been identified (Cuppoletti et al, 1989; Cuppoletti, 1990). In functional studies, the effects of melittin and mastoparan on ATP hydrolysis, paranitrophenylphosphatase (pNPPase) activity, steady-state levels of phosphoenzyme, and enzyme conformation measured with fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-labelled enzyme have been compared and contrasted (Cuppoletti et al, 1992). In structural studies, photoaffmity analogs of melittin and mastoparan were employed to demonstrate direct interactions between melittin and mastoparan, and the alpha subunit of the H+/K+ ATPase (Cuppoletti et al, 1989; Cuppoletti et al, 1992). In the search for intracellular proteins which might bind to the H+,K+ ATPase by virtue of having epitopes in common with these insectotoxins, antibodies raised against melittin were reacted with parietal cell proteins (Cuppoletti et al, 1993). These studies resulted in the identification of a parietal cell “melittin-like” protein which reversibly associated with gastric H+/K+ ATPase-containing (apical) membranes when parietal cells were in the stimulated state of HC1 secretion, but it was in the cytosol when the cells were in the resting state.
Men's health 2018: BPH, prostate cancer, erectile dysfunction, supplements

This review describes the latest research and guidelines for 4 topics in men's health commonly addressed by primary care physicians: the diagnosis and treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), prostate cancer, and erectile dysfunction and the evidence concerning the use of dietary supplements in men.
Preclinical curriculum of prospective case-based teaching with faculty- and student-blinded approach.

Case-based teaching with real patient cases provides benefit of simulating real-world cognition. However, while clinical practice involves a prospective approach to cases, preclinical instruction typically involves full disclosure of case content to faculty, introducing hindsight bias into faculty teaching in medical curricula. During 2015–2018, we piloted an optional medical school curriculum involving 6–7 one-hour sessions over a 3-month period each year. New groups enrolled each year from first- and second-year classes. A facilitator provided a blinded physician discussant and blinded students with case information during and not in advance of each session, allowing prospective case-based discussions. Cases were based on real patients treated in the Department of Medicine. Clinical material was presented in the chronologic sequence encountered by treating physicians. Content covered a median of 5 patient visits/case (range: 2–10) spanning over months. A 14-item survey addressing components of the reporter-interpreter-manager-educator (RIME) scheme was developed and used to compare self-reported clinical skills between course participants and non-participant controls during the 2016 course iteration. This elective curriculum at Stanford School of Medicine involved 170 preclinical students (22.7% of 750 eligible). During the 2016 course iteration, a quasi-experimental study compared self-reported clinical skills between 29 course participants (response rate: 29/49 [59.2%]) and 35 non-participant controls (response rate: 35/132 [26.5%]); students self-assessed clinical skills via the RIME-based survey developed for the course. Two-sample t-tests compared the change in pre- and post-course skills between course participants and non-participants. Of 15 Department of Medicine faculty members invited as discussants, 12 (80%) consented to participate. Compared with controls, first-year participants self-assessed significantly greater improvement in understanding how clinicians reason through cases step-by-step to arrive at diagnoses (P = 0.049), work through cases in longitudinal settings (P = 0.049), and share information with patients (P = 0.047). Compared with controls, second-year participants self-assessed significantly greater improvement (P = 0.040) in understanding how clinicians reason through cases step-by-step to arrive at diagnoses. Prospective case-based discussions with blinding of faculty and students to clinical content circumvents hindsight bias and may impart real-world cognitive skills as determined by student self-report.
Emigrants in contemporary Spanish press: A socio-cognitive approach

Abstract This article reports on an investigation of the lemma emigra* in three mainstream Spanish newspapers from 2011 and 2015. The analysis brings together corpus-assisted Critical Discourse Analysis and Cognitive Linguistics to explore the semantic configuration of the lemma and the relationship between lexical meanings and social ideologies. Results show that in contemporary Spain, emigra* cannot simply be defined in terms of an outward population displacement, but has additional attributes derived from a shared socio-cognitive understanding of the lemma. Thus, the semantic prototype of emigra* presents emigrants as victims forced to leave their homeland because of economic reasons. Present-day Spanish emigrants, however, show additional semantic attributes that place them as peripheral members of the lexical category. Results also show that such cognitive configuration of the lemma is closely linked to different social perspectives on Spanish emigration, and provides evidence of the role media discourse has in the creation of shared socio-cognitive meanings.
An extension of Newell’s simplified kinematic wave model to account for first-in-first-out violation: With an application to vehicle trajectory estimation

Abstract Newell’s simplified kinematic wave model has been widely used in studying traffic dynamics in a road network. However, it cannot account for First-In-First-Out violation among vehicles on multi-lane roads. In this study, we present an extension of the model in the Lagrangian coordinates. In particular, we define a new variable of a vehicle’s order as its corresponding cumulative flows at different times and locations. The new kinematic wave model is consistent at the aggregate level with Newell’s simplified kinematic wave model, but allows for FIFO violation among individual vehicles. Based on the new model, we then present two algorithms to estimate vehicles’ trajectories from Eulerian data (cumulative flows provided by loop detectors) and Lagrangian data (the vehicle’s entry and exit times provided by reidentification technologies) at two boundaries of a road segment. In the first algorithm, we assume that vehicles follow the First-In-First-Out (FIFO) principle on a multi-lane road, and their orders are constant and equal the average of the entry and exit orders; in the second algorithm, we introduce a linear order-changing model to interpolate a vehicle’s orders at different times according to its entry and exit times. With Next Generation Simulation (NGSIM) datasets, we demonstrate that both algorithms are effective, but the second one, with an estimation error of around 10%, greatly outperforms the first one, with an estimation error of around 13%. This verifies the advantage of incorporating FIFO violation in the new model.
Predicting and Visualizing STK11 Mutation in Lung Adenocarcinoma Histopathology Slides Using Deep Learning

Abstract Studies have shown that STK11 mutation plays a critical role in affecting the lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) tumor immune environment. By training an Inception-Resnet-v2 deep convolutional neural network model, we were able to classify STK11-mutated and wild type LUAD tumor histopathology images with a promising accuracy (per slide AUROC=0.795). Dimensional reduction of the activation maps before the output layer of the test set images revealed that less immune cells were accumulated around cancer cells in STK11-mutation cases. Our study demonstrated that deep convolutional network model can automatically identify STK11 mutations based on histopathology slides and confirmed that the immune cell density was the main feature used by the model to distinguish STK11-mutated cases.
Work effort, readability and quality of pharmacy transcription of patient directions from electronic prescriptions: a retrospective observational cohort analysis.

Background Free-text directions generated by prescribers in electronic prescriptions can be difficult for patients to understand due to their variability, complexity and ambiguity. Pharmacy staff are responsible for transcribing these directions so that patients can take their medication as prescribed. However, little is known about the quality of these transcribed directions received by patients. Methods A retrospective observational analysis of 529 990 e-prescription directions processed at a mail-order pharmacy in the USA. We measured pharmacy staff editing of directions using string edit distance and execution time using the Keystroke-Level Model. Using the New Dale-Chall (NDC) readability formula, we calculated NDC cloze scores of the patient directions before and after transcription. We also evaluated the quality of directions (eg, included a dose, dose unit, frequency of administration) before and after transcription with a random sample of 966 patient directions. Results Pharmacy staff edited 83.8% of all e-prescription directions received with a median edit distance of 18 per e-prescription. We estimated a median of 6.64 s of transcribing each e-prescription. The median NDC score increased by 68.6% after transcription (26.12 vs 44.03, p Conclusion Pharmacy staff put significant effort into transcribing e-prescription directions. Manual transcription removed the majority of quality issues; however, pharmacy staff still miss or introduce following their manual transcription processes. The development of tools and techniques such as a comprehensive set of structured direction components or machine learning–based natural language processing techniques may help produce clear directions.
830-P: Screening for Depressive Symptoms in Adolescent Type 2 Diabetes Point to a Need for Improvement in Clinical Processes and Resources

Objective: To document rates of elevated depressive symptoms endorsed during routine screening for adolescents and young adults (AYA) with type 2 diabetes (T2D), review clinical actions taken in response to screening results, and evaluate associations of depressive symptoms with AYA characteristics. Research Design and Methods: The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ) was administered to 218 AYA with T2D using the PHQ-2 or PHQ-9 in routine pediatric diabetes care at 4 academic medical centers. Data from electronic health records were collected from the screening date and 12 months prior. Results: The mean age was 16.77 (SD 2.10 years); 56% male; 74% non-Hispanic White; Mean T2D duration 3.48 (SD 2.51 years). On the PHQ, 21.6% of AYA with T2D endorsed elevated depressive symptoms (PHQ score≥10) and 15.2% endorsed thoughts of self-harm. Older age, shorter T2D duration, not on insulin, and more blood glucose checks per day were significantly associated with more depressive symptoms. Of those AYAs endorsing the harm-to-self item, 8.3% were in mental health treatment. For AYAs expressing harm-to-self who were not in treatment (91.7%),18.2% did not have a documented referral for mental health treatment in the medical record. Conclusions: Screening for depressive symptoms identifies individuals in need of referral for mental health treatment; however, a focus on self-harm assessment, standardized methods for documentation of symptoms, mental health referrals and increased referral resources are needed. Disclosure J.Y. Stone: None. S.A. Mulvaney: None. C.A. Mara: None. J.C. Kichler: None. S. Majidi: Advisory Panel; Self; Companion Medical. K.A. Driscoll: None. S.C. Westen: None. A. Rawlinson: None. L.M. Jacobsen: None. K.K. Hood: Research Support; Self; Dexcom, Inc. Speaker’s Bureau; Self; LifeScan, Inc., MedIQ. M. Monaghan: Research Support; Self; American Diabetes Association. R.N. Adams: Employee; Self; Virta Health Corp. Funding National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (UL1TR002243, UL1TR001427)
Animals and Cartesian Consciousness: Pardies vs. the Cartesians

The Cartesian view that animals are automata sparked a major controversy in early modern European philosophy. This paper studies an early contribution to this controversy. I provide an interpretation of an influential objection to Cartesian animal automatism raised by Ignace-Gaston Pardies (1636–1673). Pardies objects that the Cartesian arguments show only that animals lack ‘intellectual perception’ but do not show that animals lack ‘sensible perception.’ According to Pardies, the difference between these two types of perception is that the former is reflexive such that we both perceive an object and the perception itself, whereas sensible perception lacks this reflexivity. This notion of sensible perception was criticized by the Cartesian Antoine Dilly for violating the doctrine that all thought is conscious. However, I argue that sensible perceptions are not unconscious for Pardies. Rather, they are conscious perceptions that are unaccompanied by a kind of reflexive perception that is constitutive of attention. Moreover, I argue that when understood in this way Pardies raises a compelling objection to Cartesian animal automatists.
Impact of a shelter-in-place order during the COVID-19 pandemic on the incidence of opioid overdoses.

Abstract Introduction Since the beginning of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in the United States, there have been concerns about the potential impact of the pandemic on persons with opioid use disorder. Shelter-in-place (SIP) orders, which aimed to reduce the spread and scope of the virus, likely also impacted this patient population. This study aims to assess the role of the COVID-19 pandemic on the incidence of opioid overdose before and after a SIP order. Methods A retrospective review of the incidence of opioid overdoses in an urban three-hospital system was conducted. Comparisons were made between the first 100 days of a city-wide SIP order during the COVID-19 pandemic and the 100 days during the COVID-19 pandemic preceding the SIP order (Pre-SIP). Differences in observed incidence and expected incidence during the SIP period were evaluated using a Fisher's Exact test. Results Total patient visits decreased 22% from 46,078 during the Pre-SIP period to 35,971 during the SIP period. A total of 1551 opioid overdoses were evaluated during the SIP period, compared to 1665 opioid overdoses during the Pre-SIP period, consistent with a 6.8% decline. A Fisher's Exact Test demonstrated a p Conclusion The COVID-19 pandemic and the associated SIP order were associated with a statistically and clinically significant increase in the proportion of opioid overdoses in relation to the overall change in total ED visits.
Genetic correlations between COVID-19 and a variety of diseases and other medically relevant traits

We analyzed GWAS results released by COVID-19 Host Genetics Initiative, UK biobank and GWAS Catalog to explore the genetic overlap between COVID-19 and a broad spectrum of traits and diseases. We validate previously reported medical conditions and risk factors based on epidemiological studies, including but not limited to hypertension, type 2 diabetes and obesity. We also report novel traits associated with COVID-19, which have not been previously reported from epidemiological data, such as opioid use and educational attainment. Taken together, this study extends our understanding of the genetic basis of COVID-19, and provides target traits for further epidemiological studies.
Visitor Guidelines in US Children's Hospitals During COVID-19.

OBJECTIVES: To examine visitor guidelines among children’s hospitals in the United States in response to the coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. METHODS: A retrospective assessment of visitor guidelines in 239 children’s hospitals in the United States. RESULTS: In this study, we present an analysis of 239 children’s hospital visitor guidelines posted to hospitals’ Web sites during 1 week in June 2020. Of the 239 hospitals, only 28 did not have posted guidelines for review. The guidelines were analyzed and grouped by how the guidelines were updated in response to COVID-19. Parental visitation was restricted to 1 parent in 116 of the posted guidelines (49%). There were no obvious similarities among guidelines associated with their geographical (eg, state or local) location. As of February 2021, 33 of 55 (60%) randomly selected hospitals had not changed their visitor policy since our initial review. CONCLUSIONS: The COVID-19 pandemic triggered changes in publicly reported visitor guidelines across the majority of children’s hospitals. With our findings, we suggest wide variation in policies and practices in how guidelines were updated. More work is needed to understand how to optimize public safety and preserve family-centered care and parental authority in times of crisis.