cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Structure and properties of phospholipid-peptide monolayers containing monomeric SP-B(1-25) I. Phases and morphology by epifluorescence microscopy.

Epifluorescence microscopy was used to study the structure and phase behavior of phospholipid films containing a human-sequence monomeric SP-B1–25 synthetic peptide (mSP-B1–25). Measurements were done directly at the air–water (A/W) interface on films in a Langmuir–Whilhelmy balance coupled to a fluorescence microscope and real-time detection system to yield an approximate optical resolution of 1 Am. Fluorescence was achieved by laser excitation of 2-(4,4-difluoro-5,7-dimethyl-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene-3dodecanoyl)-1-hexadecanoyl-sn-glycero-3-PC (BODIPY-PC, concentration V1 mol%). The presence of mSP-B1–25 in films of 4:1 (mol/mol) 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DPPC)/1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-[phospho-rac-(1-glycerol)] (sodium salt) (DOPG) had a substantial effect on lipid morphology and phase behavior that depended on both surface pressure and peptide concentration (10, 5, and 1 wt.%). The mSP-B1–25 peptide tended to fluidize phospholipid monolayers based on expanded molecular areas and reduced collapse pressures. In addition, epifluorescence measurements revealed the formation of solid-phase domains apparent as three-armed counterclockwise spirals separated from regions of fluid liquid-expanded phase domains in compressed phospholipid–peptide films. The appearance of these separated solid-phase domains resembled pure L-DPPC rather than the ensemble-type solid domains found in films of DPPC/DOPG alone and were most apparent when 10 wt.% mSP-B1–25 was present. In contrast, films containing lower, more physiological mSP-B1–25 contents of 5 and 1 wt.% exhibited a prominent intermediate ddendriticT phase that increased in extent as surface pressure was raised. This phase was characterized by branching structures that formed a lattice-like mesh network with fluorescence intensities between a dye-depleted solid domain and a dye-enriched liquid phase. These results indicate that mSP-B1–25 at near-physiological levels produces morphological changes in phospholipid monolayers analogous to those observed for native SP-B1–79. D 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
160 Gb/s all-optical binary-to-quaternary amplitude shift keying format conversion

160Gb/s all-optical binary-to-quaternary amplitude shift keying format conversion is carried out in nonlinear optical fiber. This scheme, which also acts as a 2-bit digital-to-analog convertor, has been confirmed through Q-factor measurements.
Properties of Wool Modified with Difunctional Isocyanates

The reaction of wool with toluene-2,4-diisocyanate and hexamethylene diisocyanate is described, The treated wools exhibit greater resistance towards solubilization in hot acid and alkali and towards attack by several other chemical agents. The wet single-fiber stress-strain properties exhibited below 30% extension are only slightly affected by treat ment with isocyanates. The values for stress at break and elongation at break, however, are considerably lowered by treatment with difunctional isocyanates. but not with phenyl isocyanate. Fabric stiffness and crease recovery are only slightly affected by the iso cyanate pickups studied
Effect of gap size on gliding resistance after flexor tendon repair.

Background:Gap formation is a common complication after flexor tendon repair and is associated with adhesion formation, tendon rupture, and decreased strength. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of gap formation on tendon gliding resistance after flexor tendon repair in a human
Does obesity affect outcomes of cytoreductive surgery and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemoperfusion for disseminated mucinous appendiceal neoplasms

Obesity has been described as a risk factor for surgical complications and may play a prominent role in the progression, recurrence, and survival rates of various cancers. Our objective was to investigate the impact of being overweight or obese on perioperative and oncologic outcomes after cytoreductive surgery (CRS) and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemoperfusion (HIPEC) for peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) from mucinous appendiceal neoplasms (MAN). From a prospectively maintained database (2001–2010) of CRS/HIPEC for PC from MAN, we evaluated the body mass index (BMI) of patients, categorizing them into normal weight (NW < 25 kg/m2), overweight (OW = 25 to 29.9 kg/m2), and obese (OB ≥ 30 kg/m2). We compared the perioperative and oncologic outcomes among groups. Of the 282 patients in the database, 234 had BMI data available, and 81, 79, and 74 patients were categorized as NW, OW, and OB, respectively. Although there was a trend toward increased risk of overall complications, wound infections, deep vein thrombosis, respiratory and renal complications, and anastomotic leaks in the OW and OB groups, these differences only achieved statistical significance for renal (p = 0.03) and pulmonary (p = 0.02) complications in the OW and OB groups, respectively. The 5-year survival rate for NW, OW, and OB patients was 63.9, 48, and 54.4 %, respectively (p = 0.63). The median time to progression was 21.1 (NW), 21.7 (OW), and 23.9 (OB) months (p = 0.83). OW and OB patients may have an increased risk of renal and pulmonary complications, respectively. Obesity has no major impact on perioperative mortality and long-term oncologic outcomes in patients undergoing CRS/HIPEC for MAN.
Comparative binding of bile acids to serum lipoproteins and albumin.

Characteristics of the binding of lithocholic acid (LC), chenodeoxycholic acid (CDC), and cholic acid to human plasma proteins were studied. Affinity of the different plasma protein fractions for the bile acids studied decreased with increased polarity of the steroid nucleus of the bile acid. Binding of LC, CDC, and cholic acid to the lipoprotein-free, albumin-rich plasma fraction was characterized by two classes of binding sites with respective KDs of 2, 5, and 51 microM, and of 39, 2,387, and 5,575 microM, while corresponding Bmax values were similar for the different bile acids, at around 6 and 100 nmol/mg protein. Bile acid binding to the different lipoprotein fractions was characterized by a single population of binding sites, with a KD ranging from 47 to 66 microM for LC, 695 to 1010 microM for CDC, and 2,511 to 2,562 microM for cholic acid. Bmax values, at 416-913 nmol/mg protein, were similar among the different bile acids studied. Both glycine- and taurine-conjugated, as well as unconjugated LC competitively inhibited [24-14C]LC binding to low density (LDL) and to high density lipoproteins (HDL) to the same extent, while the more polar LC-3-sulfate, CDC, and cholic acid were increasingly less potent in displacing LC binding from the respective lipoproteins. Furthermore, all bile acids studied shared the same lipoprotein binding site. The lipoprotein fluorescence at 330-334 nm, following excitation at 280 nm, was diminished after incubation with LC, suggesting that the bile acid masks the tryptophan residues of the protein moiety. Finally, the initial rate of uptake of 1 microM LC, in isolated hamster hepatocytes, at around 0.045 nmol.sec-1.mg cell wt-1, was not affected by the protein carrier. However, for the same concentration of LC, bound to either LDL or HDL, LC binding resulted in 75-77% of the total [24-14C]LC nonspecifically bound to the hepatocyte, compared to 65% when bound to albumin, and 45% in the absence of protein. The studies show that, under conditions when the serum bile acid concentration exceeds the capacity of the high affinity class of albumin binding sites for bile acids, lipoproteins have similar or greater affinity to bind bile acids than does albumin. The ability of lipoproteins to increase the nonspecific association of lithocholic acid with liver cells may also facilitate bile acid association with extrahepatic tissues. As lipoproteins, in contrast to albumin, are targeted to most cells, they may play a major role in the transport of potentially toxic bile acids to peripheral cells.
The Emotional Landscapes of Literacy Coaching Issues of Identity, Power, and Positioning

In this article, the researchers use positioning theory and de Certeau’s theoretical insights into cultural production in everyday life to examine how first-year literacy coaches negotiate issues of power, positioning, and identity during their professional development. Data were collected during a yearlong qualitative study of literacy coaches participating in a district–university partnership to provide professional development to first-year literacy coaches. The researchers used positioning analysis of three small stories drawn from interviews with literacy coaches and one vignette from a professional development session to investigate how the literacy coaches positioned themselves within the moral order of the district’s literacy and professional development model. Findings demonstrate how the literacy coaches both shaped and were shaped by the institutional spaces through which they moved as they tactically negotiated conflicting expectations and discourses about coaching. These negotiations highligh...
No Evidence of Infectious Retroviruses in Measles Virus Vaccines Produced in Chicken Embryo Cell Cultures

All vaccines that are prepared in chicken embryo fibroblasts (CEFs) contain a low level of particle-associated reverse transcriptase (RT) activity, which is produced from the avian cell substrate. The RNAs present in the particles have sequence homology to viral DNAs belonging to the ancient endogenous avian virus (EAV) family or to the avian sarcoma-leukosis virus (ALV)-related subgroup E endogenous virus loci. Although no replication-competent retrovirus has been associated with the RT activity produced from CEFs, there have been some theoretical safety concerns regarding potential consequences of integration of EAV and ALV sequences in human DNA, which may result from nonproductive infection with replication-defective particles or infection with EAV and ALV pseudotypes bearing measles virus envelopes. To address these possibilities, we have analyzed EAV and ALV particles in a measles virus vaccine equivalent (MVVE) preparation, obtained from a U.S. manufacturer, for integration and for replication in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). The results show the absence of EAV and ALV integrants in DNA prepared from MVVE-inoculated human cells by direct DNA PCR and Alu PCR assays and no propagation of retrovirus in 18-day cultures of MVVE-inoculated human PBMCs by a highly sensitive PCR-based RT assay. These results provide further confidence regarding the safety of chicken RT activity in live viral vaccines and support the continued use of chick-cell-derived vaccines in humans.
The mechanical consequences of dynamic frontal plane limb alignment for non-contact ACL injury

This study investigated the mechanical consequences of differences in dynamic frontal plane alignment of the support limb and the influence of anticipatory muscle activation at the hip and ankle on reducing the potential for non-contact ACL injury during single-limb landing. A frontal plane, three-link passive dynamic model was used to estimate an ACL non-contact injury threshold. This threshold was defined as the maximum axial force that the knee could sustain before the joint opened 8 degrees either medially or laterally, which was deemed sufficient to cause injury. The limb alignment and hip and ankle muscle contractions were varied to determine their effects on the ACL injury threshold. Valgus or varus alignment reduced the injury threshold compared to neutral alignment, but increasing the anticipatory contraction of hip abduction and adduction muscle groups increased the injury threshold. Increasing anticipatory ankle inversion/eversion muscle contraction had no effect. This study provides a mechanical rationale for the conclusion that a neutral limb alignment (compared to valgus or varus) during landing and increasing hip muscle contraction (abductors/adductors) prior to landing can reduce the possibility of ACL rupture through a valgus or varus opening mechanism.
Simulation and fabrication of submicron channel length DMOS transistors for analog applications

The use of an asymmetric MOS structure for superior analog circuit performance is considered. Results from the fabrication of 1- mu m-gate length DMOS transistors show increases of up to 1.9 in transconductance, 10 in output resistance, and 8 in intrinsic gain when compared to NMOS structures of similar gate length and threshold voltage. Substrate current is also reduced by up to a factor of 10. This represents the first reported results of submicron channel length DMOS transistors. The standard 7 degrees implantation angle has significant impact on DMOS fabrication and is shown to produce a usable asymmetric DMOS from an otherwise symmetric DMOS. An optimal implant energy and diffusion time are shown to exist for DMOS enhancement region formation. Two-dimensional process and device simulators have proved necessary to develop the DMOS process, as well as to qualitatively explain body effect reduction and threshold voltage determination. The DMOS process has successfully yielded experimental circuits including a single ended operational amplifier of folded cascode technology and a 101-state ring oscillator. >
Smoking Status and Pain Level Among Head and Neck Cancer Patients

Abstract Smoking is a risk factor for cancer of the upper aerodigestive tract with recidivism rates high even after diagnosis. Nicotine, a major product in tobacco, is a complex drug with multiple characteristics including analalgesic properties. The goal of the study was to examine pain levels in the context of smoking status among patients recently diagnosed with cancer of the upper aerodigestive tract who have not yet received any treatment including radiation, surgery, or chemotherapy. A convenience sample of 112 newly diagnosed head and neck cancer patients (78 men and 34 women) was recruited from clinics at the University of Florida. Smoking rates were: 32% never smoked, 34% former smokers, 34% current smokers. Among current smokers, 62% reported plans to quit in the next 3 months and 38% had tried to quit more than 3 times in the past 5 years. Current smokers reported higher general (sensory and affective) and oral pain levels (spontaneous and functional) and pain-related interference than did never and former smokers (all F's > 8. and P 's 2,73 = 10.5 P Perspective This study highlights the importance of understanding self-reported pain in cancer patients who continue to smoke. When pain is elevated, smokers may be motivated to use tobacco as a means of reducing pain, which in turn reinforces smoking behavior. Tobacco cessation programs should include pain management as a component of treatment.
THE EVOLUTION OF ROBOTIC GENERAL SURGERY

Surgical robotics in general surgery has a relatively short but very interesting evolution. Just as minimally invasive and laparoscopic techniques have radically changed general surgery and fractionated it into subspecialization, robotic technology is likely to repeat the process of fractionation even further. Though it appears that robotics is growing more quickly in other specialties, the changes digital platforms are causing in the general surgical arena are likely to permanently alter general surgery. This review examines the evolution of robotics in minimally invasive general surgery looking forward to a time where robotics platforms will be fundamental to elective general surgery. Learning curves and adoption techniques are explored. Foregut, hepatobiliary, endocrine, colorectal, and bariatric surgery will be examined as growth areas for robotics, as well as revealing the current uses of this technology.
Responding to informality through urban design studio pedagogy

AbstractRecent scholarship suggests that the urban design profession is flourishing with many newly created urban design departments, programmes and certificates. Within this context, this paper suggests that urban design education should explore how urban designers can acquire a deeper understanding of the larger socio-economic processes which have an impact on urban form and different groups in the city. More specifically, it posits that urban designers should take notice of the informal urbanism that is burgeoning in many cities of the Global North. For this to happen, urban design pedagogy should prepare future urban designers to better understand and positively intervene in informal urban landscapes, and the urban design studio is an appropriate venue where this can happen. The paper articulates a four-tier framework of responding to informal urbanism through urban design that concentrates on the scope, context, process and practice of urban design. It details a graduate urban design studio that foll...
Finite Wall Thickness Effects on Currents Induced on Open Surface Scatterers

The classical boundary value problem of electromagnetic plane wave diffraction by a conducting wedge serves as a canonical geometry to study the effect of varying wall thickness on the induced surface currents. This first principles analysis is a preliminary effort toward understanding the impact of the common assumption of infinitesimally thin walls in electromagnetic scattering and coupling problems. Both TM and TE polarizations are included in this two-dimensional frequency domain scattering problem.
Biotype Composition of Hessian Fly (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) Populations from the Southeastern, Midwestern, and Northwestern United States and Virulence to Resistance Genes in Wheat

Twenty-three Hessian fly, Mayetiola destructor (Say), populations collected in the southeastern (Alabama and Mississippi), midwestern (Indiana), and northwestern (Idaho and Washington) United States from 1995 to 1999 were evaluated for biotype composition based on response to Hessian fly resistance genes H3, H5, H6, and H7H8 in wheat, Triticum aestivum L. Biotypes L and O, combined, made up at least 60% of all Alabama populations. Biotype L was predominant in the northern third of Alabama and biotype O in the southern two-thirds of the state. Based on biotype data, wheat cultivars with H7H8 resistance should be highly effective in central and southern Alabama. Fifty-four percent of the Mississippi population consisted of biotype L, and the remaining virulent biotypes (B, D, E, G, J, and O) ranged in frequency from 1 to 17%. The Mississippi population also contained 4% of the avirulent biotype GP. Only biotypes D and L were found in Indiana populations, but biotype L was predominant. Hessian fly populations from Idaho and Washington contained one or more of the virulent biotypes D-H, J, and L-O; however, only biotypes E, F, and G occurred at frequencies > 12%. The avirulent biotype GP made up 25-57% of Idaho and Washington populations, a much higher percentage than found in populations from the eastern United States. Although the highest level of virulence in Idaho and Washington populations was found to resistance genes H3 and H6, the frequency of biotype GP would indicate that the currently deployed gene H3 would provide a moderate to high level of resistance, depending on location. Nine of the populations, plus populations collected from the mid-Atlantic state area in 1989 and 1996, also were tested against the wheat cultivar 'INW9811' that carries H13 resistance to Hessian fly biotype L and two Purdue wheat lines with unidentified genes for resistance. The H13 resistance in INW9811 was highly effective against all populations tested from the eastern and northwestern U.S. wheat production areas, except Maryland and Virginia. Population studies also indicated that wheat line CI 17960-1-1-2-4-2-10 likely carries the H13 resistance gene, based on the similarity of its response and that of INW9811 to eight fly populations. Continued monitoring of biotype frequency in Hessian fly populations is required for optimal deployment and management of resistance genes in all wheat production areas.
How to Read a Review Paper

Review papers commonly summarize the current knowledge on a selected topic. These types of papers are considered narrative reviews. Narrative reviews rarely detail the methods used to select the literature included, nor do the authors typically report the purpose of the review. Narrative reviews may be biased due to inadequate literature reviews or individual beliefs. A systematic review limits bias by disclosing the purpose of the paper, the assembly of the literature, and the appraisal of study quality. A meta-analysis, a specific style of systematic review, quantitatively pools data from individual studies for re-analysis. Pooling data increases the sample size and improves statistical power. The common representation of a meta-analysis is the forest plot. The forest plot demonstrates the odds ratio of individual studies, the weight each trial contributes to the analysis, and the 95% confidence intervals. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses are not without shortcomings, including issues related to study heterogeneity. Because of their transparency, systematic evaluations of the literature are superior to narrative reviews.
‘Old Orthodoxies Die Hard’: Herwagen’s Bridferti Ramesiensis Glossae

An investigation and a critique of Johannes Herwagen’s attribution, in 1563, of a set of glosses on Bede’s De natura rerum and De temporum ratione to Byrhtferth of Ramsey in the light of recent publications supporting Herwagen’s claim.
Response of Multi-Story Structures to Earthquakes

The behavior of multi-story buildings responding to strong earthquake ground motion has been computed by a high-speed digital computer. Response curves and tables are presented, and the effects of certain structural parameters on the response are studied.
What Keeps Hotel Asset Managers Up at Night: Key Industry Issues and Proposed Solutions

The Hospitality Asset Managers Association (HAMA), which represents hotel owners globally, regularly surveys its members to identify issues of concern to owners. The association conducts an annual student competition to research these issues and present their results at the annual HAMA conference. The article identifies these issues and presents research conducted by one of the students on the issue of hotel room service and recommends alternatives to room service.
Corporate Scandals and Spoiled Identities: How Organizations Shift Stigma to Employees

I apply stigma-management strategies to corporate scandals and expand on past research by (a) describing a particular type of stigma management strategy that involves accepting responsibility while denying it, (b) delineating types of stigma that occur in scandals (demographic versus character), and (c) considering the moral implications of shifting stigmas that arise from scandals. By emphasizing the distinction between character and demographic stigma, I make progress in evaluating the moral implications of shifting different types of stigma.
Sherlock holmes and tropical medicine : a centennial appraisal

Abstract Sir Arthur Conan Doyle incorporated an unidentified tropical disease as a murder weapon in the Sherlock Holmes story, “The Dying Detective,” written in 1913. Documentary and circumstantial evidence suggests that the disease mentioned was melioidosis. The description of the newly identified disease occurred shortly before Doyle's death. Doyle's other works at the time reflect a consistent interest in tropical disease.
Soft-switched discontinuous pulse-width pulse-density modulation scheme

This paper presents a soft-switched discontinuous pulse-width pulse-density modulation (PWPDM) scheme to decrease the switching losses of the capacitor-less high-frequency pulsating dc-link (HFPDCL) inverters. The proposed modulation scheme employs both pulse-width modulation (PWM) and pulse-density modulation (PDM) schemes to increase the overall efficiency of the inverter and generate high-quality output line-frequency (LF) Sine waveforms. In order to increase the efficiency of the converter, it decreases the switching requirement of the converter and it also provides soft-switching condition for the output inverter. The performance of the proposed PWPDM scheme is verified using am experimental 2 kW HFPDCL inverter.
The role of the cytoskeleton and intercellular junctions in the transcellular membrane protein polarity of bovine aortic endothelial cells in vitro

This project examines the transcellular membrane protein polarity of bovine aortic endothelial cell (BAEC) monolayers in vitro with respect to the roles that intercellular junctions (as defined by comparing confluent and subconfluent monolayers) and the submembranous cytoskeleton play in controlling this phenomenon. Plasma membrane (PM) proteins obtained from apical (AP) and basolateral (BL) PM domains of confluent BAEC monolayers were isolated using the cationic colloidal silica technique and resolved by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-D PAGE). To facilitate the identification of domain-specific PM proteins, an isoelectric point/molecular weight database of the proteins from AP and BL PM domains was constructed. Domain-specific PM proteins were assessed for their interaction with the cytoskeleton by determining whether they co-isolated with a Triton X-100 detergent-resistant cytoskeletal/extracellular matrix fraction. The maintenance of polarized PM protein segregation by intercellular junctional complexes was determined by comparing AP and BL protein patterns of confluent monolayers with patterns generated by subconfluent monolayers, which lack such junctional structures. Proteins isolated from AP and BL PM domains from both confluent states were immunoblotted with antibodies to angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) and collagen receptors (CR). ACE was restricted exclusively to the AP PM domain in the subconfluent condition, even though no apparent cytoskeletal interaction was observed. CRs, found to interact with the cytoskeleton in either confluence state, were predominantly segregated to the BL PM domain regardless of the presence or absence of cell-cell contact. Membrane proteins found by 2-D PAGE to be asymmetrically distributed in the absence of intercellular junctions were assessed for cytoskeletal interaction by their inability to be extracted by Triton X-100 from monolayers in the subconfluent state. Computer cross-referencing of 2-D PAGE peak lists and immunodetection generated from the above fractionation protocols identifies a set of four proteins associated with the cytoskeleton that remain segregated in the proper domain, and five proteins associated with the cytoskeleton that become equally distributed between AP and BL PM domains in the absence of intercellular junctions. Additionally, six proteins not associated with the cytoskeleton remain asymmetrically distributed to the AP domain in the subconfluent state. The data suggest that BAEC monolayers have unknown mechanisms, apart from intercellular junctions expressed at confluency or cytoskeletal binding, for maintaining transcellular PM protein polarity.
Finding Transition States Using the LTP Algorithm

Preliminary results using the Line-Then-Plane (LTP) procedure to find Transition States (TS) in simple chemical systems are here presented. With slight modifications the algorithm has been implemented in the ZINDO program package, and has proven to require less computer time than other procedures that demand the full evaluation of the Hessian. We demonstrate that this procedure is able to give a good approximation of the minimum energy reaction path.
Nondiffusive heat dissipation from a pulse-heated conductive filament in RRAM

Here, we discuss experimental and theoretical studies of nondiffusive thermal transport, which occurs when geometrical length scales are comparable to energy carrier mean free paths (MFPs). We expand upon a previous study that emphasizes the importance of nondiffusive thermal transport in resistive-switching random access memory (RRAM). To model this behavior, an approximate solution to the Boltzmann transport equation (BTE), under the relaxation time approximation in the cylindrical geometry, is derived for the case of an arbitrary, temporally periodic surface temperature boundary condition. This boundary condition coupled with the BTE more realistically models switching stimuli in an RRAM device.
Mantle Cell Lymphoma: An Epigenetic Disease of Cyclin D1 Deregulation Involving Nucleophosmin, CTCF and Small RNA’s.

Translocations involving the immunoglobulin heavy chain gene locus (IgH) are common in B cell malignancies. The molecular mechanisms of long distance gene activation by IgH regulatory elements in B cell malignancies are unknown. One common target gene is cyclin D1, which is deregulated in most patients with mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) and 20–30% of patients with multiple myeloma (MM). Cyclin D1 is known not to be expressed in normal lymphocytes, yet is deregulated by IgH translocations and insertions. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assays demonstrated the presence of the CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF) at both the cyclin D1 promoter and 3′ IgH regulatory regions only in cyclin D1 expressing malignant B cell lines containing IgH translocations or insertions. The nucleolar protein nucleophosmin (NPM), a newly identified CTCF interaction partner, exhibited a similar distribution in ChIP assays. Combined FISH/immunofluorescence assays in MCL cell lines and patient samples have demonstrated the presence of the cyclin D1/IgH translocated locus at the nucleolus specifically in cells with the t(11;14). Short hairpin (Sh) RNA mediated NPM knockdown results in a specific growth arrest only in cells with translocated chromosomes. Cell growth in variant MCL cells and B lymphocytes is not altered. The presence of small RNA’s and binding of the protein Dicer at the translocation breakpoint has been demonstrated. ShRNA knockdown of dicer results in significant reduction of cyclin D1 protein in MCL cells. Tethering of the cyclin D1 promoter to the 3′ IgH regulatory regions at the nucleolar membrane by CTCF/nucleophosmin provides a mechanism for spatial juxtaposition of the cyclin D1 promoter and 3′ IgH regulatory elements that facilitates deregulated expression of the cyclin D1 gene. These results also demonstrate the participation of small RNA’s and the RNA interference pathway in the deregulated expression of cyclin D1 in MCL.
Holocene glacial activity in Barilari Bay, west Antarctic Peninsula, tracked by magnetic mineral assemblages: Linking ice, ocean, and atmosphere

We investigate the origin and fate of lithogenic sediments using magnetic mineral assemblages in Barilari Bay, west Antarctic Peninsula (AP) from sediment cores recovered during the Larsen Ice Shelf System, Antarctica (LARISSA) NBP10-01 cruise. To quantify and reconstruct Holocene changes in co-varying magnetic mineral assemblages, we adopt an unsupervised mathematical un-mixing strategy and apply it to measurements of magnetic susceptibility as a function of increasing temperature. Comparisons of the unmixed end-members with magnetic observations of northwestern AP bedrock and the spatial distribution of magnetic mineral assemblages within the fjord, allow us to identify source regions, including signatures for ‘inner bay', ‘outer bay', and ‘northwestern AP' sources. We find strong evidence that supports the establishment of a late Holocene ice shelf in the fjord coeval with the Little Ice Age. Additionally, we present new evidence for late Holocene sensitivity to conditions akin to positive mean Southern Annual Mode states for western AP glaciers at their advanced Neoglacial positions. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Emerging Strategies for Developing Next-Generation Protein Therapeutics for Cancer Treatment

Protein-based therapeutics have been revolutionizing the oncology space since they first appeared in the clinic two decades ago. Unlike traditional small-molecule chemotherapeutics, protein biologics promote active targeting of cancer cells by binding to cell-surface receptors and other markers specifically associated with or overexpressed on tumors versus healthy tissue. While the first approved cancer biologics were monoclonal antibodies, the burgeoning field of protein engineering is spawning research on an expanded range of protein formats and modifications that allow tuning of properties such as target-binding affinity, serum half-life, stability, and immunogenicity. In this review we highlight some of these strategies and provide examples of modified and engineered proteins under development as preclinical and clinical-stage drug candidates for the treatment of cancer.
Preoperative Thrombocytosis Predicts Shortened Survival in Patients with Malignant Peritoneal Mesothelioma Undergoing Operative Cytoreduction and Hyperthermic Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy

This study was designed to determine the clinical significance of preoperative thrombocytosis in patients with malignant peritoneal mesothelioma (MPM) undergoing operative cytoreduction (CRS) and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC). CRS and HIPEC have been associated with prolonged survival in patients with MPM and is the preferred treatment in select patients. However, patient selection criteria remain ill-defined for this operation that is also associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Preoperative thrombocytosis has been associated with poor outcomes in various malignancies but never studied in MPM. Between January 2006 and December 2015, 100 patients with high-grade epithelioid MPM were evaluated and selected for CRS and HIPEC at our center (M: 53, F: 47; mean age: 54 years [range 17–81 years]). We analyzed various patient and treatment related factors potentially associated with overall survival (OS). The median actuarial overall survival was 32.8 months; the actuarial 1-, 3-, 5-year survivals were 70, 49, and 36%, respectively. On multivariate analysis, suboptimal resection (CCR > 1), high tumor burden (PCI > 20), and elevated preoperative platelet count (>367,000/mm3) were independently associated with shortened OS (P < 0.05). Median OS in patients with elevated versus normal platelet counts were 13 and 58 months, respectively (P < 0.001). Compared with patients with normal platelet counts, patients with elevated counts had significantly greater residual disease after operation (P = 0.008). Elevated preoperative platelet count is independently associated with poor outcome. Notably, thrombocytosis reflects aggressive tumor biology and should be considered a factor in patient selection for CRS and HIPEC.
Waveless: MTV and the “Quiet” Feminism of the 1980s

The rise to prominence of MTV in the 1980s enabled the creation of a space in which feminist voices could be aired to a national audience. Such artists as Madonna, Blondie, Joan Jett, the Go-Gos, and Cyndi Lauper, among others, built off the intellectual positionality and energies of Second Wave Feminism in their efforts to ensure that the voice of the unconventional woman could be heard. Moreover, this chapter argues that the sex-positivity and diversity present among these select artists presaged and precipitated the rise of Third Wave Feminism at the end of the decade, in turn helping to give voice to Riot Grrrl and the artists associated with the Lilith Fair.
Workers’ Refusal to Consent

This chapter analyzes the radical workers who are quite unsusceptible to legal hegemony. The labor law system fails to shape their worldviews or actions in favor of capital accumulation; they have formulated radical challenges to both the capitalist economy and the party-state.
Can a finite number of discrete delays approximate stochastic delay

Abstract In stability analysis and control design for a system with stochastic delay, it is a question whether one can approximate the stochastic system, for instance in the sense of average, with a deterministic system that has a finite number of discrete delay terms with the same delays that appear in the stochastic system and the weight coefficients of these delayed terms are taken from the probability distribution function of the stochastic delay. In this note, we consider a linear system with stochastic delay and discuss conditions under which this approximation is valid and conditions where it is not. In particular, we assume that the delay has piece-wise constant realizations with constant dwelling time at each value and show that the above mentioned approximation loses its grounds when the delay dwelling time gets larger than the minimum delay in the system.
Sequential Joint Maximization

This paper describes a new method by which a competitive market economy may be represented as the optimal solution to a planning problem The resulting sequential joint maximization (SJM) algorithm solves a sequence of “partial equilibrium relaxations” of the underlying general equilibrium model The partial equilibrium submodels can be solved as nonlinear complementarity problems or as constrained nonlinear optimization problems in either a primal or dual form. This paper introduces the three SJM algorithms, evaluates performance and examines convergence theory. Computational tests demonstrate that SJM is not always as efficient as complementarity methods. A counterexample is presented which demonstrates that local convergence of SJM cannot be guaranteed Although SJM may have neither the theoretical pedigree of a fixed-point algorithm nor the local convergence rate of a Newton algorithm, the usefulness of the SJM algorithm is demonstrated by the range of real models for which the procedure has been successfully applied SJM benefits from the availability of robust, large-scale nonlinear programming codes. Consequently, for large scale equilibrium models with inequalities SJM may not be the “best” algorithm in theory, but it works extremely well in practice.
High Average Power Mode-Locked Co: MgF2 Laser

The use of Co:MgF2 as a laser material was first demonstrated in the early years of laser development [1]. More recently, vibronic lasers such as Co:MgF2 have proven to be versatile, broadly tunable, cw and pulsed sources of infrared radiation [2,3]. We report here the first tunable, cw mode-locked operation of this laser.
TMI (Too much information)! Effects of given information on organic chemistry students’ approaches to solving mechanism tasks

We report our qualitative study of twenty-four students enrolled in the second-semester of a second-year undergraduate (sophomore-level) organic chemistry course, Organic Two. We asked the research participants to propose the product and electron-pushing mechanism of elementary mechanistic steps in the absence and presence of the corresponding overall transformation. We also asked the students about their preferences of representational systems when working on tasks common to Organic Two to ascertain the extent to which an external representation, rather than a task, might evoke a problem-solving strategy. In addition to familiarity to instructional materials, the main reason for which the students preferred line-angle formulas for nearly all of the task types is that the representational system allowed them most readily extract relevant, or otherwise useful, information without distracting them. However, line-angle formulas did not seem to cue students to the three-dimensional attributes of molecules; only dash-and-wedge structures and Newman and chair conformers did so. For the electron-pushing tasks, the research participants’ reasoning processes included at least some chemical characteristics of the species involved in the transformation when they were not given the product of reaction. When provided with the overall transformation, however, the students changed their focus to getting to the product. Consequently, they replaced correct answers with incorrect ones when given the reaction products. These results raise the possibility that traditional mechanism tasks may mask students’ mechanistic reasoning ability.
Neuropsychological Evaluation of Culturally/Linguistically Diverse Older Adults

The US population is becoming both older and more culturally and linguistically diverse. These changes in the demographic profile of the USA highlight the urgent need for clinical neuropsychologists to be equipped to competently evaluate the growing population of older individuals from culturally/linguistically diverse backgrounds. However, there is a relative dearth of empirically based, practical resources specifically targeted toward serving such individuals. The aim of this chapter is to identify some of the most salient challenges in the evaluation of culturally/linguistically diverse underrepresented minority (URM) older adults and provide some guidelines to help face these challenges. Herein, we examine sociocultural issues germane to older patients referred for neuropsychological evaluation, discuss relevant assessment considerations, and offer concrete recommendations to aid neuropsychologists to engage in empirically supported, culturally responsive neuropsychological evaluation with culturally/linguistically diverse and underrepresented, older populations.
Study of wet and dry etching processes for antimonide-based photonic ICs

We report on the dry etch process parameters and the associated etch rates for target and mask materials, as well as surface roughness in an inductively coupled plasma (ICP) for the (AlGaIn)(AsSb)-compounds. The essential chemistry is based on Cl2 with the addition of N2 for sidewall passivation. The optimized ICP etch process is capable of producing high aspect ratio structures with smooth sidewalls. In situ reflectance monitoring with a 670-nm-wavelength laser was used to enable stop-etching at a material interface with high accuracy. Given the additional need for highly selective wet chemical etchants in the fabrication of GaSb based electronic and optoelectronic devices, an extensive investigation was also performed to examine numerous etch solutions. These etchants were listed with etch rates, selectivities, and surface roughness in order to validate their suitability for intended applications. Despite the frequent use of GaSb or InAsSb materials for etch stop layers against each other, devices where their unique type-II broken bandgap alignment is undesired require new selective wet etchants between GaSb and AlGaAsSb with good selectivity. All of the wet chemical and dry etching processes described here were optimized using an n-type GaSb substrate.
Emerging Creation Care Movement Among Brazilian Evangelicals

This chapter broadly explores how Brazilian theologians and practitioners are framing the environmental discourse and its praxis among local churches, arising from key questions Nagel 2013 seminarians considered on environmental justice: How robust and distinctly contextual is a Brazilian theology of creation care? How is the environmental discourse extending beyond the boundaries of theory to praxis among evangelical churches? How systemically integrated (politically, economically, socially) is the evangelical discourse on environmental justice at both the macro- and micro-level? In researching Latin American theological constructs on ecological justice, Morgan surfaces distinct underlying principles that are particular to Latin American discourse. Following this exploration, she describes relevant “agent provocateurs,” advocates and practitioners, of creation care in the Brazilian context.
Association Between High Discharge Rates of Vulnerable Patients and Skilled Nursing Facility Copayments

This study uses data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to investigate the association between Medicare copayment policies and discharge rates of vulnerable patients from skilled nursing facilities.
Robust ESD Implanted 5V GGNMOS Clamp Design and Process optimization with maximized ESD Design Window

Design and process optimization of an ESD implanted 5V GGNMOS clamp for high ESD robustness and maximized ESD design window was investigated. Design optimization of the shape and location of the ESD implant (especially, Poly-to-ESD spacing, SPC) together with process co-optimization (ESD implant dose) could maximize the ESD design window while balancing DC Leakage. A comparative analysis between two distinct clamp designs is presented.
A Semantic QA-Based Approach for Text Summarization Evaluation

Many Natural Language Processing and Computational Linguistics applications involve the generation of new texts based on some existing texts, such as summarization, text simplification and machine translation. However, there has been a serious problem haunting these applications for decades, that is, how to automatically and accurately assess quality of these applications. In this paper, we will present some preliminary results on one especially useful and challenging problem in NLP system evaluation---how to pinpoint content differences of two text passages (especially for large passages such as articles and books). Our idea is intuitive and very different from existing approaches. We treat one text passage as a small knowledge base, and ask it a large number of questions to exhaustively identify all content points in it. By comparing the correctly answered questions from two text passages, we will be able to compare their content precisely. The experiment using 2007 DUC summarization corpus clearly shows promising results.
Multiaged redwood responds well to partial harvest and herbicide treatments

Chemical control of unwanted trees can be a cost-efficient tool for forest management and restoration. In California, United States, the response of merchantable conifers to hardwood control is poo...
Statistical analysis of SAR signature domains

In support of airborne radar detection missions that rely on Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imagery, there is a need for extensive sets of training data. Due to a paucity of measured data from some targets of interest, there is sometimes a need to train on only simulated SAR data, and yet detect live targets with high confidence during testing. In support of this mission, many researchers have applied a variety of mathematical techniques to simulate data sets. These techniques range from template matching and simpler statistical methods to deep neural networks (DDNs). They demonstrate that with proper pre-processing, some of these methods can achieve target detection with apparently high confidence. However, for all these papers there is no exact measurement of the differences or similarities in the simulated and measured data that would provide a good predictor of the margins between decision boundaries. Thus, this paper has developed a combination of pre-processing methods and standard metrics that enable the assessment of simulated data quality independent of which target recognition algorithm will be utilized. The results show that for some pre-processing methods the differences in simulated data and measured data do not always lend themselves to the desired ability to train on simulated SAR imagery and test on measured SAR imagery.
Does the Narcissist (and Those Around Him/Her) Pay a Price for Being Narcissistic? An Empirical Study of Leaders’ Narcissism and Well-Being

Using a social exchange perspective of narcissism as the foundation for study hypotheses, this study explored the relationship between leaders’ narcissism (as rated by subordinates) and the well-being of both leaders and subordinates at the individual and group levels. Results from a sample of 1017 subordinates working under 424 leaders generally support the hypothesized models finding leaders’ narcissism negatively relates to leader-member exchange (LMX), and that LMX subsequently relates to subordinates’ job satisfaction and emotional exhaustion. At the group level, leaders’ narcissism also negatively relates to three forms of leaders’ personal well-being (identification, job satisfaction, and perceived self-worth) but these relationships go through average LMX. Elaboration on theoretical and empirical implications for business ethics is offered to provide a clearer direction for future research in this area.
Abstract 16763: Frailty, as Measured by the Essential Frailty Toolset, is Associated With Higher Resource Utilization in Patients Undergoing Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting

Introduction: Frailty is an important predictor of clinical outcomes, but its contribution to resource utilization remains understudied. This study investigates the impact of frailty on high resour...