cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Abstract 5466: Integrative TCGA analyses identify Basonuclin1 (BNC1) as a key mediator for platinum resistance

Proceedings: AACR 106th Annual Meeting 2015; April 18-22, 2015; Philadelphia, PA Objective. We have previously shown that platinum-resistant (disease progression within 6 months of diagnosis) high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC) expresses higher levels of basonuclin1 (BNC1) compared to platinum-sensitive tumors (no disease progression for more than 2 years). Here, we aim to systematically examine the functional effects of BNC1 silencing on tumor sensitivity to platinum and other commonly used chemotherapeutic agents in multiple cancer models. Methods. An integrative analysis was performed using The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) dataset to systematically identify genes associated with platinum-resistance in patients with HGSOC. The biological effects of BNC1, one of the lead candidates identified, were studied in HGSOC (HeyA8-MDR, PEO4), endometrioid ovarian (A2780-CP20), clear cell ovarian (ES2), and squamous cell lung (H1299) cancer models both in vitro and in vivo. The effects of BNC1 silencing or overexpression on the sensitivity of cancer cells to paclitaxel, gemcitabine, doxorubicin, and cisplatin treatments were assessed. Results. BNC1 expression was increased by more than two-fold in platinum-resistant tumors in the TCGA ovarian cancer dataset. BNC1 silencing increased the sensitivity of A2780-CP20, HeyA8-MDR, PEO4, ES2, and H1299 cells to cisplatin and doxorubicin treatments, but not to gemcitabine or taxane-based therapies. BNC1-silenced cells showed a 3-fold average increase in the percentage of apoptotic cells following cisplatin treatment, when compared to cells treated with control siRNA. Importantly, combination treatment of siBNC1 and cisplatin resulted in a 90% reduction in tumor burden in platinum-resistant A2780-CP20 and HeyA8-MDR orthotopic ovarian cancer mouse models when compared to control siRNA plus cisplatin treatment group. Overexpression of BNC1 in platinum-sensitive A2780 cells led to a 2.5-fold reduction in cisplatin sensitivity in vivo as measured by total tumor burden 4 weeks after therapy. Conclusion. Collectively, BNC1 represents an important target for enhancing platinum-sensitivity in ovarian and lung cancer. Targeting BNC1 in platinum-resistant malignancies may improve patient survival. Note: This abstract was not presented at the meeting. Citation Format: Sherry Y. Wu, Justyna Filant, Michael McGuire, Rajesha Rupaimoole, Sunila Pradeep, Anna Unruh, Herbrich Shelley, Cristina Ivan, Ruder Dennis, Cristian Rodriguez-Aguayo, Vasudha Sehgal, Takahito Miyake, Archana Nagaraja, Kshipra Gharpure, Guillermo Armaiz, Rebecca Previs, Gabriel Lopez-Berestein, Prahlad Ram, Keith Baggerly, Anil Sood. Integrative TCGA analyses identify Basonuclin1 (BNC1) as a key mediator for platinum resistance. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 106th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2015 Apr 18-22; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(15 Suppl):Abstract nr 5466. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2015-5466
Characterization of the hemagglutinin gene of a strain of H5N1 subtype of influenza A virus isolated from dead black goose

The hemagglutinin (HA) gene of a strain of H5N1 subtype of influenza A virus isolated from dead goose was characterized, in which the target gene was amplified by RT-PCR, and the PCR-product was linked to vector pTEM-T(Promega, USA) at 4℃. The recombinant plasmid was then transferred into bacteria Dh5a, and the positive colonies were selected and identified with restriction endonucleases. Afterwards, they were sent to Liuhetong Company in Beijing for nucleotide sequencing. Finally, the phylogenetic analysis of the sequencing data was performed by using the MegAlign (Version 1.03) and Editseq (Version 3.69) softwares. The results showed that the cleavage site of hemagglutinin of the isolate contained multiple basic amino acids (R-E-R-R-R-K-R) with 8 potential glycosylation sites, from which 6 sites were located on the 9, 10, 23, 165, 193 and 296 position of the heavy chain region, and other 2 located on the 154 and 213 position of the light chain region. The phylogenetic tree analysis on the HA gene showed definite differences from those isolates either from humans or from poultries.
Basal ganglia output reflects internally-specified movements

An important role of the nervous system is to allow us to move around in the world. These movements are typically influenced by the goal that we want to achieve (for example, finding food) as well as stimuli that we sense in our environment (for example, the smell of pizza). Yet we understand little about how the brain controls these sorts of goal-directed movements, even under normal conditions. This lack of basic understanding presents a big problem when it comes to treating movement disorders like Parkinson’s disease. For a long time, a collection of brain regions called the basal ganglia have been known to be important for controlling movements, although the specific role that they play in this process is not well understood. Does the brain activity that controls movements differ depending on whether the movement is made in response to a stimulus or not? Using mice, Lintz and Felsen have now recorded the activity of individual neurons in the basal ganglia that signal to other brain regions as the animals performed a behavioral task. Different trials in the task required the mouse to make two types of otherwise-identical movements: movements based on a stimulus, and movements based on recent experiences (and not triggered by a stimulus). The output activity of the basal ganglia differed under these two conditions, suggesting that the basal ganglia may play different roles in each type of movement. From the results, Lintz and Felsen could make some predictions about how the basal ganglia influence the activity of downstream regions of the nervous system that control movement. Further studies are now required to test these predictions.
Rule 3: Know Which Assets to Buy and Sell

After developing a financial plan, investors must closely monitor the price of different assets that are closely correlated with macroeconomic and financial conditions, which may provide tailwinds or headwinds that affect their price performance. Stocks and commodities usually perform well in an expanding economy, while bonds usually perform well in a weak economy—though their performance depends on the factors that drive different business cycles and on historical valuations at the point of entry to an investment position. Bonds also perform well in the aftermath of a financial crisis, as investors cash out from stocks and commodities, as was the case in the financial crisis of 2008. This means that investors must diversify their portfolio not just across stocks, but also across asset categories—adjusting their allocation according to the direction of the economy.
Towards Managing Variability in the Cloud

Performance variability in advanced computing systems, such as those supporting the cloud computing paradigm, is growing intractably and leads to inefficiency and resource wastage. A key requirement in large-scale virtualized infrastructure, e.g., Amazon EC2, Microsoft Azure, etc., is to provide a guaranteed quality of service to cloud tenants, especially in today's multi-tenant cloud environments. This generally involves using past information and prediction of the probability distribution of requests to match resources that meet service-level agreements. The variability in systems performance hinders the cloud service providers' ability to effectively guarantee SLAs, and thus efficiently meet user demands. In this paper, we propose innovative methodologies for resource management, which leverages the understanding of performance variability in high performance computing systems to exploit new opportunities for tradeoffs between system stability and performance in the cloud. This would help cloud providers better provision and design their infrastructure, as well as ensure meeting provider-tenant SLAs. Moreover, the approach also leads to improved cloud service costs, as tighter bounds on variability could be codified in cost structures bundled in operations or directly offered to cloud tenants.
Interhospital transfer of pediatric neurosurgical patients

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to describe patterns of transfer, resource utilization, and clinical outcomes associated with the interhospital transfer of pediatric neurosurgical patients. METHODS All consecutive, prospectively collected requests for interhospital patient transfer to the pediatric neurosurgical service at Texas Children's Hospital were retrospectively analyzed from October 2013 to September 2014. Demographic patient information, resource utilization, and outcomes were recorded and compared across predefined strata (low [ 30%]) of predicted probability of mortality using the Pediatric Risk of Mortality score. RESULTS Requests for pediatric neurosurgical care comprised 400 (3.7%) of a total of 10,833 calls. Of 400 transfer admissions, 96.5%, 2.8%, and 0.8% were in the low, moderate, and high mortality risk groups, respectively. The median age was 54 months, and 45% were female. The median transit time was 125 minutes. The majority of transfers were after-hours (69.8%); nearly a third occurred during the weekend (32.3%). The median intensive care unit stay for 103 patients was 3 days (range 1-269 days). Median length of hospital stay was 2 days (range 1-269 days). Ninety patients (22.5%) were discharged from the emergency room after transfer. Seventy-seven patients (19.3%) required neurosurgical intervention after transfer, with the majority requiring a cranial procedure (66.2%); 87.3% of patients were discharged home. CONCLUSIONS This study highlights patient characteristics, resource utilization, and outcomes among pediatric neurosurgical patients. Opportunities for quality improvement were identified in diagnosing and managing isolated skull fractures and neck pain after trauma.
Measures of Effectiveness for Military Air Traffic Control and Landing Systems

To evaluate the military mission impact of alternative Air Traffic Control and Landing Systems, measures of effectiveness (MOEs) are needed that capture the effects of weather and that can be evalu...
Stress, security, and scent: The influence of chemical signals on the social lives of domestic cats and implications for applied settings

Abstract Although millions of cats live among humans worldwide the scientific community knows relatively little about cat behavior and cognition. Olfaction is an important perceptual sense for many members of Carnivora, however the role of chemical signals in cat social relationships is not fully understood. Research indicates chemical signals play an important role in many areas of cat behavior including mother-offspring and conspecific interactions and exploration of their environment. Chemical cues appear to play a role in stress and anxiety reduction, allowing cats to feel secure in their environment. A better understanding of cat chemical signals, especially as it relates to within and between species communication, may lead to an increase in cat wellbeing as humans can utilize this knowledge in applied settings. Therefore, the purpose of this review is to investigate how cats process and use chemical signals in social contexts and identify ways this information can be applied to address cat behavioral issues, such as inappropriate litter box and scratching behavior, and improve cat welfare, including species-appropriate ways of reinforcing the human-cat bond.
In situ study of multialkylated cyclopentane and perfluoropolyalkyl ether chemistry in concentrated contacts using ultraviolet Raman spectroscopy

In situ analysis of lubricated, concentrated contacts can be performed using ultraviolet Raman spectroscopy. An ultraviolet Raman spectrometer has been constructed and interfaced to a ball-on-flat tribology apparatus. Two lubricants have been studied under various loads with and without pure sliding: (1) a mixture of perfluoropolyalkyl ethers (Krytox 143AC), and (2) a mixture of high molecular weight multialkylated cyclopentanes (2001A). Results show that without sliding, Krytox and 2001A remain stable under the various loads used. When sliding was applied, both Krytox and2001A undergo chemical decomposition to amorphous carbon (friction polymer). An analysis of the Raman spectra shows a structural difference between the amorphous carbon produced from Krytox and that produced from 2001A. Results also demonstrate the importance of in situ analysis since the composition at the contact center during and after sliding are different.
What It Means to Become “More Resilient”: An Analysis of Local Resilience-Building Approaches in Three Florida Communities

AbstractFrom international to local scales of governance, resilience building is being presented as the way to prepare for impacts of both slow- and quick-onset disasters. Having transitioned from ecological to social applications, the concept of resilience has multiple interpretations, and definitions tend to emphasize both resistance to and acceptance of transformational change. The purpose of this research is to investigate how the concept of resilience is being conceptualized in three south Florida communities in order to understand and compare what ideal types and dimensions of resilience are prioritized at those local scales. To do this, content analyses of city and county documents were conducted to extract explicit definitions of resilience as well as implicit definitions based on context clues using carefully selected keywords. The term resilience appeared 684 times in documents from Broward County, Lee County, and the city of Punta Gorda, yet only one document provided any explicit definition. B...
Thinking Psychology Otherwise: A Conversation with Mark Freeman

In his dialogue, Mark Freeman carries forward the ideas of Levinas by suggesting a whole host of ways in which the Other can offer unique forms of transcendence wherein our egocentric preoccupations are “arrested” and the “perimeters of the self” are not the limits of experiential and ethical possibilities. Music, nature, and the human face all have the capacity to pull one out of what he calls “ordinary oblivion,” beyond oneself and more fully into the world and the experience it gives. Freeman describes this as a type of “thinking otherwise” where experience originates from outside of the prioritization of the self, not merely functioning as a “product of the psyche.”
First-principles calculation of intrinsic defect chemistry and self-doping in PbTe

Semiconductor dopability is inherently limited by intrinsic defect chemistry. In many thermoelectric materials, narrow band gaps due to strong spin–orbit interactions make accurate atomic level predictions of intrinsic defect chemistry and self-doping computationally challenging. Here we use different levels of theory to model point defects in PbTe, and compare and contrast the results against each other and a large body of experimental data. We find that to accurately reproduce the intrinsic defect chemistry and known self-doping behavior of PbTe, it is essential to (a) go beyond the semi-local GGA approximation to density functional theory, (b) include spin–orbit coupling, and (c) utilize many-body GW theory to describe the positions of individual band edges. The hybrid HSE functional with spin–orbit coupling included, in combination with the band edge shifts from G 0 W 0 is the only approach that accurately captures both the intrinsic conductivity type of PbTe as function of synthesis conditions as well as the measured charge carrier concentrations, without the need for experimental inputs. Our results reaffirm the critical role of the position of individual band edges in defect calculations, and demonstrate that dopability can be accurately predicted in such challenging narrow band gap materials. Accurate modeling of defects in PbTe lies on the combination of hybrid functionals with spin-orbit coupling and Green function theory. Dopability of thermoelectric materials (that can convert thermal into electrical energy and vice versa) is crucial for their improvement; however most modeling approaches fail on an atomic level, especially if spin-orbit coupling effects (that modify the band position) are present. In this work, Vladan Stevanovic and coauthors manage to accurately reproduce the electronic structure of PbTe with first-principles based density functional theory. They prove that the only approach that can model the intrinsic defect chemistry, in agreement with experimental results, is the combination of hybrid functionals (based on a screened Coulomb potential) with spin-orbit coupling and the band edge shifts calculated through the G 0 W 0 approximation (which calculates the Green function theory that models excited-state properties of extended systems). Such level of understanding is necessary to predict the dopability of PbTe.
Ru(II) Complexes with a Chemical and Redox-Active S2N2 Ligand: Structures, Electrochemistry, and Metal–Ligand Cooperativity

Here we describe the synthesis, structures, and reactivity of Ru complexes containing a triaryl, redox-active S2N2 ligand derived from o-phenylenediamine and thioanisole subunits. The coordination chemistry of N,N′-bis[2-(methylthio)phenyl]-1,2-diaminobenzene [H2(MeSNNSMe)] was established by treating RuCl2(PPh3)3 with H2(MeSNNSMe) to yield {Ru[H2(MeSNNSMe)]Cl(PPh3)}Cl (1). Coordinated H2(MeSNNSMe) was sequentially deprotonated to form Ru[H(MeSNNSMe)]Cl(PPh3) (2) followed by the five-coordinate, square pyramidal complex Ru(MeSNNSMe)(PPh3) (3). Single-crystal X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies revealed that the ligand structurally rearranged around the metal at each deprotonation step to conjugate the adjacent aryl groups with the o-phenylenediamine backbone. Deprotonation of 2 with NaBH4 or treatment of 3 with BH3·tetrahydrofuran (THF) yielded Ru[(μ-H)BH2](MeSNNSMe)(PPh3) (5) with BH3 bound across a Ru–N bond in a metal–ligand cooperative fashion. The cyclic voltammogram of 3 in THF revealed three redox even...
Managing Information Complexity in Material Flow Systems

Few people seem to realize how extraordinarily complex the everyday activities involved in making products really are. Even those who are directly involved in these activities ordinarily see only a limited view of the entire process. In this paper, we would like to first call attention to some facts about the character of the information involved in manufacturing, emphasizing how difficult it is to manage This perspective is essential background to the real purpose of the paper, which is to examine alternative strategies for managing manufacturing information. Four strategies will be assessed, their merits and deficiencies will be compared, and a few comments will be added about hybrid methods.
Maternal Obesity, Gestational Weight Gain, and Childhood Growth in the First Year of Life

Obesity has reached epidemic proportions among women of childbearing age. Prepregnancy obesity and inappropriate gestational weight gain (GWG) have detrimental consequences for maternal health, birth outcomes, and infant growth in the first year of life. Dietary interventions during pregnancy have a modest, although significant, impact on GWG, but their long-term impact is unknown. Studies of interventions to reduce obesity prior to pregnancy are limited, but these interventions have the potential to address modifiable behavioral, social, and environmental factors that may predispose women and their infants to excessive weight gain and to establish healthy trajectories in weight for both.
Reliability-Based Metrics to Quantify the Maximum Permissible Load Demand of Electric Vehicles

The continuous increase of electric vehicles (EVs) is expected to introduce several challenges to power systems among which is the deteriorating reliability of power supply. This paper proposes two adequacy metrics to quantify the maximum permissible EV loads for a power system without deteriorating its reliability and the required improvements to power systems to accommodate high penetrations of EVs, which are defined as follows: 1) extra effective available energy for EVs’ charging (EEAE-EVs) and 2) extra effective required generation to accommodate EVs (EERG-EVs). The EEAE-EVs provides a measure for the maximum amount of EV loads that a power system can accommodate without adding new generation while maintaining its reliability. The EERG-EVs provides a measure to the minimum amount of new generation that is needed to restore the reliability level of a power system if the load of EVs exceeds the maximum permissible load of the system. These metrics provide a decision aid to power system planners and operators on when and how to perform generation expansion. The importance of the proposed metrics is demonstrated on the IEEE Reliability Test System (IEEE RTS) with real EV charging data. The sequential Monte Carlo simulation method is used in evaluating the well known power system reliability indices, the EEAE-EVs, and the EERG-EVs. The results show that a power system can accommodate EV loads without deteriorating its reliability as long as EV loads do not exceed the EEAE-EVs of the system. For the IEEE RTS, the EERG-EVs shows that the amount of the required generation to maintain system reliability is about half of the added EV loads from 330–660 MW.
Human Rights and U.S. Foreign Policy: Prevarications and Evasions

Human Rights and U.S. Foreign Policy provides a comprehensive historical overview and analysis of the complex and often vexing problem of understanding the formation of U.S. human rights policy. The proper place of human rights and fundamental freedoms in U.S. foreign policy has long been debated among scholars, politicians, and the American public. Clair Apodaca argues that the history of U.S.human rights policy unfolds as a series of prevarications that are the result of presidential preferences, along with the conflict and cooperation among bureaucratic actors. Through a series of chapters devoted to U.S. presidential administrations from Richard Nixon to the present, she delivers a comprehensive historical, social, and cultural context to understand the development and implementation of U.S. human rights policy. For each administration, she pays close attention to how ideology, bureaucratic politics, lobbying, and competition affect the inclusion or exclusion of human rights in the economic and military aid allocation decisions of the United States. She further demonstrates that from the inception of U.S. human rights policy, presidents have attempted to tell only part of the truth or to reformulate the truth by redefining the meaning of the terms "human rights," "democracy," or "torture," for example. In this way, human rights policy has been about prevarication. Human Rights and U.S. Foreign Policy is a key text for students, which will appeal to all readers who will find a historically informed, argument driven account of the erratic evolution of U.S. human rights policy since the Nixon Administration.
Dispersal of Two Species of Trichoptera from Desert Springs: Conservation Implications for Isolated vs Connected Populations

During the Pleistocene, when the climate was wetter and cooler, aquatic habitats in the Great Basin of western North America were much more extensive and connected. As the climate warmed over the last 10 000 years, many of these habitats dried but others remained as isolated springs and inland lakes. The isolation of desert springs and lack of dispersal between populations of non-vagile species (e.g. fish, spring snails) has led to genetic differentiation and speciation. However, the extent to which vagile species of aquatic insects disperse from spring to spring is unknown. We examined the population genetics of two caddisflies, Hesperophylax designatus (Limnephilidae) and Lepidostoma ojanum (Lepidostomatidae) that occur in isolated springs in Nevada and eastern California to determine the extent of their dispersal from spring to spring. Mitochondrial DNA sequences indicate that the populations of L. ojanum are isolated and that the populations represent management units. In contrast, H. designatus individuals are flying from spring to spring and their populations are connected by dispersal. Disturbance impacts (e.g. grazing by ungulates, water extraction) that eliminate poor dispersers (e.g. L. ojanum) locally may result in permanent losses of genetic diversity; this is less likely with broader dispersers such as H. designatus.
The Diagnostic Potential & Interactive Dynamics of the Colorectal Cancer Virome

Abstract Human viruses (those that infect human cells) have been associated with many cancers, largely due to their mutagenic and functionally manipulative abilities. Despite this, cancer microbiome studies have almost exclusively focused on bacteria instead of viruses. We began evaluating the cancer virome by focusing on colorectal cancer, a primary cause of morbidity and mortality throughout the world, and a cancer linked to altered colonic bacterial community compositions but with an unknown association with the gut virome. We used 16S rRNA gene, whole shotgun metagenomic, and purified virus metagenomic sequencing of stool to evaluate the differences in human colorectal cancer virus and bacterial community composition. Through random forest modeling we identified differences in the healthy and colorectal cancer virome. The cancer-associated virome consisted primarily of temperate bacteriophages that were also predicted to be bacteria-virus community network hubs. These results provide foundational evidence that bacteriophage communities are associated with colorectal cancer and potentially impact cancer progression by altering the bacterial host communities.
Micromechanics Characterization on the Lower Bound Young’s Moduli of Composite Materials Measured from Nanoindentation

The measurements of the through-thickness Young’s moduli of composite materials are important, but they were not systematically reported because of the complexity. In this paper, a lower bound characterization approach for the Young’s moduli using nanoindentation is proposed based on contact mechanics and micromechanics analysis. This approach was applied to grid nanoindentation of a glass-fiber composite material system, and the estimated lower bound was around 40% lower than the directly measured Young’s modulus of the same composite system using Hertz’s contact law. Therefore, the proposed approach provides a conservative measurement if the actual through-thickness Young’s modulus is not available. This approach is helpful for nanoindentation users without comprehensive knowledge of micromechanics and contact mechanics to conduct complicated nanoindentation experiments for composite materials.
African Americans in evolutionary science: where we have been, and what’s next

In 2017 National Science Foundation data revealed that in the United States the professional biological workforce was composed of ~ 69.5% “whites”, 21.3% “Asians”, and only 3% “African American or Blacks” (National Science Foundation, 2017, https://ncsesdata.nsf.gov/doctoratework/2017/html/sdr2017_dst_03.html ). There are problems with the categories themselves but without too deep an investigation of these, these percentages are representative of the demography of biology as a whole over the latter portion of the twentieth and beginning of the twenty-first century. However, evolutionary biologists would argue (and correctly so) that the representation of persons of African descent in our field is probably an order of magnitude lower (0.3%). This commentary focuses on the factors that are associated with underrepresentation of African Americans in evolutionary science careers.
A State-of-the-Science Review of Arsenic’s Effects on Glucose Homeostasis in Experimental Models

Background: The prevalence of type 2 diabetes (T2D) has more than doubled since 1980. Poor nutrition, sedentary lifestyle, and obesity are among the primary risk factors. While an estimated 70% of ...
Single-shot full-field measurement with a multimode fiber (Conference Presentation)

Multimode fibers are widely explored for optical communication, imaging and sensing applications. We develop a single-shot full-field temporal measurement technique based on a multimode fiber. The complex spatiotemporal speckle field is created by a reference pulse propagating through the fiber, and it interferes with a signal pulse. From the time-integrated interference pattern, both the amplitude and the phase of the signal are retrieved in spectral and temporal domains. The simplicity and high sensitivity of our scheme illustrate the potential of multimode fibers as versatile and multi-functional sensors.
Galactic Abundance Patterns via Peimbert Types I & II PNe

We present total element abundances based upon newly acquired spectrophotometry of a sample of abundances and to improve total extrapolated sulfur - a useful metallicity tracer. With this compilation we explore abundance patterns in PNe that reveal signatures of stellar evolution and nucleosynthesis as well as larger-scale galactic chemical evolution.
Enhanced Antifibrinolytic Efficacy of a Plasmin-Specific Kunitz-Inhibitor (60-Residue Y11T/L17R with C-Terminal IEK) of Human Tissue Factor Pathway Inhibitor Type-2 Domain1

Current antifibrinolytic agents reduce blood loss by inhibiting plasmin active sites (e.g., aprotinin) or by preventing plasminogen/tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) binding to fibrin clots (e.g., e-aminocaproic acid and tranexamic acid); however, they have adverse side effects. Here, we expressed 60-residue (NH2NAE…IEKCOOH) Kunitz domain1 (KD1) mutants of human tissue factor pathway inhibitor type-2 that inhibit plasmin as well as plasminogen activation. A single (KD1-L17R-KCOOH) and a double mutant (KD1-Y11T/L17R- KCOOH) were expressed in Escherichia coli as His-tagged constructs, each with enterokinase cleavage sites. KD1-Y11T/L17R-KCOOH was also expressed in Pichia pastoris. KD1-Y11T/L17R-KCOOH inhibited plasmin comparably to aprotinin and bound to the kringle domains of plasminogen/plasmin and tPA with Kd of ~50 nM and ~35 nM, respectively. Importantly, compared to aprotinin, KD1-L17R-KCOOH and KD1-Y11T/L17R-KCOOH did not inhibit kallikrein. Moreover, the antifibrinolytic potential of KD1-Y11T/L17R-KCOOH was better than that of KD1-L17R-KCOOH and similar to that of aprotinin in plasma clot-lysis assays. In thromboelastography experiments, KD1-Y11T/L17R-KCOOH was shown to inhibit fibrinolysis in a dose dependent manner and was comparable to aprotinin at a higher concentration. Further, KD1-Y11T/L17R-KCOOH did not induce cytotoxicity in primary human endothelial cells or fibroblasts. We conclude that KD1-Y11T/L17R-KCOOH is comparable to aprotinin, the most potent known inhibitor of plasmin and can be produced in large amounts using Pichia.
Embolization of a rare case of focal nodular hyperplasia in an adolescent boy

Abstract This report highlights a special case of focal nodular hyperplasia (FNH) in a 14-year-old boy. FNH is a benign liver lesion which typically presents in middle-aged women. Symptomatic FNH lesions, lesions of large size, or lesions in problematic locations are often surgically resected. Surgical treatment options such as resection or liver transplantation were discussed in our case, however the mass was deemed unresectable due to its central location and proximity to vascular structures. Super-selective particle embolization of this hypervascular benign mass proved to be an effective treatment resulting in complete resolution of symptoms and significant reduction of the size of the mass, with no post-procedural complications.
Addressing Health Inequities in Vulnerable Populations Through Social Justice

Social justice is the underlying principle of population health nursing and a fundamental nursing value. The tenets of social justice require nurses to maintain and demonstrate health-related ethical, moral, humanitarian, and legal principles. Nurses need to understand root causes of social injustices in order to choose and apply socially just wellness strategies in helping alleviate health inequities of vulnerable populations. This chapter reviews the concepts of vulnerability, health disparities, and determinants of health. In addition to clarifying the difference between health disparities and health inequities there is discussion about the socially constructed concept of “race” and systemic racism that pervades society and perpetuates disenfranchisement of marginalized populations. The chapter concludes with suggestions for what nurses can do in taking-action involving internal/personal work, interaction with clients, and working in the wider sphere for impacting change within society.
Simon Says: Evaluating and Mitigating Bias in Pruned Neural Networks with Knowledge Distillation

In recent years the ubiquitous deployment of AI has posed great concerns in regards to algorithmic bias, discrimination, and fairness. Compared to traditional forms of bias or discrimination caused by humans, algorithmic bias generated by AI is more abstract and unintuitive therefore more difficult to explain and mitigate. A clear gap exists in the current literature on evaluating and mitigating bias in pruned neural networks. In this work, we strive to tackle the challenging issues of evaluating, mitigating, and explaining induced bias in pruned neural networks. Our paper makes three contributions. First, we propose two simple yet effective metrics, Combined Error Variance (CEV) and Symmetric Distance Error (SDE), to quantitatively evaluate the induced bias prevention quality of pruned models. Second, we demonstrate that knowledge distillation can mitigate induced bias in pruned neural networks, even with unbalanced datasets. Third, we reveal that model similarity has strong correlations with pruning induced bias, which provides a powerful method to explain why bias occurs in pruned neural networks. Our code is available at this https URL
Predictable Returns over the Credit Cycle

Asset returns move predictably over the credit cycle. Using credit expansion in the nonfinancial corporate sector to capture the phase of the credit cycle, this paper shows that both equity and corporate bond returns decline as credit expansion accelerates. Impulse response analysis suggests that the stage of the credit cycle contains information about the term structure of risk premium. Moreover, this paper examines alternative indicators of the credit cycle and finds that credit flows to the government sector (i.e., government credit expansion) forecast higher future equity returns. Overall, the evidence highlights time varying risk premium as a potential driver of the credit cycle.
No One Representation to Rule Them All: Overlapping Features of Training Methods

Despite being able to capture a range of features of the data, high accuracy models trained with supervision tend to make similar predictions. This seemingly implies that high-performing models share similar biases regardless of training methodology, which would limit ensembling benefits and render low-accuracy models as having little practical use. Against this backdrop, recent work has made very different training techniques, such as large-scale contrastive learning, yield competitively-high accuracy on generalization and robustness benchmarks. This motivates us to revisit the assumption that models necessarily learn similar functions. We conduct a large-scale empirical study of models across hyper-parameters, architectures, frameworks, and datasets. We find that model pairs that diverge more in training methodology display categorically different generalization behavior, producing increasingly uncorrelated errors. We show these models specialize in subdomains of the data, leading to higher ensemble performance: with just 2 models (each with ImageNet accuracy ~76.5%), we can create ensembles with 83.4% (+7% boost). Surprisingly, we find that even significantly low-accuracy models can be used to improve high-accuracy models. Finally, we show diverging training methodology yield representations that capture overlapping (but not supersetting) feature sets which, when combined, lead to increased downstream performance.
Rural differences in psychiatric medication prescribing in veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder

Purpose Disparities in the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) for rural veterans have been noted in prior research. The objective was to examine rural differences in prescribing for veterans with PTSD, and changes over time, in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care system. Methods Prescribing prevalence in veterans with PTSD during 2009 and 2019 was determined using national VA administrative pharmacy data according to the joint VA-Department of Defense clinical practice guideline as medications recommended for use in PTSD and those recommended against use. Multivariable logistic regression was used to contrast patient residence (urban vs rural) and site of PTSD care (medical center, urban clinic, or rural clinic), while adjusting for clinical covariates. Findings Recommended medications were prescribed significantly less often to patients of rural clinics, relative to medical centers in 2009 (OR = 0.91; 95% CI: 0.89-0.94) but reached equivalence in 2019 (OR = 1.01; 95% CI: 0.99-1.03). In addition, rural clinics had significantly lower prescribing of recommended against medications (OR = 0.86; 95% CI: 0.84-0.87) in 2019. Prescribing of medications recommended against the use for PTSD was higher among rural residents, relative to urban residents in 2009 (OR = 1.14; 95% CI: 1.12-1.16), which declined toward equivalence by 2019 (OR = 1.06; 95% CI: 1.05-1.07). Conclusions While some clinically meaningful differences in prescribing for rural veterans with PTSD were observed in 2009, these differences shifted toward equivalency within the following decade. In 2019, we failed to observe any systematic prescribing deficiencies for veterans receiving PTSD care at rural clinics.
Radiation Dose-Rate Effects on Gene Expression in a Mouse Biodosimetry Model.

In the event of a nuclear accident or radiological terrorist attack, there will be a pressing need for biodosimetry to triage a large, potentially exposed population and to assign individuals to appropriate treatment. Exposures from fallout are likely, resulting in protracted dose delivery that would, in turn, impact the extent of injury. Biodosimetry approaches that can distinguish such low-dose-rate (LDR) exposures from acute exposures have not yet been developed. In this study, we used the C57BL/6 mouse model in an initial investigation of the impact of low-dose-rate delivery on the transcriptomic response in blood. While a large number of the same genes responded to LDR and acute radiation exposures, for many genes the magnitude of response was lower after LDR exposures. Some genes, however, were differentially expressed (P < 0.001, false discovery rate <5%) in mice exposed to LDR compared with mice exposed to acute radiation. We identified a set of 164 genes that correctly classified 97% of the sampl...
Bicyclo[3.3.1]nonanes : A new synthesis of 2-bicyclo[3.3.1]nonanone

Abstract An investigation of the internal enolate alkylation process as a route to bicyclo[3.3.1]nonanes has been made. Application of the method to 4-(3-hydroxylpropyl)cyclohexanone has been found to provide an economical synthesis for 2-bicyclo[3.3.1]nonanone.
Comparison of yellow dent and NutriDense corn hybrids in swine diets.

Two experiments were conducted to verify the feeding value of NutriDense (ND) and NutriDense Low-Phytate (NDLP) corn (Exseed Genetics LLC, BASF Plant Science, Research Triangle Park, NC) relative to that of yellow dent (YD) corn in swine diets. NutriDense corn is a high-protein, high-oil variety, and NDLP is a high-protein, high-oil, low-phytate variety. In Exp. 1, 315 nursery pigs that initially weighed 15.2 kg were used in a 21-d growth assay. Dietary treatments were arranged in a 3 x 3 factorial; main effects were corn source (YD, ND, and NDLP) and added fat (0, 3, or 6%, as-fed basis). Diets were formulated to contain 3.83 g of lysine/Mcal using calculated nutrient values. There were no corn source x fat interactions observed. Pigs fed YD, ND, and NDLP had ADG of 750, 734, and 738 g/d and G:F of 0.64, 0.66, and 0.65, respectively. No differences (P > 0.10) in ADG were observed among the three corn sources; however, pigs fed diets containing either ND or NDLP corn had decreased ADFI (P < 0.02) and improved G:F (P < 0.05) compared with pigs fed diets containing YD corn. Increasing dietary fat increased ADG (727, 746, and 748 g/d; linear, P < 0.04) and G:F (0.62, 0.66, and 0.68; linear, P < 0.01) and decreased ADFI (linear, P < 0.01). Using the NRC (1998) value for ME in YD corn, we calculated the energy value for ND and NDLP based on G:F differences compared with pigs fed YD corn. These data indicated the ME values for ND and NDLP corn are 4.5 and 2.5% greater (3,575 and 3,505 Kcal/ kg), respectively, than for YD corn (3,420 Kcal/kg). In Exp. 2, 1,144 gilts (initial BW = 50.1 kg) were used in a commercial research facility to evaluate the effects of corn source (ND and YD) and added fat (0, 3, or 6%, as-fed basis) in a 2 x 3 factorial on pig performance and carcass traits. There was a corn source x fat interaction for ADFI and G:F. Increasing added fat resulted in greater changes in ADFI and G:F in pigs fed YD corn diets compared with those fed ND corn. Feeding ND corn increased ADG (main effect, P < 0.04), and greater percentages of added fat increased ADG (main effect; linear, P < 0.01). Results of Exp. 2 suggest that ND corn has 5.3% more ME than YD corn. The additional energy provided by ND corn improves G:F in both nursery and grow-finish pigs, and ND corn offers a means of formulating diets more concentrated in energy than YD corn.
Case 14--2014: Tetralogy of Fallot with severe cyanosis in an infant with trisomy 18: ethical dilemmas in the perioperative period.

From the Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX. J.R.W. is cardiac anesthesia fellow. Address reprint requests to Jamie R.Wingate, MD, Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children’s Hospital, 6621 Fannin Street, WT, 17317B, Houston, TX 77030. E-mail: hwarraic@bidmc.harvard.edu © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. 1053-0770/2602-0033$36.00/0 http://dx.doi.org/10.1053/j.jvca.2014.04.004
Operational status of the uranium beam upgrade of the ATLAS accelerator

The Positive-Ion Injector (PII) for ATLAS is complete. First beams from the new injector have been accelerated and used for experiments at ATLAS. The POI consists of an ECR ion source on a 350-kV platform and a low-velocity superconducting linac. The first acceleration of uranium for the experimental program has demonstrated that the design goals of the project have been met, Since the summer of 1992, the new injector has been used for the research program approximately 50% of the time. Longitudinal beam quality from the new injector has been measured to be significantly better than comparable beams from the tandem injector. Changes to the mix of resonators in the main ATLAS accelerator to match better the velocity profile for heavy beams such as uranium are nearly complete and uranium energies up to 6.45 MeV per nucleon have been achieved. The operating experience of the new ATLAS facility will be discussed with emphasis on the measured beam quality as well as achieved beam energies and currents. >
Networking large-scale virtual environments

The virtual environment research community is focusing on the human computer interaction model for fully articulated 3D humans in the networked virtual environment. As that work moves forward there is the desire to internetwork large numbers of players. The NPSNET Research Group is in the forefront of that work and is focusing on the network and software architecture necessary to support large scale VEs. The paper presents a look at our multicasting and applications layer protocol research.
Evaluation, Medical Therapy, and Course of Adult Persistent Hyperinsulinemic Hypoglycemia After Roux-En-Y Gastric Bypass Surgery: A Case Series

ABSTRACT Objective To describe the evaluation and treatment of hyperinsulinemic hypoglycemia in adults who had undergone gastric bypass surgery. A small number of patients who undergo Roux-en-Y bypass surgery develop postprandial hypoglycemia in the absence of dumping. In some cases, such patients have been treated with pancreatectomy. Methods We report the demographics, diagnostic results, response to medical therapy, and subsequent course of 6 referral patients with post–Roux-en-Y gastric bypass hypoglycemia. Results Characteristic clinical and metabolic parameters consistent with hyperinsulinemic hypoglycemia were identified. Parameters were similar for both spontaneous and glucose-challenge-induced hypoglycemia. In the context of exclusively postprandial symptoms, simultaneous glucose ≤ 55 mg/dL, insulin ≥ 17 μU/mL, C peptide ≥ 3.0 ng/mL, and insulin to glucose ratio > 0.3 were associated with Roux-en-Y gastric bypass hyperinsulinemic hypoglycemia. Five of 6 patients improved on therapy consisting of dietary modification plus either calcium channel blockade, acarbose, or both. Two patients have remained on therapy for 12 to 15 months. The nonresponder was atypical and had had hypoglycemic events for several decades. Three treated patients were subsequently observed to have undergone partial or complete remission from hypoglycemic episodes after 2 to 37 months of therapy. None of the 6 have undergone pancreatectomy, and none have evidence of insulinoma. Invasive diagnostic procedures were of limited utility. Conclusion In a subset of patients with post–Roux-en-Y gastric bypass hyperinsulinemic hypoglycemia, medical management can be efficacious and an alternative to partial pancreatectomy. In some cases, the disorder remits spontaneously. (Endocr Pract. 2015;21:237-246)
A simplified approach to noise in microwave transistors

Abstract The theory of noise in transistors is applied to microwave transistors at microwave frequencies and an expression for the noise figure is obtained in terms of easily measurable parameters of the transistor. By making some simplifying assumptions, the expression for the noise figure can be reduced to a simple form containing only one parameter, which is useful for engineering applications. The effects of feedback and parasitics introduced by the encapsulation are taken into account. Friiss' formula is modified in order to take the effects of image frequency response on the measurements into account. A method of measuring gain and noise figure simultaneously is also described. Experimental verification of the theory up to 4 GHz is presented.
Arsenic Distribution in Soils Surrounding the Utah Copper Smelter

We investigated the extent of arsenic contamination from a Utah copper smelter as reflected by arsenic residue accumulated in the surface soil. The highest arsenic concentrations occurred within 3 km of the smelter. Arsenic soil contamination was evident up to 10 km from the smelter, with the major transport direction being ESE. Data from the subsurface soil samples indicated that arsenic has also leached through the soil.
Gertrude's tonsure: an examination of hair as a symbol of gender, family and authority in the seventh-century Vita of Gertrude of Nivelles

Using the seventh-century Vita of Gertrude of Nivelles, this paper examines the story of Gertrude's tonsure in connection with Frankish attitudes about hair-cutting, family, gender and authority. The story of Gertrude's tonsure is unique in the hagiography of early medieval Western female saints. Gertrude's tonsure was inspired by many examples of renunciation and hair-cutting including the Bible, Patristic writing, Germanic practices and Frankish myths. However, if Gertrude's tonsure is considered in the light of distinctly Frankish beliefs about the relationship of hair, hair-cutting, and family lineage and inheritance, Gertrude's mother Itta appears to have used the male symbol of monastic tonsure as a method of protecting Gertrude's inheritance for the foundation of the monastery of Nivelles. As Gertrude's tonsure saved the girl from forced marriage, Itta's actions in tonsuring her daughter paradoxically re-emphasised the meaning of the forced tonsure of Frankish royal men and the voluntary tonsure of...