cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Shared parameter models for joint analysis of longitudinal and survival data with left truncation due to delayed entry – Applications to cystic fibrosis:

Many longitudinal studies observe time to occurrence of a clinical event such as death, while also collecting serial measurements of one or more biomarkers that are predictive of the event, or are surrogate outcomes of interest. Joint modeling can be used to examine the relationship between the biomarker and the event, and also as a way of adjusting analyses of the biomarker for non-ignorable dropout. In settings such as registry studies, an additional complexity is caused when follow-up of subjects is delayed, referred to as left-truncation of follow-up in the survival analysis setting. If not adjusted for, this can cause bias in estimation of parameters of the survival distribution for the clinical event and in parameters of the longitudinal outcome such as the profile or rate of change over time because subjects may die or have the clinical event before follow-up starts. This paper illustrates how a broad class of shared parameter models can be used to jointly model a time to event outcome along with a longitudinal marker using available nonlinear mixed modeling software, when follow-up times are left truncated. Methods are applied to jointly model survival and decline in lung function in cystic fibrosis patients.
Case Report: Primary Orbital Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the orbit is almost uniformly the result of local invasion from a cutaneous primary, extension by perineural invasion, or the result of metastasis. This is owed to the lack of native squamous epithelium in the orbit. After review of the literature, to date, only 6 reports of 8 patients with primary orbital SCC exist. Of those cases, only 2 reported non-apical orbital SCC. There are 2 reports of orbital SCC after retina surgery with proposed transplanted conjunctival epithelium and subsequent malignant transformation of a conjunctival cyst. The initial signs and symptoms can be vague and lead to delay in diagnosis. We present a case of primary orbital SCC and discuss the workup, imaging, and multidisciplinary management of this rare condition.
NADPH Cytochrome P450 Reductase and Its Structural and Functional Domains

NADPH cytochrome P450 reductase has been a topic of interest and study since Horecker1 first reported the isolation from pig liver after acetone extraction and trypsin treatment of a protein that catalyzed the reduction of cytochromes c. Since that initial report, much information has been revealed and reported about the nature, reactivities, structure, and regulation of the reductase that we have come to recognize as a component of the cytochrome P450-dependent drug metabolism system. The development of knowledge about the role and mechanism of NADPH cytochrome P450 reductase has been periodically discussed and reviewed.2–5 The most recent review (by Backes5) in 1993 focused on the function of cytochrome P450 reductase, summarizing and evaluating very elegantly a number of studies of the mechanism of electron transfer to the flavin centers of the reductase, interflavin electron transfer and transfer of electrons from the flavin centers to oxygen and/or the redox partners of cytochrome P450 reductase. This present review, therefore, will not cover mechanism in any more than a cursory fashion, but will attempt to focus on a summary of the salient features of the study of structural/functional regions or domains of cytochrome P450 reductase.
Perfect Polish Spaces

A limit point of a topological space is a point that is not isolated, i.e., for every open nbhd U of x there is a point y ∈ U, y≠ x. A space is perfect if all its points are limit points. If P is a subset of a topological space X, we call P perfect in X if P is closed and perfect in its relative topology.
Families of Camassa-Holm and Schrodinger Equations

In this chapter, we will study two families of nonlinear evolution equations that gained its importance because of its appearance in many scientific applications and physical phenomena. These are the family of Camassa-Holm equations and the family of Schrodinger equations.
Role of Digital Fluency and Spatial Ability in Student Experience of Online Learning Environments

Online learning environments have become a standard support for most higher education courses, whether they are face to face, hybrid, or online. During their years of study, today’s students will need to navigate these online learning environments: from finding the syllabus to interacting with the faculty virtually. However, not all learners have equal facility when dealing with online environments. In this article we report results of two exploratory studies investigating cognitive characteristics involved in learning and personal pre-requisites that are important for a positive learner experience in an online learning environment. In particular, we examined the perceived easiness of use and perceived helpfulness of the OLE, as related to the user’s digital fluency and spatial ability. Logistic regression of scores in digital fluency (DF) tests on dichotomized survey responses demonstrated that senior undergraduate students with higher DF scores find online learning environments easy to use, and helpful, more often than their peers having lower DF scores. Comparison of mental rotation scores with the digital fluency scores, by means of linear regression analysis, demonstrated statistically significant association between spatial ability and digital fluency. As previous studies demonstrated that spatial ability can be trained, these results will facilitate digital readiness for the expansion of educational ecosystem and will help people to make better use of eLearning materials.
Thinking About Emojis

This article discusses various issues associated with the growing use of emojis and emoticons in written communications as they become evidence in legal disputes. It reviews a brief history of the trend and some prominent examples of emojis’ use as evidence of meaning. It discusses the difficulties involved with pictograms’ fluid meaning and ambiguity, and explores the special challenges emojis pose for legal research and legal publication. It concludes that attorneys need to be mindful of this form of communication as we advise our clients, and that courts and legal publishers need to find ways to incorporate these forms of communication in their written product.
PCIT and Language Facilitation for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

This chapter outlines the significance of Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) in facilitating language growth in young children. PCIT’s first phase of treatment, Child Directed Interaction (CDI), is described in relation to literature from child language disorders. Parent-mediated methods, such as responsiveness, engagement, and directive strategies, are linked to the skills taught in CDI (i.e., PRIDE skills). Authors review scientific evidence for the effectiveness of language facilitation strategies, including their three pilot projects investigating PCIT and language growth for children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Factors impacting implementation are considered, such as treatment fidelity and dosage, and clinical applications and potential adaptations of PCIT for ASD are discussed.
Developments in Illinois and Indiana in 1949

In all, 4,018 wells were drilled for oil and gas in Illinois and Indiana in 1949 as compared with 3,662 in 1948, an increase of 10 per cent. Total oil production increased 3 per cent, from 71,782,000 barrels in 1948 to 74,139,000 barrels in 1949. Wildcat drilling increased from 955 completions in 1948 to 1,217 completions in 1949. Fifty-one new pools, 84 extensions, and 53 new producing zones were discovered in the two states in 1949. Most of the discoveries in 1949 were in Mississippian formations, but the Devonian limestone produced oil in six new pools, Pennsylvanian sandstone in five, Ordovician limestone in three, and Silurian limestone in one.
Hypersensitivity to monoclonal antibodies used for cancer and inflammatory or connective tissue diseases.

Abstract Objective To review the medical literature on hypersensitivity reactions to therapeutic monoclonal antibodies for patients with malignant tumors and chronic inflammatory or connective tissues diseases. Data Sources We searched the PubMed database using the terms monoclonal antibody, hypersensitivity, and allergy. Study Selections We selected case reports and cohort studies of patients with hypersensitivity reactions to monoclonal antibodies. We included selected review articles to glean expert opinion on issues for which high-quality data are available. We sought specific information on the incidence, clinical description, pathobiology, and treatment of reactions. Results Hypersensitivity reactions to therapeutic monoclonal antibodies can be classic type I (mast cell mediated, perhaps IgE dependent) reactions, cytokine release reactions, or type IV cell-mediated reactions. There are limited data on the frequency of such reactions, and because new agents are added to the set at a relatively high rate, it is difficult to determine precisely the incidence of reactions to this class of drugs as a whole. The classification of a specific hypersensitivity reaction depends mainly on the medical history. Skin testing may be available but often is not validated and may be prohibitively expensive. Avoidance of the culpable agent is ideal, but if treatment with the responsible drug is necessary, rapid drug desensitization is an option for type I reactions. Desensitization is less likely to be effective for cytokine release reactions and is contraindicated for type IV reactions. Conclusion Hypersensitivity reactions to therapeutic monoclonal antibodies are heterogeneous. Management depends on accurate identification and thoughtful consideration of the pathobiologic features of the reaction.
Semantically-targeted analytics for reproducible scientific discovery

We develop a semantics-driven, automated approach for dynamically performing rigorous scientific studies. This framework may be applied to a wide variety of data and study types; here, we demonstrate its suitability for conducting retrospective cohort studies using publicly available population health data. The goal is to identify risk factors that, for some automatically-discovered subpopulation, have significant associations with some health condition. Our semantically-targeted analytics (STA) approach addresses the end-to-end data science workflow, ranging from intelligent data selection to dissemination of derived data and results in a rigorous, reproducible way. STA drives an automated architecture allowing analysts to rapidly and dynamically conduct studies for different health outcomes, risk factors, cohorts, and analysis methods; it also lets the full analysis pipeline be modularly specified in a reusable domain-specific way. The framework developed here maybe readily extended to other learning tasks and datasets in the future.
Ebola and the Kidney

The Ebola virus disease (EVD) re-emergence in March 2014 has caused global alarm among the public as well as with health care providers. Infected patients usually present with nonspecific symptoms, such as vomiting, diarrhea, fever, and visible hemorrhage. Mortality rates in previous outbreaks have varied from 25-90%. EVD is transmitted by direct contact with the blood or other bodily fluids of infected patients and with contaminated surfaces and materials.1 It results in multiorgan failure, with acute kidney injury (AKI) present in many cases.2
Rosonance Raman scattering in Cr4+-doped-forsterite laser crystal

The laser properties of solid-state tunable lasers are affected by nonradiative relaxation processes. To date, there is no theory to predict which vibronic (impurity-associated) and phonon (lattice) modes are involved in such processes or what the most important features that determine their coupling are.
Impact of neuroimaging in the pretreatment evaluation of early stage non-small cell lung cancer.

Abstract Background There are limited data and conflicting guideline recommendations regarding the role of neuroimaging in the pretreatment evaluation of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Methods We performed a retrospective, pragmatic cohort study of patients with NSCLC diagnosed between January 1 and December 31, 2015. Eligible patients were identified from an institutional tumor registry. We collected all records of pretreatment neuroimaging within 12 weeks of diagnosis, including CT head (CT) and MRI brain (MRI). We abstracted the indication for neuroimaging, presence of central neurologic symptoms and cancer stage (with and without neuroimaging findings) from the tumor registry and the electronic health record. Results We identified 216 evaluable patients with newly diagnosed NSCLC. 157 of 216 patients (72.7%) underwent neuroimaging as part of initial staging, and 41 (26%) were found to have brain metastases. Of 43 patients with central neurologic symptoms at the time of neuroimaging, 28 (67%) had brain metastasis. In patients without central neurologic symptoms, brain metastases were discovered in 0 of 33 patients with clinical stage I or II, 4 of 36 (11%) with clinical stage III and 9 of 45 (20%) with clinical stage IV disease. Conclusions In patients with early stage NSCLC (i.e. clinical stage I and II) without central neurologic symptoms, brain metastases are unlikely. The continued use of neuroimaging in the pretreatment evaluation of clinical stage I patients without central neurologic symptoms is not needed.
MQF and buffered MQF: quotient filters for efficient storage of k-mers with their counts and metadata

Specialized data structures are required for online algorithms to efficiently handle large sequencing datasets. The counting quotient filter (CQF), a compact hashtable, can efficiently store k-mers with a skewed distribution. Here, we present the mixed-counters quotient filter (MQF) as a new variant of the CQF with novel counting and labeling systems. The new counting system adapts to a wider range of data distributions for increased space efficiency and is faster than the CQF for insertions and queries in most of the tested scenarios. A buffered version of the MQF can offload storage to disk, trading speed of insertions and queries for a significant memory reduction. The labeling system provides a flexible framework for assigning labels to member items while maintaining good data locality and a concise memory representation. These labels serve as a minimal perfect hash function but are ~ tenfold faster than BBhash, with no need to re-analyze the original data for further insertions or deletions. The MQF is a flexible and efficient data structure that extends our ability to work with high throughput sequencing data.
The Link Between Output Growth and Output Growth Volatility: Barbados

This article investigates the effect of output volatility on output growth in Barbados, a small island developing state located in the Caribbean, based on data from 1976 through 2018. I conduct the analysis using the Stochastic Volatility in Mean model with time-varying parameters. The evidence suggests that output growth volatility, measured by stochastic volatility, negatively links with output growth at the aggregate level. I also examine disaggregate output data in order to understand this link better. The sectoral evidence suggests a positive link for services, a negative link for manufacturing, and a weak link for agriculture and the industrial sectors.
Mapping Female Patients’ Judgments of Satisfaction to Hypothetical Changes in Depression Symptom Severity

Abstract Within mental health, approaches to determine whether a patient experienced “meaningful” change from treatment have predominantly involved imposing thresholds on three types of metrics derived from assessments of symptom severity: end-score (post-treatment score), absolute change (pre- minus post-treatment score), and proportion of change. However, none of these approaches have considered input from the consumer. This study examined correspondences between various reductions from pre- to post-treatment symptom severity levels and patients’ judgments of satisfaction with change. Former or currently depressed patients were asked to provide judgments of their satisfaction reflected in vignettes that used descriptions from the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression. Judgments from 108 female participants were fit using four metrics: end-score, absolute change, proportion of change, and the combination of end-score and absolute change. AICs and Akaike weights were used to determine the best-fitting model. Cutoffs were calculated for the five levels of satisfaction with change. Proportion of change best accounted for variation in the patients’ ratings. For “slightly…”, “somewhat…”, “moderately…”, and “very…”, the proportions of reduction that corresponded with each of these ratings of satisfaction were, respectively: 17%, 39%, 62%, and 84%. Our a priori level of satisfaction (between “somewhat” and “moderately”) corresponded to a 50% reduction in pre-treatment severity. This study may provide services some insight into their female patients’ satisfaction with change from treatment for depression using only the proportion of reduction from pre-treatment severity. A similar procedure could be applied to other diagnostic groups as well as other constructs that attend to the patient’s perspective.
Online engagement with surgical treatments for benign prostatic hyperplasia: Are Minimally Invasive Surgical Therapies outpacing the gold standard?

Background Patients suffering from progressive symptoms of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) increasingly turn to the internet for information on invasive and minimally invasive surgical therapies (MIST). This study aimed to identify online articles accessed by patients seeking guidance on said options and to evaluate the quality and readability of their content. Methods Social media analytics tool Buzzumo was used to identify the most shared articles on Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, and Pinterest related to BPH surgical treatments from 2016 to 2021. The content quality was graded using the DISCERN tool; a questionnaire that assesses the quality of written information on treatment choices for a health problem. An online Automatic Readability Checker was used to evaluate the readability of the written transcripts. Google Trends data was used to evaluate search term popularity for BPH procedures from 2016 to 2021. Google trends data and DISCERN ratings were analyzed with ANOVA and paired t-test, respectively. Results Thirty-nine percent of identified articles were rated as low quality, 39% as moderate quality, and 22% as high quality using the DISCERN tool, with no significant difference among reviewer ratings (p = 0.0561). The median reading level of all articles was 12th grade. Google Trends data illustrated a rising popularity of MIST such as Rezūm and Urolift, exceeding interest in more invasive procedures like Holmium laser enucleation of the prostate (HoLEP) and laser surgery. Transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) remained popular with no significant difference between MIST and TURP on Google Trends (p = 3.46). Conclusions The most accessed articles on BPH treatments have important shortcomings including risks of treatment and other available options for treatment. Article transcripts exceed the reading level of the average adult patient. TURP has remained a popular procedure online, but there is a notable rising interest in MIST, especially Urolift.
Fatigue Crack Initiation at Notches — Techniques, Experiments and Interpretations

This paper reports on recent studies by the author and his associates on crack initiation at notch roots using techniques developed for remote monitoring of crack growth in high temperature water environments. Two specific investigations are reported. In the first, a notched compact type specimen of a carbon steel, SA 333 Gr. 6, is monitored for crack initiation (defined as a 0.076 mm crack at the notch root) in a variety of water chemistries and testing conditions. An analysis of the mechanical conditions at the notch root is undertaken using the Neuber notch analysis, such that a direct comparison can be made to the smooth specimen, strain controlled fatigue data curves used in the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, Section III.
Methodology and Development of a Software Package for a Low Cost Machine Vision System for Real Time Applications

A software package for a low cost machine vision system was developed. The system, which might be used as an educational tool, or for industrial applications, is capable of detecting, locating and identifying simple objects made up by straight lines with no constraints on orientation or location in the viewing area.
A Model for the Estimate of Local Velocity

Motion sensitive cells in the primary visual cortex are not selective to velocity, but rather are directionally selective and tuned to spatiotemporal frequencies. This paper describes physiologically plausible theories for computing velocity from the outputs of spatiotemporally oriented filters and proves several theorems showing how to combine the outputs of a class of frequency tuned filters to detect local image velocity. Furthermore, it can be shown (Grzywacz and Yuille 1990) that the filters' combination may simulate “Pattern” cells in the middle temporal area (MT), while each filter simulates primary visual cortex cells. This suggests that MT's role is not to solve the aperture problem, but to estimate velocities from primary cortex information. The spatial integration that accounts for motion coherence may be postponed to a later cortical stage.
Peptide analogues compete with the binding of alpha-factor to its receptor in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

alpha-Factor, a secreted tridecapeptide pheromone, is required for mating between the a- and alpha-haploid mating types of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. An analogue of alpha-factor, [DHP8,DHP11,Nle12] tridecapeptide (where DHP represents 3,4-dehydro-L-proline and Nle represents norleucine), was catalytically reduced in the presence of 3H gas to produce a radiolabeled pheromone with high specific activity, purity, and biological activity. Association and dissociation kinetics indicated values of 4.9 x 10(4) M-1 s-1 for k1 and 1.1 x 10(-3) s-1 for k-1. Saturation binding studies gave an equilibrium dissociation constant equal to 2.3 x 10(-8) M, which approximated the kinetically derived KD of 2.2 x 10(-8) M. These values compare favorably to the previously determined KD of 6 x 10(-9) M (Jenness, D.D., Burkholder, A.C., and Hartwell, L.H. (1986) Mol. Cell. Biol. 6, 318-320). Scatchard analysis and dissociation in the presence of excess unlabeled ligand indicated interaction with a homogeneous population of noninteracting binding sites (13,000 sites/cell). A number of alpha-factor analogues, previously investigated for their structure-function relationships (Naider, F., and Becker, J.M. (1986) CRC Crit. Rev. Biochem. 21, 225-249), were used to compete with [3H]alpha-factor binding. Four tridecapeptides having conservative amino acid replacements bound strongly to the receptor. In contrast, [Phe3]alpha-factor and 10 des-Trp1-alpha-factor analogues bound to the receptor 1-3 orders of magnitude less effectively than did alpha-factor itself. The binding constants for all active pheromones correlated with biological activity. However, des-Trp1[Phe3]alpha-factor and des-Trp1-[Ala3]alpha-factor, which were not biologically active, still competed with alpha-factor binding, indicating that these analogues fail to induce a secondary signal necessary for biological response to the pheromone. One analogue, des-Trp1-[Cha3,L-Ala9]alpha-factor (where Cha represents cyclohexylalanine), was not biologically active and did not demonstrate binding to the receptor, whereas des-Trp1-[Cha3,D-Ala9]alpha-factor was active and bound to the receptor. This finding suggests that a type II beta-turn is necessary for binding of alpha-factor to its receptor and for subsequent biological activity.
Physical Education: Part of the Learning Process

skills to be enhanced. The next step to determine the particular courses, and their sequence, that would give students an understanding of the world. These core courses would be the same in each school in a district. Whereas some people would "insist . . . that what one learns, and should learn, from the humanities will differ according to one's race, ethnicity, gender, political preference, or social class (Finn, Ravitch, and Fancher 1984, 247), Diane Ravitch and Chester Finn reject such a view as "unintentionally . . . antidemocratic and essentially confining rather than liberating. If desirable attributes of character and citizenship vary with the color of one's skin, the creed of one's church, the wealth of one's parents, or the birthplace of one's great-grandparents, then the humanities may as well not be taught at all, for the concept has been drained of its essential meaning" (248). Secondary students must be given a substantial core background in a clearly defined sequence of social studies courses that provides them with the interpretations and understandings of their own political, social, economic, intellectual, and cultural heritage within the framework of the larger world and its cultures. Second, teachers, as a group, need to determine the appropriate delivery system(s) for this content and skilldevelopment program. New technologies give social studies teachers and their students immediate access to much current informa ion. These technologies, by providing alternative delivery systems, allow social studies educators to individualize assignments and activities to address student's specific cultural and intellectual interests within the broad scope of a core curriculum. Finally, given the politically volatile nature of the social studies curriculum, parental and community support must be solicited from the very outset to insure the success of a district's program. This solicitation is an ongoing process that takes into account the constantly changing demographics affecting each school. In the final analysis, however, it is educators who must assure the responsibility for seeing that each student leaves school with an appreciation of the total world community and his or her place in it.
CHAPTER 16 – Nonlinear Optical Diagnostics

In linear optics, one photon interacts with the medium and one photon leaves the medium. Events occur at a rate proportional to the light intensity. In nonlinear optical processes, several photons, sometimes at different frequencies, simultaneously interact with the medium; sometimes incoherent or coherent light is emitted at a frequency that is different from the input frequencies. The rates of these events usually depend nonlinearly on laser intensity and become appreciably large only at very high laser intensities. more expensive, less robust, and more intrusive than linear optical processes, they are not very suitable for real-time monitoring and control. However, they are still very useful for fundamental and process development studies. Nonlinear optical methods, such as second-harmonic generation, sum frequency mixing, third harmonic generation, and stimulated Raman scattering, are also frequently used in generating light for linear and nonlinear optical diagnostics studies. Another potential application of nonlinear optical processes is in detection of infrared photons by frequency up conversion. In this process, the frequency of the infrared photon is summed with that of an input visible/ultraviolet photon from a high-intensity fixed-frequency laser. The resulting visible/ultraviolet photon is detected with a photomultiplier, which is faster, has higher quantum efficiency, and is less noisy than infrared detectors. While frequency up conversion has not been used much in thin film diagnostics, it has sometimes been used in the transient detection of gas-phase species by infrared diode lasers.
IN VIVO THRESHOLDS FOR MECHANICAL INJURY TO THE BLOOD-BRAIN BARRIER

A finite element model (FEM) of cerebral contusion in the rat was developed and compared to experimental injury maps demonstrating blood-brain barrier (BBB) breakdown. The model was exercised at the nine unique loading conditions used experimentally. Logistic regressions of the following four variables demonstrated highly significant confidence in the prediction of the 50th percentile values (chi-squared, p less than 0.00001): maximum principal logarithmic strain (LEP), maximum principal stress (SP), strain energy density (SEN), and von Mises stress (MIS). However, only values for LEP were invariant across loading conditions. These results suggest that the BBB is most sensitive to LEP, and that breakdown occurs above a strain of 0.188 plus/minus 0.0324. (A) For the covering abstract of the conference see IRRD E201172.
Theory of associative ionization

The theory of atomic associative ionization (AI) presented here is a many-channel treatment incorporating radial Born-Oppenheimer and Coriolis couplings among the reactant channels as well as analogous couplings among the ionized, final states. Careful attention is paid to characterizing the basis sets used to represent the pre- and post-collisional states, especially with regard to the internal and relative angular momenta of the fragments. Particularly noteworthy in this context is our use of a total angular momentum representation. This representation is excellently adapted to the derivation of selection rules needed in the analysis of AI experiments involving atoms excited into oriented hyperfine states by means of polarized lasers. Selection rules previously obtained by heuristic means are derived more rigorously here. Finally, explicit and compact formulas are constructed for the lowest-order (two-state) approximation to the AI scattering amplitude and for the first-order Born-Oppenheimer corrections as well.
High-temperature characteristics of Seebeck coefficients for AlInN alloys grown by metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy

The Seebeck coeeficients of AlInN alloys, grown by metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy, with In-contents (x) from 0.38% up to 21.34%, were characterized and analyzed from room temperature (T = 300 K) up to high temperature (T = 382 K). The Seebeck coefficients of the n-type AlInN alloys show significant enhancement at higher temperature up to 382 K, in comparison to those measured at room temperature. Large Seebeck coefficients (602.0– 1233.2 μV/K) were obtained for the lattice-matched Al0.83In0.17N alloy (n = 5.1 × 1018 cm−3) from T = 300 K up to T = 382 K. The improvement of Seebeck coefficients for the n-type AlInN alloys will lead to ∼1.5–4 times improvement of the thermopower at higher temperatures.
Outcome, reoperation, and complications in 99 consecutive children operated for tight or fatty filum.

Objective Recent studies have suggested that retethering in patients operated for a tight or fatty filum is higher than previously predicted. In this retrospective review, outcome, complications, and risk of reoperation for recurrent tethered cord syndrome (TCS) at our own institution were investigated. Methods The medical records of 100 consecutive children who underwent initial division of the filum terminale at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center (November 1995–May 2006) for a tight or fatty filum were reviewed. One patient was excluded due to previous spinal surgery at an outside institution. Presenting symptoms/signs, magnetic resonance imaging findings, complications, postoperative symptoms/signs, and need for reoperation were recorded. Mean follow-up for 97 of the 99 patients was 33 months; 80 were followed for 6 months or more and 68 were followed for 12 months or more. Results The most common presenting symptoms were bladder and/or bowel dysfunction, followed by gait abnormality, back pain, and spasticity. At last follow-up, 85 patients were improved or stable, whereas 12 patients had at least one symptom or sign that had worsened. Five children required a second operation for recurrent TCS. Mean time to reoperation was 58 months (range 22–73 months). Arachnoid adhesions accounted for the retethering in four of five patients. There were a total of 12 complications in 9 patients including 5 wound infections, 4 cerebrospinal fluid leaks, 1 pseudomeningocele, 1 stitch abscess, and 1 transient headache. Conclusions Division of a tight or fatty filum, in this consecutive series of pediatric patients, resulted in improved or stable neurological symptoms in 88% of patients. However, the complication and reoperation rate for recurrent TCS were not insignificant. Future studies aimed at reducing complications and retethering in this population may be warranted.
CD41 expression defines the onset of primitive and definitive hematopoiesis in the murine embryo

The platelet glycoprotein IIb (alpha(IIb); CD41) constitutes the alpha subunit of a highly expressed platelet surface integrin protein. We demonstrate that CD41 serves as the earliest marker of primitive erythroid progenitor cells in the embryonic day 7 (E7.0) yolk sac and high-level expression identifies essentially all E8.25 yolk sac definitive hematopoietic progenitors. Some definitive hematopoietic progenitor cells in the fetal liver and bone marrow also express CD41. Hematopoietic stem cell competitive repopulating ability is present in CD41(dim) and CD41(lo/-) cells isolated from bone marrow and fetal liver cells, however, activity is enriched in the CD41(lo/-) cells. CD41(bright) yolk sac definitive progenitor cells co-express CD61 and bind fibrinogen, demonstrating receptor function. Thus, CD41 expression marks the onset of primitive and definitive hematopoiesis in the murine embryo and persists as a marker of some stem and progenitor cell populations in the fetal liver and adult marrow, suggesting novel roles for this integrin.
Advanced stages and poorly differentiated grade are associated with an increased risk of HER2/neu positive breast carcinoma only in White women: findings from a prospective cohort study of African-American and White-American women

The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the race-specific risk associated with HER2/neu positive breast carcinoma in a prospective cohort design. Our secondary objectives were to assess prevalence of different breast cancer phenotypes between African-American and White women and to determine if race was associated with the risk of basal-like breast carcinoma phenotype in this cohort. Demographic, clinical and pathologic data were collected from existing databases. The status of HER2/neu and hormone receptors was dichotomized as either positive or negative. Immunohistochemistry taxonomy was used to assess prevalence of different breast carcinoma phenotypes. Risk estimates were calculated using the multivariable logistic regression statistics. The risk of HER2/neu positive breast carcinoma differs between African-American and White women. For White women only, this risk was statistically significant and increased almost linearly within each TNM stage with grade dedifferentiation. The statistically significantly higher prevalence of “ER−/PR−, HER2− ” phenotype in African American women potentially is the attributing factor to observed lack of an association between the risk of HER2/neu positive breast carcinoma with advanced stages and poorly differentiated grade. Among women diagnosed with “ER−/PR−, HER2−” phenotype the odds ratios of being African-American and pre-menopausal was 1.72 (95% CI 1.17–2.54, P = 0.006) and 1.94 (95% CI 1.27–2.96, P = 0.002), respectively. The histologic features of basal-like and ER−/HER2+ carcinomas overlaps. Differences in the biology of breast carcinoma between African American and White women are partially attributed to the disparity in more adverse pathologic prognostic indicators at the initial clinical presentation of this disease.
Practicing Anthropology in an Academic Community Hospital: Lessons From the Field

Practicing anthropology at an academic community hospital involves collaborations across the full continuum of care, from hospital, to doctor's office, to the medical education classroom and into the community. Through these collaborations, the anthropologist learns about hospital culture through many different lenses and is, in turn, able to provide valuable insights into organizational culture and patient care from a variety of vantage points.
Stress fields in the unplated and plated canine femur calculated from in vivo strain measurements.

Abstract Two single strain gages and one strain gage rosette were used to measure in vivo strains at three circumferential locations in the femoral midshaft of an adult dog. Bending theory and a finite element method of torsional analysis was used to calculate the result axial load, bending moments, and torsional moment acting at the section. Assuming transverse isotropy and homogeneity, the midshaft stress distributions at a particular instant of time during the stance phase of the gait cycle were calculated. The altered stress distributions created by the application of a standard ASIF fracture plate to the bone were determined for plates attached to the anterior, antero-lateral and lateral aspects. In vivo experiments of plate applications to the antero-lateral aspect of the canine femur were performed. Tetracycline labeling of these animals suggest that a strong relationship exists between the altered stress field and the distribution of bone remodeling induced by plate application.
[A new pharmacological and physiological aspects of L-amino acids]

Taste preferences are altered to reflect physiological needs and to support the recovery from nutritional disorders. The central mechanism both recognition for and adaptation to a deficient essential nutrient, i.e. L-lysine, have been unveiled that the feeding center in the hypothalamus is a primary center nucleus to induce a neuronal plasticity responding to dietary intake of deficient nutrient in the brain and peripherally, such as sense of taste and its concentration change. Changing preferences may act as an alarm, signaling protein malnutrition or metabolic adult disease, such as hypertension for saltiness, diabetes for sweetness, etc. In addition, our consumption of alcohol beverage is still increasing despite of one of candidate to induce the hepatic disorders, because pharmacological function of alcohol in the brain is welcome for people enjoying meal or being relieved from stresses. Preference for both L-alanine and L-glutamine was observed when alcoholic rats fell in the hepatic disorder. Acute alcohol loading induced suppression of motor activity and the hepatic dysfunction, but both amino acids did obviously protect these alcoholic symptoms. People should have to require a little bit more specific L-amino acid physiologically and pharmacologically depending upon different states among aging, lifestyle, metabolic diseases and various stresses.
Prognostic markers in renal cell carcinoma: A focus on the 'mammalian target of rapamycin' pathway.

Abstract Objectives Increased knowledge about the molecular pathways involved in tumorigenesis has led to the discovery of new prognostic molecular markers and development of novel targeted therapies for renal cell carcinoma (RCC). In this review we describe the prognostic markers of RCC and highlight the areas of recent discovery with a focus on the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway. Methods We reviewed previous reports, using PubMed with the search terms ‘renal cell carcinoma’, ‘molecular markers’, ‘prognosis’, ‘outcomes’ and ‘mammalian target of rapamycin pathway’ published in the last two decades. We created a library of 100 references and focused on presenting the recent advances in the field. Results Growing evidence suggests that mTOR deregulation is associated with many types of human cancer, including RCC. Consequently, temsirolimus and everolimus, which target mTOR, are approved for treating advanced RCC. There is a demand to integrate clinical, pathological and molecular markers into accurate prognostic models to provide patients with the most personalised cancer care possible. Conclusions The mTOR pathway is highly implicated in RCC tumorigenesis and progression, and its constituents might represent a promising prognostic tool and target for treating RCC. Combining newly discovered molecular markers with classic clinicopathological prognostics might potentially improve the management of RCC.
Determining replication for discrimination among microbial communities in environmental samples using community‐level physiological profiles

A statistical approach was employed to assess microbial community variability within a single 4-l water sample and among 10 independent 4-l water samples from a single location using community-level physiological profiles. Power calculations demonstrated that duplicate analyses could distinguish between two different locations at two times during the year. Variability associated with replicates from a single container or from different containers was nearly the same for the two sites examined. Duplicate assays (one from each of two independent samples) were sufficient to resolve the between-site differences at α=0.05 with power exceeding 0.95 at both times of the year. Similar methods are recommended to determine the appropriate number of replicates for environments of interest.
Follicle-stimulating hormone is required for quantitatively normal inhibin secretion in men.

Inhibin is a glycoprotein hormone produced by the testis and ovary which is postulated to be an important regulator of pituitary FSH secretion. Animal data indicate that inhibin is produced by the Sertoli cells of the testis under the influence of FSH. To determine the role of FSH withdrawal and replacement in the control of inhibin secretion in man, we measured serum inhibin concentrations in men in whom isolated FSH deficiency had been produced by chronic hCG administration; this was followed by FSH replacement. After a 3-month control period, four normal men received hCG for 7 months, resulting in suppression of serum FSH to undetectable levels and urinary FSH excretion to prepubertal levels. Their mean serum inhibin levels fell to 70% of control values during hCG administration [362 ± 60 (±se) vs. 518 ± 56 U/L; P < 0.01]. While continuing hCG, testosterone enanthate was administered for a further 6 months. Serum FSH and inhibin levels remained suppressed to a similar degree. Testosterone administratio...
Racial Athletic Stereotype Confirmation in College Football Recruiting

The present study tested real-world racial stereotype use in the context of college athletic recruiting. Stereotype confirmation suggests that observers use stereotypes as hypotheses and interpret relevant evidence in a biased way that confirms their stereotypes. Shifting standards suggest that the evaluative standard to which we hold a target changes as a function of their group membership. We examined whether stereotype confirmation and shifting standards effects would be seen in college football coaches during recruiting. College football coaches evaluated a Black or White player on several attributes and made both zero- and non-zero-sum allocations. Results suggested that coaches used the evidence presented to develop biased subjective evaluations of the players based on race while still maintaining equivalent objective evaluations. Coaches also allocated greater overall resources to the Black recruit than the White recruit.
Cognitive performance and plasma levels of homocysteine, vitamin B12, folate and lipids in patients with Alzheimer disease.

Background: Conflicting results have been reported on the association of plasma total homocysteine (tHcy) and cholesterol levels in Alzheimer disease (AD). The objective of this study was to determine the relationship between cognitive performance and plasma levels of tHcy and its biological determinants folate and vitamin B 12 , and lipids in clinically diagnosed AD patients. Methods: A cross-sectional database review was performed on two separate groups of patients (n = 191). Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE) scores, plasma levels of tHcy, vitamin B 12 , folate, cholesterol, and triglycerides were analyzed. Results: The MMSE scores were inversely correlated with age, plasma levels of tHcy and LDL cholesterol. However, only the inverse relationship between MMSE scores and LDL cholesterol levels persisted after adjustment for age, sex, and status of statin treatment. Plasma tHcy levels increased significantly with age and were inversely related to vitamin B 12 and folate levels, which modified the relationship between MMSE scores and plasma tHcy levels. Conclusions: The plasma tHcy levels appeared to relate
Perianastomotic injection of autologous fat at the time of radical retropubic prostatectomy

Abstract Objectives. The present study represents the first attempt to improveurinary continence following radical prostatectomy (RP) by perianastomotic injection of autologous fat at the time of the surgical procedure. Methods. A total of 15 consecutive men with clinically localized carcinoma of theprostate underwent nerve-sparing radical retropubic prostatectomy (RRP) with perianastomotic injection of autologous fat. The autologous fat was obtained using a liposuction cannula connected to a power aspirator. The fat was harvested from the adipose tissue immediately adjacent to the lower midline incision. After the pelvic floor musculature was perforated, a total of 30 mL of autologous fat was injected through a 1 2 gauge angiocatheter under cystoscopic guidance. Results. There were no complications resulting from the harvesting or injection of the autologous fat. All of the patients were evaluated for 6 months. Of the 15 patients, 12 (80%) achieved total urinary control within 6 months. The average time required to achieve total urinary continence was 89 days. None of the patients experienced total or nocturnal incontinence. Of the 3 patients with stress urinary incontinence (SUI), 2 required 2 small pads per day and 1 required 3 pads per day. Only 1 patient reported that the level of bother resulting from the incontinence was severe. Conclusions. The preliminary experiences with, the perianastomotic fat injection at thetime of RRP are encouraging. Determining the ultimate safety and effectiveness of this technique requires longer follow-up in expanded series of patients.
“Wasp-waisted” hysteresis loops from a pyrrhotite and magnetite-bearing remagnetized Triassic limestone

Remagnetized samples of the Triassic Prezzo Limestone from northern Italy contain a mixture of pyrrhotite and magnetite, as deduced by thermal unblocking characteristics of triaxial isothermal remanent magnetizations (IRM's) and low-temperature cycling of saturation IRM's. Hysteresis loops are commonly “wasp-waisted” and remanent coercivity curves contain a break in slope, as a result of the contrast in coercivity between remanence-carrying pyrrhotite and magnetite. The relative proportion of the high to low remanent coercivity fractions, as deduced by the study of the remanent coercivity curves, seems to control the degree of “wasp-waistedness” of the hysteresis loops. Samples that are dominated by one of the two coercivity end members have lower Bcr/Bc values as well as hysteresis loops that have a less pronounced constricted waist compared to samples with higher Bcr/Bc values. Maximum Bcr/Bc values (and thus maximum degrees of “wasp-waistedness” in the hysteresis loops) are attained when the low remanent coercivity fraction contributes 15–35% to the bulk remanent coercivity curves.