cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Barrett’s oesophagus: past, present and future

Barrett’s oesophagus (BE) is the most common cause of oesophageal adenocarcinoma. Adenocarcinoma develops through a meta-plasia-dysplasia-carcinoma sequence, but there are many unknown and controversial issues related to the diagnosis, classification, pathological criteria, molecular progression, natural history and treatment of metaplastic and dysplastic precursor lesions in BE. The purpose of this lecture (review) is to provide an evidence-based summary of the diagnosis and classification of BE-associated metaplasia and dysplasia, to provide a summary of the key pathological features of the most common types of precursor lesions, to outline common areas of diagnostic difficulties, and to evaluate adjunctive markers of cancer progression in BE. The current American College of Gastroenterologists (ACG) definition of BE is partially flawed, since not all cases of BE are endoscopically recognisable, non-goblet epithelium is biologically intestinalised and genetically abnormal, and determination of the presence or absence of goblet cells is susceptible to sampling error and variability with time. Metaplastic epithelium in BE shows clonal molecular abnormalities that precede morphological expression of dysplasia. Dysplasia in BE begins in the crypt bases and then extends more superficially to include the upper portion of the crypts and surface epithelium with time and progression. Low and high grade dysplasia are distinguished by the presence of marked cytological and/or architectural abnormalities in the latter compared to the former, but there are newly discovered subtypes of dysplasia, such as the foveolar and serrated type, in which differentiation of low from high grade dysplasia is difficult and the significance of grading dysplasia is unknown. For instance, one type of dysplasia (foveolar dysplasia) may occur in non-goblet metaplastic columnar epithelium and shows a high progression rate to carcinoma compared to conventional (intestinal type) dysplasia. There are few, if any, reliable adjunctive diagnostic techniques that can help differentiate non-dysplastic from dysplastic epithelium in BE, but α-methylacyl coenzyme A racemase (AMACR) staining has been shown to be useful in several different studies. Both low and high grade dysplasia are progressive lesions, and in general, the extent of dysplasia is a strong risk factor for progression to carcinoma. Of all the biological and genetic biomarkers studied to date, evaluation of DNA content is the most reliable and specific marker of progression in BE. The management of patients with dysplasia is variable between institutions, and ranges from aggressive surveillance, endoscopic mucosal resection, either with or without mucosal ablation, or total oesophagectomy. Recent data on radiofrequency ablation in BE is promising.
Chronological Summary of the Leaders in Entomological Research in the U.S. Department of Agriculture--1853-1972

The demise of entomology as a recognized entity in the organizational structure of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in July 1972 and the subsequent failure to designate an overall leader of entomological research created an interest in the leaders of previous years. The following chronology and comments are presented in the hope that they will be of value.
Effects of cold press operating conditions on vegetable oil fatty acid profiles

ABSTRACTAlthough most of jet fuels are currently made from petroleum, nonfood oilseeds such as flax and canola seeds may be an alternative for renewable jet fuel production in the near future. Vegetable oils produced from those oilseeds can be upgraded to liquid hydrocarbons to produce renewable jet fuels. The production efficiency and cost are heavily relied on the vegetable oil fatty acid profile (FAP). Previous research indicated that vegetable oil FAP is affected by oilseed species and oil extraction conditions. Cold press oil extractions from flax and canola seeds were conducted. The effect of the frequency controlling the screw rotating speed on the oil extraction efficiency and quality was discussed. Characterization of the vegetable oils produced, including density, pH value, viscosity, moisture, element component, heating value and FAP, was carried out. The residual oil contents left in the cold press meals were also determined. The results show that the oil extraction efficiency of oilseeds incr...
Autoradiographic and biochemical investigations of collagen biosynthesis and participation in the dentine extracellular organic matrix.

SummaryThe kinetics of proline and hydroxyproline and their respective incorporation into dentine collagen during rapid dentinogenesis has been reported. The incorporation of proline into collagen and the subsequent hydroxylation of this imino acid takes place as an intracellular event, demonstrated by the rapid rise in the specific activity of hydroxyproline in the neutral salt collagen fraction and the intracellular localization of the grain density. Four hours after administration of proline C14, the biosynthesis of collagen and its export from the odontoblast into the extracellular organic matrix was completed. Both proline and hydroxyproline exhibit similar specific activities in the insoluble collagen fractions throughout the experimental period. The developing rodent molar was found to be an excellent experimental model for the study of rapid collagen synthesis and its role in the formation of the dentine organic matrix.
P5-S7.02 Trends in screening females for Chlamydia in juvenile detention centers US 2005–2009

Background CDC began development of Performance Measures in 1999 and 58 Project Areas have continuously reported on the measures twice yearly since 2005. Two Performance Measures from Juvenile Detention Centers (screening in 2004 and positivity in 2009) were developed to capture the burden of chlamydia infection in this underserved population of adolescent females. Objectives To assess changes in performance of screening of females in juvenile detention centers (JDC9s) from the US as reported through Performance Measures and to obtain a measure of the positivity detected. Methods 50 US States, six US cities, Washington, DC and Puerto Rico are asked to report the percentage of females screened for chlamydia twice yearly from all juvenile detention centers that admit 500 or more adolescent females annually. Project Areas with no facilities that admit 500 or more are to report on one or more facilities of their choice. A chlamydia positivity measure was added in 2009. We collapsed the 2 half-yearly reports for each Project Area into yearly summaries from 2005 to 2009. Results The percentage of Project Areas that were able to report any chlamydia screening from their JDC9s increased from 60% in 2005 to 84% in 2009. The mean percentage of Project Areas reporting any screening over the 5 years was 80%. Many Project Areas reported from multiple JDC9s during 2005–2009 with California reporting from 12 facilities and Ohio reporting from 11 facilities. The reported percentage of juvenile females screened by year were 54, 63, 59, 60 and 51% from 2005 to 2009. The percentage screened ranged from 3% to 100%. The mean percentage of females screened over the 5 years was 57%. In 2009, the mean chlamydia positivity for all Project Areas was 13.8%. For facilities (n=69) that screened at least 100 females in 2009, the mean chlamydia positivity detected was 13.7%, with a median of 12.6% and positivity ranging from 6 to 31%. Almost half (48%) of the Project Areas reported from 49 facilities for all 10 reporting periods across the 5-year period. The percentage screened in these 49 facilities increased 59, 64, 66, 69 and 69% from 2005 to 2009. The mean per cent positivity for these facilities in 2009 was 12.5%. Conclusions Juvenile Detention Centers are excellent venues from which to detect chlamydia infections in adolescent females. Additional efforts are needed to increase the number of facilities that routinely offer screening and increase the proportion screened.
An aquatic plethodontid salamander from Oaxaca, Mexico

We describe a new species of Pseudoeurycea from the northern versant of the state of Oaxaca, Mexico. This is the only aquatic species of bolitoglossine salamander known. Besides its aquatic behavior, this species differs from congeners by having very long legs, a triangular shaped head with nostrils that can be completely closed, and relatively few maxillary teeth. This remarkable new species of salamander may have become extinct over two decades ago. THE lungless salamanders (family Pleth- odontidae) have achieved high species di- versity in Middle America, where more than 150 species occur. All of these species are fully terrestrial and as far as is known all of them lay eggs in terrestrial or arbo- real habitats. These eggs develop directly, without a larval stage, and following a long embryonic period, hatchlings emerge that are miniatures of the adults. There are many aquatic and semiaquatic plethodon- tids, but all of them have larvae and all belong either to the subfamily Desmog- nathinae or the tribe Hemidactyliini of the subfamily Plethodontinae, neither of which occur south of the United States (Wake, 1966). The tropical plethodontids all are members of the tribe Bolitoglossini of the subfamily Plethodontinae. Here we report the discovery of a remarkable new aquatic species from the mountains of northern Oaxaca, Mexico, that appears to be morphologically specialized for aquatic life, although it lacks any obvious features such as gills or folds of loose skin that are found in other aquatic salamanders. MATERIALS AND METHODS
Dynamic Threshold Technique for Soft Error and Soft Delay Mitigation

The analysis in Chap. 8 had shown that decreasing threshold voltages increase the critical charge of logic circuits thus providing more robustness to radiation transients and soft delay effects. In a normal dynamic threshold MOS (DTMOS) scheme, the body-source junction is “forward biased” (at less than 0.6 V), forcing the threshold voltage to drop and hence this lower threshold effect can be exploited for SE transient and soft delay mitigation. This chapter compares various DTMOS inverter schemes for soft error and soft delay tolerance to find that the standard DTMOS scheme offers the best radiation tolerance. The chapter then presents a soft error mitigation methodology based on the combined use of the standard DTMOS scheme along with driver sizing. Results indicate that the combine approach mitigates SE transients and soft delays with lot more area efficiency than driver sizing taken alone.
Polysilicon Thin Film Developed on Flexible Polyimide for Biomedical Applications

Flexible pressure and thermal sensors are the critical parts of the functional electronic skin of prostheses and robots, as well as flexible catheter/devices for multimodal biomedical monitoring. In this paper, a polysilicon thin film was developed on a flexible polyimide substrate using aluminum induced crystallization process for biomedical pressure and temperature sensing applications. The formation of polycrystalline structure was verified from the developed polysilicon film. Long term stability and real-time temperature tests were performed to evaluate potential application to the in vivo monitoring of brain or body temperature. The linear real-time change of polysilicon resistance with temperature was attained with the temperature coefficient of the resistance of −0.0027/°C and the resolution of 0.05 °C. With a gauge factor of 10.3, the polysilicon film developed in this paper represents a promising material for the development of high-sensitivity pressure sensors on flexible polyimide substrates. [2015-0106]
The clinical experience with anti-cytokine therapy in heart failure

Recent clinical and experimental studies have identified the importance of classical neurohormones such as angiotensin II and norepinephrine as biological mediators and/or modifiers of left ventricular remodeling and disease progression in the failing heart. This insight has, in turn, provided the rationale basis for antagonizing the activation of these neurohormonal systems (e.g., the renin angiotensin system and the adrenergic system) in the setting of heart failure. In addition to neurohormones, it has become apparent that another portfolio of biologically-active molecules, termed cytokines, is expressed along with the neurohormones in the setting of heart failure. In the present review we will discuss the emerging rationale for studying inflammatory mediators in heart failure, as well as the clinical attempts to antagonize cytokines in the setting of heart failure.
National Trends in Direct Health Care Expenditures Among US Adults With Migraine: 2004 to 2013

Abstract Migraine is a common neurological disorder with significant economic burden in the United States. However, changes in the economic burden of migraine in the past decade have not been examined considering therapeutic advances at the national level. Therefore, we estimated cross-sectional trends in the incremental total and types of direct health care expenditures among individuals with migraine using nationally representative data, the Medical Expenditures Panel Survey. The analytic sample was comprised of an annually weighted population of 228,010,000 adults aged 18 years and older from 2004 to 2013. Two-part models were used to estimate the incremental total and types of annual direct health care expenditures (adjusted to 2013 US dollars) among individuals with migraine after adjusting for predisposing, enabling, need, personal health practice, and external environment factors selected on the basis of the Anderson Healthcare Behavior Model. The unadjusted average annual total health care expenditure for individuals with migraine was $8,033 (standard error [SE] = $292) which comprised major proportions of outpatient ($2,952, SE = $128), prescription drugs ($2,207, SE = $91), and inpatient ($1,784, SE = $178) expenditures. Individuals with migraine had $866 (SE = $298) and $1,519 (SE = $400) greater adjusted annual total direct health care expenditures in 2004/2005 and 2012/2013 compared with those without migraine. However, those with migraine in 2012/2013 did not have significant changes in the total direct health care expenditures compared with those having migraine in 2004/2005 (changes: −$330, SE = $480). The estimated adjusted incremental total direct health care expenditures for individuals with migraine was approximately $9.20 billion per year compared with those without migraine. Perspective Although annual incremental total direct health care expenditures among individuals with migraine did not change significantly from 2004 to 2013, expenditures remained significantly greater in the migraine population compared with those without migraine across the years. Our study findings suggest the need to design and implement policy and interventions to reduce excess health care expenditures among individuals with migraine.
Visible Light Communication in Railways

There has been an ever-increasing demands on the rail transport network lately, with a vast majority of customers having access to mobile communication and the internet. As such, there is a need for a transport network which is more intelligent and provides seamless connectivity to meet the demand. Visible Light Communication (VLC) - A technology which has matured recently, has the potential to provide a wide range of benefits to the railway industry. The paper outlines the basic components in this system, review the state of the art and discuss some of the challenges & possibilities and the broad spectrum of potential applications in railway environment this new wireless technique opens up.
Multiple Positive Solutions of a Fourth-order Boundary Value Problem

We consider the nonlinear fourth-order semipositone boundary value problem $$\begin{aligned} u^{(4)}=f(t,u(t),u'(t)), \quad t \in (0,1), \end{aligned}$$ $$\begin{aligned} u(0)=u'(0)=u''(1)=u'''(1)=0, \end{aligned}$$ where \(f: [0,1] \times [0,\infty ) \times [0, \infty ) \rightarrow (-\infty , \infty )\) has the property \(f(t,x,y) \ge -g(t)\) for a nonnegative continuous function g(t). This paper improves the results of Ma (Hiroshima Math J 33:217–227, 2013) and Spraker (Differ Equ Appl 8:21–31, 2016).
Case 1: Progressive Hypotonia and Decreased Alertness in an 8-month-old Girl.

1. Megan Paul, MD* 2. Kareem Shehab, MD* 3. Tien Nguyen, MD* 1. *Department of Pediatrics, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ A previously healthy 8-month-old girl in southern Arizona is admitted for progressive hypotonia and decreased alertness over several weeks. She has experienced 3 months of cough and 1 week of fever. She no longer crawls, makes eye contact, visually tracks, or babbles. Her mother travels frequently with the child to Mexico and has a chronic cough for which she has neither sought nor received care. Her vital signs are as follows: temperature, 98.6°F (37°C); blood pressure, 101/57 mm Hg; heart rate, 117 beats/min; respiratory rate, 26 breaths/min; and oxygen saturation, 100% on room air. Her weight is in the 27th percentile for age, length is in the 90th percentile, and head circumference is in the 88th percentile. Physical examination reveals an alert but hypotonic infant, unable to support herself sitting, and with limited spontaneous movements. Sucking and swallowing are weak, gag reflex is intact, and deep tendon reflexes are 1+. Her anterior fontanelle is open, flat, and wide. Pupils are equal and reactive, but there is no visual fixation. Extraocular movements are intact. Fundi are normal. Examination of the lungs reveals …
Cell Division: Single-Cell Physiology Reveals Secrets of Chromosome Condensation.

Summary Our understanding of higher order chromosome structure has been transformed through statistical mechanics-based computer simulations of polymer chains. A new study exploring basic electrostatic interactions demystifies how chromosomes regulate their state of compaction over several orders of magnitude.
Biomarkers of Rehabilitation Therapy Vary according to Stroke Severity.

Biomarkers that capture treatment effects could improve the precision of clinical decision making for restorative therapies. We examined the performance of candidate structural, functional, and angiogenesis-related MRI biomarkers before and after a 3-week course of standardized robotic therapy in 18 patients with chronic stroke and hypothesized that results vary significantly according to stroke severity. Patients were 4.1 ± 1 months poststroke, with baseline arm Fugl-Meyer scores of 20-60. When all patients were examined together, no imaging measure changed over time in a manner that correlated with treatment-induced motor gains. However, when also considering the interaction with baseline motor status, treatment-induced motor gains were significantly related to change in three functional connectivity measures: ipsilesional motor cortex connectivity with (1) contralesional motor cortex (p = 0.003), (2) contralesional dorsal premotor cortex (p = 0.005), and (3) ipsilesional dorsal premotor cortex (p = 0.004). In more impaired patients, larger treatment gains were associated with greater increases in functional connectivity, whereas in less impaired patients larger treatment gains were associated with greater decreases in functional connectivity. Functional connectivity measures performed best as biomarkers of treatment effects after stroke. The relationship between changes in functional connectivity and treatment gains varied according to baseline stroke severity. Biomarkers of restorative therapy effects are not one-size-fits-all after stroke.
The Role of Government Policy in Promoting Physical Activity

This chapter will examine the role of government policies in shaping the cultural environment to make it more motivating for older people to be physically active. We begin by describing how existing scientific evidence has been used to develop physical activity (PA) guidelines that have subsequently been translated into policies and PA initiatives—the focus of the second section of the chapter. A critical review will also be presented of national and community-level initiatives and policies from three developed countries—Australia, Canada, and the United States. The choice of these countries was based on the authors’ familiarisation with each country’s PA policies and the fact that all three identify the general public as a direct target audience.
Contemporary Review of Peyronie's Disease Treatment.

To analyze the literature on the current treatment options for Peyronie’s disease (PD). Intracavernosal injection therapy using collagenase clostridium histolyticum (CCH) has been widely adopted since its FDA approval in 2013. Based on the current evidence, it appears to be moderately efficacious for men with mild curvatures. Although a recent study has shown similar outcomes using a modified protocol requiring fewer injections, CCH remains an expensive medication. Surgery provides the most definitive treatment. The most common adverse effect following surgery is perceived loss of length. Length restoration procedures have recently been developed to address this with promising results reported in small series. There are a variety of medical treatment options for PD, with CCH getting the most attention for being the first drug to be FDA approved for PD treatment. It is the authors’ opinion that the non-surgical therapy most likely to provide meaningful results is combination therapy utilizing oral, intralesional, and external traction therapy. Surgery remains the gold standard for definitive treatment.
Abstract 203: Role of Glucagon Receptor Signalling in PCSK9 Regulation

Excessive glucagon receptor action in hepatocytes is a major contributing factor to type 2 diabetes (T2D). Accordingly, there has been great interest in developing glucagon receptor antagonists (GRAs) as a treatment for T2D. Although phase 2 clinical trials have shown that GRAs effectively lower blood glucose in T2D subjects, they increase plasma low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels, which has presented a significant block to their development. In this context, recent studies have suggested that cholesterol and proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) levels can be regulated by fasting and perhaps glucagon, but in-depth mechanistic insight is lacking. In order to test the functional importance of hepatic glucagon action on lipid metabolism, we silenced glucagon receptor (GcgR) in obese mice using AAV8-H1-shGcgr to silence the receptor in hepatocytes. Consistent with previous reports, this treatment effectively lowered blood glucose in obese mice without a change in body weight. Moreover, GcgR silencing, like GRAs in humans, significantly increased plasma LDL cholesterol. In search for the mechanism, we found that inhibition of GcgR significantly lowered hepatic LDL-receptor protein levels and increased both hepatic PCSK9 and circulating PCSK9. To determine causation, we treated GcgR-silenced mice with a neutralizing monoclonal antibody against PCSK9 and found that this intervention restored hepatic LDL-receptor protein levels and prevented the increase in LDL cholesterol. Further mechanistic work revealed that GcgR silencing in hepatocytes did not increase Pcsk9 mRNA. Rather, blocking GcgR increased the half-life of PCSK9 protein by suppressing signalling through exchange protein activated by cAMP 1 (Epac1). In particular, the ability of GcgR silencing to increase PCSK9 and suppress LDL receptor protein levels was mimicked by hepatocytes lacking Epac1. Thus, GcgR signalling through Epac1 appears to have critical effects on processes that regulate cholesterol metabolism through PCSK9. These new findings have important implications for the lipid metabolism effects of hepatic glucagon signalling in both normal physiology and metabolic disease, and for the development of safer GRA-like drugs to treat T2D.
Prognostic Factors for Mortality in the Critically Ill Cancer Patient

With the aging population of industrialized countries increasing, the diagnosis of cancer is becoming more prevalent. Many patients with cancer are living longer, and as with others living with chronic diseases, may become critically ill during the course of their illness. In the past, Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admission was discouraged because of poor survival rates in these very sick patients. Within the last decade, however, groups of critically ill cancer patients have shown improved survival with ICU management. Several patient cohorts have continued to have dismal outcomes, notably recipients of hematopoietic transplants, patients with lung cancer, and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients. Predictive models to assess group outcomes have been largely inadequate to project ICU prognosis in cancer patients, and multiple studies conclude that the number of failed organ systems remains the best predictor of survival overall. Reassessment of goals of care after a trial of full-support ICU care has been proposed to address the uncertainties that exist when using cohort data to treat individual patients.
Chapter 10 – Nuclear Fusion

Nuclear fusion, the joining of light nuclei of hydrogen into heavier nuclei of helium, has potential environmental, safety and proliferation characteristics as an energy source, as well as adequate fuel to power civilisation for times long compared to human history. It is, however, more challenging to convert into an energy source than nuclear fission. This chapter introduces the physics, advantages, difficulties, progress, economics and prospects for fusion energy power plants.
Specification and Hypothesis Testing

The estimating system consists of a profit function and a series of net supplies for outputs and inputs. The convention adopted is that positive net supplies obtain for outputs and negative net supplies for inputs. Alternatively, if all quantities of inputs and outputs are defined to be non-negative, negative user costs obtain for outputs and positive user costs for inputs. Hence, net demands for outputs are negative, and net demands for inputs positive. The former convention yields non-negative prices, the appropriate form for specification and testing with a variable profit function.
Recent advances in graduate psychiatric training

The graduate psychiatric training is currently undergoing a major reconceptualization and restructuring (1). This new and advanced educational initiative originated primarily in the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States and a few other countries from Western Europe. What is unique in this new graduate psychiatric training model is the fact that it is rapidly and effectively spreading in most regions of the world. Even among developing nations, interest and curiosity in this regard is strongly manifested. In the past, the focus of graduate psychiatric training in most Western countries was directed to three basic areas - knowledge, skills and attitudes - and all graduate psychiatric training curriculums reflected quite well these three basic areas of training (2-5). Besides, much attention was also given to the appropriate evaluation of the outcome of the curriculum implementation in graduate psychiatric training (6-8). Currently, however, the curriculum emphasis has radically changed, and new curriculum models are nowadays being tried in several industrialized nations from the Western hemisphere, especially in England, Canada and the United States (1,9). These graduate psychiatric training curriculum changes and these educational reconceptualization models are not unique to psychiatry. Actually, they are currently reflected in all graduate subspecialty areas as well. It is within this context that in this article this new graduate psychiatric training approaches are addressed and discussed for the benefit of all psychiatric graduate training programs across the world.
In the Grip of Algal Genomics

Algae are dominant primary producers on the Earth and have a major impact on global productivity and biogeochemical cycling. There are still few algal genomes that have been completely characterized, and resources directed toward algal genomic sequencing are limited. However, it is also becoming evident that algae and prokaryotic picoplankton have a critical role in the fixation and sequestration of carbon, and so the interest in algal genomics is expanding. There are some algae for which full or near-full genome sequences have been secured; these genomes include those of the red alga Cyanidioschyzon merolae, the green algae or chlorophytes Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and Volvox carteri, the marine picoeukaryote Ostreococcus tauri (two different strains of O. tauri have been sequenced), the diatoms Thalassiosira pseudonana and Phaeodactylum tricornutum, and the haptophyte Emiliania huxleyi. There is also a full sequence for the vestigal ‘red’ algal genome of the nucleomorph of the Cyptomonad Guillardia theta. In addition, numerous genomes of photosynthetic microbes, including marine Synechococcus and Prochlorococcus species have been sequenced. There have also been projects developed to define algal transcriptomes as determined by cDNA analysis, full genome sequences of numerous plastids, and the genomes of a variety of viruses that infect marine and freshwater algae. The recent efforts focused on acquiring and analyzing algal genome sequences have generated an influx of exciting data to a field that is in its infancy. In this review I discuss potential criteria for determining which organisms should be targeted for genome projects, successful forays into algal genomic sequencing, and some of the inferences generated from the analysis of the sequence information.
Long-term clinical, radiological, and histological follow-up after complex ventral incisional hernia repair using urinary bladder matrix graft reinforcement: a retrospective cohort study.

Complex ventral incisional hernia repair represents a challenging clinical condition in which biologically derived graft reinforcement is often utilized, but little long-term data inform that decision. Urinary bladder matrix (UBM) has shown effectiveness in diverse clinical settings as durable reinforcement graft material, but it has not been studied over a long term in ventral incisional hernia repair. This study evaluates the clinical, radiographic, and histological outcome of complex incisional hernia repair using UBM reinforcement with 12–70 months of follow-up. A single-arm, retrospective observational study of all ventral incisional hernia repairs utilizing UBM reinforcement over a 6-year time frame by a single surgeon was performed. Patients were assessed in long-term follow-up clinically and with the Carolina Comfort Scale. A subset of patients was assessed with abdominal wall ultrasound or CT scan. Three patients had abdominal wall fascial biopsies years after the incisional hernia repair with UBM graft, and the histology is analyzed. 64 patients underwent repair of complex incisional hernias with UBM graft reinforcement by a single surgeon. 42 patients had concomitant procedures including large or small bowel resection, excision of infected mesh, evacuation of abscess or hematoma, cholecystectomy, or panniculectomy with abdominoplasty. 16 patients had ostomies at the time of repair. Median follow-up time is 36 months, with a range of 12–70 months. Nine patients (14%) have required surgical repair of a recurrent hernia, and a tenth patient has a recurrence that is managed non-surgically, for a total recurrence rate of 15.6% over the entire time frame. Median time to recurrence was 32 months, and a Kaplan–Meier freedom from recurrence curve is depicted. 28 patients have undergone ultrasound or CT assessments of the abdominal wall which demonstrate radiographic fascial integrity 12–70 months after repair. Three patients have been re-explored for unrelated reasons in the years following ventral incisional hernia repair with UBM, and full thickness fascial biopsies demonstrate a robust remodeling response histologically similar to native myofascial tissue. No patients have developed graft infection, fistulization to the graft, or required graft explantation. Carolina Comfort Scale assessment of 45 patients 3 years after the repair averaged 16 out of a possible 115. In 64 patients undergoing complex ventral incisional hernia repair with UBM reinforcement, all have experienced successful resolution of complex clinical conditions and 15.6% of these repairs have recurred at a median follow-up of 3 years. Three full-thickness biopsies of the repaired fascia years later shed light on a promising remodeling response which may signal strength and durability comparable to native fascia.
Toughening Poly(lactic acid) with Thermoplastic Elastomers Modified by Thiol–ene Click Chemistry

Due primarily to the inherent brittleness of poly(lactic acid) (PLA), numerous studies have sought to improve the mechanical properties (e.g., fracture toughness) of PLA for a wide range of contemporary applications. In this study, we report a facile method by which to prepare esterified poly[styrene-b-(ethylene-alt-propylene)-b-styrene] (eSEPS) as a toughening agent for PLA through the use of thiol–ene click chemistry. The effects of adding 1 to 30 wt % eSEPS on the thermomechanical properties and morphological characteristics of PLA/eSEPS blends have been systematically investigated. Since eSEPS copolymers are more thermodynamically compatible with PLA than their parent partially hydrogenated SIS copolymer, we find a measurable reduction in the thermal properties of PLA from thermal calorimetry and enhanced dispersion of eSEPS within the PLA matrix according to electron microscopy. Considerable boosts in mechanical properties such as toughness (∼60 MJ/m3) and elongation at break (∼470%) are about 16× an...
Abstract 4724: Regulation of DNA cleavage by the amino and carboxyl domains of human Top2α

DNA topoisomerases are involved in processing DNA structures such as knots and supercoils formed during cellular processes. hTop2α functions by creating transient DNA double-strand breaks, through which a second DNA molecule can be passed. DNA breakage by hTop2α involves formation of a transient covalent DNA-protein intermediate that can be stabilized by small molecules like etoposide and doxorubicin. Therefore, these agents convert Top2 into a DNA damaging agent. The overall architecture of type II topoisomerases has been defined by a combination of biochemical and structural studies. The homodimeric eukaryotic Top2 includes an N-terminal domain that includes an ATP dependent dimerization and ATPase activity, a domain that connects the ATPase domain to the catalytic core, termed the transducer domain, a central breakage/reunion core that carries out metal ion dependent formation of the protein/DNA covalent complex and a C-terminal domain that includes a second dimerization domain. Since drug resistance to Top2 targeting drugs can occur by mutations that greatly reduce enzyme activity, they are of limited usefulness in understanding detailed mechanisms of drug action. We carried out a large-scale screen to identify etoposide hypersensitive mutations in hTop2α. We developed novel approaches to target small regions of the hTop2α coding sequence. As anticipated, we identified several domains of hTop2α that were hotspots for changes leading to etoposide hypersensitivity. These regions included the N-terminal region of the protein (transducer and ATPase domain), the breakage/reunion catalytic core of the enzyme, and C-terminal dimerization domains. For example, we identified a prominent class of mutations including Asp374Gly, Asp374Glu, Asn445Asp, Val415Leu and Thr377Ile in the transducer domain, which confer hypersensitivity to etoposide. We purified and characterized the Asp374Gly mutant protein. In addition to an increased in vitro sensitivity to etoposide, Top2α (Asp374Gly) had a decreased requirement for ATP compared to the wild-type enzyme. The decreased requirement for ATP is unexpected and may suggest an alteration in the communication between the ATPase domain and the catalytic core. In addition, we also isolated etoposide hypersensitive alleles close to the C-terminal dimerization domain. These mutations included Asp1130Asn, Ala1052Gly and Gln1109Lys. Our results suggest at least two distinct controlling modules for Top2 cleavage: the ATPase/transducer module, and the C-terminal dimerization domain. Our results provide additional insight into how etoposide inhibits Top2α and may suggest new domains of the protein suitable for drug targeting. Citation Format: Abhishek Dilip Deshpande, Matthew A. Gilbertson, Hannah N. Miles, Karin C. Nitiss, John L. Nitiss. Regulation of DNA cleavage by the amino and carboxyl domains of human Top2α [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 4724.
Estimating Food Waste as Household Production Inefficiency

Measuring food waste at the individual household level has been nearly impossible because comprehensive, current data on uneaten food do not exist. By using food acquisition data, this article employs a new approach to estimating household‐level food waste via a stochastic production frontier model in which food waste is identified as input inefficiency. For households in our data, the average household wastes 31.9% of the food it buys, and this figure, using survey weights, translates to annual U.S. consumer‐level food waste valued at $240 billion. In addition, by accommodating heterogeneous wasting behavior, we find that healthier diets and higher income lead to more household food waste, whereas lower household food security, food‐assistance program participation, and larger household sizes are associated with less food waste.
Comparison of Six-Months Outcomes in Patients Bridged to Heart Transplant with Inotropes before and after UNOS Heart Allocation Policy Change

Purpose In October 2018, the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) implanted changes to its adult heart allocation policy. Under this new policy, hospitalized heart transplant (HT) candidates on inotropic therapy who were previously defined as status 1A were re-classified as status 3. Our aim was to assess the short-term outcomes of this re-classification for hospitalized patients on inotropes in a national dataset. Methods The UNOS database was queried for HT candidates who required inotropes prior to transplantation during a six-month period pre policy change as Status 1A (N=367) and post (N=108) policy change as Status 3. Patient demographics, comorbidities, mechanical circulatory support (MCS) requirements, and post-HT mortality were compared using standard statistical methods. Cox proportional hazards modeling was used to compare six-months survival between the two groups. Results Mean age, gender, diabetes status, and history of prior cardiac surgery were similar across both groups. There were also no significant differences in mean donor age or ischemic time. The median time (with IQR) on the waiting list was significantly shorter following the policy change [21.5 (8.0, 44.0), 36.0 (14.0, 79.0), p Conclusion The heart allocation policy change significantly decreased waitlist times in patients bridged to HT with inotropes, but had a significantly worse 6-month post-HT survival. This surprising finding will need to be better evaluated in future studies.
Strongyloides Screening in Heart Transplant Candidates

Purpose The ability of Strongyloides to establish auto-infection in the human host allows it to sustain subclinical infection that can go on for a lifetime. In solid-organ transplant recipients, Strongyloides can cause hyper-infection syndrome which has very high morbidity and mortality. Clinical suspicion for chronic infection should be considered for any persons with birth or travel to endemic regions, history of incarceration, homelessness and group home residence. Targeted screening based on epidemiologic risk is recommended by AST and ISHLT however, testing remains challenging due to variability in the diagnostic yield of currently available serologic assays. Methods We performed a retrospective chart review of heart transplant (HT) recipients from 2010-2019, who had Strongyloides serologic screening performed pre-transplant, with the aim to correlate results with epidemiological risk factors for infection. Results Two-hundred and fifty HT recipients were reviewed. Of these, 197 had pre-transplant Strongyloides serology performed, in accordance with institutional policy of universal pre-transplant screening. Based on serologic testing, prevalence of strongyloidiasis was 2.5%. Of the 5 patients with positive serology, all but 1 had epidemiologic risk for infection; 3 due to birth in an endemic region and 1 due to history of incarceration. Eosinophilia was noted in 3/5, all of whom were from endemic regions by birth. All with positive serologic screening were treated pre-transplant with ivermectin. One-hundred and ninety two patients tested negative for Strongyloides, and 58% (111/192) of those had epidemiological risk factors, due to birth (90) or travel to endemic regions (21). There were no cases of clinical strongyloidiasis in the study cohort. Conclusion In this population with high epidemiologic risk, we found a lower than expected rate of Strongyloides infection. Given the variability in diagnostic yield across commercially available serologic assays, these findings raise the possibility of false negative results and thus, bring into question the utility and reliability of using serologic testing alone, for screening of Strongyloides infection among HT candidates. Accordingly, a thoughtful assessment of epidemiologic risk is essential for appropriate risk stratification and management of Strongyloides in HT candidates and recipients.
SciANN: A Keras/TensorFlow wrapper for scientific computations and physics-informed deep learning using artificial neural networks

Abstract In this paper, we introduce SciANN, a Python package for scientific computing and physics-informed deep learning using artificial neural networks. SciANN uses the widely used deep-learning packages TensorFlow and Keras to build deep neural networks and optimization models, thus inheriting many of Keras’s functionalities, such as batch optimization and model reuse for transfer learning. SciANN is designed to abstract neural network construction for scientific computations and solution and discovery of partial differential equations (PDE) using the physics-informed neural networks (PINN) architecture, therefore providing the flexibility to set up complex functional forms. We illustrate, in a series of examples, how the framework can be used for curve fitting on discrete data, and for solution and discovery of PDEs in strong and weak forms. We summarize the features currently available in SciANN, and also outline ongoing and future developments.
From Graphene Oxide to Graphene: Tuning THz Properties by Reduction and Metal Intercalation

We investigate properties of reduced graphene oxide films in the THz frequency range. We demonstrate tuning their conductivity and THz attenuation by reduction as well as by intercalation of metals. These findings suggest that graphene oxide holds promise for electromagnetic interference shielding and other THz device applications.
Bridging With Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Under the New Heart Allocation System: A United Network for Organ Sharing Database Analysis.

Background: The effect of the new donor heart allocation system on survival following bridging to transplantation with venous-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation remains unknown. The new a...
“We ought to obey God rather then men”: John Rogers’s millenarian hermeneutics and legal reform in 1653

This article analyses two polemical works by the Fifth Monarchist John Rogers to argue that Interregnum Millenarian Scriptural hermeneutics cogently draws on Scholastic as well as Reformed authorit...
Suppuration of Powers: Abscam, Entrapment & the Politics of Expulsion

The recent success of the film American Hustle has renewed curiosity in the events surrounding the Abscam scandal and its subsequent trials. This article begins by detailing the Abscam proposition as well as its players, moving on to address the contours of the defense of entrapment those accused frequently invoked. The article then focuses on the analyses of specific Abscam cases that claimed this defense. Finally, the article considers the specific case of Harrison Williams, a senator from New Jersey and the highest official ensnared in Abscam, documenting both his trials in the courts as well as in the Senate. The article finds that Williams’ best opportunity to avoid expulsion was through a more focused commitment to the principle of the separation of powers, an argument he would only passingly avail himself of.
Catalyst-Substrate Homohelical Character Matching Determines Enantiomeric Excess

In the framework of a helix theory recently developed for molecular chiralities and chiral interactions, we further proposed that for an asymmetric reaction to be highly enantioselective, the helical characters of the catalyst and the substrate complexed with it in the corresponding transition state, which are determined by relevant group polarizabilities and their distribution patterns, must be matched. This proposal in essence is a chiral version of the classical hard and soft acid-base theory. It also from an electronic effect angle sheds light on the nature of the conventional lock-and-key origin of high enantioselection, that is, to design a good catalyst (the key), rather than focusing on the rigidity, bulkiness or -symmetry of the catalyst, one should focus more on the polarizability distribution in the substrate (the lock) with which the catalyst should interact. The proposal is supported by many experiments and is used to understanding various aspects of current asymmetric catalysis. In general, the degree of catalyst-substrate homohelical character matching largely determines the magnitude of enantiomeric excess in an asymmetric reaction, and it is easier to discover a highly enantioselective catalyst for a substrate of large helical character than for a substrate of a small helical character. This work, in conjunction with our previous paper, poses serious challenges to the prevalent steric theories as it shows those experiments conventionally explained by steric effects on a case-by-case ground instead have a general electronic origin, and perhaps most significantly, it reveals inherent stereochemical links among various experiments carried out by various groups.
Effect of Limonene on Cancer Development in Rodent Models: A Systematic Review

Cancer is a major health issue and one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Many natural compounds, e.g., lycopene, curcumin, resveratrol, etc., have been shown to inhibit the growth of cancer cells. Similarly, limonene, a major active component in citrus essential oils and widely used flavoring additive, has demonstrated anticarcinogenic effects in both cell and animal studies. This systematic review aimed to evaluate the anticarcinogenic effects of limonene and potential underlying mechanisms. Eight peer-reviewed articles published in English between 2000 and 2020 were identified after screening using MEDLINE, Academic Search Premier, and CINAHL plus. All 8 studies showed an effect of limonene on reducing tumor burden, resulting in either decreased size, number, weight, or multiplicities of tumors. Limonene treatment extended the latency and survival periods in 2 studies yet did not reduce tumor incidence rate in another study. Limonene was shown to promote cell apoptosis in 4 studies that examined either the apoptosis index or apoptosis related gene/protein expressions. Two studies tried to explain the cancer preventive mechanisms of limonene and found limonene could restore the antioxidant capacity or immune functions that were impaired by cancer. These results supported the potential applicability of limonene on inhibiting cancer development, yet the real-world applicability on human requires more research and evaluation through clinical studies.