cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Surgical wound infection surveillance.

Measuring the frequency of a defined outcome flaw for a series of patients undergoing operative procedures generates information for performance evaluation. Such data influence decisions to improve care if used responsibly. Wound infection (WI), bacterial invasion of the incision, is the most common infectious complication of surgical care and WI prevention has value because the complication affects economic, patient satisfaction, and patient functional status outcomes. WI frequency, one kind of surgical outcome flaw rate, is traditionally used to judge one aspect of surgical care quality. At the author's institution, global WI surveillance was conducted without interruption for 20 years. Results for 85 260 consecutive inpatient operations performed during the period showed that secular changes in infection rates occurred but were not necessarily caused by surgical care quality decrements.
Synonymous Modification Enables High Fidelity Expression of Biosensors and Probes with Repetitive Protein and Nucleotide Sequences

Repetitive nucleotide or amino acid sequences are often engineered into biosensors and probes to achieve functional readouts and robust signal amplification. However, these repeated sequences are notoriously difficult to construct and maintain for stable expression. They are easily deleted or truncated, which occurs randomly and is not a priori predictable, resulting in aberrant expression and impacting the ability to correctly detect and to interpret biological functions. Here, we introduce a simple and generally applicable approach to solve this often unappreciated problem by modifying the nucleotide sequences of the target mRNA to make them non-repetitive but still functional (“synonymous”). We first demonstrate the procedure by designing a cassette of synonymous MS2 RNA aptamers, and tandem coat proteins for RNA imaging and show a dramatic improvement in signal and reproducibility in single RNA detection in live cells. The same approach is extended to enhance the stability of engineered fluorescent biosensors containing FRET-pair of fluorescent proteins, upon which a great majority of systems thus far in the field are based. Using the synonymous modified FRET biosensors, we achieve correct expression of full-length sensors, eliminating the aberrant truncation products that were often assumed to be due to non-specific proteolytic cleavages. Importantly, the biological interpretations of the sensor are significantly different when a correct, full-length biosensor is expressed. Thus the method we describe here should be routinely employed in generation of probes and sensors containing multiple, repetitive motifs to achieve correct expression these state-of-the-art tools.
Cadherins in Cancer

Despite decades of research, cancer remains one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Progression of cancer includes the breakdown or loss of normal tissue structure, which closely depends on the proper expression and regulation of numerous cell–cell adhesion molecules. Not surprisingly, the multifunctional cadherin cell–cell adhesion protein family members have emerged as critical regulators of tumorigenesis. The maintenance of cell–cell junctions and adhesion-mediated signaling pathways are tightly regulated by cadherin expression in a tissue-specific manner. In addition to their adhesive functions, cadherins integrate diverse cellular inputs (from cell–cell adhesion to mechanical forces or receptor tyrosine kinase activity) and translate these cues into biochemical intracellular signaling events involved in cell proliferation, motility, survival, and tissue homeostasis. Alterations in cadherin function can lead to cancer progression through a variety of molecular mechanisms including cadherin switching/EMT and the misregulation of different signaling mediators, including Rho GTPases, Ras/MAPK, Hippo/YAP, PI3K/Akt, and other pathways that have been implicated in tumor progression. Furthermore, cadherins have been recently implicated in mechanotransduction and cancer stem cell signaling. In this chapter, we report both fundamental findings and novel insights that define the roles of cadherins in human cancer and discuss how changes in the expression and regulation of these molecules contribute to cancer progression.
Solid Implants in Facial Plastic Surgery: Potential Complications and How to Prevent Them

Allogenic implants are an effective alternative to autologous grafts in the reconstruction of facial defects. These implants are used to reconstruct a variety of bony and soft-tissue defects, including the frontal and temporal regions; internal orbit; infraorbital rim; malar, paranasal, and nasal regions; mandible; and chin. In comparison to their autologous counterparts, alloplastic materials are more readily available, lack donor-site morbidity, decrease surgical time and cost, and still have relatively good postoperative tissue tolerance. However, these implants are not without their own spectrum of complications. Common solid implant materials include silicone, GoreTex (expanded polytetrafluorethylene; W. L. Gore & Associates Inc., Flagstaff, AZ), MedPor (high-density porous polyethylene; Porex Industries, Fairburn, GA), and Mersilene mesh (nonresorbable polyester fiber; Ethicon, Somerville, NJ). Each of these materials poses certain complication risks based on their surface contour (smooth vs. porous), pliability, and reactivity with surrounding tissue. In addition, certain implant locations within the head and neck are at risk for different postoperative complications. Although there are no evidence-based guidelines for implant reconstruction to help avoid common complications, there are several principles and techniques that are commonly employed by surgeons to help reduce complication rates. These include careful patient selection, proper choice of operative procedure, infection control practices (including pre/intraoperative systemic antibiotics, meticulous aseptic technique, impregnation/soaking of implant in antibiotic, irrigation of implant pocket with antibiotic, careful closure of tissue layers, and postoperative oral antibiotics), preoperative implant shaping, choice of surgical approach, and intraoperative surgical techniques. Larger, controlled trials are needed to confirm the efficacy of the aforementioned techniques in the reduction of postoperative complications.
Why Do Partnerships Prevail in Human Capital Intensive Industries? An Information Coordination Perspective

Why does partnership as an organizational form of firms exist and persist, especially in human capital intensive industries, while traditional theory of the firm would predict otherwise? This paper addresses this question by developing a new theory of partnership firms. I show that under standard assumptions a simple partnership structure could first best coordinate individuals' actions guided by their private information. Parallel to the properties of a perfectly competitive market, in a partnership firm an enhanced version of the Second Welfare Theorem is obtained even with asymmetric information and externality. This result provides a new perspective for understanding why firms arise in a market economy, and has implications for the organization of many business activities.
The durability of cementitious composites containing microencapsulated phase change materials

Abstract This study investigates the durability of cementitious composites containing microencapsulated phase change materials (PCMs). First, the stability of the PCM's enthalpy of phase change was examined. A reduction of around 25% in the phase change enthalpy was observed, irrespective of PCM dosage and aging. Significantly, this reduction in enthalpy was not caused by mechanical damage that was induced during mixing, but rather by chemical interactions with dissolved SO42- ions. Second, the influence of PCM additions on water absorption and drying shrinkage of PCM-mortar composites were examined. PCM microcapsules reduced the rate and extent of water sorption; the former was due to their non-sorptive nature which induces hindrances in moisture movement, and the latter was due to dilution, i.e., a reduction in the volume of sorptive cement paste. On the other hand, PCM inclusions did not influence the drying shrinkage of cementitious composites, due to their inability to restrain the shrinkage of the cement paste. The results suggest that PCMs exert no detrimental influences on, and, in specific cases, may even slightly improve the durability of cementitious composites.
Approximating Sparse Graphs: The Random Overlapping Communities Model.

How can we approximate sparse graphs and sequences of sparse graphs (with average degree unbounded and $o(n)$)? We consider convergence in the first $k$ moments of the graph spectrum (equivalent to the numbers of closed $k$-walks) appropriately normalized. We introduce a simple, easy to sample, random graph model that captures the limiting spectra of many sequences of interest, including the sequence of hypercube graphs. The Random Overlapping Communities (ROC) model is specified by a distribution on pairs $(s,q)$, $s \in \mathbb{Z}_+, q \in (0,1]$. A graph on $n$ vertices with average degree $d$ is generated by repeatedly picking pairs $(s,q)$ from the distribution, adding an Erdős-Renyi random graph of edge density $q$ on a subset of vertices chosen by including each vertex with probability $s/n$, and repeating this process so that the expected degree is $d$. Our proof of convergence to a ROC random graph is based on the Stieltjes moment condition. We also show that the model is an effective approximation for individual graphs. For almost all possible triangle-to-edge and four-cycle-to-edge ratios, there exists a pair $(s,q)$ such that the ROC model with this single community type produces graphs with both desired ratios, a property that cannot be achieved by stochastic block models of bounded description size. Moreover, ROC graphs exhibit an inverse relationship between degree and clustering coefficient, a characteristic of many real-world networks.
Introduction: Water Crisis

This introductory chapter provides an overview of the water crisis and a discussion of the early approaches to studies about water. Beginning with the water crisis in Flint, Michigan and particularly the discussions about the communities that were affected by the lack of access to clean water, it draws attention to three main issues that are important for this book. First, among the environmental specters confronting humanity in the twenty-first century, shortage of water is at the top of the list. Providing details of the estimates of water availability and uses allows the reader to see the broader landscape of concerns with water, providing an overview of the world’s water resources. I incorporate details from reports about the water crisis by the United Nations, the World Resources Institute and the World Bank among others. Second, the water crisis and particularly access to and control over water resources spans across the developed and developing world. Third, those most affected by the shifts in the control over water resources and the privatization of water supply mechanisms are the marginalized and the poor. This chapter also includes an overview of the remaining chapters of the book.
LTERadar: Towards LTE-Aware Wi-Fi Access Points

Major LTE hardware vendors (e.g. Qualcomm, Ericsson), mobile service providers (e.g. Verizon, T-Mobile), and standardization bodies (e.g. LTE-U forum, 3GPP) are extending LTE networks into unlicensed spectrum bands to boost the speeds and coverage of mobile networks. However, the deployment of LTE in unlicensed has raised serious concerns regarding their adverse impact on Wi-Fi networks in the same bands. We design LTERadar, a lightweight interference detector, that runs on Wi-Fi devices and accurately detects LTE interference in real time. LTERadar is a purely software-based solution that is independent of specific hardware or technology of the LTE interferer (e.g. LTE-U, LAA, the dominant LTE unlicensed protocols). Our implementation and evaluation with off-the-shelf Wi-Fi APs show that LTERadar achieves more than 90% of the interference detection accuracy in operational networks.
Vascular K+ Channel Expression and Function at Birth and in the Neonate

The fetal pulmonary circulation is a unique vascular bed which undergoes dramatic changes during the transition from fetus to neonate. Since the developing fetus has no need of its lungs for oxygen exchange, the pulmonary vasculature remains constricted and is characterized by high pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) and minimal blood flow. Blood enters the right side of the heart and is directly shunted away into the systemic circulation via the ductus arteriosus (DA), a dilated blood vessel connecting the main pulmonary artery (PA) and the descending aorta. At birth, as the lungs become the primary site of oxygen exchange, two important changes occur in the pulmonary circulation. First, within 24 hours of birth, the pulmonary arterial bed dilates, resulting in an 8 to 10-fold increase in blood flow to the lungs and a decrease in pulmonary pressure to half systemic levels (Cassin et al., 1964; Emmanouilides et al., 1964; Dawes et al., 1953). Second, the DA constricts to remove the right-to-left shunt pathway (Heymann and Rudolph, 1975). The closure of the DA occurs in two stages, with an initial O2-dependent functional closure (characterized by constriction of the ductus) followed by intimal and medial necrosis and fibrosis (the anatomic phase). The time course over which these two phases occur is strongly species-dependent; in the normal human neonate, functional closure is generally complete within 48 hours of birth, with full anatomic closure occurring by 2–3 weeks of age (Eldridge and Hultgre, 1955). Although much of the decrease in PVR that occurs at birth is due to the mechanical process of lung ventilation (Dawes et al., 1953), there is also an O2-dependent factor in the fall in PVR.
A computer model for tool management information system

Tooling is an important and expensive part of any manufacturing enterprise. An application-based tool management system was developed for a machining company that had a total expenditure of over a million dollars per annum on tooling alone. The system was developed on a relational database system available on a PC network. All different types of tools, their cost, supplier location of the tooling, and other relevant information were built into the system for management to make the right decisions on tooling. The paper gives an overview of the tooling system and describes the individual modules and their interrelationships, including some of the important files. It also describes how the system helps the company controlling tool costs and inventory.
Numerical Algorithms for Multidimensional Scaling

Multidimensional scaling (MDS) is a collection of techniques for constructing geometric configurations of points from information about interpoint distances. Important applications of MDS are routinely made in such diverse disciplines as psychophysics, in which the points typically correspond to sensory stimuli, and computational chemistry, in which the points typically correspond to atoms in a protein molecule. This paper surveys several fundamental issues in the computation of MDS configurations. Emphasis is placed on the formulation of the optimization problems that define different approaches to MDS and on the numerical algorithms that have been developed for solving these problems.
Alcohol‐induced respiratory symptoms improve after aspirin desensitization in patients with aspirin‐exacerbated respiratory disease

Background Aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease (AERD) is characterized by chronic eosinophilic rhinosinusitis, nasal polyps, asthma, and respiratory sensitivity to aspirin and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). In addition to sensitivity to aspirin and NSAIDs, the majority of patients with AERD have been reported to have respiratory intolerance associated with the consumption of alcohol. Methods A multicenter prospective cohort study was performed. Patients with AERD confirmed by aspirin challenge were eligible to participate. Those who described themselves as able to tolerate alcohol consumption were excluded. Patients underwent aspirin desensitization following endoscopic sinus surgery. A questionnaire was distributed to patients before and after desensitization to determine pre-desensitization and post-desensitization symptoms associated with alcohol ingestion. Results Forty-five patients were enrolled and 37 patients completed the study. The most common pre-desensitization symptoms were nasal congestion (95.6%), rhinorrhea (46.7%), and wheezing (40%). Improvement in the ability to tolerate alcohol was noted in 86.5% of participants (95% confidence interval [CI], 75.5% to 97.5%) and 70.3% of participants (95% CI, 55.5% to 85.0%) described desensitization to be "very helpful" or "extremely helpful" for their ability to tolerate alcohol. Conclusion The majority of patients with AERD who experience respiratory symptoms with alcohol consumption describe improvement in this domain following aspirin desensitization.
CylA is a sequence-specific protease involved in toxin biosynthesis

CylA is a subtilisin-like protein belonging to a recently expanded serine protease family related to class II lanthipeptide biosynthesis. As a leader peptidase, CylA is responsible for maturation of the enterococcal cytolysin, a lantibiotic important for Enterococcus faecalis virulence. In vitro reconstitution of CylA reveals that it accepts both linear and modified cytolysin peptides with a preference for cyclized peptides. Further characterization indicates that CylA activates itself by removing its N-terminal 95 amino acids. CylA achieves sequence-specific traceless cleavage of non-cognate peptides even if they are post-translationally modified, which makes the peptidase a powerful tool for mining novel lanthipeptides by providing a general strategy for leader peptide removal. Knowledge about the substrate specificity of CylA may also facilitate the development of protease inhibitors targeting cytolysin biosynthesis as a potential therapeutic approach for enterococcal infections.
Use of exogenous glycine betaine and its precursor choline as osmoprotectants in Antarctic sea-ice diatoms1.

Wide salinity ranges experienced during the seasonal freeze and melt of sea ice likely constrain many biological processes. Microorganisms generally protect against fluctuating salinities through the uptake, production, and release of compatible solutes. Little is known, however, about the use or fate of glycine betaine (GBT hereafter), one of the most common compatible solutes, in sea-ice diatoms confronted with shifts in salinity. We quantified intracellular concentrations and used [14 C]-labeled compounds to track the uptake and fate of the nitrogen-containing osmolyte GBT and its precursor choline in three Antarctic sea-ice diatoms Nitzschia lecointei, Navicula cf. perminuta, and Fragilariopsis cylindrus at -1°C. Experiments show that these diatoms have effective transporters for GBT, but take up lesser amounts of choline. Neither compound was respired. Uptake of GBT protected cells against hyperosmotic shock and corresponded with reduced production of extracellular polysaccharides in N. lecointei cells, which released 85% of the retained GBT following hypoosmotic shock. The ability of sea-ice diatoms to rapidly scavenge and release compatible solutes is likely an important strategy for survival during steep fluctuations in salinity. The release and recycling of compatible solutes may play an important role in algal-bacterial interactions and nitrogen cycling within the semi-enclosed brines of sea ice.
A nurse's twenty-four-year journey with breast cancer-related lymphedema.

Background Lymphedema is one of the major complications following breast cancer treatment. The majority of women who develop breast cancer are in their years of employment. Occupational functioning and employment are issues of significant concern among women with breast cancer-related lymphedema (BCRL). We present a single-case study of a nurse living with BCRL for more than two decades in the Midwestern United States, as an exemplar to explore the 'return-to-work' phenomenon. Methods A sixty-minute, semi-structured interview was conducted with a selected single case ("Linda"), following a pre-interview survey. Themes and sub-concepts were generated through constant-comparison of evidence within the case. Results Themes included: the feeling of being lost, functional impairments related to BCRL and bandaging, being limited yet not being limited, and experiencing different challenges with different jobs. Overall, returning to work with BCRL was a complex phenomenon involving interactions of the disease process, the work activity, the individual, and an array of contextual factors. Conclusions Linda's struggles, efforts, and adaptations at different career points were revealing and exemplified how individuals navigate the journey of returning to work with BCRL.
Exploring US Federal Policy Discourse on Refugee Access to Post-secondary Education

Multiple refugee crises are taking place simultaneously in several regions of the world. Despite the fact that large numbers of refugees are children and youth, research on policy discourse related to the educational access of refugees beyond remains limited. This situation is particularly acute in the USA even though over 3 million refugees have resettled in that country over the course of the last three decades. In this paper, we take a policy-as-discourse approach (Ball in Education reform: a critical and post-structural approach, Open University Press, Philadelphia, 1994; Discourse Stud Cult Politics of Educ 36(3):306–313, 2015) to analyze policies related to post-secondary education access among refugees in the USA. This analysis reveals refugees’ status in US policy as an invisible group, frequently confounded with other groups under the euphemistic umbrella term “New American.” Moreover, in these policies, refugees are represented as economic burdens, and their economic independence is presented as the key priority of relevant US policies.
Responses of Four Common Shrub Species to Different Irrigation Regimes

The impact of different irrigation regimes to Cornus sericea L. ‘Isanti’, Hydrangea arborescens L. ‘Annabelle,’ Physocarpus opulifolius (L.) Maxim. ‘Monlo’, and Salix purpurea L. ‘Nana’ were assess...
A Longitudinal Examination of the Asthma Medication Ratio in Children with Medicaid.

Background/Objective: An efficient and accurate strategy for identifying children with asthma at high-risk for exacerbation is needed. The objective of this study is to conduct a longitudinal exami...
Total laparoscopic hysterectomy in combination with dilation and evacuation of an 18-week–sized uterus with gestational trophoblastic neoplasia: a novel treatment approach

Gestational trophoblastic disease is a spectrum that includes complete and partial hydatidiform moles, invasive mole, choriocarcinoma, and placental site trophoblastic tumor. Although most cases of gestational trophoblastic neoplasia occur after a molar pregnancy, it can develop after any pregnancy. Suction curettage remains the standard first-line management in a molar pregnancy in patients desiring fertility. However, hysterectomy is a reasonable option in patients that do not desire to preserve fertility. Hysterectomy for gestational trophoblastic neoplasia can be difficult because of the enlarged uterus and prominent uterine vasculature. Traditionally, hysterectomy for gestational trophoblastic neoplasia is usually performed via laparotomy. In this article and accompanying video, we describe and illustrate a minimally invasive technique that demonstrates a safe and feasible laparoscopic removal of an enlarged uterus and illustrates alternative extraction techniques to avoid laparotomy in hysterectomy for gestational trophoblastic disease. In this case, a combination of laparoscopic transection of the vascular pedicles followed by dilation and evacuation was used before colpotomy. The addition of dilation and evacuation allowed us to reduce the overall size of the uterus and remove it intact through the vagina with minimal bleeding, avoiding unnecessary laparotomy. This allowed the patient to have an improved postsurgical recovery experience with minimal blood loss compared with standard laparotomy for gestational trophoblastic neoplasia.
Magnitude and timing of the antiviral response determine SARS-CoV-2 replication early in infection

The interferon response is a potent antiviral defense mechanism, but its effectiveness depends on its timing relative to viral replication. Here, we report viral replication and host response kinetics in patients at the start of SARS-CoV-2 infection and explore the impact of these kinetics experimentally. In both longitudinal patient nasopharyngeal samples and airway epithelial organoids, we found that SARS-CoV-2 initially replicated exponentially with a doubling time of ∼6hr, and induced interferon stimulated genes (ISGs) with delayed timing relative to viral replication. Prior exposure to rhinovirus increased ISG levels and blocked SARS-CoV-2 replication. Conversely, inhibiting ISG induction abrogated interference by rhinovirus and enhanced SARS-CoV-2 replication rate. These results demonstrate the importance of initial interferon-mediated defenses in determining the extent to which SARS-CoV-2 can replicate at the start of infection and indicate that biological variables that alter the airway interferon response, including heterologous induction of innate immunity by other viruses, could profoundly impact SARS-CoV-2 susceptibility and transmission.
Performance of Institutional Trading Desks: An Analysis of Persistence in Trading Costs

Using a proprietary dataset of institutional investors' equity transactions, we document that institutional trading desks can sustain relative performance over adjacent periods. We find that trading-desk skill is positively correlated with the performance of the institution's traded portfolio, suggesting that institutions that invest resources in developing execution abilities also invest in generating superior investment ideas. Although some brokers can deliver better executions consistently over time, our analysis suggests that trading-desk skill is not limited to a selection of better brokers. We conclude that the trade implementation process is economically important and can contribute to relative portfolio performance. The Author 2011. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Society for Financial Studies. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com., Oxford University Press.
Explicit environmental and vibronic effects in simulations of linear and nonlinear optical spectroscopy

Accurately simulating the linear and nonlinear electronic spectra of condensed phase systems and accounting for all physical phenomena contributing to spectral line shapes presents a significant challenge. Vibronic transitions can be captured through a harmonic model generated from the normal modes of a chromophore, but it is challenging to also include the effects of specific chromophore–environment interactions within such a model. We work to overcome this limitation by combining approaches to account for both explicit environment interactions and vibronic couplings for simulating both linear and nonlinear optical spectra. We present and show results for three approaches of varying computational cost for combining ensemble sampling of chromophore–environment configurations with Franck–Condon line shapes for simulating linear spectra. We present two analogous approaches for nonlinear spectra. Simulated absorption spectra and two-dimensional electronic spectra (2DES) are presented for the Nile red chromophore in different solvent environments. Employing an average Franck–Condon or 2DES line shape appears to be a promising method for simulating linear and nonlinear spectroscopy for a chromophore in the condensed phase.
Going Virtual: The Impact of COVID-19 on Internships in Tourism, Events, and Hospitality Education

This study explored virtual internship practices and the adaptation to changes brought by the current COVID-19 pandemic crisis by interviewing a small group of interns and site supervisors to understand how virtual internships were practiced in the wake of COVID-19. The findings of the study provided several insights into virtual internships. Overall, just like the conventional fieldwork, well-planned and designed virtual internships could be an empowering learning experience that allows students to capitalize on the practical strengths while applying classroom learning experiences to actual management situations. The study also discussed the advantages and challenges of virtual internships perceived by the student interns. The implications of the study and suggestions for future research were addressed.
Nanoscale insight into the relation between pressure solution of calcite and interfacial friction.

Abstract Pressure solution of carbonate-based rocks participates in many geophysical and geochemical processes, but fundamental knowledge of the interfacial processes is still lacking. By concurrently pressing and sliding two single calcite crystals past each other, the pressure solution rate and the friction force between the crystals were concurrently measured in calcium-carbonate saturated water with an extended surface forces apparatus. These studies reveal that both a decrease and an increase in frictional strength can originate from the pressure-solution of calcite single crystals. By conducting nanoscale force measurements with an atomic force microscope, ion specific effects were unveiled at the level of a single asperity. Pressure solution is promoted when the interfacial water layers of calcite remain undisturbed under stress (e.g. with Ca(II)) and the dissolved ions and water lubricate the interface – a phenomenon called pressure-solution facilitated slip. The mechanically induced disruption of the hydration layers of the calcite surface (e.g. with Mg(II) and low Ni(II) concentration) correlates with the more fluid-like and lubricious behavior of the confined fluid in the absence of pressure solution. Charge neutralization of the calcite surface leads to an abrupt change of calcite’s hydration layers, which promotes pressure-solution facilitated slip. This work advances the fundamental understanding of physicochemical interactions occurring at confined surfaces of stressed calcite.
Is transoral incisionless fundoplication (TIF) an answer to post-peroral endoscopic myotomy gastroesophageal reflux? A multicenter retrospective study.

Background: The use of peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) for achalasia has a high incidence of post-procedural gastroesophageal reflux (GER). Transoral incisionless fundoplication (TIF) may be an ideal endoscopic treatment. We report our experience with the use of post-POEM TIF. Methods: In this multicenter retrospective study, post-POEM patients with GER who underwent TIF were included. The study end points were: (i) technical success; (ii) safety; (iii) effectiveness (changes in symptoms, scores, proton pump inhibitor [PPI] use, pH studies). Results: 12 patients underwent TIF after POEM, nine of whom had daily symptoms, with 91.7% requiring twice daily (BID) PPIs. Technical success was achieved in all patients. Two adverse events occurred. There were significant decreases in the percentage of patients on BID PPIs (P = 0.03), frequency of daily symptoms (P = 0.03), Reflux Severity Index questionnaire, and GERD Health-related Quality of Life scores (P = 0.03 and P = 0.003; n = 6). pH studies performed in seven of the patients showed a significant reduction in the mean DeMeester score (P = 0.05) and mean percentage acid exposure time (P = 0.04). Conclusion: Our experience suggests that TIF may be effective and safe in treating GER after POEM. Larger prospective trials are needed.
Stent Graft Repair of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm

The aortic stent graft currently represents a pinnacle in the evolution of endovascular technology - beginning with the DeBakey Dacron, vascular graft (which remains a gold standard), through catheter-based approaches to vascular disease. culminating in the introduction of the endovascular stent by Palmaz in 1985.1 Subsequently, while searching for a minimally invasive treatment for patients with abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) that are too sick for open surgery, Juan Parodi (1991) was the first to combine the Dacron graft with a Palmaz stent.2 Parodi sewed Pafmaz stents onto the graft, crimped the entire device onto an angioplasty balloon, and became the first to deliver an endoluminaf graft into the aorta. By excluding the aneurysm internally, reducing pressure on the aortic wall, and preventing rupture, the repair of aortic aneurysms was changed forever. Since it is unusual for aneurysms to be confined to the aorta alone, bifurcated grafts, which extend into the common iliac arteries, were a natural extension of this technology.3 Parodi’s pioneering work led to the development of the first commercially available stent grafts in 1997, the Medtronic Aneuryx gratt4 and the Guidant Ancure graft.5,6 Today there are three commercially available grafts in the United States, with another five in development.?
Design Ecologies: Essays on the Nature of Design by Lisa Tilder and Beth Blostein (eds)

(2011). Design Ecologies: Essays on the Nature of Design by Lisa Tilder and Beth Blostein (eds) Design and Culture: Vol. 3, No. 2, pp. 271-273.
Role of P2 Receptors in the Immune System

In many tissues, stressed or damaged cells can locally release nucleotides which, in turn, activate autocrine or paracrine signaling cascades that permit those tissues to adapt to the particular stress or injury that precipitated the release of cellular nucleotides (Schwiebert 1999). In complex organisms, the introduction of foreign material — living or nonliving — into any organ or tissue constitutes a major stress that triggers the powerful adaptive responses of the immune system. Pathogenic microorganisms that injure or kill cells of the host organism often elicit these responses. In turn, the response of the host organism often involves the killing and removal of the invading microorganisms. The immune system also provides a surveillance mechanism for identifying and eliminating any host cells that might be irreversibly damaged or diseased.
Spooks, Sex & Socio-Diagnostics: On Robert F. Williams

Insofar as Negro women themselves are concerned, this new movement…gives evidence of their desire to assume leadership in the Negro liberation movement, to unite Negro women in the fight for peace and justice, and to win large segments away from the passive and pro-war sell out leadership of Negro reformists in high places in Negro life.
Bias-corrected estimates for logistic regression models for complex surveys with application to the United States’ Nationwide Inpatient Sample:

For complex surveys with a binary outcome, logistic regression is widely used to model the outcome as a function of covariates. Complex survey sampling designs are typically stratified cluster samples, but consistent and asymptotically unbiased estimates of the logistic regression parameters can be obtained using weighted estimating equations (WEEs) under the naive assumption that subjects within a cluster are independent. Despite the relatively large samples typical of many complex surveys, with rare outcomes, many interaction terms, or analysis of subgroups, the logistic regression parameters estimates from WEE can be markedly biased, just as with independent samples. In this paper, we propose bias-corrected WEEs for complex survey data. The proposed method is motivated by a study of postoperative complications in laparoscopic cystectomy, using data from the 2009 United States' Nationwide Inpatient Sample complex survey of hospitals.
Evidence for neuroinflammatory and microglial changes in the cerebral response to sleep loss.

Study objectives Sleep loss has pro-inflammatory effects, but the roles of specific cell populations in mediating these effects have not been delineated. We assessed the modulation of the electroencephalographic and molecular responses to sleep deprivation (S-DEP) by minocycline, a compound that attenuates microglial activation occurring in association with neuroinflammatory events. Design Laboratory rodents were subjected to assessment of sleep and wake in baseline and sleep deprived conditions. Participants Adult male CD-1 mice (30-35 g) subjected to telemetric electroencephalography. Interventions Minocycline was administered daily. Mice were subjected to baseline data collection on the first day of minocycline administration and, on subsequent days, 2 S-DEP sessions, 1 and 3 h in duration, followed by recovery sleep. Following EEG studies, mice were euthanized either at the end of a 3 h S-DEP or as time-of day controls for sampling of brain messenger RNAs. Gene expression was measured by real-time polymerase chain reaction. Measurements and results Minocycline-treated mice exhibited a reduction in time spent asleep, relative to saline-treated mice, in the 3-h interval immediately after administration. S-DEP resulted in an increase in EEG slow wave activity relative to baseline in saline-treated mice. This response to S-DEP was abolished in animals subjected to chronic minocycline administration. S-DEP suppressed the expression of the microglial-specific transcript cd11b and the neuroinflammation marker peripheral benzodiazepine receptor, in the brain at the mRNA level. Minocycline attenuated the elevation of c-fos expression by S-DEP. Brain levels of pro-inflammatory cytokine mRNAs interleukin-1β (il-1β), interleukin-6 (il-6), and tumor necrosis factor-α (tnfα) were unaffected by S-DEP, but were elevated in minocycline-treated mice relative to saline-treated mice. Conclusions The anti-neuroinflammatory agent minocycline prevents either the buildup or expression of sleep need in rodents. The molecular mechanism underlying this effect is not known, but it is not mediated by suppression of il-1β, il-6, and tnfα at the transcript level.
The Phase Encoding Gradient

The y gradient is applied in the direction perpendicular to the coronal plane. Now it would seem that we could be able to use frequency in this direction just as we did for the x axis. However, if we did that, then we would not be able to uniquely specify whether a given frequency belonged to the x or the y axis, and the computer would get confused and render us an improper image reconstruction. So we must do something else, and in fact, all commercial scanners available today make use of “phase encoding”. This rather difficult concept will now be explained in depth.
Breast cancer: Challenge and responsibility

The diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer has changed dramatically during the last quarter century, a fact perhaps not fully appreciated by many primary care physicians. Breast cancer presents a number of challenges for the obstetrician/gynecologist. The disease is common and the mortality rate is second only to lung cancer. The appropriate role for the obstetrician/gynecologist is one of surveillance, including taking a history and physical examination and selected diagnostic studies, and as a resource for patients, including a discussion of risk factors and treatment alternatives
A framework and tool for porting assessment and remediation

We present a framework and tool for porting assessment and code remediation in commercial porting projects, primarily targeting interplatform C/C++ porting. Our framework has a modular architecture for handling real-world code bases, a key part of which is an extensible knowledge base of porting issue types. Porting issue detection and remediation are achieved through dynamically-linked detector and remediation "plug-ins" which can be augmented over time. Analysis and remediation can be performed over multiple intermediate forms, such as the AST or error logs. Analysis and remediation results can be presented as a single assessment report, or the changes can be incorporated into the original code base. Furthermore our framework has been integrated into Eclipse, providing a user interface and allowing further capability for integration with other Eclipse extensions. A subset of our tool has been prototyped and benchmarked against real-world customer code.
Role for CXCR6 in Recruitment of Activated CD8+ Lymphocytes to Inflamed Liver

Hepatic infiltration of activated CD8 lymphocytes is a major feature of graft-vs-host disease (GvHD). Chemoattractant cytokines and their receptors are key regulators of lymphocyte trafficking, but the involvement of chemoattractant receptors in the physiologic recruitment of cells into the inflamed liver has not been defined. The present study examines the role of the chemokine receptor CXCR6, which is highly expressed by liver-infiltrating CD8 T cells. Hepatic accumulation of donor CD8, but not donor CD4, lymphocytes was significantly reduced in GvHD induced by transfer of CXCR6(-/-), H-2D(b) lymphocytes into BDF(1), H-2D(bxd) recipients. To determine whether altered recruitment contributes to the reduced accumulation, CXCR6(-/-) or wild-type splenic lymphocytes participating in an active GvHD response were isolated and transferred i.v. into secondary recipients with active GvHD, and the short term (6-h) recruitment of transferred cells to the inflamed liver was assessed. CXCR6(-/-) CD8 (but not CD4) cells displayed a significant (33%) reduction in liver localization, whereas frequencies in blood of CXCR6(-/-) and wild-type CD8 cells were similar. Proliferation and apoptosis of liver-infiltrating donor CD8 cells were unaffected. We conclude that CXCR6 helps mediate the recruitment of activated CD8 lymphocytes in GvHD-induced hepatitis and may be a useful target to treat pathological inflammation in the liver.
Geometry of the substituted cyclohexane ring

Abstract A quantitative description of the conformation of seven substituted cyclohexanes in terms of bond distances, bond angles and torsional angles is given. The geometrical details of the molecules from X-ray structure determinations are compared with those obtained by computer calculations (full relaxation molecular mechanics approach) of the same or of similar systems. Reasonable quantitative agreement is obtained. The effect of an equatorial substituent, Cl or CH3, on the molecular geometry is relatively minor. The calculations show that the minimum energy conformation of the equatorial t-Bu group is twisted by ± 17° away from the perfectly staggered form. The latter constitutes a low barrier (0·27 kcal/mol). An axial Me group causes a slight extra flattening of the ring structure (1°–2°), but exerts a strong influence on the torsional angles between α,β CH bonds, φee increasing from 58° to 64°, φea decreasing from 59° to 50° (relative to cyclohexane).
The opinions of private physicians of a medical care program: Experience in the Emergency Maternity and Infant Care Program in New York City

Abstract The opinions of all physicians (a total of 5,575) who themselves cared for EMIC patients in New York City during World War II were solicited through a questionnaire with specific questions to which “yes” or “no” or “no opinion” answers could be given. About 50 per cent of physicians responded and this group of respondents was found to be representative of the entire group who cared for patients. Data were secured through three separate mailings and one telephone inquiry to a random sample. The similarity of the data so collected and the unusually large number of returns make it sound to conclude that this study reflects reasonably accurately the opinions of all the physicians in the community who cared for EMIC patients. About 90 per cent thought the program reached its objective of raising morale. Slightly fewer, but still more than three-fourths of the total, were satisfied with the procedures of application and authorization and with the general administration of the program. More than 90 per cent were satisfied with the method of payment directly to the physician and only a very small number, fewer than 1 per cent, would have preferred a cash payment to the patient. More than 90 per cent of the physicians thought that the functioning of the plan had not interfered with the patient-physician relationship. Of the small number who thought the plan had produced a change, almost one-fifth thought it made the relationship better rather than worse. Pediatricians seemed more likely to think it better. Availability of consultation services was generally appreciated but there was not as much positive expression of approval for special nursing service as for medical consultation by specialists and services of visiting nurses. The greatest dissatisfaction was in the amount of the fee paid, particularly the obstetric fee. In general, more participation, i.e., caring for a greater number of cases, was associated with a more favorable opinion of EMIC. This analysis is thought to be unique in that it is apparently the only one recorded so far in which the opinions of physicians who actually cared for EMIC patients in a community have been secured and analyzed. It is suggested that similar studies of the opinions of the physicians participating in and the patients receiving care from the many medical care programs now being tried out in this country be made.
Defining “mutation” and “polymorphism” in the era of personal genomics

The growing advances in DNA sequencing tools have made analyzing the human genome cheaper and faster. While such analyses are intended to identify complex variants, related to disease susceptibility and efficacy of drug responses, they have blurred the definitions of mutation and polymorphism. In the era of personal genomics, it is critical to establish clear guidelines regarding the use of a reference genome. Nowadays DNA variants are called as differences in comparison to a reference. In a sequencing project Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) and DNA mutations are defined as DNA variants detectable in >1 % or <1 % of the population, respectively. The alternative use of the two terms mutation or polymorphism for the same event (a difference as compared with a reference) can lead to problems of classification. These problems can impact the accuracy of the interpretation and the functional relationship between a disease state and a genomic sequence. We propose to solve this nomenclature dilemma by defining mutations as DNA variants obtained in a paired sequencing project including the germline DNA of the same individual as a reference. Moreover, the term mutation should be accompanied by a qualifying prefix indicating whether the mutation occurs only in somatic cells (somatic mutation) or also in the germline (germline mutation). We believe this distinction in definition will help avoid confusion among researchers and support the practice of sequencing the germline and somatic tissues in parallel to classify the DNA variants thus defined as mutations.
VORPAL - a multidimensional code for simulating advanced acceleration concepts

VORPAL is a new simulation code under development for simulation of advanced acceleration concepts such as laser wake field acceleration. VORPAL makes use of object oriented programming techniques to achieve greater flexibility and extensibility. For example, with VORPAL, one can set the physical dimension of the simulation at run time rather than compile time. This allows the user to simulate an advanced acceleration scenario rapidly in 2D to look for qualitative results, then move to 3D with the same code and nearly the same input file for more detailed simulations. The VORPAL framework can support multiple particle models (fluid, PIC), but at present only fluid representations are in place. VORPAL is designed to run on most flavors of UNIX and will run on both serial and parallel machines, including Beowulf clusters. VORPAL stores data in HDF5 files, allowing for subsequent visualization by a number of packages, including RSI's IDL and OpenDX. VORPAL will be applied to problems of laser plasma interactions in the near future.