cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Application of a lag contingency to reduce perseveration on circumscribed interests

ABSTRACTObjective: To evaluate the effects of a lag reinforcement contingency on the conversation topics of children diagnosed with autism who perseverated on circumscribed interests (CIs). Method: Single-case design study with two participants, age 11 and 12 years. A functional analysis employed an alternating-treatments design to assess effects of contingent attention on conversational behavior. A multiple-baseline with an embedded reversal design was employed in a subsequent lag contingency analysis, in which the conversation partner provided attention at the end of each 10 s interval if the content of the participant’s conversation met the requirement of a Lag 0, Lag 1, or Lag 2 contingency. Results: The participants’ conversational behavior was sensitive to a conversation-partner’s attention as a consequence. Lag contingencies successfully altered the prevalence of CI-related and-unrelated talk.Conclusion: Lag contingencies can shift conversation content away from CIs, but further research is needed ...
Abstract 5020: Role of LIN28 in aggressive breast cancers lacking REST

Our lab has discovered a highly aggressive subset of breast cancers characterized by a lack of function of the tumor suppressor RE1 Silencing Transcription Factor (REST). REST is a transcriptional repressor controlling over 2000 neuronal genes, and has been identified as a tumor suppressor in lung and colon cancers. Our lab has discovered that REST function is lost in 20% of breast tumors and that its loss is associated with a significantly decreased disease-free survival and poor prognosis (Wagoner et al. poster, this meeting, CB4). In addressing the mechanisms underlying the aggressiveness of these RESTless tumors, we found that expression of the tumor promoter LIN28 is upregulated. We describe the direct regulation of LIN28 by REST in a range of mammary cell lines and show a correlation between REST loss and LIN28 overexpression in breast tumors. LIN28 inhibits maturation of the tumor suppressor microRNA let-7, which in turn suppresses expression of the oncogenes Myc and Ras. LIN28 overexpression has been found to promote metastasis in a mouse xenograft model of breast cancer. To examine the effects of REST loss and LIN28 expression on cellular transformation and motility, we have knocked down REST and LIN28 in a variety of breast cell lines (including T47D, MCF7, MDA-MB-231, 3T3 and NMuMG cells). Here, we describe the results of our colony formation, soft agar growth and motility assays. We recapitulate in vitro aspects of tumor aggression seen in the patient population, and we find that these processes are promoted by REST loss in a LIN28-dependent manner. We also describe xenograft models looking at the growth and metastasis of tumors that express or lack REST and LIN28. We conclude that REST loss promotes tumor aggressiveness at least in part via upregulation of its target gene LIN28. Note: This abstract was not presented at the AACR 101st Annual Meeting 2010 because the presenter was unable to attend. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 5020.
NITROGEN METABOLISM OF LEUCOSTOMA PERSOONII AND L. CINCTA IN VIRULENT AND HYPOVIRULENT ISOLATES

The nitrogen utilization pattern of two spe? cies of Leucostoma was examined using virulent isolates of L. persoonii and L. cincta, and two virus-infected hypovirulent isolates of L. persoonii. Virulent L. per? soonii were able to utilize all of 47 nitrogen sources tested except anthranilic acid, cysteine, homocysteine, hydroxylamine, indole, lysine, urocanic acid, methyl- ated purines and pyrimidines. Leucostoma cincta isolates were unable to use these latter compounds, acetamide and the branched side chain aliphatic amino acids: isoleucine, leucine, and valine. The ability to utilize branched aliphatic amino acids might be a species- specific characteristic. A virulent isolate of L. cincta, ATCC62910, also could not utilize nitrate and nitrite. The two hypovirulent L. persoonii isolates had a further restricted list of usable nitrogen sources. In addition to the nitrogen sources above, they were unable to grow on nitrate, nitrite and the branched aliphatic amino acids, as sole nitrogen sources. Growth of the two hypovirulent isolates on glutamic acid and aspartic acid, as well as aromatic amino acids was poor com? pared to virulent isolates. The patterns of inorganic nitrogen utilization were determined in reference to the known gene loci that control the process in fungi. Inability to utilize specific nitrogen sources is likely the result of mycovirus infection. Poor growth on sev? eral utilizable nitrogen sources might be influential in hypovirulence. trees, dieback of young branch tips greatly reduces vigor, and large perennial cankers in older trees often lead to death (Hildebrand, 1947; Rozsanyay, 1977). As fungicides have proven to be ineffective in con? trolling this disease (Biggs, 1989; Chandler, 1974; Hel- ton and Rohrbach, 1967; Royse and Reis, 1978), a biological control agent that could reduce the impact of this disease has been sought. A diseased isolate of L. persoonii (NC14.4A) has been isolated from peach in North Carolina. Isolate NC14.4A is a hypovirulent nonsporulating isolate that contains many virus like particles (VLPs) in its cytoplasm when viewed in the electron microscope (Snyder et al., 1989). The strain contains at least six segments of dsRNA. Isolate HT is derived from isolate NC14.4A by successive hyphal tipping and has lost the viral particle and four of the six bands of dsRNA. HT has wild-type growth rates and can sporulate, but retains hypovirulence (Ham-
Ultrastructure of the Mycorrhizal Association Formed Between Zea Diploperennis and Glomus Fasciculatus

Initial stages of mycorrhizal establishment were marked by development of intercellular hyphae ramifying between cortical cells. Penetration of cortical cells by the invading intracellular hyphae (...
Earnings Quality Based on Corporate Investment Decisions: earnings quality and corporate investment

In this paper, I examine a new approach for measuring earnings quality, defined as the closeness of reported earnings to “permanent earnings,” based on firm decisions with regard to capital and labor investments. Specifically, I measure earnings quality as the contemporaneous association between changes in the levels of capital and labor investment and the change in reported earnings. This approach follows the reasoning that (1) firms make investment decisions based on the net present value (NPV) of investment projects and (2) reported earnings with higher quality should more closely associate with real investment decisions. I find that measures of earnings quality based on managerial labor and capital decisions correlate positively with earnings persistence and have incremental explanatory power relative to earnings-quality measures used in the accounting literature. Furthermore, investment-based earnings-quality measures are less informative when managers tend to overinvest.
Tailored deep brain stimulation optimization for improved airway protective outcomes in Parkinson's disease

There is no consensus regarding the effects of deep brain stimulation (DBS) surgery on swallowing outcomes in Parkinson's disease (PD). No prospective studies have compared airway protective outcomes following DBS to the subthalamic nucleus (STN) versus globus pallidus interna (GPi). A recent retrospective study described swallowing outcomes pre- and post-STN vs. GPi DBS in a cohort of 34 patients with PD. The results revealed that the patients who received GPi DBS maintained their swallowing function post-DBS, while those in the STN group significantly worsened in swallowing safety. As DBS surgery becomes a common management option in PD it is important to understand the impact of DBS on airway protective outcomes; especially given that aspiration pneumonia is the leading cause of death in this population. We present a case report in which optimizing DBS settings with the goal of improving laryngeal function resulted in immediate improvements to swallowing safety.
Incentivising appropriate care: the case of immunizations.

Incentivising appropriate care is a two-way street. Patients need to take greater responsibility and provider payment systems need to reward the best quality care. Today we are seeing the reemergence of many vaccine-preventable diseases that we thought were eradicated long ago for all practical purposes. In the U.S., diphtheria, polio, measles, mumps, and rubella all are on an upsurge. In this era of stringent cost containment and "managed care," preventive childhood immunizations offer one of the highest financial returns on investment we can achieve. So why have our inner cities become worse than some third-world countries in terms of low immunization rates for preschool age children and high infant mortality? We argue that "it's the money."
Generalized Decision Diagrams: the game is not over yet!

Decision diagrams have played an influential role in computer science and AI over the past few decades, with OBDDs (Ordered Binary Decision Diagrams) as perhaps the most practical and influential example. The practical influence of OBDDs is typically attributed to their canonicity, their efficient support of Boolean combination operations, and the availability of effective heuristics for finding good variable orders (which characterize OBDDs and their size). Over the past few decades, significant efforts have been exerted to generalize OBDDs, with the goal of defining more succinct representations while retaining the attractive properties of OBDDs. On the theoretical side, these efforts have yielded a rich set of decision diagram generalizations. Practially, however, OBDDs remain as the single most used decision diagram in applications. In this talk, I will discuss a recent line of research for generalizing OBDDs based on a new type of Boolean-function decompositions (which generalize the Shannon decomposition underlying OBDDs). I will discuss in particular the class of Sentential Decision Diagrams (SDDs), which branch on arbitrary sentences instead of variables, and which are characterized by trees instead of total variable orders. SDDs retain the main attractive properties of OBDDs and include OBDDs as a special case. I will discuss recent theoretical and empirical results, and a soon-to-be-released open source package for supporting SDDs, which suggest a potential breakthrough in the quest for producing more practical generalizations of OBDDs.
Pursuing DNA catalysts for protein modification.

ConspectusCatalysis is a fundamental chemical concept, and many kinds of catalysts have considerable practical value. Developing entirely new catalysts is an exciting challenge. Rational design and screening have provided many new small-molecule catalysts, and directed evolution has been used to optimize or redefine the function of many protein enzymes. However, these approaches have inherent limitations that prompt the pursuit of different kinds of catalysts using other experimental methods.Nature evolved RNA enzymes, or ribozymes, for key catalytic roles that in modern biology are limited to phosphodiester cleavage/ligation and amide bond formation. Artificial DNA enzymes, or deoxyribozymes, have great promise for a broad range of catalytic activities. They can be identified from unbiased (random) sequence populations as long as the appropriate in vitro selection strategies can be implemented for their identification. Notably, in vitro selection is different in key conceptual and practical ways from rat...
Exploring Division-I Student-Athletes’ Memorable Messages From Their Anticipatory Socialization

This study explored the socialization of 118 Division-I student-athletes via the topics of memorable messages that they received prior to their arrival on campus. Ten topics were identified (i.e., desirable attitudes, hard work, physical skill or ability, opportunities, pride, inclusion, challenges, athletes as symbols, the importance of education, and the duration of college athletics) using first cycle coding and were subsequently categorized as either addressing the characteristics or experiences of collegiate student-athletes using second cycle coding. These findings continue to demonstrate that characteristics and experiences associated with roles are prevalent within athletes’ memorable messages but also highlight the inherent ambiguity and the contradictions regarding how to use these messages and balance the dual roles of being a student-athlete. This study provides a novel communicative lens for understanding athlete socialization but underscores the need to recognize receivers’ processing and ap...
A Juggernaut in the Streets of London: Walking as Destructive Force in R.L. Stevenson’s Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

For most scholars, Edward Hyde is unquestionably atavistic, but Stevenson’s portrayal of Hyde as a uniquely proficient walker complicates such a reading. In this chapter, I read Hyde through a Certeauian lens, and I contend that in his unusual ability to move with speed and direction through London’s labyrinthine streets, Hyde prefigures Bill Brown’s postmodern city-dweller. As such, Hyde possesses the ability to orient himself within an “unmappable” environment and becomes, in some respects, the most evolved character in the novella. However, as he performs a Certeauian subversion of the established order, he also wields the power of walking against other pedestrians, often preventing them from creating city-texts of their own. Thus, destructive walking holds threatening implications for De Certeau’s diverse, street-level city.
CMHC's: relationships with academia and the state.

We have surveyed all community mental health centers (CMHC's), state departments of mental health, and university departments of psychiatry in the country to ascertain the status of their relationships with one another. The response rate to a one page questionnaire was 33%.
The Communal Basis for Moral Dignity: An African Perspective

AbstractI examine the standard view of dignity in Western literature and Metz’s African community view of dignity as a capacity for communal harmonious living. I argue that moral dignity is not just having a capacity for harmonious communal living, but the moral use of such capacity for the promotion of love, friendship, positive identity and active solidarity, which involves normatively prescriptive and evaluative elements. Thus, a plausible African communal conception of moral dignity, which is founded on a moral conception of personhood and community, involves a combination of capacity and agency that is conceptually tied to communal responsibility and respect for self and others. This indicates that human capacities do not have an inherent moral worth. Capacities are instrumentally good and their worth depends on how they are used to promote the moral good of communal well-being, on which individual well-being or dignity depends. This view captures the various use-senses of dignity, addresses many of ...
Fibulin-4 is essential for maintaining arterial wall integrity in conduit but not muscular arteries.

Homozygous or compound heterozygous mutations in fibulin-4 (FBLN4) lead to autosomal recessive cutis laxa type 1B (ARCL1B), a multisystem disorder characterized by significant cardiovascular abnormalities, including abnormal elastin assembly, arterial tortuosity, and aortic aneurysms. We sought to determine the consequences of a human disease–causing mutation in FBLN4 (E57K) on the cardiovascular system and vascular elastic fibers in a mouse model of ARCL1B. Fbln4E57K/E57K mice were hypertensive and developed arterial elongation, tortuosity, and ascending aortic aneurysms. Smooth muscle cell organization within the arterial wall of large conducting vessels was abnormal, and elastic fibers were fragmented and had a moth-eaten appearance. In contrast, vessel wall structure and elastic fiber integrity were normal in resistance/muscular arteries (renal, mesenteric, and saphenous). Elastin cross-linking and total elastin content were unchanged in large or small arteries, whereas elastic fiber architecture was abnormal in large vessels. While the E57K mutation did not affect Fbln4 mRNA levels, FBLN4 protein was lower in the ascending aorta of mutant animals compared to wild-type arteries but equivalent in mesenteric arteries. We found a differential role of FBLN4 in elastic fiber assembly, where it functions mainly in large conduit arteries. These results suggest that elastin assembly has different requirements depending on vessel type. Normal levels of elastin cross-links in mutant tissue call into question FBLN4’s suggested role in mediating lysyl oxidase–elastin interactions. Future studies investigating tissue-specific elastic fiber assembly may lead to novel therapeutic interventions for ARCL1B and other disorders of elastic fiber assembly.
Extending Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies for Racially, Linguistically, and Ability Diverse Learners:

This article discusses a research-based reading intervention called peer-assisted learning strategies in reading (PALS) and includes practical suggestions for educators concerned with literacy as a...
Relative importance of external and internal phosphorus loadings on affecting lake water quality in agricultural landscapes

Abstract Internal phosphorus (P) loading from the sediment poses a high risk of being an additional P source to deteriorate water quality. Previous studies hypothesized that internal P loads can be as high as external P inputs, especially in P enriched landscapes such as agricultural areas. However, internal P loadings in eutrophic conditions are rarely quantified or compared with external P loads. In this study, we aimed to answer these three questions; 1) how much P is internally released from the sediment of hypereutrophic lakes? 2) how much do internal P loads contribute to lake water quality compared to external loads? and 3) what factors regulate the release and retention of P in the sediment? We selected four hypereutrophic lakes located in Eastern Nebraska. In the study lakes and watersheds, internal and external P loads were quantified in 2014. Total P concentrations of inflow water collected from primary water channels feeding the study lakes and daily inflow water discharge rates were used to calculate external P loads. Internal P loads were quantified from flow-through soil core incubation experiments. External TP loads varied temporarily depending on the changes in discharge, and were highest during spring storm events. The majority of internal P loading (i.e. P release from sediment) occurred in the summer when lakes experience strong stratification (i.e. anaerobic conditions). This is likely associated with oxygen availability in the sediments and chemical dissolution of P. By comparing the annual-scale of external and internal P inputs, external P loadings were still the dominant P source to the lakes, contributing up to 98% of the total P input whereas internal P loadings accounted for 4–12% of the total P input. Although internal P loads were relatively minor on an annual time scale, we found that summer internal loadings in some of study lakes exceeded their external loadings. Our results confirmed the dominant influence of external P loadings on water quality in the reservoirs. This suggests that non-point source controls and watershed management strategies to reduce external loadings should be implemented prior to internal P loading controls. Internal P loadings can be a significant P source, even if just temporarily, worsening water quality of agricultural reservoirs and downstream ecosystems in the summer.
More-complete remains of Procolpochelys charlestonensis (Oligocene, South Carolina), an occurrence of Euclastes (upper Eocene, South Carolina), and their bearing on Cenozoic pancheloniid sea turtle distribution and phylogeny

New and more-complete material of Procolpochelys charlestonensis Weems and Sanders, 2014 provides the first detailed information on the skull, jaw, and plastron of this species, which occurs in the Oligocene Ashley and Chandler Bridge formations near Charleston, South Carolina. This material allows a much more detailed comparison of this turtle with the co-occurring pancheloniid species Ashleychelys palmeri Weems and Sanders, 2014 and Carolinochelys wilsoni Hay, 1923a, as well as with its Miocene successor Procolpochelys grandaeva (Leidy, 1851). Fused dentaries, found in the Cooper River north of Charleston, belong to the pancheloniid genus Euclastes, previously known only from the Upper Cretaceous and Paleocene. This specimen, apparently from the upper Eocene Parkers Ferry Formation, expands the temporal range of this genus and indicates that Euclastes survived in the North Atlantic basin far longer than was previously known. These new finds, combined with previous records of fossil pancheloniid sea turtles, provide an improved picture of the temporal distribution, evolutionary trends, and likely phylogeny of pancheloniids from the Late Cretaceous to the present.
The corticotropin releasing factor binding protein: A strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde in the stress system?

Abstract The corticotropin releasing factor (CRF) exerts its effects by acting on its receptors and on the binding protein (CRFBP). Extensive literature suggests a role of CRF in alcohol use disorder (AUD). Less is known about the specific role, if any, of CRFBP in AUD. In this review, we summarize recent interdisciplinary efforts toward identifying the contribution of CRFBP in mediating CRF activation. The role of CRFBP in alcohol-related behaviors has been evaluated with the ultimate goal of designing effective novel therapeutic strategies for AUD. A series of in vitro, in vivo, ex vivo, and genetic studies presented here provides initial evidence that CRFBP may possess both inhibitory and excitatory roles, and supports the original hypothesis that it represents a novel pharmacological target for the treatment of AUD. This report summarizes the proceedings of one of the talks at the Young Investigator Award symposium at the Alcoholism and Stress: A Framework for Future Treatment Strategies Conference, Volterra, Italy.
The Revolving (Bathroom) Door

An 87-year-old man with history of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, atrial fibrillation, recurrent kidney stones, and prostate cancer was referred for recurrent Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea. The patient’s only gastrointestinal past medical history included an asymptomatic 5–8 mm tubular adenoma and diverticulosis noted on colonoscopy several years prior to presentation. He presented with a urinary tract infection for which he received a 2-week course of ciprofloxacin. On day 10 of ciprofloxacin, he was brought to the emergency room in extremis with diarrhea, vomiting, fever, dehydration, and leukocytosis.
Characteristics of Successful Biotechnology Leaders

The ability to continuously learn and adapt is the single most important requirement to successfully lead biotechnology companies. The leader should be able to consistently articulate his or her vision throughout the organization, be a strategic decision-maker, and be flexible enough to allow the strategic vision to adjust to the culture and the environment. It is also important for the leader to communicate effectively and create an organization where communication flows efficiently at all levels. Clear cultural differences exist between functional groups and the importance of these differences should not be downplayed. Organizational leaders need to empower their employees at all levels to make strategic decisions; but at the same time, know which decisions must be retained as his or her sole responsibility.
A Model for Fluid Mechanical Studies of Air Pollution

A chemical model designed for fluid mechanical studies of pollutants distribution in the atmosphere is presented. The 7-step kinetic mechanism consisted of different rate constants and stoichiometric coefficients for various hydrocarbons is verified against several sets of experiments. The kinetic mechanism is adopted to predict pollutants time history in “static” and “convective” conditions simulating containments distribution in an urban (Los Angeles) basin. The model is also used to construct simple scaling laws and to examine the efficiency of various automobile engines in reducing pollutant levels.
Scalable multi-agent microgrid negotiations for a transactive energy market

Abstract Distributed energy resources are becoming increasingly common and forcing change in conventional energy markets with growing attention given to transactive energy networks that allow power trading between neighboring microgrids or distributed energy resources customers to supplement transactions with an electric utility. This study develops and evaluates a generalizable method for managing energy trading between microgrids in a grid-connected network through multi-agent techniques. The approach is demonstrated for a 3-node network and a 9-node network for a simulated year with hourly load and solar data for each unique microgrid agent. Results are compared against baseline networks without trading enabled to quantify a 3.6% and 5.4% reduction in the levelized cost of energy, respectively, with trading enabled for the 3-node and 9-node cases. Local energy storage capacities are varied to examine impact on the levelized cost of energy and trading behaviors. Results indicate that trading between microgrids reduces the levelized cost of energy for each individual node and the whole network, and that certain trends emerge between agents that allow some microgrids to operate at a lower cost than others.
Implementation of an enhanced recovery program in pediatric laparoscopic colorectal patients does not worsen analgesia despite reduced perioperative opioids: a retrospective, matched, non-inferiority study.

Background and objectives Enhanced recovery protocols (ERPs) decrease length of stay and postoperative morbidity, but it is important that these benefits do not come at a cost of sacrificing proper perioperative analgesia. In this retrospective, matched cohort study, we evaluated postoperative pain intensity in pediatric patients who underwent laparoscopic colorectal surgeries before and after ERP implementation. Methods Patients in each cohort were randomly matched based on age, diagnosis, American Society of Anesthesiologists classification, and surgical procedure. The primary outcome was average daily postoperative pain score, while the secondary outcomes included postoperative hospital length of stay, complication rate, and 30-day readmissions. Since our hypothesis was non-inferior analgesia in the postprotocol cohort, a non-inferiority study design was used. Results After matching, 36 pairs of preprotocol and postprotocol patients were evaluated. ERP patients had non-inferior recovery room pain scores (difference 0 (−1.19, 0) points, 95% CI −0.22 to 0.26 points, p valuenon-inferiority Conclusions Implementation of our ERP for pediatric laparoscopic colorectal patients was associated with less perioperative opioids without worsening postoperative pain scores. In addition, patients who received the protocol had faster return of bowel function, shorter postoperative hospital stays, and a lower rate of 30-day hospital readmissions. In pediatric laparoscopic colorectal patients, the incorporation of an ERP was associated with a pronounced decrease in perioperative morbidity without sacrificing postoperative analgesia.
Comparative Belittlement Properties of Multiscale Network Reduction Methodologies: Bistochastic and Disparity Filtering of Human Migration Flows between 3,000+ U. S. Counties

To control for multiscale effects in networks, one can transform the matrix of (in general) weighted, directed internodal flows to bistochastic (doubly-stochastic) form, using the iterative proportional fitting (Sinkhorn-Knopp) procedure, which alternatively scales row and column sums to all equal 1. The dominant entries in the bistochasticized table can then be employed for network reduction, using strong component hierarchical clustering. We illustrate various facets of this wellestablished, widely-applied two-stage algorithm with the 3, 107 × 3, 107 (asymmetric) 1995-2000 intercounty migration flow table for the United States. We compare the results obtained with ones using the disparity filter, for ”extracting the ”multiscale backbone of complex weighted networks”, recently put forth by Serrano, Boguna and Vespignani (SBV) (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 106 [2009], 6483), upon which we have briefly commented (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 106 [2009], E66). The performance of the bistochastic filter appears to be superior, in this specific case, in two respects: (1) it requires far fewer links to complete a strongly-connected network backbone; and (2) it ”belittles” small flows and nodes less–a principal desideratum of SBV–in the sense that the correlations of the nonzero raw flows are considerably weaker with the corresponding bistochastized links than with the significance levels yielded by the disparity filter. Further, the disparity filter, in general, relies upon a somewhat arbitrary choice of either AND or OR rules, while the bistochastic filter does not. Additional comparative studies–as called for by SBV–of these two filtering procedures, in particular as regards their topological properties, should be of considerable interest. Relatedly, in its many geographic applications, the two-stage procedure has–with rare exceptions–clustered contiguous areas, often reconstructing traditional regions (islands, for example), even though no contiguity constraints, at all, are imposed beforehand. PACS numbers: Valid PACS 02.10.Ox, 02.10.Yn, 89.65.Cd, 89.75.Hc ∗Electronic address: slater@kitp.ucsb.edu
Morality Politics of Physician-Assisted Suicide: Comparing Canada and the United States

In contrast to the European tendency toward parliamentary enactment of euthanasia reforms, policies on physician-assisted suicide (PAS) in both Canada and the United States were promulgated by high...
Association Between Weight Loss Before Deceased Donor Kidney Transplantation and Posttransplantation Outcomes.

Rationale & Objective There is debate on whether weight loss, a hallmark of frailty, signals higher risk for adverse outcomes among recipients of deceased donor kidney transplantation (DDKT). Study Design Retrospective cohort study. Setting & Participants Using national Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network data, we included all DDKT recipients in the United States between December 4, 2004, and December 3, 2014, who were adults (aged ≥ 18 years) when listed for DDKT. Exposures Relative pre-DDKT weight change as a continuous predictor and categorized as Outcomes We examined 3 post-DDKT outcomes: (1) transplant hospitalization length of stay (LOS) in days, (2) all-cause graft failure, and (3) mortality. Analytic Approach Unadjusted fractional polynomial methods, multivariable log-gamma models, and multivariable Cox proportional hazards models. Results Among 94,465 recipients of DDKT, median pre-DDKT weight change was 0 (interquartile range, −3.5 to +3.9) kg. There were nonlinear unadjusted associations between relative pre-DDKT weight loss and longer transplant hospitalization LOS, higher all-cause graft loss, and higher mortality. Compared with recipients with Limitations Unmeasured confounders and inability to identify volitional weight change. Also, the higher significance level set to increase the power of detecting interactions with the fixed sample size may have resulted in increased risk for type 1 error. Conclusions DDKT recipients with ≥10% pre-DDKT weight loss are at increased risk for adverse outcomes and may benefit from augmented support post-DDKT.
Pharmacological Interventions in Older Adults

In this chapter, we discuss the different pharmacological interventions for psychiatric diseases in the geriatric population. We specifically divide these treatments into five categories: anxiolytics and sedative-hypnotics, antipsychotics, antidepressants, mood stabilizers, and cognitive enhancers. These categories are further divided into disease-specific medications. The utility, general recommendations, mechanism of action, dosing, and adverse reactions of drugs are covered for the medications in this chapter. The treatment of mental illness in the geriatric population is a complicated process due to the physiologic changes of metabolism, drug absorption, and drug excretion. These transformations specifically alter the dosing of pharmacological treatments in older adults. The shift in metabolism inherently changes the side effect profile of medications compared to the general adult population, which further complicates the utilization of pharmaceutical interventions for older adults with psychiatric conditions. It is our goal to provide a solid background for clinicians to make prudent decisions in the treatment approach of psychiatric diseases in the geriatric population.
Political Affiliation in Resumes: Loathing, Disidentification, and the Dark Side of Assessment

Members of major political parties in the United States view each other much more negatively than at any time in the past several decades, and political discord is common around the globe. To test ...
Teacher-Delivered Training to Promote Paraprofessional Implementation of Systematic Instruction:

As paraprofessionals gain more instructional responsibilities for individual students, feasible training strategies must be established to promote effective delivery of instruction. This train-the-...
Do PISA Scores Relate to Happiness

The Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) tests the skills and knowledge of 15-year old students across the world in the key subjects of reading, writing, and math. Student achievement on PISA tests is believed to be a solid indicator of a nation’s economic health. However, it is now believed that economic prosperity is not the sole measure of the happiness and well-being of a nation. Therefore, since 2012, the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network measures the well-being of people using seven key metrics. The objective of this paper is to investigate how PISA scores relate to these metrics of happiness. To examine this relationship, countries which administered PISA tests are first clustered into two groups, namely, High-Achieving and Under-Performing based on their average PISA scores. Subsequently, the average happiness metrics are compared across these two clusters for statistical significance using the t-test. It was found that metrics such as GDP and health differ significantly across the two clusters. However, human-centric, progressive metrics, especially freedom and generosity do not differ significantly across the two clusters. Therefore, although PISA scores do translate into economic prosperity and better health, they do not necessarily lead to more equitable and kinder societies.
The WASP-Homology 2 Domain and Cytoskeleton Assembly

One of the most abundant and functionally diverse actin-binding folds is the WASP homology 2 (WH2 or W) domain. The W domain is found in proteins involved in actin monomer sequestration and cytoskeleton scaffolding, but is particularly abundant among proteins that mediate the de novo formation of actin filaments, which includes actin filament nucleation and elongation factors. Known filament nucleators include the Arp2/3 complex and its large family of Nucleation Promoting Factors (NPFs), formins, Spire, Cobl, VopL/VopF, TARP and Lmod. These molecules are generally unrelated, but with the exception of formins they all use the W domain for interaction with actin. A common architecture, found in Spire, Cobl and VopL/VopF, consists of tandem W domains that bind three to four actin subunits to form a nucleus. Structural considerations suggest that NPFs-Arp2/3 complex can also be viewed as a specialized form of tandem W-based nucleator. Ena/VASP proteins are distantly related to WASP-family NPFs, and function as dedicated filament elongation factors among W-based nucleators.
Radiation and Radiation Disorders

With current technologies, radiation doses associated with exploration and habitation missions to the Moon and Mars may well exceed the limits currently defined for LEO operations. Assessment of the radiation protection needed during interplanetary and remote planetary missions should include consideration of several key technologies, such as integrating structural radiation shielding into vehicle design. Mission planning should, of course, account for solar cycles in considering vehicular trajectories. Vehicle designs could maximize shielding of crew compartments by considering fuel and water storage tanks as components of shielding. Development of advanced propulsion systems is expected to shorten the required transit time. Advanced warning systems for SPEs might be possible through the use of solar orbiting satellites. Shielding strategies for surface habitats should include consideration of materials (e.g., regolith) that would reduce exposure to primary radiation and not evoke significant doses from secondary radiation. Geographic variations in the natural terrain can be exploited to enhance habitat shielding. Development and use of personalized active dosimeters deserves particular attention, as does selection of EVA suit materials.
Gut microbiota differences in Island Hispanic Puerto Ricans and mainland non-Hispanic whites during chemoradiation for rectal cancer: A pilot study

Abstract Purpose To investigate whether there are differences in diversity, taxonomic composition, and predicted functional pathways of the gut microbiome between Island Hispanic Puerto Ricans (HPR) and mainland non-Hispanic whites (NHW) measured before and at the end of chemo-radiation (CRT) for Rectal Cancer. Methods Fifty-six stool samples of newly diagnosed rectal cancer patients (25 HPR and 31 NHW) were amplicon-sequenced during chemo-radiotherapy. 16S rRNA gene data was analyzed using QIIME2, phyloseq, and LEfSe. Results We observed similar within-sample alpha diversity for HPR and NHW participants during CRT. However, at the end of CRT, several taxa were present at significantly different abundances across both groups. Taxa enriched in the gut of HPR compared to NHW included Muribaculaceae, Prevotella 2 and 7, Gemella, Bacillales Family XI, Catenibacterium, Sutterella, Pasteurellales, and Pasteurellaceae genera, whereas over-represented taxa in NHW participants were Turicibacter and Eubacteriaceae. Significant differences in predicted HPR microbiota functions included pathways for synthesis of L-methionine and degradation of phenylethylamine and phenylacetate. Conclusion In this pilot study, taxonomic analyses and functional predictions of the gut microbiomes suggest greater inflammatory potential in gut microbial functions among HPR rectal cancer patients undergoing CRT compared to that of NHW participants.
Supporting K-12 teachers in the context of whole-school sustainability: four case studies

AbstractWe examined practices from whole-school sustainability programs in four U.S. K-12 institutions in the areas of educator values, skills, and support. Based on results from four school visits...
Debunking Four Long-Standing Misconceptions of Time-Series Distance Measures

Distance measures are core building blocks in time-series analysis and the subject of active research for decades. Unfortunately, the most detailed experimental study in this area is outdated (over a decade old) and, naturally, does not reflect recent progress. Importantly, this study (i) omitted multiple distance measures, including a classic measure in the time-series literature; (ii) considered only a single time-series normalization method; and (iii) reported only raw classification error rates without statistically validating the findings, resulting in or fueling four misconceptions in the time-series literature. Motivated by the aforementioned drawbacks and our curiosity to shed some light on these misconceptions, we comprehensively evaluate 71 time-series distance measures. Specifically, our study includes (i) 8 normalization methods; (ii) 52 lock-step measures; (iii) 4 sliding measures; (iv) 7 elastic measures; (v) 4 kernel functions; and (vi) 4 embedding measures. We extensively evaluate these measures across 128 time-series datasets using rigorous statistical analysis. Our findings debunk four long-standing misconceptions that significantly alter the landscape of what is known about existing distance measures. With the new foundations in place, we discuss open challenges and promising directions.
Abstract 6346: Optimizing precision combination therapies based on single-cell profiling of brain tumor biopsies

Glioblastomas (GBM) display dramatic levels of intra-tumoral heterogeneity. This heterogeneity contributes significantly to resistance to standard and emerging treatments. As a result, GBM remains the deadliest primary tumor of the adult brain. Moreover, most preclinical studies of GBM use models of primary GBM, most studies of clinical specimens use tissue derived from primary GBMs, despite the fact that most clinical trials enroll patients at recurrence. There is a paucity of information about recurrent GBM. To address these critical barriers, we devised a strategy to optimize precision drug combinations based on an understanding of a patient9s intratumor heterogeneity, ascertained via single-cell profiling. We conducted single-nucleus RNA sequencing (snRNA-seq) and/or single-nucleus assay for transposon-accessible chromatin (snATAC-seq) sequencing for 16 recurrent GBMs. For 6 of these cases we also derived cell lines from patient biopsies. We identified lineage hierarchies of proliferating cells and their more differentiated progeny. Based on this, we performed an in vitro drug-combination screen using FDA-approved chemotherapies, targeting pathways learned from these single-cell signatures. We found that targeting distinct cellular states in the inferred lineage hierarchy of a patient9s tumor provides a more complete treatment than targeting one state alone. Additionally, we will present the results of our ongoing in vivo validation activities and profiling efforts. This work presents a novel paradigm for identifying precision combinations of chemotherapies targeted to phenotypes learned from single-cell profiling of a patient9s tumor biopsy. Citation Format: Husam Babikir, Lin Wang, Karin Shamardani, Francisca Catalan, Gary Kohanbash, Manish K. Aghi, Joanna J. Phillips, Aaron A. Diaz. Optimizing precision combination therapies based on single-cell profiling of brain tumor biopsies [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research 2020; 2020 Apr 27-28 and Jun 22-24. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2020;80(16 Suppl):Abstract nr 6346.
Fast knot optimization for multivariate adaptive regression splines using hill climbing methods

Abstract Multivariate adaptive regression splines (MARS) is a statistical modeling approach with wide-ranging real-world applications. In the MARS model building process, knot positioning is a critical step that potentially affects the accuracy of the final MARS model. Identifying well-positioned knots entails assessing the quality of many knots in each model building iteration, which requires intensive computational effort. By exploring the change in the residual sum of squares (RSS) within MARS, we find that local optima from previous iterations can be very close to those of the current iteration. In our approach, the prior change in RSS information is used to “warm start” an optimal knot positioning. We propose two methods for MARS knot positioning. The first method is a hill climbing method (HCM), which ignores prior change in RSS information. The second method is a hill climbing method using prior change in RSS information (PHCM). Numerical experiments are conducted on data with up to 30 dimensions. Our results show that both versions of hill climbing methods outperform a standard MARS knot selection method on datasets with different noise levels. Further, PHCM using prior change in RSS information performs best in both accuracy and computational speed. In addition, an open source Python code will be available upon acceptance of the paper on GitHub ( https://github.com/JuXinglong/MARSHC ).
Fetal intracranial hemorrhage associated with maternal coagulopathy and vitamin K deficiency after biliary drain placement: A case report and literature review.

Abstract Introduction Fetal intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) is a rare but serious prenatal diagnosis. Predisposing factors include maternal trauma and fetal coagulation dysfunction. Maternal vitamin K deficiency has been described as an etiology. We present a case of maternal vitamin K deficiency associated with fetal ICH after percutaneous biliary drain (PBD) placement in a complicated cholecystectomy with injury to the common bile duct. Case presentation A 21-year-old woman, G2P1, presented at 23 weeks and 3 days of gestation with epigastric pain, nausea and vomiting. Right upper quadrant ultrasound diagnosed cholelithiasis. The patient was managed conservatively and discharged. She returned four days later, at 24 weeks of gestation, with worsening symptoms and ultrasound showing acute cholecystitis. She underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Increasing bilirubin and imaging showed a transected biliary duct that required percutaneous biliary drain (PBD) placement. The patient was discharged and followed up at a high-risk obstetric clinic. Prenatal ultrasound showed bilateral ventriculomegaly with features of ICH. Maternal vitamin K deficiency was confirmed with PIVKA-II testing. The patient received vitamin K supplementation with normalization of the coagulopathy. Delivery occurred at 36 weeks of gestation via cesarean delivery after preterm premature rupture of membranes for fetal macrocrania. The neonate was discharged to a hospice. Discussion Maternal and neonatal etiologies for ICH include malabsorption and coagulopathy. Maternal vitamin K deficiency should be considered when coagulopathy is present. This case highlights that maternal vitamin K deficiency due to biliary diversion and malabsorption increases the risk of fetal ICH, which impacts pregnancy and neonatal outcomes.
Upcycling Plastic Bags to Make Jump Ropes: Elementary Students Leverage Experiences and Knowledge as They Engage in a Relevant, Community-Oriented Mathematical Modeling Task

Mathematical modeling is a high-leverage topic, critical for participation in STEM education and civic engagement (Aguirre et al., Math Teach Educ 7(2):7–26, 2019). In the Mathematical Modeling with Cultural and Community Contexts (M2C3) project, we investigate culturally responsive, community-based approaches that support mathematical modeling with elementary students, particularly those historically marginalized in STEM. This study focused on how students drew upon their knowledge and experiences as they engaged in the mathematical modeling process. Using a qualitative case study design (Stake, The art of case study research. Sage, Thousand Oaks, 1995), we investigated elementary students (third and fifth graders) in four different classes as they engaged in a common modeling lesson – Upcycling Plastic Bags to Make Jump Ropes. Data sources included video-recorded lesson observations, teacher interviews and reflections, and student work. Through iterative cycles of analysis, we conducted within-case and cross case analyses. Across the four lessons, we found that students’ experiences and knowledge related to jump rope activities supported their engagement in each phase of the modeling process. Specifically, students leveraged experiences to identify important quantities and relationships, to make assumptions, to analyze and interpret the reasonableness of their solutions, and to inform model revisions. Our findings have important implications for mathematics modeling instruction.