cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Vitamin D receptor ligands, adenomatous polyposis coli, and the vitamin D receptor FokI polymorphism collectively modulate β‐catenin activity in colon cancer cells

The activity of beta-catenin, commonly dysregulated in human colon cancers, is inhibited by the vitamin D receptor (VDR), and this mechanism is postulated to explain the putative anti-cancer activity of vitamin D metabolites in the colon. We investigated the effect of a common FokI restriction site polymorphism (F/f) in the human VDR gene as well as the effect of anti-tumorigenic 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D(3) (1,25D) and pro-tumorigenic lithocholic acid (LCA) VDR ligands on beta-catenin transcriptional activity. Furthermore, the influence of a major regulatory protein of beta-catenin, the APC tumor suppressor gene, on VDR-dependent inhibition of beta-catenin activity was examined. We report herein that beta-catenin-mediated transcription is most effectively suppressed by the VDR FokI variant F/M4 when 1,25D is limiting. Using Caco-2 colorectal cancer (CRC) cells, it was observed that VDR ligands, 1,25D and LCA, both suppress beta-catenin transcriptional activity, though 1,25D exhibited significantly greater inhibition. Moreover, 1,25D, but not LCA, suppressed endogenous expression of the beta-catenin target gene DKK-4 independent of VDR DNA-binding activity. These results support beta-catenin sequestration away from endogenous gene targets by 1,25D-VDR. This activity is most efficiently mediated by the FokI gene variant F/M4, a VDR allele previously associated with protection against CRC. Interestingly, we found the inhibition of beta-catenin activity by 1,25D-VDR was significantly enhanced by wild-type APC. These results reveal a previously unrecognized role for 1,25D-VDR in APC/beta-catenin cross talk. Collectively, these findings strengthen evidence favoring a direct effect on the Wnt-signaling molecule beta-catenin as one anti-cancer target of 1,25D-VDR action in the colorectum.
Evaluation of different selective media and culturing techniques for the quantification of Campylobacter ssp. from broiler litter

Poultry is a major reservoir for Campylobacter, the leading cause of foodborne illness in the United States, but how broilers become initially colonized is still under debate. Broiler litter is a potential source, but the best technique for quantifying Campylobacter from litter is still unknown. Therefore, our objectives were to determine if certain media are more selective for quantifying Campylobacter and if enrichment allows for the detection of stressed or viable but nonculturable cells from broiler litter samples. In this trial, 5 media and 2 culturing techniques were used to enumerate Campylobacter from broiler litter. The media used were campy-Line agar (CLA), campy-cefex agar (CCA), modified CCA, Campylobacter agar plates (CAP), and modified charcoal cefoperazone deoxycholate agar. Litter samples were obtained from a commercial broiler house. Each sample was equally divided and diluted 10-fold into peptone, for direct plating, or 4-fold into Campylobacter enrichment broth. Samples diluted in peptone were direct-plated onto each media and incubated under microaerophilic conditions for 48 h at 42 degrees C. Samples diluted in enrichment broth were incubated under the same conditions for 24 h, then further diluted to 10-fold before plating. Plates from enriched samples were incubated for an additional 24 h after plating. After incubation, all plates (direct and enriched) were counted and presumptive positive colonies were confirmed using a Campylobacter latex agglutination kit. Results indicated that there was no difference in the ability of any of the selective media tested to grow Campylobacter. Direct-plated samples had a higher Campylobacter isolation rate compared with enriched samples. The CLA and CAP were able to suppress total bacterial growth better than modified charcoal cefoperazone deoxycholate, modified CCA, and CCA. The CLA and CAP were the only media able to detect total bacterial population shifts over time. In conclusion, it is important before making a final decision on a selective medium to consider the medium's ability to suppress total bacterial growth as well as isolate Campylobacter.
Role of histopathologic and phenotypic assessment in the development and validation of optical diagnostic devices for head and neck mucosal lesions

Autofluorescence imaging has recently been shown to improve the detection of premalignant and malignant oral lesions. This method is based on the illumination in the absorption of tissue fluorophore molecules (NADH and FAD in the epithelial layer and collagen, and elastin in the stroma) in ultraviolet visible spectrum leading to the emission of lower energy photon that can be detected as fluorescence from the oral surface mucosa. Studies of these methods in normal oral mucosa have shown increased green fluorescence in comparison to neoplastic lesions upon ultraviolet (UV) or near UV light source. The histopathologic manifestations and heterogeneity of oral squamous lesions and the confounding factors for the validation and the clinical applications of autofluoresence imaging will be presented and discussed. from 1st Scientific Meeting of the Head and Neck Optical Diagnostics Society
Natural Unit Representation in Modelica

A method is presented by which alternative systems of physical units may be represented and utilized in Modelica. The method may be useful in simulating models of physical systems where the base units of the International System of Units (Systeme international d’unites, SI)—the standard unit system in Modelica— are poorly scaled. It also provides a convenient means to express the values of physical quantities in fields of science and engineering where data is typically represented in other systems of units or where the rank of the system of units is less than that of SI (i.e., natural units). By explicitly expressing the value of a physical quantity as the product of a number and a unit (where the unit is an algebraic variable), the method uses variables that are unit-neutral. Unfortunately, workarounds are necessary in order to implement the method in the current version of the Modelica language. Nonetheless, it may be useful in special applications, and the related discussion may provide valuable insight. In particular, it is shown that there is an apparent conflict in the interpretation of “number” and “value” between Modelica and the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (Bureau Inter
Oviposition and larval development of a stem borer, Eoreuma loftini, on rice and non-crop grass hosts

A greenhouse study compared oviposition preference and larval development duration of a stem borer, Eoreuma loftini (Dyar) (Lepidoptera: Crambidae), on rice, Oryza sativa L. cv Cocodrie (Poaceae), and four primary non-crop hosts of Texas Gulf Coast rice agroecosystems. Rice and two perennials, johnsongrass, Sorghum halepense (L.) Pers., and vaseygrass, Paspalum urvillei Steud. (both Poaceae), were assessed at three phenological stages. Two spring annuals, brome, Bromus spec., and ryegrass, Lolium spec. (both Poaceae), were assessed at two phenological stages. Phenological stages represented the diversity of plant development stages E. loftini may encounter. Plant fresh biomass, dry biomass, and sum of tiller heights were used as measures of plant availability. Accounting for plant availability, rice was preferred over non-crop hosts, and intermediate and older plants were preferred over young plants. Johnsongrass and vaseygrass were 32–60% as preferred as rice when considering the most preferred phenological stages of each host. Brome and ryegrass received few or no eggs, respectively. Eoreuma loftini larval development (in degree days above developmental threshold temperatures) was fastest on rice and slowest on johnsongrass and vaseygrass. Development duration was only retarded by plant stage on young rice plants. Foliar and stem free amino acid concentrations were determined to help provide insights on the mechanisms of E. loftini oviposition preference and developmental performance.
Recentering Nil Sorskii: The Evidence from the Sources

Sorskii (1433/34-1508), like any known Russian figure from his time, even the sovereigns, is barely accessible to scholars. But his writings are a window into his world, and with them I shall commence by flagging two major issues. The first involves the massive inadequacies of existing English translations of Nil, one missing about 25 percent of the content of Nil's major works the other loosely translating not his treatise "On Mental Activity," commonly called his Ustav, but a late nineteenth-century, adapted and explicated, free rendition of it.1 My own critical translation, bolstered by the location of most of the Slavic sources, is now ready for publication.2 The second problem concerns the standard paradigm regarding Nil. For over a century the usual depiction of medieval Russia's "great elder" and proponent of stillness or hesychasm was the failed, better alternative of Muscovite Orthodoxy one more reasoned, tolerant, humane, and promising for a liberal, happy Russian future than that promoted by the more formal, ritualistic, dissident-suppressing, autocracy-promoting, and wealth acquiring, if materially charitable, Iosif Volotskii and his followers.3 Of course, some Russian scholars focused favorably upon Iosif for the theological and rhetorical power of his stance against heretics, and his social concerns.4 Still, the "not-Iosif image of the "non-possessor"
Classical Delay Eyeblink Conditioning in 4- and 5-Month-Old Human Infants

Simple delay classical eyeblink conditioning, using a tone conditioned stimulus (CS) and airpuff unconditioned stimulus (US), was studied in cross-sectional samples of 4- and 5-month-old healthy, full-term infants. Infants received two identical training sessions, 1 week apart. At both ages, infants experiencing paired tones and airpuffs demonstrated successful conditioning over two sessions, relative to control subjects who had unpaired training. Conditioning was not evident, however, during the first session. Two additional groups of 5-month-olds received varied experiences during Session 1, either unpaired presentations of the CS and US or no stimulus exposure, followed by paired conditioning during Session 2. Results from these groups suggest that the higher level of conditioning observed following two sessions of paired conditioning was not the result of familiarity with the testing environment or the stimuli involved but, rather, the result of retention of associative learning not expressed during t...
Estimation of mis-specified long memory models

Abstract We study the asymptotic behaviour of frequency domain maximum likelihood estimators of mis-specified models of long memory Gaussian series. We show that even if the long memory structure of the time series is correctly specified, mis-specification of the short memory dynamics may result in estimators of both long- and short-memory parameters that are slower than n consistent for the pseudo-true parameter values, which in general differ from the true values. The conditions under which this happens are provided and the asymptotic distribution of the estimators is shown to be non-Gaussian. Conditions under which estimators of the parameters of the mis-specified model have the standard n consistency for the pseudo-true values and are asymptotically normal are also provided.
Hydrological seasonality and benthic algal biomass in a Neotropical floodplain river

AbstractOur study evaluated spatiotemporal variation of physicochemical parameters and benthic and sestonic algal biomass in littoral areas of the main channel and floodplain lakes of the Cinaruco River, a lowland tributary of the Orinoco River in Venezuela. The Cinaruco is characterized by a highly predictable annual flood pulse, high transparency, and extremely low conductivity and suspended sediment load. During 2002 and 2003, 10 sites in the main channel and floodplain lagoons were sampled on 12 occasions. Correspondence analysis based on water physicochemical variables and algal biomass showed that ˜80% of the variation in the multivariate space among sites and sampling dates was explained by 2 axes. During the high-water periods, river and lagoon sites showed high similarity in water variables and algal biomass. Conductivity, SiO3, and chlorophyll a concentrations (both benthic and sestonic) were low during the high-water phase. On the other hand, water variables and algal biomass differed between r...
A new carbon capture proxy model for optimizing the design and time-varying operation of a coal-natural gas power station

Abstract We optimize the design and time-varying operation of a CO 2 -capture-enabled power station burning coal and natural gas, subject to a CO 2 emission intensity constraint. The facility consists of a coal-fired power plant and an amine CO 2 capture system, which is powered by a combined-heat-and-power auxiliary gas-fired subsystem. The detailed design of the CO 2 capture system, the detailed heat integration of the facility, and time-varying operations schedule across all hours of the year are determined in a single optimization problem. This problem is formulated as a bi-objective mixed integer nonlinear program: objectives include minimizing total capital requirement (TCR) and maximizing net present value (NPV). Because the Aspen Plus model used for the CO 2 capture system is too computationally intensive to use directly in optimization runs, we develop a statistical proxy model of the capture system that reproduces Aspen Plus results but is several hundred times faster. The integrated proxy model includes statistical submodels for the CO 2 absorption and solvent regeneration blocks, as well as simple physical models of other system components. Incorporating the detailed CO 2 capture system in the optimization provides important design information such as the optimal number of CO 2 capture trains required. Two scenarios are considered, based on historical data for Texas and India. Results show that the choice of objective function can have a strong effect on planned operating profile (constant or variable operations). Similarly, hourly electricity price variability strongly affects design and plant scheduling. In the West Texas scenario, which has high price variability, the maximum NPV objective favors variable operations, with a CO 2 capture system utilization factor of 65.9% (out of a maximum of 85%), while the minimum TCR objective favors constant operations. In contrast, because of low electricity price variability in the India scenario, there is little value in time-shifting the demand for capture heat, so constant operations are favored in this case for both objectives.
Activation of Oncogenes by Chemical Carcinogens

Increasing evidence suggests that a small set of cellular genes appear to be targets for genetic alterations that contribute to the neoplastic transformation of cells. These genes, termed protooncogenes, appear to play a crucial role in normal cellular growth or differentiation since they are highly conserved in nature, being detected in species as divergent as yeast, Drosophila, and humans. Recent identification of a number of these genes as encoding for putative growth factors (sis,hst, int-2), growth factor receptors (neu, erb B, fms), proteins involved in the regulation of transmembrane signal transduction (ras), nuclear regulatory proteins (myc, myb, fos, jun), tyrosine kinases (src) and serine/threonine kinases (raf, mos) has served to substantiate this idea.
Effectiveness of an Alternative Dental Workforce Model on the Oral Health of Low-Income Children in a School-Based Setting

Objectives. We evaluated the effect of an alternative dental workforce program—Kansas’s Extended Care Permit (ECP) program—as a function of changes in oral health.Methods. We examined data from the 2008 to 2012 electronic medical records of children (n = 295) in a Midwestern US suburb who participated in a school-based oral health program in which preventive oral health care was delivered by ECP dental hygienists. We examined changes in oral health status as a function of sealants, caries, restorations, and treatment urgency with descriptive statistics, multivariate analysis of variance, Kruskal–Wallis test, and Pearson correlations.Results. The number of encounters with the ECP dental hygienist had a statistically significant effect on changes in decay (P = .014), restorations (P = .002), and treatment urgency (P = .038). Based on Pearson correlations, as encounters increased, there was a significant decrease in decay (–0.12), increase in restorations (0.21), and decrease in treatment urgency (–0.15).Con...
Transmit diversity implementation through phase conjugation in line of Sight and Non Line of Sight scenerios

In this work, we have demonstrated transmit diver- sity using phase conjugating scheme. A six bit digital phase shifter and three voltage controlled phase shifters were developed to implement the pre-coded phase conjugate in the transmit signal. Deliberate constructive interference of the signal transmitted from multiple antennas was achieved at the desired target. The proposed scheme is demonstrated to work successfully in Line of Sight (LoS) and Non-Line of Sight (NLoS) scenarios. This technique enables control over spatial power distribution of nulls and peaks. A gain of 16 to 20 dB was achieved (If standing on the complete null) in the incident power without increasing the transmit power.
Food insecurity and peripheral arterial disease in older adult populations

Food insecurity, defined as the limited or uncertain availability of nutritious and safe foods, is a complex phenomenon and is linked to poor nutrition and diet-sensitive chronic diseases. Dietary patterns that include saturated fats and meat products are potential risk factors for the progression of peripheral arterial disease (PAD). This study explored whether there is a relationship between food insecurity and PAD among a national sample of older adults. We conducted a cross-sectional data analysis using data from the 1999-2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Food security was assessed using the US Household Food Security Survey Module. Bivariate analyses were conducted using the Rao-Scott Chisquare test to examine associations between PAD and sociodemographic variables. Multivariable generalized logistic regression was employed to assess the effect of food security on the presence of PAD, with adjustment for respondent’s socio demographic characteristics. A total of 2,027 adults with PAD were included (Ankle Brachial Index (ABI) score ≤ 0.90).We excluded participants less than 60 years of age. Compared to older adults who are food secure, those who are food insecure have an increased risk for PAD. Food insecurity is associated with peripheral arterial disease among older adults (adults adjusted odds ratio, 1.50 [95% CI 1.11-2.03). Older adults with peripheral arterial disease are experiencing food insecurity. While nutrition and PAD are not well-defined, previous literature indicates there is a connection between food insecurity and diet-sensitive chronic diseases (diabetes and hypertension) which are risk factors for PAD. Food insecurity should be taken into consideration when treating older adults with PAD to help decrease poor health outcomes that are linked to an insufficient amount of nutritious foods.
The Effect of Disclosure Level on the Cost of EquityCapital

A lower cost of equity capital is believed by some to be a benefit of greater voluntary disclosure. I examine this association by regressing cost of capital on beta firm size and a self-constructed disclosure index based on the level of voluntary disclosure provided by 122 manufacturing firms in their 1990 annual reports. The results suggest that for lightly followed firms greater voluntary disclosure reduces cost of equity capital. No such association is found for heavily followed firms. I obtain firm-specific cost of equity capital estimates from an accounting based valuation formula. This approach incorporates forecast data thereby yielding an estimate of expected cost of equity capital and avoiding the noise arising from ex-post deviations from expected value. The association between the cost of equity capital estimates thus obtained and market beta is positive; its correlation with market value is negative. An examination of the internal consistency of the disclosure index and its association with firm characteristics identified in prior research to be correlated with annual report disclosure level provide support for the claim that the index is a valid and reliable measure of disclosure level.
Superstructures and domain structures in natural and synthetic kalsilite

Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) investigation of natural kalsilite, (K,77Doo9Na",4b(Si209Alu9Feo12bOg, from San Venanzo, Italy, shows that it contains a pervasive domain structure related to a superstructure. The probable space group for the superstructure is P21. The relationship between the unit -cell parameters of the P6, subcell and those of the P21 supercell is a,upec ~ b,upec ~ v'3a,ub; c,upec = Cmb,and the a,upec axis is rotated 30° about the C axis with respect to the a,ubaxis. Nonperiodic distribution of elongated twin domains causes streaking of superstructure reflections normal to the c* axis. The average structure of this kalsilite sample has P6, symmetry. On the basis of previous structure refinements, this average structure has three 01 positions slightly displaced from the threefold axis, and each 01 position has a site occupancy of V3.High-temperature annealing studies indicated that there is a displacive phase transition from the P21 superstructure to the P63 substructure. The twin domains are related by threefold twin operations. The phase-transition temperature for kalsilite may range from 500 to 600°C and is dependent on the crystal composition (e.g., the proportions of Na, Ca, and vacancies). Kalsilite crystals prepared from nepheline by Na-K exchange are structurally complex. Domain structures in Na-bearing kalsilite crystals with more than 2.5 mol% NaSiAI04 are similar to those in the natural kalsilite sample but exhibit additional twin boundaries parallel to the c axis. Na-poor and Na-free kalsilite crystals are composed of (0001) domains with P63 and P31c symmetries, respectively, and merohedral twins between the neighboring P63 or P31c domains. The merohedral twins in the synthetic crystals formed during transformation of the nepheline structure to the kalsilite structure. The intergrown domains with P31c symmetry formed during the phase transition on cooling of the Na-poor kalsilite. There is no simple symmetry hierarchy among the known structures in the proposed phase diagram.
Biology and Description of Immature Stages of Orthacheta hirtipes, a Predator of Cordilura spp.

The seasonal life history is elucidated and the immature stages are described. The female Orthacheta hirtipes Johnson (Diptera: Anthomyiidae) lays a single egg at the apex of a Carex culm that is infested with a Cordilura sp. larva. The female is apparently attracted to the Carex culm by the etiolated shoot that resulted from the feeding activity of the Cordilura larva. The egg hatches in 4–6 days and the 1st-stage larva of O. hirtipes bores down the center of Carex culm, eating plant material. The 2nd- or 3rd-stage O. hirtipes larva subsequently attacks and kills the Cordilura larva in the lower portion of the culm. Within its range O. hirtipes has been found attacking practically every species of Cordilura that feeds in Carex. In some localities O. hirtipes may kill up to 50% of Cordilura larvae.
Indistinguishability Obfuscation with Constant Size Overhead.

Present constructions of indistinguishability obfuscation (iO) create obfuscated programs where the size of the obfuscated program is at least a factor of a security parameter larger than the size of the original program. In this work, we construct the first iO scheme that achieves only a constant multiplicative overhead (in fact, the constant is 2) in the size of the program. The security of our construction requires the existence of sub-exponentially secure iO for circuits (that has any polynomial multiplicative overhead in the circuit size) and one-way functions.
The Ultra Vires Solution to Citizens United (Presentation Slides)

In this presentation, made June 4, 2015 at the National Business Law Scholars Conference, I argued that Delaware’s legislature could amend the DGCL to deny corporations the power to make political contributions without violating a corporation's First Amendment rights. (My paper on this same topic will be posted in this same space once it is finished.) Thanks to participants in the conference, including my panelists Elizabeth Pollman and Vince Buccola, for their comments. (Readers are welcome to email me with any further comments.)
Clinical Veterinary Immunology

This chapter reviews some basic principles of immunology and presents current methodologies used in clinical immunology laboratory. The field of clinical immunology has evolved from serological testing for the presence of antibodies to infectious agents, to a multifaceted discipline that utilizes some of the traditional techniques in addition to many newer more sensitive assay systems. Assays developed to target specific parts of the immune system enable the clinician not only to determine if a patient has normal immune responsiveness, but also to target those parts of the immune system that are suspect of inadequate function. Serology is used to determine retrospectively if a patient was infected with a particular disease agent; antibody titers continue to have importance in diagnostics. The chapter also discusses the basic concepts related to innate immunity and acquired immunity. The chapter then elaborates methods for the evaluation of immume responses to infectious agents. The chapter concludes with elaborating the concepts of laboratory diagnosis of diseases with an immunological pathogenesis.
Acute Isolated Flexor Tendon Laceration Associated With a Distal Radius Fracture.

Background Subacute rupture of the flexor tendons secondary to distal radius fractures is well documented. Recently, accounts of flexor tendon rupture following open reduction internal fixation have been associated with volar plate fixation. However, discovery of an occult traumatic flexor tendon laceration during fixation of an acute distal radius fracture is not well described. This case indicates the importance of careful preoperative and intraoperative examination of the flexor tendons in the setting of comminuted distal radius fractures. Methods A forty-seven-year-old male sustained a comminuted, dorsally displaced distal radius fracture. Initial and post-reduction examinations revealed no gross functional abnormalities. Upon operative fixation of the fracture, laceration of the flexor digitorum profundus (FDP) tendon to the index finger was incidentally noted at the level of the fracture site. Results Due to extensive dorsal comminution, shortening, and the presence of a lunate facet fragment, we performed volar fragment-specific and dorsal spanning bridge plate fixation. The proximal and distal ends of the FDP tendon were marked, but repair was deferred until implant removal. This allowed for proper informed consent and avoided potential compromise of the repair given the presence of a volar implant. Conclusions Acute flexor tendon rupture secondary to closed distal radius fractures may go unnoticed if a high index of suspicion is not maintained. Delayed diagnosis of these ruptures convolutes the mechanism of injury and disrupts the recovery process. Hand surgeons should be vigilant in examining flexor tendon function during the preoperative evaluation, especially in the setting of acute high-energy injury.
Part I––Comparing Noncancer Chronic Human Health Reference Values: An Analysis of Science Policy Choices

The goal of this study was to systematically evaluate the choices made in deriving a chronic oral noncancer human health reference value (HHRV) for a given chemical by different organizations, specifically those from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Health Canada, RIVM (the Netherlands), and the U.S. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. This analysis presents a methodological approach for comparing both the HHRVs and the specific choices made in the process of deriving an HHRV across these organizations. Overall, across the 96 unique chemicals and 171 two-way organizational comparisons, the HHRV agreed approximately 26% of the time. A qualitative method for identifying the primary factors influencing these HHRV differences was also developed, using arrays of HHRVs across organizations for the same chemical. The primary factors identified were disagreement on the critical or principal study and differential application of the total uncertainty factor across organizations. Of the cases where the total UF was the primary factor influencing HHRV disagreement, the database UF had the greatest influence.
Test Utilization: Controlling Costs in Reference Laboratory Testing

Reference laboratory testing has a disproportionately higher cost when compared to routine testing performed in the hospital laboratory. This chapter discusses the magnitude of reference laboratory testing in the United States, why reference laboratory testing is necessary, how to select a reference laboratory, how much reference laboratory testing is used by individual clinical laboratories, and considerations for when to have testing performed by a reference laboratory versus in-house. The variety of strategies used to control reference laboratory testing is discussed.
Atomic Recombination in Dynamic Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry Probes Distance in Lipid Assemblies: A Nanometer Chemical Ruler

The lateral organization of biological membranes is thought to take place on the nanometer length scale. However, this length scale and the dynamic nature of small lipid and protein domains have made characterization of such organization in biological membranes and model systems difficult. Here we introduce a new method for measuring the colocalization of lipids in monolayers and bilayers using stable isotope labeling. We take advantage of a process that occurs in dynamic SIMS called atomic recombination, in which atoms on different molecules combine to form diatomic ions that are detected with a NanoSIMS instrument. This process is highly sensitive to the distance between molecules. By measuring the efficiency of the formation of 13C15N– ions from 13C and 15N atoms on different lipid molecules, we measure variations in the lateral organization of bilayers even though these heterogeneities occur on a length scale of only a few nm, well below the diameter of the primary ion beam of the NanoSIMS instrument ...
Structural and Functional Plasticity within the Nucleus Accumbens and Prefrontal Cortex Associated with Time-Dependent Increases in Food Cue-Seeking Behavior.

Urges to consume food can be driven by stimuli in the environment that are associated with previous food experience. Identifying adaptations within brain reward circuits that facilitate cue-induced food seeking is critical for understanding and preventing the overconsumption of food and subsequent weight gain. Utilizing electrophysiological, biochemical, and DiI labeling, we examined functional and structural changes in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) and prefrontal cortex (PFC) associated with time-dependent increases in food craving (‘incubation of craving’). Rats self-administered 60% high fat or chow 45 mg pellets and were then tested for incubation of craving either 1 or 30 days after training. High fat was chosen for comparison to determine whether palatability differentially affected incubation and/or plasticity. Rats showed robust incubation of craving for both food rewards, although responding for cues previously associated with high fat was greater than chow at both 1 and 30 days. In addition, previous experience with high-fat consumption reduced dendritic spine density in the PFC at both time points. In contrast, incubation was associated with an increase in NAc spine density and α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid receptor (AMPAR)-mediated transmission at 30 days in both groups. Finally, incubation of craving for chow and high fat was accompanied by an increase in calcium-permeable and calcium-impermeable AMPARs, respectively. Our results suggest that incubation of food craving alters brain reward circuitry and macronutrient composition specifically induces cortical changes in a way that may facilitate maladaptive food-seeking behaviors.
When Dominant Culture Values Meet Diverse Clinical Settings: Perspectives from an African American Supervisor

Little has been said about how the ethnically different supervisor’s perspectives may challenge the dominant culture trainee’s values and beliefs in clinical settings. This chapter is written from the perspective of an African American female, Couple and Family Therapist, and supervisor. It examines several key areas where values and beliefs seem to differ: (1) time and its meaning to therapy sessions; (2) building relationship; (3) boundaries; (4) poverty and its impact on clinical issues; (5) involvement with larger systems such as the welfare system, etc.; and (6) parenting. Minority supervisors may help trainees see therapeutic issues from a different perspective.
Sharing Student Performance Information in Simulation: A Debate

Abstract The 2016 INACSL Professional Integrity Standard presented a major change in sharing of performance information. This article presents arguments for and against the sharing of clinical performance information along with audience perspectives from presentations at both the INACSL and SSH conferences.
International Law and Daunting Contemporary Crises to Human Security and the Rule of Law

In the wake of World War I, we failed to build the rules and institutions that the world needed to guarantee peace. We largely succeeded in doing so after World War II. But—again—crises have overtaken our institutions and their capacity to regulate major threats to our world. It is falling upon communities such as the international legal community to marshal the imagination, determination, relationships and political savvy to address these issues and to galvanise and evolve our global institutions and laws if we are to meet the daunting crises of this century.
Imaging Prostate Cancer Using Multiparametric Magnetic Resonance Imaging: Past, Present, and Future.

Abstract Magnetic resonance imaging of prostate is currently widely used for diagnosis and staging of prostate cancer. First utilized in the early 1980s, MRI technology was rapidly recognized as a promising technique for characterizing pelvic and specifically prostatic anatomy. Further advancements, including the addition of diffusion weighted imaging and dynamic contrast enhanced imaging have continued to propel MRI into the forefront of prostate cancer care, notably with the development of the multiparametric MRI. This article reviews past advancements and performance in MRI in the screening and management of prostate cancer, as well as current thought on its place in contemporary urology. Future developments and avenues for advancement are described.
Note: Restructuring Distressed Companies - Cross National Comparisons

This note briefly describes bankruptcy regimes and out of court restructuring in five countries, the U.S., the U.K., Germany, France and Japan.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN – Brain Sex

Publisher Summary This chapter emphasizes on the sex differences that appear to be valid and observed repeatedly. The differences discussed are structural, chemical, physiological, psychological, and cognitive. Sex differences in human brain structure and function result from an interaction between nature and nurture. There are at least a few structural sex differences in the adult human brain and that some of these are feminized in male homosexuals and MF transsexuals. Early exposure to sex hormones irreversibly organizes brain sex differences, but adult hormones activate these organized differences. Some adult brain sex differences are the result of activational hormone effects only. There are neonatal and childhood behavioral sex differences that could have a strong biological component. Although these sex differences are influenced by experience. Furthermore, there is a little information about the influence of environment and learning on the brain structure and the function in human males and females. Several anatomical sex differences between the brains of men and women, in both the cerebrum and the hypothalamus, are demonstrated. It also discusses the differences between the male and the female human brain from fetus through adulthood.
A Cloud of Controversy: George Washington and Smallpox Inoculation During the American Revolution

During the Revolutionary War, smallpox wreaked havoc on the American Army in their fight for Independence against the British troops. As John Adams said in a letter to his wife, Abigail Adams, “I mean, the Prevalence of small Pox among our Troops… This fatal Pestilence completed our Destruction.” John Adams, as a confidant to General George Washington understood that this deadly disease was hurting the Army more than the British, Canadians, and Indians combined. Acknowledging this, George Washington made the bold decision: to have the troops undergo mass small pox inoculations. This article will explore George Washington’s highly controversial order to inoculate his soldiers at a pivotal point during the American Revolution. Drawing from multiple primary sources including soldier’s accounts of the horrors of smallpox, John Adam’s letters, and newspapers around the 1770’s, this paper will reflect on the deadly nature of the smallpox disease, the risk and reward factors in undergoing the smallpox inoculation, and the overall effects on the war effort.
Perceiving phonemes with simulated variable cochlear implant insertion depths

Cochlear implant (CI) patients have difficulty encoding spectral aspects of a speech signal, and are at a severe disadvantage compared to normal hearing listeners in distinguishing consonants that differ by place of articulation (PoA). One reason for this difficulty could be due to a shifting of spectral energy that occurs with a shallow insertion depth of the electrode array. The present study aimed to measure the effects of spectral shifting on phoneme categorization and PoA perception specifically. Speech was vocoded and then shifted by 0, 2, 4, and 6 mm in cochlear space to simulate shallow CI insertion depth in normal hearing listeners. Stimuli included a /b-d/ and /s-ʃ/ continua that differed by PoA, as well as /ra/ and /la/, to create a six-alternative forced choice paradigm. Results show phoneme categorization became less categorical, with a biased perception of /b-d/ and /s-ʃ/ continuum towards /d/ and /s/ respectively, consistent with higher-frequency energy in those consonants. Some participant...
Serum Metabolomics Identifies Altered Bioenergetics, Signaling Cascades in Parallel with Exposome Markers in Crohn's Disease.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has stimulated much interest due to its surging incidences and health impacts in the U.S. and worldwide. However, the exact cause of IBD remains incompletely understood, and biomarker is lacking towards early diagnostics and effective therapy assessment. To tackle these, the emerging high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS)-based metabolomics shows promise. Here, we conducted a pilot untargeted LC/MS metabolomic profiling in Crohn’s disease, for which serum samples of both active and inactive cases were collected, extracted, and profiled by a state-of-the-art compound identification workflow. Results show a distinct metabolic profile of Crohn’s from control, with most metabolites downregulated. The identified compounds are structurally diverse, pointing to important pathway perturbations ranging from energy metabolism (e.g., β-oxidation of fatty acids) to signaling cascades of lipids (e.g., DHA) and amino acid (e.g., L-tryptophan). Importantly, an integral role of gut microbiota in the pathogenesis of Crohn’s disease is highlighted. Xenobiotics and their biotransformants were widely detected, calling for massive exposomic profiling for future cohort studies as such. This study endorses the analytical capacity of untargeted metabolomics for biomarker development, cohort stratification, and mechanistic interpretation; the findings might be valuable for advancing biomarker research and etiologic inquiry in IBD.
Automatic mapping of planting year for tree crops with Landsat satellite time series stacks

Abstract California’s Central Valley faces serious challenges of water scarcity and degraded groundwater quality due to nitrogen leaching. Orchard age is one of the key determinants for fruit and nut production and directly affects consumptive water use and fertilizer demand. However, regional and statewide spatially explicit information on orchard planting years in California is still lacking, despite some attempts to estimate tree ages using multi-temporal satellite imagery in other regions. Here we developed a robust detection method to track crop cover dynamics and identify the planting year through time series of Landsat imagery within the Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform. We used the full archive of Landsat data (Landsat-5 TM, Landsat-7 ETM+, and Landsat-8 OLI) from 1984 to 2017 as inputs and automated the GEE workflow for the on-fly-mapping. Preprocessing was initially performed using JavaScript to obtain high quality reflectance and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) time series for each Landsat pixel. Annual maximum NDVI was then aggregated to the orchard level based on the field boundary. Our change detection algorithm incorporated a set of decision rules, including adaptive identification of potential years with robust Z-score thresholds, elimination of false detections based on the post-planting growth curve, and estimation of planting year using the most recent minimum strategy. Our method showed a very high accuracy of estimating tree crop ages, with a R2 of 0.96 and a mean absolute error of less than half a year, when compared with 142 records provided by almond growers. We further evaluated the accuracy of the statewide mapping of planting years for all fruit and nut trees in California, and found an overall agreement of 89.2%. This automatic cloud-based application is expected to greatly strengthen our ability to forecast yield dynamics, estimate water use and fertilizer inputs, at individual field, county and statewide basis.
Different depth-related polymerization kinetics of dual-cure, bulk-fill composites.

Abstract Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the polymerization kinetics qualitatively and quantitatively for dual-cure bulk-fill composites in comparison with light-cure bulk-fill and traditional incremental composites at two clinically relevant depths. Methods Five commercial dental composites were evaluated, including three dual-cure bulk-fill composites (BulkEZ, HyperFIL and Injectafil), one light-cure bulk-fill composite Filtek Bulk Fill Flowable (FBF) and one traditional incremental composite Filtek Z250 (Z250) as controls. Specimens were prepared in two different depths (0.5 mm and 5 mm) for 20 s light irradiation. Self-cure was also evaluated for the three dual-cure composites. The polymerization kinetics were measured continuously in real-time for at least 10 min using a Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) with an attenuated total reflectance (ATR) accessory. The experimental kinetic data were fitted using two mathematical models — a sigmoidal function and a superposition of two exponential functions characterizing the gel phase and glass phase. The degree of conversion (DC) and the rate of polymerization were calculated for all test conditions. Results Both experimental FTIR measurements and mathematical modeling revealed distinct depth-related polymerization kinetics for BulkEZ compared to the other two dual-cure composites. Specifically, BulkEZ exhibited moderately-paced polymerization kinetics at both depths while HyperFIL and Injectafil exhibited faster polymerization at 0.5 mm and slower polymerization at 5 mm. The bulk-fill FBF and incremental Z250 exhibited relatively fast polymerization at both depths, a characteristic for light-cure. The DC values at the two depths were not significantly different for BulkEZ, but significantly higher at 0.5 mm than at 5 mm for the other four composites (α = 0.05). Significance Polymerization kinetics and their depth variation for dual-cure bulk-fill composites are material dependent. The distinct depth-related polymerization kinetics revealed for BulkEZ compared to other composites may affect their contraction stress and clinical performance.
Isolation and characterization of phytohemagglutinin-responsive, concanavalin A-nonresponsive human T lymphocytes

Publisher Summary This chapter describes an experiment in which fractionated human tonsil lymphocytes are obtained by using buoyant density separation at 22°C using a 17–35% discontinuous bovine serum albumin gradient. From the experiment, it was found that tonsil contains a small subpopulation of T cells that respond to phytohaemagglutinin but not to con A. In this regard, they resemble mouse helper cell precursors but behave in marked contrast to mouse thymocytes, human thymocytes, and unfractionated peripheral lymphoid cells. The cells include the smallest, most dense, and slowest spontaneously dividing lymphocytes found in the tonsil.
Family Type 2: Conformists

Conformists form families to fulfill others’ expectations. Two major subtypes are model citizens, those who build a family in response to societal expectations and face-related needs (e.g., peers are getting married), and model children, those who build a family in response to expectations or even pressure from parents. Not getting married and having children is a major sin in the traditional Hualish value system, even worse than mistreating one’s parents.
Toward Visual Voice Activity Detection for Unconstrained Videos

The prevalent audio-based Voice Activity Detection (VAD) systems are challenged by the presence of ambient noise and are sensitive to variations in the type of the noise. The use of information from the visual modality, when available, can help overcome some of the problems of audio-based VAD. Existing visual-VAD systems however do not operate directly on the whole image but require intermediate face detection, face landmark detection and subsequent facial feature extraction from the lip region. In this work we present an end-to-end trainable Hierarchical Context Aware (HiCA) architecture for visual-VAD for videos obtained in unconstrained environments which can be trained with videos as input and audio speech labels as output. The network is designed to account for local and global temporal information in a video sequence. In contrast to existing visual-VAD systems our proposed approach does not rely on face detection and subsequent facial feature extraction. It can obtain a VAD accuracy of 66% on a dataset of Hollywood movie videos just with visual information. Further analysis of the representations learned from our visual-VAD system shows that the network learns to localize on human faces, and sometimes speaking human faces specifically. Our quantitative analysis of the effectiveness of face localization shows that our system performs better than sound-localization networks designed for unconstrained videos.
Finding Opportunities from Surprises and Failures. Development of Rhodium-Stabilized Donor/Acceptor Carbenes and Their Application to Catalyst-Controlled C–H Functionalization

Catalyst-controlled C–H functionalization by means of the C–H insertion chemistry of rhodium carbenes has become a powerful synthetic method. The key requirements for the development of this chemistry are donor/acceptor carbenes and the chiral dirhodium tetracarboxylate catalysts. This perspective will describe the stages involved in developing this chemistry and illustrate the scope of the donor/acceptor carbene C–H functionalization.