cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Should primary care patients be screened for orthostatic hypotension

BACKGROUND Primary care physicians test for orthostatic hypotension to find risk factors they can modify. By doing so, they may prevent adverse outcomes related to falls and ischemic organ injury due to hypoperfusion. Varied recommendations have been made regarding which patients to test, measurement methods, and the definition of a clinically significant postural decline in blood pressure. METHODS We identified research articles relating to orthostatic hypotension by doing a literature review. Eleven articles were selected on the basis of quality of research methods and applicability to primary care practice from which prevalence, associated factors, and outcomes related to orthostatic hypotension were reported. RESULTS The prevalence of orthostatic hypotension varied from 13% to 30.3% in elderly patients. Hypertension was the most consistently associated diagnosis. Two of 3 studies did not find an association between orthostatic hypotension and mortality, and the third found that association only in patients with diabetes and hypertension. CONCLUSIONS The information available does not support postural blood pressure testing as a screening device among patients attending primary care practices. However, there is evidence to support the testing of high-risk subgroups of patients. Answers to the proposed research questions will clarify how testing for orthostatic hypotension can be most effectively applied in primary care.
Speech enhancement using Wiener filtering

The problem of reducing the disturbing effects of additive white noise on a speech signal is considered when a 'noise-reference' is not available, Wiener filtering with all-pole modeling built upon line spectral pair (LSP) frequencies is considered. The filter parameters have been optimized to achieve the highest reduction of noise. The noise is filtered using iterative LSP-based estimations of LPC parameters. The speech model filter uses an accurate updated estimate of the current noise power spectral density with the aid of a voice activity decoder.
Prototyping A Web-based High-Performance Visual Analytics Platform for Origin-Destination Data: A Case study of NYC Taxi Trip Records

Origin-Destination (OD) data has quickly emerged as a popular and fast growing spatiotemporal data type due to widely adoption of GPS, smartphones and location dependent social networks. Several previous works have developed techniques for managing and visualizing large-scale OD data in desktop computing environments. In this study, by leveraging our experiences in Web-GIS and parallel spatial data processing and learning from successful OD data visualization case studies, we have developed a Web-based high-performance visual analytics prototype platform for OD data. Observing that interactive spatial queries typically only involve a limited number of Regions of Interests (ROIs), we propose a simple yet effective technique to aggregate OD records into dynamically defined OD polygons by data parallel scanning OD point locations for cache efficiency and easy parallelization on conventional multi-core hardware for high efficiency and performance. By dynamically integrating with a graph database backend, our prototype platform is capable of visualizing social network analytical results and guide users to further retrieve detailed information of interests. Two experiments are provided to demonstrate the utilization of the proposed techniques, including web frontend functionality and backend efficiency, by using more than 170 million taxi trip records in NYC in 2013 as well several urban infrastructure datasets. Interactive demonstrations are available for the web-based system
Is a "critical" area studies possible?

At a time when nearly every topic seems to be labeled “critical” in geography, this essay asks why the discipline has lacked a clear commitment to advancing a “critical area studies” agenda. The te...
Marijuana Use in High School and College

Problem Behavior Theory, consisting of personality, perceived environment, and behavior systems, was employed to account for variation in marijuana use among junior high, senior high, and college students, both male and female. The research design enabled both cross-sectional comparisons between nonusers and users on variables in each of the systems and longitudinal comparisons between those who shifted to user status over a 1-year interval and those who remained nonusers. Data revealed a similar pattern of personality, environment, and behavior differences between all nonuser and user groups, suggesting a pervasive social-psychological constancy. The same variables were also predictive of the shift from nonuse to use over time among the high school students but not the college students.
Comparison of microfilter-based capture to CellSearch in detection of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPCa).

e22018 Background: CTCs can be detected in the blood of men with prostate cancer and have been used as a biomarker. The only FDA-approved technology (CellSearch) utilizes epithelial cell adhesion m...
The Interface Among Poverty, Air Mattress Industry Trends, Policy, and Infant Safety

Infants can suffocate on air mattresses, even when the mattress is fully inflated. The interfacing issues of poverty, the bedbug epidemic, and changes in the design and marketing of air mattresses may be increasing consumer use of air mattresses as primary sleep environments and thus increasing the potential for infant death.Despite recent changes to improve air mattress safety labeling, the National Child Death Review Case Reporting System found that between 2004 and 2015 across 24 states, an air mattress was the incident sleep place for 108 infants whose deaths were either during sleep or in a sleep environment. At the same time, design components such as inflatable headboards and memory foam pillow tops potentially increase the hazard to infants, and marketing changes represent air mattresses as a preferred low-cost primary sleep environment.Analysis of current data surveillance systems, published position statements, and consumer materials from national organizations and federal agencies reveal opport...
Critical role of ITK in mouse γ-herpes virus 68 infection as a model for human immunodeficiency (VIR1P.1140)

IL-2-inducible T cell kinase (ITK) is a Tec family tyrosine kinase predominantly expressed in T cells. In the absence of ITK, the magnitude of T cell receptor (TCR) signaling is greatly reduced, but not abolished, leading to an overall decrease in TCR signaling strength. Recently, various mutations in ITK were identified in patients suffering from a fatal lymphoproliferation due to a failure to control Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection. Interestingly, Itk -/- mice have been shown to mount protective responses to several acute virus infections. Thus, we hypothesized that ITK plays an essential role in long-term anti-viral immunity against latent γ-herpes virus infection. To study this, we infected WT and Itk -/- mice with mouse γ-herpes virus 68 (MHV68). Despite a reduced response at D7 post-infection, Itk -/- mice ultimately controlled MHV68 replication in the spleen by D14. After the initial response, both WT and Itk -/- mice showed no difference in their viral titers in the spleen at later time points. However, Itk -/- mice developed severe gastrointestinal pathology following LPS-mediated reactivation of latent MHV68, accompanied by a high viral titer in the intestine. Furthermore, the number of lymphocytes in the intestinal epithelium and lamina propria in naive Itk -/- mice was substantially less than WT mice. Overall, these data suggest that ITK is essential for anti-viral immunity against γ-herpes virus infection in the gut following reactivation from latency.
Higher order effect of regular pumping in lasers and masers

The higher-order terms in the expansion of ln(1 + pu) with respect to the pumping regularity p are considered. The effects of higher-order terms, due to regular pumping, on the photon statistics are found to be significant in maser cases, and can be neglected in laser cases. The right order approximation must be used to ensure correct results.© (1991) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Joint Mobile-Cloud Video Stabilization

In this work we analyze the complex trade-off between data transfer, computation time, and power consumption when a multi-stage data-intensive algorithm (in this case video stabilization) is split between a low power mobile device and high power cloud server. We evaluate design choices in terms of which intermediate representations should be transferred to the server and back to the mobile device, and present a graph-based solution that can update the optimal joint mobile-cloud computation separation as the hardware configuration or user's requirements change. The practices we employ in this work can be extended to other mobile computer vision applications.
Maternal and neonatal outcomes in triplet gestations by trial of labor versus planned cesarean delivery

Objective: To determine the rate of vaginal delivery after vaginal trial of labor (TOL) among women with triplet gestations.Study design: This is a retrospective cohort study of all women deliverin...
Waveguide Polarimetry using Belinfante Forces

We reveal the surprising polarization dependence of lateral forces acting on reso­nant Mie particles in evanescent fields. This effect can be utilized to retrieve the polarization state of light inside birefringent waveguides.
Acoustic communication by vocal tract modulation

In both human and nonhuman animals, the airway system may serve as an instrument for acoustic communication. Flow-induced tissue vibrations and noise sources generate the acoustic excitation, whereas the configuration of the vocal tract provides a variable resonant filter system that transforms the excitation into a “message.“ This presentation will describe the development of a vocal tract model in which the effects of articulatory movements that produce speech are generated by specifying independent acoustic events along a time axis. These events consist of directional changes in the first three resonance frequencies of an acoustically-neutral airway configuration and are transformed, via acoustic sensitivity functions, into time-varying modulations of the vocal tract shape. The duration of each event may be considerably overlapped in time with other events to produce efficient transmission of information through the effects of coarticulation. The model will be used to demonstrate construction of syllab...
Prevention of Retinal Degeneration in a Rat Model of Smith-Lemli-Opitz Syndrome

Smith-Lemli-Opitz Syndrome (SLOS) is a recessive human disease caused by defective cholesterol (CHOL) synthesis at the level of DHCR7 (7-dehydrocholesterol reductase), which normally catalyzes the conversion of 7-dehydrocholesterol (7DHC) to CHOL. Formation and abnormal accumulation of 7DHC and 7DHC-derived oxysterols occur in SLOS patients and in rats treated with the DHCR7 inhibitor AY9944. The rat SLOS model exhibits progressive and irreversible retinal dysfunction and degeneration, which is only partially ameliorated by dietary CHOL supplementation. We hypothesized that 7DHC-derived oxysterols are causally involved in this retinal degeneration, and that blocking or reducing their formation should minimize the phenotype. Here, using the SLOS rat model, we demonstrate that combined dietary supplementation with CHOL plus antioxidants (vitamins E and C, plus sodium selenite) provides better outcomes than dietary CHOL supplementation alone with regard to preservation of retinal structure and function and lowering 7DHC-derived oxysterol formation. These proof-of-principle findings provide a translational, pre-clinical framework for designing clinical trials using CHOL-antioxidant combination therapy as an improved therapeutic intervention over the current standard of care for the treatment of SLOS.
Bias in Perception of Art Produced by Artificial Intelligence

Some perceive AI as encroaching on human capacities, perchance affecting their perceptions of AI. Applying Schema theory, this study examines whether and to what extent human judges are biased in ascribing “creativity” to the artwork of artificial intelligence. To begin to examine whether an artist’s perceived identity (i.e., as an artificially intelligent agent (AI) or human) might produce different reactions in judging the same artwork, participants blocked by subject characteristics (e.g., graduate, undergraduate) were randomly assigned to one of two types of focus groups. The groups differed only in that they were led to believe the same artwork was the product of a human or the product of an AI artist, triggering very different identity schemas about the artist. Participants were asked to (a) define art; whether AI can (b) make art and (c) if given art (which was the same in all groups) is “art.” Both focus groups types similarly associated art with expression, creativity, providing a message, and broadly conceived the boundaries of what was art. They differed in that the “Human Artist group” had an interactive view of art (perceiving, providing feedback) but the “AI Artist group” said any sense (visual, auditory, etc.) stimulus was art. The “Human Artist group” thought AI could make art while the “AI Artist group” disagreed. Both types of focus groups believed that the given art piece is art. Implications of findings for applications and theory are discussed.
The Role of Schools in Outcomes for Youth: Implications for Children's Mental Health Services Research

We explore the role of schools in children's mental health services research. Recent literature has suggested that schools play an important role in delivering services to children and adolescents with emotional and behavioral problems. Research in services research, though, has taken a fairly narrow view of which dimensions of school environments are relevant for inclusion in studies. We suggest that a broader view of school environments is appropriate and potentially beneficial to the field. Using Bronfenbrenner's ecological model as a guide, we conceptualize schools as microsystems. Such an approach suggests that all aspects of school environments (treatment as well as non-treatment) are likely to influence many of the outcomes that children's mental health services research frequently targets (e.g., behavioral problems, problematic peer relationships, academic achievement, school attendance). We review literature from a variety of disciplines to suggest relevant features of schools, with particular attention to the role of peer dynamics within schools. We conclude with implications of this expanded conceptualization of schools for children's mental health services research.
Abstract P192: Trpc6 Deficiency Causes Obesity, Impaired Glucose Tolerance and Leptin Resistance

Transient receptor potential cation channel subfamily C member 6 (TPRC6) is a receptor-operated cation channel that contributes to changes in cytosolic free Ca2+ concentration. TRPCs have been sugg...
Guest Editorial: Araceae, Recent Advances and Future Challenges

The year 2018 was declared as the “Year of the Aroids” at the Missouri Botanical Garden. As part of the celebratory activities during the year, one special aroid issue was set to be produced for each of the journals published by the Garden, Novon (this issue) and the Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 104(1).
Epigenetic Influences on Plant Responses to the Environment [University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh]

Plants and animals may respond to changes in the environment at the molecular level by changing the amount of a gene product (a protein) to generate the appropriate behavior or physical structure (a phenotype) for that environment. For example, an extremely stressful environment can cause plants to reproduce immediately rather than waiting for conditions to improve. The molecular mechanisms for changing phenotype with environment (phenotypic plasticity) are not clear, however previous studies have shown plasticity may be the result of failing to change expression to maintain a phenotype or a deliberate change in expression altering the phenotype. To explore the molecular mechanisms underlying phenotypic plasticity, I am using a minION sequencing apparatus to re-sequence three inbred lines of Arabidopsis thaliana with extreme phenotypic plasticity differences and gene expression differences with the environment. I will specifically explore the role of methylated cytosines and adenines in gene expression.
Reactive tendering: mechanism and solutions

This research studies how reactive dyes affect properties of cellulosics. It was found that covalently bonded reactive dyes accelerate acidic hydrolysis of cellulose and such an accelerated hydrolysis causes a decrease in durability of reactive dyed cellulosics, especially, those with heavy shades. The problem is unsolved due to the lack of knowledge of the mechanism of fiber tendering. This research investigates the effect of structures of reactive dyes on the degree of tendering of cotton. It demonstrates that tendering of dyed cotton can be attributed to the electric field effect of the dye on cellulose. Our research also finds that the poor wet-crocking fastness of reactive dyed cotton fabrics results from reactive tendering. Based on the proposed mechanism of fiber tendering, we have designed reactive dyes with minimized field effect which was quantified using simplified Kirkwood–Westheimer model. Fabrics dyed with these new dyes demonstrate the reduction in fiber tendering and the improvement in wet-crocking fastness.
A TaqMan® multiplex assay for hoofed livestock species identification and nuclear DNA quantification

We have developed a TaqMan® real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) multiplex assay that identifies and quantifies minute amounts (0.5 - 5 pg) of mixed-species nuclear DNA of cattle ( Bos taurus), horse (Equus caballus), goat (Capra hircus)/sheep (Ovis aries), and pig (Sus scrofa) in a species-specific manner. The assay's ability to accurately detect and quantify target DNA in multi-species mixtures is crucial when the target specimen may be overwhelmed by non-target specimen. We have evaluated the assay using simulated forensic sample conditions and demonstrated that this assay is applicable for investigating criminal and civil cases including meat authentication and agri-food testing to ensure health and safety. The efficient determination of the species of origin of biological material and the accurate quantification of the species-specific template DNA will help reduce the potential risks that fraudulent/imitation and contaminated food products could pose to our food supply. Our assay's ability to accurately identify and quantify species-specific DNA present in biological samples will also facilitate downstream analyses that generate DNA profiles of the specimen for genetic identity testing and traceability. This TaqMan® qPCR assay will facilitate meat inspectors, regulatory agencies, and food safety and quality control laboratories to enforce accurate labeling of livestock meat products and prevent fraudulent manipulations of our food supply.
Forward Modeling of Uterine EMG and MMG Contractions

We develop a forward model for uterine electromyogram (EMG) and magnetomyogram (MMG) contractions. Our model aims to describe the electrophysiological aspects of uterine contractions during pregnancy at both the cellular and organ levels. In particular, we apply a bidomain approach for modeling the propagation of the myometrium transmembrane potential on the uterus and use it to compute the action potential and magnetic field at the abdominal surface. We introduce a simplified geometry for the problem and solve our model in this domain using finite element method (FEM). Numerical examples are provided to illustrate our analytical results.
On-Demand Service Sharing with Collective Dynamic Pricing

This paper designs a dynamic allocation and pricing mechanism for an on-demand platform that can provide individual or shared services. Time-sensitive customers arrive stochastically onto the platform with heterogenous willingness to pay. The mechanism optimizes at what time, to which customers and at what price to provide services. This environment creates inter-agent and inter-temporal dependencies. We decompose the platform's problem into a dynamic program, based on the novel notion of collective virtual value --- defined as the total surplus that the platform can extract from all customers. The optimal mechanism in this complex environment follows a simple, easily-implementable index rule: service is provided each time the collective virtual value exceeds a threshold, which decreases with the number of available suppliers. Service sharing thus leads to temporal discrimination: as opposed to the classical problem of dynamic pricing with commitment, customers may receive an immediate service or a delayed service --- based on their own willingness to pay and the system's dynamics. Ultimately, service sharing is not exclusively governed by cost-minimization and demand-supply management objectives, but also by discriminatory incentives: it provides an additional degree of freedom to offer differentiated service levels across heterogenous customers.
Micro-scale experimental investigations of multiphase flow in oil-wet carbonates. I. In situ wettability and low-salinity waterflooding

Abstract In this study, the impacts of temperature, initial water saturation, and aging time on wettability alteration during dynamic aging process were investigated at the pore scale, using a state-of-the-art high-temperature, high-pressure miniature core-flooding system integrated with a high-resolution micro-CT scanner. Furthermore, pore-scale displacement mechanisms impacting the waterflooding oil recovery under varying oil-wet conditions were probed. Subsequently, we investigated the wettability alteration and its corresponding impact on pore-scale displacement mechanisms during low-salinity waterflooding (LSWF). The results showed that the aging-induced wettability alteration reached an equilibrium condition after approximately seventeen days. With higher temperature, lower initial water saturation, and longer aging time, we observed greater in situ contact angles indicative of more oil-wet rock surfaces. Once brine was injected to displace oil, since the majority of pore elements were oil-wet after the aging process, pore-scale piston-like displacements (brine-to-oil drainage) had the largest contribution to the oil recovery. Based on our observations, the waterflooding-based oil recovery decreases as the porous medium becomes more oil-wet. This phenomenon is due to the higher threshold brine pressures of the displacements in more oil-wet conditions, which restricts brine invasion into medium and small size pores. Furthermore, wettability alteration towards neutral-wetness and the consequent reduction in threshold brine pressure required for the fluid to invade the midsize oil-filled pores, result in higher oil recovery by LSWF compared to high-salinity waterflooding (HSWF). The in situ analyses indicate that reservoirs with wide pore size distributions (a large number of midsize pores) could be better candidates for applications of LSWF EOR technique.
Comparative Analysis of Snowfall Accumulation and Gauge Undercatch Correction Factors from Diverse Data Sets: In Situ, Satellite, and Reanalysis

Despite its importance for hydrology and water resources, accurate estimation of snowfall rate over snow-covered regions has remained a major observational challenge from both in-situ and remote sensing instruments. Snowfall accumulation can be measured by either accumulating snowfall estimates or measuring snowpack properties such as Snow Water Equivalent (SWE) and mass. By focusing on snowfall over snow accumulation period and using case studies and long-term average (2003 to 2015) over CONUS, this study compares snowfall accumulation from gauge stations (using GPCC and PRISM products), satellite products (GPCP and the suite of IMERG products), and reanalysis (ERA-interim, ERA5, and MERRA-2). Changes in SWE based on the recent UA-SWE product together with mass change observation from GRACE were used for assessment of precipitation products. We also investigated two popular gauge undercatch correction factors (CFs) used to mitigate precipitation undercatch in GPCC and GPCP. The results show that snow accumulation from most of the products is bounded by GPCC with and without correction, highlighting the critical importance of selecting proper CFs for gauge-undercatch correction. The CF based on Legates and Willmott method was found to be more consistent with the SWE-based analysis than CF based on the Fuchs method. Reanalysis show very similar spatial pattern among themselves, but represent large variation in simulating snow accumulation, with ERA-interim showing the least accumulation and MERRA-2 showing the highest accumulation and closest to the snow accumulation suggested by SWE.
Effects of Foot Rotation on ACL Injury Risk Variables During Drop Landing

Landing is considered a “high-risk” movement for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries. Foot progression angle (FPA) during landing has been shown to influence hip, knee, and ankle mechanics. The purpose of this study was to compare five FPA conditions during drop landings between males and females. Twenty males and females were tested using five FPA conditions: self-selected, toe-in 15°, toe-in 30°, toe-out 15°, and toe-out 30°. Right hip, knee, and ankle joint kinematics and kinetics were collected using a 12-camera motion capture system and two force plates. Five successful trials were collected and compared between FPA conditions. The main effect for FPA condition was statistically different for initial contact hip flexion, hip abduction, hip internal rotation, knee flexion, knee abduction, knee external rotation, and ankle inversion angles compared to self-selected FPA at P < 0.05. Peak hip extension, hip abduction, knee adduction, knee internal rotation, ankle plantar flexion, and ankle inversion moments were also found to be statistically significant (P < 0.05). Overall, females experienced greater initial knee abduction angle (P = 0.028), hip abduction moment (P = 0.006), knee extension moment (P = 0.033), and knee internal rotation moment (P = 0.044), regardless of FPA condition. Males experienced greater initial contact hip abduction angle (P = 0.0017), regardless of FPA condition. The results suggest that landing with large toe-in FPA will increase the magnitude of ACL injury risk variables, and females demonstrated a greater magnitude in these variables compared to males. Injury prevention programs may seek to target FPA as part of training activities to avoid large FPA toe-in landings.
The Information Apocalypse

The Information Apocalypse is evidenced by the unraveling of trust in American institutions. This phenomenon is affecting not only democratic institutions, their products and outputs, but also news, information and most critically, ideas and values. The decay in public trust goes beyond institutions and also affects individuals. Personal data and identity are at risk. At the same time, the ever-expanding role of technology is not only omnipresent in our lives, it also acts as an accelerant, speeding up not only change but our abilities to keep pace and to control our responses.
Associations of cigarette smoking with gray and white matter in the UK Biobank.

Cigarette smoking is associated with increased risk for myriad health consequences including cognitive decline and dementia, but research on the link between smoking and brain structure is nascent. In the current study, we assessed the relationship of cigarette smoking with gray matter (GM) and white matter (WM) in the UK Biobank, controlling for numerous confounding demographic and health variables. We used negative-binomial regression to model the association of cigarette smoking (having ever smoked regularly, cigarettes per day, and duration smoked) with GM and WM (GM N = 19,615; WM N = 17,760), adjusting for confounders. Ever smoked and duration were associated with smaller total GM volume. Ever smoked was associated with reduced volume of the right VIIIa cerebellum and elevated WM hyperintensity volume. Smoking duration was associated with reduced total WM volume. Regarding specific tracts, ever smoked was associated with reduced fractional anisotropy in the left cingulate gyrus part of the cingulum, left posterior thalamic radiation, and bilateral superior thalamic radiation, and increased mean diffusivity in the middle cerebellar peduncle, right medial lemniscus, bilateral posterior thalamic radiation, and bilateral superior thalamic radiation. This study identified significant associations of cigarette exposure with global measures of GM and WM, and select associations of ever smoked, but not cigarettes per day or duration, with specific GM and WM regions. By controlling for important sociodemographic and health confounders, such as alcohol use, this study identifies distinct associations between smoking and brain structure, highlighting potential mechanisms of risk for common neurological sequelae (e.g., dementia).
Differing trade elasticities for intra- and international distances: A gravity approach

Using the gravity model of trade, I estimate the impact that within‐country transportation distance has on international trade levels. Combining multiple data sets, I create a measure for the distance U.S. agricultural goods travel before leaving the country. In order to account for endogeneity in production location choice, I use potential agricultural production as an instrument for actual agricultural production. I find that internal distance is statistically significant and large in magnitude. A 10% reduction in the distance a good travels within the exporting country increases trade by roughly 3%.
Nursing students' perceptions and beliefs about immunizations: A descriptive study.

Abstract Background Nurses are expected and trusted to provide education on immunizations. Education and advocacy for immunizations can be enhanced by understanding the perceptions and beliefs about immunizations as students are still immersed in their education. Objective To explore nursing students' perceptions and beliefs about immunizations and the diseases they are aimed to prevent. Methodology A quantitative, descriptive design with a convenience sample of bachelorette nursing students at a university in the Midwest United States and who met criteria resulted in (n = 74). Data was collected via an electronic survey. Results Nursing students had a decreased perception of disease severity, likelihood of infection without immunization, and concern of side effects compared to previous research involving parents. In addition, students have poor confidence in the ability to educate their clients about immunizations. Conclusion These results contribute to the known perceptions and beliefs of nursing students regarding immunizations and identified areas for improvement in nursing education.
Durable protection against repeated penile exposures to simian-human immunodeficiency virus by broadly neutralizing antibodies.

Penile acquisition of HIV accounts for most infections among men globally. Nevertheless, candidate HIV interventions for men advance to clinical trials without preclinical efficacy data, due primarily to a paucity of relevant animal models of penile HIV infection. Using our recently developed macaque model, we show that a single subcutaneous administration of broadly neutralizing antibody (bNAb) 10-1074 conferred durable protection against repeated penile exposures to simian-human immunodeficiency virus (SHIVSF162P3). Macaques co-administered bNAbs 10-1074 and 3BNC117, or 3BNC117 alone, also exhibited significant protection against repeated vaginal SHIVAD8-EO exposures. Regression modeling estimated that individual plasma bNAb concentrations of 5 μg ml−1 correlated with ≥99.9% relative reduction in SHIV infection probability via penile (10-1074) or vaginal (10-1074 or 3BNC117) challenge routes. These results demonstrate that comparably large reductions in penile and vaginal SHIV infection risk among macaques were achieved at clinically relevant plasma bNAb concentrations and inform dose selection for the development of bNAbs as long-acting pre-exposure prophylaxis candidates for use by men and women. Here, using a repeat-exposure penile SHIV infection model in macaques, the authors show that a single subcutaneous administration of a broadly neutralizing antibody (bNAb) exerts long-acting protection against both penile and vaginal virus exposure, which highlights bNAbs as a potential therapeutic for LA-PrEP.
Abstract PR04: Locoregionally administered B7H3-targeting CAR T cells mediate potent antitumor effects in atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumor

Atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumors (ATRT) are highly malignant embryonal brain tumors, arising in very young children, and are associated with inactivation of SMARCB1. The prognosis is extremely poor. Hence new treatments are urgently needed. We show that 100% of ATRT express B7-H3 and residual SMARCA4 SWI/SNF activity drives B7-H3 expression. Further, we demonstrate that prenatal brain expresses high levels of B7-H3, but expression is absent on pediatric brain, suggesting that the cell of origin may conserve high B7-H3 expression. We recently created a 4-1BB second-generation CAR targeting B7-H3. To date, there are little data on the most efficacious route of administration of CAR T cells in malignant brain tumors. The goal of this study was to test the antitumor activity of the B7-H3 CAR in highly aggressive ATRT xenograft models and compare intracavitary (IT), intraventricular (ICV), and intravenous (IV) administration in terms of efficacy, toxicity, and persistence of CAR T cells. Locoregionally (IT and ICV) administered B7H3.BB.z-CAR T cells mediate potent antitumor effects against cerebral ATRT xenografts, with more rapid kinetics, greater potency, and diminished systemic levels of inflammatory cytokines compared to CAR T cells administered intravenously. ICV-administered CAR T cells also demonstrate robust trafficking from the CNS into the periphery, and following clearance of ATRT xenografts, ICV or IV administered B7H3.BB.z-CAR T cells mediate antigen specific protection from tumor rechallenge in the CNS or in the flank. In summary, B7H3 is a promising immune target for this largely incurable pediatric tumor. We demonstrate that CNS delivered CAR T cells cure ATRT xenografts and efficiently traffic from the CNS into the periphery and can mediate long-term immune protection from disease recurrence in the CNS or in peripheral tissues. This abstract is also being presented as Poster A12. Citation Format: Johanna Theruvath, Elena Sotillo, Claus Moritz Graef, Sabine Heitzeneder, Louai Labanieh, Robbie Majzner, Crystal Mackall. Locoregionally administered B7H3-targeting CAR T cells mediate potent antitumor effects in atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumor [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on the Advances in Pediatric Cancer Research; 2019 Sep 17-20; Montreal, QC, Canada. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2020;80(14 Suppl):Abstract nr PR04.
An Automotive-Use Battery-to-Load GaN-Based Power Converter with Anti-Aliasing Multi-Rate Spread-Spectrum Modulation and In-Cycle ZVS Switching

This paper reports an automotive-use 5–24V V IN to 1V Vo GaN-based power converter that achieves 20dBμV electromagnetic interference (EMI) reduction with anti-aliasing multi-rate (MR) spread-spectrum modulation (SSM) and in-cycle zero-voltage switching (ZVS). Compared to classic fixed-rate (FR) SSM, the proposed MR-SSM technique accomplishes 29% further EMI reduction, with the use of an active shaping controller. To improve the efficiency, an elastic t dead control facilitates in-cycle ZVS switching despite of random f SW variation caused by any SSM. The design was implemented on a 180nm BCD process, with an active die area of 0.87mm2. It achieves a peak efficiency of 90.2% over a load range of 0.01 to 1.2W.
Patient motivations for non-adherence to lung cancer screening in a military population.

Background Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States, and lung cancer screening has been shown to decrease this mortality. Adherence to lung cancer screening is paramount to realize the mortality benefit, and reported adherence rates vary widely. Few reports address non-adherence to screening, and our study sought to understand the non-compliant patients in our military population. Methods This Institutional Review Board approved retrospective review of patients enrolled in our screening program from 2013-2019 identified patients who failed to obtain a subsequent Low Dose CT scan (LDCT) within 15 months of their prior scan. Attempts were made to contact these patients and elucidate motivations for non-adherence via telephone. Results Of the 242 patients enrolled, 183 (76%) patients were adherent to the protocol. Significant predictors of non-adherence versus adherence were younger age (P=0.008), female sex (P=0.005), and enlisted officer rank (P=0.03). There was no difference with regards to race, smoking status, pack-years, negative screens, lung-RADS level, or nodule size. 31 (52%) non-adherent patients were contacted, and 24 (77%) reported their reason for non-adherence was lack of follow-up for a LDCT. Twenty (64%) were interested in re-enrollment. Of the total screening cohort, 15 interventions were performed, with lung cancer identified in 5 (2%)-a 67% false positive rate. One stage IV lung cancer was found in a non-adherent patient who re-enrolled. Conclusions Lack of perceived contact for follow-up was expressed as the primary reason for non-compliance in our screening program. Compliance is critical to the efficacy of any screening modality, and adherence rates to lung cancer screening may be increased through improved contact with patients via multiple avenues (i.e., phone, email, and letter). There is benefit in contacting non-adherent patients as high rates of re-enrollment are possible.
The Influence of the Strength of Drug-Polymer Interactions on the Dissolution of Amorphous Solid Dispersions.

In an earlier report, ionic interactions between ketoconazole (KTZ), a weakly basic drug, and poly(acrylic acid) (PAA), an anionic polymer, resulted in a dramatic decrease in molecular mobility as well as reduced crystallization propensity of amorphous solid dispersion (ASD) in the solid state. On the other hand, weaker dipole-dipole interactions between KTZ and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) resulted in ASDs with higher crystallization propensity (Mistry Mol Pharm., 2015, 12 (9), 3339-3350). In this work, we investigated the behavior of the ketoconazole (KTZ) solid dispersions in aqueous media. In vitro dissolution tests showed that the PAA ASD maintained the level of supersaturation for a longer duration than the PVP ASD at low polymer contents (4-20% w/w polymer). Additionally, the PAA ASDs were more resistant to drug crystallization in aqueous medium when measured with synchrotron X-ray diffractometry. Two-dimensional 1H nuclear Overhauser effect spectroscopy (NOESY) NMR cross peaks between ketoconazole and PAA confirmed the existence of drug-polymer interactions in D2O. The interaction was accompanied by a reduced drug diffusivity as monitored by 2D diffusion ordered spectroscopy (DOSY) NMR and enthalpy-driven when characterized by isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC). On the other hand, drug-polymer interactions were not detected between ketoconazole and PVP in aqueous solution, with NOESY, DOSY, or ITC. The results suggest that interactions that stabilize ASDs in the solid state can also be relevant and important in sustaining supersaturation in solution.
Applied Art History: Theory and Praxis

Applied art history correlates with applied arts, an artform that emphasizes pragmatism and aesthetic functionality. Applied art history promotes an active, participatory exchange that encourages students to collaborate and experiment with course projects. Using the applied method, students merge studio practice and scholarship. Citing examples from an upper-division art history course at Mississippi State University titled Global Art and Activism, this chapter unpacks two applied art history projects created in collaboration with university students and communities in Starkville, Mississippi, and New Orleans, Louisiana. The theoretical dimensions of applied art history are further unpacked with comparable approaches used by art historians and practitioners working within other socially engaged frameworks.
FRET and LRET Biosensors for Cell-based Imaging and Screening of Rac1 Activation

Rac1 is a key regulator of several cell signaling pathways and dysregulated Rac1 activation has been implicated in cancer. Genetically encoded Forster resonance energy transfer (FRET) biosensors with enhanced dynamic range enabled live cell fluorescence imaging of Rac1 activity and a cell lysate-based assay of Rac1 inhibition in 96-well plates. We prepared HEK293T cell lines that stably expressed polypeptides with a general domain sequence (N- to C-terminus) of 1) FRET acceptor; 2) Rac/Cdc42 binding domain of human p21 protein kinase A (residues 68-150); 3) a linker domain; 4) FRET donor; and 5) full-length Rac1. Activated Rac1 binds to the protein kinase A domain, bringing donors and acceptors close together to increase FRET. We evaluated the effects on FRET signal dynamic range of alpha helical linkers comprised of alternating repeats of roughly four glutamate and four arginine or lysine residues. So-called ER/K linkers had limited effects on conventional FRET biosensors that incorporated the fluorescent protein (FP) pairs mCerulean/YPet, or mTFP1(cp227)/mVenus(cp229). Fluorometric measurements of cells that co-expresssed biosensors with positive (TIAM1) or negative (RhoGDI) Rac1 regulators revealed significant dynamic range enhancement in only one FP construct (mCerulean/YPet with 20 nm ER/K linker) relative to an analogous structure that incorporated an unstructured linker. We transfected this construct into a cell line that stably expressed a rapamycin-inducible c-Src analog (RapR-Src) and observed activation of Rac1 at protruding edges following rapamycin stimulation. In cells that expressed lanthanide-based FRET (LRET biosensors) that incorporated a luminescent terbium complex donor and GFP fluorescent acceptor, time-gated luminescence (TGL) measurements showed substantial gains in dynamic range that increased with linker length (up to 1200%). We robustly detected small molecule Rac1 inhibition following lysis of LRET biosensor-expressing cells grown directly in 96-well plates. The results herein highlight the potential of FRET and LRET biosensors with ER/K linkers for cell-based imaging and screening of protein activities.
Modulating Cellular Responses to Mechanical Forces to Promote Wound Regeneration

Significance: Skin scarring poses a major biomedical burden for hundreds of millions of patients annually. However, this burden could be mitigated by therapies that promote wound regeneration, with...
Uncontrolled induction motor drives

This chapter examines operation of uncontrolled induction motor drives. Most induction motors in industrial and household use operate in an uncontrolled manner, being supplied directly from the power system. The motor speed is roughly constant, but the developed torque is sensitive to changes in the stator voltage. In many applications, significant energy savings could be realized by replacing the uncontrolled drive with an adjustable-speed one. Motors with difficult starting conditions require means for assisted starting so that the motor does not overheat. Autotransformers, series impedances, wye-delta switches, or electronic soft-starters are commonly employed. The chapter briefly outlines methods of assisted starting, braking, and reversing. Speed control by pole changing is explained and abnormal operating conditions of induction motors are described in the chapter.
Do key dimensions of seed and seedling functional trait variation capture variation in recruitment probability

Seedling recruitment is a critical driver of population dynamics and community assembly, yet we know little about functional traits that define different recruitment strategies. For the first time, we examined whether trait relatedness across germination and seedling stages allows the identification of general recruitment strategies which share core functional attributes and also correspond to recruitment outcomes in applied settings. We measured six seed and eight seedling traits (lab- and field-collected, respectively) for 47 varieties of dryland grasses and used principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis to identify major dimensions of trait variation and to isolate trait-based recruitment groups, respectively. PCA highlighted some links between seed and seedling traits, suggesting that relative growth rate and root elongation rate are simultaneously but independently associated with seed mass and initial root mass (first axis), and with leaf dry matter content, specific leaf area, coleoptile tissue density and germination rate (second axis). Third and fourth axes captured separate tradeoffs between hydrothermal time and base water potential for germination, and between specific root length and root mass ratio, respectively. Cluster analysis separated six recruitment types along dimensions of germination and growth rates, but classifications did not correspond to patterns of germination, emergence or recruitment in the field under either of two watering treatments. Thus, while we have begun to identify major threads of functional variation across seed and seedling stages, our understanding of how this variation influences demographic processes-particularly germination and emergence-remains a key gap in functional ecology.