cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The stigma of "mental" illness: end stage anorexia and treatment refusal.

Objective: To answer the questions of whether psychiatric patients should ever be allowed to refuse life-sustaining treatment in favor of comfort care for a condition that is caused by a psychiatric disorder, and if so, under what conditions. Method: Case discussion and normative ethical and legal analysis. Results: We argue that psychiatric patients should sometimes be allowed to refuse life—sustaining treatment in favor of comfort care for a condition that is caused by that psychiatric disorder and articulate the core considerations that should be taken into account when such a case arises. Discussion: We also suggest that unwillingness among many, especially mental health professionals, to consider seriously both of these questions risks perpetuating stigmatization of persons with psychiatric disorders, i.e., that the “mentally” ill should not be allowed to make significant decisions for themselves—a—a stigmatization that can result in persons with mental disorders both being prevented from exercising autonomous choice even when they are capable of it, and being denied good comfort care at the end of life——care which would be offered to patients with similarly life—threatening conditions that were not deemed to be the result of “mental” illness. © 2012 by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Synaptic reorganization in the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus following damage to visual cortex in newborn or adult cats

We have studied the effects of making large lesions of visual cortex on the synaptic organization of the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) in the cat. Visual cortex was removed at birth in one group of cats and during adulthood in a second group. Following survival periods of 6 months to 2 years, the organization of synapses made by afferents from the retina in the LGN was investigated quantitatively with the electron microscope. In single thin sections we determined the percentage of retinal axon terminals that made synapses in the LGN, the average number of synapses made by each retinal axon terminal, and the identity of each postsynaptic process. These measurements were made separately for retinogeniculate connections in the A and C laminae of the LGN. For comparison, similar sets of measurements were made in adult cats that had been reared normally. When single thin sections from the A or C laminae of the LGN in normal cats are examined, about 60% of the axon terminals from the retina are seen to make at least one synaptic contact. These contacts can be with dendrites or F profiles or both. On average, each retinogeniculate terminal makes approximately 1.4 synapses in the plane of a single section and contacts dendrites three times as often as F profiles. In the A laminae of the LGN in cats that received a visual cortex lesion at birth or in adulthood, the percentage of retinal terminals that make synapses is the same as in normal cats. Similarly, the average number of synaptic contacts made by each retinogeniculate terminal is not changed by a lesion of visual cortex. In contrast, the number of contacts made with dendrites is reduced markedly, by about 29% after a lesion at birth and 53% after a lesion as an adult. However, these reductions are offset by compensatory increases in the number of contacts made with F profiles, and thus the mean number of contacts made by each retinogeniculate terminal is stabilized at a normal value. In the C laminae of the LGN, retinogeniculate terminals also reapportion their synaptic contacts. In cats with a lesion during adulthood, the redistribution of synapses is compensatory, as in the A laminae. When a lesion is made at birth, however, the number of new retinal contacts made with F profiles exceeds the number of dendritic contacts that are lost. As a result, each retinogeniculate terminal makes about 26% more synapses, in total, than normal. These results demonstrate that retinogeniculate terminals reorganize their synaptic affiliations in response to the retrograde degeneration of lateral geniculate neurons produced by a lesion of visual cortex. In general, this reorganization preserves the normal number of synaptic contacts made by individual retinogeniculate terminals. It is of special interest that this mechanism for synaptic plasticity appears to operate as effectively in the adult brain as it does in the newborn.
Downregulation of HER3 by a Novel Antisense Oligonucleotide, EZN-3920, Improves the Antitumor Activity of EGFR and HER2 Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors in Animal Models

Among the four human EGF receptor (HER) family members (EGFR, HER2, HER3, HER4), HER3 is of particular interest as it interacts with HER2 and EGFR via heterodimerization and is a key link to the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT signal transduction axis. Recent studies indicate that HER3 plays a critical role in mediating resistance to agents that target EGFR or HER2. As HER3 lacks significant kinase activity and cannot be inhibited by tyrosine kinase inhibitors, neutralizing antibodies and alternative inhibitors of HER3 have been sought as cancer therapeutics. We describe here a locked nucleic acid (LNA)-based HER3 antisense oligonucleotide, EZN-3920, that specifically downmodulated the expression of HER3, which was associated with growth inhibition. EZN-3920 effectively downmodulated HER3 expression, HER3-driven PI3K/AKT signaling pathway, and growth in tumors derived from BT474M1 breast and HCC827 lung carcinoma cell lines, which overexpress HER2 and EGFR, respectively. Furthermore, when EZN-3920 was coadministered with gefitinib or lapatinib in xenograft tumor models, enhanced antitumor activity compared with the effect of monotherapy was found. The effect was associated with a blockade of induced HER3 mRNA expression caused by lapatinib or gefitinib treatment. Finally, EZN-3920 sustained its antiproliferative effect in trastuzumab-resistant cells and three independently derived gefitinib-resistant cells. Our findings show that downmodulation of HER3 by EZN-3920 leads to the suppression of tumor growth in vitro and in vivo, suggesting that HER3 can be an effective target for the treatment of various cancers that have been activated by HER3 alone or where HER3 activation is associated with EGFR or HER2 expression.
Investigation of indole alkaloids in Bignonia capreolata

Purpose:Bignonia capreolata is a perennial semi-evergreen vine from the Eastern US that was used as medicine by the Native Americans but has since fallen out of use. The aim of this analysiswas to 1) verify the presence of the indole alkaloid reserpine in B. capreolata; and 2) if verified, generate an alkaloid rich fraction of B. capreolata to more accurately identify and quantify reserpine. Methods: Initial confirmation of the presence of reserpine was performed using high performance liquid chromatography referenced with an analytical standard of reserpine. The alkaloid rich fraction was then tested via liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry. Results:Thepresence of reserpine in B. capreolata has been confirmed and found to be 49 g per gram of leaf. Conclusion: This is the only known plant outside of the Apocynacea plant family to contain this indole alkaloid. Contact: Trevor Clark, tclark@bastyr.edu
ANALYSIS OF ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELD AND JOULE HEATING OF ELECTROSLAG REMELTING PROCESSES

A 3D finite element model was developed to simulate the magnetic field, electromag- netic force, current density and Joule heating of electroslag remelting processes (electrode, slag and ingot) by using of Maxwell equation, Lorentz law and Joule law. Especially, the skin effect is shown and discussed based on numerical results. The results show that the current distribute on the external surfaces of slag and ingot. In slag, due to the low electrical conductivity of slag, the current distribution changes, gathering on the end of electrode. The maximum electromagnetic force is at the upper surface nearby the electrode and the maximum joule heating is at the interface of electrode and slag. When current frequency is greater than 35 Hz, the vortex flow will occur in interior of electrode and ingot. When electrode immersion depth increase and slag cap thickness decrease, the maximum of the joule heat in slag will increase.
Programmed Cell Death: New Thoughts and Relevance to Aging

Cell death is a common phenomenon in developmental biology, and recent data suggest that it is as tightly regulated as mitosis. For numerous systems endocrine and neuronal factors are required to maintain viability of cells, as are specific diffusible and other unknown factors deriving from intimate cell-to-cell contact; and, in some instances, specific hormones or other circulating factors induce spontaneous self-destruction by the targeted cells. Some cells such as thymocytes may be primed to self-destruct and hence activate specific enzymes. In others, the doomed cell up-regulates a limited number of genes just before it dies. Of these genes, several are known but are not considered to cause cell death; others are under investigation. Although the situation is clearest for developmental biology, it appears that the presumptively random loss of cells in senescence results from invocation of the same mechanisms. Understanding and control of these mechanisms could conceivably lead either to protection against cell loss or specific induction of lysis in malignant cells.
Numerical evaluation of the 1S12-state radiative level shift

Abstract The one-photon self-energy radiative level shift for an electron in a Coulomb potential is evaluated numerically for the 1S 1 2 state. The evaluation is done for values of the nuclear charge Z = 10, 20,…, 110. The errors in the values obtained are estimated to be less than 0.1 %. The results are compared with the results of previous calculations. The evaluation is based on the expressions given in the preceding paper.
Variations, Good and Bad, On the Theme of Right Reason in Ethics

In his comparatively recent and altogether remarkable book, The Theory of Morality,1 Alan Donagan would appear to have managed quite to astound, not to say confound, the better part of his colleagues and confreres in the present-day moral philosophical establishment. For what is the thesis of his book, if not that the fundamental precepts of traditional Hebrew Christian morality?the Ten Commandments, the Golden Rule, the Sum mary of the Law, et al.?are all of them nothing if not precepts simply prescribed by right reason! "Incredible!", you will say. "Worse than that, it is downright presumptuous!" one can imagine the typical, present-day moral philosopher exclaiming. "For such precepts as those that Donagan cites and talks about are unmistakably religious precepts; and in the very nature of the case, a religious precept presumably derives such authority as it has only from its being thought to be by Divine command.2 How, then, can Donagan maintain that the typical religious precepts of Hebrew-Christian morality don't have to be regarded as being religious precepts in the usual sense at all? No, for he takes them to be grounded on nothing less than the authority of right reason!" Now to this kind of characteristic secularist, not to say prejudicial, professional philosophical reaction, Donagan's answer consists simply in the subtle and sustained argument of his entire book. Nor is there any denying the impressiveness of his performance. Still, for all of its impressiveness, I wonder if perhaps even one who is in every way sympathetic with Donagan's conclusions might not question whether the right reason which Donagan ap peals to in his argument is altogether a reason that is right for his purposes. Thus many of his typical examples are examples of actions that everyone would acknowledge to be, in their various ways, harmful to others?stealing, murder, adultery, bearing false witness, etc. Unmistakably, these are exam ples of actions drawn right from the Decalogue. Not only that, but they are presumably also actions of a kind that everyone of us would unhesitatingly pronounce to be wrong. But what is distinctive about Donagan's treatment of such actions is that in his eyes the basis on which we can recognize them to be wrong is simply that they can be seen to be "contrary to reason."3 And yet is this entirely correct? Is it true that all such actions and others like them may be recognized as patently contrary to reason? After all, the relevant reason here would admittedly have to be the kind of reason that for
Global higher bifurcations in coupled systems of nonlinear eigenvalue problems

On etablit des conditions pour l'existence d'une bifurcation n-aire globale de dimension elevee dans des systemes generaux de problemes aux valeurs propres non lineaires multiparametre qui conservent la structure de couplage des modeles de Lotka-Volterra diffusifs etat stationnaire
‘Call Us Ms.’: Viva and arguments for Kenyan women's respectable citizenship 1975–80

ABSTRACTDrawing on Viva, the first women's magazine published in East Africa, this article articulates the ways educated Kenyan women actively inserted themselves into public debates and constructions of the new nation. It argues that Viva authors and editors employed rhetorics of nationalism and development to advocate for Kenyan women's right to equal citizenship. They wanted participation in the possibilities, power, and self-reliance that postcolonial nationalism promised its citizens and mobilized images of a productive, modern woman to make their case. Viva's producers appropriated the momentum of 1970s development rhetoric and international women's liberation to show that Kenyan women were already fulfilling mandates to develop themselves and their fellow Kenyans through education, wage labor, consumer habits, and moral respectability. Viva reveals the ambitions, strategies, and desires of Kenya's educated women, not only for themselves but also for their nation and their rural ‘sisters’.
Activity-attribute flow chart and process algebra based approach for business process expression

In this paper, a new business process expression approach for BPR has been proposed. Firstly, the activity attribute flow chart is used to describe process.Secondly, the flow chart is analyzed by graph matrix analysis. Thirdly,a process algebraic formula is drawn out from the matrixes. Finally,the performance of business process is evaluated through the analysis of process algebraic formula. The evaluation of a process is based on the performance probability, the performance time of some process routines,the expectative performance time of the activities in a process, and the total expected performance time of the flow.
Competition and coexistence between a syntrophic consortium and a metabolic generalist, and its effect on productivity.

Abstract Syntrophic interactions, where species consume metabolites excreted by others, are common in microbial communities, and have uses in synthetic biology. Syntrophy is likely to arise when trade-offs favor an organism that specializes on particular metabolites, rather than all possible metabolites. Several trade-offs have been suggested; however, few models consider different trade-offs to test which are most consistent with observed patterns. Here, we develop a differential equation model to study competition between a syntrophic processing chain, where each microbe can perform one step in metabolizing an initial resource to a final state, and a metabolic generalist that can perform all metabolic functions. We also examine how competition affects the production of the final metabolic compound. We find that competitive outcomes can be predicted by a generalization of the R ⁎ -rule and relative nonlinearity. Therefore, the species that can persist at the lowest resource level is the competitive dominant in a constant environment, and species can coexist by partitioning variation in resources. We derive a simple rule for predicting production rates of the final metabolite, and show that competition may not maximize final metabolite production. We show that processing chains are inherently less efficient, because resources are lost during each step of the process. Our results also suggest which trade-offs are capable of explaining certain empirical observations. For example, processing chains appear to be more common in nutrient-rich environments; our model suggests that a specificity trade-off and an affinity-yield trade-off would not predict this, but a yield-maximum growth trade-off might.
Archaeological notes on a California Chinese shrimp boiler

Excavations at a late 19th century Chinese shrimp fishing camp in Marin County, California, uncovered the remains of the brick firebox and iron vat base of a shrimp boiler. Construction of this feature, particularly the absence of any evidence of a chimney, follows traditional Chinese patterns which were later modified. The boiler is smaller than similar structures in historical reports and located further from the water—differences interpreted as related to variability in boat and crew sizes and changes in other aspects of processing technology which evolved through the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Statistical and Probabilistic Background

Most of the economic relationships that are studied empirically involve more than two variables. For example, the demand for food on the part of a given consumer would depend on the consumer’s income, the price of food, and the prices of other commodities. Similarly, the demand for labor on the part of a firm would depend on anticipated output and relative factor prices. One can give many more such examples. What is common among them is that often the dependence is formulated to be linear in the parameters, leading to the so-called general linear model. Once the parameters of the model are estimated we are interested in the probability characteristics of the estimators. Since we are, typically, dealing with the estimators of more than one parameter simultaneously, it becomes important to develop the apparatus for studying multivariate relationships. This we shall do in the discussion to follow.
Effects of Inhibiting VPS4 Support a General Role for ESCRTs in Extracellular Vesicle Biogenesis

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are proposed to play important roles in intercellular communication. Two classes of EVs can be distinguished based on their intracellular origin. Exosomes are generated within endosomes and released when these fuse with the plasma membrane, whereas ectosomes bud directly from the plasma membrane. Studies of EV function have been hindered by limited understanding of their biogenesis. Components of the endosomal sorting complex required for transport (ESCRT) machinery play essential roles in topologically equivalent processes at both the endosome and the plasma membrane and are consistently recovered in EVs, but whether they are generally required to produce EVs is still debated. Here, we study the effects of inhibiting the ESCRT-associated AAA+ ATPase VPS4 on EV release from cultured cells using two methods for EV recovery, differential centrifugation and polyethylene glycol precipitation followed by lectin affinity chromatography. We find that inhibiting VPS4 in HEK293 cells decreases release of EV-associated proteins and miRNA as well as the overall number of EV particles. The tetraspanins CD63 and CD9 are among the most frequently monitored EV proteins, but they differ in their subcellular localization, with CD63 primarily in endosomes and CD9 on the plasma membrane. We find that CD63 and CD9 are enriched in separable populations of EVs that are both sensitive to VPS4 inhibition. Serum stimulation increases release of both types of EVs and is also reduced by inhibiting VPS4. Taken together, our data indicate that VPS4 activity is important for generating exosomes and ectosomes, thereby generally implicating the ESCRT machinery in EV biogenesis.
Local lung hypoxia determines epithelial fate decisions during alveolar regeneration

After influenza infection, lineage-negative epithelial progenitors (LNEPs) exhibit a binary response to reconstitute epithelial barriers: activating a Notch-dependent ΔNp63/cytokeratin 5 (Krt5) remodelling program or differentiating into alveolar type II cells (AEC2s). Here we show that local lung hypoxia, through hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF1α), drives Notch signalling and Krt5pos basal-like cell expansion. Single-cell transcriptional profiling of human AEC2s from fibrotic lungs revealed a hypoxic subpopulation with activated Notch, suppressed surfactant protein C (SPC), and transdifferentiation toward a Krt5pos basal-like state. Activated murine Krt5pos LNEPs and diseased human AEC2s upregulate strikingly similar core pathways underlying migration and squamous metaplasia. While robust, HIF1α-driven metaplasia is ultimately inferior to AEC2 reconstitution in restoring normal lung function. HIF1α deletion or enhanced Wnt/β-catenin activity in Sox2pos LNEPs blocks Notch and Krt5 activation, instead promoting rapid AEC2 differentiation and migration and improving the quality of alveolar repair.
Remembering Social Foundations of Education: Autobiographical Wanderings

For this collection of articles celebrating the 50th anniversary of the American Educational Studies Association, I was invited to contribute a narrative detailing my history and relationship to the field, influences to my development as a scholar, the state of the field during my presidency, and any advice or guidance I might share with current scholars and graduate students of Social Foundations of Education. As with any story, my perspectives are partial, based on my memories of events and experiences, and may or may not be consistent with the views and memories of others.
Patients Undergoing Radiation Therapy Are at Risk of Financial Toxicity: A Patient-based Prospective Survey Study.

Purpose Little is known about the financial burden experienced by patients receiving radiation therapy. Furthermore, currently, no financial toxicity screening tools have been validated for use in radiation oncology. Methods and Materials Physician surveys were used to gauge provider understanding of treatment costs and their willingness to adopt the use of financial toxicity screening tools. Post-treatment patient surveys were used to investigate the covariates of treatment-induced financial risk. Results Of the 210 radiation oncologists who completed our survey, 53% reported being “very concerned” with treatment-related costs negatively affecting their patients, and 80% believed that a financial toxicity screening tool would be useful in practice. An analysis of patient surveys using logistic regression found age and cancer site to be the most important variables associated with financial toxicity. Thirty-four patients (22%) experienced financial toxicity related to treatment. The financial toxicities experienced were loss of job (28%), loss of income (24%), difficulty paying their rent or mortgage (20%), difficulty paying for transportation (15%), and difficulty paying for meals (13%). Conclusions Financial toxicity is an important measure for patients and providers and is experienced by approximately one quarter of patients. Further studies to improve models to predict financial toxicity and how financial toxicity is related to patient outcomes and quality of life are warranted.
Perception of Breast Oncologists and Physician Extenders on Imaging Consultation Service at a Tertiary Cancer Institute

Abstract Objective To evaluate the perception and ease of utilization of the imaging consultation service by different types of referring clinicians and physician extenders within the breast oncology disease center at our tertiary cancer institute using a survey-based questionnaire. Methods An institutional review board-exempted survey was created using a freely available online survey software and questionnaire tool. The survey was sent to 83 clinicians associated with the breast oncology disease center at our tertiary cancer center through an institutional e-mail list. The survey included 2 questions about demographics and 8 statements regarding various aspects of the consultation service scored on a 5-point Likert-type scale. “1’’ being “agree completely,” “3” being “neutral/neither agree nor disagree,” and “5” being “disagree completely.” The survey was sent online and was answered anonymously. Responses were tallied and analyzed. Results A total of 56 responses (67%) were received. The weighted average of each Likert item ranged from 1.07 to 1.58. Highest positive concordance (95%) pertained to the access to the consult radiologist having a positive impact on patient care. The least concordant statement (78%), though still strong (with weighted average of 1.58% and 78% of respondents agreeing or agreeing completely) pertained to the role of direct consultation with radiologist in clinical management. Although there was variability of agreement to all statements (including responders feeling neutral), there was no one that disagreed with any of the Likert items. The mean Likert score for all the statements together was 1.23 (range: 1.07-1.58). Conclusion Presence of dedicated oncologic imaging consultation service is perceived positively by the breast oncology team at our tertiary cancer center.
Management of Blood Products in Orthopedic Surgery

Major orthopedic procedures entail significant blood loss in patient groups with high prevalence of anemia. The vital role of allogeneic blood is widely established in managing life-threatening blood loss. However, the safety profile of such transfusions is still far from perfect. Various perioperative modalities have proven capable of minimizing or even eliminating transfusion requirements in elective orthopedic procedures. Perioperative blood management is a multimodal planned approach to patient care. It should be regarded as the standard of care in elective orthopedic procedures.
Automated AFM as an Industrial Process Metrology Tool for Nanoelectronic Manufacturing

Scanning probe microscope (SPM) techniques, invented 20 years ago, act as eyes for nanotechnology and nanoscience research and development, for imaging and characterizing surface topography and properties at atomic resolution. Particularly for the past decade, atomic force microscopy (AFM, one member of the SPM family) has evolved from laboratory research instrumentation to an industry metrology tool for geometric dimension control in nanoelectronic device manufacturing on production floors. This chapter gives an overview in great technical detail of state-of-the-art AFM applications in process characterization and inline monitoring for semiconductor manufacturing. Use of AFM equally applies for topography, dimension, and sidewall shape metrology in photomask and hard disk recording head processing.
Modifications to the HPLC purification for PIB

463 Objectives The conventional HPLC purification of PIB [(N-Methyl-11C)-4-aminophenyl-6-hydroxybenzothiazole] uses acetonitrile and tetraethylammonium phosphate in the mobile phase. Final preparation of the solution for injection requires additional steps to remove the acetonitrile and salts. Our objective is to simplify the purification and final preparation of PIB using solvents and salts that can be present in the final solution for injection. Methods Initial experiments were performed with an analytical HPLC, a mobile phase of 60% 0.1M sodium dihydrogen phosphate and 40% ethanol and C-18, C-8 and C-5 reverse phase columns. Ten micron 250x4mm analytical columns where used to reduce back pressure. Columns were eluted at 2 mL/min. The best system was then transferred to the preparative system. Results All columns retained and resolved the PIB with satisfactory peak shape. Not unexpectedly the C-5 column gave the shortest retention times, with PIB eluting at ~7 min, precursor at ~3.5 min and the O-methyl isomer, a potential impurity in the PIB, eluting at ~11 min. This column was used on the synthesis unit with a back pressure of 20 MPa. The synthesis is performed in the injector loop using methyl triflate as the methylation agent. The reaction product is loaded directly on the C-5 “analytical” column. The column output is connected to a switching valve and a sterile vial containing 15 mls of sterile saline and a sterilizing filter. On this system the PIB peak elutes over 2 minutes at 8 -10 minutes in ~4mL, which is collected in the vial. The final total volume in the vial is 19 mL of ~7% ethanol in saline, well below the 10% ethanol, considered the maximum concentration suitable for IV administration. Conclusions The use of an analytical C-5 reverse phase column which is eluted with 40% ethanol/60% 0.1M sodium dihydrogen phosphate in the preparative HPLC purification of PIB provides a pure product which only requires dilution with isotonic saline to be administered to the patient
Far Lateral Craniotomy for Resection of Foramen Magnum Meningioma.

Objective Foramen magnum meningiomas present a formidable challenge to resection due to frequent involvement of the lower cranial nerves and vertebrobasilar circulation. The video shows the use of a far lateral craniotomy to resect a foramen magnum meningioma. Design, Setting, and Participant A 49-year-old woman presented with neck pain and was found to have a large foramen magnum meningioma ( Fig. 1A, B ). Drilling of the posterior occipital condyle was required to gain access to the lateral aspect of the brain stem. The amount of occipital condyle resection varies by patient and pathology. Outcome/Result Maximal total resection of the tumor was achieved ( Fig. 1B, C ), and the patient was discharged on postoperative day 4 with no neurologic deficits. The technique for tumor microdissection ( Fig. 2 ) is shown in the video. Conclusion Given the close proximity of foramen magnum meningiomas to vital structures at the craniocervical junction, surgical resection with careful microdissection and preservation of the overlying dura to prevent postoperative pseudomeningocele is necessary to successfully manage this pathology in those patients who are surgical candidates. The link to the video can be found at: https://youtu.be/Mds9N1x2zE0 .
A Primer on Absent Persons in Louisiana

This Article is the second in a series of primers on Louisiana Family Law. The Louisiana Civil Code of 1870, as amended to date, operates as the primary source of law, with other ancillary statutes and codes on particular subject matters. The law of absent persons appears in Title III of Book I of the Civil Code to prescribe the rules for those persons whose whereabouts are unknown. For the absent person or for those affected by his absence, the law provides a scheme to adequately protect the rights of the absent person while considering the needs of those affected by his absence.
A Design-Around Solution for a MMX-Based Tablet Drug Comprising Mesalazine—A Lesson from Shire Development, LLC v. Watson Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

This article explores Shire Development, LLC v. Watson Pharmaceuticals, Inc., 848 F.3d 981 (Fed. Cir. 2017) and illustrates some implications for designing around a MMX-based tablet drug, Lialda. T...
Scaling up Prediction of Psychosis by Natural Language Processing

Mental health professionals currently diagnose and treat mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, mainly by analyzing the language and speech of their patients, a method that maybe improved with the usage of artificial intelligence. This study aims to use machine learning to distinguish between the speech of patients who suffer from mental disorders which cause psychosis from that of healthy individuals to improve early detection of schizophrenia. We analyzed forty interview transcripts from patients who have been diagnosed with first episode psychosis. Word embeddings and convolutional neural network were utilized for the classification of patients from healthy individuals. The preliminary test results achieved a prediction rate of 99%, which indicated that our speech classifier was able to discriminate speech in patients from healthy individuals' daily conversations. This suggested that machine learning models can learn and train upon features of natural languages to predict whether or not an individual is beginning to show the first signs of early psychosis based on their speech. This line of inquiry will contribute to the improved identification of individuals at risk for psychiatric symptoms and lead to the development of targeted therapies. Source code and data of this work have been made public on https://github.com/DrDongSi/Psychosis_NLP
Acute histologic inflammatory activity and postoperative outcomes in pediatric patients with ulcerative colitis.

Abstract Background The aim of this study was to determine whether acute histologic inflammatory activity at the rectal margin predicts postoperative complications in children with ulcerative colitis following ileal pouch-anal anastomoses (IPAA). Methods Patients who underwent IPAA following previous total abdominal colectomy for ulcerative colitis between 2006 and 2014 were included. Data collected included demographics, operative and postoperative data, histologic grading of the rectal margin at time of IPAA, and stooling outcomes at one, six and 12 months following ileostomy closure. Results Twenty-seven patients were included. Acute inflammation scores ranged between 2 and 13. Unadjusted and adjusted models showed no statistically significant relationship between inflammation and presence of any postoperative complications, number of daily stools, nighttime stooling, soiling, or stool-altering medication usage. Conclusion Acute histologic inflammatory activity at the rectal margin is not associated with increased rates of postoperative complications following IPAA creation in children, nor with poorer continence outcomes following ileostomy closure.
Head Network Distillation: Splitting Distilled Deep Neural Networks for Resource-Constrained Edge Computing Systems

As the complexity of Deep Neural Network (DNN) models increases, their deployment on mobile devices becomes increasingly challenging, especially in complex vision tasks such as image classification. Many of recent contributions aim either to produce compact models matching the limited computing capabilities of mobile devices or to offload the execution of such burdensome models to a compute-capable device at the network edge – the edge servers. In this paper, we propose to modify the structure and training process of DNN models for complex image classification tasks to achieve in-network compression in the early network layers. Our training process stems from knowledge distillation, a technique that has been traditionally used to build small – student – models mimicking the output of larger – teacher – models. Here, we adopt this idea to obtain aggressive compression while preserving accuracy. Our results demonstrate that our approach is effective for state-of-the-art models trained over complex datasets, and can extend the parameter region in which edge computing is a viable and advantageous option. Additionally, we demonstrate that in many settings of practical interest we reduce the inference time with respect to specialized models such as MobileNet v2 executed at the mobile device, while improving accuracy.
RBFOX2 is Critical for Maintaining Alternative Polyadenylation Patterns and Mitochondrial Health in Rat Myoblasts

RBFOX2, which has a well-established role in alternative splicing, is linked to heart diseases. However, it is unclear whether RBFOX2 has other roles in RNA processing that can influence gene expression/function in muscle cells, contributing to disease pathology. Here, we employed both 3’-end and nanopore cDNA sequencing to reveal a previously unrecognized role for RBFOX2 in maintaining alternative polyadenylation (APA) signatures in myoblasts. We found that RBFOX2-mediated APA modulates both mRNA levels and isoform expression of a collection of genes including contractile and mitochondrial genes. We identified the key muscle-specific contractile gene, Tropomyosin 1 and essential mitochondrial gene, Slc25a4 as APA targets of RBFOX2. Unexpectedly, depletion of RBFOX2 adversely affected mitochondrial health in myoblasts that is in part mediated by disrupted APA of mitochondrial gene Slc25a4. Mechanistically, we found that RBFOX2 regulation of Slc25a4 APA is mediated through consensus RBFOX2 binding motifs near the distal polyadenylation site enforcing the use of the proximal polyadenylation site. In sum, our results unveiled a new role for RBFOX2 in fine tuning expression levels of mitochondrial and contractile genes via APA in myoblasts relevant to heart diseases.
Spiritual Care in Health Care: Guideline, Models, Spiritual Assessment and the Use of the ©FICA Spiritual History Tool

Spiritual care is an essential aspect of whole-person health care. Spiritual health is the domain of total health of a person which impacts the total well-being of the person. People who experience serious spiritual distress tend to have poorer quality of life, and greater depression and anxiety. It is therefore important that all clinicians address patients’ spiritual health as part of their clinical assessments. Many national and international guidelines have been developed for addressing spiritual care as a part of whole-person care, especially in the field of palliative care. These guidelines focus on the clinical aspect of spirituality, identifying spiritual distress as a clinical symptom to be assessed and treated. This model of interprofessional care developed following these guidelines is based on a generalist-specialist model of care: providers address spiritual concerns and work with spiritual care specialists in treating spiritual distress and helping enhance spiritual well-being. The anamnestic spiritual history tool FICA© can be used by clinicians to assess spiritual distress and spiritual resources of strength. Spiritual care has an intrinsic aspect, which includes presence in a patient’s suffering and creating a space for the patient to find their own healing, and an extrinsic aspect, which involves doing a formal assessment. Limitations to integrating interprofessional spiritual care include lack of training. Initiatives such as the ISPEC curriculum have been developed to train clinicians in interprofessional spiritual care.
Rotationally tunable varifocal 3D metalens.

Varifocal optics have a variety of applications in imaging systems. Metasurfaces offer control of the phase, transmission, and polarization of light using subwavelength engineered structures. However, conventional metasurface designs lack dynamic wavefront shaping which limits their application. In this work, we design and fabricate 3D doublet metalenses with a tunable focal length. The phase control of light is obtained through the mutual rotation of the singlet structures. Inspired by Moire lenses, the proposed structure consists of two all-dielectric metasurfaces. The singlets have reverse-phase profiles resulting in the cancellation of the phase shift in the nominal position. In this design, we show that the mutual rotation of the elements produces different wavefronts with quadratic radial dependence. Thus, an input plane wave is converted to spherical wavefronts whose focal length depends on the rotation. We use a combination of a nanopillar and a phase plate as the unit cell structure working at a wavelength of 1500 nm. Our design holds promise for a range of applications such as zoom lenses, microscopy, and augmented reality.
Arthroscopic management of glenohumeral arthritis in the young patient does not negatively impact the outcome of subsequent anatomic shoulder arthroplasty.

The objective of this study was to determine the impact of prior arthroscopic management of glenohumeral arthritis in the young patient on results of subsequent anatomic shoulder arthroplasty. Forty-three patients that had a total shoulder or ream-and-run arthroplasty with a history of arthroscopic management were matched to 86 patients without prior surgery. Each case was matched to two cases without prior arthroscopic surgery with similar age, sex, Walch classification, and type of arthroplasty. Forty-three patients with a history of arthroscopic management were matched to 86 patients without prior surgery. The mean two year SST scores (10.3 vs. 9.9, p = 0.334), % MPI (75.4 vs. 73.0%, p = 0.687), two year SANE scores (79.6 vs. 79.8, p = 0.953), and % of patients to exceed SST score MCID (89 vs. 91%, p = 0.860) and SANE score MCID (86 vs. 75%, p = 0.180) were statistically similar in patients with prior arthroscopic debridement compared with those without prior arthroscopic debridement. The rate of MUA (9 vs. 6%, p = 0.480) and open revision (9 vs. 8%, p = 1.000) were statistically similar between groups. Arthroscopic management of glenohumeral arthritis in patients aged 65 years and younger prior to anatomic shoulder arthroplasty was not associated with inferior outcomes for either total shoulder arthroplasty or ream-and-run arthroplasty.
ACEI/ARB Use is Associated with Reduced Mortality in COVID-19 Inpatients

Background: Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs)/angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) upregulate angiotensin-converting enzyme 2, the functional receptor for SARS-CoV-2, and therefore, can affect COVID-19 outcome. Methods To examine outcome among patients with COVID-19, a case control study was conducted at Maimonides Medical Center for patients admitted from February 1, 2020 to March 31, 2021. Baseline characteristics, comorbidities, concomitant pharmacotherapy, primary and secondary outcome, and lab profile were compared between patients who received inpatient ACEI/ARB use and those who did not in all patients, and subpopulation of patients when concomitant use of hydroxychloroquine, Tocilizumab, Remdesivir or dexamethasone was excluded. Primary outcome was also compared in subgroup of patients with hypertension, coronary artery disease, or congestive heart failure. Findings Among the 4854 patients admitted with COVID-19, 571 patients (11.8%) received inpatient ACEI/ARB, and 4283 patients (88.2%) did not. The ACEI/ARB group were older, had more male patients, and had more cardiovascular comorbidities. The 30-day and 90-day mortality for ACEI/ARB users were 14.71% and 15.41%, whereas the 30-day and 90-day mortality for non-users were 21.9% and 22.53%. The mortality benefit associated with ACEI/ARB use sustained when concomitant use of Remdesivir, hydroxychloroquine, Tocilizumab, or dexamethasone was excluded. Inpatient ACEI/ARB use was also associated with a relative mortality reduction of 40-45% at 30 and 90 days in patients with hypertension, coronary artery disease or congestive heart failure. The above differences in mortality between ACEI/ARB users and non-users were statistically significant except when concomitant use of dexamethasone was excluded. Interpretation: Inpatient use of ACEI/ARBs is associated with reduced mortality in COVID-19 patients; unless contraindicated, admitted COVID-19 patients should receive ACEI or ARB to improve outcome. Funding: None to declare. Declaration of Interest: None to declare. Ethical Approval: The study is approved by IRB at Maimonides Medical Center
A mechanics model for injectable microsystems in drug delivery

Abstract Injectable bioelectronic devices provide programmable drug volume delivery control via flexible electrochemical pumps featuring scalable designs for localized drug delivery experiments involving small animals and future drug delivery in humans, especially for life saving medication. A model for the drug delivery time is established from the ideal gas law, finite-deformation theory of flexible membrane, and microfluidics of the channel. It identifies two non-dimensional parameters involving the electrochemical, flexural, and microfluidic terms to control the drug delivery process. An analytical solution is derived from the perturbation method, which agrees well with the numerical solution. These results have relevance in design/optimization of bioelectronic devices used in localized delivery studies in small animals and humans where drug delivery time is an important parameter to ensure complete delivery within a required timeframe.
The Role of Palliative Care in Lung Cancer

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related mortality in the United States for both men and women, accounting for about one out of every four cancer deaths. Patients with lung cancer also suffer from high disease-related suffering due to considerable physical and psychological symptom burden during and after completion of cancer treatment, well into survivorship. This chapter examines the role of palliative care to improve patients’ quality of life and increase the quality of cancer care supported by a thorough review of the available evidence.
Corporate Ethics in the Era of Globalization: The Promise and Peril of International Environmental Standards

The growing assumption thattransnational corporations (TNCs) will apply``best practice'' and ``international standards''in their operations in developing countries hasseldom been checked against close observationof corporate behavior. In this article, Ipresent a case study, based on field research,of one voluntary initiative to useinternational standards and best practice forenvironmental protection in the AmazonRainforest, by a US-based oil company,Occidental Petroleum (Oxy) in Ecuador. The moststriking finding is that the company refuses todisclose the precise standards that apply toits operations. This, and the refusal todisclose other important environmentalinformation, make it impossible to verifyindependently Oxy's claims of environmentalexcellence, or assess the effectiveness of theinitiative. At the same time, Oxy uses theinvocation of international standards to wrapitself in a veneer of corporate responsibility;reassure government officials and localresidents; cultivate confusion about standardsand practices that apply to the operations;deflect meaningful oversight and transparency;and arbitrarily legitimize norms that have beendefined by special interests. In short,international standards offer great promise forneeded environmental improvements; but can alsobe used to impede, rather than advance,corporate responsibility and the development ofeffective environmental law at the nationallevel. These findings suggest that for theapplication of international standards to bemeaningful, the international community needsto move beyond statements of principle anddevelop mechanisms that can be used toevaluate, verify, and monitor independentlyenvironmental claims by TNCs.
New Evidence On The Effectiveness Of The Insider Trading Sanctions Act Of 1984

This study examines the effectiveness of the Insider Trading Sanctions Act (ITSA) of 1984 by employing a new approach. This approach examines the effect of ITSA in changing insider trading behavior around seasoned equity offering (SEO) announcements. Results of this study provide strong evidence of deferred net selling by insiders until after the SEO announcement date. Deferred net selling is evident for both the pre-ITSA and post-ITSA periods. We find limited evidence showing that the deferred net selling is significantly increased after passage of ITSA. Any effect of ITSA predominantly affects broad trading, rather than concentrated trading.
Role of Antioxidants on the Stimulation of the Mitogenic Response

By comparing the activities of tocopherol with other antioxidants and tocopherol analogs on mitogenesis of murine spleen cells, an attempt was made to understand the mechanism of tocopherol stimulation. N,N'-diphenyl-p-phenylene diamine (DPPD) was very active in this system, whereas butylated hydroxytoluene, another antioxidant, was much less active. Trolox C, an analog of alpha-tocopherol with a carboxyl group instead of the isoprene side chain was totally inactive. Tocopherol quinone, an oxidized form of tocopherol, was almost as active as tocopherol. Menadione (vitamin K-3), a quinone without a side chain, was also active. It was suggested therefore, that although in tocopherol-like compounds the side chain seems important, the activities of DPPD and menadione clearly do not require it. On the other hand, the stimulation by tocopherol quinone and menadione appears to rule out a requirement for an antioxidant function in mitogenic stimulation. A comparison of the action of tocopherol with indomethacin ruled out regulation of the peroxidation step leading to prostaglandin synthesis as the mechanism for the tocopherol effect.