cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effectiveness of MDCT Angiography for the Detection of Intracranial Aneurysms in Patients with Nontraumatic Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

OBJECTIVE. CT angiography (CTA) is a noninvasive imaging technique used to evaluate cerebral vascular structures. Digital subtraction angiography (DSA), although invasive, is the gold standard for diagnosing intracranial aneurysms. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of CTA in the detection of intracranial aneurysms for patients with nontraumatic subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) in a level 1 trauma center. MATERIALS AND METHODS. We evaluated the diagnostic accuracy of MDCT in 336 consecutive patients undergoing evaluation for nontraumatic SAH with both CTA and 3D DSA within 48 hours. The diagnostic performance of CTA was assessed by radiology reports using DSA as the gold standard. Analyses were performed per aneurysm and per patient, the results were stratified by aneurysm size and location, and the MDCT data—16-MDCT data versus 4-, 8-, and 16-MDCT combined data—were compared. RESULTS. The overall sensitivity and specificity of CTA per aneurysm was 83% (CI, 0.78–0.87) and 93% (0.88–0.97), respectively. CTA failed to detect 49 of the 284 aneurysms. Thirty-nine (80%) of these 49 missed aneurysms were ≤ 3 mm, nine (18%) were 4–6 mm, and one (2%) was 7–10 mm. The sensitivity and specificity of CTA per patient was 95% (0.91–0.97) and 97% (0.92–0.99), respectively. Of 211 patients, a primary aneurysm was missed on CTA in 11 patients. CONCLUSION. CTA showed excellent diagnostic performance for aneurysm detection. The high negative predictive value (91.2%) for the per-patient analysis indicates that CTA has merit as a screening tool. Most aneurysms missed were ≤ 3 mm and in patients in whom a primary aneurysm had already been detected.
Scaling parallel I/O performance through I/O delegate and caching system

Increasingly complex scientific applications require massive parallelism to achieve the goals of fidelity and high computational performance. Such applications periodically offload checkpointing data to file system for post-processing and program resumption. As a side effect of high degree of parallelism, I/O contention at servers doesn't allow overall performance to scale with increasing number of processors. To bridge the gap between parallel computational and I/O performance, we propose a portable MPI-IO layer where certain tasks, such as file caching, consistency control, and collective I/O optimization are delegated to a small set of compute nodes, collectively termed as I/O Delegate nodes. A collective cache design is incorporated to resolve cache coherence and hence alleviates the lock contention at I/O servers. By using popular parallel I/O benchmark and application I/O kernels, our experimental evaluation indicates considerable performance improvement with a small percentage of compute resources reserved for I/O.
A 'greedy' approach to the write problem in shadowed disk systems

There has been considerable interest in parallel disk drive systems, in which replication of the stored data is used for both fault tolerance and enhanced performance. It has been discovered that performance gains are limited by the fact that no matter how large the number of disk drives, the system still behaves probabilistically like a small system. These findings are summarized, and a greedy, that is, anticipatory, approach is proposed to deal with the problem. In this approach idle read/write heads are moved to positions which will minimize the expected seek time of the next disk access request. Substantial performance gains are found to accrue. >
Filtering Data Based on Human-Inspired Forgetting

Robots are frequently presented with vast arrays of diverse data. Unfortunately, perfect memory and recall provides a mixed blessing. While flawless recollection of episodic data allows increased reasoning, photographic memory can hinder a robot's ability to operate in real-time dynamic environments. Human-inspired forgetting methods may enable robotic systems to rid themselves of out-dated, irrelevant, and erroneous data. This paper presents the use of human-inspired forgetting to act as a filter, removing unnecessary, erroneous, and out-of-date information. The novel ActSimple forgetting algorithm has been developed specifically to provide effective forgetting capabilities to robotic systems. This paper presents the ActSimple algorithm and how it was optimized and tested in a WiFi signal strength estimation task. The results generated by real-world testing suggest that human-inspired forgetting is an effective means of improving the ability of mobile robots to move and operate within complex and dynamic environments.
Response to Letter Regarding Article, “Art of Expertise in Stroke Telemedicine: Imaging and the Collaterome”

The complimentary comments by Uchino et al1–3 on the recent editorial about stroke telemedicine suggest that the Stroke Emergency Mobile (STEMO) methodology was erroneously described.1–3 They contend that the presence of a neurologist in the ambulance defies the definition of stroke telemedicine despite the use of both teleradiology and further teleneurology consultation with a senior stroke expert to facilitate complex decision making. Their letter describes a further iteration of the mobile stroke unit methods pioneered in Berlin to advance telemedicine and the streamlined triage of patients with stroke in Cleveland. I strongly endorse their efforts to advance the care of patients with both ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke but suggest that their model is not the first nor ultimate refinement of stroke telemedicine. Stroke telemedicine may be defined and implemented with a variety of …
Backup path allocation based on a correlated link failure probability model in overlay networks

Communication reliability is a desired property in computer networks. One key technology to increase the reliability of a communication path is to provision a disjoint backup path. One of the main challenges in implementing this technique is that two paths that are disjoint at the IP or overlay layer may share the same physical links. As a result, although we may select a disjoint backup path at the overlay layer one physical link failure may cause the failure of both the primary and the backup paths. In this paper we propose a solution to address this problem. The main idea is to take into account the correlated link failure at the overlay layer More precisely, our goal is to find a route for the backup path to minimize the joint path failure probability between the primary and the backup paths. To demonstrate the feasibility of our approach, we perform extensive evaluations under both single and double link failure models. Our results show that, in terms of robustness, our approach is near optimal and is up to 60% better than no backup path reservation and is up to 30% better than using the traditional shortest disjoint path algorithm to select the backup path.
Sulfur mustard vapor effects on differentiated human lung cells

Context: sulfur mustard (SM) causes skin blistering and long-term pulmonary dysfunction. Its adverse effects have been studied in battlefield-exposed humans, but lack of knowledge regarding confounding factors makes interpretation challenging. Animal studies are critical to understanding mechanisms, but differences between animals and humans must be addressed. Studies of cultured human cells can bridge animal studies and humans.Objective: Evaluate effects of SM vapor on airway cells.Materials and methods: We examined responses of differentiated human tracheal/bronchial epithelial cells, cultured at an air-liquid interface, to SM vapors. SM effects on metabolic activity (Water Soluble Tetrazolium (WST) assay), cytokine and metalloproteinase secretion, and cellular heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1), an oxidative stress indicator, were measured after 24 h.Results: At noncytotoxic levels of exposure, interleukin 8 and matrix metalloproteinase-13 were significantly increased in these cultures, but HO-1 was not significa...
Crystallographic structure analysis of lamprey hemoglobin from anomalous dispersion of synchrotron radiation

The molecular structure of lamprey hemoglobin was previously determined and refined by conventional crystallographic analysis. In this study, the structural analysis has been repeated in the course of developing the method of multiwavelength anomalous diffraction (MAD) for phase determination. New experimental and analytical procedures that were devised to perform this determination should have general applicability. These include an experimental design to optimize signal strength and reduce systematic errors, experimental evaluation of anomalous scattering factors, and a least-squares procedure for analyzing the MAD data. MAD phases for the structure at 3A resolution are as accurate overall as the multiple isomorphous replacement (MIR) phases determined previously.
Caregiving mothers of children with impairments: coping and support in Russia

Parents providing long‐term care for their children with impairments face myriad physical and emotional challenges. Researchers have examined coping strategies among parent caregivers in various contexts internationally. However, little research has focused on caregiving mothers of children with impairments in developing countries, and even less on mothers in Russia. The purpose of this qualitative study is to investigate the ways in which caregiving mothers cope and their perceptions of services and supports they need and utilize in a small Russian city. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with caregiving mothers (n = 20) concerning postnatal and current treatment, information and services, finances, social support, and future plans. Analysis revealed that planning for the future and navigating limited resources, overcoming structural barriers and cultural obstacles, and maintaining social support were the three most important facets of mothers’ abilities to cope with the demands of caregiving.
Erethizon dorsatum (L.) (American Porcupine) Skeletal Remains from the Charles Church Rockshelter, Watauga County, North Carolina

Abstract Osseus remains of Erethizon dorsatum (American or Common Porcupine) were recovered by archaeological excavations at the Charles Church Rockshelter site in Watauga County, NC. Two specimens were successfully radiocarbon-dated to between 7670 and 7460 years before present, confirming the presence of Porcupines in the mountains of North Carolina in the middle Holocene. Climatic events and human predation may have led to its extirpation from the southern Appalachians by AD 1000.
Simulation of hypercube architectures using Network II.5

A series of simulations comparing different hypercube architectures for application in a network configuration of personal computers (PCs) is described. The study was done using Network II.5, a simulation package for networking and processing, to simulate various levels of hypercube architectures. The data are used to analyze the various levels of hypercube programming (N=1 to 4) for comparison with a single- and multiple-user microcomputer. Implementation includes an application communications program running on a PC that uses message passing as a form of control between other computers in the hypercube network. >
Selective Bioactivity of Synthetic Amphipathic Peptides Against Murine Macrophages Infected with Brucella abortus

The efficacy of current antibiotics is declining at an alarming rate due to the proliferation of multi-drug resistant bacteria [1]. Synthetic antimicrobial peptides are currently being investigated as potential agents to address the increased need of antibiotics with different mechanism of action [2]. A series of short, synthetic, amphipathic peptides, incorporating high levels of Cα,Cα-disubstituted glycines (Table 1) have been prepared to determine their suitability as antimicrobial agents against the intracellular pathogen Brucella abortus. Though exhibiting low direct bioactivity against B. abortus, the peptides show a remarkable selectivity towards killing Murine peritoneal macrophages that have been infected with the pathogen in vitro. In all instances, the a-helical permutation isomers of the peptides exhibited higher selectivity and overall activity than the 310-helical permutations. These results are being applied towards the development of therapeutic applications of synthetic peptides against intracellular pathogens of significant current interest, such as M. tuberculosis.
In-Class Debating in Public Law Classes as a Complement to the Socratic Method

In an introductory American politics course students customarily learn a modicum of public law by memorizing seminal cases and matching them with concepts relating to larger topics, e.g., "rights and liberties" or "the judiciary." Students in advanced courses in public law, however, are usually required to grapple directly with, and to critically evaluate, appellate court cases and constitutional commentaries. Typically, this objective of teaching students how to "teach themselves the law" is accomplished by the technique known as the Socratic method. The Socratic method, an approach that dominates legal education in the United States, involves asking students, who have presumably already read the assigned cases, to indicate the facts of the case, the legal questions put before the court, how the court answered each question, the reasoning of the majority opinion, and the reasoning behind dissenting or concurring opinions. Then, often in order to answer a series of hypothetical questions by the instructor, students must "harmonize the outcomes of seemingly inconsistent cases so that they are made to stand together." As Howard Abadinsky noted, "By taking and putting together different cases, the student acquires a way of thinking and working with cases that constitutes the fundamentals of legal reasoning, as well as knowledge of doctrinal rules presented by these cases."' 1 The Socratic method, however, has not been without its critics. First, it is questionable whether or not instructors want to subject undergraduate students to the same rigors as law students. Political science courses in public law are not mini-law-school classes, and it is not the objective of most instructors in undergraduate classes in constitutional law to get their students to "think like lawyers." Second, there are those who argue that the technique itself actually is damaging to students.2 I believe there is a way to teach students to critically evaluate cases, and to expose them to case commentaries as well as the basics of legal research, without relying exclusively on the Socratic method. In my classes in public law, I have each student participate in an in-class debate during the quarter, structured much like competitive debates at the interscholastic or intercollegiate level. Although, for the most part, students are re-arguing cases that have already been decided, they function as the "affirmative" and the "negative" terms in traditional academic debating. The cases serve as the resolution. Both sides present constructive speeches and rebuttal speeches, and they answer cross-examination questions. Further, there is a short writing assignment accompanying the project that obliges the students to argue the merits of their case and to anticipate their opponents' arguments. I have successfully used inclass debating in conjunction with lecturing and the Socratic method.
Studies of asymmetric styrene cyclopropanation with a rhodium(II) metallopeptide catalyst developed with a high-throughput screen.

Dirhodium metallopeptides have been developed as selective catalysts for asymmetric cyclopropanation reactions. A selective ligand sequence has been identified by screening on-bead metallopeptide libraries in a 96-well plate format. Efficient ligand synthesis and screening allows a 200-member library to be created and assayed in less than three weeks. These metallopeptides catalyze efficient cyclopropanation of aryldiazoacetates, providing asymmetric access to cyclopropane products in high diastereoselectivity. Chirality 25:493–497, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Defining excellence: next steps for practicing clinicians seeking to prevent diagnostic error.

The Institute of Medicine (IOM) released its report on diagnostic errors in September, 2015. The report highlights the urgency of reducing errors and calls for system-level intervention and changes in our basic clinical interactions. Using the report’s controversial definition of diagnostic error as a starting point, we introduce the issues and the potential impact on practicing physicians. We report a case used to illustrate this in an academic conference. Finally, we turn to the challenge of integrating these ideas into the traditional peer-review process. We argue that the medical community must evolve from understanding diagnostic failures to redesigning the diagnostic process. We should see errors as steps toward diagnostic excellence and reliable processes that minimize the risk of mislabeling and harm.
Could tariffs be pro-cyclical?

Abstract Conventional wisdom says that tariffs are counter-cyclical. We analyze the relationship between business cycles and applied MFN tariffs using a disaggregated product-level panel dataset covering 72 countries between 2000 and 2011. Strikingly, and counter to conventional wisdom, we find that tariffs are pro-cyclical. Further investigation reveals that this pro-cyclicality is driven by the tariff setting behavior of developing countries; tariffs are acyclical in developed countries. We present evidence that pro-cyclical market power drives the pro-cyclicality of tariffs in developing countries, providing further evidence of the importance of terms of trade motivations in explaining trade policy.
Of Men and Superman

This chapter discusses gender. It starts with how Lois Lane, the comics’ main female character, is figured in relation to New Deal political culture and Jewish American assimilationism. An overly willful, behaviorally “nonwhite” woman, she needs to be disciplined into proper bourgeois, “white” femininity. Second, it discusses Superman’s hypermasculinity, arguing that it was rooted both in personal, intertextual, and Jewish American understandings of desirable characteristics in a man. Finally, Superman’s dual masculinities are discussed. Superman is here read in tune with a reconfigured Jewish American masculinity and with pop culture and ethnic humor. Aside from being a practical joke on bullies, tormentors, and perhaps anti-Semites, the Superman–Clark Kent duality, it is argued, might have been a way to cast nonideological difference as illusory, or at least inconsequential.
Joint Replacement Volume Positively Correlates With Improved Hospital Performance on Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Quality Metrics

Abstract Background The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is transitioning Medicare from a fee-for-service program into a value-based pay-for-performance program. In order to accomplish this goal, CMS initiated 3 programs that attempt to define quality and seek to reward high-performing hospitals and penalize poor-performing hospitals. These programs include (1) penalties for hospital-acquired conditions (HACs), (2) penalties for excess readmissions for certain conditions, and (3) performance on value-based purchasing (VBP). The objective of this study was to determine whether high-volume total joint hospitals perform better in these programs than their lower-volume counterparts. Methods We analyzed data from the New York Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System database on total New York State hospital discharges from 2013 to 2015 for total knee and total hip arthroplasty. This was compared to data from Hospital Compare on HAC's, excess readmissions, and VBP. From these databases, we identified 123 hospitals in New York, which participated in all 3 Medicare pay-for-performance programs and performed total joint replacements. Results Over the 3-year period spanning 2013-2015, hospitals in New York State performed an average of 1136.59 total joint replacement surgeries and achieved a mean readmission penalty of 0.005909. The correlation coefficient between surgery volume and combined performance score was 0.277. Of these correlations, surgery volume and VBP performance, and surgery volume and combined performance showed statistical significance ( P Conclusion Our study demonstrates that there is a positive association between joint replacement volumes and overall hospital quality, as well as joint replacement volumes and VBP performance, specifically. These findings are consistent with previously reported associations between patient outcomes and procedure volumes. However, a relationship between joint replacement volume and HAC scores or readmission penalties could not be demonstrated.
Fermi Question, Fermi Paradox: One Hit, One Out

Our understanding of the universe and the history of life on Earth suggests we may not be alone in the Galaxy. Today we are ignorant of where “they” are, if they are, as was Fermi when he asked, “Where are they?” Many scientists believe the way to seek for answers is to search for “their” radiated signature. (Hence SETI, now.) But some have argued persistently that since they are not here, they are not out there, and a few insist the situation is paradoxical. This note samples speculations supporting this view and concludes one cannot make a worthy paradox from absent evidence, a belief that interstellar travel will soon be a cinch, and a willingness to predict the distant future of intelligent species.
Alternative Investment Strategies

FALL 1999 O ften alternative investment strategies are lumped into two areas: managed futures and hedge funds. Investors have to be reminded that private equity, private debt, real estate, and credit derivatives all form part of the alternative to the long-only world of mutual fund stock and bond investments. In contrast to other books about the alternative investment firmament, this work directly provides insight into an array of alternative investment strategies. The book brings together chapters on private equity and private debt as well as what are commonly called skill-based investment strategies such as hedge funds, managed futures, and currencies, and provides detailed insight into developments affecting asset-backed securities, emerging market fixed-income debt, credit and insurance derivatives, and risk management within these strategies. More precisely, the book contains ten sections. In the introduction, the editor provides the wide range of questions surrounding alternative investments from an investor’s viewpoint. In the second section, on private equity and venture capital, two chapters represent the pertinent investment risks, liquidity, and regulatory issues. In the third section, the authors discuss skill-based strategies that include market-neutral investing, multimanager products, managed futures, commodities, and currencies. In the fourth section, three chapters address hedge fund performance as well as risk management issues. For instance, Chapter 12 provides a comparison of return patterns on traditional and alternative investments and concludes that hedge funds and CTAs have different trading styles and opportunities than the traditional stock and bond mutual fund managers. The fifth section on emerging markets addresses new techniques in emerging market fund management. In the sixth section, the authors introduce non-traditional types of asset-backed securities (ABS), which offer enhanced yield and well-managed, diversified risk, especially collateralized loan obligations (CLOs) and collateralized bond obligations (CBOs). The seventh section contains three chapters presenting issues on insurance and credit derivatives. Insurance-linked securities and contingent capital are now firmly established and are expected to grow over the next few years, although the current softness of the reinsurance market may limit the number of issues. In the eighth section, credit arbitrage and creditand insurance-linked notes are discussed, as well as a range of new asset structures. The ninth section discusses regulatory environment issues, including marketing alternative investment funds and taxation of hedge funds. The final section contains three appendixes including an executive summary of a 1997 report on alternative Book Review
CROSS REACTIVITY OF LETHAL VENOMS TO A MONOCLONAL ANTIBODY

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the cross reactivity of lethal venoms to a monoclonal antibody (MAB). In an experiment described in the chapter, MAB to specific lethal factors from the venom of the Portuguese Man-O'war was prepared. The cross reactivity of K5 MAB with that of a number of other venoms available was examined. A strong cross reaction was seen with the venoms of the South American rattlesnake, Crotalus durissus terrificus, the oriental hornet, Vespa orientalis, the sea wasp, Chironex fleckeri, the sea nettle, Chrysaora quinquecirrha, and a purified component of the venom of the sea anemone Anemonia sulcata. K5 MAB did not react with APA and APC from the venom of the sea anemone, Anthopleura xanthogrammica or ατχI from Anemonia sulcata. No reaction was seen with the crude venom of Bolocera tuediae. To confirm this correlation, a quantity of Crotalus durissus terrificus venom was purified by immunochromatography with K5 MAB immobilized on Sepharose via cyanogen bromide.
DIFFUSION OF HYDROGEN THROUGH BINARY NOBLE METAL SOLID SOLUTIONS

ABSTRACT New data for the thermodynamic and kinetic behavior of solutions of hydrogen in deformed and undeformed pure palladium and in alloys of palladium with the noble metals are presented and discussed in the light of statistical models.
Functional Genomics in Murine Macrophages

In this chapter, we describe methods for functional genomics studies in mouse macrophages. In particular, we describe complementary methods for gene inhibition using RNA interference (RNAi) and gene overexpression. These methods are readily amenable to medium- and high-throughput functional genomics investigations. These complementary loss-of-function and gain-of-function genomic approaches provide a rapid means of investigating the function of candidate genes prior to initiating more cumbersome studies in vivo.
Optimal Dynamic Control for Input-Queued Switches in Heavy Traffic

We consider optimal control of input-queued switches under a cost-weighted variant of the MaxWeight scheduling algorithm, for which we establish theoretical properties that include showing the algorithms exhibit optimal heavy-traffic queue-length scaling. Our results are expected to be of theoretical interest more broadly than input-queued switches.
Prognostic factors for overall survival (OS) in metastatic melanoma (MM) patients (pts) treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors: A single institution study of 696 pts.

9574Background: Limited OS data, including prognostic and predictive factors of response, is available in mm pts treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors. Methods: A single-institution retrospecti...
Experimental Procedure: Making Molecules in the New Apparatus

Most of the laser systems for the experiment are the same between the old apparatus and the new apparatus, so to change to the new apparatus, we moved the old vacuum chamber off of the main optical table for the experiment, and on to a smaller optical table for testing and building. The new chamber was then moved from this table to the position on the main experiment table where the old chamber was previously. The moving of the chambers was done with a mobile jacking lift platform which was outfitted with a large aluminum breadboard. The two sides of the flexible bellows were braced on both chambers when moving them. Figure 9.1 shows the entire chamber-moving process.
Suboptimal Temperature Acclimation Affects Kennedy Pathway Gene Expression, Lipidome and Metabolite Profile of Nannochloropsis salina during PUFA Enriched TAG Synthesis

In humans, dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are involved in therapeutic processes such as prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases, neuropsychiatric disorders, and dementia. We examined the physiology, PUFA accumulation and glycerol lipid biosynthesis in the marine microalga Nannochloropsis salina in response to constant suboptimal temperature (<20 °C). As expected, N. salina exhibited significantly reduced growth rate and photosynthetic activity compared to optimal cultivation temperature. Total fatty acid contents were not significantly elevated at reduced temperatures. Cultures grown at 5 °C had the highest quantity of eicosapentanoic acid (EPA) (C20:5n3) and the lowest growth rate. Additionally, we monitored broadband lipid composition to model the occurrence of metabolic alteration and remodeling for various lipid pools. We focused on triacylglycerol (TAG) with elevated PUFA content. TAGs with EPA at all three acyl positions were higher at a cultivation temperature of 15 °C. Furthermore, monogalactosyldiacylglycerol and digalactosyldiacylglycerol, which are polar lipids associated with chloroplast membranes, decreased with reduced cultivation temperatures. Moreover, gene expression analysis of key genes involved in Kennedy pathway for de novo TAG biosynthesis revealed bimodal variations in transcript level amongst the temperature treatments. Collectively, these results show that Nannochloropsis salina is a promising source of PUFA containing lipids.
Islamic Schools Challenges: Réussite and IFSQY/Samarcande

This chapter focuses on two schools that illustrate some of the difficulties encountered by Muslim schools to get a contract with the State. One of the goals of Reussite, the first private junior high Muslim school was to fight school failure in the department of Seine-St-Denis, notorious for its failed housing policies that have created ghettos. Reussite submitted all paperwork to the State and underwent an inspection in June 2006. Despite impressive results at national exams in 2008, the school waited for an answer from the state for many years, only to have its request denied in 2014. In the meantime, debts accumulated and the school had to close in 2017. IFSQY/Samarcande was denied its first request for a contract for lack of funding.
PNPLA3, CGI-58, and Inhibition of Hepatic Triglyceride Hydrolysis in Mice

A variant (148M) in patatin-like phospholipase domain-containing protein 3 (PNPLA3) is a major risk factor for fatty liver disease. Despite its clinical importance, the pathogenic mechanism linking the variant to liver disease remains poorly defined. Previously, we showed that PNPLA3(148M) accumulates to high levels on hepatic lipid droplets (LDs). Here we examined the effect of that accumulation on triglyceride (TG) hydrolysis by adipose triglyceride lipase (ATGL), the major lipase in the liver. As expected, overexpression of ATGL in cultured hepatoma (HuH-7) cells depleted the cells of LDs, but unexpectedly, co-expression of PNPLA3(wild type [WT] or 148M) with ATGL inhibited that depletion. The inhibitory effect of PNPLA3 was not caused by the displacement of ATGL from LDs. We tested the hypothesis that PNPLA3 interferes with ATGL activity by interacting with its cofactor, comparative gene identification-58 (CGI-58). Evidence supporting such an interaction came from two findings. First, co-expression of PNPLA3 and CGI-58 resulted in LD depletion in cultured cells, but expression of PNPLA3 alone did not. Second, PNPLA3 failed to localize to hepatic LDs in liver-specific Cgi-58 knockout (KO) mice. Moreover, overexpression of PNPLA3(148M) increased hepatic TG levels in WT, but not in Cgi-58 KO mice. Thus, the pro-steatotic effects of PNPLA3 required the presence of CGI-58. Co-immunoprecipitation and pulldown experiments in livers of mice and in vitro using purified proteins provided evidence that PNPLA3 and CGI-58 can interact directly. Conclusion: Taken together, these findings are consistent with a model in which PNPLA3(148M) promotes steatosis by CGI-58-dependent inhibition of ATGL on LDs.
Literature review: the gap between mentoring theory and practice for diverse women faculty

Mentoring remains a beneficial resource for faculty career advancement. Yet, women faculty across African, Latinx, Asian, and Native American Diasporas often report their career advancement needs a...
Abstract 2818: Neutrophil extracellular traps regulate mitochondrial quality control in cancer cells to promote tumor growth

Introduction: Evidence is accumulating that neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) are present within tumors and confer a worse outcome. The exact mechanisms of their role in tumor progression have been far from answered. Methods: Preoperative serum and tumor tissue were obtained from colorectal cancer liver metastases (CCLM) patients. In vivo, subcutaneous and liver metastasis tumor models were done in WT and nu/nu mice. Hepatocellular and colon murine and human cancer cell lines were used. DNase injection or PAD4KO mice were used to suppress NETs. In vitro, human and mice neutrophils were isolated and stimulated with PMA to form NETs to treat multiple cancer cell lines and examine NETs effect on their bioenergetics. Results:Tumors from CCLM patients showed increased NETs. Preoperative serum MPO-DNA, a NET marker, was found to be significantly elevated in CCLM patients compared to healthy controls. Patients with high MPO-DNA had significantly shorter overall and disease-free survival than patients with low MPO-DNA. The median disease-free survival was 5.8 times shorter (5.5vs.31 months, p Conclusion:NETs actively recruited to the tumor microenvironment can alter the metabolic programming of cancer cells by upregulating biogenesis and maintain mitochondrial fission, fusion and mitophagy which result in increased tumor growth. NETs represent a promising therapeutic target to halt cancer progression. Citation Format: Samer Tohme, Hamza Yazdani, Richard L. Simmons, Allan Tsung, David Bartlett. Neutrophil extracellular traps regulate mitochondrial quality control in cancer cells to promote tumor growth [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 2818.
Classical complement cascade initiating C1q protein within neurons in the aged rhesus macaque dorsolateral prefrontal cortex

Cognitive impairment in schizophrenia, aging, and Alzheimer’s disease is associated with spine and synapse loss from the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) layer III. Complement cascade signaling is critical in driving spine loss and disease pathogenesis. Complement signaling is initiated by C1q, which tags synapses for elimination. C1q is thought to be expressed predominately by microglia, but its expression in primate dlPFC has never been examined. The current study assayed C1q levels in aging primate dlPFC and rat medial PFC (mPFC) and used immunoelectron microscopy (immunoEM), immunoblotting, and co-immunoprecipitation (co-IP) to reveal the precise anatomical distribution and interactions of C1q. Age-related changes in C1q levels in rhesus macaque dlPFC and rat mPFC were examined using immunoblotting. High-spatial resolution immunoEM was used to interrogate the subcellular localization of C1q in aged macaque layer III dlPFC and aged rat layer III mPFC. co-IP techniques quantified protein-protein interactions for C1q and proteins associated with excitatory and inhibitory synapses in macaque dlPFC. C1q levels were markedly increased in the aged macaque dlPFC. Ultrastructural localization found the expected C1q localization in glia, including those ensheathing synapses, but also revealed extensive localization within neurons. C1q was found near synapses, within terminals and in spines, but was also observed in dendrites, often near abnormal mitochondria. Similar analyses in aging rat mPFC corroborated the findings in rhesus macaques. C1q protein increasingly associated with PSD95 with age in macaque, consistent with its synaptic localization as evidenced by EM. These findings reveal novel, intra-neuronal distribution patterns for C1q in the aging primate cortex, including evidence of C1q in dendrites. They suggest that age-related changes in the dlPFC may increase C1q expression and synaptic tagging for glial phagocytosis, a possible mechanism for age-related degeneration.
Recreational Cannabis Legalization in the US and Maternal Use during the Preconception, Prenatal, and Postpartum Periods

In the United States (US), recreational cannabis use is on the rise. Since 2011, 11 states and the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis for adult recreational use. As additional states consider legalizing, there is an urgent need to assess associations between recreational cannabis legalization and maternal use in the preconception, prenatal, and postpartum periods—all critical windows for maternal and child health. Using cross-sectional data from the 2016 Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System, we assessed associations between state cannabis legalization and self-reported maternal cannabis use. Using logistic regression, we estimated the adjusted prevalence ratio (PR) of cannabis use during the preconception, prenatal, and postpartum period for women delivering a live-born infant in three states that had legalized recreational cannabis (Alaska, Colorado, and Washington) and three states that had not legalized (Maine, Michigan, and New Hampshire) by 2016. Our final sample size was 7258 women. We utilized 95% confidence intervals (CI) and a significance level of alpha = 0.05. After adjustment for potential confounders, women who resided in states with legalized recreational cannabis were significantly more likely to use cannabis during the preconception (PR 1.52; 95%CI ranging from 1.28–1.80; p < 0.001), prenatal (PR 2.21; 95% CI ranging from 1.67–2.94; p < 0.001), and postpartum (PR 1.73; 95%CI ranging from 1.30–2.30; p < 0.001) periods, compared to women who resided in states without legalized recreational cannabis. Although evidence about the effect of marijuana use during these periods is nascent, these findings show potential for increased incidence of child exposure to cannabis. Longitudinal research is needed to assess immediate and sustained impacts of maternal use before and after state legalization of recreational cannabis.
Association of adverse childhood experiences with menopausal symptoms: Results from the Data Registry on Experiences of Aging, Menopause and Sexuality (DREAMS).

Abstract Objective To examine the association of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) with overall menopausal symptom burden in midlife women. Study design This was a cross-sectional study of women between the ages of 40 and 65 years who were seen for specialty consultation in the Menopause and Women’s Sexual Health Clinic, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN between May 1, 2015 and December 31, 2016. Main outcome measures Participants completed the ACE questionnaire to assess childhood abuse and neglect, the Menopause Rating Scale (MRS) to assess menopausal symptom burden, the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) to assess depression, the Generalized Anxiety Disorder questionnaire (GAD-7) to assess anxiety, and provided information on current abuse (physical, sexual and verbal/emotional). Results Women meeting inclusion criteria (N = 1670) had a median age of 53.7 years (interquartile range: 49.1, 58.0). Of these women, 977 (58.5 %) reported any ACE and 288 (17.2 %) reported ≥4 ACEs. As menopausal symptoms increased in severity from the first to fourth quartile, the odds ratio of ACE 1-3 (vs. 0) increased from 1 to 2.50 (trend p Conclusion In this large cross-sectional study, there was a significant association between childhood adversity and self-reported menopausal symptoms that persisted even after adjustment for multiple confounders. These associations highlight the importance of screening women with bothersome menopausal symptoms for childhood adversity, and of offering appropriate management and counseling for the adverse experiences, when indicated.
Resuscitating Resuscitation: Advanced Therapies for Resistant Ventricular Dysrhythmias.

Abstract Background More than 640,000 combined in-hospital and out-of-hospital cardiac arrests occur annually in the United States. However, survival rates and meaningful neurologic recovery remain poor. Although “shockable” rhythms (i.e., ventricular fibrillation (VF) and pulseless ventricular tachycardia (VT)) have the best outcomes, many of these ventricular dysrhythmias fail to return to a perfusing rhythm (resistant VF/VT), or recur shortly after they are resolved (recurrent VF/VT). Objective This review discusses 4 emerging therapies in the emergency department for treating these resistant or recurrent ventricular dysrhythmias: beta-blocker therapy, dual simultaneous external defibrillation, stellate ganglion blockade, and extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation. We discuss the underlying physiology of each therapy, review relevant literature, describe when these approaches should be considered, and provide evidence-based recommendations for these techniques. Discussion Esmolol may mitigate some of epinephrine's negative effects when used during resuscitation, improving both postresuscitation cardiac function and long-term survival. Dual simultaneous external defibrillation targets the region of the heart where ventricular fibrillation typically resumes and may apply a more efficient defibrillation across the heart, leading to higher rates of successful defibrillation. Stellate ganglion blocks, recently described in the emergency medicine literature, have been used to treat patients with recurrent VF/VT, resulting in significant dysrhythmia suppression. Finally, extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation is used to provide cardiopulmonary support while clinicians correct reversible causes of arrest, potentially resulting in improved survival and good neurologic functional outcomes. Conclusion These emerging therapies do not represent standard practice; however, they may be considered in the appropriate clinical scenario when standard therapies are exhausted without success.
Navigating the College Experience: The Human Faces of Refugees Students

As the refugee population continues to increase, the Trump administration continues to slash resettlement admissions framing refugees as a security threat. Education is a fundamental human right, and it is the best avenue for self-reliance. This paper explores how refugee students conform to, and persist schooling. Using Critical Race Theory as a framework, evidence of “sticky mess” or racial inequalities (Espinoza and Harris, 1997) was shown to impact the lives of all participants. However, the strength of community cultural wealth (Yosso, 2005) assuaged the negative didactic experiences. Analysis of the dialogic semi-structured interviews that compromised the data set focused on the refugees’ lives and educational experiences in their journey to the U.S.
In-silico experimentations of multimode shock response of polyurea

Abstract Computational studies can supplement existing ultrahigh strain rate experimental techniques in the absence of invasive full-field measurement and visualization. In this study, a computational model is employed to elucidate various phenomena accompanying the generation, propagation, and interaction of multimode shock waves in a viscoelastic material. Specifically, a 4 mm diameter polyurea plug with a thickness of 0.5 mm was modeled as a linear viscoelastic solid, where the relaxation behavior of the shear modulus was described using a Prony series while the bulk modulus was assumed to be linear elastic based on the Poisson's ratio of polyurea. The results are presented in three case studies, where a different type of shock wave was emphasized in each case while focusing on the regions at the leading and trailing edges of the shock wavefront. Generally, the wavefront interacted with the accompanying and reflected waves, resulting in compromising the purity of the sought-after loading condition, especially during the return trip of the wave upon approaching the free surface. In Case Study I, the propagation of laser-induced pressure wave remained pure during the forward trip towards the free surface but was compromised by the accompanying shear wave and side spherical patterned pressure waves. Case Study II simulated the generation of surface waves by incorporating a ring-shaped loading site, where the release of a surface displacement was found to be focused and amplified at the central point. In the final case study, Case Study III, the applied shear wave at ultrahigh strain rate generated secondary pressure and horizontal shear waves at the edges of the loading site, which complicated the loading scenario but provided new insight into the interaction of laser-generated shock waves within the solid. The results can be used to improve the analysis of experimental data to quantify the accompanying deformation and failure mechanisms of polymers subjected to hypervelocity impacts.
Hirsutism and Menstrual Irregularity in a 16-year-old Girl.

1. Brittany S. Bruggeman, MD* 2. Angelina Bernier, MD* 1. *Division of Endocrinology, Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL A 16-year-old girl presents to the clinic for follow-up of polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) and type 2 diabetes. She was diagnosed as having PCOS and type 2 diabetes 3 years ago; laboratory studies at that time included the following results (reference ranges): hemoglobin A1c, 6.7%; total testosterone, 53 ng/dL (1.87 nmol/L) (6–50 ng/dL [0.21–1.74 nmol/L]); free testosterone, 14.5 pg/mL (50.32 pmol/L) (0.9–6.8 pg/mL [3.12–23.60 pmol/L]); luteinizing hormone, 12.3 mIU/mL (12.3 IU/L) (1.0–95.6 mIU/mL [1.0–95.6 IU/L]); follicle-stimulating hormone, 5.5 mIU/mL (5.5 IU/L) (1.7–21.5 mIU/mL [1.7–21.5 IU/L]); dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S), 232 μg/dL (6.26 µmol/L) (22–255 μg/dL [0.59–6.88 µmol/L]); and 17-hydroxyprogesterone, 44.7 ng/dL (1.35 nmol/L) (9–208 ng/dL [0.27–6.29 nmol/L]). She previously had oligomenorrhea, with her first menses at 14 years of age and menses every few months from age 14 to 15 years. At this visit, after a lapse in follow-up, her chief concern is worsening hirsutism. She has had no menses for the past year and notes increasing facial hair growth during the past several months. She also notes new abdominal pain, bloating, and nausea during the past several months, which she attributes to her metformin therapy. She currently takes metformin, 1,000 mg twice daily with meals, as well as omeprazole, 20 mg daily, for heartburn. Her growth parameters include a height of 60.2 in (153 cm) (6.5th percentile), weight of 130.7 lb (59.3 kg) (68th percentile), and BMI of 25.35 (86th percentile). Physical examination is significant for mild hirsutism with a Ferriman-Gallwey score of 9, truncal adiposity, and clitoromegaly measuring 3.5 × 1 cm (350 mm2). ### Differential Diagnosis Secondary amenorrhea is defined as the cessation of regular menses for 3 months or the cessation of irregular menses for 6 months (1). If hirsutism is also present, as in our patient’s case, the differential diagnosis narrows significantly and includes PCOS, nonclassical congenital …
Approach to Peripheral Nerves

Peripheral nerves when visualized using ultrasound are typically described as having a “honeycomb” appearance when in short axis and a “train track” appearance when in long axis. There are some exceptions to this as the echotexture of the nerve can change based on the peripheral nerve being scanned and/or its anatomic location in which a more hypoechoic or hyperechoic appearance can be visualized and still be a normal finding.
St. Louis Flood Protection: Interior Drainage

The interior drainage considerations in the project authorization and basis for determinations of storm runoff, hydraulic gradients, sewer capacities, gate closing stages, stormwater ponding capacities, seepage, base flow, required pumping capacities, and sewer sizes are presented. In addition, the basis for schemes of plans considered, comparative cost analysis, and selection of plans are evaluated.