cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Abstract 12039: Health Literacy Mediates the Relationship Between Perceived Control and Cardiac Event-free Survival in Patients With Heart Failure

Introduction: Lower levels of perceived control and health literacy are independently associated with morbidity (higher levels of anxiety and depression or rehospitalizations) in individuals with heart failure (HF). However, little is known about the interrelationship of these two predictors. Low health literacy impairs engagement in the health care process and in doing so may play a role between perceived control and outcomes. Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among perceived control, health literacy and cardiac event-free survival in patients with HF. Methods: This was a prospective study of 575 rural patients with HF (female 41%, age 66±13, married 57%). Perceived control was assessed using the Control Attitude Scale-Revised. Health literacy was measured by the Short Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults. Cardiac events were followed for 24 months by patient/family interview and hospital database review. Linear/logistic regression and survival analyses were used to examine the associations among health literacy, perceived control, and cardiac event-free survival. Results: Patients with higher perceived control had higher health literacy. Higher perceived control and higher health literacy were associated with better cardiac event-free survival before and after adjusting for covariates (e.g. age, marital status, B-type Natriuretic Peptide) ( p p =.10) after entering health literacy ( p Conclusions: Lower perceived control was associated with worse outcomes and health literacy was a mediator between perceived control and health outcomes. Our results suggest that interventions intended to improve health outcomes in adults with HF need to increase their perceived control of HF care and also take into account patients’ level of health literacy.
Construction of the Real Numbers

Real analysis—which in its most basic form is the rigorous study of the ideas in calculus—takes place in the context of the real numbers, because the real numbers have the properties needed to allow things such as derivatives and integrals to work as we would like them to. A rigorous study of derivatives and integrals requires a rigorous treatment of the fundamental properties of the real numbers, and that is the topic of this chapter and the next.
High constitutive activity accounts for the combination of enhanced direct activation and reduced potentiation in mutated GABAA receptors

GABAA receptors activated by the transmitter GABA are potentiated by several allosterically acting drugs, including the intravenous anesthetic propofol. Propofol can also directly activate the receptor, albeit at higher concentrations. Previous functional studies have identified amino acid residues whose substitution reduces potentiation of GABA-activated receptors by propofol while enhancing the ability of propofol to directly activate the receptor. One interpretation of such observations is that the mutation has specific effects on the sites or processes involved in potentiation or activation. We show here that divergent effects on potentiation and direct activation can be mediated by increased constitutive open probability in the mutant receptor without any specific effect on the interactions between the allosteric drug and the receptor. By simulating GABAA receptor activity using the concerted transition model, we demonstrate that the predicted degree of potentiation is reduced as the level of constitutive activity increases. The model further predicts that a potentiating effect of an allosteric modulator is a computable value that depends on the level of constitutive activity, the amplitude of the response to the agonist, and the amplitude of the direct activating response to the modulator. Specific predictions were confirmed by electrophysiological data from the binary α1β3 and concatemeric ternary β2α1γ2L+β2α1 GABAA receptors. The corollaries of reduced potentiation due to increased constitutive activity are isobolograms that conform to simple additivity and a loss of separation between the concentration-response relationships for direct activation and potentiation.
The Use of Multivariate Generalizability Theory to Evaluate the Quality of Subscores

Conventional methods for evaluating the utility of subscores rely on reliability and correlation coefficients. However, correlations can overlook a notable source of variability: variation in subte...
Landcover and geomorphology influence streamwater temperature sensitivity in salmon bearing watersheds in Southeast Alaska

Climate warming is projected to increase the regional air temperature in Southeast Alaska and alter precipitation patterns and storage, with potentially important implications for the region's aquatic ecosystems. The climate-landcover relationships influencing stream temperature have not been comprehensively evaluated in Southeast Alaskan watersheds, many of which provide spawning and rearing habitat for five species of Pacific salmon. Thus, improving our understanding of current streamwater thermal regimes is critical to assess how stream temperatures across the region may be altered by ongoing climate change. We evaluated seasonal streamwater thermal regimes in forty-seven salmon-spawning watersheds in Southeast Alaska to assess the influence of watershed geomorphic and landscape characteristics on streamwater temperature and sensitivity to variation in air temperature. Stream temperatures were measured during the 2015 water year and analyzed for winter and summer seasons. Mean summer stream temperatures ranged from 4.0 °C–17.2 °C, while mean winter stream temperatures were less variable (0.5 °C–3.5 °C). Maximum weekly average temperatures ranged from 4.3 °C–21.5 °C. Regression and time-series analyses revealed that low gradient watersheds with higher lake coverage experienced warmer summer stream temperatures and were more sensitive to air temperature fluctuations compared to streams draining watersheds with high gradients. Winter mean stream temperatures were warmer in higher gradient watersheds with greater forest and lake coverage. These findings demonstrate that streamwater thermal regimes and sensitivity to air temperature are strongly moderated by watershed geomorphology and landcover, resulting in substantial thermal heterogeneity in streams across the complex terrain characterizing the coastal temperate rainforest of Southeast Alaska.
Chemoattract receptor signaling and its role in lymphocyte motility and trafficking.

Intravital microscopy has provided extraordinary glimpses of lymphocytes crossing high endothelial venules, detailed the movements and interactions of lymphocytes within lymph organs, and recorded lymphocytes crossing the lymphatic endothelium into the efferent lymph. Helping to orchestrate these movements are signals generated by the engagement of chemoattractants with their cognate receptors. Chemokines present on high endothelial venules and within lymph organs, and the high levels of sphingosine 1-phosphate in the lymph provide signposts to help guide lymphocytes and provide intracellular signals that affect lymphocyte polarity and motility. Within lymph nodes, T and B lymphocytes migrate along networks of fibroblastic reticular cells and follicular dendritic, respectively, which provide an adhesive platform and solid phased chemokines. Illustrating the importance of chemoattractant receptors in these processes, lymphocytes that lack CXCR4, CXCR5, CCR7, or S1PR1, or which lack crucial signaling molecules activated by these receptors, exhibit defects in lymph node entrance, positioning, polarity, motility, and/or lymph node egress. This review will focus on the contributions of in vivo imaging of lymphocytes from various mouse mutants to our understanding of the roles chemoattractants play in lymphocyte entrance into and exit from lymph nodes, and in coordinating and facilitating the movements of lymphocytes within lymph nodes.
A tough pill to swallow: Medicolegal liability and dysphagia.

Abstract Level of evidence Level 4 (Case Series). Objective Dysphagia is a debilitating condition that is associated with many etiologies. It can have a devastating effect on a patient's quality of life with long-term sequelae that make it a source of medical malpractice litigation. This study analyzed medical malpractice cases involving dysphagia and looked for factors determining legal liability. Methods The Westlaw Next legal database (Thomson Reuters, New York, NY) was searched for relevant malpractice cases and assessed for several factors including if the dysphagia was iatrogenic, the amount paid by the defendant, and the medical specialty of the defendants. Results A total of 45 cases of dysphagia were included. The majority of these cases were jury verdicts for the defendant (73.3%). Iatrogenic dysphagia was alleged in 55.5% of cases. Settlements and verdicts favoring the plaintiff resulted in awards ranging between $25,000 and $5,003,000 with a mean of $1,014,015. The most frequent physician specialists named were general surgeons (24.1), internists (11.1%), anesthesiologists (9.3%), gastroenterologists (7.4%), and otolaryngologists (5.6%). Iatrogenic dysphagia (OR 8.89 CI 1.02–77.32), medication-related iatrogenesis (OR 18.86 CI 1.82–195.41), and cases naming multiple specialties as a defendant (OR 5.90, CI 1.07–32.55) were factors associated with a verdict for the plaintiff or a settlement. Conclusion Dysphagia is a condition with medicolegal consequences for many specialties. While the majority of these cases are decided in favor of the defendant the cost of a negative outcome is considerable. Iatrogenic dysphagia and naming more than one defendant specialty were associated with increased odds of a plaintiff verdict or settlement.
MISIMO: A Multi-Input Single-Inductor Multi-Output Energy Harvesting Platform in 28-nm FDSOI for Powering Net-Zero-Energy Systems

This paper presents a power management unit that meets the need of small-form-factor net-zero energy systems by aggregating the maximum available power from three different energy sources while simultaneously regulating three output power rails over a wide dynamic load range, while also managing the charging and discharging of a battery, all in a single-stage single-inductor converter. The proposed architecture uses hysteresis control to regulate the voltage of each harvester at their respective maximum power points (MPPs) using pulse-frequency modulation (PFM) and adaptive inductor ON-time, all via a low-power event-driven controller. The converter, fabricated in 28-nm fully-depleted silicon-on-insulator (FDSOI), achieves a peak efficiency of 89% and supports an output power range from $1~\mu \text{W}$ to 60 mW with efficiency >75% at $V_{\text {out}}=1$ V and >69% at $V_{\text {out}}=0.6-0.9$ V, all with a quiescent power of only 262 nW.
Constraints and possibilities in the thrown togetherness of feeding the family

Purpose Macro-social disruptions and evolutions open up new possibilities for feeding the family. This paper aims to review prior constraints imposed by the gendered history of care work as part of the moral economy, with particular focus on how food traditions and routines reproduce family relations. Design/methodology/approach An assemblage perspective provides an appropriate theoretical lens to trace such emergent reconfigurations. Findings The paper takes as its focus three macro shifts with the potential to incite more and less intentional changes to the realities of feeding the family: changes in home life and organization of care, dads’ participation in feeding the family and innovation in food systems. Research limitations/implications Theoretical contributions reveal how shifting macro-social structures constrain and shape trajectories for the work of feeding the family. Practical implications Practical implications focus on how creative family members, marketers and policymakers influence arrangements, capacities and practices of family life. Originality/value This commentary brings an assemblage view of family life that proposes potential lines of flight when considering macro-context shifts, with particular attention to the relationship between food and family.
Operant costs modulate dopamine release to self-administered cocaine

The costs associated with obtaining illicit drugs can fluctuate depending upon the relative drug availability. As a consequence of the changing costs, the effort that one must exert to obtain drugs is dynamic. Considerable evidence illustrates a critical role for dopamine in the ventral medial striatum in mediating drug reinforcement. However, little is known regarding how dopamine release is affected by changes in the costs associated with earning drugs. We used fast-scan cyclic voltammetry to determine how changes in the operant requirement affected dopamine release to self-administered cocaine in male rats. Dopamine release to cocaine infusions increased across trials during self-administration sessions using a fixed-ratio reinforcement schedule with a low operant requirement. However, increasing the operant requirement abolished the within-session elevation in dopamine release to drug rewards. This effect was not due to underlying changes in preinfusion dopamine levels and was not explained by cocaine levels in the brain. This within-session increase in dopamine release to cocaine infusions reemerged when the operant requirement was lowered. Under a progressive ratio reinforcement schedule, there was no increase in dopamine release to drug rewards across trials, which contrasts with prior studies demonstrating an increase in dopamine release to food rewards. Collectively, these findings illustrate that the influence of operant costs on reward-evoked dopamine release depends upon type of reward that can be earned (e.g., food or drug).SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The mesolimbic dopamine system is involved with mediating drug reinforcement. Although the costs associated with earning drugs are dynamic, no studies to date have examined how dopamine release to drug rewards is affected by changing costs. By performing fast-scan cyclic voltammetry recordings in rats self-administering cocaine, the present work demonstrates that changing the operant costs reversibly modulates the dopamine response to cocaine rewards. Furthermore, these findings highlight that the influence of costs on dopamine release to drug rewards differs from the established effect of costs on dopamine release to food rewards.
Impacts of Companies’ Promotion of Work–Life Balance and the Restrictive Regular Employment System on Gender Wage Gap

This chapter examines whether certain firm policies regarding work–life balance and flexible work places increase women’s wages, thereby decreasing the gender wage gap. In particular, this chapter focuses on the influence of (1) firms’ personnel policies that “encourage employees to fulfill their potential regardless of gender,” which hereinafter is referred to as the Gender Equality of Opportunity (GEO) policy, (2) whether firms have systematic work–life balance (WLB) promotion policies in place, and (3) whether firms have work–location-restricted regular employment systems. The linked survey data between Japanese firms and their employees taken from the 2009 International Comparative Survey on Work–Life Balance conducted by the Research Institute of Economy Trade and Industry are used in the analysis. A selection bias occurs because companies’ policies and measures are not randomly assigned. In this chapter, the selection bias caused by firm and employee characteristics is eliminated through the use of propensity-score weighting. Furthermore, the analysis takes into account unobserved heterogeneity in company characteristics and interprets the causal relationship of the analytical results accordingly. The analytical results are as follows. (1) Compared with situations in which the GEO policy is not in place, women’s wages increase and the gender wage gap decreases in cases in which it is in place. (2) The effects of the presence of both the WLB promotion policy and work-location-restricted regular employment systems depend on the presence of the GEO policy. When the GEO policy is in place, the effects of both increase women’s wages and decrease the gender wage gap over and beyond the effects of the GEO policy. (3) When the GEO policy is not in place, the presence of work-location-restricted regular employment systems has no significant effect on the gender wage gap, whereas the presence of the WLB promotion policy actually increases the gender wage gap.
Abstract 716: Chakasaponin I from tea (Camellia sinensis) flower induce anti-proliferative effect and apoptosis of cisplatin-resistant ovarian cancer cells

Ovarian cancer has the highest rate of death among gynecological malignancy and ranks fifth in cancer deaths among women. Adverse side effects and acquired resistance to conventional chemotherapy based on platinum drive the exploration of other anticancer therapies,thus natural products have drawn greater attention for cancer treatment in recent years. Tea (Camellia sinensis) flower being an abundant agricultural by-product in China and Japan, has been studied for its bio-functional effects. A recent research showed that tea flower saponins (TFS) could induce anti-proliferative effect and cell cycle arrest in human ovarian cancer cells. In the present study, Chakasaponin I, one of the major constituents in TFS, whose main structure is oleanane-type triterpene, showed strong growth inhibitory effects on cisplatin-resistant OVCAR-3 cells at 3 μM by MTS assay. Such inhibitory effects might result from the induction of apoptosis. Western blot assay, Hoechst 33342 staining assay, and flow cytometry analysis were used to examine the effects of Chakasaponin I on apoptosis. The results showed that Chakasaponin I treatment dose-dependently activated the pro-apoptotic proteins (Bad and Bax) and therefore induced apoptosis might by the intrinsic apoptotic pathway. Citation Format: Yi C. Chen. Chakasaponin I from tea (Camellia sinensis) flower induce anti-proliferative effect and apoptosis of cisplatin-resistant ovarian cancer cells [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 716.
Assessing Burnout and Professional Fulfillment in Breast Surgery: Results From a National Survey of the American Society of Breast Surgeons.

Physician burnout is a well-recognized problem in health care that has a negative impact on professional well-being and quality of patient care. Rates of burnout in breast surgery are not well-defined. This study sought to understand the degree of burnout among breast surgeons and to identify factors that influence professional fulfillment. All U.S. members of the American Society of Breast Surgeons with a valid email address were surveyed in October 2017. The results were anonymous, and the participants were blinded to the study hypothesis. The survey included 30 questions (16-item Professional Fulfillment Index [PFI] and 14-item demographics/practice patterns). Multivariable linear regressions were performed to assess overall burnout and high professional fulfillment. Of the 2568 surveys delivered, 708 surveys were initiated, and 660 were completed. Among breast surgeons, 270 (41.3%) expressed burnout, whereas 281 (42.5%) reported high professional fulfillment. In the multivariable analysis, years in practice was inversely associated with burnout and positively correlated with professional fulfillment. Working more than 60 h per week was positively associated with burnout, and having more than 50% of practice dedicated to breast surgery correlated positively with fulfillment. Approximately 4 of 10 breast surgeons have symptoms of burnout, whereas 4 of 10 surgeons report high professional fulfillment. Specific clinical practice conditions largely influence rates of burnout and professional fulfillment. The contributing factors identified in the study analysis may be useful in identifying breast surgeons at higher risk for burnout. The study findings also help to inform the design of interventions focused on the clinical practice environment to promote professional fulfillment and sustainability.
Increase High Frequency Impedance of Ferrite Toroid Inductors Based on Electromagnetic Energy Analysis

The paper evaluates the equivalent parasitic capacitance and the equivalent parasitic resistance of a typical toroid inductor with Mn-Zn ferrite core based on the analysis of the electric field energy in the magnetic core and the space. The high frequency impedance can be increased based on the reduction of the total electric field energy. Several techniques, such as optimizing the dimension of the magnetic core, applying stacked cores, modifying winding turn number and improving the winding structure are introduced to improve the high frequency impedance of the ferrite toroid inductors. FEA simulation and experiments verify the theory and techniques.
Post-tournament dispersal of smallmouth bass in western Lake Erie

Abstract Catch-and-release tournaments for smallmouth bass Micropterus dolomieu transport fish from many capture locations to a centralized release site. In the Great Lakes, these fish may be transported long distances (i.e., >100 km) and subsequently become concentrated at a release site, possibly negatively affecting subpopulations at popular fishing sites if fish remain concentrated in the area. To assess timing of post-tournament dispersal, 23 smallmouth bass were implanted with acoustic transmitters and released into Sandusky Bay (Lake Erie) after a large tournament (50 boats) in September 2018. Tagged fish were tracked via a grid of acoustic receivers. All surviving fish (n = 19) left the immediate vicinity of the release site ( 1 month) concentration of smallmouth bass at release sites is unlikely to be a problem for Lake Erie bass tournaments, but temporary (up to 1 month) accumulations of fish are possible. A fraction of tournament-released smallmouth bass resided in Sandusky Bay for extended periods (>2 months), which could be considered functionally harvested from main lake subpopulations. Currently, the frequency of bass tournaments on Lake Erie is uncertain, and better documentation of tournament frequency and scale is necessary to assess potential negative impacts on bass populations.
Safety of Intravenous Bisphosphonates for the Treatment of Hypercalcemia in Patients With Preexisting Renal Dysfunction.

BackgroundAlthough intravenous (IV) bisphosphonates are first-line medications for the management of hypercalcemia, studies examining their use in patients with preexisting renal dysfunction are li...
“For You Galaxies Will Burn and Stars Will Flame”: The Speech of the Dying in Samuel Beckett’s Malone Dies and Carlos Fuentes’s The Death of Artemio Cruz

Lest anyone assume the speech of the dead is limited to the rural peripheries—where it is audible but still ignorable—this chapter examines how trauma permeates the nation entire, by comparing Samuel Beckett’s 1951 novel Malone Dies and Carlos Fuentes’ 1962 novel The Death of Artemio Cruz. Both stream-of-conscience works dying men on their deathbeds who were simultaneously victims and perpetrators of early-twentieth-century revolutionary violence (the 1916 Rising and 1910 Revolution, respectively), as they reflect upon the wreck of their lives, and by extension their nations. This subtle shift from the speech of the dead to the dying emphasizes how the legacy and influence of the dead stubbornly remain with the living, despite all attempts to ignore, erase, and silence them.
Defining core competencies in transfusion medicine for resident physicians: A multi‐specialty Delphi consensus study

Background Although resident physicians across disciplines are responsible for ordering blood products and managing sequelae of blood product transfusion, no designated set of competencies in transfusion medicine has been established for postgraduate trainees. The primary goal of this study was to determine core transfusion-related competencies that such residents should possess. Study design and methods A modified Delphi method was used to achieve consensus among a panel of clinical faculty and program leadership in six medical specialties to establish core transfusion-related competencies for resident physicians. Review of transfusion education literature, relevant clinical responsibilities, and specialty licensing requirements facilitated generation of an initial transfusion medicine topic list and additional topics were considered if suggested by experts. In two Delphi rounds, experts rated the clinical significance of initial topics on a 5-point Likert scale. Select topics were deemed core competencies if identified as Extremely Important or Moderately Important by at least 75% of panelists to meet a minimum content validity index (CVI) of 0.75 and if topics achieved a minimum content validity ratio (CVR) of 0.5. Results Nineteen invited clinical experts completed both Delphi rounds with 100% completion across the two rounds. Twenty transfusion medicine topics achieved minimum CVI 0.75 and minimum CVR 0.5. Highest-ranked topics by level of importance include Red Blood Cell (RBC) Transfusion Indications, Platelet Transfusion Indications, and Pulmonary Reactions. Conclusions Multispecialty panelists across six medical specialties reached consensus in identification of core transfusion-related competencies for resident physicians. Such consensus-driven core competencies may inform the development of transfusion medicine curricula and assessments to improve transfusion safety.
Lipschitz estimates for functions of Dirac and Schrödinger operators

We establish new Lipschitz-type bounds for functions of operators with noncompact perturbations that produce Schatten class resolvent differences. The results apply to suitable perturbations of Dirac and Schrodinger operators, including some long-range and random potentials, and to important classes of test functions. The key feature of these bounds is an explicit dependence on the Lipschitz seminorm and decay parameters of the respective scalar functions and, in the case of Dirac and Schrodinger operators, on the Lp- or lp(L2)-norm of the potential.
Multi-Degree of Freedom (MDOF) Systems

We consider systems with finite numbers n > 1 of degrees of freedom. Systems with infinite numbers of degrees of freedom, referred to as continuous systems, are discussed in the subsequent chapter. It will be seen that the methods for solving MDOF and continuous systems are conceptually similar and involve three steps.
An Analysis of Procedural Medicare Reimbursement Rates in Hand Surgery: 2000 to 2019.

Background:Medicare reimbursement trends across multiple surgical subspecialties have been analyzed; however, little has been reported regarding the long-term trends in reimbursement of hand surger...
Social, Psychological, and Behavioral Predictors of Salivary Bacteria, Yeast in Caries-Free Children.

Introduction:Early childhood caries (ECC) is a complex, multifactorial oral disease that is a major public health concern because it is prevalent, profoundly alters a child’s quality of life, is di...
The Good, the Poor and the Wealthy: who Responds Most to College Financial Aid?

Financial aid programmes for students in the United States focus increasingly on academic merit, rather than financial need. There is little empirical evidence, however, on the distributional effects of merit–based aid – who benefits or responds most. We develop a bivariate probit model of the enrolment process estimated using data for a large public university over several years. Results show that merit–based aid increases enrolment for all students, but that financially–able students respond disproportionately, even with academic merit held constant. Thus, increased emphasis on merit in financial aid may exacerbate the trend toward greater income inequality in the US, even among students of equal academic merit.
Testing the efficacy of three informational interventions for reducing misperceptions of the Black-White wealth gap.

Americans remain unaware of the magnitude of economic inequality in the nation and the degree to which it is patterned by race. We exposed a community sample of respondents to one of three interventions designed to promote a more realistic understanding of the Black–White wealth gap. The interventions conformed to recommendations in messaging about racial inequality drawn from the social sciences yet differed in how they highlighted data-based trends in Black–White wealth inequality, a single personal narrative, or both. Data interventions were more effective than the narrative in both shifting how people talk about racial wealth inequality—eliciting less speech about personal achievement—and, critically, lowering estimates of Black–White wealth equality for at least 18 mo following baseline, which aligned more with federal estimates of the Black–White wealth gap. Findings from this study highlight how data, along with current recommendations in the social sciences, can be leveraged to promote more accurate understandings of the magnitude of racial inequality in society, laying the necessary groundwork for messaging about equity-enhancing policy.
Limitations and modifications of quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Application to measurement of multiple mRNAs present in small amounts of sample RNA.

Abstract Quantification of mRNA by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is performed by using a competitor DNA standard in the PCR or by employing an internal standard RNA following simultaneous reverse transcription (RT) with the sample RNA. The latter approach is more reliable since it accounts for variations in both the RT and PCR steps. However, we describe in this report that at times the internal standard RNA competes with the target mRNA in the PCR when both are present in disproportionate concentrations in the initial simultaneous RT reaction. To overcome the competition in the PCR, multiple simultaneous RT reactions with the sample RNA and the internal standard RNA are required. Such procedures make the approach time consuming and restrict the use of internal standard RNA for quantification of multiple mRNAs present in small amounts of sample RNA. These limitations are circumvented by the competitor DNA standard approach and mRNA levels can be quantified by calculating the RT efficiency. We illustrate the situations by quantifying the levels of IL-2, IL-4, IL-5, IFN-γ, and β-actin mRNAs in mitogen stimulated murine T cells using a multiple mRNA specific internal standard.
Side effect profiles of new antipsychotic agents

Although neuroleptic drugs have become the mainstay of treating acute and chronic psychosis, they are substantially limited by troublesome side effects. The traditional neuroleptic drugs have a wide array of central nervous system and peripheral system side effects that often lead to problems in management or patient noncompliance. Of particular difficulty are the extrapyramidal symptoms and tardive dyskinesia. However, other side effects of seizures, sedation, neuroleptic malignant syndrome and cardiovascular, hematologic, endocrinological, and weight gain problems remain as clinical management challenges posed by existing antipsychotic drug therapy. Considerable progress has been made in improving the motor side effect profile with the advent of clozapine and risperidone. However, each of these drugs has its own dose-limiting side effect profile. Two new drugs, olanzapine and sertindole, are now added to the pharmacopeia for treating psychosis. They further improve the benefit/ risk ratio because they have even fewer EPS and other side effects. Overall, these new antipsychotic agents greatly improve the treatment of psychosis by reducing drug-induced morbidity and improving the quality of life for patients.
The Churchills: In Love and War – By Mary S. Lovell

The author of this book is a biographer of the rich and famous, usually English and mostly women, with many being related to the aristocratic, though impoverished, Spencer‐Churchill family. Therefo...
Repetitive nerve stimulation and single-fiber electromyography in the evaluation of patients with suspected myasthenia gravis or Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome: Review of recent literature.

Introduction: Our aim in this study was to provide an updated literature review of electrodiagnostic testing in myasthenia gravis and Lambert–Eaton myasthenic syndrome. Methods: A systematic review of the recent literature was performed using the following key words: myasthenia gravis (MG); Lambert–Eaton myasthenic syndrome (LEMS); electromyography (EMG); repetitive nerve stimulation (RNS); single-fiber electromyography (SFEMG); nerve conduction study; and normative values. Results: Several articles supported testing of facial, bulbar, and respiratory muscles in the diagnosis of neuromuscular junction (NMJ) disorders, including muscle-specific kinase antibody (MuSK)-seropositive MG. Several articles supported use of concentric needle EMG as an alternative to SFEMG jitter in disorders of neuromuscular transmission. A limited number of articles addressed measurement of area (vs. amplitude) decrement in RNS and decreasing the threshold of post-exercise facilitation. Conclusions: Electrodiagnostic testing continues to be useful for diagnosis of MG and LEMS, although the quality of the evidence is not great. This literature review summarizes RNS and jitter measurement of facial and respiratory muscles and use of concentric needle EMG for SFEMG. Muscle Nerve 52:455–462, 2015
Coordinated Power Modulation in Multiterminal HVDC Systems

A comparison is made between linear decentralized power modulation and centrally coordinated modulation of multiterminal hvdc systems. The centralized method is based on a fast on-line dc load flow solution which recognizes the nonlinearities of converter operation. A computer simulation of an integrated ac/dc power system demonstrates that the centralized approach can utilize dc overload capacity more efficiently than decentralized modulation.
Observations on forest nutrition research in Australia

Summary The status of forest soils and nutrition research and practice in Australia is reviewed from the point of view of a visitor to the Australian continent who has much expertise in these fields. Pertinent observations are made of the state of the art of forest nutrition, together with searching comments on such topics as soil fertility research, the need for soil classification, soil and plant analyses, the use of phosphorus and nitrogen fertilisers, second rotation research, micro element nutrition, and the communication of research results.
Refinement of the structure of B-DNA and implications for the analysis of X-ray diffraction data from fibers of biopolymers

Abstract The molecular structure of the B form of DNA has been refined using the 3 A resolution X-ray diffraction intensities (from crystalline fibers of its lithium salt) and supplementary stereochemical data. Atomic positions have been determined with a precision of a few tenths of an Angstrom unit. The best model is similar to earlier ones but unlike them has no undesirable stereoehemical features, apparently as a result of having the furanose rings in a standard C3-exo conformation. The correctness of the base-pairing scheme has also been investigated. Alternatives to the Watson-Crick scheme can be rejected decisively. The strategy used to test alternative molecular models is of general application.
Strengthening public school support for continuing education

Since public school system sponsor continuing education by choice, any strategy to build support must be pragmatic, realistic, and flexible.
Luminal progenitor and fetal mammary stem cell expression features predict breast tumor response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy

Mammary gland morphology and physiology are supported by an underlying cellular differentiation hierarchy. Molecular features associated with particular cell types along this hierarchy may contribute to the biological and clinical heterogeneity observed in human breast carcinomas. Investigating the normal cellular developmental phenotypes in breast tumors may provide new prognostic paradigms, identify new targetable pathways, and explain breast cancer subtype etiology. We used transcriptomic profiles coming from fluorescence-activated cell sorted (FACS) normal mammary epithelial cell types from several independent human and murine studies. Using a meta-analysis approach, we derived consensus gene signatures for both species and used these to relate tumors to normal mammary epithelial cell phenotypes. We then compiled a dataset of breast cancer patients treated with neoadjuvant anthracycline and taxane chemotherapy regimens to determine if normal cellular traits predict the likelihood of a pathological complete response (pCR) in a multivariate logistic regression analysis with clinical markers and genomic features such as cell proliferation. Most human and murine tumor subtypes shared some, but not all, features with a specific FACS-purified normal cell type; thus for most tumors a potential distinct cell type of ‘origin’ could be assigned. We found that both human luminal progenitor and mouse fetal mammary stem cell features predicted pCR sensitivity across all breast cancer patients even after controlling for intrinsic subtype, proliferation, and clinical variables. This work identifies new clinically relevant gene signatures and highlights the value of a developmental biology perspective for uncovering relationships between tumor subtypes and their potential normal cellular counterparts.
Transient behavior of flare-associated solar wind. II - Gas dynamics in a nonradial open field region

Transient behavior of flare-associated solar wind in the nonradial open field region is numerically investigated, taking into account the thermal and dynamical coupling between the chromosphere and the corona. A realistic steady solar wind is constructed which passes through the inner X-type critical point in the rapidly diverging region. The wind speed shows a local maximum at the middle, O-type, critical point. The wind's density and pressure distributions decrease abruptly in the rapidly diverging region of the flow tube. The transient behavior of the wind following flare energy deposition includes ascending and descending conduction fronts. Thermal instability occurs in the lower corona, and ascending material flows out through the throat after the flare energy input ceases. A local density distribution peak is generated at the shock front due to the pressure deficit just behind the shock front.
Human Lesion Studies

We describe recent information on the atherothrombotic processes leading to the acute coronary syndromes (ACS) in humans. Then, we outline the mechanism of action and impact of lipid-lowering therapy in stabilization and secondary prevention of such processes. We start with (1) definitions of atherosclerotic lesions. In the progression of coronary atherosclerosis, eight morphologically different lesions are defined (Type I to VI) in various phases of disease. (2) Then we discuss vulnerable lipid-rich plaques and ACS. The type IV and Va lesions tend to be relatively small in size, but soft or vulnerable to disruption (with subsequent thrombosis) because of high lipid content (cholesterol esters rather than free cholesterol monohydrate crystals). The above process represents a "passive" phenomenon of plaque disruption. In addition to this "passive" phenomenon, an "active," macrophage-dependent, phenomenon of plaque disruption is evolving. (3) We then show the role of thrombosis in ACS. Monocytes/macrophages in lipid-rich plaques may play a detrimental role after plaque disruption, promoting thrombin generation and thrombosis through the tissue factor pathway, which can be prevented by tissue factor pathway inhibitor. Such thrombotic phenomena are critical in the development of ACS. (4) Finally, we discuss the effect of lipid-modifying strategies on the vulnerable lipid-rich plaques. When high LDL-cholesterol is reduced therapeutically, efflux from the plaques of the liquid or sterified cholesterol, and also its hydrolysis into cholesterol crystals depositing in the vessel wall, predominate over the influx of LDL-cholesterol. Consequently, there is a decrease in the softness of the plaque and so, presumably in the "passive" phenomenon of plaque disruption. When low HDL-cholesterol is increased experimentally, there is a partial decrease in the number and activity of the macrophages and so, presumably in the "active" phenomenon of plaque disruption.
Quaternary low-angle slip on detachment faults in Death Valley, California

Detachment faults on the west flank of the Black Mountains (Nevada and California) dip 29°-36° and cut subhorizontal layers of the 0.77 Ma Bishop ash. Steeply dipping normal faults confined to the hanging walls of the detachments offset layers of the 0.64 Ma Lava Creek B tephra and the base of 0.12-0.18 Ma Lake Manly gravel. These faults sole into and do not cut the low-angle detachments. Therefore the detachments accrued any measurable slip across the kinematically linked hanging-wall faults. An analysis of the orientations of hundreds of the hanging-wall faults shows that extension occurred at modest slip rates (<1 mm/yr) under a steep to vertically oriented maximum principal stress. The Black Mountain detachments are appropriately described as the basal detachments of near-critical Coulomb wedges. We infer that the formation of late Pleistocene and Holocene range-front fault scarps accompanied seismogenic slip on the detachments.
Viscertopic localization of preganglionic parasympathetic cell bodies of origin of the anterior and posterior subdiaphragmatic vagus nerves

Utilizing the retrograde HRP transport method, fibers from anterior and posterior subdiaphragmatic branches of the vagus nerve in the rat were traced to their cells of origin in the brainstem. Efferents to the gut supplied by the subdiaphragmatic vagus nerves derive from cell bodies organized in a viscerotopic, spindle-shaped longitudinal cell column throughout the longitudinal extent of the classically described dorsal nucleus of the vagus (DNV) and in regions of nucleus commissuralis (NC), caudal to the DNV. This entire longitudinal group of cells is called the DNV cell column. In the caudal one third of the DNV cell column, the cell bodies were found in the midline and paramedian posterior portion of the NC, and in the anterior portion of the caudal DNV, in a horizontally oriented cluster of cells when viewed in cross section. In the middle one third of the DNV cell column, the cell bodies moved laterally, but still maintained their anterior position in the nucleus. In the rostral one third of the cell column, the cell bodies were located at the lateral margin of the DNV. A few scattered cell bodies extended caudally from the DNV cell column into the dorsal region of lamina X of spinal cord, and reached as far caudal as the C5-C6 segments. The anterior subdiaphragmatic branch of the vagus contained axons whose cell bodies were mainly but not exclusively located in the ipsilateral (left) side of the medulla, while the posterior subdiaphragmatic branch of the vagus contained axons whose cell bodies were found bilaterally in the medulla, with a majority (approx. 60%) located on the ipsilateral (right) side, and approximately 40% located on the contralateral (left) side.
Induction of aneuploidy by mitotic arrestants in mouse bone marrow.

Abstract Most human and animal carcinogens induce gene mutation, chromosome breakage or other types of DNA lesions. However, recent studies indicate that some carcinogens do not directly damage DNA, but may cause missegregation of chromosomes resulting in aneuploidy production. Aneuploidy-producing agents pose serious genetic hazards to the human population. Such agents may cause genomic imbalance not only in somatic cells which may result in cancer development, but also in germinal cells which may result in the production of abnormal offspring (e.g. Down's syndrome). To limit human exposure to potential aneuploidy-producing agents, such agents must first be identified in experimental animals. The present study demonstrates that vinblastine and colcemid are capable of inducing aneuploidy in bone marrow cells of treated mice. Both of these compounds are chemotherapeutic agents that arrest mitosis by interfering with the formation of spindle microtubules. Single intraperitoneal injections of vinblastine, at a dose of 9 mg/kg, were found to produce 1.5–5.2% of hyperdiploidy in all of the 10 treated mice sampled at 17–96 h after injection. Only the frequency of hyperdiploidy was determined because hypodiploid cells could result from artifactual chromosome loss during slide preparation. At 0.9 mg/kg, vinblastine was found to produce 0.5–3.5% of hyperdiploidy in 8 of the 10 treated animals. The frequency of hyperdiploid cells in animals treated with colcemid was low. A dose as high as 37 mg/kg was found to produce only 0.5–1% of hyperdiploidy in 3 of the 10 treated animals, and hyperdiploidy was observed only in animals sampled at 17–24 h. In 10 mice treated with saline alone, no hyperdiploid cells were observed. Unlike cell cultures where vinblastine and colcemid had been shown to be equally effective in producing aneuploidy, vinblastine was found in this study to be a much more potent aneuploidy inducer than colcemid in mice.
Partial purification and properties of the fatty acid elongation systems in the outer and inner membranes of beef liver mitochondria.

Abstract Purified outer membrane of beef liver mitochondria was found to elongate medium chain fatty acyl-CoA primer by the incorporation of [1- 14 C]acetyl-CoA. This enzymic activity, extracted by Triton X-100, was purified 8-fold by ammonium sulfate fractionation followed by chromatography on a Sephadex column. Purified inner membrane, when processed through an identical purification procedure, yielded a second enzyme system which incorporated [1- 14 C]acetyl-CoA into long chain fatty acids in the presence of medium chain fatty acyl-CoA primer. This enzyme preparation was about four times as active as the preparation from the outer membrane, and used NADH as the reductant for the synthesis. The molecular weights of the inner and the outer membrane enzyme systems, estimated by gel filtration as well as sucrose density gradient centrifugation, were approx. 57000 and 126000, respectively. The partially purified outer membrane enzyme system required NADH and a medium chain acyl-CoA primer for the incorporation of [1- 14 C]acetyl-CoA into long chain fatty acids. KCN stimulated the reaction. NADPH could substitute for NADH only to a limited extent. Malonyl-CoA was ineffective as a substrate in this reaction. The optimum pH of the reaction was 7.2–7.6 in 0.1 M potassium phosphate buffer. Dithiothreitol, β-mercaptoethanol, N -ethyl-maleimide and high concentrations of ATP and acyl-CoA primer inhibited the reaction. The specificity for the acyl-CoA primer in the reaction was very broad. All the primers tested, C 8 to C 16 , incorporated acetyl-CoA significantly. However, maximum incorporation was observed with dodecanoyl-CoA. Decanoyl-CoA was the best primer for the enzyme system isolated from the inner membrane. About 42% of the radioactivity in the fatty acids synthesized by the outer membrane enzyme system, from myristoyl-CoA and [1-C 14 ]acetyl-CoA, was in palmitic acid. Of the remaining activity, 41% was in stearic acid and about 38% in longer-chain acids. Hence, the elongation of the primer fatty acid by one C 2 unit appeared to be the predominant process in this synthesis. In the elongation of myristoyl-CoA by the inner membrane enzyme system, palmitic acid which constituted nearly 78% of the fatty acids synthesized, was the primary product.