cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
L-arginine fails to prevent ventricular remodeling and heart failure in the spontaneously hypertensive rat.

BACKGROUND The effects of long-term oral administration of L-arginine, a substrate for nitric oxide (NO) production, on left ventricular (LV) remodeling, myocardial function and the prevention of heart failure (HF) was compared to the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor captopril in a rat model of hypertensive HF (aged spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR)). METHODS SHRs and age-matched normotensive Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats were assigned to either no treatment, treatment with L-arginine (7.5 g/l in drinking water) or captopril (1 g/l in drinking water) beginning at 14 months of age, a time when SHRs exhibit stable compensated hypertrophy with no hemodynamic impairment; animals were studied at 23 months of age or at the time of HF. RESULTS In untreated SHR, relative to WKY, there was significant LV hypertrophy, myocardial fibrosis, and isolated LV muscle performance and response to isoproterenol (ISO) were depressed; and, 7 of 10 SHRs developed HF. Captopril administration to six SHRs attenuated hypertrophy and prevented impaired inotropic responsiveness to ISO, contractile dysfunction, fibrosis, increased passive stiffness, and HF. In contrast, L-arginine administration to SHR increased LV hypertrophy and myocardial fibrosis while cardiac performance was depressed; and 7 of 9 SHRs developed HF. In WKY, L-arginine treatment but not captopril resulted in increased LV weight and the contractile response to ISO was blunted. Neither L-arginine nor captopril treatment of WKY changed fibrosis and HF did not occur. CONCLUSION These data demonstrate that in contrast to captopril, long-term treatment with L-arginine exacerbates age-related cardiac hypertrophy, fibrosis, and did not prevent contractile dysfunction or the development of HF in aging SHR.
Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Science Have the Same Problem.

Cognitive scientists attempting to explain human intelligence share a puzzle with artificial intelligence researchers aiming to create computers that exhibit humanlevel intelligence: how can a system composed of relatively unintelligent parts (such as neurons or transistors) behave intelligently? I argue that although cognitive science has made significant progress towards many of its goals, that solving the puzzle of intelligence requires special standards and methods in addition to those already employed in cognitive science. To promote such research, I suggest creating a subfield within cognitive science called intelligence science and propose some guidelines for research addressing the intelligence puzzle. The Intelligence Problem Cognitive scientists attempting to fully understand human cognition share a puzzle with artificial intelligence researchers aiming to create computers that exhibit humanlevel intelligence: how can a system composed of relatively unintelligent parts (say, neurons or transistors) behave intelligently?
Universities as partners in research joint ventures

Sustainable economic growth depends on a continual flow of innovations that depends in turn on a continual flow of knowledge. While empirical evidence suggests that universities can play a significant role in the creation and dissemination of that knowledge, little is known of the characteristics of research joint ventures involving universities. One of the few studies to investigate this issue is Link and Scott (Research Policy 34:385–393, 2005), which found a positive relationship between university participation in RJVs and the size of RJVs which they attributed to universities providing higher marginal value and lower appropriability problems to larger RJVs. Boardman and Bozeman (Economics of Innovation and New Technology 15:51–69, 2006), however, suggests that the explanation might be more complex and not necessarily associated with profit maximization. The purpose of this paper is to present a theoretical model based on a profit-maximizing approach of the decision to invite a university to participate in an RJV that can serve as a foundation for future empirical work, an exploration of the relative explanatory power of a profit-maximizing approach, and a framework for evaluating empirically the policy implications of the Link and Scott’s (Research Policy 34:385–393, 2005) findings.
Nutrition shapes life-history evolution across species

Nutrition is a key component of life-history theory, yet we know little about how diet quality shapes life-history evolution across species. Here, we test whether quantitative measures of nutrition are linked to life-history evolution across 96 species of butterflies representing over 50 independent diet shifts. We find that butterflies feeding on high nitrogen host plants as larvae are more fecund, but their eggs are smaller relative to their body size. Nitrogen and sodium content of host plants are also both positively related to eye size. Some of these relationships show pronounced lineage-specific effects. Testis size is not related to nutrition. Additionally, the evolutionary timing of diet shifts is not important, suggesting that nutrition affects life histories regardless of the length of time a species has been adapting to its diet. Our results suggest that, at least for some lineages, species with higher nutrient diets can invest in a range of fitness-related traits like fecundity and eye size while allocating less to each egg as offspring have access to a richer diet. These results have important implications for the evolution of life histories in the face of anthropogenic changes in nutrient availability.
“Form Gulping after Formlessness”: Petrarch’s Resistant Lauras in Stevens’s “Auroras of Autumn”

Speculating that the horrors exposed in the aftermath of World War II “triggered” the 1947 “Auroras” Charles Berger reads it as a last gasp of civilization: “when the books are about to burn, the values they radiate are brightest.”1 But Berger projects a too optimistic Stevens. If Hiroshima and the Holocaust prompted the poem, Stevens seems to be saying that the cultural roots of books and bomb are the same. The values they radiate explode. The nihilism of the opening image—“this is where the serpent lives”—represents the long-seated cultural malaise Stevens reveals in “Three Academic Pieces.” James Longenbach calls the apocalypse in this poem “an unveiling of what we already know.”2 I would go one step further than Longenbach to argue that the poem in fact chronicles how what we know (the whole of Western culture) led into what we did. For the Stevens of “Auroras,” the war was a consequence of that culture, a serpentine evolution of its original violations.
A modern look at a neglected summation formula by Euler

In Euler derives the approximate summation formula This primitive result does not appear to be well known to modern readers, and we will try to show by examples that it deserves more attention. After translating this paper into English and reflecting on its contents, we thought it desirable to present Euler’s work in a form convenient for today’s readers. Because of inadequate notations for functions, sums, and definite integrals, the modern reader is likely to find Euler’s writing difficult, even in translation. Also, in Euler’s time, mathematicians were familiar with properties of the conic sections that have largely been ignored today.
Weather, fuels, and topography impede wildland fire spread in western US landscapes

Abstract As wildland fire activity continues to surge across the western US, it is increasingly important that we understand and quantify the environmental drivers of fire and how they vary across ecosystems. At daily to annual timescales, weather, fuels, and topography are known to influence characteristics such as area burned and fire severity. An understudied facet, however, concerns how these factors inhibit fire spread and thereby contribute to the formation of fire boundaries. We evaluated how weather, fuels, and topography impeded fire spread in four large study areas in the western US, three in the Northern Rockies and one in the Southwest. Weather and fuels were the most important factors in the Northern Rockies, whereas fuels and topography were dominant in the Southwest. Within the categories of weather, fuels, and topography, we also evaluated which specific variables were most influential in impeding fire spread. We explicitly accounted for the presence and age of previous burns within the fuels category. We found that: (1) temperature was the most influential weather variable in the Northern Rockies; (2) previous burns (particularly those that were ⩽5 years old) were moderately to highly influential in all study areas; and (3) valley bottoms and ridgetops were moderately to highly associated with fire boundaries in all study areas. Our results elucidate the regionally varying roles of weather, fuels, and topography in impeding fire spread, emphasizing each ecosystem’s unique biophysical setting and fire regime.
Epistemology, Expectation, and Aging

While working on this chapter, I have also been shopping around for a Mazda Miata. I am about to be 50, and this handsomely designed but relatively inexpensive sports car, I had been thinking, might be just the special thing I would like to get myself for a present. Never having heard me express interest in owning such a car, my bemused wife sympathized with what she believed was my terror of growing old. She saw the gift I imagined for myself as a touching (or pathetic) effort to acquire externally the internal zip, flash, or grace I must feel was vanishing at 50. Psychologist though I might be, her depressing interpretation never occurred to me before she mentioned it. “Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar,” I told her Freud once said. “But this isn’t sometimes,” she said. “You’ve never been about-to-be-50. And a sleek, fancy-looking cigar is not just a cigar.”
Impact of performance interdependencies on structural vulnerability: A systems perspective of storm surge risk to coastal residential communities

Abstract Interaction between residential structures during natural hazards can lead to interdependencies in their performance. During storm surge, for example, structures can affect the performance of inland buildings by generating damaging waterborne debris or by beneficially dampening surge loads. Quantifying the impact of this interaction on structural vulnerability is critical for risk assessment and informed decision-making. In this study we present and implement two general modeling approaches for investigating such interdependencies. The first method is to condition the vulnerability of a structure on the performance of neighboring buildings using a Markov model. The second uses a marginal model to account for correlation between damage observations when estimating a structure's vulnerability to the hazard. Both approaches are implemented using a case study of an impacted coastal community during Hurricane Sandy (2012). Findings indicate that a structure's performance during storm surge is strongly dependent on the damage state of the structure immediately seaward. Furthermore, considering the correlated damage states of buildings increases statistical uncertainty when relating structural performance to hazard intensity. Motivated by these findings, we propose a more coordinated approach to coastal risk mitigation which considers the effects of interdependencies on insurance pricing, structural design, mitigation strategies and community resilience.
Phosphorylated Presenilin 1 decreases β-amyloid by facilitating autophagosome–lysosome fusion

Presenilin 1 (PS1), the catalytic subunit of the γ-secretase complex, cleaves βCTF to produce Aβ. We have shown that PS1 regulates Aβ levels by a unique bifunctional mechanism. In addition to its known role as the catalytic subunit of the γ-secretase complex, selective phosphorylation of PS1 on Ser367 decreases Aβ levels by increasing βCTF degradation through autophagy. Here, we report the molecular mechanism by which PS1 modulates βCTF degradation. We show that PS1 phosphorylated at Ser367, but not nonphosphorylated PS1, interacts with Annexin A2, which, in turn, interacts with the lysosomal N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor attachment protein receptor (SNARE) Vamp8. Annexin A2 facilitates the binding of Vamp8 to the autophagosomal SNARE Syntaxin 17 to modulate the fusion of autophagosomes with lysosomes. Thus, PS1 phosphorylated at Ser367 has an antiamyloidogenic function, promoting autophagosome-lysosome fusion and increasing βCTF degradation. Drugs designed to increase the level of PS1 phosphorylated at Ser367 should be useful in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.
A Novel, Disease-Specific Self-Report Instrument to Measure Body Image Concerns in Patients With Head and Neck Skin Cancer.

Background Skin cancer commonly occurs on areas that are salient to body image perception (i.e., head and neck). Patients with head and neck skin cancer (HNSC) may experience negative body image perceptions related to their disease, which is concerning, given the numerous negative sequelae of poor body image. However, there are no existing disease-specific measures of body image concerns in HNSC. Objective To develop and examine the psychometric properties of a brief self-report, disease-specific measure of body image concerns in patients with HNSC-the Body Image Questionnaire (BIQ). Materials and methods Patients with HNSC completed the BIQ before (n = 239) and 6 months after (n = 80) treatment with Mohs micrographic surgery. Analyses examined the internal consistency, convergent validity, and factor structure of the BIQ. Results Internal consistency reliability was acceptable, and the measure demonstrated convergent validity with well-being. Four dimensions underlie the BIQ: appearance satisfaction, appearance avoidance, head/neck/skin-specific dissatisfaction, and perceived change. Conclusion The BIQ is a valid and internally reliable disease-specific instrument that measures body image concerns in patients with HNSC.
Comparison of Ultrasonography and Short-Segment Nerve Conduction Study in Ulnar Neuropathy at the Elbow

Abstract Objective To assess the correlation between ultrasonographic and electrodiagnostic findings to determine the localization of the ulnar trapping at the elbow. Design Cross-sectional and noninterventional trial. Setting Physical medicine and rehabilitation department of a teaching hospital. Participants Patients (N=14) diagnosed with ulnar nerve entrapment using short-segment nerve conduction study. Interventions The elbow area was divided into 4 segments with 2-cm intervals. All patients underwent ultrasonographic and electrodiagnostic examinations. Main Outcome Measures The nerve conduction velocity (NCV) of each segment was measured. The cross-sectional area (CSA) of the ulnar nerve was measured at 5 levels. The proximal CSA/distal CSA ratio (PDR) was calculated by proportioning the CSA values for each segment. The highest PDR was accepted as a trapping segment, whereas the segment with the lowest NCV was accepted electrophysiologically (provided it was Results A total of 80 PDR and NCV measurements were taken from 20 elbows. A statistically significant negative correlation (r=−.554; P Conclusions Ultrasonography seems to be advantageous because it is more comfortable for the patient and requires shorter time than does electroneuromyography. To our knowledge, this is the first study to detect ulnar nerve entrapment by using not only CSA but also PDR as a ratio method with ultrasound.
Measuring Yeast Fermentation Kinetics with a Homemade Water Displacement Volumetric Gasometer

A simple homemade water displacement volumetric gasometer constructed from plastic water bottles, plastic tubing, and a graduated cylinder was used to measure the evolution of carbon dioxide by the fermentation of sugars by baker’s yeast. The apparatus provides reproducible, quantitative data that can be graphed to display phenomena such as induction lag time, steady-state growth, and nutrient depletion, and can be used to demonstrate the effect of a variety of conditions (such as carbohydrate type and concentration, inhibitors, pH, and temperature) on yeast fermentation kinetics. Advanced students can use the gasometer to calculate kinetic parameters such as the Michaelis constant, maximal velocity, and activation energy. The gasometer can be a versatile tool for exploring the principles of fermentation and enzyme kinetics in science laboratories ranging from elementary school to high school advanced placement chemistry and first-year college chemistry.
Science in the Archives: Pasts, Presents, Futures

Sciences have always employed archives that collected the past, and not only those sciences that we conveniently call historical. This usage changed as data resources increased in quantity and soph...
Temporal bone and cerebellopontine angle tumors

Publisher Summary This chapter reviews that the tumors of the temporal bone and cerebellopontine angle comprise a diverse spectrum of lesions ranging from benign disorders to destructive lesions. However, even the benign lesions may be locally destructive. Prompt diagnosis and treatment is necessary to prevent further worsening of audiologic, vestibular, facial, or lower cranial nerve dysfunction that are common upon presentation with these lesions. The chapter also explores that the most common tumor of the temporal bone and cerebellopontine angle is the schwannoma, accounting for approximately 6% of all intracranial tumors, and roughly 91% of all tumors in and around the temporal bone. Schwannomas are benign tumors of the nerve sheath that historically have also been referred to as neuromas, neurofibromas, neurinomas, and neurolemmomas. Within the temporal bone and cerebellopontine angle, schwannomas arise in three anatomic loci: the internal auditory canal from the VIIIth cranial nerve, the fallopian canal from the VIIth cranial nerve, and the jugular foramen from cranial nerves IX–XI. It discusses the various other disorders that are present on clinical testing.
Finite rotation and strain measurement using the moiré technique

The moire-interference technique for obtaining the two-dimensional displacement field is well known. However, interpretation of the interference fringes to obtain a measure of finite rotation and a tensorial description of finite strain has not been given. This paper presents the analysis for obtaining large rotation and strain within the vicinity of a material point from data contained in moire photographs of displacement fields. No approximations are made limiting the magnitude of rotation or strain. The Eulerian state of strain obtained from moire data is related to the Lagrangian description.
Miranda and the Requirement of Rewarning: Analogizing Mosley and Edwards to Protect Post-Waiver Defendants

The current procedural safeguards afforded to post-waiver defendants under Miranda leaves the vast majority of defendants unprotected against the very coercive pressures that Miranda aimed to dispel. Studies indicate 80% of defendants waive their Miranda rights, but the only safeguards implemented by the Supreme Court are directed at the minority of those that invoke their Miranda rights. This disparity between post-waiver and post-invocation safeguards is illogical and in direct contrast to the tenets of Miranda.Further, this problem, although widely litigated, receives little attention in legal scholarship. While most Miranda issues have been thoroughly addressed, the problem of protecting post-waiver defendants from subsequent coercion is seemingly lost within the larger subject of Miranda. In fact, no article directly addressing this issue has been written for several decades. Further, in addition to being the first article in decades to shed light on this highly litigated issue, this article also contains a full fifty state and federal circuit survey of cases that categorizes each jurisdiction’s approach.The issue of post-waiver protections is regularly litigated, but each jurisdiction is left to determine its own solution. This has lead to contrasting, and often contradictory, results. However, the Supreme Court’s lack of attention to this problem does not include an attendant lack of solutions; solutions exist in current post-invocation safeguards. Further, analogizing those protections is merited to provide equity for all defendants. Accordingly, implementing a totality-of-the-circumstances test alongside a bright-line rule provides optimal protection.By ensuring all defendants are protected, the gulf between post-waiver and post-invocation defendants would be bridged, and the tenets of Miranda would be more appropriately realized.
Temporal scale of environmental correlations affects ecological synchrony

Population densities of a species measured in different locations are often correlated over time, a phenomenon referred to as synchrony. Synchrony results from dispersal of individuals among locations and spatially correlated environmental variation, among other causes. Synchrony is often measured by a correlation coefficient. However, synchrony can vary with timescale. We demonstrate theoretically and experimentally that the timescale-specificity of environmental correlation affects the overall magnitude and timescale-specificity of synchrony, and that these effects are modified by population dispersal. Our laboratory experiments linked populations of flour beetles by changes in habitat size and dispersal. Linear filter theory, applied to a metapopulation model for the experimental system, predicted the observed timescale-specific effects. The timescales at which environmental covariation occurs can affect the population dynamics of species in fragmented habitats.
Motivated Information Seeking and Graph Comprehension Among College Students

Learning Analytics Dashboards (LADs) are predicated on the notion that access to more academic information can help students regulate their academic behaviors, but what is the association between information seeking preferences and help-seeking practices among college students? If given access to more information, what might college students do with it? We investigated these questions in a series of two studies. Study 1 validates a measure of information-seeking preferences---the Motivated Information-Seeking Questionnaire (MISQ)----using a college student sample drawn from across the country (n = 551). In a second study, we used the MISQ to measure college students' (n=210) performance-avoid (i.e., avoiding seeming incompetent in relation to one's peers) and performance-approach (i.e., wishing to outperform one's peers) information seeking preferences, their help-seeking behaviors, and their ability to comprehend line graphs and bar graphs---two common graphs types for LADs. Results point to a negative relationship between graph comprehension and help-seeking strategies, such as attending office hours, emailing one's professor for help, or visiting a study center---even after controlling for academic performance and demographic characteristics. This suggests that students more capable of readings graphs might not seek help when needed. Further results suggest a positive relationship between performance-approach information-seeking preferences, and how often students compare themselves to their peers. This study contributes to our understanding of the motivational implications of academic data visualizations in academic settings, and increases our knowledge of the way students interpret visualizations. It uncovers tensions between what students want to see, versus what it might be more motivationally appropriate for them to see. Importantly, the MISQ and graph comprehension measure can be used in future studies to better understand the role of students' information seeking tendencies with regard to their interpretation of various kinds of feedback present in LADs.
Atlantoaxial instability in a patient with neck pain and rheumatoid arthritis.

Context: The purpose of this report is to describe the clinical decision-making process for a patient with rheumatoid arthritis with neck pain with underlying atlantoaxial instability.Findings: The...
Mechanical generation of isocyanate by mechanically induced retro [2 + 2] cycloaddition of a 1,2-diazetidinone mechanophore

The encapsulation of guests in supramolecular capsules has long been used to trap reactive intermediates and enhance or reduce the kinetic stability of reactants, and alter the products of chemical reactions that occur within the capsule interior. In recent years, multiple studies have shown that variations of normal reactivity patterns can be induced by trapping reactants under tension, for example along a backbone of an overextended polymer chain, in a manner that is fundamentally very different from, but reminiscent of, encapsulation. Here, we describe the formation of a mechanochemically generated isocyante via a mechanical retro [2 + 2] cycloaddition of a 1,2-diazetidinone (DAO) mechanophore. A single DAO mechanophore is incorporated into the chain center of a poly(methyl acrylate) (PMA) backbone via single electron transfer-living radical polymerization (SET-LRP). Mechanical activation of the DAO via ultrasonic sonication leads to the formation of isocyanate and imine products, as supported by trapping experiments using 9-(methylaminomethyl)anthracene labelling and 1H NMR spectroscopy. Further, we examine the relative mechanical susceptibility of chain-centered DAO mechanophores through a variety of methods, and evaluate the advantage and disadvantage of each.
Synthesis and Structural Characterization of Compounds Containing the [Zr6Cl18H5]3- Cluster Anion. Determination of the Number of Cluster Hydrogen Atoms

Reduction of ZrCl4 with HSnBu3 followed by addition of [R4A]Cl resulted in the formation of [R4A]3[Zr6Cl18H5] (2a, R = Ph, A = P; 2b, R = n-Pr, A = N; 2c, R = Et, A = N). Six zirconium atoms are arranged as an octahedron with one Cl atom terminally coordinated to each Zr atom and the other 12 Cl atoms edge-bridging the octahedron. When [Ph4P]I was used, the compound [Ph4P]3[Zr6Cl18-xIxH5] (x = 0.81) (3) was isolated. In compound 3, I atoms occupy only the terminal positions. The number of cluster hydrogen atoms in compounds 2a−c and 3 was established by 1H NMR. The X-ray results are consistent with the five cluster hydrogen atoms being distributed at or slightly outside the centers of all eight triangular faces of the octahedron. Compounds 2a−c and 3 were characterized by X-ray single-crystal diffraction. Compound 2a·3CH2Cl2 crystallized in the triclinic space group P1 with cell dimensions (20 °C) of a = 15.993(3) A, b = 22.237(3) A, c = 14.670(4) A, α = 95.31(1)°, β = 112.07(2)°, γ = 82.06(2)°, V = 4784...
Making qualitative data more visible in policy: a critical appraisal of meta-synthesis:

This article explores meta-synthesis, the systematic review, and integration of qualitative findings, as a tool to advance the visibility, accessibility, and policy and programmatic relevance of qu...
Time Spent Away from Home in the Year Following High‐Risk Cancer Surgery in Older Adults

OBJECTIVES To understand where older adults spend time (at home, in the hospital, or in a nursing home) in the year following high-risk cancer surgery. DESIGN Retrospective cohort study. SETTING Medicare beneficiaries using data from Medicare Inpatient claims to ascertain hospital days and the Minimum Data Set to ascertain nursing home days. PARTICIPANTS Beneficiaries who underwent high-risk cancer surgery (cystectomy, pancreaticoduodenectomy, gastrectomy, or esophagectomy) were identified to determine cumulative time spent away from home in the year following surgery. MEASUREMENTS Adjusted percentages of time spent away from home (ie, days in a hospital or nursing home) were modeled for the year following surgery. RESULTS A total of 37 748 beneficiaries underwent high-risk cancer surgery during the study period, and 28.3% died within 1 year. Overall, beneficiaries spent 13.9 ± 26.2 days in the hospital (over 1.5 ± 2.0 hospital readmissions) and 37.2 ± 50.6 days in the nursing home (over 1.5 ± 1.0 admissions) in the year following surgery. Among beneficiaries who were alive and dead at 1 year, 18.5% and 30.1% of time was spent away from home, respectively. Beneficiaries who were initially discharged to a facility following surgery and died within 1 year spent 44.4% of their final year away from home. CONCLUSION Time spent away from home in the hospital and/or nursing home in the year following high-risk cancer surgery is substantial among Medicare beneficiaries. This information is crucial in counseling patients on postoperative expectations and may additionally influence preoperative decision making. J Am Geriatr Soc 68:505-510, 2020.
One-step RT-qPCR assay for ZIKV RNA detection in Aedes aegypti samples: a protocol to study infection and gene expression during ZIKV infection

Zika virus (ZIKV) is transmitted to humans during the bite of an infected mosquito. In a scenario of globalization and climate change, the frequency of outbreaks has and will increase in areas with competent vectors, revealing a need for continuous improvement of ZIKV detection tools in vector populations. A simple, rapid and sensitive assay for viral detection is quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), yet oligos optimized for ZIKV detection in mammalian cells and samples have repeatedly shown high background when used on mosquito ribonucleic acid (RNA). In this paper, we present a one-step qRT-PCR protocol that allows for the detection of ZIKV in mosquitoes and for the evaluation of gene expression from the same mosquito sample and RNA. This assay is a less expensive qRT-PCR approach than that most frequently used in the literature and has a much lower background, allowing confident detection. Our new oligo design to detect ZIKV RNA included in silico analysis of both viral and mosquito (Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus) genomes, targeting sequences conserved between Asian and African ZIKV lineages, but not matching Aedes genomes. This assay will allow researchers to avoid nonspecific amplification in insect samples due to viral integration into the mosquito genome, a phenomenon known to happen in wild and colonized populations of mosquitoes. Standard curves constructed with in vitro transcribed ZIKV RNA were used to optimize the sensitivity, efficiency and reproducibility of the assay. Finally, the assay was used with success to detect both ZIKV RNA in infected mosquitoes and to detect expression of the Defensin A gene, an antimicrobial peptide (AMP) involved in Aedes aegypti immune response to virus infection. The experimental approach to detect ZIKV RNA in Aedes aegypti presented here has demonstrated to be specific, sensitive and reliable, and additionally it allows for the analysis of mosquito gene expression during ZIKV infection.
Early Initiation of Oral Antihypertensives Reduces Intensive Care Unit Stay and Hospital Cost for Patients with Hypertensive Intracerebral Hemorrhage

Intravenous nicardipine infusion is effective for rapid blood pressure control. However, its use requires hemodynamic monitoring in the intensive care unit (ICU) and is associated with high hospital cost. This study aimed to examine the effect of early versus late initiation of oral antihypertensives on ICU length of stay (LOS) and cost of hospitalization in patients with hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). This is a single-center retrospective study of patients with hypertensive ICH treated with nicardipine infusion from January 1, 2013, to December 31, 2017. Patients were dichotomized into study and control groups, based on receiving oral antihypertensives within 24 h versus after 24 h of emergency department arrival. Baseline characteristics, duration of nicardipine infusion, LOS in the ICU and hospital, functional outcome at discharge, and hospital cost were compared between the two groups using univariate and multivariate analysis. A total of 90 patients in the study group and 76 in the control group were identified. There was no significant difference in demographics, past medical history, and initial SBP between the two groups. After adjusting for confounding factors with multivariate regression models, early initiation of oral antihypertensives was associated with significant reductions in duration of nicardipine infusion (55.5 ± 60.1 vs 121.6 ± 141.3 h, p <0.005), nicardipine cost ($14,207 vs $29,299, p < 0.01), ICU LOS (2 vs 5 days, p < 0.005), and cost of hospitalization ($24,564 vs $47,366, p < 0.01). There was no significant difference in adversary renal events, favorable outcomes, and mortality between the two groups. Early initiation of oral antihypertensives is safe and may have a significant financial impact on patients with hypertensive ICH.
Endoscopic removal and replacement of the same lumen-apposing metal stent for multiple endoscopic necrosectomy sessions.

Background This study evaluated the feasibility, efficacy, and safety of removal and replacement of a lumen-apposing metal stent (LAMS) to facilitate direct endoscopic necrosectomy (DEN). Methods Endoscopic ultrasound-guided LAMS placement for walled-off necrosis (WON) was performed. During subsequent endoscopy, the LAMS was removed, DEN was performed, and the same LAMS was redeployed across the transmural tract. Results 140 LAMS were placed for drainage (43 pseudocysts, 97 WON) from 10/1/2016 to 11/15/2019, and 40 patients (mean age 43.9 [SD 15.4] years; 70 % males; mean WON size 10.9 [SD 4.9] × 8.7 [SD 3.8] cm) underwent removal and replacement of the same LAMS for multiple DEN sessions. LAMS was successfully replaced across the transmural tract during all 81 DEN sessions. Complete resolution was achieved after a median of 2 DEN sessions (range 1–7; mean 2.4 [SD 1.5]), with stent retrieval after a mean of 64.1 (SD 31.6) days after initial placement. No stent damage, tissue ingrowth, or major bleeding occurred. Conclusions Removal and replacement of LAMS during multiple necrosectomies is feasible, safe, and facilitates DEN.
p53 tetramerization: at the center of the dominant-negative effect of mutant p53

The p53 tumor suppressor functions as a tetrameric transcription factor to regulate hundreds of genes-many in a tissue-specific manner. Missense mutations in cancers in the p53 DNA-binding and tetramerization domains cement the importance of these domains in tumor suppression. p53 mutants with a functional tetramerization domain form mixed tetramers, which in some cases have dominant-negative effects (DNE) that inactivate wild-type p53. DNA damage appears necessary but not sufficient for DNE, indicating that upstream signals impact DNE. Posttranslational modifications and protein-protein interactions alter p53 tetramerization affecting transcription, stability, and localization. These regulatory components limit the dominant-negative effects of mutant p53 on wild-type p53 activity. A deeper understanding of the molecular basis for DNE may drive development of drugs that release WT p53 and allow tumor suppression.
Evolution, clinical applications, and prospects of nickel-titanium alloys for orthodontic purposes

Abstract This review article presents an evolution of the nickel-titanium wires for orthodontics, following their introduction by the pioneering studies of Andreasen. The original nonsuperelastic wires were followed by the introduction of superelastic Japanese NiTi wire by Miura and colleagues and Chinese NiTi wire by Burstone and colleagues. Subsequently, new nickel-titanium wires with true shape memory in the oral environment were introduced. Manufacturers have marketed special heat-treated wires with variable force delivery at different positions along the archwire. Ion implantation and other surface modification techniques have been used by manufacturers to reduce in vivo nickel release from the nickel-titanium wires, provide a more esthetic appearance, decrease friction, and improve corrosion resistance. The use of several research techniques to provide supporting information about the structures and transformations, mechanical properties, and clinical failure for the different types of the nickel-titanium wires are summarized. The evolution of the ADA/ISO standard for evaluation of these wires is also described. The closing section focuses on the use of surface modification and special coatings for the nickel-titanium wires, a major recent and ongoing area of active research.
Thioredoxin and aging: What have we learned from the survival studies?

Our laboratory has conducted the first systematic survival studies to examine the biological effects of the antioxidant protein thioredoxin (Trx) on aging and age-related pathology. Our studies with C57BL/6 mice overexpressing Trx1 [Tg(act-TRX1) +/0 and Tg(TXN) +/0 ] demonstrated a slight extension in early lifespan compared to wild-type (WT) mice; however, no significant effects were observed in the later part of life. Overexpression of Trx2 in male C57BL/6 mice [Tg(TXN2) +/0 ] demonstrated a slightly extended lifespan compared to WT mice. The pathology results from two lines of Trx1 transgenic mice showed a slightly higher incidence of age-related neoplastic diseases compared to WT mice, and a slight increase in the severity of lymphoma, a major neoplastic disease, was observed in Trx2 transgenic mice. Together these studies indicate that Trx overexpression in one compartment of the cell (cytosol or mitochondria alone) has marginal beneficial effects on lifespan. On the other hand, down-regulation of Trx in either the cytosol (Trx1KO) or mitochondria (Trx2KO) showed no significant changes in lifespan compared to WT mice, despite several changes in pathophysiology of these knockout mice. When we examined the synergetic effects of overexpressing Trx1 and Trx2, TXNTg x TXN2Tg mice showed a significantly shorter lifespan with accelerated cancer development compared to WT mice. These results suggest that synergetic effects of Trx overexpression in both the cytosol and mitochondria on aging are deleterious and the development of age-related cancer is accelerated. On the other hand, we have recently found that down-regulation of Trx in both the cytosol and mitochondria in Trx1KO x Trx2KO mice has beneficial effects on aging. The results generated from our lab along with our ongoing study using Trx1KO x Trx2KO mice could elucidate the key pathways (i.e., apoptosis and autophagy) that prevent accumulation of damaged cells and genomic instability leading to reduced cancer formation. Key Words: Thioredoxin, transgenic mouse, knockout mouse, cancer, lifespan, aging
Big Hole: Excavating intimate histories of a nuclear homefront

Growing up in the woods of Chatham County, North Carolina, among families who had decided to go back to the land, I imagined that nuclear conflict was worlds away—until I discovered that a top-secr...
An Optimization Framework for Real-Time Systems with Sustainable Schedulability Analysis

The design of modern real-time systems not only needs to guarantee their timing correctness, but also involves other critical metrics such as control quality and energy consumption. As real-time systems become increasingly complex, there is an urgent need for efficient optimization techniques that can handle large-scale systems. However, the complexity of schedulability analysis often makes it difficult to be directly incorporated in standard optimization frameworks, and inefficient to be checked against a large number of candidate solutions. In this paper, we propose a novel optimization framework for the design of real-time systems. It leverages the sustainability of schedulability analysis that is applicable for a large class of real-time systems. It builds a counterexample-guided iterative procedure to efficiently learn from an unschedulable solution and rule out many similar ones. Compared to the state-of-the-art, the proposed framework may be ten times faster while providing solutions with the same quality.
Impact Testing of a Commercial Poly-Lactic Acid

As the fabrication of prototypes continues to become ever more accessible to wider audiences, and advances in additive manufacturing techniques such as 3D printing progresses, it is imperative to understand the properties of materials adopted. One specific material: Polylactic acid (PLA), is taking the spotlight for its cost efficiency, availability and biodegradable nature. The lack of characterization and variability in mechanical properties of 3D printed thermoplastics proves a hindrance in the application of this material. To address this issue, the current research aims to characterize PLA utilizing standard ISO 179-1:2010 while varying printing parameters such as infill density, and printing speed. This investigation focuses on how the afore mentioned properties affect the resulting impact energy of the polymer. Standard manufactured filament acquired from K-camel was extruded through a fused deposition 3D printer (Prusa Geetech I3) and tested on a CEAST 9050 impact testing machine. The result also showed a decrease in impact energy as infill density decreases at most of the print speeds tested as expected. The impact energy however did not show a clear pattern as print speed increases. Future work includes exploring the effect of the material cooling rate to identify if it explains the current patterns in mechanical performance presented here and in the published literature at large.
The Great Secret: The Classified World War II Disaster that Launched the War on Cancer

In December 1943 – two years after American entry into World War II – the tide of the war turned slowly toward the Allies’ favor. The Allies were pushing German forces back up the Italian peninsula...
Analyzing the Proliferation of Social Media Use Among Orthopaedic Surgery Residency Programs

Social media can influence how students and residents learn about and select graduate medical education programs. COVID-19-related travel restrictions forced residencies to adapt their recruitment strategies. The objective of our investigation was to characterize the prevalence of social media use by orthopaedic surgery residency programs and to examine any change over time before the COVID-19 pandemic and leading up to the 2020 to 2021 virtual interview season. Methods: The Fellowship and Residency Electronic Interactive Database was queried for all orthopaedic surgery residency programs (N = 164). We performed a cross-sectional analysis on the use of Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram by orthopaedic surgery residency programs in May 2019, July 2020, and November 2020. Orthopaedic surgery residency programs were systematically identified on each of the social media platforms. Descriptive statistics were used to facilitate comparisons between the time points. Results: Seventy-six social media accounts were identified in May 2019 compared with 239 in November 2020-a greater than 300% increase in 19 months. The prevalence of residency programs using Facebook increased from 21.3% in May 2019 to 30.5% in July 2020 to 36.0% in November 2020. Similar increases in prevalence were identified for Twitter (15.2%-31.7% then 43.9%) and Instagram (9.1% to 37.2% to 65.9%). In May 2019, we identified 35 programs with Facebook accounts, 26 with Twitter accounts, and 15 with Instagram accounts. By November 2020, this increased to 59 Facebook accounts, 72 Twitter accounts, and 108 Instagram accounts. This corresponds to an expansion in the use of each platform by 69%, 177%, and 620% for Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, respectively. Conclusions: The use of social media by academic orthopaedic surgery residency programs increased substantially over the study period. The adoption of Instagram seems to be occurring at the fastest rate. Social media may represent a useful tool in resident recruitment, but the platform must be carefully selected and planned to avoid unintended dilemmas.
Treatment of Hyperlipidemia in the Nephrotic Syndrome

The nephrotic syndrome is defined by urinary protein excretion of more than 3.5 g/day (1) and is generally accompanied by hypoalbuminemia and increased blood lipid levels (2). Both plasma cholesterol and triglyceride concentration are usually inversely related to plasma cholesterol concentration (3) or to a marker of glomerular permselectivity, the renal clearance of albumin (4). Cholesterol generally bears a negative first-order correlation with serum albumin concentration, while triglyceride levels increase asymptotically as plasma albumin concentration declines (3,4).
Piperacillin-tazobactam pharmacokinetics in patients with intraabdominal infections

Study objective To determine the appropriate compartmental and noncompartmental pharmacokinetic parameters for intravenous piperacillin and tazobactam. Design Sequential selection of patients entered into a randomized, open-label clinical efficacy trial. Setting Los Angeles County-University of Southern California Medical Center. Participants Sequential sample of 18 patients admitted for intraabdominal infections and consented into a comparative antibiotic trial. Interventions Patients received piperacillin 4 g plus tazobactam 500 mg by intravenous intermittent infusion every 8 hours. Measurements and main results The estimated noncompartmental pharmacokinetic parameters (mean +/- SD) for piperacillin and tazobactam, respectively, were as follows: maximum concentration in plasma 218.7 +/- 48.9 micrograms/ml and 27.8 +/- 9.1 micrograms/ml; half-life 1.07 +/- 0.22 hours and 1.00 +/- 0.27 hours; elimination rate constant 0.67 +/- 0.13 hr-1 and 0.73 +/- 0.18 hr-1; area under the concentration-time curve from zero hour to infinity 288.5 +/- 71.25 mg.hr/L and 36.3 +/- 9.55 mg.hr/L; total plasma clearance 14.75 +/- 3.93 L/hour and 14.78 +/- 4.39 L/hour; renal clearance 5.69 +/- 1.94 L/hour and 7.85 +/- 3.37 L/hour; volume of distribution at steady state 21.00 +/- 4.18 L and 22.47 +/- 8.27 L; and mean residence time 1.72 +/- 0.29 hours and 1.79 +/- 0.35 hours. Conclusion Our findings were similar to those in other surgical patient models. The two-compartmental model best described piperacillin and tazobactam disposition in our patients. Bayesian analyses of the two-compartment models of piperacillin and tazobactam were able to predict trough, peak, and 2-hour postadministration levels without bias.
A minimum gradient algorithm for phased‐array null formation

[1] Formation of the null at the phased-array beam pattern pointed toward the source of a radio frequency interference (RFI) can serve to mitigate the effects of that RFI. Several algorithms for creating a null at the phased-array beam pattern have been designed. On the basis of an array side lobe minimization algorithm (Kogan, 2000), a new method for creating a null at the phased-array beam pattern is described here. The algorithm is a straightforward one and can have an advantage in creating wide-area nulls, especially for phased arrays with a small number of antennas. We have tested this algorithm for a possible Square Kilometre Array antenna station configured as a phased array of 19 antennas and for the Very Large Array configuration D (VLA-D), working as a phased array for very long baseline interferometry experiments. The null is created at the given area around the given direction. The narrow null (∼0.1 ) deeper than 100 dB level can be achieved at the cost of a 2% decrease in the signal-to-noise ratio in the main direction. The creation of such a deep null can be impractical for many reasons, however, first and foremost because the phases and weights would have to be specified with impractical precision. Rounding the phase and weights to 1° and 0.01, respectively raises the null up to ∼50 dB.