cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Antioxidant Treatment Reduces Expansion and Contraction of Antigen-Specific CD8+ T Cells during Primary but Not Secondary Viral Infection

During many viral infections, antigen-specific CD8 + T cells undergo large-scale expansion. After viral clearance, the vast majority of effector CD8 + T cells undergo apoptosis. Previous studies have implicated reactive oxygen intermediates (ROI) in lymphocyte apoptosis. The purpose of the experiments presented here was to determine the role of ROI in the expansion and contraction of CD8 + T cells in vivo during a physiological response such as viral infection. Mice were infected with lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV) and treated with Mn(III)tetrakis(4-benzoic acid)porphyrin chloride (MnTBAP), a metalloporphyrin-mimetic compound with superoxide dismutase activity, from days 0 to 8 postinfection. At the peak of CD8 + -T-cell response, on day 8 postinfection, the numbers of antigen-specific cells were 10-fold lower in MnTBAP-treated mice than in control mice. From days 8 to 30, a contraction phase ensued where the numbers of antigen-specific CD8 + T cells declined 25-fold in vehicle-treated mice compared to a 3.5-fold decrease in MnTBAP-treated mice. Differences in contraction appeared to be due to greater proliferation in drug-treated mice. By day 38, the numbers of antigen-specific CD8 + memory T cells were equivalent for the two groups. The administration of MnTBAP during secondary viral infection had no effect on the expansion of antigen-specific CD8 + secondary effector T cells. These data suggest that ROI production is critical for the massive expansion and contraction of antigen-specific CD8 + T cells during primary, but not secondary, viral infection.
Analysis of membrane protein interaction: ToxR can dimerize the amino terminus of phage lambda repressor

Summary The ToxR protein of Vibrio cholerae is an integral membrane protein that co-ordinately regulates virulence determinant expression. ToxR directiy activates the cholera toxin operon, but maximal activation is achieved in the presence of ToxS, an integral membrane protein thought to interact with ToxR periplasmic sequences. Studies that substitute alkaline phosphatase sequences for the periplasmic domain of ToxR have led to a model for ToxR activation based on dimerization and ToxS interaction. We constructed λ-ToxR chimeric proteins using the DNA-binding domain of the phage λ repressor, which cannot effectively dimerize by itself, to assess the ability of ToxR to form dimers in Escherichia coli The results suggest that ToxR sequences can propagate dimerization, and that ToxS can influence the ability to dimerize.
Survival of diploid males in Bracon sp. near hebetor (Hymenoptera : Braconidae)

In the parasitoid wasp Bracon sp. near hebetor, unfertilized eggs develop as haploid males, but fertilized eggs are diploid and can develop into males or females. It is likely that the sex of diploid individuals is determined by allelic variation at a single sex locus within a system of sex determination known as single-locus complementary sex determination (CSD). Under single-locus CSD, individuals that are heterozygous at the sex locus are female and individuals that are ho- mozygous or hemizygous are male. In B. hebetor (Say), a closely related species in which this mechanism of sex determination was 1st discovered, diploid males are sterile and usually do not survive. In this study, the survival of diploid males was confirmed in B. sp. near hebetor by the use of phenotypic and molecular markers. Females with a recessive light body color mutation (blonde) crossed with dark-bodied males produced families in which diploid males were identified through inheritance of the dominant dark-bodied allele from the father. Polymorphic RAPD-polymerase chain reaction (PCR) markers were used to confirm inheritance of paternal alleles in diploid males. In families that included diploid males, only 44% of diploids were male, indicating that diploid male survival is lower than female survival. Diploid males also are capable of mating, but mating by diploid males constrained females to producing only haploid male progeny. In the closely related species B. hebetor, diploid males rarely survive, but in other Bracon sp. (B. serinopae (Cherian) and B. brevicornis Wesmael) diploid males survive at high rates. The differential survival rates of diploid males between closely related species of Bracon may indicate that the CSD system is not as evolutionarily conserved as has been presumed.
Towards Autonomous Systems: From Control Systems to Intelligent Control to Intelligent Behavior Generation to Cooperative Autonomy

Today a number of enabling technologies have matured to the point that it is possible to build robots and intelligent machines that are physically capable of autonomous behavior. However, to achieve the promise of autonomy, we also need equivalently-mature information-processing and decision systems to exploit these physical capabilities. In this talk we discuss the problem of devising truly autonomous systems in three parts, describing several threads of research from the speaker's experience. In Part 1, we begin with a discussion of intelligent control, including its promise and reality, introducing specifically the paradigm of iterative learning control (ILC). After highlighting and critiquing the history and accomplishments of ILC, we posit that in fact intelligent control has not achieved its promise and argue that as we try to develop increasingly autonomous systems we need better understandings of the purpose (goals), the components (memory, learning), and organization of intelligence (models, language, architecture). From this motivator, in Part 2 we consider how to move beyond conventional intelligent control to develop intelligent behavior generators for single-system autonomy, focusing on mobile robots operating in semi-structured environments. We present an intelligent, reactive command and control system that uses a multi-resolution, hierarchical task-decomposition strategy based on a grammar of atomic actions. The effectiveness of the strategy is demonstrated in actual tests with real robots in which the path-planning and control algorithms are implemented in a distributed processing environment.
Phylogeny of Gobiidae and identification of gobiid lineages

The teleost family Gobiidae includes at least 1120 described species of fishes, distributed worldwide in both tropical and temperate habitats. The majority of gobies inhabit marine environments, in particular Old World coral reefs. However, a radiation of gobiids inhabits the rivers and near-shore habitats of Europe and Asia, and a variety of genera are also found in the seas of the New World. This study builds on previous work in which gobiids were placed among their gobioid relatives by adding additional taxa as well as additional markers, providing a much more comprehensive portrait of gobiid intrarelationships and including all major lineages of gobies. We used DNA sequences from both mitochondrial (ND1, ND2, COI) and nuclear (RAG2, Rhodopsin, RNF213) genes to infer phylogeny among 127 representatives of 100 species of gobies, using two gobionellid species as outgroups. We delineated 13 lineages within Gobiidae, including one clade of shrimp-associated gobies represented by the genera Cryptocentrus, M...
Guiding Light: Navigation assistance system using projection based augmented reality

We introduce an indoor navigation assistance system, Guiding Light. The system uses projection based augmented reality to provide way-finding information using handheld projectors on mobile phones. In this version of the system, we use a combination of business cards, maps and building interiors as venues for augmenting information to assist users with navigation guidance.
The date of Sir Robert Filmer's Patriarcha

In Gordon J. Schochet's new book on Patriarchalism in political thought (New York, 1975) there is one thirty-year-old assumption that he should have challenged. Our estimate of Filmer's place in political thought and the relation of his ideas to his contemporaries’ depends to some extent on the date at which he is presumed to have written Patriarcha, and Schochet has unquestioningly accepted Peter Laslett's dating of the work in the late 1630s, or at the very latest before the outbreak of civil war in 1642. The New Cambridge bibliography of English literature, without any explanation, gives the date as 1635. It was not always so. Edmund Bohun, Filmer's first editor, thought Patriarcha was written in 1642, and James Tyrell, one of his early detractors, began his attack with the assumption that Patriarcha was the culmination of Filmer's work and contained his ‘most mature thoughts’. The implausibility of a date in the thirties seems recently to have escaped everyone's notice, probably because we are all immensely indebted to Laslett not only for finding the best text of Patriarcha at East Sutton Park in 1939 but for editing it with a scholarly introduction ten years later.
Aedes albopictus in the Americas.

Presentation de la biologie de A. albopictus, des donnees sur la genetique de population, sur son potentiel vecteur de maladies et sur sa distribution en Amerique
Systematic Curation of miRBase Annotation Using Integrated Small RNA High-Throughput Sequencing Data for C. elegans and Drosophila.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of 20 to 23 nucleotide small RNAs that regulate gene expression post-transcriptionally in animals and plants. Annotation of miRNAs by the miRBase database has largely relied on computational approaches. As a result, many miRBase entries lack experimental validation, and discrepancies between miRBase annotation and actual miRNA sequences are often observed. In this study, we integrated the small RNA sequencing (smRNA-seq) datasets in Caenorhabditis elegans and Drosophila melanogaster and devised an analytical pipeline coupled with detailed manual inspection to curate miRNA annotation systematically in miRBase. Our analysis reveals 19 (17.0%) and 51 (31.3%) miRNAs entries with detectable smRNA-seq reads have mature sequence discrepancies in C. elegans and D. melanogaster, respectively. These discrepancies frequently occur either for conserved miRNA families whose mature sequences were predicted according to their homologous counterparts in other species or for miRNAs whose precursor miRNA (pre-miRNA) hairpins produce an abundance of multiple miRNA isoforms or variants. Our analysis shows that while Drosophila pre-miRNAs, on average, produce less than 60% accurate mature miRNA reads in addition to their 5’ and 3’ variant isoforms, the precision of miRNA processing in C. elegans is much higher, at over 90%. Based on the revised miRNA sequences, we analyzed expression patterns of the more conserved (MC) and less conserved (LC) miRNAs and found that, whereas MC miRNAs are often co-expressed at multiple developmental stages, LC miRNAs tend to be expressed specifically at fewer stages.
Accelerated design of FIR filters in the complex domain

The authors present an algorithm for a standard filter design problem, the design of an FIR (finite impulse response) filter that best approximates, in the Chebyshev sense, a desired complex-valued frequency response. The algorithm is iterative and stable, and exhibits good convergence speed. Both complex and real-valued impulse responses can be designed with it. Examples are given for both cases. It is conjectured that this algorithm may have important advantages over previous techniques with respect to speed, stability of convergence, accuracy, and memory requirements, especially when these qualities are desired simultaneously. >
Overview of Target Fabrication for LMF

Target design, fabrication and handling are central to the design of a Laboratory Microfusion Facility (LMF). Both direct and indirect drive target designs are being considered. This paper will add...
Drones and Targeted Killings: Facing the Challenges of Unlimited Executive Power

Teaching morality is difficult; it is amorphous, with unclear “curriculum.” Nevertheless, it is essential that commanders — senior and junior, alike — actively engage in studying, training and implementing morality. Failure to do so directly, has powerful deleterious consequences from multiple perspectives, including operational counterterrorism, unit morale, public perception and the oft-referred to “hearts and minds” of the civilian population. The recognition that morality is essential to effective military decision making, has been increasingly recognized by commanders, however, that is not enough. The extraordinary importance of morality must be clearly articulated to non-military personnel, engaged in operational counterterrorism. After all, civilian agencies are actively engaged in targeting decisions and their implementation. Under no condition can their civilian status grant them a “deferment” from implementing principles of morality. To not enforce strict morality standards on all units and personnel, involved in operational counterterrorism, suggests that the light at the end of the proverbial tunnel, may well be a train headed toward the nation-state. Morality is that important; not teaching it is just that dangerous.
Modulating Enzyme Catalysis through Mutations Designed to Alter Rapid Protein Dynamics.

The relevance of sub-picosecond protein motions to the catalytic event remains a topic of debate. Heavy enzymes (isotopically substituted) provide an experimental tool for bond-vibrational links to enzyme catalysis. A recent transition path sampling study with heavy purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP) characterized the experimentally observed mass-dependent slowing of barrier crossing (Antoniou, D.; Ge, X.; Schramm, V. L.; Schwartz, S. D. J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 2012, 3, 3538). Here we computationally identify second-sphere amino acid residues predicted to influence the freedom of the catalytic site vibrational modes linked to heavy enzyme effects in PNP. We mutated heavy and light PNPs to increase the catalytic site vibrational freedom. Enzymatic barrier-crossing rates were converted from mass-dependent to mass-independent as a result of the mutations. The mutagenic uncoupling of femtosecond motions between catalytic site groups and reactants decreased transition state barrier crossing by 2 orders of magn...
Strengthening Nanoscience Education through Multidisciplinary Collaborations

Recent collaborations with science and engineering faculty in major research universities have dramatically increased and strengthened research and educational opportunities in nanoscience and nanotechnology at Ball State University. The three-year Center for Computational Nanoscience (CCN) project involved eleven co-principal investigators from three disciplines (physics, chemistry, electrical engineering) and five universities, including Ball State University, University of Notre Dame, Ohio University, Purdue University, and Valparaiso University. Funded by the Indiana 21st Century Research and Technology Fund, this $1.5 million project focused on theoretical and computational investigations of the electrical and optical properties of quantum dots and included partial support for software development for the Purdue NanoHub, a web-based software repository. The effects of this collaborative project (and previous contacts) on nanoscience education and research at the undergraduate and master’s levels in the Department of Physics & Astronomy at Ball State University have been extensive and are described in this paper. University and community impacts include an enhanced awareness of nanoscience and nanotechnology.
Case Studies for the Statistical Design of Experiments Applied to Powered Rotor Wind Tunnel Tests

The application of statistical Design of Experiments (DOE) to helicopter wind tunnel testing was explored during two powered rotor wind tunnel entries during the summers of 2012 and 2013. These tests were performed jointly by the U.S. Army Aviation Development Directorate Joint Research Program Office and NASA Rotary Wing Project Office, currently the Revolutionary Vertical Lift Project, at NASA Langley Research Center located in Hampton, Virginia. Both entries were conducted in the 14- by 22-Foot Subsonic Tunnel with a small portion of the overall tests devoted to developing case studies of the DOE approach as it applies to powered rotor testing. A 16-47 times reduction in the number of data points required was estimated by comparing the DOE approach to conventional testing methods. The average error for the DOE surface response model for the OH-58F test was 0.95 percent and 4.06 percent for drag and download, respectively. The DOE surface response model of the Active Flow Control test captured the drag within 4.1 percent of measured data. The operational differences between the two testing approaches are identified, but did not prevent the safe operation of the powered rotor model throughout the DOE test matrices.
A note on the reproductive activity of Hampshire and Suffolk ewes outside the breeding season

The present study investigated the intensity of the anoestrous period in 36 Hampshire and Suffolk ewes as influenced by the photoperiod and the presence of the ram. The study began on 4 April and terminated on 11 June. Ewes kept under natural light in the absence of the ram (Group I) exhibited a limited amount of ovarian activity as determined by cervical smear. Ewes kept under natural light, but in the presence of a ram (Group II) showed an increased amount of cycling (P
Running into an out of oil: Scenarios of global oil use and resource depletion to 2050

Is a transition from conventional oil imminent? Is it likely to lock the world into a high-carbon energy future? This report attempts to shed some light on these questions.
Neutron Spectra, Fluence and Dose Rates from Bare and Moderated Cf-252 Sources

A new, stronger 252Cf source (serial number SR-CF-3050-OR) was obtained from Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in 2014 to supplement the existing 252Cf sources which had significantly decayed. A new instrument positioning track system was designed and installed by Hopewell Designs, Inc. in 2011. The neutron field from the new, stronger 252Cf source in the modified calibration environment needed to be characterized as well as the modified neutron fields produced by the new source and seven different neutron moderators. Comprehensive information about our 252Cf source, its origin, production, and isotopic content and decay characteristics needed to be compiled as well. This technical report is intended to address these issues.
Use of computerized tomography in the delineation of uric acid calculi.

AbstractComputerized tomography without injection of contrast material was used to detect the presence of uric acid stones within the kidney in 10 patients. In contrast to the lucent appearance on conventional urography the stones are dense on computerized tomography. The technique is useful to differentiate lucent stones from renal pelvic tumors. Additionally, stone dissolution can be monitored with sequential computerized tomography studies.
Availability of a multidisciplinary Pelvic Pain Clinic and frequency of hysterectomy for pelvic pain

AbstractTwo hundred and two women with chronic pelvic pain of at least 6 months’ duration were referred to a multidisciplinary Chronic Pelvic Pain Clinic at a large military teaching hospital following negative laparoscopy. One hundred and forty patients completed evaluation and were followed for a minimum of 6 months following completion of therapy. Subjective improvement was achieved for an average of 17 months (range of follow-up 6–41 months) in only 81 (58%) of the 140 subjects. Subsequent to initiation of the clinic, however, the percentage of hysterectomies performed for chronic pain within a defined catchment area decreased from 16.3% to 5.8% (p < 0.0001). To date, only six (4.3%) of the 140 women completing therapy in the pain clinic have undergone hysterectomy. Our results suggest that the availability of a multidisciplinary clinic can reduce the utilization of hysterectomy for chronic pelvic pain.
Role of Ni in nitrogen metabolism

Urease is a Ni-metalloenzyme and Ni has been shown to be involved in several other biological processes (Welch 1981). Recently we reported that Ni deficient soybeans [Glycine max (L) Merr] accumulated 2.5% urea in necrotic lesions at their leaflet tips (Eskew et al. 1983). Nodulation was delayed by 2–3days, growth was reduced and leaflet tip necrosis was more severe with N2 fixing plants. Both leaf and seed urease activity were increased by addition of lugNil-1 and leaflet tip necrosis was prevented. Here we present further evidence that Ni has an essential role in plant N metabolism.
MITTS: memory inter-arrival time traffic shaping

Memory bandwidth severely limits the scalability and performance of multicore and manycore systems. Application performance can be very sensitive to both the delivered memory bandwidth and latency. In multicore systems, a memory channel is usually shared by multiple cores. Having the ability to precisely provision, schedule, and isolate memory bandwidth and latency on a per-core basis is particularly important when different memory guarantees are needed on a per-customer, per-application, or per-core basis. Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) Cloud systems, and even general purpose multicores optimized for application throughput or fairness all benefit from the ability to control and schedule memory access on a fine-grain basis. In this paper, we propose MITTS (Memory Inter-arrival Time Traffic Shaping), a simple, distributed hardware mechanism which limits memory traffic at the source (Core or LLC). MITTS shapes memory traffic based on memory request inter-arrival time, enabling fine-grain bandwidth allocation. In an IaaS system, MITTS enables Cloud customers to express their memory distribution needs and pay commensurately. For instance, MITTS enables charging customers that have bursty memory traffic more than customers with uniform memory traffic for the same aggregate bandwidth. Beyond IaaS systems, MITTS can also be used to optimize for throughput or fairness in a general purpose multi-program workload. MITTS uses an online genetic algorithm to configure hardware bins, which can adapt for program phases and variable input sets. We have implemented MITTS in Verilog and have taped-out the design in a 25-core 32nm processor and find that MITTS requires less than 0.9% of core area. We evaluate across SPECint, PARSEC, Apache, and bhm Mail Server workloads, and find that MITTS achieves an average 1.18× performance gain compared to the best static bandwidth allocation, a 2.69× average performance/cost advantage in an IaaS setting, and up to 1.17× better throughput and 1.52× better fairness when compared to conventional memory bandwidth provisioning techniques.
Essentials of Advocacy in Case Management: Part 2: Client Advocacy Model and Case Manager's Advocacy Strategies and Competencies.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES This article describes a client advocacy model for use by case managers. It delineates necessary competencies for the case manager and shares important strategies for effective client advocacy. PRIMARY PRACTICE SETTING(S) All practice settings across the continuum of health and human services and case managers of diverse professional backgrounds. FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION Advocacy is a primary role and necessary competency of professional case managers functioning in various care settings. It is rooted in ethical theory and principles. Successful case managers apply ethical principles of advocacy at every step of the case management process and in the decisions they make. Part II of this two-part article presents a client advocacy model for case managers to apply in their practice, describes the role of advocacy in client engagement, and identifies important strategies and a set of essential competencies for effective case management advocacy. Part I already explored the ethical theories and principles of advocacy, the perception of case management-related professional organizations of advocacy, and the common types of advocacy based on scope, complexity, impact, and reach. IMPLICATIONS FOR CASE MANAGEMENT Acquiring foundational knowledge, skills, and competencies in what advocacy is and how to effectively enact its related behaviors is essential for success of case managers and for achieving desired outcomes for both the clients and health care agencies/providers alike. Case management leaders are urged to use the knowledge shared in this article to develop advocacy training and competency management programs for their case managers.
Autonomy and Federation within the Ottoman Empire: Introduction to the Special Issue

In 1921, James Brown Scott, a Canadian-born expert on international law, published a collection of statutes from the British Dominions entitled Autonomy and Federation within Empire. Scott maintain...
Race/Ethnicity Concordance Between Patients and Physicians

The growth of our population, especially the older than 65 segment, require more health providers. Moreover, compared to whites, persons of racial/ethnic minorities have less favorable clinical outcomes and this may be related to access to health care. Racial/ethnic concordance between physicians and patients improve outcomes and satisfaction with medical care. New medical schools have been opened, some schools have increased the size of the entering class, and there is the general desire to increase the enrollment and graduation of minority groups' physicians. This report summarizes current progress made in this area.
Effect of Vancomycin, Tylosin, and Chlortetracycline on Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus faecium Colonization of Broiler Chickens During Grow-Out.

Abstract Broiler chickens may serve as reservoirs for human colonization by vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE). We examined the effects of vancomycin and two commonly used antimicrobial feed additives on VRE colonization in broiler chickens during grow-out. Chicks received unsupplemented feed or feed containing vancomycin, chlortetracycline, or tylosin from day of hatch to grow-out at 6 weeks. At 3 days of age, chicks received by crop gavage 107 colony-forming units (CFUs) of a human or poultry VRE isolate. Cecal contents were monitored weekly for VRE, short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), and bacterial denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) profile methods. Vancomycin promoted persistent and high-level colonization with human- and poultry-derived VRE to grow-out in comparison with controls, while treatment with chlortetracycline and tylosin did not. Colonization by the poultry isolate in control, chlortetracycline, and tylosin groups persisted throughout the grow-out period with low concentration...
Adding fuel to the fire: Coronary artery dissection complicating blunt chest trauma

A 21year-old male presented to the emergency department with 6 h of atypical chest pain after suffering blunt chest trauma. His electrocardiogram revealed 1-1.5mm ST segment elevation in leads V1-V3 with reciprocal depressions in II, III, and aVF. Mid-anterior wall akinesis was observed on echocardiography associated with an estimated left ventricular ejection fraction of 40%. A left main coronary artery dissection was diagnosed and treated surgically with a bypass graft. Although rare, coronary dissections can be a catastrophic complication of chest trauma.
Galvanic reduction of uranium(III) chloride from LiCl-KCl eutectic salt using gadolinium metal

Abstract The drawdown of actinides is an important unit operation to enable the recycling of electrorefiner salt and minimization of waste. A new method for the drawdown of actinide chlorides from LiCl-KCl molten salt has been demonstrated here. Using the galvanic interaction between the Gd/Gd(III) and U/U(III) redox reactions, it is shown that UCl 3 concentration in eutectic LiCl-KCl can be reduced from 8.06 wt.% (1.39 mol %) to 0.72 wt.% (0.12 mol %) in about an hour via plating U metal onto a steel basket. This is a simple process for returning actinides to the electrorefiner and minimizing their loss to the salt waste stream.
Principal component analysis of immunosenescent markers in older adults: The roles of age, sex, and cytomegalovirus

Phenotypic markers of immunosenescence have been associated with poor health outcomes in older adults. However, multiple phenotypic markers on natural killer (NK) and T cells may affect each other and be inter-related. We used principal component analysis (PCA) as a dimension-reduction technique to characterize the sets of markers that contribute independently to variability in immunosenescence among older adults (N = 140, 43% male, aged 60–92). Three principal components were identified (PC1-PC3). PC1 (49% variance explained) was characterized by indicators of NK cell exhaustion (NK56dim: NKG2C+, FCRγ-, NKG2C + CD57+, NKG2C + FCRγ-, and FCRγ-CD57+). PC2 (23% variance explained) was characterized by indicators of T cell senescence (CD8+: CD28-, CD57+, and CD56+). PC3 (10% variance explained) was characterized by NK56dimCD57+. Using PCA results, we examined relationships between the principal components and relevant descriptive and physical health variables that may affect immunological aging. PC1-PC3 were not significantly associated with chronological age, and PC1 and PC2 did not significantly differ by sex. However, males were significantly higher than females on PC3 (F(1,106) = 7.19, p = 0.009). In addition, PC1 and PC2 were significantly associated with cytomegalovirus titers (PC1: b(SE) = 2.77(1.27), p = 0.002; PC2: b(SE) = 5.98(2.13), p = 0.006). Immunological aging may be driven less by chronological age (i.e., years lived) and more by overall health status and androgens. Furthermore, latent viral infections, particularly cytomegalovirus, may drive cellular aging in both NK and T cell dimensions in older adults.
Afterward: Closing Thoughts on the Water–Food–Energy–Climate Nexus

In the space of a decade, the concept of the “nexus” has gained considerable traction as a holistic, and allegedly disruptive, approach to thinking about current environmental issues. The content of the nexus varies across reports and conferences and speeches—there is the water–energy nexus, the water–energy–food nexus, the water–energy–food–climate nexus and so on (e.g. McCornick et al. 2008; Perrone and Hornberger 2014; Poppy et al. 2014; WBCSD 2009; WEF 2009; for an annotated bibliography, see Williams 2014). But those embracing this concept appear less concerned about reaching broad agreement on what it does and does not include than they are about reaching an agreement that the concept itself is innovative, inclusive and useful for understanding and addressing contemporary environmental challenges.
Endomorphins potentiate acid-sensing ion channel currents and enhance the lactic acid-mediated increase in arterial blood pressure: effects amplified in hindlimb ischaemia.

Chronic muscle ischemia leads to accumulation of lactic acid and other inflammatory mediators with a subsequent drop in interstitial pH. Acid-sensing ion channels (ASICs), expressed in thin muscle afferents, sense the decrease in pH and evoke a pressor reflex known to increase mean arterial pressure. The naturally occurring endomorphins are also released by primary afferents under ischemic conditions. We examined whether high affinity mu opioid receptor (MOR) agonists, endomorphin-1 (E-1) and -2 (E-2), modulate ASIC currents and the lactic acid-mediated pressor reflex. In rat dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons, exposure to E-2 in acidic solutions significantly potentiated ASIC currents when compared to acidic solutions alone. The potentiation was significantly greater in DRG neurons isolated from rats whose femoral arteries were ligated for 72 hr. Sustained ASIC current potentiation was also observed in neurons pretreated with pertussis toxin, an uncoupler of G proteins and MOR. The endomorphin-mediated potentiation was a result of a leftward shift of the activation curve to more basic pH values and a slight shift of the inactivation curve to more acidic pH values. Intra-arterial co-administration of lactic acid and E-2 led to a significantly greater pressor reflex than lactic acid alone in the presence of naloxone. Finally, E-2 effects were inhibited by pretreatment with the ASIC3 blocker (APETx2) and enhanced by pretreatment with the ASIC1a blocker psalmotoxin-1. These findings have uncovered a novel role of endomorphins by which the opioids can enhance the lactic acid-mediated reflex increase in arterial pressure that is MOR stimulation-independent and APETx2-sensitive. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved
Abstract 15755: Clinical Trials Associated With Heart Failure Guidelines Are Not Generalizable to Black Populations

Introduction: Black individuals have a higher incidence of heart failure (HF) and suffer worse outcomes relative to white individuals. Inclusion of black patients in major randomized clinical trial...
Mitochondria-ER Pas de Deux Controls Memory T Cell Function.

Memory CD8+ T cells mediate protective secondary immune responses. In this issue, Bantug et al. (2018) demonstrate that mTORC2-AKT-GSK3β signaling at mitochondria-ER contact sites enables the TCA cycle flux that is necessary for memory CD8+ T cells to produce IFN-γ.
Examining Early Elementary Teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge for Teaching Scientific Explanations

Young children need opportunities to engage in the practice of constructing scientific explanations in order to develop their own understanding of science content. To engage in this scientific prac...
Bending-Independent Imaging through Glass-Air Disordered Fiber Based on Deep Learning

We demonstrate a bending-independent imaging system for the first time by combining deep neural networks (DNNs) and a meter-long silica-air disordered optical fiber. High-quality artifact-free images can be reconstructed from the transported raw images.
Separating Interaction Effects Using Locating and Detecting Arrays

The correctness and performance of complex engineered systems are often impacted by many factors, each of which has many possible levels. Performance can be affected not just by individual factor-level choices, but also by interactions among them. While covering arrays have been employed to produce combinatorial test suites in which every possible interaction of a specified number of factor levels arises in at least one test, in general they do not identify the specific interaction(s) that are significant. Locating and detecting arrays strengthen the requirements to permit the identification of a specified number of interactions of a specified size. Further, to cope with outliers or missing responses in data collected from real engineered systems, a further requirement of separation is introduced. In this paper, we examine two randomized methods for the construction of locating and detecting arrays, the first based on the Stein-Lovasz-Johnson paradigm, and the second based on the Lovasz Local Lemma. Each can be derandomized to yield efficient algorithms for construction, the first using a conditional expectation method, and the second using Moser-Tardos resampling. We apply these methods to produce upper bounds on sizes of locating and detecting arrays for various numbers of factors and levels, when one interaction of two factor levels is to be detected or located, for separation of up to four. We further compare the sizes obtained with those from more targeted (and more computationally intensive) heuristic methods.
Helium Analysis of Palladium Electrodes After Molten Salt Electrolysis

A case of [sup 4]He enrichment in a spent palladium deuteride electrode is reported. The issue of helium isotope production related to the Fleischmann-Pons effect is still much in debate. In light of this important issue, two palladium samples, used in deuteride- and hydride-conducting molten salt electrolytes, and their corresponding blanks were analyzed for both [sup 3]He and [sup 4]He content. Four specimens from the deuteride samples, which has produced excess heat, showed significant [sup 4]He signals (enrichment) above the blank background level, while the hydride samples, used as a control with no excess heat measured, exhibited an opposite (depletion) effect. The [sup 3]He content remained unchanged, within the limits of the instrument's sensitivity. The amount of [sup 4]He detected was not commensurate with the excess heat according to known reaction mechanisms. The interpretation of the results was complicated by a substantial morphology difference among the samples. Because the level of helium content was small in magnitude, the possibility of atmospheric contamination cannot be dismissed completely. 16 refs., 4 figs., 4 tabs.
Identification of Biotic Constituents

We have endeavored to provide a brief, elementary summary of the groups of fossils one is likely to encounter and recognize in thin sections at magnifications of 10 to 100 and to indicate where additional information is available. Our coverage includes 18 major fossil groups.
Multivariate Analysis: Overview

Multivariate analysis is the statistical study of data where multiple measurements are made on each experimental unit and where the relationships among multivariate measurements and their structure are important. A modern, overlapping categorization of multivariate analysis is: normal and general multivariate models and distribution theory; the study and measurement of relationships; probability computations of multidimensional regions; and the exploration of data structures and patterns. The multivariate normal distribution plays a central role in multivariate analysis in the same way that the univariate normal distribution plays a central role. The Student's t generalizes to Hotelling's T 2 and the chi-square distribution to the Wishart distribution. Newer multivariate distributions can model data when the multivariate normal distribution is not adequate. For multidimensional data, relationships among the variables are fundamental to explore. Useful techniques to understand and quantify these include multivariate regression analysis and various correlational notions such as partial correlations and canonical correlations. Approaches to compute complicated multidimensional probabilities including obtaining lower bounds for the probabilities and using numerical approximation techniques. The exploration of structure and patterns for complex multivariate data sets is crucial for modern data analysis and data mining. Multivariate tools, useful in this context, include principal components analysis, canonical analysis, factor analysis, path analysis, structural equation methods, clustering, and discriminant analysis.
Lorenz Curves: A New Model for the Distribution of Psychiatric Services

The growth of child and adolescent psychiatric services based on the wraparound philosophy raises new questions for medical directors, investigators, and clinicians interested in improving quality of care and outcomes. Typically, quality improvement studies have focused on standardizing care and decreasing variation while community based services following a wraparound model are by definition individualized. To date, little information on how to evaluate such services in a managed care environment has been available. We present one option for evaluating the distribution of medical services and the extent to which providers individualize services for children with severe emotional disorders. Specifically, we (a) review the philosophy and goals of wraparound services, (b) introduce the Lorenz curve as a tool for determining the degree of inequality in service distribution at a given institution, and (c) present a case study on the use of Lorenz curves by a Medicaid Behavioral Health Organization in profiling behavioral providers.
Noise and marine life: progress from Nyborg to Cork in science and technology to inform decision making.

The 1st International Conference on The Effects of Noise on Aquatic Life in Nyborg, Denmark, in August 2007 was a watershed event. There have been numerous sessions of scientific and professional conferences devoted to this topic, but the Nyborg meeting was unique in being specifically focused on environmental noise impacts while considering all aquatic species. It was also remarkable in having a truly international scope and participation and, perhaps most notably, in serving as an interdisciplinary nexus for scientists, regulators, policy makers, industry representatives, and resource sponsors. The subsequent period leading to this follow-on meeting in Cork, Ireland, in August 2010 saw remarkable advances in understanding the effects of human noise on aquatic life and how data are used to predict and minimize the environmental impacts.
Endoscopic Techniques, Equipment, and Optics

Neuroendoscopy has rapidly established itself as an important field of neurosurgery. This became possible with technical developments in the field of endoscopy allowing the application of this technique to neurosurgery. In addition, the minimally invasive nature of endoscopy and the associated overall minimal morbidity have made neuroendoscopy an accepted and rapidly developing modality in neurosurgery with many potential areas of application. However, as with any new field, it requires skills that are not always intuitive to the neurosurgeon who is not trained in endoscopic techniques. It also relies on the development of new technology specifically designed for neurosurgical applications and procedures. Therefore, in addition to technology development, neurosurgeons need to be specially trained in endoscopy to apply it correctly and with the minimal morbidity it allows. This chapter reviews some of the issues regarding neuroendoscopic equipment, its appropriate selection, and the different applications of Neuroendoscopy.
Epigenetic mechanisms and implications in tendon inflammation (Review)

Cellular inflammation is not just an immediate response following pathogenic infections or resulting from damage due to injury, it is also associated with normal physiological functions, including wound healing and tissue repair. The existence of such a definitive role in normal physiology and in disease pathology indicates the presence of a regulatory mechanism that is tightly controlled in normal cells. A tight control over gene expression is associated with regulatory mechanisms in the cells, which can be either inducible or epigenetic. Among other intracellular mechanisms that contribute to epigenetic gene regulation, DNA methylation has been shown to maintain a tight control over gene expression through the actions of DNA methyltransferases (DNMTs). With a clear role in developmental and tissue‑specific temporal gene regulation, the involvement of DNMTs is evident in normal and pathological conditions. In this review article, inflammation in tendons associated with disease pathology and tissue repair or regeneration at the musculoskeletal joints is critically reviewed. More specifically, the review focuses on known epigenetic mechanisms and their role in the clinical presentation of the disease in human joint disorders associated with tendon inflammation, with an emphasis on the gene regulatory mechanisms that are controlled through DNA methylation, histone deacetylation, and microRNAs.
Coupled DSMC-Monte Carlo radiative transfer modeling of gas dynamics in a transient impact-generated lunar atmosphere

Abstract Volatile-rich impacts on nominally airless solar system bodies such as the Moon can give rise to collisional, transient atmospheres, traces of which may be preserved at cold, permanently shadowed regions near the lunar poles. Understanding the physical mechanisms that influence gas dynamics and volatile transport in an impact-generated atmosphere is critical to interpreting the lunar polar volatile record. Here, we investigate the influence of radiative heat transfer on the structure of an impact-generated atmosphere, an issue that previous work has not addressed in detail. We develop a Monte Carlo radiative transfer model for the attenuation and absorption of thermal radiation by a three-dimensional, evolving, non-uniform, rarefied water vapor atmosphere, accounting for spontaneous emission at the molecular level, as well as radiation from the Sun and the lunar surface. This radiative transfer model is coupled to Direct Simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) simulations of an impact-generated lunar atmosphere. We find that the trapping of heat by atmospheric water vapor causes characteristic atmospheric shock structures to become more diffuse than if the gas were modeled as transparent to radiation. Trapping of thermal radiation also allows infalling vapor to retain more energy, increasing the efficacy of transport of water vapor to the lunar night side by day side winds, and reducing the overall rate of volatile loss in the short-term. Cold trap deposition patterns are also affected. Accounting for radiative heat transfer also has consequences for temperature-sensitive physical and chemical processes in a collisional atmosphere – for instance, dense regions of the modeled impact-generated atmosphere remain sufficiently warm that condensation is unlikely.
Endocrine therapy discontinuation rates in older women with early stage breast cancer who are candidates for omission of radiation.

e23018Background: As the treatment for early-stage breast cancer continually evolves, there has been a pragmatic shift with regard to standard treatment placing a high-value on multidisciplinary ma...
Kinetics of the nucleophilic dissolution of hydrophobic and hydrophilic elemental sulfur sols by sulfide

Abstract The reaction most directly responsible for polysulfide formation in aquatic settings, as a key part of overall biotic and abiotic sulfur cycling, is the nucleophilic reaction between elemental sulfur and sulfide. The reactivity of elemental sulfur, and therefore the production of polysulfide, is fundamentally tied to a suite of poorly understood surface properties of elemental sulfur, that in natural environments is thought to primarily exist in the most stable state (α-S8), or as biologically produced elemental sulfur (S8bio). Sulfur sols, a group of particles from nanoparticle to colloidal size, can be used as model systems to isolate key characteristics responsible for poorly understood reactivity associated with sulfur cycling. Specifically, Weimarn sols (S8weimarn), as hydrophobic particles, and Raffo sols (S8Raffo) as hydrophilic particles, represent ideal end members for biologically produced elemental sulfur. The reaction most directly responsible for polysulfide formation in aquatic settings, as a key part of overall biotic and abiotic sulfur cycling, is the nucleophilic reaction between elemental sulfur and sulfide. A series of pseudo-first order kinetic batch reactions were performed after development of a technique to measure sulfur sol concentrations with sufficient quality at second time scales on a 96-well microplate UV–Vis spectrophotometer. The experiments facilitated determination of the kinetics of the reaction between elemental sulfur sols and sulfide as a function of specific surface area, sulfide concentration, pH, ionic strength, and temperature for both Raffo and Weimarn sols, and determination of the effect of organic surfactants (using sodium dodecylsulfate, SDS, as an analogue). A broad governing rate law for either sol proved statistically undefinable, likely a result of key back reactions, surface reaction details, and undefined side reactions. However, a series of rate laws for specific conditional variables and defined rates for an array of conditions set a kinetic framework to define these rates. Activation energy for sols are relatively close to that determined for S8bio and significantly lower than those measured for α-S8. Reaction rates as a function of surface character (hydrophilic v hydrophobic) are significantly different, and rates as a function of surfactant concentration suggest enhancement of reaction rates as a surface process, not linked to dissolution of the elemental sulfur by surfactants. An accurate description of kinetic pathways governing intermediate sulfur species thus requires specific definition of the form of elemental sulfur.
Preterm Birth among Infants Exposed to in Utero Ultrafine Particles from Aircraft Emissions

Introduction: Ambient air pollution is a known risk factor for adverse birth outcomes, but the role of ultrafine particles (UFPs) is not well understood. Aircraft-origin UFPs adversely affect air q...