cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Relationship between lodging, certain morphological characters and yield of grain sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench)

Studies were conducted in two consecutive years at Mead, Nebraska, to investigate the relationship between lodging, certain morphological characters and grain yield of sorghum.Morphological characters correlated with lodging were plant height, length of prepeduncle internode and rind thickness. Lodging was negatively correlated with number of days from sowing to 50% bloom and grain yield but was not correlated with grain weight of the head.
Labor Market Deregulation and Industrial Conflict in New Democracies: A Cross-National Analysis:

This article studies the effect of recent labor market reforms on industrial relations in new democracies (1994–2003). The literature on labor politics posits two channels through which labor marke...
Mechanisms of protein S-thiolation and dethiolation

S-thiolation of cardiac creatine kinase and skeletal muscle glycogen phosphorylase b was initiated by reduced oxygen species in reaction mixtures containing reduced glutathione. Both proteins were extensively modified at similar rates under conditions in which the oxidation of glutathione was inadequate to cause S-thiolation by thioldisulfide exchange. Creatine kinase was both S-thiolated and non-reducibly oxidized at the same time at low glutathione concentration. The amount of each modification was decreased by adding additional reduced glutathione and with adequate glutathione, oxidation was prevented while Sthiolation was still very active. S-thiolation of glycogen phosphorylase b was not significantly affected by glutathione concentration and non-reducible oxidation of glycogen phosphorylase b was not observed. These experiments suggest that oxyradicalor H202-initiated processes may be an important mechanism of protein Sthiolation during oxidative stress, and that the cellular concentration of glutathione may be an important factor in S-thiolation of different proteins. Both creatine kinase and glycogen phosphorylase b competed favorably with ferricytochrome c for superoxide anion in the standard xanthine oxidase system for
eTuner: tuning schema matching software using synthetic scenarios

Most recent schema matching systems assemble multiple components, each employing a particular matching technique. The domain user mustthen tune the system: select the right component to be executed and correctly adjust their numerous “knobs” (e.g., thresholds, formula coefficients). Tuning is skill and time intensive, but (as we show) without it the matching accuracy is significantly inferior. We describe eTuner, an approach to automatically tune schema matching systems. Given a schema S, we match S against synthetic schemas, for which the ground truth mapping is known, and find a tuning that demonstrably improves the performance of matching S against real schemas. To efficiently search the huge space of tuning configurations, eTuner works sequentially, starting with tuning the lowest level components. To increase the applicability of eTuner, we develop methods to tune a broad range of matching components. While the tuning process is completely automatic, eTuner can also exploit user assistance (whenever available) to further improve the tuning quality. We employed eTuner to tune four recently developed matching systems on several real-world domains. The results show that eTuner produced tuned matching systems that achieve higher accuracy than using the systems with currently possible tuning methods.
Effects of the nonsteroidal ecdysone mimic RH 5849 on larval crustaceans

The effects of the nonsteroidal ecdysone mimic RH 5849 on larvae of a crab (Rhithropanopeus harrisii) and the cypris larva of a barnacle (Balanus amphitrite) have been investigated. Larvae were exposed to exogenous RH 5849 in the concentration range of 0.1–10.0 mg/L. The two lowest concentrations tested (0.1 and 1.0 mg/L) accelerated molting of crab zoeae. RH 5849 did not induce premature apolysis. A concentration of 10 mg/L RH 5849 was toxic to zoeae: these larvae underwent apolysis but not ecdysis and subsequently died. Attachment and metamorphosis of barnacle cyprids was enhanced by 10.0 mg/L RH 5849. Increased attachment may be a result of physiological aging of larvae by the ecdysone mimic. Increased metamorphosis is consistent with the stimulatory effect of 20-hydroxyecdysone on this process. RH 5849 was first demonstrated as an ecdysone mimic in insects (Wing, Science, 241:467–469, '88). The present study provides preliminary evidence for a similar action in crustaceans. © 1992 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Window breakdown caused by high-power microwaves

Physical mechanisms leading to microwave breakdown on windows are investigated for power levels on the order of 100 MW at 2.85 GHz. The test stand uses a 3-MW magnetron coupled to an S-band traveling wave resonator. Various configurations of dielectric windows are investigated. In a standard pillbox geometry with a pressure of less than 10/sup -6/ Pa, surface discharges on an alumina window and multipactor-like discharges starting at the waveguide edges occur simultaneously. To clarify physical mechanisms, window breakdown with purely tangential electrical microwave fields is investigated for special geometries. Diagnostics include the measurement of incident/reflected power, measurement of local microwave fields, discharge luminosity, and X-ray emission. All quantities are recorded with 0.21-ns resolution. In addition, a framing camera with gating times of 5 ns is used. The breakdown processes for the case with a purely tangential electric field is similar to DC flashover across insulators, and similar methods to increase the flashover field are expected to be applicable.
Interpolation of bathymetry data from the Sea of Galilee: A noise attenuation problem

We process a bathymetry survey from the Sea of Galilee. This data set is contaminated with non-Gaussian noise in the form of spikes inside the lake and at the track ends. There is drift on the depth measurements leading to vessel tracks in the preliminary depth images. The drift comes from different seasonal and human conditions during data acquisition, e.g., wind and water levels. We derive an inversion scheme that produces a much-reduced noise map of the Sea of Galilee. This inversion scheme includes preconditioning and iteratively reweighted least squares with the proper weighting function to remove the non-Gaussian noise. We remove the ship tracks by adding a modeling operator inside the inversion that accounts for the drift in the data. We then approximate the model covariance matrix with a prediction error filter that enhances details inside the lake. Unfortunately, the prediction error filter slightly degrades the frequency content of the final depth map. Our images of the Sea of Galilee show ancient shorelines and, inside the lake, rifting features.
Computational Narrative Intelligence: A Human-Centered Goal for Artificial Intelligence

Narrative intelligence is the ability to craft, tell, understand, and respond affectively to stories. We argue that instilling artificial intelligences with computational narrative intelligence affords a number of applications beneficial to humans. We lay out some of the machine learning challenges necessary to solve to achieve computational narrative intelligence. Finally, we argue that computational narrative is a practical step towards machine enculturation, the teaching of sociocultural values to machines.
A real-time system for dynamic optical tomography

Presented are the operating characteristics of an integrated CW-near infrared tomographic imaging system capable of fast data collection and producing 2D/3D images of optical contrast features that exhibit dynamic behavior in tissue and other highly scattering media in real time. Results of preliminary in vivo studies on healthy and cancerous breast tissue are shown.
Notch Signaling in Meibomian Gland Epithelial Cell Differentiation.

Purpose Notch1 was previously shown to play a critical role in murine meibomian gland function and maintenance. In this study, we have examined the expression and activation of Notch pathway in human meibomian gland epithelial cells in vitro. Methods An immortalized human meibomian gland epithelial cell (HMGEC) line was cultured under proliferative and differentiative conditions. Expression of Notch receptors and ligands were evaluated by quantitative PCR and Western blot. The effect of Notch inhibition and induction on oil production was also assessed. Results Human meibomian gland epithelial cell expressed Notch1, Notch2, Notch3, Jagged1, Jagged2, Delta-like 1, and Delta-like 3. The level of cleaved (activated) Notch1 strongly increased with differentiation. The expression of Notch3 was inversely correlated with proliferation. Induction and inhibition of Notch1 led to an increase and decrease in the amount of oil production, respectively. Conclusions Notch signaling appears to play an important role in human meibomian gland epithelial differentiation and oil production. This may provide a potential therapeutic pathway for treating meibomian gland dysfunction.
The Incidence of Surgery in Osteochondritis Dissecans in Children and Adolescents

Background:The frequency of osteochondritis dissecans (OCD), a disorder of the subchondral bone and articular cartilage, is not well described.Purpose:To assess the frequency of pediatric OCD lesions that progress to surgery based on sex, joint involvement, and age.Study Design:Descriptive epidemiology study.Methods:A retrospective chart review (2007-2011) was performed on OCD. Inclusion criteria included OCD of any joint and patients aged 2 to 19 years. Exclusion criteria included traumatic osteochondral fractures or coexistence of non-OCD intra-articular lesions. Differences in progression toward surgery were compared between age groups, sex, and joint location. Logistical regression analysis was performed by sex, age, and ethnicity.Results:Overall, 317 patients with a total of 334 OCD lesions were found. The majority of lesions (61.7%) were in the knee, with ankle, elbow, shoulder, and foot lesions representing 25.4%, 12.0%, 0.6%, and 0.3% of all lesions, respectively. The majority of joints needing su...
Haptic proprioception in a virtual locomotor task.

Normal gait needs both proprioceptive and visual feedback to the nervous system to effectively control the rhythmicity of motor movement. Current pre- programmed exoskeletons provide only visual feedback with no user control over the foot trajectory. We propose an intuitive controller where hand trajectories are mapped to control contralateral foot movement. Our study shows that proprioceptive feedback provided to the users hand in addition to visual feedback result in better control during virtual ambulation than visual feedback alone. Hand trajectories resembled normal foot trajectories when both proprioceptive and visual feedback was present. Our study concludes that haptic feedback is essential for both temporal and spatial aspects of motor control in rhythmic movements. I. INTRODUCTION Individuals with paraplegia due to spinal cord injury (SCI) have impairment to their motor and sensory feedback systems in their lower extremity often resulting in the inability to walk. Although wheelchairs provide mobility, they are limited in their ability to support everyday activities (1, 2). Current research tries to address the issue of ambulation through wearable exoskeletons. Two exoskeletons have been developed and are currently available in the market: the Ekso and the Rewalk. Both exoskeletons have preprogrammed gait (2, 3). The user can initiate the movement but has little control over the stride length or amplitude of the step. A limitation of these exoskeletons concerns the lack of control of the gait cycle. Current exoskeletons only provide visual feedback and lack sensory input related to force feedback, as most users have impaired lower extremity sensory system. In order to build a more intuitive control system, we propose that hand trajectories and finger trajectories can be applied to control foot trajectory (4). In this study, we map hand trajectories to foot trajectories in a virtual environment to validate the need for the use of both haptic and visual feedback for effective control of an exoskeleton.
Placentitis and abortion in cattle inoculated with chlamydiae isolated from aborted human placental tissue.

SummaryThe abortifacient potential of a strain of Chlamydia psittaci originally isolated by J. Schachter (6) from aborted human placental tissue was tested in prognant cattle. For comparison, other cattle were inoculated with the prototype bovine abortion strain of Storz et al. (1) and with an intestinal strain isolated from cattle feces (7). The human and bovine abortion strains produced severe placentomal necrosis and abortion in intravenously inoculated cows. The clinical signs, gross and microscopic lesions, and serologic reactions caused by either strain were similar. Both strains multiplied and caused their primary damage in the cotyledons but caused little damage elsewhere in the cows. At necropsy, chlamydiae were consistently reisolated from diseased cotyledons and uterine fluids and exudates but not from other maternal organs. Isolations from tissues of aborted fetuses were erratic and inconsistent.In contrast, as previously reported (7), a bovine intestinal strain of C. psittaci failed to cause ...
Hispanics in Urban Government and Politics: Some Findings, Comparisons and Implications:

n an important work, Browning, Marshall and Tabb (1984) examined "the struggle of blacks and Hispanics for equality in urban politics." Among the findings of their study was that Hispanics were substantially underrepresented in the ten northern California cities examined. Relatedly, Browning, Marshall and Tabb found that Hispanics were not well "incorporated" in city government and that little policy responsiveness (as they measured it) could be attributed to Hispanic political influence on city government. Do these findings on Hispanics in the northern California cities apply to other cities (cf. Browning and Marshall 1986)? While Hispanics (MexicanAmericans) increasingly have been the subject of research attention, much remains to be examined. Given the group's population growth and given what is still a relatively sparse body of political science research on Hispanics, further, comparative, inquiry is warranted. The discussion below presents some findings from a larger study which (partly) replicated the approach and questions of the Browning, Marshall and Tabb study. The focus, however, is on two cities with substantial Hispanic populations in Colorado-Denver and Pueblo-comparing and contrasting the findings on these two cities with each other as well as with the California cities.
Linear Optical Quantum Computing with Polarization Encoding

We demonstrate how to implement the KLM scheme for linear optical quantum computing using polarization encoding. The resulting gates have very high fidelity and allow construction of optical cluster states with currently available detectors.
Efficacy of long-lasting insecticidal nets washed with a standard protocol

Objective To observe the efficacy of long-lasting insecticidal nets against mosquitoes using a standard protocol. Methods The forced contact test and tunnel test according to the standard of WHO. Results When the net was washed by 10 and 20 times,the results showed that the decreased rate of KD were 37.5%,78.9% in the forced contact test.And in the tunnel test the net caused blood-feeding inhibition of the mosquito reduced rate were 19.7%,35.0% respectively.By washing for 10 times,62.5% and 100% mortalities were recorded respectively in the forced contact test and in the tunnel test,which showed no significant difference comparing by 10 washes with by 0 washes.However,by 20 washes,the mortalities were 15.0% and 65.5% respectively.These differences were significant between by 0 washes and by 20 washes(P0.05).Conclusion When long-lasting insecticidal nets were used to control the mosquito,they should be changed or reimmerged insecticide after 20 times washing.
Efficient synthesis of fluorescent alkynyl C-nucleosides via Sonogashira coupling for the preparation of DNA-based polyfluorophores

A facile and general procedure for the preparation of alkynyl C-nucleosides with varied fluorophores is presented. Sonogashira coupling was used as a key reaction to conjugate the dyes to an easily accessible ethynyl functionalized deoxyribose derivative. The new C-nucleosides were used for the preparation of DNA-based polyfluorophores.
Middle-Aged Women in Literature

Henry James was nearly 50 when he wrote those words in his notebook; 10 years later he would begin The Ambassadors, the first of his last three great novels. Its hero is a man of 55, a man who has failed to live his life until now—even, perhaps, to recognize that he has not lived it. Henry James and his generation of American men provide all of us with a model for late achievement. Two friends from his youth, Henry Adams and Oliver Wendell Holmes, were, like James, to flower late: Adams did not write Mont-Saint-Michel and Chartres until he was 65 and his Education of Henry Adams until he was almost 70. Holmes reached his full powers when he was appointed to the Supreme Court at 61 (Matthiessen, 1944, p. 30). Henry’s brother, William James, whose youth was a long exercise in indecision, did not produce his first book, the important Principles of Psychology, until he was 47.
Weed control strategies for field grown herbaceous perennials.

Abstract Fourteen herbicides or herbicide combinations, wood chip mulch, chipped rubber tire mulch, and newspaper mulch were evaluated for weed control efficacy and phytotoxicity using 12 species of herbaceous perennials under field growing conditions. The effect of herbicide application time was monitored by applying herbicides to dormant and actively growing plants. Herbicide and mulch treatments were compared to weeded and non-weeded controls. Herbicide phytotoxicity was dependent on age and species of herbaceous perennial and time of herbicide application. Herbicide injury was generally greater for young plants compared to established plants and phytotoxicity was usually reduced when herbicides were applied to dormant rather than actively growing plants. Injury was sometimes greater when herbicides were applied in early spring compared to applications made after complete herbaceous perennial emergence. Injury to young shoots that had emerged prior to the earliest possible time that herbicides could be...
Professional Development of Teacherresearchers (Pdtr) in Tamil Nadu, India

We report on our investigation of the applications of the TR/NYCity model of mathematics teaching-research approach to teaching and learning in Tamil Nadu, India. The TR/NYCity methodology and the design experiment were presented during epiSTEMe-1 (Czarnocha & Prabhu, 2004).
Quantification of breast stiffness using MR elastography at 3 Tesla with a soft sternal driver: A reproducibility study

Purpose Previous studies of breast MR elastography (MRE) evaluated the technique at magnetic field strengths of 1.5 Tesla (T) with the breast in contact with the driver. The aim of this study is to evaluate breast stiffness measurements and their reproducibility using a soft sternal driver at 3T and compare the results with qualitative measures of breast density. Materials and Methods Twenty-two healthy volunteers each underwent two separate breast MRE scans in a 3T MRI. MRE vibrations were introduced into the breasts at 60 Hz using a soft sternal driver and axial slices were collected using a gradient echo MRE sequence. Mean stiffness measurements were calculated for each volunteer as well as a measure of reproducibility using concordance correlation between scans. Mean stiffness values for each volunteer were assessed and related to amounts of fibroglandular tissue (i.e., breast lobules, ducts, and fibrous connective tissue). Results The stiffness values were reproducible with a significant P-value < 0.0001 between two scans with concordance correlation of 0.87 and 0.91 for center slice and grouping all slices, respectively. Volunteers with dense breasts (i.e., higher grades of fibroglandular tissue) had mean stiffness values of 0.96 kPa (center slice) and 0.92 kPa (all slices) while those without dense breasts had mean stiffness values of 0.85 kPa (center slice) and 0.83 kPa (all slices) (P ≤ 0.05). Conclusion Breast MRE is a reproducible technique at 3T using a soft sternal driver. Dense breasts had significantly higher stiffness measurements compared with nondense breasts. Level of Evidence: 2 J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2016.
Rotational Groups of Regular Polyhedra

To complete this lab, you should know how a group can be generated from a set of elements and a binary operation. You should also be familiar with Euler angles (see the Rotations Lab on the CD for a review) and group actions.
Monitoring Extremely Young Clusters: Past, Present and Future

CCO cameras attached to small telescopes have been powerful and cost effective tools for studying the variability of pre-main sequence stars. By monitoring extremely young stellar aggregates, such as the Trapezium Cluster in Orion, it has been possible to learn a great deal about solar-like and lower-mass stars during a time when planet formation is active. Here we briefly review the results of such studies, concentrating on the rotation of young stars. The short time scales (hours to days) and complex nature of the phenomena involved dictate the need for intensive monitoring campaigns, which benefit from coordinated observations obtained at a variety of longitudes spanning the globe. Hence, international cooperation is essential. The instrumentation and manpower needs of future programs in this area are actually less demanding than the organizational needs. However, wider field CCO cameras, higher degrees of automation, improved communication across great distances and, especially, the development of CCO astronomy in Asia, will contribute to increased scientific productivity in this exciting arena. The Large-aperture Synoptic Survey Telescope, proposed by the Astronomy and Astrophysics Survey Committee of the U. S. National Research Council, will, if constructed, open a new window on the “time frontier” which will create increased opportunities and demand for follow-up work by small telescopes.
Helping Adolescents Respond with Integrity to Defensive Teaching

Integrity in student-teacher interaction is more likely when students and teachers tactfully disrupt the pacing of efficient, but fragmented lessons. Yet, teachers sometimes cling to fragmented, oversimplified definitions of knowledge, and defensively manage classroom behavior by controlling students’ access to information. Ironically, adolescents who support such defensive teaching strategies inevitably devalue course content. We detected this epistemological gap in student-teacher communication by aligning adolescents’ beliefs about an ideal school with existing teacher quality models. Teacher quality models did not include evaluations of teachers’ knowledge choices. And, youth who accepted fragmented curricular priorities were less willing to work hard and address justice, and more willing to cheat or take shortcuts than adolescents who endorsed multiple forms of knowledge. Adolescents can function with integrity when they and their teachers pressure one another to explore complex forms of knowledge.
Formation of Maillard Aromas During Extrusion Cooking

Summary Extrusion cooking is a powerful food processing technique that utilizes high temperature and high shear to produce food products with unique physical and chemical characteristics. The conditions employed during extrusion cooking are generally ideal for the production of aroma volatiles via the Maillard reaction. 2% levels of the amino acids glutamine, glutamic acid, and arginine were separately added to com flour with 5% glucose and 18% moisture. The volatiles produced were dictated by the amino acid added. Glutamine produced the highest levels of volatiles, specifically pyrazines, and the addition of glutamic acid produced higher levels of furans.
Series Feed Networks for Dual-Polarized Frequency Scanning Phased Array Antenna Based on Composite Right/Left-Handed Transmission Line

In this paper, series feed networks based on composite right/left-handed transmission line for dual-polarized frequency scanning phased array antenna are presented. The proposed all-passive feed networks provide unique frequency dispersion and adjustable current amplitude distribution, which enable continuous backward-to-forward beam scanning capability as well as the directivity, beamwidth, and sidelobe level controllability of the incorporated array antenna. The working mechanisms are demonstrated through broadband dual-polarized aperture-coupled antenna elements and series feed networks that support uniform/binomial current amplitude distributions. Backward-to-forward frequency beam scanning and wide range beam shaping capability for dual-polarization states of the proposed phased array are validated in both simulation and measurement.
Distinct and complementary roles of CD4 T cells in protective immunity to influenza virus

CD4 T cells play a multiplicity of roles in protective immunity to influenza. Included in these functions are help for high affinity antibody production, enhancement of CD8 T cell expansion, function and memory, acceleration of the early innate response to infection and direct cytotoxicity. The influenza-specific CD4 T cell repertoire in humans established through exposures to infection and vaccination has been found to be highly variable in abundance, specificity and functionality. Deficits in particular subsets of CD4 T cells recruited into the response result in diminished antibody responses and protection from infection. Therefore, improved strategies for vaccination should include better methods to identify deficiencies in the circulating CD4 T cell repertoire, and vaccine constructs that increase the representation of CD4 T cells of the correct specificity and functionality.
A Chopping Switched-Capacitor RF Receiver With Integrated Blocker Detection

A 0.1–0.6 GHz chopping switched-capacitor (SC) RF receiver (RX) with an integrated blocker detector features a tunable center frequency, a programmable filter order, and a high out-of-band (OB) linearity. RF impedance matching, high-order OB interferer filtering, and flicker-noise chopping are achieved with passive SC circuits only. The 34–80 mW 65-nm RX achieves 35-dB gain, +31 dBm OB-third-order input intercept point, +15 dBm B1dB, and 4.6–9 dB NF. The 0.2-mW integrated blocker detector detects large OB blockers with only 1- $\mu \text{s}$ response time. The filter order can be adapted to blocker power with the blocker detector.
Signal Processing Techniques for Eddy-Current Data

This paper is a tribute to the research we completed with John Moulder before his untimely death in January 1998. With John, we had undertaken a rigorous research program for the purpose of advancing signal processing techniques of eddy-current data. Even though this program was still young, significant results were obtained. In this paper we describe two of the projects, both of which involve data collected from nuclear steam generator tubes with eddy-current measurements. The first project discussed involved the restoration of two-dimensional data for the purpose of increasing the resolution of eddy- current images. The second project was concerned with the creation of a software package that could automatically detect flaws in one-dimensional eddy current data.
Emergency Department Disposition of Patients Presenting with Chest Pain

The disposition of patients with chest pain, concerning for acute coronary syndrome, presenting to the emergency department, is a challenge for emergency physicians. The creation of chest pain observation units had added another option, other than discharge or admission, for further evaluation of patients with chest pain. The key to rapid and safe evaluation and treatment is risk stratification. Most patients can be classified into high risk, intermediate risk, and low risk. High-risk patients are usually appropriate for admission to an inpatient cardiology service. Intermediate-risk patients can be admitted either to observation unit or inpatient service, but should receive further risk stratification during their hospital visit. Low-risk patients can be sent to an observation unit and should receive stress testing within 72 hours of presentation.
Application of Spectroscopy and Chromatography in Water Quality Analysis

This paper discusses spectroscopy and chromatography as they are being applied to obtain factual data and develop information for a comprehensive water-pollution control program. Spectroscopy and chromatography are employed in water-quality determinations to ascertain the levels of constituents such as nitrogens, phosphorus, gross minerals, organic content, and pesticides with the use of existing methods and modified or new methods developed in the Federal Water Pollution Control Administration’s Great Lakes Region-Chicago Program Office (GLR-CPO) laboratories. This paper also discusses the adaptation of automation in using an Auto- Analyzer for determining several water-quality parameters and touches upon future applications of spectroscopy and chromatography.
Adiabatic Polarization Potentials for the Water and Nitrogen Molecules. A Comparison of Large and Small Basis Sets

Electrostatic potentials play an important role in a wide range of chemical applications ranging from biochemistry, where they are used in modeling large-molecule interactions and reactivity, to molecular physics, where model potentials are employed in quantum mechanical studies of electron scattering. In both of these applications, the electrostatic potential is only an approximation to the true interaction potential. A better approximation to the interaction potential is obtained by allowing for charge polarization of the target molecule by the reactive partner or scattering particle. In this chapter we focus on this charge-polarization aspect, and, in particular, we study how adiabatic charge polarization affects the interaction potentials for electron-molecule scattering. The general topic of electron-molecule interaction potentials is discussed in detail in the previous chapter in this book.
Urochordata: Botryllus – Natural Chimerism and Tolerance Induction in a Colonial Chordate

Chimerism is defined as the coexistence of two or more genomes of separate origin within an individual. In placental mammals such as humans, natural chimerism develops during pregnancy between a mother and fetus and has an important role in the induction of fetal tolerance to maternal tissues. Natural chimerism between kin also occurs in colonial ascidians, the closest extant ancestors of chordates. In the ascidian, Botryllus schlosseri, some colonies fuse to create lifelong chimeric entities of two allogeneic genomes. The decision to fuse in B. schlosseri is governed by a polymorphic histocompatibility gene called the Botryllus histocompatibility factor (BHF). Colonies that share at least one BHF allele fuse upon contact, whereas colonies without any BHF alleles in common ultimately reject. Following vasculature fusion, stem cells from each histocompatible B. schlosseri colony compete to overtake germline or somatic lineages. Stem cell competition may lead to elimination of the other colony’s genome, or it may produce a chimeric colony with mixed genotypes. In this way, chimerism in B. schlosseri represents a nexus between stem cell competition, genome parasitism, and allorecognition. Here we review studies conducted over six decades that led to the discoveries of the nature of the cells that mediate chimerism in colonial ascidians and the gene that controls it.
Exploration of Fine-Grain Body Bias Control in Many-Core Processor Arrays

Although fine-grain many-core processor arrays have demonstrated great increases in performance, energy efficiency, and area efficiency across many workload domains, methods to integrate the control and optimization of body bias into these arrays has not been well explored. We investigate circuits to implement per-core body bias, and simulate complex workloads to estimate the net benefits in a many-core processor array when body bias is jointly optimized along with per-core supply voltage and clock frequency scaling. Compared to a system utilizing per-core clock frequency and supply voltage tuning, adding per-core body-bias voltage tuning decreases energy dissipation by a mean of 22%–30% at the same throughput for four 900+ core applications.
Seasonal variation of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D and parameters of bone and mineral disorder in dialysis patients

Abstract Background Vitamin D deficiency is common among dialysis patients and may impact blood concentrations of calcium, phosphorus, intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH), and alkaline phosphatase (ALP). Seasonal variation of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] concentrations has been well established for the general population; however, less is known about circannual variation in 25(OH)D as well as other parameters of mineral and bone disorder among dialysis patients. Method Based on 57,500 serum 25(OH)D measurements collected over two years from January 2009 to December 2010 among 25,025 dialysis patients, we evaluated the circannual variations in serum concentrations of 25(OH)D, calcium, phosphorus, iPTH, and ALP by a linear regression model with a cosinor function for the time period (month). We adjusted for potential confounders including case-mix variables, and ultraviolet index. Results Serum 25(OH)D concentrations showed significant circannual variation and mean serum 25(OH)D was 3.2 ng/mL higher in summer than in winter. Furthermore, 25(OH)D concentration increased steadily by 1.3 ng/mL per year. While serum calcium concentrations showed statistically significant but clinically negligible seasonal variation (0.02 mg/dL in peak-trough difference), serum phosphorus did not follow such a pattern. Serum iPTH concentrations also showed a modest seasonal variation with 9% higher values in winter than in summer. Concordantly, ALP concentrations in the winter were 2% higher than in the summer time. Seasonal variation of 25(OH)D was greater in male (vs. female), African-American (vs. non-African-American), and younger (vs. older) dialysis patients. Conclusion Serum 25(OH)D and iPTH concentrations show seasonal variation among dialysis patients while the variation in other parameters of mineral and bone disorder was clinically irrelevant, if any. Serum 25(OH)D also showed a gradual increase over time. Clinicians and researchers should be aware of these changes when interpreting laboratory results in dialysis patients.
The relationship of insulin-like growth factor-I with postweaning performance in Angus beef cattle.

This study was designed to evaluate the ontogeny of serum IGF-I (SI) concentrations and its relationship to animal performance in a 140-d postweaning feeding trial. Ninety-eight progeny representing six sires (three high and three low feed conversion) and two sexes (43 bulls and 55 heifers) with ad libitum access to feed were allocated by sire and sex to monitor individual weights and pen feed consumption. Blood serum samples were obtained at the beginning of test (average age of 230 d) and every 28 d thereafter until each animal reached a fat thickness (estimated by sonoray) of 8.9 mm. Individual serum samples were acid-ethanol extracted and measured for IGF-I peptide by heterologous RIA. Serum IGF-I concentrations differed (P less than .10) between high (H) and low (L) feed conversion progeny groups at the end of the first 28-d period (125.12 vs 89.52 ng/ml) and tended to differ at the conclusion of the second 28-d period (P less than .15). Weight gains of H and L groups tended to differ in the second and third 28-d periods (P = .11 and .10, respectively). Serum IGF-I concentrations differed (P less than .05) between bulls and heifers for the first through fourth 28-d periods (P less than .01, P less than .05, P less than .10 and P less than .01, respectively). Phenotypic correlations indicated that pens with higher mean SI concentrations at the beginning of the test consumed less feed and had lower cumulative feed:gain ratios.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Abstract 3279: All-trans-retinoic acid (ATRA) markedly augments anti-tumor immunity

All-trans-retinoic acid (ATRA) engages diverse actions on populations of immune cells. These include effects on regulatory T cells (Tregs), myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), Th17 and other immune cells. Prior work found that ATRA can induce anti-tumor immunity through MDSCs and CD8+ T cells and pro-tumor immunity by increasing Treg cells. In this study, we explored how ATRA modulated anti-tumor immunity in solid tumors. To do this, syngeneic lung cancer and colon cancer models were independently developed by optimizing subcutaneous injections of ED1SQ4 lung cancer and MC38 colon cancer cells into immune-competent mice. ATRA-treatment markedly repressed both syngeneic lung cancer and colon cancer growth as compared to vehicle-treated mice. To exclude the possibility that ATRA directly suppressed growth of cancer cells, ED1SQ4 and MC38 cells were independently implanted subcutaneously into athymic mice in order to allow these lung and colon cancer xenografts to grow. Notably, ATRA-treatment did not reduce the growth of these respective xenograft tumors. Intriguingly, ATRA did not suppress in vitro proliferation of either ED1SQ4 or MC38 cells. This implicated ATRA as engaging mechanisms that affect the tumor microenvironment. To learn if the observed anti-tumorigenic activity was mediated by regulation of T cell immunity, CD4+ or CD8+ T cell populations were depleted in syngeneic mice before in vivo ATRA-treatment. CD4+ and CD8+ T cell depletion from syngeneic mice at least partially reversed the tumor suppressive activity of ATRA. Flow cytometry assays conducted on intratumoral immune cells revealed that ATRA-treatment decreased the CD8+ T to Treg cellular ratios while increasing the ratios of CD8+ T to Treg cells. Cytokine and chemokine assays were performed on these syngeneic cancers as well as on peripheral blood harvested from ATRA or vehicle-treated syngeneic mice in order to identify mediators of the observed anti-tumorigenic effects. Findings will be presented. Taken together, this study uncovered a previously unrecognized role for ATRA in augmenting immunotherapy. These preclinical immunotherapy findings can be translated into the cancer clinic. Citation Format: Lu Huang, Zibo Chen, Leila Williams, Yulong Chen, Yunfei Wang, Masanori Kawakami, Jason Roszik, Patrick Hwu, Ethan Dmitrovsky, Weiyi Peng, Xi Liu. All-trans-retinoic acid (ATRA) markedly augments anti-tumor immunity [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 3279.
Assessing the Anxiolytic Properties of Taurine-Derived Compounds in Rats Following Developmental Lead Exposure: A Neurodevelopmental and Behavioral Pharmacological Pilot Study.

Lead (Pb2+) is a developmental neurotoxicant that causes alterations in the brain’s excitation-to-inhibition (E/I) balance. By increasing chloride concentration through GABA-ARs, taurine serves as an effective inhibitory compound for maintaining appropriate levels of brain excitability. Considering this pharmacological mechanism of taurine facilitated inhibition through the GABA-AR, the present pilot study sought to explore the anxiolytic potential of taurine derivatives. Treatment groups consisted of the following developmental Pb2+-exposures: Control (0 ppm) and Perinatal (150 ppm or 1000 ppm lead acetate in the drinking water). Rats were scheduled for behavioral tests between postnatal days (PND) 36–45 with random assignments to either solutions of Saline, Taurine, or Taurine Derived compounds (i.e., TD-101, TD-102, or TD-103) to assess the rats’ responsiveness to each drug in mitigating the developmental Pb2+-exposure through the GABAergic system. Long Evans Hooded rats were assessed using an Open Field (OF) test for preliminary locomotor assessment. Approximately 24-h after the OF, the same rats were exposed to the Elevated Plus Maze (EPM) and were given an i.p. injection of 43 mg/Kg of the Saline, Taurine, or TD drugs 15-min prior to testing. Each rat was tested using the random assignment method for each pharmacological condition, which was conducted using a triple-blind procedure. The OF data revealed that locomotor activity was unaffected by Pb2+-exposure with no gender differences observed. However, Pb2+-exposure induced an anxiogenic response in the EPM, which interestingly, was ameliorated in a gender-specific manner in response to taurine and TD drugs. Female rats exhibited more anxiogenic behavior than the male rats; and as such, exhibited a greater degree of anxiety that were recovered in response to Taurine and its derivatives as a drug therapy. The results from the present psychopharmacological pilot study suggests that Taurine and its derivatives could provide useful data for further exploring the pharmacological mechanisms and actions of Taurine and the associated GABAergic receptor properties by which these compounds alleviate anxiety as a potential behavioral pharmacotherapy for treating anxiety and other associated mood disorders.
Clinical Determinants of Myocardial Injury, Detectable and Serial Troponin Levels among Patients with Hypertensive Crisis.

Introduction There is a high prevalence of hypertensive crisis with myocardial injury, as evidenced by elevation in cardiac troponin levels. The risk factors predisposing patients to developing a myocardial injury, detectable troponin, and increase in serial troponin in this population are not known. Methods A retrospective study was designed to include all patients, presenting to the emergency room, diagnosed with hypertensive crisis, using International Classification of Diseases, 10th revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-10-CM) codes between 2016-2018 (n=467). Logistic regression was used to determine the important predictors of myocardial injury evidenced by troponin elevation >99th percentile of upper reference level (URL), detectable troponin (> 0.015 ng/ml), and increase in serial troponin levels. Results The 99th percentile of the initial troponin level among all patients was 0.433 ng/ml. A total of 15% had a myocardial injury, and the significant risk factors associated with it were body mass index (BMI) 99th percentile URL, and the majority of these patients have minimal changes in serial troponin. Low BMI was associated with higher initial and serial troponin levels, and this obesity paradox was stronger among females and older patients.
Perioperative Antibiotics for Otologic Surgery

A computerized PubMed search of MEDLINE 1966-November 2004 was performed. Articles mapping to any of the following medical subject headings were exploded and combined: “antibiotic prophylaxis,” “antibacterial agents,” “lactams,” “fluoroquinolones,” “macrolides,” “clindamycin.” These articles were then cross-referenced with those mapping to either the exploded medical subject heading “myringoplasty” or textword “myringoplasty.” This process yielded 21 trials. These articles were then reviewed to identify those that met the following inclusion criteria: 1) a distinct patient population under-going myringoplasty alone, 2) intervention with perioperative systemic antibiotics versus placebo or other no-antibiotic control, 3) outcome measured in terms of postoperative surgical site infections1 and/or graft success, 4) randomized controlled trials (RCTs). The outcome of graft success was considered relevant because SSIs have been correlated with graft failure. Articles in which the use of randomization was not clearly specified were excluded.
The Impact of Home Literacy on Bilingual Vocabulary Development.

For bilingual children, home literacy experiences contribute to the development of both languages. In this study, survey data were gathered on the frequency of home literacy activities in two langu...
Effect of Ionic Environment on Vibrational Spectra of Lipid Reservoir of Susceptible Plaque

A new Fourier transform magnetohydro-dynamic acoustic-resonance near-IR (FT-MAReNIR) microspectrometer on a chip utilizes independent physical phenomena to mode! changes in analytes unci interferences found in susceptible plaques nondestructively. resulting in reduced prediction error Near-IR spectrometric determination of minor constituents of susceptible atherosclerotic plaques is complicated by the fact that near-IR spectra of these materials vary in different chemical and physical environments. In such cases. chemomerric techniques such as PLS and PCR (that weight each wavelength in calibration) produce excess error because they must attempt to model complex interference-driven variations in major constituents and natural variations in the minor analyte. The nonlinearity of acoustic spectrometry calls for a novel method of component identification and quantification. and such a method (based upon multivariate quantiles) is introduced.
Developing 21st-Century Skills through Restorative Practices

School counselors are an important cornerstone in addressing inequities and supporting student success. A thorough review of the literature promotes the unification of contemporary school counselor...
Flexible and Fast Spatial Return Level Estimation Via a Spatially Fused Penalty

Li acknowledges partial support from the NSF grants AGS-1602845 and DMS-1830312. Reich acknowledges partial support from The King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (grant no. 3800.2) and National Institutes of Health (NIH grant no. R01ES027892).
Oligodendrocyte precursor cells prune axons in the mouse neocortex

ABSTRACT Neurons in the developing brain undergo extensive structural refinement as nascent circuits adopt their mature form1. This transformation is facilitated by the engulfment and degradation of excess axonal branches and inappropriate synapses by surrounding glial cells, including microglia and astrocytes2,3. However, the small size of phagocytic organelles and the complex, highly ramified morphology of glia has made it difficult to determine the contribution of these and other glial cell types to this process. Here, we used large scale, serial electron microscopy (ssEM) with computational volume segmentation to reconstruct the complete 3D morphologies of distinct glial types in the mouse visual cortex. Unexpectedly, we discovered that the fine processes of oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs), a population of abundant, highly dynamic glial progenitors4, frequently surrounded terminal axon branches and included numerous phagolysosomes (PLs) containing fragments of axons and presynaptic terminals. Single- nucleus RNA sequencing indicated that cortical OPCs express key phagocytic genes, as well as neuronal transcripts, consistent with active axonal engulfment. PLs were ten times more abundant in OPCs than in microglia in P36 mice, and declined with age and lineage progression, suggesting that OPCs contribute very substantially to refinement of neuronal circuits during later phases of cortical development.
Untying knots with force.

RNA knot-like structures function as an efficient physical barrier to RNA exoribonucleases. Single-molecule mechanical manipulation is used to unfold these structures and unravel the cause of their unusual mechanical resistance from a different direction.