cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Methylation microarray analysis of late-stage ovarian carcinomas distinguishes progression-free survival in patients and identifies candidate epigenetic markers

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to profile methylation alterations of CpG islands in ovarian tumors and to identify candidate markers for diagnosis and prognosis of the disease. Experimental Design: A global analysis of DNA methylation using a novel microarray approach called differential methylation hybridization was performed on 19 patients with stage III and IV ovarian carcinomas. Results: Hierarchical clustering identified two groups of patients with distinct methylation profiles. Tumors from group 1 contained high levels of concurrent methylation, whereas group 2 tumors had lower tumor methylation levels. The duration of progression-free survival after chemotherapy was significantly shorter for patients in group 1 compared with group 2 ( P < 0.001). Differential methylation in tumors was independently confirmed by methylation-specific PCR. Conclusions: The data suggest that a higher degree of CpG island methylation is associated with early disease recurrence after chemotherapy. The differential methylation hybridization assay also identified a select group of CpG island loci that are potentially useful as epigenetic markers for predicting treatment outcome in ovarian cancer patients.
Biologically motivated quantitative models and the mixture toxicity problem.

The article highlighted in this issue is "A PBPK Modeling-Based Approach to Account for Interactions in the Health Risk Assessment of Chemical Mixtures" by Sami Haddad, Martin Beliveau, Robert Tardif, and Kannan Krishnan (pp. 125-131).
Effect of Aging on Adipose Tissue Inflammation in the Knee Joints of F344BN Rats

The infrapatellar fat pad (IFP) secretes inflammatory mediators in osteoarthritic knees, but the effect of aging on IFP inflammation is unknown. We tested the hypothesis that aging increases basal and interleukin-1β (IL-1β)-stimulated IFP inflammation in 10-, 20-, and 30-month-old male F344BN F1-hybrid rats. IFPs were cultured ex vivo for 24 hours and treated ±1ng/mL IL-1β to simulate injury-induced inflammation. IFP inflammation was evaluated by measuring secreted cytokine concentrations and by quantitative expression of immunoregulatory and pro- and anti-adipogenic genes. With age, osteoarthritis pathology increased and IFP mass decreased. Although adipocyte size did not change with age, variation in adipocyte size was positively associated with synovial thickness independent of age whereas associations with cartilage damage were age dependent. In the absence of IL-1β, aging was associated with a significant increase in IFP secretion of tumor necrosis factor α by 67% and IL-13 by 35% and a reduction in the expression of immunoregulatory M2 macrophage genes. However, following an IL-1β challenge, adipogenesis markers decreased and pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines increased independent of age. The lone exception was leptin, which decreased >70% with age. Thus, although aging promotes osteoarthritis risk by increasing basal inflammation, our findings also revealed a potentially protective effect of aging by decreasing IL-1β-stimulated leptin production.
Accuracy of information about the intrauterine device on the Internet.

Background Intrauterine devices (IUDs) are highly effective methods of contraception, but use continues to lag behind less effective methods such as oral contraceptive pills and condoms. Women who are aware of the actual effectiveness of various contraceptive methods are more likely to choose the IUD. Conversely, women who are misinformed about the safety of IUDs may be less likely to use this method. Individuals increasingly use the Internet for health information. Information about IUDs obtained through the Internet may influence attitudes about IUD use among patients. Objective Our objective was to evaluate the quality of information about IUDs among World Wide Web sites providing contraceptive information to the public. Study Design We developed a 56-item structured questionnaire to evaluate the quality of information about IUDs available through the Internet. We then conducted an online search to identify web sites containing information about contraception and IUDs using common search engines. The search was performed in August 2013 and web sites were reviewed again in October 2015 to ensure there were no substantial changes. Results Our search identified >2000 web sites, of which 108 were eligible for review; 105 (97.2%) of these sites contained information about IUDs. Of sites, 86% provided at least 1 mechanism of the IUD. Most web sites accurately reported advantages of the IUD including that it is long acting (91%), highly effective (82%), and reversible (68%). However, only 30% of sites explicitly indicated that IUDs are safe. Fifty percent (n = 53) of sites contained inaccurate information about the IUD such as an increased risk of pelvic inflammatory disease beyond the insertion month (27%) or that women in nonmonogamous relationships (30%) and nulliparous women (20%) are not appropriate candidates. Among sites, 44% stated that a mechanism of IUDs is prevention of implantation of a fertilized egg. Only 3% of web sites incorrectly stated that IUDs are an abortifacient. More than a quarter of sites listed an inaccurate contraindication to the IUD such as nulliparity, history of pelvic inflammatory disease, or history of an ectopic pregnancy. Conclusion The quality of information about IUDs available on the Internet is variable. Accurate information was mixed with inaccurate or outdated information that could perpetuate myths about IUDs. Clinicians need knowledge about accurate, evidence-based Internet resources to provide to women given the inconsistent quality of information available through online sources.
Sequence Analysis and Characterization of Active Human Alu Subfamilies Based on the 1000 Genomes Pilot Project

The goal of the 1000 Genomes Consortium is to characterize human genome structural variation (SV), including forms of copy number variations such as deletions, duplications, and insertions. Mobile element insertions, particularly Alu elements, are major contributors to genomic SV among humans. During the pilot phase of the project we experimentally validated 645 (611 intergenic and 34 exon targeted) polymorphic "young" Alu insertion events, absent from the human reference genome. Here, we report high resolution sequencing of 343 (322 unique) recent Alu insertion events, along with their respective target site duplications, precise genomic breakpoint coordinates, subfamily assignment, percent divergence, and estimated A-rich tail lengths. All the sequenced Alu loci were derived from the AluY lineage with no evidence of retrotransposition activity involving older Alu families (e.g., AluJ and AluS). AluYa5 is currently the most active Alu subfamily in the human lineage, followed by AluYb8, and many others including three newly identified subfamilies we have termed AluYb7a3, AluYb8b1, and AluYa4a1. This report provides the structural details of 322 unique Alu variants from individual human genomes collectively adding about 100 kb of genomic variation. Many Alu subfamilies are currently active in human populations, including a surprising level of AluY retrotransposition. Human Alu subfamilies exhibit continuous evolution with potential drivers sprouting new Alu lineages.
“The lost decade”: an MPT perspective

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to test the efficacy of an application of modern portfolio theory (MPT) from 2000 through 2009, a period during which the annual rate of return on the S & P 500 is negative. The financial media have called this period “the lost decade” for investors. Design/methodology/approach – Using monthly data, the author uses a series of annual out-of-sample tests to compare the risk-reward performances of MPT portfolios against those of the S & P 500. Findings – The author finds that the MPT portfolios outperformed the S & P 500. During the “lost decade”. They generated a cumulative return of over 77 percent compared to a cumulative return of −9.1 percent on the S & P 500. Moreover, the MPT portfolio β’s are low, ranging from 0.45 to 1.01, suggesting above-average risk-reward performances. Research limitations/implications – The MPT portfolios are relatively small, and might not be well diversified. That said, they comprise a core set of securities that could help investors ac...
Do Conglomerates Stifle Innovation

Using patent-based metrics, this paper examines the impact that the conglomerate form may have on the scale and novelty of corporate R&D activity. It shows that firms that are more reliant on internal capital markets to reallocate resources across divisions produce both a lesser number of innovations and also less novel innovations. Conglomerates producing more novel innovations have higher market values and appropriate organizational design helps in enhancing the novelty of innovations. Evidence gathered from a quasi-experiment strongly suggests a causal link between organizational form and R&D productivity, that is, conglomerates do stifle innovation.
The Aging Arterial Wall

A chronic increase in the production of inflammatory signals drives age-associated arterial structural remodeling and functional changes, including diffuse arterial intimal-medial thickening and stiffening. Under the microscope, the aged artery is characterized by increases in vascular smooth muscle cell apoptosis, senescence, invasion, proliferation, inflammatory molecule secretion, endothelial disruption, prothrombosis, glycoxidation, fibrosis, elastin fragmentation, calcification, and amyloidosis. These adverse cellular and molecular events occur within aged arterial wall experimentally in young animals under inflammatory stress conditions, and are attenuated in old animals by interfering with proinflammatory signals. Importantly, the profile of arterial aging is intertwined with hypertension and atherosclerosis at the molecular, cellular, vascular, and clinical levels, rendering the aged arterial wall a fertile soil for their pathogenesis. Thus, early and effective strategies to suppress age-associated arterial proinflammation may be realistic approaches to curb the initiation and progression of age-associated cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension and atherosclerosis.
Exercise-induced changes of CSF vascular endothelial growth factor in adult chronic hydrocephalus patients

Background Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a growth factor demonstrated to play a key role in cerebral angiogenesis and neurogenesis. It has been considered a critical component in hippocampus neurogenesis and memory formation and has been observed to increase in the rat hippocampus after exercise. In a previous study, we found increases in VEGF receptor and/or ligand in an experimental model of chronic e hydrocephalus in several brain areas and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), suggesting a role in the adaption to chronic hypoxia. Here we investigate the ability of moderate exercise to increase CSF-VEGF levels in adult chronic hydrocephalus patients.
Russia's Industrial Enterprises in 2008

This paper was prepared using data of monthly business surveys conducted by the Gaidar Institute for Economic Policy (IEP) among managers of industrial enterprises since September 1992. The surveys are based on the European harmonized methodology and encompass the entire territory of the Russian Federation. The size of the panel is about 1100 enterprises that employ over 15% of the total number of employed in industry. The panel is biased towards large enterprises in each of the selected sub-industries. The rate of response to questionnaires ranges from 65% to 70%.
Integrating subsistence practice and species distribution modeling: assessing invasive elodea’s potential impact on Native Alaskan subsistence of Chinook salmon and whitefish

Alaska has one of the most rapidly changing climates on earth and is experiencing an accelerated rate of human disturbance, including resource extraction and transportation infrastructure development. Combined, these factors increase the state's vulnerability to biological invasion, which can have acute negative impacts on ecological integrity and subsistence practices. Of growing concern is the spread of Alaska's first documented freshwater aquatic invasive plant Elodea spp. (elodea). In this study, we modeled the suitable habitat of elodea using global and state-specific species occurrence records and environmental variables, in concert with an ensemble of model algorithms. Furthermore, we sought to incorporate local subsistence concerns by using Native Alaskan knowledge and available statewide subsistence harvest data to assess the potential threat posed by elodea to Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) and whitefish (Coregonus nelsonii) subsistence. State models were applied to future climate (2040-2059) using five general circulation models best suited for Alaska. Model evaluations indicated that our results had moderate to strong predictability, with area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve values above 0.80 and classification accuracies ranging from 66 to 89 %. State models provided a more robust assessment of elodea habitat suitability. These ensembles revealed different levels of management concern statewide, based on the interaction of fish subsistence patterns, known spawning and rearing sites, and elodea habitat suitability, thus highlighting regions with additional need for targeted monitoring. Our results suggest that this approach can hold great utility for invasion risk assessments and better facilitate the inclusion of local stakeholder concerns in conservation planning and management.
Family Control and Corporate Social Responsibility: Evidence from East Asia

This paper investigates the impact of family control on corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance. Using Carney and Child's (2013) newly collected data on the ultimate ownership structure o...
Reoperation following Adult Tonsillectomy: Review of the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program.

ObjectiveTonsillectomy remains a common procedure in adults; however, there are few population-level data evaluating risk factors for reoperation.Study DesignRetrospective review of national databa...
Finding a Way to Get By: Latino Household Economic Strategies in a Time of Economic and Political Strain

Few studies have addressed how Latino families resident in the United States for many years have been impacted by the economic downturn of 2007–2009, the household economic strategies these families adopted to cope with financial distress, or if such efforts are affected by localized responses to immigration policy. Drawing on survey and matched qualitative interview data from a random sample of Latino households in Phoenix, Arizona, we examine the types and number of household economic strategies families deploy; whether social network composition and exchanges vary according to the level of financial strain experienced and the types of strategies used to ameliorate that strain; and how the local policy context affects the strategies. We find that households do not rely on just one strategy but deploy multiple strategies engaged in by different family members concurrently. There is little variation in household social network composition or resource exchange by strategy, but some variation in resource ex...
The Normal Megakaryocyte Concentration in Aspirated Human Bone Marrow

1. A practical chamber method has been devised for enumerating the megakaryocyte concentration of aspirated bone marrow. 2. Marrow aspirations from 23 healthy young adults had a mean megakaryocyte concentration of 4.0 ± 1.1 per 10,000 total nucleated cells or 6.1 ± 1.6 per 10,000 granulocytes. 3. Of the three principal cell types in marrow, i.e. granulocytes, erythrocytes and lymphocytes, the megakaryocyte content seemed to parallel most closely the granulocytes.
Application of half-metallocene cyclopentadienyl-titanium catalysts

Application of constrained geometry metallocene catalysts in olefins polymerization was reviewed,including of ethylene-chain-olefins copolymerization,copolymerization of long-chain α-olefins with norbornene,copolymerization of macromolecular monomer containing vinyl end groups,polymerization of ethylene with styrene and synthesis of atactic polypropylene with higher molecular weight.The results showed that mono-cyclopentadienyl allowed the insertion of various monomer;the introduction of substituents and ligands on cyclopentadienyl had influenced on catalytic activities for olefin polymerization,the control of molecular weight of polymer and polymerization dispersion.
Management of colorectal neoplasia during pregnancy and in the postpartum period.

AIM: To report our experience on management of colorectal neoplasia during pregnancy and in the postpartum period. METHODS: Patients who were diagnosed with colorectal cancer during pregnancy or in the postpartum period (< 6 mo), between 8/1997 and 4/2013, in our department were reviewed. Patient characteristics, operations, fetal health and follow-up during pregnancy, type of delivery and oncologic outcomes were analyzed. RESULTS: Eight patients met our study criteria. Median age at the time of diagnosis of colorectal cancer was 31 years. Median follow-up after surgery was 36 mo. Median duration of symptoms before diagnosis was 16 wk. Three patients were diagnosed with colorectal cancer during pregnancy and underwent surgery prior to delivery. None of the patients received adjuvant treatment during pregnancy. Five patients were diagnosed with colorectal cancer within a median of 2.1 mo after delivery and underwent surgery. No adverse neonatal outcomes were noted. All deliveries were at term (2 cesarean sections) except for one preterm delivery following low anterior resection on the 34th week of pregnancy. CONCLUSION: There has been a significant delay in the diagnosis of colorectal cancer which is probably due to overlap of symptoms and signs between these tumors and a normal pregnancy. Surgery for colorectal cancer during pregnancy can be performed safely without compromising maternal and fetal outcomes.
Testing for Wage Discrimination in US Manufacturing

In spite of the large literature on labor market discrimination, the quantity of solid evidence on discrimination is relatively limited. This is because evidence of discrimination is difficult to obtain. Two individuals may be treated equally, but this does not prove discrimination unless we can show that the differences in treatment were not justified by differences in productivity. The method most commonly used to identify wage discrimination, the Oaxaca decomposition, is flawed because any omitted variables that are correlated with gender will contribute to the unexplained portion of the wage gap, leading to an over- or under-estimation of wage discrimination. Audit studies provide more direct evidence of differential treatment, but are costly to carry out. Only a small number of studies attempt to measure worker productivity to see if wage differences are justified. This may be because the data needed to measure productivity are difficult to obtain. This paper tests for wage discrimination by gender and race by estimating relative productivity from 2002 Census of Manufacturing data linked to demographic information on workers from Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics (LEHD) files. Comparing the estimated productivity ratios to the observed wage ratios, I conclude that females and blacks face wage discrimination in US manufacturing.
Oral discussions on Session: “Advanced Operations” - Part II

This paper contains the second part of the transcribed oral discussions of Session “Advanced Operations” of the 2013 IREP Symposium-Bulk Power System Dynamics and Control, held on Thursday morning, August 29, 2013. Papers [1]–[4] were presented.
Two-stage robust optimization approach to elective surgery and downstream capacity planning

Abstract Scheduling elective surgeries is a complicated task due to the coupled effects of multiple sources of uncertainty and the impact of the proposed schedule on the downstream units. In this paper, we propose a two-stage robust optimization model to address the existing uncertainty in surgery duration and length-of-stay in the surgical intensive care unit. The framework allows for the decision-maker to adjust the level of risk with which she/he is comfortable. We propose the adapted column-and-constraint generation method to obtain exact solutions for the proposed formulation. The performance and the quality of our proposed solution methodology are tested through computational experiments and simulation modeling.
Brush polymer-based nanostructures for drug delivery

Abstract Polymeric nanostructures have been broadly investigated for applications in drug delivery. As compared with other types of polymers, brush polymers (BPs) can possess not only unimolecular but also intermolecularly assembled nanostructures with versatile properties, and therefore drug delivery via BP-based scaffolds has attracted drastically increasing interest. A broad variety of BPs with diverse structural features and properties have been integrated with drugs via either physical encapsulation or chemical conjugation to construct BP-based drug-delivery systems. Besides drugs, various biomedical functionalities, including targeting ligands, imaging elements, and other biologically related moieties, can also be incorporated into these drug-delivery systems to further improve their therapeutic performance. In this chapter, an overview on BP-based drug-delivery systems is presented. Following a general discussion on structural design of BP-based scaffolds, BP-based drug-encapsulated, drug-conjugated, and multifunctional systems are discussed. The future research directions of BP-based drug-delivery systems are highlighted.
No-carrier-added (NCA) Silver [18F]Fluoride as a Novel Synthon for Nucleophilic [18F]Fluorination.

324 Objectives up>18F has not been commonly used in [18F]fluorination due to the difficulty in formulating it from the 18O-enriched water used to produce [18F]fluoride. Our objective was to develop a facile method to elute Ag18F via solid phase extraction (SPE) and show the utility of Ag18F as a nucleophilic fluorinating source in C(sp3)-F bond formation using C-H activation catalyzed by Pd to form [18F]8-fluoromethylquinoline as a model reaction (see Sanford et al. Org. Lett. 2012, 14, 4094 for the corresponding reaction using 19F). Methods In order to prepare Ag18F for use from 18O-enriched target water SPE (QMA) was accomplished in three steps: i) preconditioning the QMA cartridge; ii) trapping [18F]fluoride on QMA cartridge; iii) eluting Ag18F. The insolubility of silver salts is the chief challenge to preparing Ag18F by SPE (e.g. CO3- and HCO3-). There are a number of silver salts that are water soluble, including AgOTs, AgOTf, AgOAc, and AgNO3. Preconditioning the QMA resin with corresponding potassium salt would result in a soluble Ag18F solution when elution was achieved with one of the soluble silver salts. The eluent concentration, silver salt used and preconditioning counter anion were screened to determine optimized conditions for Ag18F preparation. Once azeotropically dried, Ag18F was pre-stirred with PhI(OPiv)2 in CH2Cl2 for 15 min at 80C before adding Pd(OAc)2, 8-methylquinoline, and MgSO4. The reaction vial was tightly sealed and heated at 110C for 1 hr to form [18F]8-fluoromethylquinoline. Radiochemical conversion (RCC) and radiochemical yield (RCY) was determined by radio-TLC and analytical HPLC. Results 90 mM of aqueous KOTf (900 mg in 10 mL D.I. water) was used to precondition the QMA cartridge and [18F]fluoride was eluted with AgOTf (10 mg in 0.5 mL D.I. water; 20 mM) with a trapping efficiency of 98 % (n=2). Ag18F was used for C-F bond formation of 8-methylquinoline via direct activation of C-H bond in no-carrier-added conditions and [18F]8-fluoromethylquinoline was formed in up to 5 % (RCC, n=2, Scheme). In contrast, NCA nucleophilic [18F]fluorination of 8-methylquinoline with K18F yielded no detectable amount of [18F]8-fluoromethylquinoline. Conclusions NCA Ag18F was efficiently produced by a new method that lends itself to automation. Availability of Ag18F as an alternate [18F]fluoride source for nucleophilic benzyl/aryl/allylic [18F]fluorination gives radiochemists the ability to employ more fluorination methods and thus access to a greater diversity of scaffolds for radiolabeling. Efficient purification systems for reactions involving Ag is ongoing along with additional applications for the use of Ag18F in radiosynthesis such as direct radiofluorination of aryl iodides and other precursor molecules. Research Support: Acknowledgements: We acknowledge the US DOE (DE-SC0012484 (P.J.H.S.)), NIH (GM073836 (M.S.S.) and T32-EB005172 (P.J.H.S.)), the Alzheimer’s Association (NIRP-14-305669 (P.J.H.S.)), and Merck (M.S.S. and P.J.H.S.) for financial support.
Mobility of Skilled Labor, Capital Structure and Investment

Using a new measure of labor mobility instrumented by state-level shocks, I find that an increase in worker mobility negatively affects firms' average leverage and investment rates, but only in firms that rely on high-skill workers. I develop a dynamic model that provides an economic mechanism to rationalize these findings. In the model, firms make investment and financing decisions, hire labor with different levels of skill and mobility, and set wages through bargaining. Skilled workers with high mobility receive high-value outside job offers more frequently. Firms that rely on this type of labor operate with low leverage in anticipation of the outside offer shocks, in order to retain their workforce against those shocks. The differences in investment are generated both by the capital-labor complementarity and by the differences in financing policies, which affect the cost of capital. I estimate the model to quantify the effect of changes in labor mobility on different aspects of firms' decisions. Counterfactual analyses imply that policies that exogenously change workers' ability to move among firms have a sizable impact on the leverage, investment, hiring, and wages of high-skill firms. My results highlight the importance of considering this channel in evaluating the economic impact of policies that change workers' mobility.
TANGLES OF CARE: Killing Goats to Save Tortoises on the Galápagos Islands

If calls to care for other species multiply in a time of global and local environmental crisis, this article demonstrates that caring practices are not always as benevolent or irenic as imagined. To save endemic tortoises from the menace of extinction, Proyecto Isabela killed more than two hundred thousand goats on the Galapagos Islands in the largest mammal eradication campaign in the world. While anthropologists have looked at human engagements with unwanted species as habitual and even pleasurable, I discuss an exceptional intervention that was ethically inflected toward saving an endemic species, yet also controversial and distressing. Exploring eradication's biological, ecological, and political implications and discussing opposing practices of care for goats among residents, I move past the recognition that humans live in a multispecies world and point to the contentious nature of living with nonhuman others. I go on to argue that realizing competing forms of care may help conservation measures—and, indeed, life in the Anthropocene—to move beyond the logic of success and failure toward an open-ended commitment to the more-than-human. [care; Anthropocene; multispecies assemblages; conservation; Galapagos Islands]
What is a Historical Legacy

While continuity and change have long been central in the study of politics, we do not yet fully understand the criteria by which claims of such continuity can be made. What is the dividing line between continuity with the past and change from the past? This paper addresses that question through a focus on historical legacies, and in particular what it means for characteristics of a prior political regime to feature in the politics of a latter political regime. Historical legacies are an important component of many explanations of contemporary outcomes in polities attempting to democratize after a period of authoritarian rule. Democratic failure and success are often attributed to some legacy originating in the prior authoritarian regime or in some cases the pre-authoritarian regime. Yet while there is no shortage of legacies accounts, there is still no clear understanding of what a legacy is or how legacy arguments actually work. This paper establishes the criteria by which a phenomenon can be considered a legacy.
Medicaid coverage expansions and cigarette smoking cessation among low-income adults

Introduction:Expanding Medicaid coverage to low-income adults may have increased smoking cessation through improved access to evidence-based treatments. Our study sought to determine if states’ decisions to expand Medicaid increased recent smoking cessation.Methods:Using pooled cross-sectional data
A Quantum Circuit to Construct All Maximal Cliques Using Grover Search Algorithm

A quantum circuit to construct all maximal cliques using Grover search algorithm is presented. This oracle circuit takes as input an n-qubit state |x> and the adjacency matrix data A of an n-node network, and outputs the state (-1)^f(x) |x> where f(x)=1 if |x> is a maximal clique, and f(x)=0, otherwise. The oracle workspace requires 2n^2 qubits. Each oracle call makes about 10n^2 calls to the Toffoli gates. The overall Grover search algorithm takes as input a uniform superposition n-qubit state and the adjacency matrix data, and outputs a uniform superposition of all maximal clique states.
Military Government by Induction: American Strategic Ambiguity in the Military Government of Cuba, 1899:

In the wake of the Spanish American War, the United States became a world power. How consciously the USA pursued global ambitions is the subject of intense scholarly debate. This article examines US strategic policy toward Cuba in 1899 and argues that the USA prioritized stability and left US commanders to infer via a process of experimentation the true strategic direction of US policy in Cuba.
Sustainable coal waste disposal practices

Abstract For centuries, coal has been a reliable source of energy; however, despite terms such as “clean coal,” coal is considered “dirty.” Unlike other fossil fuels, coal is a solid and in its rawest form contains significant quantities of incombustible impurities, which must be dealt with before, during, and after mining. Overburden waste, processing refuse, and coal combustion residuals constitute large volumes of material that must be handled and managed. Handling segregates waste material into coarse and fine fractions. Coarse fractions are used to construct impoundments into which fine fractions are pumped. Storage piles quickly become part of the “natural” landscape, but unless properly constructed and maintained, they can have long-term negative impacts on the surrounding environment including generation of geochemical pollutants and creation of geotechnical safety hazards. After defining coal waste and sustainability, traditional coal waste disposal practices are briefly summarized. The remainder of the chapter focuses on sustainable coal waste disposal practices of the future. The first is eliminating slurry impoundments by codisposal of coarse processing waste and dewatered fine processing waste. This practice requires low-cost, efficient dewatering technology for fine waste material, and two contemporary options are discussed. Next, backfilling is explored as an alternative to stowing coal waste in expansive surface landfills. Finally, the sustainability principles of reduce, reuse, and recycle are examined from the coal mining perspective, an approach that can seem counterintuitive unless a holistic viewpoint is taken.
Me and you and everyone we know

In the slim volume You: A Natural History , Wright State University philosopher William B. Irvine lays out some of the fundamental science behind human history, human ancestry, life9s history and origin, and the origin of our Universe in simple and engaging prose.
Buddhism and Law: An Introduction , edited by Rebecca Redwood French and Mark A. Nathan

Buddhism and Law: An Introduction, edited by Rebecca Redwood French and Mark A. Nathan. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2014. xxii + 385 pp., $69.95 (hb), $34.99 (pb). ISBN 978-0-521-51579-5 (hb), 978-0-521-73419-6 (pb).
Healthcare facility characteristics associated with achievement and maintenance of HIV viral suppression among persons newly diagnosed with HIV in New York City

Health care facility characteristics have been shown to influence intermediary health outcomes among persons with HIV, but few longitudinal studies of suppression have included these characteristic...
Analyzing Mild Cognitive Impairment Progression via Multi-view Structural Learning.

Alzheimer’s disease (AD), and its precursor, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), are progressive neurodegenerative conditions with a preclinical period that can last a decade or more. A variety of predictive models and algorithms have been developed to classify different clinical groups (e.g., elderly normal versus MCI) or predict conversion (e.g., from MCI to AD) based on longitudinal neuroimaging or other biomarker datasets. Even so, it is still unknown how brain structural and functional alterations jointly contribute to the MCI/AD progression process. Here we introduce a novel supervised multi-view structure learning framework to model the latent patterns of MCI/AD progression. Specifically, we learned and optimized a common data representation based on both structural and functional connectome data. Instead of determining patterns of abnormal structural and functional connectivity and their overlap, we create and analyze a common structure (graph) that can describe the entire process of disease progression. Different structural and functional connectome features contribute to this common structure simultaneously. The learned common structure reflects “a progression path” of MCI: it starts from elderly normal, proceeds through significant memory concern (SMC), early MCI and eventually ends with late MCI. As the common structure is learned from different structural and functional connectome features, it suggests that the connectome alterations related to MCI progression might happen in different structural and functional regions simultaneously.
Abstract 5161: Probing leukemia vulnerabilitiesin vivousing domain-focused CRISPR screening

The cancer microenvironment plays an important role in the disease emergence, development, recurrence, and treatment resistance. For human myeloid malignancies, the bone marrow microenvironment contains a complex structure with a number of different cell types. The sophisticated interaction network between myeloid leukemia and the microenvironment adds great challenges to elucidating the pathogenesis of the disease, and discovering novel therapeutic mechanisms. Over the last few years, CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing technology has risen as a powerful tool for identifying essential genes for cancer growth. Our lab has further developed an advanced CRISPR-Cas9 screening approach that uses pooled sgRNAs targeting functional protein domains to significantly improve screening efficiency. In contrast to the massive amount of in vitroCRISPR-Cas9 screening studies, very few studies have focused on developing an in vivoCRISPR-Cas9 screening approach. Compared to in vitroscreening, a huge advantage of in vivoscreening is that it allows cancer cells in direct contact with the native microenvironment, which would lead to the identification of essential signalings for cancer development in vivo. In this study, we developed an effective and efficient in vivo domain-targeting CRISPR-Cas9 screening approach with a human acute myeloid leukemia (AML) xenograft model. We designed and constructed a number of domain-targeting sgRNA libraries covering different cellular functions, including G-protein coupled receptors, ion channels, solute carriers, membrane associated proteins, kinases, phosphatases, glycosylation pathway proteins, proteases, transcription factors, and chromatin regulators. We performed the CRISPR-Cas9 screens both in vivo and in vitro at the same time to identify in vivo specific essential genes for AML. With the focused-size libraries, we are able to achieve high screening quality and to nominate high confident in vivo specific targets. Among them, we re-captured the in vivo specific essentialities of the CXCR4 and CD47 genes, which have been well studied for their critical connections with bone marrow microenvironment. In addition, we identified and validated several in vivo specific targets associate with glycosylation pathway, integrin linked pathways, and chromatin regulators. Our preliminary results have demonstrated this approach can effectively identify essential genes for cancer microenvironment, which in vitroscreening is incapable of. We aim to use this approach to further identify in vivo specific targets in other pathways; and to understand their mechanism connecting to the cancer microenvironment; and to identify small molecules with therapeutic potency that could disrupt these connections. Citation Format: Yiliang Wei, Christopher Vakoc. Probing leukemia vulnerabilitiesin vivousing domain-focused CRISPR screening [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 5161.
Prevalence of Sarcopenia Obesity in Patients Treated at a Rural, Multidisciplinary Weight and Wellness Center.

Sarcopenic obesity portends poor outcomes, yet it is under-recognized in practice. We collected baseline clinical data including data on body composition (total and segmental muscle mass and total ...
A zwitterionic polymer as an interfacial layer for efficient and stable perovskite solar cells

Perovskite solar cells have been rapidly developed in the past ten years. It was demonstrated that the interfacial layer plays an important role in device performance of perovskite solar cells. In this study, we report utilization of a photoinitiation-crosslinked zwitterionic polymer, namely dextran with carboxybetaine modified by methacrylate (Dex-CB-MA), as an interfacial layer to improve the film morphology of the CH3NH3PbI3 photoactive layer and the interfacial contact between the poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) hole extraction layer and CH3NH3PbI3 photoactive layer. It is found that the Dex-CB-MA thin layer forms a better band alignment between the PEDOT:PSS hole extraction layer and CH3NH3PbI3 photoactive layer, and improves the crystallization of the CH3NH3PbI3 photoactive layer, resulting in efficient charge carrier transport. As a result, perovskite solar cells with the PEDOT:PSS/Dex-CB-MA hole extraction layer exhibit more than 30% enhancement in efficiency and dramatically boosted stability as compared with that with the PEDOT:PSS hole extraction layer. Our studies provide an effective and facile way to fabricate stable perovskite solar cells with high power conversion efficiency.
Malnutrition risk among older mexican adults in the mexican health and aging study

Few studies assess the malnutrition risk of older Mexican adults because most studies do not assess nutritional status. This study proposes a modified version of the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) to assess the risk of malnutrition among older Mexicans adults in the Mexican Health and Aging Study (MHAS). Data comes from the 2012, 2015, and 2018 waves of the MHAS, a nationally representative study of Mexicans aged 50 and older. The sample included 13,338 participants and a subsample of 1911 with biomarker values. ROC analysis was used to calculate the cut point for malnutrition risk. This cut point was compared to the definition of malnutrition from the ESPEN criteria, BMI, low hemoglobin, or low cholesterol. Logistic regression was used to assess predictors of malnutrition risk. A score of 10 was the optimal cut point for malnutrition risk in the modified MNA. This cut point had high concordance to identify malnutrition risk compared to the ESPEN criteria (97.7%) and had moderate concordance compared to BMI only (78.6%), and the biomarkers of low hemoglobin (56.1%) and low cholesterol (54.1%). Women, those older than 70, those with Seguro Popular health insurance, and those with fair/poor health were more likely to be malnourished. The modified MNA is an important tool to assess malnutrition risk in future studies using MHAS data.
Recovery of waste nutrients by duckweed for reuse in sustainable agriculture: Second-year results of a field pilot study with sorghum

Abstract Between 62% and 92% of industrial and municipal wastewater in upper-middle, low-middle, and low income countries is discharged to the environment untreated, releasing valuable nutrients such as nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) into rivers, lakes, and oceans ( Lipponen and Nikiforova, 2017 ). This, in addition to excess nutrients often present in agricultural runoff due to overuse and misuse of fertilizers, can lead to eutrophication, often causing irreparable damage to aquatic ecosystems. For these reasons, new techniques must be found to effectively recover waste nutrients and upcycle them into natural soil amendments that can be used to enrich soil quality and grow food for future generations while minimizing agricultural runoff. Duckweed is a small floating aquatic plant that can hyperaccumulate nutrients present in wastewater and agricultural runoff and then be harvested and reused to replace or supplement commercial soil fertilizers. As part of a two-year field trial, duckweed was tested for the second consecutive year in this study as a soil amendment in comparison to, and in combination with, commercial fertilizer for the growth of sorghum, a drought-resistant grain. Relative to fertilizer in all cases, soils amended with duckweed generated less ammonia and nitrate in surficial runoff. No differences in P in cumulative runoff were found among the different treatments (p = 0.509). Additionally, duckweed application produced sorghum grains with greater N and P content than other treatments (1.63 ± 0.03% N (p = 0.001) and 0.35 ± 0.0% P (p = 0.016)). Duckweed treatments also showed increased soil residue carbon and P after harvesting the crop. When normalized by germination rate, sorghum yield was similar across treatments. In agreement with first-year findings, the results indicated that duckweed may be a viable alternative to commercial fertilizer from an environmental and agricultural perspective, providing acceptable yields and contributing to the buildup of beneficial nutrients in the soil profile. Additional testing is needed to further evaluate potential germination inhibitors, greenhouse gas emissions (ex., N2O), and efficacy when applied to different crops and soil types.
A probabilistic fatigue life prediction for adhesively bonded joints via ANNs-based hybrid model

Abstract The paper is aimed at developing an efficient and robust probabilistic fatigue life prediction framework for adhesively bonded joints. This framework calibrates the fatigue life model by quantifying uncertainty in the fatigue damage evolution relation using a set of experimental fatigue life data. Probabilistic assessment of fatigue life is simulated through damage evolution along the bondline and Bayesian inference via the Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) sampling method for inverse uncertainty quantification (UQ). To expedite the fatigue life simulation, a hybrid model composed of physics-based fatigue damage evolution relation and a data-driven artificial neural networks (ANNs) model is employed. The degradation of the adhesive is evaluated by the fatigue damage evolution relation which is then mapped to the strain redistribution along the bondline using the ANNs model. Once the mapping is learned by the ANNs, through data from FEA simulations, the probabilistic fatigue life prediction framework involves three successive modules: (I) fatigue damage growth (FDG) simulator, (II) uncertainty quantification (UQ), and (III) confidence bounds for fatigue life prediction. The FDG simulator can be used for simulating fatigue degradation rapidly for a given geometric configuration under any arbitrary fatigue loading spectra. The quantified uncertainties from the framework correspond to the intrinsic statistical material properties that can be used for probabilistic fatigue life prediction in any joint configuration with the same adhesive material. The probabilistic framework is verified using a single lap joint (SLJ) by quantifying uncertainties which are then used for probabilistic fatigue life prediction in laminated doublers in the bending (LDB) joint, that uses the same adhesive material as SLJ, and successfully compared with experimental data. The framework is also tested and validated by estimating probabilistic fatigue life in other joint configurations under constant and variable amplitude fatigue loading spectra.
Restoring invisible and abandoned trials of gabapentin for neuropathic pain: a clinical and methodological investigation

Introduction Gabapentin (Neurontin) is prescribed widely for conditions for which it has not been approved by regulators, including certain neuropathic pain conditions. There is limited evidence that gabapentin is safe and effective for the treatment of neuropathic pain. Published trial reports, and systematic reviews based on published trial reports, mislead patients and providers because information about gabapentin’s harms has been published only partly. We confirmed that trials conducted by the drug developer have been abandoned, and we plan to conduct a restoration with support from the Restoring Invisible and Abandoned Trials Support Centre (https://restoringtrials.org/). Methods and analysis In this study, we will analyse and report the harms that were observed in six trials of gabapentin, which have not been reported publicly (eg, in journal articles). We will use clinical study reports and individual participant data to identify and report the harms observed in each individual trial and to summarise the harms observed across all six trials. We will report all adverse events observed in the included trials by sharing deidentified data and summary tables on the Open Science Framework (https://osf.io/w8puv/). Additionally, we will produce a summary report that describes differences between the randomised groups in each trial and across trials for prespecified harms outcomes. Ethics and dissemination We will use secondary data. This study was determined to be exempt from Institutional Review Board (IRB) review (protocol #1910607198).
The Effect Ultrasound and Surfactants on Nanobubbles Efficacy against Listeria innocua and Escherichia coli O157:H7, in Cell Suspension and on Fresh Produce Surfaces.

Removing foodborne pathogens from food surfaces and inactivating them in wash water are critical steps for reducing the number of foodborne illnesses. In this study we evaluated the impact of surfactants on enhancing nanobubbles’ efficacy on Escherichia coli O157:H7, and Listeria innocua removal from spinach leaves. We evaluated the synergistic impact of nanobubbles and ultrasound on these two pathogens inactivation in the cell suspension. The results indicated that nanobubbles or ultrasound alone could not significantly reduce bacteria in cell suspension after 15 min. However, a combination of nanobubbles and ultrasonication caused more than 6 log cfu/mL reduction after 15 min, and 7 log cfu/mL reduction after 10 min of L. innocua and E. coli, respectively. Nanobubbles also enhanced bacterial removal from spinach surface in combination with ultrasonication. Nanobubbles with ultrasound removed more than 2 and 4 log cfu/cm2 of L. innocua and E. coli, respectively, while ultrasound alone caused 0.5 and 1 log cfu/cm2 of L. innocua and E. coli reduction, respectively. No reduction was observed in the solutions with PBS and nanobubbles. Adding food-grade surfactants (0.1% Sodium dodecyl sulfate-SDS, and 0.1% Tween 20), did not significantly enhance nanobubbles efficacy on bacterial removal from spinach surface.