cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Influence of calcium and phosphorus feeding on markers of bone metabolism in transition cows.

A study was carried out to verify the effect of Ca and P levels on production, digestibility, and serum bone metabolism biomarkers in dairy cows. Fifty-two nonlactating multiparous cows (≥3 lactations) were confined in a free-stall barn approximately 20 d before calving. A standard close-up diet was fed to cows once daily until d 2 postpartum. Cows were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 dietary treatments arranged in a 2 × 2 factorial approach averaging 0.64% Ca for high Ca (HCa), 0.46% Ca for low Ca (LCa), 0.47% P for high P (HP), and 0.38% P for low P (LP) on a dry matter basis. Experimental diets were fed twice daily from 3 d in milk (DIM) until 31 DIM. Intake and milk yield were recorded daily. Milk samples were collected on d 28, 29, and 30 postpartum for components analyses. Blood samples were drawn 10 d before expected calving, at calving, and at 15 and 30 DIM for serum analyses of osteocalcin, a biomarker of bone accretion, and pyridinoline, a biomarker of bone resorption. Total fecal collection was conducted when cows in a block averaged 20 DIM. Intake and production traits were not significantly affected by any of the dietary treatments. Cows averaged nearly 21 kg/d dry matter intake and 44 kg/d milk yield from 6 to 31 DIM. There were no significant differences across treatments in body weight or body condition score loss. Phosphorus intake, P fecal output, P digestibility, and P apparent absorption were affected by dietary P content. Calcium intake was higher with HCa, but Ca fecal output, digestibility, and apparent absorption showed an interaction between dietary Ca and dietary P. Calcium fecal output was 100.6 g/d for cows fed HCaHP, intermediate for cows on the HCaLP diet (89 g/d), and similar among cows fed the 2 LCa diets (70 g/d with LCaHP and 75 with LCaLP). There was no significant effect of Ca or P on osteocalcin measurements. Pyridinoline concentrations were affected by dietary Ca levels and tended to have a significant dietary Ca × dietary P interaction. Phosphorus apparent digestibility occurred independently of dietary Ca levels. Results of this study suggest that more bone was mobilized in cows fed LCa diets, but excess dietary P caused greater and prolonged bone mobilization regardless of dietary Ca content.
RESEARCH IN CHEMISTRY

It will be the object of this department to present each month the very latest results of investigations in the pedagogy of chemistry, to bring to the teacher those new and progressive ideas which will enable him to keep abreast of the times. Suggestions and contributions should be sent to Dr. B. S. Hopkins, University of Illinois. Urbana, III.
Intraseasonal Eastern Pacific Precipitation and SST Variations in a GCM Coupled to a Slab Ocean Model

Abstract Coupling the NCAR Community Climate Model version 3.6 (CCM3.6) with relaxed Arakawa–Schubert convection to a slab ocean model (SOM) improves the simulation of eastern Pacific convection during a composite June–November intraseasonal oscillation (ISO) life cycle. Intraseasonal oscillations in the SOM simulation produce convective variability over the tropical northeastern Pacific that is similar to that produced by the observed Madden–Julian oscillation (MJO). A composite ISO life cycle in the SOM simulation exhibits stronger, more coherent, and more widespread eastern Pacific warm pool convective anomalies than in a control simulation using climatological SSTs. Competing convective forcings over land and ocean make eastern Pacific low-level circulation anomalies more complex in the SOM simulation than in the observed MJO. Off-equatorial eastern Pacific SST variations of more than 0.6°C are associated with the June–November SOM simulation ISO. These variations are similar to those observed with th...
Microscale measurements of oxygen concentration across the thickness of diffusion media in operating polymer electrolyte fuel cells

Abstract Although polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFCs) offer promise as efficient, low emission power sources, the large amount of platinum catalyst used for the cathode's oxygen reduction (ORR) results in high costs. One approach to using less Pt is to increase the oxygen concentration at the catalyst by reducing the oxygen transport resistances. An important resistance is that of the diffusion media (DM). The DM are highly heterogeneous porous carbon fiber substrates with a graded composition of additives across their thickness. In this work we use an oxygen microsensor with a micro-positioning system to measure the oxygen concentration and presence of liquid water in the pores at discrete points across the thickness of a commercial carbon felt DM in operating PEFCs. Under conditions with no liquid water, the DM accounts for 60% of the oxygen depletion, with 60–70% of that depletion being due to the thin microporous layer (MPL) on the catalyst layer (CL) side. Using concentration gradient data, we quantify the non-uniform local transport resistance across the DM and relate it to high resolution 3D X-ray computed tomography of the same DM.
The Ineffectiveness of E-Vites to Democracy

Political campaigns are just now learning how to put the Internet to best use. This article conducts seven field experiments containing 161,633 participants testing whether an e-mail campaign can be effective for voter registration and mobilization. No increase in registration or turnout was detected, and the conclusion drawn is that e-mail is not currently a cost-effective means of boosting rates of registration or increasing voter turnout.
The Language of Taxation: Ideology Masquerading as Science

The economic analysis of taxation contains two disparate strands of theorizing. One strand is a scientific strand that seeks to explain the rhyme and reason of the pattern of taxation that governments create. The other strand is a normative or exhortatory strand that seeks to instruct governments as to how they should extract taxes from the population. There is no good reason why a theorist can’t contribute to both strands, only not at the same time because the position of political partisan requires different theoretical formulations than does the position of political observer. Yet the two distinct roles and their associated formulations are often confounded, with the result being that the language of taxation often entails commingling between ideological claims and scientifically based claims. After characterizing these two visions of tax theory, the remainder of this essay disentangles some of the conflicts between ideology and science with respect to taxation, particularly as these apply to personal income taxation and to commodity taxation.
KCNA10: a novel ion channel functionally related to both voltage-gated potassium and CNG cation channels.

Our laboratory previously cloned a novel rabbit gene (Kcn1), expressed in kidney, heart, and aorta, and predicted to encode a protein with 58% amino acid identity with the K channelShaker Kv1.3 (Ya...
Longitudinal Assessment of Small Fiber Neuropathy: Evidence of a Non-Length-Dependent Distal Axonopathy.

Importance Few data are available on the natural history of small fiber neuropathy (SNF). Peripheral neuropathy typically follows a length-dependent pattern, leading us to hypothesize that patients with SFN would lose intraepidermal nerve fibers at the distal leg more quickly than at more proximal thigh sites. Objective To compare the longitudinal rate and pattern of intraepidermal nerve fiber density (IENFD) change in idiopathic SFN (iSFN), impaired glucose tolerance–associated SFN (IGT-SFN), and diabetes mellitus–associated SFN (DM-SFN). Design, Setting, and Participants In this longitudinal, case-control study, patients diagnosed as having SFN from January 1, 2002, through December 31, 2010, and age- and sex-matched controls underwent additional evaluation at tertiary outpatient neurology clinics. Participants and healthy controls were evaluated twice separated by at least 2 years. Participants underwent standardized examinations, nerve conduction, and skin biopsy at 3 sites along the leg. A linear mixed-effects model was used to compare rates of IENFD decrease between cause and biopsy site. Main Outcomes and Measures We compared the rate of IENFD loss over time in subjects with iSFN, IGT-SFN and DM-SFN as well as the spatiotemporal pattern of IENF loss at different rostal-caudal sites along the leg. Results Fifty-two participants (25 with iSFN, 13 with IGT-SFN, and 14 with DM-SFN) and 10 healthy controls were evaluated. Mean (SD) ages were 50.9 (12.9), 63.1 (10.4), and 61.6 (11.6) years for the iSFN, IGT-SFN, and DM-SFN groups, respectively. There were 12, 7, and 8 female patients and 13, 6, and 6 male patients in the iSFN, IGT-SFN, and DM-SFN groups, respectively. The mean follow-up time was 24.2, 26.7, and 38.8 months for those with iSFN, IGT-SFN, and DM-SFN, respectively, and 32 months for healthy controls. At baseline, mean (SE) for distal leg IENFD (6.48 [1.06]) was lower than distal thigh (13.32 [1.08]) and proximal thigh IENFD (19.98 [1.07]) ( P = .001). In addition, IENFD was significantly lower in patients with DM-SFN and IGT-SFN compared with iSFN at all biopsy sites ( P = .001). All 3 neuropathy groups had significant IENFD decrease at follow-up at all 3 sites ( P = .002), whereas there was no change in the control group. The mean yearly rates of IENFD change over time at the distal leg, distal thigh, and proximal thigh irrespective of cause are −1.42, −1.59, and −2.8 fibers per millimeter, respectively. The mean slopes of IENFD change over time by cause regardless of biopsy site are −0.179, −0.164, and −0.198 for iSFN, IGT-SFN, and DM-SFN, respectively. No difference was found between SFN groups in the rate of decrease. The rate of IENFD decrease was similar at all 3 biopsy sites. Conclusions and Relevance Similar rates of IENFD decrease irrespective of cause were observed. Epidermal nerve fibers were lost at similar rates in proximal and distal sites, suggesting that SFN is a non–length-dependent terminal axonopathy.
The Geography, Incidence, and Underreporting of Gun Violence: New Evidence Using Shotspotter Data

This paper provides new evidence on the extent of underreporting of gun violence. Criminal activity is often selectively underreported – that is, underreported in a non-random manner. This can make it difficult to understand public safety problems and devise effective policy strategies to address them. However, new surveillance technologies are facilitating the collection of more accurate data on crime. In this paper, we describe data on gunfire incidents, recorded using a tool called ShotSpotter. We compare those data with previously-available data on gun violence (reported crime and 911 calls) to estimate baseline correlations between these measures as well as the causal effect of gunfire incidents on reporting. Using data from Washington, DC, and Oakland, CA, we find that only 12% of gunfire incidents result in a 911 call to report gunshots, and only 2-7% of incidents result in a reported assault with a dangerous weapon. These extremely low reporting rates have important implications for research on gun violence. The characteristics and research potential of ShotSpotter data are relevant to surveillance data more broadly; while such data have not yet been exploited by social scientists, they could be extremely valuable for crime research and policy.
Expecting Immediate Grades: Impacts on Motivation, Effort, and Performance

1. Qin Zhao[1][1][⇑][2] 2. Jenni Redifer[1][1] 1. 1Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, USA 1. Qin Zhao, Department of Psychology, Western Kentucky University, 1906 College Heights Blvd., Bowling Green, KY 42101, USA. Email: qin.zhao{at}wku.edu Two experiments were conducted to investigate the effects of expecting immediate grades on numerical and verbal reasoning performance and the moderating role of achievement goals. Anticipated grade proximity (immediate vs. 1 week later) and goal orientation (approach vs. avoidance) were manipulated with instructions. Experiment 1 showed that expecting immediate grades yielded lower numerical performance than expecting delayed feedback, regardless of participants’ goal orientation. Neither grade proximity nor goal orientation impacted verbal performance. In Experiment 2, we used a stronger goal manipulation and included measures of motivation. Expecting immediate grades increased task anxiety, lowered task involvement, and lowered task effort among participants with avoidance goals, compared with expecting delayed grades. The effects on performance were not replicated in Experiment 2, however. The findings demonstrate that expecting immediate grades may have negative consequences under certain conditions, including demotivation and performance impairment. [1]: #aff-1 [2]: #corresp-1
Study on the Hebei Human All-round Development Evaluation

The ultimate goal of insisting on people-oriented scientific development concept is to realize the human all-round development,to find the problems through the evaluation of the human all-round development,and to make policy recommendations based on the evaluation results.The main work of this paper are as follows:firstly,according to the meaning of scientific development concept,the comprehensive human all-round development evaluation index system of Hebei is constructed through rules such as quality of human,quality of life,economic development,social development,ecological and human capital.Secondly,revised G1 by standard deviation is used to get the weights.Evaluation model is set up to appraise the development status of 2005-2010 of Hebei.The results of the study show that:the human all-round development level of Hebei increases year by year.The number of doctors permillion people,rate of compulsory education,Engel coefficient,consumption level,the per-capita urban housing,urban unemployment rate and urban unemployment have profound effect on human all-round development.
Gas Chromatographic Determination of Cadaverine, Putrescine, and Histamine in Foods

A GLC procedure for the quantitative determination of the diamines putrescine and cadaverine has been developed, using their perfluoropropionyl derivatives. The amines were extracted from foods with methanol; an interval standard, hexanediamine, was added and a dry residue of their hydrochloride salts was prepared. The salts were derivatized with perfluoropropionic anhydride by heating for 30 min at 50 degrees C. The reaction mixture was separated on an alumina column to remove excess reagent, and the derivatives were eluted with a solution of 30% ethyl acetate in toluene. GLC separations were performed on a 3% OV-225 column held at 180 degrees C. The retention times were 4.3, 5.7, and 7.0 min for the derivatives for putrescine, cadaverine, and the internal standard, respectively. Less than 1 microgram diamine/g tissue could be quantitated, using either an electron capture detector or a nitrogen-specific detector. The procedure was applied to cheese and a variety of fishery products. An increase in the diamines correlated with the presence of decomposition in some of the products. A collaborative study of the method is planned.
Prognostic factors in aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma: who has high- risk disease?

As the above-mentioned cellular and molecular parameters and newly identified biologic features are evaluated in larger numbers of patients with aggressive NHL, the biologic heterogeneity of this disease will be better appreciated. With a more complete understanding of the disease, it is likely that we will substitute biologic variables for clinical surrogate features in our prognostic factor models and target these biologic variables for therapy in specific subsets of patients. In the meantime, widely accepted clinical models such as the International Index and the age-adjusted index will aid in the identification of specific patient risk groups and the ongoing comparison of different therapeutic approaches. Early restaging with sensitive techniques like Ga-67 citrate scans may also identify patients with suboptimal responses to induction therapy at timepoints when additional therapeutic alternatives may be most effective.
The lysis of intravascular thrombi in rabbits with human plasmin (fibrinolysin).

1. Thrombi were produced in the marginal vein of the ear of rabbits with the use of either thrombin or sodium morrhuate. Sodium morrhuate was found to be most dependable. 2. Plasmin given intravenously with an average dose of 10 to 15 ml. per Kg. was effective in producing a complete intravascular lysis in all instances where the thrombus was less than 24 hours old, and a partial or total lysis in the great majority of animals with thrombi over 24 hours old. This lysis took place within 1 to 2 hours after the injection of plasmin. 3. The intravenous use of plasmin is shown in rabbits to be nonlethal and nontoxic.
Genetic algorithm for adaptable radar bandwidth

The spectrum sensing, multi-optimization (SS-MO) technique was recently investigated to enhance radar performance when the radar operates in the presence of radio frequency interference (RFI). The SS-MO technique passively monitors the operating band of the radar using spectrum sensing to identify a frequency sub-band with minimal RFI, thus allowing the radar to maintain a high signal to inference plus noise ratio (SINR). Prior results have indicated significant improvement of SINR and PSLR (peak to average sidelobe level ratio) at the cost of a high computational complexity. In this paper, the non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm II (NSGA-II) is used to lower the computational complexity while maintaining performance.
Using an inpatient portal to engage families in pediatric hospital care.

Objective Assess parent use and perceptions of an inpatient portal application on a tablet computer that provides information about a child’s hospital stay. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted with parents of children hospitalized on a medical/surgical unit at a tertiary children’s hospital. From December 2014 to June 2015, parents were provisioned a tablet portal application to use throughout the hospitalization. The portal includes real-time hospital vitals, medications, schedules, lab results, education, health care team pictures/roles, and request and messaging functionalities. Portal use information was gathered from tablet metadata. Parents completed discharge surveys on portal satisfaction, use, and impact on their information needs, engagement, communication, error detection, and care safety and quality. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and qualitative content analysis. Results Over 6 months, 296 parents used the portal, sending 176 requests and 36 messages. No tablets were lost or damaged. The most used and liked features included vitals, medication list, health care team information, and schedules. Overall, parent survey respondents (90) were satisfied with the portal (90%), reporting that it was easy to use (98%), improved care (94%), and gave them access to information that helped them monitor, understand, make decisions, and care for their child. Many parents reported that portal use improved health care team communication (60%). Most perceived that portal use reduced errors in care (89%), with 8% finding errors in their child’s medication list. Conclusions Overall, parents were satisfied with the inpatient portal. Portals may engage parents in hospital care, facilitate parent recognition of medication errors, and improve perceptions of safety and quality.
Applying Supervised and Unsupervised Learning Techniques on Dental Patients’ Records

The research presents a process for applying data mining techniques on dental medical records comprised of oral conditions and different dental procedures that are performed on various patients. The dental expert decides to pursue a set of procedures based on the examination and diagnostics. Digital dentistry is becoming more and more active now, hence this research addresses the issues in exploiting the digital data at its potential like heterogeneous data gathering, access restrictions or inadequate patient data and lack of expert systems to utilize the data. It proposes a way to deal with the dental medical records and apply data mining. Having gathered the dental data and prepared it through pre-processing techniques, unsupervised learning techniques were applied to perform clustering in order to discover interesting patterns and assigning these a label class. Mostly the patients lie in the mild and moderate dental patient’s class. The most common problem that is being noticed in patients is tooth cavity with a treatment named “resin-based composite—one surface, posterior”. Using this labelled data set, supervised learning algorithms were applied to train and test the data for predicting the targeted class accurately. A comparison between classification algorithms based on their accuracy was made to filter out the best outcome. An expert system has also been developed to support the idea, ease up the decision making process and automate the manual practices that are being used. It provides quick recommendations to the medical expert in examining the patient depending upon the diagnosis. Research reveals that decision tree runs better than others on our data set with highest accuracy in predicting the Patients’ targeted classes.
3.4 Composites in Missiles and Launch Vehicles

The usage of composite material in various applications is increasing enormously, especially in the field of missiles and launch vehicles. Nowadays, a large number of missiles and launch vehicles use composite material for rocket motor cases, nozzles, and control surfaces to reduce its weight and better performance. However, the effective utilization of the advanced composite material in missile and launch vehicles is still a concern. Hence, an attempt was made in the effective utilization of the composite materials for the above mentioned applications. In general, composite materials have specific advantages such as inexpensive, lightweight, easy manufacturability, and high specific strength over conventional materials. One of our preliminary studies revealed that the new generation Al–Li alloys have higher strength, fracture, and fatigue/corrosion resistance compared to the traditional aluminum alloys. It is concluded that more research should be carried out in the effective deployment of the composite materials in missile applications.
Identifying genetic markers of wheat (Triticum aestivum) associated with flavor preference using a laboratory mouse model

Abstract Whole wheat products provide critical nutrients for human health, but flavor of whole wheat products may hinder consumer acceptance. However, flavor differences among wheat varieties are not well understood. Using a mouse model system, flavor of whole wheat grain was examined using a two-choice feeding system. A bi-parental recombinant inbred line (RIL) population derived from Clark's Cream x NY6432-18 was used for mapping flavor preference. Clark's Cream is a hard white, and NY6432-18 is a soft white wheat. “Yummy” (cv. Diva soft white) and “yucky” (cv. Macon hard white) varieties were used as ‘checks’ for evaluating each RIL. Marker-trait association was performed using the Student's t as a preference phenotype from each check-RIL comparison. Twenty-two significant marker associations were found. Because mice prefer softer kernel texture, the effect of the Puroindoline b haplotype and phenotypic kernel texture were used as covariates in analyses. Twenty-eight markers exhibited significant associations in the two covariate analyses, with an additional five having significant associations in both covariate analyses. The results indicate that there is an identifiable genetic basis for flavor preference independent of kernel texture. Identifying flavor genes in wheat grain may help facilitate the development of varieties with greater palatability for whole-wheat products.
Design of a self-evolving decision support system

Abstract:The paper presents a self-evolving approach to decision support systems (dss) design. The basic premise of this approach is that a dss should be aware of how it is being used and, then, automatically adapt to the evolution of its users. With self-evolving capabilities, a dss will be able to provide a flexible menu hierarchy and a dynamic user interface.The major difference between the self-evolving design and a dss developed by current approaches such as system development life cycle and user-involved evolutionary design is that the former has an extra component—the evolutionary mechanism—to control the evolution of the system. In order to develop self-evolving capabilities, the following three components must be developed: (1) a database of user profiles to keep track of related system usage data, (2) a knowledge base to store rules for determining appropriate system default policy, and (3) a control mechanism to control the evolution of the system.
A Prospective Evaluation of Opioid Utilization After Upper-Extremity Surgical Procedures: Identifying Consumption Patterns and Determining Prescribing Guidelines.

Background: Although adequate management of postoperative pain with oral analgesics is an important aspect of surgical procedures, inadvertent overprescribing can lead to excess availability of opioids in the community for potential diversion. The purpose of our study was to prospectively evaluate opioid consumption following outpatient upper-extremity surgical procedures to determine opioid utilization patterns and to develop prescribing guidelines. Methods: All patients undergoing outpatient upper-extremity surgical procedures over a consecutive 6-month period had the following prospective data collected: patient demographic characteristics, surgical details, anesthesia type, and opioid prescription and consumption patterns. Analysis of variance and post hoc comparisons were performed using t tests, with the p value for multiple pairwise tests adjusted by the Bonferroni correction. Results: A total of 1,416 patients with a mean age of 56 years (range, 18 to 93 years) were included in the study. Surgeons prescribed a mean total of 24 pills, and patients reported consuming a mean total of 8.1 pills, resulting in a utilization rate of 34%. Patients undergoing soft-tissue procedures reported requiring fewer opioids (5.1 pills for 2.2 days) compared with fracture surgical procedures (13.0 pills for 4.5 days) or joint procedures (14.5 pills for 5.0 days) (p < 0.001). Patients who underwent wrist surgical procedures required a mean number of 7.5 pills for 3.1 days and those who underwent hand surgical procedures required a mean number of 7.7 pills for 2.9 days, compared with patients who underwent forearm or elbow surgical procedures (11.1 pills) and those who underwent upper arm or shoulder surgical procedures (22.0 pills) (p < 0.01). Procedure type, anatomic location, anesthesia type, age, and type of insurance were also all significantly associated with reported opioid consumption (p < 0.001). Conclusions: In this large, prospective evaluation of postoperative opioid consumption, we found that patients are being prescribed approximately 3 times greater opioid medications than needed following upper-extremity surgical procedures. We have provided general prescribing guidelines, and we recommend that surgeons carefully examine their patients’ opioid utilization and consider customizing their opioid prescriptions on the basis of anatomic location and procedure type to prescribe the optimal amount of opioids while avoiding dissemination of excess opioids.
TCT-134 Mechanical Chest Compressions as a Bridge to Percutaneous Extracorporeal Life Support Increase Return of Spontaneous Circulation in Patients with Cardiac Arrest

Recent studies have reported that patients with cardiac arrest refractory to advanced cardiac life support (ACLS) may benefit from initiation of percutaneous extracorporeal life support (ECLS) during resuscitation. In order to preserve critical organ function, chest compressions must be performed
Risk perception and practice towards road traffic safety among medical students

Background: Road traffic injuries are a major but neglected epidemic. WHO has declared road traffic accidents (RTA) as the number one cause of death among those aged 15-29 years. India has witnessed 31.3% of the road traffic deaths among 15 to 29 years individuals in the year 2011 as reported by national crime records bureau. This study is aimed to learn and study risk perception and practice of road safety measures among medical students . Methods: A Cross-sectional study was conducted among medical students with an objective A 297 M.B.B.S. students were selected by convenient sampling technique. The study period was May-August, 2016. The information collected was analysed using SPSS version 16 & Microsoft excels 2007 software. Results: Majority of boys (82% and 98%) and girls (55% & 66%) had a satisfactory understanding of traffic rules and traffic signs & signals, respectively. While exploring on the helmet use, only 36% of girls were aware of its importance. About the factors responsible for the crash severity, participants showed a lesser concern to the seat-belts & child restraints (59% boys and 39% girls). Notably only 52% of male participants were in view that alcohol consumption sometimes increases the severity while driving . Conclusions: Abidance to road safety was not found satisfactory. Adequate interventions and reorientation training towards road safety need to be introduced among young drivers.
Muscle Protein Signaling in C2C12 Cells Is Stimulated to Similar Degrees by Diverse Commercial Food Protein Sources and Experimental Soy Protein Hydrolysates

Dietary protein stimulates muscle protein synthesis and is essential for muscle health. We developed a screening assay using C2C12 mouse muscle cells to assess the relative abilities of diverse commercial protein sources and experimental soy protein hydrolysates (ESH), after simulated gut digestion (SGD), to activate the mechanistic target of rapamycin complex I (mTORC1) muscle protein synthesis signaling pathway (p70S6K(Thr389) phosphorylation). Activation of mTORC1 was expressed as a percentage of a maximal insulin response. The bioactivities of proteins grouped by source including fish (81.3 ± 10.6%), soy (66.2 ± 4.7%), dairy (61.8 ± 4.3%), beef (53.7 ± 8.6%), egg (52.3 ± 10.6%), soy whey (43.4 ± 8.6%), and pea (31.4 ± 10.6%) were not significantly different from each other. Bioactivity for ESH ranged from 28.0 ± 7.5 to 98.2 ± 6.6%. The results indicate that both the protein source and processing conditions are key determinants for mTORC1 activation. Regression analyses demonstrated that neither leucin...
Comparative Safety of Sulfonylurea and Metformin Monotherapy on the Risk of Heart Failure: A Cohort Study

BackgroundMedications that impact insulin sensitivity or cause weight gain may increase heart failure risk. Our aim was to compare heart failure and cardiovascular death outcomes among patients ini...
Abstract 285: Cardiac Inflammation and Fibrosis Induced by Heart Failure Are Reversed by Short-Duration Estrogen Therapy

Heart failure is generally characterized by increased fibrosis and inflammation, which leads to functional and contractile defects. We have previously shown that short-term estrogen (E2) treatment can rescue pressure overload-induced decompensated heart failure (HF) in mice. Here, we investigate the anti-inflammatory and anti-fibrotic effects of E2 on reversing the adverse remodeling of the left ventricle which occurs during the progression to heart failure. Trans-aortic constriction procedure was used to induce HF. Once the ejection fraction reached ∼30%, one group of mice was sacrificed and the other group was treated with E2 (30 αg/kg/day) for 10 days. In vitro, co-cultured neonatal rat ventricular myocytes and fibroblasts were treated with Angiotensin II (AngII) to simulate cardiac stress, both in the presence or absence of E2. In vivo RT-PCR showed that the transcript levels of the pro-fibrotic markers Collagen I, TGFβ, Fibrosin 1 (FBRS) and Lysil Oxidase (LOX) were significantly upregulated in HF (from 1.00±0.16 to 1.83±0.11 for Collagen 1, 1±0.86 to 4.33±0.59 for TGFβ, 1±0.52 to 3.61±0.22 for FBRS and 1.00±0.33 to 2.88±0.32 for LOX) and were reduced with E2 treatment to levels similar to CTRL. E2 also restored in vitro AngII-induced upregulation of LOX, TGFβ and Collagen 1 (LOX:1±0.23 in CTRL, 6.87±0.26 in AngII and 2.80±1.5 in AngII+E2; TGFβ: 1±0.08 in CTRL, 3.30±0.25 in AngII and 1.59±0.21 in AngII+E2; Collagen 1: 1±0.05 in CTRL.2±0.01 in AngII and 0.65±0.02 (p<0.05, values normalized to CTRL)). Furthermore, the pro-inflammatory interleukins IL-1β and IL-6 were upregulated from 1±0.19 to 1.90±0.09 and 1±0.30 to 5.29±0.77 in the in vivo model of HF, respectively, and reversed to CTRL levels with E2 therapy. In vitro, IL-1β was also significantly increased ∼ 4 fold from 1±0.63 in CTRL to 3.86±0.14 with AngII treatment and restored to 1.29±0.77 with Ang+E2 treatment. Lastly, the anti-inflammatory interleukin IL-10 was downregulated from 1.00±0.17 to 0.49±0.03 in HF and reversed to 0.67±0.09 in vivo with E2 therapy (all values normalized to CTRL). This data strongly suggests that one of the mechanisms for the beneficial action of estrogen on left ventricular heart failure is through reversal of inflammation and fibrosis.
Sublocalization of Cytochrome b6f Complexes in Photosynthetic Membranes.

It is well established that the majority of energy-converting photosynthetic protein complexes in plant thylakoid membrane are nonhomogenously distributed between stacked and unstacked membrane regions. Yet, the sublocalization of the central cytochrome b 6 f complex remains controversial. We present a structural model that explains the variation in cytochrome b 6 f sublocalization data. Small changes in the distance between adjacent membranes in stacked grana regions either allow or restrict access of cytochrome b 6 f complexes to grana. If the width of the gap falls below a certain threshold, then the steric hindrance prevents cytochrome b 6 f access to grana. Evidence is presented that the width of stromal gap is variable, demonstrating that the postulated mechanism can regulate the lateral distribution of the cytochrome b 6 f complexes.
On Identification of a Class of Nonlinear Systems

Abstract The paper deals with identification of the nonlinear systems which are composed of a nonlinearity followed by a linear dynamics. Corresponding to the cases of the nonlinearity's structure being known and unknown, respectively, different algorithms are proposed to cope with the identification problem. Theoretical analysis results are given for consistence or convergence of the proposed algorithms. The effectiveness of the algorithms is verified by simulation studies.
To what lengths the ‘Physical and Moral Defence of the Record’ in times of conflict and exigency? *

Hilary Jenkinson, Ernst Posner and other archivists in Europe and the US played key and often parallel roles on different sides in the identification and strategic securing of records in Europe during the Second World War. This paper is concerned with the various ways in which archivists, in times of conflict and other exigencies, view and act upon their responsibility to the ‘physical and moral defence of the record.’ Drawing from the author’s ethnographic research, it first briefly reflects on the personal positioning and professional agency of archivists during the Yugoslav Wars and amid today’s continuing ethnic and nationalist politics. It then uses archival sources to examine how these Second World War archivists positioned themselves with regard to their physical and moral obligations to the records, the call of their nations, and their personal circumstances and politics. Finally, it contemplates how these historical examples might help the field to prepare archivists for the realities of ...
Antibiotic stewardship: Why we must, how we can

Improving our antibiotic use is critical to the safety of our patients and the future of medicine. This can improve patient outcomes, save money, reduce resistance, and help prevent negative consequences such as Clostridium difficile infection. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is undertaking a nationwide effort to appropriately improve antibiotic use in inpatient and outpatient settings.
The Atiyah Conjecture and $$L^2$$ L 2 -cohomology computations

If G is a discrete group with bounded torsion, the Strong Atiyah Conjecture predicts that the $$L^2$$ -Betti numbers of any G-space are rational, with denominators determined by the orders of the torsion subgroups. We prove the conjecture for some new examples of groups, including the class of virtually sparse special groups. We then show that the conjecture can be used to compute the $$L^2$$ -cohomology of certain Coxeter groups that have highly symmetric nerves.
Normalization of carotid plaque based strain indices using blood pressure measurements

Ultrasound based Lagrangian carotid strain imaging (LCSI) utilizes physiological deformation caused by arterial pressure variations to generate strain tensor images. We have previously demonstrated the ability of maximum accumulated strain indices (MASI) and peak-to-trough indices derived from these corresponding strain tensor images to quantify carotid plaque vulnerability thereby enhancing their utility as vascular biomarkers. However, a critique of LCSI has been the lack of normalization of MASI and peak-to-trough strain indices to the physiological stimuli, namely the blood pressure. We report in this paper on the impact of normalization of these strain indices to blood pressure measurements. The blood pressure measurements are acquired immediately after the acquisition of radiofrequency data loops for strain imaging and carotid ultrasound images. All imaging was performed on human patients scheduled for a carotid endarterectomy (CEA) procedure (n=44 patients). Patients were further identified as symptomatic or asymptomatic based on clinical symptoms. Cognition was also assessed on these patients using the 60-minute neuropsychological test protocol following guidelines of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Canadian Stroke Network. Blood pressure measurements were utilized to normalize strain indices estimated from the axial, lateral and shear strain images over two cardiac cycles using systolic, diastolic and maximum arterial pressure (MAP) respectively. No significant differences in the area under the curve (AUC) estimates were obtained between MASI and peak-to-trough strain indices that were normalized to the systolic, diastolic, pulse pressure and maximum arterial pressure when compared to the unnormalized results reported previously. Although small improvements in the correlation of the strain indices with cognition parameters and AUC values were obtained with normalization, unnormalized strain indices on their own provided a significant correlation with the reduction in executive function reported with cognitive testing. For axial strain, the correlation of peak values with cognition were −0.49, −0.47, −0.5 and −0.49 for unnormalized, systolic, diastolic and MAP normalization respectively. The corresponding AUC values for classifiers designed using the maximum likelihood estimation model were 0.75, 0.73, 0.75, and 0.73 respectively.
K-Absorption Edge Structures in Gases, Crystals and Polymers

Absorption structure around the K-shell and L-shell ionization threshold for low-Z elements has evoked considerable interest in recent years becuase of the observation that remarkably strong features occur both below and above the photoionization threshold energy. We present here a brief summary of the results obtained for the absorption fine-structure around the oxygen K-edge in gases, crystals and polymers.
ACOG Junior Fellow Activity

The junior fellows in the Iowa section have had an exceptionally successful year. Section Chair Dr. Rachel Mejia and Vice Chair Dr. Amandeep Mahal attended the Annual District Meeting for District VI. The junior fellows worked with other representatives within the district to develop and promote medical student recruitment, networking, transition to practice, and fundraising
Exposures and Health Risks from Volatile Organic Compounds in Communities Located near Oil and Gas Exploration and Production Activities in Colorado (U.S.A.)

The study objective was to use a preliminary risk based framework to evaluate the sufficiency of existing air data to answer an important public health question in Colorado: Do volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted into the air from oil and gas (OG) operations result in exposures to Coloradoans living at or greater than current state setback distances (500 feet) from OG operations at levels that may be harmful to their health? We identified 56 VOCs emitted from OG operations in Colorado and compiled 47 existing air monitoring datasets that measured these VOCs in 34 locations across OG regions. From these data, we estimated acute and chronic exposures and compared these exposures to health guideline levels using maximum and mean air concentrations. Acute and chronic non-cancer hazard quotients were below one for all individual VOCs. Hazard indices combining exposures for all VOCs were slightly above one. Lifetime excess cancer risk estimates for benzene were between 1.0 × 10-5⁻3.6 × 10-5 and ethylbenzene was 7.3 × 10-6. This evaluation identified a small sub-set of VOCs, including benzene and n-nonane, which should be prioritized for additional exposure characterization in site-specific studies that collect comprehensive time-series measurements of community scale exposures to better assess community exposures.
Non-work accessibility and related outcomes

Abstract Accessibility metrics, which describe the ease of reaching destinations, are widely recognized as valuable indicators of transportation system performance. After decades of academic research on the subject, accessibility metrics are gaining use in practice. The most notable applications, however, focus solely on access to jobs. While commute travel is closely related to peak period travel demand, it makes up only a small share of overall travel. This study presents a measure of local access to a wide range of non-work destinations, calibrated using data from Virginia. It focuses specifically on walking access as a proxy for multimodal accessibility and supportive land uses. The metric is intuitive, it can be calculated using available software and data, and it relates to important outcomes such as travel behavior and economic productivity. This work presents an opportunity for practitioners to incorporate accessibility metrics in various decision making applications and improve upon them as their knowledge and use of these metrics grow.
A Neural Net Framework for Accumulative Feature-based Matrix Completion

In this paper, we propose a novel multimodal framework for matrix completion where the missing values are accumulatively estimated with feature-based neural networks. Speciftcally, for each individual feature, a different model is trained to predict the missing values in the observations using the remaining features as input to provide an initial estimate. These estimates are then used to initiate the next round of model training to iteratively converge to the ftnal prediction of the missing value. The weight parameters of the networks are propagated through these accumulative iterations which leads to a computationally efftcient algorithm where training times become progressively shorter with each round. Unlike traditional algorithms relying on matrix factorization, separating the model building and exploiting steps also enables more effective deployment in online applications. Results show that the proposed algorithm outperforms prior work in 80% of the test scenarios when compared to four universally accepted methods on a combination of different datasets and missing data ratios.
Pathologic Assessment After Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy for NSCLC: Importance and Implications of Distinguishing Adenocarcinoma From Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Abstract Introduction Major pathologic response after neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) for NSCLC has been defined as 10% or less residual viable tumor without distinguishing between histologic types. We sought to investigate whether the optimal cutoff percentage of residual viable tumor for predicting survival differs between lung adenocarcinoma (ADC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). Methods Tumor slides from 272 patients treated with NAC and surgery for clinical stage II-III NSCLC (ADC, n = 192; SCC, n = 80) were reviewed. The optimal cutoff percentage of viable tumor for predicting lung cancer–specific cumulative incidence of death (LC-CID) was determined using maximally selected rank statistics. LC-CID was analyzed using a competing-risks approach. Overall survival was evaluated using Kaplan-Meier methods and Cox proportional hazard analysis. Results Patients with SCC had a better response to NAC (median percentage of viable tumor: SCC versus ADC, 40% versus 60%; p = 0.027). Major pathologic response (≤10% viable tumor) was observed in 26% of SCC cases versus 12% of ADC cases (p = 0.004). The optimal cutoff percentage of viable tumor for LC-CID was 10% for SCC and 65% for ADC. On multivariable analysis, viable tumor 10% or less was an independent factor for better LC-CID (p = 0.035) in patients with SCC; in patients with ADC, viable tumor 65% or less was a factor for better LC-CID (p = 0.033) and overall survival (p = 0.050). Conclusions In response to NAC, the optimal cutoff percentage of viable tumor for predicting survival differs between ADC and SCC. Our findings have implications for the pathologic assessment of resected specimens, especially in upcoming clinical trials design.
Factors associated with suspected nonmelanoma skin cancers, dysplastic nevus, and cutaneous melanoma among first-time SPOTme screening program participants (2009-2010).

Abstract Background There have been no studies of the American Academy of Dermatology's SPOTme skin cancer screening program that have collectively analyzed the factors associated with suspected diagnoses of basal cell carcinoma (BCC), squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), dysplastic nevus (DN), and cutaneous melanoma (CM). Objective Describe the demographics, risk factors, and access to care profile associated with suspected diagnoses of BCC, SCC, DN, and CM among first-time SPOTme screenees from 2009 to 2010. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of data from SPOTme skin cancer screenings conducted in 2009 and 2010. We performed multivariable logistic regression analysis for each diagnosis, incorporating traditional demographic, access to care, and risk factor variables in the models. Results Men, those without a regular dermatologist, persons reporting recently changing moles, and those with a personal history of melanoma were at increased risk for each of the suspected diagnoses analyzed. The uninsured were at increased risk for the suspected malignancies (BCC, SCC, and CM). Limitations Lack of histological confirmation for diagnoses; cross-sectional design. Conclusion Among first-time SPOTme participants, suspected diagnoses of BCC, SCC, DN, and CM shared several associated factors which may be considered when planning outreach and screening for populations at risk for skin cancer.
INFLAMMATORY BIOMARKERS AND CARDIOVASCULAR OUTCOMES IN PATIENTS WITH STEMI: A NESTED OBSERVATIONAL STUDY FROM LATITUDE-TIMI 60

Inflammation has been implicated in atherogenesis, plaque destabilization, and adverse remodeling after MI. Inflammatory proteins, including IL-6, are of interest as potential targets for therapeutic interventions in this population. We performed a nested prospective biomarker study, analyzing