cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A multi-size study of gold nanoparticle degradation and reformation in ceramic glazes

Most traditional ceramic glazes employ high amounts of transition metal colorants that are toxic to the environment and can cause health issues in humans through surface leaching. Gold nanoparticles (Au-NPs) have been found to be environmentally friendly and non-toxic alternative metal colorant in ceramic glazes. The plasmon band observed with Au-NPs can result in vibrant solutions by manipulating NP size, shape, and concentration; however, the effects of traditional firing in both reductive and oxidative kilns on Au-NPs are poorly understood. Aside from ancient art processes whose mechanisms have not been fully explored, the use of Au-NPs as suspended ceramic glaze colorants remains somewhat unexplored. Au-NPs have been previously reported to diminish in size during sintering and possess significant differences in concentration with respect to reduction and oxidation firing atmospheres. As a means of studying possible degradation/renucleation processes within the glaze during firing, a systematic study introducing different diameter Au-NPs into the glaze materials was conducted with transmission electron microscopy and reflectance spectroscopy used to probe possible mechanisms which showed changes to Au-NP diameter and color intensity, making this work applicable to industry and art current practices.
Prepregnancy Extreme Obesity Is Associated with Increased Steroid Dispensing in Early Childhood

Prepregnancy overweight and obesity have been linked to early childhood wheezing and asthma, but the presence and strength of such associations are mixed and the underlying biological mechanisms re...
Percutaneous Cementoplasty in Cancer Patients

Percutaneous cementoplasty (PC) consists of injecting acrylic cement (polymethylmethacrylate) in bone and is a perfect example of a minimally invasive technique in the musculoskeletal system. PC has been performed since 1984. Its role is to consolidate weight-bearing bone and to treat pain. Bone packing with acrylic cement is a procedure aimed at preventing pathological fractures and pain in patients with vertebral body lesions and acetabular metastasis.
Spinal Cord Ependymoma Presenting with Neurological Deficits in the Setting of Trauma

Ependymomas represent 4% of all primary central nervous system neoplasms in adults, with 30% occurring in the spinal cord. We describe a young man with neurological deficits following a motor vehicle accident who was found to have an intramedullary cervicothoracic ependymoma.
Knowledge for Everyman - (Extended Abstract).

Increasing globalization creates situations with wide-ranging effects on large communities, often requiring global responses and innovative solutions. Timely examples are climate and environmental changes related to rapid growth and economic development. Natural and man-made unforeseen catastrophes like oil spills, landslides and floods require immediate action that might crucially rely on information and expertise available only from sources far removed from the crisis site. Knowledge sharing and transfer are also essential for sustainable long-term growth and development. In both kinds of cases, it is important that information and experience be made available and widely shared, communicated and encoded for future re-use. The global scope of many problems and their solutions requires furthermore that information and communication be accessible to communities crossing languages and cultures. Finally, an appropriate system for recording, maintaining and sharing information must be accessible to both experts and laymen. The goal of the European Union-funded KYOTO project (Knowledge-Yielding Ontologies for Transition-Based Organization, http://www.kyoto-project. eu) is to develop an information and knowledge sharing system that relates documents in several languages to lexical resources and a common central ontol- ogy and allows for deep semantic analysis. KYOTO facilitates the crosslinguistic and crosscultural construction and maintenance of a sophisticated knowledge sys- tem among the members of domain-specific communities. Representation, stor- age and retrieval of a shared terminology takes place via a Wiki platform. Relevant terms are anchored in a language-independent, customizable formal ontology that connects the lexicons of seven languages (Basque, Chinese, Dutch, English, Ital- ian, Japanese, and Spanish) and that guarantees a uniform interpretation of terms across languages. The semantic representations in the ontology are accessible to a computer and allow deep textual analysis and reasoning operations. KYOTO's target domains are the environment and biodiversity, with appro- priate experts acting as "users". Once developed, the system will be available for extension to any domain.
MASTL induces Colon Cancer progression and Chemoresistance by promoting Wnt/β-catenin signaling

Chemotherapeutic agents that modulate cell cycle checkpoints and/or tumor-specific pathways have shown immense promise in preclinical and clinical studies aimed at anti-cancer therapy. MASTL (Greatwall in Xenopus and Drosophila), a serine/threonine kinase controls the final G2/M checkpoint and prevents premature entry of cells into mitosis. Recent studies suggest that MASTL expression is highly upregulated in cancer and confers resistance against chemotherapy. However, the role and mechanism/s of MASTL mediated regulation of tumorigenesis remains poorly understood. We utilized a large patient cohort and mouse models of colon cancer as well as colon cancer cells to determine the role of Mastl and associated mechanism in colon cancer. Here, we show that MASTL expression increases in colon cancer across all cancer stages compared with normal colon tissue (P < 0.001). Also, increased levels of MASTL associated with high-risk of the disease and poor prognosis. Further, the shRNA silencing of MASTL expression in colon cancer cells induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in vitro and inhibited xenograft-tumor growth in vivo. Mechanistic analysis revealed that MASTL expression facilitates colon cancer progression by promoting the β-catenin/Wnt signaling, the key signaling pathway implicated in colon carcinogenesis, and up-regulating anti-apoptotic proteins, Bcl-xL and Survivin. Further studies where colorectal cancer (CRC) cells were subjected to 5-fluorouracil (5FU) treatment revealed a sharp increase in MASTL expression upon chemotherapy, along with increases in Bcl-xL and Survivin expression. Most notably, inhibition of MASTL in these cells induced chemosensitivity to 5FU with downregulation of Survivin and Bcl-xL expression. Overall, our data shed light on the heretofore-undescribed mechanistic role of MASTL in key oncogenic signaling pathway/s to regulate colon cancer progression and chemo-resistance that would tremendously help to overcome drug resistance in colon cancer treatment.
Abstract 3484: In vivo metabolomics reveals a potentially potent combination therapy for MYC-driven medulloblastoma

The MYC oncogene is associated with aggressive forms of the pediatric brain tumor medulloblastoma. MYC promotes oncogenesis in part by altering cellular glucose and glutamine metabolism. We hypothesized that MYC-driven medulloblastoma would be sensitive to the glutamine metabolic inhibitor 6-diazo-5-oxo-l-norleucine (DON). In MYC-driven medulloblastoma cell lines, 10uM DON treatment increases apoptosis by up to 280% (p 0.4), suggesting that DON was inhibiting asparaginase synthetase, the enzyme that transfers the ammonia group from glutamine to aspartate to generate asparagine. We hypothesized that DON efficacy could be enhanced by asparaginase (ASNase), an enzyme that breaks down asparagine into aspartate and ammonia. ASNase is a commonly used therapy in pediatric patients with leukemia and lymphoma. In MYC-driven medulloblastoma cell lines, treatment with low-dose DON or ASNase as single agents did not significantly increase apoptosis by cleaved caspase-3 immunofluoresence or cleaved-PARP western blot. The combination of low-dose DON and ASNase increased apoptosis by up to 577% (p Citation Format: Allison R. Hanaford, Brad Poore, Jesse Alt, Barbara Slusher, Charles G. Eberhart, Eric H. Raabe. In vivo metabolomics reveals a potentially potent combination therapy for MYC-driven medulloblastoma [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2018; 2018 Apr 14-18; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2018;78(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 3484.
Women in Entrepreneurship Educaiton in US Higher Education

Women’s participation in informal economy is correlated with gendered marginalization and lowered socio economic condition of them in a society(Chant & Pedwell, 2008). Although many entrepreneurshi...
Variables Influencing RNAV STAR Adherence

In this study we investigated how variables in the aviation domain impact adherence levels of aircraft flying area navigation arrivals with optimized profile descents (RNAV OPDs) (RNAV STARs: aRea NAVigation Standard Terminal Arrival Routes). Variable categories were: weather, aircraft, procedure, and traffic. Non-adherence events analyzed were: miss above, miss below, skip before merge, and skip after merge. Miss below and miss above describe when a flight does not comply vertically with a procedure. Skips refer to a flight leaving a procedure, then returning. Findings of this work reveal that vertical events are most impacted by altitude restriction size, steepness of flight paths, and merging routes. Lateral events were impacted by merging flight conflicts, number of speed restrictions, and the flow rate of the arrival traffic. This study helps increase understanding of how the system is functioning and identifies where procedures are not flexible enough to handle the variability in normal operations.major airports, procedure design, and recommendations for future work.
Theoretical analysis of spectral precision in spectroscopic single-molecule localization microscopy

Spectroscopic single-molecule localization microscopy (sSMLM) is a novel super-resolution imaging technology, which simultaneously records the nanoscopic location and the corresponding full emission spectrum of every stochastic single-molecule emission event. This spectroscopic imaging capability of sSMLM necessitates the establishment of a theoretical foundation of the newly introduced spectral precision and to guide the system design and optimization. Based on numerical simulation and analytical solution, we introduced such a theoretical model to analyze spectral precision by considering the main system parameters, including signal and background shot noises, readout noise, and the spectral calibration procedure. Using this model, we demonstrated the delicate balance among these parameters in achieving the optimal spectral precision and discovered that the best spectral precision can only be achieved at a particular system spectral dispersion. For example, with a given signal of 3000 photons and a readout noise of 2 e-, a system spectral dispersion of 1.6 nm/pixel is required for sSMLM to achieve the highest spectral precision of 1.31 nm.
A narrative review of data collection and analysis guidelines for comparative effectiveness research in chronic pain using patient-reported outcomes and electronic health records

Chronic pain is a widespread and complex set of conditions that are often difficult and expensive to treat. Comparative effectiveness research (CER) is an evolving research method that is useful in determining which treatments are most effective for medical conditions such as chronic pain. An underutilized mechanism for conducting CER in pain medicine involves combining patient-reported outcomes (PROs) with electronic health records (EHRs). Patient-reported pain and mental and physical health outcomes are increasingly collected during clinic visits, and these data can be linked to EHR data that are relevant to the treatment of a patient's pain, such as diagnoses, medications ordered, and medical comorbidities. When aggregated, this information forms a data repository that can be used for high-quality CER. This review provides a blueprint for conducting CER using PROs combined with EHRs. As an example, the University of Pittsburgh's patient outcomes repository for treatment is described. This system includes PROs collected via the Collaborative Health Outcomes Information Registry software and cross-linked data from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center EHR. The requirements, best practice guidelines, statistical considerations, and caveats for performing CER with this type of data repository are also discussed.
ANALYSIS OF TREATMENT STRATEGIES AND SHORT-TERM OUTCOMES FOR CORONARY ARTERY DISEASE IN END-STAGE RENAL DISEASE (ESRD) COMPARED TO NON-ESRD PATIENTS FOLLOWING CARDIAC CATHETERIZATION

We sought to assess the influence of ESRD status on revascularization strategies, readmission and in-hospital mortality rates in patients who underwent a recent cardiac catheterization. We performed a retrospective analysis of all consecutive patients who underwent cardiac catheterization between
The emergence of the ΔU = 0 rule in charm physics

We discuss the implications of the recent discovery of CP violation in two-body SCS D decays by LHCb. We show that the result can be explained within the SM without the need for any large SU(3) breaking effects. It further enables the determination of the imaginary part of the ratio of the ΔU = 0 over ΔU = 1 matrix elements in charm decays, which we find to be (0.65 ± 0.12). Within the standard model, the result proves the non-perturbative nature of the penguin contraction of tree operators in charm decays, similar to the known non-perturbative enhancement of ΔI = 1/2 over ΔI = 3/2 matrix elements in kaon decays, that is, the ΔI = 1/2 rule. As a guideline for future measurements, we show how to completely solve the most general parametrization of the D → P+P− system.
GENETIC ANALYSIS OF ASPARTATE AMINOTRANSFERASE ISOZYMES FROM HYBRIDS BETWEEN DROSOPHILA MELANOGASTER AND DROSOPHILA SIMULANS AND MUTAGEN-INDUCED ISOZYME VARIANTS

ABSTRACT The aspartate aminotransferases (designated GOT1 and GOT2) are two enzymes of Drosophila melanogaster for which naturally occurring electrophoretic variants were not found. There is an electrophoretic difference between D. melanogaster and D. simulans. Since the F1 hybrid offspring of these species are sterile, a genetic analysis of the ordinary type cannot be done on differences between the two species. A method was devised to make "partial hybrids" in which one chromosome arm is homozygous for melanogaster genes in an otherwise hybrid background. By using this method, Got1 was localized to 2R and Got2 to 2L. Once a gene can be assigned to a chromosome, it may be followed in crossing schemes and mutations from mutagen treatments may be looked for. At the locus of Got1 a mutation with low activity was recovered and designated Got1lo. It was located at a genetic map position of 75 on 2R. A Got2 mutant with a greater migration to the anode was recovered and designated Got2J. It was located at a genetic map position of 3.0, and in the salivary chromosome was between 22B1 and 22B4 inclusive.
Better fisheries management can help reduce conflict, improve food security, and increase economic productivity in the face of climate change

Abstract Fisheries provide food for billions of people and employ tens of millions. Climate change is already causing changes in the distribution and abundance of many of the fish stocks that support fisheries, resulting in overfishing and conflicts arising from changes in access to fisheries and in the distribution of fishery benefits. If business continues as usual, these problems will likely get worse, with 80% of the worlds stocks falling into an overfished status by the middle of the next decade. This does not have to be the case. Many fishery challenges posed by climate change, such as changes in stock abundance and distribution, are familiar. Fisheries have developed effective ways to address them, such as harvest control rules that vary with climate regime, frequent monitoring, and adaptive management systems. However, many of these approaches are not yet widespread. Indeed more than 80% of the world's catch is derived from stocks without a formal stock assessment, which makes implementation of robust forms of management problematic. Moreover, climate change is introducing new kinds of challenges, such as the introduction of new species into fisheries. A great deal of political will, capacity building, and collective action will be necessary to scale fisheries management that is responsive and adaptive to climate change. If this can be accomplished, recent projections suggest that many fisheries could continue to produce good yields and rebuild depleted stocks even in the face of moderate climate change.
Laser assisted rapid fabrication of perovskite photodetector

In the past few years, with the advance of laser technology, laser engraving has been considered as an alternative method to traditional lithography in the fabrication of microfluidic devices. Considering solution-based method as the main technique for perovskite deposition, the capillary motion of perovskite precursor can be employed for filling a laser-engraved patterned conducting layer. Herein, we used CO2 laser micromachining for the fabrication of the perovskite photodetector. First, several microchannels were formed by laser engraving of indium tin oxide (ITO) coated polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates. Power, speed and frequency parameters of the laser were varied in order to achieve the desired channel roughness. The samples were characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and potentiostat. The I-V characteristics and bode plots of the sample showed a capacitive and an inductive behavior. Finally, a simulation tool was used to analyze the experimental data. This approach offers a simple, rapid and low-cost fabrication method for perovskite photodetector and can be used in large-scale commercial application.
Association between ambulatory status and call bell use in hospitalized patients-A retrospective cohort study.

Aim Characterize the relationship between patient ambulatory status and in-hospital call bell use. Background Although call bells are frequently used by patients to request help, the relationship between physical functioning and call bell use has not been evaluated. Methods Retrospective cohort study of 944 neuroscience patients hospitalized in a large academic urban medical centre between April 1, 2014 and August 1, 2014. We conducted multiple linear regression analyses with number of daily call bells from each patient as the primary outcome and patients' average ambulation status as the primary exposure variable. Results The mean number of daily call bell requests for all patients was 6.9 (6.1), for ambulatory patients 5.6 (4.8), and for non-ambulatory patients, it was 7.7 (6.6). Compared with non-ambulatory patients, ambulatory patients had a mean reduction in call bell use by 1.7 (95% CI 2.5 to -0.93, p 250 feet had 5 fewer daily call bells than patients who were able to perform in-bed mobility. Conclusion Ambulatory patients use their call bells less frequently than non-ambulatory patients. Implications for nursing management Frequent use of call bells by non-ambulatory patients can place additional demands on nursing staff; patient mobility status should be considered in nurse workload/patient assignment.
Permanent chemotherapy-induced alopecia: awareness and attitudes among health care providers.

Reports of permanent chemotherapy-induced alopecia (PCIA) are increasing in the field of oncodermatology, but there is a dearth of information regarding how it is recognized and managed by health care providers (HCPs) across different medical specialties (dermatology, oncology, and internal medicine). A 25-question survey was designed to elicit general knowledge and awareness of PCIA, as well as attitudes about referral and treatment. Responses were collected via REDCap, a secure online application, and analyzed with descriptive statistics, chi-square, and ANOVA tests. There was a significant difference in the number of subjects who had heard of PCIA prior to starting the survey (Derm 79%, Onc 30%, IM 22%, p 6 months) than IM (42% and 45% vs. 17%) and significantly more had encountered patients with the condition (47% and 45% vs. 17%). More providers in dermatology and IM knew how to diagnose PCIA compared with oncology (84% and 83% vs. 70%). Dermatology HCPs were the only participants who had attempted to treat patients with PCIA, and most providers believed that patients would accept similar types of treatment for PCIA. Dermatology HCPs were more likely to report higher confidence in their abilities to diagnose and manage PCIA than other providers. The results of this survey identify knowledge gaps about PCIA among health care providers. Therefore, education and multidisciplinary engagement should be pursued in order to improve awareness, diagnosis, referral, and management of PCIA as part of survivorship care.
Hydroxyl Orientation in Pyrophyllite

THE problem of the orientation of hydroxyls in micas has received considerable attention recently. Norrish1 has proposed a mechanism to explain regular interstratification in dioctahedral micas (found, for example, in rectorite) which depends on hydroxyl orientation and specifically on the electrostatic interactions between the protons of neighbouring hydroxyls and the interlayer cations. Pairs of hydroxyls form shared edges between filled octahedra and these OH groups are oriented such that they make a small angle (16° for muscovite 2M1, ref. 2) with the cleavage plane and are directed away from the octahedral sheet (Fig. 1a). It has been postulated that this angle would be larger because of the mutual electrostatic repulsion of the protons belonging to the shared edge hydroxyls, but that the interlayer cations (K+ for muscovite) which are directly above and below the two hydroxyls prevent this3. Theoretical calculations indicate that the angle between the cleavage plane and the hydroxyl increases to approximately 53° in the muscovite 2M1 structure if the K+ is removed4. Norrish proposes that the expansion of alternate interlayer regions caused by the substitution of another, possibly hydrated cation for the K+ increases the distance between the interlayer cation and the neighbouring hydroxyls; this permits the hydroxyls to reorient themselves more toward the normal to the cleavage plane, thus reducing the proton-proton repulsion (Fig. 1b). This implies that the adjacent hydroxyl which still has a nearby interlayer cation can also reorient itself by moving away from the cation, thereby stabilizing the alternating interlayering structure. The proposal rests on the premise that the orientation of the hydroxyl groups is strongly influenced by the interlayer cations. The only test of this so far has been the work on muscovite 2M1 (ref. 4). An interesting comparison study would be the determination of the OH orientation in the mineral pyrophyllite which is structurally similar to muscovite but has no interlayer cation.
Chapter 5 – Germination Ecology of Seeds with Morphophysiological Dormancy

Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on the fact that some seeds have both morphological and physiological dormancy, and thus, they have morphophysiological dormancy (MPD). It also illustrates the dormancy breaking and germination requirements of seeds with MPD. Particular attention is given to the phenology of embryo growth, germination phenology, and conditions (especially temperature) in the habitat between the time of seed maturation and the time of germination. There are eight types of MPD, which are discussed in detail. However, nondeep simple MPD is observed in seeds found in the temperate regions. But annual and perennial species, which have underdeveloped embryos, germinate during autumn. Seeds come out of PD during summer, and embryo growth, and germination occur during autumn. These seeds have nondeep simple MPD, and period of warm stratification breaks both PD and MD. Moreover, seeds with deep simple MPD require warm followed by cold stratification before they germinate. Thus, these various dormancy-breaking requirements are fulfilled in temperate regions by the summer, autumn, and winter sequence of temperatures, and germination occurs during spring.
Value of echocardiography in transcatheter closure of ruptured sinus of Valsalva aneurysm

Objective To evaluate the value of echocardiography in transcatheter closure of ruptured sinus of Valsalva aneurysm(TC-RSVA).Methods TC-RSVA was attempted in 11 patients.The location,shape,size of defects and its relationship with the neighbor structures were revealed before the procedure.Then the deployment of occluder was monitored during the procedure,and the effectiveness was observed in the follow-up.Results Eleven patients were diagnosed as the isolated RSVA by echocardiography.The size of defects was 2 - 13 mm estimated by echo.The procedures were successful in all patients.Usually the Amplatzer duct occluders were chosen to be 1 to 5 mm larger than the size of defects.Three patients had mild residual shunt during the procedure,which all dispeared in the first month of follow-up,but one of them demonstrated recurrent mild residual shunt in the 32nd month of follow-up.There was no aggravating aortic regurgitation in the follow-up.Conclusions TC-RSVA is relatively safe and effective.Observation of long-term effectiveness is still necessary.Echocardiagraphy plays an important role in TC-RSVA. Key words: Echocardiography; Sinus of Valsalva; Ruptured sinus of Valsalva aneurysm
An Alternate Simple Proof of Fermat’s Last Theorem

ℜ denotes the real line as well as the set of all real numbers, and the real numbers are considered as if they are points on the real line, and the points on the real line as if they are real numbers. Hence, three positive rational numbers a, b & c, satisfying the condition c n = a n + b n , where abc ≠ 0, and n is an integer greater than 1, will represent three sides of a triangle, say ΔABC, on a two dimensional plane. Consequently, the algebraic equation will yield the trigonometric equation Sin n A + Sin n B = Sin n (A+B). The solution of this equation, in general, will be in the form of B = f(A), where the relation between the variables A & B has to be linear in nature on account of the properties of the ΔABC, which is on a two dimensional plane with the relation between the vertical angles given by (A+B+C) = π, as well as the exponent of the variables A & B of the trigonometric equation is also one; but this condition is satisfied only when n = 2. Hence, the algebraic equation has rational solutions only with n = 2 and the FLT is true.
Consistency of random-walk based network embedding algorithms

Random-walk based network embedding algorithms like node2vec and DeepWalk are widely used to obtain Euclidean representation of the nodes in a network prior to performing down-stream network inference tasks. Nevertheless, despite their impressive empirical performance, there is a lack of theoretical results explaining their behavior. In this paper we studied the node2vec and DeepWalk algorithms through the perspective of matrix factorization. We analyze these algorithms in the setting of community detection for stochastic blockmodel graphs; in particular we established large-sample error bounds and prove consistent community recovery of node2vec/DeepWalk embedding followed by k-means clustering. Our theoretical results indicate a subtle interplay between the sparsity of the observed networks, the window sizes of the random walks, and the convergence rates of the node2vec/DeepWalk embedding toward the embedding of the true but unknown edge probabilities matrix. More specifically, as the network becomes sparser, our results suggest using larger window sizes, or equivalently, taking longer random walks, in order to attain better convergence rate for the resulting embeddings. The paper includes numerical experiments corroborating these observations.
Organophosphate pesticide exposure during pregnancy and childhood and onset of juvenile delinquency by age 16 years: The CHAMACOS cohort.

Abstract Background Though prenatal organophosphate pesticide (OP) exposure has been associated with lower intellectual quotient and behavioral disorders in childhood, factors related to later delinquency, no research has directly evaluated the impact of OPs on delinquency. Objective To evaluate the association between prenatal and childhood OP exposure and juvenile delinquency in Mexican-American youth in the Center for Health Assessment of Mothers and Children of Salinas (CHAMACOS). Methods We measured dialkyl phosphate (DAPs) urinary metabolites of OPs in two prenatal maternal samples and in five child samples collected between six months and five years of age. Youth completed delinquency questionnaires at 16 years. We examined associations of prenatal and childhood DAPs with several delinquency outcomes (n = 313) using survival and generalized linear models. Results Almost 60% of youth reported delinquent acts (mostly minor), and 8% reported a police arrest. We observed largely null results of prenatal or childhood DAP concentrations and delinquency outcomes, with some isolated associations. A ten-fold increase in maternal dimethylphosphate (DM) concentrations measured after 20 weeks gestation was associated with an earlier age of first delinquent act (Hazard Ratio = 1.38, 95% CI: 1.01, 1.88) and an increased Odds Ratio (OR) of having committed 1–3 or ≥4 delinquent acts, compared to the no delinquency reference group (OR = 1.77, 95% CI: 1.01–3.08 and 2.17, 95% CI: 1.13–4.17, respectively). Higher childhood diethylphosphate (DE) concentrations were associated with a later age of first delinquent act (HR: 0.67; 95% CI: 0.46–0.97). Discussion We did not find strong evidence of association between prenatal or childhood OP exposure and juvenile delinquency in the present cohort. There is an increasing literature that relates OP exposure to neurobehavioral impairments in childhood, and there is a need to understand long-term potential neurodevelopmental effects of early-life OP exposure.
Endoscopic visualization for tracheoesophageal puncture tract sizing.

Accurate tracheoesophageal prosthesis (TEP) size is essential for optimal functioning. Current sizing techniques do not afford direct visualization. The clinical utility of direct visualization wit...
Development of the rat salivary glands: II. The identification of a trypsinlike protease in the submaxillary gland☆

Abstract Trypsinlike protease activity at pH 9.2 was measured in tissue extracts of adult rat salivary glands by using a fluorometric assay in which β-naphthylamine is released by the hydrolysis of benzylarginine β-naphthylamide. The submaxillary gland contains high levels of this activity, and the parotid and sublingual glands have a maximum of 2000-fold and 200-fold less. After polyacrylamide disc gel electrophoresis at pH 8.3, the protease activity of submaxillary extracts is associated with a major protein band. Neither this protein band nor its protease activity is detectable in extracts of parotid or sublingual glands. Homogenates of newborn submaxillary gland do not have this protease activity at detectable levels, suggesting that its major accumulation is postnatal.
Low profile plastic quad flat package: LPPQFP

The effects of stress on the mechanical integrity of the high pin-count surface-mount PQFP packages and on very large (500 mil) IC dies have been studied experimentally. Passivation cracks, metal movement, and crack propagation in the package are examined. Changes in package design that improve the resistance to thermal excursions of surface-mounted devices are described. A factorial experiment is reviewed that used package thickness, lead-frame materials, and adhesion promoters as the variables. The latest ultra-low-stress molding compounds and passivations were studied. The affect of adding stress buffers to mold compounds, particularly crack passivation, is emphasized. Also included are experimental data using a package-development test die to electrically characterize the effects of the various package design and material changes as well as the system performance during various stress tests such as temperature cycle, thermal shock, moisture preconditioning/crack resistance and moisture resistance. >
Early Family Ties and Marital Stability Over 16 Years: The Context of Race and Gender.

Spouses' emotional ties to family early in marriage are linked to marital outcomes, but little is known about how these ties affect marital stability and whether these effects vary by race and gender. The present study examines the links between emotional ties to family of origin and in-laws in the first year of marriage and marital stability over the first 16 years of marriage. Data were collected as part of a longitudinal study following Black American (n = 199) and White American (n = 174) married couples. Analyses revealed that perceptions of closeness to in-laws early in marriage were associated with odds of divorce over time, but the results varied by race and gender. Findings are discussed in terms of couples' ties to family early in marriage and the role that in-law bonds play for marital stability. We also offer insights for practitioners who provide premarital and marital education and counseling services to couples.
More barriers? Yes please!: Strategies of control, co-optation, and hijacking of online disability campaigns in Scotland

Can the internet help disabled people overcome traditional barriers to participation and become empowered? This paper shades light on this issue by innovatively combining disability studies and internet politics research. Two case studies from Scotland are presented in order to empirically investigate the “emancipatory” potential of the internet for disabled people. Whilst authoritative work in disability studies has claimed that Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) can constitute powerful tools against disabling, exclusionary barriers, the analysis carried out for this paper returned contradictory results. Besides organisational strategies aimed at controlling, co-opting, or even hijacking disabled people’s online “voices,” the investigation also revealed more positive, albeit limited, opportunities for participation strongly connected to the type of online tool used and the surrounding context. Whilst stressing the potential ambivalence of the internet for disabled users, such outcomes also hinted at a new, more nuanced idea of empowerment through ICTs capable of aligning expectations more closely to reality, and whose relevance could be extended to other “marginal” groups in the political arena. Building upon these findings, the paper concludes with a series of recommendations for future research in the area of disability and the internet.
Modeling eddy current analysis data to determine depth of weld penetration

The Applied Engineering Technology Group in the Engineering Sciences and Applications Division at Los Alamos National Laboratory is currently providing the design, engineering, assembly, and testing of an eddy current instrument for weld inspection. This instrument is designed to provide an in situ weld depth measurement of nuclear weapons primary components during fabrication. The goal of this effort is to improve the accuracy and reliability of the measurement of the weld joint depth and provide a mechanism for inspection without removing the part from the fixture. This feature is essential to accommodate the re-welding process if the inspection fails. The production system consists of a commercially available eddy current instrument and eddy current probe connected to a portable PC. The objective of the system software is acquire and analyze voltage and phase angle data to produce a near-real time estimate of weld depth. The data obtained from the instrument are perfectly suited for analysis by a neural network technique. This paper compares the effectiveness of a neural network application with traditional mathematical models for the analysis of weld depth information.
The fate of nephrons in congenital and heritable renal disorders

Most chronic kidney disease in infants and children results from congenital anomalies of the kidneys and urinary tract, including obstructive nephropathy. Although less common, inherited disorders such as polycystic kidney disease (PKD) and cystinosis also lead to progressive tubular injury and nephron loss. At the present time, therapies to slow progression of kidney disease are mainly directed renal interstitial fibrosis, a final common pathway. To target earlier events in congenital renal disorders, we have investigated in animal models the response of the renal proximal tubule, which appears to be particularly susceptible to injury. Unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO) causes marked oxidative stress and rapid death of proximal tubular cells in the adult mouse, leading to the formation of atubular glomeruli. This occurs also following UUO in the neonate (during completion of nephrogenesis), but tubular cell death is delayed until proximal tubular mitochondrial maturation is complete. In the pcy mutant mouse, a model of autosomal dominant PKD, tubular cysts develop in the neonatal period, and progressively enlarge, eventually causing obstruction of neighboring nephrons and formation of atubular glomeruli. In the ctns mutant mouse with nephropathic cystinosis, injury results from accumulation of cystine crystals. This results in oxidative stress and stimulates flattening (rather than death) of proximal tubular cells (“swan neck deformity”), and onset of the Fanconi syndrome. Progression to severe proximal tubular atrophy and formation of atubular glomeruli develops in later adult life. These studies suggest that early treatment of congenital renal disorders should target protection of proximal tubules from oxidative injury. We are currently investigating the use of antioxidants that are selectively concentrated in mitochondria. Since children with congenital renal disorders are born with a reduced nephron number (which cannot be regenerated), every effort must be made to preserve remaining nephrons throughout adult life. Proceedings of the 9 th International Workshop on Neonatology · Cagliari (Italy) · October 23 rd -26 th , 2013 · Learned lessons, changing practice and cutting-edge research
A sterol mesylate activator of CEBPα signaling induces monocytic differentiation in human leukemia cells in vitro and in vivo

4619 A novel sterol mesylate (NSC 67657) was previously identified as a potent activator of CEBPα signaling in an HTS assay, and it was also demonstrated that this compound could induce myeloid differentiation in U937 and HL60 human leukemia cell lines. The present study compared transcription profiles (generated from 20,000K oligonucleotide arrays) of HL60 cells, treated with NSC 67657 (20μM) and all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA, 5μM), which suggested these two agents produced differentiated cells along different lineages. While ATRA induced gene expression changes related to granulocytic differentiation, NSC 67657 triggered monocytic differentiation as evidenced by prominent induction of CD14 and other related genes. Additional data supporting NSC 67657 induction of monocyte/macrophage differentiation was generated using flow cytometry and the NBT test in HL60 and NB4 (acute promyelocytic leukemia) cells. Both cells lines were induced to differentiate (>99% of the cells) following 2μM ATRA treatment for 5-7 days measured by reduction of nitroblue tetrazolium to its insoluble formazan (NBT assay), and >90% of the cells expressed CD18 and CD35, but not CD14. In contrast only HL60 cells were induced to differentiate (NBT assay) following NSC67675 treatment and 95% of the cells were positive for expression of CD14. However, NB4 cells (which only terminally differentiate into monocytes/macrophages in the presence of phorbol esters), showed no indication of differentiating either by the NBT assay or markers of differentiation following treatment with NSC 67657. When HL60 cells were implanted intraperitoneally into athymic mice, and treated orally beginning on day 3, with 200mg/kg NSC 67657 bid qd x 5, and ascites cells extracted on day 7, these cells were found to express elevated levels of the CD14 mRNA (>20fold), or antigen as measured by flow cytometry. Thus the sterol mesylate agent, NSC 67657, which activates CEBPα signaling, has been shown to primarily initiate monocytes/macrophage differentiation as opposed to granulocytic differentiation in HL60 cells, both in vitro and in vivo. These results indicate that NSC 67657 is a novel differentiating agent that warrants further preclinical evaluation as a potential anti-leukemic drug. Supported by NCI contract # NO1-CO-12400.
Sonographic Evaluation of Clinically Significant Perigraft Hematomas in Kidney Transplant Recipients.

OBJECTIVE. The purpose of this study was to assess the sensitivity of ultrasound in evaluating peritransplant hematomas that require surgical evacuation in recipients of kidney transplants. MATERIALS AND METHODS. Thirty-four patients who underwent 37 hematoma evacuations underwent ultrasound examinations in the 24 hours before surgical evacuation. The operative reports were evaluated for presence and size of collection, presence of active bleeding at operation, and composition of the hematoma. The clinical findings leading to the ultrasound examination were recorded. Ultrasound examinations were evaluated in consensus by two board-certified and fellowship-trained abdominal radiologists for the presence, size, and echogenicity of the collection; subjective perfusion visualized with color and power Doppler ultrasound; velocities of the renal arteries; and arcuate artery resistive indexes. RESULTS. Ten of the 37 imaged hematomas (27%) had either no or small (< 50 mL) fluid collections on ultrasound examinati...
The preparation and characterization of (±)-[phenoxy-3H(N)] phenoxybenzamine hydrochloride at high specific activity

(±)-Phenoxybenzamine is a ligand capable of irreversibly alkylating the alpha-1 adrenergic receptor. Previous attempts to radiolabel it have achieved only low specific activities which impeded their use in neurochemical investigations. (±)-[Phenoxy-3H(N)] Phenoxybenzamine.HCL (1) has been prepared in our laboratory by the catalytic reductive aryl debromination of an appropriate brominated precursor with tritium gas. 3H NMR showed exclusive radiolabeling on the phenoxy ring and the radioligand had a specific activity of 32.4 Ci/mmol.
The Relationship between Maternal Ethnicity and Post-Term (>42 Weeks) Infants: A Population-Based Study

The Relationship between Maternal Ethnicity and Post-Term (>42 Weeks) Infants: A Population-Based Study
Flicker (1/f) noise in Josephson tunnel junctions

We have measured the power spectrum of the voltage fluctuations in shunted Josephson junctions biased at a constant current $I$ greater than the critical current ${I}_{c}$. Over the frequency range ${5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}10}^{\ensuremath{-}2}$-50 Hz the power spectra vary approximately as $\frac{1}{f}$, where $f$ is the frequency. At any single frequency, the noise decreases as $I$ is increased. Experimental evidence is presented to show that the voltage noise arises from equilibrium fluctuations in the temperature $T$ of the junction, which in turn modulate ${I}_{c}$ and hence the voltage $V$ across the junction. The magnitude of the power spectra is consistently predicted to within a factor of 5 by an extension of the semiempirical formula of Clarke and Voss: ${S}_{V}(f)=\frac{{(\frac{d{I}_{c}}{\mathrm{dT}})}^{2}{(\frac{\ensuremath{\partial}V}{\ensuremath{\partial}{I}_{c}})}_{I}^{2}{k}_{B}{T}^{2}}{3{C}_{V}f}$. In this formula, we postulate that ${C}_{V}$ is the heat capacity of an "effective" junction volume given by the product of the junction area and the sum of the coherence lengths of the two superconductors. The dependence of ${S}_{V}(f)$ on ${(\frac{\ensuremath{\partial}V}{\ensuremath{\partial}{I}_{c}})}_{I}^{2}$ and ${(\frac{d{I}_{c}}{\mathrm{dT}})}^{2}$ is experimentally established.
Aldose reductase-catalyzed reduction of aldehyde phospholipids.

Abstract Oxidation of unsaturated phospholipids results in the generation of aldehyde side chains that remain esterified to the phospholipid backbone. Such “core” aldehydes elicit immune responses and promote inflammation. However, the biochemical mechanisms by which phospholipid aldehydes are metabolized or detoxified are not well understood. In the studies reported here, we examined whether aldose reductase (AR), which reduces hydrophobic aldehydes, metabolizes phospholipid aldehydes. Incubation with AR led to the reduction of 5-oxovaleroyl, 7-oxo-5-heptenoyl, 5-hydroxy-6-oxo-caproyl, and 5-hydroxy-8-oxo-6-octenoyl phospholipids generated upon oxidation of 1-palmitoyl-2-arachidonoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (PAPC). The enzyme also catalyzed the reduction of phospholipid aldehydes generated from the oxidation of 1-alkyl, and 1-alkenyl analogs of PAPC, and 1-palmitoyl-2-arachidonoyl phosphatidic acid or phosphoglycerol. Aldose reductase catalyzed the reduction of chemically synthesized 1-palmitoyl-2-(5-oxovaleroyl)-sn-glycero-3-phosphatidylcholine (POVPC) with a Km of 10 μm. Addition of POVPC to the culture medium led to incorporation and reduction of the aldehyde in COS-7 and THP-1 cells. Reduction of POVPC in these cells was prevented by the AR inhibitors sorbinil and tolrestat and was increased in COS-7 cells overexpressing AR. Together, these observations suggest that AR may be a significant participant in the metabolism of several structurally diverse phospholipid aldehydes. This metabolism may be a critical regulator of the pro-inflammatory and immunogenic effects of oxidized phospholipids.
Sol-gel/rhodamine 6G composite films with tailored microstructures

A multi-step hydrolysis procedure was developed to prepare composite organic dye/sol-gel thin films with variable porosity for such applications as switches or sensors. Variation of acid and base catalyzed hydrolysis sequences of three sols prepared from tetraethoxysilane with identical H 2 O/Si ratios, dilution factors, and pH resulted in considerably different silicate speciation. Under conditions where monomer was avoided, the refractive indices of as- deposited films could be varied by an aging step prior to film deposition. This general strategy, which relies on the aggregation of fractal polymeric clusters, is compatible with the low temperature and near neutral pH requirements of both organic dyes and biologically-active species such as enzymes.
Using fiber optics to simplify free-space lasercom systems

The use of single mode fiber optics to simplify the design of space-based optical communication systems is explored. Design considerations concerning the issues of acquisition, pointing, tracking, communication performance, efficient source-to-fiber coupling, isolation, and transmitter power limitations are presented. Preliminary experimental results of a breadboard fiber-based coherent optical communication system are also presented.© (1990) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.