cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Contributions of NanI Sialidase to Caco-2 Cell Adherence by Clostridium perfringens Type A and C Strains Causing Human Intestinal Disease

Previous studies showed that Clostridium perfringens type D animal disease strain CN3718 uses NanI sialidase for adhering to enterocyte-like Caco-2 cells. The current study analyzed whether NanI is similarly important when type A and C human intestinal disease strains attach to Caco-2 cells. A PCR survey determined that the nanI gene was absent from typical type A food poisoning (FP) strains carrying a chromosomal enterotoxin (CPE) gene or the genetically related type C Darmbrand (Db) strains. However, the nanI gene was present in type A strains from healthy humans, type A strains causing CPE-associated antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD) or sporadic diarrhea (SD), and type C Pig-Bel strains. Consistent with NanI sialidase being the major C. perfringens sialidase when produced, FP and Db strains had little supernatant sialidase activity compared to other type A or C human intestinal strains. All type A and C human intestinal strains bound to Caco-2 cells, but NanI-producing strains had higher attachment levels. When produced, NanI can contribute to host cell attachment of human intestinal disease strains, since a nanI null mutant constructed in type A SD strain F4969 had lower Caco-2 cell adhesion than wild-type F4969 or a complemented strain. Further supporting a role for NanI in host cell attachment, sialidase inhibitors reduced F4969 adhesion to Caco-2 cells. Collectively, these results suggest that NanI may contribute to the intestinal attachment and colonization needed for the chronic diarrhea of CPE-associated AAD and SD, but this sialidase appears to be dispensable for the acute pathogenesis of type A FP or type C enteritis necroticans.
Analysis of contamination condition for food-borne pathogens in retailed foods in Lishui from 2007 to 2008

Objective: To investigate the occurrence and distributing trends of food-borne pathogens in retailed foods,find out food with high risk.Methods:172 specimens of 3 category in Lishui during the year of 2007 and 2008 were detected by bacterial culture method of national standards.Results:5 of 7 monitored food-borne pathogens were found.In fresh pork,Listeria monocyto-genes,Salmonella had the mostly high positive rate(17.78% and 11.11% respectively) than other pathogens,E.coli O157:H7 was 2.22%.While in aquatic products,Vibro parahaemolyticus was 4.82%.In cooked products,Staphylococcus aureus was 25%.Conclusion:There is pathogens contamination existing in raw or frozen poultry meat,cooked meat and other food products in Lishui city.Pathogen contamination of foods in Lishui is serious and more attention should be paid to it by relevant departments.
Ectopic ureter presenting as a psoas abscess

Psoas abscesses are uncommon infections whose etiology may be primary or secondary. We report on a boy with ureteral ectopia presenting as a secondary psoas abscess. The diagnosis of a psoas abscess is protean and should be considered in all patients, particularly children, who present with acute thigh or hip pain and fever.
Modulation of calcium homeostasis in cultured rat aortic endothelial cells by intracellular acidification

Acidosis produces vasodilation in a process that may involve the vascular endothelium. Because synthesis and release of endothelium-derived vasodilatory substances are linked to an increase in cytosolic calcium concentration ([Ca2+]i), we examined the effect of intracellular acidification on cultured rat aortic endothelial cells loaded either with the pH-sensitive probe carboxy-seminaphthorhodafluor-1 or the Ca(2+)-sensitive fluorescent probe indo 1. The basal cytosolic pH (pHi) of endothelial monolayers in a 5% CO2-HCO3- buffer was 7.27 +/- 0.02 and that in a bicarbonate-free solution was 7.22 +/- 0.03. Acidification was induced either by removal of NH4Cl (delta pHi = -0.10 +/- 0.02), changing from a bicarbonate-free to a 5% CO2-HCO3(-)-buffered solution at constant buffer pH (delta pHi = -0.18 +/- 0.03), or changing from a 5% to a 20% CO2-HCO3- solution (delta pHi = -0.27 +/- 0.07). Regardless of the method used, intracellular acidification increased [Ca2+]i as indexed by indo 1 fluorescence. The increase in [Ca2+]i induced by changing from a 5 to a 20% CO2-HCO3- solution was not significantly altered by removal of buffer Ca2+ either before or after depletion of bradykinin- and thapsigargin-sensitive intracellular Ca2+ stores. Thus intracellular acidification of vascular endothelial cells releases Ca2+ into the cytosol either from pH-sensitive intracellular buffer sites, mitochondria, or from bradykinin- and thapsigargin-insensitive intracellular stores. This Ca2+ mobilization may be linked to endothelial synthesis and release of vasodilatory substances during acidosis.
Abnormal proximal tubule apical membrane protein composition in X-linked hypophosphatemic mice.

The hypophosphatemic (Hyp) mouse is characterized by an isolated X-linked defect in proximal tubular phosphate (Pi) reabsorption associated with a decreased maximum velocity (Vmax) and a normal affinity (Km). To directly investigate the underlying cellular defect proximal tubular brush-border membranes (BBM) from normal control (Con) and Hyp male littermates were examined for differences in cholesterol content, total and individual phospholipid composition, phospholipid incorporation rates, membrane fluidity, and by two-dimensional sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-polyacrylamide protein electrophoresis. The cholesterol content, total and individual phospholipid profiles, phospholipid incorporation rates, and membrane fluidity of Con and Hyp BBM samples were comparable. However, the two-dimensional gel electrophoreses of Con and Hyp BBM proteins, run simultaneously under identical conditions, revealed a protein with an apparent abnormal isoelectric migration pattern in Hyp BBM samples. This protein had an appa...
Thermodynamics and Mechanisms of Protonated Asparaginyl-Glycine Decomposition.

Deamidation at asparagine residues, a spontaneous post-translational modification in proteins, plays a significant role in various biological processes and degenerative diseases. In the current work, we present a full description of the deamidation process as well as other key fragmentations (dehydration, peptide bond cleavage, and loss of 2 NH3) from protonated asparaginyl-glycine, H+(AsnGly), by studying its kinetic energy dependent collision-induced dissociation (CID) with Xe using a guided ion beam tandem mass spectrometer. These results are compared with those for sustained off-resonance irradiation (SORI)-CID of H+(AsnGly) with Ar in a Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer. Computationally, simulating annealing methodology and a series of relaxed potential energy scans at the B3LYP/6-31G(d) level were performed to identify all intermediate and transition state (TS) structures for each key reaction. All species were further optimized at the B3LYP and B3LYP-GD3BJ/6-311+G(d,p) lev...
On the Inevitability of Aging: Essentialist Beliefs Moderate the Impact of Negative Age Stereotypes on Older Adults' Memory Performance and Physiological Reactivity.

Objectives The goal of this research was to investigate how individual differences in essentialist beliefs about aging affect how older adults' respond to negative age stereotypes. Essentialist beliefs about aging (EBA) define the process of aging as fixed and inevitable rather than malleable and modifiable. Method Two experiments including older adults tested the hypothesis that EBA moderate the effect of negative age stereotypes on older adults' memory performance and physiological reactivity. Results In line with predictions, results of Experiment 1 (N = 79, 61-87 years) showed that for older adults with strong EBA, the activation of negative age stereotypes (vs neutral information) led to stereotype assimilation entailing a poorer memory performance. In contrast, for older adults with non-EBA, the activation of negative age stereotypes led to stereotype reactance entailing a better memory performance. Experiment 2 (N = 41; 65-92 years) replicated this pattern and also showed that older adults who endorsed rather than rejected EBA exhibited increased systolic blood pressure reactivity when negative age stereotypes were activated. Discussion The discussion focuses on pathways through which age stereotypes impact cognitive performance and health in later adulthood, as well as ways to stimulate positive plasticity by changing EBA.
Joint Soft-Error-Rate (SER) Estimation for Combinational Logic and Sequential Elements

With drastic device shrinking, low operating voltages, increasing complexities, and high speed operations, radiation-induced soft errors have posed an ever increasing reliability challenge to both combinational and sequential circuits in advanced CMOS technologies. Therefore, it is imperative to devise efficient soft error rate (SER) estimation methods, in order to evaluate the soft error vulnerabilities for cost-effective robust circuit design. Previous works either analyze only SER in combinational circuits or evaluate soft error vulnerabilities in sequential elements. In this paper, a joint SER estimation framework is proposed, which considers single-event transients (SETs) in combinational logic and multiple cell upsets (MCUs) in sequential components. Various masking effects are considered in the combinational SER estimation process, and several typical radiation-hardened and non-hardened flip-flop structures are analyzed and compared as the sequential elements. A schematic and layout co-simulation approach is proposed to model the MCUs for redundant sequential storage structures. Experimental results of a variety of ISCAS benchmark circuits using the Nangate 45nm CMOS standard cell library demonstrate the difference in soft error resilience among designs using different sequential elements and the importance of modeling MCUs in redundant structures.
SOME INVERSE AND ILL-POSED PROBLEMS IN COMPUTATIONAL FLUID DYNAMICS

1. Abstract Both inverse and ill-posed problems occur in a variety of computational fluid dynamics settings. As simple examples, we consider splitting and double ADI splitting of the first biharmonic equation (simple Stokes flow) and pseudo-direct methods for the solution of the boundary layer equations at flow separation and reattachment. The former involves ill-posed operator equations, while the latter is a problem in parameter estimation. These problems, together with new procedures for their solution, are presented.
Spatial distribution and controlling factors of stable isotopes in meteoric waters on the Tibetan Plateau: Implications for paleoelevation reconstruction

Abstract Debates persist about the interpretations of stable isotope based proxies for the surface uplift of the central–northern Tibetan Plateau. These disputes arise from the uncertain relationship between elevation and the δ 18 O values of meteoric waters, based on modern patterns of isotopes in precipitation and surface waters. We present a large river water data set (1,340 samples) covering most parts of the Tibetan Plateau to characterize the spatial variability and controlling factors of their isotopic compositions. Compared with the amount-weighted mean annual oxygen isotopic values of precipitation, we conclude that river water is a good substitute for isotopic studies of precipitation in the high flat (e.g., elevation >3,300 m) interior of the Tibetan Plateau in the mean annual timescale. We construct, for the first time based on field data, contour maps of isotopic variations of meteoric waters ( δ 18 O , δ D and d-excess) on the Tibetan Plateau. In the marginal mountainous regions of the Plateau, especially the southern through eastern margins, the δ 18 O and δ D values of river waters decrease with increasing mean catchment elevation, which can be modeled as a Rayleigh distillation process. However, in the interior of the Plateau, northward increasing trends in δ 18 O and δ D values are pronounced and present robust linear relations; d-excess values are lower than the marginal regions and exhibit distinct contrasts between the eastern ( 8 ‰ – 12 ‰ ) and western (
Activity of Ceftazidime-Avibactam Against Clinical Isolates of Klebsiella pneumoniae, Including KPC-Carrying Isolates, Endemic to New York City

In this report, we examined the (1) activity of ceftazidime-avibactam against clinical isolates Klebsiella pneumoniae, including those harboring blaKPC, (2) potential mechanisms leading to reduced susceptibility, and (3) activity of ceftazidime-avibactam when combined with other agents. Of 802 carbapenem-resistant isolates of K. pneumoniae gathered from New York City from 1999 to 2014, all were susceptible to ceftazidime-avibactam. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) were higher in isolates with K. pneumoniae, with the carbapenemase (KPC)-3 (compared to KPC-2), and those with a frameshift mutation in ompK35. MICs did not appear to be affected by changes in ompK36 or by expression of acrB. Time-kill experiments demonstrated synergy between either polymyxin B or amikacin and ceftazidime-avibactam in a minority of isolates. In conclusion, ceftazidime-avibactam is active against K. pneumoniae, including blaKPC isolates, in our region, but activity is affected by KPC subtype and by mutations in ompK35. Synergy can occur when combined with polymyxin B or amikacin, but is unpredictable.
Epilogue: Comparative Theology and the Postcolonial

The epilogue is a summary of what has been discussed in religious discourse, phenomenology, and comparative theology in the context of multiple modernities; then, it entails a deliberation of the significance of comparative theology in the postcolonial context, especially with respect to Foucault and Edward Said. This epilogue concludes with interreligious illumination and prayerful exchange in a comparative study of Bonhoeffer’s poem of theologia crusis and bodhisattva prayer.
Associations between bottle-feeding intensity and maternal encouragement of bottle-emptying.

Objective To explore longitudinal associations between bottle-feeding and maternal encouragement of infant bottle-emptying during the first 6 months of infancy. Design Mothers completed questionnaires during the third trimester of pregnancy, then monthly during the first 6 months postpartum. Questionnaires assessed family demographics, maternal and infant weight status, infant feeding patterns and maternal encouragement of infant bottle-emptying. Setting The Infant Feeding Practices Study 2, conducted by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration. Subjects Mothers (n 1776). Results Repeated-measures regression was used to explore associations between bottle-feeding intensity (BFI; defined as the percentage of daily feedings that were from a bottle) and encouragement of bottle-emptying. Mothers who reported consistently high or consistently low BFI also exhibited consistently higher or lower frequency of encouraging their infants to empty the bottle (respectively) across the first 6 months of infancy, whereas mothers who reported increases in their BFI also exhibited concomitant increases in the frequency to which they encouraged their infants to finish the bottle. More frequent encouragement of bottle-emptying was also associated with feeding expressed breast milk (P<0·001), and lower parity (P=0·01), pre-pregnancy BMI (P=0·002) and infant birth weight (P=0·001). Conclusions More frequent use of bottles for infant feeding was significantly associated with more frequent encouragement of bottle-emptying. Further research using causal designs is needed to better understand whether the use of bottles promotes this controlling feeding practice or whether mothers with more controlling feeding practices opt to bottle-feed.
Rapid discovery of SNPs that differentiate hatchery steelhead trout from ESA-listed natural-origin steelhead trout using a 57K SNP array

Natural-origin steelhead trout in the Pacific Northwest USA are threatened by a number of factors including habitat destruction, disease, decline in marine survival and a potential erosion of genetic viability due to introgression from hatchery strains. Our major goal was to use a recently developed SNP array containing ~57,000 SNPs to identify a subset of SNPs that differentiate hatchery- and natural-origin populations. We analyzed 35,765 polymorphic SNPs in nine populations of steelhead trout sampled from Puget Sound, Washington State, USA. We then conducted two outlier tests and found 360 loci that were candidates for divergent selection between hatchery and natural-origin populations (average FCT = 0.29, max = 0.65) and 595 SNPs that were candidates for selection among natural-origin populations (average FST = 0.25, max = 0.51). Comparisons with a linkage map revealed that two chromosomes (Omy05, Omy25) contained significantly more outliers than other chromosomes, suggesting that regions on Omy05 and ...
A first-order behavioral model of capacity drop

Abstract Understanding traffic dynamics at lane-drop bottlenecks, especially the mechanism of capacity drop, is critical for developing and evaluating centralized and decentralized control strategies in a freeway system. In this study, we propose a first-order behavioral model of capacity drop at a continuous lane-drop bottleneck. By extending the theoretical framework for analytically solving the generalized Riemann problem in Jin (2017), we introduce vehicles’ bounded acceleration on the LWR (Lighthill-Whitham-Richards) stationary states inside the lane-drop zone as an additional constraint for the optimization formulation of the entropy condition. We demonstrate that the optimization problem is uniquely solved with well-defined instantaneous continuous standing waves, comprised of the LWR stationary states inside the lane-drop and the bounded acceleration stationary states in the downstream acceleration zones. In the solutions to the generalized Riemann problem, the boundary flux as well as the stationary states and kinematic waves on both upstream and downstream links are the same as those in the phenomenological model of capacity drop proposed in Jin et al. (2015). This is a behavioral model of capacity drop, since both the dropped capacity and the capacity drop ratio are endogenous and can be calculated from the factors related to the fundamental diagram, road geometry, bounded acceleration, and lane changes. We present the Cell Transmission Model for the behavioral and phenomenological models and verify the theoretical results with numerical examples. We calibrate and validate the model with observed stationary speeds at a lane-drop bottleneck. Combined with Jin (2017), this study provides a proof of the conjecture by Hall and Agyemang-Duah (1991) that capacity drop results from the acceleration process when “drivers accelerate away from the (upstream) queue”.
Improving patient safety during procedural sedation via respiratory volume monitoring: A randomized controlled trial.

Abstract Study objective Assess the utility of a respiratory volume monitor (RVM) to reduce the incidence of low minute ventilation events in procedural sedation. Design Randomized control trial Setting Endoscopy suite Patients Seventy-three total patients (ASA Physical Status 1–3) undergoing upper endoscopies were analyzed. Intervention Patients were randomized into two groups using a computer generated randomization table: Control ( n =41): anesthesia provider was unable to see the screen of the RVM; RVM ( n =32): anesthesia provider had access to RVM data to assist with management of the case. Measurements Minute ventilation (MV), tidal volume, and respiratory rate were continuously recorded by the RVM. MV is presented as percent of Baseline MV (MV Baseline ), defined during a 30s period of quiet breathing prior to sedation. We defined Low MV as MV Baseline , and calculated the percentage of procedure spent with Low MV. Patients in the RVM group were stratified based on whether the anesthesiologist rated the RVM as "not useful", "somewhat useful", or "very useful" during the case. Main results Control patients experienced twice as much Low MV compared to RVM patients (15.3±2.8% vs. 7.1±1.4%, P =0.020). The "not useful" (13.7±3.8%) group showed no improvement over the Control group ( p =0.81). However, both the "very useful" (4.7±1.4%) and "somewhat useful" (4.9±1.7%) groups showed significant improvement over the "not useful" group ( p Conclusions Patients in the Control group spent more than double the amount of time with Low MV compared to the RVM group. This difference became more pronounced when the anesthesiologist found the RVM useful for managing care, lending credibility to the usage of minute ventilation monitoring in procedural sedation.
Lymphoma of Bone

Lymphoma can demonstrate primary or secondary involvement of bone.The most common subtype of primary lymphoma of bone is diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography with computed tomography (FDG PET/CT) scanning is important for diagnosis, staging, and assessing
Unemployment, Temporary Work, and Subjective Well-Being: The Gendered Effect of Spousal Labor Market Insecurity:

The negative impact of unemployment on individuals and its spillover to spouses is widely documented. However, we have a gap in our knowledge when it comes to the similar consequences of temporary employment. This is problematic, because although temporary jobs are often considered better alternatives to unemployment for endowing individuals with income and opportunities to connect to employers, they are also associated with stressors such as high levels of job insecurity and poor quality work, the effects of which might spill over to spouses. Using matched data from the British Household Panel Study, I show that temporary work is at least as detrimental as unemployment for spouses’ subjective well-being, although there are differences. When experienced by husbands, temporary work, like unemployment, has a negative effect on wives’ psychological well-being and life satisfaction. Yet, as opposed to unemployment, wives’ temporary employment also spills over and negatively affects husbands’ psychological wel...
Measurements of excess heat from a Pons-Fleischmann-type electrolytic cell using palladium sheet

Two pieces of palladium sheet similar to that used by Takahashi were loaded with deuterium in a Pons-Fleischmann-type electrolytic cell, and heat production was measured. One sheet produced a steady increase in excess power that reached 7.5 W (20% of input power) before the study was interrupted. A second similar sheet from a different batch of palladium did not produce any measurable excess power. There were differences in the loading behavior, the maximum stoichiometry, and the presence of excess volume in the deuteride made from these materials. The first sheet contained 0.8% excess volume after having been deloaded from its maximum deuterium/palladium (D/Pd) ratio of 0.82 to 0.73, and the second sheet contained 13.5% excess volume while at its maximum ratio of 0.75. The high excess volume in the latter case is an indication of internal escape paths that reduce the required high D/Pd ratio. 30 refs., 17 figs., 3 tabs.
Valve Repair in Acquired Heart Disease

Because there are some relative disadvantages of all cardiac valve replacement devices, there is a continuing interest in repair of diseased valves, rather than replacement. Most of the focus of any discussion of valve repair resides at the atrioventricular valve level, particularly the mitral valve. However, there is some interest in repair of the aortic valve. For example, Duran1, Carpentier2, and Cosgrove et al.3 each have reported small series of suture annuloplasty of the aortic ring to diminish or control aortic incompetence. Basically, an encircling purse-string suture is placed at the base of the aortic cusps and tightened such as to narrow the ventricular aortic junction. Occasionally, a triangular resection of redundant cusp tissue is used. David and Filindel4 have described the preservation of the native aortic valve in annular dilatation by scalloping the aortic sinuses and encasing the aortic valve complex in a Dacron tube, and subsequent reattachment of the coronary ostia.
Practice Variation in Antenatal Steroid Administration for Anticipated Late Preterm Birth: A Physician Survey.

Objective The objective of this study was to measure knowledge and practice variation in late preterm steroid use. Study Design Electronic survey of American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) members about data supporting the ACOG/Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) recommendations and practice when caring for women with anticipated late preterm birth (PTB), 340/7 to 366/7 weeks. Results Of 352 administered surveys, we obtained 193 completed responses (55%); 82.5% were generalist obstetrician-gynecologists (OB/GYNs), and 42% cared for women with anticipated late PTB at least weekly. Most believed that late preterm steroids provided benefit by reducing respiratory distress syndrome (93%), transient tachypnea of the newborn (83%), and neonatal intensive care unit admission (82%). More than half administered late preterm steroids to women with multiple gestations (73%), and pregestational diabetes (55–80%) depending on glycemic control. OB/GYNs administered steroids to insulin-dependent and poorly controlled diabetics more often than MFMs (75 vs. 46% and 59 vs. 37% respectively, p Conclusion Most providers are administering late preterm steroids to all women, even those populations who have been excluded from previous trials. Despite widespread use, providers believe more research is needed to optimize management.
The Impact of a Healthy Weight Intervention Embedded in a Home-Visiting Program on Children's Weight and Mothers’ Feeding Practices

Abstract Objective To examine whether a healthy weight intervention embedded in the Parents as Teachers (PAT) home visiting program, which was previously found to improve mothers’ body mass index (BMI) and obesity-related behaviors, changed the BMI of preschool children or maternal feeding practices. Methods This stratified randomized trial included preschool-aged children at risk for overweight whose mothers were overweight or had obesity (n = 179). The Healthy Eating and Active Living Taught at Home (HEALTH) intervention was based on the Diabetes Prevention Program. Differences were examined using repeated-measures mixed-ANOVA models. Results Compared with PAT usual care, the HEALTH intervention had no effect on children's BMI or maternal feeding practices. However, combined analyses showed that children's BMI percentile decreased (P = .007), BMI z-scores were maintained (P = .19), and 3 of 8 feeding practices improved over time (P Conclusions and Implications Additional research is needed to assess the effectiveness of PAT to prevent preschool-age obesity using rigorous designs (eg, group-randomized trials) and to identify its active components. HEALTH is ready to be scaled up to prevent maternal weight gain through embedding within the national PAT program.
Highly-Loaded Thermoplastic Polyurethane/Lead Zirconate Titanate Composite Foams with Low Permittivity Fabricated using Expandable Microspheres.

The sensitivity enhancement of piezocomposites can realize new applications. Introducing a cellular structure into these materials decreases the permittivity and thus increases their sensitivity. However, foaming of piezocomposites is challenging because of the high piezoceramic loading required. In this work, heat-expandable microspheres were used to fabricate thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU)/lead zirconate titanate (PZT) composite foams with a wide range of PZT content (0 vol % to 40 vol %) and expansion ratio (1–4). The microstructure, thermal behavior, and dielectric properties of the foams were investigated. Composite foams exhibited a fine dispersion of PZT particles in the solid phase and a uniform cellular structure with cell sizes of 50–100 μm; cell size decreased with an increase in the PZT content. The total crystallinity of the composites was also decreased as the foaming degree increased. The results showed that the relative permittivity (er) can be effectively decreased by an increase in the expansion ratio. A maximum of 7.7 times decrease in er was obtained. An extended Yamada model to a three-phase system was also established and compared against the experimental results with a relatively good agreement. This work demonstrates a method to foam highly loaded piezocomposites with a potential to enhance the voltage sensitivity.
Late Breaking Results: Distributed Timing Analysis at Scale

As the design complexities continue to grow, the need to efficiently analyze circuit timing with billions of transistors is quickly becoming the major bottleneck to the overall chip design flow. In this work we introduce a distributed timer that (1) has scalable performance, (2) can be seamless integrable to existing EDA applications, (3) enables transparent resource management, (4) has robust fault-tolerant control. We evaluate the distributed timer using a set of large industry benchmarks on a cluster with 24 nodes. The results show that the proposed timer achieves full accuracy over all designs with high performance and good scalability.
PERCEIVED PHYSICAL LITERACY FOR CHINESE ELDERLY QUESTIONNAIRE DEVELOPMENT: PRELIMINARY VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY

Physical activity (PA) is an essential health prompting behavior. Unfortunately, in China, only about 12% to 40% of older adults met the PA recommendations. To guide the design of future PA interventions and policy-making, innovative solutions are needed to be introduced. Physical literacy, a relatively novel concept, has been recently introduced in the field of older adults’ PA. This concept takes a holistic view of PA behavior, which proposed that a person need to be motivationally, physically, strategically, effectively, socially, and knowledgeably prepared to be and stay physically active. The aim of this study was to develop the Perceived Physical literacy for Chinese Elderly (PPLCE) questionnaire and to establish its reliability and validity. An item pool for the PPLCE was generated from literature and interviews with Chinese older adults. Expert panel reviews and cognitive interviews were applied to establish the face and content validity of the questionnaire. A convenient sample of 388 Chinese older adults was recruited to assess the psychometric properties of the PPLCE. The item-level analysis and exploratory factor analysis resulted in a 46-item self-report measure, consisting with four factors: motivation, physical competence, interaction with environment, sense of self, interaction with others, and knowledge and understanding. The Cronbach’s alpha coefficient and test-retest reliability of the PPLCE were 0.88 and 0.79 respectively. A positive correlation between PPLCE and leisure-time PA was found (r=0.43). The PPLCE has the potential to be used as a valid and reliable measure to assess Chinese older adults’ perceived physical literacy.
Jedi-1 deficiency increases sensory neuron excitability through a non-cell autonomous mechanism

The dorsal root ganglia (DRG) house the primary afferent neurons responsible for somatosensation, including pain. We previously identified Jedi-1 (PEAR1/MEGF12) as a phagocytic receptor expressed by satellite glia in the DRG involved in clearing apoptotic neurons during development. Here, we further investigated the function of this receptor in vivo using Jedi-1 null mice. In addition to satellite glia, we found Jedi-1 expression in perineurial glia and endothelial cells, but not in sensory neurons. We did not detect any morphological or functional changes in the glial cells or vasculature of Jedi-1 knockout mice. Surprisingly, we did observe changes in DRG neuron activity. In neurons from Jedi-1 knockout (KO) mice, there was an increase in the fraction of capsaicin-sensitive cells relative to wild type (WT) controls. Patch-clamp electrophysiology revealed an increase in excitability, with a shift from phasic to tonic action potential firing patterns in KO neurons. We also found alterations in the properties of voltage-gated sodium channel currents in Jedi-1 null neurons. These results provide new insight into the expression pattern of Jedi-1 in the peripheral nervous system and indicate that loss of Jedi-1 alters DRG neuron activity indirectly through an intercellular interaction between non-neuronal cells and sensory neurons.
Temporal versatility from intercalation-based neuromorphic devices exhibiting 150 mV non-volatile operation

Memristors are a promising technology to surpass the limitations of the current silicon complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor architecture via the realization of neuromorphic computing. Here, we demonstrate intercalation-based non-volatile lithium niobite (Li1 – xNbO2) memristors for highly scalable, efficient, and dense neuromorphic circuitry. Volatile, semi-volatile, and non-volatile operation is achieved using a single material, where each operational mode provides a timescale that enables short-term, medium-term, and long-term memory in conjunction with computation-in-memory. The two-terminal non-volatile devices exhibit conductance changes of up to ∼2000% and have inherent non-binary operations proportional to flux linkage, allowing for analog neuromorphic functions mimicking synaptic weight updates. It is shown that Li1 – xNbO2 devices are highly scalable due to the intercalation-based mechanism, with non-volatile operation requiring a mere 150 mV for a 4 μm2 device, the lowest reported operating voltage for an inorganic non-volatile memristor. The programming voltage scales linearly with device size, projecting millivolt operation and attojoule energy consumption for nanoscale devices.
An intergenic “safe haven” region in Aspergillus fumigatus

Aspergillus fumigatus is the most common opportunistic human fungal pathogen responsible for invasive aspergillosis. Gene manipulation is critical for the investigation of A. fumigatus biology and pathogenesis at the molecular level, and it often requires integration of the introduced DNA into the fungal genome. Here we have searched and identified two potential "safe haven" regions, SH1 and SH2, based on A. fumigatus genome annotation and transcriptome data. When a DNA fragment carrying a fluorescent protein gene mNeonGreen (mNG) and a drug selection marker was inserted into SH1 or SH2, the expression of mNeonGreen was easily detected, indicating that SH1 and SH2 are not surpressive genetic regions. We found that insertion of this DNA fragment into SH1 did not cause any significant changes in the expression of neighboring genes. Insertion of this DNA into either SH1 or SH2 did not significantly alter any of the phenotypes that we analyzed comparing to the wild type control. By comparison, transformants with random ectopic integration of the same DNA fragment showed a wider range of variation in mNeonGreen expression and in virulence in an insect infection model. Having identified predetermined "safe-haven" regions in A. fumigatus could therefore help reduce experimental variations and increase reproducibility, as it has been for the C. neoformans field.
Double jeopardy: Intimate partner violence vulnerability among emerging adult women through lenses of race and sexual orientation.

Objective: Intimate partner violence (IPV) remains a public health concern for women age 18-25. While much is known about the IPV risk and experiences of heterosexual women, little is known about t...
Jackiw-Teitelboim supergravity, minimal strings, and matrix models

The author studies a family of two-dimensional Jackiw--Teitelboim (JT) supergravites, and, by using string theory techniques, he gives them a complete definition to all orders in the topological expansion. This construction provides a non--perturbative formulation for the JT supergravity that is well--defined and stable. Furthermore, by using a combination of analytical and numerical methods, the author shows explicitly how non--perturbative physics can be extracted for JT gravity within this framework.
What Determines Where Opportunity Knocks? Political Affiliation in the Selection of Opportunity Zones

We examine the role of political affiliation during the selection of Opportunity Zones, a place-based tax incentive enacted by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. We find governors are on average 7.6% more likely to select a census tract as an Opportunity Zone when the tract’s state representative is a member of the governor’s political party. Further, we find that this effect ranges from 0.0% to 25.6% depending on the state-level information channels governors used to select Opportunity Zones, such as engagement of professional advisors and implementation of public comment procedures. These effects are incremental to local demographic factors that increased the likelihood of selection, such as lower income levels and preceding improvements in local conditions. Analysis of the early response to Opportunity Zones (e.g. commercial real estate transactions, new building permits, and construction employment) shows that initial business investment occurs only in those states where the role of political affiliation was mitigated via the state-level information processes. These results provide evidence relevant for concurrent and future academic literature studying this incentive, for five current Congressional legislative proposals to amend the incentive, and for potential Opportunity Zone investors by informing the extent to which state-level politics and processes affected the implementation of this new incentive.
Self-reported cannabis use and biomarkers of inflammation among adults in the United States

Abstract Background Cannabis is among the most frequently used substance in United States (U.S.). Studies evaluating the association between cannabis use and inflammation in humans have been few and have not explored potential sex-dependent effects. Objective To examine the relationship between self-reported cannabis use and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), Interleukin 6 (IL-6) and fibrinogen. Methods We used Wave 1 of the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) – a nationally representative sample of adults in the U.S. Weighted linear regression models were used to determine associations of self-reported cannabis use with natural log-transformed hs-CRP, IL-6 and fibrinogen, adjusting for sociodemographic and psychosocial factors. Results Self-reported cannabis use, particularly cannabis use within the past 30 days, was associated with lower levels of each biomarker of systemic inflammation, although findings were imprecise. Specifically, in multivariable models, the associations between respondents who self-reported cannabis use in the past 30 days compared to never use was imprecise for hs-CRP (β ​= ​−0.15, 95% confidence interval (CI): −0.32, 0.00), IL-6 (β ​= ​− 0.02, 95% CI: −0.10, 0.05) and fibrinogen (β ​= ​− 0.01, 95% CI: −0.04, 0.02). We did not find that these associations differed significantly by sex. Discussions Data from this nationally representative study suggest potential anti-inflammatory effects of recent cannabis use. Additional studies that biologically measure the THC and CBD concentrations of the cannabis used and employ prospective and or experimental study designs investigate cannabis and inflammation associations are needed.
Evaluation of post-flexible cystoscopy urinary tract infection rates.

Purpose The risk of urinary tract infection (UTI) development after flexible cystoscopy (FC) is not well described. It remains difficult to assess the role of pre-FC antimicrobial prophylaxis to reduce UTI risk. Methods In fall 2017, the urology service at the Providence Veterans Affairs Medical Center implemented routine oral antimicrobial prophylaxis in its outpatient FC clinic. Outpatients were randomly selected for a retrospective chart review to compare patients who received pre-FC antimicrobials (cefuroxime 500 mg tablet or sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim [800 mg/160 mg] tablet) and those who underwent FC prior to fall 2017 and did not receive prophylaxis. The primary outcome was presence of symptomatic UTI within 30 days post FC. Secondary outcomes included symptomatic UTI that met colony-forming unit (CFU)/mL guideline requirements, and UTI treatment received. Potential risk factors for UTI were also assessed. Results A total of 296 patients were included in the final analysis: 139 who did not receive and 157 who received a prophylactic antimicrobial before FC. Rates of symptomatic UTI, symptomatic UTI meeting CFU/mL guideline requirements, and postprocedure treatment for UTI were similar with and without antimicrobial prophylaxis (2.5% vs 2.2% [P > 0.99], 1.9% vs 1.4% [P > 0.99], and 2.5% vs 4.3% [P = 0.53], respectively). The mean number of days from FC to the start of UTI treatment was 7.9 (range, 1-18 days). Age over 65 years was the only risk factor present in all patients with a post-FC UTI, irrespective of antimicrobial prophylaxis. Conclusion The rate of post-FC symptomatic UTI was lower than rates previously described in the literature. The role of antimicrobial prophylaxis prior to FC warrants further exploration.
Freedom: The Overthrowing of the Slave Empires: New York: Pegasus Books, 320 pp., $27.95, ISBN 878-1-64313-206-8, Publication Date: September 2019

The abolition of slavery in the Americas remains undoubtedly one of the great transformations of the nineteenth century, ranking alongside such notable events as the end of colonialism and the birt...
ДОЛГОВОЕ И ДОЛЕВОЕ ФИНАНСИРОВАНИЕ КАК ФАКТОРЫ ДОЛГОСРОЧНОГО ЭКОНОМИЧЕСКОГО РОСТА (Debt and Equity Financing as Factors of Long-Term Economic Growth)

Russian Abstract: Объектом исследования являлись российская экономика и виды деятельности отдельных регионов. Основной целью исследования являлось теоретико-методологическое обоснование механизмов влияния кредитного рынка, отечественного фондового рынка, институциональных инвесторов на долгосрочное экономическое развитие страны. Russian Abstract: The object of the research was the Russian economy and the types of activities of individual regions. The main purpose of the study was the theoretical and methodological substantiation of the mechanisms of influence of the credit market, the domestic stock market, institutional investors on the long-term economic development of the country.
Cross-modal synaptic plasticity in adult primary sensory cortices

Sensory loss leads to widespread adaptation of brain circuits to allow an organism to navigate its environment with its remaining senses, which is broadly referred to as cross-modal plasticity. Such adaptation can be observed even in the primary sensory cortices, and falls into two distinct categories: recruitment of the deprived sensory cortex for processing the remaining senses, which we term 'cross-modal recruitment', and experience-dependent refinement of the spared sensory cortices referred to as 'compensatory plasticity.' Here we will review recent studies demonstrating that cortical adaptation to sensory loss involves LTP/LTD and homeostatic synaptic plasticity. Cross-modal synaptic plasticity is observed in adults, hence cross-modal sensory deprivation may be an effective way to promote plasticity in adult primary sensory cortices.
Abstract W P110: Preexisting Cerebral Small Vessel Disease Increases Cortical Infarct Volume after Distal Middle Cerebral Artery Occlusion

Background: Cerebral small vessel disease (cSVD) predominantly affects the subcortical white matter. However, little is known about its impact on cortical ischemic susceptibility. We sought to assess whether preexisting cSVD is predictive of the cortical infarct volume following middle cerebral artery (MCA) branch occlusion and whether it relates to a worse 90-day outcome. Methods: We analyzed data from 117 consecutive patients with MCA branch occlusion as documented by admission computed tomography (CT)-angiography. To avoid potential confounding, we excluded patients with subcortical infarction. Baseline clinical, laboratory, and outcome data as well as final cortical infarct volumes on follow-up imaging were retrospectively analyzed from a prospectively collected database. Severity of cSVD was assessed on admission CT using the van Swieten scale (VSS), grading the white matter lesions on a 3-point scale from 0 (absent) to 4 (severe). We also dichotomized the degree of cSVD (VSS 0-2 [absent to moderate]...
Wideband very fast set-on receiver

A very fast, high instantaneous bandwidth set-on receiver has been developed by replacing traditional silicon components with digital and monolithic GaAs components. It consists of an instantaneous frequency measurement module, a synthesizer module (serrodyne), and limiter filter modules. The receiver exhibits a 60-ns response time over a 180-MHz bandwidth while operating in the 7-11-GHz band. Very fast set-on receivers such as this one can track and jam frequency agile or phase agile radars. >
Evidence for conservation of ferritin sequences among plants and animals and for a transit peptide in soybean.

Ferritin is a large multisubunit protein that stores iron in plants, animals, and bacteria. In animals, the protein is mainly cytoplasmic and is highly conserved, while in plants ferritin is found in chloroplasts and other plastids. Ferritin is synthesized in plants as a larger precursor of the mature subunit. There is no sequence information for ferritin from plants, except an NH2-terminal peptide of 35 residues which shows little similarity to any known ferritin sequences or transit peptides (Laulhere, J. P., Laboure, A. M., and Briat, J. F. (1989) J. Biol. Chem. 264, 3629-3635). To understand the genetic origin and the location of ferritin synthesis in plant cells, as well as the structure of ferritin from plants, we have sequenced both CNBr peptides from pea seed ferritin and nucleotides of a soybean hypocotyl ferritin cDNA, identified using a frog ferritin cDNA as a probe. Comparison of pea and soybean sequences showed an identity of 89%. Alignment of the plant ferritin sequences with animal ferritins showed 55-65% sequence identity in the common regions. However, a peptide of 28 amino acids extended the NH2 terminus of the plant ferritins. Furthermore, the cDNA encoded additional amino acids which appear to be a transit peptide. None of the sequences in soybean ferritin were found in the tobacco chloroplast genome, suggesting, as does the transit peptide, a nuclear location of ferritin gene(s) in plants. Plant ferritin mRNA is 400-500 nucleotides longer than animal ferritin mRNAs, a difference accounted for in part by the extra peptides encoded. The size of soybean ferritin mRNA was constant in different tissues but expression varied in different tissues (leaf greater than hypocotyl). Thus, higher plants and animal ferritins display sequence homology and differential tissue expression. An ancient, common progenitor apparently gave rise to contemporary eukaryotic ferritins after specific modifications, e.g. transport to plasmids.
Who Scientists Are Now

The Scientific Life. A Moral History of a Late Modern Vocation. By Steven Shapin. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 2008. 486 pp. $29, £15. ISBN 9780226750248. Shapin9s account of the development and current practice of the profession of science spotlights the researchers in the trenches rather than the big thinkers.
Future of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet

A collapse of the Antarctic Ice Sheets would raise the sea level by 5 meters and, depending on how quickly it occurred, would pose an enormous threat to global economy and ecology. How stable are these volumes of ice? In his Perspective, Bindschadler discusses recent efforts to model the behavior of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet on the basis of data on past ice-sheet movement, including results reported in the same issue by Wingham et al . Consideration of these past data suggests that the ice sheets will remain stable for the next 4000 to 7000 years, but an accurate assessment awaits more data on ice-sheet history and better understanding of ice-sheet dynamics.