cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
More than half his mind: John Donne’s Pseudo-Martyr and the matter of sovereignty

The difficulty of reading Pseudo-Martyr, Donne’s tract in defence of English Catholics taking the Oath of Allegiance, has allowed certain generalizations about it to persist without receiving much ...
Autologous Stem Cell Transplant for Waldenström Macroglobulinemia in the Era of Novel Therapies: Still an Underutilized Tool?

Background Waldenstrom macroglobulinemia (WM) is a rare and incurable lymphoproliferative disease. The advent of novel therapies such as proteasome inhibitors and monoclonal antibodies has expanded the therapeutic armamentarium for treatment of WM. Due to the rare nature of the disease, most reported studies on the use of autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT) in WM are small and retrospective in nature. Since the advent of novel agents, few studies have reported whether these agents influence the disease course in the ASCT setting. Herein we present outcomes of patients with WM who underwent ASCT at three Mayo Clinic sites. Methods Records of all patients with WM who underwent ASCT between 8/2005 and 11/2017 were reviewed. Time-to-event analyses were performed from ASCT using the Kaplan-Meier method. Response criteria from the 6th International WM Workshop were used. Results Patient characteristics are described in Table 1. Two patients had large cell transformation; one prior to ASCT and one post-ASCT. The overall response rate to transplant was 100% (3 complete responses [CR], 8 very good partial responses [VGPR] and 6 partial responses [PR]). After a median follow-up of 58 months, the median progression free survival (PFS) after ASCT was 66 months and the median overall survival (OS) was not reached (NR). The relapse rate was 65% (11 out of 17 patients relapsed). The treatment related mortality was 0% and relapse mortality was 12%. The 2 deaths in the cohort were the patients who had large cell transformation and they died at 18 and 25 m post-ASCT, respectively. The treatment immediately prior to transplant, irrespective of the use of rituximab (R), did not impact the PFS (median PFS 47 m with prior R v 66 m without prior R, p=0.82, Fig. 1A). Similarly, prior exposure to a bortezomib (V)-based regimen did not impact the PFS (median NR v. 47 m, p=0.19 respectively, Fig. 1B). Achieving ≥VGPR after ASCT did not result in superior PFS compared to patients who achieved a PR (47 m vs. NR, p=0.59, respectively, Fig. 1C). Patients who had ASCT after >2 lines of therapy had an inferior PFS compared to patients who had ASCT ≤2 lines of therapy (41 m vs. 112 m, p=0.03, respectively, Fig 1D). Patients with large cell transformation at any point, had inferior PFS after transplant compared to those who did not (10m vs. 66m, p Conclusions ASCT for patients with WM is a safe and efficacious treatment modality with an ORR of 100% and affords eligible patients a median treatment-free interval of 4 years. The use of V or R prior to ASCT does not impact the depth of response or PFS after ASCT. To obtain the maximum PFS benefit, ASCT should be performed earlier in the disease course, prior to receiving more than 2 lines of therapy.
Role of Metastatic Site Irradiation in Pediatric Patients With Metastatic Ewing Sarcoma.

Background The use of radiation therapy to treat metastases in patients with metastatic Ewing sarcoma (MES) has been controversial and variable. The authors report outcomes and patterns of failure after metastatic site irradiation (MSI). Procedure A total of 27 pediatric patients with MES were treated with chemotherapy and received radiation therapy to their primary site. Ten patients additionally received MSI, which consisted of whole-lung irradiation (WLI) in patients with lung metastases. Metastatic sites were followed from diagnosis to the first relapse. Results Median follow-up was 29 months. Seventy-eight percent of patients relapsed. Two-year progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival with and without MSI were 30 versus 29% (log rank P=0.38) and 60 versus 70% (log rank P=0.11), respectively. The median time to relapse among patients who relapsed was 19.5 versus 12.3 months for those receiving MSI versus those who did not (P=0.04).Seven of 20 (35%) patients with lung metastases received WLI±other MSI. Two-year PFS with and without MSI was 43% versus 23% (log rank P=0.02). Among patients with a complete response to computed tomography, 5 of 14 (36%) patients received MSI. Two-year PFS with and without MSI was 60% versus 33% (log rank P=0.04).In the cohort of patients who relapsed, among all metastatic sites at diagnosis, the disease recurred at 15% of irradiated sites and 31% of unirradiated sites. On logistic regression, no factors were statistically associated with increased risk of recurrence at initial sites of metastases. Conclusions Relapses frequently occur at sites of prior unirradiated disease in patients with MES. WLI may improve 2-year PFS, regardless of chemotherapy response. Further investigation of the role of MSI is warranted.
Chapter 10 – BROWNIAN MOTION

Publisher Summary This chapter reviews the Brownian motion. Certain special classes of stochastic processes have undergone extensive mathematical development. The Brownian motion process is the most renowned and historically the first which was thoroughly investigated. Small particles execute Brownian motion owing to collisions with the molecules in the gas or liquid in which they are suspended. The chapter discusses the joint probabilities for Brownian motion. Using the property of the continuity of paths, the chapter shows how to calculate various interesting probability expressions of the Brownian motion. The first computation illustrates the use of the so-called reflection principle. Also, there are fundamental connections between Brownian motion processes and several different types of stochastic processes arising in physics, biology, and economics.
Isolation gowns as a potential work hazard

Objectives Isolation gowns are used as a barrier to bacterial transmission from patient to provider and vice versa. If an isolation gown is ineffective, the patient and provider have a potential breach of safety and increased infection risk. This study compared the bacterial permeability of differently rated, commonly uses isolation gowns to assess their effectiveness in preventing simulated bacterial transmittance, and thus contamination, from patient to provider. Methods Serial dilutions of Staphylococcus epidermidis in sterile saline were applied to a simulated skin surface. Unrated and Levels 1 through 4 non-sterile isolation gowns contacted the solution, simulating patient contact. Both sides of the contaminated gowns were then cultured on blood agar by rolling a sterile swab across the gown and evenly inoculating the culture plate. Colony counts from inside and outside of the gowns were compared. Separately, S. epidermidis was placed on a sample of each gown and scanning electron microscopy was used to visualize the contaminated gowns' physical structure. Results Mean bacterial transmittance from outside of the gown (i.e. patient contact side) to inside of the gowns (i.e. provider clothing or skin side) based on gown rating was as follows: unrated: 50.4% (SD 9.0%); Level 1: 39.7% (SD 11.2%); Level 2: 16.3% (SD 10.3%); Level 3: 0.3% (SD 0.8%); Level 4: 0.0% (SD 0.0%). Scanning electron microscope imaging of unrated, Level 1, and Level 2 gowns revealed gown pore sizes much larger than the bacteria. The Welch one-way analysis of variance statistic showed significant difference dependent on gown-level rating. Conclusions Unrated, Level 1, and Level 2 isolation gowns do not provide effective bacterial isolation barriers when bacteria like S. epidermidis make contact with one side of the gown material. Not studied, but implied, is that unrated and lower rated isolation gowns would be as or even more physically permeable to virus particles, which are much smaller than bacteria.
Far-Infrared Spectral Energy Distributions of Embedded Protostars and Dusty Galaxies: I. Theory for Spherical Sources

We present analytic radiative transfer solutions for the spectra of unresolved, spherically symmetric, centrally heated, dusty sources. We find that the dust thermal spectrum possesses scaling relations that provide a natural classification for a broad range of sources, from low-mass protostars to dusty galaxies. In particular, we find that, given our assumptions, spectral energy distributions (SEDs) can be characterized by two distance-independent parameters, the luminosity-to-mass ratio, $L/M$, and the surface density, $\Sigma$, for a set of two functions, namely, the density profile and the opacity curve. The goal is to use SEDs as a diagnostic tool in inferring the large-scale physical conditions in protostellar and extragalactic sources, and ultimately, evolutionary parameters. Our approach obviates the need to use SED templates in the millimeter to far-infrared region of the spectrum; this is a common practice in the extragalactic community that relies on observed correlations established at low redshift that may not necessarily extend to high redshift. Further, we demarcate the limited region of parameter space in which density profiles can be inferred from the SED, which is of particular import in the protostellar community as competing theories of star formation are characterized by different density profiles. The functionality of our model is unique in that in provides for a self-consistent analytic solution that we have validated by comparison with a well-tested radiative transfer code (DUSTY) to find excellent agreement with numerical results over a parameter space that spans low-mass protostars to ultra-luminous infrared galaxies (ULIRGS).
Protein Cargo Assessment through Residue Alterations

MotivationThe transport of proteins plays a crucial role in the cellular phenotype. Changes in the protein targeting sequence can result in missing protein delivery to the right destination and at the right time, and can disrupt various cellular pathways. Given the importance of single residue change(s) in the protein targeting sequence we developed a missing computational method. ResultsBy taking into account various protein features like conservation, protein modifications, charge, isoelectric effect and biochemical properties of peptides, the method, TransSite, assess the impact of mutations on the protein transportation. We applied this method to big human (cancer proteins) and nonhuman data, and discovered, in both cases, several phenotype related proteins harbour recurring mutations in their targeting sequences. Availabilityhttps://github.com/AhmedArslan/TransSite Contactaarslan@staford.edu Supplementary informationSupplementary data are available at # online.
Mechanosynthesis of a Coamorphous Formulation of Creatine with Citric Acid and Humidity-Mediated Transformation into a Cocrystal

Creatine is recognized as a dietary staple among athletes, with two supplement formulations currently available on the United States market: creatine monohydrate and creatine hydrochloride. Creatin...
Physician documentation matters. Using natural language processing to predict mortality in sepsis

Abstract Background/objective Sepsis remains without good outcome prediction. Technological advances, specifically, natural language processing (NLP), has an opportunity to approach sepsis mortality prediction in a novel way. Methods Using the MIMIC III dataset, patients diagnosed with sepsis from 2008 to 2013 had physician progress notes analyzed using NLP. Researchers utilized concepts from analysis to build a model to predict for in-hospital-mortality, using notes in the first 24 hours of a patient admission. This model was retrospectively validated on septic admissions to University of California Irvine Medical Center (UCIMC) from 2013 to 2018 and compared to SOFA and qSOFA. Results An 80-concept model was developed and validated on 7117 admissions to UCIMC. For severe sepsis, an Area Under Curve or AUC of 0.687 (95% CI 0.618–0.748) was demonstrated which was greater than SOFA at 0.571 (0.497–0.643). Additionally, for simple sepsis the model demonstrated an AUC of 0.696 (0.649–0.738) which was greater than qSOFA at 0.590 (0.545–0.638). Conclusions Physician clinical judgement extracted from notes using NLP has greater performance in predicting mortality and survival in sepsis compared to structured data used in SOFA and qSOFA.
INFLUENCER CULTURE & ALGORITHMIC APARTHEID ON GAY INSTAGRAM

Research on social media influencers has concluded that influencers’ status is always contingent upon meeting followers’ demand for specific “performances-of-self,” as well as making themselves and their content available and visible. However, few scholars have addressed the role that algorithms play in determining which influencers might be made visible, and therefore the manner by which platform design predetermines who may attain influencer status. This project seeks to address this gap in this research by providing critical ethnographic insights into what is colloquially referred to as “gay Instagram.” Throughout a three-year period, I maintained an Instagram account through which I observed trends in the production and consumption of homoerotic content utilizing a variety of methods. Of these, “algorithmic audits” provided the most insight into the manner by which algorithmic and social biases compound one another to hyper-visibilize a small minority of homoerotic content creators. Once Instagram has determined that a user is interested in homoerotic content, that user can expect the overrepresentation of white, mostly American Instagays on their “explore” page, in the promoted content featured on their feed, and so on. In effect, determinations of the most desirable homoerotic content are made through a variety of selection biases that make access to visibility an unequal enterprise on Instagram. Through these biases, white elites in Western metropolises are made more visible to Instagram users, even when others could conceivably fulfill their same representational function, troubling the notion that influencer status can be attained through an individual’s “labor” without algorithmic assistance.
The Drama of Schooling: The Schooling of Drama

Schooling is a preparation to participate in the social drama, both as an individual and as a community. Using the analogy of drama this book offers fresh insights into the nature of teaching, learning and schooling. While accommodating critics from both left and right the author goes beyond them to offer a script for restoring the schools to their human and social purposes.
Conclusion: A Discipline Defined by Doing

This chapter takes a bird’s eye view of the disciplinary landscape of biophysics in contemporary China by summarizing the major characteristics and the unique trajectory it underwent in twentieth-century China. Biophysics is a field of science that is broadly conceived with an amorphous definition, i.e. “defined by doing.” Because of its inherent flexibility, biophysics is an ideal candidate to examine how supra-scientific considerations shape the varying content and context of this scientific discipline. I argue that biophysics offered a good vantage point to analyze how factors in different historical and cultural circumstances enabled the formation of science. The preceding chapters showed that biophysics gained traction in the PRC because its leaders devised strategies to gradually integrate the lives of ordinary people with the political and social developments of its time. It is the intersections between biophysics and the state, science and politics, disciplines and missions, cell biology and physical intervention that make biophysics a useful analytical lens to assess the history of science and technology in contemporary China.
Neurotoxic effects of low doses of glutamate on purified rat retinal ganglion cells.

PURPOSE To determine whether low concentrations of glutamate induce cell death in purified rat retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). METHODS Rat retinal ganglion cells were purified from dissociated retinal cells by a modified two-step panning method and were cultured in serum-free medium containing neurotrophic factors and forskolin. Survival of RGCs after exposure to glutamate, with or without glutamate receptor antagonists, was measured by calcein-acetoxymethyl ester staining after 3 days in culture. To visualize calcium signals, RGCs were loaded with the calcium indicator dye, fluo-3 acetoxymethyl ester, and fluorescence was measured by laser scanning confocal microscope. Electrophysiological properties of RGCs were examined by using the whole-cell, patch-clamp technique. RESULTS The application of increasing concentrations (5-500 microM) of glutamate caused a dose-dependent increase in RGC death after 3 days in culture. Neurotoxic effects of low doses of glutamate were totally blocked by a specific alpha-amino-3-dihydro-5-methyl-isoxazol-4-propionic acid-kainate (AMPA-KA) receptor antagonist, 6,7-dinitroquinoxaline-2,3-dione (DNQX), but not by a specific N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor antagonist, 2-amino-5-phosphonovalerate (APV). In addition, calcium imaging and patch-clamp recordings showed that intracellular calcium accumulation and glutamate-evoked inward currents were completely blocked by DNQX but not by APV. CONCLUSIONS Low doses of glutamate can activate AMPA-KA receptors in RGCs, which causes increases in intracellular calcium and decreases in cell survival. This is the first report to show the functional role of calcium-permeable AMPA-KA receptors in cultured RGCs.
What do we Know about Stock Market “Efficiency”?

This paper surveys the development of the term “efficiency” in the context of security prices and reviews the principal definitions of “efficiency” that have been proposed, in terms of their likelihood of forming a basis for guiding and evaluating empirical research on the relation between information and prices. It asks what is presently knowable about efficiency, including the conclusions that can and cannot reliably be drawn from the evidence, given the present state of our knowledge about equilibrium security prices. It concludes with a cautious view on the limited reliable evidence concerning “efficiency”.
The Last-in-Time Marriage Presumption

The typical scenario for the last-in-time marriage presumption is not as unusual as one might expect: A husband (or wife) has unexpectedly died, and the bereaved surviving spouse is in the process of bringing a legal proceed ing that may include a probate action, a wrongful death action, a suit for social security benefits, a workers' compensation action, a life insurance action, or another legal action for related compensatory, probate, or insurance benefits. However, during the pendency of these actions a former wife comes forward, claiming that she has never been divorced from her deceased spouse and that she, rather than the subsequent wife, should recover in any legal proceeding as the legal wife. Which wife should prevail? To many, the initial conclusion might be that because American family law in the vast majority of states prohibits bigamy and other plural marriages,1 the first-in-time spouse should recover all the proceeds. But this conclusion would be wrong. The last-in-time marriage presumption is based upon "one of the strongest presumptions known to the law" that an existing marriage, once shown, is valid. A subsequent marriage, therefore, raises the very strong presumption
On Hereditarily Small Sets in ZF

We show in (the usual set theory without Choice) that for any set X, the collection of sets Y such that each element of the transitive closure of is strictly smaller in size than X (the collection of sets hereditarily smaller than X) is a set. This result has been shown by Jech in the case (where the collection under consideration is the set of hereditarily countable sets).
The Photolysis of Dimethylketazine Vapor

The photolysis of dimethylketazine in the gas phase produces acetonitrile, N-methyldimethylketimine, and minor amounts of ethane. Variation in the wave length of radiation, intensity of radiation, and the effect of added oxygen and nitrogen indicate that the intramolecular reaction, (CH3)2CN-NC(CH3)2 + h ν CH3CN + (CH3)2CNCH3, is the predominant path of the photodecomposition. The production of ethane is enhanced at short wave lengths and is perhaps the result of a competing primary reaction step. Deactivation of the initial excited state is possible to some extent with added nitrogen indicating an appreciable lifetime of this intermediate. The quantum yields of decomposition, very much greater at shorter wave lengths, and the increased importance of ethane under these same conditions suggest that several excited states participate in the overall decomposition mechanism.
Oral Escherichia coli Colonization Factor Antigen I Fimbriae Ameliorate Arthritis via IL-35, Not IL-27

A Salmonella therapeutic expressing enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli colonization factor Ag I (CFA/I) fimbriae protects against collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) by eliciting two regulatory T cell (Treg) subsets: TGF-β-producing Foxp3(-)CD39(+)CD4(+) T cells and IL-10-producing Foxp3(+)CD39(+)CD4(+) T cells. However, it is unclear whether CFA/I fimbriae alone are protective and whether other regulatory cytokines are involved, especially in the context for the EBI3-sharing cytokines, Treg-derived IL-35 and APC-derived IL-27, both capable of suppressing Th17 cells and regulating autoimmune diseases. Subsequent evaluation revealed that a single oral dose of purified, soluble CFA/I fimbriae protected against CIA as effectively as did Salmonella-CFA/I and found that Foxp3(+)CD39(+)CD4(+) T cells were the source of secreted IL-35, whereas IL-27 production by CD11c(+) cells was inhibited. Inquiring into their relevance, CFA/I fimbriae-treated IL-27R-deficient (WSX-1(-/-)) mice were equally protected against CIA as were wild-type mice, suggesting a limited role for IL-27. In contrast, CFA/I fimbriae-mediated protection was abated in EBI3(-/-) mice, accompanied by the loss of TGF-β- and IL-10-producing Tregs. Adoptive transfer of C57BL/6 CD39(+)CD4(+) T cells to EBI3(-/-) mice with concurrent CFA/I plus IL-35 treatment effectively stimulated Tregs suppressing proinflammatory collagen II-specific Th cells. In contrast, recipients cotransferred with C57BL/6 and EBI3(-/-) CD39(+)CD4(+) T cells and treated with CFA/I plus IL-35 were not protected, implicating the importance of endogenous IL-35 for conferring CFA/I-mediated protection. Thus, CFA/I fimbriae stimulate IL-35 required for the coinduction of TGF-β and IL-10.
Guanxi and Gospel: Conversion to Seventh-day Adventism in Contemporary China

This article studies the symbiotic relationship between social networks and Christian conversion among some Seventh-day Adventists in contemporary China. Drawing on the Chinese Adventist testimonies, I argue that the longstanding kinship, friendship, and discipleship networks (guanxi 關係) are fundamental to the Adventist conversion process. This extensive web of human relationships helps sustain potential converts’ interest in Christianity, nurture their understanding of Adventism, and reinforce their efforts to cultivate a distinctive Christian selfhood and identity in Adventist terms. These relationships also give meaning to the Adventist congregational practices such as Sabbath observance and healthy lifestyle, insofar as the converts rely on the relational resources of the family and church for support. In addition to the positive connection between social mobility and conversion, these stories reveal the challenge of downward social mobility when the converts are confronted with the tension between adhering to Adventist doctrinal practices and pursuing higher education in secular institutions. Lastly, this study addresses the function of Christian publication in the conversion process. Through the publication of their conversion testimonies, the converts seek to make Adventism easily accessible to ordinary people by showing the relation between Adventist theology and the daily lives of Christians. Resume Cet article analyse les relations etroites entre conversion au christianisme et reseaux sociaux parmi des adventistes du septieme jour en Chine contemporaine. En me basant sur les temoignages d’adventistes chinois, je defends l’idee que les liens familiaux, amicaux et les reseaux de fideles (guanxi 關係) jouent un role fondamental dans le processus de conversion adventiste. Ce reseau etendu de relations sociales permet d’entretenir l’interet des potentiels convertis pour le christianisme, il nourrit leur connaissance de l’adventisme et conforte leurs efforts pour construire une identite et un moi chretiens distinctifs dans les termes definis par l’adventisme. Ces relations donnent aussi un sens aux pratiques ecclesiales adventistes, comme le respect du sabbat ou un mode de vie sain, dans la mesure ou les convertis peuvent s’appuyer sur les ressources relationnelles de la famille et de l’eglise pour trouver un soutien. Ces recits soulignent le lien positif entre mobilite sociale et conversion. Ils montrent aussi que les convertis font face au risque de mobilite sociale descendante, lorsqu’ils se trouvent pris en tension entre leur adhesion aux positions doctrinales de l’adventisme et la poursuite d’etudes au sein d’institutions seculieres. Enfin, cette etude s’interesse au role des publications chretiennes dans le processus de conversion. A travers la publication de leurs temoignages de conversion, les convertis cherchent a rendre l’adventisme accessible a tout le monde, en montrant la relation entre la theologie adventiste et la vie quotidienne des chretiens.
Optimised inner boundary shapes in circular rings under diametral compression

Using a method developed by the authors, the configuration of the inside boundary of circular rings, subjected to diametral compression, has been optimised, keeping cleared the space enclosed by the original circular inside boundary. The range of diameters studied was 0.33ID/OD0.7. In comparison with circular rings of the same ID/OD, the stress concentrations have been reduced by about 30%, the weight has been reduced by about 10% and coefficients of efficiency of about 0–96 have been attained. The maximum values of compressive and tensile stresses on the edge of the hole, are approximately equal, there are practically no gradients of stress along the edge of the hole, and sharp corners exhibit zero stress. The geometries for each ID/OD design are given in detail.
The crystalline constraints on thermal expansion in NaZr2P3O12 (NZP)

NaZr2 P30~2 belongs to a very large new family of low thermal expansion materials [1-3] known as NZP or CTP and is a parent phase of this family. In 1979, Boilot et al. [4] while studying the ionic conductivity behaviour of the Nal+xZrzP3 xSixO~2 system also reported the thermal expansion and showed that it changes from negative to near zero and then to positive as x increases. This prompted Roy and coworkers [1, 2] in 1983 to undertake a systematic study of the thermal expansion behaviour of these materials in order to find new zero expansion materials. Since then, several new compositions with near zero expansion have been developed by these researchers [5, 6]. The low thermal expansion behaviour of the NZP family of materials is attributed to its unique crystal structure which was first solved by Hagman and Kriekegaard [7] in 1968. Alamo and Roy [8] showed that the NZP structure allows various ionic substitutions at different lattice sites resulting in numerous new compositions, moreover, several crystalline solutions can also be prepared by partial ionic substitutions in this family. In a powder sample of a crystalline material, the individual crystals are free to expand in any manner without any constraints. However, in a sintered ceramic body, the individual crystals or grains are bonded/linked during sintering reactions, and thus a constraint is placed upon an individual crystal/grain by the crystals/grains surrounding it. This may alter the thermal expansion on a macroscopic level. It is hypothesized that the lattice parameters of a sintered sample will be different from those of a powdersample at low temperatures and the same at high temperatures. In the present study, an attempt has been made to investigate this "constraint effect" on the thermal expansion of NaZrzP3012. For this purpose, NZP was synthesized in powder and sintered form by the sol-gel method. Thermal expansion behaviour was determined by high-temperature X-ray diffractometry and classical dilatometry. This study is quite important because (i) the NZP family of materials has generated a lot of interest among ceramists for its potential for thermal shock resistant applications, (ii) if there is a substantial constraint effect on the thermal expansion of materials, it would add another factor in order to understand and interpret the thermal expansion mechanism of various materials, and (iii) it will resolve the problem of using a sintered or powdered sample for high-temperature X-ray studies. NZP has rhombohedral symmetry and belongs to the R3c space group. Upon heating, the lattice expands in the c-direction and contracts in the a-direction. To
34-year-old woman with abdominal pain and blood-streaked diarrhea.

R c a C ( M C ( d m Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN (A.B.). A 34-year-old woman presented to the emergency department for evaluation of a 12-hour history of sudden severe epigastric pain and bilateral leg weakness during exercise associated with nausea and vomiting. She experienced 2 episodes of diarrhea; 1 of which was blood streaked. The patient reported not eating or drinking much that day. She described a few previous less severe episodes of abdominal pain and diarrhea since childhood associated with certain foods. She denied fever or chills but reported a 5-lb intentional weight loss during the past month. She denied changes in her appetite, myalgia, arthralgia, or vision changes. She had no recent travel, sick contacts, or antibiotic drug use. She denied current pregnancy. The patient was previously healthy; her medical history included recurrent urinary tract infections and infertility, with a previous artificial insemination attempt resulting in a missed abortion. Current medication use includes clomiphene and progesterone vaginal suppository. At presentation, her vital signs were as follows: temperature, 36.9°C; heart rate, 69 beats/min; respiratory rate, 16 breaths/min; and blood pressure, 98/60 mm Hg. On examination, the patient appeared uncomfortable but was in no acute distress. Her abdomen was soft and nondistended, with positive bowel sounds. She had generalized tenderness in all 4 quadrants, with absence of guarding and rebound tenderness. Her mucous membranes appeared dry. Lower extremity strength was normal. Results of a urine pregnancy test obtained on arrival to the emergency department were negative.
Defectiveness of avian myelocytomatosis virus MC29: isolation of long-term nonproducer cultures and analysis of virus-specific polypeptide synthesis.

Abstract Nonproducer (NP) clones of chicken and quail cells transformed by avian myelocytomatosis virus MC29-A were isolated in focus and agar colony assays. Several quail MC29 NP clones were developed into long-term cultures. They have been kept in continuous culture for 6 months and about 35 passages. They do not release virus particles detectable by [ 3 H]uridine incorporation or reverse transcriptase assay. Rescue of transforming virus is possible at any time by superinfection of the NP cell clones with avian leukosis viruses such as Rous associated virus type 1 or ring-necked pheasant virus (RPV). [ 35 S]Methionine pulse-labeled protein extracts of NP and of superinfected MC29 transformed cell cultures were analyzed by immune precipitation and subsequent sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. In NP cells the common precursor polypeptide for the structural proteins of avian RNA tumor viruses (pr76) is not synthesized. Instead, a major polypeptide with a molecular weight of 110,000–120,000 was observed (MC29–110K). In superinfected cells, both MC29–110K and pr76 are synthesized. The MC29–110K polypeptide was precipitated by an antiserum against whole virus (PR RSV-B) as well as by a monospecific anti-p27 serum. It was not precipitated by an anti-glycoprotein serum. Pulse-chase experiments showed that the MC29–110K polypeptide turned over at a rate comparable to that of pr76. However, none of the major structural proteins (p27, p19, p15) could be detected after the chase. Competition radioimmune assays demonstrated that protein extracts of NP MC29 cells contain inhibitory activity for precipitation of p19 and p27, but not for p15.
Neuropathy associated with chronic low level exposure to n-hexane

Concentrations of n-hexane greater than the threshold limit value (TLV) of 500 ppm are known to produce peripheral neuropathy. This report describes the case of a worker who developed peripheral neuropathy, with a histologic pattern characteristic of n-hexane toxicity, after chronic on-the-job exposure to n-hexane at concentrations less than 450 ppm. We suggest that the current TLV for n-hexane be reevaluated.
Dynamic and Steady‐State Injection of Electron‐Hole Plasma in p‐Type InSb

Potential measurements as a function of time and space show in detail the passage of an injected electron‐hole plasma front, and the eventual establishment of a nonequilibrium steady state in a long bar of p‐type InSb at 77°K. The front is preceded by a depletion layer which vanishes as plasma reaches the anode. Thereafter the current, with the voltage held constant, grows exponentially until just before the steady‐state plasma density is reached. These results are compared with a theory by Dean and by Ancker‐Johnson, Robbins, and Chang describing plasma injection into a semiconductor with deep traps. The measured front arrival time as a function of constant applied voltage agrees satisfactorily with Dean's prediction. Four observations are at variance with his theory: the time constants of the exponential current growth are density‐dependent instead of being independent as predicted; the current at the front arrival is not a function of voltage as his theory states; the electric field behind the front is...
More Affected = More Neglected Amplification of Bias in Advice to the Unidentified and Many

Professionals often give advice to many anonymous people. For example, financial analysts give public recommendations to trade stock, and medical experts formulate clinical guidelines that affect many patients. Normatively, awareness of the advice-recipient’s identity should not influence the quality of advice, and when advice affects a larger number of people, if anything, greater care should be taken to ensure its accuracy. Yet, contrary to this logic and consistent with research on the identifiable victim effect, results from two experimental studies demonstrate that advisors confronting a financial conflict of interest give more biased advice to multiple than single recipients and to unidentified than identified single recipients. Increased intensity of feelings toward single identified recipients appears to drive this process; advisors experience more empathy and appear to have greater awareness and motivation to reduce bias in their advice when the recipient is single and identified.
Remote Fault Diagnosis System of Ultrahigh Speed Grinding Based on Multi-Agent

A remote fault diagnosis method for ultrahigh speeding grinding based on multi-agent is presented. The general faults of ultrahigh speed grinding are analyzed and diagnosis model based on multi-agent is established, the dialogue layer, problem decomposition layer, control layer and problem solving layer in the process of diagnosis are studied and the knowledge reasoning model of fault diagnosis is set up based case-based reasoning (CBR) combining rule-based reasoning (RBR). Based on theoretical research, a remote fault diagnosis system of ultrahigh speed grinding is developed. Results of the system running prove the theory is correctness and the technology is feasibility.
Novel configurations and approaches for polymer electro-optic devices

We present recent developments in etchless fabrication techniques for defining low-loss waveguides in polymers. Photobleached waveguides with optical propagation loss equal to the inherent loss of the core materials have been fabricated, as well as Mach-Zehnder modulators with 4.5 volt driving voltage and fiber-to-fiber insertion loss of 8 dB. In terms of new configurations, a novel linearized directional coupler modulator that has a 10 dB enhancement in the dynamic range compared to conventional Mach-Zehnder modulators is presented. We report on the design and fabrication of polymer digital optical switches with switching voltages of 7 volts and extinction ratios greater than 20 dB. Simultaneous serrodyne frequency shifting and high-frequency phase modulation in a polymer phase modulator are demonstrated in order to simplify the setup required to implement two-color heterodyne ranging. Finally, we propose implementations of optical signal processors based on polymer optical delay lines, couplers, and electrooptic modulators, and discuss their applications to optical signal processing.
MHCI Requires MEF2 Transcription Factors to Negatively Regulate Synapse Density during Development and in Disease

Major histocompatibility complex class I (MHCI) molecules negatively regulate cortical connections and are implicated in neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism spectrum disorders and schizophrenia. However, the mechanisms that mediate these effects are unknown. Here, we report a novel MHCI signaling pathway that requires the myocyte enhancer factor 2 (MEF2) transcription factors. In young rat cortical neurons, MHCI regulates MEF2 in an activity-dependent manner and requires calcineurin-mediated activation of MEF2 to limit synapse density. Manipulating MEF2 alone alters synaptic strength and GluA1 content, but not synapse density, implicating activity-dependent MEF2 activation as critical for MHCI signaling. The MHCI-MEF2 pathway identified here also mediates the effects of a mouse model of maternal immune activation (MIA) on connectivity in offspring. MHCI and MEF2 levels are higher, and synapse density is lower, on neurons from MIA offspring. Most important, dysregulation of MHCI and MEF2 is required for the MIA-induced reduction in neural connectivity. These results identify a previously unknown MHCI-calcineurin-MEF2 signaling pathway that regulates the establishment of cortical connections and mediates synaptic defects caused by MIA, a risk factor for autism spectrum disorders and schizophrenia.
Rabies vaccine standards: Comparison of the 5th and 6th WHO international reference standards to the USDA veterinary reference standard

Ensuring rabies vaccines are potent and effective is paramount in preventing transmission of this deadly disease and safeguarding public health. Efficacy of human and veterinary vaccines is ensured by evaluating relative potency estimates of the vaccine compared to a rabies reference standard using the National Institutes of Health (NIH) test. Reference vaccines are based on the International Standard for Rabies Vaccine provided by the World Health Organization (WHO). A comparison study was conducted to determine the relative potency of the 5th WHO, 6th WHO, and United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) 08-14 reference standards using the NIH test. Results from the study demonstrate that the 6th WHO reference standard is approximately twice as potent as the 5th WHO reference when reconstituted to contain 1 IU per ml. Based on these results, the Center for Veterinary Biologics (CVB) doubled the reconstitution volume of USDA veterinary reference 08-14 from 13 ml to 26 ml, for an initial use dilution of 0.7 IU per ml for use by veterinary biologics manufacturers in the NIH test. This study emphasizes the importance of reference standard calibration for use in the National Institutes of Health test.
Intraabdominal Infections: An Overview

Intraabdominal infections are serious clinical problems that generally occur secondary to endogenous contamination following the interruption of the continuity of the gastrointestinal tract by trauma, intrinsic diseases, or surgery. Appropriate treatment necessitates early diagnosis, the accomplishment of which most frequently requires a specialized radiologic procedure such as computed tomography, followed by surgical drainage and appropriate parenteral antibiotic therapy. Several agents alone or others in combination appear to be equally efficacious in treating these infections, which usually are due to the aerobic and anaerobic constituents of the gastrointestinal microflora. Adjunctive surgical techniques include peritoneal irrigation, debridement, and repair of the damaged viscera.
Donor heart preservation with pinacidil: the role of the mitochondrial K ATP channel.

Abstract Background Pinacidil solutions have been shown to have significant cardioprotective effects. Pinacidil activates both sarcolemmal and mitochondrial potassium-adenosine triphosphate (K ATP ) channels. This study was undertaken to compare pinacidil solution with University of Wisconsin (UW) solution and to determine if the protective effect of pinacidil involved mitochondrial or sarcolemmal K ATP channels. Methods Thirty-two rabbit hearts received one of four preservation solutions in a Langendorff apparatus: (1) UW; (2) a solution containing 0.5 mmol/L pinacidil; (3) pinacidil with Hoechst-Marion-Roussel 1098 (HMR-1098), a sarcolemmal channel blocker; and (4) pinacidil with 5-hydroxydecanote, a mitochondrial channel blocker. Left ventricular pressure-volume curves were generated by an intraventricular balloon. All hearts were placed in cold storage for 8 hours, followed by 60 minutes of reperfusion. Results Postischemic developed pressure was better preserved by pinacidil than by UW. This cardioprotective effect was eliminated by 5-hydroxydecanote and diminished by HMR-1098. Diastolic compliance was better preserved by pinacidil when compared with UW. This protection was abolished by the addition of 5-hydroxydecanote and moderately decreased by HMR-1098. Conclusions Our results support the superiority of pinacidil over UW after 8 hours of storage. The cardioprotective role of pinacidil is mediated primarily by the mitochondrial K ATP channel.
Bit error ratio performance of a 1.2-Gbit/s lightwave system using mulitmode lasers

The bit error ratio (BER) performance of a 1.2-Gbit/s lightwave transmission system using 1.3-μm InGaAsP Fabry-Perot (FP) laser diodes with Zn-doped active layers was investigated experimentally. When the laser diodes were tested through a dispersive: fiber, turn-on jitter and mode-partitioning of the lasers contributed to pulse jitter of the optical waveform at the receiver, which in turn led to a dispersion power penalty. It was found that the pulse jitter and the resulting power penalty were strongly dependent on the carrier lifetime of the lasers. Since the doping level of the active layer affects the carrier lifetime, this suggests that doped-active FP laser diodes with a decreased carrier lifetime may be usable in a wider range of gigabit lightwave applications than previously considered.
The role of microglia in neurogenesis: exercise and aging as cofactors

Evaluation of: Vukovic J, Colditz MJ, Blackmore DG, Ruitenberg MJ, Bartlett PF. Microglia modulate hippocampal neural precursor activity in response to exercise and aging. J. Neurosci. 32(19), 6435–6443 (2012). Vukovic et al. took an innovative approach to determine that microglia play a significant role in the neurogenesis that occurs in the hippocampus following physical exercise. They further demonstrated that signaling through the fractalkine ligand–receptor (CX3CL1–CX3CR1) pathway is a key mechanism through which microglia confer these neuroprotective effects. When either CX3CL1 or CX3CR1 are reduced or dysregulated, neural precursor cell activation is reduced. Physical exercise was shown to be a robust intervention to elevate CX3CL1 levels in the hippocampus of both adult and aged mice. Activated microglia in aged subjects is associated with a neuroinflammatory phenotype, and when they are depleted from neurosphere cultures, neurogenesis is robustly enhanced, suggesting that interventions that reduc...
Scytonemides A and B, cyclic peptides with 20S proteasome inhibitory activity from the cultured cyanobacterium Scytonema hofmanii.

Two cyclic peptides, scytonemides A (1) and B (2), were isolated from the cultured fresh water cyanobacterium Scytonema hofmannii (UTEX 1834) by bioassay-guided fractionation using a proteasome inhibition assay. The planar structures of the compounds were determined by a combination of MS and 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopy. The advanced Marfey’s method was used to determine the absolute configuration of both peptides. Scytonemide A possesses an unusual imino linkage, while scytonemide B is a depsipeptide containing 3-hydroxyoctanoic acid in the macrocycle. Both isolates were evaluated for their inhibition of the 20S proteasome, and scytonemide A displayed an IC50 value of 96 nM, while scytonemide B was inactive at 50 μM.
SINGLE-MODE HIGH-PEAK-POWER PASSIVELY Q-SWITCHED DIODE-PUMPED ND:YAG LASER

We have demonstrated an efficient, compact, passively Q-switched single-mode diode-pumped Nd:YAG laser that uses Cr4+:YAG as a saturable absorber. Linear- and ring-cavity configurations were demonstrated. Pulse energies and widths were, respectively, 1.5 mJ and 3.9 ns for the linear cavity and 2.1 mJ and 12 ns for the ring cavity.
Pulsating instability in near-limit propagation of rich hydrogen/air flames

The adiabatic and radiation-affected unsteady planar propagation of rich hydrogen/air flames of nearlimit concentrations in the doubly infinite domain is computationally simulated with detailed chemistry and transport. Results for the adiabatic propagation show that, with progressive increase in the fuel richness, the mode of propagation changes from steady state to oscillatory with a single period, to oscillatory with double periods, and to oscillation separated by increasingly long periods of dormant chemical reactivity. In the presence of radiative loss, propagation with the first three modes are minimally affected, whereas extinction readily occurs, with precipitous drop in the flame temperature, during the dormant period of the last mode. Because the state for the onset of the last mode is at a leaner concentration than that of the nonadiabatic steady-state propagation limit the use of the steady-state result provides a conservative estimate for the rich fundamentall flammability limit. The study also shows that, by using appropriately extracted Lewis and Zeldovich numbers characterizing the steady, adiabatic flame propagation, the transition boundary from steady to pulsating propagation can be adequately described by the criterion derived by Sivashinsky based on one-step chemistry.
60 RESPONSE OF PROSTAGLANDIN (PG) SYNTHESIS AND MEMBRANE FLUIDITY TO CHANGES OF OSMOLALITY IN CULTURED HUMAN SKIN FIBROBLASTS (HSF)

The effect of changing osmolality on basal and bradykinin (BK) stimulated 6-oxo-PGFIoc, PGE2, TxB2 and arachidonic acid (AA) synthesis of human skin fibroblasts was studied, In parallel, its influence on membrane fluidity was determined using 1-(4-trimethylammoniumphenyl)-6-phenyl-1, 3, 5 -hexatriene (TMA-DPH) as a marker of superficial cell membrane layers. Hypoosmolar mannitol (35 mosm/kg) onhanced basal 6-oxoPGF1α (152%), PGE2 (292%), TxB2 (181%), AA (549%) and BK stimulated 6-oxoPGF1cx (194%), PGE2 (342%), TxB2 (152%) and AA (402%) production, when compared to isotonic control (100%). rG (fluorescence anisotropy, inversely related to membrane fluidity) was significantly decreased from 0.362±0.009 to 0.281±0.024 (p 0.05), when compared to isotonic mannitol.