cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
What do chaotrope-based avidity assays for antibodies to HIV-1 envelope glycoproteins measure?

When HIV-1 vaccine candidates that include soluble envelope glycoproteins (Env) are tested in humans and other species, the resulting antibody responses to Env are sifted for correlates of protection or risk. One frequently used assay measures the reduction in antibody binding to Env antigens by an added chaotrope (such as thiocyanate). Based on that assay, an avidity index was devised for assessing the affinity maturation of antibodies of unknown concentration in polyclonal sera. Since a high avidity index was linked to protection in animal models of HIV-1 infection, it has become a criterion for evaluating antibody responses to vaccine candidates. But what does the assay measure and what does an avidity index mean? Here, we have used a panel of monoclonal antibodies to well-defined epitopes on Env (gp120, gp41, and SOSIP.664 trimers) to explore how the chaotrope acts. We conclude that the chaotrope sensitivity of antibody binding to Env depends on several properties of the epitopes (continuity versus tertiary- and quaternary-structural dependence) and that the avidity index has no simple relationship to antibody affinity for functional Env spikes on virions. We show that the binding of broadly neutralizing antibodies against quaternary-structural epitopes is particularly sensitive to chaotrope treatment, whereas antibody binding to epitopes in variable loops and to nonneutralization epitopes in gp41 is generally resistant. As a result of such biases, the avidity index may at best be a mere surrogate for undefined antibody or other immune responses that correlate weakly with protection. IMPORTANCE An effective HIV-1 vaccine is an important goal. Such a vaccine will probably need to induce antibodies that neutralize typically transmitted variants of HIV-1, preventing them from infecting target cells. Vaccine candidates have so far failed to induce such antibody responses, although some do protect weakly against infection in animals and, possibly, humans. In the search for responses associated with protection, an avidity assay based on chemical disruption is often used to measure the strength of antibody binding. We have analyzed this assay mechanistically and found that the epitope specificity of an antibody has a greater influence on the outcome than does its affinity. As a result, the avidity assay is biased toward the detection of some antibody specificities while disfavoring others. We conclude that the assay may yield merely indirect correlations with weak protection, specifically when Env vaccination has failed to induce broad neutralizing responses.
Scaling behavior of interacting quantum fields in curved spacetime

We propose a version of the 't Hooft-Weinberg renormalization-group equation which is valid in general curved spacetimes. The key idea is to regard the Green's functions as functions of the metric and to scale the metric rather than the coordinates or momenta. We apply these equations to the infrared limit of the effective conformal coupling in $\ensuremath{\lambda}{\ensuremath{\varphi}}^{4}$ theory.
Spatial Competition and Agglomeration in Urban Modelling

Many forms of urban models are retail oriented, that is, they depend to some degree on the allocation of shopping expenditures to particular destinations. Such an allocation is usually undertaken with the aid of a production-constrained gravity model, although this type of model ignores the relationship between retail expenditure patterns and spatial competition and agglomeration forces. The effect of such a relationship on urban structure is examined with the aid of a production-constrained competing destinations model in three situations: (1) in a simple facility-location problem, (2) in a Garin–Lowry model, and (3) in the use of catastrophe theory and bifurcation theory to examine urban dynamics. The replacement of the gravity model by the competing destinations model is shown to produce more realistic urban models and leads to new insights into structural dynamics.
An improved method for designing fuzzy controllers for position control systems

The authors propose a simulation method for determining fuzzy rules in fuzzy control of tracking systems. The method is based upon minimizing the mean squared error for the combination of the rules in the original position control system. The resulting key rules for adjusting the gain yield a fuzzy controller which gives a performance that is superior to traditional controllers. It is shown that vagueness and uncertainty of this tracking system can be handled adequately by using a fuzzy controller. >
The Three-Hierarchical Location-Allocation of Banking Facilities with Risk and Uncertainty

The location-allocation of commercial banking facilities often involves providing three layers of services (automatic teller machines, branch bank offices, and main banks) to non-homogeneous population centers. As such, the bank location-allocation problem is hierarchical in nature. Nevertheless, the existing literature to date has neglected to consider the internal dynamics and functional dependence of different hierarchies of banking services. To help the commercial banking organization formulate viable location-allocation strategies in the ever-uncertain and volatile banking industry, this paper proposes a stochastic, three-hierarchical location-allocation model for successively arranging the spatial patterns of banking facilities.
Statistical mechanical models with effective potentials: Definitions, applications, and thermodynamic consequences

Realistic interactions that operate in condensed matter systems can exhibit complicated many-particle characteristics. However, it is often useful to seek a more economical description using at most singlet and pair effective interactions that are density dependent, to take advantage of the theoretical and computational simplifications that result. This paper analyzes the statistical mechanical formalism required to describe thermal equilibrium in that kind of approach. Two distinct interpretations are available for the role of density dependence. Either one can be treated with internal consistency, but generally they lead to differing thermodynamic predictions. One regards the density dependence of effective interactions as merely a passive index for the state at which the optimal choice of those effective interactions was determined (Case I). The other treats the density as an active variable on the same footing as particle coordinates (Case II). Virial pressure and isothermal compressibility expressions in terms of particle distribution functions are displayed for both cases. Under special circumstances it is possible for the two interpretations to yield the same pressure isotherms; the conditions producing this coincidental concordancy have been explored by means of density expansions.
Irrigation through Subsurface Drains

Field experiments were conducted to determine the feasibility of subirrigation on a Lumbee sandy loam soil. Results for the water table response to tile line subirrigation with tile spacings at 7.5 m, 15 m, and 30 m are presented and compared to predictions from theoretical design equations. The results indicated that water could be supplied to the root zone at a rate more than sufficient to supply plant needs for the 7.5 m and 15 m, but not for the 30 m spacing. Theoretical calculations showed that, in this soil, a water table depth range of 30 cm from directly over the tile lines to midway between tile lines could be maintained with a spacing of 19.2 m. An equation was derived for the upward movement of the water table during the early stages of subirrigation. Comparisons with the results of field tests showed that, except for an initial lag period, the equation can be used to accurately predict the water table rise midway between tile lines.
Biomaterial Applications in the Adult Skeletal Muscle Satellite Cell Niche: Deliberate Control of Muscle Stem Cells and Muscle Regeneration in the Aged Niche

Skeletal muscle stem cells known as satellite cells are responsible for muscle regeneration. Upon muscle injury, previously quiescent satellite cells become activated as proliferating myogenic precursors, differentiate into myoblasts, and ultimately fuse into new, multinucleated myofibers. Unfortunately, this paradigm breaks down with aging and instead of becoming activated upon injury, satellite cells remain quiescent. Recent work, however, has shed light on the mechanisms behind this impaired regeneration and these findings suggest several therapeutic avenues. Skeletal muscle tissue engineering aims to create functional muscle in vitro followed by engraftment in vivo for the replacement or repair of missing or pathological tissue in various dystrophies or myopathies. Biomaterials have rapidly become central to these regeneration efforts and numerous repair strategies already exist. However, optimization of these biomaterial platforms in order to more fully mimic the in vivo adult skeletal muscle niche is still necessary. More importantly perhaps, the effects of aged or pathological environments on skeletal muscle engraftment has yet to be fully characterized. Furthermore, debate still remains over whether or not all satellite cells (considered to be heterogeneous in genetic markers and functional properties) are in fact stem cells, and what implications this could have on in vitro regeneration strategies. Novel uses and advances in biomaterials show promise in tackling these problems. Therefore, after a discussion of muscle regeneration in both the ‘young’ and ‘aged’ niches, this chapter will examine the most up-to-date strategies for in vitro skeletal muscle regeneration and will discuss how current efforts in biomaterial technologies might be used to accurately determine the significance of satellite cells as muscle stem cells, and control robust production of myofibers in vitro by mimicking the in vivo niche.
Simulation of Slip Velocity and Shear Rate near the Triple Contact Point Using a Stokes Flow Subgrid Model

In this paper, the interface formed by a flat plate withdrawing from a reservoir of fluid is investigated using a modified version of the Gerris flow solver. The wall tangential velocity along the moving plate is subject to the Navier-slip boundary condition and it is confirmed that the interface in a standard Volume of Fluid (VOF) simulation does not fully converge until grid size is of the order of slip length. It is also observed that normal gradient of wall tangential velocity does not converge even when grid size is of the order of slip length. These characteristics pose a challenge as many physical problems of interest are many orders of magnitude greater than the slip length and wall normal velocity gradients are used to compute slip velocity and viscous drag. To improve convergence, a new method is proposed where the grid cell adjacent to the wall and containing the interface is modeled as a stokes flow and subject to a numerical contact angle. The numerical contact angle improves convergence of the interface shape and is a function of the Capillary number, grid size, and macroscopic contact angle. The stokes flow approximation provides an analytical solution for wall normal velocity gradient at subgrid scale resolutions. For the withdrawing plate problem, this new method shows an interface shape and velocity gradient that is comparable to a standard VOF simulation that has a grid size one order of magnitude smaller.
Site-specific genome editing for correction of induced pluripotent stem cells derived from dominant dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa

Genome editing with engineered site-specific endonucleases involves nonhomologous end-joining, leading to reading frame disruption. The approach is applicable to dominant negative disorders, which can be treated simply by knocking out the mutant allele, while leaving the normal allele intact. We applied this strategy to dominant dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (DDEB), which is caused by a dominant negative mutation in the COL7A1 gene encoding type VII collagen (COL7). We performed genome editing with TALENs and CRISPR/Cas9 targeting the mutation, c.8068_8084delinsGA. We then cotransfected Cas9 and guide RNA expression vectors expressed with GFP and DsRed, respectively, into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) generated from DDEB fibroblasts. After sorting, 90% of the iPSCs were edited, and we selected four gene-edited iPSC lines for further study. These iPSCs were differentiated into keratinocytes and fibroblasts secreting COL7. RT-PCR and Western blot analyses revealed gene-edited COL7 with frameshift mutations degraded at the protein level. In addition, we confirmed that the gene-edited truncated COL7 could neither associate with normal COL7 nor undergo triple helix formation. Our data establish the feasibility of mutation site-specific genome editing in dominant negative disorders.
Irradiation Mixing of Al into U3Si

Thermal and irradiation induced intermixing of uranium suicide reactor fuels with the aluminum cladding is an important consideration in understanding their fission gas and fuel swelling behavior. We have used Rutherford backscattering to follow the behavior of an Al thin film on U3Si and U3Si2 during 1.5 MeV Kr ion irradiation at temperatures of 30 and 350°C. After an initial dose during which no intermixing occurs, the Al mixes quickly into U3Si. The threshold dose is believed to be associated with an oxide layer between the Al and the uranium suicide. At 300°C and doses greater than threshold, rates of mixing and aluminide phase growth are extracted.
Research and Application of AC Traceable DC

The existing methods of AC traceable DC are complex,and have many error sources.A method of AC traceable to DC,which has less error sources,the simple electrical configuration and high precision,is proposed.AC voltage traces to the DC voltage by AD sampling AC voltage with a high-precision,high stability DC voltage standard as the reference voltage for AD.The traceable method of current channel adopts current/voltage conversion.The AC voltage measurementerrorof this method is 8×10-6through the theoretical error analysis.The voltage and current measurement error of this method are 6.3×10-6and 1.06×10-6through the experiments.It proves that this method is suitable for AC voltage and current traceable calibration.It simplifies the steps of value transfer and there is significant practical value.
The requirement of the testis in establishing the sensitivity of the canine prostate to develop benign prostatic hyperplasia

Abstract A long-term study on the requirement of the testis in establishing the sensitivity of the canine prostate to develop benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) was conducted using 23 aging beagles both with and without their testes. The dogs had received long-term restoration of testosterone and estrogen through silicone implants. When young beagles (0.5 to 1 year of age) were castrated and normal serum testosterone and estrogen levels restored during aging to 5 years, only 50% of these dogs developed BPH in the absence of their testes as opposed to 100% BPH development in intact controls. In addition, two-thirds of the prostates in the treated groups were remarkably reduced in size, being smaller than any prostate observed in the intact controls. If, following castration, the steroid restoration was withheld for 4 years during aging and subsequently administered starting at 5 years of age and continuing for a 6-month period, none, of the animals developed complex BPH. Moreover, two-thirds of the prostate glands were reduced in size by more than 60% and were atrophied in spite of the maintenance of normal prostatic tissue dihydrotestosterone levels. Regardless of the time of steroid restoration to a castrate beagle, the periurethral zone of the canine prostate exhibits various degrees of atrophy indicating functional regions within the canine prostate that are sensitive to the requirements of the testes during aging. This study implicates the importance of the testis in increasing the probability and/or sensitivity for the full development of canine BPH.
Evidence for a Familial Speech Sound Disorder Subtype in a Multigenerational Study of Oral and Hand Motor Sequencing Ability

PURPOSE: To evaluate phenotypic expressions of speech sound disorder (SSD) in multigenerational families with evidence of familial forms of SSD. METHOD: Members of five multigenerational families (N = 36) produced rapid sequences of monosyllables and disyllables and tapped computer keys with repetitive and alternating movements. RESULTS: Measures of repetitive and alternating motor speed were correlated within and between the two motor systems. Repetitive and alternating motor speeds increased in children and decreased in adults as a function of age. In two families with children who had severe speech deficits consistent with disrupted praxis, slowed alternating, but not repetitive, oral movements characterized most of the affected children and adults with a history of SSD, and slowed alternating hand movements were seen in some of the biologically related participants as well. CONCLUSION: Results are consistent with a familial motor-based SSD subtype with incomplete penetrance, motivating new clinical questions about motor-based intervention not only in the oral but also the limb system.
Resource Bricolage for Parallel DBMSs on Heterogeneous Clusters

Running parallel database systems in an environment with heterogeneous resources has become increasingly common, due to cluster evolution and increasing interest in moving applications into public clouds or shared infrastructures. For database systems running in a heterogeneous cluster, the default uniform data partitioning strategy may overload some of the slow machines while at the same time it may underutilize the more powerful machines. Since the processing time of a parallel query is determined by the slowest machine, such an allocation strategy may result in a significant query performance degradation.We take a first step to address this problem by introducing a technique we call resource bricolage that improves database performance in heterogeneous environments. Our approach quantifies the performance differences among machines with various resources as they process workloads with diverse resource requirements. We formalize the problem of minimizing workload execution time and view it as an optimization problem, and then we employ linear programming to obtain a recommended data partitioning scheme. We verify the effectiveness of our technique with an extensive experimental study on a commercial database system.
Algebra/English as a Second Language (ESL) Teaching Experiment

A teaching experiment in correlating the instruction of courses in Elementary Algebra and Intermediate ESL is described whose results suggest a measurable transfer of thought organization from algebraic thinking into written natural English. It is shown that a proper context to situate this new effect is (1) the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) of L. Vygotsky and (2) a new concept of the “Relative ZPD” characterizing the relationship between the ZPD of arithmetic/algebra and ZPD of native/foreign language.
Abstract # 1780 Deconstructing cancer-related fatigue: A role for motivational deficits

Cancer-related fatigue is a common, debilitating condition which is proposed to be associated with inflammatory mechanisms. The objective of our ongoing project is to objectively assess incentive motivation in cancer-related fatigue and its association with inflammation. Patients recruited at MD Anderson Cancer Center were tested for incentive motivation using a validated computerized task, the Effort Expenditure for Rewards Task (EEfRT). A blood sample was obtained on the same day. In a preliminary sample of 29 subjects, 15 patients with high fatigue and 14 patients with low fatigue were identified. Compared to low fatigued patients, patients with high fatigue showed an increased willingness to exert effort, reflected in overall higher percentage of high effort choices on the EEfRT (43% vs. 25%, p = .03). Whereas low fatigued patients were sensitive to changes in reward value, reflected in more high effort choices when rewards for high effort were increased (low vs. medium reward: 14% vs. 24%, p = .03; medium vs. high reward: 24% vs. 36%, p = .01), patients with high fatigue did not show this sensitivity (low vs. medium: 38% vs. 44%, p = .07; medium vs. high: 44 vs. 51%, p = .27). In conclusion, patients with high fatigue overall make high effort choices, regardless of the outcome-value of the invested effort. Markers of inflammation assessed in serum will be determined at completion of the study.
Targeting Enox1 in tumor stroma increases the efficacy of fractionated radiotherapy.

// Clayton A. Smith 1, 2 , Stacey Mont 1 , Geri Traver 1 , Konjeti R. Sekhar 1 , Peter A. Crooks 3 , Michael L. Freeman 1 1 Department of Radiation Oncology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN 37232, USA 2 Current Address: Department of Radiation Oncology, Mitchell Cancer Institute, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL 36604, USA 3 Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR 72205, USA Correspondence to: Clayton A. Smith, email: claytonsmith@health.southalabama.edu Michael L. Freeman, email: michael.freeman@vanderbilt.edu Keywords: radiation therapy, Enox1, xenograft, tumor stroma, endothelial Received: June 07, 2016 Accepted: October 14, 2016 Published: October 24, 2016 ABSTRACT The goal of this investigation was to clarify the question of whether targeting Enox1 in tumor stroma would synergistically enhance the survival of tumor-bearing mice treated with fractionated radiotherapy. Enox1, a NADH oxidase, is expressed in tumor vasculature and stroma. However, it is not expressed in many tumor types, including HT-29 colorectal carcinoma cells. Pharmacological inhibition of Enox1 in endothelial cells inhibited repair of DNA double strand breaks, as measured by γH2AX and 53BP1 foci formation, as well as neutral comet assays. For 4 consecutive days athymic mice bearing HT-29 hindlimb xenografts were injected with a small molecule inhibitor of Enox1 or solvent control. Tumors were then administered 2 Gy of x-rays. On day 5 tumors were administered a single ‘top-up’ fraction of 30 Gy, the purpose of which was to amplify intrinsic differences in the radiation fractionation regimen produced by Enox1 targeting. Pharmacological targeting of Enox1 resulted in 80% of the tumor-bearing mice surviving at 90 days compared to only 40% of tumor-bearing mice treated with solvent control. The increase in survival was not a consequence of reoxygenation, as measured by pimonidazole immunostaining. These results are interpreted to indicate that targeting of Enox1 in tumor stroma significantly enhances the effectiveness of 2 Gy fractionated radiotherapy and identifies Enox1 as a potential therapeutic target.
Response to Shen et al.

To the Editor: We recently applied a principal component (PC)-based population differentiation test for selection on 54,734 European Americans from the Genetic Epidemiology Research on Adult Health and Aging (GERA) dataset to identify three new genome-wide-significant signals of selection, including a signal at the coding SNP rs1229984 in ADH1B (MIM: 103720). This latter signal was independent of a previous selection signal involving a different ADH1B haplotype in East Asians.1 Shen et al. have raised the interesting question of whether the new signal of selection might derive from selection that occurred in West Asia rather than in European populations.
Sparse sensing for resource-constrained depth reconstruction

We address the following question: is it possible to reconstruct the geometry of an unknown environment using sparse and incomplete depth measurements? This problem is relevant for a resource-constrained robot that has to navigate and map an environment, but does not have enough on-board power or payload to carry a traditional depth sensor (e.g., a 3D lidar) and can only acquire few (point-wise) depth measurements. In general, reconstruction from incomplete data is not possible, but when the robot operates in man-made environments, the depth exhibits some regularity (e.g., many planar surfaces with few edges); we leverage this regularity to infer depth from incomplete measurements. Our formulation bridges robotic perception with the compressive sensing literature in signal processing. We exploit this connection to provide formal results on exact depth recovery in 2D and 3D problems. Taking advantage of our specific sensing modality, we also prove novel and more powerful results to completely characterize the geometry of the signals that we can reconstruct. Our results directly translate to practical algorithms for depth reconstruction; these algorithms are simple (they reduce to solving a linear program), and robust to noise. We test our algorithms on real and simulated data, and show that they enable accurate depth reconstruction from a handful of measurements, and perform well even when the assumption of structured environment is violated.
Dose-response study of topical minoxidil in male pattern alopecia

Fifty-eight men with Hamilton scale type III vertex or type IV male pattern baldness were studied to determine the dose-response activity of low concentrations of topical minoxidil in promoting hair growth. The patients were treated with topical minoxidil at doses of 0.01%, 0.1%, 1%, or 2% or placebo in a randomized double-blind design for 6 months. At the end of 6 months, patients using 0.1%, 1%, and 2% topical minoxidil solutions showed a significantly greater difference in the mean increase of nonvellus hair growth in comparison with those using 0.01% minoxidil or placebo. There was a clear dose-response correlation for the increase of nonvellus hairs in the 0.1 %, 1%, and 2% minoxidil treatment groups. There was a statistically significant difference in patient's self-evaluation of overall hair growth and degree. of decreased hair shedding in the 1% and 2% minoxidil groups when compared with the other study groups. From this study we conclude that significant increases in nonvellus hair counts occur with 0.1% and greater doses of minoxidil. However, only in patients treated with the 1% and 2% solutions of minoxidil was there clinically perceptible hair growth.
Intermediates and catalytic hydrostannylation. Characterization of a rare complex Pt(IPr)[η2-E-(SnBut3)(H)CC(SiMe3)(H)]

Abstract The complex Pt(IPr)(SnBut3)(H), 1 [IPr=N-heterocylic carbene ligand N,N’-bis-(2,6-(diisopropyl)phenyl)imidazol-2-ylidene] reacts with trimethylsilylacetylene to yield the C-H activation product Pt(IPr)(SnBut3)(κ1-C≡CSiMe3)(H)2, 2. Complex 2 isomerizes to form the unique complex Pt(IPr)[η2-E-(SnBut3)(H)C=C(SiMe3)(H)], 3. This demonstrates that in addition to functioning as a bulky ligand the SnBut3 group can also be actively involved in catalysis. Compound 1 catalyzes the reaction of trimethylsilylacetylene and tri-t-butylstannane at room temperature to afford the selective hydrostannylated product E-(SnBut3)(H)C=C(SiMe3)(H), 4. Structures of all compounds have been determined by single crystal x-ray diffraction analyses.
First Record of Captive Larval Culture and Metamorphosis of the Pacific Blue Tang, Paracanthurus hepatus

The Pacific blue tang, Paracanthurus hepatus, is consistently among the top 20 marine ornamental species imported into the USA, with all specimens presently sourced from wild stocks. Captive culture of this species through metamorphosis has not been previously documented and fundamental information regarding reproduction, larval culture, and production techniques is scarce. This study aimed to elucidate methods that would advance our understanding and success with captive propagation of this species. A total of 50,000 eggs were collected from a single broodstock population and stocked in a 1000-L tank. Beginning at 3 d posthatch (DPH), larvae were fed three times daily a diet comprised exclusively of copepod nauplii. At 12 DPH, enriched rotifers were first fed followed by powdered feed (20 DPH) and first instar Artemia (21 DPH). Large mortality events were observed at 7 and 20 DPH, corresponding with starvation and flexion, respectively. By 41 DPH, the majority of the remaining larvae began associating with the bottom of the culture tank. On Day 50, the first signs of blue pigmentation marked the beginning of metamorphosis. A total of 27 juvenile blue tangs were cultured during this trial. This effort represents the first successful culture of this species in captivity.
Seaweed-Derived Sulfated Polysaccharides: Scopes and Challenges in Implication in Health Care

Abstract Seaweed-derived sulfated polysaccharides (SPs) such as fucans, fucoidans, carrageenans, galactans, agarans, and ulvans have demonstrated an array of biological effects. For the antioxidant, antitumor, immunomodulation, antiinflammatory, anticoagulant, antilipemic, antiviral, antibacterial, antiprotozoan, osteoprotective, antivenomic, and nanomedicine properties, SPs have been at the forefront of pharmaceutical research. The biological efficacy of SP varies widely, as the structural attributes crosstalk with host factors differently, manipulating different pathways. Polar interaction between the SP and proteins (such as heparin cofactor II) is responsible for anticoagulant activity. For antiinflammation, the proposed and proven routes are selectin blockade, inhibition of enzyme, and complement cascades. Disarming pathogenic viruses by the SP is reliant on the blockage of the viral adsorption and internalization steps (Kim et al., 2012). This chapter summarizes the results obtained in past few years and subsequently analyzes the rationale of the findings. The underlying mechanisms of SP crosstalking with human body components have been discussed. How anticoagulant and antioxidant agents might be developed from the SPs; how therapeutic prospects of seaweed SPs might be improved, and if the SPs provoke inflammation like other immunogenic polysaccharides are other key points of this chapter.
The Well-Posedness of a 2-D Swimming Model

We introduce a “more complex” version of the swimming model from Chapter 11, namely, for which both the linear and angular momenta are conserved. Then we discuss the issues of existence, uniqueness and continuity for its solutions.
Resting Supine and Seated Blood Pressure Interrelations in Adolescence

Over the last decade there has been increasing interest in the measurement of blood pressure during childhood and adolescence. Generally, a number of investigators have hypothesized that elevated blood pressure during childhood and adolescence may be predictive of elevated blood pressure and/or hypertension in adulthood. This hypothesis is supported by the evidence that elevated blood pressure in early adulthood tends to track or positively correlate over time with elevated and hypertensive blood pressures in older adults.(10)
Expression of syndecan regulates human myeloma plasma cell adhesion to type I collagen

The syndecans comprise a family of integral membrane proteoglycans that regulate cell behaviors by binding to extracellular matrix and binding growth factors. In mouse blood cells, syndecan expression is restricted to cells of the B-cell lineage where it is expressed by pre-B cells and plasma cells, but is absent from circulating B cells. In the present study, we examined the expression, structure, and function of syndecan on human myeloma cell lines and myeloma patient bone marrow cells. On myeloma cells, syndecan is a small (modal relative molecular mass [M(r)] = 120 Kd) heparan sulfate proteoglycan localized at the cell surface. Syndecan was detected by immunodot blotting on 7 of 10 human myeloma cell lines and by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction on 10 of 14 patient samples. Cell binding assays show that myeloma cells expressing syndecan bind to type I collagen via heparan sulfate chains, while those cell lines not expressing syndecan do not bind to collagen. Furthermore, the cell lines expressing syndecan were negative for CD19 and CD45 staining, indicating that syndecan expression is restricted to tumors having a well-differentiated phenotype. We conclude that syndecan acts as a matrix receptor on human myeloma cells but is not expressed by all tumors, suggesting that syndecan may participate in regulating myeloma cell adhesion to the bone marrow stromal matrix.
An interpretation of the three line EPR spectrum of nitric oxide hemeproteins and related model systems: the effect of the heme environment.

Abstract The EPR spectra of the nitric oxide (NO) derivatives of structurally perturbed Fe(II) hemeproteins show various patterns, all of which are characterized by the conspicuous three-line hyperfine splitting due to 14 NO, in contrast to that of the native proteins. For the purpose of obtaining structural information from these three line spectra, the model systems were studied, which consist of NO, heme (or TPP-Fe(II), where TTP means α, β, γ, δ-tetraphenylporphine) and the nitrogenous base, pyridine or quinoline, which, respectively, give the native type or the three line (perturbed type) EPR spectrum. The ring proton paramagnetic shift of quinoline in this system shows that it is not coordinated to NO-TPP-Fe(II) as a normal axial ligand, in contrast to pyridine which gives the shift pattern of the ordinary axial ligation. This observation suggests that in the NO-hemeproteins some perturbations of the protein structure cause the rupture or distortion of the bond between the imidazole nitrogen on the fifth coordination site and the heme iron, resulting in the three line spectrum. The EPR study of the model systems, the pentacoordinated complex, NO-heme and NO-TPP-Fe(II), in various media revealed that the pentacoordinated species indeed exhibits, depending upon its environment, a variety of spectra, which closely reproduce the three line patterns observed in the perturbed proteins and some related model systems. Such spectral variation can be attributed to the difference in the degree of quenching the internal motion and/or the structural heterogeneity caused by molecular environment.
It's Not Just Dinner: Meal Delivery Kits as Food Media for Food Citizens

Meal kit delivery services rhetorically appeal to middle class consumers who have busy lives, but want to eat good quality food without the hassle of grocery shopping and meal planning. In this paper, we advance three arguments to explore the cultural phenomenon of these meal services that are growing exponentially across the United States and in other countries. First, such meal kits, in their efforts to provide meal and ingredient variation, decontextualize food cultures while promoting a consumer sense of cosmopolitanism. Second, meal kit companies have attempted to address environmental concerns of waste production, but many of those problems have yet to be resolved despite rhetorical appeals to the contrary. Finally, while such meal kits do not address fully the challenges and problems of global food production and capitalist systems, they do confront those who use them with some of the realities of where their food comes from and what kind of waste it produces. We ultimately argue that such companies manifest the return of the repressed through the material and rhetorical production of food and waste even as they employ diverse cultural food options and erase those cultural origins at the same time. Meal kit delivery services’ interactivity and confrontation with waste distinguishes them from traditional food media. Despite their investment in the performative dimensions of cooking as a way to reconnect with the food system, they also miss opportunities to address gender, culture, and waste that limits the radical potential of that performativity.
2003 Testimony on Securitization and Predatory Lending in a Hearing on 'Protecting Homeowners: Preventing Abusive Lending While Preserving Access to Credit'

This 2003 Congressional Testimony warns of the dangers of securitizing subprime loans. After defining "predatory lending" and describing the process of securitization, it argues that securitizing subprime loans has many dangers. While some have claimed that securitizing loans lowers loan costs to borrowers, the reverse might be true and securitization may actually increase the costs of loans to borrowers. This testimony states that securitization undermines loan underwriting. As originators immediately sell their loans and so face less risk of loss even if a borrower defaults, the originators naturally will spend less time and effort screening potential loans for default, thus increasing the risk of lending money to borrowers with a high level of default risk. With less lender supervision, borrowers are more likely to default on their loans and risk foreclosure, though the default and foreclosure would likely occur after the original lender has assigned the loan.The testimony argues that the secondary market should bear the risk of abusive lending. The securitizers of loans and other secondary market participants are far better than borrowers at detecting and deterring predatory lending and therefore should bear the risk of such predatory behavior.
A truncated-Scheil-type model for columnar solidification of binary alloys in the presence of melt convection

Abstract A two-phase truncated-Scheil-type model is developed for columnar solidification of binary alloys in the presence of melt convection and liquid undercooling ahead of the primary dendrite tips. The model is derived from a three-phase model, which takes into account liquid undercooling ahead and behind the primary tips. These models are used to simulate a numerical solidification benchmark problem, and their predictions are compared with those of a Scheil-type model that disregards liquid undercooling and solute diffusion in solid. Simulation results reveal that the predictions of the truncated-Scheil-type and three-phase models are nearly identical, indicating that undercooling behind the primary tips can be disregarded and the truncated-Scheil-type model can replace the significantly more complex three-phase model. The truncated-Scheil-type and three-phase models smoothly recover the Scheil-type model as the value of the dendrite tip selection parameter is increased. Taking into account liquid undercooling changes the melt convection pattern around the columnar front and the form of channel segregates but does not change the overall macrosegregation pattern.
Medicine, Faith and Politics in Agogo: A History of Health Care Delivery in Rural Ghana, ca. 1925 to 1980

The Agogo Presbyterian Hospital, located in the Ashanti Region of Ghana, is one of the few non-governmental hospitals in the country that trains nurses and offers specialized services in ophthalmol...
Abstract 4379: Prostate cancer cells utilize the GABA shunt to enhance oxidative metabolism

Although an upregulation of aerobic glycolysis (the Warburg effect) is a canonical hallmark of cancer, it is now recognized that most cancerous cells continue to rely on the TCA cycle as a source of both biosynthetic precursors (DeBarardinis & Chandel, 2016) and the majority of ATP production (Zu & Guppy, 2004). Drug-resistant cancers have been associated with metabolic reprogramming (Rahman & Hasan, 2015) involving an upregulation in oxidative phosphorylation (Wolf, 2014). Two advanced, treatment-resistant variants of prostate cancer are castration-resistant adenocarcinoma (CRPC-adeno) and neuroendocrine prostate cancer (NEPC). Emerging evidence suggests that the γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) shunt—an evolutionarily conserved pathway for energy production, biosynthetic precursors, and ROS management—may be used by both CRPC-adeno and NEPC. The GABA shunt is a bypass for two steps of the TCA cycle, wherein GABA is synthesized from glutamate by a GAD1-encoded decarboxylase, transaminated into succinic semialdehyde, and metabolized into the TCA cycle intermediate succinate. Analysis of publicly available transcript datasets (via cBioPortal) indicates that GAD1 mRNA expression increases with increasing Gleason score (p Citation Format: Erika L. Knott, Sumitra Miriyala, Manikandan Panchatcharam, Nancy Leidenheimer. Prostate cancer cells utilize the GABA shunt to enhance oxidative metabolism [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 4379.
Effect of temperature on ternary phase diagrams of pyrolytic lignin, mixed solvent and water

Abstract This paper reports the effect of temperature on phase behaviours and phase diagrams of a bio-oil model system consisting of pyrolytic lignin (PL), mixed solvent (MS) and water at 0–40 °C. An increase in temperature from 0 to 40 °C shifts the phase conversion curve in the ternary phase diagram towards the direction of substantially increasing PL solubility in the MS/water mixture. This leads to the maximal PL solubility in the MS/water mixture increasing from ~161 to ~229 g PL per 100 g of MS/water mixture. The results further clearly demonstrate that at 0–40 °C, if the water content is below critical thresholds (~11–18 wt% at sugar concentrations of 5–7 wt%), the effect of sugars on phase stabilities and diagrams must be considered. Such a critical water content increases with increasing sugar concentration but reduces with increasing temperature.
A role for NFAT signaling in ABC-DLBCL

In this issue of Blood, Bucher et al investigate the role of calcium-induced nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT) signaling in subtypes of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and identify a potential therapeutic vulnerability in a subtype of the disease.
Markers of cholesterol synthesis are elevated in adolescents and young adults with type 2 diabetes.

Background Changes in cholesterol absorption and cholesterol synthesis may promote dyslipidemia and cardiovascular disease in individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Objective To assess cholesterol synthesis and absorption in lean individuals, obese individuals, and individuals with T2DM. Methods We measured lathosterol and lanosterol (markers of cholesterol synthesis) as well as campesterol and β-sitosterol (markers of cholesterol absorption) in the serum of 15-26 years old individuals with T2DM (n = 95), as well as their lean (n = 98) and obese (n = 92) controls. Results Individuals with T2DM showed a 51% increase in lathosterol and a 65% increase in lanosterol compared to lean controls. Similarly, obese individuals showed a 31% increase in lathosterol compared to lean controls. Lathosterol and lanosterol were positively correlated with body mass index, fasting insulin and glucose, serum triglycerides, and C-reactive protein, and negatively correlated with HDL-cholesterol. In contrast, campesterol and β-sitosterol were not altered in individuals with T2DM. Moreover, campesterol and β-sitosterol were negatively correlated with body mass index, fasting insulin, and C-reactive protein and were positively correlated with HDL-cholesterol. Conclusions Adolescents and young adults with T2DM show evidence of increased cholesterol synthesis compared to non-diabetic lean controls. These findings suggest that T2DM may promote cardiovascular disease by increasing cholesterol synthesis, and provide additional rationale for the use of cholesterol synthesis inhibitors in this group. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Coordinated Viral Control by Cytotoxic Lymphocytes Ensures Optimal Adaptive NK Cell Responses.

Summary Natural killer (NK) cells play a critical role in controlling viral infections, coordinating the response of innate and adaptive immune systems. They also possess certain features of adaptive lymphocytes, such as undergoing clonal proliferation. However, it is not known whether this adaptive NK cell response can be modulated by other lymphocytes during viral exposure. Here, we show that the clonal expansion of NK cells during mouse cytomegalovirus infection is severely blunted in the absence of cytotoxic CD8+ T cells. This correlates with higher viral burden and an increased pro-inflammatory milieu, which maintains NK cells in a hyper-activated state. Antiviral therapy rescues NK cell expansion in the absence of CD8+ T cells, suggesting that high viral loads have detrimental effects on adaptive NK cell responses. Altogether, our data support a mechanism whereby cytotoxic innate and adaptive lymphocytes cooperate to ensure viral clearance and the establishment of robust clonal NK cell responses.
Impact of surface reflection on microbial inactivation in a UV LED treatment duct

Abstract Modeling of a UV-C LED air treatment duct showed that use of highly reflective duct surfaces significantly increased microbial inactivation and minimized the impact of LED positions on inactivation levels. This result was independent of the number of LEDs used. Four wall reflection resulted in higher inactivation rates than solely side-side or top–bottom surface reflection, but beyond three reflections of intensity the number of LEDs controlled the maximum inactivation. The model consisted of a radiation routine which calculated fluence rate from LED intensities and specular surface reflection, integrated with a fluid flow routine which determined air residence time and an inactivation routine which combined microbe inactivation rate constants with fluence levels. Model predictions compared well with data from a 2-cm square test treatment system that achieved 99.9% inactivation of Staphylococcus aureus at low flow rates. These results can guide treatment system designs and expand modeling capabilities for such systems.
Teaching Statistics in Public Health During COVID-19: Lessons Learned From Spring 2020 and Recommendations for the Future

With new COVID-19 infections still of concern in the United States, teaching will continue to be affected in the foreseeable future. It is imperative to consider lessons learned from the Spring 202...
Exploring Single Black Mothers’ Resistance Through Homeschooling: by Cheryl Fields-Smith, London, UK, Palgrave MacMillan, 2020, 165 pp., $89.99 (hardcover), ISBN: 978-3030425630

Though previous works about homeschooling cover a large amount of explanatory ground, and likely capture most homeschoolers’ historical motivations and experiences, there are aspects which remain l...
Vasa Previa: A Case Report

Vasa previa is a rare but serious medical condition characterized by a velamentous insertion of fetal blood vessels onto the placenta, which places those vessels at high risk of rupturing with rupturing of the membranes. Often vasa previa goes undetected until fetal compromise ensues following rupture of membranes. A recent case report of a 25-year-old pre-eclamptic female demonstrates the emergent and fatal nature of undiagnosed vasa previa.
Visual learning curves for American sign language (ASL) alphabet

Abstract The study objectives include: 1) to identify the visual key areas and the learning curves when learning the ASL alphabet, 2) to identify the impact of practice on key visual areas, and 3) to identify differences in visual learning curves between signs. An empirical behavioral study with twenty ASL untrained hearing participants performing the ASL alphabet for eight consecutive trials using virtual reality and eye-tracking was conducted. After completing the experiment, participants reduced the fixation duration by 51.90% and the observation count by 45.69%. The representations of the fingers acquired 66% of the fixation duration. In addition, the observation proportion for the visual instructions for the fingers decreased from 59% to 41% after 8 trials. An ANOVA analysis showed unequal variance for ASL signs, and a power regression showed different learning rates for all signs. Our experimental setting successfully tracked and identified the key visual areas when learning the ASL alphabet.