cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Low Agrobacterium tumefaciens inoculum levels and a long co-culture period lead to reduced plant defense responses and increase transgenic shoot production of sunflower ( Helianthus annuus L.)

Agrobacterium-mediated plant transformation is typically conducted by inoculating plant tissues with an Agrobacterium suspension containing approximately 108–109 bacteria mL−1, followed by a 2–3-d co-culture period. Use of longer co-culture periods could potentially increase transformation efficiencies by allowing more time for Agrobacterium to interact with plant cells, but bacterial overgrowth is likely to occur, leading to severe tissue browning and reduced transformation and regeneration. Low bacterial inoculum levels were therefore evaluated as a means to reduce the negative outcomes associated with long co-culture. The use of low inoculum bacterial suspensions (approximately 6 × 102 bacteria mL−1) followed by long co-culture (15 d) led to the production of an average of three transformed sunflower shoots per explant while the use of high inoculum (approximately 6 × 108 bacteria mL−1) followed by short co-culture (3 d) led to no transformed shoots. Low inoculum and long co-culture acted synergistically, and both were required for the improvement of sunflower transformation. Gene expression analysis via qRT-PCR showed that genes related to plant defense response were generally expressed at lower levels in the explants treated with low inoculum than those treated with high inoculum during 15 d of co-culture, suggesting that low inoculum reduced the induction of plant defense responses. The use of low inoculum with long co-culture (LI/LC) led to large increases in sunflower transformation efficiency. This method has great potential for improving transformation efficiencies and expanding the types of target tissues amenable for transformation of different plant species.
Automation in blood banking and hemotherapy.

Advances in technology, new constraints on laboratory resources, and increasing use of type and antibody screen with an abbreviated crossmatch are all forces interacting to make blood bank automation attractive for the hospital transfusion service. The immunohematology instruments currently available are discussed. Autologous blood salvage during surgical procedures is more widely available as transfusion services and hospitals attempt to provide the safest care. Instruments for this task are described.
The Schottky Relation

In this last chapter we will discuss the most famous classical result in the direction of answering the question, Which symmetric matrices Ω with positive definite imaginary parts arise from curves in the manner presented in Chapter Four? This is the so-called Schottky problem, and in approaching it, we will closely follow the work of H. Farkas.†
Words and Word Order

Robert Penn Warren has whimsically defined a poem as a group of lines that are printed evenly along the left-hand margin of a page. After that, he says, you’re on your own. Robert Frost said, “Poetry is the kind of things poets write.” Both are telling us that poetry is so varied in its potential that no definition, not even by a poet, is likely to be adequate.
Principles of landscape dynamics

The land mosaic generally has no permanent shape but changes in quality, size, shape and spatial arrangement of the patches. This dynamic is the result of complex, multiscalar processes and has tremendous importance for most living organisms.
Continuous isolation of monocytes using a magnetophoretic-based microfluidic Chip

Monocytes play an important role in the immune system and are responsible for phagocytizing and degrading foreign microorganisms in the body. The isolation of monocytes is important in various immunological applications such as in-vitro culture of dendritic cells. We present a magnetophoretic-based microfluidic chip for rapid isolation of highly purified, untouched monocytes from human blood by a negative selection method. This bioseparation platform integrates several unique features into a microfluidic device, including locally engineered magnetic field gradients and a continuous flow with a buffer switching scheme to improve the performance of the cell separation process. The results indicate high monocyte purity and recovery performances at a volumetric flow rate that is nearly an order of magnitude larger than comparable microfluidic devices reported in literature. In addition, a comprehensive 2-D computational modeling is performed to determine the cell trajectory and trapping length within the microfluidic chip. Furthermore, the effects of channel height, substrate thickness, cell size, number of beads per cell, and sample flow rate on the cell separation performance are studied.
Chapter 4 – Driving Architectural Design and Preservation from a Persona Perspective in Agile Projects

Architecturally significant requirements (ASRs) drive and constrain many aspects of architecture. Eliciting and analyzing these requirements in the early phases of a project means that quality concerns can be discovered and addressed during the architectural design. This reduces the risk of costly and unnecessary refactoring. The challenge of emerging requirements is particularly evident in agile projects, which are inherently incremental; however, existing techniques for eliciting ASRs, such as win-win and i*, are typically rejected by agile development teams as being somewhat heavyweight. In this chapter, we present the notion of an architecturally savvy persona (ASP), which is used to emerge and analyze stakeholders’ quality concerns and to drive and validate the architectural design. ASPs are useful for discovering, analyzing, and managing ASRs, and designing and validating high-level architectural solutions that balance tradeoffs and satisfy stakeholders’ concerns. We show how ASPs can be used to discover quality concerns, drive architectural design, and preserve architectural qualities during long-term maintenance activities.
Youth Development Models and Indian Youth: A Critical Literature Review, Case Example and Applications to Youth in Alternative Care:

Western models of youth development emphasise a holistic view of youth and identify the individual factors, social relationships, and institutional support that are necessary for a successful transition to young adulthood. Such models may be applicable to at-risk populations, including youth in institutionalised care. Institutional care is a documented risk factor for adverse social and mental health outcomes; however, studies have documented common factors that promote positive development among institutionalised youth. The purpose of the current article is to assess the relevance of Western youth development models to adolescents in institutional care in India. The authors review three frameworks for positive youth development, present a critical literature review on youth in institutional care, and situate results within relevant cultural, historic and socioeconomic contexts in India. Youth development models are used to synthesise findings, and potential implications are illustrated with a case example of an exemplary institutional care setting in India. When situated within the larger socioeconomic, historical and cultural contexts, international literature and Western youth development models may serve as a potential resource for practitioners and institutions working with youth in alternative care.
Misrepresenting Brown: Are Ohio Schools Lost in the Free Market? General Implications for Urban Education

The privatization of public funds for education through school choice programs has fueled the expansion of virtual online charter schools. This redirection of funds contributes to the idea that virtual school success is comparable or even superior to the performance of traditional public schools. The schools most adversely affected are the schools with the highest need, those serving children living in poverty and already underserved minority student populations: urban public schools. The purpose of this article is to investigate the performance of virtual schools and the redistribution of public monies from public to online community schools in Ohio.
Using semantic web technologies to integrate models to analytical tools

This paper discusses the potential advantages and pitfalls of using semantic web technologies in the process of preparing engineering analyses. Analytical tools are often not designed to be integrated with disparate information sources and general-purpose modeling tools and often do not support the detection of problems across domains. Conversely, modeling tools may not capture and represent explicitly the information needed to leverage the capabilities of analytical tools. The method described uses semantic web technology as the integrating mechanism between domain-specific models (DSM) and analytical tools. We describe a method and tools for representing analytical knowledge through semantic web ontologies that map between the metamodels of both the DSM and analytical tools. We compare an earlier tool chain prototype with a significantly revised prototype to reflect on the benefits of using semantic web technologies as an integrating mechanism. A potential advantage is the ability to explicitly and transparently represent the relationships between modeling and analytical tools.
Directing the Structure of Two-Dimensional Silica and Silicates

Density functional theory was used to assess the viability of approaches to controlling the structure of a recently discovered two-dimensional form of SiO2. In accord with prior work, a hexagonal bilayer of mirror image planes of corner-sharing SiO4 tetrahedra in six-membered rings yielded only a slightly higher energy than α-quartz. Structures including four- through eight-membered rings were evaluated and in certain cases found to be as little as 17 meV/Si higher in energy than the hexagonal bilayer. When either biaxial or uniaxial tensile strain was applied, combinations of eight-, six-, and four-membered rings became favored due to the lower density of structures with larger rings. These findings, together with experiments that reveal expansion of silica bilayers to match the lattice of metal substrates, suggest that epitaxial strain may be used to control the bilayer structure. Replacement of Si with Ge and Al as prototypical tetravalent and trivalent dopants was also investigated. Substituting Ge fo...
Exploring strategy use for multiplication problem solving in college students

This study investigated whether strategy accuracy and flexibility on various types of complex multiplication problems could predict college GPA concurrently and longitudinally in 164 college engineering students. Additionally, it sought to answer whether low- and high-achieving students would show unique patterns of strategy flexibility, accuracy, and recognition of strategies on a complex multiplication task. Strategy recognition significantly predicted variance in GPA at Time 1 and Time 2; the higher performing students were better at recognizing and executing problems in a forced-strategy format, highlighting the importance of the ability to recognize strategies as an important math skill. Group differences accounted for variance on total recognition, total correct strategy associative property, and total correct strategy distributive property. Specifically, low- and average-achieving students were relatively similar in their ability to employ strategies, but high-achieving students were significantly better than the other two groups at executing the correct strategies. A significantly higher portion of students was more accurate on problems that incorporated a multiple of 10, which is consistent with the problem-difficulty effect. Moreover, students of all abilities were more likely to spontaneously use strategies in a non-forced strategy format, suggesting that students had at least some ability to understand the mechanisms behind strategies. Educational implications are discussed.
Laser shock processing of polycrystalline alumina ceramics

Laser shock processing (LSP) has been applied to polycrystalline α-Al2O3 ceramics. X-ray characterizations have revealed that LSP results in significant compressive residual stresses which can extend to a depth of more than 1.2 mm from the surface. The presence of compressive residual stresses improves the resistance of α-Al2O3 ceramics to indentation cracking. Microstructural characterization suggests that the majority of α-Al2O3 grains on the surface remains intact after LSP. However, damaged regions are occasionally present, which shows intergranular fractures and a limited plastic deformation in the vicinity of grain boundaries.
Freezing Points of Raw and Pasteurized Milks

Over 2,000 samples of cow milk and 243 samples of processed milk were analyzed for freezing point. Data suggest the need for continuing surveillance of both raw and pasteurized milks. During the course of the study, the incidence of freezing points in processed milks suggestive of added water dropped markedly. It is suggested this may have been due to information gained during the study and consequent response.
Applying Within-Family Differences Approaches to Enhance Understanding of the Complexity of Intergenerational Relations

Objectives The role of family relationships in the lives of older adults has received substantial attention in recent decades. Scholars have increasingly looked beyond simple models of family relations to approaches that recognize the complex and sometimes contradictory nature of these ties. One of the most exciting conceptual and methodological developments is the application of within-family differences approaches. In this paper, we focus on the ways in which such within-family approaches can extend the understanding of patterns and consequences of intergenerational ties in adulthood. Method Following a review of the conceptual underpinnings of within-family differences approaches, we provide empirical illustrations of these approaches from three projects conducted in the United States: the Family Exchanges Study (FES), the Longitudinal Study of Generations (LSOG), and the Within-Family Differences Study (WFDS). Results Analyses from the FES, LSOG, and WFDS reveal differences in the consequences of patterns of intergenerational relations found when using within-family compared to between-family approaches. In particular, these analyses demonstrate considerable variation within families that shapes patterns and consequences of parent-adult child ties that is masked when such variations are not taken into account. Discussion Within-family differences approaches have been shown to shed new light on intergenerational relations. Despite the value of within-family designs, their use may be limited by the higher investment of finances and time required to implement such studies.
Separation of Americium from Curium by Precipitation of K3AmO2(CO3)2

A chemical process has been developed for the separation of 243Am from 244Cm for use in the production of kilogram quantities of 244Cm. In the process, americium is oxidized to ion in concentrated ...
Simple, picojoule-sensitive ultraviolet autocorrelator based on two-photon conductivity in sapphire.

We present a simple autocorrelator for ultraviolet pulses based on two-photon conductivity in a bench-top fabricatable sapphire sensor. We perform measurements on femtosecond 226–278 nm ultraviolet pulses from the third and fourth harmonics of a standard 76 MHz titanium sapphire oscillator and picosecond 266 nm pulses from the fourth harmonic of a 1064 nm 50 MHz neodymium vanadate oscillator. Our device is sensitive to 2.6 pJ ultraviolet pulses with peak powers below 20 W. These results represent the lowest measured autocorrelation peak powers by over one order of magnitude for a system with no reference pulse in the deep ultraviolet (<300 nm). The autocorrelator can potentially support UV pulse lengths from 50 fs–10s of picoseconds.
Principal component based adaptive association test of multiple traits using GWAS summary statistics

Genetics hold great promise to precision medicine by tailoring treatment to the individual patient based on their genetic profiles. Toward this goal, many large-scale genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have been performed in the last decade to identify genetic variants associated with various traits and diseases. They have successfully identified tens of thousands of disease-related variants. However they have explained only a small proportion of the overall trait heritability for most traits and are of very limited clinical use. This is partly owing to the small effect sizes of most genetic variants, and the common practice of 99testing association between one trait and one genetic variant at a time99 in most GWAS, even when multiple related traits are often measured for each individual. Increasing evidence suggests that many genetic variants can influence multiple traits simultaneously, and we can gain more power by testing association of multiple traits simultaneously. It is appealing to develop novel multi-trait association test methods that need only GWAS summary data, since it is generally very hard to access the individual-level GWAS phenotype and genotype data. Most existing GWAS summary data based association test methods have relied on ad hoc approach or crude Monte Carlo approximation. In this paper we develop rigorous statistical methods for efficient and powerful multi-trait association test. We develop robust and efficient methods to accurately estimate the marginal trait correlation matrix using only GWAS summary data. We construct the principal component (PC) based association test from the summary statistics. PC based test has optimal power when the underlying multi-trait signal can be captured by the first PC, and otherwise it will have suboptimal performance. We develop an adaptive test by optimally weighting the PC based test and the omnibus chi-square test to achieve robust performance under various scenarios. We develop efficient numerical algorithms to compute the analytical p-values for all the proposed tests without the need of Monte Carlo sampling. We illustrate the utility of proposed methods through application to the GWAS meta-analysis summary data for multiple lipids and glycemic traits. We identify multiple novel loci that were missed by individual trait based association test. All the proposed methods are implemented in an R package available at http://www.github.com/baolinwu/MTAR. The developed R programs are extremely efficient: it takes less than two minutes to compute the list of genome-wide significant SNPs for all proposed multi-trait tests for the lipids GWAS summary data with 2.5 million SNPs on a single Linux desktop.
Assessing the impact of tactical airport surface operations on airline schedule block time setting

Abstract With the growth of air traffic, airport surfaces are congested and air traffic operations are disrupted by the formation of bottlenecks on the surface. Hence, improving the efficiency and predictability of airport surface operations is not only a key goal of NASA’s initiatives in Integrated Arrival/Departure/Surface (IADS) operations, but also has been recognized as a critical aspect of the FAA NextGEN implementation plan. While a number of tactical initiatives have been shown to be effective in improving airport surface operations from a service provider’s perspective, their impacts on airlines’ scheduled block time (SBT) setting, which has been found to have direct impact on airlines’ on-time performance and operating cost, have received little attention. In this paper, we assess this impact using an econometric model of airline SBT combined with a before/after analysis of the implementation of surface congestion management (SCM) at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in 2010. Since airlines do not consider gate delay in setting SBT, we find that reduction in taxi-out time variability resulting from SCM leads to more predictable taxi-out times and thus decreases in SBT. The JFK SCM implementation is used as a case study to validate model prediction performance. The observed SBT decrease between 2009 and 2011 at JFK is 4.8 min and our model predicts a 4.2 min decrease. In addition, Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) is used as an example to demonstrate how different surface operations improvements scenarios can be evaluated in terms of SBT reduction.
Branched actin networks push against each other at adherens junctions to maintain cell–cell adhesion

Adherens junctions (AJs) are mechanosensitive cadherin-based intercellular adhesions that interact with the actin cytoskeleton and carry most of the mechanical load at cell–cell junctions. Both Arp2/3 complex–dependent actin polymerization generating pushing force and nonmuscle myosin II (NMII)-dependent contraction producing pulling force are necessary for AJ morphogenesis. Which actin system directly interacts with AJs is unknown. Using platinum replica electron microscopy of endothelial cells, we show that vascular endothelial (VE)-cadherin colocalizes with Arp2/3 complex–positive actin networks at different AJ types and is positioned at the interface between two oppositely oriented branched networks from adjacent cells. In contrast, actin–NMII bundles are located more distally from the VE-cadherin–rich zone. After Arp2/3 complex inhibition, linear AJs split, leaving gaps between cells with detergent-insoluble VE-cadherin transiently associated with the gap edges. After NMII inhibition, VE-cadherin is lost from gap edges. We propose that the actin cytoskeleton at AJs acts as a dynamic push–pull system, wherein pushing forces maintain extracellular VE-cadherin transinteraction and pulling forces stabilize intracellular adhesion complexes.
Synthesis of Highly Substituted 2-Arylindoles via Copper-Catalyzed Coupling of Isocyanides and Arylboronic Acids

Highly functionalized 2-arylindoles were synthesized from 2-alkenylarylisocyanides and arylboronic acids using a simple, inexpensive copper catalyst. The reaction exhibits excellent functional group tolerance for both the arylisocyanide and boronic acid coupling partners. To avoid the direct handling of the pungent arylisocyanide starting materials, continuous flow chemistry is further demonstrated to provide safe and effective access to 2-arylindoles through in situ dehydration and cyclization of easy-to-handle 2-alkenyl-N-formylanilines.
Energy-Efficient Data Multicast in Multi-Hop Wireless Networks

Multi-hop wireless networks (MHWNs) are an emerging paradigm for bandwidth and energy-efficient wireless systems where each terminal communicates only with a few closely positioned neighbour nodes using low power communication schemes. High-rate (multimedia) data networks, sensor networks, and voice communications are seen as three main application domains of MHWNs. While MHWNs open many new research and economic opportunities, they simultaneously pose a number of new challenging technical problems. Among them, the fundamental role is reserved for energy- efficient data delivery. We address the problem of Data Multicast in Multi-Hop Wireless Networks that effectively captures requirements of all three of the scenarios. The problem focuses on how to minimize energy consumption while delivering data to all consumers that requested it. Since in the current and pending technologies communication dominates energy consumption, we aim to minimize the number of nodes that transmit data for the request data delivery problem instance. First, we formulate the problem and establish its computation complexity. Next, we develop an efficient heuristic which utilizes information about the geographical position of the nodes in the network to find the most energy-efficient communication path. Finally, we establish the effectiveness of the proposed approach by conducting comprehensive testing of our heuristic on typical ad-hoc networks and instances.
New Natural-Product Diversity From Marine Actinomycetes

There is currently renewed interest in the study of microorganisms as a source of structurally unique and pharmacologically active natural products. Actinomycetes, being the single most productive source of naturally occurring antibiotics, are a logical component of these studies, and success with this group will be enhanced by the inclusion of previously unknown taxa. Recent studies of marine-derived actinomycetes have revealed the widespread distribution of unique marine taxa residing in ocean sediments. Chemical studies of these strains, focusing on members of the new genus Salinospora, have led to a high rate of novel secondary metabolite discovery, including molecules with potent biological activity. Given the encouraging results from preliminary studies of these newly described marine bacteria, it seems clear that marine actinomycetes represent an important future resource for small-molecule drug discovery.
Reading the Media’s Mind

‘There’s no art to find the mind’s construction in the face,’ wrote Shakespeare, but trying to infer what someone is really thinking is arguably the essence of interaction between cognitive agents. Turning this into a computational model is challenging, but one possible approach to infer mental models from linguistic expression is to look at patterns of lexical associations. Assuming that written language reflects conceptual associations in the writer’s mind, we have previously shown differences in the patterns of lexical association between creative and non-creative writing. In this paper, we apply the same approach to news reports from individual media sources over the same period, with the goal of looking for differential associative patterns. The underlying assumption is that the associative patterns of a media source will reflect its “mind” and “personality,” i.e., specific styles, preferences, or biases, just as they do for individuals.
Data-Driven Clinical Phenotyping of Denosumab Exposure in a Large United States Cohort

Denosumab is a therapeutic monoclonal antibody originally developed for alleviation of osteoporosis symptoms. Due to known anti-osteoclastic effect via RANKL inhibition, indication for denosumab was expanded to include treatment for various cancers. Phenotyping for denosumab exposure occurred within a large (~50 million individuals) US-based insurance claims cohort between 2007 and 2016. Denosumab exposed patients (n=70,610) were randomly assigned to 20% training (n=14,122) and 80% analysis (n=56,488) cohorts. CCS level 2 hierarchies annotated phenotype labels (n=146) for training, analysis, and control cohorts, including data from inpatient and outpatient diagnosis (ICD9&10) codes 12 months prior and post index date. To reduce the dimension of our phenotypic feature space of 144 CCS categories, we applied an efficient and powerful gradient boosting ML algorithm named XGBoost on the training cohort to identify individuals who have been exposed to denosumab more than once. Relevant phenotypic features (n=31) were identified with 0.988 cross-validation balanced accuracy. Within the analysis cohort, our model replicated with balanced accuracy of 0.846. Several therapeutic indications were predictive of denosumab exposure such as in treatment of osteoporosis and various cancers, hypertension, eye disorders, disorders of lipid metabolism, disease of urinary system, bone disease and spondylosis (Table 1). Removing the primary indication (osteoporosis) from the denosumab model only slightly modified feature importance scores (Table 1 - FI2). Independent statistical characterization of features corroborated all associations between denosumab exposure and phenotype prevalence as significant (all adjusted p-values < 0.001). Interdependent effect between primary or secondary indications of denosumab exposure and phenotype prevalence are needed to elucidate potential disease co-occurrence or opportunities for therapeutic repositioning.
Insights into cognition from network science analyses of human brain functional connectivity: Working memory as a test case

Abstract Because of its central role in theories of goal-oriented human cognition and rich, existing, behavioral science and cognitive neuroscience literature, the construct of working memory offers an ideal test case to examine the contributions that network science analyses of human brain functional connectivity currently can make to enhance our understanding of cognition. The construct of working memory is reviewed briefly, along with the existing activation-focused cognitive neuroscience literature examining it. The findings from more recent studies using network science-based human brain functional connectivity analyses of both resting state and task-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) research are then examined to determine what additional insights this approach can bring. Possible future directions are suggested, including analyses of a wider range of working memory tasks using resting state and task-state data.
Extended Abstract: From Research to Practice: How Insights from Social Web Research Inform Website Usability

This project explores social web feedback in relation to website usability. The concept of “audience involvement” provides a framework for understanding social web feedback about large public websites. That is, audience involvement values the integration of audience voices and feedback in consideration of use and design of information products and services. In two case studies about large public websites, social web feedback from Facebook, Twitter, and blog responses were analyzed to better understand contextual website use. A modified grounded theory analysis demonstrated ways that social web feedback revealed usability issues and impressions as well as “minis” (individual profiles) and “treks” (first-hand explanations of web paths). This analysis of social web feedback about large public websites potentially extends usability methods to achieve a better sense of audience values and expectations regarding usability.
Structure elucidation of colibactin

Abstract Colibactin is a gut microbiome metabolite of unknown structure that has been implicated in colorectal cancer formation. Several studies now suggest that the tumorgenicity of colibactin derives from interstrand cross-linking of host DNA. Here we use a combination of genetics, isotope labeling, tandem MS, and chemical synthesis to deduce the structure of colibactin. Our structural assignment accounts for all known biosynthetic data and suggests roles for the final unaccounted enzymes in the colibactin gene cluster. DNA cross-link degradation products derived from synthetic and natural colibactin were indistinguishable by tandem MS analysis, thereby confirming the structure prediction. This work reveals the structure of colibactin, which has remained incompletely defined for over a decade.
Female PAPP-A knockout mice are resistant to metabolic dysfunction induced by high-fat/high-sucrose feeding at middle age

Longevity and aging are influenced by common intracellular signals of the insulin/insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1 pathway. Abnormally high levels of bioactive IGF-1 increase the development of various cancers and may contribute to metabolic diseases such as insulin resistance. Enhanced availability of IGF-1 is promoted by cleavage of IGF binding proteins (IGFBPs) by proteases, including the pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A (PAPPA). In vitro, PAPP-A is regulated by pro-inflammatory cytokines (PICs) such as interleukin (IL)-6 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF). Mice born with deficiency of the Papp-a gene (PAPP-A knockout (KO) mice) live ∼30–40 % longer than their normal littermates and have decreased bioactive IGF-1 on standard diets. Our objective was to elucidate how the effects of high-fat, high-sucrose diet (HFHS) promote obesity, induce metabolic dysfunction, and alter systemic cytokine expression in PAPP-A KO and normal mice. PAPP-A KO mice fed HFHS diet for 10 weeks were more glucose tolerant and had enhanced insulin sensitivity compared to normal mice fed HFHS diet. PAPP-A KO mice fed HFHS diet had lower levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-2, IL-6, and TNF-α) compared to normal mice fed the same diet. However, anti-inflammatory cytokine levels (IL-4 and adiponectin) were higher in PAPP-A KO mice fed HFHS diet compared to normal mice fed HFHS. Circulating PAPP-A levels were elevated in normal mice fed an HFHS diet compared to normal mice fed a standard, low-fat, low-sucrose (LFLS) diet. Indirect calorimetry showed, at 10 weeks of feeding HFHS diet, significantly increased oxygen consumption (VO2) in PAPP-A KO mice fed HFHS diet compared to normal mice fed the same diet. Furthermore, respiratory quotient (RQ) was significantly lower in PAPP-A KO mice fed HFHS diet compared to normal (N) mice fed HFHS diet indicating PAPP-A KO mice fed HFHS diet are able to rely on fat as their primary source of energy more so than normal controls. We conclude that PAPP-A KO mice are resistant to the HFHS diet induction of metabolic dysfunction associated with higher levels of anti-inflammatory cytokines and a remarkably metabolic flexible phenotype and that some of the effects of HFHS diet in normal animals may be due to increased levels of PAPP-A.
Computer extracted features related to the spatial arrangement of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes predict overall survival in epithelial ovarian cancer receiving adjuvant chemotherapy

The presence of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) is correlated with outcome and prognosis in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). In this study, automated image analysis was used to analyze the association between overall survival (OS) and TIL spatial arrangement and density in a multi-site cohort of 102 EOC patients who received adjuvant chemotherapy following debulking surgery. Features of the spatial arrangement of TILs (SpaTIL) were used to quantify the spatial co-localization of TILs and tumor cells on digitized pathology slides of the malignant neoplasm of excised specimens. A multivariable Cox regression model of SpaTIL features was fit on the n1 = 51 patient training set and was evaluated in the n2 = 51 patient validation set. The SpaTIL signature was significantly associated with OS, both in the training set (hazard ratio (HR) = 2.81, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.33 − 5.92, and p = 0.003) and the validation set (HR = 2.06, 95% CI = 1.04 − 4.07, and p = 0.008). In addition, fusing our spaTIL risk score and the clinical staging further improved the results of the predictive model (HR = 4.045, 95% CI = 4.11−5.41, and p = 0.0002 in the validation set) and outperformed clinical staging alone. This finding illustrates that a spaTIL risk score is not only able to predict OS independent of clinical data, but also offers prognostic value complementary to current clinical standard-of-care. Patients with longer survival times had significantly higher heterogeneity of non-TIL cluster area, while shorter time survivors had mostly same-sized, evenly-distributed non-TIL clusters and smaller average TIL cluster area. These findings suggest that dispersion of TILs throughout the tumor is associated with better treatment response to post-treatment adjuvant chemotherapy, and therefore longer survival time.
Cyprus: The Submerged Final Palaeolithic of Aspros Dive Site C

Underwater reconnaissance work in front of the early site of Aspros on the west coast of Cyprus has led to the recovery of lithic artefacts that date to the Final Palaeolithic. Survey work on Cyprus was initially focused on the search for pre-Neolithic archaeology on land, resulting in the discovery of sites on formations of aeolianite along the modern coastline. Given their inferred pre-Neolithic age at a time when sea levels were significantly lower than present, their geomorphological setting was used to predict targets for underwater survey offshore, resulting in the discovery of Dive Site C. In the eastern Mediterranean, no other site of this age has been found in a submerged context so far. At the end of the Pleistocene, this place stood at the foot of an aeolianite cliff that once formed part of the north bank of the Aspros River. Detailed analysis of the lithics at Dive Site C has identified diagnostic chipped stone tools in a hyper-microlithic tradition. This chapter sets out the steps that led to the underwater discovery, describes the lithic industries, presents the resulting gains in new knowledge and highlights the contribution that underwater archaeology is making to a better understanding of the Epipalaeolithic on Cyprus. Of particular interest are the close parallels between the reduction technology and the stone tool types at Aspros Dive Cite C and those from the levels of the Okuzini Cave in southern Turkey, which date to the time of the Younger Dryas.
Photoacoustic imaging of mesenchymal stem cells in living mice via silica-coated gold nanorods

Imaging is crucial for stem cell therapy to monitor the location(s), numbers, and state of the implanted cells. Real-time imaging in particular can ensure proper cell delivery for best engraftment. However, established imaging tools such as MRI are limited by their temporal resolution for guidance during delivery. In contrast, photoacoustic imaging is ideally suited for real time, image-guided therapy. Here, we use silica-coated gold nanorods as photoacoustic contrast agents and deploy them to image and quantitate mesenchymal stem cells during implant into the muscle tissue of live mice. Silica-coated gold nanorods (SiGNRs) were created with standard methods and loaded into mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) without transfection agents. There was no significant (p<0.05) toxicity or changes to cell proliferation after incubating MSCs with 0.05 nM SiGNRs for 3 hours. A panel of cytokines should only minor upregulation of inflammatory markers including interleukin-6. We used electron microscopy to illustrate vacuole-bound SiGNRs inside the cells. This cell staining increased photoacoustic signal 175% relative to MSCs without contrast agent—the silica coat itself increased signal 55% relative to uncoated GNRs. Using inductively coupled plasma spectroscopy, we found that there were 100,000 SiGNRs per MSC. This value was 5-fold higher than a MSC population stained with GNRs in the absence of silica coat. After labeling, cells were washed and injected into murine muscle tissue to simulate a muscular dystrophy patient. Mice (N=5) treated with these SiGNRlabeled MSCs exhibited no adverse events and implants up to 5 mm deep were easily visualized. The in vivo detection limit was 90,000 cells in a 100 uL bolus in mouse thigh muscle. Here, the B-mode signal is useful for orienting the treatment area and visualizing the delivery catheter while the photoacoustic mode offers cell-specific content. The photoacoustic signal was validated with histology a long-term fluorescent tracking dye after MSC transplant. © (2014) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Neural networks for estimating physical parameters in membrane distillation

Abstract Membrane permeability and heat transfer rate in membrane distillation (MD) are approximated using physically incomplete empirical methods and imperfectly collected experimental data. This work develops a method for assessing the accuracy of these empirical methods as a function of the set of included parameters and the error in those parameter measurements. We train Neural Networks (NNs) on either process parameters (i.e. permeate flux, module design, temperatures, etc.) or both process parameters and membrane parameters (i.e., membrane porosity, membrane thermal conductivity, and pore size) from simulated MD datasets. We then compare NN predictions of membrane permeability, heat transfer rate, and membrane thermal conductivity to experimental data and a test set of simulated data with and without random error. NNs that use both process and membrane parameters have median errors, on average, 3 times lower than NNs using only process parameters and 20 times lower than Schofield and Modified-Schofield empirical methods. This work presents the first assessment of the accuracy of empirical methods for physical parameter estimation in MD and demonstrates the value of NNs in guiding the derivation of new empirical methods by identifying critical input parameters and the required measurement accuracy of those parameters.
Gynecomastia in a Patient Taking Meloxicam-A Case Report.

Gynecomastia is benign enlargement of glandular tissue in the male breast. It occurs due to an imbalance of estrogen and testosterone. It may be unilateral or bilateral. Physiologic gynecomastia co...
The coca enclosure: Autonomy against accumulation in Colombia

Abstract This article analyzes a relatively new phenomenon in northern Cauca: the massive expansion of coca cultivations. After decades of intense forced eradication campaigns promoted by the U.S. government, the so-called “War on Drugs” failed at achieving its stated aim. Instead, these militaristic policies pushed coca growers to find more remote places to cultivate coca in different parts of the county. In northern Cauca, coca cultivations are strongly associated with a wave of “colonization” (colonizacion) by coca growers displaced by Plan Colombia. In addition to the crops, these settlers also brought what some local inhabitants call the “anti-culture of coca,” which is associated with new forms of consumerism, violence, and an extractive relationship to the land. This ethnography explores coca’s power to transform social and economic relations, and it reveals how the structural inequalities in Colombian society are reproduced in regions where it is cultivated.
Profiling neural editomes reveals a molecular mechanism to regulate RNA editing during development.

Adenosine (A) to inosine (I) RNA editing contributes to transcript diversity and modulates gene expression in a dynamic, cell type-specific manner. During mammalian brain development, editing of specific adenosines increases, whereas the expression of A-to-I editing enzymes remains unchanged, suggesting molecular mechanisms that mediate spatiotemporal regulation of RNA editing exist. Herein, by using a combination of biochemical and genomic approaches, we uncover a molecular mechanism that regulates RNA editing in a neural- and development-specific manner. Comparing editomes during development led to the identification of neural transcripts that were edited only in one life stage. The stage-specific editing is largely regulated by differential gene expression during neural development. Proper expression of nearly one-third of the neurodevelopmentally regulated genes is dependent on adr-2, the sole A-to-I editing enzyme in C. elegans However, we also identified a subset of neural transcripts that are edited and expressed throughout development. Despite a neural-specific down-regulation of adr-2 during development, the majority of these sites show increased editing in adult neural cells. Biochemical data suggest that ADR-1, a deaminase-deficient member of the adenosine deaminase acting on RNA (ADAR) family, is competing with ADR-2 for binding to specific transcripts early in development. Our data suggest a model in which during neural development, ADR-2 levels overcome ADR-1 repression, resulting in increased ADR-2 binding and editing of specific transcripts. Together, our findings reveal tissue- and development-specific regulation of RNA editing and identify a molecular mechanism that regulates ADAR substrate recognition and editing efficiency.
Household food insecurity and school readiness among preschool-aged children in the USA.

Objective: The present study examines the association between mild and moderate-to-severe household food insecurity and school readiness among a nationally representative sample of preschool-aged children. Design: Cross-sectional data pertaining to household food availability as well as four domains of school readiness – early learning skills, self-regulation, social-emotional development and physical health & motor development – were employed. Setting: The USA. Participants: 15 402 children aged 3–5 years from the 2016–2018 National Survey of Children’s Health. Results: Both mild and moderate-to-severe food insecurity are associated with an increase in needing support or being at-risk in each of the four school readiness domains, particularly Self-Regulation (IRR = 4·31; CI 2·68, 6·95) and Social-Emotional Development (IRR = 3·43; CI 2·16, 5·45). Furthermore, while nearly half of the children in food-secure households are on-track across all four school readiness domains (47·49 %), only one in four children experiencing moderate-to-severe household food insecurity is on-track across all domains (25·26 %). Conclusions: Household food insecurity is associated with reductions in school readiness among preschool-aged children.
Spinal macrophages resolve nociceptive hypersensitivity after peripheral injury

Peripheral nerve injury induces long-term pro-inflammatory responses in spinal cord glial cells that facilitate neuropathic pain, but the identity of endogenous cells that resolve spinal inflammation has not been determined. Guided by single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq), we found that MRC1+ spinal cord macrophages proliferated and upregulated the anti-inflammatory mediator Cd163 in mice following superficial injury (SI; nerve intact), but this response was blunted in nerve-injured animals. Depleting spinal macrophages in SI animals promoted microgliosis and caused mechanical hypersensitivity to persist. Conversely, expressing Cd163 in spinal macrophages increased Interleukin 10 expression, attenuated micro- and astrogliosis, and enduringly alleviated mechanical and thermal hypersensitivity in nerve-injured animals. Our data indicate that MRC1+ spinal macrophages actively restrain glia to limit neuroinflammation and resolve mechanical pain following a superficial injury. Moreover, we show that spinal macrophages from nerve-injured animals mount a dampened anti-inflammatory response but can be therapeutically coaxed to promote long-lasting recovery of neuropathic pain.
Pharmacotherapy in Coronavirus Disease 2019 and Risk of Secondary Infections: A Single-Center Case Series and Narrative Review

Since the onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, immune modulators have been considered front-line candidates for the management of patients presenting with clinical symptoms secondary to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection. Although heavy emphasis has been placed on early clinical efficacy, we sought to evaluate the impact of pharmacologic approach to coronavirus disease 2019 within the ICU on secondary infections and clinical outcomes. Data sources PubMed (inception to March 2021) database search and manual selection of bibliographies from selected articles. Study selection and data extraction Articles relevant to coronavirus disease 2019, management of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2-associated respiratory failure, and prevalence of secondary infections with pharmacotherapies were selected. The MeSH terms "COVID-19," "secondary infection," "SARS-CoV-2," "tocilizumab," and "corticosteroids" were used for article identification. Articles were narratively synthesized for this review. Data synthesis Current data surrounding the use of tocilizumab and/or corticosteroids for coronavirus disease 2019 management are limited given the short follow-up period and conflicting results between studies. Further complicating the understanding of immune modulator role is the lack of definitive understanding of clinical impact of the immune response in coronavirus disease 2019. Conclusions Based on the current available literature, we suggest prolonged trials and follow-up intervals for those patients managed with immune modulating agents for the management of coronavirus disease 2019.