cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Epithelial cell cycling predicts p53 responsiveness to γ-irradiation during post-natal mammary gland development

The tumor suppressor gene, TP53, plays a major role in surveillance and repair of radiation-induced DNA damage. In multiple cell types, including mammary epithelial cells, abrogation of p53 (encoded by Trp53) function is associated with increased tumorigenesis. We examined gamma-irradiated BALB/c-Trp53(+/+) and -Trp53(-/-) female mice at five stages of post-natal mammary gland development to determine whether radiation-induced p53 activity is developmentally regulated. Our results show that p53-mediated responses are attenuated in glands from irradiated virgin and lactating mice, as measured by induction of p21/WAF1 (encoded by Cdkn1a) and apoptosis, while irradiated early- and mid-pregnancy glands exhibit robust p53 activity. There is a strong correlation between p53-mediated apoptosis and the degree of cellular proliferation, independent of the level of differentiation. In vivo, proliferation is intimately influenced by steroid hormones. To determine whether steroid hormones directly modulate p53 activity, whole organ cultures of mammary glands were induced to proliferate using estrogen plus progesterone or epidermal growth factor plus transforming growth factor-alpha and p53 responses to gamma-irradiation were measured. Regardless of mitogens used, proliferating mammary epithelial cells show comparable p53 responses to gamma-irradiation, including expression of nuclear p53 and p21/WAF1 and increased levels of apoptosis, compared to non-proliferating irradiated control cultures. Our study suggests that differences in radiation-induced p53 activity during post-natal mammary gland development are influenced by the proliferative state of the gland, and may be mediated indirectly by the mitogenic actions of steroid hormones in vivo.
Patient Satisfaction with Health-Related Quality of Life: Implications for Prognosis in Prostate Cancer

Abstract Purpose The goal of this study was to evaluate the association between patient satisfaction with health-related quality of life (HRQOL), as measured by the Ferrans and Powers Quality of Life Index (QLI), and survival in patients with prostate cancer treated in an integrative cancer treatment setting. Materials and Methods This is a case series of 230 histologically confirmed stage I-IV prostate cancers treated at Cancer Treatment Centers of America. Quality of Life Index measures overall HRQOL and HRQOL in 4 major subscales: health and physical, social and economic, psychological and spiritual, and family. Study patients were dichotomized into 2 groups based on the median scores for all QLI subscales. Kaplan- Meier and log-rank tests were used to evaluate survival. Multivariate Cox regression analyses were then performed to evaluate the joint prognostic significance of HRQOL and clinical factors. Results Patient satisfaction with health and physical ( P = .0001), psychological and spiritual ( P = .03), family ( P = .02), and overall HRQOL ( P = .0001) were statistically significantly associated with survival upon univariate analysis. Upon multivariate analysis, patient satisfaction with the health and physical subscale was found to be predictive of survival ( P = .04), independent of the effects of previous treatment history and Gleason score. Conclusion This study suggests that baseline patient satisfaction with health and physical function, as measured by the QLI, provides useful prognostic information in patients with prostate cancer, independent of previous treatment history and Gleason score. The QLI Index can be used as a stratification variable in the oncology clinic to aid in medical decision-making.
An optimized multi-tone calibration signal for quadrature receiver communication systems

Communication systems are subject to stringent image rejection requirements. Thus, accurate and regular field calibration is important. Regression techniques are effective in the calibration of quadrature receiver systems. These techniques require the transmission or injection of a calibration signal to estimate potentially frequency-dependent errors. Existing regression-based methods use nonlinear models with signals that calibrate only one frequency at a time. This paper recasts the problem in terms of linear regression and develops an optimized multi-tone calibration signal for quadrature receiver communication systems. Linear regression ensures closed-form solutions that can be computed in real-time by using adaptive filtering techniques. Simulations demonstrate the advantages of the multi-tone signal: simultaneous multi-frequency calibration and minimal interference with information bearing communication channels. At the same time, the benefits of regression-based calibration are also realized: modest model assumptions, effective performance assessment, and accommodation of non-uniformly sampled or missing calibration data.
Aldosterone acutely stimulates NCC activity via a SPAK-mediated pathway

Hypertension is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, and disordered sodium balance has long been implicated in its pathogenesis. Aldosterone is perhaps the key regulator of sodium balance and thus blood pressure. The sodium chloride cotransporter (NCC) in the distal convoluted tubule of the kidney is a major site of sodium reabsorption and plays a key role in blood pressure regulation. Chronic exposure to aldosterone increases NCC protein expression and function. However, more acute effects of aldosterone on NCC are unknown. In our salt-abundant modern society where chronic salt deprivation is rare, understanding the acute effects of aldosterone is critical. Here, we examined the acute effects (12–36 h) of aldosterone on NCC in the rodent kidney and in a mouse distal convoluted tubule cell line. Studies demonstrated that aldosterone acutely stimulated NCC activity and phosphorylation without affecting total NCC abundance or surface expression. This effect was dependent upon the presence of the mineralocorticoid receptor and serum- and glucocorticoid-regulated kinase 1 (SGK1). Furthermore, STE20/SPS-1-related proline/alanine-rich kinase (SPAK) phosphorylation also increased, and gene silencing of SPAK eliminated the effect of aldosterone on NCC activity. Aldosterone administration via a minipump in adrenalectomized rodents confirmed an increase in NCC phosphorylation without a change in NCC total protein. These data indicate that acute aldosterone-induced SPAK-dependent phosphorylation of NCC increases individual transporter activity.
Patients’ Perspective on the Value of Medication Management Appointments

Objectives: There is ongoing concern that psychiatric medication management appointments add little value to care. The present study attempted to address this concern by capturing depressed patients’ views and opinions about the value of psychiatric medication management appointments. Methods: Seventy-eight semi-structured interviews were performed with white and African American depressed patients post medication management appointments. These interviews tapped patients’ views and opinions about the value of attending medication management appointments. Analysis: An iterative thematic analysis was performed. Findings: Patients reported greater appointment value when appointments included obtaining medications, discussing the need for medication changes or dose adjustments, and discussing the impact of medications on their illness. Additionally, greater appointment value was perceived by patients when there were non-medical conversations about life issues, immediate outcomes from the appointment such as motivation to continue in care, and specific qualities of providers that were appealing to patients. Conclusions: Patients’ perceived value of psychiatric medication management appointments is complex. Though important patient outcomes are obtaining medicine and perceiving improvement in their mental health, there are other valued appointment and provider factors. Some of these other valued factors embedded within medication management appointments could have therapeutic properties. These findings have implications for future clinical research and service delivery.
Final results of incorporating an operational formal method into a software engineering curriculum

This project, which is funded by the NSF Educational Innovation Program (CDA-9522257), integrates an operational formal method into the undergraduate software engineering curriculum of the Systems Analysis Department of Miami University. Formal analysis skills were added to the curriculum to address the concern that the discipline of software engineering education lacks sufficient emphasis on mathematics and engineering science. The integration of an operational formal method throughout a six course software engineering sequence is outlined. Direct comparisons of the problem solving skills of the formal methods and control student groups have shown that the formal methods students possess an increased level of complex problem solving skills as well as a greater ability to perform problem abstraction.
Dynamic fault dictionaries and two-stage fault isolation

This paper presents dynamic two stage fault isolation for sequential random logic VLSI circuits, and introduces limited and dynamic fault dictionaries. In the first stage of the dynamic process, a limited fault dictionary identifies candidate faults, which are further distinguished in the second stage by a dictionary generated dynamically for the candidate faults and a subset of the test vectors. This provides high resolution but avoids the costs of full static dictionaries. Two-stage fault isolation is evaluated for benchmark circuits and on defects in industrial circuits.
FGF23 protein expression in coronary arteries is associated with impaired kidney function

Author(s): van Venrooij, Natalie A; Pereira, Renata C; Tintut, Yin; Fishbein, Michael C; Tumber, Navdeep; Demer, Linda L; Salusky, Isidro B; Wesseling-Perry, Katherine | Abstract: BackgroundFibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF23) levels are elevated in chronic kidney disease (CKD) and elevated values have been associated with both heart disease and mortality. Recent studies show that FGF23, a protein synthesized by osteocytes, is also present in calcified atherosclerotic plaques and may be induced by heart disease. Whether vascular expression of FGF23 is associated with progressive CKD, however, remains unknown. Therefore, the relationship between kidney function, vascular calcification and FGF23 expression was evaluated in patients with heart disease.MethodsImmunohistochemistry for FGF23 was performed in coronary arteries of all patients undergoing heart transplantation at UCLA between February 2008 and 2010. Immunohistochemical staining for Klotho, DMP1, FGFR1, and FGFR3; calcium deposition; and RNA expression of Klotho and DMP1 were assessed in a subset of eight samples.ResultsFGF23 was detected by immunohistochemistry in 56% of the coronary artery specimens. Vascular FGF23 expression correlated with declining kidney function, as evidenced by reduced creatinine clearance. FGFR1 and FGFR3 were detected throughout the vascular tissue and in calcified plaques. Calcium deposition, Klotho expression and DMP1 expression correlated with FGF23 immunoreactivity.ConclusionsThe findings suggest that the Klotho-FGF23-FGFR system is active in coronary arteries and its upregulation correlates with impaired renal function and matrix calcium deposition.
What Is Civil War? Conceptual and Empirical Complexities of an Operational Definition

The empirical literature on civil war has seen tremendous growth because of the compilation of quantitative data sets, but there is no consensus on the measurement of civil war. This increases the ...
DNA structure-induced recruitment and activation of the Fanconi anemia pathway protein FANCD2∇

The Fanconi anemia (FA) pathway proteins are thought to be involved in the repair of irregular DNA structures including those encountered by the moving replication fork. However, the nature of the DNA structures that recruit and activate the FA proteins is not known. Because FA proteins function within an extended network of proteins, some of which are still unknown, we recently established cell-free assays in Xenopus laevis egg extracts to deconstruct the FA pathway in a fully replication-competent context. Here we show that the central FA pathway protein, xFANCD2, is monoubiquitinated (xFANCD2-L) rapidly in the presence of linear and branched double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) structures but not single-stranded or Y-shaped DNA. xFANCD2-L associates with dsDNA structures in an FA core complex-dependent manner but independently of xATRIP, the regulatory subunit of xATR. Formation of xFANCD2-L is also triggered in response to circular dsDNA, suggesting that dsDNA ends are not required to trigger monoubiquitination of FANCD2. The induction of xFANCD2-L in response to circular dsDNA is replication and checkpoint independent. Our results provide new evidence that the FA pathway discriminates among DNA structures and demonstrate that triggering the FA pathway can be uncoupled from DNA replication and ATRIP-dependent activation.
Analytic Philosophy and Mental Phenomena

Throughout most of its history analytic philosophy has exhibited a curious prejudice against the mental. Many, perhaps most, analytic philosophers have felt that there was something especially puzzling about mental processes, states, and events, and that we would be better off if they could be analyzed away or explained in terms of something else or somehow eliminated. One sees this attitude, for example, in the persistent use of pejorative adjectives, such as ‘mysterious’ and ‘occult’, that analytic philosophers from Ryle to Rorty use to characterize mental phenomena naively construed.
Homogeneous optical dephasing and line broadening processes in an organic glass: comparison of the temperature dependences of picosecond photon echo and hole burning experiments

The homogeneous optical dephasing times (T2) and the non-photochemical hole burning (NPHB) linewidths of resorufin in glycerol glass are reported from 1.1 to 25.5 K. At low temperature, the linewidths obtained from NPHB are substantially wider than the linewidths (1/πT2) obtained from photon echo measurements, but the two become equal at high temperatures. The extra broadening of the NPHB is found to increase as T0.8. A model of homogeneous dephasing including both two-level system and pseudolocal mode contributions is successful over the entire temperature range.
Transforming Social Work Curricula: Institutional Supports for Promoting Sustainability

Due to the centrality of human rights and social justice in the profession, social work must collectively take a stand on ecological degradation and the climate crisis. Overall, social work education's engagement with issues of sustainability and an expanded ecological justice perspective has been peripheral and piecemeal. It is crucial that social work education expand opportunities to prepare social workers to respond to the global environmental crisis. This conceptual paper considers strategies for integrating environmental content in social work curricula and addresses the essential role of institutional supports for curricular change and professional development focused on sustainability. The role of institutional supports to advance curricular change to respond to environmental crises and promote sustainability is highlighted, along with specific examples from the authors' home institution, including (1) institutional commitment and culture, (2) curricular supports and guidelines, and (3) interdisci...
RADIATION FROM PULSARS.

We suggest that an oscillating interface, carrying a steady current between a rotating, radiating, magnetic dipole and an external plasma is the source of pulsar radiation produced over a broad band of high frequencies (108–1018 Hz). The efficiency of the radiation mechanism is so high that the oscillation energy goes mainly into radiation in each cycle of the oscillation.
Identifying associations among site properties and weed species abundance. I. Multivariate analysis

Abstract Site properties and weed species abundance are known to vary spatially across fields. The extent to which they covary is not well understood. The objective of this research was to assess how canonical correlation analysis could be used to identify associations among site properties and weed species abundance within an agricultural field. A farmer-managed field rotated between Zea mays and Glycine max in Boone County, IA, was grid-sampled for site properties in 1992 and for weed species abundance between 1994 and 1997. Twelve site properties were considered in relation to five weed species that were identified and counted after all weed control operations were completed. Site properties such as total nitrogen, Bray-1 P, percent organic carbon, and texture were spatially variable. Weed species abundance was also spatially variable such that most weeds were found in patches and much of the field was weed-free. Canonical correlation analysis identified one to four significant correlations between lin...
Cross-Bedding and Ripple Marks

Cross-bedding and ripple marks have received more attention from geologists than all other directional structures combined.
The relationship of plasma ionized calcium to cardiovascular disease endpoint and family history of hypertension

Plasma ionized calcium and total calcium were measured on 271 individuals from 34 Utah pedigrees divided into groups defined by the method of pedigree ascertainment: 1) hypertension clusters, 2) early stroke death clusters and 3) clusters of early heart attack deaths. Normotensive individuals were also categorized by family history of hypertension. Members of stroke cluster pedigrees had higher mean plasma ionized Ca2+ than either hypertension pedigrees (p < 0.05) or coronary artery disease pedigrees which had the lowest concentrations (p < 0.001). Within the normotensive group, those subjects with a positive family history of hypertension exhibited significantly higher plasma ionized Ca2+ (2.18 ± 0.10 (S.D.) mEq/1) than individuals without a family history of hypertension (2.12 ± 0.08 mEq/1, p < 0.01). In medicated hypertensives, both ionized (p < 0.05) and total (p < 0.01) plasma calcium were higher than calcium levels in the normotensive negative family history subjects. Plasma ionized Ca2+ in the adul...
Interpreting IgE sensitization tests in food allergy

Food allergies are increasing in prevalence, and with it, IgE testing to foods is becoming more commonplace. Food-specific IgE tests, including serum assays and prick skin tests, are sensitive for detecting the presence of food-specific IgE (sensitization), but specificity for predicting clinical allergy is limited. Therefore, positive tests are generally not, in isolation, diagnostic of clinical disease. However, rationale test selection and interpretation, based on clinical history and understanding of food allergy epidemiology and pathophysiology, makes these tests invaluable. Additionally, there exist highly predictive test cutoff values for common allergens in atopic children. Newer testing methodologies, such as component resolved diagnostics, are promising for increasing the utility of testing. This review highlights the use of IgE serum tests in the diagnosis of food allergy.
Relative Influence of the Managerial Power Dimension of Corporate Governance on Analysts’ Earnings Forecast Accuracy in Large and Small Firms

This study examines the influence of managerial power on analysts’ earnings forecast accuracy. CEO/Chairperson duality and voting power of management on the board are used as proxies for managerial power. After controlling for key variables that have been shown to affect analysts’ forecast accuracy in prior literature, this study indicates that managerial power is positively associated with analysts’ earnings forecast errors for large firms, but not for small firms. The non-significant association between managerial power and forecast accuracy for small firms suggests that managerial power presents relatively less agency problems for small firms, while the inverse relationship between managerial power and forecast accuracy for large firms indicates that the managerial power dimension of corporate governance is a potential source of significant agency problems for large firms.
Chronically Elevated Levels of Short-Chain Fatty Acids Induce T Cell–Mediated Ureteritis and Hydronephrosis

Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) are major products of gut microbial fermentation and profoundly affect host health and disease. SCFAs generate IL-10(+) regulatory T cells, which may promote immune tolerance. However, SCFAs can also induce Th1 and Th17 cells upon immunological challenges and, therefore, also have the potential to induce inflammatory responses. Because of the seemingly paradoxical SCFA activities in regulating T cells, we investigated, in depth, the impact of elevated SCFA levels on T cells and tissue inflammation in mice. Orally administered SCFAs induced effector (Th1 and Th17) and regulatory T cells in ureter and kidney tissues, and they induced T cell-mediated ureteritis, leading to kidney hydronephrosis (hereafter called acetate-induced renal disease, or C2RD). Kidney hydronephrosis in C2RD was caused by ureteral obstruction, which was, in turn, induced by SCFA-induced inflammation in the ureteropelvic junction and proximal ureter. Oral administration of all major SCFAs, such as acetate, propionate, and butyrate, induced the disease. We found that C2RD development is dependent on mammalian target of rapamycin activation, T cell-derived inflammatory cytokines such as IFN-γ and IL-17, and gut microbiota. Young or male animals were more susceptible than old or female animals, respectively. However, SCFA receptor (GPR41 or GPR43) deficiency did not affect C2RD development. Thus, SCFAs, when systemically administered at levels higher than physiological levels, cause dysregulated T cell responses and tissue inflammation in the renal system. The results provide insights into the immunological and pathological effects of chronically elevated SCFAs.
Interactive wallpaper

Interactive Wallpaper represents a new category of digital art. Deeply embedded into our built surroundings, interactive wallpapers exhibit the following characteristics, blurring the boundaries between decorative art and useful science:1. They operate in everyday life2. They are open3. They are spatial.4. They are alive.Interactive wallpapers combine these primitives into powerful "immaterial" building blocks for creation of future spaces, buildings, cities. In this paper, we present a series of interactive wallpaper prototypes in order to explore how the tectonic and psychological effect of our surroundings can be augmented, subverted, and estranged by animating wallpapers and introducing an interactive, possibly darker dimension into architecture. What happens when traditionally static and innocent wallpapers become alive, get a sense of memory, spatiality, connectivity and randomness, and become part of our everyday lives?
Displacements of a Rigid Body

(1934). Displacements of a Rigid Body. The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 41, No. 4, pp. 242-253.
The Identity of Women's Clothing Fashion Opinion Leaders:

This article analyses the characteristics of women's clothing fashion opinion leaders. The data suggest that substantial differences exist between fashion opinion leaders and non-leaders on a wide ...
Models of viscoplasticity some comments on equilibrium (back) stress and drag stress

Phenomenological and microstructural motivations for the terms appearing in the title are found in a literature survey. Although the interpretations differ with various investigators a strong tendency is observed to consider plastic flow as rate dependent. It is stated that plastic strain takes time to develop and the existnce of an equilibrium stress is postulated at which plastic strain is fully developed. It is similar to the back stress used in materials science. The drag stress introduced from microdynamical studies performs the same function as the isotropic variable in plasticity. Most of the theories that describe the transient and steady-state behavior of metallic alloys make the inelastic strain rate a function of the over (effective) stress. It is shown that this concept has considerable advantages in the modeling of changes of viscous (time- or rate-dependent) and plastic (time- or rate-independent) contributions to hardening that are observed in cyclic loading and dynamic plasticity.
Mathematical Modeling of the structures and bulk moduli of TX2 quartz and cristobalite structure types, T = C, Si, Ge and X = O, S

Models of the oxide and sulfide structure-types of quartz and cristobalite have been made using potential energy surfaces derived from MO calculations on small molecules. The bond length and angle and the volume compressibility data calculated for quartz match those observed for pressures up to 40 kbars. An analysis of the force constants that define the potential energy surface indicates that the bulk modulus of the mineral is governed primarily by the bending force constant of the bridging angle. Similar calculations were completed for the GeO2 form of quartz, but the agreement with the observed data is somewhat poorer. A modeling of the CO2 form of quartz predicts that it would be significantly harder, more incompressible and show less expansibility than the SiO2 form.
TOXICITY OF ANT VENOM, FURTHER STUDIES OF THE VENOM FROM POGONOMYRMEX BARBATUS.

SummaryAs previously suggested from earlier and cruder extraction procedures (2) and as now verified, the actual venom material is far more toxic than the earlier homogenized agent. The present work indicates that 1.29 mg/kg of the relatively pure material is equivalent to 24 mg/kg of the abdominal homogenate utilized previously(2). The pure extract is capable of induction of all toxic phenomena previously described, is a protein or polypeptide, and once oven dried is not as toxic when reconstituted. The UV spectrum indicates a material with an absorption peak of about 270 mμ. The powdered crystalline material resulting from lyophilization of venom extracts is highly water soluble and may be considered as one of the more toxic of naturally occurring substances. Studies are continuing.
Application of GPRS Wireless Terminal Monitoring System

According to the technique difficulties of transmitting the distribution transformer operation data to the power supply company in the distribution transformer monitoring systems, the paper brings forward a distribution transformer monitoring scheme based on GPRS technology. The paper describes the design of hardware and software modules about GPRS wireless terminals. The design of hardware includes microprocessor system modules,GPRS communication modules,serial communication modules and switch power supply modules,and the design of software mainly involves PPP modules,TCP/IP modules and serial communication modules. Application of the scheme solves the difficulties of communication in monitoring system of distribution transformers.
Renal Vasodilatation: Effect on Renal Handling of Phosphate

1. The combined effects of unilateral renal vasodilatation produced by acetylcholine or bradykinin and intravenous infusion of angiotensin on phosphate excretion and reabsorption were investigated in fourteen anaesthetized dogs. The influence of these manoeuvres on the excretion of sodium, calcium and magnesium was also evaluated. 2. Unilateral renal vasodilatation alone produced an increase in the excretion of phosphate, calcium, magnesium and sodium; and the infusion of angiotensin caused further augmentation of the excretory rates of these ions from the vasodilated kidney in most experiments. 3. The maximal tubular reabsorptive capacity (Tm) for phosphate was decreased by renal vasodilatation. 4. There was a close and significant correlation between the fraction of the filtered load of phosphate, calcium, and magnesium which was excreted and that of sodium. 5. The results indicate that renal vasodilatation with or without the infusion of angiotensin causes a decrease in the renal tubular reabsorption of phosphate, calcium, magnesium and sodium.
Differentiation of tropomyosin-containing myofibrils in cleavage-arrested ascidian zygotes expressing acetylcholinesterase.

Two muscle differentiation programs, acetylcholinesterase and tropomyosin-containing filaments and fibrils, occur together in the same cleavage-arrested zygotes (1-celled) of the ascidian Ciona intestinalis. Coexpression in such undivided but developing ‘embryos’ is consistent with the idea that separate elements of muscle differentiation are related at some regulatory level, perhaps through a single multi-gene regulatory factor. Fertilized Ciona eggs were exposed to cytochalasin B for 20 h and then briefly reacted histochemically for acetylcholinesterase activity. Strongly reacting specimens were selected and processed for transmission electron microscopy to reveal regions of muscle ultrastructure. Every acetylcholinesterase-reactive zygote tested contained muscle contractile elements; no example lacking acetylcholinesterase was found with myofilaments and myofibrils. As demonstrated by immunogold labelling, a polyclonal antibody to tropomyosin from Ciona adult body wall reacted differentially with the presumed ultrastructural muscle elements in cleavage-arrested zygotes. Site-specific reactions were also observed in larval tail muscle and the siphon muscles of postmetamorphic zooids.
RlmN and AtsB as Models for the Overproduction and Characterization of Radical SAM Proteins

An explosion of remarkable chemical transformations has been witnessed in the past decade as a result of the radical S-adenosyl-l-methionine (SAM) (RS) superfamily of proteins. These proteins share the ability to cleave SAM reductively to l-methionine and a 5'-deoxyadenosyl 5'-radical (5'-dA(•)). The 5'-dA(•) initiates >40 distinct reaction types by abstracting target hydrogen atoms on small-molecule and macromolecular substrates. All RS enzymes contain a [4Fe-4S] cluster coordinated by SAM that supplies the electron for SAM cleavage. A subset of RS enzymes contains additional iron-sulfur (Fe/S) clusters that serve alternative purposes, many remaining to be defined. The oxygen lability of their [4Fe-4S] clusters causes RS enzymes to be more tedious to purify, characterize, and study. Moreover, the type(s) and stoichiometry of Fe/S clusters in RS enzymes has often been a source of debate. Herein, we use RlmN and AtsB as models to highlight methods for purifying and characterizing RS enzymes, focusing on using Mossbauer spectroscopy in concert with methods for quantifying iron and acid-labile sulfide to assign cluster content accurately.
Biventricular VAD versus LVAD for right heart failure

Right ventricular failure (RVF) in the era of left ventricular assist device (LVAD) therapy remains a significant problem. Approximately 6% to 10% of patients with an LVAD will require the implantation of a right ventricular assist device (RVAD) (1) with an additional 15% to 20% requiring prolonged inotropic support for RVF (2,3). Several mechanisms may contribute to RVF post LVAD implantation, most importantly the unloading of the left ventricle and resultant loss of septal contribution to right ventricular (RV) function. In addition, perioperative factors such as myocardial ischemia can further compromise a vulnerable right ventricle. As these factors may lead to rescue implantation of an RVAD, which is associated with increased mortality (4), research should focus on identifying patients that would benefit from preemptive implantation of an RVAD. Here we highlight recent advances in the field, focusing on risk stratification scores, the use of pulmonary vasodilators, the use of biventricular assist devices (BIVAD) versus a total artificial heart (TAH), and the use of a temporary RVAD (tRVAD). We also briefly present recent data on right heart recovery post LVAD using tRVAD support.
Prospective study of a non-restrictive decision rule for acute aortic syndrome.

Abstract Objectives To determine the impact of a non-restrictive clinical decision rule on CT utilization for Emergency Department patients suspected of having an acute aortic syndrome (AAS). Methods We prospectively assessed the performance of a previously described, collaboratively designed, non-restrictive clinical decision rule for AAS. Emergency Department patients with suspected AAS were stratified into low and high-risk groups based on decision rule results, from July 2013–August 2014. Patients with acute trauma, prior AAS or aortic surgery were excluded. CT dose reduction protocols were concurrently implemented as a quality improvement measure. Bivariate analysis was performed to compare the prospective cohort with the historical derivation cohort for CT utilization rates, results of CT, AAS incidence and radiation exposure. The performance of the clinical decision rule was evaluated. Results Compared with the historic cohort, the study cohort demonstrated a lower CT utilization rate [0.344% (427/124,093) versus 0.477% (1465/306,961), ( p p =0.08)]. AAS incidence was similar [0.015% (19/124,093) versus 0.013% (40/306,961), ( p =0.57)]. The mean effective radiation dose was markedly lower [12±5.5mSv versus 43±20mSv, ( p Conclusions A non-restrictive, collaboratively designed, clinical decision rule for Emergency Department patients with suspected AAS performed poorly in risk-stratifying patients for AAS. However, its implementation was associated with a significant and safe decrease in CT utilization.
Solid-state nanopore analysis of alcohol-soluble molecules

We report on a modified solid-state nanopore measurement scheme to probe alcohol-soluble proteins. Taking advantage of the intrinsic alcohol solubility of LiCl as an electrolyte, we show that the devices can be operated in azeotropic mixtures of ethanol and water. We first characterize nanopore conductivity across a range of ethanol content as a function of both nanopore diameter and salt concentration, showing ionic response that can be understood through established models. Then, as a demonstration of resistive-pulse sensing, we measure and interpret electrical translocations of zeins, a class of alcohol-soluble maize protein.
Abstract P119: S100A6 Regulates Endothelial Cell Physiology

Endothelial cell dysfunction is central to the development of cardiovascular pathologies. While Calcium cycling is of recognized importance to myocyte physiology and cardiac perfomance, the role of Ca2+ signaling in endothelial cell (EC) physiology remains relatively unexplored. In this study we investigated the role of S100A6 (calcyclin), an EF-hand type Ca2+ -binding protein that modulates target protein function dependent upon intracellular Ca2+ signaling. S100A6 displays cytoplasmic distribution in quiescent, confluent HUVEC, but translocates to the nucleus upon serum stimulation. Oxidative stress, induced by incubation of HUVEC with H¬2O2 (150 uM) leads to redistribution of nuclear S100A6 to the cytosol and cell cycle arrest. Knockdown of S100A6 by siRNA transfection reduced S100A6 levels by over 70% and diminished DNA synthesis by more than 75% (±12%, n=9, p<0.01), as well as expression of the proliferation markers PCNA and KI-67 (by more than 70% (±15%, n=9, p<0.01). Reduced S100A6 levels in HUVEC ...
An overview of agriculture, nutrition and fortification, supplementation and biofortification: Golden Rice as an example for enhancing micronutrient intake

The worlds growing population and limited land resources require high intensity of food production. Human nutrition needs both macronutrients and micronutrients. One way of providing micronutrients in staple crops of the poor is biofortification, through plant breeding. All methods of plant breeding are acceptable and safe, and some methods can deliver micronutrients not achievable by other methods. Vitamin A deficiency is responsible for around 4500 preventable child deaths daily, and Golden Rice, biofortified with provitamin A, has proven potential as a costless intervention where rice is the staple crop. The Cartagena Protocol’s concentration on a very narrow concern for environment is changing to embrace concern for sustainable development, food security and climate change. The World Bank is recommending the use of biofortified cereals, including Golden Rice as an example, as the norm rather than the exception in addressing malnutrition, noting that education, social marketing and mass media are important to optimise the effectiveness of any food-based approaches to malnutrition alleviation. Regulatory applications have been made for Golden Rice, transformation event GR2E, relating to the safety of human food and feed, which has been confirmed by one regulatory authority at the time of printing. Attitudes to gmo-crops, after two decades, appear to be changing, which is expected to benefit humankind and the environment.
Knowledge Flow in Universities

In this chapter, a typical American university is chosen as a model for the quantitative analysis for the flow of knowledge in a reasonably well-defined academic setting. Knowledge flow assumes quantifiable patterns and much like the flow and retention of rain water over a given terrain of land; the quality (of teaching) and quantity (number of credit hours) of knowledge retained by students is estimated on a qualitative and quantitative basis. The model presented in this chapter is entirely generic. It can be applied in any center of learning and during any period of training, residency in limited time frame, or even to the evolution of species as they gain survival skills, and build their knowledge potential to survive, another generation, calamity, meteor fall, a catastrophic disaster, or a global nuclear fall-out. Though the probability of outcome is not accurately known, it is still bounded by confidence limits.
Understanding and Treating Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in Veterans

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is among the “signature wounds” for veterans who have served in combat during operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. While a minority of veterans will develop a full diagnosis of PTSD, even subthreshold levels of symptoms can be long-standing and destructive to veterans’ social, occupational, and health functioning. Great advances in the understanding of the diagnosis and treatment of PTSD have taken place in recent decades. This chapter reviews the development of the PTSD diagnosis over time, risk and resilience factors in the development of PTSD, and unique considerations when treating veterans with PTSD and then discusses current clinical practice guidelines and evidence-based treatments for PTSD.
Publishing pragmatic trials.

Abstract Background Pragmatic clinical trials (PCTs) are an important research approach for nurse researchers seeking to bring efficacious interventions to the real world of clinical practice. These approaches take into account the complex and often messy conditions of clinical care, involving patients with comorbid conditions, many providers providing the intervention, and limited evaluation data with which to judge effectiveness. Purpose The purposes of this paper are to describe the challenges for PCT manuscript writer and to review the various guidelines that may be used to assist in manuscript development. Discussion Describing the design and results of a PCT in a manuscript for publication is challenging due to the complexity and unique context of these important trials. Guidelines and other resources are available to assist researchers in preparing manuscripts reporting PCTs.
MELD-Na (the new MELD) and peri-operative outcomes in emergency surgery.

Abstract Background The new Model for End-Stage Liver Disease includes serum sodium (MELD-Na). To evaluate its predictive power in non-transplant surgery, we analyzed emergency surgery outcomes of cirrhotic patients, hypothesizing that negative outcomes could be associated with discrete MELD-Na score thresholds. Methods Retrospective chart review was conducted of patients with cirrhosis undergoing emergency surgery at our institution from 2001 to 2013 (n = 85). Risk thresholds and predictors of peri-operative outcomes were identified using univariate and multivariate regression. Results MELD-Na scores of 19, 17, and 12 were identified as predictors of 30-day mortality (OR = 3.44), post-operative complications (OR = 3.08), and discharge to home (inverse relationship, OR = 0.31). Post-operative complications were independent negative predictors of discharge to home (OR = 0.21). Conclusion Although emergency surgery in patients with cirrhosis can be life-saving, knowledge of the significant peri-operative risk should drive decision-making, informed by the increased risk associated with these score thresholds. Further study is needed to establish definitive MELD-Na thresholds.
Human Performance and Sports Applications of Tongkat Ali ( Eurycoma longifolia )

Tongkat ali (Eurycoma longifolia) is an herbal medicinal plant found in South East Asia and commonly called “Malaysian ginseng” due to its traditional use as a general health and “anti-aging” tonic. When used in modern dietary supplements, tongkat ali is intended to improve libido and energy, restore hormonal balance (cortisol/testosterone levels) and enhance both sports performance and weight loss. Laboratory evidence shows that eurycoma peptides stimulate release of free testosterone from its binding proteins and improve overall hormone profiles. More than a dozen rodent-feeding studies have demonstrated improved sex drive, balanced hormonal profiles, and enhanced physical function. Human supplementation trials show clear indications of reduced fatigue, heightened energy and mood, and greater sense of wellbeing in subjects consuming properly-standardized tongkat ali root extracts. Athletes would be interested in tongkat ali to help maintain normal cortisol/testosterone balance to prevent overtraining syndrome as well as to enhance post-exercise recovery.
The Lipids of Mycoplasma

Publisher Summary The current knowledge of the biochemistry of the Mycoplasma permits the separation of known species into three physiological types: (1) sterol-requiring, fermentative organisms; (2) sterol-non-requiring, fermentative organisms; and (3) sterol-requiring non-fermentative organisms. This chapter presents a hypothesis to explain the functional roles of lipids in Mycoplasma . Lipids comprise a considerable portion of the dry weight of all Mycoplasma . Sterol-non-requiring organisms contain slightly less than those requiring sterol for growth. Both neutral and phospholipids account for about half of the total lipid. The hydroxyl groups of carotenol and sterol are essential for growth but not for incorporation into the membrane. The lipids are contained solely within the membrane which also contains the appropriate enzymes for the synthesis and degradation of carotenyl or steryl glucoside and ester. The glucoside is found only in organisms capable of glucose metabolism.
Employer offers, private coverage, and the tax subsidy for health insurance: 1987 and 1996.

Economists have long been interested in the effect of tax-based subsidies on private health insurance coverage. We examine this relationship using pooled data from the 1987 National Medical Expenditure Survey and the 1996 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. Our main tax price elasticity estimates for employer offers and for private coverage are near the mid-point of the existing literature. However, these estimates may mask substantial differences in tax-price responsiveness across subsets of workers. Our more disaggregated analysis reveals tax price responsiveness to be significantly above average for low-income workers, workers with low health risks, and workers in small firms—precisely those groups whose continued participation in employment-related risk pooling is of greatest policy concern. In addition, we present family-level elasticities that allow for joint decision-making in two-worker families.
Fracture Resistance Parameters for Cementitious Materials and their Experimental Determinations

The need for characterization of fracture resistance in metals has long been recognized. Spurred on by the development of turbine engines and the aviation industry, advances in linear and non-linear fracture mechanics have rapidly established standardized testing techniques to rank materials and to aid in the design against fracture failure in many metal structures. Un-fortunately, the same has not happened in the concrete industry. The ACI code, for example, does not embody concepts from fracture mechanics. It has been said that the code is a “low-tech” one and at least part of the reason may be attributed to our lack of understanding of the fracture behavior in concrete and the proper application of fracture mechanics in concrete structure design. Also, our inability to characterize fracture resistance in concrete almost certainly has an effect on prohibiting the rapid development of new cementitious composites with improved strength and ductility. The need for a rational basis of concrete structure design with regard to public safety and economy, and the increasing demand in load carrying capability of concrete structures under severe environments are forcing us to reconsider our past strategy.
Generalized Mean Apparent Propagator MRI to Measure and Image Advective and Dispersive Flows in Medicine and Biology

Water transport in biological systems spans different regimes with distinct physical behaviors: diffusion, advection, and dispersion. Identifying these regimes is of paramount importance in many in vivo applications, among them, measuring microcirculation of blood in capillary networks and cerebrospinal fluid transport in the glymphatic system. Diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) can be used to encode water displacements, and a Fourier transform of the acquired signal furnishes a displacement probability density function known as the propagator. This transformation normally requires the use of a fast Fourier transform (FFT), which presents major feasibility challenges when scanning in vivo , mainly because of dense signal sampling, resulting in long acquisition times. A second approach to reconstruct the propagator is by using analytical representation of the signal, overcoming many of the FFT’s limitations. In all analytical implementations of dMRI to date, the translational motion of water has been assumed to be exclusively diffusive, which is the case only in the absence of flow. However, retaining the phase information from the diffusion signal provides the ability to measure both mean coherent velocity and random diffusion from a single experiment. We implement and extend an analytical framework, mean apparent propagator (MAP), which can account for non-zero flow conditions. We call this method generalized MAP or GMAP. We describe a numerical optimization scheme and implement it on data from an MRI flow phantom constructed from a pack of 10- $\mu \text{m}$ beads. The advantages of GMAP over the FFT-based method in the context of sampling density and low-flow detection were demonstrated, and analytically derived propagator moments were shown to agree with theoretical values even after data subsampling. GMAP would enable the detection of microflow in vivo that could help elucidate many important biological processes.
Archaeological Research and the British in Latin America

Historical archaeologists have made tremendous strides in understanding and interpreting European colonialism in the Americas. Much of the analysis has centered on eastern North America and more recently on Spanish America. Fewer researchers have investigated the myriad roles the English and later the British have played in the cultural history of Latin America. But, English interest in Latin America extends to the earliest days of the so-called Age of Exploration, and archaeological research has much to reveal about past daily life in the region.