cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Axons regulate Schwann cell expression of the POU transcription factor SCIP

SCIP (suppressed cAMP-inducible POU) is a POU domain transcription factor expressed by Schwann cells. Drugs that elevate intracellular cAMP, such as forskolin, increase the expression of SCIP and partially mimic the inductive effects of axons on Schwann cell gene expression. Thus, SCIP may be involved in a differentiation pathway in Schwann cells that is activated by axons. We have examined this issue by studying SCIP expression in developing, degenerating, and regenerating rat peripheral nerves, and in Schwann cell-neuron cocultures. High levels of SCIP mRNA were detected in developing and regenerating nerves, and axotomy at these times caused the level of SCIP mRNA to plummet. Similarly, there were many SCIP-immunoreactive Schwann cell nuclei in developing and regenerating nerves, and their number fell sharply after axotomy. SCIP-immunoreactive Schwann cells were associated with axons in developing and regenerating nerves, and in Schwann cell-neuron cocultures. These data demonstrate that axons upregulate the expression of SCIP in Schwann cells, and that SCIP is expressed in Schwann cells that ensheathe axons. Thus, SCIP may mediate some of the changes in Schwann cell gene expression that accompany axonal ensheathment.
Scheduling and binding bounds for RT-level symbolic execution

Generalizes ALAP (as late as possible) bounds for the exact scheduling problem on a pre-defined data path. Conventional bounds are inapplicable because of the possible requirement of re-computing operands for minimal schedule length. Efficient techniques are presented for constructing the new bounds which are sensitive to point-to-point delays via transitive memory units. An efficient operand mapping bound is also described. Based on these two bounds, time improvement factors of 50 have demonstrated in exact scheduling results.
New Determinations of Iridium and Tantalum in Meteoritic Materials (An Interim Report)

Neutron activation analysis has proven to be an extremely valuable tool in meteoritics. Its major advantages are its extremely high sensitivity for many elements and its freedom from reagent and laboratory contamination. Data have been obtained by this technique on the abundances of iridium and tantalum in meteorites, meteoritic phases and related materials. Chondritic abundances of 0.46 ppm iridium and 0.23 ppm tantalum have been determined, based on 20 and 9 analyses, respectively. Some observations relating to theories of meteorite formation are made, based on the data obtained to date. Additional analyses for these elements are currently under way.
460 MeV negative pion scattering from neutrons in a propane bubble chamber

pi /sup -/ scattering at 460 Mev by neutrons bound in a carbon nucleus in a propane bubble chamber was examined. The total and difierential cross sections were determined. The angular distribution obtained from ( pi /sup +/,p) scattering. (C.J.G.)
Evidence for residual elastic strain in deformed natural quartz

Residual elastic strain in naturally deformed, quartz-containing rocks can be measured quantitatively in a petrographic thin section with high spatial resolution using Laue microdiffraction with white synchrotron x-rays. The measurements with a resolution of one micrometer allow the quantitative determination of the deviatoric strain tensor as a function of position within the crystal investigated. The observed equivalent strain values of 800-1200 microstrains represent a lower bound of the actual preserved residual strain in the rock, since the stress component perpendicular to the cut sample surface plane is released. The measured equivalent strain translates into an equivalent stress in the order of {approx} 50 MPa.
Loss of chloroplast protease SPPA function alters high light acclimation processes in Arabidopsis thaliana L. (Heynh.)

SPPA1 is a protease in the plastids of plants, located in non-appressed thylakoid regions. In this study, T-DNA insertion mutants of the single-copy SPPA1 gene in Arabidopsis thaliana (At1g73990) were examined. Mutation of SPPA1 had no effect on the growth and development of plants under moderate, non-stressful conditions. It also did not affect the quantum efficiency of photosynthesis as measured by dark-adapted Fv/Fm and light-adapted ΦPSII. Chloroplasts from sppA mutants were indistinguishable from the wild type. Loss of SPPA appears to affect photoprotective mechanisms during high light acclimation: mutant plants maintained a higher level of non-photochemical quenching of Photosystem II chlorophyll (NPQ) than the wild type, while wild-type plants accumulated more anthocyanin than the mutants. The quantum efficiency of Photosystem II was the same in all genotypes grown under low light, but was higher in wild type than mutants during high light acclimation. Further, the mutants retained the stress-related Early Light Inducible Protein (ELIP) longer than wild-type leaves during the early recovery period after acute high light plus cold treatment. These results suggest that SPPA1 may function during high light acclimation in the plastid, but is non-essential for growth and development under non-stress conditions.
Networking for critical conditions

To enhance the preparedness of federal and state agencies to effectively manage federal or state recovery efforts in response to a broad spectrum of emergencies, we propose a hybrid adaptive network that will adopt currently available off-the-shelf wireless network devices and integrate them quickly into a scalable, reliable, and secure network with a minimum of human intervention for configuration and management. This model will serve as the framework for various rescue missions for securing and distributing critical resources. We investigate different technologies and network strategies and integrate them into the proposed network model to provide seamless support to heterogeneous environments including wireline nodes, ad hoc and sensor network nodes, and network devices based on different standards. In this article we present the network architecture and identify the key technical aspects of its management, security, QoS, and implementation.
Reduced gastrin releasing peptide in cerebrospinal fluid after recovery from bulimia nervosa.

Abstract People with anorexia (AN) and bulimia nervosa (BN) have altered patterns of eating. It is possible that alterations of the neuropeptide gastrin releasing peptide (GRP), a bombesin (BBS) -like peptide with potent central anorexigenic activity, could contribute to disturbed eating behavior. To avoid the confounding effects of pathologic eating behavior, we measured cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) GRP concentrations in women who were long-term recovered (>1 year, normal weight, and regular menstrual cycles, no bingeing or purging) from AN (REC AN, N =12) or BN (REC BN, N =21) compared to healthy control women (NC, N =15). CSF GRP was significantly lower (χ 2 =9·41(3), p
The Foundations of Mathematics

Mathematics has a long and distinguished history. Babylonian tablets as old as 1800 BCE show clear evidence of sophisticated mathematical thinking. More elementary mathematics for keeping track of commerce and land area dates back even further.
Individual Identification of the Endangered Wyoming Toad Anaxyrus baxteri and Implications for Monitoring Species Recovery

Abstract Monitoring the fates of individuals after release in the wild is essential for building effective species recovery programs. Current conservation efforts for the endangered Wyoming Toad (Anaxyrus baxteri) are limited by the size and number of toads that can be individually marked using invasive tagging techniques. We evaluated the use of natural patterns of wart-like glands on the dorsum of Wyoming Toads as a potential identification technique. We photographed 194 known-identity individuals (822 total images, representing 1,554 true matching-image pairs of the same individuals) from two captive-breeding facilities in 2011 and 2012. Spot patterns provided stable markings from metamorphosis through adult life stages, and naive observers correctly matched 100% of a subset of photo pairs “by eye.” In contrast, computer-assisted identification performed relatively poorly: the two software platforms tested (Wild-ID and Hotspotter) failed to match 47% and 64% of true matching-image pairs, respectively. ...
The Greening of National Accounts: The Role of Ideas in a Theory of Institutional Change

Recent incremental changes to the United Nations' System of National Accounts (SNA) are used in this paper to explore the theory of institutional change from the New Institutional Economics perspective. The SNA is subject to strong forces of inertia given the embeddedness of the accounts in information systems, the high cost of achieving the consensus required for change and the low payoff to individual political entrepreneurs and interest groups who might work toward change. But ideas and feedback between ideas, learning, acceptance, consensus, and demand for change have figured prominentaly as forces of institutional change for "greener" national accounts.
Flow theory

We develop a simple theory of flows to study the flow of data in real-time computing networks. Flow theory is based on discrete and nondeterministic mathematics, rather than the customary continuous or probabilistic mathematics. The theory features two types of flows: smooth and uniform, and eight types of flow operators. We prove that, if the input flow to any of these operators is smooth or uniform, then both the internal buffer and delay of that operator are bounded. Linear networks of flow operators are introduced, and their internal buffers and delays are derived from the internal buffers and delays of their constituent operators. We extend flow theory so that it can be used in analyzing cyclic networks and networks of multiflows. Since many rate-reservation protocols can be represented as linear networks of flow operators, we use flow theory to prove that a number of these protocols (stop-and-go, hierarchical round-robin, weighted fair queueing, self-clocking fair queueing, and virtual clock) require bounded buffering and introduce bounded delay.
The facial skeleton of the early Oligocene colodon (perissodactyla, tapiroidea)

Two skulls of the early Oligocene Colodon from the White River Group in South Dakota are much more derived than previously reported. In particular, morphologies of the facial skeleton and narial region are surprisingly modern, including a deeply retracted nasoincisive incisure, and other indicators of prehensile proboscis development. High-resolution X-ray computed tomography was used to explore the internal anatomy of these tapiroids, and revealed frontal sinuses, and an internal facial skeleton approaching that of modern tapirs. This not only indicates an earlier origin for these anatomical conditions than previously recorded, but in a phylogenetic context indicates that Colodon is more closely related to Tapirus than is Protapirus. Matthew W. Colbert. The Jackson School of Geosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Geological Sciences Department, 1 University Station C1100, Austin, Texas 78712-0254 USA colbert@mail.utexas.edu
Vortex Phase Qubit: Superpositions of counter-rotating phase structures in BEC through optical angular momentum beams

We propose strategy for generating arbitrary and coherent superpositions of counterrotating phase structures in BEC, as possible candidates for qubits. Here we devise methods to generate and detect them through orbital angular momentum beams of light.
Neutrinoless double beta decay search with EXO-200

Abstract We present the performance of the EXO-200 detector running at the WIPP site in New Mexico. The results from the first year of operation of the detector are reported.
THE TENSILE PROPERTIES OF KNIT-FRP

Glass fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) has several advantages such as higher heat-and chemical-resistance, great insulation and easier formability, especially being lighter and stronger than the metals.Although varying forms of glass fibers are produced for commercial reinforcements like rovings, chopped strands, mats and woven fabrics, etc., the knitted fabrics have not been produced in spite of their large deformability.There are some difficulties to knit glass fiber yarns except of the beta-yarn, and no investigation on knit-FRP has yet been reported.Since the knitted glass fabrics are superior to any other types of materials as a reinforcement, the knit-FRP is expected to be one of the most promising industrial materials by virtue of extremely large deformability.In the present paper, effect of yarn direction and glass contents of knit-FRP on tensile properties and applicability of the rule of mixture to the results obtained have been investigated by using the plane-knit composed of various diameters of a single fiber.The strength at break was found to depend on the structure of knitted fabric in FRP, and to increase with the glass content. It is noteworthy that the strength at break takes the maximum value at the wale direction because the knit-FRP has an anisotropic structure. The strength is independent of the other factors, for example number of fabrics, thickness of FRP, etc., but the rule of mixture could be applied. The elongation at break has a constant value at a higher level of ca. 7%.
Elastic Full Waveform Inversion on Land Data Acquired With Dispersed Source Arrays

The absence of low-frequency information in real field seismic data prevents Full Waveform Inversion (FWI) applications from obtaining smoothed velocity model for accurate seismic imaging. In addition, for land datasets, FWI with acoustic wave equation is not suitable in describing wave propagations to accommodate surface and converted waves. The seismic data used in this paper was acquired in Saudi Arabia by using an acquisition configuration based on dispersed source arrays having three different frequency bands, namely, 1.5 to 8 Hz, 6.5 to 54 Hz and 50 to 87 Hz. Alternatively, elastic FWI is applied for the estimation of three parameters, namely, the Pwave, S-wave velocities and density to one of this dataset containing 1.5 to 8 Hz. In an algorithm of elastic FWI, wave modeling is performed in the time domain by the first-order wave equation with the staggered grid scheme while other procedures such as calculating the partial derivative wavefields are conducted in the Laplaceor Laplace-Fourier domains based on the second-order wave equation with the finite element method. To demonstrate the validity of the elastic FWI, acoustic reverse time migration was implemented on the initial and inverted P-wave velocities with the data containing 6.5 to 54 Hz.
Growth of Dispira Cornuta in Artificial Culture

(1) Dispira cornuta was isolated and cultivated on certan artificial media. The methods of isolation and culture are given, also the extent of growth and of sporulation on various media is tabulate...
Guizhou Changshun county village life drinking water in 2010 fluid matter examination analytical

Objective:For Changshun county village to change water to touch bottom survey to provide a foundation data and make a decision towards changing water engineering.Methods:Carry on an examination to 29 index signs that Changshun county 53 water kindses according to the GB/T5750-2006 life drinking water standard examination method.Results:The poison reason learn the index sign 2 water kind lead in addition to super standard,rest 51 water kind poison reason learn index sign all good;Chemistry index sign in addition to individual water kind manganese super standard,oxygen consumption is over-standard to lead 34.0%,the rest water kind all is good,the fluid matter is partial to alkali and is partial to hard;Sense organs index sign,deodorization and flavor a water kind super standard,can see without the aid of instruments a thing to have the rarely parts of water kind super standard,the rest water kind all is good;Bacteriology index sign,the germ falls to amount over-standard lead 49.06%,total coliforms,heat-proof coliforms over-standard rate all is 18.87%.Conclusion:Influence village life drinking water fluid matter of the main factor is germ pollution,fasten to be subjected to a person dumb and then pollute,before changing water,the conditioned village drinking water wants to add a chlorine disinfection processing,having no conditioned village drinking water should be keeping to throw a disinfectant slice inside the water jar,bucket, the villagers should change the habit of drinking living water, drink boiled water and prevent from the occurrence of bowel way infectious disease and keep the healthy body.
Isolation and Purification of Enterocin EL1, a Bacteriocin Produced by a Strain of Enterococcus faecium †.

A meat isolate, identified as Enterococcus faecium L1, was found to produce a bacteriocin designated enterocin EL1 Enterocin EL1 was active against a narrow spectrum of microorganisms, inhibiting all tested strains of Listeria . Identification of the producer strain was determined phenotypically by biochemical and morphological tests. Enterocin EL1 was heat stable, sensitive to several proteolytic enzymes, and stable from pH 2 to 11. Adsorption of the bacteriocin to producer cells was dependent on ionic interaction of the bacteriocin and the cell surface at various pHs. By changing the pH of the extraction buffer, enterocin EL1 was extracted from E. faecium L1 cells in a concentrated form. Enterocin EL1 isolated by cell extraction was resolved by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis as a protein with an approximate molecular weight of 2,300. Partially purified enterocin EL1 added to sensitive cells of Listeria ivanovii was bactericidal; however, the bacteriocin did not inhibit the producer strain L1.
Frequency‐Dependent Effects of 2D Random Velocity Heterogeneities in the Mantle Lid on Pn Geometric Spreading

Abstract Geometric spreading of the Pn phase for shallow sources, which refracts through the uppermost mantle and is the first seismic‐wave arrival at distances of ∼200 to ∼1500 km, is expected to be frequency dependent for most velocity structures. The smoothly varying distance and frequency dependence of Pn geometric spreading predicted for simple 1D spherical structures are dependent upon precise interference of multiple underside reflections from the Moho boundary. This interference is strongly impacted by lateral variations in the velocity structure. Prior work has shown that the presence of 2D random heterogeneities in the mantle lid or topography of the Moho boundary modifies Pn geometric spreading for ∼1 Hz signals, suppressing the distinctive character of the distance dependence for a 1D structure and approaching a power‐law behavior as the root mean square (rms) strength of the heterogeneity increases. Here, 2D finite‐difference calculations of the effects of random heterogeneities in the mantle lid on the Pn geometric spreading are extended to frequencies of up to 10 Hz, quantifying the frequency dependence. Although the shape of the distance dependence is still systematically modified, the strength of the frequency dependence is actually increased from that for homogeneous models for many suites of models with varying rms perturbations and correlation lengths of exponential random heterogeneity distributions superimposed on constant and linear gradient background mantle lid velocity structures. This indicates that assumption of frequency‐independent power‐law spreading for Pn directly introduces artificial frequency dependence to inferred attenuation coefficients. Similar behavior is expected for Sn phases. Efforts to characterize the mantle lid heterogeneity spectrum are required to overcome this trade‐off with anelasticity representations. Electronic Supplement: Figures showing calculated Pn ‐wave spectral amplitudes versus distance.
Retail pricing for stochastic demand with unknown parameters: An online machine learning approach

The problem of dynamically pricing of electricity by a retailer for customers in a demand response program is considered. It is assumed that the retailer obtains electricity in a two-settlement wholesale market consisting of a day ahead market and a real-time market. Under a day ahead dynamic pricing mechanism, the retailer aims to learn the aggregated demand function of its customers while maximizing its retail profit. A piecewise linear stochastic approximation algorithm is proposed. It is shown that the accumulative regret of the proposed algorithm grows with the learning horizon T at the order of O(log T). It is also shown that the achieved growth rate cannot be reduced by any piecewise linear policy.
Exchange bias in Ba0.4Sr0.6TiO3/La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 heterostructures

This work relates to the integration of the two-layer stack of the proposed multiferroic structure onto silicon substrates. Ba1-xSrxTiO3 is an excellent material for room-temperature voltage-tunable dielectric applications due to its high (e=6000) dielectric constant. In this study we choose a composition of Ba0.4Sr0.6TiO3 (BST), which is cubic and paraelectric at 300K, and transforms to a ferroelectric tetragonal phase upon cooling through the Curie temperature (TC) at 200K. The main focus of the present work is to study what happens when BST is placed in contact with a room temperature ferromagnetic layer such as La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 (LSMO). In this study, the magnetic properties of a BST (200nm)/LSMO (63nm) heterostructure was compared to that of a single LSMO layer (63nm). Both films were deposited onto MgO/TiN buffered Si (100) using pulsed laser deposition (PLD) and a domain matching epitaxy (DME) paradigm. X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements showed that these films were of single phase and epitaxial in ...
Has Adequacy Been Achieved? A Study of Finances and Costs a Decade after Court-Ordered Reform.

Purpose This article discusses the methods and results of a study designed to determine the cost of education under the curriculum frameworks and state laws in a northeastern state after major education reform and a judicial decision finding the system inadequate and unconstitutional. The study is designed to determine the funding levels necessary for different school districts in the state to meet standards, laws, and objectives that define an adequate education, using professional judgment and evidence-based methods.
Does fair trade matter to consumers? A study of African cultural products

ABSTRACTThis study uses an adapted S-O-R framework to investigate the influence of fair trade (FT) product information for African cultural products. Consumer’s internal state (affective and cognitive) and purchase intention towards a FT African cultural product is examined while considering previous FT knowledge and concern. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire distributed on social media sites employing a snowballing technique. It was determined that FT knowledge and concern, especially the dimension of concern, was a significant indicator of consumer’s internal states and purchase intention. Consumers’ affective and cognitive state also significantly influence purchase intention consistent with previous studies using the S-O-R model. Following these findings, it is important for FT retailers, policy-makers, and socially responsible organisations to understand and evoke a consumer’s concern for FT as a way to ensure higher levels of purchase intention towards unique African cultural pr...
Invariants of trace forms in odd characteristic and authentication codes

Abstract We complete A. Klapper's work on the invariant of a one-term trace form over a finite field of odd characteristic. We apply this to computing the probability of a successful impersonation attack on an authentication code proposed by C. Ding et al. (2005).
Architectural Approaches for Multimedia Processing

The recent advances in VLSI technology, high-speed processor designs, Internet/Intranet implementations, broadband networks (ATM and ISDN) and compression standards (JPEG, MPEG, H.261, H.263 and G.273) are leading to the popularity of multimedia applications. Examples include, video over the internet, interactive TV, distance learning, telemedicine, and digital libraries. Multimedia refers to a combination of various media types including text, audio, 2D and 3D graphics, animation, images and video. Visual media (image, video and graphics) proliferation in multimedia applications demands high-powered compute engines, large storage devices, and high bandwidth networks for processing, storage, and transport of image/video data. Visual media processing poses challenges from several perspectives, specifically from the points of view of real-time implementation and scalability. There has been several approaches to obtain speedups to meet the computing demands in multimedia processing ranging from media processors to special purpose implementations. Note that a variety of parallel processing strategies are adopted in these implementations in order to achieve the required speedups. The objective of this paper to present a summary of the various architectural alternatives that exist for multimedia processing.
The Plant Trans-Golgi Network: Not Just a Matter of Distinction.

The trans-Golgi network in plants is a major sorting station of Golgi derived cargo while it also receives recycled material from endocytosis.
The role of motivational factors in predicting STEM career aspirations

ABSTRACTThis study examined how motivational factors (i.e., self-concept in science, enjoyment of science, and instrumental value of science) predict science, technology, engineering, and math (STE...
The speed of a Brownian ratchet

Some cellular motile processes do not appear to involve molecular motors. These include many types of cellular extensions, including fllopodia, lamellipodia, and acrosomal extension. These processes transduce chemical bond energy into directed motion by a mechanism quite different from motor molecules. They do not operate in a direct mechanochemical cycle and need not depend directly upon nucleotide hydrolysis. In this paper we describe several such processes and present simple formula for the velocity and force they generate. We shall call these machines “Brownian Ratchets” (BR) to distinguish them from the usual class of protein motors-although motors may be Brownian Ratchets as well (Cordova et al.1991; Meister et al. 1989; Mitsui & Ohshima 1988; Vale & Oosawa 1990).
Extracellular Ca2+ stimulates the activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase and cell growth in human fibroblasts.

In serum-free medium containing serum replacements but totally lacking in protein growth factors, diploid human fibroblasts remained quiescent if the extracellular Ca2+ concentration was only 0.1 mM. However, when the Ca2+ concentration in this medium was increased to 1 mM, the cells replicated as rapidly as they do in medium supplemented with protein growth factors. When quiescent cells in medium with only 0.1 mM Ca2+ were exposed to 1 or 10 mM Ca2+ or 100 ng/ml epidermal growth factor (EGF), the 42 kDa and 44 kDa forms of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) were rapidly activated, as demonstrated by a characteristic electrophoretic mobility shift of these proteins and by their enhanced ability to phosphorylate myelin basic protein (MBP). Analysis of fractions from Mono Q anion-exchange chromatography of lysates of cells exposed to 10 mM Ca2+ or 100 ng/ml EGF revealed a peak of MBP phosphorylation activity that was coeluted with p42 and p44 MAPK as shown by immunoblot analysis. Activation of MAPK by extracellular Ca2+ was dose-dependent and biphasic, with a peak of activation at 5-10 min after exposure, followed by a period of sustained activation of MAPK at a lower level. This pattern has been shown [Vouret-Craviari, Van Obberghen-Schilling, Scimeca, Van Obberghen and Pouyssegur (1993) Biochem J. 289, 209-214] to correlate with the re-entry of mammalian cells into the cell cycle.
Conclusion: Frenchness as a New Transcultural Identification

Navarro-Ayala concludes that Frenchness is often perceived as queer when it exits the Hexagon. Frenchness, whether imagined or real, is treated as queer and transcultural in the Latin American and North African contexts. Navarro-Ayala contends that possible sites of resistance—which initially appear to be signs of the inappropriate, because of the individual’s mimetic component through self bodily manipulations (or the strategic confusing character, as Homi Bhabha would claim)—provide an unexpected agency to the boys involved in homosexual tourism in Morocco. The intimate interaction with the French Other allows writers to not only erase former colonial traces, but also propose postcolonial subversion and new transcultural identifications, where the queer subject from the global South becomes an active participant in the process.
Factual or Factitious Hypocalcemia

Hypocalcemia, i.e. a low serum total calcium or ionized calcium concentration, can occur in a number of common pathological conditions including hypoalbuminemia, chronic renal failure, hypoparathyroidism, pseudohypoparathyroidism, vitamin D deficiency, magnesium deficiency, and certain types of bone diseases (1). While these listed medical conditions are well known, other preanalytical causes can also result in hypocalcemia and thus affect patient care. Recently we encountered the following 2 cases with hypocalcemia. Case 1 is a 19-year-old man who presented to our hospital with a white blood cell count of 483 × 109/L (reference interval, 4–11 × 10 …
Why don't mice lacking the mitochondrial Ca 2+ uniporter experience an energy crisis?

Current dogma holds that the heart balances energy demand and supply effectively and sustainably by sequestering enough Ca2+ into mitochondria during heartbeats to stimulate metabolic enzymes in the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle and electron transport chain (ETC). This process is called excitation-contraction-bioenergetics (ECB) coupling. Recent breakthroughs in identifying the mitochondrial Ca2+ uniporter (MCU) and its associated proteins have opened up new windows for interrogating the molecular mechanisms of mitochondrial Ca2+ homeostasis regulation and its role in ECB coupling. Despite remarkable progress made in the past 7 years, it has been surprising, almost disappointing, that germline MCU deficiency in mice with certain genetic background yields viable pups, and knockout of the MCU in adult heart does not cause lethality. Moreover, MCU deficiency results in few adverse phenotypes, normal performance, and preserved bioenergetics in the heart at baseline. In this review, we briefly assess the existing literature on mitochondrial Ca2+ homeostasis regulation and then we consider possible explanations for why MCU-deficient mice are spared from energy crises under physiological conditions. We propose that MCU and/or mitochondrial Ca2+ may have limited ability to set ECB coupling, that other mitochondrial Ca2+ handling mechanisms may play a role, and that extra-mitochondrial Ca2+ may regulate ECB coupling. Since the heart needs to regenerate a significant amount of ATP to assure the perpetuation of heartbeats, multiple mechanisms are likely to work in concert to match energy supply with demand.
Targeting the Enterohepatic Bile Acid Signaling to Modulate Hepatic Autophagic Activity in Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis

Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis is associated with hepatic free cholesterol accumulation and defective autophagy activity, which sensitize hepatocytes to injury and inflammation. Bile acid synthesis ...
Improved neuropsychological outcomes following proton therapy relative to X-ray therapy for pediatric brain tumor patients.

BACKGROUND Survivors of pediatric brain tumors are at risk for impaired development in multiple neuropsychological domains. The purpose of this study was to compare neuropsychological outcomes of pediatric brain tumor patients who underwent X-ray radiotherapy (XRT) versus proton radiotherapy (PRT). METHODS Pediatric patients who underwent either XRT or PRT and received posttreatment age-appropriate neuropsychological evaluation-including measures of intelligence (IQ), attention, memory, visuographic skills, academic skills, and parent-reported adaptive functioning-were identified. Multivariate analyses were performed to assess differences in neuropsychological outcomes and included tests for interaction between treatment cohort and follow-up time. RESULTS Between 1998 and 2017, 125 patients with tumors located in the supratentorial (17.6%), midline (28.8%), or posterior fossa (53.6%) compartments received radiation and had posttreatment neuropsychological evaluation. Median age at treatment was 7.4 years. The PRT patient cohort had higher estimated SES and shorter median time from radiotherapy completion to last neuropsychological evaluation (6.7 vs 2.6 y, P < 0.001). On multivariable analysis, PRT was associated with higher full-scale IQ (β = 10.6, P = 0.048) and processing speed (β = 14.4, P = 0.007) relative to XRT, with trend toward higher verbal IQ (β = 9.9, P = 0.06) and general adaptive functioning (β = 11.4, P = 0.07). Planned sensitivity analyses truncating follow-up interval in the XRT cohort re-demonstrated higher verbal IQ (P = 0.01) and IQ (P = 0.04) following PRT, with trend toward improved processing speed (P = 0.09). CONCLUSIONS PRT is associated with favorable outcomes for intelligence and processing speed. Combined with other strategies for treatment de-intensification, PRT may further reduce neuropsychological morbidity of brain tumor treatment.
The cost of Christian unity1

In Acts 2 and 2 Corinthians 8, the New Testament links together economic sharing and Christian unity, in that through the generous act of material sharing, our unity in Christ is made manifest in t...
Management of overdoses of loperamide, gabapentin, and modafinil: a literature review

Introduction: The current emphasis on combatting the opioid epidemic in the United States and across the globe is well warranted, but rates and variations of other drugs and substances of abuse may be inadvertently increasing as well. These drugs and substances deserve equal attention in the literature to equip healthcare practitioners with the knowledge to provide optimal care in overdose patients. Areas covered: This evaluation includes loperamide, gabapentin, and modafinil and was accomplished through a comprehensive literature review of PubMed, MEDLINE, SCOPUS, ProQuest Central, ProQuest Dissertations, and CINAHL. The results of forty-four pieces of literature are included in this evaluation. The objective of this review is to provide a repository of standard and emerging treatment modalities for loperamide, gabapentin and modafinil for the emergency medicine team. Expert opinion: Loperamide, gabapentin, and modafinil are becoming drugs of abuse, and as such, should be on the radar of healthcare providers. Recognizing their unique toxicity profiles is imperative in providing optimal resuscitative care.
Addressing the Unique Mental Health Needs of Female Inmates with HIV: What Services are Required Under the Constitution and the Americans with Disabilities Act?

This article outlines the unique mental health needs of HIV infected female inmates, including the types of mental health intervention shown to be effective in treating HIV-related neuropsychological disturbances. Additionally, this Articles explores the type of prison mental health services that are mandated to be provided by the Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which guarantees that prisoners be free from cruel and unusual punishment. This article further discusses the possible impact of Pennsylvania Department of Corrections v. Yeskey, in which the Supreme Court held that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) applies to state prison systems. Finally, the Article discusses how prisons will likely have to respond to the mental health needs of HIV-positive female inmates in order to be in compliance with the requirements of both the ADA and the Eighth Amendment.
Políticas de comunicación y producción de conocimiento

This paper analyzes the way in which the Audiovisual Communication Law was incorporated as an study object in the academic research field. We analyze articles presented at the annual RedCom congresses, between 2009 and 2013. Due to its federal and interdisciplinary nature, this sample allows us to examine the relationship between the politics of communication and the production of knowledge.
Parallel Processing, 1980 to 2020

Abstract This historical survey of parallel processing from 1980 to 2020 is a follow-up to the authors’ 1981 Tutorial on Parallel Processing, which covered the state of the art in hardware, program...
Safety of neonatal sternal wound reconstruction after open heart surgery

An open sternal wound is a dreaded complication after open heart surgery for neonatal congenital cardiac anomalies. Vascularised muscle flap reconstruction of sternal wound defects, to prevent life-threatening mediastinal infections, is the standard of care in adults and children. However, there is paucity of published literature regarding the safety of this technique in neonates. We describe a successful operative technique for complex reconstruction of an open heart sternal defect on a neonatal male patient. On 6 months postoperative follow-up, we identified an issue with sternal instability. Patient underwent a subsequent operation for reinforcement of the sternal wound repair with Vicryl mesh. The authors report safety of using three separate vascularised muscle flaps in a single neonatal operation. Long-term follow-up of the sternal wound reconstruction is warranted to determine need for secondary procedures.
Impact of Extending Eligibility for Reinstatement of Waiting Time After Early Allograft Failure: A Decision Analysis.

Abstract Rationale & Objective The shortage of deceased donor kidneys identified for potential transplantation in the United States is exacerbated by a high proportion of deceased donor kidneys discarded after procurement. We estimated the impact of a policy proposal aiming to increase organ utilization by extending eligibility for waiting time reinstatement for recipients experiencing allograft failure following transplantation. Study Design Decision analysis informed by clinical registry data. Setting & Population We used Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network data to identify 76,044 deceased-donor kidneys (DDKs) procured in the United States from 2013 to 2017, 80% of which were transplanted and 20% discarded. Intervention Extend waiting time reinstatement for recipients experiencing allograft failure from the current 90 days to 1 year following transplantation. Outcomes Net impact to the waitlist, defined as the estimated number of additional transplants minus estimated increase in waiting list reinstatements. Model, Perspective, & Timeframe We estimated (1) the number of additional deceased donor kidneys that would be transplanted if there was a 5%-25% relative reduction in discards, and (2) the number of recipients who would regain waiting time under a 6-, 12-, 18-, and 24-month reinstatement policy. Results Reinstating waiting time for recipients experiencing allograft failure up to 1-year following transplantation yielded more additional transplants than growth in additions to the waiting list for all model assumptions except the combination of a very low relative reduction in discards (5%) and a very high failure rate of transplanted kidneys that would previously have been discarded (≥5 times the rate of currently transplanted kidneys). Limitations Lack of empirical evidence supporting the proposed impact of such a policy change. Conclusions A policy change reinstating waiting time for deceased donor kidneys recipients with allograft failure up to 1 year following transplantation should explored as a decision science-based intervention to improve organ utilization.
Elaborative learning practices are associated with perceived faculty growth mindset in undergraduate science classrooms

Abstract Although recent research has found that undergraduate students' perceptions of faculty growth mindsets are important predictors of their motivation, engagement, and performance, only a few studies have investigated the specific practices and behaviors that are associated with students' perceptions of faculty growth mindsets. In a sample of 3910 undergraduate science students, we found that students' reports of engagement in cognitively active, elaborative learning practices in their science classrooms, such as hands-on activities, interactive group discussions, and doing meaningful projects, were positively associated with their perceptions of science faculty growth mindset beliefs. Importantly, this association held even controlling for students' satisfaction with instruction in their science classes, their college GPA, and their year in college. Further, these associations were strongest for students who personally endorsed growth mindsets themselves, suggesting that students' personal mindsets shape how they perceive faculty teaching practices.
Partitioning and sources of microbial pollution in the Venice Lagoon.

Abstract Microbial pollutants are a serious threat to human and environmental health in coastal areas. Based on the hypothesis that pollution from multiple sources may produce a distinct microbial signature and that microbial pollutants seem to distribute between a free-living and a particle-attached fraction, we investigated the occurrence, partitioning and sources of microbial pollutants in water samples collected in the Venice Lagoon (Italy). The area was taken as a case study of an environment characterized by a long history of industrial pollution and by growing human pressure. We found a variety of pollutants from several sources, with sewage-associated and faecal bacteria accounting for up to 5.98% of microbial communities. Sewage-associated pollutants were most abundant close to the city centre. Faecal pollution was highest in the area of the industrial port and was dominated by human inputs, whereas contamination from animal faeces was mainly detected at the interface with the mainland. Microbial pollutants were almost exclusively associated with the particle-attached fraction. The samples also contained other potential pathogens. Our findings stress the need for monitoring and managing microbial pollution in highly urbanized lagoon and semi-enclosed systems and suggest that management plans to reduce microbial inputs to the waterways should include measures to reduce particulate matter inputs to the lagoon. Finally, High-Throughput Sequencing combined with computational approaches proved critical to assess water quality and appears to be a valuable tool to support the monitoring of waterborne diseases.
Update in Aphasia Research

The sequelae of post-stroke aphasia are considerable, with implications at the societal and personal levels. An understanding of the mechanisms of recovery of cognitive and language processes after stroke and the factors associated with increased risk of post-stroke language and cognitive deficits is vital in providing optimal care of individuals with aphasia and in counseling to their families and caregivers. Advances in neuroimaging facilitate the identification of dysfunctional or damaged brain tissue responsible for these cognitive/language deficits and contribute insights regarding the functional neuroanatomy of language. Evidence-based person-centered behavioral therapy remains the mainstay for rehabilitation of aphasia, although emerging evidence shows that neuromodulation is a promising adjunct to traditional therapy. These topics are discussed in this review, illustrating with recent studies from the Stroke Cognitive Outcomes and REcovery (SCORE) lab.
Rapid plant evolution in the presence of an introduced species alters community composition

Because introduced species may strongly interact with native species and thus affect their fitness, it is important to examine how these interactions can cascade to have ecological and evolutionary consequences for whole communities. Here, we examine the interactions among introduced Rocky Mountain elk, Cervus canadensis nelsoni, a common native plant, Solidago velutina, and the diverse plant-associated community of arthropods. While introduced species are recognized as one of the biggest threats to native ecosystems, relatively few studies have investigated an evolutionary mechanism by which introduced species alter native communities. Here, we use a common garden design that addresses and supports two hypotheses. First, native S. velutina has rapidly evolved in the presence of introduced elk. We found that plants originating from sites with introduced elk flowered nearly 3 weeks before plants originating from sites without elk. Second, evolution of S. velutina results in a change to the plant-associated arthropod community. We found that plants originating from sites with introduced elk supported an arthropod community that had ~35 % fewer total individuals and a different species composition. Our results show that the impacts of introduced species can have both ecological and evolutionary consequences for strongly interacting species that subsequently cascade to affect a much larger community. Such evolutionary consequences are likely to be long-term and difficult to remediate.
Applications and advances of metabolite biosensors for metabolic engineering

Quantification and regulation of pathway metabolites is crucial for optimization of microbial production bioprocesses. Genetically encoded biosensors provide the means to couple metabolite sensing to several outputs invaluable for metabolic engineering. These include semi-quantification of metabolite concentrations to screen or select strains with desirable metabolite characteristics, and construction of dynamic metabolite-regulated pathways to enhance production. Taking inspiration from naturally occurring systems, biosensor functions are based on highly diverse mechanisms including metabolite responsive transcription factors, two component systems, cellular stress responses, regulatory RNAs, and protein activities. We review recent developments in biosensors in each of these mechanistic classes, with considerations towards how these sensors are engineered, how new sensing mechanisms have led to improved function, and the advantages and disadvantages of each of these sensing mechanisms in relevant applications. We particularly highlight recent examples directly using biosensors to improve microbial production, and the great potential for biosensors to further inform metabolic engineering practices.
Biological Neural Control

Neural control refers to the manipulation of inputs to particular structures of the nervous system to cause desirable output behavior. There are two kinds of neural control mechanisms, namely, closed loop and open loop. As an example of the former, the hypothalamus receives sensory information from the body to control its temperature. If the environmental temperature rises, then the hypothalamus makes the skin sweat to cool the body. This temperature control is called closed loop, because after the output behavior is modified, new sensory data are taken to see whether the output behavior should be increased or reduced. Hence, closed-loop neural control depends on feedback information about the effects of output behavior. In contrast, the nervous system can sometimes perform open-loop control. This form of control does not rely on feedback to correct erroneous outputs, and thus, the nervous system must rely on knowledge of system behavior to compute its output. Therefore, open-loop neural control requires accurate models of the system. Although such control can be less precise, it has the advantage of speed, because it does not require feedback for computations. One example of open-loop neural control occurs in the first 100 ms of the eye trying to do smooth pursuit of a target in the visual field. This period of pursuit is open loop, because no visual feedback is available because of the delays in the visual system. Thereafter, visual feedback (and other sources of information) is available to close the loop, which improves performance. Keywords: feedback; neuron firing; locomotion; adaptation; learning