cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The antiphospholipid syndrome: still an enigma

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is defined by clinical manifestations that include thrombosis and/or fetal loss or pregnancy morbidity in patients with antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL). Antiphospholipid antibodies are among the most common causes of acquired thrombophilia, but unlike most of the genetic thrombophilias are associated with both venous and arterial thrombosis. Despite an abundance of clinical and basic research on aPL, a unified mechanism that explains their prothrombotic activity has not been defined; this may reflect the heterogeneity of aPL and/or the fact that they may influence multiple pro- and/or antithrombotic pathways. Antiphospholipid antibodies are directed primarily toward phospholipid binding proteins rather than phospholipid per se, with the most common antigenic target being β2-glycoprotein 1 (β2GPI) although antibodies against other targets such as prothrombin are well described. Laboratory diagnosis of aPL depends upon the detection of a lupus anticoagulant (LA), which prolongs phospholipid-dependent anticoagulation tests, and/or anticardiolipin and anti-β2-glycoprotein 1 antibodies. Indefinite anticoagulation remains the mainstay of therapy for thrombotic APS, although new strategies that may improve outcomes are emerging. Preliminary reports suggest caution in the use of direct oral anticoagulants in patients with APS-associated thrombosis. Based on somewhat limited evidence, aspirin and low molecular weight heparin are recommended for obstetrical APS. There remains a pressing need for better understanding of the pathogenesis of APS in humans, for identification of clinical and laboratory parameters that define patients at greatest risk for APS-related events, and for targeted treatment of this common yet enigmatic disorder.
The Space Infrastructure Vulnerability Cadastre: Orbital Debris Critical Loads

Orbital debris from over 50 years of human activity in space are threatening the operations of existing and future satellites and the sustainability of high-value satellite orbits. This technical memorandum calls for the development of a cadastre that depicts the vulnerability of critical satellite orbits to accumulating orbital debris. A space infrastructure vulnerability cadastre could serve as a governance tool for use by developers and operators of critical space infrastructures to better communicate the current and future vulnerability of high-value orbits to the accumulation of orbital debris. These high-value orbits are susceptible to “loss” for decades or centuries if generation of orbital debris continues unabated. The concept of environmental critical loads is applied to heavily used orbits as a way to indicate acceptable debris density for satellite operations, and when debris density / risk thresholds approach unacceptable levels that reduce the probability of sustaining spacecraft operations in those orbits.
Assessing Unmet and Latent Demand for Pharmacists at the State Level.

Background: Past reports suggest that a near balance has been reached in the supply and demand for pharmacists in the US. Although data on the level of supply of pharmacists is available, there is no continuous and systematic tracking of the level of demand (unmet and latent) for pharmacists at state level. Unmet demand, an established construct in pharmacy workforce, is important to measure the number of vacancies and assess pharmacist shortage consistently over time. Latent demand or potential demand is a novel construct and has never been measured in pharmacy workforce. With the increase in supply, it is important to measure the potential demand that could be budgeted in pharmacies in the near future. Objective: The objective of this study was to measure the unmet and latent demand for pharmacists and explore the association between latent demand and workload characteristics in community and hospital pharmacies in Wisconsin in 2011-12. Methods: The study used a cross-sectional, descriptive survey design. A sample of community pharmacies (n=1,064) and hospital pharmacies (n=126) licensed in Wisconsin in 2011-12 was identified. Key informants (managers/owners) of sampled pharmacies were sent a one-page cover letter explaining the purpose of the study and requesting participation and a three page survey form. The main outcome measures of the study were total number of FTE pharmacist positions vacant, presence of adequate staff size, additional number of FTE pharmacist positions needed to attain adequate staff size, prescription volume, daily census, hospital size and number of hours prescription department is open. Descriptive statistics were calculated for all the pharmacies collectively, then separately for community and hospital pharmacies. Pharmacy setting, vacancies and workload characteristics of pharmacies with and without latent demand were compared using chi-squared test of independence and/or t-test. Sample weights were calculated and used in all the analyses to weigh the estimates to all pharmacies in Wisconsin. Results: Overall response rate to the survey was 50.1%. Of the total number of FTE pharmacist positions budgeted in Wisconsin, 54.3 FTE positions (1.5%) were reported vacant in 2011-12. Approximately 28.2% of the community and hospital pharmacies reported the presence of latent demand. Latent demand was significantly associated with higher workload in community pharmacies and larger bed size in hospital pharmacies. Conclusion: There appeared to be a balance between the supply and demand for pharmacists in Wisconsin in 2011-12. There is a potential for additional FTE positions (latent demand) to be budgeted in pharmacies to attain adequate pharmacist staff size. It is important to consistently track the level of unmet and latent demand for pharmacists in Wisconsin and combine this information with other workforce characteristics to guide the decision making of pharmacy workforce planners and pharmacy managers. Type: Original Research
Wood: Preservative Treated

Abstract After a brief historical introduction, this article details the current preservative treatments and preservatives in the marketplace today. Particular emphasis is put on novel and new approaches to wood preservation. Wood modification is emphasized as are newer preservative systems and standards. The new Use Category System developed by the American Wood Protection Association (AWPA) is presented. Environmental and energy concerns as driving forces are discussed.
Variation of the matter densities of nuclei from Ca 40 to Zn 68

Analysis is made of elastic scattering of 42 MeV $\ensuremath{\alpha}$ particles from 19 nuclei from $^{40}\mathrm{Ca}$ to $^{68}\mathrm{Zn}$ in terms of a folding model, allowing determination of matter densities in the nuclear surface region relative to that of $^{40}\mathrm{Ca}$. Specifically, values are deduced for the radii at which the matter density equals 0.016 nucleon/${\mathrm{fm}}^{3}$ as well as matter rms radii. The relative sizes vary more slowly than ${A}^{\frac{1}{3}}$ between $^{40}\mathrm{Ca}$ and $^{54}\mathrm{Fe}$ and more rapidly than ${A}^{\frac{1}{3}}$ between $^{54}\mathrm{Fe}$ and $^{68}\mathrm{Zn}$. The overall trend gives an increase with ${A}^{\frac{1}{3}}$ but with a bowing effect. The near equality of proton and matter rms radii indicates that the neutron-proton radii are approximately equal to within the errors of the present analysis. The results are in reasonable agreement with those obtained with other hadronic probes and with calculated Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov densities.NUCLEAR REACTIONS $^{40,42,44,48}\mathrm{Ca}$, $^{46,48,50}\mathrm{Ti}$, $^{52}\mathrm{Cr}$, $^{54,56}\mathrm{Fe}$, $^{58,60,62,64}\mathrm{Ni}$, $^{63,65}\mathrm{Cu}$, $^{64,66,68}\mathrm{Zn}$; ($\ensuremath{\alpha}$,$\ensuremath{\alpha}$) 42 MeV; microscopic optical model analysis; deduced matter rms radii; comparison with other results.
Effects of Eimeria acervulina infection severity on growth performance, apparent ileal amino acid digestibility, and plasma concentrations of amino acids, carotenoids, and α1-acid glycoprotein in broilers

An experiment was conducted to evaluate growth performance, apparent ileal digestibility (AID) of amino acids, and plasma concentrations of amino acids, carotenoids, and α1-acid glycoprotein, an acute-phase protein, in broilers inoculated with graded doses of E. acervulina oocysts. Ross 308 male broilers (400 total) were housed in battery cages from 1 to 21 d post-hatch and received common corn-soybean meal-based diets throughout the experiment. At 9 d post-hatch, birds were individually weighed and allotted to 4 treatment groups with 10 replicate cages of 10 birds per cage. At 15 d post-hatch, all birds were inoculated with 1 mL of distilled water that contained 0, 2.5 × 10(5), 5.0 × 10(5), or 1.0 × 10(6) sporulated E. acervulina oocysts. At 21 d, birds were euthanized for collection of blood and ileal digesta. Body weight gain and feed efficiency decreased linearly (P 0.05) by E. acervulina infection. In conclusion, E. acervulina challenge adversely impacted growth performance, plasma carotenoids, and AID of amino acids in a dose-dependent manner. However, plasma amino acid responses to graded E. acervulina inoculation doses varied considerably among amino acids. Thus, these results indicated that alterations in amino acid metabolism caused by E. acervulina infection extended beyond reduced amino acid digestibility.
Electrical Conductivity in (Gdl-xCax)2Sn2O7±δ Pyrochlore System

Electrical conductivity measurements were performed on Gd2Sn207 as a function of temperature, P02 and Ca doping concentration. An effective frenkel constant and oxygen vacancy mobility were derived. The high level of intrinsic anion disorder found in this study is consistent with expectations based on the cation radius ratio (rA/rB) which was earlier found to be important in determining anion disorder in A2B207 pyrochlore compounds [1]. The magnitude of the ionic conductivity in Gd2Sn2O7 was found to be depressed relative to Gd2(Til-xZrx)207 based systems due to a high oxygen vacancy migration energy.
Determination of trace phosphorus in iron & steel and alloys by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry(ICP-MS)applicated for the measurement of trace phosphorus in iron and steel alloys is restricted by serious spectral interference from polyatoms.In the presented method,the octopole collision/reaction system(ORS)is used and helium gas is introduced into ORS cell,and interferences of polyatoms on the determination of phosphorus have been eliminated effectively by kinetic energy discrimination.The experimental conditions is optimized and matrix effect is minimized through matrix matching and using rhodium as internal standard.Linear range of the calibration curve in the method is 0-100 ng/mL and the correlation coefficient is 0.999 6.The detection limits of phosphorus is 0.31 μg/g(3δ,n=11).It is successfully applied to the determination of trace phosphorus in certified reference materials of steel and alloys and the results obtained are in good agreement with the certified values.The relative standard deviation(RSD)is less than 5%.
Multiple and Diverse vsp and vlp Sequences in Borrelia miyamotoi, a Hard Tick-Borne Zoonotic Pathogen

Based on chromosome sequences, the human pathogen Borrelia miyamotoi phylogenetically clusters with species that cause relapsing fever. But atypically for relapsing fever agents, B. miyamotoi is transmitted not by soft ticks but by hard ticks, which also are vectors of Lyme disease Borrelia species. To further assess the relationships of B. miyamotoi to species that cause relapsing fever, I investigated extrachromosomal sequences of a North American strain with specific attention on plasmid-borne vsp and vlp genes, which are the underpinnings of antigenic variation during relapsing fever. For a hybrid approach to achieve assemblies that spanned more than one of the paralogous vsp and vlp genes, a database of short-reads from next-generation sequencing was supplemented with long-reads obtained with real-time DNA sequencing from single polymerase molecules. This yielded three contigs of 31, 16, and 11 kb, which each contained multiple and diverse sequences that were homologous to vsp and vlp genes of the relapsing fever agent B. hermsii. Two plasmid fragments had coding sequences for plasmid partition proteins that differed from each other from paralogous proteins for the megaplasmid and a small plasmid of B. miyamotoi. One of 4 vsp genes, vsp1, was present at two loci, one of which was downstream of a candiate prokaryotic promoter. A limited RNA-seq analysis of a population growing in the blood of mice indicated that of the 4 different vsp genes vsp1 was the one that was expressed. The findings indicate that B. miyamotoi has at least four types of plasmids, two or more of which bear vsp and vlp gene sequences that are as numerous and diverse as those of relapsing fever Borrelia. The database and insights from these findings provide a foundation for further investigations of the immune responses to this pathogen and of the capability of B. miyamotoi for antigenic variation.
CAT7 and cat7l Long Non-coding RNAs Tune Polycomb Repressive Complex 1 Function during Human and Zebrafish Development.

The essential functions of polycomb repressive complex 1 (PRC1) in development and gene silencing are thought to involve long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), but few specific lncRNAs that guide PRC1 activity are known. We screened for lncRNAs, which co-precipitate with PRC1 from chromatin and found candidates that impact polycomb group protein (PcG)-regulated gene expression in vivo. A novel lncRNA from this screen, CAT7, regulates expression and polycomb group binding at the MNX1 locus during early neuronal differentiation. CAT7 contains a unique tandem repeat domain that shares high sequence similarity to a non-syntenic zebrafish analog, cat7l. Defects caused by interference of cat7l RNA during zebrafish embryogenesis were rescued by human CAT7 RNA, enhanced by interference of a PRC1 component, and suppressed by interference of a known PRC1 target gene, demonstrating cat7l genetically interacts with a PRC1. We propose a model whereby PRC1 acts in concert with specific lncRNAs and that CAT7/cat7l represents convergent lncRNAs that independently evolved to tune PRC1 repression at individual loci.
The Genesis of Britain’s Anti-Communist Propaganda Policy

On January 8, 1948, the British Foreign Secretary, Ernest Bevin, presented four papers to the Cabinet which authorized a new direction for British foreign policy.1 This Cabinet meeting finalized Britain’s reluctant embrace of the division of Europe, including Germany, into Communist and non-Communist camps, and of the need for a more aggressive anti-Communist foreign policy to counter the Soviet threat to Britain and the West. This meeting also provided the foundation for Britain’s propaganda policy during the early Cold War years through the Cabinet’s approval of the paper entitled “Future Foreign Publicity Policy.”2 The Cabinet’s approval of this paper represented the culmination of a two-year battle over Britain’s publicity policy toward the Soviet Union. The “Future Foreign Publicity Policy” paper not only authorized the inception of an anti-Communist propaganda campaign but also founded the Information Research Department (IRD), the organization that was destined to become the hub of Britain’s Cold War political warfare efforts.
Advanced Automated Disk Investigation Toolkit

Open source software tools designed for disk analysis play a critical role in digital forensic investigations. The tools typically are onerous to use and rely on expertise in investigative techniques and disk structures. Previous research presented the design and initial development of a toolkit that can be used as an automated assistant in forensic investigations. This chapter builds on the previous work and presents an advanced automated disk investigation toolkit (AUDIT) that leverages a dynamic knowledge base and database. AUDIT has new reporting and inference functionality. It facilitates the investigative process by handling core information technology expertise, including the choice and operational sequence of tools and their configurations. The ability of AUDIT to serve as an intelligent digital assistant is evaluated using a series of tests that compare it against standard benchmark disk images and examine the support it provides to human investigators.
Dystonia and Hypoparathyroidism

Recurrent attacks of flexion of the right hand and arm and bowing of the head initiated by sudden movement were associated with idiopathic hypoparathyroidism in a 12 yr old boy seen at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, PA.
Decoding memory features from hippocampal spiking activities using sparse classification models

To understand how memory information is encoded in the hippocampus, we build classification models to decode memory features from hippocampal CA3 and CA1 spatio-temporal patterns of spikes recorded from epilepsy patients performing a memory-dependent delayed match-to-sample task. The classification model consists of a set of B-spline basis functions for extracting memory features from the spike patterns, and a sparse logistic regression classifier for generating binary categorical output of memory features. Results show that classification models can extract significant amount of memory information with respects to types of memory tasks and categories of sample images used in the task, despite the high level of variability in prediction accuracy due to the small sample size. These results support the hypothesis that memories are encoded in the hippocampal activities and have important implication to the development of hippocampal memory prostheses.
Justification, Explanation, and Induction

A belief is justified by its explanatory role in a system of beliefs. Some beliefs are justified because of what they explain, and other beliefs are justified because they are explained, but every belief that is justified is so either because of what it explains or because of what explains it. These doctrines formulate a theory of justification which I shall label ‘explanationism’. The theory has much support among contemporary philosophers, even though it is rarely stated this explicitly, and no general defense of it will be attempted here.1 Instead, I shall assume that the theory is correct and then proceed to consider two problems that must be solved by a philosopher who is committed to explanationism. The first problem concerns the question of how those basic beliefs which provide what is to be explained as well as what is to do the explaining can be justified within this theory. The second problem concerns the question of when a hypothesis is inductively justified and how inductive justification can be specified in terms of explanation. I shall attempt to formulate these problems with greater precision below, and, having done so, propose solutions to them.
Oral Health Integration Into a Pediatric Practice and Coordination of Referrals to a Colocated Dental Home at a Federally Qualified Health Center

We have integrated preventive oral health measures into preventive care visits for children at a federally qualified health center in Boston, Massachusetts. The program, started in 2015, covers 3400 children and has increased universal caries risk screening in primary care to 85%, fluoride varnish application rates to 80%, and referrals to a dental home to 35%. We accomplished this by minimizing pressures on providers’ workflow, empowering medical assistants to lead the initiative, and utilizing data-driven improvement strategies, alongside colocated coordinated care.
Performance-Based Maintenance Contracting in Florida: Evaluation by Surveys, Statistics, and Content Analysis

AbstractIn recent years, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) adopted a form of performance-based maintenance contracting (PBMC) that it calls the asset maintenance contracting (AMC) pro...
Valuation Methods and Estimates in Relationship to Investing versus Consulting

This study examines which techniques are most used by practicing analysts in establishing the value of a small, closely-held firm and whether these valuations converge with the actual fair market p...
Synthesis of Nanocrystalline Carbide Ceramics Via Reduction of Anion-Loaded Activated Carbon Precursors

Commercial ceramic carbide operations require large thermal and mechanical energy inputs in order to produce a powder product. A process that could reduce the energy requirements needed to make these materials would allow for these materials to be implemented in a greater number of industrial applications. In this study, silicon carbide (SiC), tungsten carbide (WC), and molybdenum carbide (Mo2C) were synthesized via the carbothermal reduction of activated carbon loaded with silicate, tungstate, and molybdate anions adsorbed from aqueous solutions. Carburization was carried out under reducing and inert gas atmospheres, at temperatures lower than those utilized by commercial operations. Silicon carbide “whiskers” were synthesized under H2 at 1400 °C, while molybdenum carbide and mixed crystals of WC, W2C, and W were synthesized at temperatures below 1000 °C. X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy were used to characterize the carburization products, and inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) was used to determine the degree of adsorption onto the activated carbon matrix.
Directed test generation using concolic testing on RTL models

Functional validation is one of the most time consuming steps in System-on-Chip (SoC) design methodology. In today's industrial practice, simulating designs using billions of random or constrained-random tests can lead to high functional coverage. However, it is hard to cover the remaining small fraction of corner cases and rare functional scenarios. While formal methods are promising in such cases, it is infeasible to apply them on large designs. In this paper, we propose a fully automated and scalable approach for generating directed tests using concolic testing of RTL models. While application of concolic testing on hardware designs has shown some promising results, existing approaches are tuned for improving overall coverage, rather than covering a specific target. We developed a Control Flow Graph (CFG) assisted directed test generation method that can efficiently generate a test to activate a given target. Our experimental results demonstrate that our approach is both efficient and scalable compared to the state-of-the-art test generation methods.
An update on high grade B-cell lymphoma

Abstract The new WHO 2017 revised fourth edition details updates on several large B-cell entities, the most important including separation of cases of large B-cell lymphomas with the so called “double-hit” or “triple-hit” phenotype that harbor rearrangements of MYC in conjunction with rearrangements of BCL2 and/or BCL6. In addition, the knowledge of several EBV-driven B-cell lymphoproliferations has led to the firm establishment of the entity called EBV+ diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, not otherwise specified which can mimic several other Hodgkin-like lymphoproliferations including classical Hodgkin lymphoma and T-cell/histiocyte rich large B-cell lymphoma. Certain other newer provisional entities with unique molecular alterations including Burkitt-like lymphoma with 11q aberration which do not harbor MYC alterations occurring mostly in the paediatric population as well as large B-cell lymphoma with IRF4 rearrangement are also discussed in this review although these may not necessarily exhibit aggressive clinical behavior.
Neuropeptides are Chemoattractants for Human Monocytes and Tumor Cells: A Basis for Mind-Body Communication

Monocytes, or their non-circulating counterparts, macrophages, are a heterogeneous population of cells which regulate many aspects of immune functioning including antigen processing, T cell activation, lymphokine and antibody production, as well as defense against neoplastic cells’. Recently, several other cell types, histologically and morphologically different from classical macrophages, have come to be included into this family of cells. They include the several minor cell populations present in skin (called Langerhans cells), brain (microglia), and dendritic cells sparsely distributed throughout basal epithelial layers of numerous organs and endocrine tissues2, as well as osteoclasts in joints. The functions of these macrophages are less clear although a role of the Langerhans cell in local immune reactions has been inferred.
Chemical Forms and Reactions of Barium in Mixtures of Produced Water with Seawater

High concentrations of Ba in produced water have been linked to adverse biological impacts during toxicity testing. This observation, along with interest in modelling chemical processes during produced water discharges to the ocean, led to the present study. Essentially all the Ba in produced water collected for this study was dissolved and passed through 0.4-μm pore size filters and 1-KDa ultrafilters. Using 1:99 and 1:199 mixtures of produced water with seawater, initial amounts of dissolved Ba of 180–600 μg/L did not change over 72 h and were oversaturated with respect to BaSO4 by factors of ~5–16. For 1:9 mixtures of produced water with seawater, precipitation was observed to either start immediately or be delayed for as long as 12 h; however, the dissolved Ba that remained after 24–72 h in these mixtures ranged from 340–1,200 μg/L, or ~10 to >30 times above apparent saturation. Field sampling of a discharge in the Gulf of Mexico showed that >98% of the Ba added to seawater via produced water was still dissolved 5 min after discharge at a distance of 20 m from the source and at >1,600-fold dilution. Overall, the results show the importance of considering both dilution and precipitation when interpreting the behavior or impact of Ba based on laboratory and field studies.
Chapter 25 Terrorism: A Game-Theoretic Approach⁎

Abstract This chapter surveys the past applications of game theory to the study of terrorism. By capturing the strategic interplay between terrorists and targeted governments, game theory is an appropriate methodology for investigating terrorism and counterterrorism. Game theory has been used to examine the interaction among targeted governments, the interface between factions within a terrorist organization, and the interplay between diverse agents (e.g., rival terrorist groups). This chapter identifies a host of externalities and their strategic implications for counterterrorism policies. In addition, the chapter indicates novel directions for applying game theory to terrorism-related issues (e.g., cooperative collectives to strengthen borders). For counterterrorism, we use normal-form games to distinguish proactive from defensive policies. Although both policy types can be represented with similar games, we identify essential strategic differences between these policy classes. When targeted governments must allocate resources among antiterrorism measures, there is generally a dominance of defensive over proactive countermeasures against transnational terrorism. The resulting outcome gives a suboptimal equilibrium. The policy prognosis is much better for domestic terrorism as a central government can internalize externalities among alternative targets. For transnational terrorism, dilemmas also arise when counterterrorism is investigated for continuous choice variables. Too much action is associated with defensive measures, while too little action is associated with proactive measures. This follows because defensive responses are strategic complements, while proactive responses are strategic substitutes for targeted governments. These same strategic concepts are crucial for understanding the interaction among political and military wings of a terrorist group. Game-theoretic notions also inform about interdependent security choices where the safety achieved by one at-risk agent is dependent not only on its precautions but also on those of other agents. Coordination games are particularly appropriate for analyzing the pitfalls of numerous aspects of international cooperation – for example, freezing terrorist assets and denying safe havens. We identify many roadblocks to effective international cooperation. For hostage negotiations, we show that the never-concede policy of governments hinges on at least five unstated assumptions that seldom hold in practice. Thus, even the staunchest proponents of the no-concession policy have reneged under the right circumstances. Ways to bolster adherence are indicated. The chapter also investigates the influence of asymmetric information when terrorists are better informed about the strength of the governments than the other way around. A model is put forward that unifies two alternative approaches based on the terrorists' preferences for revenge or resolution. Recent contributions involving asymmetric information and terrorism are discussed.
Deletions in HSP110 T17 and patient prognosis in stage III microsatellite instable (MSI) colon cancers: Findings from CALGB 89803 and NCCTG N0147.

e15148Background: MSI is detected in approximately 15% colorectal cancers, and associated with improved survival in early stage colon cancer. Heat shock protein 110 (HSP110) is a chaperone protein ...
Radiographic Results of Unicortical Medial Malleolar Fracture Fixation

Background:Medial malleolar fractures commonly occur as part of rotational ankle fractures, which often require surgery. Different fixation techniques exist, including unicortical or bicortical lag...
Dehydration Sensing of a Polyvinyl Alcohol Film via Plasmonic Nanoparticles

In situ, real-time monitoring of a dehydration of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) film is researched. The technique based on the incorporation plasmonic nanocages (NCs) between the two identical layers of PVA, (PVA)/NCs/(PVA) film, and its sensitivity to the variation of the refractive index of the surrounding PVA film via desorption water. The dehydration time increases from 180 (s) to 1800 (s) as the content of the PVA in the films increases twice, from (PVA)/NCs/(PVA) to (PVA)2/NCs/(PVA)2. Such effect could be explained by different rate of the molecules desorption from the PVA based films. Specifically, the dehydration rate is of 0.22 (vol% per s) and 0.026 (vol% per s) for (PVA)/NCs/(PVA) and (PVA)2/NCs/(PVA)2 films, respectively. The dehydration rate constant reduces from −50×10−4 (s−1) to −4.3 ×10−4 (s−1) as the content of PVA increases from (PVA)/NCs/(PVA) to (PVA)2/NCs/(PVA)2 films, respectively.
Introduction: The Unfolded Protein Response

The translation and appropriate folding of proteins is critical for the maintenance of cellular function. This process is tightly controlled, and it can create a significant energy demand, particularly in secretory cells. Inadequate folding of proteins, as may occur with an insufficient energy supply, can cause unfolded, misfolded, or damaged proteins to accumulate in the endoplasmic reticulum. The consequent endoplasmic reticulum stress leads to activation of the unfolded protein response (UPR). In stressed mitochondria, a similar process is activated (mitochondrial unfolded protein response). The unfolded protein response is an ancient stress response that coordinates multiple functions in an attempt to restore metabolic homeostasis. In higher organisms, three signaling arms, driven respectively by PERK, ATF6, and IRE1α, may be activated. Together, the signaling from these arms coordinates specific cellular functions including autophagy, cell metabolism, and apoptosis. From a cell fate perspective, the outcome of activating the unfolded protein response can be either the restoration of homeostasis and normal cell function, or the failure to do so leading to aberrant cellular function (including neoplastic transformation) and/or the eventual initiation of an irreversible programmed cell death. Hence, activation of the unfolded proteins response can be either prosurvival or prodeath. This book covers many aspects of the unfolded protein response, from its roles in normal cell development and some aspects of immunity, through to those associated with neoplastic transformation and drug resistance in cancer. Also included is a chapter on the role of UPR-activated autophagy in specific neurodegenerative disorders. The primary focus of these chapters is the unfolded protein response as activated by an endoplasmic reticulum stress. While each chapter may be read independently, the reader will gain a much broader perspective of the critical roles of the unfolded protein response when the chapters are read collectively.
Adaptation of muscle capillarity.

The single most important physiological factor affecting the capillarity of skeletal and cardiac muscle is normal growth. In both skeletal and cardiac muscle, increases in body size and weight are associated with increases in the cross sectional area of existing fibers and decreases in capillary density which result in longer diffusion distances (Aquin et al., 1980; Kayar et al., 1982). These normal decreases in capillary density occur despite increases in the total number of capillaries which are measured as increases in the capillary density to fiber density ratio (C/F). However, it is not clear what factors are involved in the development of new capillaries in muscle growth.
Barriers to Reduced-Intensity Conditioning (RIC) Transplant in Patients with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia.

Abstract 1374 Poster Board I-396 Introduction: Allogeneic stem cell transplantation is the only potentially curative therapeutic option for patients with CLL. However, in spite of recent improvements in transplant-related mortality due to the introduction of reduced-intensity conditioning (RIC), only a proportion of patients go on to receive a stem cell transplant. The aim of this study was to quantify how many patients are evaluated for transplant versus how many go on to transplant, and to examine the reasons why transplantation was not performed. Patients and methods: A list of all patients with CLL who have been referred to the Ohio State University for a transplant evaluation from January 2003 to the present was obtained. Two electronic databases, E-Results and TransChart, were reviewed to determine if a consultation was performed, if patients were subsequently transplanted, and if not, why. Results: The outcomes of the referrals are summarized in Table 1. From January 2003 to the present, 205 patients with CLL were referred to our center for a transplant evaluation. Of those, 34 (16.6%) underwent transplantation. For patients who did not receive a transplant, it was not indicated at the time of consult according to current standard of care in 37 patients (18%), and in 29 (14.1%), transplant was indicated but patients were unable to obtain a remission in order to proceed. The differences between patients who went on to transplant and those who could not obtain remission were analyzed more closely. The median age in the transplant group was 55, and the median age in the group that could not obtain remission was 58. Both groups received a median 2 lines of treatment prior to transplant evaluation. The cytogenetic abnormalities of the groups are summarized in Table 2. Conclusions: The majority of patients who did not undergo transplantation did not have an indication for transplant, reflecting previous standards of care prior to the understanding of the poor prognosis of patients with high risk karyotype and fludarabine-refractory CLL. In contradistinction, an inability to obtain a remission in order to proceed to transplantation was the second most common reason transplantation was deferred. These data reflect the difficulty in some cases of determining the appropriate timing for allogeneic transplantation in CLL and the risk of delaying a transplant referral in patients with fludarabine refractory disease. Appropriate timing of transplant referral and choice of effective salvage therapy are critical to the successful long-term management of patients with fludarabine-refractory CLL. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
From Service Conversation Models to WS-CDL

Changing business environments are forcing organizations to develop flexible and adaptable enterprise systems. To accomplish this and to solve associated systems integration issues, many are moving towards web service technology. Two key ingredients of web services based solution are service composition and service choreography. While there has been lot of advancement in respect to service composition, service choreography rather largely remains an open problem. WS-CDL specification is considered to be a candidate standard for service choreography; however, consensus on support mechanisms to develop conversation models depicting peer-to-peer interactions are yet to be reached. In this paper, we develop an approach as well required heuristics for identifying service interaction patterns from business process models and using them to develop conversation models. We provide detailed discussion on heuristics, illustrate our approach through an example, as well as indicate how these conversation models can be used for generating WS-CDL specifications.
Graduation Rate Differences by Ethnicity/Race at Texas Community Colleges: A Statewide, Multiyear Examination

In this multiyear, statewide investigation, the degree to which differences were present in graduation rates between Black and White, Black and Hispanic, and Black and Asian students was addressed for the 2007-2008 academic year to the 2015-2016 academic years. Inferential statistical procedures revealed the presence of statistically significant differences for all 9 academic years. In all 9 years, Black students had statistically significantly lower graduation rates than White, Hispanic, and Asian students. Also identified were the Texas community colleges that had the highest and that had the lowest graduation rates of their Black students in the last two academic years. Implications of these findings and recommendations for future research were discussed.
Characterization of Polyurethane Foam Environmental Monitoring Tools for the Recovery and Release of Viruses

The U.S. FDA Food Safety Modernization Act Preventive Controls for Human Food Rule emphasizes the importance of an effective environmental monitoring (EM) program. This study aims to characterize polyurethane foam (PUF) EM tools—currently used in the food industry for the recovery of bacteria from food contact surfaces—for their efficacy in the release and recovery of human enteric viruses. Two viruses (human norovirus [hNoV] and Tulane virus [TV]) were compared at varying inoculum levels, with two EM tools (PUF swab and sponge), two delayed processing times (24 h and 72 h), and one surface type (stainless steel [SS]). Specifically, the objectives were to (1) determine the ability of PUF devices to release viruses for detection and (2) assess the ability of PUF devices to recover viruses from SS surfaces. For TV release from the sponge, there was a significant difference (p = 0.0064) when compared across inoculum level (105 plaque forming unit [PFU]/sponge vs. 102 PFU/sponge). Release of hNoV at a single inoculum level by PUF sponge and swab was compared resulting in a significant difference (p < 0.0001). Data on recovery of TV from SS surfaces using both the sponge and swab indicate significant differences depending on the inoculum level. Recovery of hNoV from SS surfaces differed significantly (p = 0.0030) between the sponge and swab devices. Overall, the study provides a detailed characterization of two commercially available, PUF-based EM tools, and the differences identified in this study can be used to improve the efficacy of EM tools.
Outcome of Patients Having Transcatheter Mitral Valve Implantation for the Treatment of Degenerated Mitral Bioprostheses.

Transcatheter mitral valve implantation (TMVI) is at various levels of preclinical investigation and has proven to be more challenging than transcatheter aortic valve implantation due to more complex anatomy. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the short-term and long-term outcomes of high-risk patients who underwent TMVI for degenerated mitral bioprostheses. In this retrospective, observational study, we reviewed data on the first 26 patients with previous surgical mitral valve replacement or repair with annular ring that underwent TMVI using the balloon-expandable heart-valve system at our institution from 2014 to 2019. We reviewed pre/postprocedure echocardiographic data, in-hospital, 30-day data and 1-year outcomes. The indication for TMVI was mitral regurgitation (MR) in 9 patients, mitral stenosis in 9 patients and mixed mitral disease in 8 patients. There was a 100% device implantation success rate and a 96% in-hospital survival rate. Survival was 96% at 30 days and 85% at 1 year. Mean mitral gradient (MMG) improved postprocedure (13.3 mm Hg to 6.8 mm Hg, p
Association of Dietary Quality with Risk of Incident Systemic Lupus Erythematosus in the Nurses' Health Studies

OBJECTIVE Knowledge remains scarce regarding diet and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) risk. Our objective was to investigate 4 dietary quality scores and SLE risk overall and by anti-double-stranded DNA (anti-dsDNA) positive versus negative subtypes. METHODS We studied 79,568 women in the Nurses' Health Study (1984-2014) and 93,554 in the Nurses' Health Study II (1991-2013). Using validated food frequency questionnaires, we calculated 4 dietary scores: the 2010 Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI-2010), the Alternative Mediterranean Diet Score (aMed), the Dietary Approach to Stop Hypertension (DASH), and the Empirical Dietary Inflammatory Pattern (EDIP). Incident SLE was confirmed by medical record review. Time-varying Cox regression models estimated pooled hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) of SLE risk, overall and by anti-dsDNA, for cumulative average dietary quality score tertiles and individual AHEI-2010 components. RESULTS We identified 194 incident SLE cases. SLE risk was similar in women with the highest (versus lowest) dietary scores (AHEI-2010 HR 0.78 [95% CI 0.54-1.14], aMed HR 0.82 [95% CI 0.56-1.18], DASH HR 1.16 [95% CI 0.81-1.66], EDIP HR 0.83 [95% CI 0.57-1.21]). No association was demonstrated for anti-dsDNA+ or anti-dsDNA- SLE risk. Women in the highest (versus lowest) AHEI-2010 tertile of nut/legume intake had a decreased SLE risk (HR 0.59 [95% CI 0.40-0.87]). No association was demonstrated for other AHEI-2010 components and SLE risk. CONCLUSION We observed no association between long-term adherence to the AHEI-2010, aMed, DASH, or EDIP scores with SLE risk, suggesting a large effect of dietary quality on SLE risk is unlikely. However, potential reduction in overall SLE risk with high nut/legume intake warrants further investigation.
A two-step approach to testing overall effect of gene-environment interaction for multiple phenotypes.

Motivation While gene-environment (GxE) interactions contribute importantly to many different phenotypes, detecting such interactions requires well-powered studies and has proven difficult. To address this, we combine two approaches to improve GxE power: simultaneously evaluating multiple phenotypes and using a two-step analysis approach. Previous work shows that the power to identify a main genetic effect can be improved by simultaneously analyzing multiple related phenotypes. For a univariate phenotype, two-step methods produce higher power for detecting a GxE interaction compared to single step analysis. Therefore, we propose a two-step approach to test for an overall GxE effect for multiple phenotypes. Results Using simulations we demonstrate that, when more than one phenotype has GxE effect (i.e., GxE pleiotropy), our approach offers substantial gain in power (18%-43%) to detect an aggregate-level GxE effect for a multivariate phenotype compared to an analogous two-step method to identify GxE effect for a univariate phenotype. We applied the proposed approach to simultaneously analyze three lipids, LDL, HDL and Triglyceride with the frequency of alcohol consumption as environmental factor in the UK Biobank. The method identified two loci with an overall GxE effect on the vector of lipids, one of which was missed by the competing approaches. Availability We provide an R package MPGE implementing the proposed approach which is available from CRAN: https://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/MPGE/index.html.
Resection of supplementary motor area gliomas: revisiting supplementary motor syndrome and the role of the frontal aslant tract.

OBJECTIVE The supplementary motor area (SMA) is an eloquent region that is frequently a site for glioma, or the region is included in the resection trajectory to deeper lesions. Although the clinical relevance of SMA syndrome has been well described, it is still difficult to predict who will become symptomatic. The object of this study was to define which patients with SMA gliomas would go on to develop a postoperative SMA syndrome. METHODS The University of California, San Francisco, tumor registry was searched for patients who, between 2010 and 2019, had undergone resection for newly diagnosed supratentorial diffuse glioma (WHO grades II-IV) performed by the senior author and who had at least 3 months of follow-up. Pre- and postoperative MRI studies were reviewed to confirm the tumor was located in the SMA region, and the extent of SMA resection was determined by volumetric assessment. Patient, tumor, and outcome data were collected retrospectively from documents available in the electronic medical record. Tumors were registered to a standard brain atlas to create a frequency heatmap of tumor volumes and resection cavities. RESULTS During the study period, 56 patients (64.3% male, 35.7% female) underwent resection of a newly diagnosed glioma in the SMA region. Postoperatively, 60.7% developed an SMA syndrome. Although the volume of tumor within the SMA region did not correlate with the development of SMA syndrome, patients with the syndrome had larger resection cavities in the SMA region (25.4% vs 14.2% SMA resection, p = 0.039). The size of the resection cavity in the SMA region did not correlate with the severity of the SMA syndrome. Patients who developed the syndrome had cavities that were located more posteriorly in the SMA region and in the cingulate gyrus. When the frontal aslant tract (FAT) was preserved, 50% of patients developed the SMA syndrome postoperatively, whereas 100% of the patients with disruption of the FAT during surgery developed the SMA syndrome (p = 0.06). Patients with SMA syndrome had longer lengths of stay (5.6 vs 4.1 days, p = 0.027) and were more likely to be discharged to a rehabilitation facility (41.9% vs 0%, p < 0.001). There was no difference in overall survival for newly diagnosed glioblastoma patients with SMA syndrome compared to those without SMA syndrome (1.6 vs 3.0 years, p = 0.33). CONCLUSIONS For patients with SMA glioma, more extensive resections and resections involving the posterior SMA region and posterior cingulate gyrus increased the likelihood of a postoperative SMA syndrome. Although SMA syndrome occurred in all cases in which the FAT was resected, FAT preservation does not reliably avoid SMA syndrome postoperatively.
Actin Activation of Phosphorylated Aortic Myosin

The interaction of actin and myosin in smooth muscle, like that in striated muscle, is controlled through changes in the intracellular calcium concentration. The calcium-sensitive mechanism responsible for the primary regulation in smooth muscle occurs through phosphorylation of myosin light chain (Barron et al., 1980; Hathaway and Adelstein, 1979; Sherry et al., 1978). The investigators cited have shown that myosin phosphorylation is prerequisite to actin activation of the MgATPase. A secondary modulation of myosin MgATPase by calcium was first reported by Chacko et al (1977). This group showed that direct interaction of calcium with phosphorylated myosin from vas deferens increased the MgATPase activity to a level higher than that observed in the absence of calcium. Similar findings for phosphorylated myosin from vascular smooth muscle were reported by Rees and Frederiksen (1981).