cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
EF-Tu Binding Peptides Identified, Dissected, and Affinity Optimized by Phage Display

The highly abundant GTP binding protein elongation factor Tu (EF-Tu) fulfills multiple roles in bacterial protein biosynthesis. Phage-displayed peptides with high affinity for EF-Tu were selected from a library of approximately 4.7 x 10(11) different peptides. The lack of sequence homology among the identified EF-Tu ligands demonstrates promiscuous peptide binding by EF-Tu. Homolog shotgun scanning of an EF-Tu ligand was used to dissect peptide molecular recognition by EF-Tu. All homolog shotgun scanning selectants bound to EF-Tu with higher affinity than the starting ligand. Thus, homolog shotgun scanning can simultaneously optimize binding affinity and rapidly provide detailed structure activity relationships for multiple side chains of a polypeptide ligand. The reported peptide ligands do not compete for binding to EF-Tu with various antibiotic EF-Tu inhibitors, and could identify an EF-Tu peptide binding site distinct from the antibiotic inhibitory sites.
Demographic Analysis of Induced Resistance Against Spider Mites (Acari: Tetranychidae) in Cotton

Demographic analyses were conducted of twospotted spider mites, Tetranychus utica Koch, raised on excised leaves of cotton, Gossypium hirsutum L., plants that had been previously damaged by mites, Tetranychus Turkestani Ugarov and Nikolski, or on leaves of undamaged controls. There were no differences in survival or development of individuals reared on leaves of the two treatments. Fecundity of mites was reduced by approximately 50% on excised leaves from plants that had been damaged as cotyledons relative to mites grown on leaves from undamaged control plants. Other workers who have examined the effects of plant conditioning on spider mites also have found this striking effect on fecundity and no effect on survivorship and development. This demographic pattern is consistent with patterns noted when the nutritional quality of the host plant is diminished but inconsistent with patterns caused by changes in the “secondary chemistry” of the host. Adult female mites behaviorally preferred excised leaves of control plants compared with excised leaves of damaged plants. Further work is required before a reliable behavioral assay is available that can be used to determine the chemical nature of induced resistance in cotton.
Microcosm analysis of salinity effects on coastal lagoon plankton assemblages

A microcosm experiment was conducted to assess the effects of salinity on coastal lagoon plankton assemblages. Five salinity levels were replicated four-fold in 380 1 fiberglass tanks. Salinity levels used were 0, 8.5, 17, 34 and 51 ppt, or 0, 25, 50, 100 and 150 percent seawater. These were achieved by mixing concentrated lagoon water and tapwater in different proportions. Tanks were inoculated with plankton collected from San Dieguito Lagoon (Del Mar, San Diego County, California) and other fresh and saline waterbodies in the area. Selected physical-chemical variables, phytoplankton, Zooplankton, and other invertebrate populations were monitored on five sampling dates over a 114 day period (13 August-5 December 1986).
Good Cause Eviction

Legislative bodies, courts, and commentators have long recognized the right of the people to shelter and decent housing. Courts have used the recognition of such rights to justify the extension of tenants’ rights in residential housing over the last twenty years. At least since Judge Wright’s opinion in Javins v. First National Realty Corp., most courts have rejected the common law theory that the residential landlord-tenant relationship was primarily a transfer of a non-freehold estate in land, carrying no duties for the landlord, and transferring a bare possessory right to the tenant. They have concluded that the appropriate way to analyze and deal with those relationships is to look to contract principles developed in the consumer context. This article focuses on the issue of whether these same contract principles may be used to give rise to an obligation, implied in all residential landlord-tenant leases, that a landlord may evict a tenant only for “good cause.”
Fit to Live

(1946). Fit to Live. The Journal of Health and Physical Education: Vol. 17, No. 2, pp. 67-104.
Problems and Prospects of Rice Varietal Resistance in Pest Control in West Africa

The origin of African rice, Oryza glaberrima Steud and Asian rice, O. saliva L., in West Africa is briefly reviewed. Major pests of rice in this region have been listed and the present status of crop protection with reference to rice is discussed. Major constraints to utilization of varietal resistance as a component in crop protection are mainly research-related. The need for manpower development, provision of adequate facilities, standardization of techniques as well as greater emphasis on studies on varietal resistance are highlighted.
Impact of Economic Globalization on Income Inequality: Developed Economies vs Emerging Economies

This paper studies income inequality and globalization by decomposing economic globalization into trade intensity and financial integration, and also by differentiating the effect of globalization ...
Effects of spine damage and microhabitat on resource allocation of the purple sea urchin Strongylocentrotus purpuratus (Stimpson 1857)

Abstract Though phenotypically plastic responses in echinoids are well studied, the majority of the literature examines the effect of altered diet. Some species, however, such as the purple sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus purpuratus, occur over a large geographic range and thus experience a variety of substrate types and wave forces. To determine whether these factors impact resource allocation in adult intertidal S. purpuratus, a laboratory experiment was conducted using two types of microhabitat based on extremes inhabited by sea urchins in the field (flat substratum vs. concave pit), and two levels of spine damage to simulate wave exposure (monthly clipping vs. control). A suite of measurements were taken to determine the effects of these two treatments including feeding and movement behavior, test morphometrics, demipyramid (jaw) allometry, spine growth cycles, and mass and stereological counts of gonad sections. When given the opportunity, sea urchins remained in their pits for the duration of the experiment, which limited their ability to feed. This behavioral response caused a decrease in weight and volumetric growth, and an increase in jaw growth relative to test growth. Sea urchins in pits also grew more spheroid in shape (increased height:diameter ratio), while those on flat substrates decreased in height:diameter ratio. Further, both males and females in pits showed altered gametogenesis. While spine damage did not affect test growth, sea urchins with clipped spines showed decreased gonad index and altered production of mature oocytes. Altogether, these results are congruent with the life history strategy of long living species like S. purpuratus, in that it spreads reproductive efforts over multiple seasons, while diverting resources toward repairing damage, acquiring suitable refuge, and maximizing attachment area. Therefore, microhabitat and spine damage, by impacting movement, feeding, growth, and reproductive output, likely have important indirect impacts on the intertidal community by way of altered sea urchin grazing rates and susceptibility and value to predators.
Reversible Semiconducting-to-Metallic Phase Transition in Chemical Vapor Deposition Grown Monolayer WSe2 and Applications for Devices

Two-dimensional (2D) semiconducting monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) have stimulated lots of interest because they are direct bandgap materials that have reasonably good mobility values. However, contact between most metals and semiconducting TMDCs like 2H phase WSe2 are highly resistive, thus degrading the performance of field effect transistors (FETs) fabricated with WSe2 as active channel materials. Recently, a phase engineering concept of 2D MoS2 materials was developed, with improved device performance. Here, we applied this method to chemical vapor deposition (CVD) grown monolayer 2H-WSe2 and demonstrated semiconducting-to-metallic phase transition in atomically thin WSe2. We have also shown that metallic phase WSe2 can be converted back to semiconducting phase, demonstrating the reversibility of this phase transition. In addition, we fabricated FETs based on these CVD-grown WSe2 flakes with phase-engineered metallic 1T-WSe2 as contact regions and intact semiconducting 2H-WSe2 as a...
1624 and The Temple

The Temple should be considered within the context of the events of 1624. I hope to show that the poetic sequence is evidence for Herbert’s engagement in the world during this year and throughout his life. The Temple displays Herbert’s effort, most visible to modern readers in the events of 1624, to link together a deep spiritual devotion, ethical behavior, professional activities, and a commitment to the future of world Protestantism. Although the lyrics in The Temple have been approached as evidence of Herbert’s meditative withdrawal from worldly events, I will argue, as have many others, that these lyrics should be considered in the context of contemporary events, and in terms of the rest of the work, including “The Church-porch”, and “The Church-militant”. The following chapter will substantiate this argument through a consideration of the events of 1624 and the parts of The Temple, including “The Dedication”, “The Church-porch”, “The Church”, and “The Church-militant”. The chapter will end with a summary of the various explanations for the structure of The Temple.1
The fourth mode of fracture in fractal fracture mechanics

This paper offers a systematic approach for obtaining the order of stress singularity for different self-similar and self-affine fractal cracks. Mode II and Mode III fractal cracks are studied and are shown to introduce the same order of stress singularity as Mode I fractal cracks do. In addition to these three classical modes, a Mode IV is discovered, which is a consequence of the fractal fracture. It is shown that, for this mode, stress has a weaker singularity than it does in the classical modes of fracture when self-affine fractal cracks are considered, and stress has the same order of singularity when self-similar cracks are considered. Considering this new mode of fracture, some single-mode problems of classical fracture mechanics could be mixed-mode problems in fractal fracture mechanics. By imposing a continuous transition from fractal to classical stress and displacement fields, the complete forms of the stress and displacement fields around the tip of a fractal crack are found. Then a universal relationship between fractal and classical stress intensity factors is derived. It is demonstrated that for a Mode IV fractal crack, only one of the stress components is singular; the other stress components are identically zero. Finally, stress singularity for three-dimensional bodies with self-affine fractal cracks is studied. As in the two-dimensional case, the fourth mode of fracture introduces a weaker stress singularity for self-affine fractal cracks than classical modes of fracture do.
Flow cytometric analysis of megakaryocyte ploidy. Comparison with Feulgen microdensitometry and discovery that 8N is the predominant ploidy class in guinea pig and monkey marrow

Flow cytometry (FCM) was adapted to measure ploidy values in megakaryocytes isolated from normal guinea pigs and African green monkeys. The FCM approach was validated by microscopic identification of electronically sorted 8N and higher ploidy cells and by comparisons with Feulgen microdensitometry on the same samples. Sorted 8N populations contained only megakaryocytes and were completely free of cell clumps; clumping was also absent in cell suspensions examined prior to FCM. Discrete megakaryocyte peaks were found at 8N, 16N, and 32N but not at intermediate values. The ploidy patterns of isolated megakaryocytes were similar by both methods (approximately 15% 8N, 58% 16N, and 27% 32N in guinea pigs). Unexpectedly, FCM analysis of unseparated marrow cell suspensions found that the most frequent ploidy class of megakaryocytes was 8N (50%). In contrast, by microdensitometry, the 8N class accounted for only 21% of the megakaryocytes in unseparated marrow cell suspensions. Since the traditional method depends on measurement only of easily recognizable megakaryocyte nuclei, a microdensitometric analysis of unselected marrow cells was carried out. Many more smaller 8N megakaryocytes (48%) were found by this approach, confirming the FCM data and the bias of the traditional sampling method. The decrease in 8N megakaryocytes (50%–15%) with enrichment was accounted for by the consistent finding that cells lost during isolation were predominantly 8N. with relative sparing of the 32N class. FCM provides more rapid and objective analysis of ploidy patterns in much larger samples of megakaryocytes than previous methods.
Diagnosis of Minimal Hepatic Encephalopathy

Minimal hepatic encephalopathy (MHE) is a neurocognitive disorder that can affect up to 80% of cirrhotic patients. Patients seem clinically unimpaired, but have subtle deficits and psychomotor abnormalities that can only be elicited by specialized tests. Used singly or in combination, varying tests can provide diagnostic information, including neuropsychological testing or neurophysiological testing. While there is no gold standard for the diagnosis, MHE remains an important entity for clinicians to recognize because of its negative impact on a patient’s health-related quality of life and association with driving impairment and vehicular accidents. The currently available tests are broadly divided into neuropsychological or neurophysiological. Prominent neuropsychological tests are the psychometric hepatic encephalopathy score, inhibitory control tests and repeatable battery for the assessment of neuropsychological status. Standard EEG and other variations thereof, critical flicker frequency as well as evoked potentials are the most studied neurophysiological tests. There is an immense variation in local norms for each test which makes standardization difficult. There is a clear need for the standardization of, and consensus on, employing these tools or developing a universally applicable tool in the evaluation and diagnosis of MHE.
Towards Secure Mobile Virtual Group in information-centric network

Information-centric networking proposes salient features towards future Internet architecture, including publish/subscribe paradigm, information level security, name-based networking, and in-network caching. This paper proposes Secure Mobile Virtual Group built on information-centric principles with the objective of enabling global device and personal mobility, secure transaction among group members, and service assured content dissemination within single and multiple domains.
Should We Treat Hypertension Immediately Before Electroconvulsive Therapy

A 70-year-old man admitted with refractory major depression is scheduled for electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). He has hypertension and coronary artery disease, s/p myocardial infarction (MI), and stent 10 years ago. His cardiologist writes that he is stable on medications (lisinopril, aspirin, and escitalopram). He is thin, with a normal airway. Blood tests are within normal limits, and electrocardiogram (ECG) shows sinus rhythm with old Q-waves in inferior leads.
Magnetism of Nanocrystalline Particles

The magnetic and structural properties of free standing small metallic particles (“smoke”) and granular solids have been investigated. Smoke particles of Fe, Co and Ni in the size range 50–350 A were prepared by the vapor deposition method and the granular solids by sputtering. The effects of particle size, surface chemistry and temperature on the magnetization and coercivity behavior have been studied.A strong size dependence of magnetization is observed in smoke particles, for sizes below 150 A. The magnetic and structural data are consistent with a core-shell morphology where the core is metallic and the shell a polycrystalline metal-oxide. The surface magnetic oxide layer is found to enhance the coercivity of the particles and bring about a strong temperature dependence.
Requirement of Treg-intrinsic CTLA4/PKCη signaling pathway for suppressing tumor immunity

The ability of Tregs to control the development of immune responses is essential for maintaining immune system homeostasis. However, Tregs also inhibit the development of efficient antitumor responses. Here, we explored the characteristics and mechanistic basis of the Treg-intrinsic CTLA4/PKCη signaling pathway that we recently found to be required for contact-dependent Treg-mediated suppression. We show that PKCη is required for the Treg-mediated suppression of tumor immunity in vivo. The presence of PKCη-deficient (Prkch-/-) Tregs in the tumor microenvironment was associated with a significantly increased expression of the costimulatory molecule CD86 on intratumoral CD103+ DCs, enhanced priming of antigen-specific CD8+ T cells, and greater levels of effector cytokines produced by these cells. Similar to mouse Tregs, the GIT/PAK/PIX complex also operated downstream of CTLA4 and PKCη in human Tregs, and GIT2 knockdown in Tregs promoted antitumor immunity. Collectively, our data suggest that targeting the CTLA4/PKCη/GIT/PAK/PIX signaling pathway in Tregs could represent a novel immunotherapeutic strategy to alleviate the negative impact of Tregs on antitumor immune responses.
T cell receptor signal transduction: affinity, force and conformational change

T cell recognition of antigen and resulting proximal signaling are key steps in the initiation of the adaptive immune response. The T cell receptor interaction with antigen drives signal initiation in an affinity-dependent manner, but many aspects of this process remain incompletely understood, including what regions are responsible for structural changes in the TCR upon antigen binding, the importance of extracellular T cell receptor interactions with CD3, how structural changes are integrated with signaling components, and the role of force in signal transduction. Advances in structural modeling of the TCR–CD3 complex and the ability to quantify the affinity and biophysical nature of these molecular interactions have significantly furthered our understanding of the mechanism of transduction of T cell antigen recognition into intracellular signaling. This knowledge is paramount to understanding how T cell perform their critical role in adaptive immune responses, and for the development and improvement of immunotherapies.
Modification of Interpersonal Behavior

Researchers in diverse disciplines (e.g., medicine, organizational behavior, business, politics, industry) have found interpersonal behavior to be one of the differentiating factors between success and failure within their professions. Psychological research (e.g., Libet & Lewinsohn, 1973; Zigler & Phillips, 1960) reveals that interpersonal behavior and the development of proficient patterns of communication have earnest implications for an individual’s adjustment within a social milieu.
Renormalization and Taxonomy

Taxonomists now seem to embrace the conclusion that natural classification not based on phylogeny is impossible in principle. Classification in physics suggests, however, that a natural classification of objects is possible when there are two disparate levels of their description. This is the essence of classification based on the renormalization-group (RG) philosophy, and the resultant classification scheme is regarded sufficiently objective. Thus, we can argue that it is still premature to conclude that biological classification is objective only when it is based on molecular phylogeny. The analogy to RG suggests the developmental taxonomy dependent solely on ontogeny.
Competitive coevolutionary algorithm decision support

Using coevolutionary algorithms to find solutions to problems is a powerful technique but once solutions are identified it can be difficult for a decision maker to select a solution to deploy. ESTABLO runs competitive coevolutionary algorithm variants independently, in parallel, and then combines their test and solution results at the final generation into a compendium. From there, it re-evaluates each solution, according to three different measurements, on every test as well as on a set of unseen tests. For a decision maker, it finally identifies top solutions using various metrics and visualizes them in the context of other solutions. We demonstrate ESTABLO on a cyber security related resource allocation problem.
Ultrasonically Rechargeable Platforms for Closed-Loop Distributed Sensing and Actuation in the Human Body

In the near future, innovative medical therapies will be administered by means of intra-body wireless sensor networks of implantable medical devices (IMDs). However, realizing wireless networks with traditional implantable biosensors and actuators is challenging, because (i) they often rely on wired connections that are invasive and prone to infections; and (ii) they are powered by batteries that occupy most of the device volume and have a relatively short lifetime. This article reports on the design of a system of interconnected implantable nodes that leverage ultrasonic wireless propagation to (i) be remotely recharged, removing the need for batteries; (ii) to create wireless communication links avoiding wires or radio-frequency (RF) connections that have poor performance when operating in tissues. We illustrate the design of the core building blocks to realize ultrasonically rechargeable medical sensors and actuators equipped with ultrasonic connectivity. We further demonstrate their use in a practical implementation of a sensing/actuation closed-loop system with distributed sensor nodes. We also develop and experimentally validate a mathematical model to predict the system performance.
Photothermal Effect of Nanomaterials for Efficient Energy Applications

Abstract The photothermal effect of nanomaterials has been extensively studied in the last decade. However, the vast majority of applied research has only focused on cancer therapeutics. A great potential of the photothermal effect in energy applications, such as reducing heat loss in building structures, especially for high rises and public buildings in extremely cold regions, lies largely dormant and provides a rich opportunity for a plethora exciting new research. In this chapter, nanotechnology based on the applied photothermal effect for sustainable energy and efficient energy consumption of nanomaterials will be reviewed alongside the fundamental science of the photothermal effect and engineering design of photothermal nanostructures.
Drought Exacerbates Botryosphaeria Dieback Symptoms in Grapevines and Confounds Host-based Molecular Markers of Infection by Neofusicoccum parvum.

Neofusicoccum parvum, causal fungus of the grapevine trunk disease Botryosphaeria dieback, attacks the wood of Vitis vinifera. Because lesions are internal, using putative host-based markers of inf...
Making a Case for a Funds of Knowledge Approach to Teaching and Learning for First-Generation College Students

AbstractFirst-generation college (FGC) students compose nearly a third of the total student population in most four-year higher education institutions in the United States. Yet they graduate in dra...
Proximal versus distal embolic protection for carotid artery stenting: a national cardiovascular data registry analysis.

Abstract Objectives The aim of this study was to compare the stroke/death rates between proximal embolic protection devices (P-EPDs) and distal filter embolic protection devices (F-EPDs) in elective carotid artery stenting (CAS). Background P-EPDs have theoretical advantages that may make them superior to F-EPDs for stroke prevention during CAS. Methods We examined 10,246 consecutive elective CAS procedures performed with embolic protection in the NCDR CARE registry between January 2009 and March 2013. We analyzed crude and propensity-matched rates of in-hospital combined death/stroke in patients treated with P-EPDs versus F-EPDs. Secondary analyses included 30-day adverse event rates and stroke rates by the involved cerebrovascular territory. Results P-EPDs were used in 590 of 10,246 cases (5.8%). Patients treated with P-EPDs had higher rates of symptomatic lesion status (46.8% vs. 39.7%, p Conclusions Use of a P-EPD during CAS was associated with low rates of in-hospital stroke/death similar to those with an F-EPD in the first comparative effectiveness study of the devices. An adequately powered randomized trial comparing clinical outcomes between these devices is unlikely to be feasible.
3029 Physician Awareness of Medical Device Cost: A Systematic Review

Study Objective To investigate the accuracy of physician estimates of medical device costs. Design A systematic review of PUBMED, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, EconLit, and Clinicaltrials.gov was conducted. Articles were included for review if they surveyed physicians or residents and included a description of (1) how the authors defined accuracy with regard to medical device cost estimates and (2) how the true costs of the devices were calculated. Exclusion criteria comprised incomplete or duplicate data and research not in English. Setting Systematic Review. Patients or Participants N/A. Interventions N/A. Measurements and Main Results Of 2,699 studies identified, 10 satisfied both inclusion and exclusion criteria. All articles were published between 1998 and 2019, representing a total of 984 physician respondents. Individual article response rates ranged from 22.6–100% (median 44.4%). Cost estimates were considered accurate if they fell within 20–25% of the true device cost, with the exception of 1 study that defined accuracy as being within 50% of the true cost. Between 9% and 35% of physicians were able to accurately estimate medical device costs. Of note, 36.0–92.2% of physicians reported that they felt their knowledge of medical device costs was inadequate, with a majority of participants in every study (66–100%) identifying knowledge of medical device costs as at least moderately important. Conclusion Physicians have limited insight into medical device costs, with a vast majority unable to accurately estimate these costs. Given that many physicians recognize their lack of knowledge concerning medical device costs and believe that such information is important, increased transparency and improved education on this topic may represent important areas of need.
Racial disproportionality of students in United States colleges of pharmacy.

Abstract Objective To describe the disproportionality of racial and ethnic people of color (i.e., minorities) among the student body in schools and colleges of pharmacy (COPs) compared to county-specific United States Census Bureau data. Methods Data were obtained from national databases and published reports from the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy. In addition, demographic information for enrollees of minority-serving institutions and predominantly white institutions was obtained and racial disproportionality was assessed to determine the degree of concordance between enrollees and the demographics of people within the county that the school was located. Data were evaluated using descriptive statistics. Results Compared to the general population in counties where COPs are located, Asians are over-represented while all other students of color are underrepresented. The top schools that have a negative disproportionality rate for Black students included Thomas Jefferson University (−40.49), Wayne State University (−40.13), Philadelphia College of Pharmacy (−39.90), and the University of Tennessee (−39.74).The top five schools that have a negative disproportionality rate of Hispanic students included Loma Linda University (−45.67), California Health Sciences (−45.64), the University of Southern California (−43.79), the University of the Pacific California (−37.95), and Texas Southern University (−36.65). The enrollments within most COPs do not reflect the racial and ethnic diversity of the counties in which they are located. Conclusions To meet the healthcare needs of an increasingly diverse population, each institution should establish a strategic plan for increasing diversity and evaluating and adopting best practices.
Drain-Voltage-Induced Secondary Effects in AlGaN/GaN HEMTs With Integrated Body-Diode

Integration of body-diode-based back-gate control in AlGaN/GaN high-electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) was recently demonstrated by the authors to enable dynamic control of the device characteristics. Here, we present an experimental study of drain-voltage-induced secondary effects in AlGaN/GaN HEMTs with integrated body-diode. Both the three-terminal and four-terminal device characteristics are studied to understand the secondary effects in this configuration. The results show that the voltage at the drain terminal plays a crucial role in biasing the body-diode under dynamic operation. Drain-voltage-induced dynamic biasing of the body-diode is observed both under the biased and floating back-gate conditions. The kink-effect in the saturation channel current and light emission at the source terminal are observed at higher drain voltages. Our results show that a combination of high resistivity of the p-GaN layer and the direct bandgap nature of III-nitride (III-N) material prevents the parasitic bipolar junction transistor (BJT)-triggered latch-up mechanism in this device structure.
Localized Corrosion Behavior of Non-Equiatomic NiFeCrMnCo Multi-Principal Element Alloys

Abstract A series of single phase Ni38Fe20CrxMn21–0.5xCo21–0.5x multi-principal element alloys (MPEAs) were fabricated and their localized corrosion behavior was tested in 0.6 M NaCl solution. These MPEAs were found to be susceptible to localized corrosion, exhibiting pitting at room temperature, as indicated by positive hysteresis loops and low repassivation potentials observed in cyclic potentiodynamic polarization experiments. The pitting resistance increased with increasing Cr content. Interestingly, even the MPEAs with low chromium content, Ni38Fe20Cr6Mn18Co18 and Ni38Fe20Cr10Mn16Co16, exhibited passivity and localized corrosion. The passivity observed in these low chromium MPEAs is likely derived from their relatively high nickel content. Crystallographic pit morphology was observed in most of these MPEAs, suggesting the absence of a salt film on the dissolving pit surface. Such crystallographic pit morphology indicates that the pit growth in most of these MPEAs was under charge-transfer/ohmic control.
Analyzing the costs of developing and operating an integrated health-system specialty pharmacy: The case of a centralized insurance navigation process for specialty clinic patients.

Purpose Direct and indirect costs related to the growth of specialty pharmacy services and the insurance navigation process for specialty clinic patients are discussed, and development and implementation of a pharmacy-driven and system-wide prior authorization (PA) processing center within a health system are described. Summary Expensive specialty drugs require PA. Due to the concentration of specialists, health systems with multiple specialties experience higher PA burden and resulting care delays. Although clinic staff typically handle PA requests, health-system specialty pharmacies are well positioned to support patients, clinic staff, and physicians by assuming responsibility for the PA process entirely. University of Utah Health established its Pharmacy Ambulatory Clinical Care Center (PAC3) to centralize PA processing for selected specialty and primary care clinics within the health system. In fiscal year 2019, the PAC3 team (10 pharmacy technician and 1.5 pharmacist full-time equivalents) completed over 13,000 PAs. The pharmacy labor cost increase was significant; however, the benefits gained from increased services, quality, and financial strength surpassed all costs associated with the implementation and maintenance of the pharmacy operation. Other tangible benefits included decreased delays in therapy initiation, increased patient satisfaction, increased clinic visits, and increased staff and provider satisfaction and engagement. Conclusion Increased PA requests associated with specialty drugs have placed considerable stress and staff burden on specialty clinics within health systems. However, development and implementation of an efficient PA processing infrastructure within a health-system specialty pharmacy may reduce the burden, increase financial strength, and improve the patient experience.
Profiling Mannheimia haemolytica infection in dairy calves using near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) and multivariate analysis (MVA).

Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) linked with Mannheimia haemolytica is the principal cause of pneumonia in cattle. Diagnosis of BRD traditionally relies on visual assessment, which can be untimely, insensitive, and nonspecific leading to inadequate treatment and further spread of disease. Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS) is a rapid acquisition vibrational spectroscopy that can profile changes in biofluids, and when used in combination with multivariate analysis, has potential for disease diagnosis. This study characterizes the NIR spectral profile of blood plasma from dairy calves infected with M. haemolytica and validates the spectral biochemistry using standardized clinical and hematological reference parameters. Blood samples were collected for four days prior to (baseline), and 23 days after, a controlled intrabronchial challenge. NIR spectral profiles of blood plasma discriminated and predicted Baseline and Infected states of animal disease progression with accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity ≥ 90% using PCA–LDA models. These results show that physiological and biochemical changes occurring in the bloodstream of dairy calves during M. haemolytica infection are reflected in the NIR spectral profiles, demonstrating the potential of NIRS as a diagnostic and monitoring tool of BRD over time.
How Social Group Memberships Interact to Shape Partisanship, Policy Orientations, and Vote Choice

Individuals are members of multiple social groups (race, class, religion, etc.). Intersectionality theory contends we cannot understand the influence of a group in isolation because group identities interact to influence outcomes collectively. This assertion challenges the typical approach in the political behavior literature, which assumes the effects of group memberships are additive. In this paper, I correct this shortcoming. I test how racial and ethnic group memberships condition the impact of gender, religion, region, and social class on policy attitudes, partisanship, and vote choice. Using pooled ANES (2000–2016) and the 2016 CMPS data, I show that these group memberships’ effects are conditional upon race and ethnicity. They shape Whites, Blacks, Latinos, and Asians’ political attitudes in diverse and, in some cases, opposite ways. The results imply that behavioral studies must be careful not to assume that group identities are additive instead of interactive. I conclude that quantitative scholars should account for the interactions of group identities in theoretical and empirical models.
Universal social needs assessment in gynecologic oncology: An important step toward more informed and targeted care in the public safety net

Background Social needs are actionable mediators of social determinants of health. Along with distress, they affect quality of life and survival in patients with cancer. The objectives of this study were to identify the most common social needs and distress in a largely immigrant gynecologic oncology patient population at a public safety-net hospital and to evaluate for specific needs associated with distress and poor outcomes. Methods This was a prospective, survey-based cohort study of patients who participated in a performance-improvement initiative offering social needs assessment and distress screening. Patients provided sociodemographic information and completed validated surveys adapted from the Health Leads Social Needs Screening Toolkit, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Distress Thermometer, and the Emotion Thermometers Tool. Associations between social needs, distress, and treatment outcomes were analyzed. Results In total, 135 women were included. Of these, 65.2% had at least 1 unmet social need, and 36.3% screened positive for distress. Help reading hospital materials (30.4%) was the most frequently reported need. Social isolation (odds ratio [OR], 3.65; 95% CI, 1.35-9.9; P = .01) and lack of safety at home (OR, 4.90; 95% CI, 2.23-10.62; P = .0001) were associated with distress. Perceived lack of finances for medical care (OR, 5.69; 95% CI, 1.12-28.9; P = .036) and lack of transportation (OR, 20.5; 95% CI, 2.69-156.7; P = .004) were associated with nonadherence-related treatment interruption, whereas positive distress scores were associated with interruption because of comorbidities or treatment-related toxicities (OR, 20.5; 95% CI, 1.5-268.6; P = .02). Conclusions Systematically identifying social needs and developing interventions aimed at mitigating them may lead to more actionable health care disparities research and affect treatment outcomes. Lay summary Social needs are individual-level social conditions that drive health disparities. In this survey-based study, the objective was to identify common social needs and how these relate to distress and poor health outcomes in a largely immigrant and underserved gynecologic oncology patient population. The authors found that greater than one-third of patients screened positive for distress, nearly two-thirds had at least 1 unmet social need, and these factors were associated with emergency room visits, hospital admissions, and treatment interruptions. These findings suggest that screening for universal social needs allows providers to identify unrecognized needs and implement interventions to mitigate distress and improve health outcomes.
Syncope as the Initial Manifestation of a Late-Stage Renal Cell Carcinoma With Metastasis to the Brain.

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the most common neoplasm that arises from renal parenchyma. About one-third of patients with RCC develop metastatic spread, with common sites including the lung, liver, bone, adrenal gland, and brain. Distant metastases can be difficult to detect unless symptoms appear. We report a case of a 56-year-old female who presented to the emergency department with the unresponsiveness of unknown duration. She underwent a thorough laboratory workup, and the computed tomography (CT) scan revealed a retroperitoneal mass originating from the right kidney and a large hemorrhagic brain mass in the left frontal lobe. The patient underwent emergent full craniotomy for tumor removal, and histology confirmed metastatic RCC. Since several patients with RCC are asymptomatic, the slow growth of tumors leading to distant metastasis can be overlooked. Thus, this case demonstrates the importance of early detection of RCC to help prevent or delay further disease progression.
RESEARCH ARTICLE: Teaching information literacy concepts in pharmaceutics through video

Objective: The objective was to determine if online, asynchronous video content could be used to teach information literacy concepts successfully to pharmacy students in a pharmaceutics course. Method: An existing in-person lecture was transferred to a series of online videos. Students enrolled in the course who agreed to participate took a 13-question pre-test, watched videos, and completed the same post-test, along with a survey of their opinions towards the videos. Scores on each of the questions on the pre-and post-test changed positively and significantly. Students slightly preferred videos to in-person instruction. Result: The results suggest that asynchronous videos can be used to teach information literacy concepts to pharmacy students and this knowledge is retained for the duration of the course.
DRUG INDUCED AMNESIAS: BEHAVIORAL, PHARMACOLOGICAL, AND NEUROCHEMICAL STUDIES

Protein (P) and catecholamine (CA) synthesis inhibitors induce memory retrieval deficits in mice in a variety of behavioral paradigms. These deficits can be pharmacologically recovered by agents that activate CA systems: pargyline, pheniprazine, amphetamine, Clonidine, and isoproterenol. P inhibitors also impair central CA biosynthetic, release, and receptor mechanisms.
Physiological Mechanisms Underlying Motion-Induced Blindness

Visual disappearance illusions - such as motion-induced blindness (MIB) - are commonly used to study the neural underpinnings of visual perception. In such illusions a salient visual target becomes perceptually invisible. Previous studies are inconsistent regarding the role of primary visual cortex (V1) in these illusions. Here we provide physiological and psychophysical evidence supporting a role for V1 in generating MIB.
Bayesian consistent prior selection

A subjective expected utility agent is given information about the state of the world in the form of a set of possible priors. She is allowed to condition her prior on this information. A set of priors may be updated according to Bayes’ rule, prior-by-prior, upon learning that some state of the world has not obtained. We show that there exists no decision maker who obeys Bayes’ rule, conditions her prior on the available information (by selecting a prior in the announced set), and who updates the information prior-by- prior using Bayes’ rule. The result implies that at least one of several familiar decision theoretic “paradoxes” is a mathematical necessity.
Strategically-controlled information fusion

Defines performance metrics that quantitatively characterize fusion engine (FE) output. Defines context metrics that quantitatively characterize FE performance as a function of input data. Quantitatively maps FEs' performance space (how predicted performance depends on context). Encapsulates FEs so that they share data representations, services, and queries. Controls this confederation of encapsulated FEs with an intelligent fusion strategist that maximizes overall performance as a function of context by: (a) selecting the FE with the best-predicted performance for a given real-time context; (b) sequencing FEs to maximize performance by receiving data set outputs from other FEs, thus improving the region of the performance space in which they operate; (c) adjusting FE control and modeling parameters to achieve peak performance over a broader range of contexts; (d) reacting to FE outputs by comparing them to predicted performance and adjusting parameters, sequences, and selections to maintain overall performance.
Collagen IV mRNA expression during development of the mouse retina: an in situ hybridization study.

Purpose. During development of the nervous system, neuronal migration and axonal growth depend on specific interactions with molecules in the extracellular matrix. In a recent study of laminin expression, it was shown that laminin B, mRNA was expressed by both nonneural cells and the retinal ganglion cells during development of the mouse retina. Because collagen IV is associated with laminin in basement membranes, this report examined whether collagen IV mRNA also is expressed by neurons and nonneural cells during retinal development. Methods. Collagen IV was localized by immunocytochemistry, whereas the sites of collagen IV mRNA synthesis were identified by in situ hybridization. Results. Collagen IV immunostaining was detected at embryonic day 12 (E-12), the earliest stage examined. At E-12 and E-15, collagen was found in the lens, the embryonic (hyaloid) blood vessels, and the internal limiting membrane (ILM) of the retina. At E-17, immunostaining was reduced in the ILM, whereas the lens and hyaloid were strongly stained. Collagen was barely detected in the ILM in postnatal retinas. In the in situ hybridization experiments, at E-12, collagen IV mRNA was found in the lens and the hyaloid vessels. Only sparsely labeled cells were present in the retina. After E-17, the density of labeling in these structures decreased dramatically. Collagen IV mRNA was not found in the retina at any stage in development or in the adult. Northern blot analysis showed that a 6 Kb collagen IV transcript was present in the eye. Conclusions. These findings establish that high levels of collagen IV are present at the ILM only during early development (E-12 to E-17), when most axonal growth occurs. Retinal collagen IV is possibly derived from nonretinal sources, such as the lens, or more likely from the hyaloid vessels. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 1993;34:145-152.
Selective Adsorption of Non-helical Polynucleotides to an Organomercurial Sephadex

Abstract A method is described to distinguish between helical and non-helical polynucleotides in solution by the selective adsorption of the non-helical polynucleotides to an organomercurial Sephadex.
Multiple arterial thromboses in a newborn infant, with particular involvement of an umbilical and hypogastric artery.

Abstract Multiple arterial thrombi in a newborn infant, involving the left umbilical and hypogastric artery, with interference with circulation to the lower limb, gluteal and serotal regions, and the development of cyanosis, tissue breakdown, and flaccid paralysis, are described. The similarity to the syndrome recently reported by Mills is pointed out; the widespread vascular involvement in the present case raises doubts as to the validity of the etiological explanation, proposed by Mills, that the injection of nikethamide into an umbilical artery produces arterial thrombosis or spasm, with the consequent effects as described.
Integrated CASE: our experience with Teamwork and Rational

Mapping existing software development processes to new development methods, and implementing these methods with new and emerging computer aided software engineering (CASE) tools, is now beginning to fulfil to original CASE promises of minimizing the cost and improving the quality of software. In addition to these advantages, the computer-assistance provided by the tools, coupled with the object-oriented approach advocated by current methods, promises both near-term as well as long-term productivity increases. >
VALIDATION OF THE PULSED DOPPLER TECHNIQUE FOR ASSESSMENT OF CEREBRAL BLOOD FLOW VELOCITY

Non-invasive measurements of intracranial blood flow velocities can be made through the fontanel by the Doppler technique. A range gated 2 and 5 MHz instrument with a 2-4 mm long sampling volume was used in an in vitro model, simulating intracranial blood flow in newborns. The Doppler instrument measured the maximum and the cross-sectional mean frequency Doppler shifts. Calibration signals were used to transform the frequency shift to velocity. The computed time average of the mean frequency Doppler signal was the best measure of absolute flow (r=0.985, p < 0.001) in artificial blood vessels with 1.0-2.8 mm diameters, over a wide range of flows, 4-94 ml/minute. A fontanel was created surgically in newborn lambs and the blood flow velocities in the basal intracranial arteries were measured with the Doppler instrument. Simultaneous recordings of the carotid blood flow were made by electromagnetic flow cuffs. Occlusions of one or both carotid arteries induced changes in intracranial blood flow velocities, closely correlated to the carotid blood flow on the same side (r=0.89, p<0.01). The pulsatility index was not a useful indicator of changes in blood flow. The range gated Doppler instrument can measure blood flow velocities in very small arteries, at a defined depth under the fontanel. The time average of the mean frequency Doppler signal is the closest estimate of absolute blood flow, when the diameter of the blood vessel under study cannot be measured.