cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Enteric Microflora in IBD: Pathogens or Commensals?

SUMMARY : Both pathogenic and normal enteric microflora can induce and perpetuate chronic intestinal inflammation with systemic manifestations in genetically susceptible hosts. At the present time, there is no convincing indication that the majority of cases of ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease is caused by persistent infection by Mycobacterium paratuberculosis, measles, Listeria monocytogenes, or Helicobacter species, but this possibility remains a valid hypothesis. Transient infection with any of a number of pathogens including upper respiratory tract infections and common enteric pathogens could provide one of the environmental triggers that initiate or reactivate IBD, which is then perpetuated in susceptible hosts by resident (not pathogenic) commensal luminal bacteria. Recent results in animal models demonstrate the absence of colitis, gastritis, and arthritis in a sterile (germ-free) environment, showing the importance of resident bacteria as persistent antigenic stimuli in the genetically susceptible hosts. Furthermore, there is an indication that not all normal luminal bacteria have equal capacities to induce mucosal injury, since some species can induce inflammation (Bacteroides), some are neutral (E. coli) and others may be protective (Lactobacilli). These observations have important therapeutic implications, such that altering luminal bacterial components and thereby decreasing the persistent antigenic drive offer alternative or adjuvant approaches to ongoing efforts to block mucosal immune responses to these stimuli.
EDITORS AS AUTHORS: PUBLICATION TRENDS OF ARTICLES AUTHORED BY JABA EDITORS

Journal editors are gatekeepers; they review and shape the work of others, and influence the journal's direction and quality. They also contribute to the body of knowledge within a field as authors. The author role of editors of the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis is described. Annual publication rates of the 55 former and current editors and associate editors are presented and discussed.
Bridging the gap between health and justice

What does health have to do with justice? Everything! More than seven million people in the United States are currently under some form of criminal justice supervision, and control (whether in jail, prison, or on probation or parole), and they have somatic and mental health issues in rates that are much higher than those found in the general population. Ignoring these issues will contributes to health disparities and negative outcomes and this will be unjust—not only for those individuals—for the communities in which they live (or will live, upon release), and for human kind in general. As this article will show, the health needs of this population are also of paramount importance to those within specific communities, even if they are not currently involved with the criminal justice system. It is thus critically important to bridge the gap between the fields of public health and criminal justice by promoting an interdisciplinary discourse that brings together professionals and scholars from both ends of the justice and health spectrum; and thus better serve society, and address health disparities issues that affect health and justice. Criminal justice practitioners and public health workers may, at first glance, seem to be in unrelated (sometimes even opposing) fields, but in fact, they share many of the same challenges, as they both deal with human beings, environments, and public safety. Yet these two fields have long operated in parallel universes, and only recently has that approach begun to change. Scholars, practitioners, and policy makers from both sides have started to share ideas and information in an effort to create a better response to rising challenges that concern both fields. So far, most of the work has been related to incarcerated offenders and their rehabilitation and reintegration, but health-related issues are also relevant for examining and intervening with non-incarcerated criminal justice populations. As Levy (2007) states, “...public health practices inform and empower individuals and communities, and create healthy environments through the use of evidence-based
Student Veterans in Transition: Re-enrolling after War Zone Deployments

United States National Guard and Reserve units, including their college student members, increasingly are deployed, resulting in students’ abrupt withdrawals from college and subsequent re-enrollments after their return. This study explored student veterans’ transitions from deployment back to their prior status as full-time college students at one research extensive university.
Predicting crime using Twitter and kernel density estimation

Abstract Twitter is used extensively in the United States as well as globally, creating many opportunities to augment decision support systems with Twitter-driven predictive analytics. Twitter is an ideal data source for decision support: its users, who number in the millions, publicly discuss events, emotions, and innumerable other topics; its content is authored and distributed in real time at no charge; and individual messages (also known as tweets) are often tagged with precise spatial and temporal coordinates. This article presents research investigating the use of spatiotemporally tagged tweets for crime prediction. We use Twitter-specific linguistic analysis and statistical topic modeling to automatically identify discussion topics across a major city in the United States. We then incorporate these topics into a crime prediction model and show that, for 19 of the 25 crime types we studied, the addition of Twitter data improves crime prediction performance versus a standard approach based on kernel density estimation. We identify a number of performance bottlenecks that could impact the use of Twitter in an actual decision support system. We also point out important areas of future work for this research, including deeper semantic analysis of message content, temporal modeling, and incorporation of auxiliary data sources. This research has implications specifically for criminal justice decision makers in charge of resource allocation for crime prevention. More generally, this research has implications for decision makers concerned with geographic spaces occupied by Twitter-using individuals.
Hot filament CVD conductive microcrystalline diamond for high Q, high acoustic velocity micromechanical resonators

A capacitively transduced micromechanical resonator constructed in hot filament CVD boron-doped microcrystalline diamond (MCD) structural material has posted a measured Q of 146,580 at 232.441 kHz, which is 3× higher than the previous high for conductive polydiamond. Moreover, radial-contour mode disk resonators fabricated in the same MCD film and using material mismatched stems, cf., Figure 1, exhibit a Q of 71,400 at 299.86 MHz, which is the highest series-resonant Q yet measured for any on-chip resonator at this frequency. The material used here further exhibits an acoustic velocity of 18,516 m/s, which is now the highest to date among available surface micromachinable materials. For many potential applications, the hot filament CVD method demonstrated in this work is quite enabling, since it provides a much less expensive method than microwave CVD based alternatives for depositing doped CVD diamond over large wafers (e.g., 8”) for batch fabrication.
Robust Path Planning and Feedback Design Under Stochastic Uncertainty

Autonomous vehicles require optimal path planning algorithms to achieve mission goals while avoiding obstacles and being robust to uncertainties. The uncertainties arise from exogenous disturbances, modeling errors, and sensor noise, which can be characterized via stochastic models. Previous work defined a notion of robustness in a stochastic setting by using the concept of chance constraints. This requires that mission constraint violation can occur with a probability less than a prescribed value.In this paper we describe a novel method for optimal chance constrained path planning with feedback design. The approach optimizes both the reference trajectory to be followed and the feedback controller used to reject uncertainty. Our method extends recent results in constrained control synthesis based on convex optimization to solve control problems with nonconvex constraints. This extension is essential for path planning problems, which inherently have nonconvex obstacle avoidance constraints. Unlike previous approaches to chance constrained path planning, the new approach optimizes the feedback gain as wellas the reference trajectory.The key idea is to couple a fast, nonconvex solver that does not take into account uncertainty, with existing robust approaches that apply only to convex feasible regions. By alternating between robust and nonrobust solutions, the new algorithm guarantees convergence to a global optimum. We apply the new method to an unmanned aircraft and show simulation results that demonstrate the efficacy of the approach.
Semantic-based concurrency control for object-oriented database systems supporting real-time applications

Recently object-oriented database technology has started to gain the attention of researchers in real-time database systems. This paper investigates major issues in designing semantic-based concurrency control for object-orient database systems supporting real-time applications, and describes an approach to solving those problems in an efficient way. This approach depends on the notion of affected-set of operations to determine operation compatibilities, and employs concurrency control algorithms augmented with priority-based conflict resolution schemes. With this method, it is impossible to manoeuvre the trade-off between logical and temporal consistency constraints in determining operation compatibilities, because the method deals with the two separately in different dimensions. However, this approach significantly lessens the complexity of the compatibility relation construction process, and can easily apply results from previous research on semantic-based concurrency control for object-oriented databases and on priority-based concurrency control for real-time database systems. >
Cross-calibration of two small footprint sensors

This paper presents a method for determining the calibration of a small footprint satellite sensor using another small footprint system. The work uses the System Pour l'Observation de la Terre (SPOT) 3-High Resolution Visible (HRV) Sensor and Landsat 5-Thematic Mapper (TM) to determine calibration coefficients for TM using HRV given the different look angles, bandpasses, crossing times and footprints. The cross-calibration results are referenced to the reflectance-based vicarious calibration results from October 8 and 9, 1994, from White Sands Missile Range, NM. Although the images are from two different days the atmospheric and reflectance data are very similar and both satellites had near-nadir views. Bands 1, 2, and 3 of HRV, are used to calibrate bands 2, 3, and 4 of TM. The initial attempt of cross-calibration does not account for spectral differences. The calculated calibration coefficient for Chuck Site for TM is within 4% of the reflectance-based values. Several other sites are also used with dark areas providing the worst results. Other bright areas have errors ranging from 1-12%. Areas within the gypsum dunes have results within the 1-4% range. To determine misalignment effects, the TM image is moved relative to the HRV image. This produced changes of less than 1% for up to a 40 meter misalignment.
A Spatiotemporal Approach to the Objective Analysis of Initiation and Termination of Vocal-fold Oscillation With High-speed Videoendoscopy

Summary High-speed videoendoscopy excels in the ability to observe the vocal-fold oscillatory patterns during voice initiation and termination. The initial and most critical step in the analysis of these transient regions is to identify the locations of these transient periods, that is, determining when the vocal-fold oscillation is absent and when the oscillation has reached its steady-state behavior. The latter is more challenging as the "steady" oscillation during sustained phonation is not truly steady and is expected to vary over time. This variation may cause unreliable identification of the transient periods, possibly resulting in less accurate or less reliable parameter measurements. An oscillation feature that is relatively consistent in the steady state is the glottal length, that is, the extent of the oscillation along vocal folds. This paper proposes an autonomous algorithm to estimate the vocal-fold oscillation length and its use to detect four transient events: oscillation onset and offset, and attainment and loss of full-length oscillation. The detected event markers are intended to be used to improve the transient parameter measurements. The autonomous algorithm manipulates the set of glottal width waveforms spatiotemporally to estimate the oscillation length. Examples with in vivo high-speed videoendoscopy recordings of both normal and pathological cases are included to show the efficacy of the proposed algorithm to identify the transient markers.
Educating, Enrolling, And Engaging: The State Of Marketplace Consumer Assistance Under The Affordable Care Act

Programs created under the Affordable Care Act to connect consumers to health care coverage represent an unprecedented public-sector investment. State-level implementation of these programs has varied greatly, making it possible to learn from differences in strategy and performance. In this article we assess the current state of Marketplace enrollment assistance, synthesizing evidence from published evaluations (largely derived from grey literature) and analyses of data from nationwide surveys of assisters. Synthesis of this evidence suggests that assister programs play a vital role supporting consumers in the new Marketplaces, particularly when assisters maintain extended ongoing relationships with consumers; assisters come from and are situated within communities they serve; local programs are well coordinated; and postenrollment issues can be addressed. Stable funding commitments, year-round employment, and enriched training were identified as crucial long-run strategies for building a more professiona...
Reference-Related Memory Management in Intelligent Agents Emulating Humans

For intelligent agents modeled to emulate people, reference resolution is memory management: when processing an object or event – whether it appears in language or in the simulated physical or cognitive experience of the agent – the agent must determine how that object or event correlates with known objects and events, and must store the new memory with semantically explicit links to related prior knowledge. This paper discusses eventualities for memory-based reference resolution and the modeling strategies used in the OntoAgent environment to permit agents to fully and automatically make reference decisions.
42.8 Gb/s Chirp-Managed Signal Transmission over 100 m Graded-Index Plastic Optical Fiber

High-speed transmission at 42.8 Gb/s over 100 m graded-index plastic optical fiber using a low-cost chirp-managed directly modulated laser has been demonstrated for the first time.
Low-rank tensor completion with spatio-temporal consistency

Video completion is a computer vision technique to recover the missing values in video sequences by filling the unknown regions with the known information. In recent research, tensor completion, a generalization of matrix completion for higher order data, emerges as a new solution to estimate the missing information in video with the assumption that the video frames are homogenous and correlated. However, each video clip often stores the heterogeneous episodes and the correlations among all video frames are not high. Thus, the regular tenor completion methods are not suitable to recover the video missing values in practical applications. To solve this problem, we propose a novel spatially-temporally consistent tensor completion method for recovering the video missing data. Instead of minimizing the average of the trace norms of all matrices unfolded along each mode of a tensor data, we introduce a new smoothness regularization along video time direction to utilize the temporal information between consecutive video frames. Meanwhile, we also minimize the trace norm of each individual video frame to employ the spatial correlations among pixels. Different to previous tensor completion approaches, our new method can keep the spatio-temporal consistency in video and do not assume the global correlation in video frames. Thus, the proposed method can be applied to the general and practical video completion applications. Our method shows promising results in all evaluations on both 3D biomedical image sequence and video benchmark data sets.
A New Method to Determine the VTI Anisotropic Resistivity and Formation Dip

Summary We examined the response of directional resistivity tools with tilted antennas to a VTI anisotropic formation. A new method is proposed to determine the VTI anisotropic resistivity (with the horizontal resistivity and the vertical resistivity) and the formation dip using the directional resistivity tool with single transmitter-receiver offset at one
Identification of patients for pharmacologic review by computer analysis of clinical laboratory drug concentration data

Clinical pharmacokinetics evaluation and consultation can improve drug therapy and decrease the incidence of adverse reactions in selected patients. However, identification of patients appropriate for review is difficult. The authors developed a microcomputer-based expert system that scans clinical laboratory drug concentration data to identify patients for follow-up. Rules were developed from a review of data for digoxin, phenytoin, and theophylline. These were implemented in software that provides for simple rule creation and modification, on-screen graphic review of data, and printing of chart reports. This program is readily adapted for use with most laboratory information systems. In a retrospective study of 868 patients monitored for digoxin, phenytoin, and theophylline, 29% were flagged as having drug level profiles of possible concern. The majority (62%) of these patients had multiple specimens flagged, suggesting persistent problems. These data suggest that patients can be identified for follow-up by scanning serial drug concentrations, allowing consultative resources to be focused on patients most likely to benefit from them.
Improving Treatment Engagement for Returning Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom Veterans With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Depression, and Suicidal Ideation.

AbstractPosttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with increased risk of suicidal ideation among veterans of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. This report examined the effectiveness of a brief phone-based cognitive-behavioral intervention on treatment seeking among sui
Peziza Proteana Var. Sparassoides in America

Peziza proteana was described by Boudier,1 in I899, from material collected in the foret de Carnelle, near Paris. In I917, Seaver2 published a photograph and description of the species, stating that it had appeared several times in the vicinity of New York City, and citing Texas, also, as within its range of distribution. Two collections of P. proteana were made at Ithaca, N. Y., by E. J. Petry, in I907 and 1909, both of which were studied in the fresh condition by the writer. The plants were growing in late autumn, on burnt soil around the bases of trees, on the wooded, swampy flats at the head of Cayuga Lake. The collection made in I907 (Herb. Durand, no. 5251) consisted of three separate ascomata, about 5 cm. in diameter, bowl-shaped and somewhat inequilateral, and of one group made up of several cups coalesced into a large, irregular Gyromnitra-like mass. The specimens were all growing together, and microscopical examination disclosed no differences in either excipular structure or hymenial characters. The compound mass gave every appearance of being an extreme development of the condition seen so often among the fleshy Pezizas when growing closely crowded together. In P. badia and P. vesiczlosa, for example, the writer has seen large numbers of crowded ascomata not only cohering closely, but the tissues of adjoining cups so completely grown
Study on newborn pneumonia of Klebsiella pneumonia

Objective To probe into the drug sensitivity about newborn pneumonia of Klebsiella pneumoniae(Kp) and provide the evidence of reasonable treatment. Method After cultivating, separating and identifying the sputum samples, from the patients who were diagnosed as newborn pneumonia in newborn department of our hospital from 2000.1 to 2005.1, only the patients whose culture results were Kp were chosen to do the drug sensitivity tests and clinical analysis. Result Kp was 100% sensitive to carbopenems, e. g Imipenen, Meropenen, and 80%~90% to Amikacin and Ciprofloxacin, which were hardly used in newborn recent years. While it was resistant to commonly used Penicillin and Cephalosporin. The selection of sensitive antibiotics according to the results of drug sensitivity test can gain satisfactory treatment outcomes in clinic. Conclusion Partial Kp are ESBLs (Extended-Spectrum beta-Lactamases) strains and insensitive to commonly used antibiotics. So in order to control the development of diseases and cut down the case-fatality rates, the selection of sensitive antibiotics should be guided by the results of drug sensitivity tests.
Longitudinal Case Study of the Interaction Effect of Relation-Social Capital on the Development Performance of New Ventures

The relationship between network ties and entrepreneurial performance has been widely studied by scholars,but there are controversial conclusions in those researches.Through a dynamic tracking of case studies of six new ventures,this study has explored the mechanism of the effect of network ties on firm performance in ventures' growth,and introduces one contingency factor:trust,to explore its effect on the relationship between network ties and firm performance.The results show:1From entrepreneurial opportunity exploitation to new venture growth,the role of strong ties gradually decreases,and the role of weak ties gradually increases.2In the stage of entrepreneurial opportunity exploitation,affective trust has a mediating effect on the relationship between strong ties and entrepreneurial performance.3In the stage of new venture growth,cognitive trust has a positive moderating effect on the relationship between weak ties and entrepreneurial performance.
Study on process and properties of the atmospheric plasma spray nanozirconia coating

The optimum process parameters of nanozirconia thermal barrier coating were optimized by the orthogonal experiments which took bond strength as measurement index,and the bond strength,thermal-shock resistance and heat-insulating property of nanozirconia coating were investigated.The test results show that the bond strength of nanozirconia coating with optimizing process can reach 33 MPa;its thermal-shock resistance is good.The nanozirconia coating can suffer 22 times thermal shock during cooling water test at 1 050 ℃;its heat-insulating effect is apparent;there existes 300~600 ℃ difference between flame and coating surface and 100~200 ℃ difference between coating surface and backside of sample.
Measuring Well-Being: A Review of Instruments

Interest in the study of psychological health and well-being has increased significantly in recent decades. A variety of conceptualizations of psychological health have been proposed including hedo...
The theory gap in higher education

This essay makes the case that while theory plays a vital role in the context of disciplinary research and scholarship, it has had little meaningful impact on the discourses, policies, and practices of contemporary higher education. This lack of theoretical engagement is not value-neutral, but has had devastating consequences in terms of higher education’s inability to resist neoliberal rationalities and conceptualize new possibilities for practice.
The Brief Case: Probable Transfusion-Transmitted Babesiosis in a Transplant Recipient.

A 3-year-old immunocompromised male who had been hospitalized for 7 months in the cardiac intensive care unit developed fever and tachycardia in December. He was prenatally diagnosed with hypoplastic left heart syndrome and received right ventricle to pulmonary artery conduit surgery days after
Investigating the association between perioperative blood transfusions and outcomes in children undergoing cytoreductive surgery with hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy.

Background and Objectives Studies indicate the perioperative transfusion of red blood cells during oncologic surgery may be associated with worse outcomes. In this study, we evaluated the impact of red blood cell transfusions on the short- and long-term outcomes of children undergoing a major oncologic surgery. Materials and Methods A retrospective review of the medical records of children ≤18 years of age who had undergone cytoreductive surgery with hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy was performed. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify factors influencing survival, complications and length of stay. Results Seventy-five children were identified, 80% of whom had received a red blood cell transfusion. Children who received a red blood cell transfusion had a significantly longer length of stay (P = 0·0003). However, the association between red blood cell transfusions and recurrence-free survival (HR: 1·307, 95% CI: 0·547–3·124; P = 0·55), overall survival (HR: 1·487, 95% CI: 0·585–3·780; P = 0·40) or the incidence of major complications (27·8 vs. 0% in non-transfused children, P = 0·18) was not statistically significant. Conclusion This retrospective study of children undergoing major oncologic surgery did not demonstrate a significant association between red blood cell transfusions and worse outcomes.
Abstract 202: Hydrogen Peroxide Increases Osteopontin Expression Through Activation of Transcriptional and Translational Pathways

The occlusion of blood vessels in the setting of cardiovascular disease leads to ischemia, initiating processes that promote neovascularization to restore blood flow and preserve tissue function. O...
Accommodation in Youth With OCD and Anxiety

Accommodation refers to the ways in which family members act to alleviate a child's symptoms and distress. In the context of youth obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and anxiety, accommodation may contribute to the development and maintenance of the disorder. We review the theory and research literature on accommodation, including measures of accommodation. Findings support the idea that accommodation is not a preferred parenting strategy; the sequelae of accommodation are negative and are often associated with both parent and sibling distress. Accommodation should be assessed and targeted in treatment for youth OCD and anxiety. We conclude by identifying several areas for future research, including the development of interventions that specifically target accommodation, the evaluation of potential family factors implicated in accommodation, and the exploration of the construct of accommodation in other childhood disorders.
The Empire Strikes Back: The Struggle to Reshape ISDS

The Great Compact, which is the basis of ISDS, is at the heart of the contemporary international investment system. The major challenge to it now comes from Developed Countries, who seem to have lost sight of its inclusive benefits.
Machine learning for epigenetics and future medical applications

Understanding epigenetic processes holds immense promise for medical applications. Advances in Machine Learning (ML) are critical to realize this promise. Previous studies used epigenetic data sets associated with the germline transmission of epigenetic transgenerational inheritance of disease and novel ML approaches to predict genome-wide locations of critical epimutations. A combination of Active Learning (ACL) and Imbalanced Class Learning (ICL) was used to address past problems with ML to develop a more efficient feature selection process and address the imbalance problem in all genomic data sets. The power of this novel ML approach and our ability to predict epigenetic phenomena and associated disease is suggested. The current approach requires extensive computation of features over the genome. A promising new approach is to introduce Deep Learning (DL) for the generation and simultaneous computation of novel genomic features tuned to the classification task. This approach can be used with any genomic or biological data set applied to medicine. The application of molecular epigenetic data in advanced machine learning analysis to medicine is the focus of this review.
Test Anxiety and Standardized Achievement Test Performance in the Middle School Years.

Some researchers have suggested that the relationship of test anxiety and test performance differs for Black and White youth, but limitations in the researchers' analyses prevented adequate testing...
The Trial of Ascertaining Individual Preferences for Loved Ones' Role in End-of-Life Decisions (TAILORED) Study: A Randomized Controlled Trial to Improve Surrogate Decision Making.

Context Patients with terminal illnesses often require surrogate decision makers. Prior research has demonstrated high surrogate stress, and that despite standards promoting substituted judgment, most patients do not want their surrogates to make pure substituted judgments for them. It is not known how best to help loved ones fulfill the surrogate role.
GPU taint tracking

Dynamic tainting tracks the influence of certain inputs (taint sources) through execution and it is a powerful tool for information flow analysis and security. Taint tracking has primarily targeted CPU program executions. Motivated by recent recognition of information leaking in GPU memory and GPU-resident malware, this paper presents the first design and prototype implementation of a taint tracking system on GPUs. Our design combines a static binary instrumentation with dynamic tainting at runtime. We present new performance optimizations by exploiting unique GPU characteristics--a large portion of instructions on GPU runtime parameters and constant memory can be safely eliminated from taint tracking; large GPU register file allows fast maintenance of a hot portion of the taint map. Experiments show that these techniques improved the GPU taint tracking performance by 5 to 20 times for a range of image processing, data encryption, and deep learning applications. We further demonstrate that GPU taint tracking can enable zeroing sensitive data to minimize information leaking as well as identifying and countering GPU-resident malware.
Neural congruence between intertemporal and interpersonal self-control: Evidence from delay and social discounting

Behavioral studies using delay and social discounting as indices of self-control and altruism, respectively, have revealed functional similarities between farsighted and social decisions. However, neural evidence for this functional link is lacking. Twenty-five young adults completed a delay and social discounting task during fMRI scanning. A spatiotemporal partial least squares analysis revealed that both forms of discounting were well characterized by a pattern of brain activity in areas comprising frontoparietal control, default, and mesolimbic reward networks. Both forms of discounting appear to draw on common neurocognitive mechanisms, regardless of whether choices involve intertemporal or interpersonal outcomes. We also observed neural profiles differentiating between high and low discounters. High discounters were well characterized by increased medial temporal lobe and limbic activity. In contrast, low discount rates were associated with activity in the medial prefrontal cortex and right temporoparietal junction. This pattern may reflect biological mechanisms underlying behavioral heterogeneity in discount rates.
Cyclin D1-negative mantle cell lymphoma with aberrant CD3 expression.

![Figure][1] A 57-year-old man presented with generalized lymphadenopathy. Lymph node biopsy showed a vaguely nodular infiltrate of pleomorphic intermediate-sized lymphocytes (panels A and B, original magnification ×20 and ×500, respectively; hematoxylin and eosin [H&E]–stained lymph node
P16 Implications of nice guidance in england and wales on eligibility for treatment with mepolizumab and omalizumab – an ideal study analysis

Rationale Severe asthma (SA) patients are a heterogeneous population with diverse clinical characteristics and biomarkers, including eosinophils and IgE. It is of clinical relevance to understand the relationship between different severe asthma phenotypes and thus eligibility for biologic therapies. The IDEAL study (Identification and Description of Severe Asthma Patients in a Cross-Sectional Study) aimed to define the proportion of patients in England and Wales who are eligible for anti IL-5 (mepolizumab) or anti-IgE (omalizumab) targeted therapy, and those who may be eligible for both, given current NICE guidance. Methods IDEAL, an observational study, included SA subjects aged ≥12 years defined according to ATS/ERS guidelines by treatment with high-dose ICS plus additional controller(s) for ≥12 months. A post hoc analysis of IDEAL was conducted to identify eligibility to mepolizumab and omalizumab in accordance with current NICE guidance for each. Mepolizumab eligibility was defined as per NICE guidance: ‘severe refractory eosinophilic asthma patients who have eosinophils≥300 cells/microlitre (0.30 × 109/L) or more in the previous 12 months and have had ≥4 asthma exacerbations needing systemic corticosteroids in the previous 12 months, or have had continuous oral corticosteroids of at least the equivalent of prednisolone 5 mg per day for the previous 6 months’. Omalizumab eligibility defined as ‘evidence of severe persistent allergic asthma and need for continuous or frequent treatment with oral corticosteroids (defined as ≥4 courses in the previous year), and meeting bodyweight and IgE criteria for omalizumab treatment’. Results Of 748 SA subjects enrolled in the study, 670 met the analysis criteria and were included in this post-hoc analysis (mean age=50.9 years; 62% female). 90 subjects (13%) were eligible for mepolizumab and 184 (27%) were eligible for omalizumab. Of the 90 mepolizumab eligible patients, 31 (5%) were receiving omalizumab therapy, while of the remaining 59 (9%) patients not on a biologic 11 (2%) were also eligible for omalizumab. Conclusions This is the first cross-sectional study providing estimation of the proportion of SA patients eligible for biologic therapy in accordance with NICE guidance, indicating 13% mepolizumab-eligibility and 27% omalizumab-eligibility with limited overlap. (Funded by GSK; 2 01 722.)
Seasonality of cerebrospinal fluid monoamine metabolite concentrations and their associations with meteorological variables in humans.

Abstract Seasonal variations in neurotransmitter parameters have been previously reported in humans. However, these studies have involved small sample sizes and have not examined possible relationships with meteorological variables. We compared cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) concentrations of the major monoamine neurotransmitter metabolites (5-HIAA, HVA, and MHPG) in 188 healthy controls (80 men, 108 women) in relationship to age, sex, BMI, and available meteorological variables. All subjects had a lumbar puncture (LP) performed at 9 a.m. after overnight stay. Meteorological data for the day prior to LP were obtained from the National Climatic Association and included the photoperiod, percent sunshine, temperature (max, min, mean), barometric pressure, relative humidity, amount of precipitation and sky cover. Results revealed differences across seasons and cross-seasons for CSF 5-HIAA (p ≤ .05), with post-hoc differences emerging between spring versus summer and fall and between x-spring and x-summer (p ≤ .05). Differences were also found across seasons for CSF HVA (p ≤ .05) with post-hoc differences between spring versus fall. CSF 5-HIAA was significantly inversely correlated with maximum (r = −.28, p ≤ .02), minimum (r = −.24, p ≤ .04), and mean temperature (r = −.28, p ≤ .02) in men. In women, 5-HIAA (r = −.22, p ≤ .02) and HVA (r = −.28, p ≤ .003) were significantly correlated with relative humidity. These data confirm previous findings of variations in serotonin and dopamine metabolites across the year and highlight possible underlying mechanisms involving meteorological changes, which may result in alterations in neurophysiology and behavior.
Doctors are not pilots and patients are not airplanes: Quality improvement in medicine

The Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Science issued a report in 1999 entitled “To Err Is Human.” It described errors in hospitals which led to between 44,000 and 99,000 deaths per y...
Long-term effects of tree density and tree shape on apple orchard performance, a 20 year study – part 2, economic analysis

Abstract While the adoption of high-density apple orchards during the last decades has resulted in a significant improvement in yield and fruit quality, there is great disparity of opinion on the optimum density or the optimum tree shape. A 2-ha replicated field trial was planted in 1997 at the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva, New York and continued through 2016, with 4 apple cultivars (‘Empire’, ‘Fuji’, ‘Gala’, and ‘McIntosh’), where we compared 8 tree planting densities (598, 840, 1026, 1283, 1655, 2243, 3262, and 5382 trees/ha), and two tree shapes (conic and V). At the lowest 2 densities, trees were planted on M.7 rootstock (598 trees/ha) and M.26 rootstock (840 trees/ha). At all of the higher tree densities, trees were planted on M.9. After 20 years, there was a strong negative correlation of tree planting density and trunk cross sectional area for all the cultivars and training systems, with the exception of ‘McIntosh’ in a V tree shape where no clear differences were observed. A different pattern for each cultivar was observed with respect to yield and planting density. High-density plantings were more appropriate for ‘Fuji’ and ‘Gala’, where conic tree shapes were better than V shapes. On the other hand, with ‘Empire’ and ‘McIntosh’ high planting density was not as beneficial. The highest yields from ‘McIntosh’ were realized at less than 3000 trees/ha with V tree shapes, or ∼3500 trees/ha with conic tree shapes. Planting density significantly affected firmness, soluble solids, fruit color, and fruit size. Light interception for each density and shape was measured only with ‘Empire’. Planting density had a strong positive effect on light interception. There were no significant differences in interception between tree shapes through the 4th leaf, however, after that more light was intercepted by the V shaped trees. Cumulative yield was a linear function of light energy intercepted by the canopy. While V tree shapes had more light interception, conic shapes seemed to have a better efficiency converting intercepted energy into yield. Planting density improved light interception, but decreased tree partitioning because of the need for more pruning leading to unbalanced trees. Tall Spindle at high planting density seemed to be the best option for cultivars with similar bearing habits such as ‘Fuji’ and ‘Gala’.
Intimacy and Racial Equality: The Limits of Antidiscrimination

This Review Essay considers Randall Kennedy's engaging and provocative book, Interracial Intimacies: Sex, Marriage, Identity, and Adoption. Kennedy mines a wide variety of historical and contemporary sources to assemble a collection of captivating and illuminating accounts of interracial intimacy from slavery to the present. Throughout, Kennedy advocates individual autonomy in racial matters, unconstrained by historical patterns, the demands of the group, or the coercion of the state. I focus in particular on Kennedy's analysis of the issue of race and adoption, the only area in which state policy about interracial intimacy remains unsettled. Kennedy identifies two distinct forms of racial discrimination that pervade the adoption process. Social workers match children to parents on the basis of race (a practice known as race matching), and adoptive parents select children on the basis of race. Kennedy would prohibit the use of race by social workers, but not by adoptive parents. He distinguishes these two forms of discrimination on both substantive and pragmatic grounds. He views the use of race by social workers as illegitimate state discrimination, and by adoptive parents as a morally justifiable assertion of individual autonomy. Moreover, he argues that as a practical matter, the interests of children are best served by permitting discrimination by adoptive parents yet prohibiting discrimination by social workers. While I do not find particularly compelling Kennedy's substantive justification for permitting adoptive parents to discriminate racially, I share the substantive bases of his opposition to racial discrimination by social workers. Kennedy correctly terms race matching a form of "superstition." However, Kennedy's single-minded emphasis on ending race matching by social workers unjustifiably sleights the pragmatic considerations central to his rejection of prohibition of parental preferences. The same sorts of pragmatic concerns that weigh against prohibition of discrimination by adoptive parents also counsel caution in efforts to eliminate discrimination by social workers. In both cases, vigorous enforcement of the antidiscrimination principle might not meaningfully benefit children. Given the uncertain practical benefits of attempting to rid the adoption process of either type of discrimination, efforts to aid children should consider a variety of alternative means of furthering their interests.
Management strategies for recurrent non-small cell lung cancer.

Because the benefit of first-line chemotherapy for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) may be marginal, the use of chemotherapy in the second-line setting for the patient who has failed primary platinum-containing chemotherapy (PCC) is similarly debatable. The most experience with second-line chemotherapy for NSCLC is with docetaxel. Two identical studies enrolled 88 good performance status (PS) patients with NSCLC resistant or refractory to prior PCC. The partial response rate was 17%, median survival was 39 weeks, and the 1-year survival rate was 40% (compared with historical controls who had median and 1-year survivals of 16 weeks and 16% [P = .003]). Second-line activity of paclitaxel is less clearly defined: three trials are negative, two are equivocal, and one is positive. Comparison of these studies is difficult, however, because of varying drug doses/schedules, small sample sizes, and/or incomplete data. Median and 1-year survivals (available in two studies) were 17 weeks and 16%. Other agents active against NSCLC have been disappointing in the secondline setting, including vinorelbine, irinotecan, vindesine, mitomycin, and etoposide. In conclusion, docetaxel (and perhaps paclitaxel) may offer some benefit to NSCLC patients whose disease has failed initial PCC. However, the routine use of second-line chemotherapy with a taxane should probably be limited to patients with PS of 0 or 1 only.
Introduction: The Role of the Electrostatic Potential in Chemistry

The electrostatic potential at a point \(\vec r\) in the vicinity of an atomic or molecular system having an electronic density function ρ(\(\vec r\) ) is given, in atomic units,* by $${V^{ES}}\left( {\overrightarrow r } \right) = \sum\limits_A {\frac{{{Z_A}}}{{\left| {{{\overrightarrow R }_A} - \overrightarrow r } \right|}}} - \int {\frac{{\rho \left( {\overrightarrow {r'} } \right)\overrightarrow {dr'} }}{{\left| {\overrightarrow {r'} - \overrightarrow r } \right|}}}$$ (1) where ZA is the charge on nucleus A, located at \({\vec R_A}\) A. The two terms on the right side of equation (1) correspond, respectively, to the nuclear and electronic contributions to the potential. As can be seen, they have opposite signs and accordingly opposite effects; VES (\(\vec r\)) represents the net result at any point \(\vec r\). The electrostatic potential is a real physical property, which is rigorously defined by equation (1). It is exactly equal in magnitude to the electrostatic (coulombic) interaction energy between the static (i.e., unperturbed) charge distribution of the system and a positive unit point charge located at \(\vec r\).
Analysis of humoral and cellular events and the role of lipid haptens during CNS demyelination.

In recent years, considerable interest has focused on the possibility that in experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE), antigens other than myelin basic protein (MBP) may be required for the initiation of demyelination and for the development of exacerbating-remitting disease. Previous results from these laboratories have implicated a role for antibodies against galactocerebroside (GC) in initiating demyelination of central nervous system (CNS) tissue in vitro (8) and in vivo (9). We have now used the rabbit eye model to dissect further the role of antibodies in causing CNS demyelination. The results show: that in animals directly sensitized against GC, no spontaneous CNS lesion develops but primary demyelination is observed if a mononuclear inflammatory reaction is superimposed; that in rabbits sensitized against MBP, antiserum against GC causes enhanced demyelination; and that in normal animals, anti-GC serum initiates primary demyelination only when an inflammatory reaction is induced by supernatants of activated lymphocytes. Injection of anti-GC serum alone has no pathologic effect. These results suggest that antibodies against lipid haptens are capable of causing primary demyelination in the CNS in vivo but that effector cells provided by an inflammatory response are required. Thus, the development of the fully demyelinating lesion probably depends on both cellular and humoral mechanisms.
Cell Model for Nonlinear Fracture Analysis – II. Fracture-Process Calibration and Verification

A cell endowed with the micro-separation characteristics of the material is critical to formulating a predictive tool for nonlinear fracture mechanics analysis. This companion article addresses the second step in a two-step calibration scheme, namely, the calibration of the fracture-process parameters D and f0. The discrete, three-dimensional nature of a cell element enables it to capture important features of (i) interaction between the cell elements forming the fracture process zone and the crack including a single cavity-crack tip interaction and (ii) interaction between the fracture process and the plastic dissipation in the background material. The full three-dimensional computational model is applied to two crack geometries known to give rise to significantly different crack tip constraints and crack growth resistance behavior. Details of the load, displacement and crack growth histories in these specimens including the measured three-dimensional crack profiles are accurately predicted by the computational model. The comparison of model predictions and test data of surface cracked plates loaded by different combinations of tension and bending is reported in the third paper (Gao et al., 1997) in this series.
Higher Dimensional Approach for Classification of Lung Cancer Microarray Data

A lung cancer microarray dataset is re-examined using simple techniques, but retaining more of the high-dimensional structure. In particular, instead of discarding genes that look uninformative when considered in isolation, pairs, triples and quartets of genes are selected using kNN classifiers. Genes of potential biological importance are also uncovered.