cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Volvulus During Coitus

case Report A 46-year-old woman came to the emergency department complaining of severe, sharp, upper abdominal pain that had begun less than 1 hour earlier. The most notable aspect of her history was that the abrupt onset of this excruciating pain occurred within 5 minutes after coitus. The pain was the most severe she had ever experienced. She described it as steady, burning, and located vaguely in the upper abdomen without radiation. She had no history of abdominal surgery. Her medical history was unremarkable. Her obstetric history was gravida 2, para 2, aborta O. Her last menses was 5 months prior to admission. She denied past gynecologic problems. The patient was in extreme distress when first seen. On examination, she responded with moderate guarding to abdominal palpation, and she had mildly decreased bowel tones, but there was no mass, tenderness, or hernia. Results of a pelvic examination were normal except that lateral motion of the cervix elicited mild discomfort, which radiated to the area of her pain in the epigastrium but did not exactly reproduce her symptoms. Admission laboratory data were as follows: leukocytes 17,300/mm3 with normal differential counts hematocrit 40.3 percent, and normal serum a~ylase levels, erythrocyte sedimentation rate and electrolytes. Findings on urinalysis were no~. A pregnancy test was negative. Res~ts of abdominal radiographs showed no free aIr or
Relationship between Medication Adherence and Distance to Dispensing Pharmacies and Prescribers Among an Urban Medicaid Population with Diabetes Mellitus

Study objective To determine whether a relationship exists between medication adherence to angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) and angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) and distance to dispensing pharmacies and prescribers among an urban public aid population with diabetes mellitus. Design Retrospective cohort study using claims data. Data source Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services database. Patients A total of 6532 patients aged 18-64 years with diabetes who had at least one prescription fill for an ACEI or ARB and had continuous Medicaid coverage in the greater Chicago area in 2009. Measurements and main results We assessed medication adherence, defined as proportion of days covered (PDC) of 0.8 or higher, to ACEIs and ARBs and its association with distances between patients and their pharmacies and prescribers. Of the 6532 patients included in the analyses, 2930 (45%) had PDC levels of 0.8 or higher. No significant differences were observed between patients who were adherent versus those who were nonadherent in distance to pharmacy (median 1.39 vs 1.35 miles, p=0.15) or distance to prescriber (median 4.39 vs 4.48 miles, p=0.80). In a multivariate regression model including age, sex, race/ethnicity, number of pharmacies, number of prescribers, distance to pharmacy, and distance to prescriber, a greater number of prescribers was associated with higher adherence (two prescribers vs one prescriber: odds ratio [OR] 1.396, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.233-1.580; three or more prescribers vs one prescriber: OR 2.208, 95% CI 1.787-2.727). Conclusion ACEI or ARB adherence was not associated with distances to pharmacies and prescribers.
A ubiquitous situation-aware data visualization dashboard to reduce ICU clinician cognitive load

Hospital intensive care unit (ICU) bedside devices and electronic medical record (EMR) technology do not yet adequately address the visualization of patient data in the context of cognitive overload and its impact on patient safety. We respond to these challenges through the design of a novel visualization dashboard for use in the ICU: MIVA 2.0 (Medical Information Visualization Assistant, v.2). MIVA 2.0 is designed to support rapid analysis and interpretation of real-time clinical data-trends and communication for clinical work and information flow. This paper describes the system design, functionality, and prior studies of MIVA 2.0.
Dry and Wet Processed Interface Layer in Ge/High-K Devices Studied by Deep Level Transient Spectroscopy

Dry and wet processed interface layer quality of Ge/high-k MOS structures were studied by deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS). The interface treatments were: (i) simple chemical oxidation (Chemox); (ii) chemical oxide removal (COR) followed by 1 nm oxide by slot-plane-antenna (SPA) plasma (COR & and (iii) COR followed by vapor O-3 treatment (COR&O-3). By conducting deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS) on these three samples, it is found that the dry processed interface (COR&SPAOx and COR&O-3) shows a majority slow trap which was not observed in wet processed interface treatment (Chemox). This results clearly suggest that formation of a different type of interfacial GeOx is responsible for the the additional defect type in dry processed devices.
Analysis of the flavor substance in different ghee by headspace GC- MS

The flavor substances in edible ghee and industrial ghee were analyzed by headspace GC-MC. Ten flavor substances were separated and identified in the edible ghee by spectral library search combined with gas chromatographic retention index. The identified constituents accounted for 97. 22% of the total ion peak area and the main component was phthalic acid mono-( 2- ethylhexyl) ester,the relative mass fraction was 70. 76%. Eight compounds were identified in the industrial ghee from the 112 detected flavor substances,which covering 14. 57% of the total ion peak area and the main component was phthalic acid mono-( 2- ethylhexyl) ester,the relative mass fraction was 6. 67%.
Analysis of model development strategies: predicting ventral hernia recurrence

Abstract Background There have been many attempts to identify variables associated with ventral hernia recurrence; however, it is unclear which statistical modeling approach results in models with greatest internal and external validity. We aim to assess the predictive accuracy of models developed using five common variable selection strategies to determine variables associated with hernia recurrence. Methods Two multicenter ventral hernia databases were used. Database 1 was randomly split into “development” and “internal validation” cohorts. Database 2 was designated “external validation”. The dependent variable for model development was hernia recurrence. Five variable selection strategies were used: (1) “clinical”—variables considered clinically relevant, (2) “selective stepwise”—all variables with a P value P P 0.70 was considered “reasonable”. Results The recurrence rate was 32.9% ( n = 173/526; median/range follow-up, 20/1-58 mo) for the development cohort, 36.0% ( n = 95/264, median/range follow-up 20/1-61 mo) for the internal validation cohort, and 12.7% ( n = 155/1224, median/range follow-up 9/1-50 mo) for the external validation cohort. Internal validation demonstrated reasonable predictive accuracy (C-statistics = 0.772, 0.760, 0.767, 0.757, 0.763), while on external validation, predictive accuracy dipped precipitously (C-statistic = 0.561, 0.557, 0.562, 0.553, 0.560). Conclusions Predictive accuracy was equally adequate on internal validation among models; however, on external validation, all five models failed to demonstrate utility. Future studies should report multiple variable selection techniques and demonstrate predictive accuracy on external data sets for model validation.
European Pillars in the 1980s

As discussed in the preceding chapters, by the 1980s the ec’s mechanisms for political cooperation had helped to achieve some notable successes in articulating independent European positions on specific issues, often either at variance with or in direct conflict with those of the United States. Beginning with the 1973/74 Atlantic crisis, Europeans started utilising the newly established procedures for political cooperation as a framework for concerting and articulating what they regarded as distinctively European interests on the issues at hand. However, the effectiveness of European Political Cooperation was often impaired by internal disagreements among EC governments, the inefficient machinery of political cooperation, and by strategic dependence on the United States which discouraged the pursuit of initiatives to the point of risking a damaging break with Washington.
Dynamic Modeling of Friction Stir Welding for Model Predictive Control

Abstract Controlling temperature in Friction Stir Welding (FSW) is important for consistent post-weld properties. PID temperature control of FSW has been previously implemented once the process is at a quasi-steady state, but has not worked well during either starting transients or during process changes that significantly alter the system dynamics. This work develops models and theories for the application of Model Predictive Control (MPC) to FSW and assesses temperature predication capabilities in simulation. Two different model forms are developed for MPC and are evaluated in simulation. The first model is a first-order plus dead time (FOPDT) model. The second is the Hybrid Heat Source model that combines the heat source method and a 1D discretized thermal model of the FSW tool. Model parameters are determined by fitting model predictions to weld data. This is done both manually and via optimization-based curve fitting. The models’ fits are compared quantitatively by calculating the mean-subtracted SSE (MSSSE) and average absolute derivative error. The manually tuned parameter sets result in a better fit by both metrics for both models. The FOPDT model matches the post-startup-transient data better than the Hybrid Heat Source, and is expected to have superior control in this region of the weld. The Hybrid Heat Source model is expected to have superior temperature control during the startup transient.
Serial Murder, Psychopathy, and Objectification

Why are psychopathic serial murderers like Ted Bundy and Edmund Kemper so often cited as examples of evil people? Does it have something to do with serial murder? Does it have something to do with psychopathy? For that matter, what is psychopathy? And how can psychopaths be evil if they supposedly “lack a conscience”? The short-term aim of this chapter is just to address all of these questions. The long-term aim is to gather psychological data to be used later in the book, for purposes of evaluating various philosophical theories of evil, and then developing and defending my own.
Experiments in purchasing and supply management research

Abstract In this article, I provide a brief introduction to the use of experiments in purchasing and supply management research. Different types of experiments common within the field are introduced, and within these types I compare the strengths and weaknesses regarding reliability and validity concerns and the limitations surrounding participant pools. Topics for which experimentation is appropriate and useful are identified, and examples of recent work in the field provided. Several trends and future research opportunities are presented to inspire more work in this arena.
Mercury Exposure in Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) Admitted for Rehabilitation in Iowa, USA

Abstract To gain insight into mercury exposure in Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) in Iowa, US we collected blood from 22 rehabilitation eagles in 2012–13. The geometric mean blood mercury level was 0.144 μg/g (95% confidence interval: 0.066–0.314) and was at the lower end of the range of levels reported elsewhere.
Aggression Predicts Changes in Peer Victimization that Vary by Form and Function.

Peer victimization is predictive of serious problems in adjustment, especially among children who are both victimized and aggressive. This study investigated how different types of aggression contribute to later victimization. Specifically, we examined prospective relationships between the types of aggression that children perpetrated and the types that they experienced at the hands of others. Trained observers coded schoolyard behavior of 553 children in grades 3–6 during the initial year of a bullying intervention program. Both observed aggression and victimization were specified by form (direct, indirect) and function (proactive, reactive). Total hourly rates of victimization were highest in the upper grades. Direct-reactive aggression uniquely predicted increases in victimization, while direct-proactive aggression predicted decreases, particularly in direct-proactive victimization. Indirect-proactive aggression (e.g., derogatory gossip) predicted increases in indirect-proactive victimization only in the control group. Indirect-reactive aggression and victimization occurred too rarely to detect change. Aggression-victimization relationships did not differ for boys and girls. Discussion considers why children might risk direct reactive aggression in the face of increased victimization. Different sequelae for different forms and functions of aggression highlight the need to resolve theoretical ambiguities in defining proactive and reactive aggression.
Benign Cox Deficiency Myopathy

Clinical and pathological features of benign infantile mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase (COX) deficiency were studied in 8 patients with the disease phenotype seen at the National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan.
The risk of malignancy among biologic-naïve pediatric psoriasis patients: A retrospective cohort study in a US claims database

Background Little published literature exists regarding malignancy risk in pediatric psoriasis patients. Objective To compare malignancy risk in biologic-naive pediatric psoriasis patients with a matched pediatric population without psoriasis. Methods This retrospective cohort study used IMS LifeLink Health Plan Claims data covering 1998-2008. Cancer incidence was compared with the US Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) data using standardized incidence ratios (SIR), and between cohorts using Cox models. Results Among 9045 pediatric psoriasis patients and 77,206 comparators, 18 probable or highly probable cancers were identified. Pediatric psoriasis patients had a nonsignificantly lower incidence than comparators (hazard ratio [HR] 0.43, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.05-3.54). The HR increased to 1.67 (95% CI 0.54-5.18) when cancer diagnosed during the first 90 days of follow-up was included. The pediatric psoriasis cohort had a significantly increased lymphoma rate compared with SEER (SIR 5.42, 95% CI 1.62-12.94), but no significant increase relative to the comparator cohort. Limitations Misclassification of disease and outcome might have occurred with patients in the claims database. Conclusion Patients with pediatric psoriasis showed no significant increase in overall cancer risk compared with those without psoriasis. A potential increased risk for lymphoma was observed when compared with the general population.
ABA and Shading Induce ‘Bartlett’ Pear Abscission and Inhibit Photosynthesis but Are Not Additive

Exogenous application of abscisic acid (ABA) can cause fruit abscission. ABA indirectly reduces carbon assimilation via stomatal closure, but may also induce abscission directly through hormone action. Variable thinning of pear suggests an effect of light environment on ABA efficacy. We tested the hypothesis that combinations of ABA and shade will be additive in inducing fruit abscission if they affect different physiological processes. A two-way factorial design was used to evaluate ABA (0, 125 ppm) and shading (0, 44, 77%) on gas exchange and fruit set of 10-year-old ‘Bartlett’ pear trees on OH × F 97 rootstock. Within 6 h from the application of ABA (applied at petal fall), entire canopies of treated and non-treated trees were shaded for 15 days. Single-leaf stomatal conductance (g s) was controlled solely by ABA, whereas photosynthesis (Pn) was regulated by ABA and shade. Under increasing shade, however, Pn inhibition was not increased by ABA. Internal CO2 of leaves was consistently highest for 77% shade, indicating non-stomatal effects. Fruit set was significantly reduced by both ABA and shade, but a significant interaction suggested that ABA played a negligible role in abscission as shading increased. The data suggest that ABA and shading inhibited Pn by different mechanisms; shading limited light reactions and ABA reduced CO2 supply. When 125 ppm ABA was combined with high levels of shading, shading placed greater limits on Pn. Had ABA elicited a direct hormonal response to induce fruit abscission, an additive effect of ABA and shade would have been observed. Based on these data, the major role of ABA on pear thinning may be carbohydrate deficit.
Quantifying the influence of 5'-RNA modifications on RNA polymerase I activity.

Abstract For ensemble and single-molecule analyses of transcription, the use of synthetic transcription elongation complexes has been a versatile and powerful tool. However, structural analyses demonstrate that short RNA substrates, often employed in these assays, would occupy space within the RNA polymerase. Most commercial RNA oligonucleotides do not carry a 5′-triphosphate as would be present on a natural, de novo synthesized RNA. To examine the effects of 5′-moities on transcription kinetics, we measured nucleotide addition and 3′-dinucleotide cleavage by eukaryotic RNA polymerase I using 5′-hydroxyl and 5′-triphosphate RNA substrates. We found that 5′ modifications had no discernable effect on the kinetics of nucleotide addition; however, we observed clear, but modest, effects on the rate of backtracking and/or dinucleotide cleavage. These data suggest that the 5′-end may influence RNA polymerase translocation, consistent with previous prokaryotic studies, and these findings may have implications on kinetic barriers that confront RNA polymerases during the transition from initiation to elongation.
Harvey flooding rescue in social media

Social media provided a significant communication platform for rescuing people when Harvey hit Houston area. In this devastating flooding crisis, the overloaded official emergency institutes were not able to respond quickly due to the burst of call for help in a very short period of time. In this circumstance, many volunteers and people who needed help often post their information on social media such as Twitter and Facebook. How to organize volunteers smartly and efficiently to help people is an extremely challenging and significant problem considering the constraints of volunteer's time slots, urgent priorities, etc. In this paper, we propose three rescue scheduling algorithms to explain how to provide victims timely help by the volunteers on social media.
Drogue-Loss Detection for Surface Drifters during the Lagrangian Submesoscale Experiment (LASER)

AbstractThe Lagrangian Submesoscale Experiment (LASER) was designed to study surface flows during winter conditions in the northern Gulf of Mexico. More than 1000 mostly biodegradable drifters were...
Extensive alteration of genomic DNA and rise in nuclear Ca2+ in vivo early after hepatotoxic acetaminophen overdose in mice.

Much attention has fallen upon Ca2+ and the critical role it appears to play in the process of lethal cell injury (Schanne et al., 1979; Moore, 1980; Jewell et al., 1982). Ca2+ appears to serve as the principal intracellular messenger that conveys initial damage arising from alkylation or peroxidation to discrete secondary sites that are essential to cell viability. Nonetheless, several aspects of the Ca2+ hypothesis of cell death remain elusive, including the location of initially damaged Ca2+ regulatory sites important to cell death, and the actual identity of the vital function or functions that deteriorate under excessive Ca2+ activity. Cell death is believed to occur via two distinct processes; apoptosis, or the programmed cell death seen during physiological events such as organ development and cell renewal, and necrosis, or the unprogrammed cell death that follows substantive pathologic insult (Wyllie, 1980; Duvall and Wyllie, 1986). A number of the steps leading to apoptosis in immature thymocytes are well defined. These include Ca2+ influx into the cell, endonuclease activation in the nucleus, and DNA degradation into periodic fragments not seen in necrosis (Cohen and Duke, 1984; McConkey et al., 1988a). The present study assesses whether acetaminophen-induced liver necrosis may share certain key steps in common with the process of apoptosis. Toxic doses of acetaminophen are known to cause Ca2+ to accumulate in liver and cytosolic Ca2+ activity to rise within 2 hr (Corcoran et al., 1987, 1988). We now examine the nucleus for lethal actions of unchecked Ca2+ activity in acetaminophen-induced necrosis, and we specifically monitor genomic DNA as a critical secondary target in this form of cell death.
Prophylactic Ureteral Stenting in Laparoscopic Colectomy: Revisiting Traditional Practice.

Abstract Background Prophylactic placement of ureteral stents is performed during open colectomy to aid in ureteral identification and to enhance detection of injury. The effects of this practice in laparoscopic colectomy are unknown. This study compares outcomes of patients undergoing laparoscopic colectomy with and without prophylactic ureteral stenting. Methods A retrospective cohort study at a tertiary academic medical center was performed. The primary outcome measure was the incidence of ureteral injury. Secondary outcomes evaluated included mortality, length of stay, procedural duration, and new-onset urinary complication (hematuria, dysuria, and urinary tract infection). Results In 702 consecutive patients undergoing elective laparoscopic colectomy from 2013 to 2016, prophylactic stents were placed in 261 (37%) patients. Two ureteral injuries occurred (0.3%), both in patients who underwent ureteral stent placement (P = 0.07) and were found and repaired intraoperatively. There was no in-hospital mortality. When accounting for age-adjusted Charlson comorbidity score, procedural indication, gender, BMI, and extent of resection, no difference in hospital length of stay (P = 0.79) was noted comparing patients with and without stenting. However, stent placement prolonged operating time (P = 0.03) and increased the risk of new-onset urinary complications (P = 0.04). Conclusions In this study, ureteral injuries only occurred in those with stent placement. Prophylactic ureteral stents in laparoscopic colectomy are associated with increased operative time and urologic morbidity. Owing to the low prevalence of ureteral injury in the elective setting and the increased risk of urinary complications, use of prophylactic ureteral stenting should be highly selective.
Sustainable development goals and nationally determined contributions: the poor fit between agent-dependent and agent-independent policy instruments

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which serve as the primary feature of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), which serve as a vital instr...
The role of astrocytes on the effects of exercise on episodic memory function.

This review discusses the potential role that glial cells may play in influencing the relationship between exercise and episodic memory function. A narrative review methodology is employed. Herein,...
Proteasomal degradation within endocytic organelles mediates antigen cross-presentation

During MHC-I-restricted antigen processing, peptides generated by cytosolic proteasomes are translocated by the transporter associated with antigen processing (TAP) into the endoplasmic reticulum, where they bind to newly synthesized MHC-I molecules. Dendritic cells and other cell types can also generate MHC-I complexes with peptides derived from internalized proteins, a process called cross-presentation. Here, we show that active proteasomes within cross-presenting cell phagosomes can generate these peptides. Active proteasomes are detectable within endocytic compartments in mouse bone marrow-derived dendritic cells. In TAP-deficient mouse dendritic cells, cross-presentation is enhanced by the introduction of human β2 -microglobulin, which increases surface expression of MHC-I and suggests a role for recycling MHC-I molecules. In addition, surface MHC-I can be reduced by proteasome inhibition and stabilized by MHC-I-restricted peptides. This is consistent with constitutive proteasome-dependent but TAP-independent peptide loading in the endocytic pathway. Rab-GTPase mutants that restrain phagosome maturation increase proteasome recruitment and enhance TAP-independent cross-presentation. Thus, phagosomal/endosomal binding of peptides locally generated by proteasomes allows cross-presentation to generate MHC-I-peptide complexes identical to those produced by conventional antigen processing.
Supervisor-subordinate guanxi: A meta-analytic review and future research agenda

Abstract The present research focuses on supervisor-subordinate guanxi (SSG) – a non-work or personal tie that reflects the relationship between a subordinate and their supervisor. Although SSG has received considerable attention, results are mixed. Further, how the Eastern conceptualization of SSG differs from the Western conceptualization of leader-member exchange (LMX) remains nebulous. We meta-analyzed 71 samples that contain 238 effect sizes. We found that: (1) SSG has a strong overlap with LMX (ρ = 0.56); (2) SSG has small magnitude relations with its correlates (age, gender, education, and tenure); (3) SSG demonstrates smaller relative weights than LMX in predicting outcome variables (task performance, organizational citizenship behavior, job satisfaction, organizational commitment, turnover intention, subordinates' perceived distributive justice, subordinates' perceived procedural justice, and trust in supervisor); and (4) SSG contributes statistically significant, yet very small (ranging from 0.00 to 0.04), incremental validity above and beyond LMX in predicting all of the aforementioned outcome variables except for subordinates' perceived distributive justice. We conclude with a discussion of future directions for research on SSG.
Combination of low-dose glucocorticosteroids and mineralocorticoids as adjunct therapy for adult patients with septic shock: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials and observational studies.

Background: The role of the combination of glucocorticosteroids and mineralocorticosteroids in treating septic shock is not well-defined. The aim of this study was to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of the randomized controlled trials and observational studies assessing the effect of low-dose hydrocortisone and fludrocortisone on patients with septic shock. Materials and Methods: MEDLINE, Scopus, and Cochrane databases were reviewed. A random effect model meta-analysis was used and I-square was used to assess the heterogeneity. Short-term mortality was chosen as our primary end point. A subgroup analysis was performed including only the randomized controlled trials. Results: A total of 10,550 patients were included in this meta-analysis. Administration of the steroid combination was associated with improved short-term mortality (odds ratio, 0.78, confidence interval, 0.64–0.96), intensive care unit mortality, and shock reversal, without increase in steroid-related side effects, such as secondary infection or gastrointestinal hemorrhage. Conclusion: This systematic review and meta-analysis showed that use of the combination of glucocorticosteroids and mineralocorticosteroids has a beneficial impact on short-term mortality, intensive care unit mortality, and shock reversal, without increasing the incidence of gastrointestinal hemorrhage or superinfection in patients with septic shock, when used as an adjunct treatment to the established standard of care.
Is obesity a contraindication for kidney donation

To enlarge the donor pool, kidney donors with obesity have been considered. We hypothesized that it is safe for patients with obesity to serve as living kidney donors. In this single-center retrospective analysis, we examined the effect of obesity (body mass index (BMI) of 30–35 kg/m2) on glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and creatinine in patients undergoing laparoscopic donor nephrectomy. Other outcomes included intraoperative, 30-, and 90-day complications. We examined the trajectory between patients with obesity versus patients without obesity over time using mixed effects models for the outcomes of creatinine in mg/dL and GFR in mL/min/1.73 m2. Among donors with obesity versus donors without obesity, there were no significant differences in demographics or comorbidities. Baseline creatinine in donors with obesity was significantly greater than that of donors without obesity (p = 0.02). Operative time was significantly longer in donors with obesity versus without obesity (p = 0.03). There was no significant difference in 30-day morbidity between donors with obesity versus without obesity (6.52 vs. 3.57%, respectively; p = 0.38). The rate of graft complications was 8.7% in donors with obesity versus 7.1% in donors without obesity (p = 1.0). 90-day complications were infrequent, and not significant different between the groups. At 6, 12, and 24-month postoperative follow-up, the mean creatinine level in patients with obesity was not significantly different from that of patients without obesity (1.23 vs. 1.31, 1.23 vs. 1.26, and 1.17 vs. 1.19 at 6, 12, and 24 months, respectively). Mean GFR was also not significantly different at 6, 12, and, 24 months. Postoperative creatinine and GFR changes were not significantly different in patients with obesity versus without obesity after laparoscopic donor nephrectomy. These findings suggest that carefully screened living kidney donors with obesity do not experience decreased postoperative renal function.
Assessment of Workforce Systems Preferences/Skills Based on Employment Domain

Given the growing demand for a workforce with an understanding of system of systems, there is a need to assess an individual’s systems thinking skills. This research was undertaken to address this ...
Oxygen-Permeable Films for Continuous Additive, Subtractive, and Hybrid Additive/Subtractive Manufacturing.

In the past 5 years, oxygen-permeable films have been widely used for continuous additive manufacturing. These films create a polymerization inhibition zone that facilitates continuous printing in ...
Chemical Surface Modification and Chemical Crosslinking Combined with Mass Spectrometry for Protein Tertiary Structural Information

In an effort to gain tertiary structural information of proteins, chemical modification of surface exposed residues and chemical crosslinking have been used in combination with mass spectrometry. For this work, the acetylation of lysine residues was used as a chemical modification reagent. The lysine residues that are determined to be acetylated are, thus, assumed to be surface accessible. The chemical crosslinker DTSSP, 3, 3′-dithiobis-[sulfosuccinimidylpropionate], was used for the crosslinking experiments. DTSSP is a homobifunctional amine reactive crosslinker that is cleavable. Therefore, an aliquot of the crosslinked protein was then subjected to conditions that would result in cleavage of the linker. After performing all modification and crosslinking experiments, the protein was digested and analyzed by both MALDI and LC/ESI mass spectrometry. For proof-of-principle, bovine β-lactoglobulin was used for these analyses, and the results are compared to the X-ray crystal structure of the protein. As an extension of this work, these biochemical and mass spectrometric techniques have been applied to a protein of unknown structure.
Detection of bacterial infection via a fidget spinner

A custom fidget spinner that uses centrifugal forces to concentrate bacterial pathogens in urine samples enables the rapid on-device colorimetric detection of urinary tract infections and the testing of the pathogen’s susceptibility to antibiotics.
Understanding the Situation on the Ground

Mansurah Izzul Mohamed comments on the implementation of Syariah Penal Code Order 2013—Brunei’s new Islamic criminal code. Phase One, covering small crimes and misdemeanors, took effect in May 2014. Phases Two and Three, specifying more serious crimes and more severe punishments, recently took effect in April 2019. This post outlines the history and procedural components of the law with respect to national and international law. Her basic argument is that Codification + Procedure = Just Implementation.
Proteus empyema as a rare complication from an infected renal cyst, a case report

The most commonly isolated organisms in a parapneumonic effusion include S. pneumoniae, H. influenzae, and S. aureus. If unusual organisms are isolated from the pleural space, further investigation is warranted to locate the primary source. We present a patient with an infected chronic renal cyst found to have an empyema secondary to Proteus mirabilis to highlight the importance of further diagnostic workup when encountering unusual organisms in the pleural space. A 40-year-old African-American female, with a past medical history of asthma and sickle cell trait, presented with 5 weeks of upper respiratory tract symptoms and chest pain. A computed tomography angiogram (CTA) of the chest was negative for a pulmonary embolism but revealed a loculated left sided pleural effusion with associated left-lower lobe consolidation. She was started on empiric antibiotics, and a chest tube was inserted with drainage of frank pus. Fluid gram stain was positive for gram negative rods. Intrapleural fibrinolytics were administered for 72 h given the presence of loculations. With no improvement following fibrinolytics, she was taken to the operating room for large bore chest tube placement and left visceral pleura decortication. Pleural fluid cultures speciated to Proteus mirabilis, so further cross-sectional imaging of her abdomen/pelvis was pursued to evaluate for a primary source. A complex cystic lesion in the upper pole of the left kidney that communicated with the ipsilateral diaphragm was identified. Subsequent drainage and culture of the renal cyst was positive for Proteus mirabilis. Given clinical improvement following these interventions she was discharged with an extended course of antibiotics with plans for repeat imaging following completion of treatment. While cases of Proteus mirabilis empyema have previously been reported as a consequence of conditions such as pyelonephritis, we present, to our knowledge, the first case of a Proteus mirabilis empyema as a consequence of an infected renal cyst communicating with the pleural space. This study highlights that further evaluation with cross-sectional imaging is warranted when unusual organisms are found in the pleural space. Anatomic abnormalities that become apparent on imaging may help elucidate the source of infection.
Severe dyspnea and uncontrolled seizures following meperfluthrin poisoning: a case report.

Meperfluthrin is a novel sanitary cyhalothrin insecticide invented in China and has increasingly been used to produce liquid mosquito repellents. Oral meperfluthrin poisoning in human has rarely been reported. Here, we reported a case of meperfluthrin poisoning by ingestion of a meperfluthrin-based liquid mosquito repellent in a 16-month-old infant. A 16-month-old boy with a history of accident ingestion of meperfluthrin was admitted to our hospital’s emergency department. He exhibited severe dyspnea, and lung radiograph showed multiple patchy and cord-like high-density shadows bilaterally in a short time. He also suffered 35 min of seizures which were finally controlled by the intravenous infusion of propofol. He was diagnosed with meperfluthrin poisoning, status epilepticus and severe pneumonia. After treated with methylprednisolone, aerosolized beclomethasone dipropionate, anti-infection, and some critical supportive therapy, the patient was in good health and showed no symptoms during 12 months of follow-up. Meperfluthrin poisoning is rare. Oral meperfluthrin poisoning shows neurotoxic effects and pulmonary toxicity. Controlling seizures rapidly and ensuring an adequate oxygen supply are critical to the successful treatment.
Hospital Revenue Under Maryland's Total Cost of Care Model During the COVID-19 Pandemic, March-July 2020.

This study compares revenue of Maryland hospitals in March-July 2020 vs historical trends and assesses whether rate increases for inpatient and outpatient services that were permitted to offset pandemic-related decines in revenues were associated with changes to state hospital revenue.
Impact of Specialized Hauling Vehicles and Emergency Vehicles on Bridge Load Rating

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) mandated states to adopt specialized hauling vehicles (SHVs) and emergency vehicles (EVs) in 2013 and 2016, respectively, in the load rating of bridges. Bo...
The m6A reader YTHDC2 is essential for escape from KSHV SOX-induced RNA decay

The role m6A modifications have increasingly been associated with diverse set of roles in modulating viruses and influencing the outcomes of viral infection. Here we report that the landscape of m6A deposition is drastically shifted during KSHV (Kaposi Sarcoma Associated herpesvirus) lytic infection for both viral and host transcripts. In line with previous reports, we also saw an overall decrease in host methylation in favor of viral mRNA along with 59 hypomethylation and 39 hypermethylation. During KSHV lytic infection, a major shift in overall mRNA abundance is driven by the viral endoribonuclease SOX, which induces the decay of greater than 70% of transcripts. Here, we reveal that Interlukin-6 (IL-6) mRNA, a well-characterized SOX-resistant transcript, is m6A modified during lytic infection. Furthermore, we show that this modification falls within the IL-6 SOX Resistance Element (SRE), an RNA element in IL-6 39 UTR that was previously shown to be sufficient for protection from SOX cleavage. We show that the presence of this m6A modification is essential to confer SOX resistance to the IL-6 mRNA. We next show that this modification recruits the m6A reader YTHDC2 and found that YTHDC2 is necessary for the escape of the IL-6 transcript. These results shed light on how the host cell has evolved to use RNA modifications to circumvent viral manipulation of RNA fate during KSHV infection.
Making Our Work Work

Over the course of my career, I have received a lot of good advice that I want to share with my colleagues in the Section on Labor Relations and Employment Law. Specifically, I want to share my thoughts about how to disseminate our research outside the legal academy by: 1) testifying before Congress, state legislatures, and government agencies; 2) writing op-eds and magazine articles; and 3) speaking to the general public. At the outset, however, I want to offer some general advice. First, perhaps, the best advice that I ever received was to make your research count at least three times. The second best advice I ever received was to always say yes to opportunities to write or speak, lest people stop asking. Along the same lines, the third best advice was to sow the seeds for future opportunities. As a fourth bit of advice, I want to encourage you to promote yourself in almost every way that you can think of. Send at least 100 reprints of every law review article. Have current business cards, a one-page vita, a full vita, and a web page. Fifth, keep track of what is hot on the national and state public policy agendas, and always work on at least one hot topic. Help legislators and their staffs draft legislation; help agencies formulate policies and regulations; and submit statements for the record of hearings. You may even get to testify or serve on an advisory committee.
Water-induced polymer swelling and its application in soft electronics

Abstract Polymer blend system has been commonly applied in a wide variety of applications. Herein, we propose to introduce sugar particles to polymer matrix, which results in a controllable polymer swelling under the action of osmotic pressure upon soaking in water. Taking advantage of this economic and environment-friendly, water-induced polymer swelling process, we have fabricated wrinkled conductive films and 3D structures by depositing conductive materials on the swollen polymer substrates for stretchable strain sensing devices. Several commercial silicone elastomers were utilized in the study. Key processing factors affecting the polymer swelling were investigated, including film thickness, sugar concentration, and temperature of soaking medium. The swelling ratio can be regulated by changing these parameters and the soaking duration. By sputtering gold (Au) on the swollen films (through vapor deposition) or depositing graphene on 3D complex structures companied by polymer swelling (in aqueous dispersion), wrinkled conductive elastomer films and 3D structures have been fabricated. These conductors not only demonstrated high sensitivity in electrical response when subjected to external deformations from 5% up to 100%, but also possessed good stability after long-term stretching/releasing cycles. The excellent electrical properties of these elastomer conductors implied a great potential in applications of flexible and stretchable sensors.
Behavioural profile predicts dominance status in mountain chickadees, Poecile gambeli

Individual variation in stable behavioural traits may explain variation in ecologically relevant behaviours such as foraging, dispersal, anti-predator behaviour, and dominance. We investigated behavioural variation in mountain chickadees, a North American parid that lives in dominance-structured winter flocks, using two common measures of behavioural profile: exploration of a novel room and novel object exploration. We related those behavioural traits to dominance status in male chickadees following brief, pairwise encounters. Low-exploring birds (birds that visited less than four locations in the novel room) were significantly more likely to become dominant in brief, pairwise encounters with high-exploring birds (i.e. birds that visited all perching locations within a novel room). On the other hand, there was no relationship between novel object exploration and dominance. Interestingly, novel-room exploration was also not correlated with novel object exploration. These results suggest that behavioural profile may predict the social status of group-living individuals. Moreover, our results contradict the idea that novel object exploration and novel-room exploration are always interchangeable measures of individuals' sensitivity to environmental novelty.
Mouse MCP1 C‐terminus inhibits human MCP1‐induced chemotaxis and BBB compromise

Compared to the rodent monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 (MCP1/CCL2), the human MCP1 lacks a C-terminal extension. Although the function of this C-extension is not entirely defined, in previous work we reported that it decreases the chemotactic properties of mouse MCP1. To determine if this function is specific to the rodent chemokine, or if the C-terminal extension has the ability to regulate chemotactic potency to MCP1 in general, we generated a chimeric protein consisting of human MCP1 fused to the mouse MCP1 C-terminal fragment. We found that mouse MCP1 C-terminus significantly decreased the chemotactic potency of human MCP1 and diminished the blood brain barrier compromise normally induced by the human protein. Not only did mouse MCP1 C-terminus inhibit human MCP1-induced Rac1 activation and formation of lamellipodia, it also disrupted the staining pattern of ZO-1 at cell-cell borders and prevented human MCP1-induced F-actin formation in brain microvascular endothelial cells. Additionally, the MCP1 C-terminus dramatically decreased human MCP1-induced activation of ERM proteins in endothelial cells. These findings confirm that the rodent C-terminal MCP1 extension acts as a rheostat for MCP1 functions and suggest that potentially in humans another protein or protein complex may assume a similar regulatory function.
Comparison of MLP neural network and Kalman filter for localization in wireless sensor networks

Localization with noisy distance measurements is a critical problem in many applications of wireless sensor networks. Different localization algorithms offer different tradeoffs between accuracy and hardware resource requirements. In order to provide insight into selecting the best algorithm that optimizes this tradeoff, this paper evaluates the accuracy, memory, and computational requirements of two approaches that may be taken in localization: neural networks and Kalman filters. In this paper, we quantitatively compare the localization performance of a Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) neural network, PV, and PVA models of the Extended Kalman filter. Our experimental results show that the MLP neural network has weaker self-adaptivity than the Extended Kalman filters; however, the MLP can potentially achieve the highest localization accuracy and requires the least amount of computational and memory resources.
Matrix Metalloproteinase 9 Exerts Antiviral Activity against Respiratory Syncytial Virus.

Increased lung levels of matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9) are frequently observed during respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection and elevated MMP9 concentrations are associated with severe disease. However little is known of the functional role of MMP9 during lung infection with RSV. To determine whether MMP9 exerted direct antiviral potential, active MMP9 was incubated with RSV, which showed that MMP9 directly prevented RSV infectivity to airway epithelial cells. Using knockout mice the effect of the loss of Mmp9 expression was examined during RSV infection to demonstrate MMP9’s role in viral clearance and disease progression. Seven days following RSV infection, Mmp9-/- mice displayed substantial weight loss, increased RSV-induced airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) and reduced clearance of RSV from the lungs compared to wild type mice. Although total bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) cell counts were similar in both groups, neutrophil recruitment to the lungs during RSV infection was significantly reduced in Mmp9-/- mice. Reduced neutrophil recruitment coincided with diminished RANTES, IL-1β, SCF, G-CSF expression and p38 phosphorylation. Induction of p38 signaling was required for RANTES and G-CSF expression during RSV infection in airway epithelial cells. Therefore, MMP9 in RSV lung infection significantly enhances neutrophil recruitment, cytokine production and viral clearance while reducing AHR.