cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Abstract LB-222: Culturing cancer cells from liquid biopsies for precision cancer therapy

Liquid biopsies include circulation tumor cells (CTC), ctDNA/RNA, exosomes from blood or tumor relevant information from other liquid samples (urine, pleural effusion, ascites, saliva, etc.). Culturing cancer cells from liquid biopsies is a simple, non-invasive technique that has the potential to advance the diagnosis, treatment and monitoring of cancer patients. In this study, we described several approaches that allow to enrich cancer cells from urine (for bladder cancer), blood (for prostate cancer), and pleural effusion (for non-small cell lung carcinoma). These cancer cells from liquid biopsies were cultured and further propagated in suspension and/or adherent cultures using a specialized cell culture medium. We also confirmed genetic alterations in both original tumors and cancer cells from liquid biopsies, for example, mutant EGFR for lung cancer, mutations of hTERT promoter for bladder cancer. We also reported that these cancer cells from liquid biopsies were used for identify therapies for the patients. For example, a woman patient with metastatic NSCLC harboring mutant EGFR was primarily resistant to TKI treatment, we were able to identify a combination of chemotherapy for the patient. Cancer cells from urine samples were used for predicting recurrence of the bladder cancer or monitoring treatment. We also used these cultured cancer from original tumors and liquid biopsies for study of tumor heterogeneity. Citation Format: Xuefeng Liu. Culturing cancer cells from liquid biopsies for precision cancer therapy [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2018; 2018 Apr 14-18; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2018;78(13 Suppl):Abstract nr LB-222.
Neglected spinal cord, brain stem and musculoskeletal injuries stemming from birth trauma.

Objective A review of the medical literature was undertaken to determine cause, diagnosis, prognosis, treatment and prevention of injuries resulting from birth trauma. The primary focus was the neonate, though infant, child and adult were also considered because the effects of birth trauma can be life-long. Data source A compilation of case studies and review articles were extracted from numerous "MEDLINE" literature searches. Key Terms included: Birth Trauma, Central Nervous System Injuries, Musculoskeletal Injuries, Stillbirth, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), Cerebral Palsy, Brachial Plexus Palsies (Erb's and Klumpke's), Neonatal-Infantile Respiratory Distress, Obstetric Accidents (Forceps, Vacuum Cup and Cesarean Deliveries), Subluxation, Chiropractic Treatment. American, British, Danish and German studies were included to show the universality of the problem. Study selection Findings were selected on the basis of a clear connection between birth trauma and the resulting symptoms, syndromes and/or death. Data extraction Findings were compiled by studying articles from the literature search. The quality and validity were assessed by corresponding references, method of documentation, number of case studies, length of time over which studies took place and presence of follow-up documentation. Data synthesis Inadequacies and source discrepancies were also included with regard to cause and types of obstetric accidents. Conclusion Birth trauma remains an underpublicized and, therefore, an undertreated problem. There is a need for further documentation and especially more studies directed toward prevention. In the meantime, manual treatment of birth trauma injuries to the neuromusculoskeletal system could be beneficial to many patients not now receiving such treatment, and it is well within the means of current practice in chiropractic and manual medicine.
Optimizing the Cutoff Grade for an Operational Underground Mine

An important strategic decision for any operational mine is the differentiation between ore and waste material; this differentiation is referred to as the cutoff grade. In underground mining, mater...
Social Justice, Public Goods and Rent-Seeking in Narratives

Social justice, as a concept, has long been considered inimical to the classical liberal tradition (Hayek 1976; Nozick 1973; 1974). To be fair, there is much to criticize about the concept. The definitional fluidity of the term, along with its frequent deployment for “activist” political endeavors, cast doubt upon the scholarly rigor of the term (Hayek 1978). However, where there is chaff, there is wheat and thus the possibility of salvaging some parts of the social justice concept to serve both normative and positive ends (Tomasi 2012, xvii-xx). Sorting the wheat from the chaff is the aim of this paper. To do so, we introduce the concept of “rent-seeking in narratives,” which, as we argue, takes the best concepts from the literature on social justice in order to make it a relevant tool for social science and classical liberal thought.
Sodium-glucose co-transporter-2 inhibitor use and risk of lower-extremity amputation: Evolving questions, evolving answers.

Aim To examine whether sodium-glucose co-transporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitors are associated with a higher risk of lower-extremity amputation than dipeptidyl-peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors and sulphonylureas. Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort study, using the MarketScan Commercial Claims and Encounters Database (2013-2015), to compare the incidence of lower-extremity amputation (LEA) between initiators of SGLT2 inhibitors and initiators of two second-line drugs, DPP-4 inhibitors and sulphonylureas (SUs). We estimated crude incidence rates (IRs) and adjusted hazard ratios (aHR), with 95% confidence intervals (CIs), before and after propensity-score weighting. We additionally conducted sensitivity analyses using a comparator group of all non-metformin, non-SGLT2 inhibitor glucose-lowering drugs, as previous studies used this approach. Results In a cohort of 328 150 individuals aged 18 to 64 years, the IR of LEA ranged from 1.5 to 2.4 per 1000 person-years. In as-treated analysis, the estimated hazard of LEA was increased among SGLT2 inhibitor initiators compared to DPP-4 inhibitor initiators (aHR 1.69, 95% CI 1.20-2.38), but not compared to SU initiators (aHR 1.02, 95% CI 0.67-1.55) or non-metformin, non-SGLT2 inhibitor initiators (aHR 1.02, 95% CI 0.54-1.93). Results were consistent in intention-to-treat analysis and across a number of sensitivity analyses. Conclusions Among commercially insured patients in the United States, our results suggest that initiation of SGLT2 inhibitors may increase the risk of LEA compared to initiation of DPP-4 inhibitors. Contrasting results when comparing SGLT2 inhibitor initiators to DPP-4 inhibitor and SU initiators highlight the importance of choosing appropriate comparator drugs when addressing comparative effectiveness and safety questions that can inform clinical decision-making.
Gestational exposure to nicotine and/or benzo[a]pyrene causes long-lasting neurobehavioral consequences.

Tobacco smoke is a complex mixture that includes thousands of compounds. Previously, we have found that gestational exposure to the complex mixture of tobacco smoke extract caused long-term neurobehavioral impairments. In this study, we examined the interaction of two of the most biologically active, nicotine and benzo[a]pyrene (BaP). Developmental effects were determined in Sprague-Dawley rats prenatally exposed to low doses of BaP and nicotine (0.03 mg/kg/day of BaP and 2 mg/kg/day of nicotine) via maternal osmotic minipumps throughout gestation. Behavioral function was assessed in the offspring via a battery of tests through adolescence into adulthood. There were sex-selective effects in four of the behavioral tests. In the elevated plus maze, there was a significant interaction of BaP and sex, where BaP-treated males showed a trend for increased activity. In the novelty suppressed feeding test, there were significant sex selective effects in males such that the normal sex difference in the behavior in this test was eliminated. Male offspring with prenatal exposure to either nicotine or BaP showed significant reductions in fear response. In the Figure-8 locomotor activity test, BAP-exposed male offspring were significantly hyperactive. This also eliminated the sex difference typically seen in this test. This effect persisted into adulthood. In the attention task, males exposed to nicotine during gestation showed a significant percent hit impairment. BaP reversed this effect. No significant effects were seen with percent correct rejection. These data show that both nicotine and BaP cause persisting sex-selective behavioral effects that persist into adulthood.
Predicting suitability of regions for Zika outbreaks with zero-inflated models trained using climate data

Abstract In recent years, Zika spread through the Americas. This virus has been linked to Guillain-Barre syndrome, which can lead to paralysis, and microcephaly, a severe birth defect. Zika is primarily transmitted by Aedes (Ae.) aegypti, a mosquito whose geographic range has expanded and is anticipated to continue shifting as the climate changes. We used statistical models to predict regional suitability for autochthonous Zika transmission using climatic variables. By suitability for Zika, we mean the potential for an outbreak to occur based on the climate’s habitability for Ae. aegypti. We trained zero-inflated Poisson (ZIP) and zero-inflated negative binomial (ZINB) regression models to predict Zika outbreak suitability using 20 subsets of climate variables for 102 regions. Variable subsets were selected for the final models based on importance to Ae. aegypti survival and their performance in aiding prediction of Zika-suitable regions. We determined the two best models to both be ZINB models. The best model’s regressors were winter mean temperature, yearly minimum temperature, and population, and the second-best model’s regressors were winter mean temperature and population. These two models were then run on bias-corrected climate projections to predict future climate suitability for Zika, and they generated reasonable predictions. The predictions find that most of the sampled regions are expected to become more suitable for Zika outbreaks. The regions with the greatest risk have increasingly mild winters and high human populations. These predictions are based on the most extreme scenario for climate change, which we are currently on track for. Author Summary: In recent years, Zika spread through the Americas. This virus has been linked to Guillain-Barre syndrome, which can lead to paralysis, and microcephaly, a severe birth defect. Zika is primarily transmitted by Aedes (Ae.) aegypti, a mosquito whose geographic range has expanded and is anticipated to continue shifting as the climate changes. We used statistical models to predict regional suitability for locally-acquired Zika cases using climatic variables. By suitability for Zika, we mean the potential for an outbreak to occur based on the climate’s habitability for Ae. aegypti. We trained statistical models to predict Zika outbreak suitability using 20 subsets of climate variables for 102 regions. Variable subsets were selected for the final two models based on importance to Ae. aegypti survival and their performance in aiding prediction of Zika-suitable regions. These two models were then run on climate projections to predict future climate suitability for Zika, and they generated reasonable predictions. The predictions find that most of the sampled regions are expected to become more suitable for Zika outbreaks. The regions with the greatest risk have high human populations and increasingly mild winters.
Using Reentry Simulations to Promote Changes in Attitude toward Offenders: Experiential Learning to Promote Successful Reentry

This research examines the viability of using reentry simulations as a tool for influencing changes in participants’ perspectives about the realities of coming back in the community after a period of incarceration. Using both quantitative and qualitative methodologies, we investigated changes in attitudes toward offenders after participants completed a reentry simulation designed to replicate the experience of the first four weeks in the life of a person attempting to reenter society after incarceration. Participants were 27 students enrolled in a community corrections course that was cross listed and co-taught between criminal justice and social work. Participants completed a quantitative pre- and post-test that assessed attitudes toward prisoners as well as a reflection assignment about the simulation experience. Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test was used to analyze scores from pre- and post-tests. Qualitative analysis of the reflection papers identified and analyzed themes. Both quantitative and qualitative analysis indicate that simulations humanize perspectives toward former offenders and develop a better understanding of their situation. This understanding creates empathetic feelings that can reduce discrimination and stigma, thereby creating an environment more conducive to successful reintegration. Based on the results of this study, use of simulation-based training is recommended with audiences including criminal justice personnel, service providers, court practitioners, judges, and legislators as a way to more clearly articulate the realities faced by this vulnerable population.
Simulation of coarsening in two-phase systems with dissimilar mobilities

Abstract In this work, we apply phase field simulations to examine the coarsening behavior of morphologically complex two-phase microstructures in which the phases have highly dissimilar mobilities, a condition approaching that found in experimental solid-liquid systems. Specifically, we consider a two-phase system at the critical composition ( 50 % volume fraction) in which the mobilities of the two phases differ by a factor of 100. This system is simulated in two and three dimensions using the Cahn-Hilliard model with a concentration-dependent mobility, and results are compared to simulations with a constant mobility. A morphological transition occurs during coarsening of the two-dimensional system (corresponding to a thin film geometry) with dissimilar mobilities, resulting in a system of nearly-circular particles of high-mobility phase embedded in a low-mobility matrix. This morphological transition causes the coarsening rate constant to decrease over time, which explains why a previous study found lack of agreement with the theoretical t 1 / 3 power law. Three-dimensional systems with dissimilar mobilities resulted in bicontinuous microstructures that evolve self-similarly, as determined by quantitative analysis of the interfacial shape distribution. Coarsening kinetics in three dimensions agreed closely with the t 1 / 3 power law after the initial transient stage. A model is derived to explain a nearly-linear relationship between the coarsening rate constant and the variance of scaled mean curvature that is observed during this transient stage.
Patriotic Leisure: Internet Games, Esports, and the Discourse of Productivity

This chapter builds upon the previous chapter’s discussion of Internet addiction by closely examining the criteria used to separate healthy games from unhealthy games, arguing that such categorizations reveal competing political and ideological orientations guiding the modernizing logic of the Chinese state. Even realms of leisure often assumed to be free are assigned their proper place in the narrative of upward mobility in which China’s young middle-class urbanites are ensconced; games too are governed by a kind of neoliberal logic, coming to reflect concepts about what constitutes productive play and proper behavior in the quest to better the self. Through analysis of ethnographic interviews, this chapter also demonstrates how characterizations of games as either addictive or athletic insinuate themselves into young college students’ own narratives about game play. Far from completely resisting official efforts to control Internet games, many young college students become active agents in perpetuating the discourse of Internet addiction and stigmatization of Internet games in general. As a result, we come to see how the same segment of the population described by Lisa M. Hoffman as patriotic professionals are also cultivating, or, at the very least, paying lip service to a sort of patriot leisure.
8 – Sugarcane Rusts

Publisher Summary This chapter provides an overview of sugarcane rusts. It discusses the various factors that influence urediospore germination, such as temperature and moisture. Puccinia melanocephala and Puccinia kuehnii are two pathogens that cause sugarcane rusts. Rust caused by P. kuehnii has never been of significant economic importance because of its inability to initiate and sustain epidemics. P. melanocephala can be distinguished from P. kuehnii because of the smaller urediospores, the absence of thickened apical wall of urediospores, abundant capitate paraphyses, and darker spore wall. Uredia develop mainly on the lower leaf surface; however, certain cultivars may also have some uredia on the upper surface. Uredia are subepidermal, and they rupture the epidermis because of the formation of masses of orange or cinnamon-brown urediospores. Rust develops on sugarcane when temperatures are cool to warm and humidity is high. Soil moisture exerts a pronounced influence on plant growth and thereby, imposes an indirect influence on infection. Soil moisture might be a limiting factor for plant growth; however, infection might still occur if urediospores are present and temperature and leaf wetness are adequate for infection to take place.
Multicenter Analysis of Electronic Health Record Use among Ophthalmologists.

Abstract Order entry via mobile client was associated with decreased after-hours EHR use in a cohort of 139 academic ophthalmologists. EHR audit log data can provide insights into strategies for optimizing efficiency of EHR use.
Using Physical Education Courses to Help Increase Well-Being of RN-BSN Nursing Students: An Exploratory Analysis of Outcomes

Background: Student health and wellness has been a growing concern over the years. Evidence is showing that behaviors and health patterns developed in college tend to hold through the years after graduation. Aim: To examine the pre-post wellness outcomes of nursing students taking a physical education course in an online accelerated Registered Nurse-Bachelor of Science Nursing (RN-BSN) program at a university in the Southeast region of the United States. Methods: An online course with incorporated physical activities and tutorials was designed based on the Travis Wellness Inventory to teach about 12 different dimensions of wellness. Students completed modules that addressed different aspects of wellness. Wellness was assessed using the Wellness Inventory and pre-post outcomes were examined. Results: The results found statistically significant changes between the pre and post assessments for all dimensions of wellness outcomes. There were also significant changes between the pre and post assessments when investigating differences based on gender with females improving on all 12 dimensions and males on 4. Conclusion: Introductory Physical Education (PED101) courses may be useful in improving wellness and reducing stress and turnover for RN-BSN students.
The Influence of Dune Aspect Ratio, Beach Width and Storm Characteristics on Dune Erosion for Managed and Unmanaged Beaches

Abstract. Dune height is an important predictor of dune impact during a storm event given that taller dunes have a lower likelihood of being overtopped. However, the temporal dominance of the wave collision regime, wherein significant volume loss (erosion) from the dune will occur through dune retreat without the dune being overtopped, suggests that dune width must also be considered when evaluating the vulnerability of dunes to erosion. We use XBeach, a numerical model that simulates hydrodynamic processes, sediment transport, and morphologic change during a storm, to analyze dune erosion as a function of dune aspect ratio (i.e., dune height versus dune width) for storms of varying intensity and duration. We find that low aspect ratio (low and wide) dunes lose less volume than high aspect ratio (tall and narrow) dunes during longer storms, especially if they are fronted by a narrow beach. During more intense storms, low aspect ratio dunes experience greater erosion as they are more easily overtopped than high aspect ratio dunes. In managed scenarios where sand fences are used to construct a fenced dune seaward of the existing natural dune, we find that the fenced dune effectively prevents the natural dune behind it from experiencing any volume loss until the fenced dune is sufficiently eroded, reducing the magnitude of erosion of the natural dune by up to 50 %. We also find that beach width exerts a significant influence on dune erosion; a wide beach offers the greatest protection from erosion in all circumstances regardless of dune morphology or storm characteristics. These findings suggest that efforts to maintain a wide beach may be effective at protecting coastal communities from dune loss. However, in maintaining wide beaches and dunes, the protection offered in the short-term must be considered against long-term detrimental effects of potentially limiting overwash fluxes, which are critical to maintaining island elevation as sea level rises.
The Texas Supreme Court and Oil and Gas Jurisprudence: What Hath Wagner & Brown v. Sheppard Wrought?

According to the Texas Supreme Court, a lessor’s interest remains pooled even after her lease terminates. The Court’s November 2008 opinion in Wagner & Brown, Ltd. v. Sheppard provoked strong reactions among oil and gas law practitioners, academics, and others involved in the industry. In fact, the court received nearly a dozen amicus curiae briefs signed by more than 20 attorneys—many of whom typically represent producers—urging it to reconsider. Not persuaded by these concerns, the court finalized its opinion on June 5, 2009. So now the question for players in the oil patch is: What hath Wagner & Brown, Ltd. v. Sheppard wrought? This question is further discussed and suggestions for addressing the aftermath are discussed. Although Sheppard joins a long line of cases in which the Texas Supreme Court adopted producers’ legal arguments in oil and gas lease disputes, it injects unprecedented uncertainty into Texas oil and gas jurisprudence. Rather than discourage litigation, the opinion encourages parties to pursue disputes in court since it called into question principles and practices previously considered settled. Therefore, for years to come attorneys, producers, title examiners, financial institutions, mineral owners, and other stakeholders in the oil and gas industry will grapple with the unfortunate legacy of Wagner & Brown, Ltd. v. Sheppard.
Design Guidelines for Early Childhood Computer Science Education Tools

The current literature on developing tools for early childhood computer science education focuses primarily on the content of the lessons and how to embed that content into educational technologies. However, in considering “CS For All” it is critical to understand how the environment and approach surrounding the technology itself can best serve both students and educators in learning this material. This chapter presents results from a grounded-theory analysis of classroom observations and in-depth semi-structured interviews with both students and educators. We contribute to an understanding of how intentional design—via eight specific design considerations–can lead to more accessible, approachable, and engaging technologies.
The center cannot hold: Variations of frame width help to explain the “inward bias” in aesthetic preferences

Although most visual aesthetic preferences are likely driven by a mix of personal, historical, and cultural factors, there are exceptions: some may be driven by adaptive mechanisms of visual processing, and so may be relatively consistent across people, contexts, and time. An especially powerful example is the "inward bias": when a framed image contains a figure (e.g., a face in profile), people prefer arrangements in which the figure faces inward. Although the inward bias has been studied in many contexts, its underlying nature remains unclear. It may be a function of an image's center (as in the "affordance-space" account, in which people prefer to center the implied functional extensions of objects), or it may be a function of the frame's borders (as in the "looking-into-the-future" account, in which people dislike perspectives on scenes that won't allow them to witness predicted future actions). Here we directly contrast these possibilities using a simple novel manipulation. Observers placed a face (in profile) in a frame to maximize the image's aesthetic appeal, and across observers we varied the frame's aspect ratio. We observed a powerful inward bias, and across frame widths observers preferred an approximately constant positive ratio of space in front versus behind the face. This suggests that the inward bias is driven primarily not by the image's center, but by the frame's borders - and it is consistent with the possibility that certain regions of empty space are prioritized because they are where future actions are predicted to occur.
Disabling Theological Education

The white male self-sufficient persona that Willie Jennings argues is the evaluative standard for theological education and ministerial formation is also able bodied. Consequently, theological educ...
Materials Implications on Millimeter Wave Radome Performance

An evaluation of candidate millimeter wave (MMW) radome materials necessitated determination of measurement repeatability of the Fabry-Perot interferometer. Measurements took into account material orientation with respect to the applied field to study fiber orientation effects. Subsequently, theoretical calculations were performed to find the impact of these dielectric variations on missile radome performance.
Personal Growth of the Therapist: Living with Loss

Loss through death can be a difficult topic for family psychotherapists and clients. A Model of Active Acceptance is to bring alive shared experiences with loss which intellectually are recognized as key issues in individual and family dynamics but which too often remain unchallenged in the emotional and experiential context. Understanding fearful reactions to death and the humanistic parallel process provides an opportunity for the therapist's own growth and devolves positively on clients and trainees. Practice implications are directed to promote dialogue about therapists' reactions when clients talk about loss through death.
Essay Question Formative Assessments in Large Section Courses: Two Studies Illustrating Easy and Effective Use

Do formative assessments, via practice exercises accompanied by generalized feedback, make a difference in student final essay and short-answer examination performance? If so, does the practice help some students more than others? We sought to answer these questions in two studies performed with law students. We also sought to devise a duplicable model for examining those same questions across disciplines. Finally, we hoped to develop an easily workable method to provide practice and feedback to large section courses without unduly burdening faculty. This chapter discusses our findings that practice exercises and generalized feedback formative assessments can be done in large section courses with minimal additional professorial work and that the effects of that practice can be easily studied. The chapter also discusses our findings that although practice exercises accompanied by annotated model answers and grading rubrics had a positive effect on student final-examination performance on essay questions and short-essay/short-answer test questions, the effects of the practice and feedback did not benefit all students equally—the students with the highest-grade predictors received the greatest benefit from the formative assessments. This chapter explains the work and its implications for student learning as well as for future research.
The Houston Conference: the road more traveled.

Many of the issues raised in the recent paper by Ardila are readily addressed through a fuller understanding of the history of clinical neuropsychology in North America. The perceptions also offered in his essay can also be informed by an appreciation of the professional context in which those seeking to understand and concurrently apply knowledge about brain–behavior relationships reside. To clarify at the outset, there are not two proposals in play at this point. The original INS-Division 40 Guidelines have been supplanted by the Houston Conference Report, which was the consensus work product of a Conference convened with broad-based organizational support in clinical neuropsychology in conjunction with the recognition of Clinical Neuropsychology as a formal specialty by the American Psychological Association. Other points that need to be elaborated as well here deal with Ardila’s level of apparent appreciation of the history and issues at hand. First, it is important to note that the correct title of the original INS-Division 40 Task Force work is “Report of the INS-Division 40 Task Force on Education, Accreditation, and Credentialing.” This document was originally developed by Manfred Meier and a diverse group of 28 neuropsychologists as a project arising out of an opendoor workshop of educators in neuropsychology before the INS annual meeting in San Francisco in 1980. The working group first published their findings and suggestions in the INS Newsletter in September 1981. This document was reprinted again in 1984 after its adoption by Division 40 in their newsletter. The essential portions were published again with permission in 1987 in The Clinical Neuropsychologist, a recognized serial. In relation to this work, Meier (1981) published a book chapter elaboration of the “competencies” concept
Quadriceps neural alterations in anterior cruciate ligament reconstructed patients: A 6‐month longitudinal investigation

The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate differences in quadriceps corticospinal excitability, spinal-reflexive excitability, strength, and voluntary activation before, 2 weeks post and 6 months post-anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLr). This longitudinal, case-control investigation examined 20 patients scheduled for ACLr (11 females, 9 males; age: 20.9 ± 4.4 years; height:172.4 ± 7.5 cm; weight:76.2 ± 11.8 kg) and 20 healthy controls (11 females, 9 males; age:21.7 ± 3.7 years; height: 173.7 ± 9.9 cm; weight: 76.1 ± 19.7 kg). Maximal voluntary isometric contractions (MVIC), central activation ratio (CAR), normalized Hoffmann spinal reflexes, active motor threshold (AMT), and normalized motor-evoked potential (MEP) amplitudes at 120% of AMT were measured in the quadriceps muscle at the specific time points. ACLr patients demonstrated bilateral reductions in spinal-reflexive excitability compared with controls before surgery (P = 0.02) and 2 weeks post-surgery (P ≤ 0.001). ACLr patients demonstrated higher AMT at 6 months post-surgery (P ≤ 0.001) in both limbs. No MEP differences were detected. Quadriceps MVIC and CAR were lower in both limbs of the ACLr group before surgery and 6 months post-surgery (P ≤ 0.05) compared with controls. Diminished excitability of spinal-reflexive and corticospinal pathways are present at different times following ACLr and occur in combination with clinical deficits in quadriceps strength and activation. Early rehabilitation strategies targeting spinal-reflexive excitability may help improve postoperative outcomes, while later-stage rehabilitation may benefit from therapeutic techniques aimed at improving corticospinal excitability.
Contribution of IL6 −174 G>C and IL1B +3954 C>T polymorphisms to congenital infection with Toxoplasma gondii

The purpose of this investigation was the determination of the distribution of genotypes and alleles, residing within interleukin 6 (IL6) and interleukin 1 (IL1) polymorphisms, among fetuses and neonates, congenitally infected with Toxoplasma gondii, and among uninfected control cases. The study included 22 fetuses and newborns infected with T. gondii and 49 control cases. Screening for IgG and IgM antibodies against the parasite and IgG avidity was performed by enzyme-linked fluorescent assay (ELFA) tests. Quantitation of T. gondii DNA in amniotic fluids was assayed by the real-time Q PCR technique for the parasitic B1 gene. Genotypes at IL6 and IL1 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were determined by a self-designed, nested polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) assay. Representative genotypes at the studied loci were confirmed by sequencing. All the genotypes were estimated for Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium and IL1 genotypes were tested for linkage disequilibrium. Genotypes and haplotypes at the studied SNPs were investigated for their possible association with the occurrence of congenital T. gondii infection, using a logistic regression model. GC heterozygotes at the IL6 −174 G>C SNP were significantly associated with toxoplasmosis and increased the risk of T. gondii infection [odds ratio (OR) 4.24, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 1.24–14.50 in the codominant model, p ≤ 0.050]. In case of IL1 SNPs, similar prevalence rates were observed between T. gondii-infected and -uninfected offspring. Regarding allelic variability, the C alleles at both IL6 and IL1B SNPs were significantly more frequent in the infected than in the uninfected cases (p ≤ 0.050). It is concluded that IL6 −174 G>C and IL1B +3954 C>T SNPs might be involved in the development of congenital T. gondii infection.
Factitious Disorder by Proxy: Pediatric Condition Falsification

We present a comprehensive overview of the condition factitious disorder by proxy, also known as Munchausen syndrome by proxy. The review begins by highlighting essential definitions and the etiology and epidemiology of the disorder. It then analyzes relevant clinical issues such as assessment and diagnostic methods. The final section is a detailed discussion of the complex issues facing the clinician, including the process of confronting the perpetrator, relevant legal issues, and the treatment of the caretaker, child, and family through a multidisciplinary, team approach.
The effect of prey consumption on territorial defense by harriers: differential responses to neighbors versus floaters

Food consumption may reduce fighting intensity of territory owners by decreasing resource value (additional food cannot be consumed) and/or increasing fighting costs (food in the digestive tract may raise injury risks). A territorial harrier's (Circus cyaneus, adult females) decision to reduce its level of aggression should depend upon whether or not the intruder was a competitor for individual prey items (as are smaller male floaters) or for the territory proper (as are female floaters and especially female neighbors). Accordingly, following meals, aggressive intensity of owners was strongly reduced towards male floaters (more were ignored), slightly reduced towards female floaters (more were called at than chased), and remained unchanged towards neighbors (virtually all were chased). Hence, alterations in aggressive behavior of territory owners following food consumption may depend upon the type of intruder and the resource under contest (a food item or a territory).
Modeling of ammonium dinitramide (ADN) monopropellant combustion with coupled condensed and gas phase kinetics

Abstract A comprehensive multi-phase combustion model has been developed to study the physiochemical processes involved in the combustion of ammonium dinitramide (ADN). The numerical model is based on the conservation equations of mass, species concentration, and energy, and takes into account finite-rate chemical kinetics in both condensed and gas phases. Based on an extensive review of the literature on ADN thermal decomposition, three global decomposition reactions in the condensed phase of ADN are included. A detailed chemical kinetics scheme involving 34 species and 165 reactions is employed in the gas phase. Detailed combustion-wave structures and burning rate characteristics of ADN are described. The optimized gas-phase kinetics mechanism was able to predict the multi-stage flame structure. Good agreements between the predicted and measured profiles of temperature and species mole fractions were obtained at different pressures. Reasonable agreements between calculated and measured values of propellant burning rates and surface temperatures were obtained over a broad range of pressure from 0.7 to 350 atm. The burning rate increases with pressure, except in the mid range of ∼60–100 atm. The coupled condensed- and gas-phase analysis employed in the current model is able to capture this irregular/unstable combustion behavior in the mid range, where the burning rate decreases with the increase in pressure.
Print-focused read-alouds in preschool classrooms: intervention effectiveness and moderators of child outcomes.

Purpose This study was conducted to determine the effectiveness of teachers' use of a print-referencing style during whole-class read-alouds with respect to accelerating 4- and 5-year-old children’...
Assessment of warfarin dosing requirements after bariatric surgery in patients requiring long-term warfarin therapy.

tudy Objective To quantify the change in weekly warfarin dose after bariatric surgery in patients requiring long-term warfarin therapy. Design Retrospective matched-cohort study. Setting Anticoagulation management service in an integrated health care delivery system. Patients Patients receiving long-term warfarin anticoagulation who underwent bariatric surgery between January 1, 1996, and December 31, 2010 (27 patients), were matched by date of surgery (± 2 years), age (± 5 years), and target international normalized ratio (INR) range to patients receiving long-term anticoagulation therapy who underwent other abdominal surgical procedures: cholecystectomy or endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (59 patients [control group]). Measurement and Main Results The main end point was change in postoperative warfarin dose from baseline (preoperative dose), measured at weekly postoperative intervals from weeks 1 to 8 and again at months 3 and 6. After surgery, patients in the bariatric surgery group had statistically significant decreases in weekly warfarin doses compared with preoperative dose at all postoperative time points (week 1 dose vs preoperative dose, p 0.05). No statistically significant decreases in warfarin dose were detected at any postoperative time points in the control group. Twenty patients (74.1%) in the bariatric surgery group experienced a 20% or more decrease in weekly warfarin dose compared with 19 patients (32.2%) in the control group (p=0.004). No significant differences in warfarin-related adverse events were noted between groups. Conclusion Weekly warfarin doses decreased in the immediate postoperative period in anticoagulated patients after bariatric surgery but returned to their preoperative doses after approximately 6 months. A similar pattern was not observed in patients in the control group who underwent other types of abdominal surgery. Compared with preoperative anticoagulation control, this resulted in reduced anticoagulation control despite close INR monitoring. If a causal relationship between bariatric surgery and warfarin sensitivity is established in future research, developing and validating a postbariatric surgery warfarin-dosing algorithm would be valuable.
The lamin B receptor of the nuclear envelope inner membrane : a polytopic protein with eight potential transmembrane domains

The lamin B receptor is a previously identified integral membrane protein in the nuclear envelope of turkey erythrocytes that associates with the nuclear intermediate filament protein lamin B (Worman, H. J., J. Yuan, G. Blobel, and S. D. Georgatos. 1988. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 85:8531-8534). In the present report, we use cell fractionation and antibodies against the lamin B receptor to localize it to an 8-M urea-extracted membrane fraction of chicken liver nuclei, supporting an inner nuclear membrane localization. We deduced the amino acid sequence of the chicken lamin B receptor from overlapping clones obtained by screening cDNA libraries with a probe generated by the polymerase chain reaction with primers based on the partial protein sequence of the isolated protein. The mature lamin B receptor has a calculated molecular mass of 73,375 D and eight segments of hydrophobic amino acids that could function as transmembrane domains as determined by hydropathy analysis. Preceding the first putative transmembrane segment is a highly charged 204-residue-long amino terminal region that contains two consensus sites for phosphorylation by protein kinase A. Since the lamin B receptor has been shown to be phosphorylated by protein kinase A in vitro and in vivo and this phosphorylation affects lamin B binding (Applebaum, J., G. Blobel, and S. D. Georgatos. 1990. J. Biol. Chem. 265:4181-4185), it is likely that this amino terminal region faces the nucleoplasm. The amino terminal region also contains three DNA-binding motifs that are found in gene regulatory proteins and histones, suggesting that the lamin B receptor may additionally play a role in gene regulation and/or chromatin organization.
Improvement of side-wall roughness in deep glass etched MEMS vibratory sensors

In this paper we report an optimized post-fabrication annealing process for improvement of sidewall roughness in deep glass etched resonant MEMS devices. The method utilizes thermal-reflow behavior of glass and does not require chemical or mechanical treatment. Experiments were conducted to explore the trade-off space between roughness improvement and structural deformation by varying temperature from 300 °C to 900 °c and duration from 2 to 240 minutes. The optimal results were obtained at 700 °C for 30 minutes, resulting in an 10x improvement in roughness from 900 nm Ra to 85 nm Ra and low feature deformation of <10%. The method was successfully utilized in deep glass etching of micro-glassblown wineglass resonators, which resulted in very low side wall roughness and sub-hz frequency symmetry.
American Idol and NIH Grant Review.

Peer review is an essential part of identifying scientific projects worthy of NIH funding. An Analysis article in the June 2, 2006 issue of Cell (Bonetta, 2006) highlighted the fact that six years after the reorganization of the NIH integrated review groups, further streamlining of NIH grant peer review is still needed. The NIH is well aware of the problems related to the peer review process, and Toni Scarpa, the director of the Center for Scientific Review, is committed to further reform of the current system (Scarpa, 2006).
Failure of α-Methyltyrosine to Inhibit Peripheral Triiodothyronine Formation

To determine if the adrenergic nervous system, and specifically tyrosine hydroxylase, plays a role in the extrathyroidal conversion of T4 to T3, normal male volunteers were treated with T4 and subsequently with T4 and α-Methyl-p-tyrosine (α-MPT), an inhibitor of tyrosine hydroxylase, for 2 weeks. The mean serum T4 and T3 concentrations increased during T4 administration and remained at the same levels during combined T4 and α-MPT administration. Urinary vanillylmandelic acid excretion declined significantly during α- MPT administration. These results do not support the hypothesis that tyrosine hydroxylase is involved in extrathyroidal T3 production.
Fugacities in high‐pressure equilibria and in rate processes

This work considers the importance of vapor-phase nonideal mixing in high-pressure equilibrium and rate-process calculations. New techniques are presented for calculating vapor-phase fugacity coefficients in nonideal mixtures. The equilibrium properties of gaseous mixtures are represented by a virial equation of state which is adequate for the vast majority of chemical engineering problems. Techniques based on an extension of the corresponding-states theory are given for estimating the various coefficients appearing in the equation of state; these estimates appear to be reliable for a large variety of nonpolar or weakly polar systems. Techniques based on the theory of intermolecular forces are also presented for polar systems and for a limited class of mixtures containing hydrogen-bonding components. The proposed methods of calculation are illustrated by a large variety of problems occurring in common chemical engineering calculations, and it is shown that failure to correct for vapor-phase nonideal mixing can, in some cases, lead to very large errors.
Striatal dopaminergic denervation and gait in healthy adults

Parkinsonian-like motor impairments are common in the elderly. The etiology of these symptoms in the absence of clinically diagnosable Parkinson’s disease (PD) is unknown. The aim of this study was to evaluate associations between striatal dopaminergic neuron losses that occur with aging and gait in healthy adults. Forty healthy subjects aged 21–85 years old underwent [11C]-β-CFT dopamine transporter (DAT) positron emission tomography (PET). Subjects were also asked to walk in a gait laboratory at their own pace. Gait variables of interest included average general spatiotemporal characteristics of walking patterns and their standard deviation reflecting gait variability. Segmented nonlinear models were used to investigate the relationship between striatal DAT activity and gait while controlling for age. Gait speed, cadence, and single and double support durations were significantly slower than age-based predictions in adults with lower striatal DAT activity (P < 0.05). After controlling for age, striatal DAT activity was not significantly associated with average step length and step width and with gait variability. We conclude that dopaminergic physiology influences certain aspects of gait independent of age-related changes. The findings of this study may augur novel therapeutic approaches to treating gait disorders in the elderly.
Dislocation substructure of mantle-derived olivine as revealed by selective chemical etching and transmission electron microscopy

Cleaved and mechanically polished surfaces of olivine from peridotite xenoliths from San Carlos, Arizona, were chemically etched using the techniques of Wegner and Christie (1974). Dislocation etch pits are produced on all surface orientations and they tend to be preferentially aligned along the traces of subgrain boundaries, which are approximately parallel to (100), (010), and (001). Shallow channels were also produced on (010) surfaces and represent dislocations near the surface that are etched out along their lengths. The dislocation etch channel loops are often concentric, and emanate from (100) subgrain boundaries, which suggests that dislocation sources are in the boundaries. Data on subgrain misorientation and dislocation line orientation and arguments based on subgrain boundary energy minimization are used to characterize the dislocation structures of the subgrain boundaries. (010) subgrain boundaries are of the twist type, composed of networks of [100] and [001] screw dislocations. Both (100) and (001) subgrain boundaries are tilt walls composed of arrays of edge dislocation with Burgers vectors b=[100] and [001], respectively. The inferred slip systems are {001} 〈100〉, {100} 〈001〉, and {010} 〈100〉 in order of diminishing importance. Exploratory transmission electron microscopy is in accord with these identifications. The flow stresses associated with the development of the subgrain structure are estimated from the densities of free dislocations and from the subgrain dimensions. Inferred stresses range from 35 to 75 bars using the free dislocation densities and 20 to 100 bars using the subgrain sizes.