cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Analysis of Host-Cell Proteins in Biotherapeutic Proteins by LC/MS Approaches

A generic method for the identification and quantification of host-cell proteins (HCPs) in protein biopharmaceuticals is described. Therapeutic proteins and HCPs were converted to complex peptide mixtures following tryptic digestion. Comprehensive peptide separations were performed using online two-dimensional capillary liquid chromatography-(LC) involving high-pH reversed phase (RP)/low-pH RP separations. We applied this method to the analysis of HCP impurities in monoclonal antibody (mAb) preparations.
Targeting the nucleotide excision repair pathway for therapeutic applications

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the nucleotide excision repair pathway (NER) for therapeutic applications. The NER pathway involves a complex series of reactions and interactions that lead to the effective removal of damage from DNA and is crucial in maintaining genome integrity and stability. The role of NER in removing cisplatin chemotherapy-induced DNA damage and the demonstrated mechanism of resistance in multiple cancers involving increased repair presents the opportunity for intervention. Realization of this potential to sensitize cancers to cisplatin and reverse resistance of those cancers that develop insensitivity to this agent will require the development of specific agents capable of targeting the NER pathway. The possibility exists that the success of platinum therapy in the treatment of testicular cancer can be replicated in lung and ovarian cancers where the lack of response to platinum therapy is a major determinant of the dismal survival statistics associated with those diseases. Such a finding would be a watershed event that could dramatically alter treatments of human cancer.
Romanticism and ‘Exaggeration of Thought’

Listening to a strong critic gather up and reject a thought can disclose its appeal in a fresh way. In an aside that wants to relegate – but instead invites future work – a leading critic of modern poetry recently complained of deconstructive theory’s surreptitious embrace of ‘moral idealism,’ ‘since its newest versions are replete with the talk of “knowledge of the heart” and “the ethics of letting be.”’2 The epigraph above has that same inadvertent generativity for me. It comes from the Scottish reviewer Francis Jeffrey; and it attacks the exaggerative thinking of ‘our modern poets’ – our romantics – from the other, overactive, side of a shared topic of jussive command. No doubt beyond his own aim, Jeffrey suggests in this famous review that a common excess links the biblical ‘let there be light,’ the French order ‘let him die,’ and the deconstructive ‘letting be’ of a later theoretical moment that also comes across French.
Work-Related Outcomes of the Work-Family Interface: Why Organizations Should Care

Publisher Summary The objective of this chapter is to review the existing literature regarding outcomes associated with the work–family interface. First it reviews, work-related outcomes pertaining to the “negative side” (i.e., work–family conflict). Then reviews outcomes associated with the “positive side” (i.e., work–family enhancement) of the work–family interface. Next, a summary of multinational studies is presented. Finally, a summary and critique of the literature, as well as directions for future research, are provided. Throughout the chapter, work-related outcomes are grouped into four categories: job attitudes, career outcomes, performance-related outcomes, and withdrawal behaviors and intentions. It emphasizes research linking work–family conflict (WFC) to work-related outcomes. It states the relationship between WFC and job satisfaction that has received a wealth of empirical investigation, with the vast majority of research, indicating that greater WFC relates to less job satisfaction. Differential relationships are also found across dimensions of WIE with behavior-based WIF demonstrating the strongest relationship with job satisfaction. It explores that research has supported a negative relationship between WFC and job satisfaction, using diverse samples and measures of WFC/job satisfaction. Although few researchers examined job satisfaction at the facet level, those that did uncovered differential relationships across dimensions. Thus, future research should continue to explore how relationships vary across facets of job satisfaction.
Women's and Feminist Activism in East Asia

This entry focuses primarily on women's and feminist organizations in the Chinese, Japanese, and (South) Korean cultures during the modern period (late 1800s to the present), with some attention to the transnational frameworks of feminist activity that have developed therein. It situates these movements in the context of emerging nationalism, imperialism, modernization, and industrialization that shaped women's relationships to the state, to family life, to education and employment, and to other activities in the public sphere. It also notes the persistence of cultural conservatism and patriarchal attitudes toward women's role in society in spite of this tumultuous process of political, economic, and social development. Keywords: East Asia; feminisms; gender equality; women's rights; women's/feminist organizations
Persian Language Instruction

This survey of Persian language instruction in the United States and Canada does not pretend to be exhaustive in coverage, or to present the most up-to-date and complete information in all aspects. A questionnaire was sent in June 1971 to some 28 institutions of higher learning where Persian was known or suspected to be taught at the time. It was divided into 8 sections, each containing a number of specific questions. The section headings were: I. Background Information; II. Objectives of Persian-Language Teaching; III. Teaching Methods; IV. Teaching Materials; V. Teaching Staff; VI. Degrees and Curricula; VII. Applied Research; VIII. Recommendations and General Evaluation. The list of the institutions was compiled from various sources, including MESA bulletins.
Coarctation Index Predicts Recurrent Aortic Arch Obstruction Following Surgical Repair of Coarctation of the Aorta in Infants

Recurrent aortic arch obstruction (RAAO) remains a major cause of morbidity following surgical neonatal repair of coarctation of the aorta (CoA). Elucidating predictors of RAAO can identify high-risk patients and guide postoperative management. The Coarctation index (CoA-I), defined as the ratio of the diameter of the narrowest aortic arch segment to the diameter of the descending aorta, has been used to help diagnose RAAO in neonates following the Norwood Procedure. We sought to assess the predictive value of the CoA-I on RAAO after CoA repair in infants with biventricular circulation. Clinical, surgical, and echocardiographic data of infants with biventricular circulation following neonatal CoA repair between 2010 and 2014 were evaluated. RAAO was defined using a composite quantitative outcome variable: a blood pressure gradient >20, a peak aortic arch velocity >3.5 m/s by echocardiogram, or a catheter-measured peak-to-peak gradient >20 within 2 years of surgery. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used. Of the 68 subjects included in the analysis, 15 (22%) met criteria for RAAO. In the multivariate model, only CoA-I (OR 35.89, 95% CI 6.08-211.7, p < 0.0001) and use of patch material (OR 9.26, 95% CI 1.57-54.66, p = 0.014) were associated with increased risk of RAAO. The odds of developing RAAO was higher in patients with a CoA-I less than 0.7 (OR 33.8, 95% CI 5.7-199.5, p < 0.001). Postoperative CoA-I may be used to predict RAAO in patients with biventricular circulation after repair of CoA. Patients with a CoA-I less than 0.7 or patch aortoplasty warrant close follow-up.
Metallic superhydrophobic surfaces via thermal sensitization

Superhydrophobic surfaces (i.e., surfaces extremely repellent to water) allow water droplets to bead up and easily roll off from the surface. While a few methods have been developed to fabricate metallic superhydrophobic surfaces, these methods typically involve expensive equipment, environmental hazards, or multi-step processes. In this work, we developed a universal, scalable, solvent-free, one-step methodology based on thermal sensitization to create appropriate surface texture and fabricate metallic superhydrophobic surfaces. To demonstrate the feasibility of our methodology and elucidate the underlying mechanism, we fabricated superhydrophobic surfaces using ferritic (430) and austenitic (316) stainless steels (representative alloys) with roll off angles as low as 4° and 7°, respectively. We envision that our approach will enable the fabrication of superhydrophobic metal alloys for a wide range of civilian and military applications.
Coordinated regulation of growth, activity and transcription in natural populations of the unicellular nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterium Crocosphaera

The temporal dynamics of phytoplankton growth and activity have large impacts on fluxes of matter and energy, yet obtaining in situ metabolic measurements of sufficient resolution for even dominant microorganisms remains a considerable challenge. We performed Lagrangian diel sampling with synoptic measurements of population abundances, dinitrogen (N2) fixation, mortality, productivity, export and transcription in a bloom of Crocosphaera over eight days in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre (NPSG). Quantitative transcriptomic analyses revealed clear diel oscillations in transcript abundances for 34% of Crocosphaera genes identified, reflecting a systematic progression of gene expression in diverse metabolic pathways. Significant time-lagged correspondence was evident between nifH transcript abundance and maximal N2 fixation, as well as sepF transcript abundance and cell division, demonstrating the utility of transcriptomics to predict the occurrence and timing of physiological and biogeochemical processes in natural populations. Indirect estimates of carbon fixation by Crocosphaera were equivalent to 11% of net community production, suggesting that under bloom conditions this diazotroph has a considerable impact on the wider carbon cycle. Our cross-scale synthesis of molecular, population and community-wide data underscores the tightly coordinated in situ metabolism of the keystone N2-fixing cyanobacterium Crocosphaera, as well as the broader ecosystem-wide implications of its activities.
Deformation Tracking in 3D Point Clouds Via Statistical Sampling of Direct Cloud-to-Cloud Distances

Dense three-dimensional (3D) point clouds of infrastructure systems, generated from laser scanners or through multi-view photogrammetry, have significant potential as a source of nondestructive evaluation information. The growing maturity of these techniques make them capable of reconstructing photorealistic 3D models with accuracy on the millimeter scale, adequate for inspection and evaluation practices. Manual analysis of these point clouds is often time consuming and labor intensive and does not provide explicit information on structural performance and health conditions, highlighting the need for new techniques to efficiently analyze these models. This paper presents a new 3D point cloud change analysis approach for tracking small movements over time through localized spatial analytics. This technique uses a combination of a direct point-wise distance metric in conjunction with statistical sampling to extract structural deformations. By identifying and tracking these changes, mechanical deformations can be quantified along with the associated strains and stresses. These measurements can then be used to assess both service conditions and remaining system capacity. The results of a series of laboratory experiments designed to test the proposed approach are presented as well. The findings indicate measurement accuracy on the order of +/− 0.2 mm (95% confidence interval), making it suitable for accurate and automatic geometrical analyses and change detection in a variety of infrastructure inspection scenarios. Ongoing work seeks to connect this technique to automated finite element model updating, and to field test the measurement technique.
Trends in Pediatric Otolaryngology Disparities Research

Objectives To describe trends in disparities research within pediatric otolaryngology as evidenced by major meeting presentations and to compare observed trends with those in the realm of patient safety and quality improvement (PSQI). Study Design Retrospective review of presentations at national otolaryngology meetings. Setting Online review of meeting programs. Subjects and Methods Meeting programs from the American Society of Pediatric Otolaryngology, Triological Society, American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation, and Society for Ear, Nose and Throat Advances in Children from 2003 to 2016 were manually searched for pediatric oral and poster presentations addressing disparities and socioeconomic determinants of health, as well as PSQI. Presentation frequency was compared between categories and within each category over time. Results Of 11,311 total presentations, 3078 were related to the pediatric population, and 1945 (63.2%) of those were oral presentations. Disparities-related presentations increased from 0 in 2003 to 17 in 2016. From 2003 to 2009, 9 of 656 (1.4%) presentations involved disparities, as opposed to 70 of 2422 (2.9%) from 2010 to 2016 ( P = .03). The proportion of presentations regarding PSQI also increased: from 42 of 656 (6.4%) in 2003-2009 to 221 of 2422 (9.1%) in 2010-2016 ( P = .01). PSQI presentations remain more common than disparities presentations (9.1% vs 2.9%, P < .001). Conclusion Health care disparities are increasingly addressed in pediatric otolaryngology meeting presentations. Compared with the well-established realm of PSQI, disparities research remains nascent but is gaining attention. Health care reform and quality improvement efforts should recognize the role of socioeconomic factors and include strategies for addressing disparities.
Response by Baggish et al to Letter Regarding Article, “Competitive Sport Participation Among Athletes With Heart Disease: A Call for a Paradigm Shift in Decision Making”

We appreciate the interest of Dr d’Aloja and colleagues in our recent Perspective delineating the role of shared decision making in the care of athletes with cardiovascular disease.1 We concur with their assertion that decision making for competitive sport participation among athletes with heart disease is indeed a “troublesome issue.” This trouble stems in large part from the historical dominance of paternalistic decision making in the absence of adequate science to justify a 1-sided, clinician-dominated approach to health and longevity. d’Aloja and colleagues raise concerns about our call to engage key individuals other than the patient in the shared decision-making process. They cite …
Debt and vulnerability: indebtedness, institutions and smallholder agriculture in South India

Expanding access to credit remains a key central government strategy for promoting agricultural development and livelihood diversification in south India and more widely. Smallholders borrowing fro...
A demographic and epistemological divide: problematizing diversity and equity education in traditional, rural teacher education

AbstractThis study documents the experience of an Asian woman faculty in the rural Mountain West as it relates to difficulties teaching predominantly White preservice teachers about the importance of diversity and social justice to prepare them adequately with skills and materials for their P-12 classrooms in a rapidly changing world. The current challenge has its origins in US history (the macro-level) and continues into the present (the micro-level) beyond the preservice teachers to include college of education colleagues and administrators, and community members. Using nexus analysis to reveal this larger picture, the hope is to develop actions to keep the problem from persisting into the future. This study is geography-specific in that not all rural areas are predominantly White, nor do they all share the same worldview. The results suggest that rural university communities remain predominantly White in their demographic makeup and crucial actors often hold fast to Whiteness and White ignorance. This ...
Dissimilarity Based Query Selection for Efficient Preference Based IR Evaluation

The evaluation of Information Retrieval IR systems has recently been exploring the use of preference judgments over two lists of search results, presented side-by-side to judges. Such preference judgments have been shown to capture a richer set of relevance criteria than traditional methods of collecting relevance labels per single document. However, preference judgments over lists are expensive to obtain and are less reusable as any change to either side necessitates a new judgment. In this paper, we propose a way to measure the dissimilarity between two sides in side-by-side evaluation experiments and show how this measure can be used to prioritize queries to be judged in an offline setting. Our proposed measure, referred to as Weighted Ranking Difference WRD, takes into account both the ranking differences and the similarity of the documents across the two sides, where a document may, for example, be a URL or a query suggestion. We empirically evaluate our measure on a large-scale, real-world dataset of crowdsourced preference judgments over ranked lists of auto-completion suggestions. We show that the WRD score is indicative of the probability of tie preference judgments and can, on average, save 25% of the judging resources.
Classic Lowland Maya Political Organization: A Review

This paper reviews recent archaeological research concerning Classic Maya lowland political systems (ca. A.D. 250–1000). It focuses specifically on (1) subsistence practices revealed through the analysis of prehistoric climate, available resources, agricultural technologies, and diet; (2) population distribution, density, and size revealed through the analysis of settlement practices and architectural function; (3) social differentiation and interaction revealed through the analysis of burial practices, diet and health, architecture, and production, consumption, and exchange patterns; and (4) ancient Maya political economy (how it was funded) revealed through the analysis of community organization, ritual activities, the Classic Maya collapse, and warfare. It finally ends with a brief discussion of the future of Maya archaeology. A key factor that recurs throughout this review is the noticeable amount of variability that existed—varied resources, subsistence strategies, settlement practices, and social and political systems. An understanding of this variability is the key to appreciate fully the Classic Maya.
Recent V.L.F. Work at The U.S. Army Electronics Research and Development Laboratory

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the recent v.l.f. work at the U.S. army electronics research and development laboratory. At laboratory, v.l.f. phase measurements have mostly been carried out with Pierce's photographic recording technique, having a time constant of about 0.1 sec and recently also with automatic phase following receivers having a time constant of about 1 min. In 1960, the feasibility of synchronizing was demonstrated with a flying atomic clock two atomic clocks, one located at Rome, New York and the other on Oahu, Hawaii (8000 km), and keeping them synchronized via v.l.f. transmissions. An error of 3.7 μsec was measured when the flying clock returned to Rome, New York, after 4 days. V.l.f. measurements using the flying clock as a reference revealed a dispersion between 10.2 and 14.2 kc/s signals of 0.3 per cent and between 14.2 and 18.2 kc/s signals of 0.1 per cent with the lower frequency waves travelling the faster. The measurements also indicated a small nonreciprocity, with v.l.f. propagation in east–west direction being about 0.01 to 0.02 per cent faster than propagation in west–east direction. These experiments utilized double frequency transmissions from Haiku on Oahu, Hawaii and Forestport, New York carried out on a time-sharing base with a repetition period of 5 sec.
Second Colorado Mathematical Olympiad: April 19, 1985

The First Olympiad was such a success, it received such wonderful media coverage, that I was called into the office of my dean. He went straight to the point: “You ran the Olympiad, I solicited the prizes. What do we need the College of Education for?” “You want to join Education as a co-organizer?” I asked. “No, Engineering alone will run the Olympiad from now on.” “I cannot go to Dennis (Dean of Education), the only person who supported the Olympiad from the start, and tell him to get out.” “I’ll do it myself,” said my dean.
Savings, Private Property and Sound Money

The overarching goal of this paper is to provide an answer to the following question from the perspective of economists working within the Mengerian or Austrian tradition: What are the essential pre-requisites and pre-conditions for a process of economic growth and development to take place? In course of our discussion, we focus on three important pre-requisites. First, we look at the implications of the presence of time preference, especially for the importance that savings have for adopting longer and more productive production processes and boosting productivity. Second, we analyze the problem of economic calculation and isolate the important institutional pre-conditions that are necessary for the allocation of higher order goods: private property in higher order goods and the use of money. These institutional pre-conditions, as we discuss, are thus also essential for the process of economic growth. And finally, we discuss the importance of a sound monetary order for generating sustainable economic growth.
Applications of Dry Vapor Steam Cleaning Technique for Removal of Surface Contaminants

Abstract Dry vapor steam cleaning is an efficient and economical technique for removal of surface contaminants and for elimination of microbial contaminants. The technique uses dry steam (4–6% moisture) at high temperatures to emulsify hydrocarbon contaminants and to destroy microbial contaminants. Steam cleaning is a viable alternative to solvent cleaning in various applications, including cleaning of metal surfaces, electronic components, gilded art objects and anilox rollers, decontamination of microbially-contaminated surfaces, disinfection and sterilization, food decontamination, weed extermination, and radioactive decontamination.
The Recovery Model and Psychosis

Abstract For many people with psychotic symptoms or disorders, the chief goal is recovery and not to minimise the experience of symptoms. This chapter will highlight the importance of listening to patients, understanding what their goals are, and what recovery would ‘look like’ for them. It will provide a brief history and critical introduction to the various definitions of recovery and the tenets of the recovery model and how this differs around the globe. It will also present an overview of research evidence supporting the concept of recovery and suggestions on how to implement this approach in clinical practice, including a discussion of factors that may help or hinder recovery. The chapter includes case studies illustrating the central components of the recovery model, such as optimism about outcomes, the importance of empowerment and taking a collaborative approach to treatment.
Planar topological Hall effect from conical spin spirals

The planar topological Hall effect (PTHE) is known to arise from in-plane skyrmion tubes with an external magnetic field applied in the plane of the charge current. Here, we propose that the PTHE can robustly appear also from an unexpected source, the conical spin spiral, realizable in a variety of materials. We show that for both in-plane skyrmion tubes and conical spin spirals, the PTHE is twofold symmetric with respect to the magnetic-field angle, while it is fourfold symmetric for ${90}^{\ensuremath{\circ}}$-rotated domains of conical spin spirals. We predict that the symmetry and magnetic-field response of the PTHE can distinguish between the two scenarios, unambiguously probing the nature of the antisymmetric spin-exchange interaction and the resulting magnetic texture.
Shipwrecks, House-Fires, and Mourning Rings

This chapter positions Villette within the context of a range of eighteenth- and nineteenth-century novels concerning the possibilities and limitations of marriage between Roman Catholic and Protestant characters. I read Villette against literary predecessors such as Elizabeth Inchbald’s A Simple Story, Lady Georgiana Fullerton’s Grantley Manor, and Charles Dicken’s Barnaby Rudge. Despite Villette’s rejection of Roman Catholic celibacy, Lucy is left celibate through Paul Emanuel’s shipwreck, rather than finding her “true home” in a mixed-faith suburban household at Faubourg Clotilde. The novel’s ambiguously tragic ending represents uncertainty about whether such a house built on religious and national division could stand. This chapter, therefore, explores some of the challenges of building communities that cross religious and national boundaries.
Pediatric liver transplantation from a living donor in mitochondrial disease: Good outcomes in DGUOK deficiency?

DGUOK deficiency is an autosomal recessive mitochondrial disorder characterized by hepatic and neurological manifestations. In patients with liver failure, the decision to perform LT can be difficult due to the likelihood of progressive neurological disease. We present a case of a 9-month-old boy who had DGUOK deficiency (E227K/R118H genotype) intact neurological status and liver failure. His MRI indicated extensive white matter changes, which created hesitation to perform LT. After a multidisciplinary evaluation, he underwent LT from a living donor at 11 months of age. Six years post-transplant, he has had no significant complications and no progression of neurological symptoms. Our case supports that even in the presence of neurological MRI findings, but in the absence of significant neurological symptoms, LT represents a viable option in DGUOK-deficient patients who have the E227K/R118H mutation combination along with liver failure.
ACR Appropriateness Criteria® Thoracic Outlet Syndrome

Thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS) is the clinical entity that occurs with compression of the brachial plexus, subclavian artery, and/or subclavian vein at the superior thoracic outlet. Compression of each of these structures results in characteristic symptoms divided into three variants: neurogenic TOS, venous TOS, and arterial TOS, each arising from the specific structure that is compressed. The constellation of symptoms in each patient may vary, and patients may have more than one symptom simultaneously. Understanding the various anatomic spaces, causes of narrowing, and resulting neurovascular changes is important in choosing and interpreting radiological imaging performed to help diagnose TOS and plan for intervention. This publication has separated imaging appropriateness based on neurogenic, venous, or arterial symptoms, acknowledging that some patients may present with combined symptoms that may require more than one study to fully resolve. Additionally, in the postoperative setting, new symptoms may arise altering the need for specific imaging as compared to preoperative evaluation. The American College of Radiology Appropriateness Criteria are evidence-based guidelines for specific clinical conditions that are reviewed annually by a multidisciplinary expert panel. The guideline development and revision include an extensive analysis of current medical literature from peer reviewed journals and the application of well-established methodologies (RAND/UCLA Appropriateness Method and Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation or GRADE) to rate the appropriateness of imaging and treatment procedures for specific clinical scenarios. In those instances where evidence is lacking or equivocal, expert opinion may supplement the available evidence to recommend imaging or treatment.
10 – ABSTRACT SYSTEMS

Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on abstract systems. For all sets A, every function f on A is a transformation on A, only if f is one to one from A onto A. The set of transformations on a set has the following properties in regard to the operation composition of transformations; there is an identity, every element has an inverse, and the operation is not commutative. For every set S, the transformation i on S, that maps every element to itself is called the identity transformation on S. The set of all transformations on a set S forms a group in regard to the operation of composition of transformations. A ring is a mathematical system that consists of a nonempty set Q on which two binary operations are defined.
Mechanical, thermal, and corrosion properties of Cu-10Sn alloy prepared by laser-powder-bed-fusion additive manufacturing

Abstract Cu-10Sn (wt. %) alloy specimens were prepared by Laser-Powder-Bed-Fusion based Additive Manufacturing (LPBF-AM). The compositions, microstructures, together with mechanical, thermal, and corrosion properties of LPBF-AM Cu-10Sn specimens were investigated in the as-fabricated (AF) condition and after vacuum annealing (VA) at 600 ℃ and 800 ℃. The AF specimens exhibit smaller grain sizes and higher compression strength than those of VA specimens, consistent with the Hall-Petch equation. Thermal conductivity of the AF specimens is around 10 % and over 20 % higher than that of the VA specimens annealed at 800 ℃ and 600 ℃, respectively, which can be ascribed to the two-phase constituents of the AF specimens. The corrosion rate of the AF specimens is almost two times higher than that of the VA specimens due to the differences in passive layer, intergranular corrosion, and internal galvanic corrosion.
Gender differences in cutaneous melanoma: Demographics, prognostic factors, and survival outcomes

Background/Objectives Several recent studies have reported a considerably higher overall survival rate in females in various geographic regions This study further investigates the characteristics of melanoma that contribute to overall survival of women residing in the United States. Methods Chi‐Square, Kaplan‐Meier, and Cox regression models were used to analyze differences in demographics, treatment, and survival of invasive cutaneous melanoma in men and women diagnosed from 2004 to 2016 in the National Cancer Database (NCDB). Results 316,966 patients met inclusion criteria. Men had a significantly higher median age of diagnosis at 61 years (IQR: 51‐72) in comparison to women where the median age of diagnosis was 55 years (IQR: 43‐68) (p<0.0001). ). The most common primary site for men was the trunk (35.5%), whereas the lower extremities (LE) were the most common primary site for women (30.3%). Women had a higher 5‐year (82.6%) and 10‐year (73.1%) overall survival (OS) compared to 5‐year and 10‐year OS of 72.2% and 58.7%, respectively, in men (p<0.0001). When adjusting for confounders, female gender was independently associated with improved OS (ref: male HR= 0.791; 95%CI 0.773‐0.809; p<0.0001). Conclusion Overall, we conclude that female gender is an independent favorable prognostic factor for melanoma survival. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Olfactory Perception and Presence in a Virtual Reality Food Environment

Virtual reality (VR)’s effectiveness as a medium for training, education, research, entertainment and other uses is based on the fact that users can be deeply immersed and feel present within virtual environments. Unlike some other sensory modalities, olfaction has received little attention regarding its ability to add realism to VR environments. It is important to investigate under which circumstances olfactory stimuli are likely to add to user experience and help achieve the goals of VR applications. This study examined the role of scent in a VR-based buffet restaurant environment. French fry scented oil was administered while participants made a plate of food in the VR Buffet. Participants were asked afterwards to report on smells they perceived. Only 18% of participants perceived the olfactory stimulus, 78% of whom correctly identified it. Perceiving the olfactory stimulus was associated with higher levels of presence in the VR Buffet. Correctly identifying the olfactory stimulus was associated with heightened presence and increased likelihood of choosing french fries from the VR Buffet. These results demonstrate the potential for variability in scent perception and related user experience in VR. Additionally, this study highlights a need for future research into factors that underlie and moderate olfactory perception in VR environments.
Identifying and repurposing antiviral drugs against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 with in silico and in vitro approaches.

Coronavirus infectious diseases 2019 (COVID-19), a global pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has been a serious public health threat worldwide. So far, there are no drugs and vaccines whose efficacy has been well-proven. After the outbreak, there has been a massive search for anti-SARS-CoV-2 medications, focusing on approved drugs because repurposing approved drugs will take less time to reach clinical usage than new drugs. This article summarizes the studies using in silico and in vitro approaches to identify therapeutic candidates among approved drugs that target the SARS-CoV-2 life cycle.
Post-Cesarean Opioid Use after Implementation of Enhanced Recovery after Surgery Protocol.

OBJECTIVE This study aimed to evaluate whether implementation of an enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocol is associated with lower maternal opioid use after cesarean delivery (CD). STUDY DESIGN We performed a pre- and postimplementation (PRE and POST, respectively) study of an ERAS protocol for cesarean deliveries. ERAS is a multimodal, multidisciplinary perioperative approach. The four pillars of our protocol include education, pain management, nutrition, and early ambulation. Patients were counseled by their outpatient providers and given an educational booklet. Pain management included gabapentin and acetaminophen immediately prior to spinal anesthesia. Postoperatively patients received scheduled acetaminophen and ibuprofen. Oxycodone was initiated as needed 24 hours after spinal analgesia. Preoperative diet consisted of clear carbohydrate drink consumed 2 hours prior to scheduled operative time with advancement as tolerated immediately postoperation. Women with a body mass index (BMI) <40 kg/m2 and scheduled CD were eligible for ERAS. PRE patients were randomly selected from repeat cesarean deliveries (RCDs) at a single site from October 2017 to September 2018, BMI <40 kg/m2, without trial of labor. The POST cohort included women who participated in ERAS from October 2018 to June 2019. PRE and POST demographic and clinical characteristics were compared. Primary outcome was total postoperative morphine milligram equivalents (MMEs). Secondary outcomes included length of stay (LOS) and maximum postoperative day 2 (POD2) pain score. RESULTS All women in PRE (n = 70) had RCD compared with 66.2% (49/74) in POST. Median total postoperative MMEs were 140.0 (interquartile range [IQR]: 87.5-182.5) in PRE compared with 0.0 (IQR: 0.0-72.5) in POST (p < 0.001). Median LOS in PRE was 4.02 days (IQR: 3.26-4.27) compared with 2.37 days (IQR: 2.21-3.26) in POST (p < 0.001). Mean maximum POD2 pain score was 5.28 (standard deviation [SD] = 1.86) in PRE compared with 4.67 (SD = 1.63) in POST (p = 0.04). CONCLUSION ERAS protocol was associated with decreased postoperative opioid use, shorter LOS, and decreased pain after CD. KEY POINTS · ERAS protocol was associated with decreased postoperative opioid use after CD.. · ERAS protocol was associated with shorter length of stay after CD.. · ERAS protocol was associated with decreased postoperative pain after CD..
Knockdown of TRIM5α or TRIM11 increases lentiviral vector transduction efficiency of human Muller cells.

Abstract The goal of this study was to determine the expression and distribution of the host restriction factors (RFs) TRIM5α and TRIM11 in non-human primate (NHP) neural retina tissue and the human Muller cell line MIO-M1. In addition, experiments were performed to determine the effect of TRIM5α and TRIM11 knockdown on FIVGFP transduction of MIO-M1 cells with the goal of devising strategies to increase the efficiency of lentiviral (LV) gene delivery. Immunofluorescence (IF) studies indicated that TRIM5α and TRIM11 were localized predominantly in nuclei within the outer nuclear layer (ONL) and inner nuclear layer (INL) of NHP retina tissue. Double label IF indicated that TRIM5α and TRIM11 were localized to some of the retinal Muller cell nuclei. MIO-M1 cells expressed TRIM5α predominantly in the nucleus and TRIM11 primarily in the cytosol. FIVGFP transduction efficiency was significantly increased, at 4 and 7 days post transduction, in TRIM5α and TRIM11 knockdown clones (KD) compared to WT MIO-M1 cells. In addition, pretreatment with the proteasome inhibitor MG132 increased the transduction efficiency of FIVGFP in WT MIO-M1 cells. The nuclear translocation of NF-κB (p65), at 72 h post FIVGFP transduction, was enhanced in TRIM5α and TRIM11 KD clones. The expression of TRIM5α and TRIM11 in macaque neural retina tissue and MIO-M1 cells indicate the presence of these RFs in NHP retina and human Muller cells. Our data indicate that even partial knockdown of TRIM5α or TRIM11, or a short proteasome inhibitor pretreatment, can increase the transduction efficiency of a LV vector.
Clinical impact of component placement in manually instrumented total knee arthroplasty : a systematic review.

Aims The goal of the current systematic review was to assess the impact of implant placement accuracy on outcomes following total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Methods A systematic review was performed ...
Electrocatalytic activity and structural transformation of Ca2Sr2Mn2MO10-δ (M = Fe, Co)

The structural transformation between Ca2Sr2Mn2FeO10-δ and Ca2Sr2Mn2CoO10-δ and the enhancement in electrocatalytic activity is reported. Ca2Sr2Mn2FeO10-δ has a structure where corner-sharing (Mn/Fe)O6 octahedra form triple-layered stacks and Ca/Sr are located in spaces within and between the stacks. The incorporation of cobalt results in Ca2Sr2Mn2CoO10-δ, which has a greater concentration of oxygen vacancies and a quasi-one-dimensional structure, consisting of chains of CoO6–MnO6–MnO6–CoO6 polyhedra with distorted trigonal prismatic and octahedral geometry. Detailed investigation of the electrocatalytic activities of these materials indicates that these compounds are able to catalyze both half reactions of water splitting, namely, hydrogen-evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen-evolution reaction (OER). Ca2Sr2Mn2CoO10-δ shows enhanced electrocatalytic properties compared with Ca2Sr2Mn2FeO10-δ. The former material exhibits lower overpotential and greater electrochemically active surface area, as well as faster kinetics for both HER and OER processes.
Party Ballots, Reform, and the Transformation of America's Electoral System

This book explores the fascinating and puzzling world of nineteenth- and early twentieth-century American elections. It examines the strategic behavior of nineteenth-century party politicians and shows how their search for electoral victory led them to invent a number of remarkable campaign practices. Why were parties dedicated to massive voter mobilization? Why did presidential nominees wage front-porch campaigns? Why did officeholders across the country tie their electoral fortunes to the popularity of presidential candidates at the top of the ticket? Erik J. Engstrom and Samuel Kernell demonstrate that the defining features of nineteenth-century electoral politics were the product of institutions in the states that prescribed how votes were cast and how those votes were converted into political offices. Relying on a century's worth of original data, this book uncovers the forces propelling the nineteenth-century electoral system, its transformation at the end of the nineteenth century, and the implications of that transformation for modern American politics.
A Review of Tissue Proliferation of Rhododendron

Tissue proliferation (TP), a disorder first found in the mid-1980s on micropropagated rhododendrons, is characterized by the formation of gall-like or tumor-like growths on the lower portion of the stem above or below the soil line. The superficial similarity in appearance of the gall-like growths of TP to crown gall, incited by the bacterium Agrobacterium tumefaciens, has created considerable concern among growers and nursery inspectors. Significant economic loss has occurred when nurserymen destroyed plants showing the disorder rather than selling ones that they thought might be diseased.
Causes of perinatal death associated with gestational hypertension and proteinuria

Abstract This study determined the frequency of the individual placental and fetal disorders responsible for the excessive perinatal mortality rate associated with gestational hypertension and proteinuria. In a large prospective study of pregnancy 3.2 per cent of the mothers were classified as hypertensive when one or more measurements of gestational diastolic blood pressure were 85 mm. Hg or more and proteinuria was 1+ or greater. The perinatal mortality rate for these pregnancies was 37.9 per 1,000 births compared with 17.2 per 1,000 for normotensive gestations without proteinuria. Forty-two per cent of the total excess perinatal mortality rate in the pregnancies complicated by hypertension was due to large placental infarcts, 15 per cent to placental growth retardation, and 13 per cent to abruptio placentae. Both the frequency of occurrence and perinatal mortality rate increased for each of these disorders with increasing maternal blood pressures.
Positive periodic solutions of singular systems with a parameter

Abstract The existence and multiplicity of positive periodic solutions for second-order non-autonomous singular dynamical systems are established with superlinearity or sublinearity assumptions at infinity for an appropriately chosen parameter. Our results provide a unified treatment for the problem and significantly improve several results in the literature. The proof of our results is based on the Krasnoselskii fixed point theorem in a cone.
Chapter 6 Land institutions and land markets

Abstract Assignment of land rights affects equity and efficiency, determining among other things households' ability to generate subsistence and income, their social and economic status, incentives to exert effort and make investments, and access to financial markets and consumption-smoothing mechanisms. The chapter discusses costs and benefits of the transition towards individualized land rights. It reviews how characteristics of the agricultural production process, credit access, portfolio risk, and transaction costs affect functioning of land sales and rental markets. Policy conclusions are drawn concerning the transition from communal to individualized land rights, award of formal titles, improved functioning of land sales and rental markets, and redistributive land reform.
Alanine analogues of [D-Trp]CJ-15,208: novel opioid activity profiles and prevention of drug- and stress-induced reinstatement of cocaine-seeking behaviour

Background and Purpose The novel macrocyclic peptide cyclo[Phe-D-Pro-Phe-D-Trp] ([D-Trp]CJ-15,208) exhibits κ opioid (KOP) receptor antagonist activity in both in vitro and in vivo assays. The four alanine analogues of this peptide were synthesized and characterized both in vitro and in vivo to assess the contribution of different amino acid residues to the activity of [D-Trp]CJ-15,208. Experimental Approach The peptides were synthesized by a combination of solid phase peptide synthesis and cyclization in solution. The analogues were evaluated in vitro in receptor binding and functional assays, and in vivo with mice using a tail-withdrawal assay for antinociceptive and opioid antagonist activity. Mice demonstrating extinction of cocaine conditioned-place preference (CPP) were pretreated with selected analogues to evaluate prevention of stress or cocaine-induced reinstatement of CPP. Key Results The alanine analogues displayed pharmacological profiles in vivo distinctly different from [D-Trp]CJ-15,208. While the analogues exhibited varying opioid receptor affinities and κ and μ opioid receptor antagonist activity in vitro, they produced potent opioid receptor-mediated antinociception (ED50 = 0.28–4.19 nmol, i.c.v.) in vivo. Three of the analogues also displayed KOP receptor antagonist activity in vivo. Pretreatment with an analogue exhibiting both KOP receptor agonist and antagonist activity in vivo prevented both cocaine- and stress-induced reinstatement of cocaine-seeking behaviour in the CPP assay in a time-dependent manner. Conclusions and Implications These unusual macrocyclic peptides exhibit in vivo opioid activity profiles different from the parent compound and represent novel compounds for potential development as therapeutics for drug abuse and possibly as analgesics.
Hormonal Control of Implantation in the Rat: Inhibition by Luteinizing Hormone‐Releasing Hormone and its Analogues

Chronic treatment of pregnant rats with luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LH-RH) and its analogues (Analogue I: des-Gly10-LH-RH-ethylamide; Analogue II: des-Gly10-[D-Ala6]-LH-RH-ethylamide) inhibited implantation of the ovum. Analogues I and II were 4.5 and 173 times potent than native LH-RH in inhibiting implantation respectively. On Day 8 of the treatment with Analogue II, the pituitary glands of the pregnant rats contained approximately 10% of the amount of LH and FSH found in intact pregnant rats. By contrast, serum levels of LH were significantly higher and those of FSH significantly lower in Analogue II-treated rats than in control rats. The ovaries of Analogue II-treated rats were lighter than those of control rats because of smaller corporalutea and less developed follicles. Peripheral serum concentrations of progesterone in rats treated with LH-RH and its analogues were significantly lower than those in control rats. The peripheral serum concentration of progesterone declined earlier in rats treated with LH-RH and Analogue I than it did in rats treated with Analogue II. The inhibitory affect of Analogue II was overcome by concurrent treatment with the following combinations of hormones: progesterone + oestradiol; progesterone + human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG); prolactin + oestradiol; and prolactin + hCG. Treatment with progesterone or prolactin alone did not overcome the effect of Analogue II. These results indicate that Analogue II stimulates the production and release of LH and release of FSH to cause high ratios of LH/prolactin and LH/FSH. The induced imbalance of gonadotropins suppresses the development of ovarian follicles and corpora lutea and reduces secretion of both oestrogen and progesterone. The resulting low levels of ovarian steroids cause a delay in implantation.
Introduction to topic detection and tracking

The Topic Detection and Tracking (TDT) research program has been running for five years, starting with a pilot study and including yearly open and competitive evaluations since then. In this chapter we define the basic concepts of TDT and provide historical context for the concepts. In describing the various TDT evaluation tasks and workshops, we provide an overview of the technical approaches that have been used and that have succeeded.
Zn disrupts Cd-induced stimulation of apical choline uptake in cultured choroid plexus independent of GSH availability (685.4)

In cultured neonatal rat choroid plexus we showed cadmium (Cd) stimulated apical choline uptake and induced oxidative stress and glutathione (GSH) synthesis. Zinc (Zn) supplementation disrupted Cd-...