cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Marker expression reveals heterogeneity of spermatogonia in the neonatal mouse testis

Prospermatogonia transition into type A spermatogonia, which provide the source for the spermatogonial stem cell (SSC) pool. A percentage of these type A spermatogonia then differentiate to enter meiosis as spermatocytes by ~P10. It is currently unclear when these distinct populations are initially formed in the neonatal testis, and when the expression of markers both characteristic of and required for the adult undifferentiated and differentiating states are established. In this study, we compared expression of known spermatogonial cell fate markers during normal development and in response to the differentiation signal provided by retinoic acid (RA). We found that some markers for the undifferentiated state (ZBTB16/PLZF and CDH1) were expressed in nearly all spermatogonia from P1 through P7. In contrast, differentiation markers (STRA8 and KIT) appeared in a subset of spermatogonia at P4, coincident with the onset of RA signaling. GFRA1, which was present in nearly all prospermatogonia at P1, was only retained in STRA8/KIT− spermatogonia. From P4 through P10, there was a great deal of heterogeneity in the male germ cell population in terms of marker expression, as markers characteristic of the undifferentiated (except GFRA1) and differentiating states were co-expressed through this interval. After P10, these fate markers diverged to mark distinct populations of undifferentiated and differentiating spermatogonia, and this pattern was maintained in the juvenile (P18) and adult (P>60) testis. Taken together, these results reveal that the spermatogonia population is heterogeneous during the first wave of spermatogenesis, and indicate that neonatal spermatogonia may not serve as an ideal substitute for studying the function of adult spermatogonia.
Radiofrequency Ablation–Assisted Robotic Laparoscopic Partial Nephrectomy Without Renal Hilar Vessel Clamping Versus Laparoscopic Partial Nephrectomy: A Comparison of Perioperative Outcomes

Abstract Objectives: Radiofrequency ablation (RFA)–assisted laparoscopic partial nephrectomy (LPN) may allow for improved hemostasis without need for renal hilar vessel clamping and elimination of warm ischemia to the kidney. We compare outcomes in patients undergoing radiofrequency ablation-assisted robotic clampless partial nephrectomy (RF-RCPN) and LPN. Methods: Thirty-six patients and 42 patients underwent LPN and RF-RCPN, respectively. In the RF-RCPN group, the Habib 4× RFA device was used to coagulate a margin of normal parenchyma around the renal mass to allow excision of the mass within a bloodless plane. Unlike in the LPN group, renal hilar vascular occlusion was not performed in the RF-RCPN group. Results: Tumors treated in the RF-RCPN group tended to be larger (2.8 vs. 2.0 cm) and more often endophytic (52.6% vs. 16.1%). Collecting system reconstruction occurred more often in the RF-RCPN group (78.6% vs. 30.6%). Operative duration was longer in the RF-RCPN group (373 vs. 250 minutes), but this ...
A note on the spreading rate and virtual origin of a plane turbulent jet

The reported experimental coefficients describing the spreading rate and virtual origin of a plane turbulent jet exhibit substantial scatter. The hypothesis is made that the basic reason for these variations is that the growth of the jet is not linear on a large scale. Existing experimental results are used to support this hypothesis.
Meshes: the next generation

Building complex meshes for large-scale numerical simulations presents immense difficulties in exploiting high-performance computers. Industry and research leaders describe the current state of the art for generating meshes for such large scientific problems. This is followed by a panel and general audience discussion of the algorithmic and architectural issues surrounding the generation of meshes with 10/sup 7/ to 10/sup 9/ grid points. (The terms "mesh" and "grid" are used interchangeably in the literature). >
Environmental Factors Related to the Distribution, Abundance, and Life History Characteristics of Mountain Whitefish in Idaho

Abstract Mountain whitefish Prosopium williamsoni are a broadly distributed native salmonid in western North America, but comparatively little investigation has been made regarding their population characteristics. We surveyed 2,043 study sites to assess whether physiochemical stream conditions affected mountain whitefish distribution and abundance in southern Idaho, and at 20 of these sites life history characteristics were also estimated. A total of 581 sites were dry or contained too little water to support any fish species. Mountain whitefish were captured at 106 sites; for these sites only, mean abundance was 2.2/100 m2. They were rarely present when mean wetted width was less than 10 m but were almost always present when wetted width was greater than 15 m. We estimated that within the study area there were approximately 4.7 ± 1.8 million mountain whitefish, mostly in fifth- to seventh-order streams, which comprised only 13% of the total stream kilometers but accounted for 93% of the total abundance ...
Early experience treating thoracic disc herniations using a modified transfacet pedicle-sparing decompression and fusion

Object Symptomatic thoracic disc herniations (TDHs) are relatively uncommon and are typically treated with an anterior approach. Various posterior surgical approaches have been developed to treat TDH, but the gold standard remains transthoracic decompression. Certain patients have comorbidities and herniation aspects that are not optimally treated with an anterior approach. A transfacet pedicle-sparing approach was first described in 1995, but outcomes and complications have not been well described. The objective of this study was to assess outcomes and complications in a consecutive series of patients with TDH undergoing posterior transfacet decompression and discectomy with posterior instrumentation and fusion. Methods Eighteen consecutive patients undergoing operative management of TDH were identified from a tertiary care referral database. All patients underwent a transfacet pedicle-sparing decompression and segmental instrumentation with interbody fusion. Outcomes and complications were retrospective...
Learning with Hidden Information

In many classification problems, there exists additional information which is available during training but not available during testing. In this paper we denote such information as hidden information, and study how to incorporate it to improve the learning performance. Despite its importance, learning with hidden information has not attracted enough attention from the field and existing work in this area remains limited. In this paper we make improvements from two perspectives. First, unlike the related work, we propose a general framework to capture hidden information, which is not limited to a specific type of classifier but is widely applicable to different classifiers. Second, borrowing the tool of Bootstrap widely used in statistics, we are able to numerically quantify the benefits and identify the most useful hidden information. Experiments on both digit and object recognition demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.
Failure to thrive: current clinical concepts.

1. Arthur C. Jaffe, MD* 1. *Associate Professor, Division of General Pediatrics, Oregon Health & Science University, Doernbecher Children's Hospital, Portland, OR. After completing this article, readers should be able to: 1. Characterize the limitations of the classic dichotomy of “nonorganic” versus “organic” failure to thrive (FTT). 2. Recognize that FTT is not a diagnosis but rather a physical sign of inadequate nutrition to support growth. 3. Know potential sequelae of FTT. 4. Understand how the diagnostic process must account for the multifactorial nature of FTT. 5. Describe a systems-based, multidisciplinary approach to treatment of FTT. 6. Discuss potential adverse effects of nutritional repletion of children who fail to thrive. Failure to thrive (FTT) or growth failure has long been a major focus of attention and critical thought for pediatricians. Over many years, consensus has evolved about its cause, outcome, diagnosis, and management. By the last half of the 20th century, mainstream thinking held that FTT developed by one of two alternative mechanisms. On rare occasions, an underlying medical condition could lead to a failure of growth, which would present as “organic” FTT. In such cases, correct management of this underlying disorder would allow the patient to resume his or her normal growth. However, in most FTT cases, as many as 90% in some series, it was believed that no underlying medical diagnosis could be made. Affected children were said to have “nonorganic” FTT (NOFTT). This term and its synonym, “psychosocial” FTT, were often used as euphemisms to imply that the child was intrinsically normal and healthy and that the observed growth failure was due to environmental issues, most commonly family factors such as neglect, indifference, or other failures of parenting. This construct led to children receiving extensive medical evaluations to rule out diagnosable conditions and to prolonged hospitalizations that …
Evaluation of CLM4 Solar Radiation Partitioning Scheme Using Remote Sensing and Site Level FPAR Datasets

This paper examines a land surface solar radiation partitioning scheme, i.e., that of the Community Land Model version 4 (CLM4) with coupled carbon and nitrogen cycles. Taking advantage of a unique 30-year fraction of absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (FPAR) dataset, derived from the Global Inventory Modeling and Mapping Studies (GIMMS) normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) data set, multiple other remote sensing datasets, and site level observations, we evaluated the CLM4 FPAR's seasonal cycle, diurnal cycle, long-term trends, and spatial patterns. Our findings show that the model generally agrees with observations in the seasonal cycle, long-term trends, and spatial patterns, but does not reproduce the diurnal cycle. Discrepancies also exist in seasonality magnitudes, peak value months, and spatial heterogeneity. We identify the discrepancy in the diurnal cycle as, due to, the absence of dependence on sun angle in the model. Implementation of sun angle dependence in a one-dimensional (1-D) model is proposed. The need for better relating of vegetation to climate in the model, indicated by long-term trends, is also noted. Evaluation of the CLM4 land surface solar radiation partitioning scheme using remote sensing and site level FPAR datasets provides targets for future development in its representation of this naturally complicated process.
An artificial intelligent algorithm for tumor detection in screening mammogram

Cancerous tumor mass is one of the major types of breast cancer. When cancerous masses are embedded in and camouflaged by varying densities of parenchymal tissue structures, they are very difficult to be visually detected on mammograms. This paper presents an algorithm that combines several artificial intelligent techniques with the discrete wavelet transform (DWT) for detection of masses in mammograms. The AI techniques include fractal dimension analysis, multiresolution Markov random field, dogs-and-rabbits algorithm, and others. The fractal dimension analysis serves as a preprocessor to determine the approximate locations of the regions suspicious for cancer in the mammogram. The dogs-and-rabbits clustering algorithm is used to initiate the segmentation at the LL subband of a three-level DWT decomposition of the mammogram. A tree-type classification strategy is applied at the end to determine whether a given region is suspicious for cancer. The authors have verified the algorithm with 322 mammograms in the Mammographic Image Analysis Society Database. The verification results show that the proposed algorithm has a sensitivity of 97.3% and the number of false positives per image is 3.92.
Development of the insect pathogenic alga Helicosporidium.

This study examined the morphogenesis and replication dynamics of the different life stages (cysts, filamentous cells, vegetative cells) of Helicosporidium sp., a non-photosynthetic, entomopathogenic alga. The isolate (SjHe) used originated from an in- fected black fly larva. Filamentous cell transformation into vegetative cells and autosporulation during vegetative cell replication were observed under controlled in vitro conditions. The transformation process was initiated by a partial swelling of the filamentous cell along with the reorganization of the nuclear material. Two subsequent nuclear and cell divisions resulted in the release of 4 rod-shaped daughter cells, which divided into oval to spherical vegetative cells. These underwent several cycles of autosporogenic cell division. Multiple- passaged vegetative cell cultures formed non-motile, adherent cell clusters (palmelloid colonies). Vegetative replication dynamics were also observed in 2 experimental noctuid hosts, Spodoptera exigua and Helicoverpa zea. The average density of helicosporidial cells produced per microliter hemolymph exceeded cell concentrations obtained in vitro by 15- and 46-fold in S. exigua and H. zea, respec- tively. Cyst morphogenesis was only observed in the hemolymph, whereas no cysts differentiated at various in vitro conditions.
Replication: A View From the Streets

I support a replication policy because it would require political scientists to document carefully how they have generated their findings. Yes, creating a replication data set is a little extra work, but it is work researchers should be doing in the first place. Compensating for this cost are two benefits: The author is more sure that the results are valid, and the study has greater credibility simply because the author is willing to release the data and documentation to others. In two cases
Polysubstance use is associated with deficits in substance-free reinforcement in college students.

Objective:Diminished availability of substance-free reinforcement is a behavioral economic risk factor for dependence. The goal of this study was to determine the incremental effects of increasing levels of substance use (heavy drinking [HD], heavy drinking and marijuana use [HD + MJ], and polysubstance use) on levels of reinforcement related to substance-free activities and related constructs among college students.Method:Participants were 205 college students (53% female; 65% White, 26% African American; Mage = 19.5 years) who reported at least one heavy drinking episode (five/four or more drinks on one occasion for a man/woman) in the past month. Participants reported on past-month illicit drug use and substance-free activity reinforcement, time allocation, and depression.Results:A series of analyses of covariance indicated that heavy drinking, marijuana use, and other illicit drug (polysubstance) use was associated with lower total and peer-related substance-free reinforcement; less time spent exercis...
A robust finite element formulation for solving electromagnetic scattering by complex bodies of revolution

A novel formulation for solving electromagnetic scattering by bodies of revolution is presented. The method is accurate and robust enough to handle objects with complex shapes and material properties including objects having sharp edges, curved surfaces, and high aspect ratios. These objects may include perfect conductors, lossy dielectric or magnetic materials, and a multilayered coating which can be tapered in thickness. The formulation avoids the use of the coupled azimuthal projections and, instead, solves for all three components of either the electric or magnetic field using a node-based finite-element approach. Results are presented for two examples. >
African American Men's Perceptions of Factors Influencing Health-Information Seeking

The lack of health information is one of several factors implicated in the poor health status of African American men. Although a growing body of research delineates the obstacles to African Americans' engagement in preventive health behaviors, relatively little is known about the barriers that adversely affect men's involvement in health-information seeking. This article presents qualitative data on African American men's information seeking through an analysis of focus group data. Three research questions are addressed: (a) What health-information concerns and needs do African American men have? (b) How do African American men describe their efforts to obtain health information? and (c) What factors facilitate or inhibit health-information seeking by African American men? The implications of the data and suggestions for future research are provided.
Local drug delivery to prevent restenosis.

Introduction Despite significant advances in vascular biology, bioengineering, and pharmacology, restenosis remains a limitation to the overall efficacy of vascular reconstructions, both percutaneous and open. Although the pathophysiology of intimal hyperplasia is complex, a number of drugs and molecular tools have been identified that can prevent restenosis. Moreover, the focal nature of this process lends itself to treatment with local drug administration. This article provides a broad overview of current and future techniques for local drug delivery that have been developed to prevent restenosis after vascular interventions. Methods A systematic electronic literature search using PubMed was performed for all accessible published articles through September 2012. In an effort to remain current, additional searches were performed for abstracts presented at relevant societal meetings, filed patents, clinical trials, and funded National Institutes of Health awards. Results The efficacy of local drug delivery has been demonstrated in the coronary circulation with the current clinical use of drug-eluting stents. Until recently, however, drug-eluting stents were not found to be efficacious in the peripheral circulation. Further pursuit of intraluminal devices has led to the development of balloon-based technologies, with a recent surge in trials involving drug-eluting balloons. Early data appear encouraging, particularly for treatment of superficial femoral artery lesions, and several devices have recently received the Conformite Europeene mark in Europe. Investigators have also explored the periadventitial application of biomaterials containing antirestenotic drugs, an approach that could be particularly useful for surgical bypass or endarterectomy. In the past, systemic drug delivery has been unsuccessful; however, there has been recent exploration of intravenous delivery of drugs designed specifically to target injured or reconstructed arteries. Our review revealed a multitude of additional interesting strategies, including >65 new patents issued during the past 2 years for approaches to local drug delivery focused on preventing restenosis. Conclusions Restenosis after intraluminal or open vascular reconstruction remains an important clinical problem. Success in the coronary circulation has not translated into solutions for the peripheral arteries. However, our literature review reveals a number of promising approaches, including drug-eluting balloons, periadventitial drug delivery, and targeted systemic therapies. These and other innovations suggest that the future is bright and that a solution for preventing restenosis in peripheral vessels will soon be at hand.
A Review of Non-Immune Mediated Transfusion Reactions

Observed Technique Study Although the chi-squared analysis showed plastic vs metal cannulas as being significantly different, the logistic regression analysis showed this factor to be noncontributory. Logistic regression analysis revealed that the key variables were site of draw and fullness of the tubes. The antecubital fossa may be more favorable than the distal arm because of the faster flow due to its increased diameter and reduced resistance. In addition, smaller cannulas may be used for distal blood draws. The fullness of the tubes may affect hemolysis through the poorly understood effect of pneumatic tube transportation. Further investigation is necessary to elucidate the causes. The endpoint for hemolysis used in this study, though not quantifiable, is true to life. Samples are rejected not because their spectrophotometer reading indicates excessive hemolysis, but because the technician perceives it to be hemolyzed. Newer clinical chemistry analyzers have built in “hemolysis” flags that reject specimens that exceed a predetermined spectrophotometric standard for hemolysis. The barriers to reducing hemolysis include personal preference and feasibility. It is common in emergency medicine to draw blood samples from the distal arm when placing IVs to reduce the number of venipunctures. Emergency department personnel avoid placing the IV in the antecubital fossa because of the possibility of the catheter bending and obstructing infusions when the patient moves their arm. They are more likely to draw blood from the distal arm. Likewise, it may be difficult to fill a specimen tube despite one’s best efforts. Use of a standardized protocol for blood drawing can reduce the rate of preanalytic hemolysis by more than 7-fold. Hemolysis can best be reduced by drawing blood from the antecubital fossa and by completely filling the tube Acknowledgements
Dietary licorice root supplementation reduces diet-induced weight gain, lipid deposition, and hepatic steatosis in ovariectomized mice without stimulating reproductive tissues and mammary gland.

Scope We studied the impact of dietary supplementation with licorice root components on diet-induced obesity, fat accumulation, and hepatic steatosis in ovariectomized C57BL/6 mice as a menopause model. Materials and methods We evaluated the molecular and physiological effects of dietary licorice root administered to ovariectomized C57BL/6 mice as root powder (LRP), extracts (LRE), or isolated isoliquiritigenin (ILQ) on reproductive (uterus and mammary gland) and nonreproductive tissues important in regulating metabolism (liver, perigonadal, perirenal, mesenteric, and subcutaneous fat). Quantitative outcome measures including body weight, fat distribution (magnetic resonance imaging), food consumption, bone density and weight (Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry), and gene expression were assessed by the degree of restoration to the preovariectomized health state. We characterized histological (H&E and oil red O staining) and molecular properties (expression of certain disease markers) of these tissues, and correlated these with metabolic phenotype as well as blood levels of bioactives. Conclusion Although LRE and ILQ provided some benefit, LRP was the most effective in reducing body weight gain, overall fat deposition, liver steatosis, and expression of hepatic lipid synthesis genes following ovariectomy. Our data demonstrate that licorice root provided improvement of multiple metabolic parameters under conditions of low estrogen and high-fat diets without stimulating reproductive tissues.
Stochastically Perturbed Bifurcations

The methods of normal form and stochastic averaging are used appropriately to study nonlinear stochastic dynamical systems. General results obtained by those procedures are applied to study the effect of stochastic excitations on nonlinear systems which exhibit co-dimension one bifurcations. As an application the stochastic version of the Lorenz model is considered.
Novel small-molecular therapeutics for rheumatoid arthritis.

Purpose of reviewSince the introduction of biologic therapies into the treatment paradigm of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), there has been hope that oral small molecule immune modulators would be developed that would have a risk : benefit profile at least similar to biologic therapies, be more convenien
Mouse plantar flexor muscle size and strength after inactivity and training.

Abstract : Introduction: Losses in muscle mass and strength may affect an astronaut's safety; therefore, it is of utmost importance to optimize countermeasures to minimize atrophy and strength loss during space flight. The main purpose of this study was to determine if high force eccentric or isometric contractions performed by the plantar fl exor group during hind limb suspension would preserve muscle mass and strength. Methods: Plantar flexor muscles of mice were trained with either eccentric or isometric contractions every other day during a 10-d hind limb suspension period. Pre- and post-suspension stimulation frequency- and angular velocity-dependent measurements of torque of the plantar flexors, soleus twitch (Pt) and tetanic (Po) force, bodyweight, and muscle wet weight measurements were made. Results: The 19 and 26% losses in gastrocnemius and soleus muscle wet weights, respectively, were not attenuated with eccentric or isometric contractions. Neither eccentric nor isometric contractions attenuated the soleus muscles 30% isometric force loss after hind limb suspension. Despite losses in muscle mass, there was no decrease in the force produced by the plantar flexor muscle group after hind limb suspension. Discussion: Hind limb suspension decreased both gastrocnemius and soleus mass, and in vitro soleus force production. However, in vivo force production of the plantar flexor muscle group did not decrease, which may be explained by a shift in the isometric torque: ankle angle relationship. The use of eccentric or isometric contractions as a countermeasure to offset muscle mass and strength requires further investigation as neither was capable of maintaining soleus muscle force production, or gastrocnemius and soleus muscle mass during hind limb suspension.
Layered Reflections on a Written Story Through Real-Time Conversation

In this work, the authors develop a dialogical method for generating layered reflections about a written story. The authors then apply this method to an existing narrative so as to discover important, but nonobvious meanings that might facilitate the psychological growth of the storyteller. The dialogical interchange used here to prompt deeper reflections will hopefully generalize to anyone using this method.
High density quantum dots by direct laser fabrication

We report a study of direct laser fabrication that produces quantum dots with their density higher than the critical density without appearance of large clumps. Atomic force microscopy is used to image GaAs(001) surfaces that are irradiated by high power laser pulses interferentially. The analysis suggests that high density quantum dots be fabricated directly on semiconductor surfaces during epitaxial growth processes.
Association of diabetes with tooth loss in Hispanic/Latino adults: findings from the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos

Objectives To investigate the association between diabetes mellitus and missing teeth in Hispanic/Latino adults from diverse heritage groups who reside in the USA. Research design and methods The Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL) is a multicenter, population-based study of 18–74 years old who underwent a physical and oral examination (n=15 945). Glycemic status was categorized as diabetes, impaired, or normal, based on medication use, and American Diabetes Association criteria for fasting glucose and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c). HbA1c 7% indicated uncontrolled diabetes. We estimated ORs and 95% CIs for missing >9 teeth and being edentulous (missing all natural teeth), after adjustment for age, income, education, Hispanic background, study site/center, nativity, last dental visit, health insurance, diet quality, cigarette smoking, obesity, periodontitis, and C reactive protein. Results Persons with uncontrolled diabetes had a significant increased likelihood of missing >9 teeth and being edentulous as compared with persons with normal glycemic status (adjusted OR=1.92, 95% CI 1.44 to 2.55 and adjusted OR=1.73, 95% CI 1.22 to 2.46, respectively). The association appeared to be stronger at younger ages (18–44 years old; p for interaction Conclusions Dentists should be aware of their Hispanic patients9 diabetes status and whether or not they are well controlled, because these may affect tooth loss and impair oral function, which can lead to poor nutrition and complications of diabetes.
The Practical Application of Soviet Ideas on Sex Differences

We mentioned in the introduction that efforts have been made to tackle the demographic crisis on a practical as well as an ideological level. Yet improvements in material conditions do not automatically increase the birth-rate; indeed, Soviet demographers have shown that they can have the opposite effect.1 They have, accordingly, argued that it is also necessary to convince people that they want more children — to form in them, as one writer put it, ‘a thirst for fatherhood and motherhood’.2
Conclusion: Implications for EU Studies and the Debate over the Future of Integration

This book addressed a crucial yet currently undertheorized research question: what makes the EU viable? Such a task was shown to matter not only because of the succession of crises, resulting at times in inanition, that the European integration project has endured in the past six decades. Understanding viability is also essential in order to judge the merits of the current plethora of schemes for reforming the EU order. The Janus-faced nature of the viability problem was reflected in the twofold analytical concern with, firstly, explaining the historical evolution of successful integration before, secondly, considering how certain transformative changes would affect this compound political system. The former was seen to follow, in the conceptual vocabulary of this study, a path of dynamic equilibrium; the second, a process theorized as voluntary centralization, was revealed as fraught with danger.
How Did Galaxies Come into Existence

How can we understand the origin of galaxies? The problem is not unlike that of the origin of life on earth. We see a wide variety of species in the world today. The fossil records tells us that species were different in the past. At very early times only very simple single celled organisms existed. Biologists studying the origin of life must ask themselves how so much complexity and diversity emerged from simple beginnings. They must also ask what got the process going in the first place.
A United States national prioritization framework for tree species vulnerability to climate change

Climate change is one of several threats that will increase the likelihood that forest tree species could experience population-level extirpation or species-level extinction. Scientists and managers from throughout the United States Forest Service have cooperated to develop a framework for conservation priority-setting assessments of forest tree species. This framework uses trait data and predictions of expected climate change pressure to categorize and prioritize 339 native tree species for conservation, monitoring, management and restoration across all forested lands in the contiguous United States and Alaska. The framework allows for the quantitative grouping of species into vulnerability classes that may require different management and conservation strategies for maintaining the adaptive genetic variation of the species within each group. This categorization is based on risk factors relating to the species’ (1) exposure to climate change, (2) sensitivity to climate change, and (3) capacity to adapt to climate change. We used K-means clustering to group species into seven classes based on these three vulnerability dimensions. The most vulnerable class encompassed 35 species with high scores for all three vulnerability dimensions. These will require the most immediate conservation intervention. A group of 43 species had high exposure and sensitivity, probably requiring conservation assistance, while a group of 69 species had high exposure and low adaptive capacity, probably needing close monitoring. This assessment tool should be valuable for scientists and managers determining which species and populations to target for monitoring efforts and for pro-active gene conservation and management activities.
Radar-Communications Convergence: Coexistence, Cooperation, and Co-Design

In this paper, we introduce a radar information metric, the estimation rate, that allows the radar user to be considered in a multiple-access channel enabling performance bounds for joint radar-communications coexistence to be derived. Traditionally, the two systems were isolated in one or multiple dimensions. We categorize new attempts at spectrum-space-time convergence as either coexistence, cooperation, or co-design. The meaning and interpretation of the estimation rate and what it means to alter it are discussed. Additionally, we introduce and elaborate on the concept of “not all bits are equal,” which states that communications rate bits and estimation rate bits do not have equal value. Finally, results for joint radar-communications information bounds and their accompanying weighted spectral efficiency measures are presented.
Monocular diplopia-associated migraine-like headache induced by nicotine withdrawal.

Key Clinical Message We describe an extremely rare case of migraine-associated monocular diplopia developed in a 23-year-old man after sudden cessation of smoking. The physical examination and brain MRI scan were unremarkable. The symptoms resolved after starting nicotine patch. We reviewed the literature and discussed the diagnosis and possible mechanism of this phenomenon.
The Isolability of Syntactic Processing

In this chapter we explore a controversial hypothesis about the nature of the syntactic processing system. The hypothesis, roughly stated, is that some of the procedures that create grammatical patterns in sentences are in an important sense indifferent to the content of the symbols they manipulate, in somewhat the same way that the procedures for long multiplication are indifferent to the numbers involved in the computation. The purpose of this exploration is to uncover the linguistic or cognitive bases of a phenomenon noted by many, including Edward Sapir, who described it in this way: All languages evince a curious instinct for the development of one or more particular grammatical processes at the expense of others, tending always to lose sight of any explicit functional value that the process may have had in the first instance, delighting, it would seem, in the sheer play of its means of expression .... This feeling for form as such, freely expanding along predetermined lines and greatly inhibited in certain directions by the lack of controlling types of patterning, should be more clearly understood than it seems to be... these submerged and powerfully controlling impulses to definite form operate as such, regardless of the need for expressing particular concepts or of giving consistent external shape to particular groups of concepts (1921, pp. 60–61).
Indications for surgery in Crohn's disease: analysis of 500 cases.

Data for 500 patients with Crohn's disease who underwent operations were analyzed (316 patients, 1966 to 1969; 184 patients, 1972 to 1973) by comparison of various anatomic disease locations (clinical pattern): (1) ileocolic, 225 patients; (2) small intestinal, 130 patients; (3) colonic, 127 patients; (4) anorectal, 18 patients. Indications for surgery were tabulated and compared using statistical analysis for the three large patterns. For patients with ileocolic Crohn's disease, the primary surgical indications were internal fistula and abscess, 44%, intestinal obstruction, 35%, and perianal disease, 12%. For patients with Crohn's disease of the small intestine, the primary surgical indications were intestinal obstruction, 55%, and intestinal fistula and abscess, 32%. Patients with colonic Crohn's disease had a significantly more diverse surgical indication, with poor response to medical therapy, 26%, internal fistula and abscess, 23%, toxic megacolon, 20%, and perianal disease, 19%. These values were highly statistically significant (P
Disparities in Assisted Reproductive Technology Utilization by Race and Ethnicity, United States, 2014: A Commentary

Abstract Disparities in infertility and access to infertility treatments, such as assisted reproductive technology (ART), by race/ethnicity, have been reported. However, identifying disparities in ART usage may have been hampered by missing race/ethnicity information in ART surveillance. We review infertility prevalence and treatment disparities, use recent data to examine ART use in the United States by race/ethnicity and residency in states with mandated insurance coverage for in vitro fertilization (IVF), and discuss approaches for reducing disparities. We used 2014 National ART Surveillance System (NASS) data to calculate rates of ART procedures per million women 15–44 years of age, a proxy measure of ART utilization, for Census-defined racial/ethnic groups in the United States; rates were further stratified by the presence of insurance mandates for IVF treatment. Missing race/ethnicity data (35.6% of cycles) were imputed. Asian/Pacific Islander (A/PI) women had the highest rates of ART utilization at...
Using audio playback to expand the geographic breeding range of an endangered species

Aim Species conservation typically involves working within the existing geographic range of that species. However, with habitat loss and climate change, conservationists may need to extend their work beyond the current range of a species. We attempted to extend the geographic breeding range of a rare species, Kirtland's warbler (Setophaga kirtlandii), by 225 km from the closest known breeding pairs and 550 km from its core population. Location Wisconsin, USA. Methods We broadcast conspecific song playbacks at two sites in landscapes that were far from source populations but had a history of intermittent occupancy. We also estimated the potential effect that additional use of this technique in Wisconsin could have on the global Kirtland's warbler population. Results The sites were initially unoccupied, but over the course of three years, playback attracted individuals to sites where they successfully reproduced. In the final year of the study, at least seven males and four females occupied the sites, producing 15 young. Based on the amount of appropriate habitat (5- to 15-year-old jack [Pinus banksiana] and red pine [P. resinosa]) in Wisconsin, we estimated that a population of approximately 250 pairs of Kirtland's warblers (10% of the global population) could eventually be supported. Main conclusion Although conspecific playback has often been reported to work over short distances, our success here demonstrates the potential for effectiveness over much greater distances, even in species with a small global population. This highlights that conspecific playback can be a powerful tool to assist recovery of endangered species, particularly in migratory species with a restricted distribution and high dispersal capabilities. As climate changes and humans alter the landscape, it may become crucial to attempt to establish populations beyond a species' current geographic range.
Power-efficient and highly scalable parallel graph sampling using FPGAs

Energy efficiency is a crucial problem in data centers where big data is generally represented by directed or undirected graphs. Analysis of this big data graph is challenging due to volume and velocity of the data as well as irregular memory access patterns. Graph sampling is one of the most effective ways to reduce the size of graph while maintaining crucial characteristics. In this paper we present design and implementation of an FPGA based graph sampling method which is both time- and energy-efficient. This is in contrast to existing parallel approaches which include memory-distributed clusters, multicore and GPUs. Our strategy utilizes a novel graph data structure, that we call COPRA which allows time- and memory-efficient representation of graphs suitable for reconfigurable hardware such as FPGAs. Our experiments show that our proposed techniques are 2x faster and 3x more energy efficient as compared to serial CPU version of the algorithm. We further show that our proposed techniques give comparable speedups to GPU and multi-threaded CPU architecture while energy consumption is 10x less than GPU and 2x less than CPU.
Introduction to Vertebrate Sex Ratio Adjustment

For more than a century, both anecdotal and scientific accounts have indicated that vertebrates have the ability to control the allocation of resources between male and female reproductive function. In some species, this sex allocation occurs through parental manipulation of offspring sex ratios, in others through environmental control of sexual development during early life, and some appear to retain the ability to choose between the production of sperm and eggs even during adulthood. There are now many adaptive theories for optimal strategies of sex allocation and hypotheses regarding the mechanisms by which sex allocation occurs in each system, yet we are still a long way from understanding these processes and their importance. In this introduction and book, I highlight the remaining questions in the field of sex allocation, with an emphasis on the need for comparative approaches.
Somatostatin inhibits cAMP-mediated cholinergic transmission in the myenteric plexus

The mechanism by which somatostatin acts to modulate cholinergic transmission is not clear. In this study we investigated the role of the adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cAMP) system in mediating cholinergic transmission in the guinea pig myenteric plexus and examined the ability of somatostatin to alter acetylcholine (ACh) release stimulated by various cAMP agonists. Forskolin, 8-bromo-cAMP, vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP), and cholera toxin each stimulated the release of [3H]ACh in a dose-related manner. Addition of theophylline enhanced the release of [3H]ACh stimulated by these cAMP agonists. In contrast 2',5'-dideoxyadenosine, an inhibitor of adenylate cyclase, antagonized the action of forskolin, VIP, and cholera toxin but had no effect on that evoked by 8-bromo-cAMP. These observations suggest that cAMP may serve as a physiological mediator for ACh release from myenteric neurons. Somatostatin inhibited release of [3H]ACh evoked by various cAMP agonists in a dose-related manner. Maximal inhibition, observed in the presence of 10(-6) M somatostatin was 48 +/- 5, 47 +/- 9, and 43 +/- 12% of control for forskolin-, VIP-, and cholera toxin-evoked release of [3H]ACh. In contrast somatostatin at 10(-6) M inhibited only 20 +/- 5% of the release of [3H]ACh stimulated by 8-bromo-cAMP. Pretreatment with pertussis toxin antagonized the inhibitory effect of somatostatin on the release of [3H]ACh evoked by forskolin, VIP, or cholera toxin but had no effect on the inhibitory action of somatostatin on the release of [3H]ACh evoked by 8-bromo-cAMP.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Riboswitches and Translation Control

A growing collection of bacterial riboswitch classes is being discovered that sense central metabolites, coenzymes, and signaling molecules. Included among the various mechanisms of gene regulation exploited by these RNA regulatory elements are several that modulate messenger RNA (mRNA) translation. In this review, the mechanisms of riboswitch-mediated translation control are summarized to highlight both their diversity and potential ancient origins. These mechanisms include ligand-gated presentation or occlusion of ribosome-binding sites, control of alternative splicing of mRNAs, and the regulation of mRNA stability. Moreover, speculation on the potential for novel riboswitch discoveries is presented, including a discussion on the potential for the discovery of a greater diversity of mechanisms for translation control.
Deformable medical image registration using generative adversarial networks

Conventional approaches to image registration consist of time consuming iterative methods. Most current deep learning (DL) based registration methods extract deep features to use in an iterative setting. We propose an end-to-end DL method for registering multimodal images. Our approach uses generative adversarial networks (GANs) that eliminates the need for time consuming iterative methods, and directly generates the registered image with the deformation field. Appropriate constraints in the GAN cost function produce accurately registered images in less than a second. Experiments demonstrate their accuracy for multimodal retinal and cardiac MR image registration.
Let curiosity lead you

It is an incredible honor to receive the Woman in Cell Biology Mid-Career Award for Excellence in Research. My lab works on cell–cell fusion, an indispensable process in the conception, development...
Teaching Benign Skin Lesions as a Strategy to Improve the Triage Amalgamated Dermoscopic Algorithm (TADA).

Introduction: Dermoscopy aids family physicians (FPs) in skin cancer detection. The triage amalgamated dermoscopic algorithm (TADA) was created to simplify the dermoscopic evaluation of a skin growth. The purpose of this image-based study was to evaluate the effect of teaching the clinical and dermoscopic features of benign skin lesions on the diagnostic accuracy of skin cancer identification using TADA. We also sought to determine the best method to teach benign neoplasms. Methods: In this cross-sectional study of an educational intervention, FPs participated in dermoscopy training. Participants were divided into 3 groups for teaching of common benign neoplasms (dermatofibroma, angioma, and seborrheic keratosis/lentigo): didactic + interactive, didactic + heuristic, and didactic. For each group, the benign teaching was followed by skin cancer identification training with TADA. All participants took a 30 image pre-test and 30 image post-test. Results: Fifty-nine participants completed the study. The mean preintervention score (out of 30 correct responses) was 17.9 (SD, 4.5) and increased to 23.5 (SD, 3.0) on the postintervention evaluation (P Conclusion: Short dermoscopy training sessions with dedicated time for benign growths followed by TADA training for malignant growths are an effective means of teaching FPs dermoscopy and result in a high sensitivity and specificity for the identification of benign and malignant skin neoplasms.
A case report of a midesophageal diverticulum mimicking a fibrovascular esophageal polyp

Abstract Introduction Esophageal diverticula and esophageal fibrovascular polyps are uncommon clinical entities. While an asymptomatic presentation is possible, symptoms, when present, may be dissimilar in their gastrointestinal or respiratory characteristics. Additionally, these findings typically occur in different segments of the esophagus, with polyps occurring most frequently in the cervical esophagus and the midesophagus being the predominant location of pathologic diverticula. Presentation of case We report the case of a 55-year-old patient who presented with a two-year history of progressive dysphagia secondary to a large proximal to midesophageal mass. Workup included esophagography, computed tomography, and endoscopy with ultrasound and was initially consistent with a diagnosis of a large esophageal fibrovascular polyp. Upon operative exploration, the mass was found to be a midesophageal diverticulum associated with a leading lipoma. The patient was successfully treated with transthoracic stapled diverticulectomy. At postoperative follow-up the patient was tolerating oral intake with no symptoms of dysphagia. Discussion Esophageal diverticula are typically found in the midesophagus and are thought to arise from radial traction secondary to mediastinal inflammation. Esophageal fibrovascular polyps may result from tracheobronchial compression, and esophagography typically identifies a mobile intraluminal mass. Conclusion Esophageal fibrovascular polyps and diverticula are rare, and a high index of suspicion is important in evaluation of these entities.
Computational Study of the Oxidation of Guanine To Form 5-Carboxyamido-5-formamido-2-iminohydantoin (2Ih).

Oxidative damage to DNA leads to a number of two-electron oxidation products of guanine such as 8-oxo-7,8-dihydroguanine (8oxoG). 5-Carboxyamido-5-formamido-2-iminohydantoin (2Ih) is another two-el...