cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Snap Transitions of Pressurized Graphene Blisters

Blister tests are commonly used to determine the mechanical and interfacial properties of thin film materials with recent applications for graphene. This paper presents a numerical study on snap transitions of pressurized graphene blisters. A continuum model is adopted combining a nonlinear plate theory for monolayer graphene with a nonlinear traction–separation relation for van der Waals interactions. Three types of blister configurations are considered. For graphene bubble blisters, snap-through and snap-back transitions between pancake-like and dome-like shapes are predicted under pressurecontrolled conditions. For center-island graphene blisters, snap transitions between donut-like and dome-like shapes are predicted under both pressure and volume control. Finally, for the center-hole graphene blisters, growth is stable under volume or N-control but unstable under pressure control. With a finite hole depth, the growth may start with a snap transition under N-control if the hole is relatively deep. The numerical results provide a systematic understanding on the mechanics of graphene blisters, consistent with previously reported experiments. Of particular interest is the relationship between the van der Waals interactions and measurable quantities in corresponding blister tests, with which both the adhesion energy of graphene and the equilibrium separation for the van der Waals interactions may be determined. In comparison with approximate solutions based on membrane analyses, the numerical method offers more accurate solutions that may be used in conjunction with experiments for quantitative characterization of the interfacial properties of graphene and other two-dimensional (2D) membrane materials. [DOI: 10.1115/1.4033305]
Current Status of HIV/AIDS Epidemic in Xinyang,Henan in 2010

Objective To analyze the current status of HIV/AIDS epidemic among former commercial blood donors,female sex workers,and prisoners in Xinyang. Methods Regular and special monitoring data of AIDS in Xinyang from 1995 to 2010 were analyzed descriptively. Results Totally 1,961 confirmed HIV infectors were reported at the end of 2010 since the first case of AIDS was found in Xinyang in April,1995.The results suggested that the proportion of transmission routes of HIV infectors was gradually changed.There were 32 HIV infectors reported in 1995,and all of them were commercial blood or plasma donors and recipients of blood or blood products through transfusion.From then on the proportion of transmission route by blood(products) was declined as the number of years added,while the proportion of transmission route by sexual contact was increased.The HIV infectors caused by blood donation or transfusion and by sexual contact accounted for 28.86% and 59.46%,respectively. Conclusions We should further enhance prevention,control and management of HIV/AIDS infectors caused by commercial blood donation or transfusion,meanwhile,it is necessary to strengthen the intervention of HIV/AIDS-related high-risk behaviors and to prevent HIV infection caused by sexual contact.
Cancer education for the generalist physician.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES The care of cancer patients has become increasingly complex and multidisciplinary while more responsibility for cancer care has been shifted to primary care physicians. We developed a medical student educational program to teachfuture primary care physicians about care of cancer patients. METHODS The Multidisciplinary Oncology Clerkship was designed for fourth-year medical students planning to enter primary care residencies. The clerkship hasfive major components: ambulatory patient care, multidisciplinary conferences, skill stations, problem-based learning in small groups, and supervised objective structured clinical examinations. Learning during the clerkship was evaluated with knowledge tests before, immediately after, and 6 months after the clerkship. RESULTS Twenty-four students participated in the first year of the clerkship. Program evaluation revealed that the students' scores on the knowledge test rose 40% between the pre-clerkship and post-clerkship tests. Retesting at 6 months demonstrated knowledge retention of 90%. CONCLUSIONS Multidisciplinary cancer education, using the combination of problem-based learning, skill stations, clinical exposure, and standardized patients, increases the cancer-care knowledge of medical students dedicated to a career in primary care.
Brown Heroin-Associated Candida albicans Ventriculitis and Endopthalmitis Treated with Voriconazole

Chronic meningitis and ventriculitis are defined as inflammatory pleocytoses in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and ependyma that persists for at least 1 month without spontaneous resolution. Because the CSF communicates directly with the posterior compartments of the eye, fungal infections in the brain often cause secondary ophthalmologic complications. We report a 23-year-old male who presented to the emergency room with progressive severe headaches associated with insidious monocular vision loss. After extensive workup and a multidisciplinary team effort, the patient was diagnosed with ventriculitis and endogenous endopthalmitis. The etiology is suspected to be due to brown heroin use with secondary disseminated Candida albicans.
Biomechanics of the Oral Tissues

Although dentistry seems to be an obvious field for the application of engineering techniques, such studies have been predominantly oriented towards dental materials research and to dental equipment such as the high-speed air drill. However, the effect of stress on the oral tissues has not been the subject of quantitative study. These tissues are known to respond very sensitively to mechanical stress and this effect is made use of very widely in orthodontics. A variety of clinical problems arise from abnormal stresses within the mouth, e.g. ulcers caused by pressure under a denture, periodontal problems.
Argument against the routine use of steroids for pediatric acute respiratory distress syndrome

Steroids have a plausible mechanism of action of reducing severity of lung disease in Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) but have failed to show consistent benefits in patient-centered outcomes. Many studies have confounding from the likely presence of ventilator-induced lung injury and steroids may have shown benefit because administration minimized ongoing inflammation incited by injurious ventilator settings. If steroids have benefit, it is likely for specific populations that fall within the heterogeneous diagnosis of ARDS. Those pediatric patients with concurrent active asthma or reactive airway disease of prematurity, in addition to ARDS, are the most common group likely to derive benefit from steroids, but are poorly studied. With the information currently available, it does not appear that the typical adult or pediatric patient with ARDS derives benefit from steroids and steroids should not be given on a routine basis.
Zero-rate achievability of posterior matching schemes for channels with memory

Shayevitz and Feder proposed a capacity-achieving sequential transmission scheme for memoryless channels called posterior matching (PM). The proof of capacity achievability of PM is involved and requires invertibility of the PM kernel (also referred to as one-step invertibility). Recent work by the same authors provided a simpler proof but still requires PM kernel invertibility.
Frontal Structural Neural Correlates of Working Memory Performance in Older Adults.

Working memory is an executive memory process that allows transitional information to be held and manipulated temporarily in memory stores before being forgotten or encoded into long-term memory. Working memory is necessary for everyday decision-making and problem solving, making it a fundamental process in the daily lives of older adults. Working memory relies heavily on frontal lobe structures and is known to decline with age. The current study aimed to determine the neural correlates of decreased working memory performance in the frontal lobes by comparing cortical thickness and cortical surface area from two demographically matched groups of healthy older adults, free from cognitive impairment, with high versus low N-Back working memory performance (N=56; average age = 70.29 ± 10.64). High-resolution structural T1-weighted images (1mm isotropic voxels) were obtained on a 3T Philips MRI scanner. When compared to high performers, low performers exhibited significantly decreased cortical surface area in three frontal lobe regions lateralized to the right hemisphere: medial orbital frontal gyrus, inferior frontal gyrus, and superior frontal gyrus (FDR p < 0.05). There were no significant differences in cortical thickness between groups, a proxy for neurodegenerative tissue loss. Our results suggest that decreases in cortical surface area (a proxy for brain structural integrity) in right frontal regions may underlie age-related decline of working memory function.
A reason for the non-specialist to care about the metaphysics of properties and persistence

AbstractWe have compelling extra-philosophical reasons for caring about identity, parthood, and location. For example, we desire ceteris paribus that nothing every part of which is very near to our location be very near to the location of something dangerous, evil, or otherwise unpleasant. This essay argues that such considerations are relevant to certain first-order metaphysical debates, namely, the debates over immanent universals and tropes and endurantism and perdurantism, respectively. As a consequence, even the non-specialist has a reason to care about the metaphysics of properties and persistence.
Importance of metabolomics analyses of maternal parameters and their influence on fetal growth (Review)

Metabolomics is the scientific study of chemical processes involving metabolites. Specifically, metabolomics is the systematic study of the unique chemical fingerprints that specifically conveys cell processes. Fetal growth aberrations, including fetal growth restriction and macrosomia, convey the highest risk of perinatal mortality and morbidity, as well as increasing the chance of developing chronic disease in later life. We searched the electronic database PubMed for preclinical as well as clinical controlled studies pertaining to metabolomics analyses of maternal parameters and their influence on fetal growth. It was observed clearly that metabolic profiling/metabolomics approaches in maternal urine samples provide information on early-life exposure and are potentially linked to child health outcomes, in addition to identifying new biomarkers of exposure. This review article is aimed to discuss intra- and inter-individual variations in maternal urine profiles during pregnancy, fetal growth outcomes and environmental sources of metabolic variations. The review concludes that metabolic profiling of mother is a useful tool for the evaluation of influences on the growth of the fetus.
Capital Asset Pricing Model

The capital asset pricing model (CAPM) for a security is a linear relationship between the expected excess return of the security and the expected excess return of the market. It was developed by William Sharpe, John Lintner and Jan Mossin. It is a useful framework to discuss idiosyncratic and systematic risk. The security market line is a powerful graphical construct of the CAPM. While the CAPM has strong underlying assumptions, recent research has relaxed many of these assumptions. It is commonly used to calculate cost of capital and required rate of return.
Taking the measure of MicroED

It is now possible to routinely determine atomic resolution structures by electron cryo-microscopy (cryoEM), facilitated in part by the method known as micro electron-diffraction (MicroED). Since its initial demonstration in 2013, MicroED has helped determine a variety of protein structures ranging in molecular weight from a few hundred Daltons to several hundred thousand Daltons. Some of these structures were novel while others were previously known. The resolutions of structures obtained thus far by MicroED range from 3.2A to 1.0A, with most better than 2.5A. Crystals of various sizes and shapes, with different space group symmetries, and with a range of solvent content have all been studied by MicroED. The wide range of crystals explored to date presents the community with a landscape of opportunity for structure determination from nano crystals. Here we summarize the lessons we have learned during the first few years of MicroED, and from our attempts at the first ab initio structure determined by the method. We re-evaluate theoretical considerations in choosing the appropriate crystals for MicroED and for extracting the most meaning out of measured data. With more laboratories worldwide adopting the technique, we speculate what the first decade might hold for MicroED.
Where Are We Headed with Neuromodulation for Overactive Bladder

Overactive bladder (OAB) affects millions of people around the world and decreases quality of life for those affected. Over the past two decades, significant advances in treatment have transformed the lives of those with OAB. Sacral neuromodulation (SNM), posterior tibial nerve stimulation (PTNS), and dorsal genital nerve stimulation are the most effective contemporary treatment modalities. New techniques and bio-sensing schemes offer promise to advance therapy beyond what is currently available. Current neuromodulation techniques do not use real-time data from the body or input from the patient. Incorporating this is the goal of those pursuing a neuroprosthesis to enhance bladder function for these patients. Dorsal genital nerve, pudendal nerve, S3 afferent nerve roots, and S1 and S2 ganglia have all been used as targets for stimulation. Some of these have also been used as sources of afferent nerve information to detect significant bladder events and even to estimate the fullness of the bladder. As technology improves, an intelligent neuroprosthesis with the ability to sense significant bladder events may revolutionize treatment of OAB.
Assessment of Biocatalytic Production Parameters to Determine Economic and Environmental Viability

The minimum selling price (MSP), specific energy consumption, and greenhouse (GHG) emissions resulting from biobased production of adipic acid, succinic acid, 1,3-propanediol, 3-hydroxy propionic acid, and isobutanol were estimated for various combinations of titer, yield, and volumetric productivity. The MSP, energy consumption, and GHG emissions of anaerobic biobased commodity chemical processes were found to be nearly the same for a given titer, yield, and productivity. The estimated MSP of biobased commodity chemicals produced via aerobic respiration was found to be nearly 30% higher than those of produced through anaerobic fermentation. It was determined that biocatalyst yields of ≥0.32 g/g and titers of ≥45 g/L result in lower production cost, energy consumption, and GHG emissions, when compared to conventional petrochemical production processes. The economic and environmental benefits of improving titer beyond 125 g/L and volumetric productivity beyond 2 g/L·h were found to be low when producing bi...
Standard Pseudodifferential Operators

This chapter is the basic one in the book and, I hope, the most elementary. Its contents are essentially the definitions and fundamental properties of what are called here standard pseudodifferential operators, often called operators of type (1, 0), to contrast them with operators of type (ρ, δ), studied in Chapter IV. The presentation follows the line now widely adopted of first defining the operators by means of amplitudes, then proving (easily) the five basic theorems (pseudolocal character, continuity, transposition, composition, invariance under diffeomorphism), and only afterwards going to the symbolic calculus, by then a purely “algebraic” affair.
Language identification of encrypted VoIP traffic: Alejandra y Roberto or Alice and Bob?

Voice over IP (VoIP) has become a popular protocol for making phone calls over the Internet. Due to the potential transit of sensitive conversations over untrusted network infrastructure, it is well understood that the contents of a VoIP session should be encrypted. However, we demonstrate that current cryptographic techniques do not provide adequate protection when the underlying audio is encoded using bandwidth-saving Variable Bit Rate (VBR) coders. Explicitly, we use the length of encrypted VoIP packets to tackle the challenging task of identifying the language of the conversation. Our empirical analysis of 2,066 native speakers of 21 different languages shows that a substantial amount of information can be discerned from encrypted VoIP traffic. For instance, our 21-way classifier achieves 66% accuracy, almost a 14-fold improvement over random guessing. For 14 of the 21 languages, the accuracy is greater than 90%. We achieve an overall binary classification (e.g., "Is this a Spanish or English conversation?") rate of 86.6%. Our analysis highlights what we believe to be interesting new privacy issues in VoIP.
Crystallization of Poly(ethylene terephthalate)

It has been reported that several endothermic melting transitions exist in differential thermal analysis thermograms of polyethylene.1 Similar transitions are reported in differential scanning calorimetric thermograms of poly (ethylene terephthalate)2 and bisphenol-A polycarbonate.3 The appearance of separate melting endotherms in these polymers is evidence that almost completely discontinuous distributions of crystallite sizes or perfections can be induced in a polymer by appropriate thermal treatments.4 At present, there is no evidence of the existence of polymorphic crystalline modifications in poly (ethylene terephthalate).
MCENet: A database for maize conditional co-expression network and network characterization collaborated with multi-dimensional omics levels.

Abstract Maize (Zea mays) is the most widely grown grain crop in the world, playing important roles in agriculture and industry. However, the functions of maize genes remain largely unknown. High-quality genome-wide transcriptome datasets provide important biological knowledge which has been widely and successfully used in plants not only by measuring gene expression levels but also by enabling co-expression analysis for predicting gene functions and modules related to agronomic traits. Recently, thousands of maize transcriptomic data are available across different inbred lines, development stages, tissues, and treatments, or even across different tissue sections and cell lines. Here, we integrated 701 transcriptomic and 108 epigenomic data and studied the different conditional networks with multi-dimensional omics levels. We constructed a searchable, integrative, one-stop online platform, the maize conditional co-expression network (MCENet) platform. MCENet provides 10 global/conditional co-expression networks, 5 network accessional analysis toolkits (i.e., Network Search, Network Remodel, Module Finder, Network Comparison, and Dynamic Expression View) and multiple network functional support toolkits (e.g., motif and module enrichment analysis). We hope that our database might help plant research communities to identify maize functional genes or modules that regulate important agronomic traits. MCENet is publicly accessible at http://bioinformatics.cau.edu.cn/MCENet/ .
Dynamic changes of brain functional states during surgical skill acquisition.

There is lack of a standardized measure of technical proficiency and skill acquisition for robot-assisted surgery (RAS). Learning surgical skills, in addition to the interaction with the machine and the new surgical environment adds to the complexity of the learning process. Moreover, evaluation of surgeon performance in operating room is required to optimize patient safety. In this study, we investigated the dynamic changes of RAS trainee’s brain functional states by practice. We also developed brain functional state measurements to find the relationship between RAS skill acquisition (especially human-machine interaction skills) and reconfiguration of brain functional states. This relationship may help in providing trainees with helpful, structured feedback regarding skills requiring improvement and will help in tailoring training activities.
Practical Data-Driven Methods to Improve the Accuracy and Detail of Hosting Capacity Analysis

Distributed energy resource (DER) hosting capacity of distribution feeders is commonly analyzed with scenario-based methods assuming specific load conditions. For feeders with existing DER, additional processing is necessary to capture conditions of these DERs, that can impact hosting capacity indicators. Only modeling min/max scenarios for the load and DER may not represent realistic worst-case scenarios and may lead to under- or over-estimating the hosting capacity. This paper proposes a method based on historical data that determines a set of scenarios which captures worst-case conditions and enables accurate determination of hosting capacity values. This paper also proposes a probabilistic hosting capacity analysis method that provides valuable information for robust system planner decisions.
The Story of Sound Off: A Community Writing/Community Listening Experiment

This provocation reflects on Sound Off, a community writing project with listening as its central activity and storytelling as a key component. Understanding Sound Off as an experiemental site for community listening, I highlight the need for listening in localized contexts, while exploring how we might design community writing projects as listening spaces. Perhaps most provocatively, I identify challenges that teachers, scholars, and activists need to address for community writing to become fully multimodal and reflect reciprocity among participants.
Proceedings of the 2011 workshop on Dynamic distributed data-intensive applications, programming abstractions, and systems

Welcome to the 2011 Workshop on Dynamic Distributed Data-Intensive Applications, Programming Abstractions, and Systems (3DAPAS). This workshop operates at the triple point of dynamic, distributed and data-intensive (3D) attributes. It also focuses on innovative approaches for scalability in the end-to-end real-time processing of scientific data. We refer to 3D applications as those are data-intensive, need to support and respond to dynamic data, and, either are fundamentally, or need to be, distributed. There has previously been a lot of effort in managing and distributing tasks where computational loads are dominant. Such applications have after all, been historically the drivers of "grid" computing. There has, however, been relatively less effort on tasks where the computational load is matched by the data load, or even dominated by the data load. For such tasks to be able to operate at scale, there are conceptually simple run-time trade-offs that need to be made, such as determining whether to move data to compute versus keeping data localized and move computational tasks to operate on the data in situ, or possibly neither, and with data regenerated on-the-fly. Due to fluctuating resource availability and capabilities, as well as insufficient prior information about application requirements, such decisions must be made at run-time. Furthermore, resource, connectivity and/or storage constraints may require the data to be manipulated intransit. Currently it is very difficult to implement these dynamic decisions or the underlying mechanisms in a general-purpose and scalable fashion. Although the increasing volumes and complexity of data will make many problems data-load-dominated, the computational requirements will still be high. In practice, data-intensive applications will encompass data-driven applications. For example, many data-driven applications will involve computational activities triggered as a consequence of independently created data; thus it is imperative for an application to be able to respond to unplanned changes in data load or content. Therefore, understanding how to support dynamic computations is a fundamental, but currently missing element in data-intensive computing. 3DAPAS builds upon a three-year research theme on Distributed Programming Abstractions (DPA), which has held a series of related workshops including but not limited to e-Science 2008, EuroPar 2008 and the CLADE series. 3DAPAS also draws on ideas from the ongoing 3DPAS Research Theme funded by the NSF and UK EPSRC. The workshop includes a keynote presentation, an invited paper, and two peerreviewed papers.
A Practical Approach to Assessing and Mitigating Loneliness and Isolation in Older Adults

Loneliness and social isolation are strongly associated with several adverse health outcomes in older persons including death and functional impairments. The strength of these associations has been compared with smoking. Accordingly, loneliness and isolation have significant public health implications. Despite the adverse impacts of loneliness and social isolation on quality of life, and their strong association with health outcomes, the evaluation of loneliness and isolation have not been integrated into medical care. The risks for loneliness may be of particular concern to persons with serious illness as patients and caregivers cope with the experience of loss, loss of independence, and increasing care needs. To date, there has been no uniform way of evaluating and documenting loneliness and social isolation as a part of a review of a patient's social determinants of health. This article provides a framework for healthcare systems, providers, and community members working with older adults to (1) understand loneliness, isolation, and its counterpart social connection; (2) describe the different ways loneliness affects health; and (3) create a framework for asking about and documenting these experiences. Finally, because the lack of studies assessing whether targeting loneliness can improve health outcomes is a major gap, we provide guidance on the future of interventions. J Am Geriatr Soc 67:657-662, 2019.
Quantifying intersectionality: An important advancement for health inequality research.

Abstract Background Intersectionality is a powerful theoretical framework that is useful in describing the lived experiences of people with multiple marginalized statuses. By focusing on power and domination (e.g., racism, sexism), and the ways in which they are inextricably linked and mutually constructing, researchers can better understand experiences of all people, not just those with one or more master statuses. This framework is valuable in understanding how discrimination relates to health and in attempts to reduce health disparities. Rationale Population health researchers have only recently begun to consider intersectionality in their theories and measurement (Bowleg, 2012), and have been hindered by the challenges of measuring and analyzing experiences of discrimination in intersectional ways. We need new methodological strategies to enable empirical research to catch up with theoretical advances. Conclusions The pair of articles in this issue by Scheim and Bauer (2019), and Bauer and Scheim (2019), offer important new data collection instruments and data analytic strategies to advance our ability to measure discrimination intersectionally. When using these new tools, it is important to not lose track of the origins and historical underpinnings of intersectionality and to focus on the transformative goal of intersectionality to eradicate inequality.
New Paradigms in Defining Optimum Cost Conditions in Thermoelectric Energy Recovery Designs

Abstract Cost is just as important as power density or efficiency for the adoption of waste heat recovery (WHR) thermoelectric generators (TEG). Prior work [1] has shown that the system design that minimizes cost (e.g., the G [$/W] value) can be close to the designs that maximize power, but these design regimes are not necessarily aligned with high system conversion efficiency or power density. Recent work [2–5] further explores the impact of heat exchanger conditions on the optimum TEG fill factors and cost scaling of a waste heat recovery thermoelectric generator with a detailed treatment of the hot side exhaust heat exchanger. The cost scaling analysis considers the overall TEG system costs, including TE material costs, manufacturing costs, and specifically heat exchanger costs; and the performance analysis accounts for heat lost to the environment and updated relationships between the optimum hot-side and cold-side conductances that maximize power output. The optimum fill factor, Fopt, to minimize TEG energy recovery system costs is strongly dependent on the heat leakage fraction, σ, the mass flow rate of the exhaust, the hot-side heat exchanger effectiveness, heat exchanger UAu, and interfacial heat flux [1]. A more rigorous analysis and conclusion for the optimum fill factor was recently introduced and characterized at the 14th European Conference on Thermoelectrics [5] in 2016. A new, more comprehensive relationship for Fopt has created an updated, more rigorous relationship for the optimum cost, Gopt, relationship for thermoelectric energy recovery systems. These new [Gopt, Fopt] relationships are explored and characterized to show the inherent design complexities. The heat exchanger costs can often dominate the TEG cost equation and it is critical to fully understand the tradeoff between heat exchanger performance, TEG manufacturing and material costs, optimum TEG fill factors, and TE performance to establish potentially optimum design points within the cost-performance design space. This work explores and characterizes new design tradeoffs and new cost minimization relationships within this cost-performance design space for a typical thermoelectric energy recovery system application where the interplay between optimum TEG fill factors, TE device design parameters, and heat exchanger design parameters can impact system footprint, volume, and mass in weight-sensitive applications. This work shows how heat exchanger UAu, interfacial heat flux, and Fopt govern cost minimization and create and control cost regimes within the overall cost-performance design domain. This shift of emphasis acknowledging the interdependence of optimum TE fill factors, heat exchanger performance, and interfacial heat flux has significant implications on thermoelectric WHR system designs, their performance, and their operation.
Thrombectomy of Ventricular Assist Device-Originated Embolic Stroke: A Clinical Decision Model.

Background and purpose The use of ventricular assist devices (VADs) for the treatment of heart failure has become increasingly common. These patients have a considerable risk of cerebral embolism. We describe such a patient and his successful treatment by thrombectomy, compare his attributes with those previously published, and describe the construct of a clinical decision model, whose results bear practical implications for patient management. Methods The details of our patient and his treatment are presented, followed by a literature review of all previously reported similar cases. Using this information, as well as that available from published series, we constructed a probabilistic decision tree, completed all calculations (ie, "folding back"), and, in order to assess the strength of the results, subjected them to multiple independent sensitivity analyses of each of the variables. Results The therapeutic success of our case, the 14th reported to date, when combined with previous reports, shows: (1) recanalization times of 184 minutes, (2) "successful" recanalization (ie, TICI = 2b or 3) achieved in 71% of procedures, (3) ultimate functional outcome (ie, mRS = 0-2) achieved in 57% patients, and (4) ultimate successful heart transplantations in 66% of cases. The clinical decision model showed the predicted utility of thrombectomy to be superior to conservative management (3.33 QALY vs. 2.56 QALY, respectively). The sensitivity analyses support the validity of these results. Conclusions In conclusion, thrombectomy appears to be a safe and effective method (and often the only viable one) for urgent treatment of patients with VAD-originated cerebral embolism.
Liraglutide improves insulin sensitivity in high fat diet induced diabetic mice through multiple pathways

Abstract Glucagon like peptide-1 (GLP-1) promotes postprandial insulin secretion. Liraglutide, a full agonist of the GLP-1 receptor, reduces body weight, improve insulin sensitivity, and alleviate Non Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD). However, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. This study aims to explore the underlying mechanisms and cell signaling pathways involved in the anti-obesity and anti-inflammatory effects of liraglutide. Mice were fed a high fat high sucrose diet to induce diabetes, diabetic mice were divided into two groups and injected with liraglutide or vehicle for 14 days. Liraglutide treatment improved insulin sensitivity, accompanied with reduced expression of the phosphorylated Acetyl-CoA carboxylase-2 (ACC2) and upregulation of long chain acyl CoA dehydrogenase (LCAD) in insulin sensitive tissues. Furthermore, liraglutide induced adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase-α (AMPK-α) and Sirtuin-1(Sirt-1) protein expression in liver and perigonadal fat. Liraglutide induced elevation of fatty acid oxidation in these tissues may be mediated through the AMPK-Sirt-1 cell signaling pathway. In addition, liraglutide induced brown adipocyte differentiation in skeletal muscle, including induction of uncoupling protein-1 (UCP-1) and PR-domain-containing-16 (PRDM-16) protein in association with induction of SIRT-1. Importantly, liraglutide displayed anti-inflammation effect. Specifically, liraglutide led to a significant reduction in circulating interleukin-1 β (IL-1 β) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) as well as hepatic IL-1 β and IL-6 content. The expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS-1) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in insulin sensitive tissues was also reduced following liraglutide treatment. In conclusion, liraglutide improves insulin sensitivity through multiple pathways resulting in reduction of inflammation, elevation of fatty acid oxidation, and induction of adaptive thermogenesis.
The Status of K to 12 Basic Education Program in the Philippines: A Reference for Teachers’ Twenty-First Century Skills Development Plan

The Department of Education, with its major aim to enhance the quality of basic education and make the country at par with other countries, has paved the way to the K to 12 Basic Education Program. In its initial phase of implementation, this paper seeks to assess the extent of implementation on curriculum and instruction; standards and assessment; learning environment; governance, operations, and administration; human resource management and development; and finance. As frontlines of the academe, school heads and teachers assessed these aspects. Findings reveal that the K to 12 Program is implemented to a high extent as assessed by school heads and teachers. In terms of schools’ performance, enrolment rate had an increasing trend. Achievement, repetition and drop-out rates vary for the past three years. School heads’ evaluation of teachers’ performance based from CB-PAST is very satisfactory. Learners were assessed as fairly competent in learning and literacy while competent in life skills. These form the bases for the Proposed Skills Development Plan. It is also urgent to enhance the quality management systems and curriculum implementation to uplift the quality of basic education in the country.
The NRF2 Signaling Network Defines Clinical Biomarkers and Therapeutic Opportunity in Friedreich's Ataxia.

Friedreich’s ataxia (FA) is a trinucleotide repeats expansion neurodegenerative disorder, for which no cure or approved therapies are present. In most cases, GAA trinucleotide repetitions in the first intron of the FXN gene are the genetic trigger of FA, determining a strong reduction of frataxin, a mitochondrial protein involved in iron homeostasis. Frataxin depletion impairs iron–sulfur cluster biosynthesis and determines iron accumulation in the mitochondria. Mounting evidence suggests that these defects increase oxidative stress susceptibility and reactive oxygen species production in FA, where the pathologic picture is worsened by a defective regulation of the expression and signaling pathway modulation of the transcription factor NF-E2 p45-related factor 2 (NRF2), one of the fundamental mediators of the cellular antioxidant response. NRF2 protein downregulation and impairment of its nuclear translocation can compromise the adequate cellular response to the frataxin depletion-dependent redox imbalance. As NRF2 stability, expression, and activation can be modulated by diverse natural and synthetic compounds, efforts have been made in recent years to understand if regulating NRF2 signaling might ameliorate the pathologic defects in FA. Here we provide an analysis of the pharmaceutical interventions aimed at restoring the NRF2 signaling network in FA, elucidating specific biomarkers useful for monitoring therapeutic effectiveness, and developing new therapeutic tools.
Sigma-1 receptor activation-induced glycolytic ATP production and endothelial barrier enhancement.

Objective We tested the hypothesis that σ1 modulates endothelial barrier function due to its influence on endothelial bioenergetics. Methods Cultured HUVEC monolayers were used to model the endothelial barrier. ECIS, Transwell assays, and immunofluorescence labeling of junctional proteins were used to evaluate endothelial barrier function. Endothelial cell bioenergetics was determined using extracellular flux analysis and direct ATP level measurements. The endothelial-specific contribution of σ1 was tested using the σ1-selective agonist, PRE-084, and with targeted knockdown of σ1 expression using siRNA. Results Activation of σ1 with PRE-084 significantly enhanced endothelial barrier function and decreased permeability to albumin and dextran. Knockdown of σ1 with siRNA reduced barrier function and abolished PRE-084-induced endothelial barrier enhancement. PRE-084 upregulated endothelial glycolysis and glycolytic ATP production, but this response was abolished by siRNA-mediated knockdown of σ1 expression. PRE-084 also reduced the degree of endothelial barrier dysfunction caused by the mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation uncoupler CCCP. Conclusion Activation of σ1 enhances endothelial barrier function and modulates the ratio of glycolytic versus mitochondrial ATP production. These novel findings suggest that endothelial σ1 may prove beneficial as a novel therapeutic target for reducing microvascular hyperpermeability and counteracting mitochondrial dysfunction.
Opioid initiation and injection transition in rural northern New England: A mixed-methods approach.

Abstract Background In rural northern New England, located in the northeastern United States, the overdose epidemic has accelerated with the introduction of fentanyl. Opioid initiation and transition to opioid injection have been studied in urban settings. Little is known about opioid initiation and transition to injection drug use in rural northern New England. Methods This mixed-methods study characterized opioid use and drug injection in 11 rural counties in Massachusetts, Vermont, and New Hampshire between 2018 and 2019. People who use drugs completed audio computer-assisted self-interview surveys on substance use and risk behaviors (n = 589) and shared personal narratives through in-depth interviews (n = 22). The objective of the current study is to describe initiation of opioid use and drug injection in rural northern New England. Results Median age of first injection was 22 years (interquartile range 18–28 years). Key themes from in-depth interviews that led to initiating drug injection included normalization of drug use in families and communities, experiencing trauma, and abrupt discontinuation of an opioid prescription. Other factors that led to a transition to injecting included lower cost, increased effect/ rush, greater availability of heroin/ fentanyl, and faster relief of withdrawal symptoms with injection. Conclusions Trauma, normalization of drug use, over-prescribing of opioids, and abrupt discontinuation challenge people who use drugs in rural northern New England communities. Inadequate opioid tapering may increase transition to non-prescribed drug use. The extent and severity of traumatic experiences described highlights the importance of enhancing trauma-informed care in rural areas.
Heart Failure Training and Job Satisfaction: A Survey of Home Care Workers Caring for Adults with Heart Failure in New York City.

Background: Home care workers (HCWs), who include home health aides and person­al care attendants, frequently care for adults with heart failure (HF). Despite substantial involvement in HF care, prior qualitative studies have found that HCWs lack training and confidence, which creates challenges for this workforce and potentially for patient care. Herein, we quantified the prevalence of HF training among HCWs and deter­mined its association with job satisfaction. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey of agency-employed HCWs caring for HF patients across New York, NY from 2018-2019. HF training was assessed with, “Have you received prior HF training?” Job satisfaction was assessed with, “How satis­fied are you with your job?” The association between HF training and job satisfaction was determined with robust poisson regres­sion. Results: 323 HCWs from 23 agencies participated; their median age was 50 years (IQR: 37,58), 94% were women, 44% were non-Hispanic Black, 23% were Hispanic, 78% completed ≥ high school education, and 72% were foreign-born. They had been caregiving for a median of 8.5 years (IQR: 4,15) and 73% had cared for 1-5 HF patients. Two-thirds received none/a little HF training and 82% felt satisfied with their job. In a fully adjusted model, HCWs with some/a lot of HF training had 14% higher job satisfaction than those with none/a little HF training (aPR 1.14; 95% CI 1.03-1.27). Conclusions: The majority of HCWs have not received HF training. HF training was associated with higher job satisfac­tion, suggesting that HF training programs may improve HCWs’ experience car­ing for this patient population. Ethn Dis. 2020;30(4):575-582; doi:10.18865/ed.30.4.575
The Interpath Relation for Spatially-Discrete Traveling-Wave Modulated Structures

Traveling-wave modulation has been employed since the 1950s for amplification and frequency conversion, and more recently for beam-steering and breaking reciprocity. Typically, traveling-wave modulation is realized by applying a staggered bias/pump signal to an array of discrete unit cells. This is referred to as spatially-discrete traveling-wave modulation (SD-TWM). SD-TWM structures can prove challenging to simulate due to their often complex geometry and extreme temporal variation. Here, we examine a relation established within SD-TWM structures referred to as the interpath relation. The interpath relation reveals that the solution within a single unit cell (as opposed to an entire spatial period) is sufficient to determine the entire problem. The interpath relation is then incorporated into a method of moments solver to compute the scattered field produced by a representative SD-TWM metasurface. The presented method simplifies the computation of both physical patterned designs, as well as nearly continuous idealized structures.
Market Performance of Spun-Off Subsidiaries: Effects of Board Independence and Directors’ Industry Experience

The goal of corporate spin-offs, as a corporate restructuring technique, is to create better value for both the divesting firm and its subsidiary/ division. These corporate transactions lead to the creation of independent, publicly traded entities, which are called spun-off subsidiaries. In this study, we examine the effect of board independence and directors’ industry experience on the market performance of spun-off subsidiaries by setting two main hypotheses. Our sample includes 123 completed U.S.-based spin-off events during a 14-year long time frame. According to our empirical analysis, we find support for both hypotheses, which appear to be significant and positive. In addition, our moderation analysis shows that the interaction effect of directors’ industry experience and board ownership is positive and significant. Based on the arguments of agency and resource dependence theories, this study contributes to the governance literature by proving the significant importance of board of directors (namely, their independence and industry experience) on the market performance of spun-off subsidiaries after being separated from their corporate parents. From the managerial contributions aspect, this study tells us that if the board is independent and includes directors with the same industry experience, these spun-off subsidiaries will experience positive change in their market performance. Our interaction effect also shows that if board members are offered more shares on the top of their industry experience, the change in market performance will be stronger.
Written scholarship as a foundation for professional practice: Similarities and differences between writing coaches and editors.

ABSTRACT Scholarship forms the scientific basis of advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) practice. Although the number of manuscripts from APRNs has grown, the vast majority of APRNs do not publish works that affect practice, education, research, or policy. Many APRNs are unaware of resources, such as a writing coach and an editor, that facilitate producing publishable scholarship. This article describes the similarities and differences of the two resources.
On the Distance to a Class of Generalized Splines

The purpose of this note is to discuss how well certain classes of smooth functions can be approximated by some linear spaces of generalized splines.
Integrating Telemental Healthcare with the Patient-Centered Medical Home Model.

Abstract Objective: The purpose of this article is to discuss how telemental healthcare and the patient-centered medical home (PCMH) can be integrated to improve the quality of mental healthcare available. Methods: This article outlines the components of a PCMH, and how the needs of this type of system of care can benefit from telemental healthcare. Results: The princples of PCMHs are being increasingly promoted in a variety of settings. In order to fulfill these principles, mental heathcare must be a integral part of the care provided to patients within the PCMH. The mental healthcare workforce is inadequate to provide care for patients, particularly in rural and high-poverty areas. Telemental healthcare provides a means to extend mental health services to the PCMHs using a variety of models. Conclusions: Telemental healthcare offers unique opportunities to bridge the need for mental healthcare integration in the PCMH for all patients.