cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Abstract 4424: Antitumor activities of targeted therapeutic agents in preclinical models of gastric cancer

Proceedings: AACR 102nd Annual Meeting 2011‐‐ Apr 2‐6, 2011; Orlando, FL Gastric cancer (GC) is one of the most prevalent cancer types in Asia, and the 2nd most common cause of cancer deaths worldwide. Although considerable advances have been made with the use of improved surgical techniques and chemotherapy regimens, the prognosis for most GC patients remains poor. Therefore there is an urgent medical need for novel, effective targeted therapeutic agents for GC. One of the key drivers for a successful drug discovery program is utilization of predictive preclinical models that represent the patients of interest. Through internal efforts and collaborations we have developed subcutaneous (SC), orthotopic, syngeneic and patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models for target validation and pharmacological studies. Here we report the establishment of various cell line-derived mouse models of GC, and their validation with targeted therapeutic agents. In SC models of MKN-74, NCI-N87 and MKN-45, sunitinib malate significantly inhibited tumor growth. To establish orthotopic GC model, luciferase-expressing MKN-74 and NCI-N87 cells were first SC implanted in athymic nude mice. Four weeks after in vivo propagation, tumor fragments (1 mm3) were surgically implanted to the stomach wall in the greater curvature region. Primary tumor growth and spontaneous metastasis were monitored by bioluminescent imaging. Sunitinib malate treatment inhibited primary tumor growth but the effect on metastasis was inconclusive. Furthermore, PF-299804, an orally available irreversible pan-HER tyrosine kinase inhibitor, inhibited in vivo growth of NCI-N87 (with ERBB2 amplification), but not of AGS (without ERBB2 amplification). Both sunitinib malate and PF-299804 were well tolerated by the animals during the course of the studies. These results support anti-angiogenesis and as a valid approach for effective treatment of GC, and preclinically demonstrated the importance of patient selection for targeted agents. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 102nd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2011 Apr 2-6; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2011;71(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 4424. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2011-4424
Evolvement of International Standard on Biological Evaluation of Medical Devices

The article describes new requirements on biological safety evaluation of medical devices,material characterization,strategics approach to risk management practice and safety assessment of nanomaterials in medical devices etc.discussed on the 22th annual meeting of ISO/TC194.The evolvement of ISO10993 is focused on.
Application of High Throughput Screening To Identify Novel Small Molecule Inhibitors of αIIbβ3-Mediated Platelet Adhesion to Fibrinogen.

Two separate conformational changes have been proposed to accompany activation of platelet αIIbβ3: 1) leg separation leading to extension of the head region composed of the αIIb propeller and β3 βA (I-like) domains, and 2) a swing-out motion at the junction of the β3 βA (I-like) and hybrid domains. Small molecule inhibitors of αIIbβ3 competitively block the RGD ligand binding site and variably induce conformational changes in αIIbβ3 as judged by the binding of ligand-induced binding site (LIBS)-specific monoclonal antibodies. In an attempt to identify molecules that may inhibit αIIbβ3 activation without initiating the conformational changes associated with ligand binding, we screened 33,264 compounds from four different chemical libraries (Prestwick, Chembridge, Cerep and ChemDiv) for their ability to inhibit the adhesion of washed platelets in HEPES-modified Tyrode’s buffer with 1 mM Ca2+/0.5 mM Mg2+ to immobilized fibrinogen adsorbed from a 50 μg/ml solution. When tested at a final concentration of 16 μM, a total of 102 compounds (0.31%) demonstrated greater than 50% inhibition of platelet adhesion, and two of these (Figure 1) demonstrated >30% inhibition of the initial wave of ADP-induced aggregation of platelets in citrated platelet-rich plasma. IC50s for inhibition of ADP (5 μM)-induced platelet aggregation for compounds 1 and 2 were 13 ± 4.5 and 17 ± 5 μM (n=3), respectively. Compounds 1 and 2 also inhibited fibrinogen binding to platelets induced by the activating LIBS antibody AP5 with IC50s of 27 and 30 μM, and 20 and 27 μM, respectively, in two experiments. Since AP5 binds to and directly activates αIIbβ3, it is likely that the compounds’ inhibitory effects are due to direct binding to αIIbβ3 rather than inhibition of signal transduction. In two separate experiments, compound 1 at 15 - 20 μM produced variable increases in the binding of LIBS mAbs AP5, PMI-1 or LIBS1 to unactivated and ADP-activated platelets, whereas tirofiban (20 μM) consistently increased the binding of each mAb. Compound 2 did not increase the binding of any of the mAbs. Neither compound contains a negatively charged carboxyl group, which mediates the interaction of the Asp group in RGD ligands with the β3 MIDAS metal ion, but compound 1 has a carbonyl group that may potentially interact with the MIDAS metal ion. Compound 1 resembles 1,2-fused pyrimidine derivatives that have previously been demonstrated to inhibit platelet aggregation (Roma et al., Bioorg. Med. Chem. 2003, 11, 123). We conclude that high throughput screening of molecular libraries can identify novel compounds that inhibit αIIbβ3 and that one of them appears to inhibit αIIbβ3 without inducing conformational changes in the receptor. ![Figure][1] Figure [1]: pending:yes
Efficacy of quinalphos 25 EC for the management of wheat aphid

The present investigation was undertaken to find out the effective and economical control measures for the management of foliage feeding wheat aphids, for which three insecticides viz quinalphos 25 EC, thiamethoxam 25 % WG, and spinosad 45 EC were evaluated. Minimum aphid population was observed in case of quinalphos 25 EC @1600 ml/ha and was found at par with spinosad 45 EC @125 ml/ha and was found significantly better than other treatments, viz. quinalphos @1200 ml/ha and thiamethoxam 25 % WG @ 100 gm/ha including untreated check after 7 days of treatment. However, quinalphos 25 EC @1600 ml/ha and spinosad 45 EC @125 ml/ha and significantly better than other treatments including untreated check. Grain yield of plot treated with quinalphos 25 EC @1600 ml/ha was registered with highest yield (39.25 q/ha) and significantly better than other treatments including control. Cost-benefit ratio and net profit calculated for different insecticidal treatments revealed that quinalphos 25 EC @1600 ml/ha (1:9.65) was found highly cost effective as compare to other insecticides.
Accredited Orthopaedic Sports Medicine Fellowship Websites: An Updated Assessment of Accessibility and Content.

Background:A substantial number of orthopaedic surgeons apply for sports medicine fellowships after residency completion. The Internet is one of the most important resources applicants use to obtai...
Are standalone gate size and V T optimization tools useful

Many algorithms for gate size and threshold voltage (V T ) optimization have been proposed. The International Symposium of Physical Design (ISPD) contests for discrete gate sizing with wire loads have led to improved algorithms. However, significant changes in cell sizes require re-placement and re-routing which invalidate the wire loads upon which the sizing was performed. In turn, sizing must be re-performed with new wire loads. To best of our knowledge, it has not been shown how much leakage power reduction can be obtained for actually laid out circuits, nor whether the process even converges. In this work, we chose a gate size and V T optimization algorithm which achieves leakage reduction results comparable to best reported to date for smaller circuits and better results for the largest circuits in the ISPD set. We interfaced the tool with leading EDA tools using a 45nm multi-V T cell library. We propose an incremental placement and routing methodology for use with the EDA placement and routing tool, such that the post-sizing placement and routing converges to the solution achieved after sizing and V T optimization. The flow achieves as much as a 28% leakage reduction with an average reduction of 12% after performing the proposed incremental placement and routing compared to the leading EDA synthesis and layout tool.
Estimation of Mean Residual Life

Yang (Ann Stat, 6:112–116, 1978) considered an empirical estimate of the mean residual life function on a fixed finite interval. She proved it to be strongly uniformly consistent and (when appropriately standardized) weakly convergent to a Gaussian process. These results are extended to the whole half line, and the variance of the limiting process is studied. Also, nonparametric simultaneous confidence bands for the mean residual life function are obtained by transforming the limiting process to Brownian motion.
Heterologous prion-forming proteins interact to cross-seed aggregation in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The early stages of protein misfolding remain incompletely understood, as most mammalian proteinopathies are only detected after irreversible protein aggregates have formed. Cross-seeding, where one aggregated protein templates the misfolding of a heterologous protein, is one mechanism proposed to stimulate protein aggregation and facilitate disease pathogenesis. Here, we demonstrate the existence of cross-seeding as a crucial step in the formation of the yeast prion [PSI +], formed by the translation termination factor Sup35. We provide evidence for the genetic and physical interaction of the prion protein Rnq1 with Sup35 as a predominant mechanism leading to self-propagating Sup35 aggregation. We identify interacting sites within Rnq1 and Sup35 and determine the effects of breaking and restoring a crucial interaction. Altogether, our results demonstrate that single-residue disruption can drastically reduce the effects of cross-seeding, a finding that has important implications for human protein misfolding disorders.
Correction to: Treatment Strategies for the Opioid-Dependent Patient

The original version of this article contains an error in the gender listing of the first author in the Conflict of Interest statement.
Should This Patient Receive Prophylactic Medication to Prevent Delirium?: Grand Rounds Discussion From Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

In 2015, the American Geriatrics Society released recommendations for prevention and management of postoperative delirium, based on a systematic literature review and evaluation of nonpharmacologic and pharmacologic approaches by an expert panel. The guidelines recommend an interdisciplinary focus on nonpharmacologic measures (reorientation, medication management, early mobility, nutrition, and gastointestinal motility) for prevention and consideration of this strategy for acute management. They also recommend optimizing nonopioid medication as a means to manage pain and avoiding benzodiazepines other than to treat substance withdrawal. The authors concluded that evidence to recommend antipsychotics for prevention of delirium is insufficient but that these drugs may be considered for short-term treatment in the setting of imminent harm to the patient or caregivers or severe distress due to agitation. Patients should be given the lowest possible dose for the shortest duration when other nonpharmacologic measures have failed. In this Beyond the Guidelines, a psychiatrist and a geriatrician debate whether Mr. W, a 79-year-old man at high risk for postoperative delirium, should receive prophylactic antipsychotics with his next surgery. They review risk factors, appropriate evaluation, and potential benefits and harms of the various medications often used in this setting.
Sharing data: Some examples

Shared methods, procedures, documentation, and data are essential features of science. This observation is illustrated by autobiographical examples and, far more important, by the history of astron...
Home-based nurse practitioners demonstrate reductions in rehospitalizations and emergency department visits in a clinically complex patient population through an academic–clinical partnership

ABSTRACTBackground and purpose:The purpose of this pilot study was to describe the impact of one aspect of an academic–clinical partnership that showed how assigning nurse practitioner faculty to deliver home-based primary care services to clinically complex patients would decrease rehospitalization
Crystal Cube: Multidisciplinary Approach to Disruptive Events Prediction

The goal of Crystal Cube is to create an automated capability for the prediction of disruptive events. In this paper we present initial prediction results on six prediction categories previously shown to be of interest in the literature. In particular, we compare the performance of static classification models, often used in previous work for these prediction tasks, with a gated recurrent unit sequence model that has the ability to retain information over long periods of time for the classification of sequence data. Our results show that the sequence model is comparable in performance to the best performing static model (the random forest), and that more work is needed to classify highly dynamic prediction categories with high probability.
The velveteen rabbit : fragment of an analysis

This paper develops a psychoanalytic interpretation both of the popular children's story and of the process by which interpretation of the story unfolded within the writer's experience as an analys...
Progress in Photochemical Air Quality Simulation Modeling

Over the past 15 years we have witnessed the development of atmospheric dispersion models which include increasingly complex approximations of photochemistry. Unlike existing Gaussian or analytic schemes, the models simulate atmospheric chemical reactions, some of which act at very rapid rates, and therefore involve time steps much shorter than are generally regarded as necessary for transport and dispersion of inert species. The computational demands rise rapidly with the number of chemical species considered, and it is not unusual to see present-day models for urban and regional scales having computer simulation speeds comparable to the real-world events. Computer restrictions have tended to engender decisions to diminish the spatial resolution of the models in order to increase the number of species and reactions treated.
Design study of copper toroidal field coils with bow shaping, demountable sliding joints, and active liquid-nitrogen cooling

The motivation for this design study has been to identify magnet designs for useful magnetic fusion experiments which minimize capital cost. Some possibly useful novel design features have been identified. 5 refs., 6 figs., 3 tabs.
Innate Immune Response to Influenza Virus at Single-Cell Resolution in Human Epithelial Cells Revealed Paracrine Induction of Interferon Lambda 1.

Early interactions of influenza A virus (IAV) with respiratory epithelium might determine the outcome of infection. The study of global cellular innate immune responses often masks multiple aspects of the mechanisms by which populations of cells work as organized and heterogeneous systems to defeat virus infection, and how the virus counteracts these systems. In this study, we experimentally dissected the dynamics of IAV and human epithelial respiratory cell interaction during early infection at the single-cell level. We found that the number of viruses infecting a cell (multiplicity of infection [MOI]) influences the magnitude of virus antagonism of the host innate antiviral response. Infections performed at high MOIs resulted in increased viral gene expression per cell and stronger antagonist effect than infections at low MOIs. In addition, single-cell patterns of expression of interferons (IFN) and IFN-stimulated genes (ISGs) provided important insights into the contributions of the infected and bystander cells to the innate immune responses during infection. Specifically, the expression of multiple ISGs was lower in infected than in bystander cells. In contrast with other IFNs, IFN lambda 1 (IFNL1) showed a widespread pattern of expression, suggesting a different cell-to-cell propagation mechanism more reliant on paracrine signaling. Finally, we measured the dynamics of the antiviral response in primary human epithelial cells, which highlighted the importance of early innate immune responses at inhibiting virus spread. IMPORTANCE Influenza A virus (IAV) is a respiratory pathogen of high importance to public health. Annual epidemics of seasonal IAV infections in humans are a significant public health and economic burden. IAV also causes sporadic pandemics, which can have devastating effects. The main target cells for IAV replication are epithelial cells in the respiratory epithelium. The cellular innate immune responses induced in these cells upon infection are critical for defense against the virus, and therefore, it is important to understand the complex interactions between the virus and the host cells. In this study, we investigated the innate immune response to IAV in the respiratory epithelium at the single-cell level, providing a better understanding on how a population of epithelial cells functions as a complex system to orchestrate the response to virus infection and how the virus counteracts this system.
Multiple Computed Tomography Robust Optimization to Account for Random Anatomic Density Variations During Intensity Modulated Proton Therapy

Abstract Purpose To propose a method of optimizing intensity modulated proton therapy (IMPT) plans robust against dosimetric degradation caused by random anatomic variations during treatment. Methods and Materials Fifteen patients with prostate cancer treated with IMPT to the pelvic targets were nonrandomly selected. On the repeated quality assurance computed tomography (QACTs) for some patients, bowel density changes were observed and caused dose degradation because the treated plans were not robustly optimized (non-RO). To mitigate this effect, we developed a robust planning method based on 3 CT images, including the native planning CT and its 2 copies, with the bowel structures being assigned to air and tissue, respectively. The RO settings included 5 mm setup uncertainty and 3.5% range uncertainty on 3 CTs. This method is called pseudomultiple-CT RO (pMCT-RO). Plans were also generated using RO on the native CT only, with the same setup and range uncertainties. This method is referred to as single-CT RO (SCT-RO). Doses on the QACTs and the nominal planning CT were compared for the 3 planning methods. Results All 3 plan methods provided sufficient clinical target volumes D95% and V95% on the QACTs. For pMCT-RO plans, the normal tissue Dmax on QACTs of all patients was at maximum 109.1%, compared with 144.4% and 116.9% for non-RO and SCT-RO plans, respectively. On the nominal plans, the rectum and bladder doses were similar among all 3 plans; however, the volume of normal tissue (excluding the rectum and bladder) receiving the prescription dose or higher is substantially reduced in either pMCT-RO plans or SCT-RO plans, compared with the non-RO plans. Conclusions We developed a robust optimization method to further mitigate undesired dose heterogeneity caused by random anatomic changes in pelvic IMPT treatment. This method does not require additional patient CT scans. The pMCT-RO planning method has been implemented clinically since 2017 in our center.
Toppling Oranges: Death, Disability, Decline, and Readmission of Community-Dwelling Elderly Patients After an Emergency Department Visit.

Abstract Background Every emergency department (ED) faces both a rising tide and a revolving door of elderly patients. Unplanned short-term returns after a recent ED evaluation or hospital admission are sentinel events. Consequences include substantial functional decline, reduced health-related quality of life, and increased risk of dependency or death. Returning families, unaware of the significant likelihood of deterioration after an ED or hospital discharge, often harbor suspicions that something was missed. Literature describing the significant likelihood of functional decline in elderly patients after ED or hospital discharge is presented. Suggestions for incorporating the potential for subsequent deterioration into the evaluation of elderly ED patients and the discussions surrounding disposition decisions are included. Discussion In addition to impacting patients and families, posthospitalization decline and short-term readmissions create serious burdens for hospitals and their EDs. Education, vigilance, specialized geriatric EDs, dedicated inpatient units, and ED access to outpatient services for the elderly can aid in the recognition and mitigation of postvisit functional decline and associated returns. Financial incentives for reducing short-term readmissions can translate into novel approaches and referral arrangements. Conclusions Currently, and for the foreseeable future, EDs are integral to predicting, identifying, and preventing functional decline in the elderly. For now, we are all Geriatric EDs.
Mokken Scale Analysis of Lifetime Responses on the Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale's Severity of Ideation Subscale.

Suicide risk screening assumes that suicidal thoughts and behaviors exist on a continuous, hierarchical spectrum with some suicidal thoughts implicated with greater risk for suicidal behaviors. How...
Elevated Right And Left Sided Filling Pressures Determine Adverse Outcomes In Ambulatory Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction

Introduction Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) constitutes approximately half of all heart failure (HF) hospitalizations. The driving force of pathophysiology and symptoms in HFpEF are elevated filling pressures. We sought to evaluate clinical outcomes by hemodynamic parameters in ambulatory HFpEF. Methods We included patients referred to the Johns Hopkins HFpEF Clinic with a clinical diagnosis of HFpEF and right heart catheterization data. Baseline characteristics and clinical outcomes at 2 years were compared for patients with right atrial (RA) to pulmonary capillary wedge pressure (PCWP) ratio of Results Of the 161 patients included, 60 (37%) had an RA:PCWP ratio of ≥0.6 and 60 (37%) had a PCWP ≥20 mmHg. In the high RA:PCWP group, there was a significantly lower proportion of females and African Americans and lower systolic blood pressure compared to the low RA:PCWP group (Table). Patients with a high PCWP were significantly more obese, more likely to be on a beta-blocker, and had higher NT-proBNP compared to those with a low PCWP (Table). Clinical signs and symptoms of HF were not significantly different between groups, except for a higher proportion of patients with orthopnea in the low PCWP group. Event-free probability was significantly lower in the high RA:PCWP and PCWP groups compared to the low groups at 2 years (p=0.001 and 0.011 respectively, Figure). There was no significant difference in event-free probability by cardiac index ( Conclusion Elevated right and left-sided filling pressures are a key determinant of clinical outcomes in ambulatory HFpEF. Clinical signs and symptoms of HF in an obese HFpEF population may not be a reliable metric of elevated filling pressures. Therefore, invasive hemodynamic assessment for prognostication and intensification of diuretic therapy should be considered. Future therapies in HFpEF should focus on accurate detection of congestion and novel strategies for enhanced natriuresis.
Regularly Varying Functions and Pareto-Type Distributions

Regularly varying functions have a deceptively simple structure. However, despite their apparent simplicity, they possess numerous interesting properties. Chapter 7 provides a short overview of the theory of regularly varying functions. In addition, the chapter discusses Pareto type distributions, which are distributions with regularly varying tails. A new notion of weak Pareto type functions is introduced and studied. A function is of a weak Pareto type if it can be squeezed between two regularly varying functions having the same index of regular variation. It is shown in Chap. 7 that the distributions of the stock price in the Hull-White, Stein-Stein, and Heston models are all of Pareto type. The proof of the previous statement is based on the asymptotic formulas for the stock price densities established in Chap. 6. Weak Pareto type functions will reappear in Sect. 10.6, devoted to the asymptotic equivalence in R. Lee’s moment formulas for the implied volatility.
Getting Promoted to Associate Professor

Academic promotion to Associate Professor is an important milestone in one’s academic career. The number of women who hold upper-level faculty ranks is disproportionately lower than the number of full-time women faculty in US medical schools. Because the promotions process is quite involved and can take 6–12 months from the point of initiation, careful planning is necessary. It is important to build a strong portfolio of work that includes publications, research abstracts, invited lectures, awards, and leadership roles. Keep your curriculum vitae updated at all times, and set aside all evaluations and positive feedback received for your work. A faculty member’s readiness for promotion should be jointly determined by the candidate and her chairperson. Once a timeline has been established, start composing your dossier. Utilize resources offered by the institution, and carefully review requirements before starting. Seeking advice and guidance from senior colleagues can be invaluable. Set aside plenty of time to request materials that rely on others’ schedules, such as letters of support and institutional forms. Authors of your letters should be able to attest to your contributions and future potential. After your dossier is completed and proofread, your chairperson will submit it to the promotions committee. Your chair will present you to the committee on a pre-determined date, and a decision will be rendered and pushed to the Board of Trustees for sign-off. Following your successful promotion to Associate Professor, remember to thank all the staff, letter writers, mentors, and colleagues who assisted you through this process.
Mines, Communities, and States: The Local Politics of Natural Resource Extraction in Africa: By Jessica Steinberg Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2019, 282 pp., £75 (hardback), ISBN: 9781108476935

In Mines, Communities, and States, Jessica Steinberg sets out to develop and test a generalisable theory to explain why some regions of natural resource extraction in Africa experience protest and ...
Dual-Loop Model of the Human Controller

A dual-loop model of the human controller in single-axis compensatory tracking tasks is introduced. This model possesses an inner-loop closure that involves feeding back that portion of controlled element output rate that is due to control activity. A novel feature of the model is the explicit appearance of the human's internal representation of the manipulator-controlled element dynamics in the inner loop. The sensor inputs to the human controller are assumed to be system error and control force. The former can be sensed via visual, aural, or tactile displays, whereas the latter is assumed to be sensed in kinesthetic fashion. A set of general adaptive characteristics for the model is hypothesized, including a method for selecting simplified internal models of the manipulator-controlled element dynamics. It is demonstrated that the model can produce controller describing functions that closely approximate those measured in four laboratory tracking tasks in which the controlled element dynamics vary considerably in terms of ease of control. An empirically derived expression for the normalized injected error remnant spectrum is introduced.
Are Faculty Changing? How Reform Frameworks, Sampling Intensities, and Instrument Measures Impact Inferences about Student-Centered Teaching Practices.

This study highlights the risks of broad, decontextualized sampling protocol recommendations and illustrates how reform frameworks, sampling intensities, and COPUS measures interact to impact infer...
Revisiting the estimation of Covid-19 prevalence: Implications for rapid testing

Surveillance studies for Covid-19 prevalence estimation are subject to sampling bias due to oversampling of symptomatic individuals and error-prone tests, particularly rapid antigen tests which are known to have high false negative rates for asymptomatic individuals. This results in naive estimators which can be very far from the truth.In this work, we present a method that removes these two sources of error directly. Moreover, our procedure can be easily extended to the stratified error situation in which a test has very different error rate profiles for symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals as is the case for rapid antigen testing. The result is an easily understandable four-step algorithm that produces much more reliable prevalence estimates as demonstrated on data from the Israeli Ministry of Health. Thus it may re-open the debate about whether we are under-valuing rapid testing as a surveillance tool and may have policy implications in Third-World countries or disadvantaged communities where access to PCR testing may be less accessible.
Self-stabilization of Ni/Al2O3 Catalyst with a NiAl2O4 Isolation Layer in Dry Reforming of Methane

Alumina oxide supported nickel (Ni/Al2O3) catalysts generally suffer from fast deactivation caused by coking and formation of nickel aluminate (NiAl2O4) in dry reforming of methane (DRM). Herein, for the first time, a self-stabilization mechanism of the Ni/Al2O3 catalyst (with 0.1 wt% Ni loading) was revealed and effectively applied for DRM. Namely, the conversion of catalytically active Ni species into catalytically inert NiAl2O4 spinel in DRM over the Ni/γ-Al2O3 catalyst could be mitigated by repeated reduction-reaction treatments owing to the increasing amount of Ni located on the NiAl2O4 isolation layer rather than the reactive γ-Al2O3. The self-stabilization could be achieved over Ni/α-Al2O3 as well, even with a faster rate, since the NiAl2O4 isolation layer can be directly formed in the first reduction-reaction cycle due to its small surface area and weak metal-support interaction. These observations not only highlight the importance of an isolation layer for protecting the catalyst from deactivation, but also provide a novel and efficient self-stabilization approach for catalytic DRM.
SU-E-T-313: Dosimetric Deviation of Misaligned Beams for a 6 MV Photon Linear Accelerator Using Monte Carlo Simulations

Purpose: To quantify the dosimetric variations of misaligned beams for a linear accelerator by using Monte Carlo (MC) simulations. Method and Materials: Misaligned beams of a Varian 21EX Clinac were simulated to estimate the dosimetric effects. All the linac head components for a 6 MV photon beam were implemented in BEAMnrc/EGSnrc system. For incident electron beam parameters, 6 MeV with 0.1 cm full-width-half-max Gaussian beam was used. A phase space file was obtained below the jaw per each misalignment condition of the incident electron beam: (1) The incident electron beams were tilted by 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5 degrees on the x-axis from the central axis. (2) The center of the incident electron beam was off-axially moved toward +x-axis by 0.1, 0.2, and 0.3 cm away from the central axis. Lateral profiles for each misaligned beam condition were acquired at dmax = 1.5 cm and 10 cm depth in a rectangular water phantom. Beam flatness and symmetry were calculated by using the lateral profile data. Results: The lateral profiles were found to be skewed opposite to the angle of the incident beam for the tilted beams. For the displaced beams, similar skewed lateral profiles were obtained with small shifts of penumbra on the +x-axis. The variations of beam flatness were 3.89–11.18% and 4.12–42.57% for the tilted beam and the translated beam, respectively. The beam symmetry was separately found to be 2.95 −9.93% and 2.55–38.06% separately. It was found that the percent increase of the flatness and the symmetry values are approximated 2 to 3% per 0.5 degree tilt or per 1 mm displacement. Conclusion: This study quantified the dosimetric effects of misaligned beams using MC simulations. The results would be useful to understand the magnitude of the dosimetric deviations for the misaligned beams.
Genetics of Bipolar Disorder

In this chapter, we will attempt to outline the current state of genetic knowledge for bipolar disorder and briefly summarize the main findings from genetic epidemiology studies. We then review the most recent original literature, based largely on genome-wide association study methods. We conclude with some ideas about future directions.
A REMARK ON GELFAND-KIRILLOV DIMENSION

Let A be a finitely generated non-PI Ore domain and Q the quotient division algebra of A. If C is the center of Q, then GKdimC ≤ GKdimA− 2. Throughout k is a commutative field and dimk is the dimension of a k-vector space. Let A be a k-algebra and M a right A-module. The Gelfand-Kirillov dimension of M is GKdimM = sup V,M0 lim n→∞ logn dimkM0V n where the supremum is taken over all finite dimensional subspaces V ⊂ A and M0 ⊂ M . If F ⊃ k is another central subfield of A, we may also consider the Gelfand-Kirillov dimension of M over F which will be denoted by GKdimF to indicate the change of the field. We refer to [BK], [GK] and [KL] for more details. Let Z be a central subdomain of A. Then A is localizable over Z and the localization is denoted by AZ . For any right A-module M , M ⊗ AZ is denoted by MZ . Let F be the quotient field of Z. The first author [Sm, 2.7] proved the following theorem: Let A be an almost commutative algebra and Z a central subdomain. Suppose M is a right A-module such that MZ 6= 0. Then GKdimM ≥ GKdimF MZ + GKdimZ. As a consequence of this, if A is almost commutative but non-PI and Z is a central subalgebra such that every nonzero element in Z is regular in A, then GKdimZ ≤ GKdimA− 2. It is natural to ask if the above theorem (and hence the consequence) is true for all algebras. In this paper we will precisely prove this. Theorem 1. Let A be an algebra and Z a central subdomain. Suppose M is a right A-module such that MZ 6= 0. Then GKdimM ≥ GKdimF MZ + GKdimZ. An algebra is called locally PI if every finitely generated subalgebra is PI. As a consequence of Theorem 1, we have Received by the editors July 12, 1996 and, in revised form, August 20, 1996. 1991 Mathematics Subject Classification. Primary 16P90.
Exploring the effect of complex patients on care delivery tasks.

Purpose – The needs of complex patients with chronic conditions can be unpredictable and can strain resources. Exploring how tasks vary for different patients, particularly those with complex needs, can yield insights about designing better processes in healthcare. The purpose of this paper is to explore the tasks required to manage complex patients in an anticoagulation therapy context. Design/methodology/approach – The authors analyzed interviews with 55 staff in six anticoagulation clinics using the Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety (SEIPS) work system framework. The authors qualitatively described complex patients and their effects on care delivery. Findings – Data analysis highlighted how identifying complex patients and their effect on tasks and organization, and the interactions between them was important. Managing complex patients required similar tasks as non-complex patients, but with greater frequency or more intensity and several additional tasks. After complex patients and ass...
How Hypermodern Technology in Social Work Education Bites Back

This article examines the effect that use of increasingly sophisticated and costly technology is having on social work education. While much of the literature addresses the positive aspects of technology in the profession, the authors consider the negative implications of technology for productivity, program development, and social relationships, to name a few. The authors provide suggestions for maintaining a social work perspective in the face of increased technology usage.
MFG-E8 and HMGB1 Are Involved in the Mechanism Underlying Alcohol-Induced Impairment of Macrophage Efferocytosis

Efferocytosis is a unique phagocytic process for macrophages to remove apoptotic cells in inflammatory loci. This event is maintained by milk fat globule-EGF factor 8 (MFG-E8), but attenuated by high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1). Alcohol abuse causes injury and inflammation in multiple tissues. It alters efferocytosis, but precise molecular mechanisms for this effect remain largely unknown. Here, we showed that acute exposure of macrophages to alcohol (25 mmol/L) inhibited MFG-E8 gene expression and impaired efferocytosis. The effect was mimicked by hydrogen peroxide. Moreover, N-acetylcysteine (NAC), a potent antioxidant, blocked acute alcohol effect on inhibition of macrophage MFG-E8 gene expression and efferocytosis. In addition, recombinant MFG-E8 rescued the activity of alcohol-treated macrophages in efferocytosis. Together, the data suggest that acute alcohol exposure impairs macrophage efferocytosis via inhibition of MFG-E8 gene expression through a reactive oxygen species dependent mechanism. Alcohol has been found to suppress or exacerbate immune cell activities depending on the length of alcohol exposure. Thus, we further examined the role of chronic alcohol exposure on macrophage efferocytosis. Interestingly, treatment of macrophages with alcohol for seven days in vitro enhanced MFG-E8 gene expression and efferocytosis. However, chronic feeding of mice with alcohol caused increase in HMGB1 levels in serum. Furthermore, HMGB1 diminished efferocytosis by macrophages that were treated chronically with alcohol, suggesting that HMGB1 might attenuate the direct effect of chronic alcohol on macrophage efferocytosis in vivo. Therefore, we speculated that the balance between MFG-E8 and HMGB1 levels determines pathophysiological effects of chronic alcohol exposure on macrophage efferocytosis in vivo.
Balancing market priorities with security issues

The control of a heterogeneous, widely dispersed, yet globally interconnected system is a serious technological problem. This becomes even more complex and difficult to control for optimal efficiency and maximum benefit to the ultimate consumers while still allowing all its business components to compete fairly and freely. While creating a smart grid with self-healing capabilities is no longer a distant dream, considerable technical challenges as well as several economic and policy issues remain to be addressed. To address these and other vulnerabilities, the electric power industry and all pertinent public and private sectors must work together with other critical infrastructure stakeholders. Given economic, societal and quality of life issues and the ever-increasing interdependencies among infrastructures, a key challenge is whether the electricity infrastructure will evolve to become the primary support for the 21st century's digital society or be left behind as a 20th century industrial relic.
On a class of (2n-1)-stage rearrangeable interconnection networks

A class of (2n-1)-stage rearrangeable multistage interconnection networks (MINs) that includes all the previously proposed 2n-1 stage MINs as special cases or subsets is proposed. Both permutation routing and generalized distributed tag routing algorithms of this class of MINs are proposed. It is shown that previously proposed routing algorithms for some specific rearrangeable networks are just special cases of the general routing algorithm. >
Cerebral endothelium and astrocytes cooperate in supplying docosahexaenoic acid to neurons.

Elongated, more highly polyunsaturated derivatives of linolenic acid, especially docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), accumulate in neurons of the brain (1). We have previously shown that neurons themselves are incapable of significant essential fatty acid elongation and desaturation and, thus, are dependent upon a supply of preformed DHA (2). However, astrocytes and cerebral endothelium actively elongate and desaturate the ω-3 fatty acid precursors, linolenic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) (2, 3). By doing so they may together represent an important source of DHA for the central nervous system.
Hypovirulence-associated traits induced by a mycovirus of Cryphonectria parasitica are mimicked by targeted inactivation of a host gene.

Abstract Expression of the Vir2 gene of Cryphonectria parasitica is down-regulated in strains of the fungus containing a double-stranded RNA genetic element that reduces fungal virulence (W. A. Powell and N. K. Van Alfen, Mol. Cell. Biol. 7:3688-3693, 1987). We have sequenced the Vir2 gene and characterized its structure; the mRNA contains a short open reading frame whose product has structural similarities to several fungal pheromones. A null mutant was constructed by homologous recombination to determine the function of the Vir2 gene and whether its disruption resulted in any of the altered phenotypes exhibited by many hypovirulent strains, such as reductions in virulence, pigmentation, and sporulation. The Vir2 null mutant (18dm) exhibited a wild-type phenotype with respect to gross colony morphology, growth rate, pigmentation, asexual spore viability, and virulence in apple fruit and chestnut trees. However, numbers of asexual fruiting bodies (pycnidia) and conidia were reduced significantly in comparison with the wild-type strain EP155/2. In sexual crosses of 18dm with a wild-type strain of the opposite mating type, perithecia (sexual fruiting bodies) developed but were barren. Deletion of the Vir2 gene results in a phenotype that mimics that of many double-stranded-RNA-containing hypovirulent strains; i.e., the null mutant exhibits significant reductions in asexual sporulation and pycinidum production as well as impaired sexual crossing ability. To our knowledge, this is the first report of the partial reproduction of a virus-induced phenotype by deletion of a virus-perturbed host gene.
Hydrogen Oxidation by the Host-Controlled Uptake Hydrogenase Phenotype of Bradyrhizobium japonicum in Symbiosis with Soybean Host Plants

Symbioses between uptake hydrogenase host-regulated (Hup-hr) phenotypes of Bradyrhizobium japonicum and exotic, agronomically unadapted soybean germ plasm were examined for expression of uptake hydrogenase activity. Determinations for hydrogen evolution and uptake hydrogenase activity identified five plant introduction (PI) lines which formed hydrogen-oxidizing symbioses with strains USDA 61 and PA3 6c. Hup-hr strains belonging to serogroup 94 expressed uptake hydrogenase activity in symbioses with PI 181696 and PI 219655 at rates sufficient to prevent hydrogen from escaping the nodules. The identification of soybean germ plasm forming hydrogen-oxidizing symbioses with Hup-hr bradyrhizobia potentially has implications for enhancing nitrogen fixation efficiency in soybean production.
Metastatic melanoma simulating a primary endometrial tumor

migrate along the dorsal mesentery of the hindgut to the gonadal ridges, and, in the sixth week, they are incorporated into the future ovaries. The ovaries and paramesonephric ducts then move anteriorly with fusion of the paramesonephric ducts in the midline to form the primitive uterus and tubes. Arrest of migration of pluripotent germ cells while in the dorsal mesentery would lead to the classic presacral or sacrococcygeal teratoma located posterior to the rectum. If germ cells were to become arrested in their migration between the yolk sac endoderm and the dorsal mesentery then, as the paramesonephric ducts fuse in the midline, they would become trapped between the future uterus and colon, i.e., in the retrouterine pouch of Douglas (Fig. 2). A teratoma arising from a germ cell so placed would lead to the lesion described in this report. Inherent in the term “pluripotent” is the ability of germ cells to form tissues derived from ectoderm, mesoderm, and endoderm. As this case report indicates, the full meaning of “pluripotent” could rightfully be expanded to include the ability of germ cells to take multiple paths of wandering, coming to rest even in a location as rare as the retrouterine cul-de-sac.
Does breast-feeding influence intelligence quotients at 9 and 10 years of age?

Abstract The effect of breast-feeding on intellectual development remains controversial. We explored this relationship in a high socioeconomic population in which breast-feeding was supplemented with soy containing formulas at some time during the first year of life. As part of the 1988 National Institute of Child Health and Human Development school-based survey of two metropolitan Washington, D.C. counties to identify children in the 1978 to 1979 birth cohort who had been exposed to the chloride deficient formulas Neo-Mull-Soy and Cho-Free during infancy, information on breast-feeding was also obtained on children exposed to the chloridedeficient formulas and a group of control children exposed to other soy formulas. Because no differences in intellectual development were observed between the two groups, they were combined and the effect of breast-feeding on intellectual development at 9 and 10 years was assessed. There were 176 infants that received no breast-feeding and 342 who were breast-fed. The median duration of breast-feeding was 124 days (interquartile range, 42–248 days). There were no differences in birth weight, gender or race between the infants who were breast-fed and those who were not. The mean Weschler Intelligence Scale-Revised Full Scale IQ was 122 among those breast-fed compared to 118 among those that were not (P = 0.0008). However, following adjustment by linear regression for maternal education, paternal education and annual income the adjusted mean full scale IQ was 111 among the breast-fed and 110 among the non-breast-fed (P = 0.23). Further analyses limited to those exclusively breast-fed for the first 60 days failed to demonstrate any significant relationship between breast-feeding and IQ.
Quantification of Ionizable Functional Groups on a Hydrolyzed Polyimide Surface

Surfaces of a hydrolyzed PMDA-ODA polyimide have been examined by contact angle titrations. From an analysis of the data and the free energy changes occurring during ionization, an estimate can be made of the number of carboxylic acid groups created by hydrolysis. Calculations estimate that (5−7) × 1017 −CO2H/m2 are formed during alkaline hydrolysis (0.25 M NaOH) from times of 5−120 min. These results are consistent with X-ray scattering data and unit cell area values obtained on aromatic polyimides.
Multipactor with electric field retarding secondary emission

A systematic study of the effects of emission under opposing rf electric field in multipactors is performed including external magnetic field. It is shown that the small, 1 eV or less, kinetic energy of the emitted secondaries suffices to overcome opposing ac electric fields of the order kV/cm at the moment of emission, owing to the high frequency that the field changes sign. Thus, the static space charge limitation (no emission under the opposing field) does not apply, and ac driven avalanches occur for resonant impact phases with retarding electric field. Hence (a) the limit in the parameter space where multipactor occurs is pushed towards much higher ac fields, where the resonant impact phase is negative. (b) For mostly negative impact phases the space charge remains confined in a tight bunch during multipactor saturation. At lower ac fields, where the resonant impact phases are positive, the finite emission energy has a small overall effect.