cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Freestanding emergency departments and the trauma patient.

Abstract Background Freestanding emergency departments (FEDs) continue to grow in number and more research is needed on these facilities. Objective We sought to characterize the types of injuries and patients who initially presented to two FEDs and were transferred to the main tertiary care ED for trauma team consult and admission. Methods This retrospective cohort descriptive study examined medical records of adult trauma patients who were initially seen at an FED and then transferred to the main ED. All patients who received a trauma consultation were included. Data collection included demographics, initial mode of transport to the ED, injury, mechanism of injury, ED, hospital course and outcome. Results Mean age was 61.8 ± 23.8, 96.7% were Caucasian and 52.5% were male. Mode of transport to the FEDs included private vehicle (46.4%) and emergency medical services (53.6%). The main injury mechanisms were fall from standing (51.9%) and fall from an object (16%). A total of 12.7% were from motor vehicle accidents and 6.6% presented from bicycle and all-terrain vehicle accidents. Blunt traumatic injuries accounted for 97.8% (n = 177) patients. Computed tomography scanning was performed on 90.1% of patients. Median ED length of stay was 189 min. Mean hospital length of stay was 3 days and 2.2% (n = 4) of patients died from their injuries. Conclusions Understanding the patients and traumatic injuries that present to FEDs will guide training and identify resources needed for patients requiring additional care at a trauma center.
Dip-pen nanolithography on SiOx and tissue-derived substrates: comparison with multiple biological inks.

There has been extensive interest in the micro and nanoscale manipulation of various substrates in the past few decades. One promising technique is dip-pen nanolithography which has shown the capability to pattern substrates of all forms including, tissue-derived substrates. Patterning of tissue-derived substrates is of particular interest, as it would facilitate studies into controlling cell morphology and cell–substrate interaction. To expand the field into this area both peptides and bioactive collagen-binding peptide-linked biomolecules were patterned to the inner collagenous zone of the Bruch's membrane (BM). Collagen-binding peptide, and extra cellular matrix (ECM) proteins laminin and fibronectin were patterned on the BM and SiOx. The lithographic protocol was facilitated by Triton X-100 which was used to clean the tissue-derived construct after harvesting. This produced a collagen-exposed BM which was more hydrophilic (contact angle 67°±8.49°) surface compared with other cleaning methods but it maintained similar surface roughness (root-mean-square) 80±18 nm and collagen exposure. This type of surface can be readily patterned with the chosen inks under lower humidity conditions. SCANNING 32: 30–34, 2010. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
A computerized system for the evaluation of community dental programs

This paper reports on a relatively uncomplicated and inexpensive computerized system for prospective evaluation of clinical dental programs from the point of view of effectiveness and efficiency. Availability of this system does away with some high start-up costs. Three forms of input data, new case information, examination findings and operative procedure information, are regularly collected on data sheets and specially designed Port-a-punch® IBM cards. Easily interpreted output tables are generated monthly on such variables as completed cases according to treatment series and clinician, number of various procedures performed by clinicians, etc. Productivity is measured, in part, by application of monetary constants to procedure data. This paper describes the computer programs used, the cost of setting up and operating the system (which is within the budgetary constraints of most small, publicly funded programs) and the benefits that can be derived from the use of such a system. The system provides prompt feedback of relevant administrative data, thus allowing for relatively quick response to problems. Use of the system reduces clerical needs to a minimum and the program can easily be implemented on any except the very smallest digital computer.
Filmless radiology in the Emergency Department

The introduction of standardization in image formatting allowed the development of a picture archiving and communication system, or filmless radiology. In practice, we have found advantages in quick access and availability, image manipulation, and cost savings to outweigh the disadvantages of portability and system down time.
The prevalence of myocardial bridging and septal squeeze in patients with significant aortic stenosis.

One hundred thirty-three cases of significant aortic valvular stenosis (mean systolic gradient = 93.3 ± 26.3 mm Hg) were studied to determine the prevalence of myocardial bridging and septal squeeze. Seven of 133 cases (5%) had myocardial bridging. Six of the 7 patients with myocardial bridging also had septal squeeze. Of the 126 patients without myocardial bridging, 92 (73%) had septal squeeze. The prevalence of myocardial bridging in patients with aortic stenosis (AS) is compared to that in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy or normal left ventricles.
Direct expression of active spinach glycolate oxidase in Escherichia coli

Abstract Spinach glycolate oxidase (GAO) was expressed in Escherichia coli using the T7 RNA polymerase promotor. The enzyme accounts for approx. 1% of the soluble protein fraction and is expressed as a soluble and active enzyme. Comparison with GAO expressed in Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Macheroux, P., Massey, V., Thiele, D.J. and Volokita, M. (1991) Biochemistry 30, 4612–4619) showed that the GAO expressed in E. coli has identical physico-chemical features to the wild-type enzyme, but is expressed at a level approx. 15-fold higher than in the yeast system.
Numerical integration of rate constitutive equations in finite deformation analysis

Abstract In analysis of finite deformation problems the use of constitutive equations in rate form is often required. In a spatial setting, these equations may express a relationship between some objective rate of spatial stress tensor and the rate of deformation. Constitutive equations of this type characterize a variety of material models including hyperelasticity, hypoelasticity and elastoplasticity. Employing geometrical concepts, a family of unconditionally stable and incrementally objective algorithms is proposed for the integration of such rate constitutive equations. These algorithms, which are appropriate for finite deformation analysis, are applicable to any choice of stress rate and, in most cases, employ quantities that arise naturally in the context of finite element analysis. Examples illustrate the objectivity and accuracy of the algorithms.
Three-choice probability learning: Effect of varying information level

To explore further variables determining the finding of “matching” in probability learning paradigms, Ss were asked to predict which one of three stimuli would be “correct” for each trial of a series. IVs were two levels of information feedback, three levels of verbal reinforcement, and three levels of instruction concerning game strategy. Ss responded to stimuli representing ps selected for maximum discriminability. Both complete and partial feedback Ss closely matched actual ps under all conditions. “Partial” Ss achieved “match” levels more slowly, however, indicating eventual asymptote at levels comparable to the “complete” group.
A model for AIDS education

Lessons for AIDS preventive education can be drawn from research on public health problems of longer standing, such as smoking and drug abuse.
The living coelacanth Latimeria chalumnae does not have a cloaca

POSSESSION of a cloaca is presumed to be a primitive vertebrate character that has been lost independently four times—in lampreys, chimaeras, actinopterygians and eutherian mammals—as the adult morphology of the urinary-genital-rectal openings is different in each group. Hagfishes, sharks, lungfishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, monotremes, marsupials and Aplodontia rufa all possess a cloaca1. Millot and Anthony2 stated that the male Latimeria has a true cloaca whereas the female has a rectal opening separate from a common urinary-genital opening. We report here evidence that neither male nor female Latimeria chalumnae has a cloaca.
Aysmptotically-tight bounds on the number of cycles in generalized de Bruijn-Good graphs

Abstract The number of cycles of length k that can be generated by q-ary n-stage feedback shift registers is studied. This problem is equivalent to finding the number of cycles of length k in the natural generalization, from binary to q-ary digits, of the so called de Bruijn-Good graphs [2,7]. The number of cycles of length k in the q-ary graph Gn(q) of order n is denoted by β(q)(n, k). Known results about β(2)(n, k) are summarized and extensive new numerical data is presented. Lower and upper bounds on β(q)(n, k) are derived showing that, for large k, virtually all q-ary cycles of length k are contained in Gn(q) for n>2 logq k, but virtually none of these cycles is contained in Gn(q) for n lim k→∞ β (q) (n(k),k) v k (q) =0 for n(k)=⌊2logqk−2logqlogqk−f>(k)⌋, and lim k→∞ β (q) (n(k),k) v k (q) =1 for n(k)=⌊2logqk+f(k)⌋, where ⌊·⌋ denotes the integer part of the enclosed number. Finally, some approximations for β(q)(n, k) are given that make the global behavior of β(q)(n, k) more transparent.
PHYSIOLOGICAL DISPOSITION, SUBCELLULAR DISTRIBUTION AND TISSUE BINDING OF α‐CHACONINE (3H)12

The distribution, absorption, metabolism and tissue binding of radioactivity were studied in hamsters after oral and intraperitoneal administration of α-chaconine-(3H). The material was well absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract and nearly 25% of the label was excreted in 7 days via urine and feces. The excretion was higher in urine (24%) than in feces (1%). Tissue concentrations of radioactivity peaked at 12 h following po administration, with the highest concentrations being in lungs, liver, spleen, skeletal muscle, kidney and pancreas, with heart and brain containing moderate amounts. Excretion of chloroform-soluble products in the feces was 100 higher than that of chloroform-insoluble metabolites after oral and ip administration. In urine, the activity was predominantly in the chloroform-insoluble form and the chloroform-soluble metabolites were relatively small in amounts (0.29, 0.85 and 2.45% versus 0.0, 0.14 and 0.19 for 12, 24 and 72 h, respectively). After 7 days, the chloroform-soluble metabolites in urine increased to 20% of the excreted radioactivity, while the amount of chloroform-insoluble metabolites was less than 1%. Subcellular distribution of the labeled compound indicated the highest concentration of radioactivity in the nuclear and microsomal fractions of brain, liver, and heart tissues. Binding of radioactivity was observed in brain, testes, kidney, lung, liver and heart. All of the label in brain appeared to be in bound form. The results indicated that α-chaconine which is absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract after oral administration persists in various tissues, much of it in bound (nonextractable) form (in microsomal fraction).
Does a history of postoperative ileus predispose to recurrent ileus after multistage ileal pouch-anal anastomosis?

Background Although postoperative ileus (POI) is a common complication after major abdominal colorectal surgery, it is unknown whether a history of POI predisposes to recurrent POI in subsequent surgeries. In the present retrospective case–control study, conducted at the colorectal surgery division of a tertiary care center, we attempted to identify factors that may predict recurrent POI in ulcerative colitis (UC) patients undergoing three-stage ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (IPAA).
Men of War: British Sailors and the Impressment Paradox

In the long eighteenth century, the British Royal Navy established dominance of the seas with the widely despised forced labor system of impressment. Previous attempts at explaining this paradox have erred either in deemphasizing the devastating personal and communal costs of impressment or by stressing that the navy’s oppressive system of discipline left sailors with no choice but to serve admirably. In fact, sailors exercised their agency both by resisting British press-gangs and by serving to the best of their ability on naval vessels. The British navy created incentives that appealed to mariners’ professional self-interests and male gender aspirations. Through naval service, sailors regained some of their dignity and sense of manhood that capture by press-gangs had taken away.
Sympathetic Uveitis and Phacoanaphylaxis

Loewenstein found reports of 19 sympa­ thizing eyes and 10 pairs of eyes. He raised the total to 23 sympathizing eyes and 12 pairs by his own reports. Greeves reported on 13 sympathizing eyes but no histologie report was made of the exciting eyes. Three other cases of the sympathizing eye only have been reported. Biodi reported on three pairs of eyes in 1959. Easom and Zimmerman, in their excellent study of sympathetic ophthalmia and phacoanaphy­ laxis, added four sympathizing and seven pairs of eyes to the literature.
The incidence of illicit drug use in the United States, 1962-1989.

The Data Note Series is edited by Bridget Grant of the US National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism Abstract Epidemiological descriptions of drug abuse in the US in the Ian three decades have generally not included data on the patterns and trends in the incidence of illicit drug use (i.e. new users). In this paper, estimates of illicit drug use incidence are presented, based on retrospective data from the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse. Incidence of marijuana use began increasing in the 1960s and reached a peak in 1973, after which a continuing decline was seen. Cocaine use incidence began to increase in the late 1960s and reached a peak in 1982, then declined.
Altered pulsatile and coordinate secretion of pituitary hormones in aging: evidence of feedback disruption

A novel thesis is that healthy aging of neuroendocrine axes is marked by disruption of orderly patterns of hormone release (1). This can be quantified by a recently validated approximate entropy statistic applied to 24-hour hormone profiles, e.g., luteinizing hormone (LH), and growth hormone (GH). Moreover, more subtle disturbances of feedback control are indicated by decreased conditional regularity or synchrony (higher cross-approximate entropy) within coupled axes, such as ACTH-cortisol, LH-testosterone, etc. Such alterations can precede any changes in mean serum hormone concentrations, thus highlighting an impact of age on the feedback control mechanisms that coordinate the flow of signaling information within a neuroendocrine axis or network.
Pyridinium Salt Photochemistry in a Concise Route for Synthesis of the Trehazolin Aminocyclitol, Trehazolamine

[reaction: see text] A strategy for the concise synthesis of trehazolamine, the aminocyclitol core of the potent trehalase inhibitor trehazolin, has been developed. The methodology takes advantage of photocyclization reaction of 1-methoxyethoxymethyl-3-pivaloxymethylpyridinium perchlorate to generate a bicyclic-aziridine intermediate, which is transformed under aziridine ring opening conditions to the key intermediate, 3,5-diacetoxy-3-pivaloxymethyl-4-(N-acetylamino)cyclopentene. In addition, the strategy is used in an enantio-divergent sequence for preparation of the natural (+)-trehazolamine and its unnatural (-)-enantiomer. In this route, the chiral auxiliary containing 1-(tetracetyl-alpha-D-glucosyl)-3-pivaloxymethylpyridinium perchlorate undergoes photocyclization to generate separable, diastereomeric bicyclic-aziridines, which are then independently transformed to enantiomeric 3,5-diacetoxy-3-pivaloxymethyl-4-(N-acetylamino)cyclopentenes.
Drug counselors' perceptions of clients: Demographic, personality and psychopathology correlates

Counselors' interpersonal perceptions of their clients in outpatient drug treatment were studied. Factor analysis produced three general factors, interpreted as perceptions of manageability, treatment readiness, and suitability for group treatment. Counselor perception of client interpersonal attractiveness did not emerge as a separate factor, but appeared equally significantly related to each of the first two factors. Correlates of counselor perceptions were sought among measures of client program performance, demographic and drug use history, psychopathology, and counselor background and personality. With one exception, measures of clients' actual program performance were the best predictors of counselors' perceptions of clients. Clinical implications are discussed.
Standard potential of silver-silver chloride electrode and related thermodynamic quantities in glycerol at 5 to 45°C

Summary Standard potentials of the Ag−AgCl electrode in glycerol have been determined by a polynomial curve-fitting program from e.m.f. measurements of cells of the type Pt; H 2 (g, 1 atm) |HCl (m), glycerol| AgCl, Ag, at nine different temperatures in the range 5 to 45°C. The primary medium effect of the solvent upon HCl was also calculated. The temperature variation of the difference in standard e.m.f. in two solvents (water and pure glycerol) was utilized to calculate the thermodynamic quantities (Δ G o , Δ H o , Δ S o , and Δ C p o ) for the transfer of one mole of HCl from water to glycerol. The results have been interpreted in regard to the acid-base properties and the structure of the solvent.
Technology and the Customer Interface: What Consumers Want in the Physical and Virtual Store:

For companies to realize the benefits of recent innovations in customer interface technology, they need to understand the value consumers place on technology as part of the shopping process. A national survey of 2,120 online consumers was conducted to explore how people want to shop in both online and in-store environments and determine how interactive and conventional media work together to move consumers through the purchase process. The study investigated 128 different aspects of the shopping experience, from common elements to recent innovations. The results indicated that consumers are generally satisfied with the convenience, quality, selection, and value provided by retailers today. They are less satisfied with the level of service provided, the availability of product information, and the speed of the shopping process. The findings suggest that new technologies can enhance the shopping experience, but applications must be tailored to the unique requirements of consumer segments and product categories.
Effect of edge-tone noise on supercritical airfoil data

A N investigation has recently been carried out in the National Aeronautical Establishment (NAE) 0.38x1.5 m two-dimensional test section1 to determine: 1) The possibility of edge-tone noise suppression by overlaying the perforated floor and ceiling with a fine gauze or screen. 2) The change in wall interference characteristics due to the application of point 1. 3) The effect of edge-tone noise suppression on twodimensional airfoil test data. The investigation was performed with a 0.254 m chord model of the BGK No. 1 airfoil and covered the Mach number range of 0.3-0.8 at chord Reynolds numbers of 10-21 x 106. A full account of the investigation is given in Ref. 2. This Note deals primarily with selected data related to point 3. However, first some brief comments on points 1 and 2. The fine gauze technique, first demonstrated by Vaucheret,3 was found to be both a practical and an effective means for edge-tone suppression, as demonstrated in Figs. 1 and 2, respectively. It was also found that the presence of the gauze, although reducing the geometric porosity from 20.5 to 8%, had a very minor effect on the wall interference characteristics. Measurements on the BGK No. 1 airfoil comprised balance, wake, and surface pressure. Only the latter two are discussed here. The data depicted in Fig. 2 were obtained by a sidewallmounted differential pressure transducer, with the reference side detuned and connected to the plenum chamber. The frequency response of the active side was flat up to 16 kHz. The data are presented in the form of the root mean square of the fluctuating wall static pressure coefficient, Cpj^, referenced to the mean value of the freestream dynamic pressure. The significant reduction in noise level due to the edge-tone suppression is clearly evident. In fact, at the higher Mach number the measured noise level is reduced to a level comparable to that inherent in the wall boundary layer itself. For a well-developed turbulent boundary layer, the wall CPRMS (referenced to the dynamic pressure at the edge of the boundary layer) is known to be about 0.6-0.7%. To what degree then are model test data influenced by this improvement in flow quality? The obvious thought that comes to mind is that the edge tones could excite the TollmienSchlichting waves and thus cause early transition. A cursory investigation reveals that, at the Reynolds numbers here of interest, the "dangerous" frequencies are an order of magnitude higher than the edge-tone frequencies. Thus the edge tones are not expected to influence the boundary-layer transition. However, we may speculate that they could interfere with, for instance, a turbulent boundary layer close to separation, although the mechanism in such a case would be far from clear. We shall first examine drag data obtained from wake pressure measurements. In Fig. 3 we have plotted the drag coefficient vs freestream Mach number, both corrected for wall interference effects, for two values of the normal force coefficient CN, 0.3 and 0.6. The data points are obtained by a
Formation of loops in DNA under tension

We study the formation of loops along a DNA molecule under applied tension, as might occur in single-DNA micromanipulation experiments with proteins which are able to simultaneously bind two DNA sites. We consider the case of ``bare'' DNA in the loop, which forms a ``teardrop'' shape, and the case where a single DNA-bending protein produces a ``kink'' in the middle of the loop; the presence of a right-angle kink in the loop reduces its bending energy by a factor of 3. Using the bending energy plus an estimate of the free energies associated with fluctuations and the elasticity of the extended nonlooped DNA, we obtain a probability distribution for loops as a function of loop size and force. Force strongly suppresses formation of all loops, but suppresses large loops more severely than small ones. This quenching effect of force is reduced in the presence of a kink in the loop. We also calculate the speed at which length is absorbed into loops between arbitrary positions along the DNA (i.e., for non-sequence-specific loop forming proteins). The speed of retraction of the molecule decays as a stretched exponential function of the force with characteristic force scales depending on the geometry of the loops.
Analysis of Fire Calls to an Industrial Complex Over a 12-year Period

This article gives an analysis of fire calls from over a decade of operations at a process facility complex operated by the Idaho National Laboratory. These data include valid alarms, unwanted or false alarms, ambulance calls, and hazardous material cleanup calls. Of special interest are false alarms, which are not only a nuisance to facility productivity but also are detrimental to public and facility safety. Of the fire calls listed here, over half were from false alarms. The results given are compared with National Fire Protection Association data. The data presented can serve as exemplar data for future facilities and can be compared with other operating facilities' experiences. © 2009 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Process Saf Prog, 2009
Recent instrumentation developments at the university of Wisconsin synchrotron radiation center

Abstract Two new monochromators have been installed at the Wisconsin Synchrotron Radiation Center and four more are being designed and constructed for installation later this year. The new instruments installed are an uhv version of a vertically dispersing Seya-Namioka monochromator and an adjustable slit version of the “Grasshopper” grazing incidence monochromator built at the University of Wisconsin Physical Sciences Laboratory for use at the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Project The new instruments to be installed later are a 4 normal incidence monochromator designed around a high efficiency Bausch and Lomb grating ruled for the Sky Lab Program and three grazing incidence toroidal grating monochromators designed for use with special Jobin-Yvon holographic gratings. The work on the toroidal grating monochromator is proceeding in collaboration with research groups from the IBM Watson Laboratories and the University of Pennsylvania. Operating characteristics achieved or to be expected with these instruments will be discussed.
Regularizing optical-flow computation using tensor theory and complex analysis

This paper reports a technique that improves the robustness and accuracy in computing dense optical-flow fields. We propose a global formulation with a regularization term. The regularization expressions are derived based on tensor theory and complex analysis. It is shown that while many regularizers have been proposed (image-driven, flow-driven, homogeneous, inhomogeneous, isotropic, anisotropic), they are all variations of a single base expression nablaunablauT + nablavnablavT . These regularizers, strictly speaking, are valid for uniform 2D translational motion only, because what they do essentially is to penalize changes in a flow field. However, many flow patterns-such as rotation, zoom, and their combinations, induced by a 3D rigid-body motion.are not constant. The traditional regularizers then incorrectly penalize these legal flow patterns and result in biased estimates. The purpose of this work is then to derive a new suite of regularization expressions that treat all valid flow patterns resulting from a 3D rigid-body motion equally, without unfairly penalizing any of them.
A Comment on an Alleged Association between Hypnosis and Death: Two Remarkable Cases

Dr. Ewin recently reported his research on two "remarkable" cases where hypnosis performed by a lay hypnotist was allegedly associated with the death of the subject. Commentary is provided about both cases. In the first case, it seems clear that the death was co-incident to the hypnosis. In the second case, Dr. Ewin speculates that hypnosis may have been related to the subject's death following her experience in a stage hypnosis show. Instead, we propose that the alerting suggestion used to terminate the hypnosis (that "the subjects would feel 10,000 volts of electricity through the seat of their chairs"), not hypnosis per se, was inappropriate and may have specifically adversely affected this particular subject due to her phobia regarding electricity. Legal ramifications of these cases regarding the issue of informed consent are raised. It is concluded that these cases do not imply a duty to warn subjects/patients that one possible negative consequence of undergoing hypnosis is death.
An update on the pharmacotherapy of neovascular age-related macular degeneration.

Introduction: Neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is currently the most common cause of legal blindness in industrialized countries. The advent of pharmacotherapy with intravitreal VEGF inhibitors has greatly improved outcomes for the treatment of this disease. Areas covered: The present review is divided into two major sections: the period prior to the use of anti-VEGF agents (triamcinolone acetonide, verteporfin photodynamic therapy) and the period following their introduction (pegaptanib sodium, bevacizumab, ranibizumab, aflibercept). The main pharmacological and clinical characteristics of each therapy are summarized. Expert opinion: Monotherapy with anti-VEGF agents is currently the ‘gold standard' for treating neovascular AMD, but, with several drug choices and various different dosing regimens available, there is still wide variability in how individual clinicians manage their patients. Despite improved visual outcomes, there remains a significant unmet need for better treatments as ...
Photothermal ionization via excited states of sulfur donor in silicon

Abstract Structures in the photoionization cross-section spectra below the extrinsic edge of the doubly charged sulfur donor (613 meV) are attributed to the two-step photothermal excitation process in which the bound electron at the ground state first makes an optical transition to an excited state and it is then thermally released from the excited state to the conduction band. A weak peak (cross-section 7 × 10−19 cm2)at 425 meV is attributed to the intervalley optical transition 1s(A1)→1s(T2). Peak observed at 570 meV (10−17 cm2) is attributed to the 1s(A1→2p0 intervalley optical transition and the peak at 591 meV (3 × 10−17 cm2) to the 1s(A1)→2p± intravalley optical transition. Data for electron bound at the neutral gold center has no structures which is consistent with the lack of excited states of a neutral impurity potential.
Structure of Phenomenological Lagrangians for Broken Supersymmetry

Abstract We consider the explicit connection between linear representations of supersymmetry and the non-linear realizations associated with the generic effective lagrangians of the Volkov-Akulov type. We specify and illustrate a systematic approach for deriving the appropriate phenomenological lagrangian by transforming a pedagogical linear model, in which supersymmetry is broken at the tree level, into its corresponding non-linear lagrangian, in close analogy to the linear σ model of pion dynamics. We discuss the significance and some properties of such phenomenological lagrangians.
Thermodynamic basis of selectivity in guide-target-mismatched RNA interference

Silencing in RNAi is strongly affected by guide-strand/target-mRNA mismatches. Target nucleation is thought to occur at positions 2–8 of the guide (“seed region”); successful hybridization in this region is the primary determinant of target binding affinity and hence target cleavage. To define a molecular basis for the target sequence selectivity in RNAi, we studied all possible distinct single mismatches in seven positions of the seed region — a total of 21 substitutions. We report results from soft-core thermodynamic integration simulations to determine changes in target binding free energies to Argonaute due to single mismatches in the guide strand, which arise during binding of an imperfectly matched target mRNA. In agreement with experiment, most mismatches impair target binding, consistent with a prominent role for binding affinity changes in RNAi sequence selectivity. Individual Argonaute residues located near the mismatched base pair are found to contribute significantly to binding affinity changes. We also employ this methodology to analyze the mismatch-dependent free energy changes for dissociation of a DNA·RNA hybrid from Argonaute, as a model for the escape of miRNAs from the silencing pathway. Several mismatched sequences of the miRNA have increased affinity to Argonaute, implying that some mismatches may reduce the probability for escape. Furthermore, calculations of base-substitution-dependent free energy changes for binding ssDNA reveal mild sequence sensitivity as expected for guide strand binding to Argonaute. Our findings give a thermodynamic basis for RNAi target sequence selectivity and suggest that miRNA mismatches may increase silencing effectiveness and thus could be evolutionarily advantageous.
Teaching health law. Personal reflections on teaching health law in a school of public health.

Peter D. Jacobson Introduction For the past 20 years, I have been teaching various law courses, mostly to public health students. At the RAND Graduate School, I taught two courses to Ph.D. candidates: one on law and social science, and then a course on law and epidemiology (co-listed with the UCLA School of Public Health). Each year since 1996 at the University of Michigan School of Public Health (UMSPH), I have been teaching health law to our Master of Health Services Administration (MHSA) candidates, and public health law to Master of Public Health (MPH) candidates.1 I also teach a seminar on health care regulations. In 2004, I taught health law at the Georgetown University Law Center as a visiting scholar. The non-law student audience presents a different set of challenges than does teaching law students, even though my UMSPH classes usually include at least one dual law/public health degree candidate (and an occasional law student). Teaching a multidisciplinary cohort with little prior exposure to law is an exciting challenge that offers many rewards. What follows are some observations about how to approach teaching health law to non-law students.2
Effects of diasprin cross-linked hemoglobin (DCLHb) on cardiac function and ECG in the swine.

The effects of DCLHb on cardiac function were measured in diazepam sedated (2–4 mg/min) swine. Mean arterial blood pressure (MAP), peak systolic left ventricular pressure (IVP), rate of left ventricular pressure development (dP/dt), pressure rate product (PRP), cardiac output (CO), and ECG were monitored continuously. Hemodynamic parameters were compared during control, DCLHb infusion (40 ml/min), one minute balloon occlusion (BO) of the proximal left anterior descending coronary artery (LAD) with a 2.5–3.5 F, 20 mm balloon angioplasty catheter, and four minute balloon occlusion with DCLHb (BO+DCLHb) perfusion (40 ml/min) of the LAD occluded region. Control hemodynamic values were as follows; MAP 91±6 mmHg, IVP 102±6 mmHg, dP/dt 2519±351 nmiHg/min, PRP 15809±1515 mmHg/min, and CO 2.72±0.29 L/min. There was a significant reduction in cardiac function with BO as compared to control; MAP 16%↓, IVP 14%↓, dP/dt 34%↓, and PRP 40%↓. In contrast BO+DCLHb significantly increased all measurements of cardiac functio...
The Student Curriculum Review Team: How we catalyze curricular changes through a student-centered approach

Student feedback is a valuable asset in curriculum evaluation and improvement, but many institutions have faced challenges implementing it in a meaningful way. In this article, we report the rationale, process and impact of the Student Curriculum Review Team (SCRT), a student-led and faculty-supported organization at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. SCRT's evaluation of each pre-clinical course is composed of a comprehensive three-step process: a review of course evaluation data, a Town Hall Meeting and online survey to generate and assess potential solutions, and a thoughtful discussion with course directors. Over the past two years, SCRT has demonstrated the strength of its approach by playing a substantial role in improving medical education, as reported by students and faculty. Furthermore, SCRT's uniquely student-centered, collaborative model has strengthened relationships between students and faculty and is one that could be readily adapted to other medical schools or academic institutions.
Incidence of abdominal wall numbness post-liver transplantation and its complications.

Liver transplantation (LTx) is a life-saving procedure for end-stage liver disease. However, LTx remains a major surgical procedure with a significant amount of morbidity and mortality. Several different types of post-LTx complications have been studied and reported; however, the numbness of the abdominal skin between the subcostal incision and the umbilicus and its associated complications have not been studied in a large patient population. The aim of this study was to report the incidence of numbness in the abdominal skin post-LTx and its implications in routine life. One hundred and one post-LTx patients were questioned in the clinic about numbness. There were 52 male patients and 49 female patients with a mean age of 51.9 11.3 years at the time of LTx, and the mean time from transplant was 35.0 29.5 months (range, 3-113 months). The implications were recorded. All 101 patients (100%) had an area of numbness between the subcostal incision and the umbilicus. Four of these patients had an area of superficial-to-deep burns from hot food (accidentally dropped on the abdomen), heating pads, or a hot cup of tea. One patient had ecchymosis from blunt trauma during gardening. Out of 36 diabetic patients, more than 24 patients were insulin-dependent and used the area for subcutaneous insulin injections. In addition, some of the 43 hepatitis C virus–positive patients used the area for subcutaneous interferon therapy. In conclusion, 100% of the patients had persistent numbness up to 9 years following LTx. Five percent of the patients developed thermal injuries or blunt trauma complications that could have been prevented with better education and awareness. More then 24% of the patients used the area for subcutaneous injections of insulin and/or interferon. Liver Transpl 15:1488-1492, 2009. © 2009 AASLD.
Self-reported Goal Pursuit and Purpose in Life Among People With Dementia

Objectives Existential aspects of well-being are rarely studied in people with dementia, despite their reported importance. Self-report methods are also rarely used, despite the growing evidence for its use in mild-to-moderate dementia and the lack of concordance between self-reports and proxy reports of well-being. The goal of this study was to examine the relationship between one aspect of well-being, purpose in life, and one of its predictors, goal pursuit, while employing the self-report of individuals with dementia. Methods Questionnaire and experimental methods were used to gauge the relationship between goal pursuit and purpose in life. The experimental portion was structured around creative drawing activities that are often used in adult day service centers. Results People with mild-to-moderate dementia were able to provide reliable self-report data on their well-being. A strong association between goal pursuit and purpose in life emerged, but dementia severity did not moderate this relationship. Discussion People with dementia who engage in goal-directed activity may experience a greater sense of purpose. Results from this study illuminate the experience of psychological well-being in dementia and may inform activity programming for this population.
Comparing the performance of group detection algorithm in serial and parallel processing environments

Developing an algorithm for group identification from a collection of individuals without grouping data has been getting significant attention because of the need for increased understanding of groups and teams in online environments. This study used space, time, task, and players' virtual behavioral indicators from a game database to develop an algorithm to detect groups over time. The group detection algorithm was primarily developed for a serial processing environment and later then modified to allow for parallel processing on Gordon. For a collection of data representing 192 days of game play (approximately 140 gigabytes of log data), the computation required 266 minutes for the major steps of the analysis when running on a single processor. The same computation required 25 minutes when running on Gordon with 16 processors. The provision of massive compute nodes and the rich shared memory environment on Gordon has improved the performance of our analysis by a factor of 11. Besides demonstrating the possibility to save time and effort, this study also highlights some lessons learned for transforming a serial detection algorithm to parallel environments.
Qualitative results for a hierarchical discrete event control paradigm applied to structures operating under nominal and fault conditions

This paper presents a mathematical discrete event state space model for plants and controllers that is amenable to classical state space control theory. The model is based upon industry-standard N-squared diagrams which are shown to readily translate into a state space matrix form. A hierarchical structure is defined that allows the design to scale in dimension and remain tractable. The motivation for using this state space model approach is to develop reachability, observability and stability results using approaches based upon existing control theory, and as well as to adapt certain control design paradigms. The state space model defined is based upon Boolean algebra, and so the desired theoretical results must be adapted accordingly. The model is described in the context of two examples, the first being a Bouc-Wen modified hysteresis model, and the second a general supervisory discrete-event servo controller.
Calcific aortic valve disease: outflow obstruction is the end stage of a systemic disease process

Over the past decade, a body of evidence has accumulated demonstrating that calcific aortic valve disease (CAVD) is prevalent in older adults and that the presence of calcific valve disease is associated with adverse clinical outcomes, even in the absence of left ventricular (LV) outflow tract obstruction. Stritzke et al. report for the KORA/MONICA study that degenerative (or calcific) aortic valve disease was present in 28% of a population-based sample of >900 adults with a mean age of ∼50 years.1 This finding parallels previous population-based studies such as the Helsinki Aging Study2 with a prevalence of aortic sclerosis of 21% in adults aged 55–71 years and the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS) with aortic sclerosis in 26% of adults age 65 years or older.3 Further, in the KORA/MONICA study, the presence of calcific valve disease was associated with age, active smoking, and elevated total cholesterol on a baseline evaluation carried out 10 years before the echocardiographic study.1 These findings support the concept that patients ‘at risk’ of CAVD can be identified based on these associated clinical factors. In addition to age, smoking, and hypercholesterolaemia, previous studies have convincingly shown that the presence of calcific valve disease is associated with hypertension, diabetes, and the metabolic syndrome.3,4 Recent data from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) study indicated that the total cholesterol to HDL ratio is associated with an increased risk of CAVD across the entire age range (45–84 years), whereas LDL is associated with increased risk only in those <65 years of age.5 ‘At … *Corresponding author. Tel: +1 206 685 1379, Fax: +1 206 616 4847, Email: cmotto{at}u.washington.edu
DEVELOPMENT AND EFFICACY ASPECTS OF A NOVEL SOFT LENS CLEANER

In this paper the author discusses the development and aspects of the efficacy of an enzymatic cleaner for hydrogel contact lenses.
An expandable anchor for fixation in osteoporotic bone.

Abstract With the aging population, osteoporosis and osteoporotic fractures are becoming more prevalent. Adequate screw fixation in this type of bone is difficult. Screws are often cemented in bone to help obtain purchase. However, cement augmentation is not without problems. Here we present an expandable anchor for fixation in osteoporotic bone that does not require cement. We compared the ultimate holding power of this expandable anchor to a standard solid screw of similar dimensions. The solid screw and the expandable anchor were both placed into fresh frozen lumbar vertebral bodies and pulled out using a mechanical testing system. The expandable anchor had a 74% greater holding power compared to the standard screw ( P =0.02). The expandable anchor provides a significant increase in holding power without the problems associated with cement. This prototype anchor is promising for fixation in osteoporotic bone and warrants further evaluation.
Optogenetic Manipulation of Ca2+ Transients and Contraction in a Mathematical Model of Cardiomyocyte Function

The cardiac optogenetics ‘toolbox’ combines optical physics and genetic engineering technology to provide a means of manipulating heart cell function with high specificity. For instance, recent studies have shown that light irradiance at specific wavelengths can perturb the processes of excitation, transmembrane potential propagation, and beating frequency in ChR2-expressing cardiac cells. We hypothesized that optogenetics could be used to manipulate not just beating frequency of heart cells, but also the intensity of contractions.In this study, we present an integrative optogenetics-electromechanical mathematical model that uses an engineered light-electric impulse to stimulate genetically modified cardiomyocytes. This hybrid excitation protocol simulates the excess inward ionic current produced by brief, high-intensity light flashes and demonstrates that when properly timed, these pulses can be used to manipulate the cellular action potential duration, intracellular calcium release, and myofilament twitch dynamics. The model is composed of three coupled modules; a light controlled ion channel (ChR2) module, an electrical cellular model with enhanced calcium induced calcium released process (CICR), and a myofilament (MF) mechanical component. The cell membrane connects activity of ChR2 with other time- and voltage-dependent ionic currents in the cell as well as CICR. The Ca2+ transient produced by CICR then links ChR2 activity to the local cardiac MF dynamics causing muscle to contract. The model is expected to be useful for designing many different types of in vitro cardiomyocytes studies where beat-to-beat manipulation of contractility is desirable.
Earth, Wind, and Fire: Wildfire Risk Perceptions in a Hurricane-Prone Environment

Wildfire is one of several potential disturbances that could have extraordinary impacts on individuals and communities in fire-prone areas. In this article we describe disturbance risk perceptions from interviews with residents in three Florida communities that face significant wildfire and hurricane risk. Although they live in areas characterized by emergency managers as having high wildfire risk and many participants have direct experience with wildfire, residents tended to share high hurricane and low wildfire risk perceptions. The different perceptions of risk seem linked to several factors: direct hurricane experience, different scales of impact, the local “hurricane culture,” effectiveness of local ordinances and development patterns, perceived predictability of the event, and perceived ability to control the event. This study shows that residents may perceive and act to reduce risk for one disturbance in relation to their perceptions, concern, and actions for another.
A low power 900 MHz transmitter IC with audio baseband for ISM applications using 0.25 /spl mu/m BiCMOS

The audio processing function is combined with a 0 dBm transmitter using 0.25 /spl mu/m BiCMOS technology for portable wireless applications. Reference suppression is better than 60 dB. It operates over 1.8 to 2.8 V and consumes 26 mA. As part of a highly integrated two-chip transceiver system, it enables a low cost solution for analog cordless telephones.
Exposing Complex Bug-Triggering Conditions in Distributed Systems via Graph Mining

Software bugs in distributed systems are notoriously hard to find due to the large number of components involved and the non-determinism introduced by race conditions between messages. This paper introduces Pop Mine, a tool for diagnosing corner-case bugs by finding the minimal causal directed acyclic graph (DAG) of events, spanning multiple processes, which captures a bug-triggering condition. Being based on causal order, a global notion of time is not required in uncovering bug-triggering distributed event patterns. Bug triggering event DAGs can be identified by comparing execution graphs from successful runs to those where bug manifestations were observed, and exposing the minimal discriminative event DAGs that may be responsible for the problem. This is a significant extension to prior debugging tools, in that prior work considered much simpler bug-triggering conditions such as single events, event sets, or ordered chains of events. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first paper that considers bug-triggering conditions in the form of distributed event graphs. To prove the effectiveness of our approach, we applied our tool to VCP, Chord and GreenGPS and diagnosed bugs. We also present performance analysis results to demonstrate the scalability of our approach.