cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
LOX-1 abrogation reduces cardiac hypertrophy and collagen accumulation following chronic ischemia in the mouse

We hypothesized that lectin-like oxidized LDL receptor-1 (LOX-1) deletion may inhibit oxidative stress signals, reduce collagen accumulation and attenuate cardiac remodeling after chronic ischemia. Activation of LOX-1 plays a significant role in the development of inflammation, apoptosis and collagen signals during acute ischemia. Wild-type and LOX-1 knockout (KO) mice were subjected to occlusion of left coronary artery for 3 weeks. Markers of cardiac hypertrophy, fibrosis-related signals (collagen IV, collagen-1 and fibronectin) and oxidant load (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase expression, activity of mitogen-activated protein kinases and left ventricular (LV) tissue thiobarbituric acid reactive substances) were analyzed. In in vitro experiments, HL-1 cardiomyocytes were transfected with angiotensin II (Ang II) type 1 receptor (AT1R) or type 2 receptor (AT2R) genes to determine their role in the cardiomyocyte hypertrophy. LOX-1 KO mice had 25% improvement in survival over the 3-week period of chronic ischemia. LOX-1 deletion reduced collagen deposition and cardiomyocyte hypertrophy (∼75%) in association with a decrease in oxidant load and AT1R upregulation (all P<0.05). The LOX-1 KO mice hearts exhibited a disintegrin and metalloproteinase 10 (ADAM10) and a disintegrin and metalloproteinase 17 (ADAM17) expression and matrix metalloproteinase 2 activity, and increased AT2R expression (P<0.05). Attenuation of cardiac remodeling was associated with improved cardiac hemodynamics (LV ±dp/dt and cardiac ejection fraction). In vitro studies showed that it is AT1R, and not AT2R overexpression that induces cardiomyocyte hypertrophy. We demonstrate for the first time that LOX-1 deletion reduces oxidative stress and related intracellular signaling, which leads to attenuation of the positive feedback loop involving AT1R and LOX-1. This results in reduced chronic cardiac remodeling.
A statistical analysis of the correlation between large igneous provinces and lower mantle seismic structure

SUMMARY Large igneous provinces (LIPs) lie approximately above the margins of the African and Pacific large low shear velocity provinces (LLSVPs) in the deep mantle. This spatial correlation has been used to argue that plumes are preferentially generated at the margins of LLSVPs. We perform a series of Monte Carlo‐based statistical tests to assess the uniqueness of this conclusion. These tests indicate that (1) the reconstructed locations of LIPs are significantly correlated with both slower-than-average shear wave velocity regions, which contain LLSVPs, and the margins of these structures; and (2) these correlations cannot be statistically distinguished. That is, given current constraints, if plumes were generated randomly throughout regions of slower-than-average shear wave velocity in the deep mantle, then statistical tests are expected toshowasignificant correlation between thelocations ofLIPs and themargins ofLLSVPs. We therefore conclude that it is premature toargue that the margins of LLSVPs represent preferred zones of plume generation. This conclusion is reinforced in our analysis by a demonstration that the expected mean distance of a set of points randomly placed in slower-than-average shear wave velocity regions is consistent with the observed mean distance between LIPs and the margins of LLSVPs. Finally, we also test the correlation between the reconstructed locations of LIPs and the horizontal gradient in deep mantle shear velocity perturbations. We find, given the uncertainty implied by different tomography models, that there is no statistically significant correlation and that being in a slow region (i.e. in the region of LLSVPs) is a stronger geographic requirement for plume generation than being at a specific (high) gradient.
Detection of trace elements in liquids by laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy with a Meinhard nebulizer

The laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy of magnesium, manganese, and chromium atoms by use of a commercial Meinhard nebulizer originally designed for inductively coupled plasma measurements is described. This is the first time, to our knowledge, that this nebulizer has been used for laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy measurements. The limit of detection is slightly lower when the nebulizer rather than a liquid jet is used in single-pulse laser excitation. In addition we present the response characteristics of the nebulizer, such as effects of variations in purge gas and liquid flow rate, that are different from normal operating specifications. The effects of gate delay, gate width, and laser power variations were also studied. The objective of the present research has been to consider a new operating mode and conditions in which a better limit of detection of trace elements in water can be obtained.
Different profiles of carcinogen exposure in Chinese compared with US cigarette smokers

Background Differences in carcinogen exposure from different cigarette products could contribute to differences in smoking-associated cancer incidence among Chinese compared with US smokers. Methods Urine concentrations of metabolites of nicotine, the tobacco-specific nitrosamine (TSNA) 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanol (NNAL), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon metabolites (PAHs) were compared in 238 Chinese and 203 US daily smokers. Results Comparing Chinese versus US smokers, daily nicotine intake and nicotine intake per cigarette smoked were found to be similar. When normalised for cigarettes per day, urine NNAL excretion was fourfold higher in US smokers, while the excretion of urine metabolites of the PAHs fluorene, phenanthrene and pyrene metabolites was 50% to fourfold higher in Chinese smokers (all, p Conclusions Patterns of carcinogen exposure differ, with lower exposure to TSNA and higher exposure to PAHs in Chinese compared with US smokers. These results most likely reflect country differences in cigarette tobacco blends and manufacturing processes, as well as different environmental exposures. Trial registration number NCT00264342.
Conjugate Music for Non-Circular Sources

This paper proposes a method for the direction of arrival (DOA) estimation for non-circular sources, such as binary phase shift keying (BPSK) and M-ary amplitude shift keying (MASK). The proposed scheme can be applied to both scenarios; the sources are noncoherent or coherent. Comparisons that are made with the well-know known classical subspace algorithms, such as MUSIC and forward/backward smoothing by Pillai et al., show that the proposed method has several advantages. First, no forward/backward spatial smoothing for the covariance matrix is needed, whereas the Pillai method requires it, which increases the computational load and is time-consuming. Second, the proposed method can detect N-1 coherent sources when N antennas are used, whereas the well-known Pillai method can only detect 2N/3 coherent sources. Third, the proposed method is more suitable for real-time implementation since it only requires a single or few snapshots in order to give an accurate DOA estimation. However, both MUSIC and Pillai require a high number of snapshots, which increases the computational cost and memory storage. Simulation results show that the proposed method has better performance, compared to the forward/backward spatial smoothing by the Pillai and MUSIC Algorithm.
Feeding hotspots for four northwest Atlantic groundfish species

We used predator distribution and stomach content data to estimate the annual per capita rate of consumption for four representative predator species from the northwestern Atlantic Ocean, and considered how consumption is influenced by depth, bottom salinity, sediment grain size, location variables, and species-specific diet components. We found that geographic variables and species-specific prey resources were significantly associated with consumption rates, a pattern consistent with predator-prey theory. Prey categories comprised of fish were particularly important for a more mobile predator (silver hake Merluccius bilinearis), whereas benthic invertebrate prey were consistently important for a more sedentary predator (little skate Raja erinacea). Hotspots in consumption rates that overlap with particular prey resources were highlighted by the significance of location variables (longitude) for winter flounder Pseudopleuronectes americanus, silver hake, little skate, and sea raven Hemitripterus americanus. Depth was an important explanatory factor for consumption by little skate, but the explanatory value of abiotic habitat factors was low for the other three species. Greater emphasis on species-specific food habits, migratory patterns, and ecological interactions at the synoptic scales relevant to fisheries is needed for fisheries management.
Load balancing techniques for distributed stream processing applications in overlay environments

Service overlays that support distributed stream processing applications are increasingly being deployed in wide-area environments. The inherent heterogeneous, dynamic and large-scale nature of these systems makes it difficult to meet the quality of service (QoS) requirements of the distributed stream processing applications. In this paper we address the load balancing problem for distributed stream processing applications and present a decentralized and adaptive algorithm that allows the composition of distributed stream processing applications on the fly across a large-scale system, while satisfying their QoS demands. The algorithm fairly distributes the load on the resources and adapts dynamically to changes in the resource utilization or the QoS requirements of the applications. Our experimental results demonstrate the scalability, efficiency and performance of our approach.
Hereditary papillary renal carcinoma type I.

Germline missense mutations in the tyrosine kinase domain of the hepatocyte growth factor / scatter factor (HGF / SF) receptor, c-Met, are thought to be responsible for hereditary papillary renal carcinoma (HPRC) type 1, a form of human kidney cancer. In addition to extensive linkage analysis of HPRC families localizing the HPRC type 1 gene within chromosome 7, the demonstration that individual c-Met mutations reconstituted in cultured cells display enhanced and dysregulated kinase activity, and confer cell transformation and tumorigenicity in mice, solidifies this conclusion. Our prior knowledge of HGF / SF biology and c-Met signaling enabled rapid progress in unraveling the molecular pathogenesis of HPRC type 1, and in laying the framework for the development of novel therapeutics for the treatment of this cancer. At the same time, the study of HPRC type 1 has refined our appreciation of the oncogenic potential of c-Met signaling, and challenges our current understanding of HGF / SF and c-Met function in health and disease.
Gene flow in maize fields with different local pollen densities

The development of maize (Zea mays L.) varieties as factories of pharmaceutical and industrial compounds has renewed interest in controlling pollen dispersal. The objective of this study was to compare gene flow into maize fields of different local pollen densities under the same environmental conditions. Two fields of approximately 36 ha were planted with a nontransgenic, white hybrid, in Ankeny, Iowa, USA. In the center of both fields, a 1-ha plot of a yellow-seeded stacked RR/Bt transgenic hybrid was planted as a pollen source. Before flowering, the white receiver maize of one field was detasseled in a 4:1 ratio to reduce the local pollen density (RPD). The percentage of outcross in the field with RPD was 42.2%, 6.3%, and 1.3% at 1, 10, and 35 m from the central plot, respectively. The percentage of outcross in the white maize with normal pollen density (NPD) was 30.1%, 2.7%, and 0.4%, respectively, at these distances. At distances greater than 100 m, the outcross frequency decreased below 0.1 and 0.03% in the field with RPD and NPD, respectively. A statistical model was used to compare pollen dispersal based on observed outcross percentages. The likelihood ratio test confirmed that the models of outcrossing in the two fields were significantly different (P is practically 0). Results indicated that when local pollen is low, the incoming pollen has a competitive advantage and the level of outcross is significantly greater than when the local pollen is abundant.
Autocorrelation and power spectrum of Hadamard signalling

The paper presents results for the autocorrelation and power spectrum of digital modulation for M-ary orthogonal and biorthogonal signal sets based on binary Hadamard matrices. Such signal sets provide easily-mechanised orthogonal (and related) constructions, and are important in coded signalling for jammed and/or fading channels using large-alphabet codes.
Moral lessons from the jury box.

A decade ago a North Carolina jury awarded millions of dollars in damages because of a healthcare institution's failure to provide appropriate pain relief to a dying patient. In 2001, a California jury found a physician guilty of elder abuse for his failure to properly manage the pain of a cancer patient. In both instances, state licensing boards had failed to take any disciplinary action against those involved. These cases dramatically illustrate a significant and persistent gulf between the lay public and the health professions with regard to the moral significance they attach to the duty to relieve suffering. Measures to insure that all patients receive effective assessment and management of their pain must take into account this disparity, and endeavor to achieve congruence by reconnecting the health professions to their ancient and core value-the relief of suffering.
Channel estimation for MIMO-OFDM using complementary codes

We present a pilot-assisted method for estimating the frequency selective channel in a MIMO-OFDM (Multiple Input Multiple Output - Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing) system. The pilot sequence is designed using the DFT (Discrete Fourier Transform) of the Golay complementary sequences. Novel exploitation of the perfect autocorrelation property of the Golay codes, in conjunction with OSTBC (Orthogonal Space-Time Block Code) based pilot waveform scheduling across multiple OFDM frames, facilitates simple separation of the channel mixtures at the receive antennas. The DFT length used to transform the complementary sequence into the frequency domain is shown to be a key critical parameter for correctly estimating the channel. NMSE (Normalized Mean Squared Error) between the actual and the estimated channel is used to characterize the estimation performance.
Toolkit Approach To Integrating Library Resources Into The Learning Management System

Abstract As use of learning management systems (LMS) increases, it is essential that librarians are there. Ohio State University Libraries took a toolkit approach to integrate library content in the LMS to facilitate creative and flexible interactions between librarians, students and faculty in Ohio State University’s large and decentralized academic environment.
Optimal scheduling in buffered WDM interconnects with limited range wavelength conversion capability

All optical networking is a promising candidate for supporting high-speed communications because of the huge bandwidth of optics. In this paper, we study optimal scheduling in buffered WDM interconnects with limited range wavelength conversion capability. We formalize the problem of maximizing network throughput and minimizing total delay as a problem of finding an optimal matching in a weighted bipartite graph. We then give a simple algorithm, called the Scan and Swap Algorithm, that finds the optimal matching in O(kB) time, where k is the number of wavelengths per fiber and B is the buffer length, as compared to directly adopting other existing algorithms that need at least O(k/sup 2/N/sup 2/ + k/sup 2/BN) time, where N is the number of input fibers.
Flow-controlled ATM switches for Available Bit Rate services

Switch design for ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode) networks needs to take a fresh approach in order to support ABR (Available Bit Rate) services efficiently. In particular, ATM switches designed for data communications should implement flow control functions to prevent data loss while minimizing required memory. These new requirements make the design of ATM switches fundamentally different from that of traditional switch design.
Coccidioidomycosis among Persons with AIDS in the United States

Adults and adolescents diagnosed with AIDS from 1987 through 1992 residing in counties endemic (selected counties in California, Arizona, Texas, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah) and not endemic for Coccidioides immitis were assessed to determine the frequency of and risk factors for disseminated coccidioidomycosis. Of 602 AIDS patients reported with disseminated coccidioidomycosis, 323 (1.1% of AIDS patients) resided in C. immitis-endemic counties and 279 (0.1% of AIDS patients) resided in C. immitis-nonendemic counties in 35 states. In multivariate analysis, patients with disseminated coccidioidomycosis in C. immitis-endemic counties were more likely to be injecting drug users (odds ratio, 2.6; 95% confidence interval, 1.8-3.7) and blood product recipients (odds ratio, 3.6; 95% confidence interval, 1.5-8.3) than to be homosexual or bisexual men. Of patients with disseminated coccidioidomycosis, 63% had died by 1 year after AIDS diagnosis. Disseminated coccidioidomycosis should be considered in AIDS patients in all areas of the United States.
Multimedia knowledge representation system

A software system has been developed that allows very convenient implementation of multimedia knowledge representation for various narrow domains. The system is developed on the Sun workstations, which allow multiple processes to be carried out simultaneously, provide large screens for clear multiple-window displays which are mouse oriented, and offer a networked environment allowing remote multiple-user access of the same files. The system matches the human cognitive model and is particularly easy to learn and to use. >
Consumption of milk from transgenic goats expressing human lysozyme in the mammary gland results in the modulation of intestinal microflora

Lysozyme is a key antimicrobial component of human milk that has several health-promoting functions including the development of a healthy intestinal tract. However, levels of lysozyme in the milk of dairy animals are negligible. We have generated transgenic dairy goats that express human lysozyme (HLZ) in their milk in an attempt to deliver the benefits of human milk in a continual fashion. To test the feasibility of this transgenic approach to achieve a biological impact at the level of the intestine, feeding trials were conducted in two animal models. Pasteurized milk from HLZ transgenic animals was fed to both kid goats (ruminant model) and young pigs (human model), and the numbers of total coliforms and Escherichia coli present in the small intestine were determined. Data from this proof-of-principle study demonstrate that milk from transgenic animals was capable of modulating the bacterial population of the gut in both animal models. Pigs that consumed pasteurized milk from HLZ transgenic goats had fewer numbers of coliforms and E. coli in their intestine than did those receiving milk from non-transgenic control animals. The opposite effect was seen in goats. Milk from these transgenic animals not only represent one of the first transgenic food products with the potential of benefiting human health, but are also a unique model to study the development and role of intestinal microflora on health, well-being and resistance to disease.
Influence of changing from dry-lot feeding to pasture on the freezing point of milk.

The freezing point of milk from cows on a dry-lot feeding program was −0.543 C, −0.545 C when on full pasture, and −0.542 C when changed back to dry-lot feeding. Samples from the morning and evening milkings froze at −0.542 C and −0.545 C, respectively. Milk from cows on dry-lot feeding froze at colder temperatures in times of high barometric pressure.
Halo Nevus (Regressing Nevus)

Histologically, the so-called halo nevus is overwhelmed by an infl ammatory, mostly lymphocytic infi ltrate with extensive loss of melanocytes. The clinically evident white halo corresponds to the loss of melanin in the basal layer of the epidermis and to a reduction in the number of melanocytes.
Factor graphs for inverse problems: Accelerated phase contrast magnetic resonance imaging

In this work, we present a novel technique for image recovery from highly undersampled phase contrast magnetic resonance imaging (PC-MRI) data. Our approach is holistic and includes modeling of the underlying physics, optimized sampling strategies, and design of a novel inversion algorithm. We capture the unique magnitude and phase structure of PC-MRI data as a non-Gaussian conditional mixture density. We then create a factor graph that describes the joint posterior probability of the inference variables given the noisy measurements. A combination of standard belief propagation and generalized approximate message passing (GAMP) is used to form an iterative inversion algorithm capable of producing MAP or MMSE estimates of the signal of interest. Using the proposed technique, we demonstrate high-fidelity PC-MRI recovery for simulated and phantom data undersampled by a factor of ten.
Cloud Resource Management for Image and Video Analysis of Big Data from Network Cameras

With the existence of millions of public network cameras capturing countless events around the world, there is a need for a system to retrieve, save, and analyze the tremendous amount of visual data from the cameras. The knowledge from the data will ultimately help better understand the world. Such a system needs to allocate and manage significant amounts of resources in order to meet the analysis requirements. In order to reduce the overall analysis cost, this paper presents a cloud resource manager that allocates cost-effective cloud instances, monitors and automatically scales the cloud resources. The paper presents a system that uses the proposed resource manager for image and video analysis of the big data from global network cameras. Our experiments show that the resource manager can lead to 13% reduction in cost. The experiments use four analysis programs which represent different workloads in terms of CPU and memory. The experiments show that different cloud instances are more cost-effective for different analysis programs. One experiment analyzes data streams from 1026 cameras simultaneously for six hours using different analysis programs at different frame rates. The experiment analyzes 5.5 million images, totalling 260GB data.
Life Distributions: A Brief Discussion

This article presents a brief description of some of the characteristics of life distributions that arise in survival analysis and reliability theory. Alternative definitions of a distribution are discussed and related to a variety of stochastic orders: hazard rate order, likelihood ratio order, convex order, Lorenz order. Nonparametric families, particularly log-concave densities, completely monotone distributions, increasing hazard rate families, new-better-than-used families, and bathtub hazard rate families are analyzed. A taxonomy for semiparametric families is presented and the effect of introducing parameters on various stochastic orders is shown. Finally, the introduction of covariate models in these families is developed.
The Ghetto ‘Liquidations’ of 1942–43

In contrast to the mass killings reported in detail by the Einsatzgruppen in 1941, much less is known about the ghetto ‘liquidations’ in 1942. In the areas under civil administration in iitWeisruthenien and western parts iitof Reichskommissariat Ukraine, however, the majority of Jews were killed during the ‘Second Wave’ in 1942 and 1943.1 Moreover these were total ‘liquidations’. Only a few Jews were exempted from these so-called ‘actions’, usually to be killed themselves within a couple of months. A large proportion of the victims were women, children and the elderly. By the end of 1942 only a handful of ‘work ghettoes’ remained in these areas.
Under-reporting of Risky Drug Use Among Primary Care Patients in Federally Qualified Health Centers.

OBJECTIVE: The Affordable Care Act encourages integration of behavioral health into primary care. We aim to estimate the level of under-reporting of drug use in federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) among self-reported risky drug users. METHODS: Adult patients in the waiting rooms of 4 FQHCs who self-reported risky drug use on the screening instrument World Health Organization's Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (score 4-26), who participated in the "Quit Using Drugs Intervention Trial," submitted urine samples for drug testing. Under-reporters were defined as patients who denied use of a specific drug via questionnaire, but whose urine drug test was positive for that drug. Descriptive statistics, Pearson chi-square test, and logistic regression were used for analysis. RESULTS: Of the 192 eligible participants, 189 (96%) provided urine samples. Fifty-four samples were negative or indeterminate, yielding 135 participants with positive urine drug tests for this analysis: 6 tested positive for amphetamines, 18 opiates, 21 cocaine, 97 marijuana. Thirty patients (22%) under-reported drug use and 105 (78%) reported drug use accurately. Under-reporting by specific substances was: amphetamines 66%, opiates 45%, cocaine 14%, and marijuana 7%. Logistic regression revealed that under-reporting of any drug was associated with history of incarceration and older age (odds ratios 2.6 and 3.3, respectively; P CONCLUSIONS: Under-reporting of drug use is prevalent even among self-reported drug users in primary care patients of FQHCs (22%), but varied considerably based on the substance used. Further research is indicated to assess the extent of under-reporting among all primary care patients, regardless of their self-reported drug use status. Language: en
Improving the Science of Measles Prevention-Will It Make for a Better Immunization Program?

In the early 1960s before measles vaccine was introduced, more than 2 million persons died annually from measles [1]. Control efforts reduced that number to an estimated 114,900 deaths in 2014, and many countries have interrupted transmission, achieving elimination of indigenous measles [2]. Yet measles continues to circulate in many countries. A major reason for this is that the measles virus is highly infectious and herd immunity thresholds needed to stop transmission have been estimated to be as high as 94% [3]. A single dose of measles vaccine administered at age 9 mo, the standard age for first vaccination in most developing countries, induces immunity in about 85% of vaccinated children [4]. Over 90% immunity is achieved when the first dose is administered after the first birthday [4]. Because the likelihood of reaching herd immunity thresholds is limited, even with 100% immunization coverage, a second dose was recommended, which seroconverts more than 90% of those who fail to seroconvert after the first dose [5].
Diastolic echo parameters: meaningless numbers or crucial information?

Assessment of diastolic function has emerged as another important contribution of echocardiography to the clinical care of patients. Diastolic dysfunction as diagnosed by echocardiography carries a negative prognostic value,1–3 and diastolic assessment is now a routine part of any complete echocardiographic report.4 Bhella et al,5 in this issue of Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging , investigate the reliability of several echocardiographic diastolic parameters in predicting the pulmonary capillary wedge variation in individual subjects subjected to preload manipulation. Bhella et al controversially conclude that “Noninvasive indices do not adequately track changes in left-sided filling pressures as these pressures vary within individual subjects.” The findings are in contrast to a recent clinical paper published by Nagueh et al6 in a previous issue of the Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging. Those authors demonstrated clinical utility of the same indices in patients with acute decompensated heart failure. How can these findings be reconciled, and what is the practicing cardiologist to do? Are the currently available diastolic parameters a bunch of meaningless numbers or crucial information in the treatment of patients? Article see p 482 The first well-accepted parameter of diastolic function, the mitral valve filling pattern assessed by Doppler velocity measurements, reflects the gradient between the left atrium (LA) and left ventricle (LV) in diastole. The gradient is specifically sensitive to LA pressure and LV relaxation. In general, the ratio of the early wave velocity (E) to the late velocity after atrial contraction (A) was helpful in identifying the diastolic function in individual patients. However, the clear preload dependence of the E/A ratio as well as its unreliability in tachycardia, moderate diastolic dysfunction with moderately elevated LA pressures (pseudonormalization), and other issues led to the search for more reliable parameters. The …
“Loves the Spirit”: Transformative Mediation as Pedagogical Practice

After 20 years of teaching in a predominately white Southern protestant seminary, womanist ethicist Marcia Riggs envisions and enters her classroom as a space where frequently conflictual energies of particularities and differences can generate creative teaching and learning. She has developed a pedagogical method called religious ethical mediation that draws on transformative mediation theory, intercultural communication, and womanist ethics. This essay shares key insights from these theories, describes the pedagogical method that integrates them, and explains the import of religious ethical mediation for teaching religion in the twenty-first century. Riggs argues that the problem of religion and violence is at the heart of teaching religion and theology today. Given this fact and the reality of conflict in the classroom, teaching and learning require transformative mediation as pedagogical practice.
Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSC) Promote Aggressive Behavior of Human Breast Cancer Cells (MCF-7) in Vitro- the Role Cytokines (TNF-alpha) and Chemokines

The tumor microenvironment contributes to local tumor growth and may set up a metastatic niche for breast cancer cells. We tested the effects of spontaneously transformed murine mesenchymal stem cells (stMSC; Li et al. Cancer Res 2008) on the migration, proliferation and cell cycle of the MCF-7 human breast cancer cell line. MCF-7 cells were collected from plates held at confluence to establish cell cycle arrest and then grown either in control media (50/50 mix of fresh and conditioned MCF-7 media) or modification of stMSC conditioned media (50/50 mix of fresh and stMSC conditioned media with TNF-alpha, anti-TNF-alpha or isotype control). MCF-7 cells were plated at equal concentrations into 24-well dishes to establish near confluent plates. The MCF-7 monolayer was wounded using a pipette tip, and the area evaluated/photographed at 0, 24 and 48 hours (in triplicate). Media was changed daily. Synchronized cultures were grown in control or MSC media for 0, 24 or 48 hours in triplicates and analyzed by FACS for cell cycle status and standard cell counts. MCF-7 cells grown in MSC cultured media healed 49% (based on wound size) while control wound size was 26% healed at 24 hrs ( p =0.00591). At 48 hrs, MCF-7 cells exposed to stMSC media showed 95% healing while MCF-7 cells in control media still retained 50% of the original wound size (50% healing; p =0.00002). The exposure MCF-7 grown in control media and MSC media did not differ in cell cycle progression. MSC media increased proliferation of MCF-7 cells at 24, 48 and 72 hours compared to control media. (p<0.002). In a separate experiments media from stMSC exposed to TNF-alpha led to increased healing of MCF-7 monolayer compared to stMSC conditioned media at 24 hrs (59.5% vs 44.5%; p =0.027). Healing was lower in media from stMSC cultured with anti-TNF blocking antibody compared to stMSC conditioned media at 24 hrs (66.6% vs 95.7%; p =0.002). We have also detected that stMSC conditioned media contains very high levels of TNF-alpha, MCP-1, CCL-5 and also high levels of NF-kB activity in stMSC conditioned media. StMSCs produce factors (such as TNF-alpha) that provide breast cancer cells (MCF-7) with migration and growth advantage. Animal experiments assessing the ability stMSCs to contribute to invasion and migration of breast cancer cells are currently underway.
Delivery of Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Medically Ill Patients in Primary Care: A Pragmatic Randomized Clinical Trial

Background Few studies have examined the practical effectiveness and implementation potential of brief psychotherapies that integrate mental and physical health.
A Review of the Scientific Literature and Methods for Production of Factitious Hosts for Use in Mass Rearing of Trichogramma spp. (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) in the Former Soviet Union, the United States, Western Europe and China

Trichogramma spp. are important biological control agents for lepidopterous pests. Insectaries for mass rearing them, using factitious hosts, have been constructed in many countries. Selection of factitious hosts is based on the simplicity of their mass production, mechanization of rearing processes, and cost of production compared to that of utilizing target pest eggs. Scientific literature and personal experiences with the techniques used for production of factitious hosts for Trichogramma spp. in the former Soviet Union, the United States, Western Europe, and China are presented.
Comparing Dorsal Tangential and Lateral Views of the Wrist for Detecting Dorsal Screw Penetration after Volar Plating of Distal Radius Fractures

Background. The dorsal tangential (DT) view has been shown to improve the detection of dorsal screw perforation during volar distal radius fracture fixation. Here we performed a cadaveric imaging survey study to evaluate if the DT view was uniformly beneficial for all screws. Methods. Standardized placement of fixed-angle volar distal radius plates was performed on two cadavers. Fluoroscopic images depicting variable screw perforation of each of the four screw holes on the plate were generated. A 46-image survey was distributed at a large academic medical center. Respondents were asked to answer if the screw was perforating through the dorsal cortex in each image. Statistical analysis was performed using Fisher’s exact test. A value < .05 was considered significant. Results. The DT view offered a significantly more reliable determination of dorsal screw penetration than traditional lateral imaging for the radial-most screw at all degrees of perforation and the middle two screws at 2 mm of perforation. Residents and attendings had more accurate screw readings overall using the DT view. Conclusions. The DT view is superior to traditional lateral imaging in the detection of small amounts of dorsal perforation of the radial-most three screws of a fixed-angle volar plate.
Conferring Visibility on Trauma within Rwanda’s National Reconciliation: Kivu Ruhorahoza’s Disturbing and Salutary Camera

This chapter analyses Kivu Ruhorahoza’s recent film Grey Matter (Rwanda 2011) as an unprecedented attempt to confer social visibility on the mental scars that survivors of traumatic violence carry within themselves and their daily attempts to negotiate the haunting past of the genocide against the Tutsi. Grey Matter underlines the social tensions surrounding the political and institutional responsiveness to trauma, both for survivors and perpetrators. It opens and ends with the political and economic struggles of a young Rwandan film-maker who seeks funds for his film, The Cycle of the Cockroach. Within that film, which is embedded within the main film, he denounces the perverse and self-destructive dynamic that requires those who were targeted by ideological discrimination to hide and remain silent about their struggle and mental scars. This film-within-the-film encourages the viewers to reflect both on the psychological reality of victims and perpetrators of violence, and the cultural visibility a post-genocide society is willing to give to a traumatic past within its present reunification process. Breaking with the historical realism that defines cinematic production on the genocide against the Tutsis in Rwanda, Ruhorahoza favours a symbolic and haunting huis clos that dramatises the loneliness of survivors and perpetrators who are each respectively trapped in mental prisons—be they the result of ideological constructs or of traumatic violence. While one survivor finds a way to overcome his mental entrapment, his sister and a genocide perpetrator end up in the same mental institution. Ultimately Grey Matter explores through its embedded and self-reflexive structure the interrelations between personal reconciliation and national reunification, and the role of cinema as a cultural medium to confer social visibility on these interrelations.
The effect of preoperative liver dysfunction on cardiac surgery outcomes

To determine the impact of preoperative Liver Dysfunction (LD) on outcomes after elective Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting (CABG) and Valvular surgery (VS). The Nationwide Inpatient Sample (2002–2010) was queried to identify patients with LD who had elective CABG or VS utilizing ICD-9-CM diagnosis and procedure codes. These patients were matched with the similar patients without LD (controls) by propensity score matching. Chi-square and Wilcoxon rank sum tests were used for analysis. We identified 1197 patients with LD (CABG = 755; VS = 442) who were matched to 2394 controls. LD significantly increased hospital mortality after both CABG (OR = 5.19; 95%CI = 2.93–9.20) and VS (OR = 7.49; 95%CI = 3.12–17.96). Overall rates of complications after CABG with LD were greater than in non-complicated cases (OR = 1.73; 95%CI = 1.46–2.05). Among them, there was an increase in bleeding (OR = 1.81;95%CI = 1.44–2.28), respiratory (OR = 2.33;95%CI = 1.86–2.93), renal (OR = 2.79;95%CI = 2.04–3.81), and infectious (OR = 2.93;95%CI = 2.14–4.01) complications. In general, the rates of complications after VS with LD were also greater than in non-complicated cases (OR = 2.77;95%CI = 2.13–3.60), specifically for bleeding (OR = 3.07;95%CI = 2.17–4.34), respiratory (OR = 3.57;95%CI = 2.51–5.07), renal (OR = 4.40;95%CI = 2.80–6.92), and infectious (OR = 4.63;95%CI = 2.85–7.51) complications. The development of LD significantly increased mean hospital length of stay (LOS) and total hospital charges after both CABG (from7.0 ± 4.0 to 9.2 ± 9.1 days and from $100,265 ± 87,107 to $117,756 ± 99,320, respectively; P < 0.0001 for both) and VS (from 7.9 ± 5.0 to 11.4 ± 9.9 days and from $134,306 ± 114,216 to $176,620 ± 147,049, respectively; P < 0.0001 for both). LD worsened the outcomes after cardiac surgery. It increased rates of complications, hospital mortality, length of stay and total hospital charges after both procedures.
HETEROGENEOUS DEPOSITION OF CALCIUM PHOSPHATES AT THE SILICON (HYDROUS) OXIDE· WATER INTERFACE

Calcium phosphates (CP) are found in significant quantities in almost all kidney stones. With a relatively high surface free energy, but only a moderate supersaturation in human urine, it is likely that nucleation of CPs requires a pre-existing surface. As a consequence, there have been a number of studies that have focused on the heterogeneous nucleation of CPs on a variety of materials, from calcium oxalate monohydrate to uric acid and the urate salts 1-3. However, there have also been studies that have implicated silicon and its oxide compounds, hydrous oxides, or soluble silicate ions, in the nucleation and growth of CPs and hydroxyapatite, the thermodynamically stable form, in particular. These past studies tended to focus on organic silicon or soluble silicates 4, 5. However, silicon has a concentration in human urine in the range of 6 to 17 mg per 24 hours 6. With a solubility of about 100 ppm in water, solid forms of silicon such as silicon dioxide or the more thermodynamically stable solid silicon (hydrous) oxide are likely to be present in urine as particles.
Improving Text-Based Person Search by Spatial Matching and Adaptive Threshold

As an important complement to person re-identification, text-based person search in large-scale database is concerned greatly for person search applications. Given language description of a person, existing frameworks search the images in the dataset that describe the same person, by computing the affinity score between the description and each image. In this paper, we first propose an efficient patch-word matching model, which can accurately capture the local matching details between image and text. In particular, it computes the affinity between an image and a word as the affinity of the best matching patch of the image toward the word. Compared with the state-of-the-art framework, it achieves competitive performance, but yields lowcomplexity structure. In addition, we put forward a significant limitation of affinity-based model, it is overly sensitive to the matching degree of a corresponding image-word pair. For this limitation, we feed a creative adaptive threshold mechanism into the model, it automatically learns an adaptive threshold for each word, and effectively “compress” the affinity score between a word and an image when the score exceeds the words threshold. Extensive experiments on the benchmark dataset demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed framework, which outperforms other approaches for text-based person search. To provide a deeper insight into the proposed model, we visualize the matching details between spatial patches of images and words of texts on typical examples, and illustrate how adaptive threshold mechanism compresses the affinity score and benefits the final rank of different images toward a text description.
RMBS Put-Back Litigations and the Efficient Allocation of Endogenous Risk Over Time

In many cases pending around the country, purchasers of residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBSs) are suing the financial institutions that created and sold the RMBSs, alleging that representations and warranties made by these institutions concerning the quality of the underlying mortgage loans were false in various respects. Because the agreements memorializing the securitization transactions that created the RMBSs generally provide that, if a loan fails to conform to the seller’s representations, the seller will repurchase the loan at full value, these cases are generally referred to as the RMBS Put-Back Litigations. A key issue in many of these cases, including cases currently before the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and the New York Court of Appeals, concerns whether the plaintiffs’ claims are barred by the statute of limitations. The issue turns on whether the statute began to run on the date that the seller made an allegedly false representation about the loans, in which case the statute would in many cases have already expired, or only on the much later date when the plaintiff demanded that the seller repurchase the allegedly non-conforming loans and the seller refused.This seemingly highly-technical issue raises important questions about the efficient allocation of risk in sophisticated commercial agreements. The seller’s representations about the loans, backed up by the repurchase provision, shifts the endogenous risks associated with the loans to the seller, which is exactly what economic theory would predict because the seller is undoubtedly the superior bearer of these risks. The running of the statute of limitations, however, retransfers these risks back to the holders of the RMBSs. Since all the factors that make the seller the superior risk bearer still obtain on the date the statutory period expires, it would seem that the statute of limitations is creating an inefficient allocation of risk.This article shows why retransferring endogenous risks to the RMBS holders is in fact efficient, that is, why the seller is the efficient risk bearer for a given period of time after the closing of the transaction but that, at a certain later point in the time, the RMBS holders become the efficient risk bearers. The argument turns on the fact that error rates in determining whether loans are conforming and the transaction costs of implementing the repurchase provision both rise over time, with the result that at some point the net benefit captured by shifting endogenous risks to the seller is reduced below the costs involved in implementing the repurchase provision. At this point, which the article denominates the moment of efficient repose, it becomes efficient to allow the costs of materializing endogenous risks to remain where they fall.
I-LEARN: A Model for Learning with Information

This chapter’s presentation of the I-LEARN model is the heart of the book. It is also the longest chapter—using detailed text and a series of illustrations to explain the author’s model for learning in information-rich environments. A description of information behavior that extends traditional information-seeking models into one focused directly on learning, the model provides a blueprint for developing the concepts and skills required for meaningful learning in the information age. The chapter explains and expands I-LEARN’s grounding in ideas presented in the previous chapters and illustrates its application in both formal and informal information-rich environments. Recursive rather than linear, the model includes six stages and eighteen elements that intertwine and overlap. These stages and elements are presented as concepts rather than as specific steps to underscore the model’s flexibility and applicability in a wide range of settings. Detailed examples provide extensive guidance for conceptualizing and implementing it. The chapter is the culmination of the book’s argument that the world itself is the ultimate information-rich environment and that the ability to access, evaluate, and use all types of its information is the key to twenty-first-century learning.
Soil Enzyme Activities as Affected by Manure Types, Application Rates, and Management Practices

Manure application can restore soil ecosystem services related to nutrient cycling and soil organic matter (SOM) dynamics through biochemical transformations mediated by soil enzymes. Soil enzymes are crucial in soil metabolic functioning, as they drive the decomposition of organic residues, humification processes, transformations leading to the release of plant available nutrients, stabilization of soil structure, and degradation of xenobiotic (foreign or strange) compounds. However, despite the fact that there is an exhaustive amount of literature available on the effects of manure on soil enzyme activities, there is no comprehensive overview of recent research findings that compares different management scenarios, manure types, and potentially new manure products or management. The purpose of this chapter is to provide a review of the response of enzyme activities to manure applications and their potential implications on soil biogeochemical cycling in agroecosystems. Additionally, this chapter intends to provide some perspective on specific areas where more information is warranted and pinpoint avenues for future research.