cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Synthesis and preliminary evaluation of para- and meta-[18F]fluorobenzylguanidine.

meta-[18F]Fluorobenzylguanidine ([18F]MFBG) and para-[18F]fluorobenzylguanidine ([18F]PFBG) were synthesized in three steps beginning with a fluoro for nitro exchange reaction on 3- and 4-nitrobenzonitrile, respectively. Overall radiochemical yields were 10-15% for [18F]MFBG and 50-55% for [18F]PFBG in a total synthesis time of 60 min. However, impurities interfered with the binding of the product to target cells. A new route was adopted for the synthesis of [18F]PFBG using 4-nitrilophenyl trimethylammonium trifluoromethanesulfonate (Q.S.) as the starting material. In addition to shortening the overall synthesis time by 10 min, this precursor also eliminated problems associated with the presence of small amounts of starting material in the preparation. In vitro binding of [18F]PFBG prepared by the Q.S. method to SK-N-SH, human neuroblastoma cells was 26.5 +/- 1.1%, compared to 16.9 +/- 1.6% when the nitro precursor was used. Selective uptake of both 18F-labeled isomers in the heart and adrenal was seen in mice. At 4 h, adrenal and heart uptake of [18F]PFBG prepared using Q.S. was 20.3 +/- 4.8 and 5.9 +/- 0.8% ID/g respectively, compared to 23.8 +/- 5.0 and 10.5 +/- 1.7% ID/g for [18F]MFBG. Based on the 5-fold higher radiochemical yields obtained with [18F]PFBG, this isomer would appear to be the more practical choice; however, in vitro and in vivo results suggest that [18F]MFBG exhibits greater similarities to MIBG.
Gonadotrophic Regulation of Precursor Incorporation Into Ovarian RNA, Protein, and Acid-Soluble Fractions. I. Effects of Pregnant Mare Serum Gonadotrophin (PMSG), Follicle-Stimulating Hormone (FSH), and Luteinizing Hormone (LH)

The time course of gonadotrophic regulation of precursor uptake and incorporation into ovarian RNA and protein, ovarian growth, and estrogen production has been measured and correlated. Significant increases in in vivo cytidine and amino acid incorporation into ovarian RNA and protein, respectively, were noted by 4 hr after PMSG or LH treatment of immature rats. PMSG was found to initiate growth of the ovary and its secretion of estrogen within 18 hr of hormone administration. As little as 2.5 μg of LH effectively stimulated in vivo cytidine incorporation into RNA. This LH response was both hormone and tissue specific and could be obtained in hypophysectomized as well as intact immature animals. Since the in vivo PMSG and LH effects were not readily apparent under in vitro incorporating conditions, it is suggested that an intact ovarian blood supply is essential for the expression of the PMSG and LH response. (Endocrinology 83: 1083, 1968)
On the Development of Systems of Men and Machines

We formulate the development of systems of men and machines as a programming problem for multiprocessing in which some processors are men and some are machines. In this way, users guides, training courses, etc., are determined from processing requirements, just as machine specifications, which are consistent with the objectives of the total operation. An Appendix illustrates this idea in miniature for a supermarket checkout operation.
Secure and privacy-preserving database services in the cloud

Cloud computing becomes a very successful paradigm for data computing and storage. Increasing concerns about data security and privacy in the cloud, however, have arisen. Ensuring security and privacy for data management and query processing in the cloud is critical for better and broader uses of the cloud. This tutorial covers recent research on cloud security and privacy, while focusing on the works that protect data confidentiality and query access privacy for sensitive data being stored and queried in the cloud. We provide a comprehensive study of state-of-the-art schemes and techniques for protecting data confidentiality and access privacy, and explain their tradeoffs in security, privacy, functionality and performance.
Modelling microscale flow and colloid transport in saturated porous media

The microscale flow in soil porous media determines the transport of colloids contained in groundwater. In this paper, two completely different computational approaches, namely a mesoscopic lattice Boltzmann approach and a Navier-Stokes based hybrid approach, are applied to simulate pore-scale viscous flows. The porous medium is represented by a channel partially filled with circular (in 2D) or spherical (in 3D) particles. We demonstrate that the two approaches produce almost identical pore-scale flow field, providing a rigorous cross-validation for each approach. A Lagrangian particle-tracking approach is then used to study the transport of colloids in these flows. Due to the competing effects of hydrodynamic forces and electro-chemical interactions, it is shown that enhanced removal of colloids from the fluid by solid surfaces occurs when the residence time of colloids in a given flow passage is increased, in qualitative agreement with pore-scale visualisation experiments using confocal microscopy.
A simple and sensitive bioassay method for detection of EDRF with RFL-6 rat lung fibroblasts.

Detailed characteristics of a new bioassay method for detection and quantification of endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF) are described. Guanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cGMP) responses of RFL-6 rat fetal lung fibroblast cells were utilized to estimate the activity of nitric oxide (NO) and EDRF. The conditioned medium from bovine aortic endothelial (BAE) cells cultured in tissue culture plates was quickly transferred to RFL-6 incubations to determine EDRF. In the presence of superoxide dismutase, RFL-6 cells cultured in six-well tissue culture plates exhibited very high sensitivities to both NO and EDRF; e.g., they responded to NO at a concentration as low as 2 nM and the basal release of EDRF from 1-2 X 10(6) BAE cells. Based on the lower detection limit of the radioimmunoassay for cGMP, calculations reveal that 100-200 fmol of NO and the basal EDRF release from 1-2 X 10(5) BAE cells can be detected with RFL-6 cells by choosing smaller culture wells. Thus this method is more sensitive than any other currently available. Furthermore, it may be widely used, since the instrumentation required is presently available in many laboratories. This bioassay technique for EDRF and NO is sensitive, simple, and quite useful for the evaluation of experimental conditions and compounds that regulate EDRF release from various endothelial cells and tissues.
A hole in my heart: mitral abscess and fistula

A 73-year-old male was admitted with a 2-week history of shortness of breath, fatigue, fever, and frequent falls at home. The patient reported a history of diabetes mellitus and multiple myeloma requiring intermittent chemotherapy. Blood cultures were positive for methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus and intravenous antibiotics were initiated. A transesophageal echocardiogram (Fig. 1a) showed prolapse of the posterior leaflet of the mitral valve with mobile densities on the ventricular surface and a fluctuant mitral annulus suggestive of vegetation (arrowhead) and abscess (arrow). Severe mitral regurgitation was noted through the cavity with flow reversal in both the right and left upper pulmonary veins. Color-flow Doppler showed aliasing through the abscess (Fig. 1b), suggesting an extracardiac conduit. The video in the online Supplementary Data captures the large ruptured abscess creating an external conduit permitting regurgitant flow from the left ventricle to the left atrium. During hospitalization the patient developed respiratory failure requiring intubation secondary to rapid progression of heart failure. Surgical repair was subsequently pursued as this was felt to be the patient’s only chance at survival. At the time of surgery, the patient was found to have a large abscess cavity which had eroded through the myocardium involving the entire middle and most of the lateral segments of the posterior mitral valve. Further debridement indicated separation through the atrioventricular groove creating a fistula communicating with the pericardium. This fistula was repaired along with pericardial patch and replacement of the mitral valve. The patient responded well post-operatively and several months later showed improvement in symptoms and returned exercise tolerance. Echocardiography remains a staple in diagnosing infective endocarditis (IE) through modified Duke Criteria and should be performed in all patients with a moderate or high suspicion of endocarditis [1]. S. aureus IE has been associated with higher secondary complications rates and higher mortality [1, 2]. For advanced and destructive disease such as in our case, surgical intervention decreases mortality rates especially in patients with S. aureus IE [1–4]. Although post-operative surgical mortality rates have improved, and are now \10 % overall, they can be much higher in patients presenting with heart failure [2]. Recent valvular heart disease guidelines issued by the American College of Cardiology support surgical evaluation in patients with large abscesses, perivalvular extension, fistulas and severe valvular insufficiencies as in our case [4]. Our patient was fortunate enough to have a good result because of early surgical intervention with extensive debridement and mitral valve replacement. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s12574-015-0266-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Adaptable Nasal Reconstruction with an Axial Forehead Flap

Historically, the Indian method of nasal reconstruction with forehead flaps and Tagliacozzi’s arm flap methods are two of the earliest described procedures in the specialty that was to become plastic surgery. Now, extensive nasal defects are more likely due to ablation from tumor than from trauma. But despite the miraculous advances in our field, complex nasal defects—large nasal surface areas missing with underlying structural and/or lining defects—remain one of the toughest challenges in modern plastic surgery.
Incorporating ecological process and environmental change into spiny lobster population models using a spatially-explicit, individual-based approach

Marine fisheries and the ecosystems that sustain them are increasingly beset by environmental deterioration, yet traditional fishery models used for stock prediction typically handle these dynamics poorly if at all. To do so requires the integration of spatio-temporal change in environmental quality and its subsequent effects on habitat suitability and life history dynamics. Spatially-explicit, individual-based simulation models are particularly well suited to this task and, although they are seeing increased use in fisheries ecology and management, this approach has seen limited application in crustacean fisheries. In 1993, we began development of a spatially-explicit individual-based model (IBM) describing the recruitment of Caribbean spiny lobster (Panulirus argus) in the Florida Keys, Florida (USA) to investigate the impact of regional changes in environmental quality, habitat structure and postlarval supply on lobster recruitment. The shallow coastal waters of the Florida Keys ecosystem have experienced an unprecedented series of environmental perturbations over the past decade. Seagrass die-offs, cyanobacteria blooms, sponge die-offs and dramatic changes in salinity have occurred and these potentially impact the recruitment of spiny lobsters in the region via both direct and indirect means. Here I provide an overview of the unique approach that we have used to examine these dynamics, an approach that links environmental events that occur on large scales (e.g. changes in habitat structure and salinity) with their population-level consequences for lobsters via impacts that operate on the individual-level. Although not applicable in all situations, spatially-explicit IBMs should see wider use in crustacean fishery applications because of both the ecological insight they yield and their ability to integrate data across hierarchical scales of organization.
Noble gas-actinide complexes of the CUO molecule with multiple Ar, Kr, and Xe atoms in noble-gas matrices.

Laser-ablated U atoms react with CO in excess argon to produce CUO, which is trapped in a triplet state in solid argon at 7 K, based on agreement between observed and relativistic density functional theory (DFT) calculated isotopic frequencies (12C16O, 13C16O, 12C18O). This observation contrasts a recent neon matrix investigation, which trapped CUO in a linear singlet state calculated to be about 1 kcal/mol lower in energy. Experiments with krypton and xenon give results analogous to those with argon. Similar work with dilute Kr and Xe in argon finds small frequency shifts in new four-band progressions for CUO in the same triplet states trapped in solid argon and provides evidence for four distinct CUO(Ar)4-n(Ng)n (Ng = Kr, Xe, n = 1, 2, 3, 4) complexes for each Ng. DFT calculations show that successively higher Ng complexes are responsible for the observed frequency progressions. This work provides the first evidence for noble gas−actinide complexes, and the first example of neutral complexes with four n...
Analysis of Xenorhabdus nematophila metabolic mutants yields insight into stages of Steinernema carpocapsae nematode intestinal colonization.

Summary Xenorhabdus nematophila colonizes the intestinal tract of infective-juvenile (IJ) stage Steinernema carpocapsae nematodes. During colonization, X. nematophila multiplies within the lumen of a discrete region of the IJ intestine termed the vesicle. To begin to understand bacterial nutritional requirements during multiplication in the IJ vesicle, we analysed the colonization behaviour of several X. nematophila metabolic mutants, including amino acid and vitamin auxotrophs. X. nematophila mutants defective for para-aminobenzoate, pyridoxine or l-threonine biosynthesis exhibit substantially decreased colonization of IJs (0.1–50% of wild-type colonization). Analysis of gfp-labelled variants revealed that those mutant cells that can colonize the IJ vesicle differ noticeably from wild-type X. nematophila. One aberrant colonization phenotype exhibited by the metabolic mutants tested, but not wild-type X. nematophila, is a spherical shape indicative of apparently non-viable X. nematophila cells within the vesicle. Because these spherical cells appear to have initiated colonization but failed to proliferate, we term this type of colonization ‘abortive’. In a portion of IJs grown on para-aminobenzoate auxotrophs, X. nematophila does not exhibit abortive colonization but rather reduced growth and filamentous cell morphology. Several mutants with defects in other amino acid, vitamin and nutrient metabolism pathways colonize IJs to wild-type levels suggesting that the IJ vesicle is replete with respect to a number of nutrients.
Ultrafast competition between energy and charge transfer in a functionalized electron donor/fullerene derivative

Abstract The fact that fullerenes are good electron acceptors has generated interest in covalently linked complexes between electron donors and fullerenes; photoinduced charge transfer in these dyads has great potential for use in photovoltaic devices. In this Letter, we investigate the excited-state properties of a perylene–fulleropyrrolidine dyad using steady-state and femtosecond time-resolved spectroscopies. Following photoexcitation, charge separation and energy transfer occur in nearly equal proportion; both processes take place on a sub-picosecond timescale. This suggests that competition between energy and charge transfer is common in these molecular systems, so that the best molecules for device applications are not necessarily those with the fastest electron transfer rates.
The p53 proto-oncogene can act as a suppressor of transformation

DNA clones of the wild-type p53 proto-oncogene inhibit the ability of E1A plus ras or mutant p53 plus ras-activated oncogenes to transform primary rat embryo fibroblasts. The rare clones of transformed foci that result from E1A plus ras plus wild-type p53 triple transfections all contain the p53 DNA in their genome, but the great majority fail to express the p53 protein. The three cell lines derived from such foci that express p53 all produce mutant p53 proteins with properties similar or identical to transformation-activated p53 proteins. The p53 mutants selected in this fashion (transformation in vitro) resemble the p53 mutants selected in tumors (in vivo). These results suggest that the p53 proto-oncogene can act negatively to block transformation.
Systems Level Neuroplasticity in Drug Addiction

Drug addiction is a chronic relapsing disorder for which research has been dedicated to understand the various factors that contribute to development, loss of control, and persistence of compulsive addictive behaviors. In this review, we provide a broad overview of various theories of addiction, drugs of abuse, and the neurobiology involved across the addiction cycle. Specific focus is devoted to the role of the mesolimbic pathway in acute drug reinforcement and occasional drug use, the mesocortical pathway and associated areas (e.g., the dorsal striatum) in escalation/dependence, and the involvement of these pathways and associated circuits in mediating conditioned responses, drug craving, and loss of behavioral control thought to underlie withdrawal and relapse. With a better understanding of the neurobiological factors that underlie drug addiction, continued preclinical and clinical research will aid in the development of novel therapeutic interventions that can serve as effective long-term treatment strategies for drug-dependent individuals.
Theories of adolescent risk-taking behavior.

The study of adolescent risk-taking behavior gained prominence in the 1980s as it became increasingly evident that the majority of the morbidity and mortality during the second decade of life was behavioral in origin. The term risk-taking behavior has been used to link, conceptually, a number of potentially health-damaging behaviors including, among others, substance use, precocious or risky sexual behavior, reckless vehicle use, homicidal and suicidal behavior, eating disorders, and delinquency. The linkage of these behaviors under a single domain is theoretically useful because it allows for the investigation of particular behaviors in the context of other behaviors. The construct of risk-taking behavior also suggests a more parsimonious use of interventions, targeting groups of behaviors rather than applying multiple more narrowly targeted interventions.
The Morbidity and Mortality Conference in Gastroenterology and Hepatology: An Important Cornerstone of Patient Safety and Optimal Care

The morbidity and mortality (M&M) conference has evolved considerably in recent years. M&M was originally developed by surgeons and anesthesiologists to investigate negative “end results.” M&Ms were intended to be an open discussion promote and enhance patient safety, and to be engaged in projects to improve systems of care, decrease health care disparities and improve patient outcomes. Incorporation of these varied objectives and principles has led to a variety of innovations in M&M conferences that have been reported widely in general and emergency medicine, oncology, surgery, pediatrics, and obstetrics. The result is an evolution of the traditional M&M into a comprehensive and dynamic Quality and Patient Outcomes (QPO) conference, which fosters QI, patient safety, and medical education. The combination of high-volume diverse procedures, inpatient and outpatient clinical practice, and integration of hepatology and luminal gastroenterology each
Vitamin D endocrine system.

Publisher Summary The chapter illustrates recent developments that demonstrate quite conclusively that vitamin D is the precursor of a hormone of central importance in the control of serum calcium and phosphorus, which are in turn necessary for mineralization of bone, muscle contraction, and nerve function. In the absence of vitamin D, mineralization of bone collagen cannot occur thus leading to the disease rickets in the young and osteomalacia in the adult. Deprivation of vitamin D brings about the acute disease state of hypocalcemic tetany. Although parathyroid hormone is involved in the etiology of hypocalcemic tetany, vitamin D also plays a basic role in preventing this disturbance and that there is an interlocking function between the parathyroid hormone and vitamin D in this capacity. Because vitamin D is the precursor of a hormone that functions in the mobilization of calcium and phosphorus and because other hormonal factors interact with vitamin D in these functions, it will become evident that a disturbance of vitamin D conversion to its active hormone may result in a variety of pathological situations, which are the well recognized symptoms of rickets and osteomalacia. Vitamin D is a building block for one hormone, which has its endocrine system located in the kidney and the targets of hormone action in intestine, bone, and kidney. From the clinical point of view, methods for assessment of vitamin D metabolism and hormonal status are under development that will usher into the clinical chemistry area a new era of bone disease in treatment, diagnosis, and evaluation of treatment.
Isolation and properties of a beta-mercaptopyruvate-cleaving copper enzyme.

1. 1. The distribution and isolation of β-mercaptopyruvate transsulfurase is described. The enzyme was isolated from rat liver by (NH4)2SO4 fractionation and repeated preparative electrophoresis. 2. 2. The enzyme was characterized by constant specific activity, copper content and its absorption spectrum. 3. 3. The mechanism of action of 2-mercaptoethanol and Na2SO3 on the enzymic formation of pyruvate from β-mercaptopyruvate was determined. While 2-mercaptoethanol acts as a reducing and stabilizing agent, SO3= reacts as a second substrate to accept S from β-mercaptopyruvate. 4. 4. The catalytically active group of the enzyme, which participates in the removal and transfer of S from the substrate, was identified as a thiol-disulfide-Cu system. A mechanism of transsulfuration based on analytical and kinetic measurements is described. This mechanism is restricted to the description of the reaction of the mercapto group of the substrate with the enzyme.
Feasibility of hypomethylating therapy in patients with renal insufficiency

7089 Background: Epigenetic therapy with hypomethylating agents (HA) is the standard of care in patients (pts) with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). Although neither 5-azacytidine (5AZA) nor 2'-deox...
Coupled RNA-SIP and metatranscriptomics of active chemolithoautotrophic communities at a deep-sea hydrothermal vent

The chemolithoautotrophic microbial community of the rocky subseafloor potentially provides a large amount of organic carbon to the deep ocean, yet our understanding of the activity and metabolic complexity of subseafloor organisms remains poorly described. A combination of metagenomic, metatranscriptomic, and RNA stable isotope probing (RNA-SIP) analyses were used to identify the metabolic potential, expression patterns, and active autotrophic bacteria and archaea and their pathways present in low-temperature hydrothermal fluids from Axial Seamount, an active submarine volcano. Metagenomic and metatranscriptomic results showed the presence of genes and transcripts for sulfur, hydrogen, and ammonium oxidation, oxygen respiration, denitrification, and methanogenesis, as well as multiple carbon fixation pathways. In RNA-SIP experiments across a range of temperatures under reducing conditions, the enriched 13C fractions showed differences in taxonomic and functional diversity. At 30 °C and 55 °C, Epsilonproteobacteria were dominant, oxidizing hydrogen and primarily reducing nitrate. Methanogenic archaea were also present at 55 °C, and were the only autotrophs present at 80 °C. Correspondingly, the predominant CO2 fixation pathways changed from the reductive tricarboxylic acid (rTCA) cycle to the reductive acetyl-CoA pathway with increasing temperature. By coupling RNA-SIP with meta-omics, this study demonstrates the presence and activity of distinct chemolithoautotrophic communities across a thermal gradient of a deep-sea hydrothermal vent.
Application of the p-Multigrid Algorithm to Discontinuous Galerkin Formulations of the Compressible Euler Equation

p-multigrid is an iterative algorithm used to obtain solutions to hp-finite element discretizations. In this work, we have investigated the use of p-multigrid (for p = 2 approximations) and agglomeration multigrid (for p = 0 approximations) to obtain the solution to the discontinuous Galerkin formulation of the compressible Euler equations applied to a model problem. Various diagonal, line solve and sweeping relaxation schemes have been investigated to compare their performance. The model problem analyzed is a 2-D free-steam subsonic flow which is periodic in one direction. For this problem, we have used a structured rectangular mesh and linear analysis is used to obtain the convergence rates (damping factors) of the different schemes. For all orders of p, the damping factors are observed to vary significantly with the angle of the flow with respect to the mesh. The block line relaxation schemes including the alternate direction line (ADL) scheme, with an under-relaxation factor of 2/3, showed the least variation with flow angle. Even when the flow is perfectly aligned with the mesh, these schemes converge well unlike the diagonal relaxation schemes. We also studied the variation of the damping factors with grid refinement and here again the line relaxation schemes showed grid independence at all flow ∗Ph.D. candidate, Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering Department, mascarbs@clarkson.edu, AIAA Student Member. †Associate Professor, Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering Department, helenbrk@clarkson.edu, AIAA Member. ‡Senior Research Scientist, Computational Modeling and Simulation Branch, h.l.atkins@larc.nasa.gov, AIAA member 1 18th AIAA Computational Fluid Dynamics Conference 25 28 June 2007, Miami, FL AIAA 2007-4331 Copyright © 2007 by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc. All rights reserved. angles, whereas the diagonal schemes were only grid independent at flow angles away from 0◦ and 180◦. For the p = 0 approximations, the block line solve scheme with symmetric Gauss-Seidel (SGS) sweeps and two-level agglomeration multigrid, performs the best, giving damping factors in the range of 0.35 to 0.8 for a wide range of flow angles. The ADL multigrid scheme with GaussSeidel sweep also performs very well when the GS sweep is in the direction of the x-component of the flow velocity, giving damping factors between 0.33 and 0.42 for all flow angles less than 90◦. For the p = 2 approximations, the ADL relaxation coupled with a two level p-multigrid algorithm (p coarsened from 2 to 1) has the best convergence properties with damping factors in the range of 0.65 to 0.80 for all flow angles other than those between 80◦ and 100◦. When p is coarsened from 1 to 0 however, the p-multigrid algorithm does not perform well. We also explain this anomalous behavior of the p-multigrid algorithm.
The absorption spectra of krypton and xenon in the wavelength range 330-600

A total of 153 krypton resonances in the spectral region 330-500 A and 253 xenon resonances in the spectral region 375-600 A are reported. A detailed listing of the resonances is given, with wavelength and line shape information. The analysis of the spectra is very incomplete and will require detailed theoretical calculation to significantly improve it. In Kr, 45 resonances and in Xe, 56 resonances have been grouped into probable Rydberg series, for which classifications are suggested. The resonances are due, in the main, to either the excitation of the inner subshell "s" electron (s2p6→ sp6np) or to the excitation of two of the outer "p" electrons simultaneously (s2p6→ s2p4nln'l'). These high-lying excited states autoionize, resulting in resonances with window-, asymmetric-, or absorption-type profiles. Where possible, comparisons are made with previous work.
Relatively Low β-Cell Responsiveness Contributes to the Association of BMI with Circulating Glucose Concentrations Measured under Free-Living Conditions among Pregnant African American Women

Background Body mass index (BMI, in kg/m(2)) is positively associated with plasma glucose in late pregnancy and with risk of adverse obstetric outcomes. Much of the existing research uses single-clinic measures of plasma glucose, which may not accurately reflect circulating glucose under free-living conditions. Furthermore, little is known about circulating glucose concentrations of African American women, who tend to have poorer diet quality and a greater risk of obstetric complications. Objective The objective of the study was to test the hypothesis that the positive association of BMI in early pregnancy with third-trimester circulating glucose concentrations measured under free-living conditions among African American women would be at least partially attributable to lower β-cell insulin secretion relative to insulin sensitivity [i.e., lower disposition index (DI)]. Methods Using a prospective, observational design, 40 pregnant African American women (mean ± SD age: 23.1 ± 4.0 y; mean ± SD BMI: 28.4 ± 7.5) wore continuous glucose monitors and accelerometers for 3 d at 32-35 wk of gestation and concurrently maintained a food diary to report their self-selected meals. The DI was derived from a 75-g oral glucose tolerance test. Linear regression modeling was used to calculate the association of BMI with the 24-h glucose (GLUC24h) and 2-h (GLUC2hPP) postprandial glucose areas under the curve and with the percentage of time the glucose concentrations were >120 mg/dL. Results The positive associations between BMI and GLUC24h (standardized β = 0.36, P = 0.03) and the percentage of time glucose concentrations were >120 mg/dL (standardized β = 0.40, P = 0.02) were independent of total carbohydrate intake and physical activity and were attenuated when DI was added to the model. The positive association of BMI with GLUC2hPP was attenuated when DI was added to the model, and DI itself was independently associated with GLUC2hPP after self-selected breakfast and dinner (standardized β = -0.33 and -0.42, respectively; P = 0.01). Conclusions The association of BMI with high circulating glucose in free-living pregnant African American women is at least partially attributable to lower β-cell responsiveness.
Surface Topology Optimization of Water Tanks Using Genetic Algorithm

The purpose of this work is to explore the possibility of utilizing Genetic Algorithm in optimizing the surface topology of water tanks. The surface characteristics of a corrugated tank are tested on a small element on its circumference. A mathematical equation to represent most practical corrugated surfaces is developed using the Coons surface with trigonometric series curves. The parameters of this mathematical equation are used to describe the chromosome for different surfaces. A multi-objective fitness function incorporating the performance of a surface and the manufacturing cost associated with that surface is developed, which uses finite element analysis to determine the performance of each surface. Considerable better corrugations, compared to those normally used, were found.Copyright © 2003 by ASME
Felbamate in Intractable Childhood Epilepsy

Of 51 children with intractable seizures treated for two months with add on felbamate (50-75 mg/kg/day) at the Scottish Rite Children’s Hospital, Atlanta, GA, 51% responded with improved seizure control, 22% were unchanged, and 28% had increased seizure frequency.
Crowdsourcing Precision Cerebrovascular Health: Imaging and Cloud Seeding A Million Brains Initiative™.

Crowdsourcing, an unorthodox approach in medicine, creates an unusual paradigm to study precision cerebrovascular health, eliminating the relative isolation and non-standardized nature of current imaging data infrastructure, while shifting emphasis to the astounding capacity of big data in the cloud. This perspective envisions the use of imaging data of the brain and vessels to orient and seed A Million Brains Initiative™ that may leapfrog incremental advances in stroke and rapidly provide useful data to the sizable population around the globe prone to the devastating effects of stroke and vascular substrates of dementia. Despite such variability in the type of data available and other limitations, the data hierarchy logically starts with imaging and can be enriched with almost endless types and amounts of other clinical and biological data. Crowdsourcing allows an individual to contribute to aggregated data on a population, while preserving their right to specific information about their own brain health. The cloud now offers endless storage, computing prowess and neuroimaging applications for post-processing that is searchable and scalable. Collective expertise is a windfall of the crowd in the cloud and particularly valuable in an area such as cerebrovascular health. The rise of precision medicine, rapidly evolving technological capabilities of cloud computing and the global imperative to limit the public health impact of cerebrovascular disease converge in the imaging of A Million Brains Initiative™. Crowdsourcing secure data on brain health may provide ultimate generalizability, enable focused analyses, facilitate clinical practice and accelerate research efforts.
In Reply: Acid-base disturbances.

Readers comment on caring for international patients (November 2016) and on acid-base disorders (January 2017).
Acromioclavicular Joint Separation

Acromioclavicular joint separations are common injuries that usually occur after a fall onto the shoulder. Classification of these injuries is based on the degree and direction of the separation. The Rockwood classification is the most commonly used classification. Treatment often depends on the classification but is individualized to each patient according to their symptoms and function. Nonoperative treatment includes a sling for comfort and early range of motion. Operative treatment consists of a variety of options to stabilize the joint that allows return of function.
Glial Model for Traumatic Brain Injury: Network Strain Field and Inflammation Induced by Repeated Mechanical Impacts In Vitro

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a form of acquired brain trauma in which sudden external mechanical insults damage brain structures and cells. With a wide range of severities, TBI induces inflammatory responses with neurodegeneration and dysfunction. To develop new treatments, reproducible models of implementation are needed. Moreover, these models need to exhibit high biological and mechanical fidelity to the injurious event that they are trying to mimic. Here, the Highly Automated Mechanical Impactor (HAMr) is used to deliver 64 controlled pressure-pulses of known magnitude and duration to mixed glia cultures as a model for repetitive TBI. The mechanical response of those glial networks was quantified in terms of induced strain histories using Digital Image Correlation (DIC) under high-speed microscopic imaging. Four hours post-impact, glial network shearing and gene expression increases of TNFα and IL-1α were observed. However, select microglia and astrocyte markers were unchanged. These findings validate HAMr as a tool that enables quantification of the cell-substrate strain history during impact loading while reproducibly inducing inflammation and damaging glial network integrity, which are both common consequences of TBI.
Expertise in evidence-based medicine: a tale of three models

Expertise has been a contentious concept in Evidence-Based Medicine (EBM). Especially in the early days of the movement, expertise was taken to be exactly what EBM was rebelling against—the authoritarian pronouncements about “best” interventions dutifully learned in medical schools, sometimes with dire consequences. Since then, some proponents of EBM have tried various ways of reincorporating the idea of expertise into EBM, with mixed results. However, questions remain. Is expertise evidence? If not, what is it good for, if anything? In this article, I describe and analyze the three historical models of expertise integration in EBM and discuss the difficulties in putting each into practice. I also examine accounts of expertise from disciplines outside of medicine, including philosophy, sociology, psychology, and science and technology studies to see if these accounts can strengthen and clarify what EBM has to say about expertise. Of the accounts of expertise discussed here, the Collins and Evans account can do most to clarify the concept of expertise in EBM. With some additional clarification from EBM proper, theoretical resources from other disciplines might augment the current EBM account of expertise.
Parental Care and Postnatal Growth in the Chiroptera

Publisher Summary This chapter reviews the available literature on parental care and postnatal growth in bats and further investigates how these traits vary among species and how parental effort can be adjusted to the variation in costs and benefits to both parents and offspring. Interspecific and intraspecific variation in parental care in mammals can largely be linked to differences in the amount of energy and nutrients allocated to offspring in the form of milk, but non-nutritional care also may influence this variation. These differences may be associated with several factors, including phylogeny, diet, offspring gender, litter size, climate, habitat and risk of predation. In bats, as in most other mammals, mothers provide a continuum of protection to their offspring from gestation to weaning. In the fetal period, the mother's womb protects the fetus from many environmental stimuli and strongly affects the biochemical and thermal environment in which the offspring develops. After birth, the mother's direct biochemical influences are limited to the milk that she supplies. In addition, non-nutritional care may be provided and can include sensory stimulation, thermal influence, and pup retrieval and transport. Depending on the relative availability of food, environmental changes may increase or reduce efforts of parental expenditure in offspring. This chapter also examines patterns of parental effort in bats and summarizes factors that appear to influence patterns of postnatal growth in the Chiroptera in an effort to determine how parents contribute to the development of their young.
The HCI lab at UNC Charlotte

At the Human Computer Interaction Lab (HCILab) at UNC Charlotte, we investigate novel ways for people to interact with computers, and through computers with their environments. Our research covers a broad range of areas within Human Computer Interaction, such as Novel Interaction and Multimedia, Privacy, Creativity, and Visual Analytics. We collaborate with researchers in a number of areas related to HCI, such as visualization, gaming, art, and psychology. We also study interaction in a variety of domains such as intelligent information systems, information privacy and security, image processing and graphics, and intelligence analysis.
Modeling Social Structure as Network Effects: Rewards for Learning Improves Performance

A theoretical representation of social structure in agent-based organizations is developed. To test the model we generated a hypothesis from organizational learning theory and tested it using computational experiments. We found that emergent social structure associated with rewarding agent learning increased collective output over and above pay for performance.
The challenge of technology transfer

Because of the increasingly complex nature of the work undertaken by Federal Systems Division of IBM, a software engineering curriculum was initiated to train all programmers in the division’s practices for developing high-quality software. These practices were selected from the best academic and industrial experience available and they were documented to ensure their consistent application across the division’s wide range of projects. While the division had great success in developing the classes, teaching them and measuring the student’s ability to understand and use the concepts, the challenge of their usefulness was whether the technology could be transferred to the working environment. To speed this transfer and to exchange ideas and experiences associated with using the technology in the field, a Software Engineering Forum was defined and conducted to aid lead designers and programmers in sharing information about experiences gained and technology learned. They also aided the Software Engineering Education Department in making assessments about the practicality and usefulness of te concepts, tools, and technologies taught by the department.
Young and Aged Blunt Trauma Patients Display Major Differences in Circulating Inflammatory Mediator Profiles after Severe Injury

Background Aging is accompanied by alterations in immune functions. How these changes translate into levels of circulating inflammatory mediators and network expression after severe trauma is not well characterized. To address this, we compared time-dependent changes in the levels of an extensive biomarker panel in cohorts of severely injured young and aged adults. Study Design Cohorts of young (18 to 30 years old, n = 115) and aged (65 to 90 years old, n = 101) blunt trauma patients admitted to the ICU with plasma sampled 3 times within the first 24 hours and daily from day 1 to day 7 were assayed for 30 inflammatory biomarkers using Luminex analyzer. Stringently matched groups controlling for sex ratio and Injury Severity Score (n = 56 young vs n = 56 aged) were generated. Data were analyzed using 2-way ANOVA, area under the curve analysis, Dynamic Bayesian Network inference, and Dynamic Network Analysis. Results In the overall cohorts, the young group had a significantly higher Injury Severity Score, which was associated with higher circulating levels of 18 inflammatory mediators from admission to day 7. The aged group had higher levels of C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 10/interferon gamma-induced protein 10 and C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 9/monokine induced by gamma interferon. In groups that were matched for Injury Severity Score, the significantly higher levels of interferon gamma-induced protein 10 and monokine induced by gamma interferon persisted in the aged. Dynamic Bayesian Network revealed interferon gamma-induced protein 10 and monokine induced by gamma interferon as key mediators in the aged, and Dynamic Network Analysis revealed higher network complexity in the aged. Conclusions These findings indicate that differences in the early inflammatory networks between young and aged trauma patients are not simply a suppression of pro-inflammatory responses in the aged, but are characterized by a major shift in the mediator profile patterns with high levels of CXC chemokines in the aged.
Abstract 21: Lipid Metabolites Are Associated With Epigenetic Aging Acceleration in the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) Study

Background: Epigenetic aging measures including phenotypic aging (PA) and extrinsic epigenetic age acceleration (EEAA) have been associated with age-related diseases and conditions that include car...
Who Is a Jew (in Africa)? Definitional and Ethical Considerations in the Study of Sub-Saharan Jewry and Judaism

ABSTRACTIn recent decades, the fulcrum of African Jewry has shifted from long-established Ethiopian communities to emerging ones in West and Central Africa. This transition from “old” to “new” expr...
New Targeted Treatments for Fragile X Syndrome

Fragile X Syndrome (FXS) is the most common cause of inherited intellectual disability with prevalence rates estimated to be 1:5,000 in males and 1:8,000 in females. The increase of >200 Cytosine Guanine Guanine (CGG) repeats in the 5' untranslated region of the Fragile X Mental Retardation 1 (FMR1) gene results in transcriptional silencing on the FMR1 gene with a subsequent reduction or absence of fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP), an RNA binding protein involved in the maturation and elimination of synapses. In addition to intellectual disability, common features of FXS are behavioral problems, autism, language deficits and atypical physical features. There are still no currently approved curative therapies for FXS, and clinical management continues to focus on symptomatic treatment of comorbid behaviors and psychiatric problems. Here we discuss several treatments that target the neurobiological pathway abnormal in FXS. These medications are clinically available at present and the data suggest that these medications can be helpful for those with FXS.
Impact Of Hypoxia In The Expression And Regulation Of The TASK-1 Potassium Channel In Cardiac Myocytes

TASK-1 is a member of the two-pore domain potassium channel family and strongly expressed in the heart. However, little is known about the roles and regulation of TASK-1 channels in cardiac hypoxia...
Pediatric blunt cerebrovascular injuries: A national trauma database study

Abstract Background The incidence of blunt cerebrovascular injuries (BCVIs) in children is unknown. We aimed to determine the rate and consequences of BCVIs in pediatric blunt trauma patients. Methods We queried the National Trauma Data Bank (NTDB) for all blunt trauma patients between 2007 and 2014. BCVI patients were identified by ICD-9 codes. Demographic, emergency room, and concomitant injury data were analyzed. Results There were 732,702 blunt trauma patients, and 1682 BCVIs were identified (0.23%). 791 (47%) sustained carotid artery injuries (CAIs), 957 (57%) had vertebral artery injuries (VAIs), and 4% of patients sustained both. A majority of the injuries occurred in white patients (61%) and in motor vehicle accidents (53%). The average age was 12.1 ± 5.4 years. CAIs had more skull base fractures (55% vs 35%, p Conclusions BCVIs are rare in children. Vertebral injuries are more common. Carotid injuries are associated with a longer length of stay and higher stroke rates. Type of Study Retrospective cohort study. Level of Evidence III
Individual variation in two types of advertisement calls of Pacific tree frogs, Hyliola (=Pseudacris) regilla, and the implications for sexual selection and species recognition

Anuran advertisement calls play a fundamental role in social interactions related to reproduction, like territory defence and mate attraction. As such, advertisement calls are often shaped by natur...
Tobacco Magazine Advertising Impacts Longitudinal Changes in the Number of Tobacco Products Used by Young Adults.

Abstract Purpose The present study examined the longitudinal associations between exposure to tobacco advertisements in magazines popular among young adults and changes in the number of tobacco products used by young adults. Methods Participants were 4,824 students from 24 Texas colleges participating in a longitudinal study. Tobacco advertisements in 11 magazines, collected from 2015 to 2017, were objectively assessed and young adults self-reported the frequency of reading each magazine on five biannual surveys from 2015 to 2017. The objective and self-reported measures were multiplied to create a tobacco advertisement exposure score. Growth curve models were used to determine if exposure to tobacco advertisements in magazines predicted changes in the number of tobacco products used across the 2-year period, controlling for sociodemographic factors, ever tobacco use, recall of tobacco advertisements on the internet, and personality characteristics. Results Young adults with more exposure to tobacco advertisements reported a slower decline in the number of tobacco products they used across time. Conclusions Tobacco advertising in magazines contributes to the continuation of single-product and polyproduct use among young adults. Findings highlight the need for additional federal regulations limiting advertisements for all types of tobacco products in magazines, particularly those popular among young adults, the youngest legal targets of the tobacco industry.