cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Regulation of RANKL by biomechanical loading in fibrochondrocytes of meniscus

Abstract Objective We sought to determine whether fibrochondrocytes from menisci express receptor activator of NF- κ B (RANK), its ligand (RANKL), or osteoprotegerin (OPG) and, if so, whether their expression is modulated by dynamic mechanical loading under inflammatory and normal conditions. Methods Fibrochondrocytes from rat menisci were subjected to cyclic tensile strain (CTS) at various magnitudes and frequencies in the presence or absence of interleukin (IL)-1 β for up to 24 h. In order to determine whether a possible regulatory effect of mechanical loading on RANKL and its receptors under inflamed conditions is sustained, cells were stimulated with IL-1 β for 24 h while being subjected to CTS only for the initial 4 and 8 h, respectively. Regulation of RANKL, RANK, and OPG expression and synthesis were determined by semiquantitative and real-time PCR, Western blotting, and immunofluorescence. Result Fibrochondrocytes constitutively expressed low levels of RANKL and RANK but marked levels of OPG. IL-1 β upregulated expression and synthesis of RANKL and RANK significantly ( p 0.05 ), whereas expression of OPG was unaffected following 4 and 24 h. When fibrochondrocytes were simultaneously subjected to CTS and IL-1 β , expression of RANKL and RANK was significantly ( p 0.05 ) downregulated as compared to that of IL-1 β -stimulated unstretched cells. The inhibitory effect of CTS on the IL-1 β -induced upregulation of RANKL and RANK was sustained as well as magnitude and frequency dependent. Conclusions Our study provides evidence that RANKL and its receptors are expressed in fibrochondrocytes from meniscus. These data also demonstrate that dynamic mechanical loading can modify the expression of RANKL and RANK in inflammatory conditions.
Identification of Fe-rich meteoric dust

Abstract Cryo-mineralogy in coagulated ice particles nucleated onto meteoric iron species in noctilucent clouds could be a critical step in the formation of meteoric dust at the mesopause. Meteoric dust of the hydrated iron species α-FeOOH (goethite) is dehydrated via kinetically controlled reactions during descent in the mesosphere and stratosphere to hematite or maghemite. This thesis must await experimental and observational verification before it can be accepted.
Comparison of two methods of service delivery for students with learning disabilities.

Both the process and outcome of providing occupational and physical therapy services in the public school system to students with learning disabilities were examined. A therapist-disrected group recieved a combination of large and small group therapy while a consultation group received large group therapy and teacher-led follow-up sessions. Group progress on three standardized tests was compared by analysis of covariance. The result indicated that the consultation group made a greater change in mean standard score on the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency (p <.01). The therapist-directed group made a mean change in standard score of 19.4on the Test of Visual-Perceptual Skills compared to 7.5 for the consultation group, a difference that was clinically but not statistically significant (p=.07). Both groups made comparable progress on the Test of Visual-Motor Skills. Progress within each group was examined by the proportional change index score for each test subscale and the results were favorabl...
Corrigendum to “The complete genomic sequence of the modified vaccinia Ankara (MVA) strain: Comparison with other orthopoxviruses” [Virology 244 (1998) 365-396]

The authors would like to correct some sequencing errors that appeared in their original paper, referenced above. The sequence of a second MVA isolate with a different passage history was submitted to GenBank (accession number AY603355; Esposito, J.J., Frace, M., Sammons, S.A., OlsenRasmussen, M.S., Osborne, J., Khristova, M. and Wohlhueter, R.M., 2004. Vaccinia virus strain Acambis 3000 modified virus Ankara (MVA), complete genome). A comparison of the earlier deposited sequence of the MVAII/85 derived MVA M4 clone (accession number U94848; above-referenced article) with the new sequence (AY603355) revealed five single nucleotide differences in the viral genome (Table 1). A review of our raw sequence data suggested that sequencing errors, rather than genetic variation, may have resulted in the five single nucleotide
Effect of calcium spray materials, rate, time of spray application, and rootstocks on fruit quality of 'Red' and 'Golden Delicious' apples.

Abstract Calcium (Ca) spray materials improved fruit quality as measured by control of bitter pit, fruit finish (appearance), increased red skin color, reduced incidence of scald, increased juiciness, texture, and fruit firmness of ‘Red’ and ‘Golden Delicious’ apples (Malus domestica, Borkh.). Concentrations of Ca in leaf and fruit tissues were increased by Ca sprays, especially calcium chloride (CaCl2)‐containing spray materials. Improved fruit firmness and control of bitter pit occurred for either standard recommended or high rates of Ca spray materials. At high rates of application, the only significant difference that occurred between early and late applications of Ca spray materials was that less leaf injury occurred with the early applications. Unsprayed ‘Red Delicious’ fruit from M.7 rootstocks had greater fruit peel Ca concentrations and a lower incidence of bitter pit but smaller fruit than fruit from trees on M.26 rootstocks. The above information is strong evidence that Ca sprays are important ...
Effects of Land Use and Vegetation Cover on Soil Temperature in an Urban Ecosystem

Human activity has changed land surfaces by converting native ecosystems to urban and agricultural land uses. This conversion has caused increases in air and soil temperatures that influence soil C and N cycling. Efforts to model changes in soil temperature resulting from urban land use change have not accounted for changes in both plant cover and land use and thus fail to produce accurate predictions at high-resolution spatial and temporal scales. We measured average daily soil temperature at a 10-cm depth at urban and rural forest and grassland sites for 8 yr in the Baltimore, MD, metropolitan area and developed a model of the average daily soil temperature that accounts for two vegetation and two land use types. Average annual soil temperature was higher in urban than rural sites under both turfgrass (15.0°C vs. 13.5°C) and forest (12.6°C vs. 12.2°C). The application of climate-change scenarios predicted by general circulation models to our soil temperature model suggested that the highest increases in mean soil temperatures will occur in August, September, February, and March, and will range from 1.2 to 2.0°C, while air temperature is predicted to change from 3.4 to 5.6°C between 2070 and 2099. The model can be used to predict the average daily soil temperature in the Baltimore area for sites with similar hydrologic and soil conditions, i.e., remote from the shoreline and characterized by loamy soils.
Automatic detection and exploitation of branch constraints for timing analysis

Predicting the worst-case execution time (WCET) and best-case execution time (BCET) of a real-time program is a challenging task. Though much progress has been made in obtaining tighter timing predictions by using techniques that model the architectural features of a machine, significant overestimations of WCET and underestimations of GCET can still occur. Even with perfect architectural modeling, dependencies on data values can constrain the outcome of conditional branches and the corresponding set of paths that can be taken in a program. While branch constraint information has been used in the past by some timing analyzers, it has typically been specified manually, which is both tedious and error prone. This paper describes efficient techniques for automatically detecting branch constraints by a compiler and automatically exploiting these constraints within a timing analyzer. The result is significantly tighter timing analysis predictions without requiring additional interaction with a user.
Event Views and Graph Reductions for Understanding System Level C Code

Concurrent processing, runtime bindings, and an extensive use of aggregate data structures make system level C codes difficult to understand. This paper proposes event views and graph reductions as techniques to facilitate program comprehension. Starting with some domain knowledge, a user can apply these techniques to quickly identify and analyze exactly those parts of the program that are relevant to a given concern. We have built a tool called CVision to demonstrate applicability of the proposed techniques. CVision is an interactive tool that allows the user to: (a) quickly get to the relevant parts of the code; (b) graphically visualize relationships between program elements; and (c) interactively apply different graph reductions to eliminate irrelevant relationships. Using these capabilities, the user can quickly distill a large body of code and extract meaningful views of runtime events that capture the user's concern. The proposed program comprehension techniques are demonstrated through two case studies based on Linux and XINU operating systems
GaN microwave electronics

In this paper, recent progress of AlGaN/GaN-based power high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMT's) is reviewed. Remarkable improvement in performances was obtained through adoption of high Al contents in the AlGaN layer. The mobility in these modulation-doped structures is about 1200 cm/sup 2/.V/sup -1/.s/sup -1/ at 300 K with sheet densities of over 1/spl times/10/sup 13/ cm/sup -2/. The current density is over 1 A/mm with gate-drain breakdown voltages up to 280 V. F/sub t/ values up to 52 GHz have been demonstrated. Continuous wave (CW) power densities greater than 3 W/mm at 18 GHz have been achieved.
Whither Cognitive-behavioral Therapy for Schizophrenia?

Clinical studies of cognitive therapy and rehabilitation for persons with schizophrenia have generated promising findings of improvements in patients' cognitive and clinical status. However, the results do not appear to be specific to a particular form of intervention, and long-term evaluations of cognitive therapy, as an element in a comprehensive system of care, need to be conducted for clinical validation. Rehabilitation efforts should be congruent with laboratory findings of specific cognitive deficits, including those that are "vulnerability indicators" and endure beyond symptomatic episodes. With the demonstration that chronic schizophrenic patients can learn a variety of cognitive and behavioral skills through Integrated Psychological Therapy and other psychosocial treatments, the future appears bright for a profusion of new modalities aimed at cognitive-behavioral rehabilitation, especially those that emerge from what is known about information-processing deficits in schizophrenia.
Educational Implications of Choosing “Practice” to Describe Science in the Next Generation Science Standards

(NGSS; NGSS Lead States, 2013) highlight aneducational aim for students to engage in scientiﬁc practices. Following its predecessors“scientiﬁc method” and “inquiry,” “practice” is the most recent vocabulary choice for ex-pressing an educational aim that students learn how to reason and act scientiﬁcally. Onemotivation for this shift is that, although it may be out of reach to think and act scientif-ically exactly as scientists do, students can be taught, in some basic form, scientiﬁcallypowerfulwaysofreasoningandactingthatcapturewhatisparticularaboutscience—waysof reasoning and acting that develop reliable knowledge claims and are underpinnings ofscience’s epistemic privilege.Previous attempts to articulate semantically what is particular about the reasoning andacting of scientists have faced challenges. For example, “scientiﬁc method" appeals intu-itively to an undeniable truth that something scientists think and do methodically resultsin scientiﬁc knowledge. Articulating this ran aground when science education scholarsand others (see Woodcock, 2014 for a recent summary) pointed to ways in which “sci-entiﬁc method” does not resemble actual scientiﬁc work—for example, scientists do notfollow ordered steps, and no set of steps are necessary or common across different disci-
Performance of Alamouti transmit diversity over time-varying Rayleigh-fading channels

We analyze the impact of a time-varying Rayleigh-fading channel on the performance of an Alamouti transmit-diversity scheme. We propose several optimal and suboptimal detection strategies for mitigating the effects of a time-varying channel, and derive expressions for their bit-error probability as a function of the channel correlation coefficient /spl rho/. We find that the maximum-likelihood detector that optimally compensates for the time-varying channel is very tolerant to time-varying fading, attaining full diversity order even for the extreme case of /spl rho/=0. In contrast, although lower in complexity, the suboptimal schemes suffer a diversity penalty and are thus suitable only for slowly fading channels.
Mechanical models of sandfish locomotion reveal principles of high performance subsurface sand-swimming

We integrate biological experiment, empirical theory, numerical simulation and a physical model to reveal principles of undulatory locomotion in granular media. High-speed X-ray imaging of the sandfish lizard, Scincus scincus, in 3 mm glass particles shows that it swims within the medium without using its limbs by propagating a single-period travelling sinusoidal wave down its body, resulting in a wave efficiency, η, the ratio of its average forward speed to the wave speed, of approximately 0.5. A resistive force theory (RFT) that balances granular thrust and drag forces along the body predicts η close to the observed value. We test this prediction against two other more detailed modelling approaches: a numerical model of the sandfish coupled to a discrete particle simulation of the granular medium, and an undulatory robot that swims within granular media. Using these models and analytical solutions of the RFT, we vary the ratio of undulation amplitude to wavelength (A/λ) and demonstrate an optimal condition for sand-swimming, which for a given A results from the competition between η and λ. The RFT, in agreement with the simulated and physical models, predicts that for a single-period sinusoidal wave, maximal speed occurs for A/λ ≈ 0.2, the same kinematics used by the sandfish.
Extending interoperability into the real-time domain

In recent years, substantial effort has been made in researching and developing interoperable data management systems. The major focus has been on data model mapping, communication protocols, and database integration including schema integration, query processing, consistency management, and security management. However, little attention has been paid to integration of data management systems that have real-time characteristics. Interoperability must also deal with real-time issues. The author identifies a number of research issues in integrating real-time data management systems. Since these issues do not exist in either traditional distributed database systems or multi-databases, they must now be addressed in the context of real-time system integration. >
Bounded Ethicality and The Principle That “Ought” Implies “Can”

In this article we investigate a philosophical problem for normative business ethics theory suggested by a phenomenon that contemporary psychologists call “bounded ethicality,” which can be identified with the putative fact that well-intentioned people, constrained by psychological limitations, make ethical choices inconsistent with their own ethical beliefs and commitments. When one combines the idea that bounded ethicality is pervasive with the idea that a person morally ought to do something only if she can, it raises a doubt about the practical relevance of the moral principles that business ethics theory prescribes. We call this doubt the Radical Behavioral Challenge. It consists in the idea that people cannot generally conform to the normative ethical principles that business ethics theorists prescribe, and that these principles are therefore practically irrelevant. We answer the Radical Behavioral Challenge and explore normative implications of our answer
CTBT Monitoring: A Vital Activity for Our Profession

Late in 2007, the Seismological Society of America (SSA) and the American Geophysical Union (AGU) agreed on a joint position statement titled “Capability to Monitor the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT).” It reaffirmed a similar joint statement issued eight years earlier, saying in essence that these two professional societies are confident that a combination of worldwide monitoring resources will meet the verification goals of the CTBT. The full statement can be found at http://www.seismosoc.org/government/position_statement.html and in the March/April 2008 issue of Seismological Research Letters ( SRL 79, 158–159). I appreciate the SRL editor's invitation to expand here on some of the issues related to this joint statement. ...the development of seismology has been stimulated for decades by funding to improve the ability to monitor nuclear test explosions... The CTBT is intended to impede nuclear weapons development and as such is a major initiative in nuclear arms control, strongly supporting the endangered Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). It is of specialized importance to seismologists for a variety of reasons—first, because the development of seismology has been stimulated for decades by funding to improve the ability to monitor nuclear test explosions;1 and second because policymakers sometimes interact intensively with seismologists who bring their specialized skills to bear on the analysis of a particular seismic event by detecting, locating, and identifying it and estimating its yield if the event appears to have been an explosion.2 Given that seismology is recognized as the most important technology for monitoring nuclear explosions, a third reason for seismologists to pay attention to the CTBT is that ongoing professional assessments of monitoring capability are needed for serious discussion and decisions on whether this treaty is adequately verifiable. This latter reason may be particularly salient during the next few years, as the pros and cons of the treaty are likely to …
Blastomyces dermatitidis meningoencephalitis in a dog.

Blastomycotic meningoencephalitis in a dog was characterized by granulomas, which occurred most frequently in the gray matter of the cerebrum and the granular layer of the cerebellum, and often centered around vessels. Numerous B. dermatitidis organisms were in the granulomas and leptomeninges.
Breast cancer prognostic and predictive factors

The purpose for developing prognostic and predictive factors is to assist oncologists to optimize treatment decisions for every patient. Prognostic factors evaluate risk, and so are informative of the inherent biological aggressiveness of a patient’s breast cancer. Tumor stage, nodal status, grade, estrogen receptor status, and a patient’s age have known prognostic value and are combined in the Adjuvant! online site as a valuable tool for clinical care. Molecular diagnostic tests of gene expression have been developed to supplement known prognostic factors. While these tests are not yet standard of care, they could become useful for particular subsets of breast cancer patients for whom the additional information from the molecular test would be likely to change the recommendation of whether to offer systemic therapy. Predictive factors evaluate the likely benefit to be gained from a specific treatment. Examples include evaluation of ER for hormonal therapy and HER-2 for trastuzumab therapy. These are the most widely used tests in breast cancer because the results directly support an oncologist’s recommendations about these therapies. There are currently no predictive tests for other systemic treatments, but recent progress in this area is discussed.
Information technology impacts on firm performance: an extension of Kohli and Devaraj (2003)

Despite the importance of investing in information technology, research on business value of information technology (BVIT) shows contradictory results, raising questions about the reasons for divergence. Kohli and Devaraj (2003) provided valuable insights into this issue based on a meta-analysis of 66 BVIT studies. This paper extends Kohli and Devaraj by examining the influences on BVIT through a meta-analysis of 303 studies published between 1990 and 2013. We found that BVIT increases when the study does not consider IT investment, does not use profitability measure of value, and employs primary data sources, fewer IT-related antecedents, and larger sample size. Considerations of IT alignment, IT adoption and use, and interorganizational IT strengthen the relationship between IT investment on BVIT, whereas the focus on environmental theories dampens the same relationship. However, the use of productivity measures of value, the number of dependent variables, the economic region, the consideration of IT assets and IT infrastructure or capability, and the consideration of IT sophistication do not affect BVIT. Finally, BVIT increases over time with IT progress. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.
GATT Law on Agricultural Trade in Light of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development

This article concentrates specifically on the subject of the rules of the GATT which affect agricultural trade and their present and prospective impact on the environment. This examination will be undertaken in the context of the results of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), held in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992. The general conclusion of this study is that the results of UNCED and the present direction of the GATT in regards to agricultural trade, in terms of the GATT Uruguay Round negotiations and the work of the Group on Environmental Measures and International Trade, are largely complimentary. The agricultural-trade-related instruments which emerged from UNCED are supportive of an open international trading system in recognition of the need to enhance global agricultural production, while at the same time drawing the attention of the GATT to the requirement that agricultural development be undertaken ina sustainable manner.
Current concepts in the treatment of panic disorder.

Panic disorder is a prevalent psychiatric condition that often is chronic and rarely resolves without medical intervention. Many patients with panic disorder initially present with a variety of somatic symptoms, including chest pain, nausea, or dizziness, and patients frequently seek care in ambulatory care settings. Although panic disorder is classified as a single entity, it can have many dimensions and may be associated with significant morbidity. During the past 2 decades, there have been significant advances in the treatment of panic disorder, and a range of therapeutic choices is now available. Four classes of medications, including the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), high-potency benzodiazepines, tricyclic antidepressants, and monoamine oxidase inhibitors, may be considered for the management of patients with panic disorder. Emerging clinical data favor the SSRIs as first-line treatment for patients with panic disorder, and paroxetine and sertraline have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for use in panic disorder. This article reviews the efficacy and safety of these treatments, as well as their relative merits and disadvantages, and assists the practicing clinician in choosing among the various pharmacotherapies to tailor therapy to each patient's individual needs.
NMR Chemical Shifts of Trace Impurities: Industrially Preferred Solvents Used in Process and Green Chemistry

The 1H and 13C NMR chemical shifts of 48 industrially preferred solvents in six commonly used deuterated NMR solvents (CDCl3, acetone-d6, DMSO-d6, acetonitrile-d3, methanol-d4, and D2O) are reported. This work supplements the compilation of NMR data published by Gottlieb, Kotlyar, and Nudelman (J. Org. Chem. 1997, 62, 7512) by providing spectral parameters for solvents that were not commonly utilized at the time of their original report. Data are specifically included for solvents, such as 2-Me-THF, n-heptane, and iso-propyl acetate, which are being used more frequently as the chemical industry aims to adopt greener, safer, and more sustainable solvents. These spectral tables simplify the identification of these solvents as impurities in NMR spectra following their use in synthesis and workup protocols.
Evolutionary sequence divergence within repeated DNA families of higher plant genomes

The higher proportion of repeated DNA sequences in the garden pea (Pisum sativum) than in the mung bean (Vigna radiata), as well as other differences between these legume genomes, are consistent with a higher rate of sequence amplification in the former. This hypothesis leads to a prediction that repeated sequence families inPisum are mostly heterogeneous, as defined by Bendich and Anderson (1977), whileVigna families are homogeneous. An assay developed by these authors to distinguish between the two types of families, by comparison of reassociation rates at different temperatures, was utilized. The results forVigna defied the predictions of the assay for either homogeneous or hetereogeneous model. Evaluation of the kinetic data in light of the great diversity of repeated family copy numbers in both genomes enabled an interpretation of the results as consistent with hetereogenous families inPisum and homogeneous families inVigna. These tentative conclusions were supported by the results of a thermal denaturation (melting) assay described in the accompanying paper.
Altered glutamine metabolism in platinum resistant ovarian cancer

// Chantelle D. Hudson 1 , Alyssa Savadelis 1 , Anil Belur Nagaraj 2 , Peronne Joseph 2 , Stefanie Avril 3 , Analisa DiFeo 2, * , Norbert Avril 1, * 1 Department of Radiology, Case Center for Imaging Research, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA 2 Case Comprehensive Cancer Center, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA 3 Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA * Shared senior authors Correspondence to: Norbert Avril, email: Norbert.Avril@Case.edu Keywords: ovarian cancer, cisplatin resistance, glutamine metabolism, glutaminase inhibitors Received: February 13, 2016 Accepted: April 10, 2016 Published: May 12, 2016 ABSTRACT Ovarian cancer is characterized by an increase in cellular energy metabolism, which is predominantly satisfied by glucose and glutamine. Targeting metabolic pathways is an attractive approach to enhance the therapeutic effectiveness and to potentially overcome drug resistance in ovarian cancer. In platinum-sensitive ovarian cancer cell lines the metabolism of both, glucose and glutamine was initially up-regulated in response to platinum treatment. In contrast, platinum-resistant cells revealed a significant dependency on the presence of glutamine, with an upregulated expression of glutamine transporter ASCT2 and glutaminase. This resulted in a higher oxygen consumption rate compared to platinum-sensitive cell lines reflecting the increased dependency of glutamine utilization through the tricarboxylic acid cycle. The important role of glutamine metabolism was confirmed by stable overexpression of glutaminase, which conferred platinum resistance. Conversely, shRNA knockdown of glutaminase in platinum resistant cells resulted in re-sensitization to platinum treatment. Importantly, combining the glutaminase inhibitor BPTES with platinum synergistically inhibited platinum sensitive and resistant ovarian cancers in vitro . Apoptotic induction was significantly increased using platinum together with BPTES compared to either treatment alone. Our findings suggest that targeting glutamine metabolism together with platinum based chemotherapy offers a potential treatment strategy particularly in drug resistant ovarian cancer.
Sensor selection for passive sensor networks in dynamic environment: A dynamic data-driven approach

This paper addresses the sensor selection problem in a passive sensor network under dynamically varying environment. It is assumed that sensors in the same local area share similar dynamic environmental characteristics but only a few may have events within their respective sensing radii. The main challenge is to select sensors for separation in two categories: (i) those sensors whose outputs contain combined information of event and dynamic environment and (ii) those sensors whose outputs contain the environment information only. The criteria for sensor selection is made based on the entropy rate measurements of the standard Probabilistic Finite State Automata (PFSA) constructed from sensor time series and cross D-Markov machines constructed from combined time series of a sensor and the first (i.e., dominant) principal component representing the dominant linear mode in the ensemble of related sensor data within the network. The proposed method is applied to experimental data collected from a small local passive sensor network for target detection under dynamic environments, where characteristics of environmental signal is similar to the target signal in the sense of time scale and texture.
Rapid Scan Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Opens New Avenues for Imaging Physiologically Important Parameters In Vivo

We demonstrate a superior method of 2D spectral-spatial imaging of stable radical reporter molecules at 250 MHz using rapid-scan electron-paramagnetic-resonance (RS-EPR), which can provide quantitative information under in vivo conditions on oxygen concentration, pH, redox status and concentration of signaling molecules (i.e., OH•, NO•). The RS-EPR technique has a higher sensitivity, improved spatial resolution (1 mm), and shorter acquisition time in comparison to the standard continuous wave (CW) technique. A variety of phantom configurations have been tested, with spatial resolution varying from 1 to 6 mm, and spectral width of the reporter molecules ranging from 16 µT (160 mG) to 5 mT (50 G). A cross-loop bimodal resonator decouples excitation and detection, reducing the noise, while the rapid scan effect allows more power to be input to the spin system before saturation, increasing the EPR signal. This leads to a substantially higher signal-to-noise ratio than in conventional CW EPR experiments.
Trafficked Children and Youth in the United States: Reimagining Survivors, by Elżbieta M. Goździak

Book review: Trafficked Children and Youth in the United States: Reimagining Survivors Elzbieta M . Goździak New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2016, 141 pp.
ETS transcription factors Etv2 and Fli1b are required for tumor angiogenesis

ETS transcription factor ETV2/Etsrp functions as a key regulator of embryonic vascular development in multiple vertebrates. However, its role in pathological vascular development has not been previously investigated. To analyze its role in tumor angiogenesis, we utilized a zebrafish xenotransplantation model. Using a photoconvertible kdrl:NLS-KikGR line, we demonstrated that all tumor vessels originate from the existing embryonic vasculature by the mechanism of angiogenesis. Xenotransplantation of mouse B16 melanoma cells resulted in a significant increase in expression of the ETS transcription factors etv2 and fli1b expression throughout the embryonic vasculature. etv2 null mutants which undergo significant recovery of embryonic angiogenesis during later developmental stages displayed a strong inhibition of tumor angiogenesis. We utilized highly specific and fully validated photoactivatable morpholinos to inhibit Etv2 function after embryonic vasculogenesis has completed. Inducible inhibition of Etv2 function resulted in a significant reduction of tumor angiogenesis and inhibition of tumor growth. Furthermore, inducible inhibition of Etv2 function in fli1b mutant embryos resulted in even stronger reduction in tumor angiogenesis and growth, demonstrating that Etv2 and Fli1b have a partially redundant requirement during tumor angiogenesis. These results demonstrate the requirement for Etv2 and Fli1b in tumor angiogenesis and suggest that inhibition of these ETS factors may present a novel strategy to inhibit tumor angiogenesis and reduce tumor growth.
Biobehavioral Resources, Manpower, and Training Programs

Probably the single most important development which helped the scientific community to recognize the role of behavioral factors in health and illness and the need to address this knowledge in future training and research was the scientific knowledge accumulated between 1960 and 1980 on the role of behavioral and environmental factors, including an individual’s lifestyle, in his or her health.s
SHAKER ACCOUNTING RECORDS AT PLEASANT HILL: 1830–1850

Shakertown at Pleasant Hill, Kentucky was the third largest of nineteen Shaker communities which existed in eight states during the nineteenth century. Many of the accounting records used by the Pleasant Hill Shakers are still in existence. An analysis of these records indicates that the same care and attention to detail which came to be associated with the Pleasant Hill Shakers in agriculture, mechanics, and architecture is also evident in their accounting records
Display of functional proteins on supramolecular peptide nanofibrils using a split-protein strategy.

The display of functional proteins on self-assembled peptide nanofibrils is challenging since the steric bulk of proteins attached to simple self-assembling peptides often impedes incorporation into nanofibrils. Herein is described a split-protein strategy to tether functional proteins to preassembled peptide nanofibrils. In this strategy, a short affinity motif peptide derived from a split protein system is appended to a self-assembly motif (the amphipathic Ac-(FKFE)2-NH2 peptide) to form an affinity-assembly fusion peptide. The small size of the affinity motif allows the affinity-assembly fusion peptide to be readily incorporated into peptide nanofibrils that display the affinity motif when the affinity-assembly peptide is coassembled with Ac-(FKFE)2-NH2. Introduction of the split-protein that is complementary to the affinity motif to the assembled nanofibrils results in efficient, multivalent attachment of functional proteins to the peptide nanofibrils. This strategy is demonstrated with two split-protein systems, ribonuclease S′ (RNase S′) and split green fluorescent protein (GFP).
Optimizing Aesthetic Outcomes in Delayed Breast Reconstruction.

Background The need to restore both the missing breast volume and breast surface area makes achieving excellent aesthetic outcomes in delayed breast reconstruction especially challenging. Autologous breast reconstruction can be used to achieve both goals. The aim of this study was to identify surgical maneuvers that can optimize aesthetic outcomes in delayed breast reconstruction. Methods This is a retrospective review of operative and clinical records of all patients who underwent unilateral or bilateral delayed breast reconstruction with autologous tissue between April 2014 and January 2017. Three groups of delayed breast reconstruction patients were identified based on patient characteristics. Results A total of 26 flaps were successfully performed in 17 patients. Key surgical maneuvers for achieving aesthetically optimal results were identified. A statistically significant difference for volume requirements was identified in cases where a delayed breast reconstruction and a contralateral immediate breast reconstruction were performed simultaneously. Conclusions Optimal aesthetic results can be achieved with: (1) restoration of breast skin envelope with tissue expansion when possible, (2) optimal positioning of a small skin paddle to be later incorporated entirely into a nipple areola reconstruction when adequate breast skin surface area is present, (3) limiting the reconstructed breast mound to 2 skin tones when large area skin resurfacing is required, (4) increasing breast volume by deepithelializing, not discarding, the inferior mastectomy flap skin, (5) eccentric division of abdominal flaps when an immediate and delayed bilateral breast reconstructions are performed simultaneously; and (6) performing second-stage breast reconstruction revisions and fat grafting.
Urine trouble: genitourinary tuberculosis and subsequent DRESS syndrome

A 40-year-old woman with HIV (CD4 270, viral load undetectable) from Zambia presented with fevers, urinary tract infection symptoms, sterile pyuria and haematuria. She was found to have genitourinary tuberculosis (TB) via mycobacterial culture of urine and ascites, and treated with rifabutin, isoniazid, pyrazinamide and ethambutol. She later had multiple episodes of asymptomatic transaminitis, triggering changes to both TB and HIV regimens. The patient then presented with diffuse rash, fevers, transaminitis and eosinophilia concerning for drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (DRESS). After initial improvement on discontinuation of likely responsible medications and completion of corticosteroid therapy, the patient returned with acute liver failure. This new episode was felt to be severe organ dysfunction due to DRESS, and she was treated with a prolonged corticosteroid taper and changes to her TB regimen. She has since completed therapy for TB, has improving CD4 counts and is without evidence of liver dysfunction.
Properties of Self-Assembled Monolayers Revealed via Inverse Tensiometry.

Self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) have emerged as a simple platform technology and hence have been broadly studied. With advances in state-of-the-art fabrication and characterization methods, new insights into SAM structure and related properties have been delineated, albeit with some discrepancies and/or incoherencies. Some discrepancies, especially between experimental and theoretical work, are in part due to the misunderstanding of subtle structural features such as phase evolution and SAM quality. Recent work has, however, shown that simple techniques, such as the measurement of static contact angles, can be used to delineate otherwise complex properties of the SAM, especially when complemented by other more advanced techniques. In this article, we highlight the effect of nanoscale substrate asperities and molecular chain length on the SAM structure and associated properties. First, surfaces with tunable roughness are prepared on both Au and Ag, and their corresponding n-alkanethiolate SAMs are charact...
MECHANISM IN THE SYSTEM OF DIMERS OF BUTADIENE

The question of concert or lack of concert in the Diels -Alder reaction can be approached through the construction of an energy diagram, on which are placed the transition state of the reaction and as many approximations to the hypothetical intermediate of the non-concerted process as possible. Depending on the extent to which the two processes differ significantly in energy, more or less definitive answers to the question may be obtained. New work on racemization and rearrangement of deuterium in optically active 4-vinylcyclohexene labelled with deuterium in the vinyl group affords a good fix on the energy required to make the octa-1, 7-dien-3, 6-diyl diradicals. When these data are combined with those obtainable from trans -1, 2-divinylcyclobutane, cycloocta-1, 5-diene, and the dimerization of butadiene itself, a small but not entirely secure concert is discernible in this Diels-Alder reaction. The butadienebutadiene, ethylene-butadiene and cyclopentadiene systems will be discussed in terms of a mechanism in which the concert of the Diels-Alder is viewed as a perturbation on the fundamental dimerization of olefins to non-interacting singlet diradicals in their most stable conformation.
Grammatical and lexical factors in sound change: A usage-based approach

The question of whether or not grammatical factors can condition or block sound change has been discussed from many perspectives for more than a century without resolution (Melchert, 1975). Here we consider studies of sound change in progress which show that words or phrases that are used frequently in the phonetic environment for change undergo the change before those whose use is less frequent in these contexts. Because words of different categories and with different structures also have different distributions, they may occur preferentially in certain phonetic environments. Thus, some apparent cases of influence by grammatical and lexical factors can be explained by phonetic factors if we expand our notion of phonetic environment to include frequency within the environment for change, which includes the segmental environment as well as factors that affect the degree of prominence a word receives in context.
Numerical Simulation of Electromagnetic and Heat Transfer Phenomena in Inductively Heated Risers

Electromagnetic induction heating of open risers presents an energy efficient means to maintain the alloy in its molten state for mass feeding whilst allowing riser size reduction and substantial material savings. This paper presents preliminary simulation results of solidification phenomena in an inductively heated top riser. The electromagnetic field was calculated using a hybrid control volume/integral method to solve the magnetic diffusion equation with accompanying boundary conditions, and used temperature dependent electrical conductivity. The heat transfer equation was solved using the control volume method. Computed results show that it is possible to prevent premature solidification of the riser even though traditional design criteria are violated. The significance of these findings pertaining to sand and ingot casting systems will be discussed.
Basic Concepts of Forecasting

Any astronomer can predict just where every star will be at half past eleven tonight; he can make no such prediction about his daughter.
Advanced HAZMAT Life Support

Durch die Terroranschlage auf die USA ist ein Umdenken bei den Schwerpunkten in der Notfallmedizin eingetreten. Die verantwortlichen notfallmedizinischen Planungsstabe in den USA bereiten sich nun auch zunehmend auf ausgedehnte atomare, biologische und chemische (ABC) Angriffe auf die Zivilbevolkerung vor. Beim Notfallpersonal herrscht derzeit allerdings noch ein groses Wissensdefizit auf diesem Gebiet. Gleichzeitig werden Nervengasantidotkits auf US-Notfallfahrzeugen eingefuhrt und Dekontaminationsanlagen in Krankenhausern angeschafft. Zusatzliche Schulung des gesamten medizinischen Personals soll Wissensdefizite verringern. Neue Kurse uber dieses sehr umfangreiche Wissensgebiet der Notfallmedizin sind gerade in der Entstehung und zunehmend auch im Angebot. In den USA ist der Advanced HAZMAT Life Support ein relativ neuer Kurs uber Gefahrengut und chemische Kampfstoffe. Dieser Bericht aus den USA beleuchtet die neuen Trainingsschwerpunkte im Rahmen der Schulung von Notfallpersonal und medizinischem Fachpersonal.
Gastroesophageal Reflux and Esophageal Dysmotility in Patients Undergoing Evaluation for Lung Transplantation: Assessment, Evaluation, and Management

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) can dramatically affect quality of life but rarely results in significant complications. Moreover, since GERD can be effectively managed with proton pump inhibitor therapy, the disease is mostly thought of as a very benign condition—easy to diagnose and easy to treat. However, over the past 20 years, a darker side of GERD has emerged: GERD has become implicated in the development of several chronic progressive pulmonary diseases. Esophageal dysmotility is a common comorbid condition in patients with GERD, and this association is even stronger in patients with GERD and chronic lung disease. Importantly, when lung transplantation is considered as definitive therapy for end-stage lung disease, it is even more important to identify and treat GERD and esophageal dysmotility, because GERD is closely associated with the development of bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome, graft dysfunction, and even death. A thorough evaluation of any patient suspected to have GERD should include esophageal manometry and pH testing, an esophagram, and an upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. In any patient with confirmed GERD and life-limiting symptoms that are incompletely managed with medications, antireflux surgery should be considered. In patients with GERD and end-stage lung disease (before or after transplantation), antireflux surgery may mitigate the deleterious effects of GERD on lung function. Importantly, due to their multiple unique and complex medical needs, any patient with GERD and end-stage lung disease or a history of lung transplantation should be managed at a quaternary care center by a multidisciplinary team that includes an experienced gastroesophageal surgeon.
The frequency of alpha oscillations: Task-dependent modulation and its functional significance.

Abstract Power (amplitude) and frequency are two important characteristics of EEG alpha oscillations (8–12 Hz). There is an extensive literature showing that alpha power can be modulated in a goal-oriented manner to either enhance or suppress sensory information processing. Only a few studies to date have examined the task-dependent modulation of alpha frequency. Instead, alpha frequency is often viewed as a trait variable, and used to characterize individual differences in cognitive functioning. We performed two experiments to examine the task-dependent modulation of alpha frequency and its functional significance. In the first experiment, high-density EEG was recorded from 21 participants performing a Sternberg working memory task. The results showed that: (1) during memory encoding, alpha frequency decreased with increasing memory load, whereas during memory retention and retrieval, alpha frequency increased with increasing memory load, (2) higher alpha frequency prior to the onset of probe was associated with longer reaction time, and (3) higher alpha frequency prior to the onset of cue or probe was associated with weaker early cue-evoked or probe-evoked neural responses. In the second experiment, simultaneous EEG-fMRI was recorded from 59 participants during resting state. An EEG-informed fMRI analysis revealed that the spontaneous fluctuations of alpha frequency, but not alpha power, were inversely associated with BOLD activity in the visual cortex. Taken together, these findings suggest that alpha frequency is task-dependent, may serve as an indicator of cortical excitability, and along with alpha power, provides more comprehensive indexing of sensory gating.
The Protective Effect of Prenatal Social Support on Infant Adiposity in the First 18 Months of Life.

Objective To determine whether prenatal social support was associated with infant adiposity in the first 18 months of life in a low-income, Hispanic sample, known to be at high risk of early child obesity. Study design We performed a longitudinal analysis of 262 low-income, Hispanic mother-infant pairs in the control group of the Starting Early child obesity prevention trial. Prenatal social support was measured using an item from the Maternal Social Support Index. We used multilevel modeling to predict weight-for-length z-score trajectories from birth to age 18 months and logistic regression to predict macrosomia and overweight status at ages 6, 12, and 18 months. Results High prenatal social support was independently associated with lower infant adiposity trajectories from birth to age 18 months (B = −0.40; 95% CI, −0.63 to −0.16), a lower odds of macrosomia (aOR = 0.35; 95% CI, 0.15-0.80), and a lower odds of overweight at ages 12 (aOR = 0.28; 95% CI, 0.10-0.74) and 18 months (aOR = 0.35; 95% CI, 0.14-0.89). Prenatal social support was not significantly associated with overweight status at age 6 months. Conclusions Prenatal social support may protect against excessive infant adiposity and overweight in low-income, Hispanic families. Further research is needed to elucidate mechanisms underlying these associations and to inform preventive strategies beginning in pregnancy.