cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Cardiac management in the ICU.

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is common in the surgical population, with up to 50% of postoperative deaths due to cardiac events. Most of these events are ischemic, with some being exacerbations of underlying congestive heart failure (CHF). Recent data indicate that acute perioperative β-adrenergic blockade can reduce ischemia and ischemic events. Postoperative monitoring should focus on myocardial ischemia, with preparation for rapid treatment using IV therapy. A few studies suggest that elderly patients with known CAD undergoing major procedures might benefit from perioperative treatment guided by information from a pulmonary artery catheter. Postoperative CHF, which is likely to present early after surgery, may need aggressive management with diuretics, vasodilators, and inotropic drugs. Mechanical ventilation should be considered. When the patient develops severe or refractory dysrhythmias, serum magnesium levels should be supplemented and consideration given to IV use of amiodarone. Postoperative hypertension is common and can precipitate ischemia, CHF, and arrhythmias as well as cause bleeding. Newer IV drugs are arterial specific and can lower BP in a smooth and predictable manner. All acute cardiac disorders can be precipitated or exacerbated by inadequate pain control, hypoxemia, and fluid or electrolyte disorders.
Purification of a major allergen, Asp f 2 binding to IgE in allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis, from culture filtrate of Aspergillus fumigatus

Background: Most cases of allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA) are caused by the fungus Aspergillus fumigatus. Successful treatment of this disease depends on early diagnosis with the use of well-characterized and relevant antigens/allergens of the organism. Objective Methods Results Conclusions
Revenant clades in historical biogeography: the geology of New Zealand predisposes endemic clades to root age shifts

Aim Our aim was to elucidate the effect of mass extinctions on inferred crown ages of terrestrial clades endemic to ancient islands. We thereby assessed the potential for mass extinction events, such as the Zealandian marine incursion episode in the Oligocene, to skew the interpretation of the evolutionary history of clades of various sizes. Location Simulation study focusing on New Zealand. Methods Clades of various sizes were simulated under a birth–death model with variable parameters for diversification, invoking a prolonged extinction event, using the R package TreeSim. We measured the scaled root shift J between actual (i.e. first cladogenetic event) and inferred (i.e. most recent common ancestor of extant taxa) clade divergence times in simulated phylogenies incurred by extinction processes. Results A pulse of extinction followed by a prolonged period of low cladogenetic potential – modelled after the geological history of Zealandia in the Oligocene – produced large root shifts in clades of all sizes. Small clades with high net diversification rates were especially prone to belying pre-Oligocene history. In simulations invoking mass extinctions wherein a pre-extinction root was retained, phylogenies of extant taxa were characterized by anti-sigmoidal log lineage-through-time plots that mimicked an upturn in diversification rate after the extinction period. Main conclusions Non-selective mass extinctions can engender large discrepancies in actual and inferred root ages, particularly in small, old clades. The evolutionary histories of lineages that survive mass extinctions are difficult to distinguish from scenarios of rapid radiation. This outcome challenges previous interpretations of post-Oligocene crown ages for clades endemic to New Zealand as sufficient evidence for rejecting a pre-Oligocene evolutionary history. As a corollary, our results suggest that the extant size of a particular clade is the foremost indicator of its potential for historical biogeographical inference. We therefore review the hypothesis of the total submersion of Zealandia, highlighting empirical cases of lineages with demonstrable pre-Oligocene history that refute the hypothesis of total submersion.
The future of death: Death in the hands of science

M edical science has dramatically increased the life ex· pectancy and significantly enhanced the quality of life for most people. Science has helped minimize the average person's personal encounters with death. Still, fears of death grip humanity. In fact, the institutionalization of medical practice, the increasing legislative mandates, the underlying paradigms and metaphors of modern science, and the fragmentation and specialization of industrial society have in many ways depersonalized the process of dying, while engendering growing new fears of death. This article briefly reviews historical attitudes toward .death and then emphasizes significant trends that influence nurses and other medical professionals who interact with dying patients. Our attitudes toward death have undergone dramatic change in this century, but despite miraculous medical advances and increasing prognostications of death's demise, we have no assurance that death will ever cease to be our constant companion through life. The once simple matter of dying-a
Local Structure of Turbulence in Stably Stratified Boundary Layers

Abstract The “flux based” local scaling in the stably stratified boundary layer is valid only in cases with strong, continuous turbulence, when the gradient Richardson number Ri is constant and subcritical. To extend the local similarity approach to cases with weak turbulence (very stable regime), the “gradient based” local scaling is introduced and discussed in the paper. Both types of local scaling, the flux based and the gradient based, are tested based on the data, collected from a 60-m tower during the Cooperative Atmosphere–Surface Exchange Study-1999 (CASES-99). The obtained results show that the gradient-based scaling provides a useful framework for the treatment of cases with both strong and weak turbulence and overcritical Richardson numbers.
Male-female, female-female, and male-male sexual behavior in the stumptail monkey, with special attention to the female orgasm.

Mating behavior in Macaca arctoides has several features unique to the macaques. Observations of laboratory groups of stumptail monkeys revealed that their single-mount copulations are exceptionally long, that male orgasm is unusually salient (being characterized by body rigidity followed by body spasms and a characteristic facial expression and vocalization), and that the couple generally remains united, or “tied,” in a genital lock after ejaculation. This pattern behaviorally accentuates some of the physiological aspects of coitus. Consequently, they can be more easily observed than in any of the other macaques. Homosexual encounters were numerous. They always involved sexual inversions (that is, the assumption of the coital role generally assumed by the opposite sex). Orgasms were observed in females during homosexual interactions—they were easily distinguished by all the features enumerated above as characterizing masculine orgasms. Examination of the behavior of females during heterosexual coitus suggests that female orgasms also occur during heterosexual interactions. The female potential for orgasm and ability to assume inversed sex roles offer a new view of nonhuman primate sexuality. Females are evidently capable of taking active roles in coitus, and their potential for orgasm is much more similar to that of males than previously thought.
Existence of optimal open-loop strategies for a class of differential games

In this paper, the class of differential games with linear system equations and a quadratic performance index is investigated for saddlepoint solutions when one or both of the players use open-loop control. For each formulation of the game, a necessary and sufficient condition is obtained for the existence of an optimal strategy pair that generates a regular optimal path. For those cases where a solution exists, the unique saddle-point solution is presented. Also, relationships are established between the time intervals of existence of solutions for the various formulations of the game.
Stability of β‐Galactosidase from Aspergillus oryzae and Khyveromyces lactis in Dry Milk Powders

A milk-based beverage powder with 2% vegetable fat and reduced levels of lactose is needed by some segments of the consumer market as well as military units. To provide such, two commercial β-galactosidases were dry-blended into milk powders made with coconut, cottonseed, canola or sunflower oils and stored at -20, 4, 25, and 45 o C. Enzyme activity was measured monthly by reconstituting the powders and measuring freezing point depression after incubation at 32 o C (optimum for β-galactosidase from Kluyveromyces lactis) and incubation at 50 o C with pH adjusted to 5.0 (for activity of Aspergillus oryzae enzyme). Both enzymes retained >95% of original activity at -20 and 4 o C. Activity of K. lactis enzyme declined moderately at room temperature (23 o C) and rapidly at 45 o C. The A. oryzae enzyme retained 93.4% of original activity after 6 mo at 45 o C
Effects of pinealectomy on neurohypophysial hormones in the SFO and plasma of dehydrated rats exposed to 12 hours of light

Abstract Magnocellular neurons in the supraoptic and paraventricular nuclei synthesize and release vasopressin and oxytocin in response to dehydration. Pinealectomy has been observed to decrease the distribution in the supraoptic nuclei of thiamine diphosphate-phosphohydrolase, an enzyme specific for the Golgi apparatus that correlates positively with neurosecretory activity. Based upon these studies we postulated that pinealectomy would alter the concentration of neurohypohysial hormones in plasma elevated by 48 hr of water deprivation. In addition, we investigated the possibility that pinealectomy would affect vasopressin concentration in another circumventricular organ, the subfornical organ (SFO) and in an adjacent fiber tract of the limbic system, the hippocampal commissure-fornix (HC-F). Adult, male, Sprague-Dawley rats exposed to a 12 hr light/dark cycle were either unoperated (controls; C), sham-operated (Sham; S) or pinealectomized (PX) three weeks prior to testing. Food and water consumption and urinary excretion of Na and K were measured for 7 days. On the fifth day, half of the animals in each treatment group (C, S, PX) were deprived of water for 48 hr. Animals were decapitated on day 8. Vasopressin and oxytocin in plasma were extracted using bentonite and acetone-ether, respectively, then quantified by radioimmunoassay. The SFO and HC-F were microdissected from each brain. Like tissues from 4 rats were pooled, homogenized in 0.1 N HCl, and centrifuged. The supernatant was neutralized and vasopressin was quantified by radioimmunoassay. Dehydration resulted in antidiuresis, increased urine concentrations of Na and K, a decreased ratio of Na:K in urine, and reduced food consumption of similar magnitudes in all groups (C, S, PX; p > 0.05). The plasma concentration of both vasopressin and oxytocin was increased ( p p p > 0.05) in vasopressin concentration (pg/mg protein, pg/mg wet wt) in the SFO area was measured in pinealectomized or dehydrated rats. Pinealectomy influences release of oxytocin but not vasopressin from the hypothalamo-neurohypophysial system of the dehydrated rat exposed to a 12 hr light photoperiod.
Prospective Association of Childhood Receptive Vocabulary and Conduct Problems with Self-Reported Adolescent Delinquency: Tests of Mediation and Moderation in Sibling-Comparison Analyses

Associations among receptive vocabulary measured at 4–9 years, mother-reported childhood conduct problems at 4–9 years, and self-reported adolescent delinquency at 14–17 years were assessed using data from a prospective study of the offspring of a large U.S. nationally representative sample of women. A novel quasi-experimental strategy was used to rule out family-level confounding by estimating path-analytic associations within families in a sibling comparison design. This allowed simultaneous tests of the direct and indirect effects of receptive vocabulary and childhood conduct problems, and of their joint moderation, on adolescent delinquency without family-level environmental confounding. The significant association of receptive vocabulary with later adolescent delinquency was indirect, mediated by childhood conduct problems. Furthermore, a significant interaction between receptive vocabulary and childhood conduct problems reflected a steeper slope for the predictive association between childhood conduct problems and adolescent delinquency when receptive vocabulary scores were higher. These findings of significant indirect association were qualitatively identical in both population-level and within-family analyses, suggesting that they are not the result of family-level confounds.
Dissection of Autophagosome Biogenesis into Distinct Nucleation and Expansion Steps

Rapamycin, an antifungal macrolide antibiotic, mimics starvation conditions in Saccharomyces cerevisiae through activation of a general G0 program that includes widespread effects on translation and transcription. Macroautophagy, a catabolic membrane trafficking phenomenon, is a prominent part of this response. Two views of the induction of autophagy may be considered. In one, up-regulation of proteins involved in autophagy causes its induction, implying that autophagy is the result of a signal transduction mechanism leading from Tor to the transcriptional and translational machinery. An alternative hypothesis postulates the existence of a dedicated signal transduction mechanism that induces autophagy directly. We tested these possibilities by assaying the effects of cycloheximide and specific mutations on the induction of autophagy. We find that induction of autophagy takes place in the absence of de novo protein synthesis, including that of specific autophagy-related proteins that are up-regulated in response to rapamycin. We also find that dephosphorylation of Apg13p, a signal transduction event that correlates with the onset of autophagy, is also independent of new protein synthesis. Finally, our data indicate that autophagosomes that form in the absence of protein synthesis are significantly smaller than normal, indicating a role for de novo protein synthesis in the regulation of autophagosome expansion. Our results define the existence of a signal transduction-dependent nucleation step and a separate autophagosome expansion step that together coordinate autophagosome biogenesis.
Radiosurgical Management of Trigeminal Neuralgia

Over the past several decades, stereotactic radiosurgery has become a viable noninvasive treatment option for patients with trigeminal neuralgia. The scientific literature regarding the radiosurgical treatment of trigeminal neuralgia has evolved to identify factors that predict both efficacy and toxicity. Radiosurgical management has, thus, become complementary to medical management, microvascular decompression, and percutaneous ablative procedures. Thus, effective management often requires multidisciplinary collaboration. The intent of this review is to discuss the role of radiosurgery in the modern management of trigeminal neuralgia and to review radiosurgical outcomes, targeting, and controversies.
Evaluating utility residential energy conservation programmes: an overview of an EPRI workshop

Abstract The Electric Power Research Institute sponsored a two-day workshop, ‘Measuring the Effects of Utility Conservation Programs’, in February 1982. The workshop featured 10 presentations by electric utility analysts on several subjects related to evaluation of utility residential energy conservation programmes. This paper summarizes the major themes and findings of the workshops. The workshop papers are published in the Proceedings, available from EPRI.
Effect of monensin on osmotic water flow across the toad bladder and its stimulation by vasopressin and cyclic AMP.

The effects of the sodium ionophore monensin on osmotic water flow across the urinary bladder of the toadBufo marinus were studied. Monensin alone did not alter osmotic water flow; however, the ionophore inhibited the hydrosmotic response to vasopressin and cyclic AMP in a dose-dependent manner. The inhibitory effects of monensin were apparent when the ionophore was added to the serosal bathing solution but not when it was added to the mucosal bathing solution. The inhibitory effect of serosal monensin required the presence of sodium in the serosal bathing solution but not the presence of calcium in the bathing solutions. Thus, it appears that intracellular sodium concentration is a regulator of the magnitude of the hydrosmotic response to vasopressin and cyclic AMP.
Metabolic conversion of cyclohexane by Pacific salmon microsomal preparations

Abstract Hydrocarbons are being introduced into the marine environment from a variety of sources including combustion processes, crude oil spills, fuel oil spills, and controlled disposal such as processed ballast water. Even in the relatively clean waters of Alaska hydrocarbons are being released at an alarming rate. The purpose of this study was to determine the optimum conditions for the metabolism of a representative hydrocarbon by Coho Salmon Oncorhynchus kisutch liver microsomes. The product of cyclohexane metabolism in the salmon microsomal system was identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry as cyclohexanol. Conditions of the microsome incubation were varied systematically to determine the optimum temperature, pH, and ionic strength for cyclohexanol production. Cyclohexanol was quantified by capillary column gas chromatography. Maximum cyclohexanol formation was achieved at 20°C, a pH of 8·0–8·5 and an ionic strength of 0·026. A linear rate of cyclohexanol formation is seen from 0–60 min of incubation and there is an apparent decrease in the rate from 60–90 min. Poor stability of the microsomal preparation from the species studied was also identified and several stability studies have been undertaken using cyclohexane metabolism as a monitor.
On nonlinear stability of general undercompressive viscous shock waves

We study the nonlinear stability of general undercompressive viscous shock waves. Previously, the authors showed stability in a special case when the shock phase shift can be determined a priori from the total mass of the perturbation, using new pointwise methods. By examining time invariants associated with the linearized equations, we can now overcome a new difficulty in the general case, namely, nonlinear movement of the shock. We introduce a coordinate transformation suitable to treat this new aspect, and demonstrate our method by analyzing a model system of generic type. We obtain sharp pointwise bounds andLp behavior of the solution for allp, 1≦p≦∞.
The Relationship of Grade Placement to Programming Aptitude and FORTRAN Programming Achievement

Computer programming courses are rapidly being introduced in secondary schools and colleges. While courses in various languages are offered, those concerned with programming in algebraic languages such as FORTRAN are usually taught in mathematics departments or in departments closely associated with mathematics. With the lowering of grade placement of many mathematics courses, there is some question as to what the appropriate grade placement is for beginning FORTRAN courses. These courses are presently being taught at both the college and high school levels. This study was designed to investigate the effects of differences in grade placement upon programming aptitude and FORTRAN programming achievement for high school juniors and seniors as compared to college juniors and seniors.
Signal transduction via unstructured protein conduits.

Signaling via phosphorylation-regulated protein-protein interactions often involves flexible or unstructured proteins. Detailed biophysical and computational studies on one such interaction reveal a marvelously intricate, temporally regulated, multistep conduit for signal transduction in the cell cycle.
Cardiomyocyte Cell Cycle Regulation

Although rapid progress is being made in many areas of molecular cardiology, issues pertaining to the origins of heart-forming cells, the mechanisms responsible for cardiogenic induction, and the pathways that regulate cardiomyocyte proliferation during embryonic and adult life remain unanswered. In the present study, we review approaches and studies that have shed some light on cardiomyocyte cell cycle regulation. For reference, an initial description of cardiomyogenic induction and morphogenesis is provided, which is followed by a summary of published cell cycle analyses during these stages of cardiac ontology. A review of studies examining cardiomyocyte cell cycle analysis and de novo cardiomyogenic induction in the adult heart is then presented. Finally, studies in which cardiomyocyte cell cycle activity was experimentally manipulated in vitro and in vivo are reviewed. It is hoped that this compilation will serve to stimulate thought and experimentation in this intriguing area of cardiomyocyte cell biology.
Accounting Craftspeople versus Accounting Seers: Exploring the Relevance and Innovation Gaps in Academic Accounting Research

SYNOPSIS: Is accounting research stuck in a rut of repetitiveness and irrelevancy? I would answer yes, and I would even predict that both its gap in relevancy and its gap in innovation are going to continue to get worse if the people and the attitudes that govern inquiry in the American academy remain the same. From my perspective in accounting information systems, mainstream accounting research topics have changed very little in 30 years, except for the fact that their scope now seems much more narrow and crowded. More and more people seem to be studying the same topics in financial reporting and managerial control in the same ways, over and over and over. My suggestions to get out of this rut are simple. First, the profession should allow itself to think a little bit normatively, so we can actually target practice improvement as a real goal. And second, we need to allow new scholars a wider berth in research topics and methods, so we can actually give the kind of creativity and innovation that occurs na...
2014 ACC/AHA valve guidelines: earlier intervention for chronic mitral regurgitation

In the new 2014 ACC/AHA Guidelines for the Management of Patients with Valvular Heart Disease, there have been a number of changes in the recommendations for diagnosis and management of mitral regurgitation (MR) compared with the prior version of 2006.1 As outlined in a previous editorial,2 the process of guideline writing was transformed in these newly released guidelines, so each class recommendation now is based upon published data summarised in large online evidence tables and then written in a modular format to allow quick and easy access at the point of care. This modular format will also allow for rapid updates as new trials emerge. As with aortic stenosis, the concept of disease stages can be applied to patients with chronic primary MR to better aid the clinician in timing of operation (table 1). Stages A and B include patients at risk and asymptomatic patients with less than severe valve regurgitation. Stage C encompasses patients who meet criteria for ‘severe MR’ but remain asymptomatic. The new definition of ‘severe’ MR is based on integration of multiple parameters, including valve anatomy, regurgitant severity, LV size and systolic function and other consequences of chronic volume overload, such as pulmonary hypertension and atrial fibrillation. An effective orifice area of 0.4 cm2 or greater was defined as severe MR because natural history studies have demonstrated poor clinical outcomes in patients with this degree of valve regurgitation. View this table: Table 1 Stages of chronic primary MR Asymptomatic patients with severe MR are divided into two groups based on LV systolic function: stage C-1 indicates normal LV systolic function, whereas patients in stage C-2 have evidence of early LV …
An approach to computing electrostatic charges for molecules

We present an approach for deriving net atomic charges from ab initio quantum mechanical calculations using a least squares fit of the quantum mechanically calculated electrostatic potential to that of the partial charge model. Our computational approach is similar to those presented by Momany [J. Phys. Chem., 82, 592 (1978)], Smit, Derissen, and van Duijneveldt [Mol. Phys., 37, 521 (1979)], and Cox and Williams [J. Comput. Chem., 2, 304 (1981)], but differs in the approach to choosing the positions for evaluating the potential. In this article, we present applications to the molecules H2O, CH3OH, (CH3)2O, H2CO, NH3, (CH3O)2PO, deoxyribose, ribose, adenine, 9-CH3 adenine, thymine, 1-CH3 thymine, guanine, 9-CH3 guanine, cytosine, 1-CH3 cytosine, uracil, and 1-CH3 uracil. We also address the question of inclusion of “lone pairs,” their location and charge.
Effects of Heat Removal Through the Hand on Metabolism and Performance During Cycling Exercise in the Heat

Objective: This two-part study tested the hypotheses that the use of a new cooling device, purported to extract heat from the body core through the palm of the hand, would (a) attenuate core temper...
Molecular mechanisms of antiestrogen action in breast cancer

The success of antiestrogen therapy to treat all stages of breast cancer, and the evaluation of tamoxifen as a preventive for breast cancer in normal women, have focused attention on the molecular mechanisms of antiestrogen action and mechanisms of drug resistance. The overall goal of research is to enhance current therapies and to develop new approaches for breast cancer treatment and prevention. Recent studies show that tamoxifen and the new pure antiestrogens appear to have different mechanisms of action: tamoxifen and related compounds cause a change in the folding of the steroid binding domain that prevents gene activation whereas the pure antiestrogens cause a reduced interaction at response elements and cause a rapid loss of receptor complexes. Tamoxifen treatment produces changes in the cellular and circulating levels of growth factors that could influence both receptor negative or receptor positive tumor growth and the metastatic potential of a tumor. These events may explain the survival advantage observed with tamoxifen therapy. However, the current therapeutic challenge is to avoid drug resistance during long-term tamoxifen therapy. Numerous explanations for drug resistance to tamoxifen have been suggested, including elevated estrogen levels, increased tumor antiestrogen binding sites, receptor mutations, and impaired signal transduction. However, it is probable that multiple mechanisms evolve to facilitate tumor survival. Most importantly, current research is examining mechanisms responsible for the beneficial actions of tamoxifen on bones and lipids as well as the potentially deleterious effects of tamoxifen on liver and endometrial carcinogenesis and retinopathy. The urgent need to understand antiestrogenic drug mechanisms and toxicity is being facilitated by the application of the technology developed for basic molecular biology.
A Combinatorial Library of Photocrosslinkable and Degradable Materials

However, the synthesis of multifunctional macro-mers that form these degradable networks commonly involvesmultiple functionalization and purification steps, which makesthe development of large numbers of polymers with diverseproperties difficult. Here, we develop the first combinatoriallibrary of degradable photocrosslinked materials. A library ofacrylate-terminated poly(
Wide Band Instrumentation

Wide-bandwidth measurement equipment is used where both long and short time accuracy is required. Present sensing devices can be broken into two classes, namely those that function accurately over long time measurements and conversely those that indicate changes but are lacking long time stability. Pressure pickoffs and radars are examples that fall into the former class of devices while velocity pickoffs and accelerometers possess only short time accuracy. This paper presents a technique whereby both types of inputs are injected into a mixer whose output retains the good properties of each input while rejecting the inaccurate portions of the input data. The resultant output of the mixer is superior to either input, since it possesses both high and low frequency accuracy. A general method for solution of the mixer characteristic is given which indicates that complementary linear filters may be used to perform the mixing function. The system may be made dynamically exact, that is, the mixer has a unity transfer function and contributes no error in the absence of noise. The mixer parameters are chosen on the basis of minimizing the root mean square error in the output considering the noise inputs to the system. An illustrative example is given based on a Baro-Inertial Mixer using both pressure and inertial data to give accurate wide band vertical velocity as its output.
Assistive technology-based navigation aid for the visually impaired

This paper discusses the conception and development of a semi-autonomous robot that aids visually impaired users in travelling by helping them make purely intuitive decisions i.e., the user makes the final decision. The core of the robot comprises of a steer-able base and a sensor suite mounted on the base.
Instrument development of the self-efficacy scale for abused women

The development of a scale to measure an abused woman's self-efficacy is described. The Self-Efficacy Scale for Abused Women (SESAW) originally was a 27-item 100-mm visual analog scale. It underwent face and content validity testing and was administered to a community sample of abused women (N = 50). The SESAW was tested for internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and construct validity. Cronbach's alphas were.95 and.96 at times 1 and 2, respectively. The bivariate correlation between the SESAW at times 1 and 2 was r =.85, p <.01. Construct validity was established by a moderate bivariate correlation with the criterion as measured by the Self-Efficacy Scale-general/global subscale (r =.64, p <.01 at time 1, and r =.78, p <.01 at time 2). The SESAW was streamlined to 19 items. The SESAW is an acceptable measure of situation-specific self-efficacy in community-based abused women.
PD-L1 Expression as a Predictive Biomarker in Cancer Immunotherapy

The resurgence of cancer immunotherapy stems from an improved understanding of the tumor microenvironment. The PD-1/PD-L1 axis is of particular interest, in light of promising data demonstrating a restoration of host immunity against tumors, with the prospect of durable remissions. Indeed, remarkable clinical responses have been seen in several different malignancies including, but not limited to, melanoma, lung, kidney, and bladder cancers. Even so, determining which patients derive benefit from PD-1/PD-L1-directed immunotherapy remains an important clinical question, particularly in light of the autoimmune toxicity of these agents. The use of PD-L1 (B7-H1) immunohistochemistry (IHC) as a predictive biomarker is confounded by multiple unresolved issues: variable detection antibodies, differing IHC cutoffs, tissue preparation, processing variability, primary versus metastatic biopsies, oncogenic versus induced PD-L1 expression, and staining of tumor versus immune cells. Emerging data suggest that patients whose tumors overexpress PD-L1 by IHC have improved clinical outcomes with anti-PD-1-directed therapy, but the presence of robust responses in some patients with low levels of expression of these markers complicates the issue of PD-L1 as an exclusionary predictive biomarker. An improved understanding of the host immune system and tumor microenvironment will better elucidate which patients derive benefit from these promising agents.
Detection of forces and displacements along the axial direction in an optical trap.

We present measurements of the forces on, and displacements of, an optically trapped bead along the pro- pagation direction of the trapping laser beam (the axial direction). In a typical experimental configuration, the bead is trapped in an aqueous solution using an oil-immersion, high-numerical-aperture objective. This refractive index mismatch complicates axial calibrations due to both a shift of the trap center along the axial direction and spherical aberrations. In this work, a known DNA template was unzipped along the axial direction and its characteristic unzipping force-extension data were used to determine 1), the location of the trap center along the axial direction; 2), the axial displacement of the bead from the trap center; and 3), the axial force exerted on the bead. These axial calibrations were obtained for trap center locations up to ;4 mm into the aqueous solution and with axial bead displacements up to ;600 nm from the trap center. In particular, the axial trap stiffness decreased substantially when the trap was located further into the aqueous solution. This approach, together with conventional lateral calibrations, results in a more versatile optical trapping instrument that is accurately calibrated in all three dimensions.
Enhanced gm3 cancellation for linearity improvement in CMOS LNAs

An enhanced linearity improvement technique based on the third order intermodulation distortion cancellation or gm3 cancellation technique is presented in this paper. By identifying the issues related to the conventional gm3 cancellation method, the proposed technique is used to design a 0.18/spl mu/m CMOS LNA using Jazz semiconductor's BiCMOS process. With an IIP3 of more than +16dBm and gain of more than 15dB, the enhanced linearity LNA or EL2NA with a current consumption of 9mA from a 1.8V supply, provides an efficient way of improving linearity of 5G range direct conversion receivers.
Hemispheric Lateralization of Pain Processing by Amygdala Neurons

Recent biochemical and behavioral data suggest right-hemispheric lateralization of amygdala functions in pain. Our previous electrophysiological studies showed pain-related neuroplasticity in the latero-capsular division of the central nucleus of the amygdala (CeLC) in the right brain hemisphere. Here we determined differences in the processing of pain-related signals in right versus left CeLC neurons. Individual CeLC neurons were recorded extracellularly before and after induction of an arthritis pain state in anesthetized rats. Brief innocuous and noxious test stimuli were applied to peripheral tissues ipsi- and contralateral to the recording site. A monoarthritis was induced in the ipsi- or contralateral knee by intraarticular injections of kaolin and carrageenan. Under normal conditions, CeLC neurons in the left amygdala had smaller receptive fields than those in the right, but the magnitude of background and evoked activity was not significantly different. After arthritis induction, neurons in the right, but not left, CeLC developed increased background activity and evoked responses, irrespective of the location of the arthritis (ipsi- or contralateral to the recording site). A protein kinase A (PKA) inhibitor decreased the activity of right CeLC neurons after arthritis induction but had no effect in the left amygdala. Forskolin, however, increased the activity of left and right CeLC neurons under normal conditions. The results show for the first time laterality of pain-related electrophysiological activity changes in individual amygdala neurons. Whereas both left and right amygdala neurons receive nociceptive inputs and can become sensitized in principle, a yet unknown mechanism prevents PKA activation and pain-related changes in the left amygdala.
Investigating Arc Instability with Binary Gas Mixture

Summary form only given. A mixture of hydrogen with primary plasma gas argon has been used to investigate some fundamental aspects of arc instability in an SG-100 spray torch. In such arcs, owing to inherent demixing processes, the boundary layer and the core of the plasma column are dominated by hydrogen and argon respectively. Therefore, associated variations in instability features due to variation in the argon flow may reflect phenomena happening at the core and similar effects for variations in the hydrogen flow may reflect the phenomena happening in the boundary layer. It has been observed that for a given hydrogen flow and arc current, the basic instability features remain mostly unaffected over a wide range of argon flow rates and only the average arc voltage varies. On the other hand, a small variation in hydrogen flow by as little as 1 slm, significantly changes the instability features under similar conditions. Identical behaviors have been observed for all values of arc currents studied. The observations suggest that the arc instability originates from the boundary layer over the anode surface, the region, strongly influenced by the hydrogen flow. This, together with the observation of strong dependence of the instability behavior on the magnitude of arc current dictates that the instability-originating zone over the anode boundary layer must also carry current. In other words, the study identifies the region over the anode arc root as the instability-originating zone similar to that postulated in earlier studies. Overall behavior of the instability features and the average arc voltage are presented for the operating range of arc current 300 A to 700 A, hydrogen flow rate 1 slm to 5 slm and argon flow rate 42 slm to 70 slm.
Political perceptions of population stabilization and decline.

There are 2 issues central to understanding population policies in low-fertility societies: 1) negative attitudes toward low birth rates in industrial societies in the light of agreement among scholars and political leaders that population stabilization will eventually be necessary and 2) lack of concern in the U.S. similar to concern in Europe over low population growth rates even though American fertility is below replacement level. At the basis of societal aversion to population stabilization is the hypothesis that the most significant determinant of government attitudes is how political elites perceive the impact of population growth on national power and the economy. France provides an historical example of the importance a nation attributes to population size in pursuit of power; while politicians and economists generally see a positive correlation between population growth and the economy. As governmental policy options are limited by the role and function of the state in regulating society socialist states due partly to greater political centralization show more capacity to pursue pronatalist policies than Western European and North American democracies. Reasons for lack of concern in the U.S. over low fertility involve a different interplay of population power and economics. Even if the population growth rate declined further political institutional and ideological factors specifically limits on the role of government would inhibit development of pronatalist policies.
Business Value Analysis of IT Services

Business value evaluation of IT services is critical for an enterprise to develop an IT project portfolio aligned with its business operations. To lessen the dependency on subjective assumptions on how IT capabilities benefit the implementation of business strategies and operations, this paper proposes a business value modeling approach based on value driver trees which hierarchically model causal relationships from IT capability and performance to operational metrics, business metrics, and finally to business strategic metrics. This paper also presents an asset-based modeling framework and an analysis methodology which helps apply the business value analysis to various IT services. Besides depending on subject matter experts' experience and opinion, the methodology also proposes to apply a regression model to historical data of business metrics to discover and refine quantitative relationships among metrics. A case study is presented to illustrate how the proposed value-modeling and the regression method help in real-world business value analyses of IT services.
Cis-interactions between Delta and Notch modulate neurogenic signalling in Drosophila

We find that ectopic expression of Delta or Serrate in neurons within developing bristle organs is capable of non-autonomously inducing the transformation of the pre-trichogen cell into a tormogen cell in a wide variety of developmental contexts. The frequencies at which Delta can induce these transformations are dependent on the level of ectopic Delta expression and the levels of endogenous Notch signalling pathway components. The pre-trichogen cell becomes more responsive to Delta- or Serrate-mediated transformation when the level of endogenous Delta is reduced and less responsive when the dosage of endogenous Delta is increased, supporting the hypothesis that Delta interferes autonomously with the ability of a cell to receive either signal. We also find that a dominant-negative form of Notch, ECN, is capable of autonomously interfering with the ability of a cell to generate the Delta signal. When the region of Notch that mediates trans-interactions between Delta and the Notch extracellular domain is removed from ECN, the ability of Delta to signal is restored. Our findings imply that cell-autonomous interactions between Delta and Notch can affect the ability of a cell to generate and to transduce a Delta-mediated signal. Finally, we present evidence that the Fringe protein can interfere with Delta- and Serrate-mediated signalling within developing bristle organs, in contrast to previous reports of the converse effects of Fringe on Delta signalling in the developing wing.
Reference-invariant controllers for norm uncertain systems

A problem of guaranteed error control is formulated (in a minimax sense) for a norm uncertain system. We eliminate the usual Frechet dlfferentiability requirement on the system error norm. Consequently, the classical differential theory (for stationary points etc.) is not applicable. Nevertheless, the solution may be characterized in this case by using *e, the envelope correspondence.
On the use of Bloom filters for defect maps in nanocomputing

While the exact manufacturing process for nanoscale computing devices is uncertain, it is abundantly clear that future technology nodes will see an increase in defect rates. Therefore, it is of paramount importance to construct new architectures and design methodologies that can tolerate large numbers of defects. Defect maps are a necessity in the future design flows, and research on their practical construction is essential. In this work, we study the use of Bloom filters as a data structure for defect maps. We show that Bloom filters provide the right tradeoff between accuracy and space-efficiency. In particular, they can help simplify the nanosystem design flow by embedding defect information within the nanosystem delivered by the manufacturers. We develop a novel nanoscale memory design that uses this concept. It does not rely on a voting strategy, and utilizes the device redundancy more effectively than existing approaches.
Chemotactic response of macrophages to Acanthamoeba castellanii antigen and antibody-dependent macrophage-mediated killing of the parasite

The chemotactic potential of antigens of Acanthamoeba castellanii for macrophages and the ability of naive and immune rat peritoneal macrophages to kill A. castellanii in vitro were assessed. The amoebolytic capacity of immune rat serum and complement was also examined. No parasite was killed in the presence of heat-inactivated naive rat serum. Low numbers of parasites were lysed in the presence of heat-inactivated immune rat serum, whereas significantly greater numbers of parasites were lysed in the presence of nonheat-inactivated naive and immune rat serum. Macrophages from naive rats were capable of lysing some parasites. However, the amoebolytic capability of these cells was significantly increased in the presence of serum from immune rats. Regardless of the source of serum used, macrophages from immune rats demonstrated about twice the amoebolytic proficiency of cells from naive rats. Macrophages from naive rats showed their highest capacity for lysing amoebae when incubated in the presence of gamma interferon and immune rat serum. The greatest overall proficiency in lysing parasites was displayed by cells from immune rats incubated with A. castellanii in the presence of gamma interferon and nonheat-inactivated serum from immune rats.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Investigation of solid-state immiscibility and thermoelectric properties of the system PbTe - PbS

We have shown that (Pb1−mSnmTe)1−x(PbS)x where m = 0.05 and x = 0.08 exhibits a ZT of ~1.4 at 700 K. This system incorporates two thermoelectric systems: PbSxTe1−x and Pb1−xSnxTe. Here we report the thermoelectric properties of PbSxTe1−x (x = 0.08 and 0.30). The material PbS0.08Te0.92 exhibits nucleation and growth of PbS precipitates, while PbS0.30Te0.70 exhibits PbS precipitation through spinodal decomposition phase separation. We report the thermoelectric properties of this system as a result of the differing precipitation phenomena.
Human Factors Engineering Aspects of Satellite Communication Systems

Development of satellite communication systems for military use involves human factors engineering in such new areas as digital data handling and computer assistance, besides the well-known areas: function allocation, task analysis, control and display arrangement, workplace layout and personnel subsystem test and evaluation. This paper deals with contributions made during definition, design and verification of the Air Force Satellite Communication System and associated Navy and Army versions. The description of system development provides an up-to-date case study of human factors engineering problems in a military procurement setting. Recommendations are made concerning future system planning.
Rehospitalization Is a Major Determinant of Inpatient Care Costs in Adult Congenital Heart Disease

A part of the rapid increase in U.S. health care costs is attributable to the enlarging group of adult congenital heart disease (ACHD) patients [(1–3)][1]. We examined predictors of annual inpatient cost among patients with ACHD, to better understand which clinical variables have the greatest
Uranium pyrrolylamine complexes featuring a trigonal binding pocket and interligand noncovalent interactions.

The syntheses of tri- and tetravalent uranium complexes of the ArF3TPA3– ligand [ArF = 3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)phenyl; TPA = tris(pyrrolyl-α-methylamine)] are described. Interligand noncovalent int...
Lung ultrasound: a 'B-line' to the prediction of decompensated heart failure.

This editorial refers to ‘Detection and prognostic value of pulmonary congestion by lung ultrasound in ambulatory heart failure patients’[†][1], by E. Platz et al . on page 1244. Despite advances in medical and device-based therapy for the management of ambulatory patients with heart failure (HF), the post-discharge mortality and readmission rates have continued to be unacceptably high,1,2 while chronic mortality has actually increased recently.3 Central to frequent hospitalizations and high mortality among patients with HF is cardiogenic pulmonary oedema, characterized by the accumulation of fluid in the lung's interstitial and alveolar spaces at least partially due to elevated cardiac filling pressures. Early accurate diagnosis and subsequent treatment of pulmonary congestion may prevent hospitalizations. Furthermore, reliable quantitative assessment of the pulmonary interstitial fluid may also aid the provider in determining the most appropriate discharge date, preventing hospital readmission. Lung ultrasound (LUS) has emerged as a readily available, efficient, semi-quantitative method for assessing pulmonary congestion. Previous work has shown that LUS is effective as a diagnostic tool, with a higher sensitivity and specificity than the clinical exam and chest X-ray.4 Platz and colleagues now report the prognostic significance of LUS in ambulatory patients with New York Heart Association (NYHA) class II–IV HF and a previous HF hospitalization in the past 12 months. Two-second ultrasound clips were recorded in eight LUS zones by … [1]: #fn-2