cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The role of newer antibiotics in gastroenterology

The past decade has seen the introduction of a number of new potent antimicrobial agents, including broad-spectrum beta-lactam compounds such as the ureidopenicillins, third-generation cephalosporins, carbapenems, and monobactams; combinations of penicillins with inhibitors of beta-lactamase; and the quinolones. Most of these agents have excellent activity against enteric gram-negative rods and some are active against anaerobic organisms, the two bacterial groups most likely to be encountered in gastrointestinal infections. Despite the potency and wide spectrum of many of these new agents, there are currently relatively few clinical situations in which any of the newer antimicrobials are the first-line agents for therapy or prophylaxis of gastrointestinal diseases. Reluctance to use these agents as first-line therapy is based on concerns about the selection and spread of resistant organisms, superinfection syndromes, and the high cost of many of the newer agents. Specific clinical settings in which these agents may be given preference are as follows: 1. use of a third-generation cephalosporin (cefotaxime or ceftriaxone) in the treatment of spontaneous bacterial peritonitis. 2. use of broad-spectrum beta-lactam compounds to provide gram-negative coverage in patients who should not receive aminoglycosides 3. use of a third-generation cephalosporin (ceftriaxone) in the treatment of central nervous system relapses of Whipple's disease 4. use of quinolones for the empiric treatment of suspected bacterial diarrhea in patients sufficiently ill to require empiric initiation of antibiotics. 5. use of quinolones for the treatment of chronic carriers of Salmonella typhi 6. use of norfloxacin for prophylaxis against SBP. As further experience with these new antimicrobial agents is obtained and as more bacteria develop resistance to current first-line agents, there can be little doubt that these new antibiotics will play an increasing role in the prevention and treatment of gastrointestinal disease.
Social interactions in a solitary carnivore.

In total, 177 of 245 terrestrial carnivores are described as solitary, and much of carnivore ecology is built on the assumptions that interactions between adult solitary carnivores are rare. We employed Global Positioning System (GPS) technology and motion-triggered cameras to test predictions of land-tenure territoriality and the resource dispersion hypothesis in a territorial carnivore, the puma Puma concolor. We documented 89 independent GPS interactions, 60% of which occurred at puma kills (n = 53), 59 camera interactions, 11 (17%) of which captured courtship behaviors, and 5 other interactions (1 F-F, 3 M-F, and 1 M-M). Mean minimum weekly contact rates were 5.5 times higher in winter, the season when elk Cervus elaphus were aggregated at lower elevations and during which puma courtship primarily occurred. In winter, contacts rates were 0.6 ± 0.3 (standard deviation (SD)) interactions/week vs. 0.1 ± 0.1 (SD) interactions/week during summer. The preponderance of interactions at food sources supported the resource dispersion hypothesis, which predicts that resource fluxes can explain temporary social behaviors that do not result in any apparent benefits for the individuals involved. Conspecific tolerance is logical when a prey is so large that the predator that killed it cannot consume it entirely, and thus, the costs of tolerating a conspecific sharing the kill are less than the potential costs associated with defending it and being injured. Puma aggregations at kills numbered as high as 9, emphasizing the need for future research on what explains tolerance among solitary carnivores.
Corporate Crime, Overcriminalization, and the Failure of American Public Morality

Corporate crime presents an unusual case of American legal exceptionalism. In terms of substantive legal doctrine, it is neither recent nor completely exceptional: the practice of holding corporate entities criminally liable goes back at least 150 years, in both the United States and other systems based on English common law, and occasionally has appeared elsewhere. Where America is exceptional is in its enforcement efforts, and in the social and political context in which the idea of “corporate crime” was invented and promoted. Outside of the United States, corporate criminal liability as a legal doctrine appears to be gaining ground, especially within some of the EU countries. However, it is unlikely that such changes have or ever will produce the incidence or rigor of criminal law enforcement against corporations observed in the United States, because of profound differences in the legal and political systems. Within the United States, there have been dramatic changes since 1991, not in the scope of liability doctrines but in enforcement structures. Since that time, previous legal constraints on corporate criminal punishment have been removed, and enforcement policy has begun to spin out of control. This reflects in part the broader problem that America is overcriminalized in general. Compared with peer Western nations having similar crime rates, the United States has an incarceration rate 5-10 times higher, and approximately 5 times higher than the global average. This same pattern of severity extends to corporate criminal prosecutions. Unlike individuals in general, corporations also are subject to a robust system of parallel and cumulative enforcement actions under regulatory law and even private civil lawsuits. Ironically, efforts to reform unduly expansive civil tort law may be accompanied or followed by further expansion in criminal law enforcement. This produces a disproportionate rise in legal compliance costs, and thereby undermines global competitiveness, destroying firms and even entire industries. Most Western societies treat criminal law enforcement primarily as a morality play and not a principal component of law enforcement. Their punishment practices indicate that their systems recognize the potentially destructive effect of over-reliance on the criminal sanction. In this respect, the American system has lost its compass.
The roots of southern poverty

Twenty-odd years ago … I fondly imagined a great era of prosperity for the South. Guided by history and by a knowledge of our people and our climatic and physicial advantages, I saw in anticipation all her tribulations ended, all her scars healed, and all the ravages of war forgotten, and I beheld the South greater, richer and mightier than when she molded the political policy of the whole country. But year by year these hopes, chastened by experience, have waned and faded, until now, instead of beholding the glorious South of my imagination, I see her sons poorer than when the war ceased his ravages, weaker than when rehabilitated with her original rights, and with the bitter memories of the past smouldering, if not rankling, in the bosoms of many. Lewis H. Blair, A Southern Prophecy: The Prosperity of the South Dependent upon the Elevation of the Negro , 1889. Reprinted (Boston: Little, Brown & Co., 1964), p. 15. No event was more significant to southern history than the Civil War. For generations southerners continually referred to The War, wrote of The War, even dated the events of their lives by the years elapsed since The War. It is easy, of course, to understand this preoccupation. The South's defeat in the Civil War destroyed much of the framework of antebellum southern society, and what replaced it was often designed on radically different lines. Gone was slavery. Gone were the plantations. Gone were the cotton factors. In their place were sharecroppers, tenant farms, and rural merchants.
mediRobbi: an interactive companion for pediatric patients during hospital visit

Young children often feel terribly anxious while visiting a doctor. We designed mediRobbi, an interactive robotic companion, to help pediatric patients feel more relaxed and comfortable in hospital visits. mediRobbi can guide and accompany the pediatric patients through their medical procedures. The sensors and servomotors enable mediRobbi to respond to its environmental inputs and the reactions from young children as well. The ultimate goal of this study is to transform an intimidating medical situation into a joyful adventure game for the pediatric patients.
Letter from Skolnik Regarding Article, "Ablation Versus Amiodarone for Treatment of Persistent Atrial Fibrillation in Patients With Congestive Heart Failure and an Implanted Device: Results From the AATAC Multicenter Randomized Trial".

Clinicians need to be aware of the potential for cognitive bias in deciding how to use the results reported by Di Biase et al.1 This study showed superiority of catheter ablation to amiodarone in maintaining normal sinus rhythm in the treatment of atrial fibrillation. Given this conclusion, the temptation for clinicians is to assume that catheter ablation is the preferred therapy for atrial fibrillation. This assumption represents commonly …
Defects in low-κ dielectrics and etch stop layers for use as interlayer dielectrics in ULSI

The electronic properties of thin film low-κ interlayer dielectric (ILD) and etch stop layers (ESL) are important issues in present day ULSI development.1–6 Low-κ ILD and ESLs with dielectric constants significantly less then those of SiO 2 and SiN are utilized to reduce capacitance induced RC delays in ULSI circuits. However as the semiconductor industry looks to transition to 16 nm and beyond technology nodes, numerous reliability concerns with low-k materials need to be addressed. In particular, leakage currents, time dependent dielectric breakdown (TDDM) and stress induced leakage currents (SILC) are critical problems that are not yet well understood in ILD. A topic of current interest is ultraviolet light (UV curing) of low-k materials.5,6 We have made electron spin resonance (ESR) and current density versus voltage measurements on a moderately extensive set of dielectric/silicon structures involving materials of importance to low-k interconnect systems. Most of the dielectrics studied involve various compositions of SiOC:H. In addition we have also made measurements on other dielectrics including SiO 2 , SiCN:H and SiN:H.
Fabrication of nanoelectrode ensembles using silicon nanowires in an electrochemical glucose sensor

Gold (Au) nanoelectrode ensembles (NEEs) were investigated after the synthesis of silicon nanowires using the metal assisted chemical etching technique. Structural and non-destructive optical characterization of silicon nanowires are carried out to determine its morphology and crystallinity. The cyclic voltammetry technique is used to determine the oxidation-reduction potentials of the sensor at different voltage scan rates of 100, 200, and 300 mV/s. Amperometric measurement at a fixed oxidation potential of 0.6 V is performed to measure the sensitivity, response time, and detection limit of the sensor. The presence of Au NEEs improve the signal to noise ratio of the sensor. Therefore, the sensor exhibits a high sensitivity of 0.4 mA/mM cm2 with a response time of 1 s, and a limit of detection 0.077 mM.
King Taita and his “Palistin”: Philistine State or Neo-Hittite Kingdom?

The end of the Hittite Empire and the destruction and abandonment of Alalakh represents a cultural break between the Late Bronze and Early Iron Ages in the ‘Amuq Valley. In the Iron I, a population with clear ties to the greater Aegean world, perhaps related to the Philistines of southern Canaan, established an agro-pastoral settlement at Tell Ta‘yinat and the surrounding area. This occupation, marked by Field Phases 6–3 at Ta‘yinat, was both materially and chronologically ephemeral, and should be viewed as a cultural outlier sandwiched between the Hittite-controlled LBA and later Iron I. This intrusive population lived alongside the indigenous inhabitants of the ‘Amuq, bequeathing to the region a toponym—Palistin—that would far outlast their own relevance and archaeological visibility. By the First Building Period at Tell Ta‘yinat, which followed the Aegean-related phases, the site was home to a dynasty overseeing a typical Neo-Hittite state, with its toponym all that remained of the “Sea Peoples” presence that occupied it at the beginning of the Iron Age.
Chronic exposure to a neonicotinoid increases expression of antimicrobial peptide genes in the bumblebee Bombus impatiens

Bumblebees are important pollinators in wild and agricultural settings. In recent decades pollinator declines have been linked to the effects of increased pesticide use and the spread of disease. Synergy between these factors has been suggested, but no physiological mechanism has been identified. This study examines the connection between neonicotinoid exposure and innate immune function in the bumblebee Bombus impatiens, which is an important wild and commercial pollinator in eastern North America. Experimental colonies in the field were enclosed and provided pollen and sugar syrup containing an agriculturally relevant range of imidacloprid concentrations. Bumblebees were collected from colonies over four weeks, and the expression of antimicrobial peptides was measured using multiplex quantitative real time PCR. Significant increases in the expression of abaecin, apidaecin and hymenoptaecin were found over time in treatments receiving moderate to high concentrations of the pesticide. Responses were dependent on time of exposure and dose. These results indicate that immune function in bumblebees is affected by neonicotinoid exposure and suggest a physiological mechanism by which neonicotinoids may impact the innate immune function of bumblebee pollinators in wild and agricultural habitats.
Building a Successful Superficial Venous Program

As the treatment of superficial venous insufficiency transitioned from the hospital to the office setting, a remarkable increase in provider interest developed. However, the novelty of the disease process and procedural opportunities are tempered by the challenges associated with knowledge acquisition, skill development, strategic planning, and program development. Only a unique recipe of clinical growth, technical acumen, management skill, operational efficiency, and financial sense lead to program success. Despite the variety of skills required, treating superficial venous insufficiency is obtainable for both the formally and non-formally trained physicians with sufficient commitment, education, and resources.
Meteorological Factors Affecting Airport Operations during the Winter Season in the Midwest

AbstractDuring the coldest months of the year, weather systems bring a variety of winter weather to most of the continental United States in the form of snow, sleet, and freezing rain, which along with strong winds, low clouds, and reduced visibilities may create dangerous conditions. These weather conditions can result in major disruptions in air travel, leading to delays and cancellations of hundreds or thousands of flights, thus affecting the plans of millions of travelers. To assess the specific meteorological factors that prompt flight delays and cancellations in the Midwest region of the United States during wintertime, a comprehensive study was performed on nine of the largest airports (by passenger boardings) in the area.Flight delay and cancellation data from 11 winter seasons (2005–06 to 2015–16) were collected from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) and analyzed along with climatological data from the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI). A classification scheme was ...
Spike timing dependent plasticity based enhanced self-learning for efficient pattern recognition in spiking neural networks

Spike Timing Dependent Plasticity (STDP), wherein synaptic weights are modified based on the temporal correlation between a pair of pre- and post-synaptic (post-neuronal) spikes, is widely used to implement unsupervised learning in Spiking Neural Networks (SNNs). In general, STDP-based learning models disregard the information embedded in post-neuronal spiking frequency. We observe that updating the synaptic weights at the instants of every post-neuronal spike while ignoring the spiking frequency could potentially cause them to learn overlapping representations of multiple input patterns sharing common features. We present STDP-based enhanced plasticity mechanisms that account for the spiking frequency to achieve efficient synaptic learning. First, we utilize low-pass filtered neuronal membrane potential to obtain an estimate of the spiking frequency. We perform STDP-driven weight updates in the event of a post-spike if the filtered potential exceeds a definite threshold. This ensures that plasticity is effected on the dominantly firing neuron that indicates a strong bias in learning the input pattern. Synaptic updates are restrained in the case of sporadic neuronal spiking activity, which implies a weak correlation with the input pattern. This enhances the quality of features encoded by the synapses, resulting in an improvement of 5.8% in the classification accuracy of an SNN of 100 neurons trained for digit recognition. Our simulations further show that the enhanced scheme provides a reduction of 2 χ in the number of weight updates, which leads to improved energy efficiency in event-driven SNN implementations. Second, we explore a neuronal spike-count based enhanced plasticity mechanism. The synapses are modified at the instant of a post-spike if the neuron had fired a certain number of spikes since the preceding update instant. This scheme performs delayed updates at suitable neuronal spiking instants to learn improved synaptic representations. Using this technique, the classification accuracy increased by 4% with 5.2× reduction in the number of weight updates.
Access to Online Historical Aerial Photography Collections: Past Practice, Present State, and Future Opportunities

The authors review how access to historical aerial photograph collections has evolved in response to technological developments and addresses areas for further advancement, with a particular emphasis on developing, preserving, and sustaining online collections. The authors focus specifically on the areas of metadata, the Semantic Web and linked data, and sustainability through collaboration. The article includes brief case studies, highlighting various projects involving the aerial photography collections at the University of Minnesota. The conclusion asserts the critical role played by geographic information librarians in effectively carrying out the strategies described in the article as they relate to the long-term sustainability of digital geospatial collections.
What Makes a Good Mediator? Insights from a Mediation Training Program Participant

Mediation is a popular form of alternative dispute resolution for settling conflicts occurring in employment settings. Such workplace conflicts handled by mediation, for example, include discrimination, wrongful termination, as well as various labor-management issues. Defined as a structured process where a neutral third party assists the two conflicting parties in arriving at a voluntary resolution, individuals have undergone mediation training in order to become mediators. While research exists on how mediation-training programs should be structured, the purpose of this research is to determine the key attributes required to develop good mediators and whether such characteristics can be acquired through mediation-training program participation. Utilizing an autoethnographic methodology as a mediation training program participant, it was discovered that effective mediators demonstrate strong communication skills, flexibility, neutrality, composure and ethicality during the mediation process which can be attained through participation in mediation-training programs.
Booting up the organism during development: Pre-behavioral functions of the vertebrate brain in guiding body morphogenesis

A recent study in Xenopus laevis embryos showed that the very early brain has important functions long before behavior. While the nascent brain is being constructed, it is required for normal patterning of the muscle and peripheral nerve networks, including those far away from the head. In addition to providing important developmental signals to remote tissues in normal embryogenesis, its presence is also able to render harmless exposure to specific chemicals that normally act as teratogens. These activities of the early brain can be partially compensated for in a brainless embryo by experimental modulation of neurotransmitter and ion channel signaling. Here, we discuss the major findings of this paper in the broader context of developmental physiology, neuroscience, and biomedicine. This novel function of the embryonic brain has significant implications, especially for understanding developmental toxicology and teratogenesis in the context of pharmaceutical and environmental reagents.
AlN Ultrasound Sensor for Photoacoustic Lamb Wave Detection in a High-Temperature Environment

In this paper, we present an ultrasound nondestructive testing (NDT) method for high–temperature (HT) applications using laser-generated Lamb waves and aluminum nitride (AlN) sensors. Lamb waves were introduced to a stainless steel plate by the Nd:YAG pulsed laser at one point and detected by an AlN receiver at a distant position. The fundamental symmetric ( $S_{0}$ ) and antisymmetric ( $A_{0}$ ) Lamb waves generated by the pulsed laser were successfully detected by the AlN sensor. This detection was done on a stainless steel plate at temperatures ranging from room temperature to about 800 °C, with a signal-to-noise ratio of higher than 20 dB. Based on the time-of-flights analysis, the ability of this NDT method to localize the defect at an HT (~800 °C) has been demonstrated.
The Evolution of the Treatment of Acute Myocardial Infarction: A Eulogy to the Coronary Care Unit

Treatment of an acute myocardial infarction in the 1950s was bed rest at home. Hospitalization was used for comfort and pain control. The coronary care unit (CCU) concept began in the 1960s: electrocardiography monitoring, defibrillation and pacing would be carried out in 1 area. Treatment for ventricular fibrillation and complex arrhythmias was carried out by the CCU nurse and expanded to the paramedics for arrhythmia control and thrombolytic infusion. The CCU concept expanded the field of nursing, became the clinical laboratory for major breakthroughs in cardiac therapeutics, and was the stepping-stone to the currently invoked “heart team” approach. The CCU lasted 2 to 3 decades and has largely been phased out due to the developments it engendered, in particular early primary revascularization for acute coronary syndromes. In conclusion, the evolution of the treatment of acute myocardial infarction continues. This is a eulogy to the CCU.
Flavor Chemistry and Odor Thresholds

Determination of odor thresholds of components in water solution was an early method adopted by many researchers for evaluating the relative contribution of food aroma/flavor components. Some more recent methods determine odor thresholds in air added to GC effluent from flavor volatile separation. Relatively simple methods are available for calculating thresholds in air from thresholds determined in water. Similar methods can be used for calculating oil and oil-water mixture thresholds from water threshold data. The ratio of a component’s concentration in the food to its water odor threshold value has been useful in determining relative aroma/flavor importance for mostly aqueous foods. Small variations in chemical nature and structure can lead to large changes in threshold values. Water threshold values are compared for various acetyl nitrogen heterocyclic compounds, alkylhydroxyfuranones and 4-alkoxyfuranone derivatives. Even the most careful studies can lead to errors in threshold measurements. Some examples are given where threshold determination errors were caused by minor amounts of very low threshold impurities.
Efficacy of CT-Perfusion Study in Differentiating Seizures from Acute Stroke Prior to Initiating Tissue Plasminogen Activator Therapy (P02.033)

OBJECTIVE: Acute strokes cannot be distinguished from unwitnessed seizures clinically. Seizures are a contraindication to TPA therapy. CT-Perfusion scans are routinely performed in acute strokes and help differentiate a seizure episode from an acute stroke based on cerebral blood flow. BACKGROUND: Studies show that 20% of patients who receive TPA are stroke mimics. Seizures can mimic strokes and are contraindicated in TPA therapy. While performing an EEG is time consuming, CT-Perfusion studies are readily done for acute strokes and can be a tool for differentiating acute ischemic events from seizures, as our study demonstrates. On perfusion studies, ischemic strokes are associated with decreased blood flow whereas seziures are associated with an increased flow to the affected area. DESIGN/METHODS: 75 year old male with past history of hypertension and hyperlipidemia presented to the Emergency Room with gaze deviation, right-sided weakness and speech difficulty with no witnessed seizures. Time of onset was greater than 3 hours prior to presentation and NIHSS was 12. CT scan of the head did not show any acute changes. CT-Perfusion study performed showed hyperperfusion in the left parietoccipital region with no ischemia noted. Upon returning from CT scan patient developed a witnessed seizure and was treated with intravenous Keppra and Vimpat. EEG performed later showed left-sided spike activity. Magenetic Resonance Imaging of head showed old encephalomalacia in left occipital lobe. Thereafter the patient had resolution of hemiparesis and speech. RESULTS: Our study demonstrated that CT-Perfusion scans are helpful in differentiating seizures from acute strokes based upon the patterns of blood flow. EEG later confirmed seziure activity. CONCLUSIONS: CT-Perfusion studies exhibit increased cerebral blood flow in seizures in constrast to decreased blood flow in ischemic events. It can help differentiate an acute stroke from an ictal discharge and can assist in preventing improper use of TPA and hemorrhagic complications. Disclosure: Dr. Ahmed has nothing to disclose. Dr. Duggal has nothing to disclose. Dr. Anjum has nothing to disclose. Dr. Kosa has nothing to disclose.
Vaccination of immune-deficient patients

Proteins or glycoproteins stimulate antibody responses via mechanisms distinct from polysaccharides. Humoral immune dysfunction may impair response to one or both classes of antigens. Isohemagglutinins may be a surrogate marker of polysaccharide response in young children. Vaccines are proteins, glycoproteins, polysaccharides, or polysaccharide–protein conjugates. Measuring vaccine responses is central to diagnosing immune deficiency. Interpretation considers the patient’s age and immunization history, immunogenicity in healthy individuals, and measurement method. Interpretation of responses to multivalent vaccines (e.g., pneumococcus and meningococcus) is more complex, taking into account the proportion of serotypes eliciting a response. Inadequate response at screening should be followed by assessment of response to a booster. Immunization is largely irrelevant for patients who will receive stem cell therapy or are receiving IgG replacement. Live vaccines should be withheld from patients with significantly impaired cellular or humoral immunity. Immunization is a key element of therapy for some defects, such as complement deficiency.
Autonomic Nervous System, Heart Rate and

Heart rate in healthy individuals depends on the sinoatrial pacemaker activity which is mainly regulated by the autonomic nervous system. The membrane potential and pacemaker current of the sinoatrial pacemaker cells are modulated by sympathetic and parasympathetic nerves via G protein-coupled mechanisms. At rest, heart rate is dominated by the parasympathetic nervous system activity. Parasympathetic control occurs via muscarinic acetylcholine receptors that decrease the sinoatrial pacemaker activity by inhibiting the pacemaker current and activating an inwardly rectifying potassium channel in the pacemaker cells. Sympathetic control occurs via β 1 -adrenoreceptors that increase the sinoatrial pacemaker activity by activating the pacemaker current.
Speech Recognition, Audio-Visual

Audio-visual speech recognition refers to the automatic transcription of speech into text by exploiting information present in the video of the speaker's mouth region, in addition to the traditionally used acoustic signal. The use of visual information in automatic speech recognition is also known as automatic speechreading or lipreading, and has been motivated by the bimodality of human speech production and perception, coupled with the fact that audio-only speech recognition is not robust in noisy acoustic environments. Audio-visual speech recognition systems significantly outperform their audio-only counterparts, especially under ideal visual and noisy audio conditions. Incorporating visual information into speech recognition requires two new components: the visual front end, which detects the speaker's mouth area and extracts informative visual speech features from it, and the integration of the visual features into the speech recognition process. The most commonly adopted designs of these components are discussed here.
Change through Time at Henauhof Nordwest

A major advantage offered by a stratified, multicomponent site is that it allows investigations of changes through time in behavior at the locality and, to some degree, in the wider region. In order to make inferences about behavioral changes , however , other sources of variation in the archaeological record must be controlled. As samples of prehistoric activities, the different assemblages from Henauhof Nordwest are not strictly comparable. Three factors affecting the formation and recovery of these assemblages—preservation, mode of deposition, and sample size—have imposed certain limits and patterns on these assemblages and therefore have caused specific types of variation among them .
Mediating Instructional Reform: An Examination of the Relationship Between District Policy and Instructional Coaching:

Districts make and implement policies aiming to improve structures, practices, and outcomes. Instructional coaching has become a popular lever to catalyze instructional improvement efforts. However...
Recent advances of polysaccharide-based nanoparticles for oral insulin delivery.

Abstract Diabetes mellitus is a highly prevalent metabolic and chronic disease affecting millions of people in the world. The most common route of insulin therapy is the subcutaneous injection due to its low bioavailability and enzymatic degradation. The search for effective and high patient compliance insulin delivery systems has been a major challenge over many decades. The polysaccharide-based nanoparticles as delivery vehicles for insulin oral administration have recently attracted substantial interests. The present review highlights the recent advances on the development of nanoparticles prepared from polysaccharides, including chitosan, alginate, dextran and glucan, for oral delivery of insulin, overcoming multiple barriers in gastrointestinal tract. The aims of this review are first to summarize the strategies that have been applied in the past 5 years to fabricate polysaccharide-based nanoparticles for insulin oral delivery, and then to provide in-depth understanding on the mechanisms by which such nanoparticles protect insulin against degradation in the digestive tract and provide sustained release to enhance mucus permeation and transepithelial transport of insulin administered via oral route.
Improvement in Hepatic Fibrosis Biomarkers Associated With Chemokine Receptor Inactivation Through Mutation or Therapeutic Blockade

Background The C-C chemokine receptor Type 5 (CCR5) is a key receptor for human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) entry into T-cells and a variant allele, CCR5 delta-32, is associated with decreased viral replication and disease progression. Active HIV-1 replication is highly associated with accelerated rates of hepatic fibrosis. We postulated that CCR5 plays a role in the development of hepatic fibrosis and evaluated the longitudinal effect of natural or drug-induced CCR5 mutation and blockade on biomarkers of liver fibrosis in HIV-1 patients. Methods To accomplish this goal, we examined 2 distinct cohorts. First, we evaluated fibrosis markers in the Multicenter Hemophilia Cohort Studies (MHCS), which included subjects with HIV and hepatitis C virus (HCV) coinfection with the CCR5 delta-32 allele. We also evaluated an HIV-1 infected cohort that was treated with a dual CCR5/CCR2 antagonist, cenicriviroc. The enhanced liver fibrosis (ELF) index was validated against liver histology obtained from HCV/HIV and HCV patients and demonstrated strong correlation with fibrosis stage. Results In both the MHCS patients and patients treated with cenicriviroc, CCR5 mutation or blockade was associated with a significant decrease in the ELF index. Among the patients with the delta-32 allele, the ELF index rate significantly decreased in sequential samples as compared to CCR5 wild-type patients (P = .043). This was not observed in control subjects treated with efavirenz nor with a lower dose of 100 mg cenicriviroc. Conclusion These findings suggest that hepatic fibrosis in HIV-1 infected patients can be modulated by the mutation of CCR5 and/or use of CCR5/CCR2 blockade agents. Clinical trials registration NCT01338883.
Kindred Spirits in an Age of Political Censure: The Revolt of Islam and the Example of Mary Wollstonecraft

ABSTRACTIn the introduction to the poem The Revolt of Islam (1818), Percy Bysshe Shelley presents himself as the embattled defender of the French Revolution, and offers a vision of how he expects his ideas to survive the hostile public sphere of his time. Shelley invokes the memory of Mary Wollstonecraft, the mother of his wife Mary. This article argues that Wollstonecraft was a well-chosen exemplar, and details how, in the 1790s, she had situated herself in a sharply politicized print culture, identified the audiences she expected to engage, and created the persona of the fearless woman as orator.
Abstract A206: Extracellular matrix anchoring of locally administered cytokines safely potentiates systemic cancer immunotherapy

Cytokines coordinate essential mechanisms required for an antitumor response. As a result, they robustly synergize with other immunotherapies. Unfortunately, the clinical use and approval of cytokines is frequently plagued by dose-limiting toxicities. Improving the therapeutic index of cytokines can be achieved by better localizing their effects to the tumor and away from healthy tissue. Recent efforts have shown that local injections of immunomodulatory agents at or around a tumor lesion improve the efficacy and reduce the systemic exposure of these agents. However, even when administered directly into a tumor, cytokines exhibit rapid tumor clearance and limited intratumoral retention, thus doing little to address issues of toxicity and efficacy. Here we demonstrate that extracellular matrix (ECM) anchoring of intratumorally administered cytokines is a facile strategy to retain and confine these agents in the tumor. Although the ECM is an abundant component of both tumors and healthy tissue alike, intratumoral administration obviates the need to target a tumor-specific antigen. Instead, the abundance of matrix lends itself to being an effective and general target for localization across all solid tumors. ECM-anchoring of cytokines via fusion to a matrix-binding protein significantly improves their therapeutic index. Additionally, the combination of ECM-anchored cytokines with a systemic immunotherapy (e.g., a tumor-targeting antibody, checkpoint blockade, a cancer vaccine, or CAR-T-cell therapy) enhances overall survival in syngeneic tumor models compared to combination treatments using unanchored cytokines. Cytokines that are actively retained in the tumor can safely and significantly potentiate systemic immunotherapy. Given the abundant expression of ECM across different cancers, matrix-anchoring of cytokines embodies a tumor-agnostic strategy that can readily be combined with other immunotherapeutic modalities. Citation Format: Noor Momin. Extracellular matrix anchoring of locally administered cytokines safely potentiates systemic cancer immunotherapy [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Fourth CRI-CIMT-EATI-AACR International Cancer Immunotherapy Conference: Translating Science into Survival; Sept 30-Oct 3, 2018; New York, NY. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Immunol Res 2019;7(2 Suppl):Abstract nr A206.
Carbon monoxide and cerebral microvascular tone in newborn pigs

The present study addresses the hypothesis that CO produced from endogenous heme oxygenase (HO) can dilate newborn cerebral arterioles. HO-2 protein was highly expressed in large and small blood ve...
Plasmonic-Additive Enabled Polymer Nanocomposites

The last decade has demonstrated extensive progress in the design, synthesis, functionalization, and application of plasmonic particles; with more recent efforts elucidating the multiple pathways to harness/transfer the plasmonic energy to hybridized materials. The ability to extend plasmonic applications beyond solution-based or surface deposited systems, and harness these unique properties within bulk composites will open up new application possibilities ranging from optically responsive components to solar-driven catalytically active structures. This chapter details primary additive stabilization pathways, including the incorporation of grafted polymers and silica capping shells, in order to effectively integrate the plasmonic particles into polymer systems. For commercially relevant PNC processing methods, such as extrusion and injection molding, the addition of silica protective shells are critical to maintain the nanoadditives morphology and correlated plasmonic properties. Recent efforts have shown that this approach allows for the viable integration of plasmonic additives that can survive the harsh mechanical mixing conditions and elevated processing temperatures (exceeding 300 °C) within the PNC processing steps. Opportunities to precisely tailor the resonance properties, control dispersion homogeneity, and facilitate alignment of the materials are established, allowing for the expanded application of plasmonic nanoadditives into functional PNC systems.
Exposure to Environmental Toxicants and Early Language Development for Children Reared in Low-Income Households:

Considerable evidence has highlighted the heightened susceptibility of developmental delay in children from low-income homes; consequently, this study explored whether environmental toxicant exposure may be a contributing factor to disruption in language and cognitive development for children reared in poverty. Using a sample of 190 low-income mothers and their young children, mothers completed questionnaires on toxicant exposure in the home environment. Exposure to toxicants, especially pesticides, was reported by about 20% of mothers at or around pregnancy, and 30% when their children were between 1 and 2 years of age. Toxicant exposure was significantly associated with lags in language and cognition even when controlling for socioeconomic factors. Study findings highlight the importance of the American Academy of Pediatrics' policy statements arguing for pediatricians to take a strong anticipatory guidance role in counseling parents to limit chemical exposure in the home and engage in safe storage practices.
High-Efficiency High-Power-Density CLLC Resonant Converter With Low-Stray-Capacitance and Well-Heat-Dissipated Planar Transformer for EV On-Board Charger

In this article, a high-efficiency high-power-density wide-bandgap-based CLLC resonant converter with a low-stray-capacitance and well-heat-dissipated planar transformer is presented, which is used as the isolated dc–dc stage for an electric vehicle on-board charger. A generalized planar transformer design methodology is proposed and validated by practical designs and experimental tests. A novel and simple transformer configuration is proposed to reduce the winding stray capacitance and enhance the winding thermal dissipation. The proposed transformer configuration is compared with different planar transformer designs, and the tradeoffs of employing the proposed design are well analyzed. Moreover, the system design and optimization of the high-efficiency high-power-density CLLC resonant converter is studied. The proposed transformer design and the system optimization approach are employed in a 6.6-kW/500-kHz CLLC resonant converter prototype. The prototype achieves a peak efficiency of 97.85% and a power density of 114 W/in $^\text {3}$ .
Transcriptomic entropy quantifies cardiomyocyte maturation at single cell level

While pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (PSC-CMs) offer tremendous potential for a range of clinical applications, their use has been constrained by the failure to mature these cells to a fully adult-like phenotype. Extensive efforts are currently underway with the goal to mature PSC-CMs. However, comprehensive metrics to benchmark the maturation status and trajectory of PSC-CMs have not been established. Here, we developed a novel approach to quantify CM maturation through single cell transcriptomic entropy. We found that transcriptomic entropy is robust across datasets regardless of differences in isolation protocols, library preparation methods, and other potential batch effects. We analyzed over 40 single cell RNA-sequencing (scRNA-seq) datasets and over 45,000 CMs to establish a cross-study, cross-species reference of CM maturation based on transcriptomic entropy. We subsequently computed the maturation status of PSC-CMs by direct comparison to in vivo development. Our study presents a robust, interpretable, and easy-to-use metric for quantifying CM maturation. Significance Statement There is significant interest in generating mature cardiomyocytes from pluripotent stem cells. However, there are currently few effective metrics to quantify the maturation status of a single cardiomyocyte. We developed a new metric for measuring cardiomyocyte maturation using single cell RNA-sequencing data. This metric, called entropy score, uses the gene distribution to estimate maturation at the single cell level. Entropy score enables comparing pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes directly against endogenously-isolated cardiomyocytes. Thus, entropy score can better assist in development of approaches to improve the maturation of pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes.
Shrinkage-Induced Activation of Na + /H + Exchange in Primary Rat Astrocytes: Role of Myosin Light-Chain Kinase

Primary rat astrocytes exposed to hyperosmotic solutions undergo Na(+)-dependent amiloride-sensitive alkalinization of 0.36 U [measured with the pH-sensitive fluorescent dye 2',7'-bis(carboxyethyl)-5(6)-carboxy-fluorescein], suggesting that shrinkage-induced alkalinization is due to activation of Na+/H+ exchange (NHE). Alkalinization is maintained for at least 20 min, and is readily reversible and ATP dependent. Hyperosmotic solutions produced no increase of intracellular Ca2+ or adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cAMP). Loading cells with 1,2-bis(2-aminophenoxy)ethane-N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid, a Ca2+ chelator, or depleting cells of protein kinase C (PKC) had no effect on activation of NHE. Thus shrinkage-induced activation of NHE does not involve cAMP, Ca2+, or PKC. However, ML-7, an inhibitor of myosin light-chain kinase (MLCK), inhibited shrinkage-induced activation with a half-maximal inhibition of 56 microM. This activation was also inhibited by 500 microM N-(6-aminohexyl)-5-chloro-1-naphthalenesulfonamide, 100 microM chlorpromazine, and 50 microM trifluoperazine, all calmodulin inhibitors. Shrinkage increased the phosphorylation of an 18-kDa protein that colocalizes with myosin light chain. Our data suggest that shrinkage-induced activation of NHE in astrocytes occurs via a novel pathway involving activation of calmodulin-dependent MLCK and phosphorylation of myosin light chain.
Time Series Analysis for Supply Chain Planning in Restaurants

The Food and Agricultural Organisation reports that almost 50% of food produced goes to waste before and after reaching the customers, accounting for over 1.3 billion tons of food wastage globally per year (FAO, 2019). Various sectors contribute to food wastage; the restaurant industry is a poignant culprit. To reduce the wastage of raw materials in restaurants, a machine learning system has been developed that forecasts the quantity of raw material to be procured by predicting dish sales over a fixed period. To make sales forecasts, the time series data is used to build machine learning models using the Holt Winter’s and STL algorithms. Using these algorithms the prediction is done and validated, and the best model is used to accurately forecast the cycle and safety stock of products that are to be procured. The restaurant-centric web application is developed using ReactJs and Flask. The system improves overall customer satisfaction, restaurant profit, and optimises supply chain management.
“Oh, Snap!”: A Mixed-Methods Approach to Analyzing the Dark Side of Snapchat

Snapchat, a multimedia messaging application, has over 300 million users and is currently the third most popular social media platform for young adults. Despite its popularity and unique ephemeral content, few studies examine how Snapchat is related to mental and relational health. The goal of this study therefore is to employ a mixed-methods approach to examine the dark side of Snapchat, paying close attention to how the behaviors and ephemeral content on this platform may be detrimental for young adults’ mental health and the quality of their romantic relationships. Quantitative data comes from 118 undergraduate students who completed an online survey. Qualitative data comes from 10 undergraduate students who participated in one-on-one, in-depth interviews and another 11 students who participated in two focus groups. Results reveal that intensity of Snapchat use is associated with lower mental health. Additionally, spending time on Snapchat, communicating with others on Snapchat, monitoring ex-partners on Snapchat, and using the Snap Map feature are associated with increased jealousy in romantic relationships. In short, Snapchat appears detrimental for young adults’ mental health and romantic relationships. The study concludes with practical advice for Snapchat users that may promote mental well-being and healthy romantic relationship development.