cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Relationship of amyloid-β1-42 in blood and brain amyloid: Ginkgo Evaluation of Memory Study.

A blood test that predicts the extent of amyloid plaques in the brain and risk of Alzheimer's disease would have important benefits for the early identification of higher risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease and the evaluation of new preventative therapies. The goal of this study was to determine whether plasma levels of amyloid-β1-42, 1-40 and the amyloid-β1-42/1-40 ratio among participants in the Pittsburgh centre of the Ginkgo Evaluation of Memory Study were related to the extent of brain fibrillar amyloid plaques measured in 2009 using Pittsburgh compound-B PET imaging, hippocampal volume, cortical thickness in the temporal lobe and white matter lesions. There were 194 participants who had Pittsburgh compound-B measurements in 2009 with the mean age of 85 years; 96% were white and 60% men. Pittsburgh compound-B positivity was defined as a standardized uptake value ratio of ≥1.57. Amyloid-β in blood was measured using a sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay developed by Eli Lilly and modified at the University of Vermont. All participants were nondemented as of 2008 at the time of study close out. The study sample included 160 with blood samples drawn in 2000-02 and 133 from 2009 and also had brain amyloid measured in 2009. All blood samples were analysed at the same time in 2009. Plasma amyloid-β1-42 was inversely related to the percent Pittsburgh compound-B positive (standardized uptake value ratio ≥1.57), β -0.04, P = 0.005. Practically all participants who were apolipoprotein-E4 positive at older ages were also Pittsburgh compound-B positive for fibrillar amyloid. Among apolipoprotein-E4-negative participants, quartiles of amyloid-β1-42 were inversely related to Pittsburgh compound-B positivity. In multiple regression models, plasma amyloid-β1-42 measured in 2000-02 or 2009 were significantly and inversely related to Pittsburgh compound-B positivity as was the amyloid-β1-42/1-40 ratio. There was a 4-fold increase in the odds ratio for the presence of Pittsburgh compound-B positivity in the brain in 2009 for the first quartile of amyloid-β1-42 as compared with the fourth quartile in the multiple logistic model. This is one of the first longitudinal studies to evaluate the relationship between amyloid-β1-42 in the blood and the extent of brain amyloid deposition measured by PET imaging using Pittsburgh compound-B. Our findings showed that remote and recent low plasma amyloid-β1-42 levels were inversely associated with brain amyloid deposition in cognitively normal individuals. However, changes in plasma amyloid-β1-42 over time (8 years) were small and not related to the amount of Pittsburgh compound-B.
Performing IR spectroscopy at multiple points along a gas chromatographic column for rapid high fidelity detection (Conference Presentation)

The ability to rapidly detect hazardous airborne chemicals with high fidelity in a single point-detection system remains a significant challenge in a complex chemical background. Traditional Gas chromatography (GC) can significantly augment most detection technologies by separating complex mixtures for high fidelity detection, but with the disadvantage of requiring detection at the end of the GC column which adds a time disadvantage for any decision making process. Microfabrication of GC columns has reduced device footprint and power consumption, but the end-of-column detection paradigm remains. We present a rapid detection concept of in-column detection by probing the GC stationary phase which is coated on an IR transparent column substrate. The optical evanescent field interactions in the mid-infrared spectral region (US. Patent# 9,599,567) allows analyte detection along the column without having to wait for complete elution. These spectral signatures, collected at different points along the column, are analyzed by an algorithm to quickly identify components in a complex mixture. We present results with an ATR-based system that uses a focused tunable quantum cascade laser beam directed by galvo mirrors at points along a molded micro-GC column whose base comprises an optically transparent material coated with the stationary phase.
UAS Traffic Management (UTM) Technical Capability Level 3 (TCL3) Flight Demonstration: Concept Tests and Results

Over the course of three months in 2018, NASA, in collaboration with the six FAA UAS Test Sites and industry partners, conducted its Technical Capability Level 3 (TCL3) flight testing as part of its UAS Traffic Management (UTM) research. A set of five tests were developed to address elements of the UTM concept that involved Beyond Visual Line of Sight landings, Contingency Management, development of a Public Portal for UTM information, Sustained Operations, and Unauthorized Airspace Entry/Exit. Each of the tests were successfully performed and unique insights were gained in each of the testing areas.
WU-NEAT: A clinically validated, open-source MATLAB toolbox for limited-channel neonatal EEG analysis.

Abstract Background Limited-channel EEG research in neonates is hindered by lack of open, accessible analytic tools. To overcome this limitation, we have created the Washington University-Neonatal EEG Analysis Toolbox (WU-NEAT), containing two of the most commonly used tools, provided in an open-source, clinically-validated package running within MATLAB. Methods The first algorithm is the amplitude-integrated EEG (aEEG), which is generated by filtering, rectifying and time-compressing the original EEG recording, with subsequent semi-logarithmic display. The second algorithm is the spectral edge frequency (SEF), calculated as the critical frequency below which a user-defined proportion of the EEG spectral power is located. The aEEG algorithm was validated by three experienced reviewers. Reviewers evaluated aEEG recordings of fourteen preterm/term infants, displayed twice in random order, once using a reference algorithm and again using the WU-NEAT aEEG algorithm. Using standard methodology, reviewers assigned a background pattern classification. Inter/intra-rater reliability was assessed. For the SEF, calculations were made using the same fourteen recordings, first with the reference and then with the WU-NEAT algorithm. Results were compared using Pearson's correlation coefficient. Results For the aEEG algorithm, intra- and inter-rater reliability was 100% and 98%, respectively. For the SEF, the mean±SD Pearson correlation coefficient between algorithms was 0.96±0.04. Conclusion We have demonstrated a clinically-validated toolbox for generating the aEEG as well as calculating the SEF from EEG data. Open-source access will enable widespread use of common analytic algorithms which are device-independent and unlikely to become outdated as technology changes, thereby facilitating future collaborative research in neonatal EEG.
Abstract 160: Identifying differential methylation patterns of benign and tumor prostate tissue in African American and European American prostate cancer patients

This study aims to identify biological features and processes underlying disparities in prostate cancer (PCa) between African American (AA) and European American (EA) men using DNA methylation (DNAm). Changes in genome-wide DNAm accompany tumor development and progression. Differences in genome-wide DNAm across ancestry groups may be an important mechanism to understand the higher incidence and poorer prognosis among AA men. We collected paired tumor and histologically benign tissue from formalin fixed and paraffin embedded (FFPE) blocks from 150 prostate cancer patients (75 AA, 75 EA) at the University of Chicago. DNA was extracted and genome-wide DNAm was measured at ~850,000 CpG sites in benign and tumor tissue using the Illumina Infinium MethylationEpic BeadChip. After CpG and sample-level QC and normalization, we conducted differential methylation analyses, comparing tumor and benign tissue within each ancestry group, adjusting for batch, age, and tissue pair. We then used Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA) to examine enrichment of GO and Hallmark terms. 682,694 CpGs passed QC filtering. For AA and EA, CpGs hyper-methylated in cancer tissue were enriched in CpG islands while hypo-methylated CpGs were enriched in open seas. We identified 39,768 and 25,405 tumor-associated CpGs in AA and EA respectively (p Citation Format: Meytal B. Chernoff, Kathryn Demanelis, Marc Gillard, Dayana Delgado, Donald J. Vander Griend, Brandon L. Pierce. Identifying differential methylation patterns of benign and tumor prostate tissue in African American and European American prostate cancer patients [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research 2020; 2020 Apr 27-28 and Jun 22-24. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2020;80(16 Suppl):Abstract nr 160.
One Notable Complication of Nasopharyngeal Airway: A Case Report.

Author(s): Briggs, Blake; Countryman, Chase; McGinnis, Henderson D. | Abstract: Introduction: The nasopharyngeal airway (NPA) is used by emergency providers and first responders to assist with oxygenation in obtunded, critically ill patients. There are few recorded NPA complications.Case Report: We describe a unique case in which a patient went multiple days with recurrent symptoms of upper airway obstruction secondary to retained NPA. Discussion: Nasopharyngeal airways may be uniquely prone to being displaced and retained due to their use in emergent situations, their small size, and time of insertion in the field prior to emergency department (ED) contact where handoff is not often standardized.Conclusion: The use of large-flanged NPAs might reduce incidences of displacement into the nasal cavity. This case highlights the need for improved handoff communication between emergency medical services and ED staff, especially to account for all inserted devices to prevent foreign body retention.
Hypertext, Social Media, and Civic Engagement: How Hypertext is Ruining the World, and Might Just Save It

The world is facing massive problems that no single nation can solve. Global warming, COVID-19, abject poverty, endless wars, widening inequality, religious extremism, racial discrimination, white supremacy, and mental health crises are enormous threats to human flourishing and even human survival. These problems require coordinated efforts on a global scale that, thus far, the nations of the world have rarely managed to mount. Essential to societies addressing these problems is the ability to agree on facts, to view science as authoritative, and to engage in vigorous constructive dialog about possible solutions to these problems without vilifying those of differing opinion. Unfortunately, as these difficult problems have grown more insurmountable, so too has the polarization separating people on opposing sides, especially in the U.S. Just as these problems threaten to overtake us, we seem less capable of devising solutions and coordinating efforts to combat them.Today, social media is inundated in rhetoric about these issues, but this rhetoric is rarely constructive. Social media platforms encourage viral outrage as they reinforce polarized views that monetize hyperlinks as targeted advertisements. Bombastic "debates" thrive on Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, Discord, and other platforms, but rarely change anyone's mind. President Trump has almost 90 million followers on Twitter, a platform he has used throughout his presidency to communicate directly to his followers, but his tweets have only exacerbated polarization, promulgated fake news, promoted extremism, and contributed to the rejection of shared truths.Hypertext and hyperlinks are the key features of social media platforms that connect users to online information, but too often this "information" is misinformation, disinformation, fake news, propaganda, or conspiracy theory used as "proof" for specious claims. People share articles without verifying them and often without even reading them. Our divisive discourse becomes more polarizing and self-affirming, putting solutions to major problems further out of reach.But just as hyperlinked social media subverts our discourse, it also has the power to connect us to the truth, to facts, to debunked conspiracy theories, and to a diversity of ideas. Social media platforms have begun to flag questionable claims and hyperlink us to facts. Novel user interfaces can aid in our ability to separate fact from fiction and engage in healthy online discourse. Douglas Engelbart's pioneering hypertext design boosted individual human capability; so, too, can hyperlinked social media boost our collective civic capabilities. In this keynote, I will characterize the challenges we face and show examples of how we can promote truth, facts, empathy, trust, and constructive dialog in online spaces, so that we can solve our world's greatest problems.
Organizational Flexibility and Co-Operative Task Allocation Among Agents

We compare rigid and flexible organizations when side-contracting among agents is possible. Within a rigid organization, each agent can produce only one component of the final product, whereas within a flexible organization, the agents can reallocate their tasks during the production period. In our model, the principal can only observe the joint output produced by the agents. Our analysis reveals that within a flexible organization, side transfers are exchanged between the agents in equilibrium, and not only an efficient agent but also an inefficient agent may acquire a rent. Yet, the principal's payoff is higher when the organization is flexible as the agents' rent seeking behavior generates more efficient production technology.
Ending Patent Exceptionalism and Structuring the Rule of Reason: The Supreme Court Opens the Door for Both

In a wonderfully crisp manner, Justice Breyer’s majority opinion in the recent case of FTC v. Actavis, Inc. sets out the issue in the case: [T]wo companies settle under terms that require . . . the claimed infringer[ ] not to produce the patented product until the patent’s term expires, and . . . the patentee[ ] to pay [the infringer] many millions of dollars. Because the settlement requires the patentee to pay the alleged infringer, rather than the other way around, this kind of settlement agreement is often called a “reverse payment” settlement agreement. And the basic question here is whether such an agreement can sometimes unreasonably diminish competition in violation of the antitrust laws.1 The simplicity of the description is particularly impressive given that very little in the context of patent litigation between generic and branded pharmaceutical companies is crisp or clear. The litigation and regulatory system for launching generic drugs is called Hatch-Waxman,2 after the legislation that spawned its web-like complexity.3 And herein lies the problem;
Utility of Serial Donor-derived Cell-free DNA Measurements for Detecting Allograft Rejection in a Kidney Transplant Recipient After PD-1 Checkpoint Inhibitor Administration.

Background Donor-derived cell-free DNA (dd-cfDNA) is a useful biomarker of rejection that originates from allograft cells undergoing injury. Plasma levels <1% in kidney transplant recipients have a high negative predictive value for active allograft rejection. The utility of this biomarker in kidney transplant recipients receiving immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy is unknown. Methods We describe a case in which serial dd-cfDNA monitoring facilitated the use of immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy, which is known to be associated with high rates of rejection, in a kidney transplant recipient with metastatic cancer. Results A 72-y-old man with end-stage kidney disease secondary to autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease underwent living unrelated kidney transplant in December 2010. His immunosuppression regimen included tacrolimus, mycophenolate, and prednisone. In July 2017, he presented with metastatic cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma. After his disease progressed through radiation therapy and cetuximab, he received pembrolizumab (antiprogrammed cell death protein 1). His dd-cfDNA level was undetectable at baseline, then increased during treatment but remained <1%. This trend, despite fluctuations in serum creatinine levels during therapy, allowed for continuation of pembrolizumab and successful treatment of his metastatic cancer without clinically evident allograft rejection. After discontinuation of pembrolizumab, dd-cfDNA levels fell below the level of detection. Genetic analysis of the cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma demonstrated a genetic profile distinct from the dd-cfDNA, indicating that tumor lysis did not impact increases in dd-cfDNA. Conclusions Serial dd-cfDNA measurements may provide a useful, noninvasive biomarker for detecting allograft injury that may facilitate the use of immunomodulatory therapies in organ transplant recipients with cancer.
Multifactor theoretical modeling of solar thermal fuels built on azobenzene and norbornadiene scaffolds

Solar thermal fuels (STFs) offer a unique way of harnessing energy from the sun by absorbing photons and storing the energy in a metastable photoisomerized state. The reverse isomerization process can then be catalytically or thermally triggered to release the stored energy and return the fuel to its stable configuration. Functionalization of these compounds is necessary to reach practical energy storage densities, but substitutions that increase the energy storage density may adversely impact performance at other steps along the fuel cycle. Recent computational screening efforts to identify high-performance STF candidates have focused on properties that can be estimated from ground-state electronic structure methods. Here we argue that computational screening of STF candidates across the full fuel cycle benefits from a multifactor approach with excited-state properties like excitation energies and photoisomerization quantum yields addressed alongside key ground-state properties like energy storage densities and reverse isomerization barriers. As a critical step toward multifactor high-throughput screening and optimization of STFs, in this work we first systematically simulate the specific storage energy and excitation energy of substituted azobenzene- and norbornadiene-based STFs through electronic structure calculations. Density-functional tight-binding (DFTB) predictions are benchmarked against density functional theory (DFT) and experimental measurements where available. To encompass the complete solar thermal fuel cycle in these compounds, we then apply DFT methods to analyze the reverse isomerization process and its relationship to the photoisomerization quantum yield. We find that DFTB provides a useful balance between accuracy and computational efficiency for virtual screening of STF photoabsorption and energy storage, while isomerization barrier and quantum yield predictions require more sophisticated approaches.
Cytokine Levels at Birth in Children Who Developed Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

Background: Prenatal immune development may play an important role in the etiology of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Methods: Seven cytokines, IL1β, IL4, IL6, IL8, GM-CSF, TNFα, and VEGF, were analyzed in blood spots collected at birth from 1,020 ALL cases and 1,003 controls participating in the California Childhood Leukemia Study. ORs and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) associated with an interquartile range increment in cytokine levels were calculated using logistic regression, adjusting for sociodemographic and birth characteristics. Results: We found that patients with ALL were born with higher levels of a group of correlated cytokines than controls [IL1β: OR of 1.18 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.03–1.35); IL8: 1.19 (1.03–1.38); TNFα: 1.15 (1.01–1.30); VEGF: 1.16 (1.01–1.33)], especially among children of Latina mothers (ORs from 1.31 to 1.40) and for ALL with high hyperdiploidy (ORs as high as 1.27). We found that neonatal cytokine levels were correlated with neonatal levels of endogenous metabolites which had been previously associated with ALL risk; however, there was no evidence that the cytokines were mediating the relationship between these metabolites and ALL risk. Conclusions: We posit that children born with altered cytokine levels are set on a trajectory towards an increased risk for subsequent aberrant immune reactions that can initiate ALL. Impact: This is the first study to evaluate the interplay between levels of immunomodulatory cytokines at birth, prenatal exposures, and the risk of childhood ALL.
Long-term analysis of ocean noise floor in the northeast Pacific Ocean

Characterizing the ocean noise floor is important for tracking long-term acoustic changes and creating environmental regulations to mitigate the effects of human activities on the ocean soundscape. Underwater noise levels have been measured at two sites in the northeast Pacific off the coast of Oregon between 2015 and 2019. The acoustic data were recorded continuously at a sample rate of 64 kHz at 81 m depth and 581 m depth at the continental shelf and slope, respectively. Sequential one-minute power spectral density estimates are computed and used to calculate spectral probability density functions (SPDFs) for every month of the measurement period. The ocean noise floor is then defined as the 5th percentile of the SPDF. Multi-year data are used to compute time series of the ocean noise floor at various frequencies, which are then examined for long-term trends and seasonal patterns. The frequency dependence of the noise floor is analyzed and the results are compared between two measurement sites. Environmental data from surface buoys and Conductivity, Temperature, Depth (CTD) instruments collocated with the hydrophones are used to study how the ocean noise floor changes with wind, temperature, and sound speed. [Work supported by ONR.]
The International Legal Basis of Educational Leaders Without Borders

This chapter addresses the importance of education and educational law to the countries’ systems of schooling, and therefore society. It is divided into three areas: (1) basic educational considerations; (2) comparative law and legal systems—a comparison of legal systems around the world recognizing these legal structures are the foundation under which societies operate; and (3) the evolution of educational law and specific examples worldwide. It is incumbent for the ELWB to be aware of the mores and laws of the countries in which networking activities are occurring. As scholars we write to inform policy makers in an attempt to effect change.
New methylation profile and high microsatellite instability in African-American colon cancer

AACR Annual Meeting-- Apr 12-16, 2008; San Diego, CA 2649 Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) incidence and mortality are higher in African Americans (AAs), than in the general population. Whether or not there are any molecular particularities or preferential pathways in colon carcinogenesis in AAs need to be investigated at the genetic and epigenetic levels. We chose four prominent markers for epigenetic silencing including APC2. This new marker is a homologue of the adenomatous polyposis coli tumor suppressor which plays overlapping roles in wingless signaling and proliferation in CRC. In addition, we analyzed BRAF mutation, MSI status and MLH1 and MSH2 expression. Material and Methods: A total number of 223 cases of primary CRC were selected from Howard University and John Hopkins Hospitals. DNA was extracted from microdissected tumor and matched normal MSI were studies using five sets of primers (BAT25, BAT26, NR21, NR22 and NR24). P16, MLH1, APC, APC2 methylation and BRAF V600E mutation were determined by MSP and/or pyrosequencing. MLH1 and MSH2 expression was determined by immunohistochemistry. Demographic and clinical data were extracted from patients charts. Difference of MSI by dependent factors were assessed by computing OR (95%CI). Results: The mean (SD) age of cases was 66 (14) years and 42% were males. Fifty two percent (52%) of tumors were right sided, and 84% were moderately differentiated. The frequency of MSI was 20%. There was no statistically significant difference between age groups, gender, tumor location for MSI-H. The frequency of p16, MLH1, APC and APC2 methylation in the MSI-H group were 32%, 68%, 70% and 80%, respectively. Frequency of BRAF mutation was 23% among MSI-H group. MLH1 and MSH2 expression were 18% and 21% in MSI-H samples respectively. Conclusion: The MSI-H rate is higher (20%) than in the general population. At least 1/5 of MSI-H tumors (23%) are BRAF related. APC2, APC and MLH1 are frequent targets of epigenetic silencing and may be part of the colorectal cancer hypermethylome.
Hepatitis B in hemodialysis patients: Significance of HBeAg

Abstract Twenty-four HBsAg-positive (HBsAg + ) hemodialysis patients were prospectively studied to assess (1) the prognostic value of HBeAg and its HBe 1 Ag and HBe 2 Ag components and (2) whether a difference in cellular immune status between HBeAg + and HBeAg-negative (HBeAg − ) patients could be defined. Sixteen patients were HBeAg + and 8 were HBeAg − initially. After a mean follow-up period of 23.7 months, it was concluded that the initial presence of HBeAg correlated with the persistence of HBsAg because 15 of the 16 HBeAg + patients were still HBsAg + at death or last follow-up, whereas 7 of the 8 HBeAg − patients had become HBsAg − at a mean period of 3.8 months. HBe 1 Ag was consistently present in 15 of the 16 patients when HBeAg was detectable, whereas HBe 2 Ag fluctuated widely in individual patients over time. No difference in cellular immune status between HBeAg + and HBeAg − patients could be defined; although both HBeAg + and HBeAg − patients had a similar decrease in peripheral blood T cells and poor responsiveness to purified HBsAg, both groups of patients had stimulation indices to nonspecific mitogens within the normal range.
Dynamic Triaxial and Simple Shear Behavior of Sand

The dynamic properties of dry sands from triaxial tests represented as values of modulus and damping were investigated and compared with simple shear test results for the same material using equivalent test parameters. It was confirmed that for both types of tests the effects of strain amplitude, relative density, and confining pressure are similar. Dynamic triaxial and simple shear modulus values can be related at the same shear strain amplitude and at equivalent confining pressures. A correlation curve is presented. The difference between triaxial and simple shear damping values is insignificant and the results may be used interchangeably at equivalent shear strain amplitudes.
Hybrid Eshelby Decomposition analysis of AFM indentation on heterogeneous layered samples

To determine the micromechanical properties of heterogeneous layered samples using atomic force microscope (AFM) indentation, we previously proposed the Hybrid Eshelby Decomposition (HED) analysis that combines a modified homogenization theory and finite element modeling (FEM) to extract layer-specific elastic modulus values. In this study, the HED technique was experimentally validated using bi-layer spin-coated polydimethylsiloxane (POMS) samples, and we dernonstrated its application by characterizing the layer-specific microelastic properties of mouse aortic wall tissue. Our results show that the mechanical properties of surface and sub-surface layers or thin synthetic and biological samples can be accurately deconstructed from the composite material response to AFM indentation. HED analysis offers an approach to study regional micromechanics of heterogeneous multi-layered samples without destructively separating individual components for testing.
Para-aortic lymphocyst

Although numerous articles regarding the etiology, incidence, complications, and management of pelvic lymphocysts have been published in the American literature since 1958, there has been no mention of para-aortic lymphocyst as a complication of para-aortic node dissection. Two recent cases of symptomatic para-aortic lymphocyst have prompted a review of our para-aortic node dissection technique when this procedure is not combined with a more extensive pelvic lymphadenectomy. Our modification in technique is to use retroperitoneal para-aortic drainage by constant pressure-controlled suction following closure of the posterior parietal peritoneum, and the results in our first 15 patients are presented. There were no complications related to the drainage technique. Abdominal ultrasound and intravenous urography have proved to be excellent diagnostic tools in the initial evaluation and subsequent follow-up of para-aortic lymphocytes.
Glycerol monolaurate microbicide protection against repeat high-dose SIV vaginal challenge

Measures to prevent sexual mucosal transmission are critically needed, particularly to prevent transmission to young women at high risk in the microepidemics in South Africa that disproportionally contribute to the continued pandemic. To that end, microbicides containing anti-retroviral (ARV) agents have been shown to prevent transmission, but with efficacy limited both by adherence and pre-existing innate immune and inflammatory conditions in the female reproductive tract (FRT). Glycerol monolaurate (GML) has been proposed as a microbicide component to enhance efficacy by blocking these transmission-facilitating innate immune response to vaginal exposure. We show here in an especially rigorous test of protection in the SIV-rhesus macaque model of HIV-1 transmission to women, that GML used daily and before vaginal challenge protects against repeat high doses of SIV by criteria that include virological and immunological assays to detect occult infection. We also provide evidence for indirect mechanisms of action in GML-mediated protection. Developing a sustained formulation for GML delivery could contribute an independent, complementary protective component to an ARV-containing microbicide.
Sharing your instructional materials via ensemble: tutorial presentation

Ensemble is a Pathways project of the NSF NSDL (National Science Digital Library) dedicated to supporting computing education. This tutorial will introduce Ensemble and enable faculty members to take advantage of the Ensemble facilities. The session will also provide an opportunity for the CCSC community to provide feedback about the Ensemble facilities and suggestions about the on-going development of the portal.
Abnormalities of sex differentiation. Classification, diagnosis, selection of gender of rearing and treatment.

There are many discordances between the anatomic development of the external and internal sex organs, the chromosomal patterns, the gonadal morphology and the secondary sexual development. The psychosexual orientation is not predetermined by any of these, but depends largely upon the gender role assigned to a child in early life. It is, therefore, most important to select in early life the sex to which the child can best adapt. The abnormalities of sex differentiation are: 1) Gonadal dysgenesis, in which there are various widely differing defects in the embryonic development of the gonads. These conditions are often due to chromosomal aberrations. There is a low familial incidence. 2) Male pseudohermaphroditism, in which testes are morphologically fairly well developed, but have defective secretion of "male organizing substance." 3) Female pseudohermaphroditism, in which masculinization of the external genitalia of females is due to androgens of the fetal adrenals or transmitted from the mothers during pregnancy. Ambiguity of the external genitalia is usually the finding which arouses a suspicion of an abnormality of sex differentiation. However, the finding of firm masses in the groins or labia of apparent females or the absence of gonads in apparent males are also indications for more extensive diagnostic studies. The study of the nuclear chromatin pattern of cells in smears of the buccal mucosa is the most important diagnostic screening test. A chromatin-positive pattern indicates that the patient is either a female pseudohermaphrodite, a true hermaphrodite or a case of "testicular dysgenesis." In chromatin-positive cases the urinary excretion of 17-ketosteroids should be measured to determine whether or not the patient has virilizing adrenal hyperplasia. Patients with a chromatin-negative pattern have either male pseudohermaphroditism, true hermaphroditism or some form of gonadal dysgenesis. Exploratory laparotomy with gonadal biopsies is necessary to establish the diagnosis. When the diagnosis is made in early infancy, all types of female pseudohermaphrodites should be reared as females. In male pseudohermaphroditism the assignment of the gender role depends largely upon the degree of phallic development. In true hermaphroditism one must take into consideration both the anatomy of the external genitalia and the type of development of the gonads. The explanations to be given to the parents and the hazards of changing the gender role in later life are discussed. The relative incidence of the various types of abnormalities of sex differentiation are shown. It is pointed out that among 242 patients of all types, there were only 20 cases in which the assignment of a male role would have been preferred.
The Critical Challenge of Educating the Public About Genetics

The translation of genomics into medicine would benefit from a public that has a strong foundation in core genetics principles and that is able to access, identify, and use reliable information. Unfortunately, public understanding of genetics is generally poor, a condition that can be traced to deficiencies in formal science education, weaknesses in representations of genetics in the media and on the Internet, and the limited knowledge and involvement of health care providers in patient education. Notwithstanding these challenges, the Internet, media, and health professionals likely will remain major sources of public education. Whether those sources contribute positively or negatively will depend, in part, on the public’s ability to discriminate high-quality from low-quality information and on health providers’ understanding of genetics and their willingness to engage in the genetics education of their patients.
Prolactin and teleost ionocytes: new insights into cellular and molecular targets of prolactin in vertebrate epithelia.

The peptide hormone prolactin is a functionally versatile hormone produced by the vertebrate pituitary. Comparative studies over the last six decades have revealed that a conserved function for prolactin across vertebrates is the regulation of ion and water transport in a variety of tissues including those responsible for whole-organism ion homeostasis. In teleost fishes, prolactin was identified as the “freshwater-adapting hormone”, promoting ion-conserving and water-secreting processes by acting on the gill, kidney, gut and urinary bladder. In mammals, prolactin is known to regulate renal, intestinal, mammary and amniotic epithelia, with dysfunction linked to hypogonadism, infertility, and metabolic disorders. Until recently, our understanding of the cellular mechanisms of prolactin action in fishes has been hampered by a paucity of molecular tools to define and study ionocytes, specialized cells that control active ion transport across branchial and epidermal epithelia. Here we review work in teleost models indicating that prolactin regulates ion balance through action on ion transporters, tight-junction proteins, and water channels in ionocytes, and discuss recent advances in our understanding of ionocyte function in the genetically and embryonically accessible zebrafish (Danio rerio). Given the high degree of evolutionary conservation in endocrine and osmoregulatory systems, these studies in teleost models are contributing novel mechanistic insight into how prolactin participates in the development, function, and dysfunction of osmoregulatory systems across the vertebrate lineage.
Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase variants from Italian subjects associated with severe neonatal jaundice.

Summary. Screening for the G6PD deficiency was carried out at the Maternity Division of the Galliera Hospital in Genoa, Italy. Two groups of subjects with hyperbilirubinaemia of non-immunological origin were examined: (a) 302 newborn babies of Sardinian extraction (on cord blood) and (b) 201 newborn babies of south Italian ancestry (on peripheral blood). Among 503 subjects, 43 showed an enzyme deficiency; in 39 the defect was of the Mediterranean type. In one case, previously described, the enzyme was of the A type. In the remaining cases three different variants were identified. In the present work these three cases, each with severe neonatal jaundice, are reported. Their parents originated from Calabria, from Sardinia and from Sicily. The abnormal enzymes are respectively designated as GdDebrousse-like, GdGallura and GdAgrigento.
Fast signal analysis and decomposition on graphs using the Sparse Matrix Transform

Recently, the Sparse Matrix Transform (SMT) has been proposed as a tool for estimating the eigen-decomposition of high dimensional data vectors [1]. The SMT approach has two major advantages: First it can improve the accuracy of the eigendecomposition, particularlywhen the number of observations, n, is less the the vector dimension, p. Second, the resulting SMT eigen-decomposition is very fast to apply, i.e. O(p). In this paper, we present an SMT eigen-decomposition method suited for application to signals that live on graphs. This new SMT eigen-decomposition method has two major advantages over the more generic method presented in [1]. First, the resulting SMT can be more accurately estimated due to the graphical constraint. Second, the computation required to design the SMT from training data is dramatically reduced from an average observed complexity of p3 to p log p.
Analyzing sequential categorical data: Individual variation in markov chains

Markov chains are probabilistic models for sequences of categorical events, with applications throughout scientific psychology. This paper provides a method for anlayzing data consisting of event sequences and covariate observations. It is assumed that each sequence is a Markov process characterized by a distinct transition probability matrix. The objective is to use the covariate data to explain differences between individuals in the transition probability matrices characterizing their sequential data. The elements of the transition probability matrices are written as functions of a vector of latent variables, with variation in the latent variables explained through a multivariate regression on the covariates. The regression is estimated using the EM algorithm, and requires the numerical calculation of a multivariate integral. An example using simulated cognitive developmental data is presented, which shows that the estimation of individual variation in the parameters of a probability model may have substantial theoretical importance, even when individual differences are not the focus of the investigator's concerns.
Effectiveness of strict credentialing and proctoring guidelines on outcomes of laparoscopic cholecystectomy in a community hospital.

Strict credentialing and proctoring guidelines were set up prior to initiating a program of laparoscopic cholecystectomy at the Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove, Illinois. This is a private 386-bed community hospital. At the inception of the program, there were 15 general surgeons who were going to participate in this program. In 1992, there were 20 general surgeons performing the laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC). The following guidelines were approved by the Credentials Committee and authorized by the Executive Committee:
Racial Priming Revived

This comment addresses the growing controversy over the effects of implicit racial messages in politics. Many scholars find evidence that these implicit messages work and that they have racializing effects. However, the biggest study to date finds that racial messages—implicit or explicit—have no effects. In this paper I conduct a thorough review of several relevant literatures in order to adjudicate between these competing claims. I find that the large study's null findings conflict with 17 public opinion experiments involving over 5,000 subjects, 2 aggregate studies, and a large social psychology literature. Using different methods, samples, and settings, these studies show that racial cues do in fact racialize opinion. I explain the large study's null results by noting that its participants perceived only small differences across messages, that racial predispositions were measured just before exposure to the ad, thereby neutralizing the effect of the ad's racial cue, and that WebTV studies such as this one have failed to provide many subjects with their assigned ad. Thus, the weight of the evidence heavily favors the racial effect of racial cues and messages. I offer several directions for future research on racial communication and politics.Tali Mendelberg is Associate Professor of Politics at Princeton University (talim@princeton.edu). She is the author of The Race Card: Campaign Strategy, Implicit Messages, and the Norm of Equality (Princeton University Press, 2001). She wishes to thank Oleg Bespalov and Dan Cassino for research assistance, Adam Berinsky, Claudine Gay, Martin Gilens, Vince Hutchings, Jon Krosnick, Shawn Rosenberg, and Nick Valentino for helpful feedback, and the Bobst Center for Peace and Justice at Princeton University and the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences for research support.
Physics of U.S. Surface Temperature Response to ENSO

To elucidate physical processes responsible for the response of U.S. surface temperatures to El Nino- Southern Oscillation (ENSO), the surface energy balance is diagnosed from observations, with emphasis on the role of clouds, water vapor, and land surface properties associated with snow cover and soil moisture. Results for the winter season (December-February) indicate that U.S. surface temperature conditions as- sociated with ENSO are determined principally by anomalies in the surface radiative heating—the sum of absorbed solar radiation and downward longwave radiation. Each component of the surface radiative heating is linked with specific characteristics of the atmospheric hydrologic response to ENSO and also to feedbacks by the land surface response. During El Nino, surface warming over the northern United States is physically consistent with three primary processes: 1) increased downward solar radiation due to reduced cloud optical thickness, 2) reduced reflected solar radiation due to an albedo decline resulting from snow cover loss, and 3) increased downward longwave radiation linked to an increase in precipitable water. In contrast, surface cooling over the southern United States during El Nino is mainly the result of a reduction in incoming solar radiation resulting from increased cloud optical thickness. During La Nina, surface warming over the central United States results mainly from snow cover losses, whereas warming over the southern United States results mainly from a reduction in cloud optical thickness that yields increased incoming solar radiation and also from an increase in precipitable water that enhances the downward longwave radiation. For both phases of ENSO the surface radiation budget is closely linked to large-scale horizontal and vertical motions in the free atmosphere through two main processes: 1) the convergence of the atmospheric water vapor transport that largely determines cloud optical thickness and thereby affects incoming shortwave radiation and 2) the changes in tropospheric column temperature resulting from the characteristic atmo- spheric teleconnections that largely determine column precipitable water and thereby affect downward longwave radiation.
Risk-value models: Restrictions and applications

Abstract Sarin and Weber [European Journal of Operational Research 70 (1993) 135] and others have argued for the expression of preferences under risk by the use of risk-value models, which have the intuitively appealing property that absence of certainty enters the decision-maker’s preference function only through a well-defined risk argument. The present paper proposes axioms which should be satisfied by any such model, and explores the restrictions that the axioms place on the preference function. Implications for absolute and relative risk aversion are considered, and the usefulness of the approach is demonstrated with applications to portfolio theory and the theory of the firm.
Design of double-layer ceramic absorbers for microwave heating

Abstract We propose a guide for designing double-layer ceramic absorbers in microwave heating by optimizing the thickness based on the analysis of reflection loss (RL) of a double-layer absorber consisting of a high-loss SiC layer and a low-loss Al 2 O 3 layer. The calculated reflection losses for individual layers of SiC and Al 2 O 3 show that the former with a thickness of 0.0054 m has the maximum microwave absorption while the latter in the thickness range up to 0.1 m is identified as a poor microwave absorbing material with RL larger than −0.4 dB. By using a 0.0054-m-thick SiC layer as the susceptor, the absorption in the Al 2 O 3 layer and of the entire double-layer absorber increases significantly. The results demonstrate that high microwave absorption throughout the heating process can only be achieved in a sample with a small thickness in which a slight absorption peak shift during heating (less than one eighth-wavelength in the medium) occurs.
Islet cell tumor arising from a heterotopic pancreas in the duodenal wall with ulceration

A rare case of symptomatic islet cell tumor arising from heterotopic pancreas in the duodenum with ulceration is described. Gastrointestinal bleeding was the only sign observed in this patient. Tagged red blood cell scan, upper endoscopy, and computed tomography scan showed active bleeding ulcer from a periampullary mass. Removal of the submucosal tumor was done to prevent future re-bleeding. Histologic and immunohistochemical characterization of the tumor showed an endocrine tumor that expressed a variety of endocrine peptides.
Inter-institutional relationships and emergency management

‘Public disasters’, from the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill to the 2008 US mortgage meltdown, involved many agencies and institutions, and present new challenges for the design of networks of institutions. In improved networks of institutions: the fox must not guard the henhouse accountability will be enhanced rather than clouded remediation is quick, with blame assigned later. This paper highlights the need for, and sketches an outline of, a new field of high-performance inter-organisational interaction (‘HPII’). It extends Linstone’s ‘Multiple perspectives’ (MP) approach, and maps the dimensions of HPII against the extended MP schema. Examples drawn from recent disasters fill out the discussion, and research directions are outlined.
Antidepressant-induced sexual dysfunction in men

Most of the available antidepressant medications, including tricyclic antidepressants, monoamine oxidase inhibitors, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, and dual noradrenergic/serotonergic reuptake inhibitors have been reported to be associated with sexual dysfunction in both sexes. This manuscript reviews evidence concerning the relative incidence of treatment emergent sexual dysfunction in men being treated with antidepressant drugs. Both double-blind controlled trials and large clinical series report a high incidence of sexual dysfunction, especially ejaculatory delay, with serotonergic drugs. The incidence of sexual dysfunction in men appears to be much lower with drugs whose primary mechanism of action involves adrenergic or dopaminergic systems.