cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
HOW SENSITIVE IS THE DELTOID MOMENT ARM TO JOINT CENTRE CHANGES WITH RTSA

Reverse total shoulder arthroplasty (RTSA) is an increasingly common treatment for osteoarthritic shoulders with irreparable rotator cuff tears. Although very successful in alleviating pain and restoring some function there is little objective information relating geometric changes imposed by the reverse shoulder and the moment generating capacity of the shoulder muscles. Recent modeling studies of reverse shoulders have shown significant variation in deltoid muscle moment arms over varied joint centers for shoulders with RTSA. The goal of this study was to investigate the sensitivity of muscle moment arms as a function of varying the joint center in one representative RTSA subject. We hypothesized there may exist a more beneficial joint implant placement, measured by muscle moment arms, compared to the actual surgical implant placement. A 12 degree of freedom, subject-specific model was used to represent the shoulder of a patient with RTSA for whom fluoroscopic measurements of scapular and humeral kinematics during abduction had been obtained. The computer model used these abduction kinematics and systematically varied joint center locations over 1521 different perturbations from the surgical placement to determine moment arms for the anterior, lateral and posterior aspects of the deltoid muscle. The joint center was varied from its surgical position ±4 mm in the anterior/posterior direction, 0–24 mm in the medial/lateral direction, and −10 mm to 14 mm in the superior/inferior direction. The anterior deltoid moment arm varied up to 16mm with center of rotations variations, primarily in the medial/lateral and superior/inferior directions (Figure 2, Table 1(Figure 1)). Similarly, the lateral deltoid moment arm demonstrated variations up to 13 mm, primarily with joint center changes in the anterior/posterior and superior/inferior directions. The posterior deltoid moment arm varied up to 10mm, primarily in early abduction, and was most sensitive to changes of the joint center in demonstrated a sensitivity of 6 mm corresponding to variations in the superior/inferior directions (Figure 2). The goal of this study was to assess the sensitivity of the deltoid muscle moment arms as a function of joint configuration for an existing RTSA subject. High variations were found for all three deltoid components. Variation over the entire abduction arc was greatest in the anterior and lateral deltoid, while the posterior deltoid moment arm was mostly sensitive to joint center changes early in the abduction arc. Moment arm changes of 10–16mm represent a significant amount of the total deltoid moment arm. This means there is an opportunity to dramatically change the deltoid moments arms through surgical placement of the joint center of rotation. Computational models of the shoulder may help surgeons optimize subject-specific placement of RTSA implants to provide the best possible muscle function, and assist implant designers to configure devices for the best overall performance.
Gas Hydrate Deposition on a Cold Surface in Water-Saturated Gas Systems

One of the major issues in flow assurance includes pipeline plugging due to hydrate formation and deposition. A key uncertainty in gas pipelines is hydrate deposition on the pipe wall. This work demonstrates hydrate formation and deposition on a cold surface in water-saturated gas systems. Methane hydrate deposition can be achieved in a laboratory-scale apparatus by formation of hydrates from the gas phase on the outer surface of a cold surface. The deposit evolves from the initial formation to growth to hardening stages, observed to be initially a porous deposit that later anneals to a relatively nonporous deposit. The hydrate deposit thickness gradually reaches a limit as the hydrate surface approaches the hydrate equilibrium temperature. Performing the measurements at higher initial subcooling in the system results in a thicker hydrate deposit. The average calculated hydrate deposit porosity decreases during the experiment and reaches ∼5% during the annealing stage.
Effect of Three Tillage Depths on Sugarbeet Response and Soil Penetrability Resistance

Tillage can alter soil properties and affect crop yield and quality. A 4-yr study was conducted on a Lihen sandy loam soil loam (sandy, mixed, frigid Entic Haplustoll) to evaluate the effect of tillage depth on sugarbeet (Beta vulgaris L.) root yield, root quality, and soil penetration resistance (PR). Tillage treatments consisted of no-tillage (NT), shallow tillage (ST), and deep tillage (DT). Soil PR was measured with a penetrometer in 2.5-cm increments to a 40-cm depth at three locations within each plot. Roots were hand harvested from each plot and each sample consisted of roots of two adjacent rows. Sugarbeet root yield and adjusted sucrose yield were not significantly affected by the depth of tillage in 2008, 2009, and 2011. In 2010, root yield was significantly greater (16.5%) in DT than in NT. The average sugarbeet yields across 4 yr were 58.77, 60.30, and 63.03 Mg ha–¹ for NT, ST, and DT, respectively. Root yield was lower in 2011 than other 3 yr due to cold and wet weather conditions in the spring. Soil PR values were significantly lower in DT than in ST and NT from 5- to 30-cm depth. However, significant differences were found between ST and NT at the 5- to 7.5-cm depth. Overall, DT enhanced soil physical environment but on average across 4 yr had no statistically significant effect on sugarbeet root yield and quality compared to both ST and NT practices, though a trend was noted that as tillage depth increased root yield increased.
Effects of feeding on Imidacloprid resistant Nilaparvata lugens(Stl) on the biological characteristics of Cyrtorhinus lividipennis(Reuter)

To understand the effects of feeding on brown planthopper Nilaparvata lugens(Stl)populations resistant to Imidacloprid on biological characteristics of Cyrtorhinus lividipennis(Reuter),was fed on N.lugens which was sensitive and highly resistant to Imidacloprid for 15 successive generations,respectively.Biological characteristics of C.lividipennis SNCF15 and RNCF15 were studied.The results showed that the percentage of emergence did not vary significantly between the two colonies during egg stage,nymphal stage and adult stage,as well as every period of the whole life.Compared with RNCF15 colony,SNCF15colony had a significantly longer egg laying phase and higher spawning rate,and a relatively higher egg hatching rate as well as the survival rate of nymphs,but a shorter egg period.
A Case of Possible Iatrogenic Ketamine-Induced Mania in a Patient Being Treated for Postoperative Pain.

Ketamine is an N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) antagonist that has become increasingly recognized and utilized in the treatment of post-operative pain as a way to reduce opioid use. Overall ketamine is generally well tolerated, however it is associated with transient hypertension and neurologic “emergence phenomena” manifesting as dream-like states, irrational behavior, and delirium. From a psychiatric perspective, ketamine is known to cause mania in animal models, but evidence in humans is lacking. This report adds a fourth case of possible ketamine-induced mania to the literature, however this is the first case report of mania in a patient with no previously documented family or personal history of Bipolar Disorder. Decreased need for sleep occurred within hours of the initiation of the ketamine infusion and the symptoms of mania progressed throughout the next 3 days culminating on day 4 of ketamine therapy in a full manic episode. Well-known, post-anesthetic “emergence phenomena” after ketamine use differs from our case in that patients are generally somnolent, whereas our patient developed a manic state which took weeks to resolve with olanzapine and lorazepam treatment. This patient was off treatment and symptom free for more than a year before developing a second manic episode and subsequently being diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder. As ketamine is being increasingly used in psychiatric and non psychiatric populations, all providers should be aware of the possibility of an affective switch with the use of ketamine. It is unclear if ketamine can induce mania in susceptible individuals, though this case suggests that it may.
Inactivation of Fam20B in Joint Cartilage Leads to Chondrosarcoma and Postnatal Ossification Defects.

During endochondral ossification, chondrocytes embed themselves in a proteoglycan-rich matrix during the proliferation-maturation transition. Accumulating evidence shows that proteoglycans are essential components for chondrocyte proliferation and differentiation. When we conditionally inactivated FAM20B (Family with sequence similarity 20 member-B), which is a newly identified xylose kinase essential for glycosaminoglycan (GAG) formation on the protein core of proteoglycans, from the dental mesenchyme using Osr2-Cre, which is also strongly expressed in joint cartilage, we found chondrosarcoma in the knee joint and remarkable defects of postnatal ossification in the long bones. Mechanistic analysis revealed that the defects were associated with gain of function in multiple signaling pathways in the epiphyseal chondrocytes, such as those derived by WNT, BMP, and PTHrP/IHH molecules, suggesting that the FAM20B-catalyzed proteoglycans are critical mediators for a signaling balance in the regulatory network controlling chondrocyte differentiation and proliferation. In particular, we demonstrated that the WNT inhibitor was able to rescue part of the bone defects in Osr2-Cre;Fam20Bfl/fl mice, indicating that FAM20B-catalyzed proteoglycans regulate postnatal endochondral ossification partially through the mediation of WNT signaling.
Exploring effects of presurgical weight loss among women with stage 0-II breast cancer: protocol for a randomised controlled feasibility trial.

Introduction Obesity is a known risk factor for postmenopausal breast cancer and is associated with poorer prognosis for premenopausal and postmenopausal patients; however, the aetiological mechanisms are unknown. Preclinical studies support weight loss via caloric restriction and increased physical activity as a possible cancer control strategy, though few clinical studies have been conducted. We undertook a feasibility trial among women recently diagnosed with stage 0–II breast cancer hypothesising that presurgical weight loss would be feasible, safe and result in favourable changes in tumour markers and circulating biomarkers. Methods and analysis A two-arm randomised controlled trial among 40 overweight or obese women, newly diagnosed with stage 0–II breast cancer and scheduled for surgery was planned. The attention control arm received upper body progressive resistance training and diet counselling to correct deficiencies in nutrient intake; the experimental arm received the same plus counselling on caloric restriction and aerobic exercise to achieve a weight loss of 0.68–0.919 kg/week. In addition to achieving feasibility benchmarks (accruing and retaining at least 80% of participants, and observing no serious adverse effects attributable to the intervention), we will explore the potential impact of an acute state of negative energy balance on tumour proliferation rates (Ki-67), as well as other tumour markers, serum biomarkers, gene expression, microbiome profiles and other clinical outcomes (eg, quality of life). Outcomes for the 2 study arms are compared using mixed models repeated-measures analyses. Ethics and dissemination Ethics approval was received from the University of Alabama at Birmingham Institutional Review Board (Protocol number F130325009). Study findings will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications. Given that this is one of the first studies to investigate the impact of negative energy balance directly on tumour biology in humans, larger trials will be pursued if results are favourable. Trial registration number NCT02224807; Pre-results.
Codes over a family of local Frobenius rings, Gray maps and self-dual codes

We define a class of finite Frobenius rings of order 2 2 k , describe their generating characters, and study codes over these rings. We define two conjugate weight preserving Gray maps to the binary space and study the images of linear codes under these maps. This structure couches existing Gray maps, which are a foundational idea in codes over rings, in a unified structure and produces new infinite classes of rings with a Gray map. The existence of self-dual and formally self-dual codes is determined and the binary images of these codes are studied.
Time-Domain Analysis of Passive Mixer Impedance: A Switched-Capacitor Approach

Passive mixers have become an essential component of SAW-less communication receivers in the last few years, this has encouraged many researchers to study their impedance characteristics. When observed from the input radio frequency (RF) port of the passive mixer, the impedance exhibits bandpass filtering characteristics centered around the frequency of the local oscillator (LO) signal. The theory of baseband impedance up-conversion is widely accepted in the analysis of passive mixer circuits as well as in describing the origin of this bandpass impedance characteristics. In this paper, we revisit this theory and show that it is not always accurate since it does not account for switching transients. We begin our work by showing that the most commonly used single-balanced mixer is not the right choice for a half-circuit used in analyzing the input impedance of a fully-balanced passive mixer. We propose an alternative half-circuit, and proceed with a novel analysis that accounts for switching transients. This switching-aware analysis allows capturing the switched-capacitor behavior of the passive mixer. We then derive closed-form equations for the mixer impedance using purely-capacitive loads as well as resistive-capacitive (RC) loads. We also discuss the impact of finite LO rise and fall times on the mixer impedance. Simulation results of quadrature passive mixers using ideal and MOSFET switches show very close match with the proposed theoretical analysis.
Intravenous immunoglobulin in the treatment of primary immunodeficiency diseases

Intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) has been used as antibody replacement therapy in primary immunodeficiency diseases (PIDDs) for more than 50 years. Its role as a therapeutic agent has expanded over the past couple of decades as its anti-inflammatory and immune-modulatory mechanisms of action have been elucidated. It is now used "off-label" to treat other autoimmune diseases. This article focuses on the role of IVIG in the treatment of PIDDs characterized by absent or deficient antibody production. Replacement doses are given on a monthly basis in these conditions as a prophylactic measure to prevent acute and serious bacterial infections. [Pediatr Ann. 2017;46(1):e8-e12.].
Quantitation of the THF Content in Fe[N(SiMe3)2]2·xTHF

The absence of residual solvent in metal precursors can be of key importance for the successful preparation of metal complexes or materials. Herein, we describe methods for the quantitation of residual coordinated tetrahydrofuran (THF) that binds to Fe[N(SiMe3)2]2, a commonly used iron synthon, when prepared according to common literature procedures. A simple method for quantitation of the amount of residual coordinated THF using 1H NMR spectroscopy is highlighted. Finally, a detailed synthetic procedure is described for the synthesis of THF-free Fe[N(SiMe3)2]2.
Identification of Topological Network Modules in Perturbed Protein Interaction Networks

Biological networks consist of functional modules, however detecting and characterizing such modules in networks remains challenging. Perturbing networks is one strategy for identifying modules. Here we used an advanced mathematical approach named topological data analysis (TDA) to interrogate two perturbed networks. In one, we disrupted the S. cerevisiae INO80 protein interaction network by isolating complexes after protein complex components were deleted from the genome. In the second, we reanalyzed previously published data demonstrating the disruption of the human Sin3 network with a histone deacetylase inhibitor. Here we show that disrupted networks contained topological network modules (TNMs) with shared properties that mapped onto distinct locations in networks. We define TMNs as proteins that occupy close network positions depending on their coordinates in a topological space. TNMs provide new insight into networks by capturing proteins from different categories including proteins within a complex, proteins with shared biological functions, and proteins disrupted across networks.
Surface orientation effects on bending properties of surgical mesh are independent of tensile properties.

Introduction Current mechanical testing of surgical mesh focuses primarily on tensile properties even though implanted devices are not subjected to pure tensile loads. Our objective was to determine the flexural (bending) properties of surgical mesh and determine if they correlate with mesh tensile properties. Methods The flexural rigidity values of 11 different surgical mesh designs were determined along three textile directions (machine, cross-machine, and 45° to machine; n = 5 for each) using ASTM D1388-14 while tracking surface orientation. Tensile testing was also performed on the same specimens using ASTM D882-12. Linear regressions were performed to compare mesh flexural rigidity to mesh thickness, areal mass density, filament diameter, ultimate tensile strength, and maximum extension. Results Of 33 mesh specimen groups, 30 had significant differences in flexural rigidity values when comparing surface orientations (top and bottom). Flexural rigidity and mesh tensile properties also varied with textile direction (machine and cross-machine). There was no strong correlation between the flexural and tensile properties, with mesh thickness having the best overall correlation with flexural rigidity. Conclusions Currently, surface orientation is not indicated on marketed surgical mesh, and a single mesh may behave differently depending on the direction of loading. The lack of correlation between flexural stiffness and tensile properties indicates the need to examine mesh bending stiffness to provide a more comprehensive understanding of surgical mesh mechanical behaviors. Further investigation is needed to determine if these flexural properties result in the surgical mesh behaving mechanically different depending on implantation direction. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 2017.
Electrospinning 3D Scaffolds for use in Neural Tissue Engineering

Polymer nanofiber scaffolds for use in neural tissue engineering have been fabricated via electrospinning of poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA) directly onto a 3D printed support. Previously, the investigators have shown success in promoting the directed growth of neural axons on highly aligned PLLA substrates bothin vitro andin vivo. However, one criticism of the earlierin vitro studies is that by spinning fibers on a flat, two-dimensional surface, the growth of the axons is restricted to one plane. Thus the axon-to-fiber attachment may not be the sole mechanism for aligning the growth of the axons along the fibers, and the channels between the fibers and the substrate could contribute to the results. Using 3D-printing, elevated or “bridge” spinning stages were made with supports at varying heights, allowing the fibers to be suspended 2 to 5 mm above the substrate surface in different configurations. This 3D structure promotes better access ofin vitro cell cultures on the fibers to the growth media during incubation, reduces substrate effects, allows more degrees of freedom for axonal growth, and more closely simulates the growth environment foundin vivo. Using these 3D stages, we have electrospun free-standing, highly-aligned pure PLLA fiber scaffolds. We are exploring spinning coaxial fibers with a PLLA sheath and a second core polymer. These coaxial fiber scaffold structures offer additional opportunities forin situ delivery of growth agents and/or electrical stimulation for improved axonal growth results.
Ad hoc sensor network topology design for distributed fusion: A mathematical programming approach

A distributed sensing/fusion network consists of more than one (spatially) separated sensors, each with possibly different characteristics and not all of them sensing the same environment. Due to their vast applicability, there has been a flurry of recent activity in the area of network design with respect to distributed sensing/fusion. Issues involved in the design of efficient networks include sensor mobility, reliability of links and capacity. This work builds on the Dynamic Expected Coverage Model proposed earlier and incorporates the issue of bandwidth capacity in the model. A Mixed Integer Linear Programming (MILP) formulation is proposed that includes first order preferential assignment with coverage and relocation of sensors. A modified column generation (CG) heuristic is developed for this problem. Computational results indicate that CG performs faster than standard commercial solvers and the typical optimality gap for large size problems is less than 10%.
Common Threads: A Comparative Analysis

This chapter compares and contrasts the two traditional media sites with each other and the two online-only sites with each other, and then compares and contrasts the traditional versus online-only media sites, in order to explore common challenges and benefits of incorporating new technologies. Such a holistic analysis allows insight into the context that influences the possibilities and limitations of using digital tools for social change in El Salvador. Generally, this chapter shows that the four sites incorporated digital tools into their daily processes to various degrees, and their incorporation of ICTs affected citizen participation. Who participated, how they participated, and what they participated in varied among the projects, and this variance can be linked to professional identity, mission, and digital inequalities.
High Performance Work Systems: A Necessity for Startups

New businesses are an important part of any economy, yet the key elements to achieve startup success are often unclear or up for debate. Attracting, selecting, and training employees are often critical activities for most startups. Research suggests that high performance work systems (i.e., a bundle of human resource practices) enhance organizational performance. However, we posit that most startups lack these systems at the onset, yet with minimal effort can establish a system to improve their likelihood of meeting their goals, enhancing capabilities, and ensuring long-term survival.
Molecular Verification of Cryptops hortensis (Scolopendromorpha: Cryptopidae) in the Nearctic Region

Cryptops hortensis is a successful invasive species probably of Palearctic origin. However, recent molecular studies in Europe identified multiple similar species previously misidentified as C. hortensis. In the Nearctic Region, C. hortensis is presumably an exotic species with well-established populations in the northeastern USA. After molecular and morphological identification, C. hortensis from Ohio, USA, were identified as the same species in Europe. The molecular data supported the hypothesis that C. hortensis was introduced from Europe.
Predicting Daily Urban Fine Particulate Matter Concentrations Using a Random Forest Model

The short-term and acute health effects of fine particulate matter less than 2.5 μm (PM2.5) have highlighted the need for exposure assessment models with high spatiotemporal resolution. Here, we utilize satellite, meteorologic, atmospheric, and land-use data to train a random forest model capable of accurately predicting daily PM2.5 concentrations at a resolution of 1 × 1 km throughout an urban area encompassing seven counties. Unlike previous models based on aerosol optical density (AOD), we show that the missingness of AOD is an effective predictor of ground-level PM2.5 and create an ensemble model that explicitly deals with AOD missingness and is capable of predicting with complete spatial and temporal coverage of the study domain. Our model performed well with an overall cross-validated root mean squared error (RMSE) of 2.22 μg/m3 and a cross-validated R2 of 0.91. We illustrate the daily changing spatial patterns of PM2.5 concentrations across our urban study area made possible by our accurate, high-r...
Understanding the experiences of Latina former student athletes pursuing graduate education: The role of ethnic identity and emotional intelligence

Educational leaders, inclusive of faculty, are charged now more than ever with understanding the challenges and needs of their diverse student body, ensuring that they are prepared for their chosen...
Uncertainties in cylindrical anode current inferences on pulsed power drivers

For over a decade, velocimetry based techniques have been used to infer the electrical current delivered to dynamic materials properties experiments on pulsed power drivers such as the Z Machine. Though originally developed for planar load geometries, in recent years, inferring the current delivered to cylindrical coaxial loads has become a valuable diagnostic tool for numerous platforms. Presented is a summary of uncertainties that can propagate through the current inference technique when applied to expanding cylindrical anodes. An equation representing quantitative uncertainty is developed which shows the unfold method to be accurate to a few percent above 10 MA of load current.
ACED: a hardware library for generating DSP systems

Designers translate DSP algorithms into application-specific hardware via primitives composed in various ways for different architectural realizations. Despite sharing underlying algorithms and hardware constructs, designs are often difficult to reuse, leading to redeveloping/reverifying conceptually similar instances. Hardware generators are attractive solutions for effectively balancing fine-grained control of implementation details with simple, retargetable hardware descriptions. This work presents ACED, a hardware library for generating DSP systems. It extends the Chisel hardware construction language and FIRRTL compiler and operates on three principles: zero-cost abstraction, unobtrusive downstream optimization/specialization promoting generator reusability, and unified, portable systems modeling and verification.
Ipsilateral ureteroureterostomy combined with ureteral reimplantation for treatment of disease in both ureters in a child with complete ureteral duplication.

AbstractRecurrent urinary tract infection was seen in a 3-year-old girl with a ureterocele at the lower end of the upper segment ureter and reflux into the lower segment ureter of a duplicated kidney on the left side. We combined ipsilateral ureteroureterostomy (end-to-side anastomosis) with reimplantation of the host, single ureter into the bladder distal to the anastomosis to reduce dilatation, correct the reflux and keep the patient free of infection without medication.
Applying the Multidimensional Ethics Scale to Examine Student Behavior when using Technology

This study contributes to the discussion on student perceptions of questionable academic behavior. Students evaluate behavioral scenarios to see whether they judge the behavior as ethical and to examine potential predictors of that judgment. The scenarios used isolate academic integrity decisions that involve the use of IT. The respondents were given items to examine the influence of moral equity, egoism, relativism, contractualism, and utilitarianism on three dependent variables: individual intention, peer intention, and ethical awareness of students in an academic-setting. This instrument incorporates dimensions from traditional ethical philosophies to determine which reasoning affects ethicality. This research aims to bridge the gap between faculty and student expectations by gaining a deeper understanding of the students’ decision making in a theoretical framework. The results suggest that students incorporate a number of philosophical frameworks in judging a specific behavior. Moral equity was the theory that was employed most frequently by the subjects.
Chapter 42: Response of CFU-GM (colony forming units for granulocytes and macrophages) from intact and pinealectomized rat bone marrow to murine recombinant interleukin-3 (rI1-3), recombinant granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (rGM-CSF) and human recombinant erythropoietin (rEPO)

The present study provides evidence, for the first time, of a role of the pineal gland in the proliferation of CFU-GM under the influence of different cytokines. The degree of colony formation in different cytokine groups was evaluated after 24 h, 3, 7 and 10 days. The colony growth in the present type of bone marrow cell cultures slows after the 10th day and ceases after the 14th day of incubation. The results show that rGM-CSF and the combination of rGM-CSF with rI1-3 and with rEPO stimulate the colony formation of granulocytes and macrophages. A 50% general reduction in the colony number was noted in the pinealectomy group. Their pattern of response to the different cytokines was similar to that of the intact group. It is suggested that the pineal activity has a physiological role in important aspects of host defence mechanisms, such as the proliferation of CFU-GM.
Vasopressin-induced pulmonary vasodilation in rats.

Experiments were performed to determine the pulmonary vascular responses to exogenous or endogenous arginine vasopressin (AVP) in rats. Both in vitro and in vivo approaches were used to examine the direct pulmonary vasoactive properties of AVP and how those properties affect pulmonary hemodynamics in the intact animal. In conscious, unrestrained rats, constant infusion of AVP (4.0 mU.kg-1.min-1 iv) resulted in a fall in mean pulmonary artery pressure (PAP), although systemic pressure was increased. Coincident with the fall in PAP were similar reductions in cardiac output and heart rate. Similarly, bolus administration of AVP reduced PAP, and this effect was augmented during hypoxia. Another series of experiments examined the effect of endogenous AVP released by arterial hypoxemia on pulmonary hemodynamics in conscious rats. Administration of a specific V1-vasopressinergic antagonist had no effect on the PAP response to hypoxia; however, systemic resistance tended to fall following V1-antagonism. To determine the vasoactive properties of AVP independent of these changes in blood flow, a series of experiments were performed on isolated, perfused rat lungs. Injection of 25, 200, or 2,000 mU of AVP into the circulation of the isolated lung was without effect under normoxic conditions. In contrast, 25 mU AVP elicited reproducible pulmonary vasodilation when injected during ongoing hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction. This vasodilatory response was unaffected by meclofenamate or by the platelet-activating factor receptor antagonist SRI 63-441, but was blocked by a specific V1-vasopressinergic antagonist. We conclude that although AVP exerts profound systemic vasoconstriction, the pulmonary circulation appears relatively unaffected by exogenous or endogenous AVP in vivo.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Polariscopy Measurement of Residual Stress in Thin Silicon Wafers

Near-infrared (NIR) Polariscopy has been used to find residual stresses in thin silicon wafers using phase shifting techniques. This paper describes the usage of the ten-step phase shifting method to measure the in-plane residual stresses in single- and multi-crystalline silicon wafers. We show how this technique can be applied to wafers without the application of external loading. The system is calibrated with a beam of monocrystalline CZ silicon loaded in an in-plane four-point bending fixture. The residual maximum shear stresses of the unloaded wafers are then determined. The shear difference technique is used for obtaining the normal stress values. Results are compared before and after smoothing of the isoclinic parameter, and its impact on the separated stress values is explained.
The Late Occurrence of Urinary Tract Damage in Patients Successfully Treated by Radiotherapy for Cervical Carcinoma

Urinary tract complications apparently resulting from radiation therapy for carcinoma of the cervix can occur as long as 30 years after cessation of such treatment. Patients generally present with urinary incontinence and often are treated by standard operative methods that usually are unsuccessful. Incontinence is related to bladder fibrosis, urethral nonfunction and vesicovaginal fistuLa formation, and may be accompanied by bilateral ureteral obstruction. Of 11 patients with late complications of radiotherapy 4 had upper tract deterioration, 4 had vesicovaginal fistulas, 5 had an incompetent urethra aNd 9 had a fibrotic, noncompliant areflexive bladder. Treatment was aimed at providing adequate low pressure storage capacity and consisted of augmentation cystoplasty in 5 patients, repair of the fistula in 4 and correction of urethral dysfunction in 5. Women who complain of incontinence and/or irritable bladder symptoms with a history of radiotherapy for cervical carcinoma should be evaluated for fistuLa formation, urethral incompetence, and detrusor areflexia and fibrosis before treatment is done.
The Informational Basis of Social Choiceprotect

Any procedure of social choice makes use of some types of information and ignores others. For example, the method of majority decision concentrates on people's votes, but pays no direct attention to, say, their social standings, or their prosperity or penury, or even the intensities of their preferences. The differences between distinct procedures lie, to a substantial extent, on the kind of information that each procedure uses and what it has to ignore. The informational bases of the different social choice procedures tell us a great deal about how they respectively work and what they can or cannot achieve.
Synergism of Mild Heat and High-Pressure Pasteurization Against Listeria monocytogenes and Natural Microflora in Phosphate-Buffered Saline and Raw Milk

As many as 99% of illnesses caused by Listeria monocytogenes are foodborne in nature, leading to 94% hospitalizations, and are responsible for the collective annual deaths of 266 American adults. The current study is a summary of microbiological hurdle validation studies to investigate synergism of mild heat (up to 55 °C) and elevated hydrostatic pressure (up to 380 MPa) for decontamination of Listeria monocytogenes and natural background microflora in raw milk and phosphate-buffered saline. At 380 MPa, for treatments of 0 to 12 min, d-values of 3.47, 3.15, and 2.94 were observed for inactivation of the pathogen at 4, 25, and 50 °C. Up to 3.73 and >4.26 log CFU/mL reductions (p 2.4 log CFU/mL after treatments at 380 MPa for 3 and 12 min, respectively. Treatments below three min were less efficacious (p ≥ 0.05) against the pathogen and background microflora, in the vast majority of time and pressure combinations. Results of this study could be incorporated as part of a risk-based food safety management system and risk assessment analyses for mitigating the public health burden of listeriosis.
The association between Parkinson's disease symptom side-of-onset and performance on the MDS-UPDRS scale part IV: Motor complications

Abstract Introduction Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative condition associated with aging characterized by loss of dopamine-producing neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta and a reduction in dopamine levels in the striatum. PD is commonly treated using dopamine-replacement medication called levodopa. Levodopa has decreasing efficacy over time. Periods when levodopa is not effective at controlling symptoms of PD are called “OFF-time” or “medication-related motor fluctuations,” (MRMF). One characteristic of PD is unilateral side of symptom onset. Previous studies have found that side of onset was associated with differential motor and cognitive PD-related symptoms. The main study objective was to examine differences in left and right onset PD patients and OFF-time as measured by the Movement Disorders Society Unified Parkinson Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS) Part IV Sum Score and Part IV item scores. Methods 64 individuals with mild-moderate PD (age: M(SD) = 68.72 (8.88)), years with PD: M(SD) = 6.61 (5.05); Hoehn and Yahr stage Med (1st, 3rd quartile) = 2.0 (2.0, 3.0) were assessed with the MDS-UPDRS parts I-IV. We conducted two-tailed independent sample t-tests to examine the differences between PD patients with left versus right onset. Results Right onset PD was significantly associated with more overall MRMF (p = 0.01), more OFF-time (p = 0.04), greater impact of motor fluctuations on daily life (p = 0.02) and more complex (unpredictable) MRMF (p = 0.01). Conclusion People with right onset PD have more complications with levodopa treatment. Alternative and/or adjuvant treatments to levodopa may be particularly beneficial for those with right onset PD.
Genome sequencing and implications for rare disorders

The practice of genomic medicine stands to revolutionize our approach to medical care, and to realize this goal will require discovery of the relationship between rare variation at each of the ~ 20,000 protein-coding genes and their consequent impact on individual health and expression of Mendelian disease. The step-wise evolution of broad-based, genome-wide cytogenetic and molecular genomic testing approaches (karyotyping, chromosomal microarray [CMA], exome sequencing [ES]) has driven much of the rare disease discovery to this point, with genome sequencing representing the newest member of this team. Each step has brought increased sensitivity to interrogate individual genomic variation in an unbiased method that does not require clinical prediction of the locus or loci involved. Notably, each step has also brought unique limitations in variant detection, for example, the low sensitivity of ES for detection of triploidy, and of CMA for detection of copy neutral structural variants. The utility of genome sequencing (GS) as a clinical molecular diagnostic test, and the increased sensitivity afforded by addition of long-read sequencing or other -omics technologies such as RNAseq or metabolomics, are not yet fully explored, though recent work supports improved sensitivity of variant detection, at least in a subset of cases. The utility of GS will also rely upon further elucidation of the complexities of genetic and allelic heterogeneity, multilocus rare variation, and the impact of rare and common variation at a locus, as well as advances in functional annotation of identified variants. Much discovery remains to be done before the potential utility of GS is fully appreciated.
Design of a radiation-balanced fiber laser via optically active composite cladding materials

Although the output power of commercial fiber lasers has been reported to exceed 500 kW, the heat generated within fiber gain-media has limited the generation of higher laser powers due to thermal lensing and melting of the gain-media at high temperatures. Radiation-balanced fiber lasers promise to mitigate detrimental thermal effects within fiber gain-media based on using upconverted, anti-Stokes photoluminescence to extract heat from the optical fiber’s core. In this paper, we experimentally demonstrate that Yb(III) ions within $ {\text{YLiF}_4} $YLiF4 (YLF) microcrystals are capable of cooling the cladding of optical fibers. We also present a design for radiation-balanced fiber lasers using a composite fiber cladding material that incorporates YLF nanocrystals as the active photonic heat engine. YLF crystals have the potential to form composite cladding materials to mitigate thermal gradients within the core and cladding based on anti-Stokes photoluminescence. Analytical models of heat transfer within the fiber are presented where the electric-field amplitude within the fiber core is responsible for both the heating of the core and the excitation of Yb(III) ions for anti-Stokes laser refrigeration in the cladding.
A Comparison of Potential Azide Antidotes in a Mouse Model.

Three cobalt-containing macrocyclic compounds previously shown to antagonize cyanide toxicity have been comparatively evaluated for the amelioration of sublethal azide toxicity in juvenile (7–8 wee...
Extreme Arsenic and Antimony Uptake and Tolerance in Toad Tadpoles during Development in Highly Contaminated Wetlands

The effects of extreme concentrations of toxic metalloids, such as arsenic (As) and antimony (Sb), on larval amphibians are not well-understood. We sampled Western Toad tadpoles (Anaxyrus boreas) living in As- and Sb-contaminated wetlands throughout their development. Although the tadpoles completed metamorphosis, they accumulated among the highest concentrations of As and Sb ever reported for a living vertebrate (3866.9 mg/kg; 315.0 mg/kg (dry weight), respectively). Ingestion of contaminated sediment had a more important role in metalloid accumulation than aqueous exposure alone. Metalloids were initially concentrated in the gut; however, by metamorphosis, the majority were found in other tissues. These concentrations subsequently decreased with the onset of metamorphosis, yet remained quite elevated. Sublethal effects, including delayed development and reduced size at metamorphosis, were associated with elevated metalloid exposure. The presence of organic arsenicals in tadpole tissues suggests they have the ability to biomethylate inorganic As compounds. The arsenical trimethyl arsine oxide accounted for the majority of extractable organic As, with lesser amounts of monomethylarsonic acid and dimethylarsinic acid. Our findings demonstrate remarkable tolerance of toad tadpoles to extreme metalloid exposure and implicate physiological processes mediating that tolerance.
Development and validation of an LC-MS/MS method for determination of B vitamins and some its derivatives in whole blood

Obligate symbiotic bacteria associated with the insects feeding exclusively on vertebrate blood are supposed to complement B vitamins presumably lacking in their diet, vertebrate blood. Recent genomic analyses revealed considerable differences in biosynthetic capacities across different symbionts, indicating that levels of B vitamins vary across different vertebrate hosts. However, a rigorous determination of B vitamins content in blood of various vertebrates has not yet been approached. A reliable analytical method focused on B vitamin complex in blood and hemolymph can provide valuable informative background and understanding of general principles of insect symbiosis. In this work chromatographic separation of a mixture of eight B vitamins (B1 - thiamine, B2 - riboflavin, B3 - niacin, B5 - pantothenic acid, B6 - pyridoxine, B7 - biotin, B9 - folic acid and B12 - cyanocobalamine), four B vitamin derivatives (B3 - niacinamide, B6 - pyridoxal-5-phosphate, B6 - 4-pyridoxic acid and B9 - tetrahydrofolic acid) and 3 stable isotope labelled internal standards (B3 - niacin-13C6, B5 - pantothenic acid (di-{beta}-alanine-13C6,15N2) and B7 - biotin-(ring-6,6-d2)) on C30 column was developed. Detection was carried out using dual-pressure linear ion trap mass spectrometer in FullScan MS/MS and SIM mode. Matching internal standards with analytes was done according to the results of linearity, accuracy and precision. Except for vitamin B9 (tetrahydrofolic acid) instrument quantitation limits of all analytes were ranging from 0.42 to 5.0 g/L, correlation coefficients from 0.9997 to 1.0000 and QC coefficients from 0.53 to 3.2 %. Optimization of whole blood sample preparation step was focused especially on evaluation of two types of protein-precipitation agents: trichloroacetic acid and zinc sulphate in methanol. Samples of whole blood prepared in six independent replicates were spiked at 10 g/L and 100 g/L level. The best results were obtained for zinc sulphate in methanol, but only nine analytes (B1 - thiamine, B2 - riboflavin, B3 - niacin, B3 - niacinamide, B5 - pantothenic acid, B6 - pyridoxine, B6 - 4-pyridoxic acid, B7 - biotin and B12 - cyanocobalamine) were successfully validated. Accuracy of the procedure using this protein-precipitating agent was ranging from 89 to 120 %, precision from 0.5 to 13 % and process efficiency from 65 to 108 %. HighlightsO_LILC-MS/MS method for quantitation of eight B vitamins and four B vitamin derivatives was developed. C_LIO_LIDeproteinization agents trichloroacetic acid and ZnSO4/methanol were tested for protein precipitation of whole blood. C_LIO_LIAccuracy, precision and process efficiency were evaluated. C_LIO_LISuccessful method validation for seven B vitamins and two B vitamin derivatives in whole blood. C_LI
Usefulness of Exam Questions and Vital Signs for Predicting the Outcome of Objective Vestibular Tests.

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS To determine the value of standard clinic screening questions and vital signs in predicting abnormal vestibular function, indicated by standard objective diagnostic tests. STUDY DESIGN Retrospective records review. METHODS We reviewed electronic medical records of 150 patients seen by the neurotologists or the physician assistant they supervised, in an out-patient tertiary care clinic, between June 2018 and March 2020, and subsequently referred for the complete objective vestibular test battery (VB). RESULTS Of standard questions asked during the initial exam about vertigo, disequilibrium, lightheadedness and oscillopsia, only vertigo predicted an abnormal response on the VB. More males than females had abnormal VB responses, P < .05. Pulse was not related to VB score. Significantly more subjects with blood pressure in the range for stage 2 hypertension (blood pressure [BP] stage 2) had abnormal than normal results on the VB, P < .00001. Subjects with BP stage 2 had high rates of diabetes (34.2%) and hypertension (68.4%) as diagnosed by their primary care physicians or cardiologists. CONCLUSION Complaints of subjective vertigo and BP in the range of hypertension stage 2 are most likely to predict abnormal findings on the VB. Therefore, during an examination of a patient who comes in complaining of dizziness, two measures may be the most useful for screening: BP in the range of hypertension type 2, when BP is taken by a nurse, and a question to determine whether or not the patient has true vertigo. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE 3 Laryngoscope, 131:1382-1385, 2021.
Abstract MP70: Short-term Fine Particulate Air Pollution Is Associated With Shorter Sleep Duration And Higher Sleep Variability In Adolescents

Introduction: Sleep deprivation and large sleep variability are potential risk factors for obesity and cardiovascular diseases. While it is plausible that particulate air pollution may contribute t...
Daily acute intermittent hypoxia enhances phrenic motor output and stimulus-evoked phrenic responses in rats.

Two weeks of daily acute intermittent hypoxia (dAIH) preconditioning enhanced stimulus-evoked phrenic responses to lateral funiculus stimulation (targeting respiratory bulbospinal projection to phr...