cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Elevated carbon dioxide has limited acute effects on Lepomis macrochirus behaviour.

The current study investigated the behavioural response of Lepomis macrochirus following exposures to elevated carbon dioxide (CO2 ). For this, L. macrochirus were held at ambient pCO2 (160 μatm pCO2 ) for 7 days, then exposed to elevated pCO2 (8300 μatm pCO2 ) for 5 days, and then returned to ambient conditions for a further 5 days to recover. At the end of each exposure period, several behavioural metrics were quantified (boldness, lateralization and activity). Data showed no change in lateralization and most metrics associated with performance and boldness. During the boldness test, however, average velocity, velocity in the thigmotaxis (outer) zone and proportion of activity in the thigmotaxis zone increased with pCO2 exposure. During post-exposure, average velocity of L. macrochirus decreased. In addition, individual rank was repeatable during the pre-exposure and post-exposure period in three of the 17 metrics investigated (average velocity in the middle zone, average velocity near object and total shuttles to the object zone), but not during the CO2 exposure period, suggesting that elevated pCO2 disrupted some behavioural performances. Overall, this study found elevated pCO2 caused disruption to behaviours of freshwater fishes such as L. macrochirus and effects do not appear to be as serious as has been shown for marine fishes.
Performance scaling variability and energy analysis for a resilient ULFM-based PDE solver

We present a resilient task-based domain-decomposition preconditioner for partial differential equations (PDEs) built on top of User Level Fault Mitigation Message Passing Interface (ULFM-MPI). The algorithm reformulates the PDE as a sampling problem, followed by a robust regression-based solution update that is resilient to silent data corruptions (SDCs). We adopt a server-client model where all state information is held by the servers, while clients only serve as computational units. The task-based nature of the algorithm and the capabilities of ULFM complement each other to support missing tasks, making the application resilient to clients failing.We present weak and strong scaling results on Edison, National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC), for a nominal and a fault-injected case, showing that even in the presence of faults, scalability tested up to 50k cores is within 90%. We then quantify the variability of weak and strong scaling due to the presence of faults. Finally, we discuss the performance of our application with respect to subdomain size, server/client configuration, and the interplay between energy and resilience.
Development of Polyimide Ablators for NIF: Analysis of Defects on Shells, a Novel Smoothing Technique and Upilex Coatings

Over the last three years, LLNL has developed polyimide vapor deposition technology suitable for mandrel overcoating and fabrication of polyimide capsules. Agitated mandrels were overcoated with 4,...
Chapter 5 – Serum Proteins and the Dysproteinemias

Publisher Summary The nitrogenous compounds of blood plasma encompass all those organic and inorganic nitrogen-containing compounds of blood. These include the organic macromolecular compounds such as the proteins and nucleic acids; the smaller molecular weight compounds such as glutathione, urea, and creatinine; and the inorganic compounds such as nitrate and ammonia. The non-protein nitrogen (NPN) compounds are those grouped together as the fraction of the nitrogen-containing compounds of plasma that are not removed by the common protein precipitating agents such as trichloracetic acid. The principal components of the NPN fraction are urea (50%) and amino acids (25%), which total about 35.7 mmol N/liter (50 mg N/dl) plasma in contrast to protein nitrogen, which totals more than 714 mmol N/liter (1 g N/dl) plasma (or 6.25 g protein/dl). This chapter deals primarily with the latter fraction, which is classed collectively as the plasma or serum proteins. The diagnostic and interpretive aspects of the various individual fractions of this pool of proteins are the focus of the chapter.
Interactions between Genetics and Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Consumption on Health Outcomes: A Review of Gene-Diet Interaction Studies.

The consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB), which includes soft drinks, fruit drinks, and other energy drinks, is associated with excess energy intake and increased risk for chronic metabolic disease among children and adults. Thus, reducing SSB consumption is an important strategy to prevent the onset of chronic diseases, and achieve and maintain a healthy body weight. The mechanisms by which excessive SSB consumption may contribute to complex chronic diseases may partially depend on an individual’s genetic predisposition. Gene-SSB interaction investigations, either limited to single genetic loci or including multiple genetic variants, aim to use genomic information to define mechanistic pathways linking added sugar consumption from SSBs to those complex diseases. The purpose of this review is to summarize the available gene-SSB interaction studies investigating the relationships between genetics, SSB consumption, and various health outcomes. The genetic variants investigated were either limited to a single loci or expanded multiple loci. Current evidence suggests there are genetic predispositions for an association between SSB intake and adiposity; evidence for a genetic predisposition between SSB and type 2 diabetes or cardiovascular disease is limited.
Simulation-based Tutorials for Neuroscience Education

This paper describes a set of interactive computer tutorials which were designed to be used to provide “hands on” experience in a computer simulation laboratory which would accompany upper division undergraduate and graduate neuroscience courses. Simulations can be particularly useful in a neurobiology course if the goal is to teach the use of modeling as a tool for understanding neural systems, in addition to basic concepts in neuroscience. Although they form a sequence, these tutorials were designed so that they may be used independently, as supplemental material for existing courses. Thus, they are not tied to a particular course syllabus or textbook. Each tutorial is accompanied by a number of suggested exercises or experiments which may be either assigned as homework or used for self-study.
A Game of Networks: Examining Effective Connectivity during Task-Switching (P01.005)

OBJECTIVE: To use extended-unified structural equation modeling (eu-SEM) to examine the effective connectivity in the brain during a cued task-switching paradigm in a group of healthy individuals. BACKGROUND: Task-switching studies using fMRI have shown specific areas of the dorso-lateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), supplementary motor cortex (SMA), inferior frontal cortex (IFC), anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), insula (IN) and inferior parietal lobe (IPL) show increased activity on switch trials relative to repeat trials. This study used eu-SEM to explore the interaction between these brain areas, as opposed to the magnitude of the response in these areas (as observed in traditional topographical activation studies). DESIGN/METHODS: 13 healthy, right-handed subjects (8 female; mean age 34.8 ± 12.4 yrs, mean education 16.3 ±1.1 yrs) were scanned in a 3T MRI while performing a cued task switching paradigm (subjects switched between two tasks: a color judgment task and a speed judgment task). Effective connectivity between twelve nodes of the brain network underlying task-switching [bilateral DLPFC, SMA, IFC, ACC, IN and IPL] was determined by using eu-SEM. RESULTS: During task-switches (from color to speed or vice-versa) subjects showed more effective connectivity compared to task-repeats (color to color or speed to speed). The connectivity between (L) IFC, (L) SMA and (L) IN was found to be common between the two trial types (switch vs repeat). There was more bilateral connectivity during switching (e.g., right to left DLPFC) and nodes in (R) DLPFC, (R) ACC and (R)IN showed effective connectivity only during switching. CONCLUSIONS: While the existing fMRI literature shows the brain areas that are more active on switch trials than repeat trials, this study shows how the information is transmitted between these areas. Switching appears to depend on increased involvement of the homologue of the left-sided areas that are used for repeating a given task (within the context of a task-switching experiment). Supported by: National Multiple Sclerosis Society funding (# PP1364 to GW). Disclosure: Dr. Das has nothing to disclose. Dr. Wylie has nothing to disclose.
Role of injectable hyaluronic acid in skin rejuvenation: a literature review

A review of the evidence for injectable hyaluronic acid in facial skin rejuvenation was carried out to explore whether intradermal hyaluronic acid products, using different injection techniques, deliver improvements in skin quality. A literature review of published research identified six studies with varying methodologies and clinical outcome measures. The results from some of these studies demonstrate a benefit of using hyaluronic acid products for skin rejuvenation and improving skin quality.
Transformation of a Pediatric Primary Care Waiting Room: Creating a Bridge to Community Resources.

Introduction Children and families living in poverty frequently encounter social risks that significantly affect their health and well-being. Physicians' near universal access to at-risk children and their parents presents opportunities to address social risks, but time constraints frequently interfere. We sought to redesign our waiting room to create a clinic-to-community bridge and evaluate the impact of that redesign on family-centered outcomes. Methods We conducted a pre-post study of a waiting room redesign at a large, academic pediatric primary care center. Design experts sought input about an optimal waiting room from families, community partners and medical providers. Family caregivers were surveyed before and after redesign regarding perceived availability of help with social needs and access to community resources, and hospitality and feelings of stress. Pre-post differences were assessed using the Chi square or Wilcoxon rank sum test. Results The key redesign concepts that emerged included linkages to community organizations, a welcoming environment, and positive distractions for children. A total of 313 caregiver surveys were completed (pre-160; post-153). Compared to pre-redesign, caregivers surveyed post-redesign were significantly more likely to perceive the waiting room as a place to obtain help connecting to community resources and find information about clinical and educational resources (both p < 0.05). Families were also significantly more likely to report the waiting room as more welcoming and relaxing, with sufficient privacy and space (all p < 0.05). Discussion Waiting rooms, typically a place of wasted time and space, can be redesigned to enhance families' engagement and connection to community resources.
We Live on a Spaceship

(1972). We Live on a Spaceship. Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists: Vol. 28, No. 9, pp. 22-25.
2 – Time and Space

A wide range of brain mapping techniques currently exist for use in human subjects and animal models. Each varies on the continuum with regard to spatial and temporal resolution as well as sampling frequency and volume. Special issues with regard to the sites that these methods can access, their degree of invasiveness, requirement for anesthesia, and repeatability all contribute to the selection of the appropriate approach for a given neurobiological situation. It is important to understand the limitations and constraints for each method so as to interpret the results appropriately and to use the resultant data to build reliable hypotheses that can be rigorously tested with further experimentation. The ideal brain mapping technique would have extremely high spatial and temporal resolution with the capacity to sample a large volume of the brain continuously. The ability to rigorously correlate in vivo human data acquired tomographically or by other methods with postmortem tissue that is available for the myriad of immuno-, histo-, and biochemical stains provides a two-way system to develop a more thorough understanding of the microscopic anatomy of the brain that is driven by hypotheses generated from human in vivo experiments.
Review: interventions targeting intrinsic and environmental risk factors reduce falls in older persons.

Source Citation Gillespie LD, Gillespie WJ, Robertson MC, et al. Interventions for preventing falls in elderly people. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2003;CD000340. 14583918
DryDock: A Document Firewall

Auditing a web site's content is an arduous task. For any given page on a web server, system administrators are often ill-equipped to determine who created the document, why it's being served, how long it's been publicly viewable, and how it's changed over time.To police our web site, we created a secure web publishing application, DryDock, that governs the replication of content from an internal, developmental web server to a stripped-down, external, production web server. DryDock codifies a formal approval process that forces management to approve all web site changes before they are pushed out to the external machine. Users never interact directly with the production machine; DryDock updates the production server on their behalf. This allows administrators to operate their production web server in a more secure and regimented network environment than normally feasible.DryDock audits documents, tracks revisions, and notifies users of changes via email. Managers can approve files for publication at their leisure without the risk of inappropriate content ever being publicly visible. Web authors can develop pages without intimate knowledge of security policies. And administrators can instantly know the complete history of any file that has ever been published.
Effects of Endogenous Gut LPS on Cells of the Secretory Immune System

Lipopolysaccharide (LPS), the major constituent of the outer membrane of gram-negative bacteria, is a potent biostimulant for lymphoreticular cells of the host’s immune system (14). The major source of LPS in mammalian species is the indigenous gram-negative microflora of the gastrointestinal tract, of which Bacteroides species becomes the predominant genera during the first few weeks of life. The first major lymphoid tissue affected by gut LPS is the gut-associated lymphoreticular tissue (GALT), which is mainly represented by distinct lymphoid nodules, termed Peyer’s patches (PP), along the small intestine. The GALT or PP are major inductive sites for IgA responses to ingested environmental antigens and intestinal pathogens.
Ultrasonography Findings in Severe Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

Background: Increasing severity of carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), as graded by nerve conduction studies (NCS), has been demonstrated to predict the speed and completeness of recovery after carpal tunnel release (CTR). The purpose of this study is to compare the cross-sectional area (CSA) of the median nerve in patients with severe and nonsevere CTS as defined by NCS. Methods: Ultrasound CSA measurements were taken at the carpal tunnel inlet at the level of the pisiform bone by a hand fellowship-trained orthopedic surgeon. Severe CTS on NCS was defined as no response for the distal motor latency (DML) and/or distal sensory latency (DSL). Results: A total of 274 wrists were enrolled in the study. The median age was 51 years (range: 18-90 years), and 72.6% of wrists were from female patients. CSA of median nerve and age were comparatively the best predictors of severity using a linear regression model and receiver operator curves. Using cutoff of 12 mm2 for severe CTS, the sensitivity and specificity are 37.5% and 81.9%, respectively. Conclusions: Ultrasound can be used to grade severity in younger patients ( 12.
Telangiectases and cavernous angiomas of the brainstem: "cryptic" vascular malformations. Report of a case.

The cavernous angioma, although a common cause of non-hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage, is angiographically silent. No example of the angiographic visualization of an intracranial cavernoma has been reported to date. Telangiectases rarely produce intracerebral hemorrhage but may be observed in angiography and may be associated with cavernous angiomas. A case with telangiectases, a cavernous angioma and hematoma of the brainstem, and a unique angiographic picture is presented with a review of the clinical, angiographic and pathological features of the uncommon vascular malformations.
Guideline-Directed Medical Therapy in Hospitalized Heart Failure Patients: Still Underprescribed Despite Updated Guidelines and Over 20 Years of Evidence

Background Heart failure (HF) is a progressive condition and repeated hospitalizations are associated with worse outcomes. Guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT) is proven to reduce morbidity and mortality however previous literature has demonstrated low rates of prescribing. In April 2017, the ACC/AHA/HFSA Focused Update of the 2013 ACCF/AHA Guidelines for the Management of Heart Failure provided a clarified recommendation supporting the clinical strategy of renin-angiotensin system inhibition through angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs), angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) or angiotensin receptor-neprilysin inhibitors (ARNIs) in conjunction with evidence-based beta blockers and aldosterone antagonists in select heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) patients. We aimed to evaluate prescriber adherence rates to GDMT in patients hospitalized with acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF) at time of discharge after the publication of the guideline update. Methods A retrospective chart review of HF admissions at a large urban academic health system was conducted between October 1, 2017 and December 31, 2017. Patients 18 years or older with a left ventricular ejection fraction of 40 percent or less were included. Patients were excluded if they had a left ventricular assist device, heart transplant, end-stage renal disease on hemodialysis or were dependent on inotropes. Criteria for appropriate GDMT use were developed to guide data collection based off the 2017 ACC/AHA/HFSA Focused Update. The primary outcome was prescriber adherence to GDMT determined by prescriptions written at the time of discharge or documented on the discharge summary. Secondary outcomes included 30-day all-cause readmission rate and guideline adherence by provider service. Results Of the 50 patients reviewed only 32% (n=16) were discharged on appropriate GDMT. Table 1 depicts the percent of eligible patients receiving therapy upon discharge by drug class. Guideline adherence among the internal medicine service was 33.3% (12/36) compared to 28.5% (4/14) among the cardiology service. The 30-day readmission rate was lower among those discharged on appropriate therapy versus inappropriate therapy (25% vs. 46%). Conclusion Despite over 20 years of evidence and recently published guideline updates our results demonstrate poor prescriber adherence to GDMT with an alarmingly low number of eligible patients receiving aldosterone antagonists and appropriate combination therapy. Health systems must recognize and address barriers to guideline adherence in order to improve outcomes for HF patients.
The Influence of Interactions with Dogs on Affect, Anxiety, and Arousal in Children

Interactions with animals represent a promising way to reduce the burden of childhood mental illness on a large scale. However, the specific effects of child–animal interactions are not yet well-es...
The Federal Government Enters the Healthcare Field

Medicare and Medicaid legislation received wide public approval with Americans feeling they were getting a lot from Medicare in return for the moderate increase in their FICA contribution paid into the Social Security system and shared by employers. Adjusting the annual federal income tax to gain revenue to pay for the cost of the federal/state Medicaid program also seemed like a good deal. To make this happen, the House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee worked closely with each other and respected each other’s jurisdiction, a level of cooperation rarely seen today. Payments under Medicare were divided into two parts: Part A for hospital payments and Part B for nonhospital payments. The federal government became an additional third-party payer. Unfortunately the data used to determine the funding needed to sustain the programs over time was inadequate and incomplete, resulting in quickly escalating funding deficits that continue even today. Having determined the government has a role in healthcare, Congress began the delicate dance of coming up with policies that would accommodate both systems (and philosophies)—supporting government safety net programs while maintaining a system of private insurance.
Instability of many-body localized systems as a phase transition in a nonstandard thermodynamic limit

At the many-body localization transition, the dynamics of an isolated quantum system freezes out. In systems with long-range interactions (and possibly short-range systems in many spatial dimensions) this transition does not happen in the conventional thermodynamic limit: arbitrarily weak interactions prevent many-body localization. Here, the authors argue that even in these cases a sharp phase transition exists if one scales down the interaction strength with increasing system size in a specific nonstandard way.
Assessing financial toxicity in insured patients with multiple myeloma.

6600 Background: Financial toxicity is increasingly recognized for its potential to adversely impact the quality of life and health outcomes of patients undergoing treatment for cancer. Patients wi...
Fungal Facilitation in Rangelands: Do Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi Mediate Resilience and Resistance in Sagebrush Steppe?☆

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) may exert profound influences on ecosystem resilience and invasion resistance in rangelands. Maintenance of plant community structure through ecological feedback mechanisms such as facilitation of nutrient cycling and uptake by host plants, physical and chemical contributions to soil structural stability, and mediation of plant competition suggest AMF may be important facilitators in stressful arid environments. Plant-AMF interactions could influence succession by increasing native plant community resilience to drought, grazing, and fire and resistance to exotic plant invasion. However, invasive exotic plants may benefit from associations with, as well as alter, native AMF communities. Furthermore, questions remain on the role of AMF in stressful environments, specifically the mycorrhizal dependency of sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) steppe plant species. Here, we review scientific literature relevant to AMF in rangelands, with specific focus on impacts of land management, disturbance, and invasion on AMF communities in sagebrush steppe. We highlight the nature of AMF ecology as it relates to rangelands and discuss the methods used to measure mycorrhizal responsiveness. Our review found compelling evidence that AMF mediation of resilience to disturbance and resistance to invasion varies with plant and fungal community composition, including plant mycorrhizal host status, plant functional guild, and physiological adaptations to disturbance in both plants and fungi. We conclude by outlining a framework to advance knowledge of AMF in rangeland invasion ecology. Understanding the role of AMF in semiarid sagebrush steppe ecosystems will likely require multiple study approaches due to the highly variable nature of plant-AMF interactions, the complex mechanisms of resilience conference, and the unknown thresholds for responses to environmental stressors. This may require shifting away from the plant biomass paradigm of assessing mycorrhizal benefits in order to obtain a more holistic view of plant dependency on AMF, or lack thereof, in sagebrush steppe and other semiarid ecosystems.
Neighbors Working Together: a Toxoplasma Rhoptry Protein That Facilitates Dense Granule Protein Translocation into the Host Cell.

ABSTRACT The opportunistic pathogen Toxoplasma gondii is highly adept at manipulating host cell functions. While inside a host cell, Toxoplasma divides within a parasitophorous vacuole from which it secretes numerous effector proteins from its dense granules. Many of these so-called GRA proteins are translocated from the parsitophorous vacuole into the host cell where they directly disrupt host signaling pathways. The machinery that drives the translocation of GRA proteins across the parasitophorous vacuole membrane is being elucidated through both genetic and biochemical approaches. A new mSphere research article (M. W. Panas, A. Ferrel, A. Naor, E. Tenborg, et al., mSphere 4:e00276-19, 2019, https://doi.org/10.1128/mSphere.00276-19) describes how the kinase ROP17, which is secreted from the parasite’s rhoptries into the host cell during invasion, regulates the translocation of GRA effectors.
The Time Now, the Place Spain, January–May 1938

In truth, Hemingway was filled with revolutionary fervor and anxious to leave again for Spain. He also admitted to Max Perkins, “Am in such an unchristly gigantic jam of every bloody kind that it’s practically comic.” From the first day, he had returned to Key West, Ernest missed Martha, his trench buddies, and the excitement of war reporting. Since early January, Martha had been barnstorming the country on behalf of the Spanish Republic. She drew large, frequently overflowing crowds at the University of Minnesota on 7 January; the Des Moines Women’s Club on 19 January; the War Memorial in St. Louis on 29 January. In St. Louis, while being interviewed by a local reporter, Martha mentioned that famous writers including Ernest Hemingway had gone to Spain to defend the Republic. She predicted that if Franco was not stopped in Spain, there would be a world war.
An Unusual Mimic of Intermittent Bowel Obstruction

BACKGROUND Indigestible foreign material in the bowel can develop into bezoars. Intestinal obstruction can occur secondary to these bezoars. Phytobezoars specifically refer to those which accumulate as a result of undigested plant or other food material. CASE REPORT A 42-year-old woman presented to the Emergency Department with a several-month history of right-sided abdominal pain associated with bouts of vomiting. She had no other significant medical history. Labs and computed tomography were unrevealing. Gastroenterology was consulted and performed endoscopy. A foreign body resembling an undigested mini bell pepper was found near the terminal ileum. This was removed, and the patient later reported significant improvement in her symptoms. CONCLUSIONS Phytobezoars can lead to symptoms consistent with intestinal obstruction. The underlying pathology (e.g., masses, gastritis, adhesions, or dysmotility) can precipitate obstructions in the setting of bezoar formation. Surgical removal if often necessary for small-bowel obstructions secondary to bezoars, but in our case, fortunately, the foreign body was successfully removed during endoscopy.
Childhood malnutrition within the indigenous Wayuú children of northern Colombia.

Malnutrition contributes to nearly half of all preventable deaths in children under the age of five. While the burden of disease is heaviest in Sub-Saharan Africa, South, and Southeast Asia, malnutrition in Latin America remains high, especially within indigenous communities. This study evaluates the prevalence of malnutrition and its relationship with access to healthcare resources within 172 indigenous Wayuu communities in La Guajira, Colombia. Healthcare workers administered a health questionnaire and collected anthropometric measurements on all children 6 months to 5 years of age within the Wayuu households. These data were utilised to calculate the prevalence of acute malnutrition, stunting, and underweight. Of all surveyed Wayuu children, 22.9% and 18.3% met criteria for moderate and severe malnutrition, 33.4% and 28.1% met criteria for moderate and severe stunting, and 28.1% and 16.6% were moderately and severely underweight. Across all categories, malnourished children were older, less likely to have had a medical professional present at birth, less likely to have received medical care after birth, and more likely to have been born in a non-medical, community setting. The prevalence of malnutrition is much higher than national levels in Colombia. This population requires urgent assistance to address their disproportionately high rates of malnutrition.
Design of a Semi-Humanoid Telepresence Robot for Plant Disaster Response and Prevention

We introduce the end-to-end design of WRSTelebot, a semi-humanoid telepresence robot platform for disaster response. Its software design focuses on enabling highfidelity immersive telepresence control of its manipulators and proactive multilateral control enabled by anomaly detection of the operator’s physical state. The robot’s key mechanical design features include a transformable mobile base that allows the robot to switch between two drive systems: caterpillar-track and differential drive, depending on the encountered terrain. The upper body is composed of a retractable dynamically balanced 20-DoF humanoid torso, that can fold entirely, allowing the robot to navigate through space-constrained environments. We evaluateits performance during off-site tests to show its usability.
Mechanics of bacteria-assisted extrinsic healing

Abstract Self-healing materials can typically be divided into two types: intrinsic healing that harnesses dynamic bones to autonomously repair fractures, and extrinsic healing that uses the externally added components to enable the bonding of fractured interfaces. Although the theoretical modeling of intrinsic self-healing materials has been recently studied by Wang et al., the fundamental understanding and theoretical modeling of the extrinsic self-healing materials remain elusive. Without a deep understanding of the extrinsic healing mechanics, the design of extrinsic-healing materials and corresponding applications are still at the trial-and-error stage. Here, taking bacterial-precipitation-enabled healing as an example, we construct a modeling framework to explain the bacteria-assisted extrinsic healing mechanics. A model for the growth of crystal pillars is developed to explain the bacteria-assisted growth of the calcium carbonate (CaCO3) crystal forest within the fracture interface, and a cohesive zone model is built to explain the interfacial bonding. Our modeling framework can explain the evolution of the interfacial healing strength over the healing time and reveal the effects of interface distance and concentrations of bacteria and calcium ions on the healing performance. The modeling results are consistent with the bacteria-assisted healing experiments of ceramics and cement.
SolarPede: a stick-and-slip, light-powered, Mobile micro-crawler

In this paper, we present recent research results aimed at creating mobile microrobotic agents powered by light energy. The SolarPede is a second-generation, cm-scale micro-crawler targeting microfactory applications. The microrobot is equipped with a legged locomotion system and an electronic backpack. This novel microrobot is an advancement in functionality and design over its decade-old predecessor, the ARRIPede, and includes technological advancements such as wireless communication, light power, and omnidirectional mobility on a flat operating surface. The robot “chassis” consists of Micro Electromechanical System (MEMS) electrothermal actuators and micro-assembled vertical legs. Attached to the “chassis” is an electronic backpack realized using custom Printed Circuit Boards and interfaced to the Silicon body by wire-bonding. A simulation model for the SolarPede was created to predict system behavior and dynamic operation, and to serve as a design tool. Finally, the omni-directional locomotion of the SolarPede was experimentally confirmed in a “belly-up” configuration and powered by a solar simulator. A Silicon payload was tracked under optical microscope to measure and verify the motion velocity of 40 μm/s can be achieved by the microrobot in untethered operation with light irradiance equivalent to 8 suns.
Minimally Invasive Proctectomy for Rectal Cancer: A National Perspective on Short-term Outcomes and Morbidity.

Prior randomized trials showed comparable short-term outcomes between open and minimally invasive proctectomy (MIP) for rectal cancer. We hypothesize that short-term outcomes for MIP have improved as surgeons have become more experienced with this technique. Rectal cancer patients who underwent elective abdominoperineal resection (APR) or low anterior resection (LAR) were included from the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database (2016–2018). Patients were stratified based on intent-to-treat protocol: open (O-APR/LAR), laparoscopic (L-APR/LAR), robotic (R-APR/LAR), and hybrid (H-APR/LAR). Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to assess the impact of operative approach on 30-day morbidity. A total of 4471 procedures were performed (43.41% APR and 36.59% LAR); O-APR 42.72%, L-APR 20.99%, R-APR 16.79%, and H-APR 19.51%; O-LAR 31.48%, L-LAR 26.34%, R-LAR 17.48%, and H-LAR 24.69%. Robotic APR and LAR were associated with shortest length of stay and significantly lower conversion rate. After adjusting for other factors, lap, robotic and hybrid APR and LAR were associated with decreased risk of overall morbidity when compared to open approach. R-APR and H-APR were associated with decreased risk of serious morbidity. No difference in the risk of serious morbidity was observed between the four LAR groups. Appropriate selection of patients for MIP can result in better short-term outcomes, and consideration for MIP surgery should be made.
RUC Operative Time Estimates are Inaccurate, Resulting in Decreased Work RVU Assignments for Longer Urologic Procedures

Objective To assess whether inaccurate operative time estimates utilized by the Relative Value Update Committee (RUC) contribute to the undervaluation of longer urologic procedures. Methods The National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) data sets were reviewed from 2015 to 2017. NSQIP operative time is directly measured, contrasting with CMS times which are determined by the RUC via survey-generated estimates. The 50 most frequently coded urology current procedural terminologies were included. Operative time difference was compared between the 2 data sets, and Spearman's correlation coefficient was utilized to assess differences in wRVU/h. Results A total of 105,931 cases were included. Overall, RUC operative time estimates were longer than NSQIP (124.4 vs 103.5 minutes, P Conclusion The RUC-intended wRVU/h is more equitable than the NSQIP real-world wRVU/h with regard to operative time. Inaccurate RUC operative time estimates contribute to the undervaluation of longer urologic procedures.
Treating a Global Health Crisis with a Dose of Synthetic Chemistry

The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has prompted scientists from many disciplines to work collaboratively toward an effective response. As academic synthetic chemists, we examine how best to contribute to this ongoing effort.
Near-Optimal Area-Coverage Path Planning of Energy-Constrained Aerial Robots With Application in Autonomous Environmental Monitoring

This article describes a Voronoi-based path generation (VPG) algorithm for an energy-constrained mobile robot, such as an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). The algorithm solves a variation of the coverage path-planning problem where complete coverage of an area is not possible due to path-length limits caused by energy constraints on the robot. The algorithm works by modeling the path as a connected network of mass-spring-damper systems. The approach further leverages the properties of Voronoi diagrams to generate a potential field to move path waypoints to near-optimal configurations while maintaining path-length constraints. Simulation and physical experiments on an aerial vehicle are described. Simulated runtimes show linear-time complexity with respect to the number of path waypoints. Tests in variously shaped areas demonstrate that the method can generate paths in both convex and nonconvex areas. Comparison tests with other path generation methods demonstrate that the VPG algorithm strikes a good balance between runtime and optimality, with significantly better runtime than direct optimization, lower cost coverage paths than a lawnmower-style coverage path, and moderately better performance in both metrics than the most conceptually similar method. Physical experiments demonstrate the applicability of the VPG method to a physical UAV, and comparisons between real-world results and simulations show that the costs of the generated paths are within a few percent of each other, implying that analysis performed in simulation will hold for real-world application, assuming that the robot is capable of closely following the path and a good energy model is available. Note to Practitioners —For autonomous mobile-robotics-based applications where a robot equipped with a tool or sensor is required to survey an area for inspection, monitoring, cleaning, and so on, effectively covering the area is desirable. However, for energy-constrained systems such as aerial vehicles with limited flight time, complete coverage is not possible. Presented here is a new Voronoi-based path generation algorithm that takes energy constraints into account to generate waypoints for the robot to follow in a near-optimal configuration while maintaining path-length constraints. The approach is applied in simulation and experiments for an application in environmental monitoring using unmanned aerial vehicles.
More Is More: Drivers of the Increase in Emergency Medicine Residency Applications.

Introduction The average number of applications per allopathic applicant to emergency medicine (EM) residency programs in the United States (US) has increased significantly since 2014. This increase in applications has caused a significant burden on both programs and applicants. Our goal in this study was to investigate the drivers of this application increase so as to inform strategies to mitigate the surge. Methods An expert panel designed an anonymous, web-based survey, which was distributed to US allopathic senior applicants in the 2017-2018 EM match cycle via the Council of Residency Directors in Emergency Medicine and the Emergency Medicine Residents Association listservs for completion between the rank list certification deadline and release of match results. The survey collected descriptive statistics and factors affecting application decisions. Results A total of 532 of 1748 (30.4%) US allopathic seniors responded to the survey. Of these respondents, 47.3% felt they had applied to too many programs, 11.8% felt they had applied to too few, and 57.7% felt that their perception of their own competitiveness increased their number of applications. Application behavior of peers going into EM was identified as the largest external factor driving an increase in applications (61.1%), followed by US Medical Licensing Exam scores (46.9%) - the latter was most pronounced in applicants who self-perceived as "less competitive." The most significant limiter of application numbers was the cost of using the Electronic Residency Application Service (34.3%). Conclusion A substantial group of EM applicants identified that they were over-applying to residencies. The largest driver of this process was individual applicant response to the behavior of their peers who were also going into EM. Understanding these motivations may help inform solutions to overapplication.
Test Batteries After Primary Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction: A Systematic Review:

Context:There is a lack of consensus regarding test batteries for return to sport (RTS) after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR).Objective:To report the RTS test batteries for individ...
Impaired Wound Healing, Fibrosis, and Cancer: The Paradigm of Recessive Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa.

Recessive Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa (RDEB) is a devastating skin blistering disease caused by mutations in the gene encoding type VII collagen (C7), leading to epidermal fragility, trauma-induced blistering, and long term, hard-to-heal wounds. Fibrosis develops rapidly in RDEB skin and contributes to both chronic wounds, which emerge after cycles of repetitive wound and scar formation, and squamous cell carcinoma—the single biggest cause of death in this patient group. The molecular pathways disrupted in a broad spectrum of fibrotic disease are also disrupted in RDEB, and squamous cell carcinomas arising in RDEB are thus far molecularly indistinct from other sub-types of aggressive squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). Collectively these data demonstrate RDEB is a model for understanding the molecular basis of both fibrosis and rapidly developing aggressive cancer. A number of studies have shown that RDEB pathogenesis is driven by a radical change in extracellular matrix (ECM) composition and increased transforming growth factor-beta (TGFβ) signaling that is a direct result of C7 loss-of-function in dermal fibroblasts. However, the exact mechanism of how C7 loss results in extensive fibrosis is unclear, particularly how TGFβ signaling is activated and then sustained through complex networks of cell-cell interaction not limited to the traditional fibrotic protagonist, the dermal fibroblast. Continued study of this rare disease will likely yield paradigms relevant to more common pathologies.
Umbilical Cord Erythroferrone Is Inversely Associated with Hepcidin, but Does Not Capture the Most Variability in Iron Status of Neonates Born to Teens Carrying Singletons and Women Carrying Multiples.

Background The developing fetus requires adequate iron and produces its own hormones to regulate this process. Erythroferrone (ERFE) is a recently identified iron regulatory hormone, and normative data on ERFE concentrations and relations between iron status and other iron regulatory hormones at birth are needed. Objectives The objective of this study was to characterize cord ERFE concentrations at birth and assess interrelations between ERFE, iron regulatory hormones, and iron status biomarkers in 2 cohorts of newborns at higher risk of neonatal anemia. Methods Umbilical cord ERFE concentrations were measured in extant serum samples collected from neonates born to women carrying multiples (age: 21-43 y; n = 127) or teens (age: 14-19 y; n = 164). Relations between cord blood ERFE and other markers of iron status or erythropoiesis in cord blood were assessed by linear regression and mediation analysis. Results Cord ERFE was detectable in all newborns delivered between 30 and 42 weeks of gestation, and mean concentration at birth was 0.73 ng/mL (95% CI: 0.63, 0.85 ng/mL). Cord ERFE was on average 0.25 ng/mL lower in newborns of black as opposed to white ancestry (P = 0.04). Cord ERFE was significantly associated with transferrin receptor (β: 1.17, P 25% of variance explained). Conclusions Neonates born to teens and women carrying multiples were able to produce ERFE in response to neonatal cord iron status and erythropoietic demand. ERFE, however, did not capture significant variance in newborn iron or Hb concentrations. In these newborns, cord hepcidin and the hepcidin:EPO ratio explained the most variance in iron status indicators at birth.
Single-synapse analyses of Alzheimers disease implicate pathologic tau, DJ1, CD47, and ApoE

Synaptic molecular characterization is limited for Alzheimers disease (AD). We used mass cytometry to quantify 38 probes in approximately 17 million single synaptic events from human brains without pathologic change or with pure AD or Lewy body disease (LBD), non-human primates (NHP), and PS/APP mice. Synaptic molecular integrity in humans and NHP was similar. Although not detected in human synapses, A{beta} was in PS/APP mice synaptic events. Clustering and pattern identification of human synapses showed expected disease-specific differences, like increased hippocampal pathologic tau in AD and reduced caudate dopamine transporter in LBD, and revealed novel findings including increased hippocampal CD47 and lowered DJ1 in AD and higher ApoE in AD dementia. Our results were independently supported by multiplex ion beam imaging of intact tissue.
The feasibility of medical unmanned aerial systems in suburban areas.

Abstract Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrests (OHCA) are one of the biggest challenges facing medical systems world-wide. Each year, more than 420,000 Americans experience cardiac arrests with a survival rate of approximately 10%.1 A large challenge to treating OHCA continues to be rapid access to AEDs which can increase survival rates up to 40%.1 While pivotal to an OHCA patient's survival, AEDs are not always readily available. Advances in unmanned aerial systems (UAS) – commonly referred to as drones – can provide a solution since UAS have the ability to rapidly carry an AED payload to an emergency site. This study examined the potential use of UAS delivered AEDs in suburban areas by using the Charlottesville-Albemarle area as an example. This study was carried out by using Geographical Information Systems mapping. Specifications of the Eagle drone model by Flirtey were used to develop a beneficial drone placement plan. Models were created with drones at first responder stations. Coverage area of the drones at first responder stations was compared to coverage area of drone units placed at “ideal” locations in the Charlottesville-Albemarle County area. Population statistics were gathered from the GIS program Social Explorer, using data from the U.S. Census Bureau. The “ideal” location placement plan was then evaluated for an estimate of total population covered by the system. Finally, ideal drone placements were evaluated and compared to response time and distances versus a local EMS ground unit. With the derived ideal placements, 70.08% of the area would have drone coverage that could deliver an AED in less than five minutes and 97.97% of the area would have coverage in less than 10 min. At minimum, 94.72% of the population would be covered by the ideal placements of drones within the area. Drone response time was significantly faster than ground EMS response by a factor of 5× (P value The results show that UAS delivery of AEDs is not only possible in the Charlottesville-Albemarle County area, but an effective way to decrease response time to improve chances of survival for a person experiencing an OHCA in similar suburban areas.
A gas chromatography-mass spectrometry method for quantifying squalane and squalene in aerosol emissions of electronic cigarette, or vaping, products.

Abstract Numerous chemicals of unknown inhalational toxicity have been measured in electronic cigarette, or vaping, products (EVPs). In addition, little is known about the liquid-to-aerosol transmission and deliveries of these chemicals, including oil-like terpenes such as squalene (SQE) and squalane (SQA). To provide information on the aerosol deliveries of these compounds from EVPs, we developed and validated a quantitative method to measure squalene and squalane in EVP aerosol emissions. Validation parameters include measurement repeatability (SQA and SQE %RSD
Radical-Containing Polymer Emulsions

This chapter describes the study of the radical-containing polymer-in-water dispersions obtained using the techniques described in the previous chapter. The studies include verification of the presence of radicals in the system through theoretical estimation. Some of the concepts and data presented here are adapted from Caneba and Dar (2002), Dar and Caneba (2001), Dar et al. (2003), and Caneba et al. (2002).