cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Neurotensin elevates hepatic bile acid secretion in chickens by a mechanism requiring an intact enterohepatic circulation

Neurotensin (NT), given intravenously at 10-50 pmol/kg per min to anesthetized female chickens equipped with a bile duct fistula, dose-dependently elevated hepatic bile flow and bile acid output but only when the enterohepatic circulation was maintained by returning the bile to the intestinal lumen. Infusion of NT at 10 and 50 pmol/kg per min increased the average hepatic bile acid output over a 30-min period to 138 +/- 11 and 188 +/- 13% of control, respectively. During infusion of NT, plasma levels of immunoreactive NT (iNT) increased in time from the basal level (14 +/- 1.3 pM) to reach steady state at 30 min. There was a near linear relationship between the dose of NT infused and the increment in plasma iNT. In addition, infusion of NT at 40 pmol/kg min gave a plasma level of iNT (approximately/= 88 pM) which was within the range of those observed during duodenal perfusion with lipid (54-300 pM) and near to that measured in hepatic portal blood from fed animals (52 +/- 5 pM). Perfusion of duodenum with lipid released endogenous NT and increased the rate of hepatic bile flow. When NT antagonist SR48692 was given, bile flow rate decreased to the basal level. These results suggest that intestinal NT, released by lipid, may participate in the regulation of hepatic bile acid output by a mechanism requiring an intact enterohepatic circulation.
A linear model for predicting performance of short-read aligners using genome complexity

Background The effectiveness and accuracy of aligning short reads to genomes have an important impact on many applications that rely on next-generation sequencing data. The computational requirements and material cost for aligning largescale short reads to genomes is also expensive. To prevent wasted time and resources for aligning short reads, we investigated the different measures of genome complexity [1] that correlated best to the performance of alignment to propose a linear model for each aligning method [2].
Electron Microscope Methods for Imaging Internal Magnetic Fields at High Spatial Resolution

This Advanced Study Institute is primarily concerned with magnetism in small particles, thin films, interfaces and multilayers. In other words, we are interested in the effects of boundary conditions and low dimensionality on spin systems. Before the dynamic magnetic properties of these structures can be understood, an older and simpler question often remains to be answered - what is the spatial arrangement of the spins at low temperatures on a nanometer scale? How is the three-dimensional vector field modified by the presence of boundaries, defects and interfaces? For bulk materials, we may similarly be interested in the fine details of magnetic domain structure - for example in the measurement of domain wall width, and in the mechanisms of flux pinning.
Study on Injection Molding Process of NR

The special requirements of injection molding process on compound were presented from fluidity and scorching security.The influence of scorching,fluidity and mixing process on NR compound injecting molding process was researched.The results showed that compound had good scorching safety when 1.5phr CZ,1.2phr S and 0.4phr M was adopted and flowable agent could enchance fluidity of compound.Mechanical properties of rubber reduced slightly while flowability increased significant when 5phr flowable agent was added to the rubber compound.
On the Regional Effect and Agglomeration Effect:A Research on the Reason of Regional Actual Income Gap

Traditional Economics regards the regional effect as the main reason leading to actual income gap among regions,while New Economic Geography attributes it to agglomeration effect.Based on the theory of footloose capital model,we make an empirical analysis and it shows that both regional effect and agglomeration effect have an impact on the formation of actual income gap,and the agglomeration effect plays a major role.In order to narrow the gap,we should expand the market potential in backward areas,and it is necessary to accelerate the capital accumulation and to promote technical level of enterprises in backward areas,and improve the degree of trade freedom among regions.
Private Information in the BBV Model of Public Goods

To analyze the private provision of a public good in the presence of private information, we explore the connections between two frameworks: the binary public good model with threshold uncertainty and the standard continuous model a la Bergstrom et al. Linearity of best responses in others' contributions is key to matching the two frameworks. We identify all utility functions that display this linearity, and we provide conditions ensuring that the minimal properties that Bergstrom et al. require for utilities are satisfied. Using techniques developed in the threshold uncertainty framework, we show existence and uniqueness of the Bayes-Nash equilibrium—thus generalizing existing results—and we analyze its comparative statics properties. In particular, under the reasonable assumption that agents' income is stochastic and private information, we complement the full-information crowding-out and redistribution results of Bergstrom et al. If the government taxes agents' income proportionally and redistributes (expected) revenues lump sum, equilibrium public good provision can increase or decrease, even if the set of contributors is unchanged. Similarly, we show that crowding-out can be one-for-one, less than one-for-one, or more than one-for-one. Finally, we extend our results to a multidimensional framework in which agents' unit costs of contributions are also private information.
A Simple and Reliable Method for Early Pregnancy Detection in Inbred Mice

The study of normal and abnormal development typically requires precise embryonic staging. In mice, this task is accomplished through timed matings and the detection of a copulation plug. However, the presence of a plug is not a definitive indicator of true pregnancy, particularly in inbred mice, in which false-pregnancy rates have been reported to be 50% or higher, depending on the strain. This high rate poses considerable financial and animal use burdens because manipulation of the putative dam is often required before pregnancy can be confirmed by palpation or visual inspection. To address this problem, we examined weight gain in a population of 275 wildtype C57BL/6J mice (age, 12 wk or older) between the time of plug detection and during early embryogenesis (gestational days 7 to 10). In this population, assessing pregnancy according to the presence of a plug alone yielded a 37.1% false-positive rate. Pregnant mice gained an average of 3.49 g, whereas nonpregnant mice gained only 1.15 g. Beginning at gestational day 7.75, implementing an optimal weight-gain discrimination threshold of 1.75 g reduced the false-positive rate to 10.5%, without excluding any pregnant mice. These results were consistent with those from younger (age, 8 wk) wildtype C57BL/6J and FVB/NTac female mice, suggesting broad applicability of this method across age and strain. Our findings provide a simple and effective method for reducing animal use and study costs.
Successful management of patients with "multiple chemical sensitivities" on an inpatient psychiatric unit.

Background Much controversy exists over the diagnosis, etiology, and treatment of "multiple chemical sensitivities" also known as "environmental illness." The experience of multiple nonspecific reactions to numerous environmental agents leads to these diagnoses. Due to skepticism surrounding the validity of these patients' complaints, they are often referred for psychiatric evaluations, but successful management on a psychiatric inpatient unit can be complicated because of their unique presentations. Method The approach taken by a university psychiatric inpatient unit to the evaluations of three such patients is presented along with a literature review of etiologic theories and treatment recommendations. Results Each of the three patients presented with severe disability from their "sensitivities," but each improved significantly over the course of a 17-day hospitalization. Conclusion These patients benefited greatly from a serious, nonjudgmental, comprehensive approach to the evaluation of their multiple complaints. Despite the absence of any positive organic findings, each felt that her experiences had been validated, and each subsequently improved. When evaluating similar patients, clinicians should be aware of useful, effective management strategies and should avoid overt skepticism and confrontation.
Control of Metabolism by Central and Peripheral Clocks in Drosophila

Drosophila is a powerful system for the molecular analysis of circadian clocks, providing the first account of how such a clock is generated. It is also proving to be an excellent model to dissect the neural basis of circadian behavior. In addition, clocks are located in peripheral tissues in flies, but much less is known about these clocks and about the physiological processes they control. This chapter describes the use of Drosophila for understanding the circadian control of metabolism. While a clock in the fat body is critical for metabolic function, it is clear that neuronal clocks are also involved. Indeed, synchrony between these clocks is important for reproductive fitness. A complex interplay between circadian and metabolic signals is indicated by the finding that metabolic pathways can even impact rest:activity rhythms controlled by the brain clock. Drosophila may be an optimal system to dissect the nature of these interactions and their importance for organismal fitness and life span.
Interchapter: Desperately Seeking Untimeliness

Sorensen theorizes recovery as a crucial enabling strategy for the development of contemporary multiculturalism and the new modernist studies that nevertheless can gloss over earlier texts’ profound critiques of modernity in favor of a redemptive version of literary history. Using a brief reading of Ishmael Reed’s Mumbo Jumbo as a case study, he elaborates an alternative theory of recovery in which the untimeliness of recovered texts is no longer a scandal to be avoided or a wrong to be undone but instead a key source of their continued potential to disturb and disrupt the common sense of modernity.
Liposome-mediated therapy of intracranial brain tumors in a rat model.

Purpose. Malignant brain tumors represent a serious therapeutic challenge, and survival often is low. We investigated the delivery of doxorubicin (DXR) to rat brain tumors in situ vialiposomes, to test the hypothesis that intact liposomes undergo deposition in intracranial tumor through a compromised blood-tumor vasculature. Both therapeutic effect and intra-tumor drug carrier distribution were evaluated to identify variables in carrier-mediated delivery having impact on therapy. Methods. The rat 9L gliosarcoma tumor was implanted orthotopically in Fischer 344 rats in the caudate-putamen region. The tumor-bearing rats were treated with DXR, either free or encapsulated in long-circulating, sterically-stabilized liposomes. Anti-tumor efficacy was assessed by survival time. In parallel, liposomes labeled with a fluorescent phospholipid analog were injected into tumor-bearing rats. At predetermined intervals, the brains were perfused with fixative, sectioned, and imaged with laser scanning confocal microscope (LSCM) to investigate the integrity of the tumor vascular bed and the intratumor deposition of liposomes. Results. Free DXR given in 3 weekly iv injections was ineffective in increasing the life span of tumor-bearing rats at cumulative doses ≤17 mg/kg, and at the highest dose (17 mg/kg) decreased survival slightly, compared to saline-treated controls. In contrast, DXR encapsulated in long-circulating liposomes mediated significant increases in life span at 17 mg/kg. Rats showed a 29% percent increase in median survival, respectively, compared to saline-control animals. The delay of treatment after tumor implantation was a major determinant of therapeutic effect. Fluorescent liposomes were deposited preferentially in tumor rather than normal brain, and were distributed non-uniformly, in close proximity to tumor blood vessels. Conclusions. Liposomes can be used to enhance delivery of drugs to brain tumors and increase therapeutic effect. The therapeutic effect may arise from release of drug from liposomes extravasated in discrete regions of the tumor vasculature and the extravascular space.
Networks, Crowds, and Markets: Reasoning about a Highly Connected World

Over the past decade there has been a growing public fascination with the complex connectedness of modern society. This connectedness is found in many incarnations: in the rapid growth of the Internet, in the ease with which global communication takes place, and in the ability of news and information as well as epidemics and financial crises to spread with surprising speed and intensity. These are phenomena that involve networks, incentives, and the aggregate behavior of groups of people; they are based on the links that connect us and the ways in which our decisions can have subtle consequences for others. This introductory undergraduate textbook takes an interdisciplinary look at economics, sociology, computing and information science, and applied mathematics to understand networks and behavior. It describes the emerging field of study that is growing at the interface of these areas, addressing fundamental questions about how the social, economic, and technological worlds are connected.
Using software to predict occupational hearing loss in the mining industry

Powerful mining systems typically generate high-level noise that can damage the hearing ability of miners. Engineering noise controls are the most desirable and effective control for overexposure to noise. However, the effects of these noise controls on the actual hearing status of workers are not easily measured. A tool that can provide guidance in assigning workers to jobs based on the noise levels to which they will be exposed is highly desirable. Therefore, the Pittsburgh Mining Research Division (PMRD) of the U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) developed a tool to estimate in a systematic way the hearing loss due to occupational noise exposure and to evaluate the effectiveness of developed engineering controls. This computer program is based on the ISO 1999 standard and can be used to estimate the loss of hearing ability caused by occupational noise exposures. In this paper, the functionalities of this software are discussed and several case studies related to mining machinery are presented to demonstrate the functionalities of this software.
Tracking the downstream impacts of inadequate sanitation in central Appalachia

Poor sanitation in rural infrastructure is often associated with high levels of fecal contamination in adjacent surface waters, which presents a community health risk. Although microbial source tracking techniques have been widely applied to identify primary remediation needs in urban and/or recreational waters, use of human-specific markers has been more limited in rural watersheds. This study quantified the human source tracking marker Bacteroides- HF183, along with more general fecal indicators (i.e. culturable Escherichia coli and a molecular Enterococcus marker), in two Appalachian streams above and below known discharges of untreated household waste. Although E. coli and Enterococcus were consistently recovered in samples collected from both streams, Bacteroides- HF183 was only detected sporadically in one stream. Multiple linear regression analysis demonstrated a positive correlation between the concentration of E. coli and the proximity and number of known waste discharge points upstream; this correlation was not significant with respect to Bacteroides- HF183, likely due to the low number of quantifiable samples. These findings suggest that, while the application of more advanced source targeting strategies can be useful in confirming the influence of substandard sanitation on surface waters to justify infrastructure improvements, they may be of limited use without concurrent traditional monitoring targets and on-the-ground sanitation surveys.
Planar Cell Polarity and the Cell Biology of Nervous System Development and Disease

Although the role of planar cell polarity (PCP) proteins in polarized cells such as epidermal sheets is beginning to be understood, much less is known about their roles in the nervous system despite the severe neurological phenotypes observed in PCP animal mutants and human patients harboring mutations in these genes. This is complicated by the fact that “polarization” in a neuron is a relative term, since a neuron must reengage and reorient the polarity system every time the growth cone of an axon needs to change directions in response to guidance cues. This chapter will begin with a broad introduction on PCP, followed by a discussion of PCP effector genes identified in nonneuronal tissues that play roles in the nervous system. I will then provide a description of nervous system phenotypes in PCP mutants with an emphasis on neuronal migration and axonal extension defects including what is known about the cell biology of these processes. This will include a discussion on key Rho GTPases and proteins that affect microtubule and actin dynamics. In addition, I will discuss the remarkable similarities between adherens junctions (at which the classic PCP proteins reside) and focal adhesions/point contacts, the latter of which are critical for growth cone dynamics and cell migration.
More robust Chebyshev filtering for SCF iteration, with applications in real-space DFT

Abstract Chebyshev filtered subspace iteration (CheFSI) is a popular and powerful solver for the eigenvalue problems embedded in electronic structure calculations. Effective use of ChFSI requires that the user choose good values for several parameters, notably the filter degree d . Finding a good value for d is typically done with user experience and some trial and error. If the user chooses a bad value for d , then convergence can be slow. For real-space computation using high-accuracy discretizations, the degree search space may be exceptionally large, making the search for a good degree difficult. We develop a method that is more robust to the consequences of bad choices of d ; we also provide a heuristic-based method for choosing d automatically if the user is not able to venture a good guess. We note that only by-products of CheFSI are needed to track filter performance. We provide examples that demonstrate near-equivalence to CheFSI when d is near-optimal, and a reduction in computational resource requirements in other cases.
Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumour: an unusual presentation including small bowel obstruction and palpable abdominal mass.

A 41-year-old man with no medical history presented with 2 weeks of nausea, vomiting, a new palpable abdominal mass, constipation and a 14kgweight loss. On admission, CT abdomen and pelvis demonstrated a 6.9×3.7 cm soft-tissue abdominal mass deep to and invading the lower anterior abdominal wall with tethering of the urinary bladder and potential involvement of the urachus. Subsequently, a biopsy demonstrated a low-grade spindle cell neoplasm compatible with inflammatory myofibroblastic tumour with immunostain positive for smooth muscle actin and desmin and negative for CD21, CD117, DOG-1, TKE-1, mdm2, CD34 and ALK. One week following admission, he underwent en bloc excision of the mass including abdominal wall (umbilicus, portions of rectus sheath and muscle), bladder dome, right colon and a segment of small bowel. Final pathology of the mass confirmed an inflammatory myofibroblastic tumour, and his postoperative course was uneventful.
Slow Viruses and Prions

Almost two decades have passed since the discovery of the first human slow infection, kuru.1 Several additional slow infections of humans have been discovered in recent years, but all of these diseases are rather rare. Despite an intensive effort, it has not been possible to show that a common degenerative disorder possesses a slow infectious etiology. Either slow infections are indeed rare and not the cause of such disorders, or our present techniques are inadequate to detect most slow infectious agents.
A University for the Twenty-First Century

We all know the picture well. Each year hundreds of thousands of students enter institutions of higher education: universities, technical schools, state and private colleges. Many drop out and many are dropped out. Most achieve less than they are capable of accomplishing. These outcomes underline the dismal quality of higher education. The failures are not personal. They are institutional. Many of the brightest and the best are dimmed and diminished by the instructional organizations they enter.
The Family and Schizophrenia: Toward a Psychoeducational Approach:

Families of schizophrenics traditionally have been viewed as causative agents in the development of the mental disorder. This article traces the prevailing conceptions of families with schizophreni...
Child Mortality in the United States: Bridging Palliative Care and Public Health Perspectives

* Abbreviations: ED — : emergency department PPC — : pediatric palliative care Child and adolescent mortality rates in the United States have fallen fairly consistently since the 1960s.1 And yet, infant mortality and deaths in adolescents and young adults are not infrequent. In 2015, 1 out of every 270 infants in the United States died before their first birthday, while 1 out of every 1438 Americans aged 15 to 24 died.2 Among children and adolescents, nonintentional injuries, suicide, and homicide are leading causes of death (Table 1). These cause-of-death statistics provide powerful data to inform public health initiatives, preventive medicine programs, and child health advocacy around end-of-life care. View this table: TABLE 1 2015 Child and Adolescent Mortality in the United States, Both Overall and Due to Unintentional Injuries, Suicide, and Homicide (Grouped Together as Injuries) In this issue of Pediatrics , Trowbridge et al3 take the novel approach of studying modes of death rather than causes of death. Following chart review of all deaths at a freestanding children’s hospital from 2011 to 2014, they created the following 5 mutually exclusive categories: (1) withdrawal of life-sustaining technology, (2) nonescalation of care, (3) failed … Address correspondence to JoAnna K. Leyenaar, MD, PhD, MPH, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, WTRB, 1 Medical Center Way, Lebanon, NH 03766. E-mail: joanna.k.leyenaar{at}hitchcock.org
Environment matters: new evidence from Mexican migration

ABSTRACTThis articleexamines the effects of climate-related environmental disasters on migration. Results from the gravity model estimations show that these disasters are a significant determinant ...
A Cobalt Sunrise: Thermites based on LiClO₄-Filled Co(0) Aerogels Prepared from Polymer-Cross-Linked Cobaltia Xerogel Powders

A new route to metallic aerogels that bypasses the use of supercritical fluids and handling fragile wet-gel and aerogel precursors is exemplified by the carbothermal synthesis of monolithic Co(0) aerogels from compressed cobaltia xerogel powders coated conformally (cross-linked) at the primary particle level with a carbonizable polyurea. Residual carbon is removed, and carbon-free samples are obtained by high-temperature treatment of as-prepared Co(0) aerogels under a flowing stream of H2O/H2 that prevents oxidation of the Co(0) network. The durability of Co(0) aerogels is demonstrated under harsh processing conditions in their application as thermites. For this, Co(0) aerogel discs are infiltrated with LiClO4 from a melt and are ignited at about 1100 °C with an electric resistor. As Co(0) "burns" to CoO, temperature exceeds 1500 °C, and the heat released (-552 ± 2 kcal mol-1) is near to both the theoretical value (-58.47 kcal mol-1) and that from well-known pressed-pellet iron/perchlorate thermites (-66.6 kcal mol-1). The advantage of nanostructured thermites based on Co(0) aerogels is the efficiency (100%) by which the metal is consumed during its reaction with LiClO4 filling the pores.
Friction Measurements in Piston-Cylinder Apparatus Using Quartz ⇆ Coesite Transition

The configuration for a high-pressure apparatus is generally a cylinder that is closed at one end and has a movable piston in the other. A specimen to be pressurized is placed inside the cylinder and is compressed by a piston, which is driven by the ram of a hydraulic press. A number of high-pressure apparatuses are in use for static high-pressure and high-temperature studies to 6.5 GPa and 2073 K. Of these, the end-loaded piston-cylinder apparatus has the simplest geometric configuration for directly measuring the pressure inside the cylinder. The pressure in the cylindrical WC pressure Chamber is the product of the pressure on the ram driving the piston into the Chamber and the ratio of the ram cross-section area to that of the piston. This pressure inside the cylinder is uncorrected for friction and is the nominal pressure. The basic apparatus is described by Boyd and England [1].
Characterization of Lipid Membrane Dynamics by Simulation: 3. Probing Molecular Transport Across the Phospholipid Bilayer

Purpose. The goal of this study is to elucidate the role of the motions of the hydrocarbon chains of a phospholipid bilayer in penetrant diffusion. Penetrant size, as well as its position in the hydrocarbon core of the lipid bilayer, has also been explored regarding impact on the diffusion rate in a phospholipid bilayer. Methods. Molecular dynamics, MD, simulations were carried out on a model dimyristoyl phosphatidylcholine (DMPC) membrane bilayer with and without methanol and propanol as penetrants. The MD trajectories were analyzed in terms of estimating time and space properties. Results. These simulations show that torsion angle kink shifts in the hydrocarbon chains of phospholipids are natural occurrences in a bilayer assembly. The diffusion coefficients of methanol and propanol in a DMPC lipid bilayer, as calculated from the MD simulations, agree with experimental measurements. Both methanol and propanol show different diffusion rates in different regions of the hydrocarbon chain matrix of the lipid bilayer. Solute size has more impact on diffusion rate in the bilayer regions with high torsion angle order parameters, as compared to the regions with low torsion angle order parameters. Conclusions. The simulated transport behavior suggests that a kink shift diffusion mechanism is more likely to occur in regions with high torsion angle order parameters, and a free volume transport mechanism is more likely operative in the region with low torsion angle order parameters, mainly the center core of the bilayer. A three zone diffusion model is proposed for transport of a penetrant across a bilayer.
Tuning Topology of Photonic Systems with TransparentConducting Oxides

Precise control over photonic states can be achieved in pre-engineered materials, like photonic crystals and meta-structures. However, high fabrication precisions are required due to the sensitivit...
ACEs are not equal: Examining the relative impact of household dysfunction versus childhood maltreatment on mental health in adolescence.

Abstract Rationale Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) have shown substantial effects on health across the lifespan. However, many studies on this topic discount the individual items as well as the distinction between household dysfunction and maltreatment experiences. Objective: The current study examined individual ACEs items as well as the relative contribution of the household dysfunction scale versus the childhood maltreatment scale for predicting mental health outcomes in adolescence. Lastly, we examined the utility of a cut-off score for ACEs in predicting mental health. Methods Data were from Time 4 of a longitudinal study of the effects of maltreatment on adolescent development (n = 352; Mean age = 18). Self reported ACEs were assessed via structured interview and mapped onto the original ACEs questionnaire (Kaiser-CDC). Mental health outcomes were symptoms of depression, anxiety, trauma, and externalizing behavior. Results MANCOVA showed few mean differences between those endorsing ‘yes’ versus ‘no’ for the household dysfunction items, with the exception of witnessing parental Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). Those who endorsed witnessign IPV reported more symptoms of depression, anxiety, and trauma. On the other hand, all of the maltreatment items were asscociated with significantly higher scores on at least three of the four outcomes for those endorsing versus not. Sexual abuse and physical abuse were associated with symptoms of depression, trauma, and externalizing behavior. Neglect was associated with depressive, trauma, and anxiety symptoms. Emotional abuse and emotional neglect were both associated with all four mental health outcomes. When household dysfunction and maltreatment sum scores were entered into the model together, maltreatment primarily accounted for mental health symptoms. Finally, our results did not indicate a meaningful cutoff for the number of ACEs needed to predict mental health outcomes. Conclusions Our findings support the assessment of maltreatment events as more salient than household dysfunction in mental health treatment and caution health providers against only using the total ACEs score in clinical decision-making.
Wallace and Incipient Structures: A World of ‘More Recondite’ Influences

Alfred Russel Wallace is well-known for his co-discovery of the principle of natural selection. Natural selection is usually considered a process, but it is not clear that Wallace regarded it in exactly these terms. In fact he more likely thought of the relationships involved as representing what we would now term a “state space,” a negative feedback loop wherein populations are maintained at healthy levels through elimination of the unfit. Both before and after the advent of natural selection, Wallace clung to the idea that “more recondite forces” were shaping the nature and direction of evolution; this is especially evident in his treatment of incipient structures, and continuing allusions to the probable existence of extenuating local influences on process. In this work, the history of these leanings is detailed, in the hope that Wallace’s overall position on evolution may be better understood.
The Irvine-Michigan-Brookhaven Nucleon Decay Search: Status Report on an Experiment Sensitive to A Lifetime of 1033 Years

We have studied the properties of, and the expected backgrounds in, a totally active 10,000 ton water Cerenkov detector located deep underground and sensitive to many of the conjectured decay modes of the nucleons in it. Identification of (π,μ) and (e,γ) secondaries, good energy resolution, and good angular resolution provide sufficient background rejection in the detector under construction to permit one to obtain significant information about several decay channels, should they be observed. If no events were recorded in the device in one year, a lower limit of ~1033 years would be placed on the partial lifetime for the most distinct nucleon decay modes. Depending upon the decay channel, this is ~3 orders of magnitude longer than previous measurements, and is at or beyond the level suggested by many unifying theories. The sensitivity predicted for this instrument is within an order of magnitude of that achievable in an arbitrarily large detector of this general type, since known background from atmospheric neutrinos imposes an inherent limit.
Extensive protein dosage compensation in aneuploid human cancers

Abstract Aneuploidy is a hallmark of human cancers, but the effects of aneuploidy on protein expression remain poorly understood. To uncover how chromosome copy number changes influence the cancer proteome, we have conducted an analysis of hundreds of human cancer cell lines with matched copy number, RNA expression, and protein expression data. We found that a majority of proteins exhibit dosage compensation and fail to change by the degree expected based on chromosome copy number alone. We uncovered a variety of gene groups that were recurrently buffered upon both chromosome gain and loss, including protein complex subunits and cell cycle genes. Several genetic and biophysical factors were predictive of protein buffering, highlighting complex post-translational regulatory mechanisms that maintain appropriate gene product dosage. Finally, we established that chromosomal aneuploidy has an unexpectedly moderate effect on the expression of oncogenes and tumor suppressors, demonstrating that these key cancer drivers can be subject to dosage compensation as well. In total, our comprehensive analysis of aneuploidy and dosage compensation across cancers will help identify the key driver genes encoded on altered chromosomes and will shed light on the overall consequences of aneuploidy during tumor development.
Area-coverage planning for spray-based surface disinfection with a mobile manipulator

Abstract The use of robots has significantly increased to fight highly contagious diseases like SARS-COV-2, Ebola, MERS, and others. One of the important applications of robots to fight such infectious diseases is disinfection. Manual disinfection can be a time-consuming, risky, labor-intensive, and mundane, and humans may fail to disinfect critical areas due to the resulting fatigue. Autonomous or semi-autonomous mobile manipulators mounted with a spray nozzle at the end-effector can be very effective in spraying disinfectant liquid for deep disinfection of objects and surfaces. In this paper, we present an area-coverage planning algorithm to compute a path that the nozzle follows to disinfect surfaces represented by their point clouds. We project the point cloud on a plane and produce a polygon on which we generate multiple spray paths using our branch and bound-based tree search area-coverage algorithm such that the spray paths cover the entire area of the polygon. An appropriate spray path is chosen using a robot capability map-based selection criterion. We generate mobile manipulator trajectories using successive refinement-based parametric optimization so that the paths for the nozzle are followed accurately. Thereafter, we need to make sure that the joint velocities of the mobile manipulator are regulated appropriately such that each point on the surface receives enough disinfectant spray. To this end, we compute the time intervals between the robot path waypoints such that enough disinfectant liquid is sprayed on all points of the point cloud that results in thorough disinfection of the surface, and the particular robot path is executed in the minimum possible time. We have implemented the area-coverage planning and mobile manipulator motion planning on five test scenarios in simulation using our ADAMMS-SD (Agile Dexterous Autonomous Mobile Manipulation System for Surface Disinfection) robot. We benchmark our spray path generation algorithm with three competing methods by showing that the generated paths are significantly more efficient in terms of area coverage and reducing disinfectant wastage. We also show the time interval computation between successive waypoints results in thorough disinfection of surfaces.
Management of Acne Vulgaris: A Review.

Importance Acne vulgaris is an inflammatory disease of the pilosebaceous unit of the skin that primarily involves the face and trunk and affects approximately 9% of the population worldwide (approximately 85% of individuals aged 12-24 years, and approximately 50% of patients aged 20-29 years). Acne vulgaris can cause permanent physical scarring, negatively affect quality of life and self-image, and has been associated with increased rates of anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation. Observations Acne vulgaris is classified based on patient age, lesion morphology (comedonal, inflammatory, mixed, nodulocystic), distribution (location on face, trunk, or both), and severity (extent, presence or absence of scarring, postinflammatory erythema, or hyperpigmentation). Although most acne does not require specific medical evaluation, medical workup is sometimes warranted. Topical therapies such as retinoids (eg, tretinoin, adapalene), benzoyl peroxide, azelaic acid, and/or combinations of topical agents are first-line treatments. When prescribed as a single therapy in a randomized trial of 207 patients, treatment with tretinoin 0.025% gel reduced acne lesion counts at 12 weeks by 63% compared with baseline. Combinations of topical agents with systemic agents (oral antibiotics such as doxycycline and minocycline, hormonal therapies such as combination oral contraception [COC] or spironolactone, or isotretinoin) are recommended for more severe disease. In a meta-analysis of 32 randomized clinical trials, COC was associated with reductions in inflammatory lesions by 62%, placebo was associated with a 26% reduction, and oral antibiotics were associated with a 58% reduction at 6-month follow-up. Isotretinoin is approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for treating severe recalcitrant nodular acne but is often used to treat resistant or persistent moderate to severe acne, as well as acne that produces scarring or significant psychosocial distress. Conclusions and relevance Acne vulgaris affects approximately 9% of the population worldwide and approximately 85% of those aged 12 to 24 years. First-line therapies are topical retinoids, benzoyl peroxide, azelaic acid, or combinations of topicals. For more severe disease, oral antibiotics such as doxycycline or minocycline, hormonal therapies such as combination oral conceptive agents or spironolactone, or isotretinoin are most effective.
Successional trends in Floristic Quality

Summary 1. Simple, conservation-relevant, plant community measures are sought by resource managers. In this context, the use of Floristic Quality Assessment (FQA) has increased exponentially over the past 30 years. FQA measures a habitat’s Floristic Quality and conservation value by summarizing the relative anthropogenic disturbance tolerances of its plant species (i.e. their Conservatism). However, despite their widespread use in research, restoration and conservation work, the behaviour of FQA values in communities during succession is not understood. 2. We analysed FQA values in 10 old fields over 50 years of unaltered succession. We determined whether Floristic Quality followed a predictable increasing successional trend, assessing four specific predictions: (i) FQA values will follow an asymptotically increasing, rather than peaked or linearly increasing trajectory; (ii) field initiation treatments (abandoned as hayfield or cropfield) will not lead to long-term differences in FQA values; (iii) trajectories will be consistent regardless of the particular species composition of fields and (iv) trajectories will be robust to common variations in FQA metric formulations (non-native species, varied spatial scale). 3. In all cases, a negative exponential rise to an asymptote best described FQA value trajectories over time. Field abandonment treatments did not affect FQA value trajectories. Furthermore, trends were consistent among fields despite differences in species composition among fields. Overall, the results suggest a predictable, deterministic path for FQA values over the early- to mid-successional timeframes studied. 4. Synthesis and applications. Understanding the temporal behaviour(s) of Floristic Quality is necessary for setting realistic restoration goals, evaluating habitat recovery and adapting management to achieve high conservation value natural areas. By illustrating the temporal consistency of Floristic Quality metrics during succession, this article demonstrates the robustness of FQA for such uses. The FQA value trajectory described here also establishes a background trend model for expected values in recovering habitats, which will allow for the assessment of an individual habitat’s progression relative to the background trend. Such comparisons en masse will highlight the constraints of greatest importance to community-level Floristic Quality restoration. For example, FQA values in this study were ultimately limited by Conservative understorey plant re-establishment from adjacent old-growth forest. As this is not unlike species recovery patterns observed in other habitats, it suggests that restoration practitioners would do well to focus on Conservative species.
The Egenhofer–Cohn Hypothesis or, Topological Relativity?

In this chapter, we provide an overview of research on cognitively validating qualitative calculi, focusing on the region connection calculus (RCC) and Egenhofer’s intersection models (IM). These topological theories are often claimed to be foundational to spatial cognition, a concept we term the Egenhofer–Cohn Hypothesis. (The authors are aware of the limitations of the chosen title/term. Neither Egenhofer nor Cohn necessarily support this claim in a strong form but they kindly agreed to have their names used here. Additionally, there are other approaches to topology, Cohn is the third author on the classic RCC paper, and Egenhofer published his work with co-authors. However, we feel that these two names best summarize the two most prominent topological theories in the spatial sciences.) We have been particularly interested in extending existing approaches into the realm of spatio-temporal representation and reasoning. We provide an overview on a series of experiments that we conducted to shed light on geographic event conceptualization and topology’s role in modeling and explaining cognitive behavior. Our framework also incorporates approaches to visually analyze cognitive behavior, allowing for interactive and in-depth analyses of cognitive conceptualizations. We present tangible results that can be distilled from generalizing from several experiments. These results show that the strong version of the Egenhofer–Cohn Hypothesis is not supported by all results; we suggest amendments to topological relationship specifications that are needed to serve as a sufficient basis for bridging formal and observed human spatial cognitive processes. We term this approach topological relativity.
JAK2 V617F in Myeloid Disorders: Molecular Diagnostic Techniques and Their Clinical Utility : A Paper from the 2005 William Beaumont Hospital Symposium on Molecular Pathology

In early 2005, several groups of investigators studying myeloid malignancies described a novel somatic point mutation (V617F) in the conserved autoinhibitory pseudokinase domain of the Janus kinase 2 (JAK2) protein, which plays an important role in normal hematopoietic growth factor signaling. The V617F mutation is present in blood and marrow from a large proportion of patients with classic BCR/ABL-negative chronic myeloproliferative disorders and of a few patients with other clonal hematological diseases such as myelodysplastic syndrome, atypical myeloproliferative disorders, and acute myeloid leukemia. The JAK2 V617F mutation causes constitutive activation of the kinase, with deregulated intracellular signaling that mimics continuous hematopoietic growth factor stimulation. Within 7 months of the first electronic publication describing this new mutation, clinical molecular diagnostic laboratories in the United States and Europe began offering JAK2 mutation testing on a fee-for-service basis. Here, I review the various techniques used by research groups and clinical laboratories to detect the genetic mutation underlying JAK2 V617F, including fluorescent dye chemistry sequencing, allele-specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR), real-time PCR, DNA-melting curve analysis, pyrosequencing, and others. I also discuss diagnostic sensitivity, performance, and other practical concerns relevant to the clinical laboratorian in addition to the potential diagnostic utility of JAK2 mutation tests.
CD137 Costimulation of CD8+ T Cells Confers Resistance to Suppression by Virus-Induced Regulatory T Cells

Chronic viral infections cause high levels of morbidity and mortality worldwide, making the development of effective therapies a high priority for improving human health. We have used mice infected with Friend virus as a model to study immunotherapeutic approaches to the cure of chronic retroviral infections. In chronic Friend virus infections CD4(+) T regulatory (Treg) cells suppress CD8(+) T cell effector functions critical for virus clearance. In this study, we demonstrate that immunotherapy with a combination of agonistic anti-CD137 Ab and virus-specific, TCR-transgenic CD8(+) T cells produced greater than 99% reductions of virus levels within 2 wk. In vitro studies indicated that the CD137-specific Ab rendered the CD8(+) T cells resistant to Treg cell-mediated suppression with no direct effect on the suppressive function of the Treg cells. By 2 weeks after transfer, the adoptively transferred CD8(+) T cells were lost, likely due to activation-induced cell death. The highly focused immunological pressure placed on the virus by the single specificity CD8(+) T cells led to the appearance of escape variants, indicating that broader epitope specificity will be required for long-term virus control. However, the results demonstrate a potent strategy to potentiate the function of CD8(+) T cells in the context of immunosuppressive Treg cells.
Understanding and improving teamwork in organizations: a scientifically based practical guide

Teams are pervasive in today's world, and rightfully so as we need them. Drawing upon the existing extensive body of research surrounding the topic of teamwork, we delineate nine “critical considerations” that serve as a practical heuristic by which HR leaders can determine what is needed when they face situations involving teamwork. Our heuristic is not intended to be the definitive set of all considerations for teamwork, but instead consolidates key findings from a vast literature to provide an integrated understanding of the underpinnings of teamwork—specifically, what should be considered when selecting, developing, and maintaining teams. This heuristic is designed to help those in practice diagnose team-based problems by providing a clear focus on relevant aspects of teamwork. To this end, we first define teamwork and its related elements. Second, we offer a high-level conceptualization of and justification for the nine selected considerations underlying the heuristic, which is followed by a more in-depth synthesis of related literature as well as empirically-driven practical guidance. Third, we conclude with a discussion regarding how this heuristic may best be used from a practical standpoint, as well as offer areas for future research regarding both teamwork and its critical considerations
On the Growth of the Logarithmic Derivative

We will prove that the inequality $$m\bigg(r,{f'\over f}\bigg)\leq {\rm log}^+\bigg({T(\rho,f)\over r}{\rho \over \rho-r}\bigg)+ 5.3078$$ where ρ > r, holds for all meromorphic functions such that f(0) = 1. This is an improvement of an earlier result by Gol’dberg and Grinshtein [2].
Case Report: Brief Mindfulness-Based Psychotherapeutic Intervention During Inpatient Hospitalization in a Patient With Conversion and Dissociation

Conversion and dissociative disorders have psychopathological mechanisms in common and can simultaneously be present in the same patient. Evidence-based treatments for conversion and dissociative disorders are limited and mostly focused on cognitive-behavioral therapies (CBT) for a few conversion disorders. Avoidance and difficulties in emotion expression are thought to explain conversion and hence, mindfulness-based therapies (MBTs) could hypothetically constitute a beneficial intervention. Here, we present the case of Anne, a 31-year-old female with a long-term history of depression, anxiety, and psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES). While facing health-related and marital stressors, Anne acutely developed conversion left-sided paralysis, psychogenic bilateral tremor, and dissociative amnesia and had an increase in PNES frequency. Some of these newly developed symptoms resolved and other improved significantly after an acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) intervention was offered during a brief i...