cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Microvasculature in Acute Myocardial Ischemia: Part II Evolving Concepts in Pathophysiology, Diagnosis, and Treatment

In the setting of suspected acute myocardial infarction (AMI), a cardiologist needs to know three things: (1) whether there is actually an ongoing infarction, (2) whether reperfusion therapy has succeeded, and (3) how much myocardium was salvaged by reperfusion. Myocardial contrast echocardiography (MCE) can answer the first question by demonstrating the presence of a perfusion defect resulting from reduced microvascular flow because of the presence of a thrombus in an epicardial coronary artery. In a recent multicenter study of 203 patients without ST-segment elevation who presented to the emergency department with chest pain, 21 had AMI, and MCE only missed 1 such patient (sensitivity of 95%).1 Panel A in Figure 1 demonstrates a MCE perfusion defect in a patient presenting to the emergency department with chest pain who was subsequently ruled in for an AMI. The success of reperfusion and degree of myocardial salvage are equally important to know in patients even with ST-elevation AMI. Coronary angiography is not reliable in this regard.2 Figure 1. MCE images of a patient with coronary occlusion (left panel) and reperfusion (right panel) after intravenous administration of microbubbles. Arrows indicate the extent of perfusion defect. Reprinted from Kaul S, Myocardial contrast echocardiography in acute myocardial infarction. In Braunwald E, ed. Heart Disease: A Textbook of Cardiovascular Medicine . Update 1, vol 2, No. 4). Philadelphia, Pa: WB Saunders Co; 2000. Used with permission. The success of attempted reperfusion can also be accurately assessed with MCE. Most currently used clinical and electrocardiographic parameters are accurate in ≈75% of the cases, whereas MCE has an almost 100% accuracy. Panel B in Figure 1 depicts MCE images that were obtained immediately after thrombolysis and showed that most of the myocardium was reperfused. A small region in the apex showed no reflow and failed to exhibit …
SST Sensitivities in Multiday TOGA COARE Cloud-Resolving Simulations

A two-dimensional cloud-resolving model (CRM) was used to simulate the evolution of convection over the western Pacific between 19 and 26 December 1992, during the Tropical Ocean Global Atmosphere Coupled Ocean‐Atmosphere Response Experiment. A control simulation (CONTROL) was performed in which observed, time-evolving, spatially homogeneous SSTs were used as a lower boundary condition. It showed that the CRM was able to properly represent the evolution of the cloud systems. Sensitivity experiments were carried out, in which the sea surface temperature was increased (SST1 )o r decreased (SST2 )b y 18C and the same evolving large-scale forcing used in CONTROL. The similarities among all simulations suggested that the large-scale forcing is the dominant mechanism controlling the statistics of the cloud systems, including the total precipitation. However, the convective‐stratiform partition of the cloud systems was altered, the convective part being favored in SST1 and the stratiform part favored in SST2. In terms of the radiative budget, the reduced low-level cloud coverage in SST1 acted to compensate the enhancement of high-cloud coverage produced by more vigorous convection (the opposite occurred in SST2). As a consequence, the surface downward radiation was approximately the same in CONTROL, SST1, and SST2.
Evaluation of a novel continuous glucose monitoring guided system for adjustment of insulin dosing - PumpTune: a randomized controlled trial.

Objective Retrospective continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) can guide insulin pump adjustments, however, interpretation of data and recommending new pump settings is complex and subjective. We aimed to compare the safety and glycaemic profiles of children after their diabetologist or a novel algorithm (PumpTune) adjusted their insulin pump settings. Research design and methods In a randomized cross-over trial of 22 patients aged 6–14 yr with type 1 diabetes with mean Hba1c 7.4% (57 mmol/mol) using CSII, CGM was used over two periods each of 6.5 d to assess percentage time glucose remained within, above and below 3.9–10.0 mmol/L. Before the start of one period pump settings were adjusted by the patient's diabetologist, and before the other insulin pump settings were adjusted by PumpTune. Results A total of 63.4% of the sensor glucose levels were within target range with PumpTune settings and 57.4% were within range with the clinician settings (p = 0.016). The time spent above target range with PumpTune was 26.9% and with clinician settings was 33.5% (p = 0.021). The time spent below target range with PumpTune was 9.7% and with clinician settings was 9.2% (p = 0.77). The mean number of times when a sensor glucose level <2.75 mmol/L was recorded with PumpTune settings was 2.9 compared with 3.7 with clinician settings (p = 0.39). There were no serious adverse outcomes and no difference in parent-assessed satisfaction. Conclusions Automated insulin pump adjustment with PumpTune is feasible and warrants testing in a larger more varied population over a longer time. In this well-controlled group of children, PumpTune achieved a more favorable glucose profile.
Stochastic Preference Theory: Some Unresolved Questions

The theory of stochastic preference and brand switching proposed by Bass appears to be unable to estimate brand switching in the independent subgroups of the stochastic preference group. Also, the ...
3 He) 2 Molecules in Solid 4 He

The general features of ${T}_{1}(\ensuremath{\omega})$ data on dilute $^{3}\mathrm{He}$ in solid $^{4}\mathrm{He}$ are explained in terms of coupled rotation-translation motions of ${(^{3}\mathrm{He})}_{2}$ molecules bound together by the elastic $^{3}\mathrm{He}$-$^{3}\mathrm{He}$ interaction. As the concentration of $^{3}\mathrm{He}$ is lowered the molecular motions become two-dimensional and give rise to the anomalous structure observed in the ${T}_{1}(\ensuremath{\omega})$ spectrum.
EFFECTS OF A NOVEL TETRAPEPTIDE IN HEART FAILURE WITH REDUCED EJECTION FRACTION (HFREF): A PHASE I RANDOMIZED, PLACEBO-CONTROLLED TRIAL OF ELAMIPRETIDE

Elamipretide is a novel tetrapeptide that targets mitochondrial dysfunction and has the potential to augment cardiac function in HFrEF. To assess the safety of elamipretide, 36 subjects with EF ≤ 35% and stable NYHA Class II-III were randomized (2:1) to a 4-hr IV infusion of elamipretide in 3
A Dark Secret Too Scandalous to Confront: Did the Moynihan Report Imply That Poor Black Caregivers' Parenting Styles and Childhood Cruelties Were Strongly Correlated With Self-Perpetuating Pathologies?

In this article, I attempt to mine what were the deeper implications of Moynihan's effort through his Report to identify the problems that were confronting the poor, black urban family, and using interpersonal neurobiology, attachment theory, and early childhood trauma theory, I interrogate the meaning of "weak, disorganized structure" of the black family and the contributing factors of "self-perpetuating pathologies." by examining these critical concepts through the aforementioned theories, I hope to learn if Moynihan was directing our attention by implication at the parenting styles of poor, black urban families, and at the source, along with the legacies of racism, that contributed to why black children and adolescents were woefully lagging behind their peers and committing social dislocation issues like crime. By taking seriously the teachings of these theories, I believe that they would reveal a dark secret within poor, black urban families that few people, including Moynihan, wanted to confront directly. After controlling for the legacies of slavery, Jim Crow, which had only legally died in 1964, and thus modern discrimination, that dark secret would be disruptions caused by childhood trauma early in the infant child's relationship with her black family caregivers. These disruptions and their negative, downstream effects would be correlated with the findings that Moynihan so clearly illustrated in his Report. By necessity, then, such disruptions would affected the black infants' right brain development, which would contribute to their inability to self-regulate and to adapt and thrive adequately not only at home but also at school and in their community. In short, white racism and its legacy don't account for the weak, disorganized structure of the poor black family and self-perpetuating pathologies more than the impact of the earliest disruption in the black infants and caregivers' relationship caused by early childhood cruelties and maltreatment.
Effects of adenosine antagonists on hexose uptake and preconditioning in perfused rat heart

Preconditioning with brief intermittent periods of ischemia has been shown to lessen the detrimental effects of a subsequent sustained (30-60 min) period of ischemia. Because adenosine has been suggested to be the mediator of preconditioning, we were interested in investigating whether adenosine antagonists would block the effect of preconditioning on ionic changes during ischemia. We found that 10 microM of the adenosine antagonist BW-A1433U did not reverse the effect of preconditioning on intracellular pH (pHi). Hearts preconditioned with BW-A1433U had virtually no decrease in pHi during the 30-min sustained period of ischemia; after 30 min of ischemia, the pH in untreated hearts was 5.97 +/- 0.16 compared with 6.52 +/- 0.10 in preconditioned hearts and 6.90 +/- 0.08 in hearts preconditioned plus BW-A1433U. Because anaerobic glycolysis is largely responsible for the fall in pHi during ischemia, we examined the effect of BW-A1433U [and other adenosine antagonists, such as PD-115,199 and 8-cyclopentyl-1,3-dipropylxanthine (CPDPX)] on glucose uptake and phosphorylation during aerobic perfusion using 31P-nuclear magnetic resonance to monitor uptake and phosphorylation of 2-deoxyglucose (2-DG) to 2-deoxyglucose 6-phosphate (2-DG-6-P) when one-half of the glucose in the perfusate was replaced with 2-DG. Uptake of 2-DG-6-P after 15 min was reduced by 66% in the presence of BW-A1433U and 82% in the presence of PD-115,199 as compared with untreated hearts, but was not reduced in the presence of CPDPX. Thus CPDPX was the only adenosine antagonist tested that did not block accumulation of 2-DG-6-P. We also found that CPDPX did not block the beneficial effect of preconditioning on ionic alterations during a sustained 30-min period of ischemia or the improved recovery of function on reflow.
Red Rash on the Back

A man presented with a on his back after a coronary stent procedure. The erythematous lesion was well demarcated with visible capillary break and petechiae inside the borders. There was a central fine scale.
Assessing Coupled Protein Folding and Binding Through Temperature-Dependent Isothermal Titration Calorimetry

Broad interest in the thermodynamic driving forces of coupled macromolecular folding and binding is motivated by the prevalence of disorder-to-order transitions observed when intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) bind to their partners. Isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) is one of the few methods available for completely evaluating the thermodynamic parameters describing a protein-ligand binding event. Significantly, when the effective ΔH° for the coupled folding and binding process is determined by ITC in a temperature series, the constant-pressure heat capacity change (ΔCp) associated with these coupled equilibria is experimentally accessible, offering a unique opportunity to investigate the driving forces behind them. Notably, each of these molecular-scale events is often accompanied by strongly temperature-dependent enthalpy changes, even over the narrow temperature range experimentally accessible for biomolecules, making single temperature determinations of ΔH° less informative than typically assumed. Here, we will document the procedures we have adopted in our laboratory for designing, executing, and globally analyzing temperature-dependent ITC studies of coupled folding and binding in IDP interactions. As a biologically significant example, our recent evaluation of temperature-dependent interactions between the disordered tail of FCP1 and the winged-helix domain from Rap74 will be presented. Emphasis will be placed on the use of publically available analysis programs written in MATLAB that facilitate quantification of the thermodynamic forces governing IDP interactions. Although motivated from the perspective of IDPs, the experimental design principles and data fitting procedures presented here are general to the study of most noncooperative ligand binding equilibria.
Epidemiology of Hearing Impairment

Hearing impairment is the most prevalent sensory deficit, affecting approximately 30 million (12.7 %) individuals in the United States in both ears and 48 million (20.3 %) individuals in the United States in at least one ear. Nevertheless, NIH estimates suggest that only 20 % of people who could potentially benefit from a hearing aid seek intervention. Globally, approximately 5.3 % of the world’s population, or 360 million individuals, suffer from hearing impairment that is considered to be disabling by WHO standards. Hearing impairment is a condition that can develop across the life span, and the relations between specific risk factors and hearing impairment may vary with age. The etiology of hearing impairment is complex and multifactorial, representing the cumulative influences of an amalgam of factors, such as aging, genetic, epigenetic, environmental, health comorbidity, diet and lifestyle factors, as well as the complex potential interactions among these factors, that may all contribute to its development. Identification of risk factors for hearing impairment may provide us with a better understanding of the cellular and molecular mechanisms associated with acquired hearing impairment and could aid efforts toward prevention, early detection, and delay of progression. This chapter provides an overview of the epidemiology of hearing impairment in the United States and worldwide, including information on incidence, prevalence, and a discussion of risk factors that have been identified as potential contributors.
Civil War & the Global Threat of Pandemics

This essay confronts the collision of two potential global threats: the outbreak of infectious pandemics and the outbreak and protraction of civil wars. Specifically, it addresses the potential tha...
Structural topology optimization for generative design of personalized aneurysm implants: Design, additive manufacturing, and experimental validation

In this paper, the 3D structural topology optimization is performed to create an innovative design of the aneurysm implant. The topology optimization scheme is utilized to optimize the geometry of the implant structure to satisfy both the fluidic and the structural design objectives. During the topology optimization process, an artificial density is used as the index to separate the material region from the void region. The goal of the implant structure design is expected to create a “fluid diode” effect while to possess enough stiffness to withstand the outside pressure. The final design is printed by additive manufacturing to validate the performance. Both numerical verification and experimental validation proved the effectiveness of the proposed implant structure under the current problem settings. This work showed the potential of topology optimization as a powerful tool in producing innovative high-performance implant designs for aneurysm treatments, which will pave the way for personalized medical implants.
Computer-Based Maintenance Training in the Military

The purpose of this paper is to provide a context for the problem domain which the technical issues of this conference address. In the writing of this paper it became increasingly clear to the author that the issue of simulation for maintenance training could not be dealt with independent of the overall structure and history of the maintenance training arena. It is also worth pointing out that this paper is the forerunner of an anticipated effort to document the state-of-the art and recommended research directions in support of an overall effort to improve maintenance effectiveness in the US military. The result then is a paper which does not address explicit technical issues at the level of the majority of the other conference papers, but rather provides an overview within which it is hoped that there will become visible a linkage between scientific inquiry and requirements in the real world.
Is Annual Income a Predictor of Completion of Advance Directives (ADs) in Patients With Cancer.

Context:Completion of advance directives (ADs) enhances the likelihood of receiving goal-concordant treatments near the end of life. Previous research on community samples have shown that completio...
English for Craft Students — 8

A great many craft students suffer from under‐educated parents — an unkind way of putting it, but so many of their homes provide no pro‐educational influence at all. The teacher of Craft English faces a real problem here, and needs ingenuity and humility to tackle it
Safety of Psychotropic Medications During Pregnancy

Risks, benefits, alternatives, and appropriateness of psychotropic medications, including risks of no treatment, are discussed for antidepressants, mood-stabilizing medications, anxiolytic/sedative hypnotic medications, stimulants, and medication-assisted treatment of substance use disorders. Early screening, diagnosis, and intervention prior to and/or during pregnancy often reduce morbidity and mortality of mental health disorders for mothers and infants.
Choosing a Vibratory Test to Pair With Semmes Weinstein Monofilament Testing for Evaluating Lower Extremity Sensation in Patients With Diabetes: A Comparison of Three Vibratory Methodologies.

Background:Numerous guidelines recommend pairing Semmes-Weinstein monofilament (SWM) testing with a secondary clinical test when screening for diabetic peripheral neuropathy, yet time is very limit...
Gravity Compensation of an Exoskeleton Joint Using Constant-Force Springs

Stroke is one of the leading causes of impairment in the world. Many of those who have suffered a stroke experience long-term loss of upper-limb function as a result. BLUE SABINO is an exoskeleton device being developed at the University of Idaho to help assess these patients and aid in their rehabilitation. One of the central design challenges with exoskeletons is limiting the overall weight of the device. Motors used in actuation of these devices are often oversized to allow gravity balancing of the device and user and the creation of torques to facilitate patient movements. If the torques required for gravity balancing are achieved through elastic elements, the motor and other upstream components can be lighter, potentially greatly reducing the overall weight of the device. In this paper, constant-force springs may provide an effective method of generating a constant offsetting torque to compensate for gravity. In experimental testing of multiple mounting configurations of C-shaped constant-force springs (single, back-to-back, double-wrapped), the force output fluctuated less than 8.6% over 180° of wrapping, with friction values below 2.6%, validating the viability of constant-force springs for this application. The results suggest the back-to-back configuration provides a simpler implementation with better force consistency while the double-wrapped configuration adds less friction to the system.
Consumer beliefs about healthy foods and diets.

Background The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has begun a public process to redefine how companies are allowed to use the term “healthy” on food packages. Although the definition is formulated based on the latest consensus in nutrition and epidemiological research, it is also important to understand how consumers define and understand the term if it is to be behaviorally relevant. This research is an exploratory study designed to provide a descriptive account of consumers’ perceptions of and beliefs about the meaning of “healthy” food. Methods A nationwide U.S. sample of 1,290 food consumers was surveyed in December 2018. Respondents answered 15 questions designed to gauge perceptions of healthy food and to elicit preference for policies surrounding healthy food definitions. Responses are weighted to demographically match the population. Categorical variables have a sampling error of ±2.7%. Exploratory factor analysis is used to determine latent dimensions of health perceptions related to food type. Results Consumers were about evenly split on whether a food can be deemed healthy based solely on the foods’ nutritional content (52.1% believing as such) or whether there were other factors that affect whether a food is healthy (47.9% believing as such). Consumers were also about evenly split on whether an individual food can be considered healthy (believed by 47.9%) or whether this healthiness is instead a characteristic of one’s overall diet (believed by 52.1%). Ratings of individual food products revealed that “healthy” perceptions are comprised of at least three underlying latent dimensions related to animal origin, preservation, and freshness/processing. Focusing on individual macronutrients, perceived healthiness was generally decreasing in a food’s fat, sodium, and carbohydrate content and increasing in protein content. About 40% of consumers thought a healthy label implied they should increase consumption of the type of food bearing the label and about 15% thought the label meant they could eat all they wanted. Conclusions Results suggest consumer’s perceptions of “healthy,” which is primarily based on fat content, partially aligns with the FDA definition but also suggest consumers perceive the word as a broader and more nuanced concept that defies easy, uniform definition. Results highlight areas where nutrition education may be needed and suggest disclosures may need to accompany health claims so that consumers know what, precisely, is being communicated.
TIM3 comes of age as an inhibitory receptor

T cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain-containing protein 3 (TIM3), a member of the TIM family, was originally identified as a receptor expressed on interferon-γ-producing CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. Initial data indicated that TIM3 functioned as a 'co-inhibitory' or 'checkpoint' receptor, but due to the lack of a definable inhibitory signalling motif, it was also suggested that TIM3 might act as a co-stimulatory receptor. Recent studies have shown that TIM3 is part of a module that contains multiple co-inhibitory receptors (checkpoint receptors), which are co-expressed and co-regulated on dysfunctional or 'exhausted' T cells in chronic viral infections and cancer. Furthermore, co-blockade of TIM3 and programmed cell death 1 (PD1) can result in tumour regression in preclinical models and can improve anticancer T cell responses in patients with advanced cancers. Here, we highlight the developments in understanding TIM3 biology, including novel ligand identification and the discovery of loss-of-function mutations associated with human disease. In addition, we summarize emerging data from human clinical trials showing that TIM3 indeed acts as a 'checkpoint' receptor and that inhibition of TIM3 enhances the antitumour effect of PD1 blockade.
Multi-destination vehicular route planning with parking and traffic constraints

This paper aims to provide an efficient solution for people in a city who drive their cars to visit several destinations, where they need to park for a while, but do not care about the visiting order. This instance of the multi-destination route planning problem is novel in terms of its constraints: the real-time traffic conditions and the real-time free parking conditions in the city. The paper proposes a novel Multi-Destination Vehicle Route Planning (MDVRP) system to optimize the travel time for all drivers. MDVRP's design has two components: a mobile app running on the drivers' smart phones that submits real-time route requests and guides the drivers toward destinations, and a server in the cloud that optimizes the routes by finding the most efficient order to visit the destinations. MDVRP uses TDTSP-FPA, an algorithm that finds the fastest route to the next destination and also assigns free curbside parking spaces that minimize the total travel time for drivers. We evaluate MDVRP using a driver trip dataset that contains real vehicular mobility traces of over two million drivers from the city of Cologne, Germany. By learning the spatio-temporal distribution of real driver destinations from this dataset, we build a novel experimental platform that simulates real, multi-destination driver trips. Extensive simulations executed over this platform demonstrate that TDTSP-FPA delivers the best performance when compared to three baseline algorithms.
The Effect of Anticoagulation on Bleeding and Thrombotic Events during Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Support for Postcardiotomy Shock

Purpose Postcardiotomy shock patients supported with venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA ECMO) are at high-risk for thrombotic and bleeding complications. No standardized anticoagulation guideline exists for these complex patients. We investigated the incidence of bleeding and thrombotic complications and their relation to anticoagulation therapy during VA ECMO in postcardiotomy shock patients. Methods Between December 2007 and June 2018, VA ECMO was used to support 150 patients with postcardiotomy shock at our hospital. We conducted a retrospective review of this cohort. Bleeding events were defined as bleeding requiring transfusion or re-intervention occurring during VA ECMO support. Thrombotic events included circuit thrombosis, venous or arterial system thrombosis, intracardiac thrombus, and vascular catheter thrombosis. Logistic regression was performed to determine predictors of bleeding and thrombotic events. Results The median patient age was 65 years (interquartile range [IQR] 55-73). The median duration of VA ECMO support was 4.65 days (IQR 2.75-8.00). 116 patients (77%) were anticoagulated with heparin. The median length from initiation of VA ECMO to anticoagulation was 27 hours (IQR 10-59). The median activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) for the duration of support was 43 seconds (IQR 37-50). Bleeding occurred in 42 patients (28%), of which 32 received heparin. Thrombosis occurred in 32 patients (21%), of which 30 received heparin. Both bleeding and thrombosis occurred in 10 patients (6%). The average aPTT in those with bleeding did not differ from those without bleeding (50 vs. 51s, p = 0.719). The average aPTT in those with thrombosis was less than in those without thrombosis (45 vs. 52s, p = 0.047). Multivariable logistic regression demonstrated that bleeding complications were associated with increased length of support (p = 0.005) and female sex (p = 0.004), while thrombotic events were associated with male sex (p = 0.03), history of atrial fibrillation (p = 0.05), and history of hypertension (p = 0.01). Conclusion Bleeding and thrombotic events are common complications during VA ECMO support for postcarditomy shock. aPTT values during VA ECMO may not adequately reflect the risk of bleeding but may better reflect the risk of thrombosis.
The role of glutathione and glutathione peroxidase in regulating cellular level of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species

Glutathione (GSH) and GSH/glutathione peroxidase (GPX) enzyme system is essential for normal intracellular homeostasis and gets disturbed under pathophysiologic conditions including endothelial dysfunction. Overproduction of reactive oxidative species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS) including superoxide (O2•-), and the loss of nitric oxide (NO) bioavailability is a characteristic of endothelial dysfunction. The GSH/GPX system play an important role in eliminating ROS/RNS. Studies have provided important information regarding the interactions of ROS/RNS with the GSH/GPX in biological systems; however, it is not clear how this cross talk affect these reactive species and GSH/GPX enzyme system, under physiologic and oxidative/nitrosative stress conditions. In the present study, we developed a detailed endothelial cell kinetic model to understand the relationship amongst the key enzyme systems including GSH, GPX, peroxiredoxin (Prx) and reactive species, such as hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), peroxynitrite (ONOO-), and dinitrogen trioxide (N2O3). Our simulation results showed that the alterations in the generation rates of O2•- and NO led to the formation of a wide range of ROS and RNS. Simulations performed by varying the ratio of O2•- to NO generation rates as well as GSH and GPX concentrations showed that the GPX reducing capacity was dependent on GSH availability, level of oxidative/nitrosative stress, and can be attributed to N2O3 levels, but not to H2O2 and ONOO-. Our results showed that N2O3 mediated switch-like depletion in GSH and the incorporation of Prx had no considerable effect on the ROS/RNS species other than ONOO- and H2O2. The analysis presented in this study will improve our understanding of vascular diseases in which the levels and oxidation states of GSH, GPX and/or Prx are significantly altered and pharmacological interventions show limited benefits.
Combined TLR4 and TLR9 agonists induce distinct phenotypic changes in innate immunity in vitro and in vivo.

Abstract Toll-like receptor (TLR)4 and TLR9 agonists, MPL and CpG, are used as adjuvants in vaccines and have been investigated for their combined potential. However, how these two combined agonists regulate transcriptional changes in innate immune cells and cells at the site of vaccination has not been thoroughly investigated. Here, we utilized transcriptomics to investigate how CpG, MPL, and CpG + MPL impact gene expression in dendritic cells (DC) in vitro. Principal component analysis of transcriptional changes after single and combined treatment indicated that CpG, MPL, and CpG + MPL caused distinct gene signatures. CpG + MPL induced antiviral gene expression and activated the interferon regulatory factor pathway. In vitro changes were associated with lower in vivo morbidity upon viral challenge, elevated systemic cytokine protein production, local cytokine mRNA expression, and increased migratory monocyte derived DC populations in the draining lymph node following vaccination with CpG + MPL. This report suggests that CpG + MPL enhances transcription of antiviral and inflammatory genes and increases DC migration.
Assessment supervision during COVID-19 and beyond: Trainee perspectives on the supervision of teleassessment

Due to COVID-19, there has been a rapid shift toward the remote administration of psychological assessments, or teleassessment Guidelines have been published by the American Psychological Association regarding best practices for teleassessment administration, yet there is limited guidance for the clinical supervision of trainees Quality supervision is a core competency of health service psychologists, and critical to the professional development of practitioners, as well as the protection of patients This article reviews the extant literature on teleassessment and makes practice-informed recommendations to enhance the supervision of teleassessment administration Implications for training in teleassessment during the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the development of clinical training competencies in teleassessment are considered (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved) Impact Statement This article presents strategies to improve upon the clinical supervision of teleassessment Practitioners, educators, and researchers may use this supervision approach to explore how trainees can be supported in learning teleassessment, define teleassessment training competencies, and consider ways technology can be used to close gaps in assessment services (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved)
The Taste of Fermentation: Propionic Acid Is Judged More Pleasant Than Other Short Chain Fatty Acids

Objectives Short chain fatty acids (SCFAs), such as acetic, propionic and butyric acids have many health benefits, but they have been almost exclusively studied in the context of the gut, where they are produced as by-products of the gut microbiome. SCFAs, however, are also found in fermented foods as metabolites of beneficial microbes, and may signal to taste centers of the brain that these healthful bacteria are present and, if consumed, can colonize the gut and promote health. Two free fatty acid receptors (FFARs), FFAR2 and FFAR3, have been identified in taste tissue and have different binding affinities for SCFAs based on their carbon chain length, though both bind propionic acid. Our objective was to assess whether propionic acid is preferred over the other SCFAs.
Prenatal metal exposure, cord blood DNA methylation and persistence in childhood: an epigenome-wide association study of 12 metals

BACKGROUND Prenatal exposure to essential and non-essential metals impacts birth and child health, including fetal growth and neurodevelopment. DNA methylation (DNAm) may be involved in pathways linking prenatal metal exposure and health. In the Project Viva cohort, we analyzed the extent to which metals (As, Ba, Cd, Cr, Cs, Cu, Hg, Mg, Mn, Pb, Se, and Zn) measured in maternal erythrocytes were associated with differentially methylated positions (DMPs) and regions (DMRs) in cord blood and tested if associations persisted in blood collected in mid-childhood. We measured metal concentrations in first-trimester maternal erythrocytes, and DNAm in cord blood (N = 361) and mid-childhood blood (N = 333, 6-10 years) with the Illumina HumanMethylation450 BeadChip. For each metal individually, we tested for DMPs using linear models (considered significant at FDR < 0.05), and for DMRs using comb-p (Sidak p < 0.05). Covariates included biologically relevant variables and estimated cell-type composition. We also performed sex-stratified analyses. RESULTS Pb was associated with decreased methylation of cg20608990 (CASP8) (FDR = 0.04), and Mn was associated with increased methylation of cg02042823 (A2BP1) in cord blood (FDR = 9.73 × 10-6). Both associations remained significant but attenuated in blood DNAm collected at mid-childhood (p < 0.01). Two and nine Mn-associated DMPs were identified in male and female infants, respectively (FDR < 0.05), with two and six persisting in mid-childhood (p < 0.05). All metals except Ba and Pb were associated with ≥ 1 DMR among all infants (Sidak p < 0.05). Overlapping DMRs annotated to genes in the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) region were identified for Cr, Cs, Cu, Hg, Mg, and Mn. CONCLUSIONS Prenatal metal exposure is associated with DNAm, including DMRs annotated to genes involved in neurodevelopment. Future research is needed to determine if DNAm partially explains the relationship between prenatal metal exposures and health outcomes.
PREDICTION OF DRIFTING FORCE AND MOMENT ON AN OCEAN PLATFORM FLOATING IN OBLIQUE WAVES

The paper presents a new procedure for predicting the lateral drifting force and moment on an ocean platform floating in oblique waves. The disturbance of an incident wave caused by the presence of the floating body is represented by the sum of the diffracted and forced wave potentials, which are determined by satisfying the kinematical boundary conditions on the body surface. The scattered waves are determined from the asymptotic expression of the two potentials. Frank's close-fit method, Grim's strip method and Maruo's formula for two-dimensional drifting force are used. Numerical results were compared with experimental results and found to be in good agreement. (Author)
Molecular Size Analysis ofHaemophilus Influenzae Type B Capsular Polysaccharide

Abstract The molar mass and molar mass distribution of polyribosyl ribitol phosphate (PRP) was determined using high performance size-exclusion chromatography with light scattering, viscometric, and refractive index detection. Light scattering data showed the PRP preparations to have an Mw of ca. 75,000, and a polydispersity (Mw/Mn) of about 1.46. Based on integration of the molar mass and intrinsic viscosity data, the Mark-Houwink-Sakurada coefficients for PRP were determined to be a = 1.45, and K = 3.57×10−6 cm3/g for 0.2 M ammonium acetate, pH 7.0, and a = 1.54 and K= 0.6×10−6 cm3/g for 0.1 M sodium phosphate, pH 7.2. The values of a indicate that PRP is a rigid, rod-like molecule. The rigidity of the PRP molecules is characterized by unperturbed dimensions ( /M1/2) of 0.24 nm in ammonium acetate buffer and 0.22 nm in sodium phosphate buffer. These results suggest that PRP likely has a highly ordered secondary structure.
Gaussian multiple-access channels under received-power constraints

Performance limits for multiple-access channels are well known as long as the messages of different nodes are independent. Considerable research efforts have been devoted to the problem when the source information is dependent across nodes, revealing capacities for certain special cases. This work presents a new scenario for which conclusive results can be established: The additive white Gaussian multiple-access channel under a constraint on the power at the receiver. The results of this paper have natural applications to sensor networks. By contrast to recent scaling-law results, this paper establishes coinciding upper and lower bounds, and hence, the exact performance limits, for some scenarios of interest.
Independent component analysis based single channel speech enhancement

Hands-free use of phones and voice navigation is the preferred solution in cars. However, the car environment is noisy and often-times noise substantially degrades intelligibility of speech. We propose a single channel algorithm to reduce car noise. The approach employs two phases. First, independent component analysis (ICA) is applied to a large ensemble of clean speech training frames to reveal their underlying statistically independent basis. The distribution of the ICA transformed data is estimated in the training phase. It is required for computing the covariance matrix of the ICA transformed speech data used in the operational phase. Second, a Wiener filter is applied to estimate the clean speech from the received noisy speech. The Wiener filter minimizes the mean-square error between the estimated signal and the clean speech signal in the ICA domain. An inverse transformation from ICA domain back to time domain reconstructs the enhanced signal. Extensive experiments show considerable noise reduction capability of the proposed algorithm. The evaluation is performed with respect to four objective quality measure criteria.
Clinical Presentation, Etiology, and Diagnostic Considerations

Acute mesenteric ischemia (AMI) was first described by Antonio Benivieni, a Florentine physician who is known for his work, De Abditis Morborum Causis (The Hidden Causes of Disease), which describes his discoveries as a pioneer in postmortem dissection. The first successful treatment of AMI is attributed to Elliott, who successfully resected infarcted bowel from a patient with AMI in 1895. Following this, further progress in management leading to an improvement in outcomes was extremely slow. The next breakthroughs did not occur until 1950 when Klass performed the first superior mesenteric artery (SMA) embolectomy and 1980 when Furrer performed the first percutaneous angioplasty of the SMA. Today, AMI continues to be an uncommon clinical problem, comprising 1–2 per 1,000 hospital admissions [1] and remains an extremely challenging clinical problem to diagnose. The mortality rate of AMI has declined very modestly from 80–90 % in the 1970s to 60–70 % in the 1980s and 1990s. This improvement in outcomes is likely attributable to a higher index of suspicion among clinicians, advances in radiographic diagnosis, and an aggressive surgical approach with better perioperative care.
A New Stabilized Nodal Integration Approach

A new stabilized nodal integration scheme is proposed and implemented. In this work, focus is on the natural neighbor meshless interpolation schemes. The approach is a modification of the stabilized conforming nodal integration (SCNI) scheme and is shown to perform well in several benchmark problems.
20-MeV Electrons on a Slab of Water

This chapter is meant to review many of the aspects of electron transport calculations by means of a simple example. The particular example is that of 20-MeV electrons incident on a slab of water. This is a case of considerable importance in radiotherapy physics, and thus it has been discussed often in the literature1–5. The results presented here are based on the EGS4 code, but the results obtained with other codes are similar except in those cases which are explicitly discussed.
Remote respiratory monitor

A new approach to respiration monitoring is made possible by the invention of a broad new class of patent-pending sensors that are labeled 'symmetric differential capacitive' (SDC). A pressure transducer of SDC type is used in the described remote respiratory monitor. It is similar to others that use a diaphragm, but its improved electrical symmetry permits greater sensitivity than was previously possible in inexpensive devices. As developed and employed, the SDC sensors have been routinely part of automated systems. Used with a personal computer, they are opening up new vistas in physics, both in research and in pedagogy. Thus, it is expected that their impact in medical areas along similar lines could also be significant. >
Risks of overharvesting seed from native tallgrass prairies

Seed supply often limits the size and scope of restoration projects that require active revegetation. To meet demand from more and larger tallgrass prairie restoration projects in the Great Plains, U.S.A., seed is wild-harvested—collected from remnant habitats—using agricultural combine harvesters. We investigated the potential impacts of wild-harvest by comparing prairie remnants of northwestern Minnesota that varied in their histories of harvest frequency but were otherwise similar. We asked: (1) Do wild-harvested prairies differ in species composition from unharvested prairies? (2) If so, can life history traits be used to predict the response of prairie communities to wild-harvest? We conducted a retrospective study of 17 prairies harvested for seed frequently (annually/biennially), infrequently (2–3 times), or not at all. We sampled vegetation at 45 points within each site, recording all species present within 0.25 m2 quadrats. To address the first question, we used non-metric multidimensional scaling and Mantel tests, followed by analysis of variance contrasts to identify any species less likely to occur on frequently harvested sites (“harvest-negative”). For the second question, we used logistic regression to test whether lifespan, clonality, and seed production predicted harvest-negative species. Plant community composition in frequently harvested prairies differed from that of infrequently or unharvested prairies. Fourteen species, generally short-lived and non-clonal, were classified as harvest-negative. Our results suggest that frequent wild-harvest disrupts reproduction of species relying on seed, and that life history traits may provide a basis for predicting a species' response to wild-harvest.
Monitoring Cerebral Blood Flow

Cerebral blood flow (CBF) is a neurophysiologic parameter which can be of crucial importance in evaluation of many ICU and intraoperative neurologic conditions. In this monograph some physiologic principles will be reviewed, and standard and newer CBF monitoring methods will be described.
TRPV3 regulates nitric oxide synthase-independent nitric oxide synthesis in the skin

Nitric oxide (NO) is an unstable signalling molecule synthesized de novo mainly from L-arginine by NO synthase (NOS) enzymes. Nitrite reduction can also produce NO, predominantly within body fluids (for example, saliva, sweat and blood plasma) and under extreme hypoxic and acidic conditions. It remains unknown if intracellular canonical signalling pathways regulate nitrite-dependent NO production. Here we examine NO production in the skin, a hypoxic tissue enriched in nitrites wherein NO has important roles in wound healing and other biological processes. We show that activation of TRPV3, a heat-activated transient receptor potential ion channel expressed in keratinocytes, induces NO production via a nitrite-dependent pathway. TRPV3 and nitrite are involved in keratinocyte migration in vitro and in wound healing and thermosensory behaviours in vivo. Our study demonstrates that activation of an ion channel can induce NOS-independent NO production in keratinocytes.
Solution of enzyme kinetics by the reversion method.

Mechanisms of enzyme reactions have been studied by following the transient concentrations of the unstable intermediate compounds (1, 2). The transient time functions are solutions of sets of nonlinear differential equations derived from the law of mass action. The nonlinearity arises because the reaction rates are proportional to the product of the ensyme and substrate concentrations both of which vary with time, These equations have been solved to date only by computing machines such as differential analyzers. As an alternative to these mechanical methods, an analytical method is presented here which provides more information about the effect of the nonlinear term in the solution of these equations. The procedure followed here for solving systems of nonlinear differential equations reduces systems of nonlinear differential equations to a set of systems of linear differential equations; this is an extension of the reversion method (3, 4), which has been successfully applied to single nonlinear differential equations. This method is not limited in its application to the enzymatic type of reactions but can be used to solve kinetics of other types of chemical reactions.
Localization of V1a vasopressin receptor mRNA expression in cultured neurons, astroglia, and oligodendroglia of rat cerebral cortex

Previous studies suggested the existence of V1a vasopressin receptors (V1aR) in the cerebral cortex. Here, we investigated the cellular and regional localization of V1aR in the E18 rat cerebral cortex using RT-PCR and Southern blot analysis of V1aR mRNA derived from enriched cultures of neurons, astroglia, and oligodendroglia from four cortical regions (rostral, caudal, dorsal and ventral). V1aR mRNA was detected in each of the cell types within each of the regions studied. These data indicate that V1aR is broadly distributed throughout the cerebral cortex and suggest that vasopressin plays an important role in cortical functions.
Fluid-based cooperative underwater localization

Localization for autonomous underwater vehicles (AUV) is difficult because of the lack of adequate light, distinguishable landmarks and global positioning system (GPS) radio frequency (RF) signals in undersea areas. Due to maneuverability limitations, small AUVs are usually susceptible to strong ocean currents. The impacts of ocean flow on vehicle motion are usually too large to be considered as disturbances. Simulations of large-scale ocean currents are available to track changes of the background flow. Fluid-based multi-vehicle path planning algorithms have been developed to achieve the feasibility in the presence of the background flow and optimized energy consumption. With certain information from both simulations and measurements of the background flow, the performance of multi-AUV cooperative localization can be improved. In this work, a multi-AUV cooperation hierarchy is proposed. More capable AUVs with bounded localization errors are used as localization references to improve the localization performance of other low-cost AUVs. The proposed algorithm is fully distributed and it is verified by using a modified extended Kalman filter (MEKF). This paper focuses on the outline of the algorithm and its associated matching techniques. The performance of the algorithm is evaluated based on simulations in the flow field generated by the N-vortex system. Localization errors of low-cost AUVs are all bounded at satisfactory levels. The diverging behavior of the pure cooperative localization is effectively avoided.