cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Interferon α/β modulation of growth-factor-stimulated mitogenicity in AKR-2B fibroblasts

Growth factor-stimulated mitogenicity in mouse embryo-derived AKR-2B cells was inhibited in a dose-dependent fashion by a mixture of alpha and beta mouse interferons (IFN). A 60% decrease in epidermal growth factor (EGF) and insulin-stimulated DNA synthesis was observed with 10 kU/ml IFN, and half-maximal inhibition was seen at 1 kU/ml. Likewise, the mitogenic effect of 5% fetal bovine serum (FBS) was inhibited by 60% with 10 kU/ml IFN and by 38% with 1 kU/ml IFN. IFN inhibition of DNA synthesis was paralleled by a decrease in monolayer growth of AKR-2B cells by 60% on the 3rd day of culture and by 40% on the 6th day of culture. Soft agar growth of two AKR-2B derived lines, AKR-MCA and AKR-2B (clone 84A), was also inhibited significantly with the addition of 1-10 kU/ml of IFN. The effect of IFN on EGF receptors was also examined. Treatment of AKR-2B cells with 10 kU/ml IFN resulted in a 35% decrease in EGF binding to cell surface receptors. The reduced binding of EGF to cells treated with IFN was due to a loss of EGF receptors as determined by Scatchard analysis. IFN treatment of AKR-2B cells neither altered the affinity of the EGF receptor for its ligand nor affected receptor internalization. Nuclear transcription and actinomycin D decay analysis indicated that within 2 hr, IFN reduced c-myc messenger RNA levels at the level of transcription with no affect on message decay.
The importance of being modified: an unrealized code to RNA structure and function

A, U, C, and G are boring. Truly, four nucleosides sometimes repeated in seemingly endless sequence has a numbing effect even in a computational and structural context. However, there is nothing boring about the chemistries and structures of post-transcriptional modifications of RNA as indicated by the rising interest and rapidly increasing numbers of publications. A plethora of papers demonstrate that modified nucleosides of RNA are functionally indispensable for RNA processing and translation. Over the last 20 years, efficiency, accuracy, enhanced activity and responsiveness are terms that accompany studies of modifications. Modifications are found in all types of RNAs, in every structural motif and in unstructured regions. The large numbers of modifications in tRNAs are quite familiar. The presence, chemistries and RNA sequence locations of modified nucleosides are only now beginning to be appreciated as both temporal—in response to environmental (internal and external) signals—and spatial, in their effect on RNA conformation, dynamics, and functions. Modifications can be recognition determinants for proteins as well as incredible determiners of RNA structure and function. Unfortunately, we tend to neglect the modified nucleosides. Using amplification and transcription in vitro that disregard the native modified nucleosides, we study the interesting low abundance, non-coding RNAs for which one molecule per cell is sometimes enough to affect gene expression. On the other hand, we lack technologies sensitive enough to explore modifications and their functions in these same low abundance RNAs. Our lack of understanding of RNA modification regrettably limits innovation in the use of modified nucleosides for synthetic biology and medicine. However, the past two decades have led to some of the most interesting of findings.
Acute liver failure in the setting of herpes simplex virus and coexistent acute fatty liver of pregnancy

Fulminant hepatitis is a rare complication of herpes simplex virus (HSV-1 and HSV-2). Another rare cause of fulminant hepatitis in pregnant women is acute fatty liver of pregnancy (AFLP). Here we present a female with fulminant hepatitis after a cesarean section whose infant clinically decompensated in the early neonatal period. Mother and child were diagnosed with fulminant hepatic failure from HSV, and the mother was found to have coexistent fatty liver of pregnancy on biopsy. Thus, two rare causes of fulminant hepatitis were co-morbid in the same patient. Rapid diagnosis enabled successful treatment, and both mother and infant recovered well.
Teratogenetic and Lethal Effects of Influenza-A and Mumps Viruses on Early Chick Embryos

SummaryExperimental evidence has been presented to show that influenza-A virus (PR8) has teratogenetic effects on the early chick embryo. It produces a specific syndrome, comprising microcephaly and micrencephaly, twist of the axis and impairment of the growth of the amnion. Furthermore, the virus is lethal for early embryos, within 3 days after infection. The mumps virus is likewise lethal for early embryos, within 5 days after infection. It does not produce specific abnormalities but seems to raise the incidence of malformations of the types which occur occasionally in uninfected chick embryos. These results place Influenza-A virus in line with rubella virus, as a teratogenetic agent. Furthermore, our observations on Influenza-A infections in chick embryos confirm the observations on rubella in humans in that only infections of early embryos result in abnormalities. Chick embryos of 4 days of incubation are killed by the influenza virus, but it seems that at this stage of development most organs have pa...
Load estimation for load monitoring at distribution substations

Summary form only given. This paper addresses the issues related to the real-time monitoring of loads at distribution substations. A method is proposed for estimating the measurements that becomes unavailable due to metering problems. To address the low redundancy associated with the load monitoring scheme, the method uses a regression-based model and makes use of the strong correlation between the loads that are geographically close to each other. The method was tested with actual field data. The results indicate that the method has the acceptable performance for measurement loss of up to a week. The average estimation error varies 2-7.5%, depending on which measurement is lost and how up-to-date the historical data is.
Organellar genetic diversity in Penstemon haydenii (Scrophulariaceae): an endangered plant species

Genetic variation was analyzed in the endangered prairie forb Penstemon haydenii. Individuals from nine populations were surveyed for chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variation. No cpDNA polymorphism was found. Analysis of mtDNA revealed variation within and among populations. A minimum of eight haplotypes were identified. The distribution of these genotypes suggests that there is some correlation between geographic and genetic distances, which reflects the minimal gene flow in this species.
Self-Assembly of Ruthenium Porphyrins into Monolayer and Multilayer Architectures via Heterogeneous Coordination Chemistry

Self-assembly chemistry is finding use as a means of controlling the nanoscale structures at materials interfaces. Building on the success of a previous methodology, Ruthenium porphyrins have been coordinated to the pyridine-terminated surface of a self-assembled alkylsilane coupling layer on silica glass. These arrays are built in a stepwise fashion in which the surface of each layer allows further reaction to yield the next layer. Characterization by UV-vis and XPS confirms the deposition of the alkyl chains and pyridine moieties of the coupling layer, as well as coordination of the subsequent Ru-porphyrin layer. AFM analysis indicates very smooth surfaces, with roughness measured at 0.43 nm and 1.43 nm for the pyridine and porphyrin layers, respectively. The occasional appearance of large surface features (15-30 nm diameter) suggests aggregation among Φ-systems, with further characterization underway. Strategies toward the construction of a multilayer porphyrin architecture are also reported.
Exploring the cache design space for web servers

As Internet usage for e-commerce, communication and entertainment expands rapidly, careful attention needs to be paid to the design of Internet servers for achieving high performance and end-user satisfaction. In this paper we explore the access characteristics of front-end web workloads using SPECweb99 as the characteristic benchmark. In particular we explore the cache design space for single and dual-processor servers running the SPECweb99 benchmark. This includes studying the performance impact of cache size, line size and associativity for various levels of the cache hierarchy. We analyze SPECweb99 cache performance in terms of the misses per instruction, miss rate, instruction fetches vs. data reads and writes, coherence due to sharing across caches the rate at which writebacks occur, spatial and temporal locality, and other such properties. The results presented in this paper can be used as a guide for architects who make cache design choices for future processors and performance analysts who build web server models to predict future performance.
Birth of Scientific Surgery. John Hunter versus Joseph Lister as the Father or Founder of Scientific Surgery

John Hunter (1728-1793) has frequently been considered the "Father or Founder of Scientific Surgery". His inscription at Westminster Abbey presents him as "a gifted interpreter of the Divine Power and wisdom at work in the laws of organic life and the Founder of Scientific Surgery." I take issue with Hunter being considered the father or founder of scientific surgery and propose Joseph Lister (1827-1912) as the one who should receive this consideration. Hunter was a skilled surgeon, an inquisitive innovator, keen observer, great naturalist, and astute thinker, who made no surgical discoveries of any transcendence to the discipline. His scientific observations were not in the field of surgery. Therefore, he should not be considered the "Father or Founder of Scientific Surgery." On the contrary, Lister became a revolutionary scientific innovator by explaining the pervasive role of microorganisms in surgical wounds. His work directly affected surgery and its role in medicine. Lister, therefore, should be considered the "Father or Founder of Scientific Surgery."
Racial differences in the frequencies of scleroderma-related autoantibodies.

Objective. To determine demographic differences in scleroderma-related autoantibodies. Methods. One hundred fifty-six patients with systemic sclerosis were prospectively examined for anticentromere antibodies (ACA), anti—topoisomerase I (anti—topo I, or Scl-70), antinucleolar, and anti—U1 RNP autoantibodies. Results. ACA was found in 36% of Caucasians and 4% of American blacks (P = 0.002, odds ratio [OR] 15). Anti—topo I was found in 37% of American blacks, compared with 17% of Caucasians (P = 0.04, OR 3). No significant differences in the frequencies of antinucleolar and anti—U1 RNP autoantibodies were found. Conclusion. These data suggest important demographic differences in scleroderma-associated autoantibodies.
Questions and Answers About Myostatin, GDF11, and the Aging Heart

Myostatin and GDF11 are highly homologous transforming growth factor (TGF)-β family members implicated in skeletal and cardiac muscle growth. Myostatin promotes muscle wasting. In contrast, GDF11 was identified as a factor that reverses aging-related cardiac hypertrophy, and in separate experiments, GDF11 supplementation was linked to the reversal of aging-associated skeletal muscle dysfunction. These initial findings have been challenged by work from others, specifically where injection of GDF11 did not replicate the original findings. Now, a new report in Circulation Research demonstrates that GDF11 delivery did produce a reduction in cardiac mass in both young and old animals. Article, see p 29 Myostatin, a member of the TGF-β superfamily of proteins, is a negative regulator of muscle mass.1 Both naturally occurring and genetically engineered mutations that ablate or inhibit myostatin processing lead to a dramatic increase in muscle mass, an observation not lost on body builders and the pharmaceutical industry.2 Intriguingly, deletion of myostatin specifically in the heart has been shown to block muscle wasting that occurs in cardiac cachexia although others have found that body-wide myostatin deletion renders little change in basal phenotypes.3,4 GDF11 is the most closely related TGF-β superfamily member to myostatin and shows near identity in its active domain to myostatin (Figure 1). Inhibiting myostatin activity is expected to be useful to treat many muscle-wasting conditions, as well as sarcopenia with aging. Myostatin inhibition can be achieved through a variety of mechanisms including blocking peptides or neutralizing antibodies directed toward myostatin’s active domain (Figure 2). Alternative avenues to block myostatin’s effects include ligand traps like soluble receptor or follistatin, or blocking its major receptor, the activin type II receptor. The clinical efficacy of myostatin inhibition remains to be demonstrated in the human setting although its application may ultimately be useful for treating …
On the Mechanism of Casting Skin Formation in Compacted Graphite Cast Iron

The mechanical properties of ductile iron (DI) and compacted graphite iron (CGI) iron are measured and reported on standard machined specimens (as per ASTM). However, most castings retain most of the as-cast surface. This surface layer (the casting skin) includes both surface and subsurface features. Because of the casting skin, the mechanical properties of the part are in most cases significantly lower than those found on the standard ASTM machined specimens. After reviewing the current understanding of the current understanding of the mechanism of formation of the casting skin in cast iron, the authors propose a magnesium diffusion theory of skin formation in compacted graphite cast iron that includes the role of natural convection during solidification. The theory is supported by a computational model and experimental measurements of compositional changes at the casting surface.
Word Tone Recognition in Vietnamese Whispered Speech

(1961). Word Tone Recognition in Vietnamese Whispered Speech. WORD: Vol. 17, No. 1, pp. 11-15.
Population consequences of mutagenesis and antimutagenesis.

Although the progress in basic understanding of mutagenesis and in techniques for precise measurement of mutation rates in test systems has been enormous, there has been very little progress in applying this information to estimates of germline mutation in humans, and even less in translating such estimates into quantitative assessments of the impact on future generations. This doesn’t mean that new information about the mutation process, and antimutagens in particular, is not useful. Lowering the human mutation rate would be good, even if we can’t say how good.
THE MANIFESTATION OF PHENOTYPIC SELECTION AT CONSTITUENT LOCI. I. STABILIZING SELECTION.

There is general consensus that stabilizing selection on a quantitative trait will endow the governing loci with near neutrality (e.g., Lande, 1975; Kimura, 1981; Milkman, 1982). This is because stabilizing selection maintains the population near the optimal phenotype, and selection is weak when the population is near its optimum. However, if a population drifts away from its optimum, the magnitude of selection at individual loci will increase. Kimura (198 1) has addressed this problem with the sentence: "During this short period of directional selection, extensive shift of gene frequencies is expected to occur at many loci, but this process itself will seldom cause gene substitutions." In the present work we investigate how far the population mean drifts from the optimum under stabilizing selection and the extent of gene frequency shifts which may ensue from selection when the population mean is away from the optimum. Our conclusion is that perhaps Kimura overstated the importance of selection when the population mean deviates from the optimum. Rather, any significant selection at individual loci occurs when the population mean is at its optimum. We agree with the general consensus that selection at individual loci is often imperceptible. Assuming a particular form of stabilizing selection allows more specific analysis, for which purpose the following model is employed.
Abstract 2186: Error correcting DNA barcode allows for high throughput mutation screening in patient cohorts by multiplexed high throughput sequencing

Somatic mutations are one of the major factors contributing to oncogenesis and tumor progression. Second generation sequencing allows rapid generation of several giga-bases of sequence, enabling genome-wide mutation discovery in individual samples. This is particularly effective when used with genome partitioning strategies. The biological significance of mutations may be assessed by their prevalence at the gene or pathway level and by their functional implications, requiring larger sample cohorts. Adding sequence barcodes to discriminate individual identity allows pooling of sample sets larger than those described by current Illumina protocols which are relatively complex and currently offer only up to 12 barcodes. We report a novel barcoding protocol for Illumina GA2-x sequencers, which permits multiplexing up to 2048 samples per flow-cell. Reducing hands-on time in the protocol was one major goal in designing the protocol. Throughput has been increased by up to ten-fold compared to Illumina protocols. This improvement was achieved by eliminating several enzymatic steps and gel purification/size selection and replacing those with two consecutive PCR steps. Instead of enzymatically ligating of the bar-code, our protocol incorporates barcode, sequencing and flow cell binding sites into the DNA product through a universal set of oligo primers, independent of target selection. Additionally, the PCR based protocol utilized the Fluidigm Biomark system for parallel processing allowing the processing of 317 amplimers x 48 samples in parallel. “Cross-talk” between samples and loss of usable sequences induced by read-errors in the bar-code is a major concern in multiplexed experiments. In order to minimize such effects, we introduced an error correcting 8nt DNA code using concepts from computer science. The double 8,4 Hamming code utilized guarantees error correction of read errors affecting up to 2nt, thereby boosting the number of usable codes. Additionally, error detection of read errors affecting up to 4nt minimize cross-talk between multiplexed samples. The protocol has been validated in a 48-way multiplexed experiment demonstrating the viability of the more automated, less laborious library preparation. Error detection and correction was highly effective with the number of reads mapped to a valid bar-codes could be increased by15-20% on average. In one particularly difficult barcode, almost 60% of reads were rescued by error correction. In summary, the protocol presented here extends the use of Illumina GA2 sequencers for mutation screening in cohorts of up to 2048 samples per experiment for a small set of target genes. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 2186.
Developing a Critical Consciousness for Diversity and Equity Among Preservice Music Teachers

For approximately 50 years, music education scholars have purported the need for more diversity training among preservice music teachers. This call has become increasingly urgent as contemporary pr...
Effects of antisense inhibition against Tiam 1 on cytoskeleton of gastric cancer cells and its tumorgenesis or metastasis in nude mice

OBJECTIVE:To investigate the effects of T lymphoma invasion and metastasis inducing factor 1 antisense oligodeoxynucleotides(Tiam 1 ASODN)transfection on the cytoskeleton of gastric cancer cells and its tumorgenesis or metastasis in nude mice.METHODS:The high invasive and migratory subgroup(MH)was separated from human gastric cancer cell line MKN-45 by the laminin adhesion method in vitro.Tiam 1 ASODN was transfected into MH cells with liposome,and the expressions of Tiam 1 mRNA and protein were determined by RT-PCR and ELISA respectively.The changes in cytoskeleton,tumorgenesis and metastasis of ASODN-transfected MH cells were observed by the cytoskeletal protein stain and inoculation into nude mice respectively.RESULTS:The expressions of Tiam 1 mRNA and protein in MH cells after transfected with 0.43 μmol/L ASODN(0.162±0.018,0.982±0.119)were significantly lower than those of liposome-transfected cells(0.789±0.054,1.237±0.108),sense oligodeoxynucleotides(SODN)-liposome-transfected cells(0.754±0.039,1.234±0.103)and non-transfected cells(0.801±0.065,1.290±0.182),and the values of which in the former were 20.2%-21.5% and 76.1%-79.6% of those in the three latters respectively(P values were 0.000 and 0.037).Compared with non-transfected cells(88%,7/8)and sense oligodeoxynucleotides(SODN)-transfected cells(75%,6/8),the lung metastatic rate of ASODN-transfected cells in nude-mice(25%,2/8)was much more decreased(P=0.039).Simultaneously,ASODN-transfected cells had less membrane surface projections,fewer or shortener pseudopodia and less irregular cytoskeletal network than non-transfected cells and SODN-transfected cells did.CONCLUSIONS:Tiam 1 ASODN transfection can effectively suppress the expression of Tiam 1 in gastric cancer cells and impair its invasive and migratory potential in vivo,which may be fulfilled through modulating the reconstruction of cytoskeleton and decreasing the deforming and migratory potential of gastric cancer cells.
Single-photon Emission Computed Tomography (spect) in Pediatric Epilepsy

Single Photon Emission Computerized Tomography (SPECT) is a valuable tool in the assessment of epileptic patients. Radiotracers that distribute according to regional cerebral blood flow permit the identification of altered perfusion to an epileptogenic zone both ictally and interictally. This technique has proven especially useful in temporal lobe epilepsy.
Maternal characteristics of women delivered of twins: natural vs. induced.

This study retrospectively compared sociodemographic and anthropometric data, as well as selected obstetric outcomes, of 13 mothers of twins who conceived after ovulation induction with clomiphene citrate or Pergonal with similar data from 255 mothers who conceived naturally. Infertile women were significantly (P 32 weeks (91.7% vs. 74.1%) and longer mean gestations (36.5 weeks vs. 35.4 weeks) compared to naturally conceiving mothers of twins, but neither of these differences was significant. The infants of treated mothers had birthweights 9.5% heavier than the infants of mothers who conceived naturally. These retrospective findings suggest that previously infertile women who conceive twins do not suffer worse reproductive outcome than women who conceive naturally.
Surgical Treatment of the Incontinent Female Patient with Myelomeningocele

Surgical therapy was required for 42 incontinent female patients with myelomeningocele who had urodynamically documented high pressure bladders. Conservative treatment consisting of cholinolytic and alpha-adrenergic agents, and intermittent self-catheterization had failed. The surgical approach consisted of perivesical denervation (for hyperreflexia), Burch bladder neck suspension, enlargement cystoplasty and ureteral reimplantation when required. Among 33 patients (79 per cent) there was no incontinence on intermittent self-catheterization and 6 (14 per cent) had improvement with rare urgency or stress incontinence. In 3 patients (7 per cent) sphincteric incompetence required a transvaginal sling procedure.
Likelihood-Based Parameter Estimation for High-Dimensional Phylogenetic Comparative Models: Overcoming the Limitations of “Distance-Based” Methods

Recently, a suite of distance-based multivariate phylogenetic comparative methods has been proposed for studying the evolution of high-dimensional traits, such as morphometric coordinates, gene expression data, and function-valued traits. These methods allow for the statistical comparison of evolutionary rates, assessment of phylogenetic signal, and tests of correlated high-dimensional trait evolution. Simulations reveal that distance-based comparative methods exhibit low statistical power and high Type I error under various evolutionary scenarios. Distance-based methods are also limited to relatively simple model specification (e.g., Brownian motion evolution) due to the lack of a likelihood function for parameter estimation. Here I propose an alternative method for studying high-dimensional trait evolution which overcomes some of the statistical limitations associated with distance-based methods. This framework, based on parametric bootstrapping and maximum pseudolikelihood parameter estimation, opens up the ability to estimate alternative evolutionary models, combine multiple evolutionary hypotheses, and potentially allow missing data and within-species variation. Simulations reveal that pairwise composite likelihood methods demonstrate appropriate Type I error and high statistical power, thus providing a robust framework for studying high-dimensional trait evolution. These methods are implemented in the R package phylocurve [Covariance; distance; evolutionary rate; function-valued trait; high-dimensional; morphometric; multivariate; pairwise composite likelihood; phylogenetic comparative method; phylogenetic generalized least squares; phylogenetic signal.].
The Impact of Committee Composition and Agendas on Women's Participation: Evidence from a Legislature with Near Numerical Equality

Previous studies of women's participation in legislative debates could not disentangle the possible effect of institutionalized gender discrimination from the effect of gendered patterns because of women lacking seniority and leadership posts. Costa Rica's Legislative Assembly offers an opportunity to control for seniority and leadership. The prohibition on immediate reelection means that no legislators have seniority. The country's successful gender quota, presence of an equal number of men and women committee presidents, and election of the first woman president in 2010 all point to women having relatively equal access to formal positions of power. In this context, unequal debate participation between men and women legislators would indicate that it is very difficult to change the gendered nature of an institution. We use multilevel modeling to analyze repeated observations of individual-level participation in three of six standing committees during the 2010–14 term (Agriculture, Economics, and Social Issues) to explore differences in patterns of participation under various conditions (sex ratios, discussion topics, sex of committee leaders). Findings indicate that women are active participants in committees with both stereotypically feminine and masculine policy jurisdictions, but also that women are more active when the gender composition of the committee is less skewed.
Combination Immunotherapy of Murine Transitional Cell Cancer Using BCG and an Interferon-Inducing Pyrimidinone

The immunomodulator ABPP (2-amino-5-iodo-6-phenyl-4(3H) pyrimidinone) is an interferon inducer and has been shown to have in vivo activity against the murine bladder tumor MBT-2. Two experiments were performed to determine if ABPP might enhance the in vivo anti-tumor activity of Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG). First, in vivo stimulation of cell-mediated cytotoxicity by BCG and ABPP was measured in C3H mice using a chromium-release assay. An earlier, greater, and longer-lasting increase in cytotoxicity was caused by ABPP than by BCG. Based on the differing times to peak cytotoxic stimulation, groups of 15 mice each were pretreated intraperitoneally at different times prior to inoculation with MBT-2. Compared to saline, ABPP alone did not increase survival, while BCG alone did increase survival (p less than 0.01), and the combination of BCG and ABPP yielded the highest survival (p less than 0.001). These results indicate that 1) ABPP affects the immune system differently than BCG, and 2) while ABPP may have less single-agent activity against MBT-2 than BCG, ABPP may serve to potentiate the activity of BCG.
Pollution Control with Time-Varying Model Mistrust of the Stock Dynamics

I develop a framework to analyze the robust emissions tax policy for a stock pollutant when the environmental authority is not fully confident about its estimated model of pollution dynamics and, in contrast to previous research, the degree of model mistrust may change over time. I characterize the effect of time-varying model mistrust on emission taxes, pollution stocks and welfare. The general results of this paper show that introducing the possibility of a time-varying degree of model mistrust produces different emission taxes, abatement and welfare compared to the traditional assumption of a time-fixed model mistrust. This result holds even if the probability that the model mistrust may change in the future is small. If the environmental authority expects that the model uncertainty may decrease in the future then current emissions taxes should also decrease. Conversely, if the model mistrust may increase in the future then an active approach compatible with the Precautionary Principle is optimal and current emissions taxes should also increase.
Ondersteuning bij de seksuele ontwikkeling van jeugdige vluchtelingen

Kinderen doorlopen allemaal een seksuele ontwikkeling. Jeugdige vluchtelingen zijn op verschillende thema’s extra kwetsbaar en hebben extra ondersteuning nodig. Dit vraagt van de jeugdgezondheidszorgprofessional een deskundige, cultuursensitieve en proactieve houding.
Amino Acid Therapy in Neurological Disease

Administration of purified amino acids to treat neurological disease rests upon the discovery that variations in the concentrations of amino acids circulating in the blood stream can influence rates of neurotransmitter synthesis and release in the central nervous system. There are three prominent examples in which individual amino acids that are precursors for neurotransmitter synthesis have been used to treat neurological disorders: tyrosine and L-dopa in Parkinson’s disease (1, 2) tryptophan and L-5-hydroxytryptophan for posthypoxic intention myoclonus (3, 4) and threonine for treatment of spasticity (5). In each instance, the precursor amino acid is administered in pharmacological doses as a drug; there is no evidence that any of these diseases results from an amino acid dietary deficiency. Treatments of Parkinson’s disease and posthypoxic intention myoclonus are well known and have been reviewed elsewhere (6); L-threonine administration in the treatment of spasticity is new and forms the basis of this chapter.
Progressive Solitary Sclerosis: Insidious Motor Impairment Localized to an Isolated CNS Demyelinating Lesion (P3.008)

Objective: To report patients with progressive solitary sclerosis, a progressive motor impairment resulting from a single central nervous system (CNS) demyelinating lesion. Background: Current diagnostic criteria for multiple sclerosis (MS) require dissemination in time and space with multiple MRI lesions. We previously reported MS patients with progressive impairment consistent with MS from a solitary demyelinating cervicomedullary lesion. Methods: We identified 28 patients (23 prospectively identified from our MS clinic and 5 retrospectively identified from our progressive MS database) who met inclusion criteria of: (1) progressive motor impairment >1 year attributable to a single radiologically identified CNS demyelinating lesion along the corticospinal tracts; (2) absence of other demyelinating CNS lesions; and (3) no history of relapses affecting other CNS segments. Patients were excluded if an alternative etiology for progressive motor impairment was found. Multiple brain and spinal cord MRIs were reviewed by a neuroradiologist blinded to the clinical details. Results: The median age was 48.5 years (range, 23-71) and 16 (57[percnt]) were women. All had insidiously progressive upper motor neuron weakness directly corresponding to the solitary MRI demyelinating lesion. Clinical presentations were: hemiparesis/monoparesis, 22; quadriparesis, 4; paraparesis, 1; and spastic-ataxia, 1. Solitary MRI lesions involved: cervical spinal cord, 18; cervicomedullary/brainstem region 6; thoracic spinal cord, 2; subcortical white matter, 2. Median follow-up from symptom onset was 90 months (range 15-343 mos.) and median expanded disability status scale score (EDSS) at last follow up was 6 (range 2-10). Elevations in cerebrospinal fluid oligoclonal bands or immunoglobulin (Ig) G index were found in 13 of 24 (54[percnt]). Isolated demyelinating etiology was confirmed in two with pathology (biopsy, 1; autopsy, 1). Conclusion: Progressive solitary sclerosis results from an isolated CNS demyelinating lesion arising in the cerebral, brainstem or spinal cord white matter. Disclosure: Dr. Keegan has received research support from Terumo BCT. Dr. Kaufman has received personal compensation for activities with SpineThera as a consultant. Dr. Weinshenker has received personal compensation for activities with Novartis, Biogen Idec, Mitsubishi Pharmaceuticals, MedImmune Pharmaceuticals, Chugai, and Chord as a consultant. Dr. Weinshenker has received royalty payments from RSR Ltd. and Oxford Dr. Kantarci has nothing to disclose. Dr. Schmalstieg has nothing to disclose. Dr. Paz Soldan has nothing to disclose. Dr. Flanagan has nothing to disclose.
Political Vulnerabilities and Transnational Threats

Terrorism is an asymmetrical tactic that communicates a particular message as part of a wider strategy. Military strikes will enhance terrorist networks and will only advance tensions, increase radicalization and lead to more violent reprisals. This would explain Islamic State’s increasingly barbaric actions in the world. If states persist in their futile attempt at trying to subdue Islamic State by force, they will have to accept serious responsibility. The author suggests establishing the motive of these groups before action is taken. Policy-makers can then deal with the problem efficiently by targeting motivations. Violent reactions will only illicit further violence from terrorist networks, exacerbating and strengthening the power of political vulnerabilities.
A Survey of Attack-Resistant Collaborative Filtering Algorithms.

With the increasing popularity of recommender systems in commercial services, the quality of recommendations has increasingly become an important to study, much like the quality of search results from search engines. While some users faithfully express their true opinion, many provide noisy or incorrect ratings which can be detrimental to the quality of the generated recommendations. The presence of noise can violate modeling assumptions and may thus result in unstable estimates or predictions. Even worse, malicious users can deliberately insert attack profiles in an attempt to bias the recommender system to their benefit. This is a particularly important issue, and it is necessary for systems to provide guarantees on the robustness of recommendations to ensure continued user trust. While previous research has attempted to study the robustness of various existing Collaborative Filtering (CF) approaches, the explicit design of robust recommender systems remains a challenging problem. Approaches such as Intelligent Neighborhood Selection, Association Rules and Robust Matrix Factorization are generally known to produce unsatisfactory results. In this paper, we review previous approaches to robust collaborative filtering; we also describe promising recent approaches that exploit a Singular Value Decomposition (SVD) and are both accurate as well as highly stable to shilling.
Spatially explicit return on investment to private forest conservation for water purification in Indiana, USA

Abstract Conservation programs that incentivize the increased provision of ecosystem services on private lands have become common policy instruments. The forgone revenues implied by these programs and the ecosystem services benefits they provide might be spatially heterogeneous. However, such programs are not always spatially targeted to maximize the return on conservation investment (ROI). Here, we use an integrated spatial, ecological-economic modeling approach to assess the ROI for water purification in the case of the Indiana Classified Forest and Wildlands (CFW) Program, United States. We compared the ROI of the existing non-spatially targeted CFW expansion to hypothetical, spatially targeted expansion scenarios in the White River Basin of Indiana. First, we projected nutrient retention services to increase greatly under the hypothetical spatially targeted scenarios and modestly in the non-spatially targeted, baseline case. Second, our results revealed the inclusion of conservation costs could substantially change the conservation priorities. In particular, private forestlands in subwatersheds with average conservation benefits and low conservation costs, as opposed to those with high conservation benefits and high conservation costs, would be prioritized for the CFW program, based on their positive ROIs. Third, we found that the benefits from the single ecosystem service of nutrient retention could exceed the conservation costs of the tax deductions and forgone alternatives (i.e., agriculture) if the program was targeted to contaminated watersheds. This research contributes to the integration of forest economics, forest conservation, and forest ecology to assess the effectiveness of forest conservation programs such as the CFW. It also informs citizens and governments on the benefits and costs of potential targeted increased enrollments of the CFW program in Indiana.
Quality-of-life implications of risk-reducing cancer surgery

BACKGROUND Modern advances in genetic sequencing techniques have allowed for increased availability of genetic testing for hereditary cancer syndromes. Consequently, more people are being identified as mutation carriers and becoming aware of their increased risk of malignancy. Testing is commonplace for many inheritable cancer syndromes, and with that comes the knowledge of being a gene carrier for some patients. With increased risk of malignancy, many guidelines recommend that gene carriers partake in risk reduction strategies, including risk-reducing surgery for some syndromes. This review explores the quality-of-life consequences of genetic testing and risk-reducing surgery. METHODS A narrative review of PubMed/MEDLINE was performed, focusing on the health-related quality-of-life implications of surgery for hereditary breast and ovarian cancer, familial adenomatous polyposis and hereditary diffuse gastric cancer. RESULTS Risk-reducing surgery almost uniformly decreases cancer anxiety and affects patients' quality of life. CONCLUSION Although the overwhelming quality-of-life implications of surgery are neutral to positive, risk-reducing surgery is irreversible and can be associated with short- and long-term side-effects.
Gedunin- and Khivorin-Derivatives Are Small-Molecule Partial Agonists for Adhesion G Protein-Coupled Receptors GPR56/ADGRG1 and GPR114/ADGRG5

Adhesion G protein-coupled receptors (aGPCRs) have emerged as potential therapeutic targets in multiple cancers and in neurologic diseases. However, there are few modulatory compounds that act on these receptors. The majority of aGPCRs are orphans and a general activation mechanism has only recently been defined: aGPCRs are activated by a tethered agonist. aGPCRs constitutively cleave themselves during biosynthesis to generated two-part receptors comprising an extracellular domain (ECD) and a 7-transmembrane spanning domain (7TM). ECD dissociation reveals the tethered agonist initiating G protein signaling. Synthetic peptides that mimic the tethered agonist region can activate aGPCRs. We hypothesized that small molecules could act in the same way as peptide agonists. High throughput screening of the 2000-compound Spectrum Collection library using the serum response element luciferase gene reporter assay revealed two related classes of small molecules that could activate the aGPCR GPR56/ADGRG1. The most potent compound identified was 3-α-acetoxydihydrodeoxygedunin, or 3-α-DOG. 3-α-DOG activated engineered, low-activity GPR56 7TM in independent biochemical and cell-based assays with an EC50 of ∼5 μM. The compound also activated a subset of aGPCRs but not two class A GPCRs tested. The mode of 3-α-DOG-mediated receptor activation is that of partial agonist. 3-α-DOG activated GPR56 less efficaciously than peptide agonist and could antagonize both the peptide agonist and the endogenous tethered agonist, which are pharmacological hallmarks of partial agonists. Taken together, we have uncovered a novel group of aGPCR partial agonists that will serve as invaluable resources for understanding this unique class receptors.
Debemos escuchar a los maestros: Perspectives of Bilingual Teacher Candidates in Teacher Education Partnerships.

ABSTRACTWe investigated the experiences of 12 bilingual teacher candidates as they participated in a non-traditional teacher education program implemented in the context of a partnership between a university, a non-profit organization, and an urban school district. Using the lens of Cultural Historical Activity Theory and Latinx Critical Race Theory, we analyzed participating teachers’ interviews, reflection logs, and partnership artifacts. Findings showed that teacher candidates identified positive and negative affordances from participating in the teacher education partnership. Bilingual teacher candidates reported that urban schools were challenging settings to develop their practice and that they had less access to instructional resources and mentors than general education (English-only) teachers. Additional negative affordances included inconsistent expectations between the partnership members with respect to high-quality bilingual education and a mismatch between candidates’ educational backgrounds ...
To What Extent Do Parents of Montessori-Educated Children "Do Montessori" at Home? Preliminary Findings and Future Directions.

Few, if any, empirical studies have explicitly examined the home environments of Montessori-educated children, and specifically whether or not Montessori parents reinforce or undermine their children’s Montessori education at home. With a sample of 30 parents of Montessori-educated toddlers and preschoolers attending a private Montessori school in the Midwest, this cross-sectional study examined Montessori parents’ knowledge of Montessori methods and their parenting beliefs and behaviors at home. Results suggested that Montessori parents from the targeted school were knowledgeable about and valued Montessori methods, even though few had a Montessori education themselves. Parents in this sample varied in their parenting behaviors and choices at home, with some parents who intentionally reinforced Montessori principles and others whose behaviors were inconsistent with a Montessori approach. Findings from this preliminary study provide a first glimpse into the beliefs and behaviors of Montessori parents from which future studies can build upon. Montessori educators and administrators will benefit from future research involving Montessori parents, particularly for those who offer Montessori-based parent education sessions to the families they serve.
Sequential parametric convex approximation algorithm for bilinear matrix inequality problem

The goal of this paper is to study algorithms for solving optimization problems subject to bilinear matrix inequalities (BMIs). This class of problems is known to be of great importance in engineering applications, for instance, control system designs. A main contribution is the development of a sequential convex optimization algorithm, where at each iteration step, a convex subproblem with linear matrix inequality (LMI) constraints is solved. The set of feasible points of the LMIs is a convex inner approximation of the set of feasible points of the BMI constraints around the current iteration point. Another contribution is the convergence proof of a subsequence of the iterations to a stationary point. Finally, an example of the static output-feedback controller design problem is given for comparative analysis.
Use of Standardized Patient Simulations to Assess Impact of Motivational Interviewing Training on Social⁻Emotional Development.

The objective of this study was to assess the impact of motivational interviewing (MI) training on students’ social–emotional development. Two simulations using standardized patients (SP) were conducted within a smoking cessation module. Students first completed a 4 h self-study module focused on smoking cessation tools and general counseling techniques. Faculty then administered a 15-item rubric focused on students’ self-assessment of their verbal/non-verbal communication, social–emotional competence and MI skills. Students then participated in a smoking cessation counseling session with an SP. SPs used the same rubric to assess student performance. Teaching assistants (TAs) observed and assessed the students using the same rubric and an additional 22 items related to clinical skills. TAs and SPs then provided feedback on areas of improvement. The following week, students first completed a 3 h self-study module on MI then participated in a different smoking cessation scenario. After completion, the 15-item self-assessment rubric was administered. There was a significant improvement in TA assessed student performance with an average score improvement of 8% (pre-intervention score = 67%; post-intervention mean = 75%). Students had dramatic gains in their self-assessment with their scores rising by an average of 22%. Using MI techniques can improve students’ self-assessed and perceived social–emotional competency.
Vervet monkey (cercopithecus aethiops sabaeus) whole blood serotonin level is determined by platelet uptake sites

Whole blood serotonin levels in adult male vervet monkeys living in social groups are sensitive to the animals' social environment. The mechanisms that translate different behavioral and environmental cues into altered whole blood serotonin levels are unknown. In this study, we have measured platelet number, size, serotonin content, and serotonin uptake, as well as the serum concentrations of tryptophan, Mg+2 and Ca+2. Results showed that whole blood serotonin levels, platelet serotonin content, and the serotonin uptake parameter Vmax were stable within animals on repeated sampling. The whole blood serotonin level was highly positively associated with platelet serotonin content, and the platelet serotonin content was highly positively associated with Vmax. These findings suggested that whole blood serotonin levels were a function of the number of platelet uptake sites.
Percutaneous Nephrostomy: Indications, Complications and Clinical Usefulness

AbstractOur experience with percutaneous nephrostomy in 22 patients is presented. This procedure can be accomplished readily and is safe, reliable and effective for short and long-term urinary diversion in various urologic conditions in children and adults.