cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A Physician's Guide to Talking About End-of-Life Care

A large majority of patients and close family members are interested in discussing end-of-life issues with their physician. Most expect their physician to initiate such dialogue. End-of-life discussions, however, must go beyond the narrow focus of resuscitation. Instead, such discussions should address the broad array of concerns shared by most dying patients and families: fears about dying, understanding prognosis, achieving important end-of-life goals, and attending to physical needs. Good communication can facilitate the development of a comprehensive treatment plan that is medically sound and concordant with the patient's wishes and values. This paper presents a practical 4-step approach to conducting end-of-life discussions with patients and their families: (1) Initiating Discussion, (2) Clarifying Prognosis, (3) Identifying End-of-Life Goals, and (4) Developing a Treatment Plan. By following these 4 steps, communication can be enhanced, fears allayed, pain and suffering minimized, and most end-of-life issues resolved comfortably, without conflict.
Consumer Attitudes for Asian Vegetables in Direct Markets

ADDITIONAL INDEX WORDS. consumer survey, marketing, specialty crops SUMMARY. Because the demand for Asian vegetables is rapidly increasing in the United States, these crops may provide local market growers new revenue opportunities with high returns per acre. However, consumer attitudes and purchasing habits regarding Asian vegetable crops are poorly understood. Therefore, consumers were surveyed in two direct-market venues (on-farm and farmers market) to measure their familiarity and preferences for Asian vegetables. Attributes that may influence buying decisions such as purchase frequency, consumption behavior, and knowledge of preparation and use were measured. Respondents were generally not familiar with fresh Asian vegetables. Although greater than 80% consumed less than 5 lb per year and less than once per month, the consumers surveyed expressed a strong interest to learn more about these vegetables. Consumers purchased Asian vegetables most often at supermarkets (29.4%) and restaurants (28.1%), and much less at local direct markets (12.5%). Results also indicated that Asians as well as consumers with higher income levels were most likely to consume these vegetables. Thirty-eight percent of consumers strongly indicated that the availability of recipes for various Asian vegetables at direct markets would increase the likelihood for purchase; thus, the opportunity exists to add these vegetables to local production and marketing systems, if recipes were made available at the point-of-purchase.
Selenium Fertilization of Pastures for Improved Forage Selenium Content

Selenium (Se) was applied to perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) and subterranean clover (Trifolium subterranean) pasture as a fertilizer to determine the effect of Se form and concentration on Se accumulation in subsequent forage growth. Treatments were a no Se control, 0.6 kg/ ha Se as sodium selenate, and 0.6, 1.1, and 2.2 kg/ha Se as sodium selenite, all applied to pasture plots with low soil Se concentration in southwestern Oregon (n = 3 plots per treatment). The plots were protected from grazing by use of electric fence, and total forage DM production and Se concentrations were measured after the spring growing season in yr 1. Pastures were grazed by sheep over the fall growing season, but then were protected from spring grazing to enable sampling of residual forage Se concentrations during yr 2. Application of 0.6 kg/ ha selenate provided greater (P < 0.01) average forage Se content in yr 1 (8.44 ± 0.08 mg/kg) than all other treatments. Compared with the control (0.09 ± 0.06 mg/kg), the plots in the 0.6 and 2.2 kg/ ha selenite treatments contained greater
Prevalence of Psychiatric Symptoms/Syndromes in Medical Settings

Mental health and substance use disorders, or behavioral health (BH) disorders, are common and associated with significant morbidity, disability, and health-care costs. However, BH services are not adequate to meet this need. BH care in the general medical sector has increased substantially in the last decade. However, such care tends to lack adequate evidence-based mental health treatment despite a growing evidence base. Moreover, behavioral and medical conditions tend to co-occur, and thus, patients with combined needs are often seen in medical settings. BH and medical conditions are risk factors for one another, and each complicates the course and treatment of the other. Based on these observations, it is essential that we integrate mental health and medical care delivery to improve access, care, and reduce cost.
Using Simpson’s diversity index to examine multidimensional models of diversity in health professions education

Objectives: This study explored new models of diversity for health professions education that incorporate multiple attributes and examined differences in diversity based on urbanicity, geographic region, and institutional structure. Methods: Simpson’s Diversity Index was used to develop race, gender, and interprofessional diversity indices for health professions schools in the United States (N = 318). Sullivan’s extension was used to develop a composite diversity index that incorporated multiple individual attributes for each school. Pearson’s r was used to investigate correlations between continuous variables. ANOVA and independent t-tests were used to compare groups based on urbanicity, geographic region, and Basic Carnegie Classification. Results: Mean (SD) for race, gender, and interprofessional diversity indices were 0.36(0.17), 0.45(0.07), and 0.22(0.27) respectively. All correlations between the three indices were weak. The composite diversity index for this sample was 0.34(0.13). Significant differences in diversity were found between institutions based on urbanicity, Basic Carnegie Classification, and geographic region. Conclusions: Multidimensional models provide support for expanding measures of diversity to include multiple characteristics and attributes. The approach demonstrated in this study enables institutions to complement and extend traditional measures of diversity as a means of providing evidence for decision-making and progress towards institu
Prevalence and Safety of Off-Label Use of Chemotherapeutic Agents in Older Patients With Breast Cancer: Estimates From SEER-Medicare Data

BACKGROUND Prescribing drugs outside of the label indication is legal and may reflect standard practice; however, some off-label use may be inappropriate. This study measured the prevalence and safety of off-label use both in accordance with practice guidelines and inconsistent with practice guidelines in older patients with breast cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS The SEER-Medicare data set was used to identify women diagnosed with breast cancer. Intravenous chemotherapy was identified using Medicare claims and classified as either on-label, off-label but included in the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines) for Breast Cancer ("off-label/supported"), or off-label and not included in the NCCN Guidelines ("off-label/unsupported"). Hospitalization/emergency department (ED) admission rates were compared. RESULTS A total of 13,347 women were treated with 16,127 regimens (12% of women switched regimen); 64% of regimens were off-label/supported, 25% were on-label, and 11% were off-label/unsupported, and hospitalization/ED admission occurred in 27%, 25%, and 32% of regimens, respectively (P<.0001). Drugs never included in the NCCN Guidelines for Breast Cancer accounted for 19% of off-label/unsupported use (1% of total use). CONCLUSIONS Off-label use without scientific support was not common, whereas 64% of use was off-label/supported, reflecting the fact that widely accepted indications are often not tested in registration trials. Off-label/supported use will likely increase as more drugs are expected to have activity across cancer sites, and therefore understanding the implications of such use is critical.
Comparison of Algorithmic and Human Assessments of Sentence Similarity

This paper describes a new method, based on information theory, for measuring sentence similarity. The method first computes the information content (IC) of dependency triples using corpus statistics generated by processing the Open American National Corpus (OANC) with the Stanford Parser. We define the similarity of two sentences as a function of (1) the similarity of their constituent dependency triples, and (2) the position of the triples in their respective dependency trees. We apply the algorithm to 15 pairs of sentences that were also given to human subjects to assign a similarity score. The human- and computer-generated scores are compared; the results are promising, but point to the need for further refinement.
High-Speed Liquid Chromatography of Proteins

A discussion of protein separation should be prefaced with a review of our general knowledge of protein structure. Proteins are biopolymers composed of an ordered sequence of acidic, basic, neutral, and hydrophobic amino acids coupled via peptide bonds. The bending and folding of this primary chain results in a secondary structure that is maintained primarily by internal hydrogen bonding. Further stabilization of the protein occurs by hydrogen, ionic, hydrophobic, covalent, and van der Waals linkages between amino acid side chains. The net result of these secondary and tertiary modifications along the polypeptide chain is a three-dimensional matrix with some amino acids buried in the interior of the protein and others exposed at the surface. As a result, proteins have specific shapes and sizes; in addition, they have areas that may be anionic, cationic, and/or hydrophobic depending on the amino acid sequence. These differences in properties make possible the chromatographic resolution of proteins.
Drone Congregation Areas

SUMMARYBy elevating virgin queen honeybees to heights of 6–30 m. with helium-filled balloons, it was determined that drones could be attracted in some areas and not in others. The degree of attraction varied. The data suggest that definite drone congregation areas exist, and it would appear that queens search out these areas and are there pursued by drones. It has so far been almost impossible to define a drone congregation area physically.
Instabilities on a Hypersonic Yawed Straight Cone

Our current activities focus on providing linear and nonlinear parabolized stability equation analysis of the hypersonic crossflow and second-mode instability over a 7 -halfangle yawed straight cone. A study is conducted to complement the experiments at Mach 6 in the Hypersonic Ludwieg Tube at Braunschweig 1 . Multiple instabilities can be simultaneously present in a 3-D boundary layer. For azimuthal angle 70° and x=0.36 m, analysis following Mack 2 suggests that the low-frequency disturbances observed are related to traveling crossflow. Simultaneously, a second mode is predicted with frequency range well predicted by LPSE.
Moments, Movements, and Metaphors: Paul Sidney Martin, Pedagogy, and Professionalization in Field Schools, 1926–1974

Paul Sidney Martin identified two “watershed” moments in his career: (1) his adoption of the tenets of the New Archaeology and (2) the changes he made in his approach to pedagogy at the Vernon field school. We explore the relationship between these two watershed moments using Martin’s archival record. We find that, rather than being watershed moments, these changes have deeper roots in the trajectory of Martin’s work and career and moreover are clearly linked to broader historical occurrences, such as World War II, the G.I. Bill, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the establishment of the National Science Foundation. Furthermore, we find that the New Archaeology’s emphasis on egalitarian science—the metaphor of “archaeology as commune”—serves as a link among its theoretical innovations, methodology, and pedagogy.
Determination of Polysorbate in Ascites Fluid from a Premature Infant

A method is described for the determination of poly(oxy-1,2-ethanediyl)oligomers in body fluids using ammonium cobaltothiocyanate complexation in conjunction with high pressure liquid chromatography and visible spectrophotometry. Analysis of peritoneal fluid from a baby given E-ferol, a vitamin E supplement, revealed levels as high as 100 micrograms/mL polysorbate.
ID: 30: HEPATITIS B VIRUS REACTIVATION IN AN INACTIVE CARRIER OF CHRONIC HBV AFTER THE INITIATION OF TREATMENT FOR TIBERCULOSIS

Case Presentation A 32-year-old female with a history of chronic HBV in the inactive carrier state (HBV Surface Antigen (HBsAg) reactive, HBV Surface Antibody (anti-HBs) non-reactive, HBV Core Antibody (anti-HBc) reactive and IgM anti-HBc nonreactive) and tuberculous lymphadenitis presented to the emergency department with generalized weakness, dizziness, vomiting, and an unintentional 8 pound weight loss over the past month. She reported yellowing of the skin and light colored stools during this time. She had recently been started on Ethambutol, Levofloxacin and Capreomycin by her medical doctor for tuberculosis treatment. She denied use of any other medications or herbal supplements. She denied alcohol or illicit drug use. Her family history was unremarkable for liver disease. Physical examination was notable for scleral icterus but otherwise unremarkable. Her complete blood count and basic metabolic panel were within normal limits. HIV test was negative. Her hepatic function tests returned as follows; aspartate transaminase 1397 U/L, alanine transaminase 1234 U/L, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase 107 IU/L, total bilirubin 2.3 mg/dL, and direct bilirubin 0.6 mg/dL. Hepatic function tests were normal 4 months prior to admission. Due to concern for drug-induced liver injury, her anti-tuberculosis medications were discontinued and she was started on intravenous N-acetyl cysteine with plans for further workup. An abdominal ultrasound revealed mild increased liver echogenicity and a polyp in the gall bladder. Hepatitis C Virus antibody was non-reactive. HBsAg was reactive, anti-HBs was non-reactive, and anti-HBc was reactive and IgM anti-HBc nonreactive. HBV DNA level was greater than 1,000,000,000 IU/mL consistent with a diagnosis of reactivation of HBV. The patient was started on tenofovir 300 mg PO daily ultimately the patient was discharged home. Follow up one month later revealed normalizing liver enzymes and an HBV DNA level of 471 IU/mL. Discussion HBV reactivation is diagnosed by an increase HBV DNA in chronic carrier with undetectable viral load or rise HBV DNA ≥10-fold increase in HBV DNA compared with baseline. Reactivation of HBV after starting chemotherapy or immunosuppressive medications is well described. Our case report is the first to describe HBV reactivation after starting Ethambutol, levofloxacin and Capreomycin against multidrug resistant mycobacterium tuberculosis. Most studies reported that RIPE (Rifampin, Isoniazid, Pyrazinamide, and Ethambutol) tuberculosis therapy has shown no risk of HBV reactivation. One of the Multidrug resistant tuberculosis therapy agents which is levofloxacin can cause hepatoxicity but all previous studies did not report HBV reactivation. Capreomycin can cause severe hepatotoxic injury especially if combined with other potential hepatotoxic, especially medications which interferes with metabolism of P450 as reported in our case with levofloxacin. That is could be explained hepatitis B reactivation after starting capreomycin, ethambutol and levofloxacin.
Community-acquired pneumonia in children.

Many pathogens cause pneumonia inchildren, including bacteria, viruses, andfungi. Because culture of lung parenchymaor pleural fluid requires an invasive proce-dure, most studies in children have reliedon indirect methods such as rapid viral test-ing or polymerase chain reaction assay(PCR) on upper respiratory tract secretions,serology, and/or blood culture to identifythe infecting pathogen. Studies that includean intensive search for etiology in hospital-ized children with pneumonia identified alikely cause in up to 85% of cases, but anetiologic diagnosis is made in a muchsmaller proportion of outpatient cases. Dueto a reluctance to perform invasive diag-nostic procedures on young children, theepidemiology of CAP in children remainspoorly defined.The most common etiologies of pneu-monia vary with the age of the patient (Table1). In neonates, group B streptococcus andgram-negative enteric bacteria are the mostcommon bacterial pathogens and are gen-erally acquired through vertical trans-mission.
Regulation of Myocardial Ketone Oxidative Proteins by Increased O-GlcNAcylation

An adult heart exhibits tremendous metabolic flexibility by utilizing a variety of substrates to meet its constant fuel demand. However, this metabolic flexibility is lost during overt diabetes. Mo...
Deterioration of the FRP-to-concrete interface subject to moisture ingress: Effects of conditioning methods and silane treatment

Fiber reinforced plastics (FRP) composites have emerged as one popular material in retrofitting/rehabilitation of concrete structural members in last decades. The long-term durability of the FRP-to-concrete interface in aggressive environments plays a critical role in the success of this technique. An experimental program has been carried out in this study to examine the effect of moisture on the deterioration of the FRP-to-concrete interface. In addition to conditioning the specimens through fully submerging the specimens in water, a new method to condition the specimen through submerging only the bottom half of the specimen in water was used in this study. Testing results suggest that the fracture toughness of the FRP-to-concrete interface conditioned through half immersion is significantly higher than that of the interface conditioned through full immersion. Three possible responsible mechanisms have been identified: different moisture distributions along the epoxy–concrete interface induced by conditioning methods, faster moisture diffusion through the epoxy–concrete interface, and hygroscopic swelling stress induced by the swelling of the epoxy after absorbing moisture. The significant effect of the conditioning method on the durability of the FRP-to-concrete interface makes us postulate that the laboratory testing based on full immersion of the specimen in water could exaggerate the deterioration of the interface induced by the moisture in real applications, in which the interface is exposed to air, rather than water. In such a case, neither the moisture diffusion along the epoxy–concrete interface nor the swelling of the interface is as significant as in the case of full immersion in water used in the laboratory testing. In addition, this study also evaluated the potential of silane coupling agent on enhancing the durability of the FRP-to-concrete interface in moisture conditions.
Heat production of cattle acclimated to cold, thermoneutrality and heat when exposed to thermoneutrality and heat stress.

Four Hereford X Red Angus yearling steers were acclimated to each of the following environments; cold (3 C), thermoneutrality (TNZ; 20 C) and heat (35 C). Intake was equalized for all treatments at 4.9 X kg X head-1 X d-1 (2.9 Mcal metabolizable energy/kg). Heat production, respiration rate and rectal temperature were determined after 3- and (21-h later) 24-h exposures to thermoneutral and heat stress test-temperatures: 25, 30, 32.5, 35, 37.5 and 40 C. Thermoneutral heat production (kcal X kg-.75 X d-1), after 3- and 24-h exposures, was greater (P less than .05) for the cold-acclimated cattle (139.6 +/- 5.0 and 153.0 +/- 5.8) as compared with the TNZ-acclimated cattle (117.7 +/- 5.0 and 121.6 +/- 5.8). Heat production of the heat-acclimated cattle after 3- and 24-h exposures to thermoneutrality was 121.0 +/- 5.1 and 123.5 +/- 3.2 and was not different from the TNZ-acclimated cattle. Heat production of steers acclimated to different temperatures was variable during the 3- and 24-h exposures to test-temperatures ranging from 25 to 40 C. Heat production increased linearly in the TNZ-acclimated cattle (24-h exposure) and in the heat-acclimated cattle (3-h exposure) at the rate of 1.3 and 2.3 kcal X kg-75 X d-1 X C-1 increase in test-temperature, respectively. In the other four comparisons, analysis by regression indicated no significant change in heat production. Rectal temperature and respiration rate increased significantly in either a linear or quadratic manner in all treatment groups exposed to test-temperatures from 25 to 40 C.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Lower limb alignment

Abstract The alignment of the paediatric lower limb undergoes changes alongside normal skeletal development. It is important to understand certain angular changes with age in order to differentiate normal lower limbs from pathological conditions. There are two systems of axes that we can use to describe alignment: mechanical and anatomical. They refer to two different concepts and must be used separately. Both the mechanical and anatomical axes can be used to assess the location of a deformity and to gauge treatment response during growth.
A data-driven spline model designed to predict paleoclimate using paleosol geochemistry

Paleosols (fossil soils) are abundant in the sedimentary record and reflect, at least in part, regional paleoclimate. Paleopedology thus offers a great potential for elucidating high resolution, deep-time paleoclimate records. However, many fossil soils did not equilibrate with climate prior to burial and instead dominantly express physical and chemical features reflective of other soil forming factors. Current models that use elemental oxides for climate reconstruction bypass the issue of soil-climate equilibration by restricting datasets to narrow ranges of soil properties, soil-forming environments and mean annual precipitation (MAP) and mean annual temperature (MAT). Here we evaluate a data-driven paleosol-paleoclimate model (PPM1.0) that uses subsoil geochemistry to test the ability of soils from wide-ranging environments to predict MAP and MAT as a joint response with few initial assumptions. The PPM1.0 was developed using a combined partial least squares regression (PLSR) and a nonlinear spline on 685 mineral soil B horizons currently forming under MAP ranging from 130 to 6900 mm and MAT ranging from 0 to 27 °C. The PLSR results on 11 major and minor oxides show that four linear combinations of these oxides (Regressors 1-4), akin to classic oxide ratios, have potential for predicting climate. Regressor 1 correlates with increasing MAP and MAT through Fe oxidation, desilication, base loss and residual enrichment. Regressor 2 correlates with MAT through temperature-dependent dissolution of Na- and K-bearing minerals. Regressor 3 correlates with increasing MAP through decalcification and retention of Si. Regressor 4 correlates with increasing MAP through Mg retention in mafic-rich parent material. The nonlinear spline model fit on Regressors 1 to 4 results in a Root Mean Squared Error (RMSEMAP) of 228 mm and RMSEMAT of 2.46 °C. PPM1.0 model simulations result in Root Mean Squared Predictive Error (RMSPEMAP) of 512 mm and RMSPEMAT of 3.98 °C. The RMSE values are lower than some preexisting MAT models and show that subsoil weathering processes operating under a wide range of soil forming factors possess climate prediction potential, which agrees with the state-factor model of soil formation. The nonlinear, multivariate model space of PPM1.0 more accurately reflects the complex and nonlinear nature of many weathering processes as climate varies. This approach is still limited as it was built using data primarily from the conterminous USA and does not account for effects of diagenesis. Yet, because it is calibrated over a broader range of climatic variable space than previous work, it should have the widest array of potential applications. Furthermore, because it is not dependent on properties that may be poorly preserved in buried paleosols, the PPM1.0 model is preferable for reconstructing deep time climate transitions. In fact, previous studies may have grossly underestimated paleo-MAP for some paleosols.
Internalizing and Externalizing Symptoms Moderate Treatment Response to School-Based Trauma and Grief Component Therapy for Adolescents

Internalizing and externalizing problems commonly co-occur with adolescent post-traumatic stress and grief reactions. However, little is known about whether these co-occurring symptoms moderate adolescents’ response to sequenced components of trauma- and grief-focused interventions. Forty-four middle school students (aged 12–14) rated their self-identified Top Problem during a 17-week flexibly tailored course of Trauma and Grief Component Therapy for Adolescents (TGCTA), a group-based treatment for traumatized and bereaved youth. Baseline internalizing and externalizing symptoms were examined as potential moderators of adolescents’ response to skills-building (Module I), narrative-sharing (Modules II and III), and developmental progression (Module IV) phases of intervention. Piecewise analyses of change during the three treatment phases indicated that adolescents with more internalizing symptoms showed significantly less improvement during the skills-building phase and significantly more improvement during the narrative construction phase. Findings provide preliminary evidence that: (a) traumatized and bereaved adolescents show different trajectories of response to different TGCTA components as a function of internalizing versus externalizing baseline symptoms and (b) assessing self-nominated problems and broad-spectrum internalizing and externalizing symptoms can guide trauma- and bereavement-informed treatment planning and monitoring.
The injured ankle.

Ankle injuries are common presenting complaints in both emergency departments and family physicians' offices. Approximately 1 million ankle injuries occur annually in the United States; most of them are sprains resulting from inversion injuries. Treatment options differ according to the grade of injury--grade I and grade II sprains usually respond to rest and immobilization, while grade III sprains require casting or, possibly, surgery. A chronic "ankle" injury should prompt evaluation for other conditions, such as talar dome lesion. Most ankle injuries can be treated adequately in the family physician's office, although some of the more serious injuries should be referred to an orthopedic specialist for further evaluation.
T Cell Trafficking in Acute GVHD: In Vivo Bioluminescence Evaluation To Elucidate the Role of Different Lymphatic Organs.

To study the complex pathophysiology of aGvHD in allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) we transplanted transgenic luciferase expressing T cell populations into lethally irradiated HCT recipients (murine MHC major mismatch model, H-2q into H-2d). Tracking of light emitting donor T cells in living animals and detailed studies by multi color immunofluorescence microscopy (IFM) and FACS revealed the tight links of spatial and temporal evolution in this complex immune process. Donor derived T cells migrate to T cell areas in lymphoid tissues within a period of 12 hours. In the initial periods donor CD4+ T cells appear first with CD8+ T cell infiltration at later time points. Donor T cells start proliferating in lymphatic tissues on day 2 after transfer, as observed by BrdU stainings. Although alloreactive T cells are similarly activated in all lymphoid organs, they only up-regulate gut homing molecules after more than 5 cell divisions (CFSE proliferation analysis by FACS) in certain lymphoid organs (Peyer’s patches, mesenteric LN and spleen). Abruptly on day 4 after HCT, T cells migrate into intestinal sites. These findings strongly suggested, that specific priming sites are required for alloreactive T cells to induce a distinct type of tissue tropism in GvHD. In contrast to previous reports peformed without host conditioning, depletion of certain lymphoid organs (e.g. Peyer’s patches) before HCT or antibody blocking experiments did not control aGVHD. BLI showed, that anti-L-selectin or anti-MAdCAM-1 antibody treatment alone or in combination was effective in blocking donor T cell migration to lymph nodes and Peyer’s patches, while redirecting these cells to liver and spleen. Subsequently cells proliferated predominantly in the spleen until day 3 after HCT. Surprisingly we observed a full picture of gut infiltration on day 4 and skin involvement on day 5–6, similar in dynamics and strength to the aGvHD isotype control group. These findings demonstrated, that other lymphoid organs can functionally compensate for inducing gut and skin homing of alloreactive T cells. Of importance, we demonstrated that T cells that lacked homing molecules for secondary lymphoid organs had alloreactive properties in vitro, yet did not cause aGVHD in vivo. In summary, the activation of alloreactive T cells in specific sites throughout the body is complex and involves the acquisition of homing molecule expression. Transplantation of T cells with defined homing properties therefore, appears to be a promising alternative in conferring protective immunity early after HCT without the risk of aGvHD.
Abstract 428: DNA Methylation of ASC is Associated with Decreased ASC and IL-1β Expression in Heart Failure

Introduction: Heart failure (HF) is associated with formation and activation of inflammasome, a complex of intracellular interaction proteins that trigger maturation of inflammatory cytokines to initiate inflammatory response. ASC, a vital component of the inflammasome, is controlled through epigenetic modification via methylation of CpG islands surrounding exon 1. Methods: To assess the relationships between DNA methylation of ASC, ASC expression, and inflammatory cytokines IL-1β and IL-18 in HF, stored samples from 155 chronic HF patients (age 56.9±12.0 yr, 64% male, 47% black, and ejection fraction 29.9±14.9) were analyzed. DNA extracted from PMBCs were analyzed by pyrosequencing for percent methylation of seven CpG sites in the intron region preceding exon 1 of the ASC gene. ASC mRNA was quantified via real-time PCR and analyzed as the ratio ASC:GAPDH. Serum ASC, IL-1β, and IL-18 were measured by ELISA. Results: Higher ASC methylation was associated with lower ASC mRNA (r=0-.328, p Conclusions: Increased ASC methylation was associated with lower IL-1β, likely via decreased ASC gene expression. As ASC is required for inflammasome activation of IL-1β, this study implicates the inflammasome pathway as a driver of inflammation in HF, proving a potential target for novel interventions.
An equivalent LTL/Kripke structure for the condition sequence/condition system model

Abstract A condition system is a form of Petri net that interacts with other condition systems and the environment via input and output signals called conditions. The Condition Language framework has been used in previous papers to characterize the input/output behavior of such interacting systems, as well as to specify desired control behavior. In this paper, we show that condition sequences (the specification) and condition systems (the model of the system) have an equivalent structure in the temporal logic framework. In particular, we show that there exists a linear-time temporal logic (LTL) specification and a Kripke structure that represents our specification and model. Copyright © 2004 IFAC
A Field Study of Multimodal Alerts for an Autonomous Threat Detection System

Every year, inattentive or impaired drivers strike law enforcement officials, emergency personnel, and other workers by the roadside. Preventative efforts include making at-risk parties more conspicuous to oncoming motorists in order to prompt safer driving behaviors. In contrast, this work evaluates active alerting mechanisms designed to induce defensive action from at-risk roadside personnel once a hazardous situation has been autonomously detected. This paper reports on field investigations with state police to capture their cognitive requirements for this dynamic environment, as well as the design of four alert prototypes for a high noise, low-light environment such as a highway shoulder. We discuss implications for such future autonomous systems and argue that such active defensive alert mechanisms could improve roadside safety and save lives.
The metabolic clearance rate of dehydroisoandrosterone sulfate: III. The effect of thiazide diuretics in normal and future pre-eclamptic pregnancies

The present study reports that the metabolic clearance rate of dehydroisoandrosterone sulfate (MCRDS) is decreased by thiazide diuretics during normal and future pre-eclamptic pregnancies. This observation supports the thesis that diuretics represent a potential hazard to the fetus by decreasing placental perfusion.
Abstract 14333: Irregular Protrusion and Uncover Stent Struts Correlate With Acute Coronary Syndrome - An OCT Study

Introduction: In these drug eluting era, the adverse event after stent implantation still remains clinically important problem. Patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) suffered from a higher incidence of adverse event than stable angina pectoris (SAP). Optical coherence tomography (OCT) enable us to detect various OCT findings after stent implantation. Irregular protrusion detected after stent implantation, malapposition for uncovered strut at follow up are one of the cause of adverse event at follow up. Using OCT, we evaluated the difference of OCT findings after stenting and for at follow up according to ACS and for SAP culprit lesions. Methods: We examined 118 culprit coronary lesions treated with drug eluting stents which has OCT examination at baseline and 9-month follow up (ACS 26 lesions and SAP 92 lesions). OCT evaluation at baseline includes presence of edge dissection, irregular protrusion and malapposition just after stent implantation. At 9-month follow up, the frequency of uncovered strut was evaluated at every 1 mm interval. Results: The incidence of irregular protrusion was significantly higher in ACS culprit lesion than in SAP at baseline (88.5% vs. 55.4%, P=0.002). The incidence of edge dissection and malapposition were similar between the two groups. A total of 29,103 stent struts was analyzed and the percentage of uncovered strut was 8.5% in overall subjects. ACS culprit lesion showed a higher incidence of uncovered strut than SAP (11.3±9.3% vs. 6.9±7.8%, P=0.009). Logistic regression analysis showed that ACS culprit lesion was a predictor of irregular protrusion at baseline (OR: 6.16, 95%CI: 1.97-27.26, P=0.001). Moreover, in liner regression, ACS culprit lesion was associated with the rate of uncover stent struts (P=0.018). Conclusions: ACS culprit lesions correlates to presence of irregular protrusion at baseline for uncovered struts at 9-month follow up. These findings may be one of the reasons for a higher incidence of adverse event in ACS.
9 – Improving the hemocompatibility of biomedical polymers

Abstract Biomedical polymers have and still continue to play an important role in how we support and treat patients with various diseases through their use in tissue and blood interacting medical devices and drug delivery systems. Today, a wide variety of blood-contacting devices provide the means for the diagnosis, treatment, and support of life until organ transplantation. Their usage warrants their interaction with cells, bacteria, blood, tissue, and sometimes a combination of these complex living systems and the fates of such interactions are critical for applications including biomimetic surfaces, regenerative medicine, immunomodulation, smart biomaterials for drug delivery, and many more. For blood-contacting devices, their surface interactions with blood mostly lead to blood coagulation, inflammation, device failure, and patient complications. Their lifetimes are thus limited to hours and days due to clot formation. Use on the order of months is however needed for many of these devices including vascular grafts, catheters, artificial lungs, extracorporeal circulation circuits, and dialysis membranes, which rely on the free flow of blood over their surfaces. Clots, however halts this flow and causes the devices to fail. This chapter describes prominent challenges and new directions of hemocompatibility and specifically anticlotting biomaterials research.
Dramas of Recognition: Pan’s Labyrinth and Warm Bodies as Accidental Shakespeare

Guillermo del Toro’s film Pan’s Labyrinth has no documentable connection to William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet. The existing similarities between the film’s plot and Hamlet depend on a loose structural homology between the two narratives, which depends in turn on the centrality to both of Freud’s family romance. Even more tenuous, the homology solidifies into identity based on the thinnest of evidence: the heroine’s name, Ofelia. A similar dialectic governs the novel and film Warm Bodies, a zombie drama that also has no discernible relation to Shakespeare—that is, until the late appearance of a balcony reunion between the zombie-hero R and his human love Julie. Here, the identification between novel and Shakespeare source depends on visual evidence from the film and the novel’s critical paratext in the blogosphere. The essay explores the scenes of recognition in these two instances of “accidental Shakespeare.”
Optimal power flow pursuit

Past works that focused on addressing power-quality and reliability concerns related to renewable energy resources (RESs) operating with business-as-usual practices have looked at the design of Volt/VAr and Volt/Watt strategies to regulate real or reactive powers based on local voltage measurements, so that terminal voltages are within acceptable levels. These control strategies have the potential of operating at the same time scale of distribution-system dynamics, and can therefore mitigate disturbances precipitated fast time-varying loads and ambient conditions; however, they do not necessarily guarantee system-level optimality, and stability claims are mainly based on empirical evidences. On a different time scale, centralized and distributed optimal power flow (OPF) algorithms have been proposed to compute optimal steady-state inverter setpoints, so that power losses and voltage deviations are minimized and economic benefits to end-users providing ancillary services are maximized. However, traditional OPF schemes may offer decision making capabilities that do not match the dynamics of distribution systems. Particularly, during the time required to collect data from all the nodes of the network (e.g., loads), solve the OPF, and subsequently dispatch setpoints, the underlying load, ambient, and network conditions may have already changed; in this case, the DER output powers would be consistently regulated around outdated setpoints, leading to suboptimal system operation and violation of relevant electrical limits. The present work focuses on the synthesis of distributed RES-inverter controllers that leverage the opportunities for fast feedback offered by power-electronics interfaced RESs. The overarching objective is to bridge the temporal gap between long-term system optimization and real-time control, to enable seamless RES integration in large scale with stability and efficiency guarantees, while congruently pursuing system-level optimization objectives. The design of the control framework is based on suitable linear approximations of the AC power-flow equations as well as Lagrangian regularization methods. The proposed controllers enable an update of the power outputs at a time scale that is compatible with the underlying dynamics of loads and ambient conditions, and continuously drive the system operation towards OPF-based solutions.
Further Difficulties and Alternate Approaches

This chapter examines some interesting results and viewpoints which shed light on the problem of constructing a theory of electrodynamics which is both logically consistent and in agreement with experiment. The previous chapters presented the most widely accepted viewpoint, which culminates in the Lorentz-Dirac equation. There are many motivations and “derivations” of this equation, and the one presented in Chapter 4 is the one which I find most nearly rigorous and convincing. I tried to present the best possible case for the Lorentz-Dirac theory, but it is easy to see why many have serious doubts about that equation. (Others believe it is absolutely fundamental.)
Nasolacrimal Duct Obstruction and Lacrimal Surgery in Cancer Patients

Nasolacrimal duct obstruction is often seen in patients with cancer. Iatrogenic causes such as surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy are among the most common causes. Primary lacrimal drainage tumors are less common causes. The evaluation of patients with suspected nasolacrimal duct obstruction should include a thorough history and a comprehensive ophthalmic examination, including probing and irrigation of the lacrimal drainage apparatus and a Schirmer’s test. Imaging studies may also be necessary. Treatment depends on the degree and location of the obstruction and may consist of probing and irrigation alone; balloon dilation; intubation of the drainage system with silicone stents; or dacryocystorhinostomy, usually with placement of silicone stents to maintain duct patency during healing.
Structure-Selective Synthesis of Wurtzite and Zincblende ZnS, CdS, and CuInS2 Using Nanoparticle Cation Exchange Reactions

For polymorphic solid-state systems containing multiple distinct crystal structures of the same composition, identifying rational pathways to selectively target one particular structure is an important synthetic capability. Cation exchange reactions can transform a growing library of metal chalcogenide nanocrystals into different phases by replacing the cation sublattice, often while retaining morphology and crystal structure. However, only a few examples have been demonstrated where multiple distinct phases in a polymorphic system could be selectively accessed using nanocrystal cation exchange reactions. Here, we show that roxbyite (hexagonal) and digenite (cubic) Cu2–xS nanoparticles transform upon cation exchange with Cd2+, Zn2+, and In3+ to wurtzite (hexagonal) and zincblende (cubic) CdS, ZnS, and CuInS2, respectively. These products retain the anion and cation sublattice features programmed into the copper sulfide template, and each phase forms to the exclusion of other known crystal structures. Thes...
Integrating citizen science and remotely sensed data to help inform time-sensitive policy decisions for species of conservation concern

Abstract The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) uses a Species Status Assessment (SSA) framework to inform Endangered Species Act (ESA) policy decisions. A major challenge for development of SSAs includes inconsistent or incomplete monitoring throughout a species' range, which can result from inadequate time and funding for data collection prior to final rulings. In 2014, the USFWS initiated an SSA for the Sprague's pipit (Anthus spragueii; hereafter pipit), a migratory songbird scheduled for consideration as Threatened or Endangered in fall 2015. At the time, researchers had no field data to identify the spatial distribution of habitat across the geographic extent of the pipit's wintering grounds or to forecast the species' response to probable future scenarios of environmental conditions or conservation efforts during winter. In addition, the timing of the ESA decision precluded range-wide surveys on the pipit's wintering grounds. We present an SSA case study to demonstrate how citizen science and remotely sensed data could be integrated to help inform time-sensitive policy decisions for species of conservation concern. We developed three independent estimates of potential pipit habitat, and we assumed that spatial congruence among models provided increased evidence of habitat likely to support our focal species. We do not suggest that our approach replace more robust analyses, but rather illustrate an alternative strategy to obtain baseline information for SSAs and other policy decisions when data and time are lacking.
Clinical value of growth differentiation factor-15 on myocardial injury in pediatric critical illness

Objective To study the clinical value of growth differentiation factor-15 (GDF-15) in judgment of the degree of myocardial injury in children with critical illness. Methods Fifty cases of children [pediatric critical illness score(PCIS)≤80]without primary cardiac disease in Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) of Changzhou Children's Hospital Affiliated to Nantong University were selected after hospitalization, and 20 healthy children were taken as normal control group (n=20). The level of GDF-15 in peripheral blood serum were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and biochemical indicators like troponin I (cTnI), creatine kinase isoenzyme (CK-MB) and so on were recorded.Fifty cases of critically ill children were divided into myocardial injury group (n=23), and without myocardial injury group(n=27), according to the myocardial injury standard which was cTnI > 0.2 μg/L.The relationship between the level of GDF-15 and myocardial injury in critically ill children was observed, and the correlation analysis of GDF-15 and cTnI was performed. Results 1.The rate of the myocardial injury in critically ill children was 46%(23/50 cases).2.Compared with the without myocardial injury group [25.93%(7/27 cases)] and the normal control group [5.00%(1/20 cases)], GDF-15 positive rate in myocardial injury group [60.87%(14/23 cases)] was significantly higher, and there were significant differences (P=0.027, 0.000); there was no significant difference between the without myocardial injury group and the normal control group (P=0.056).3.The levels of GDF-15 had significant difference between myocardial injury group and the without myocardial injury group (P=0.000).4.GDF-15 was positively correlated with cTnI(r=0.9704, P<0.05). Conclusions The level of GDF-15 with myocardial injury in critically ill children is higher than that of without myocardial injury children.GDF-15 and cTnI have an important value in judging the degree of myocardial injury of critically ill children. Key words: Critical illness; Growth differentiation factor-15; Troponin I; Myocardial injury
An Effective Policy Sharing Mechanism for Smart Home Networks

The rapid advancement of the Internet of Things has brought new technologies to smart homes and smart hospitals. In a smart home environment, devices may be configured to accomplish certain tasks along with other devices and digital services through user configuration. The configured policy by one user can be further shared to the other users in the network. In this work, we study the policy control application and propose a novel user policy propagation mechanism that allows quality IoT policies to spread to more users than their ineffective counterparts, by integrating user and policy reputation tracking. We evaluated the proposed mechanism using a simulated framework. Experimental results demonstrate that under our designed policy propagation mechanism, high quality policies spread much more widely than low quality policies when the system is configured properly. At the same time, reputable users can have a higher impact and thus their policies can spread further.