cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Continuous monitoring of adenosine and its metabolites using microdialysis coupled to microchip electrophoresis with amperometric detection.

Rapid monitoring of concentration changes of neurotransmitters and energy metabolites is important for understanding the biochemistry of neurological disease as well as for developing therapeutic options. This paper describes the development of a separation-based sensor using microchip electrophoresis (ME) with electrochemical (EC) detection coupled to microdialysis (MD) sampling for continuous on-line monitoring of adenosine and its downstream metabolites. The device was fabricated completely in PDMS. End-channel electrochemical detection was accomplished using a carbon fiber working electrode embedded in the PDMS. The separation conditions for adenosine, inosine, hypoxanthine, and guanosine were investigated using a ME-EC chip with a 5 cm long separation channel. The best resolution was achieved using a background electrolyte consisting of 35 mM sodium borate at pH 10, 15% dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), and 2 mM sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS), and a field strength of 222 V cm−1. Under these conditions, all four purines were separated in less than 85 s. Using a working electrode detection potential of 1.4 V vs. Ag/AgCl, the limits of detection were 25, 33, 10, and 25 μM for adenosine, inosine, hypoxanthine, and guanosine, respectively. The ME-EC chip was then coupled to microdialysis sampling using a novel all-PDMS microdialysis–microchip interface that was reversibly sealed. This made alignment of the working electrode with the end of the separation channel much easier and more reproducible than could be obtained with previous MD-ME-EC systems. The integrated device was then used to monitor the enzymatic conversion of adenosine to inosine in vitro.
Development of a Risk-Scoring Tool to Determine Appropriate Level of Care in Acute Bacterial Skin and Skin Structure Infections in an Acute Healthcare Setting.

Acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (ABSSSIs) represent a large burden to the US healthcare system. There is little evidence-based guidance regarding the appropriate level of care for ABSSSIs. This study aimed to develop a prediction model and risk-scoring tool to determine appropriate levels of care. This was a single-center observational cohort study of adult patients treated for ABSSSIs from 2012 to 2015 at the Detroit Medical Center. The predictive model used to create a novel risk-scoring tool was derived using multinomial regression analysis. The overall accuracy of this tool was compared to the Clinical Resource Efficacy Support Team (CREST) Classification and Standardized Early Warning Score (SEWS) using area-under-the- receiver-operator-curve (AUROC) analysis and Z-statistic. Final patient disposition was 230 (45.5%) home from the emergency department (ED), 65 (12.8%) observation unit (OU), and 211 (41.7%) initial inpatient. IV antibiotic therapy was used in 358 (70.8%) patients. CREST and SEWS were not accurate in the determination of ED versus OU disposition [AUROC CREST 0.0.682 (95% CI 0.640–0.724), AUROC SEWS 0.686 (95% CI 0.641–0.731)], but performed better in determining ED/OU versus inpatient [AUROC CREST = 0.678 (95% CI 0.630–0.725), AUROC SEWS 0.693 (95% CI 0.645–0.740)]. These scores were also not accurate in determining IV versus PO antibiotic therapy [AUROC CREST = 0.586 (95% CI 0.530–0.624), AUROC SEWS = 0.630 (95% CI 0.576–0.684)]. A risk-scoring tool ranging from 0 to 10 points was derived incorporating WBC, temperature, site of infection, and past medical history of diabetes, liver disease, PVD, AKI, and/or CKD. The AUROC of the new model was 0.675 (95% CI 0.611–0.739) ED versus OU, 0.789 (95% CI 0.748–0.829) ED/OU versus inpatient, and 0.742 (95% CI 0.694–0.789) IV versus oral antibiotics. The new score had a significantly higher AUROC compared to both the CREST and SEWS for determining ED/OU versus inpatient (p < 0.001). Prediction models based on patient risk may be useful for determining appropriate level of care during for ABSSSIs. While the prediction model demonstrated moderate to high levels of correlation with patient level of care, further validation of a prospective cohort of patients is warranted.
Lysines residing in putative Small Ubiquitin-like MOdifier (SUMO) motifs regulate fate and function of 37 KDa laminin receptor.

Abstract There is a putative precursor to mature receptor relationship between 37 Laminin Receptor (LR) and 67 LR. As such, the pair are frequently referred to as a single entity, the 37/67 kDa Laminin Receptor (37/67 LR) and 67 LR was identified as a laminin binding entity. 37/67 LR has been of clinical interest for many years, as 37/67 LR is a prognostic indicator for many cancers including breast, lung, colon, and prostate. However, the genesis of 67 LR is controversial, and confounded by its stability under SDS-PAGE conditions, a lack of splice variants, and the existence of post-translational modifications that cannot account for the mass discrepancy between 37 and 67 LR. In the present work, we mutated potential SUMO motif sites (Lysine residues) in 37 LR and generated a series of 37 LR-expressing plasmids with a C-terminal histidine tag. We report an inability to detect 67 LR formation, suggesting that SUMOylation does not appear to directly occur at the lysine residues proposed. However, the work revealed that these lysine mutations still appear to be important and can impact the fate and function of 37 LR, by impairing half-life and steady state pre-mRNA levels. These results suggest that the Lys residues within putative SUMO motifs of 37 LR are important for 37 LR function.
Develop fuzzy logic inference system to predict carbon fiber-reinforced polypropylene hybrid composite’s shrinkage

This paper proposes a fuzzy logic inference system that can predict the carbon fiber (CF)/polypropylene (PP) hybrid composite’s shrinkage in the injection molding process. Five factors, wt.% of CF, injection speed, packing pressure, packing time, and melt temperature, were chosen to conduct design of experiments. Based on the Taguchi and analysis of variance methods, wt.% of CF, injection speed, and melt temperature were found as top three ranks that have significant effect on the shrinkage values. Therefore, these three parameters were used as the input variables of the system, while the shrinkage was the only one output variable. Membership functions and rule bank were constructed based on both the experiences and experimental data. The results predicted by this fuzzy logic inference system showed more than 99% accuracy compared to both experiment data and validation testing data. So, this system is capable of predicting CF/PP hybrid composite’s shrinkage when wt.% of CF, injection speed, and melt temperature are decided.
Soften the Pain, Increase the Gain: Enhancing Users' Resilience to Negative Valence Feedback

Content creators fear receiving unnecessarily harsh criticism when posting creative work in online platforms. We refer to feedback written in an unnecessary harsh tone as negative feedback. We conducted an online experiment to investigate the efficacy of three coping activities for mitigating the influence of negative feedback: self-affirmation, expressive writing, and distraction. Participants (N=480) received feedback sets with different balances of neutral and negative valence content and revised their essays after performing the assigned activity. We measured participants' affective states, extents of revision, and their perceptions of the feedback and its providers. Our results showed even a small amount of negativity had significant adverse effects on all the measures. For the coping activities, we found that expressive writing encouraged essay revision, distraction improved affective states and feedback provider perception, and self-affirmation had no significant effects on the measures. Our results contribute further empirical knowledge of how negative valence feedback impacts content creators and how the coping activities tested mitigate these effects. We also offer practical guidelines regarding when and how to use the activities tested in online feedback platforms.
Precise Feature Selection in Predictive Genetic Models using Grey Wolf Optimization Algorithm

Genetic models are overarching ideas on how genes work in individuals to affect phenotypes. The process of feature selection is a vital process to be merged in the genetic model. Genetic models specifically relate genotype to phenotype. In lots of instances, the found facts are steady with those sorts of fashions and a few analyses of genetic records are in large part descriptive. The feature selection process in genetic models faces some difficulties arising from the correlation structures present in DNA structure data. An optimization algorithm is neededto solve these difficulties The main objective of this paper is to introduce an accurate feature selection process in genetic models. This aim is verified using an accurate and green optimization algorithm entitled grey Wolf Optimization algorithm GWO. The results depict that GWO solve the problem of the correlation structures in DNA sequence data more precise and efficiently with average efficiency equals 1.19E+02.
The presence of a larval honey bee parasite, Ascosphaera apis, on flowers reduces pollinator visitation to several plant species

Abstract Many floral traits have evolved through pollinator-mediated selection. In selecting flowers for forage, pollinators rely on multi-modal flower signals and innate preferences. However, pollinators are known for their flexible foraging behavior which varies with experience and numerous cues, such as the presence of competitors and floral resource availability. The shared use of flowers by many pollinators leads to high rate of parasite transmission among pollinators, and flowers can be seen as hot-spots of parasite dispersal. Throughout the animal kingdom, behavioral adaptations enable avoidance of parasite exposure. Bumblebees are known to avoid contaminated flowers, however nothing is known regarding the impact of parasite presence on overall pollinator visitation. In this study, we measured the effect of a larval honey bee parasite, the fungus Ascosphaera apis causing chalkbrood disease, on hymenopteran pollinator visitation of several plant species in a natural setting. Several contaminated flowering plant species suffered not only the subsequent reduction of visitation by honey bees but also the subsequent reduction of their overall pollinator visitation. Two plant species with similar flower architecture were the least impacted by the presence of the spores. This study highlights the negative impact of the presence of pollinator parasites for plants and its possible consequences for floral evolution.
The Best Course of Action

This case describes the ethical and legal challenges facing Dr. Caroline Webster, Director of Graduate Business Programs at MNU. She was facing one of the more unpleasant tasks of her job in determining how to proceed with a complaint by one of the university’s master’s students by the name of Bob Golden. Although a solid and intelligent student in his own right, Bob continuously challenged his grades, causing some faculty and administration to grow weary of his seemingly constant complaints. Dr. Webster wistfully recalled no less than a dozen unrelated prior instances. However, this current complaint was beyond Bob’s normal grievance. During a conversation with Dr. Webster, Bob claimed that the instructor for his current course, Adjunct Professor Joe Thomas, had a criminal past. After a quick and rather basic search, it turned out that Professor Thomas had indeed been convicted of a felony approximately a decade and a half earlier. Naturally, Dr. Webster took the matter up to Dr. Donald Hess, Dean of the MNU Business School, who was now faced with the decision of whether or not he needed to terminate the employment of Adjunct Professor Joseph Thomas. Collectively and apart from the grading complaint, they also had to decide on the proper course of action as a follow-up to Bob Golden’s allegation. The class which Adjunct Professor Thomas taught was the final and capstone class of the MBA program at MNU. Ironically, the class was one with a considerable focus on ethics and morals in business.
Complex spike clusters and false-positive rejection in a cerebellar supervised learning rule

Key points Spike doublets comprise ∼10% of in vivo complex spike events under spontaneous conditions and ∼20% (up to 50%) under evoked conditions. Under near-physiological slice conditions, single complex spikes do not induce parallel fibre long-term depression. Doublet stimulation is required to induce long-term depression with an optimal parallel-fibre to first-complex-spike timing interval of 150 ms. Abstract The classic example of biological supervised learning occurs at cerebellar parallel fibre (PF) to Purkinje cell synapses, comprising the most abundant synapse in the mammalian brain. Long-term depression (LTD) at these synapses is driven by climbing fibres (CFs), which fire continuously about once per second and therefore generate potential false-positive events. We show that pairs of complex spikes are required to induce LTD. In vivo, sensory stimuli evoked complex-spike doublets with intervals ≤150 ms in up to 50% of events. Using realistic [Ca2+ ]o and [Mg2+ ]o concentrations in slices, we determined that complex-spike doublets delivered 100-150 ms after PF stimulus onset were required to trigger PF-LTD, which is consistent with the requirements for eyeblink conditioning. Inter-complex spike intervals of 50-150 ms provided optimal decoding. This stimulus pattern prolonged evoked spine calcium signals and promoted CaMKII activation. Doublet activity may provide a means for CF instructive signals to stand out from background firing.
Whiteness and civilization: shame, race, and the rhetoric of Donald Trump

This essay draws on affect theory to develop an account of Donald Trump's rhetorical methods. Building on the work of other scholars who have linked affect theory to Communication Studies, this pap...
One-dimensional Photonic Crystals Fabricated Using Stereolithographic Single Layer Assembly for the Terahertz Spectral Range

A polymer-based one-dimensional photonic crystal with a photonic bandgap in terahertz frequency range was designed and fabricated through stereolithography and was characterized using THz spectroscopy. The photonic crystal studied here consists of alternating compact and low-density layers. The compact layers were fabricated from fully polymerized polymethacrylate without any intentional internal structure. The low-density layers consist of sub-wavelength sized columns, where the volume density was selected to provide sufficient contrast between the dielectric functions of adjacent layers. The photonic crystal samples were fabricated in a single step using a commercial stereolithography system and polymethacrylate compatible with the system. Transmission spectroscopy in a range from 82 to 125 GHz was used to determine the THz spectral response of the sample. The transmission data were analyzed using stratified optical layer model calculations. A distinct photonic bandgap with a center frequency of 111 GHz was observed in the experimental transmission spectra. Bruggeman effective medium approximation was found to accurately describe the dielectric function of the low-density layers. An excellent agreement between the relevant model parameters and the corresponding design parameters was found, indicating the versatility of the approach for the fabrication of photonic crystals for the THz spectral range.
Left scrotal abscess associated with perforated appendicitis

Abstract Acute appendicitis is a common disease afflicting the pediatric population. There are textbook presentations of periumbilical abdominal pain that migrates to the right lower quadrant with following nausea, possible diarrhea, anorexia, fever and eventual sepsis. The abnormal presentations are difficult to sort at times and varying presentations have been noted. The differential should remain broad in evaluating patients as our case illustrates.
Sub-nanowatt microfluidic single-cell calorimetry.

Non-invasive and label-free calorimetry could become a disruptive technique to study single cell metabolic heat production without altering the cell behavior, but it is currently limited by insufficient sensitivity. Here, we demonstrate microfluidic single-cell calorimetry with 0.2-nW sensitivity, representing more than ten-fold enhancement over previous record, which is enabled by (i) a low-noise thermometry platform with ultralow long-term (10-h) temperature noise (80 μK) and (ii) a microfluidic channel-in-vacuum design allowing cell flow and nutrient delivery while maintaining a low thermal conductance of 2.5 μW K-1. Using Tetrahymena thermophila as an example, we demonstrate on-chip single-cell calorimetry measurement with metabolic heat rates ranging from 1 to 4 nW, which are found to correlate well with the cell size. Finally, we perform real-time monitoring of metabolic rate stimulation by introducing a mitochondrial uncoupling agent to the microchannel, enabling determination of the spare respiratory capacity of the cells.
Investigation of impurity driven corrosion behavior in molten 2LiF-BeF2 salt

Abstract A 1000 -h corrosion experiment of 316H stainless steel at 700 °C investigated the role of metal fluoride impurities CrF2 and FeF2 in LiF-BeF2 (66-34 mole %) (FLiBe) salt. Inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) demonstrated the ability to measure changes in the concentration of these fluorides in FLiBe salt. Cyclic voltammetry (CV) showed the potential for real-time quantitative concentration measurement of corrosion products in the molten salt. Materials characterization revealed that both impurity species influence the dissolution of Cr from the alloy. The collective results from these analysis methods advance the understanding of the influence impurities have on materials corrosion.
Longitudinal box-beam bridge joints under monotonic and cyclic loads

Abstract Longitudinal joints used for connecting box beams in bridge superstructures are prone to the formation and propagation of cracks, causing various structural performance issues and durability concerns. Among possible solutions, the use of shrinkage-compensating cement concrete along with joint reinforcement has been investigated in the current study through full-scale experimental tests and supporting numerical simulations. The shrinkage-compensating cement concrete offered the capability of producing controlled compressive stresses during the early stage of hydration, counteracting detrimental tensile stresses that originate from the shrinkage of concrete. Longitudinal and transverse reinforcements were also included in the joint to ensure the proper transfer of forces. The response of the full setup was evaluated under five million load cycles, including various loading protocols and boundary conditions. The measurements recorded from the experiments consisted of strains and deflections at critical locations. To expand the scope of this investigation and understand the effect of interfacial bond strength and joint reinforcement, a set of numerical simulations were also performed. Through a new combination of concrete mixture and reinforcement detail, this study provided a holistic strategy to resolve the long-standing issue of degradation of longitudinal joints in box-beam bridges.
Gel Assay to Introduce Polymer Biodegradation in the Undergraduate Laboratory

Polymers are ubiquitous and essential to modern society, which is why the American Chemical Society has mandated inclusion of polymer chemistry in the undergraduate curriculum. To meet this require...
“Invisibility is not a natural state for anyone”: (Re)constructing narratives of Japanese American incarceration in elementary classrooms

Difficult histories that may contradict national values are rarely taught in elementary schools. This comparative study of two elementary educators examines their pedagogical approaches to the teac...
Validation of a next-generation sensory organization test in adults with and without vestibular dysfunction.

Background The traditional Sensory Organization Test (T-SOT) is a gold standard balance test; however, the psychometric properties of assessing sensory organization with a virtual-reality-based posturography device have not been established. Objective Our overall aims were to assess the criterion, concurrent, and convergent validity of a next-generation Sensory Organization Test (NG-SOT). Methods Thirty-four adults (17 vestibular-impaired) participated. We compared the area under the curve (AUC) for receiver operator characteristic (ROC) analysis for the T-SOT and NG-SOT composite scores. Between-group and between-test differences for the composite and sensory analysis scores from each SOT were assessed using Wilcoxon Rank Sum tests. Additionally, we ran Spearman correlations between the NG-SOT composite score and outcomes of interest. Results The AUCs for the NG-SOT and T-SOT were 0.950 (0.883, 1) and 0.990 (0.969, 1) respectively (p = 0.168). The median composite, vision, and visual preference scores were lower on the NG-SOT compared to the T-SOT; whereas, the median somatosensory score was higher on the NG-SOT compared to the T-SOT. Associations between the composite score and patient-reported or performance-based outcomes ranged from poor to strong. Conclusions The NG-SOT is a valid measure of balance in adults. However, the results of the NG-SOT and T-SOT should not be used interchangeably.
Intellectual Property Impacts Political Economy

This chapter focuses on the role of intellectual property (IP) on global political economy. These macro effects provide foundations to understand why countries establish an IP system. The first six topics center on the positive effects of IP on countries: economic development, licensing, international trade, foreign direct investment (FDI), welfare, and technology transfer and innovation. Nevertheless, these positive effects are conditional on the environments and interact with IP to foster the development of political economy. The last topic examines the negative effects of IP on political economy, including the direct costs of implementing an IPS, and the impacts on pricing, government expenditure, employment, and dissemination.
Stick Versus Carrot: Comparing Structural Antitrust and Behavioral Regulation Outcomes:

Debates on whether structural antitrust remedies or behavioral regulatory remedies should be used to implement institutional mandates are long-standing. Historical data for an entire population of ...
Litigation on Gender Confirmation Surgery and Hormonal Therapy among Trans Women Prisoners: Views from the U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals

This article analyzes U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals’ cases involving Title 42 U.S.C. §1983 actions filed by trans women inmates against corrections and/or medical officers for failure to provide h...
Gunfight at the New Deal Corral

Administrative law is in considerable ferment as the Supreme Court has become increasingly receptive to attacks on its core doctrines. In a new book, two towering figures in the world of administrative law, Professors Cass Sunstein and Adrian Vermeule, mount a defense of those doctrines premised on Lon Fuller’s jurisprudential theory of the morality of law. They argue that although much of administrative law is not aligned with the text of the Constitution or the Administrative Procedure Act, it largely comports with an equally legitimate (or, perhaps, higher) authority—morality. Another preeminent administrative law scholar, Professor Richard Epstein, tests that defense in a new book of his own. He argues that Fuller’s framework is an inadequate standard because it does not recognize that procedural defects undermine a law’s legitimacy and assumes, erroneously, that law’s morality may be judged independent of any assessment of the substance of the law. This Book Review examines both books and concludes that Epstein has the better argument. Not only is Fuller’s framework incomplete, but Sunstein and Vermeule ignore ways that modern administrative law violates that framework. They do not, for example, account for biased decision-making when agencies exercise judicial power, which violates Fuller’s rule that there must be no discrepancy between a law’s text and its application. Epstein’s criticisms, however, are incomplete. He misses another significant problem with Fuller’s framework: It is of dubious applicability to a constitutional republic. Fuller’s framework rests on the assumption that law is created by an absolute monarch. As such, Fuller’s rules are the only constraints on the king’s lawmaking ability. The various branches of a constitutional republic, however, face additional constraints that are both procedural and substantive. All three debaters accept the application of Fuller’s framework to American administrative law without asking whether it can be imported wholesale into a constitutional republic that separates and limits power. The modern administrative leviathan has broken those constraints. With the assistance of Congress and the Supreme Court, the administrative state has usurped legislative and judicial powers that the Framers assigned elsewhere. Sunstein and Vermeule try to convince their readers that, despite all that, the beast is not dangerous. They have failed.
Fundamental Approaches to Single Subject Design and Analysis

Developed to serve as a concise, easy-to-read text of practical designs and data analysis, this book is a resource for both students and practitioners. It provides information on single subject designs, research methodologies, and statistics.
Patent Foramen Ovale: Innocent or Guilty?: Evidence From a Prospective Population-Based Study

Patent Foramen Ovale: Innocent or Guilty?: Evidence From a Prospective Population-Based Study Irene Meissner, Bijoy K. Khandheria, John A. Heit, George W. Petty, Sheldon G. Sheps, Gary L. Schwartz, Jack P. Whisnant, David O. Wiebers, Jody L. Covalt, Tanya M. Petterson, Teresa J. H. Christianson, Yoram Agmon Reported stroke risk in patients with patent foramen ovale ranges widely from <1% to as high as 17.5%, reflecting methodologic weaknesses, including retrospective design, invalid controls, unblinded transesophageal echocardiography examinations, and data that are unadjusted for age or comorbidity. This to-date largest prospective study population-based transesophageal echocardiography study demonstrated that, after adjustment for age/comorbidity, patent foramen ovale was not a significant independent predictor of stroke (hazard ratio 1.46, 95% confidence interval 0.74 to 2.88, p = 0.28). The risk of a cerebrovascular event with atrial septal aneurysm was nearly four times that without atrial septal aneurysm; however, a larger study is required to test this putative association. Objectives We sought to determine the association between patent foramen ovale (PFO), atrial septal aneurysm (ASA), and stroke prospectively in a unselected population sample. Background The disputed relationship between PFO and stroke reflects methodologic weaknesses in studies using invalid controls, unblinded transesophageal echocardiography examinations, and data that are unadjusted for age or comorbidity. Methods The use of transesophageal echocardiography to identify PFO was performed by a single echocardiographer using standardized definitions in 585 randomly sampled, Olmsted County (Minnesota) subjects age 45 years or older participating in the Stroke Prevention: Assessment of Risk in a Community (SPARC) study. Results A PFO was identified in 140 (24.3%) subjects and ASA in 11 (1.9%) subjects. Of the 140 subjects with PFO, 6 (4.3%) had an ASA; of the 437 subjects without PFO, 5 had an ASA (1.1%, two-sided Fisher exact test, p = 0.028). During a median follow-up of 5.1 years, cerebrovascular events (cerebrovascular disease-related death, ischemic stroke, transient ischemic attack) occurred in 41 subjects. After adjustment for age and comorbidity, PFO was not a significant independent predictor of stroke (hazard ratio 1.46, 95% confidence interval 0.74 to 2.88, p = 0.28). The risk of a cerebrovascular event among subjects with ASA was nearly four times higher than that in those without ASA (hazard ratio 3.72, 95% confidence interval 0.88 to 15.71, p = 0.074). Conclusions These prospective population-based data suggest that, after correction for age and comorbidity, PFO is not an independent risk factor for future cerebrovascular events in the general population. A larger study is required to test the putative stroke risk associated with ASA.
Synechiae of the uterine cavity after curettage. Clinical and roentgenographic study of 5 cases.

Abstract 1. 1. Five cases of intrauterine adhesions which developed at an interval of from 1 to 5 years after curettage were studied. 2. 2. The clinical history and hysterograms of these patients were presented. 3. 3. Menstrual disorders occurred in 2 of the 5 women and all of them complained of infertility. 4. 4. One patient conceived without surgical therapy and delivered at term.
Toward basing fully homomorphic encryption on worst-case hardness

Gentry proposed a fully homomorphic public key encryption scheme that uses ideal lattices. He based the security of his scheme on the hardness of two problems: an average-case decision problem over ideal lattices, and the sparse (or "low-weight") subset sum problem (SSSP). We provide a key generation algorithm for Gentry's scheme that generates ideal lattices according to a "nice" average-case distribution. Then, we prove a worst-case / average-case connection that bases Gentry's scheme (in part) on the quantum hardness of the shortest independent vector problem (SIVP) over ideal lattices in the worst-case. (We cannot remove the need to assume that the SSSP is hard.) Our worst-case / average-case connection is the first where the average-case lattice is an ideal lattice, which seems to be necessary to support the security of Gentry's scheme.
Multiple mutant of Escherichia coli synthesizing virtually thymineless DNA during limited growth.

The dut gene of Escherichia coli encodes deoxyuridine triphosphatase, an enzyme that prevents the incorporation of dUTP into DNA and that is needed in the de novo biosynthesis of thymidylate. We produced a conditionally lethal dut(Ts) mutation and isolated a phenotypic revertant that had a mutation in an unknown gene tentatively designated dus (for dut suppressor). The dus mutation restored the ability of the dut mutant to grow at 42 degrees C without restoring its enzymatic activity or thymidylate independence. A strain was constructed bearing, in addition to these mutations, ones affecting the following genes and their corresponding products: ung, which produces uracil-DNA N-glycosylase, a repair enzyme that removes uracil from DNA; deoA, which produces thymidine (deoxyuridine) phosphorylase, which would degrade exogenous deoxyuridine; and thyA, which produces thymidylate synthase. When grown at 42 degrees C in minimal medium containing deoxyuridine, the multiple mutant displayed a 93 to 96% substitution of uracil for thymine in new DNA. Growth stopped after the cellular DNA had increased 1.6- to 1.9-fold and the cell mass had increased 1.7- to 2.7-fold, suggesting a general failure of macromolecular biosynthesis. DNA hybridization confirmed that the uracil-containing DNA was chromosomal and that new rounds of initiation must have occurred during its synthesis. Images
An evolutionary model of micrometastatic progression: are driver mutations in the primary tumor important?

Tumor cells are unlikely to metastasize even after intravasation, a phenomenon termed metastatic inefficiency. Approximately 80% of circulating tumor cells extravasate into foreign stroma, while only a small fraction of these extravasated cells (~2.5%) ever divide, forming micrometastases. Lastly, and most critical to our study, very few micrometastases (~1%) ever grow to clinical size, while most regress and disappear. Previously, we developed a model of tumor progression that seldomly grew to macroscopic size and most often regressed, like micrometastases. This was a result of a tug-of-war between advantageous (epi)genetic driver mutations that increased cancer cell’s proliferation rate, and frequent passenger mutations that were moderately harmful to cancer cells. By extended this theory to the evolution of micrometastases, we were able to describe many clinical phenomena, including metastatic inefficiency at this final step. The model predicted that tumors with more mutations would be less likely to metastasize, which proved true in a mouse model and suggests that a tumor’s mutational load may serve as a biomarker for response to mutagenic chemotherapy and metastatic disease. Dynamics in our model depend critically on a stroma factor, which defines the similarity of the microenvironment of new stroma to the microenvironment of the primary tumor. When large, colonizing cells are more likely to disperse early in the primary tumor’s evolution (long before clinical detection), are more likely to form metastases that are genetically very distinct from the primary tumor, and are less likely to respond to therapies targeting drivers in the primary tumor. Genomic evidence from the The Cancer Genome Atlas suggests that the stromal factor is indeed large. Hence, to successfully treat metastatic disease, clinicians must go beyond targeting the phenotypes of primary tumors, and instead characterize and exploit the phenotypes of descended metastases.
Option Pricing And Monte Carlo Simulations

The advantage of Monte Carlo simulations is attributed to the flexibility of their implementation. In spite of their prevalence in finance, we address their efficiency and accuracy in option pricing from the perspective of variance reduction and price convergence. We demonstrate that increasing the number of paths in simulations will increase computational efficiency. Moreover, using a t-test, we examine the significance of price convergence, measured as the difference between sample means of option prices. Overall, our illustrative results show that the Monte Carlo simulation prices are not statistically different from the Black-Scholes type closed-form solution prices.
Variants from the Diverse Virus Population Identified at Seroconversion of a Clade A Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1-Infected Woman Have Distinct Biological Properties

Development of effective therapeutics to prevent new infections with human immunodeficiency type 1 (HIV-1) is predicated on an understanding of the properties that provide a selective advantage to a transmitted viral population. In contrast to the homogeneous virus population that typifies early HIV-1 infection of men, the viral population in women recently infected with clade A HIV-1 is genetically diverse, based on evaluation of the envelope gene. A longitudinal study of viral envelope evolution in several women suggested that representative envelope variants detected at seroconversion had distinct biological properties that affected viral fitness. To test this hypothesis, a full-length, infectious molecular clone, Q23-17, was obtained from an infected woman 1 year following seroconversion, and chimeric viruses containing envelope genes representative of seroconversion and 27-month-postseroconversion populations were constructed. Dendritic cells (DC) could transfer infection of seroconversion variant Q23ScA, which dominated the viral population in the year following seroconversion, and the closely related 1-year isolate Q23-17 to resting peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). In contrast, resting PBMC exposed to DC pulsed with Q23ScB, which was detected infrequently in samples after seroconversion, or the 27-month chimeras were inconsistently infected. Additionally, quiescent PBMC infected with Q23ScA or Q23-17 proliferated more robustly than uninfected cells or cells infected with the other envelope chimeras in response to immobilized anti-CD3. Stimulation with tetanus toxoid led to an increased proportion of CD45RA+ cells and a decreased expression of CD28 on CD45RO+ cells in cultures of Q23-17-infected PBMC. These data demonstrate that variants from the heterogeneous seroconversion clade A HIV-1 population in a Kenyan woman have distinct biological features that may influence viral pathogenesis.
Aderlass und „Rheuma“

Der Aderlass wurde in der Antike auf dem Boden des humoral-pathologischen Konzeptes als Allgemeintherapie fur alle Krankheiten und im Mittelalter als Heilmittel vorwiegend fur die Behandlung entzundlicher und infektioser Erkrankungen in grosem Umfang eingesetzt. Die Bevolkerung war jahrhundertelang von der Bedeutung dieser Masnahme uberzeugt und forderte sie teilweise auch zur Krankheitsprophylaxe. Schon fruher immer wieder angezweifelt, mehrten sich im 17./18. Jahrhundert die ablehnenden Stimmen. 1835 hat P. Louis in Paris die Statistik in die Medizin eingefuhrt und die Unwirksamkeit des Aderlasses bei entzundlichen Krankheiten bewiesen. Und heute wird der Aderlass in der wissenschaftlichen Medizin nur noch bei wenigen seltenen Krankheiten angewandt.
Ascaris lumbricoides: Estudio de la cinética de captación de ácido hialurónico

Resumen es: El acido hialuronico (AH) participa de la respuesta inmune porque es un constituyente de las barreras mecanicas naturales, un estimulador de la inflamaci...
Converting Sugars to Biofuels: Ethanol and Beyond

To date, the most significant sources of biofuels are starch- or sugarcane-based ethanol, which have been industrially produced in large quantities in the USA and Brazil, respectively. However, the ultimate goal of biofuel production is to produce fuels from lignocellulosic biomass-derived sugars with optimal fuel properties and compatibility with the existing fuel distribution infrastructure. To achieve this goal, metabolic pathways have been constructed to produce various fuel molecules that are categorized into fermentative alcohols (butanol and isobutanol), non-fermentative alcohols from 2-keto acid pathways, fatty acids-derived fuels and isoprenoid-derived fuels. This review will focus on current metabolic engineering efforts to improve the productivity and the yield of several key biofuel molecules. Strategies used in these metabolic engineering efforts can be summarized as follows: (1) identification of better enzymes; (2) flux control of intermediates and precursors; (3) elimination of competing pathways; (4) redox balance and cofactor regeneration; and (5) bypassing regulatory mechanisms. In addition to metabolic engineering approaches, host strains are optimized by improving sugar uptake and utilization, and increasing tolerance to toxic hydrolysates, metabolic intermediates and/or biofuel products.
Management of Gallstones in the Pediatric Patient

Infant and pediatric cholelithiasis, as well as other related gallbladder diseases, are becoming increasingly more common due to heightened awareness and the increased incidence of childhood obesity [1–5]. The prevalence of biliary sludge and gallstones in the pediatric population is estimated to be 1.46 % and 1.9 %, respectively, and the incidence is slightly higher in children undergoing abdominal sonogram for abdominal pain [4, 6]. Cholelithiasis in pediatric patients usually presents between the ages of 7 and 10, but this age range is changing as the childhood obesity epidemic continues [3, 4, 7, 8].
Modification of an ultrasonic scaler for portable use.

SUMMARY To reduce treatment time and muscle fatigue associated with scaling nonambulatory patients at their bedside, a garden sprayer can be adapted to deliver a constant supply of water under pressure to an ultrasonic unit. There have been no significant problems with this arrangement during the 3-year period of use. Information about the manufactures of the products mentioned in this article may be available from the author. Neither the author nor the American Dental Association has any commercial interests in the products mentioned.
FocalSpace: multimodal activity tracking, synthetic blur and adaptive presentation for video conferencing

We introduce FocalSpace, a video conferencing system that dynamically recognizes relevant activities and objects through depth sensing and hybrid tracking of multimodal cues, such as voice, gesture, and proximity to surfaces. FocalSpace uses this information to enhance users' focus by diminishing the background through synthetic blur effects. We present scenarios that support the suppression of visual distraction, provide contextual augmentation, and enable privacy in dynamic mobile environments. Our user evaluation indicates increased memory accuracy and user preference for FocalSpace techniques compared to traditional video conferencing.
Connecting the dots: rule-based decision support systems in the modern EMR era.

The intensive care unit (ICU) environment is rich in both medical device and electronic medical record (EMR) data. The ICU patient population is particularly vulnerable to medical error or delayed medical intervention both of which are associated with excess morbidity, mortality and cost. The development and deployment of smart alarms, computerized decision support systems (DSS) and “sniffers” within ICU clinical information systems has the potential to improve the safety and outcomes of critically ill hospitalized patients. However, the current generations of alerts, run largely through bedside monitors, are far from ideal and rarely support the clinician in the early recognition of complex physiologic syndromes or deviations from expected care pathways. False alerts and alert fatigue remain prevalent. In the coming era of widespread EMR implementation novel medical informatics methods may be adaptable to the development of next generation, rule-based DSS.
Three-dimensional sparse-aperture moving-target imaging

If a target's motion can be determined, the problem of reconstructing a 3D target image becomes a sparse-aperture imaging problem. That is, the data lies on a random trajectory in k-space, which constitutes a sparse data collection that yields very low-resolution images if backprojection or other standard imaging techniques are used. This paper investigates two moving-target imaging algorithms: the first is a greedy algorithm based on the CLEAN technique, and the second is a version of Basis Pursuit Denoising. The two imaging algorithms are compared for a realistic moving-target motion history applied to a Xpatch-generated backhoe data set.
Characteristics of Selective MoSiON Etching in a Chlorine Plasma

The etch characteristics of MoSiON were investigated when chlorine was utilized as the main etch gas in an ICP dry etch system. MoSiON and glass are easily etched with fluorine-based plasmas such as: CF4, SF6, and CHF3. These plasma chemistries generate carbon-containing and fluorine-containing polymers as byproducts, which can be responsible for generating particles or hard defects on the mask during the MoSiON etch step. They also cause damage to the glass surface, manifesting themselves as a phase or transmission errors. In this paper, new plasma chemistry was applied to etch MoSiON, and its characteristics were examined focusing on the effects of each parameter. These parameters included: ICP power, bias power, pressure, and gas concentration. It is difficult to etch MoSiON with good selectivity to Cr because MoSiON and Cr can be etched simultaneously after the photoresist layer has been removed. It will be shown how to increase the selectivity to Cr using an optimized process leveraging a new hardware modification. The etch characteristics of the chlorine plasma will also be compared to that of fluorine plasmas. It was found that using a chlorine plasma to etch MoSiON instead of a fluorine plasma yields good etch properties and good morphology.
Corrosion fatigue through particle swarm optimization

A particle swarm optimization method was used to investigate the corrosion fatigue problem. The optimization procedure is used in redesigning the operating environment to achieve desired corrosion-fatigue properties for an aircraft panel/material. The operating parameters that would cause a structure to have maximum fatigue properties were obtained from the optimization simulation. The results of operating parameters obtained through the optimization procedure are reasonable and demonstrate the feasibility of the approach for estimating the corrosion fatigue of aging structures.
Codeine Disposition in Sickle Cell Patients Compared With Healthy Volunteers

The pharmacokinetics of codeine were determined after oral administration of codeine sulfate (60 mg) with sickle cell patients (SCPs) and healthy controls (HCs). Plasma concentrations of codeine were measured by reversed-phase high-pressure liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection. Pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated using both compartmental and noncompartmental analysis. No significant differences were observed in time to reach maximum peak plasma concentration (tmax) (1.0 +/- 0.4 versus 1.4 +/- 1.0 hours), maximum peak plasma concentration (Cmax) (172 +/- 25 versus 225 +/- 97 ng/mL), area under the curve (AUC infinity) (590 +/- 96 versus 779 +/- 234 ng*h/mL), and Cl/F (104 +/- 17 versus 89 +/- 27 L/h) between SCPs and HCs. Conversely, significant differences were observed in mean residence time (MRT) (3.7 +/- 0.3 versus 4.7 +/- 0.3 hours) and half-life (t1/2) (1.7 +/- 0.2 versus 2.8 +/- 0.3 hours). In a separate study, significant differences were observed in the in vitro plasma protein binding of codeine in SCPs (66.0 +/- 8.6%) and HCs (30.5 +/- 2.7%) as well as in vivo binding (68.4 +/- 11.1% for SCPs versus 29.2 +/- 3.4% for HCs). Codeine is a relatively high-extraction drug that is primarily eliminated by metabolism in the liver. Generally, the clearance of such drugs is approximately equal to hepatic blood flow and is not affected by changes in protein binding. Therefore, the change in t1/2 observed in SCPs can be attributed to changes in volume of distribution rather than clearance.
Recommendations for Enabling and Enhancing Self-Determination During the Transition Planning Process

The transition planning process for high school students with severe disabilities provides unique opportunities for the development and expression of self-determination skills. In this article, recommendations for enabling and enhancing self-determination within this process are presented. These recommendations include an emphasis on student participation in transition planning, student decision making regarding goals and needed services, and student evaluation of the acceptability of proposed services. Enabling students to assume greater control of their own transition planning empowers them to assume a more self-determined role in high school and throughout adult life.
Recurrent PID and Reproductive Health Outcomes: Findings from the PID Evaluation and Clinical Health (PEACH) Study

instability (7.8%). There was an average increase in BMI of 1.4 kg/m2 after twelve months of NA use. The mean duration of therapy was 11.3 months (range 1 to 36 months). 89/129 patients were still using NA at their most recent visit. Of those who stopped therapy, 70% did so because of persistent pain or bleeding. The most common prescription upon discontinuation was Lupron with NA add-back (52.5%), followed by continuous OCPs (32.5%). Conclusion: NA is a well-tolerated, effective option to decrease pain and bleeding in adolescents with all stages of endometriosis.
Density and temperature scaling of disorder-induced heating in ultracold plasmas

We report measurements and simulations of disorder-induced heating in ultracold neutral plasmas. Fluorescence from plasma ions is excited using a detuned probe laser beam while the plasma relaxes from its initially disordered nonequilibrium state. This method probes the wings of the ion velocity distribution. The simulations yield information on time-evolving plasma parameters that are difficult to measure directly and make it possible to connect the fluorescence signal to the rms velocity distribution. The disorder-induced heating signal can be used to estimate the electron and ion temperatures {approx}100 ns after the plasma is created. This is particularly interesting for plasmas in which the electron and ion temperatures are not known.