cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Sumoylation Dynamics During Keratinocyte Differentiation

SUMO modification regulates the activity of numerous transcription factors that have a direct role in cell-cycle progression, apoptosis, cellular proliferation, and development, but its role in differentiation processes is less clear. Keratinocyte differentiation requires the coordinated activation of a series of transcription factors, and as several crucial keratinocyte transcription factors are known to be SUMO substrates, we investigated the role of sumoylation in keratinocyte differentiation. In a human keratinocyte cell line model (HaCaT cells), Ca2+-induced differentiation led to the transient and coordinated transcriptional activation of the genes encoding crucial sumoylation system components, including SAE1, SAE2, Ubc9, SENP1, Miz-1 (PIASxβ), SUMO2 and SUMO3. The increased gene expression resulted in higher levels of the respective proteins and changes in the pattern of sumoylated substrate proteins during the differentiation process. Similarly to the HaCaT results, stratified human foreskin keratinocytes showed an upregulation of Ubc9 in the suprabasal layers. Abrogation of sumoylation by Gam1 expression severely disrupted normal HaCaT differentiation, consistent with an important role for sumoylation in the proper progression of this biological process.
Noise tolerant low voltage XOR-XNOR for fast arithmetic

With scaling down to deep submicron and nanometer technologies, noise immunity is becoming a metric of the same importance as power, speed, and area. Smaller feature sizes, low voltage, and high frequency are the characteristics for deep submicron circuits. This paper proposes a low voltage noise tolerant XOR-XNOR gate with 8 transistors. The proposed gate has been implanted in an already existing (5-2) compressor cell to test its driving capability. The proposed gate is characterized and compared with those published ones for reliability and energy efficiency. The average noise threshold energy (ANTE) and the energy normalized ANTE metrics are used for quantifying the noise immunity and energy efficiency respectively. Results using 0.18m CMOS technology and HSPICE for simulation show that the proposed XOR-XNOR circuit is more noise-immune and displays better power-delay product characteristics than the compared circuit. Also, the circuit proves to be faster in operation and works at all ranges of supply voltage starting from 0.6V to 3.3V.
Design of the IMC Filter by using the Structured Singular Value Approach

The Internal Model Control (IMC) structure has been widely recognized as very useful in clarifying the issues related to the mismatch between the model used for controller design and the actual process. The structure also gives rise to a two step controller synthesis procedure, of which the second step deals with the design of a low pass filter such that robustness with respect to model-plant mismatch is guaranteed. The Structured Singular Value (SSV) was introduced recently and it allowed the non-conservative quantification of the concept of robust performance. This paper deals with the design of the IMC filter by using the SSV and it demonstrates how this approach can be used with either an H 2 - or an H ? -optimal controller.
Social Stigma and the Potential Costs of Assunptive Help

This study examined stigmatized individuals' reactions to receiving assumptive help from a nonstigmatized other. Assumptive help was defined as unsolicited help provided without any evidence indicating personal need on the part of the recipient. It was hypothesized that Black students who received assumptive help from a White peer would have lower self esteem and more depressed affect than Black students who did not receive assumptive help. Furthermore, it was predicted that receiving assumptive help from a White peer would have more negative effects (i. e., result in lower self esteem and more depressed affect) among Black recipients than White recipients. No differences in self-esteem and affect were expected between Blacks and Whites who did not receive help. Results based on a measure of competence-based self-esteem were consistent with the hypotheses.
Increased Myocardial Rab GTPase Expression A Consequence and Cause of Cardiomyopathy

The Ras-like Rab GTPases regulate vesicle transport in endocytosis and exocytosis. We found that cardiac Rabs1, 4, and 6 are upregulated in a dilated cardiomyopathy model overexpressing β 2 -adrenergic receptors. To determine if increased Rab GTPase expression can contribute to cardiomyopathy, we transgenically overexpressed in mouse hearts prototypical Rab1a, the small G protein that regulates vesicle transport from endoplasmic reticulum to and through Golgi. In multiple independent mouse lines, Rab1a overexpression caused cardiac hypertrophy that progressed in a time- and transgene dose–dependent manner to heart failure. Isolated cardiac myocytes were hypertrophied and exhibited contractile depression with impaired calcium reuptake. Ultrastructural analysis revealed enlarged Golgi stacks and increased transitional vesicles in ventricular myocytes, with increased secretory atrial natriuretic peptide granules and degenerative myelin figures in atrial myocytes; immunogold studies localized Rab1a to these abnormal vesicular structures. A survey of hypertrophy signaling molecules revealed increased protein kinase C (PKC) α and δ, and confocal microscopy showed abnormal subcellular distribution of PKCα in Rab1a transgenics. These results indicate that increased expression of Rab1 GTPase in myocardium distorts subcellular localization of proteins and is sufficient to cause cardiac hypertrophy and failure.
RESPECT FOR PRIVATE AND FAMILY LIFE UNDER ARTICLE 8 ECHR IN IMMIGRATION CASES: A HUMAN RIGHT TO REGULARIZE ILLEGAL STAY?

Applying the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) to immigration cases has always been a balancing exercise between the effective protection of human rights and the Contracting States' autonomy to regulate migration flows. In its recent case law, the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg (ECtHR) has considerably extended the protective scope of Article 8 ECHR by granting autonomous human rights protection to the long-term resident status independent of the existence of family bonds under the heading of ‘private life’. This has important repercussions for the status of legal and illegal immigrants across Europe, since the new case law widens the reach of human rights law to the legal conditions for leave to remain, effectively granting several applicants a human right to regularize their illegal stay. The contribution analyses the new case law and develops general criteria guiding the application of the ECHR to national immigration laws and the new EU harmonization measures adopted in recent years.
External succession and disruptive change: heirs-apparent, forced turnover and firm performance

In general, CEO succession is disruptive to an organization, and external succession is especially disruptive. We analyze the impact on firm performance of disruption caused by external succession. Although traditional analysis of the succession process has emphasized the importance of a smooth transition to minimize disruption, research on external succession has emphasized the benefits of bringing in an outsider to shake things up. We investigate the impact on firm performance of three factors that affect the extent of disruption in external succession: forced turnover, which is generally viewed as highly disruptive; prior appointment of an external successor as an outside heir, in order to reduce disruption; and prior appointment as an outside heir with a public promise of becoming CEO. The results suggest that disruption in the form of forced turnover is associated with higher post-succession firm performance. The appointment of external successors as outside heirs first does not appear to be associat...
Device and Architecture Outlook for Beyond CMOS Switches

Sooner or later, fundamental limitations destine complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) scaling to a conclusion. A number of unique switches have been proposed as replacements, many of which do not even use electron charge as the state variable. Instead, these nanoscale structures pass tokens in the spin, excitonic, photonic, magnetic, quantum, or even heat domains. Emergent physical behaviors and idiosyncrasies of these novel switches can complement the execution of specific algorithms or workloads by enabling quite unique architectures. Ultimately, exploiting these unusual responses will extend throughput in high-performance computing. Alternative tokens also require new transport mechanisms to replace the conventional chip wire interconnect schemes of charge-based computing. New intrinsic limits to scaling in post-CMOS technologies are likely to be bounded ultimately by thermodynamic entropy and Shannon noise.
Effects of Protamine Sulfate, Heparin and Mercuric Chloride on Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rates

Protamine Sulfate (PS) is commonly administered in cardiovascular surgery to neutralize the anticoagulant effect of low-molecular-weight heparin (LMHW). The purpose of this study was to find the individual and combined effects of PS, LMWH, and mercuric chloride on the Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate (ESR) of human blood. Our results showed that the samples (n=11) containing mercuric chloride retarded ESR values compared to control values. Samples (n=11) containing mercuric chloride coupled with either PS or LMWH showed a synergistic effect and retarded ESR values furthermore. Finally, samples (n=11) containing all three reagents did not show a significant difference in ESR values when compared to the control.
The Politics of Need: Examining Governors’ Decisions to Oppose the “Obamacare” Medicaid Expansion

This article explains governors’ decisions to support or oppose Medicaid expansions offered under the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. We theorize that governors’ decisions to oppose the funding should depend on both political demands and the level of need in the state, though politics and need are often in tension. We find that governors’ partisanship and the composition of the legislature have substantively meaningful effects on governors’ decisions, but the level of need in the state exerts little effect on governors’ decisions. This suggests that for high profile, highly politicized issues such as the Affordable Care Act, political considerations outweigh the needs of citizens and state economic conditions in gubernatorial decision making.
The Life Course Perspective Applied to Families Over Time

One of the enduring puzzles in the life sciences is the description and explanation of change over time. Such change is frequently called “development,” and the metaphors of growth and decline, gain and loss have often been employed to characterize change in structure or function of organisms over time. Cells, individuals, groups, and even social systems exhibit change over time. While most change is orderly, regular, and normative, some change is chaotic, irregular, and unpredicted. Growth or decline at the individual level often has antecedents or consequences at the collective group level.
Positive Torsional Strain Causes the Formation of a Four-way Junction at Replication Forks

The advance of a DNA replication fork requires an unwinding of the parental double helix. This in turn creates a positive superhelical stress, a (+)-ΔLk, that must be relaxed by topoisomerases for replication to proceed. Surprisingly, partially replicated plasmids with a (+)-ΔLk were not supercoiled nor were the replicated arms interwound in precatenanes. The electrophoretic mobility of these molecules indicated that they have no net writhe. Instead, the (+)-ΔLk is absorbed by a regression of the replication fork. As the parental DNA strands re-anneal, the resultant displaced daughter strands base pair to each other to form a four-way junction at the replication fork, which is locally identical to a Holliday junction in recombination. We showed by restriction endonuclease digestion that the junction can form at either the terminus or the origin of replication and we visualized the structure with scanning force microscopy. We discuss possible physiological implications of the junction for stalled replication in vivo.
Mechanisms of Grain Size Evolution during Aluminum Spray Forming

A numerical approach is implemented to analyze the evolution of grain size during spray forming of 5083 Al. The evolution of grain size is investigated at two different thicknesses corresponding to 400 °C and 602 °C on the deposited material’s surface. Nucleation behavior and nuclei growth in individual droplets are computed during the flight and deposition stages. Based on the measured temperature history, nuclei coarsening during slow solidification of remaining liquid phase and grain growth during solid-state cooling are analyzed in detail. The calculated results indicate bimodal and relatively uniform grain morphology corresponding to the deposited material’s surfaces with 400 °C and 602 °C, respectively.
Assessment of Trismus After Chemoradiation for Nasopharyngeal Cancer: A Prospective Phase 2 Trial

1) For lateralized tumors, only ipsilateral parapharyngeal space was covered to minimize trismus, 2) Maxillary sinus and ethmoid sinus were not routinely covered unless involved, 3) Pharyngeal airway was omitted to minimize dose to oral cavity and soft palate, thereby minimizing mucositis and velopharyngeal insufficiency, respectively, 4) Sphenoid sinus was not covered routinely unless it was involved or at risk, 5) Level IB was not covered unless involved, 6) Pterygopalatine fossa was always covered, ipsilateral for lateralized and bilaterally for bilateral tumors, 7) Foramen lacerum was always covered bilaterally to prevent recurrence in the cavernous sinus, 8) When foramen ovale was involved, trigeminal ganglion in Meckel’s cave was covered for potential retrograde spread. Results: Between 1991 and 2013, 72 patients with newly diagnosed non-metastatic NPC were treated in our department by two radiation oncologists who employed the specified approach. The T-category distribution (%) was T1 14: T2 17, T3 21, T4 48. The N-category distribution (%) was N0 25, N1 17, N2 48, N3 10. Eighty-seven percent of patients were treated with protons +/photons whereas 13% were treated with IMRT only. The median dose to the GTV primary was 70 Gy (range 69.96-76.8). Twenty-six percent of patients received induction+concurrent whereas 63% of patients received concurrent chemotherapy only. With a median follow-up of 3.2 years, 4 patients developed local recurrence and 1 patient developed regional recurrence. The rates of local and regional control at 3 years were 92.2% (95% CI 85-99.9%) and 98.3% (95% CI, 95-100%), respectively. The distantmetastasis free rate at 3 years was 87.6%. All locoregional recurrences occurred within the high-dose GTVs. Conclusions: Our long-term experience of individualization of CTV delineation based on tumor extent and the orderly pattern of tumor spread results in excellent locoregional control, with no recurrence within the CTV region. Author Disclosure: A.W. Chan: None. M. Kim: None. A.A. Aizer: None. S.M. McBride: None. E. Weyman: None. N.J. Liebsch: None.
Effect of reproductive state and body size on food consumption in captive Galago senegalensis braccatus

Measurements of food consumption for different types of foods were made for seven Galago senegalensis braccatus. Differences because of reproductive state in females and body size were found. Lactating females consumed more food in total and had greater energy and protein intake than they did during other reproductive states. Near-term pregnant females consumed less food, energy, and protein than they did during other reproductive states. Body size affected food intake, with smaller animals ingesting more per unit metabolic weight than larger subjects.
Phase Transformations and Formation of Ultra-Fine Microstructure During Hydrogen Sintering and Phase Transformation (HSPT) Processing of Ti-6Al-4V

The hydrogen sintering and phase transformation (HSPT) process is a novel powder metallurgy method for producing Ti alloys, particularly the Ti-6Al-4V alloy, with ultra-fine microstructure in the as-sintered state. The ultra-fine microstructure is obtained as a direct result of the use of H2 gas during sintering. The refinement of the microstructure during HSPT is similar to that of thermal hydrogen processing (THP) of bulk Ti alloys. For both THP and HSPT of Ti-6Al-4V alloy, the mechanisms of the grain refinement depend on the phase equilibria and phase transformations in the presence of hydrogen, which are surprisingly still not well established to date and are still subjected to research and debate. In recent work by the present authors, a pseudo-binary phase diagram of (Ti-6Al-4V)-H has been determined by using in situ synchrotron XRD and TGA/DSC techniques. Aided by this phase diagram, the current paper focuses on the series of phase transformations during sintering and cooling of Ti-6Al-4V in a hydrogen atmosphere and the mechanisms for the formation of the ultra-fine microstructures obtained. Using experimental techniques, including in situ synchrotron XRD, SEM, EBSD, and TEM, the microstructural refinement was found to be the result of (1) the precipitation of ultra-fine α/α2 within coarse β grains during an isothermal hold at intermediate temperatures, and (2) the eutectoid transformation of β → α + δ at approximately 473 K (200 °C).
Academic Health Centers: Vulnerabilities in 1995 and Beyond

Resources to support biomedical research in the nation's academic health centers are under considerable threat. Particularly vulnerable is the clinical research enterprise. New strategies and prioritization will be required to maintain the vitality of our clinical research and education enterprise. (Arch Intern Med. 1995;155:2045-2048)
Correlated δ 18 O and [Ti] in lunar zircons: a terrestrial perspective for magma temperatures and water content on the Moon

Zircon grains were separated from lunar regolith and rocks returned from four Apollo landing sites, and analyzed in situ by secondary ion mass spectrometry. Many regolith zircons preserve magmatic δ18O and trace element compositions and, although out of petrologic context, represent a relatively unexplored resource for study of the Moon and possibly other bodies in the solar system. The combination of oxygen isotope ratios and [Ti] provides a unique geochemical signature that identifies zircons from the Moon. The oxygen isotope ratios of lunar zircons are remarkably constant and unexpectedly higher in δ18O (5.61 ± 0.07 ‰ VSMOW) than zircons from Earth’s oceanic crust (5.20 ± 0.03 ‰) even though mare basalt whole-rock samples are nearly the same in δ18O as oceanic basalts on Earth (~5.6 ‰). Thus, the average fractionation of oxygen isotopes between primitive basalt and zircon is smaller on the Moon [Δ18O(WR-Zrc) = 0.08 ± 0.09 ‰] than on Earth (0.37 ± 0.04 ‰). The smaller fractionations on the Moon suggest higher temperatures of zircon crystallization in lunar magmas and are consistent with higher [Ti] in lunar zircons. Phase equilibria estimates also indicate high temperatures for lunar magmas, but not specifically for evolved zircon-forming melts. If the solidus temperature of a given magma is a function of its water content, then so is the crystallization temperature of any zircon forming in that melt. The systematic nature of O and Ti data for lunar zircons suggests a model based on the following observations. Many of the analyzed lunar zircons are likely from K, rare earth elements, P (KREEP)-Zr-rich magmas. Zircon does not saturate in normal mafic magmas; igneous zircons in mafic rocks are typically late and formed in the last most evolved portion of melts. Even if initial bulk water content is moderately low, the late zircon-forming melt can concentrate water locally. In general, water lowers crystallization temperatures, in which case late igneous zircon can form at significantly lower temperatures than the solidus inferred for a bulk-rock composition. Although lunar basalts could readily lose H2 to space during eruption, lowering water fugacity; the morphology, large size, and presence in plutonic rocks suggest that many zircons crystallized at depths that retarded degassing. In this case, the crystallization temperatures of zircons are a sensitive monitor of the water content of the parental magma as well as the evolved zircon-forming melt. If the smaller Δ18O(zircon–mare basalt) values reported here are characteristic of the Moon, then that would suggest that even highly evolved zircon-forming magmas on the Moon crystallized at higher temperature than similar magmas on Earth and that magmas, though not necessarily water-free, were generally drier on the Moon.
Realistic Models for the Comet Dynamical Environment

An outgassing jet model is presented in support of spacecraft navigation for future missions to comets. The outgassing jet is modelled as an emission cone while the comet is modelled as a uniform density triaxial ellipsoid. The comet’s motion about the Sun is included in the model. This model is used for simulation and estimation of the physical outgassing properties of jets at and near the surface of a comet.
Discovering statistically significant pathways in expression profiling studies

Accurate and rapid identification of perturbed pathways through the analysis of genome-wide expression profiles facilitates the generation of biological hypotheses. We propose a statistical framework for determining whether a specified group of genes for a pathway has a coordinated association with a phenotype of interest. Several issues on proper hypothesis-testing procedures are clarified. In particular, it is shown that the differences in the correlation structure of each set of genes can lead to a biased comparison among gene sets unless a normalization procedure is applied. We propose statistical tests for two important but different aspects of association for each group of genes. This approach has more statistical power than currently available methods and can result in the discovery of statistically significant pathways that are not detected by other methods. This method is applied to data sets involving diabetes, inflammatory myopathies, and Alzheimer's disease, using gene sets we compiled from various public databases. In the case of inflammatory myopathies, we have correctly identified the known cytotoxic T lymphocyte-mediated autoimmunity in inclusion body myositis. Furthermore, we predicted the presence of dendritic cells in inclusion body myositis and of an IFN-α/β response in dermatomyositis, neither of which was previously described. These predictions have been subsequently corroborated by immunohistochemistry.
Analysis of Explosives Using Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography (UPLC®) with UV and/or Mass Spectrometry Detection

Explosives analysis has gained a great deal of attention due to various needs for both environmental monitoring as well as in the world of forensics. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is one analytical technique of choice used for this analysis. In this article we investigate the use of newer technologies in detection (mass spectrometry) and smaller column packing (sub 2 μm particles) to improve the selectivity, speed, and resolution of the analysis. Several examples showing the versatility of this technology will be shown.
Personalized Recommendation of Twitter Lists using Content and Network Information

Lists in social networks have become popular tools to orga-nize content. This paper proposes a novel framework for rec-ommending lists to users by combining several features thatjointly capture their personal interests. Our contribution is oftwo-fold. First, we develop a ListRec model that leveragesthe dynamically varying tweet content, the network of twitterers and the popularity of lists to collectively model the users’preference towards social lists. Second, we use the topicalinterests of users, and the list network structure to developa novel network-based model called the LIST-PAGERANK.We use this model to recommend auxiliary lists that are morepopular than the lists that are currently subscribed by theusers. We evaluate our ListRec model using the Twitterdataset consisting of 2988 direct list subscriptions. Using au-tomatic evaluation technique, we compare the performanceof the ListRec model with different baseline methods andother competing approaches and show that our model deliversbetter precision in terms of the prediction of the subscribedlists of the twitterers. Furthermore, we also demonstrate the importance of combining different weighting schemes andtheir effect on capturing users’ interest towards Twitter lists.To evaluate the LIST-PAGERANK model, we employ a user-study based evaluation to show that the model is effective inrecommending auxiliary lists that are more authoritative thanthe lists subscribed by the users.
Sequence and developmental expression of AmphiDll, an amphioxus Distal-less gene transcribed in the ectoderm, epidermis and nervous system: insights into evolution of craniate forebrain and neural crest

The dynamic expression patterns of the single amphioxus Distal-less homolog (AmphiDll) during development are consistent with successive roles of this gene in global regionalization of the ectoderm, establishment of the dorsoventral axis, specification of migratory epidermal cells early in neurulation and the specification of forebrain. Such a multiplicity of Distal-less functions probably represents an ancestral chordate condition and, during craniate evolution, when this gene diversified into a family of six or so members, the original functions evidently tended to be parcelled out among the descendant genes. In the amphioxus gastrula, AmphiDll is expressed throughout the animal hemisphere (presumptive ectoderm), but is soon downregulated dorsally (in the presumptive neural plate). During early neurulation, AmphiDll-expressing epidermal cells flanking the neural plate extend lamellipodia, appear to migrate over it and meet mid-dorsally. Midway in neurulation, cells near the anterior end of the neural plate begin expressing AmphiDll and, as neurulation terminates, these cells are incorporated into the dorsal part of the neural tube, which forms by a curling of the neural plate. This group of AmphiDll-expressing neural cells and a second group expressing the gene a little later and even more anteriorly in the neural tube demarcate a region that comprises the anterior three/fourths of the cerebral vesicle; this region of the amphioxus neural tube, as judged by neural expression domains of craniate Distal-less-related genes, is evidently homologous to the craniate forebrain. Our results suggest that craniates evolved from an amphioxus-like creature that had the beginnings of a forebrain and possibly a precursor of neural crest - namely, the cell population leading the epidermal overgrowth of the neural plate during early neurulation.
Lymphoblastic Leukemia and Lymphoma

This chapter covers T and B lymphoblastic neoplasms, including acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and lymphoblastic lymphoma (LBL). Morphologic, immunophenotypic, and cytogenetic features are discussed along with the parameters of various modalities used in their diagnosis. The techniques and utility of minimum residual disease (MRD) measurement after therapy is discussed, as are new insights into the molecular biology of leukemogenesis gleaned from recent studies using gene expression profiling and copy number analysis via microarray techniques.
The CH+ Abundance in Turbulent, Diffuse Molecular Clouds

The intermittent dissipation of interstellar turbulence is an important energy source in the diffuse ISM. Though on average smaller than the heating rates due to cosmic rays and the photoelectric effect on dust grains, the turbulent cascade can channel large amounts of energy into a relatively small fraction of the gas that consequently undergoes significant heating and chemical enrichment. In particular, this mechanism has been proposed as a solution to the long-standing problem of the high abundance of CH+ along diffuse molecular sight lines, which steady-state, low temperature models under-produce by over an order of magnitude. While much work has been done on the structure and chemistry of these small-scale dissipation zones, comparatively little attention has been paid to relating these zones to the properties of the large-scale turbulence. In this paper, we attempt to bridge this gap by estimating the temperature and CH+ column density along diffuse molecular sight-lines by post-processing 3-dimensional MHD turbulence simulations. Assuming reasonable values for the cloud density (30 / cm^3), size (20 pc), and velocity dispersion (2.3 km / s), we find that our computed abundances compare well with CH+ column density observations, as well as with observations of emission lines from rotationally excited H2 molecules.
Learning Watershed Cuts Energy Functions

In recent work, several popular segmentation methods have been unified as energy minimization on a graph. In other work, supervised learning methods have been generalized from predicting labels to predicting structured, graph-like objects. A recent contribution to this second area showed how the Rand Index could be directly minimized when using Connected Components as a segmentation method. We build on this work and present an efficient mini-batch learning method for Connected Component segmentation and also show how it can be generalized to the Watershed Cuts segmentation method. We present initial results applying these new contributions to image segmentation problems in materials microscopy and discuss challenges and future directions.
DigitSeis: A New Digitization Software for Analog Seismograms

This article presents a new MATLAB software, DigitSeis, that converts digital, raster images of analog seismograms to readily usable, digital time series using image‐processing techniques. It classifies important features of analog seismograms, such as time marks, to simplify the generation of continuous time series and uses some of this information to assign accurate timing. Geometrical distortions associated with various stages of seismogram creation, storage, and digitization are detected automatically and corrected. Although the software is written to minimize human input, DigitSeis provides interactive tools for challenging situations such as when traces cross. Finally, the effectiveness of the software is demonstrated with digitization of a long‐period seismogram from the Harvard‐Adam Dziewonski observatory recorded in November 1938. At least five significant teleseismic events are identified, and its spectral analysis shows no spurious features.
Balancing competing risks: perinatal exposure to macrolides increases the risk of infantile hypertrophic pyloric stenosis

Commentary on : Lund M, Pasternak B, Davidsen RB, et al. Use of macrolides in mother and child and risk of infantile hypertrophic pyloric stenosis: nationwide cohort study. BMJ 2014;348:g1908.[OpenUrl][1][Abstract/FREE Full Text][2] Infantile hypertrophic pyloric stenosis (IHPS) is a potentially life-threatening condition for which surgical treatment yields excellent patient outcomes.1 However, the aetiology of IHPS remains elusive. Prior studies have implicated early neonatal exposure to erythromycin as a strong risk factor for IHPS, but it is less clear whether maternal use in late pregnancy or while breastfeeding also poses a risk.2 Perinatal exposure to macrolide antibiotics is not uncommon. About 1% of pregnant women report use in the third trimester, and while no macrolides are licensed by the US Food and Drug Administration for use in infants less … [1]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DBMJ%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Adoi%252F10.1136%252Fbmj.g1908%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Apmid%252F24618148%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx [2]: /lookup/ijlink?linkType=ABST&journalCode=bmj&resid=348/mar11_8/g1908&atom=%2Febmed%2Fearly%2F2014%2F08%2F13%2Febmed-2014-110015.atom
Utility and Importance of Poisson–Nernst–Planck Immittance-Spectroscopy Fitting Models

This feature article highlights work done by the author and others since 1953 on the Poisson–Nernst–Planck (PNP) continuum model for analyzing and fitting wide-range immittance-spectroscopy (IS) frequency-response data for unsupported materials with diffusing mobile charge species present. The small-signal PNP approach, one relevant for analyzing data involving ordinary or anomalous diffusion, is particularly important because it leads to estimates of the values of far more physically significant parameters than do other available IS fitting models. Unfortunately, its virtues were not well appreciated until recently, and it has thus not been used as widely as it should be. The present work aims at remedying this lack by providing a thorough description of the strengths and weaknesses of the model, its response possibilities, and its broad applicability. It deals with a neutral species that can fully or partially dissociate into positive and negative charged species of equal concentrations but arbitrary mo...
Identification of the nusB gene product of Escherichia coli.

Escherichia coli nusB mutants fail to support the activity of a phage λ gene product, pN, which regulates phage gene expression by influencing transcription termination. We report the identification of the nusB protein on SDS-polyacrylamide gels as a 14,500 dalton protein.
Analysis of HIV epidemic situation and immigrant population

Objective To provide evidence for developing HIV prevention policy by analyzing HIV epidemic situation and immigrant population. Method Analyzing the following data with descriptive method: national case reporting data during 2003-2005, national behavioral surveillance data during 2004-2005, epidemiological survey data among women immigrants from other provinces in parts of counties of Shandong and Shanxi provinces. Results Among reported HIV/AIDS cases nationwide in 2003,2004 and 2005, 14.6%, 9.5% and 17.7% were from other provinces. The immigrant cases amounted to over 50% in Tibet, Beijing, Zhejiang, Shanghai, Inner Mongolia, Qinghai, Jiangsu, Tianjin and Ningxia, with the highest percentage of 87%. HIV prevalence rate among women immigrants was 1.1% in Shanxi and 0.6% in Shandong, and HIV-positive ones were found among the spouses and children of the HIV-infected women in both the provinces. Conclusion HIV epidemic among immigrant population cannot be neglected. It is urgent to strengthen HIV testing and intervention measures for immigrant population, which is one of the main infectious sources in some provinces.
Upper Tract Urothelial Malignancy after Cyclophosphamide Therapy: A Case Report and Literature Review

AbstractWe report an unusual case of simultaneous transitional cell carcinoma of the renal pelvis and distal ureter without transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder occurring after chronic cyclophosphamide therapy for nonHodgkin’s lymphoma. Other upper tract neoplasms after cyclophosphamide are reviewed.
Direct real-time quantification of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation efficiency in permeabilized skeletal muscle myofibers.

Oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) efficiency, defined as the ATP-to-O ratio, is a critical feature of mitochondrial function that has been implicated in health, aging, and disease. To date, howeve...
Next Logical Step.

I appreciate Hartmann and colleagues' letter outlining the next logical step of our bench study,[1][1] a clinical trial of the use of the vibrating mesh micropump technology for ribavirin delivery. Although the use of aerosolized ribavirin remains controversial, the patient selection by Hartmann et
Students who carry weapons to high school: comparison with other weapon-carriers.

Abstract Purpose: To determine if those who have recently carried a weapon on school grounds differ from those who carry weapons elsewhere. We hypothesized that involvement in other problem behaviors and exposure to school crime and violence would be associated with risk for weapon carrying on school grounds. Methods: The data for this study were from the 1995 Youth Risk Behavior Survey of 10,904 high school students. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine risk for weapon carrying on school grounds. Results: Among the students who carried a weapon, 48% carried a weapon on school grounds. Female gender, lower parental education levels, substance use on school grounds, involvement in physical fights, exposure to school crime and violence, frequency of weapon-carrying, and gun carrying distinguished students who carried weapons on school grounds from those who carried weapons off school grounds. Conclusions: The results suggest that weapon-carrying on school grounds is associated with individual and school-related characteristics. Efforts to reduce weapon- carrying on school grounds might focus on reduction of students' actual and perceived vulnerability to victimization, as well as by helping students understand that other problem behaviors increase their risk for violence.
Sexuality and Spinal Cord Injury: The Lived Experiences of Intimate Partners

Although sexuality is an integral aspect of the human experience, individuals who sustain a spinal cord injury (SCI) often receive inadequate education to facilitate successful participation in sexual activities. Intimate partners are often not included in discussions related to sexuality during the rehabilitative process. The purpose of this study was to identify the lived experiences of intimate partners of individuals with SCI related to sexuality. Four intimate partners were selected to participate in semistructured interviews related to their lived experiences of sexuality. Participants identified aspects of SCI, extreme discomfort due to self-perceived sexual norms, and a lack of education as contributors to unsuccessful participation in sexual activity. Coupled sexual activity is a complex phenomenon which includes factors that influence both the injured individuals as well as their intimate partners. To provide effective interventions in addressing sexuality, practitioners should consider the entire issue, the couple.
Cadmium stimulates myofibroblast differentiation and mouse lung fibrosis

Increasing evidence suggests that Cd at levels found in the human diet can cause oxidative stress and activate redox-sensitive transcription factors in inflammatory signaling. Following inflammation, tissue repair often involves activation of redox-sensitive transcription factors in fibroblasts. In lungs, epithelial barrier remodeling is required to restore gas exchange and barrier function, and aberrant myofibroblast differentiation leads to pulmonary fibrosis. Contributions of exogenous exposures, such as dietary Cd, to pulmonary fibrosis remain incompletely defined. In the current study, we tested whether Cd activates fibrotic signaling in human fetal lung fibroblasts (HFLF) at micromolar and submicromolar Cd concentrations that do not cause cell death. Exposure of HFLF to low-dose Cd (≤1.0μM) caused an increase in stress fibers and increased protein levels of myofibroblast differentiation markers, including α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) and extra-domain-A-containing fibronectin (ED-A-FN). Assay of transcription factor (TF) activity using a 45-TF array showed that Cd increased activity of 12 TF, including SMAD2/3/4 (mothers against decapentaplegic homolog) signaling differentiation and fibrosis. Results were confirmed by real-time PCR and supported by increased expression of target genes of SMAD2/3/4. Immunocytochemistry of lungs of mice exposed to low-dose Cd (0.3 and 1.0mg/L in drinking water) showed increased α-SMA protein level with lung Cd accumulation similar to lung Cd in non-smoking humans. Together, the results show that relatively low Cd exposures stimulate pulmonary fibrotic signaling and myofibroblast differentiation by activating SMAD2/3/4-dependent signaling. The results indicate that dietary Cd intake could be an important variable contributing to pulmonary fibrosis in humans.
Ecological ontologies of sovereignty and insecurity: settler colonial logics of national security

National security is an ontological and epistemological reality founded on settler colonial logics. Security becomes a state of existence and a way of knowing democracy as predicated on an indefini...
Abstract 5635: Vitamin D supplementation decreases serum 27-hydroxycholesterol and expression of CYP27A1 in tumors of breast cancer patients

The goal of this study was to investigate whether vitamin D regulates the conversion of cholesterol to 27-hydroxycholesterol (27HC), an endogenous selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM) that can act as a driver of estrogen receptor positive (ER+) breast cancer, particularly in post-menopausal women with low circulating estrogen levels. The hypothesis of this study was that the active metabolite of vitamin D, calcitriol, can inhibit expression of CYP27A1, the synthesizing enzyme for 27HC, thereby decreasing the concentration of 27HC in the blood. Both 27HC and 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) were quantified by LC-MS/MS in the serum of 29 breast cancer patients, 26 of which had ER+ cancer, pre- and post-treatment with either a low dose (control) of 400 IU vitamin D or a high dose of 10,000 IU vitamin D per day during the neoadjuvant period, which ranged between 7 and 37 days. In addition to these blood samples, tissue biopsies pre-treatment and the excised tumor collected post-treatment were tested for gene expression by microarray analysis. A significant increase (p = 4.3E-5) was observed in serum 25OHD for patients who received the high dose vitamin D compared to those who received the low dose, whose 25OHD values remained stable. A greater decrease (p = 1.7E-1) was observed in serum 27HC for the high dose group compared to the low dose group, with greater decreases in 27HC on average for those with larger increases in 25OHD concentration. Gene expression measurements showed a decrease in CYP27A1 expression (p = 4.5E-1) in breast cancer tissue for the high dose group compared to the low dose group, with greater decreases in expression observed for patients on high dose vitamin D treatment for longer times. These preliminary data show good evidence that high dose vitamin D supplementation can decrease 27HC levels in the body by inhibiting expression of CYP27A1 and that the longer this treatment, the greater the effect. While larger scale studies are needed, the data in this study point to vitamin D supplementation as a possible simple method for inhibiting ER+ breast cancer growth and suggests this reduction in CYP27A1 expression as an additional pathway by which vitamin D can mitigate risk and improve outcomes for ER+ breast cancer patients. Citation Format: Catherine Going, Ludmila Alexandrova, Ken Lau, Christine Yeh, Melinda Telli, Kristin Jensen, David Feldman, Sharon Pitteri. Vitamin D supplementation decreases serum 27-hydroxycholesterol and expression of CYP27A1 in tumors of breast cancer patients [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2017; 2017 Apr 1-5; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 5635. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2017-5635
Parkinson’s disease: experimental models and reality

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a chronic, progressive movement disorder of adults and the second most common neurodegenerative disease after Alzheimer's disease. Neuropathologic diagnosis of PD requires moderate-to-marked neuronal loss in the ventrolateral substantia nigra pars compacta and α-synuclein (αS) Lewy body pathology. Nigrostriatal dopaminergic neurodegeneration correlates with the Parkinsonian motor features, but involvement of other peripheral and central nervous system regions leads to a wide range of non-motor features. Nigrostriatal dopaminergic neurodegeneration is shared with other parkinsonian disorders, including some genetic forms of parkinsonism, but many of these disorders do not have Lewy bodies. An ideal animal model for PD, therefore, should exhibit age-dependent and progressive dopaminergic neurodegeneration, motor dysfunction, and abnormal αS pathology. Rodent models of PD using genetic or toxin based strategies have been widely used in the past several decades to investigate the pathogenesis and therapeutics of PD, but few recapitulate all the major clinical and pathologic features of PD. It is likely that new strategies or better understanding of fundamental disease processes may facilitate development of better animal models. In this review, we highlight progress in generating rodent models of PD based on impairments of four major cellular functions: mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation, autophagy-lysosomal metabolism, ubiquitin-proteasome protein degradation, and endoplasmic reticulum stress/unfolded protein response. We attempt to evaluate how impairment of these major cellular systems contribute to PD and how they can be exploited in rodent models. In addition, we review recent cell biological studies suggesting a link between αS aggregation and impairment of nuclear membrane integrity, as observed during cellular models of apoptosis. We also briefly discuss the role of incompetent phagocytic clearance and how this may be a factor to consider in developing new rodent models of PD.
Masseteric Nerve Transfer for Facial Nerve Paralysis: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

ImportanceA review of the role of masseteric nerve transfer is needed to guide its use in facial reanimation. ObjectiveTo systematically review the available literature, and, when applicable, analy...
Review of the Clinical Evidence on Tea Consumption and Weight Loss

The development of drugs to control weight, coupled with lifestyle modifications, offers the potential to manage the globally increasing obesity challenge. Tea ( Camellia sinensis L. (O.) Kuntze; Theaceae), as a non-calorific beverage, may play an anti-obesity role via the actions of its polyphenolic catechins on thermogenesis, glucose and lipid absorption and fat oxidation. The present chapter reviews the evidence available from randomized clinical trials (RCTs) on the role of tea in weight loss and weight maintenance over the past decade. Treatments in reviewed RCTs most commonly consist of green tea, catechin mixtures, or extracts of epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG). Studies measure variable outcomes, including thermogenesis, anthropometrics and biomarkers of oxidative stress. Thirty-one of the thirty-eight studies reviewed in this chapter indicate that the tea treatment had a positive effect on an outcome parameter. These findings support the potential role of tea in weight management and warrant further human studies with longer treatment administration periods. Further research is particularly needed to measure the influence of possible moderators on the effects of tea constituents such as dosage and subjects’ gender, body mass index, physical fitness and genetic predisposition.
Drug-Induced Restless Legs Syndrome.

Objective: To review the literature on drug-induced restless legs syndrome (DI-RLS). Data Sources: The review included a search for English-language literature from 1966 to December 2017 in the MED...
Using Mock Jury Studies to Measure Community Sentiment Toward Child Sexual Abusers

In the legal system, jurors serve as a reflection of community sentiment. Jurors’ task is to “find facts” and apply the law to those facts, but in the course of doing so, they necessarily make moral judgments about how bad a crime or criminal is when they render verdicts. This process allows jurors to express their own sentiments, which are reflected in their ultimate verdict. The current chapter describes two studies that assessed some of those sentiments by examining how mock jurors perceive child sexual abuse perpetrators based on the relationship between the perpetrator and child. Legally, judgments of the perpetrator should be stable regardless of the relationship between the perpetrator and the child; however, results indicated that mock jurors may be considering the relationship between the perpetrator and the child when making decisions. The chapter also addresses the challenges and benefits of assessing community sentiment through mock juror experiments and surveys.