cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Coffee Intake and Pancreatic Cancer Risk

As one of the most widely consumed beverages in the world, coffee intake has been hypothesized to be procarcinogenic and anticarcinogenic. Of the more than 30 case–control studies, 14 cohort studies, and four meta-analyses and pooled analyses that have examined the association between coffee intake and pancreatic cancer risk, results have been inconsistent across studies. The confounding effects of smoking most likely contributed to the heterogeneity observed between earlier and later studies. In the more recent studies that accounted for cigarette smoking in their models, generally null associations were observed. The overall findings do not support an association between coffee intake and pancreatic cancer risk. However, few studies have examined constituents within coffee, additives to coffee, or coffee-based beverages. In addition to not being detrimental for pancreatic cancer risk, coffee intake may be beneficial for other chronic diseases, such as diabetes, heart disease, and overall mortality.
Heat shock proteins 70 and 90 from Clonorchis sinensis induce Th1 response and stimulate antibody production.

Heat shock proteins (HSPs) are found in all prokaryotes and most compartments of eukaryotic cells. Members of the HSP family mediate immune responses to tissue damage or cellular stress. However, little is known about the immune response induced by the oriental liver fluke, Clonorchis sinensis, even though this organism is carcinogenic to humans. We address this issue in the present study in mouse bone marrow dendritic cells (mBMDCs), using recombinant HSP70 and 90 from C. sinensis (rCsHSP70 and rCsHSP90). rCsHSP70 and rCsHSP90 were produced in an E. coli system. Purified recombinant proteins were treated in BMDCs isolated from C57BL/6 mice. T cells were isolated from Balb/c mice and co-cultured with activated mBMDCs. Expression of surface molecules was measured by flow cytometry and cytokine secretion was quantified using ELISA. C57BL/6 mice were divided into four groups, including peptide alone, peptide/Freund’s adjuvant, peptide/CsHSP70, peptide/CsHSP90, and were immunized intraperitoneally three times. Two weeks after final immunization, antibodies against peptide were measured using ELISA. Both proteins induced a dose-dependent upregulation in major histocompatibility complex and co-stimulatory molecule expression and increased secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines including interleukin (IL)-1β, -6, and -12p70 and tumor necrosis factor-α in mBMDCs. Furthermore, when allogenic T cells were incubated with mBMDCs activated by rCsHSP70 and rCsHSP90, the helper T cell (Th)1 cytokine interferon-γ was up-regulated whereas the level of the Th2 cytokine IL-4 was unchanged. These results indicate that rCsHSPs predominantly induce a Th1 response. Over and above these results, we also demonstrated that the production of peptide-specific antibodies can be activated after immunization via in vitro peptide binding with rCsHSP70 or rCsHSP90. This study showed for the first time that the HSP or HSP/peptide complexes of C. sinensis could be considered as a more effective vaccine against C. sinensis infection as results of the activator of host immune response as well as the adjuvant for antigenic peptide conjugate to induce peptide-specific antibody response in mice.
Resolving an identity crisis: Implicit drinking identity and implicit alcohol identity are related but not the same.

Abstract Two variations of the Implicit Association Test (IAT), the Drinking Identity IAT and the Alcohol Identity IAT, assess implicit associations held in memory between one's identity and alcohol-related constructs. Both have been shown to predict numerous drinking outcomes, but these IATs have never been directly compared to one another. The purpose of this study was to compare these IATs and evaluate their incremental predictive validity. US undergraduate students (N = 64, 50% female, mean age = 21.98 years) completed the Drinking Identity IAT, the Alcohol Identity IAT, an explicit measure of drinking identity, as well as measures of typical alcohol consumption and hazardous drinking. When evaluated in separate regression models that controlled for explicit drinking identity, results indicated that the Drinking Identity IAT and the Alcohol Identity IAT were significant, positive predictors of typical alcohol consumption, and that the Drinking Identity IAT, but not the Alcohol Identity IAT, was a significant predictor of hazardous drinking. When evaluated in the same regression models, the Drinking Identity IAT, but not the Alcohol Identity IAT, was significantly associated with typical and hazardous drinking. These results suggest that the Drinking Identity IAT and Alcohol Identity IAT are related but not redundant. Moreover, given that the Drinking Identity IAT, but not the Alcohol Identity IAT, incrementally predicted variance in drinking outcomes, identification with drinking behavior and social groups, as opposed to identification with alcohol itself, may be an especially strong predictor of drinking outcomes.
Botanical supplements: Detecting the transition from ingredient to product

Abstract Preparation of commercial supplements from botanical ingredients results in a change in the chemical composition that is easily followed with flow injection mass spectrometry. Spectral fingerprints (counts vs ion with no chromatographic separation) were acquired by flow injection mass spectrometry (FIMS) for aerial parts of 16 Echinacea purpurea botanical ingredients (BIs) and 18 commercial botanical supplements (BSs) whose labels claimed or suggested E. purpurea aerial content. One class modeling of the BI spectral fingerprints showed them to be different from the BIs at the 95% confidence limit. The spectral components (ions) that provided discrimination between the BSs and BSs were identified using analysis of variance to obtain an F-value for each ion and produce an F-test spectrum. Ions found in both BI and BS spectra were identified by multiplication of the spectra to yield a correlation spectrum. The correlation spectra obtained from multiplication of the average BI spectrum and 6 single-ingredient BS spectra showed only one supplement to be significantly different. These correlation spectra verified the presence of the BI in the BSs and indicated that the analytical extraction and the BS preparation procedures used by 5 of the manufacturers were similar. Correlation spectra for 13 mixed or unknown ingredient BSs showed that 6 could be verified to contain E. purpurea aerial material.
School Turnaround as National Policy in the United States: Considerations from Three Studies Conducted in the Midwest: (doi: 10.14425/00.50.25)

School turnaround policy has become prominent in American education discourse. Some federal initiatives specifically target the lowest achieving five percent of schools in the nation, with the goal of bringing schools out of improvement status rapidly. This paper considers and extends the work of three recent studies of school turnaround. Collectively, the studies demonstrate how a strong federal initiative can impact public education on multiple levels, including the state, district, school, and individual levels. School turnaround demonstrates the power of federal initiatives in the United States to impact the public school system at all levels. State departments of education have responded in ways to obtain federal funding. Districts and schools generally with the least capacity to enact change have been challenged with an opportunity to win substantial dollars, but many elected not to compete. Increases in student achievement through such reform appear to be possible, but the human and social costs have yet to be adequately considered.
Stereotactic body radiation therapy for palliative treatment of bone metastases: Practice patterns and survival outcomes.

242Background: Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) is an emerging modality of treatment designed to deliver high radiation doses in few fractions. We examine practice trends in the use of SBRT for managing bone metastases in patients with breast, kidney, non-small-cell lung, melanoma, or prostate cancer. Methods: We selected patients from the National Cancer Database (2004-2013) diagnosed with bone metastases from breast, kidney, non-small-cell lung, melanoma, or prostate cancer. SBRT fractionation regimens were defined as 12-45 Gy in 1 fraction, 14-50 Gy in 2 fractions, 21-50 Gy in 3 fractions, 28-50 Gy in 4 fractions, and 30-60 Gy in 5 fractions. Standard palliative radiation fractionation regimens were defined as all other cases with 2-40 Gy in 20 fractions or fewer. Results: Patients receiving SBRT regimens made up 1454 of 57,556 total palliative cases. Bone metastases treated with SBRT primarily at the spine (65.5%), hip/pelvis (12.3%), and shoulder/extremity (11.4%). SBRT palliation regimens ...
A Pre-surgical Residency Refresher Course that Advances Students from the Cadaver Lab to the Surgical Suite

Medical students and residency program directors recognize a need to improve student knowledge and preparedness for surgery or radiology specialties. Gross anatomy, basic surgery skill sets, and radiology are often cited as areas in which students need additional training. A novel 4-week senior elective course was developed for students pursuing surgical and radiology residencies. The course focused on teaching principles of surgery and surgical skills, surgical radiology, and advanced anatomy relevant to common surgical procedures. The course settings were the hospital operating suite, radiology department, simulation laboratory, and anatomy laboratory. The elective received high post-course evaluation scores from the students, who reported feeling more confident in their knowledge of anatomy and radiology, in their surgical and presentation skills, and in their preparedness for residency.
Smart learning futures: a report from the 3 rd US-China smart education conference

The third day of the third US-China Smart Education Conference featured a discussion with 27 thinkers representing higher education, business and industry, vocational training, and policy making. Researchers from the fields of artificial intelligence, computer science, educational technology, neuro-science and the learning sciences from many countries actively participated and are collectively the co-authors of this report. After two short presentations on computational neuropsychology and the next generation of artificial intelligence by two of the participants (Thomas Parsons and Yang Yang respectively), the participants were divided into four groups led by Phillip Harris (AECT Director), Joseph South (ISTE Chief Learning Officer), Chee-Kit Looi (NIE Head of the Learning Sciences Lab), and Maiga Chang (School of Computing and Information Systems, Athabasca University). The groups were asked to consider the following four questions: (a) What are the 5 most promising technologies likely to transform education in the next 10 years? (b) How do/will advanced learning technologies impact the future of education? (c) What challenges do advanced learning technologies bring to education? (d) What are the new demands for education in the future of society? The groups could focus as they deemed appropriate, modifying adding questions or ignoring any question. This report is a synthesis of those discussions.
Assaying effector function in planta using double-barreled particle bombardment.

The biolistic transient gene expression assay is a beneficial tool for studying gene function in vivo. However, biolistic transient assay systems have inherent pitfalls that often cause experimental inaccuracies such as poor transformation efficiency, which can be confused with biological phenomena. The double-barreled gene gun device is an inexpensive and highly effective attachment that enables statistically significant data to be obtained with one-tenth the number of experimental replicates compared to conventional biolistic assays. The principle behind the attachment is to perform two simultaneous bombardments with control and test DNA preparations onto the same leaf. The control bombardment measures the efficiency of the transformation while the ratio of the test bombardment to the control bombardment measures the activity of the gene of interest. With care, the ratio between the pair of bombardments can be highly reproducible from bombardment to bombardment. The double-barreled attachment has been used to study plant resistance (R) gene-mediated responses to effectors, induction and suppression of cell death by a wide variety of pathogen and host molecules, and the role of oomycete effector RXLR motifs in cell reentry.
The Older of Two Trees: Young Children's Development of Operational Time

Piaget (1971) made a distinction between intuitive (preoperational) time and operational (logico-mathematical) time. According to Piaget, operational time develops around 7-8 years of age and is characterized by children's ability to deduce, for example, that if A was born before B,A will always be older than B. When time is still intuitive, children base their judgments of age on what is observable (e.g., people's height). With the aid of I I pictures of an apple tree and a pear tree taken on 6 consecutive birthdays, 184 children in grades K-5 were individually asked, at a specific time, if two trees were the same age or if one was older than the other. Operational time was demonstrated by 79% of these children by grade 3.
Nonlinear pylse switching ysing XPMinduced frequency shift

To date, the most established all-optical Kerr switches are based on the nonlinear optical loop mirror (NOLM) scheme.1 NOLM’s utilize the nonlinear phase shift (which should be precisely π) imposed on a signal pulse by a control pulse, which can switch the state of interference between two parts of a signal pulse from constructive to destructive and vice versa. The interferometric nature of NOLM's makes them sensitive to vibration, polarization and pump power fluctuations,2 and makes it difficult to achieve complete and undistorted switching.
PERCUTANEOUS CLOSURE OF POST-TRAUMATIC PULMONARY ARTERIOVENOUS FISTULA

Acquired pulmonary arteriovenous fistulas (PAVF) are very rare and have been reported as complications of thoracic surgery, infections, and lung trauma. PAVFs can cause significant dyspnea and hypoxia from right-to-left shunting. Therapeutic options include surgical resection or percutaneous closure
Emerging Technologies in Management Accounting

This paper gives a broad overview of emerging technology fields and their effect on management accounting. The research involved reviewing, describing, analyzing, and summarizing some of the literature in the area. The first field examined was that of business intelligence (BI) and its necessary partnership with management accounting. Following the BI section is an examination of how software aids accounting analytics. Next up is the surging field of big data and how it is poised to revolutionize the accounting profession. Included in this area are the definitions of descriptive, predictive, and prescriptive analytics. The study found that many of the emerging technologies required more research at a rapid pace because of the importance that management accountants play in the success of organizations. An additional area impacted is accounting education because of the need for business schools to turn out graduates with the necessary skills to meet the needs of a changing accounting profession.
Aetiology and outcomes of severe right ventricular dysfunction.

AIMS Right ventricular dysfunction (RVD) is an important determinant of functional status and survival in various diseases states. Data are sparse on the epidemiology and outcome of patients with severe RVD. This study examined the characteristics, aetiology, and survival of patients with severe RVD. METHODS AND RESULTS Retrospective study of consecutive patients with severe RVD diagnosed by transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) between 2011 and 2015 in a single tertiary referral institution. Patients with prior cardiac surgery, mechanical assist devices, and congenital heart disease were excluded. Primary endpoint was all-cause mortality. In 64 728 patients undergoing TTE, the prevalence of ≥mild RVD was 21%. This study focused on the cohort of 1299 (4%) patients with severe RVD; age 64 ± 16 years; 61% male. The most common causes of severe RVD were left-sided heart diseases (46%), pulmonary thromboembolic disease (18%), chronic lung disease/hypoxia (CLD; 17%), and pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH; 11%). After 2 ± 2 years of follow-up, 701 deaths occurred, 66% within the first year of diagnosis. The overall probability of survival at 1- and 5 years for the entire cohort were 61% [95% confidence interval (CI) 58-64%] and 35% (95% CI 31-38%), respectively. In left-sided heart diseases, 1- and 5-year survival rates were 61% (95% CI 57-65%) and 33% (95% CI 28-37%), respectively; vs. 76% (95% CI 68-82%) and 50% (95% CI 40-59%) in PAH, vs. 71% (95% CI 64-76%) and 49% (95% CI 41-58%) in thromboembolic diseases, vs. 42% (95% CI 35-49%) and 8% (95% CI 4-15%) in CLD (log-rank P < 0.0001). Presence of ≥moderate tricuspid regurgitation portended worse survival in severe RVD. CONCLUSION One-year mortality of patients with severe RVD was high (∼40%) and dependent on the aetiology of RVD. Left-sided heart diseases is the most common cause of severe RVD but prognosis was worst in CLD.
Resistive amplitude fingerprints during translocation of linear molecules through charged solid-state nanopores

We report the first analytical theory on the amplitude of resistive signals during molecular translocation through charged solid-state nanopores with variable cross-sectional area and piecewise-constant surface charge densities. By providing closed-form explicit algebraic expressions for the concentration profiles inside charged nanopores, this theory allows the prediction of baseline and translocation resistive signals without the need for numerical simulation of the electrokinetic phenomena. A transversely homogenized theory and an asymptotic expansion for weakly charged pores capture DC or quasi-static rectification due to field-induced intrapore concentration polarization (as a result of pore charge inhomogeneity or a translocating molecule). This theory, validated by simulations and experiments, is then used to explain why the amplitude of a single stranded DNA molecule can be twice as high as the amplitude of its double stranded counterpart. It also suggests designs for intrapore concentration polarization and volume exclusion effects that can produce biphasic and other amplitude fingerprints for high-throughput and yet discriminating molecular identification.
Dynamic Temperature Management of Near-Sensor Processing for Energy-Efficient High-Fidelity Imaging

Vision processing on traditional architectures is inefficient due to energy-expensive off-chip data movement. Many researchers advocate pushing processing close to the sensor to substantially reduce data movement. However, continuous near-sensor processing raises sensor temperature, impairing imaging/vision fidelity. We characterize the thermal implications of using 3D stacked image sensors with near-sensor vision processing units. Our characterization reveals that near-sensor processing reduces system power but degrades image quality. For reasonable image fidelity, the sensor temperature needs to stay below a threshold, situationally determined by application needs. Fortunately, our characterization also identifies opportunities—unique to the needs of near-sensor processing—to regulate temperature based on dynamic visual task requirements and rapidly increase capture quality on demand. Based on our characterization, we propose and investigate two thermal management strategies—stop-capture-go and seasonal migration—for imaging-aware thermal management. For our evaluated tasks, our policies save up to 53% of system power with negligible performance impact and sustained image fidelity.
EMS Bypass of the Closest Hospital for Pediatric Patients Varies Significantly by Socioeconomic Status

Introduction: EMS typically transports patients to the closest ED. However, pediatric care is increasingly regionalized, limiting service availability at local community hospitals. Our previous research found that nearly 50% of pediatric EMS transports bypass the nearest facility, with little variation between urban, suburban, and rural settings. The purpose of this study was to examine whether there was geographic and socioeconomic variation in transport bypass. Methods: We performed a one-year retrospective study of children aged 18 years and younger transported by ground to hospitals by a single, urban, …
Effect of Magnetic Field on Microbiologically-influenced Corrosion Behavior of Q235 Steel

The corrosion behavior of Q235 steel in a sulfate- reducing bacteria(SRB) solution in the presence and absence of magnetic field(MF) respectively was investigated by means of mass loss method, electrochemical techniques and surface analysis methods. The results showed that MF could inhibit the corrosion of Q235 steel to certain extent. The measured impedance implied that the MF delayed the formation of SRB biofilms on Q235 steel. SEM observation results indicated that the application of the MF resulted in homogeneous and compact biofilms with high adhesion to the surface of electrode. After removing the corrosion products, the corroded surface of Q235 steel without MF showed many corrosion pits and several corrosion cracks, while that with MF was much more uniform. It implied the application of MF could effectively inhibit the microbiologically influenced corrosion of Q235 steel.
Empathy, better patient care, and how interprofessional education can help.

Interprofessional education (IPE) has been promoted as one way to prepare healthcare students for interprofessional encounters they might experience in the workplace. However, the link between IPE, interprofessional care in the workforce, and better patient outcomes is tenuous, perhaps in part due to the inability of IPE programs to adequately address barriers associated with interprofessional care (e.g., power differentials, role disputes). Empathy, or understanding the experiences of others, has emerged as a critical tool to breaking down barriers inherent to working in teams. Given the evidence connecting empathy to stronger team collaboration and better patient care, researchers significantly revamped programming from a prior training called Interprofessional Education for Complex Neurological Cases (IPE Neuro) to enhance empathy, foster stronger team collaboration, and improve information integration among participants. In this improved three-session program, participants from seven different professions were grouped into teams, assessed a patient volunteer with neurological disorder, and created and presented an integrated, patient-centric treatment plan. Students (N = 31) were asked to report general empathy levels, as well as attitudes, team skills, and readiness toward interprofessional care, before and after the program. We conducted paired samples t-tests and thematic analysis to analyze the data. Results showed that participants reported higher empathy levels, more positive attitudes, and greater team skills pre- to posttest with moderate to large effects. Results bolster IPE Neuro programming as one approach to prepare students for interprofessional care while underscoring the potential implications of IPE to improve empathy levels of healthcare professionals.
Green New Deal proposals: Comparing emerging transformational climate policies at multiple scales

Abstract Green New Deal (GND) policy proposals that simultaneously address the climate crisis and economic inequity by prioritizing job creation have been developed for multiple different levels of government in jurisdictions around the world. The United States federal GND originally introduced to Congress by Representative Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Markey in 2019 has received the most attention. Since then, however, multiple other climate policy proposals that share the GND’s integrated multi-sectoral approach have emerged. To date, there has been minimal comparative assessment of these different proposals that build from a GND framework. As cities, regions, and countries around the world plan recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and respond to worsening economic inequities, racial injustices, and climate disruptions, the need to study policies that simultaneously address environmental, economic, and social issues with an integrated approach is stronger than ever. This paper reviews 14 GND-style policy proposals across multiple levels of government, from municipal to multi-national, comparing their structure, level of detail, and goals. We find that GND frameworks are emerging as a new, multi-faceted policy approach to confront the complex, multiple drivers of climate change with greater scope than traditional market-based and behavior-based strategies.
Separating Fact from Fiction in Evaluating the Endangered Species Act: Recognizing the Need for Ongoing Conservation Management and Regulation

This article was written as a tribute to the work of Professor Dale Goble, in particular his contributions to our understanding of conservation-reliant species. The truth that he revealed in a series of articles is unassailable. The steps set forth in the Endangered Species Act from listing to recovery and eventual delisting reflect a rather naive view of the risks that endangered and threatened species actually face. The task of protection and stewardship will never end for most of these species. For that reason, many if not most species will never be delisted since true recovery must be sustainable biological recovery. This understanding may not only help defuse the simplistic and misdirected assertion that the Endangered Species Act has been a failure in view of the relative handful of delistings to date, but it may help us make more informed judgements about the way our stewardship of nature can be improved as we confront a global system undergoing rapid climate change. As Dale wrote in 2010, “We have become nature and must accept the responsibilities that come with the role.”
Decentralized Nested Gaussian Processes for Multi-Robot Systems

In this paper, we propose two decentralized approximate algorithms for nested Gaussian processes in multi-robot systems. The distributed implementation is achieved with iterative and consensus methods that facilitate local computations at the expense of inter-robot communications. Moreover, we propose a covariance-based nearest neighbor robot selection strategy that enables a subset of agents to perform predictions. In addition, both algorithms are proved to be consistent. Empirical evaluations with real data illustrate the efficiency of the proposed algorithms.
Towards a more piece-ful world

We envision a world in which we can develop, synthesize, adapt, integrate, and evolve software based on high-quality, perpetually flexible pieces. New pieces may be produced by generation, adaptation of existing pieces, or integration of pieces, and this process of "pieceware" engineering continues-statically or dynamically-until a piece with the desired capabilities and properties is synthesized. The pieces themselves may comprise fragments of requirements, models, architectures, patterns, designs, code, tests, and/or any other relevant software artifacts. Many technologies are critical to achieving pieceware engineering; some have been developed in this community and elsewhere, and others are still required.Despite the progress in this field, we have encountered two major problems along the way towards realizing the pieceware vision. First, what paradigms, technologies, and methodologies are required to enable full-lifecycle pieceware engineering? Second, how do we provide the necessary tool support?Our inability to address the second problem has seriously compromised our ability to address the first. The development of tools to realize different pieceware engineering approaches represents a huge investment of time and effort. This is largely because each one must be built from scratch or from low-level abstractions. Consequently, the tools themselves represent isolated point solutions, and rarely have any ability to interoperate or be integrated. This has impeded the development and validation of full-lifecycle pieceware engineering paradigms, technologies, and methodologies.The Concern Manipulation Environment (CME) represents the first effort to define an open, extensible set of components and abstractions to promote the rapid development and integration of tools that support pieceware engineering. The initial focus is on tools for aspect-oriented software development (AOSD), an emerging technology area that is key to pieceware engineering. This talk describes the pieceware engineering vision, the major issues to be addressed, and the technologies required to achieve it. It then discusses how the CME helps to address many of these issues-illustrated by the use of the CME to enable the evolution of a real-world system-and how it can be leveraged by researchers and developers to produce, experiment with, validate, and integrate new pieceware techologies and paradigms. Finally, we identify some of the key challenges remaining to achieve the vision of pieceware engineering.
Correlation of fetal heart rate patterns and blodo gas values

Abstract A group of 13 patients with very stable fetal heart rates throughout labor has been compared to a group of 11 infants with a stable heart rate early in labor but who showed bradycardia with contractions late in labor. No significant alterations in oxygen tension, carbon dioxide tension, pH, lactate, or pyruvate could be detected in the umbilical veins of the two groups. There was evidence of a mild respiratory and metabolic acidosis in the umbilical arterial blood of those infants who showed bradycardia late in labor.
Measurement of the Time-Temperature Dependent Dynamic Mechanical Properties of Boron/Aluminum Composites

A flexural vibration test and associated equipment were developed to accurately measure the low strain dynamic modulus and damping of composite materials from -200 C to over 500 C. The basic test method involves the forced vibration of composite bars at their resonant free-free flexural modes in a high vacuum cryostat furnace. The accuracy of these expressions and the flexural test was verified by dynamic moduli and damping capacity measurements on 50 fiber volume percent boron/aluminum (B/Al) composites vibrating near 2000 Hz. The phase results were summarized to permit predictions of the B/Al dynamic behavior as a function of frequency, temperature, and fiber volume fraction.
Influenza vaccination in community elderly. A controlled trial of postcard reminders.

Available strategies to increase influenza vaccination rates in the elderly have not been tested in the private sector where most elderly receive care. We performed a randomized controlled trial of a postcard reminder in the three private general internal medicine practices. The observed vaccination rates of 55% in experimental patients (N = 262) and 54% in control patients (N = 278) were similar, though much higher than estimated national rates of 20%. The data indicated that the baseline (control group) vaccination rate was high probably because study participants were exposed to many community vaccination cues, separate from the study cue. That vaccination rates were not higher after additional exposure to the study cue suggests that a "ceiling effect" occurred. Including 70 patients not randomized into the trial because they received flu shots prior to randomization, the vaccination rate in patients who had a clinic visit during autumn months was 75% compared to a rate of 52% in patients not visiting the clinic (P less than .001). Our results suggest that vaccination rates can be considerably higher in the private sector than those reported in the past, and that both vaccination cues and direct patient contact appear important to promote vaccination. This and other studies suggest that traditional cues may have a ceiling effect, yielding vaccination rates no higher than 55 to 65%; further increases in rates will require other approaches.
Amino Acid Transport in Bone EVIDENCE FOR SEPARATE TRANSPORT SYSTEMS FOR NEUTRAL AMINO AND IMINO ACIDS

Abstract 1. A variety of naturally occurring and nonmetabolized amino acids were accumulated by fetal and adult calvaria in the rat by processes which are energy dependent, saturable, and sodium sensitive. 2. α-Aminoisobutyric acid and glycine were transported by mediated processes which differ, at least in part, from those utilized for l-proline and hydroxy-l-proline. This conclusion is based on kinetic analysis and response to the removal of Na+ from the incubation medium. 3. α-Aminoisobutyric acid and glycine were noted to be transported by mediated mechanisms in the absence of the Na+, suggesting the presence of two transport systems for these substrates in the osseous tissue used. 4. These results indicate that the dependence on Na+ may be a useful criterion with which to characterize transport mechanisms within the group of neutral amino acids, as well as between cationic and neutral substrates.
Homoserine dehydrogenase of Rhodospirillum rubrum. II. Purification and characterization of the enzyme.

Abstract Homoserine dehydrogenase of Rhodospirillum rubrum has been purified by heat treatment, ammonium sulfate fractionation, and by two successive gel filtration steps on Sephadex G-200 in the absence and presence of l-threonine, an allosteric inhibitor. The pure protein is free of aspartokinase and aspartate β-semialdehyde dehydrogenase activities. From the sedimentation velocity centrifugation and Sephadex gel filtration experiments, a molecular weight of approximately 138,000 can be calculated. Since the homoserine dehydrogenase of R. rubrum shows reversible association-dissociation behavior as well as drastic conformational alterations in the presence of various ligands, this value of 138,000 may reflect the average molecular weight of more than one form of the enzyme because of a rapid equilibrium between these species in solution. In the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate and β-mercaptoethanol, the native enzyme is dissociated to smaller units of approximate molecular weight of 48,000 ± 5,000. Titration of the native protein with 5,5'-dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) reveals 1 mole of —SH group per mole of enzyme; however, under denaturating conditions, between 3 and 4 moles of —SH per 140,000 g are titratable. The enzyme shows aggregation behavior in the presence of l-threonine, and the state of aggregation is dependent on the presence and absence of reducing agents and on the protein concentration. In phosphate buffer, pH 6.8, containing 0.001 m l-threonine and 0.002 m dithiothreitol, the enzyme sediments at a calculated s20,w value of 9.3 S; upon removal of threonine this high molecular weight species dissociates to its original size with an s20,w value of 6.9 S. In the absence of any thiol reagent, however, a large number of catalytically active nonspecific aggregates, ranging in molecular weights from 300,000 to 2 x 106, are detected by various analytical methods such as gel filtration and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. A possible explanation for the formation of these aggregates is that the enzyme molecules are covalently linked through interchain disulfide bonds.
Effects of Comorbidities on Outcomes of Patients With Intraductal Papillary Mucinous Neoplasms

Background & Aims Intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (IPMNs) of the pancreas occur mostly in older individuals. Individual life expectancy and risk of death from other factors must be carefully considered in analyzing the risks that IPMNs pose. We investigated whether there is a subset of patients with IPMNs and a high risk of dying from other causes who would not benefit from pancreatic surgery. Methods We collected data from 725 patients at Massachusetts General Hospital who underwent resection or have been under observation for IPMNs from 1992 through 2012. Comorbidities were classified according to the age-adjusted Charlson comorbidity index (CACI). Causes of death were recorded, and survival data were analyzed by the Kaplan-Meier method. Results The patients' median CACI score was 3; 10% of patients had CACI of 7 or more. Of the entire cohort, 55% underwent resection, and the remaining 45% have been under observation. After a median follow-up period of 5 years, 177 patients died (24%, 55% of deaths within 5 years of diagnosis); 78% of deaths were not related to IPMNs. The median survival time for all patients with CACI score of 7 or more was 43 months. Multivariate regression analysis revealed that the chance of non-IPMN−related death within 3 years of diagnosis is 11-fold higher for patients with CACI score of 7 or more than for patients with lower scores. Conclusions The CACI can be used to identify patients with a high risk of death from factors other than IPMNs within a few years after diagnosis. These patients are therefore not likely to benefit from further IPMN observation or pancreatic resection.
Fractionalization in Josephson junction arrays hinged by quantum spin Hall edges

We study a superconductor-ferromagnet-superconductor (SC-FM-SC) Josephson array deposited on top of a two-dimensional quantum spin Hall insulator. The Majorana bound state at the interface between SC and FM leads to charge-$e$ tunneling between neighboring superconductor islands, in addition to the usual charge-$2e$ Cooper pair tunneling. Moreover, because Majorana fermions encode the information of charge number parity, an exact ${Z}_{2}$ gauge structure naturally emerges and leads to many new phases, including a deconfined phase where electrons fractionalize into charge-$e$ bosons and topological defects. A deconfined SC-insulator transition has also been found.
Traumatic L4-5 bilateral locked facet joints.

Traumatic bilateral locked facet joints occur with extreme rarity in the lumbar spine. A careful review of the literature revealed only three case reports. We present the case of a 36 year-old male who suffered bilateral L4–5 facet fracture dislocations following a motor vehicle collision. The dislocation was associated with disruption of the posterior elements and a Grade II anterolisthesis of L4 on L5 as well as an epidural hematoma resulting in severe canal narrowing, with the patient remaining neurologically intact on presentation. The patient underwent open reduction with L3 to S1 pedicle screw fixation and arthrodesis to treat this highly unstable injury. The existing literature and a biomechanics review of the lumbar spine are described in the context of the presented case in addition to a proposed mechanism for such dislocations.
Regional Trade Agreements and Foreign Direct Investment

Regional trade institutions increase the local market size and attract higher foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows. The new economic geography provides the theoretical model for evaluating the spatial distribution of foreign capital within a multistate market. In this article, a fixed-effects cross-sectional time series regression examines 109 states from 1980-2005. The study's findings are that multilateral regional trade institutions are more likely to attract FDI inflows, and the gains in FDI inflows are highest in states with the strongest regional economy. Las instituciones de comercio regional incrementan el tamano del mercado local y atraen una cantidad mayor de inversion extranjera directa (IED). La nueva geografia economica provee un modelo teoretico para evaluar la distribucion fisica de capital extranjero dentro de un Mercado multinacional. Una regresion de serie temporal examina ciento nueve estados de 1980 a 2005. Instituciones de comercio regional multilaterales tienen mas probabilidades de atraer flujos de IED y los estados con una economia regional mas fuerte tienen los mayores beneficios por el flujo de IED.
Inhibition of porcine parvovirus replication by empty virus particles.

The influence of empty porcine parvovirus (PPV) particles on viral replication was examined in cell cultures and in swine. Following extensive purification, homogenous preparations of full and empty PPV preparations were obtained and used for in vitro and in vivo analyses. In the first in vitro experiment, swine testes cells were infected with mixtures of various ratios of empty and full (E/F) particles. The production of both intracellular and extracellular virus was markedly inhibited in the presence of empty particles. This inhibition was dependent upon the concentration of empty particles present in the mixture. In the second in vitro study, various concentrations of empty particles were added prior to full virus infection. Again, marked inhibition of progeny virus production was evident and related to the concentrations of empty particles added. Based on the results of in vitro studies, the influence of empty particles on PPV infection in swine was tested by infecting mid-term and late-term gestation swine fetuses with various E/F particle ratios. Both mid-term and late-term fetuses exposed to 0:1, 1:1 and 5:1 E/F ratios displayed gross pathological evidence of PPV infection whereas fetuses exposed to E/F ratios of 30:1 or greater were grossly normal in appearance. However, fetuses infected with 30:1, 50:1 and 300:1 E/F ratios showed evidence of virus in their tissues by DNA hybridization. Regardless of the E/F ratios, late-term infected fetuses responded with high antibody titers ranging from 1024 to 4096. The results from these studies suggested that empty particles interfered with viral replication in both cell culture and in animals.
Internal and External Stress Factors Associated with the Identity Development of Transgendered Youth

Abstract The goal of this paper is to present an alternative to a traditionally-held view that transgendered youth suffer from some sort of disorder, and instead shed light on the internal and external stress factors that may lead the young person to seek help. Social service professionals need to be aware of such factors in order to make a full assessment of what a potential transgendered adolescent client's issues are, and in order to work at changing some of these external pressures societally so that more transgendered youth can attain peaceful identity integration.
Effects of laser immunotherapy on tumor microenvironment

The microenvironments of tumors are involved in a complex and reciprocal dialog with surrounding cancer cells. Any novel treatment must consider the impact of the therapy on the microenvironment. Recently, clinical trials with laser immunotherapy (LIT) have proven to effectively treat patients with late-stage, metastatic breast cancer and melanoma. LIT is the synergistic combination of phototherapy (laser irradiation) and immunological stimulation. One prominent cell type found in the tumor stroma is the fibroblast. Fibroblast cells can secrete different growth factors and extracellular matrix modifying molecules. Furthermore, fibroblast cells found in the tumor stroma often express alpha smooth muscle actin. These particular fibroblasts are coined cancer-associated fibroblast cells (CAFs). CAFs are known to facilitate the malignant progression of tumors. A collagen lattice assay with human fibroblast cells is used to elucidate the effects LIT has on the microenvironment of tumors. Changes in the contraction of the lattice, the differentiation of the fibroblast cells, as well as the proliferation of the fibroblast cells will be determined.
Mi-2/NuRD is required in renal progenitor cells during embryonic kidney development

Development of the nephron tubules, the functional units of the kidney, requires the differentiation of a renal progenitor population of mesenchymal cells to epithelial cells. This process requires an intricate balance between self-renewal and differentiation of the renal progenitor pool. Sall1 is a transcription factor necessary for renal development which is expressed in renal progenitor cells (cap mesenchyme). Sall1 recruits the Nucleosome Remodeling and Deacetylase (NuRD) chromatin remodeling complex to regulate gene transcription. We deleted Mi2β, a component of the NuRD complex, in cap mesenchyme (CM) to examine its role in progenitor cells during kidney development. These mutants displayed significant renal hypoplasia with a marked reduction in nephrons. Markers of renal progenitor cells, Six2 and Cited1 were significantly depleted and progenitor cell proliferation was reduced. We also demonstrated that Sall1 and Mi2β exhibited a strong in vivo genetic interaction in the developing kidney. Together these findings indicate that Sall1 and NuRD act cooperatively to maintain CM progenitor cells.
Ontogeny of early event memory. II: Encoding and retrieval by 2- and 3-month-olds

Abstract The ability of 2-month-old infants to discriminate changes in a 5-object crib mobile following a retention interval of 24 hr was assessed using the mobile conjugate reinforcement paradigm. Infants were trained in 3 daily 15-min sessions to produce mobile movement by footkicking. Twenty-four hr later, independent groups received generalization tests with mobiles containing 1–5 novel objects substituted into their original training mobile. A control group was tested with the original training mobile. These findings were compared with findings of 2 previous studies involving identical procedures with 3-month-olds, reanalyzed for measures of individual performance over successive test minutes. Although, in absolute terms, 2-month-olds had a flat generalization gradient relative to 3-month-olds, when each infant's kick rate during the generalization test was expressed relative to that infant's kick rate before, and at the end of, training, it was found that the generalization gradients of 2- and 3-month-olds were indistinguishable. The relative response measures indicated a surprising degree of specificity by both age groups: Test mobiles containing more than 1 novel object did not cue retrieval, but test mobiles containing no more than 1 new object yielded perfect retention and complete generalization. These data indicate that infants as young as 2 months are capable of encoding and maintaining a representation of the specific details of their training context for at least 24 hr and, after that delay, can perform fine discriminations based on the discrepancy between their test context and that representation.
Decomposition and parallel architecture for the geometric transformation of digital images

Abstract The decomposition and implementation of image geometric transformation algorithms is considered. An approach based upon parallel within-row and column operations on image data is developed along with a taskspecific (modular) hardware for implementation. The time and hardware (space) complexity of this approach is compared with alternative architectures. Future research directions are indicated.
Use of tangential flow filtration for improving detection of viral adventitious agents in cell substrates

In this study, we assessed the feasibility of tangential flow filtration (TFF) for primary concentration of viral adventitious agents (AAs) from large volumes of cell substrate-derived samples, such as cell-free Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) culture supernatants (500 mL) and CHO cell lysates (50 mL), prior to virus detection in them by nucleic acid-based methods (i.e., qPCR and massively parallel sequencing (MPS). The study was conducted using the samples spiked with four model DNA viruses (bovine herpesvirus type 4, human adenovirus type 5, simian polyomavirus SV-40, and bovine parvovirus). The results showed that the combined TFF/MPS approach enables reliable detection of as low as 1000 genome equivalents (GE) of each of the four viruses spiked into the cell substrate samples. The final achieved sensitivities of 2 GE/mL for cell culture supernatant and 20 GE/mL for cell lysate make this approach more sensitive than virus-specific PCR and qPCR assays. The study results allowed us to propose that TFF might be useful and valuable method for simple and rapid concentration of potential AAs in cell substrate samples prior to AAs detection by conventional in vivo, in vitro, or molecular methods.