cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Abstract 2885: Retinoic acid suppressed HEY cell-induced xenograft tumor possibly through reduction of CD133+ cancer stem cells

Ovarian cancer is the most lethal gynecologic cancer with the higher recurrence. Increasing evidence indicates that cancer stem cells plays pivotal role in tumorigenesis and chemoresistance. Retinoic acid (RA), a synthetic derivative of vitamin A, has been used for treatment and chemoprevention of ovarian cancer. But it is not clear if RA affects ovarian cancer stem cells. In this paper, we found that all-trans retinoic acid (RA) treated ovarian cancer cell HEY resulted in the significant smaller xenograft tumor in SCID/NOD mice than untreated HEY cells. To understand if RA inhibition of tumor is involved in dysfunction of cancer stem cells, we detected cancer stem cells in HEY-induced tumors. CD133 positive cells in ovarian cancer were reported to have stem-like features. We found that RA-pretreated HEY cell-induced tumors had less of CD133 positive cells (3.0%) than RA-untreated ones (5.5%). To determine if RA affects status of CD133+ cells, we first cultured HEY cells in spheroid condition. HEY cells formed spheroid in suspend culture in which the percentage of CD133+ cells was increased in analyses by flow cytometry and histochemical staining. A single spheroid of Hey cells was peritoneally injected into mice and induced ovarian tumors. Consequently, treatment of RA in initiating spheroid culture attenuated HEY spheroid formation. In analyzing the molecular mechanism of RA in tumor suppression, we found that RA-treated HEY cells increased phosphorylated PTEN and level of p53 and CRABP II, and reduced expression of CD133 in Hey cells in early period (24-48h). PTEN, a tumor suppressor gene and a PI3K functional antagonist, is widely involved in normal and cancer cell proliferation, migration, drug resistance and stem cell maintenance. We further overexpressed PTEN in HEY cells that dramatically suppressed spheroid formation, suggesting that RA-induced early PTEN activation, increases of p53 and CRABP II may be involved in change of malignancy of HEY cells. These results demonstrate that RA treatment of ovarian cancer cells would alternate the cell features that compromise the change of Cd133+ positive stem-like cells which are important in tumorigenesis. Note: This abstract was not presented at the AACR 101st Annual Meeting 2010 because the presenter was unable to attend. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 2885.
Tuberculous Pancreatic Abscess as an Initial AIDS-Defining Disorder in a Patient Infected with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus: Case Report and Review

Tuberculosis (TB) is the most common opportunistic infection worldwide in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients. Intraabdominal TB includes lymphadenopathy and focal lesions of solid viscera. Symptomatic expression of tuberculous invasion of the pancreas (supplemented by demonstration of a mass on imaging) is rare among HIV-infected patients. We report the case of an HIV-infected patient with a tuberculous pancreatic abscess and review nine similar cases. All patients presented with persistent fever and abdominal pain. The diagnosis was made on the basis of detection of pancreatic mass lesions on computed tomographic (CT) scans and the results of cultures and/or acid-fast stains of peripancreatic abscess material and/or other body fluids. Despite an excellent response to antituberculous therapy, three patients died of unrelated causes. In the setting of a febrile illness with abdominal symptoms, tuberculous pancreatic abscess should be considered in the differential diagnosis for HIV-infected patients with a CT-identified mass lesion.
The effects of atmosphere on decarburizing of magnetic steels

This paper discusses the results of a series of steel decarburization studies that were performed in a nitrogen/hydrogen atmosphere with carefully controlled humidity levels. The results show that both hydrogen and moisture levels are important in achieving good decarburization in relatively short time periods.
Single-Molecule Activation by Flow: Force-Induced Conformational Transitions Regulate the Ligand Binding Affinity of a Large, Polymeric Mechanosensor Protein

Mechanical force is a critical regulator for physiological and pathophysiological processes. von Willebrand factor (VWF), a large, polymeric blood glycoprotein, is proposed to elongate in response to hydrodynamic forces in hemorrhage and become activated to bind to the vessel wall and aggregate platelets to form a plug. To provide direct evidence for this hypothesis, we simultaneously visualized the effect of hydrodynamic force on VWF conformation and the binding of its ligand, the platelet membrane receptor GPIbα.Single VWF concatemers were surface-immobilized and subjected to shear flow in a microfluidic device with rapid air pressure-actuated changes in flow. Using dual-color VWF and GPIbα fluorescence, dynamics of VWF elongation and binding of GPIbα were recorded in real time with total internal reflection microscopy. Increase in shear flow induced a rapid conformational transition in VWF from a compact to an elongated form. In alternating stop-flow and start-flow cycles, dynamics were measured of VWF re-compaction and re-extension, which exhibited kinetic hysteresis during re-compaction. GPIbα rapidly bound to flow-stretched VWF and rapidly dissociated once VWF collapsed, suggesting that elongation of VWF exposed and/or increased the affinity of its binding sites for GPIbα. GPIbα binding affinity increased with increasing shear stress, and along the length of extended VWF molecules, GPIbα localization was enriched in the region of VWF subjected to higher forces, i.e. in upstream regions. The VWF concatemer and GPIbα dissociation constant was also measured under shear flow.The results provide direct evidence for the hypothesis that increased hydrodynamic shear induces a conformational elongation in VWF, exposing high-affinity, shear-dependent binding sites for platelet GPIbα. This dynamic, force-driven mechanism enables rapid and precise regulation of hemostasis, providing a paradigm for mechanosensory control of receptor-ligand binding affinity.
Giardia lamblia infection increases risk of chronic gastrointestinal disorders

Giardia lamblia is a common parasitic cause of infectious gastroenteritis in the United States and the world and may be linked to an increased risk of chronic gastrointestinal (GI) disorders. We sought to assess the risk of several chronic GI disorders following Giardia infection among active duty US military personnel. This study was designed as a retrospective cohort study in which active duty military personnel with documented G. lamblia infection were assessed for the subsequent risk of developing a chronic GI disorder including irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), dyspepsia and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Post-giardia chronic GI disorder risk was compared to risk in uninfected personnel matched on several demographic characteristics and medical encounter information. Data were obtained from the Defense Medical Surveillance System and exposures (1998–2009) with outcomes identified based on documented medical encounters with specific medical billing codes. Modified Poisson regression was used to evaluate the relationship between G. lamblia infection and chronic GI disorders. A total of 80 Giardia cases were identified for an estimated incidence of 0.55 cases per 100,000 person-years. Cases were matched to 294 unexposed subjects. After adjusting for important covariates, there was an increased risk of IBS (relative risk: 2.1, p = 0.03) associated with antecedent Giardia infection. These data add to a growing body of literature and demonstrate an increased risk of IBS after infection with G. lamblia.
Confronting Online Extremism

Who is likely to be a target of online hate and extremism? To answer this question, we use an online survey (N = 963) of youth and young adults recruited from a demographically balanced sample of A...
Utility of Technetium-99m hydroxydiphosphonate bone scintigraphy (HDP) in the evaluation of extraosseous cardiopulmonary uptake

1637 Objectives: Myocardial uptake of bone-seeking tracers has recently been associated with prostate cancer in the majority of patients studied. Technetium-99m hydroxydiphosphonate bone scintigraphy (HDP) is also reported to possess different radiotargeting properties during cardiopulmonary localization since HDP uptake is more intense and more uniform than that of MDP, making it a potentially a more sensitive tool to study the significance of incidentally observed extraosseous bone agent uptake in the heart and lungs. Methods: Bone scintigrams clinically ordered for evaluation of benign and malignant disorders collected between 2000 to 2006 were evaluated for the presence of cardiopulmonary uptake, selected and graded on the basis of cardiac uptake: equal to surrounding bone (3+); less than bone (2+); and greater than bone (4+). Scans with absent uptake and residual blood pool (1+) were excluded. Irregular or diffuse uptake was noted and findings correlated with clinical history, biochemical and hematological parameters. Results: The average age of patients noted to have abnormal cardiac HDP uptake was 80.3 years, and all were males. The percentage of patients with known neoplastic disease was 23/30 (77%), the majority of those patients, 17/30 (57% of the total) carried the diagnosis of prostate cancer. Intensity or pattern of cardiac uptake did not correlate with PSA, Gleason score, serum calcium, alkaline phosphatase, hematological indices, or other bone scan findings. No consistent clinical cardiac abnormality (dysrhythmia, ischemia, cardiomyopathy) correlated with intensity of cardiac uptake, and the majority of patients had no significant cardiac history. Only two patients had evidence of paraproteinemia. Pulmonary uptake, when present (13%), was always less intense than cardiac uptake and did not identify significant pulmonary disease. Conclusions: Technetium-99m hydroxydiphosphonate bone scintigraphy (HDP) is able to identify patients with varying degrees of cardiopulmonary uptake as an epi-phenemenon associated with the diagnosis of prostate cancer in elderly patients, the biochemical significance of which is not yet clear. Long term follow up of this patient population may be useful.
Enhancing The Quality of Retrieval Methods

In the preceding chapters we have analyzed several methods for case retrieval. These form the essential part in the retrieval process. It is however worthwhile to review procedures that enhance the quality of the pure retrieval algorithms. This is the purpose of the present chapter.
New quantum chemistry-based descriptors for better prediction of melting point and viscosity of ionic liquids

Abstract Ionic liquids (ILs) are chemicals that are nonvolatile and hence have the potential to replace volatile organic compounds in industrial applications. A large number of ILs, through the combination of different cations and anions, can potentially be synthesized. In this context, it will be useful to intelligently design customized ILs through computer-aided methods. Practical limitations dictate that any successful attempt to design new ILs for industrial applications requires the ability to accurately predict their melting point and viscosity as experimental data will not be available for the designed structures. In this paper, we present two new correlations for precise prediction of melting point and viscosity of ILs solely based on inputs from quantum chemistry calculations (no experimental data or simulation results are needed). To develop these correlations we utilized data related to size, shape, and electrostatic properties of cations and anions that constitutes ILs. In this work, new descriptors such as dielectric energy of cations and anions as well as the values predicted by an ‘ad-hoc’ model for the radii of cations and anions (instead of their van der waals radii) were used. A large number of correlation equations consisting different combination of descriptors (as inputs to the model) were tested and the best correlation for viscosity and melting point were identified. The average relative errors were estimated as 3.16% and 6.45% for melting point, Tm, and ln(vis), respectively.
How Rhizobia Survive in the Absence of a Legume Host, a Stressful World Indeed

In the preceding decade, numerous advances have been made in understanding the genes and proteins involved in rhizobial responses to stress, particularly those caused by desiccation, pH, and nutrient deprivation. Often, the genes and proteins that are expressed under one stress condition overlap with those induced under other stress conditions. Although most studies on rhizobial stress responses employ planktonic cells, one way that rhizobia, as nonspore formers, could maximize their survival under stress conditions is to establish biofilms, surface-attached communities. However, few studies of this life style for rhizobia have been undertaken especially with regard to stress. The knowledge gained from learning about how planktonic cells respond to stress must now be applied to rhizobial biofilms because they serve as reservoirs of bacteria in the rhizosphere when a legume host is absent. By so doing, we will gain a much better understanding of how this fascinating and important group of soil bacteria lives in the “real world.”
Motivieren der Studierenden

Eine Anderung des Vorlesungsformats begrusen Studierende sicherlich nicht mit uberschwanglicher Begeisterung. Sie sind den traditionellen Vorlesungsstil gewohnt und sie bezweifeln, dass das neue Format fur sie bessere Ergebnisse bringt (oder praziser ausgedruckt, dass sie damit eine bessere Note erreichen konnen): Die uneingeschrankte Mitarbeit der Studierenden ist fur den Erfolg der Peer Instruction-Methode aber unerlasslich, deshalb mussen sie bereits von Anfang an motiviert werden. Im Folgenden beschreibe ich meine Vorgehensweise, um die Studierenden fur die neue Methode zu gewinnen.
miCloud: a plug and play, on-premises bioinformatics cloud, providing seamless integration with Illumina genome sequencers

Benchtop genome sequencers such as the Illumina MiSeq or MiniSeq are revolutionizing genomics research for smaller, independent laboratories, by enabling access to low-cost Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) technology in-house. However, post-sequencing bioinformatics data analysis still presents a significant bottleneck. We developed miCloud, a bioinformatics platform for NGS data analysis, as a solution to fill the gap between the low-cost, widely available computational resources and lack of user-friendly bioinformatics software. The miCloud is highly modular and is based on Docker virtual machine containers for its components. There are three pipelines ready to execute with the miCloud upon installation, two for single and paired-end ChIP-Seq data, in addition to one more for paired-end RNA-Seq data. Additionally, we have integrated the Visual Omics Explorer (VOE) with the miCloud, to provide users with access to rich, interactive visualizations and publication-ready graphics from the pipeline outputs. Laboratories lacking NGS data analysis expertise can easily deploy miCloud in order to process data generated from in-house sequencing instruments, on a computer with 6-10 GigaBytes (GB) of memory and 1 TeraByte (TB) or less of storage.
Between Loagaeth and Cosening: Towards an Etiology of John Dee's Spirit Diaries Entre Loagaeth et Cosening: Vers une étiologie des Journaux spirites de John Dee

Bien que le contenu de ce qu'on appelle les "journaux spirites" du Dr. John Dee (1527–1608/9) et de son "skryer" Edward Kelly (1555–1597?) ait fait l'objet de maintes interpretations savantes, une theorie etiologique systematique des seances elles-memes fait encore defaut. Apres une evaluation et une critique des theories etiologiques donnees jusqu'ici, et specialement de la "theorie charlatan", cet article entreprend d'etablir une methodologie critique centree sur des facteurs explicatifs de mise entre parenthese, puis de construire un modele explicatif comprenant quatre elements de base: 1) Les conditions environnementales dans les quelles les seances se situaient culturellement et materiellement. 2) Les traits comportementaux de Kelly qui denoteraient la possibilite d'un etat psychotique preexistant. 3) Des etats modifies de conscience (EMC) declenches par les seances elles-memes et venant, en plus, agir sur celles-ci. Et finalement: 4) Le processus epistemologique formateur qui permettait a Kelly de creer les contenus des seances comme une sorte de fabrication de mythe et comme quelque chose qui est a l'oppose de la tromperie deliberee. Cet article, qui s'appuie tres largement sur les rapports que Dee tenait des seances, a pour objet de rendre compte, de facon substantielle, de l'etiologie des "conferences angeliques" elles-memes.
Consultation-Liaison and Inpatient Psychiatry Clerkships: Comparison of Learning Outcomes and Student Attitudes

Medical students at the Tulane University School of Medicine were randomly assigned to either a consultation liaison setting (N=35) or inpatient psychiatry setting (N=59) for their four week junior clerkship in psychiatry. No significant differences in factual core knowledge were revealed in the departmental exam between the two groups. Student attitudes were positive about the role of psychiatry in the consultation liaison setting and both groups accepted a holistic/humanistic approach to patient care. Students in both groups were equivocal in their opinion about the futility of much of the practice of psychiatry and leaned toward rejecting the notion that the knowledge and technology of psychiatry is sufficient to handle its patients. None of the three areas generated a significant difference in attitudes between the consultation liaison and inpatient psychiatry students. This study demonstrates that the consultation liaison clerkship fulfills the departmental goals for the education of third year students. Furthermore, the study calls upon psychiatric educators to convey to the students the advances in the field and to acquaint them with the therapeutic tools at their disposal in a positive, enthusiastic manner.
Microfluidics for Gamete Manipulation and Embryo Culture

Microfluidics is an emerging field that holds immense potential for scientific discovery. By utilizing microfluidics, knowledge can be obtained in basic gamete/embryo developmental biology as well as expand our understanding in specialized areas, such as assisted reproduction. This review describes the technology of microfluidics and discusses applications for assisted reproduction technology. Development of an integrated microfluidic platform for assisted reproduction, which can manipulate gametes, embryos, their culture environment, and incorporate biomarker analysis, could have a dramatic impact on basic understanding of embryo physiology as well as provide significant improvements in current assisted reproductive technologies focused on treating infertility and preserving fertility.
FAP and Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT): Similarities, Divergence, and Integration

When our clients seek psychotherapy, it is usually because they are suffering and want to feel better. They often wish for more in life … more love or more satisfying love, better relationships, a sense of meaning and values, and deeper understandings and connections to what is held dear. In short, clients want a better connection with both their own intrapersonal experiences and their experiences with others. Therapists are in the privileged position of hearing the story of a client’s suffering and longings, and in so hearing, to offer help. We believe it is common across all therapists and psychotherapies to want our clients to feel at the end of therapy that it was important and meaningful, and as a measure of successful treatment, that their lives are better with respect to strategies for working toward their needs and values.
Computer assisted photoacoustic imaging guided device for safer percutaneous needle operations

Inadvertent cuts to blood vessels and nerves poses a significant risk during percutaneous needle procedures, often leading to serious injuries and even death. We propose a computer-assisted photoacoustic imaging-based device that is able to detect these vascular structures and robotically guide the surgeons in avoiding them. A fiber-coupled pulsed laser diode capable of generating photoacoustic signals is attached through a ferrule, where a 2.5 mm diameter ultrasound ring transducer receives the corresponding photoacoustic waves. The integrated device is secured on an XYZ axis linear translational stage configuration, and robotically navigated through vessel-modelling phantoms to reach a targeted region of interest. A steering feedback algorithm calculates the relative position of the device with respect to each vessel, generates a 2D map of the navigational plane, and controls the stages to steer the device accordingly towards the target while avoiding the vessels. We first ran the algorithm in a water phantom to demonstrate feasibility, and then in a milk solution to model real tissue scattering. Our proposed device successfully avoids the phantom blood vessels in both cases through photoacoustic detection, and the corresponding 2D navigational path and plane through the phantom is mapped and recorded. Our results demonstrate that a computer-assisted photoacoustic imaging-based device is a viable method of intraoperatively guiding percutaneous needle procedures. The ability of our proposed guidance device to detect and avoid damage to blood vessels and nerves can further be used to optimize biopsies and tumor removal procedures in various parts of the body.
Real Things and Why They Matter [Book Review]

This book is a direct assault on some widely-held beliefs about the "digital revolution." The author takes the reader on a tour of companies, businesses, and a summer camp that refuse to accept the cliches of the digital age. Starting at a vinyl record store in his home city of Toronto he announces, to my skepticism, that a “new record store opens every two months” in his city. This is surely hyperbole, but my web search brought an article about the best vinyl stores in Toronto with photos of a dozen of them, each filled with bins stacked full with lively sleeves containing new and used LP records. Some clue to the success is seen here in the jackets: the records come with a tactile and visual excitement not found in an MP3 file or digital stream. The author presents examples of products and markets that are succeeding despite the emergence of digital technology. Paper is best seen in Sax’s argument in a product called the Moleskine — a handsomely bound hardbound book filled with blank creamy white paper. The name has nothing to do with moles or their skins. It is the creation of an Italian company called Modo & Modo. One would like to think that the books are created by an ancient guild of Italian craftsmen, but they in fact come from China. They are, however, hand sewn, and have a nice little pocket in the back. Typically, 20 million are sold a year; twenty thousand stores in the world market them. The author observes that (like the Prius) use of the book proclaims one’s “values, interests and dreams … when everyone is using a phone from Apple or Samsung, a paper notebook stands out. “Moleskines are not advertised — their users tacitly do it for them. An overriding leitmotiv is certainly the manifestation of a deep human desire for activities presenting a live three-dimensional experience involving our senses as well.
Rehabilitation of Gymnasts

The sport of gymnastics is one of the most demanding in the world, exposing young athletes to extremely high forces at end ranges of motions and at high volumes. Due to the nature of the events and skills performed in gymnastics, multiple body regions are common sites of injury within the upper extremity, spine, and lower extremity. This combination of factors presents a unique challenge to the rehabilitation specialist who is looking to assist gymnasts back to full practice and competition following injury. It is crucial that professionals working in gymnastics have an in-depth understanding of the forces related to gymnastics skills, workload ratios, the five-stage progression of rehabilitation, and the unique pathomechanics that exist in gymnastics injuries. The principles of current scientific literature must be combined with gymnastics coaching principles to provide the athlete with the best opportunity to not only return to their pre-injury capacity level, but also build a higher degree of resiliency toward injury. This chapter aims to overview the most current research and practical guidelines for the rehabilitation of gymnasts.
Targeting humor to cope with an unpleasant emotion: Disgust

Rooted both in cognitive and emotional aspects, humor has generally been assumed to function to facilitate coping with a variety of social, emotional, and cognitive challenges and threats. Humor is intricately linked as a function of distancing one from negative stimuli, but can also foster changing one’s perspective on negative stimuli through reappraisal. The current study explored the mechanisms underlying the relationship between humor and negative stimuli. Disgusting things often evoke amusement along with revulsion in a unique mixed emotional state. It was predicted that when participants connect a humorous experience with disgusting situations, they would better be able to handle that disgusting situation. One hundred and twenty undergraduates were presented with video stimuli to evoke emotions of amusement, disgust, a combination of both amusement and disgust, or no emotion, and then rated their willingness to respond to a matching disgusting situation. Supporting our predictions, disgust-evoking videos produced lower willingness and amusement-evoking videos produced higher willingness. However, our main hypothesis was not supported because the combined amusement-disgust video did not increase willingness significantly beyond that of the disgust-only condition. A secondary post hoc analysis based on actual emotional responses to the videos regardless of assigned condition, supported the finding that amusement increased willingness to respond to the disgust situation, but did not support the main hypothesis. Difficulties in carrying out the study in a precise manner and future directions are discussed.
Accuracy in Resolving the First Hydration Layer on a Transition-Metal Oxide Surface: Experiment (AP-XPS) and Theory

Understanding the equilibrium conditions at the metal oxide/aqueous interface is a key component toward visualizing the structure of water in confined environments and differentiating the catalytic...
Error rates in dental microwear quantification using scanning electron microscopy.

There is a degree of correlation between dietary habits and dental microwear in extant primates, and this has enabled inferences to be made about prehistoric diets. Several techniques have been used to quantify microwear, but the comparability of results derived from each has not been demonstrated. Moreover, neither intra- nor interobserver error rates in microwear quantification have been documented to date. We here assess intra- and interobserver error using Microware 4.0, and evaluate intertechnique comparability using the three methods that have been most widely employed in the field. This study documents an overall intraobserver error rate of about 7%, and an overall interobserver error rate of some 9%. Both intra-and interobserver error appears to be influenced substantially by the nature of the micrograph being measured. In no instance did the results obtained by different observers using Microware 4.0 differ significantly, and there was a reasonable degree of interobserver consistency in the rank ordering of micrographs in relation to any given parameter. The results obtained through the use of different quantitative techniques differed significantly, with an overall intertechnique error rate of approximately 19%. Several variables, including differences in magnification factor, scanning electron microscope kV settings, and specimendetector relationships undoubtedly contribute to the differences among the three methods, but we were not able to assess their relative importance. Microwear quantification permits distinctions between broad dietary categories, but the margin of intra- and interobserver error should be taken into account when defining pattern differences between populations (or species) or when documenting seaseasonally mitigated differences within a taxon. In view of the error introduced by the use of different methods, we suggest that a consistent technique, such as offered by the Microware software package, be adopted by current researchers to establish a common microwear database.
Hemodynamic responses to seated and supine lower body negative pressure - Comparison with +Gz acceleration

Hemodynamic changes between upright and supine lower body negative pressure (LBNP) to levels of -70 mm Hg were compared in 8 subjects (5 males, 3 females) and correlated with their findings during simulated Shuttle reentry acceleration with a slow onset rate of 0.002 G/s (1,020 s to peak +2 Gz) and during gradual onset exposures (0.03 G/s) to +3 Gz and +4 Gz. Six of the 8 subjects were able to tolerate 2 min at peak +2 Gz, 2-5 min at +3 Gz, and 1-2 min at +4 Gz. Heart rate (HR) at any given level of upright LBNP regularly exceeded supine levels. HR change at -50 mm Hg in upright subjects (+47.7 bpm from 74.1 +/- 1.9 (M +/- S.E.) bpm, control) was 2.6 times greater than in supine subjects (+18.3 bpm from 64.8 +/- 2.8 bpm, control). HR values at -40 mm Hg supine (73.7 +/- 2.6) matched seated upright pre-LBNP control levels (74.1 +/- 1.9 bpm), while values at -70 mm Hg supine (102.5 +/- 4.4 bpm) were not significantly different from those at -40 mm Hg upright (103.1 +/- 4.0 bpm). Peak HR during +3 Gz (145.8 +/- 7.7 bpm) and +4 Gz (152.3 +/- 6.5 bpm) significantly exceeded recorded supine and upright LBNP levels, whereas values at +2 Gz (104.8 +/- 5.5 bpm) closely matched those at -40 mm Hg upright (103.1 +/- 4.0 bpm) and -70 mm Hg supine (102.5 +/- 4.4 bpm). Supine LBNP HR changes in this relatively small group of subjects closely matched those previously reported in the literature.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Is the NBA Summer League Predictive of Performance for NBA Rookies

Using data from 2006 to 2019, we show that performance in the NBA Summer League can be used to predict regular season performance for NBA rookies. This result is indicated by general performance (w...
Changes to the Psychiatric Chatbot Landscape: A Systematic Review of Conversational Agents in Serious Mental Illness: Changements du paysage psychiatrique des chatbots: une revue systématique des agents conversationnels dans la maladie mentale sérieuse.

Objective:The need for digital tools in mental health is clear, with insufficient access to mental health services. Conversational agents, also known as chatbots or voice assistants, are digital to...
Iterative Convex Refinement for Sparse Recovery

In this letter, we address sparse signal recovery in a Bayesian framework where sparsity is enforced on reconstruction coefficients via probabilistic priors. In particular, we focus on the setup of Yen who employ a variant of spike and slab prior to encourage sparsity. The optimization problem resulting from this model has broad applicability in recovery and regression problems and is known to be a hard non-convex problem whose existing solutions involve simplifying assumptions and/or relaxations. We propose an approach called Iterative Convex Refinement (ICR) that aims to solve the aforementioned optimization problem directly allowing for greater generality in the sparse structure. Essentially, ICR solves a sequence of convex optimization problems such that sequence of solutions converges to a sub-optimal solution of the original hard optimization problem. We propose two versions of our algorithm: a.) an unconstrained version, and b.) with a non-negativity constraint on sparse coefficients, which may be required in some real-world problems. Experimental validation is performed on both synthetic data and for a real-world image recovery problem, which illustrates merits of ICR over state of the art alternatives.
Toward design of cation transport in solid-state battery electrolytes: Structure-dynamics relationships

Abstract Cation-conducting, solid-state electrolytes represent a burgeoning focus of battery research, offering the potential for enhanced safety profiles, durability, and wide electrochemical stability windows for high energy density. In this review, we focus primarily on the Li/Na ion conductivity as one of the requirements and limiting factors in development of solid-state electrolytes and secondarily on stability. We highlight experimental and computational methods leading to the current state of understanding of solid-state cation transport, with the goal of drawing out structure-property relationships that lead to design strategies. Topics covered include: descriptors and high-throughput search methodologies including machine learning for identification of fast cation conductors; defect chemistry and its relationship to conduction mechanisms including emerging understanding of frustration, disorder, and concerted ion migration; the impact of strain on transport; factors determining stability; and the role of microstructure and extended defects. We conclude certain sections and the overall review with an outlook for the field, offering ideas for necessary research directions to address knowledge and property gaps.
nab-Paclitaxel and cisplatin followed by cisplatin and radiation (Arm 1) and nab-paclitaxel followed by cetuximab and radiation (Arm 2) for locally advanced head and neck squamous-cell carcinoma: a multicenter, non-randomized phase 2 trial

In locally advanced head and neck squamous-cell carcinoma (LA-HNSCC), clinical complete response (cCR) at the primary site, assessed by clinical examination, after induction chemotherapy predicts for a low relapse risk after subsequent chemoradiotherapy. Prior studies showed a cCR rate of 77% with induction nanoparticle albumin-bound (nab)-paclitaxel given with cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil (APF). The primary aims of this non-randomized phase 2 trial were to determine the cCR rate after induction nab-paclitaxel and cisplatin (Arm 1) and after nab-paclitaxel monotherapy (Arm 2). Eligibility required LA-HNSCC, T2-T4 stage classification, and suitable (Arm 1) or unsuitable (Arm 2) candidates for cisplatin. Arm 1 patients received nab-paclitaxel and cisplatin, then cisplatin with radiation. Arm 2 patients received nab-paclitaxel, then cetuximab with radiation. The primary endpoint was cCR after two cycles of induction chemotherapy. Each arm enrolled forty patients. cCR at the primary site occurred in 28 patients (70%) after nab-paclitaxel and cisplatin and in 8 patients (20%) after nab-paclitaxel monotherapy. The overall clinical response rate was 98% after nab-paclitaxel and cisplatin and 90% after nab-paclitaxel monotherapy. In subset analyses, cCR rates by T stage classifications (T2, T3, T4) were 54, 86, and 69% after nab-paclitaxel and cisplatin, and 14, 11, and 26% after nab-paclitaxel. cCR rates by human papillomavirus status (p16 positive oropharynx vs other) were 72 and 64% after nab-paclitaxel and cisplatin and 35 and 9% after nab-paclitaxel. The cCR rate after nab-paclitaxel and cisplatin was similar to APF; however, the cCR rate after nab-paclitaxel monotherapy was lower. The trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02573493 on October 9, 2015.
Exceptional degeneracy in a waveguide periodically loaded with discrete gain and radiation loss elements

We demonstrate that a periodic waveguide comprising of uniform lossless segments together with discrete gain and radiating elements supports exceptional points of degeneracy (EPDs). We provide analytical expressions for all possible conditions that guarantee the occurrence of an EPD, i.e., the coalescence of eigenvalues and eigenvectors. We show that EPDs are not only achieved using symmetric gain and radiation periodic loading, but they are also obtained using asymmetric gain and radiation loss conditions. We illustrate the characteristics of the degenerate electromagnetic modes, showing the dispersion diagram and discussing the tunability of the EPD frequency. We show a special condition, and we refer to it as a parity-time-glide symmetry, which leads to a degeneracy that is occurring at all frequencies of operation. The class of EPDs proposed in this work is very promising for many applications that incorporate discrete-distributed coherent sources and radiation loss elements; operating in the vicinity of such special degeneracy conditions leads to a potential performance enhancement in a variety of microwave and optical resonators, antennas, and devices and can be extended to a new class of active integrated antenna arrays and radiating laser arrays.
A novel print-and-release method to prepare microplastics using an office-grade laserjet printer; a low-cost solution for preliminary studies.

Abstract Microscopic plastic particles (microplastics) are widespread anthropogenic contaminants that are impacting aquatic ecosystems. Among the five most prevalent types of microplastics (polystyrene, polyamide, polyvinyl chloride, polyethylene, and polypropylene) in aquatic environments, the impact of polystyrene, polyethylene, and polypropylene has drawn more attention due to their high transportability. A lack of reliable inexpensive methods to accurately replicate the realistic microplastic samples extracted from environmental matrixes with the desired size and geometry is one of the main challenges in the design of experiments for systematic studies. In this work, a novel print-and-release technique to prepare colored microplastic (polystyrene) particles with a desired size and shape by using an office-grade laserjet printer is introduced. Microplastics ranging from 125 μm to 500 μm could be prepared with an average dimensional error of less than 5%. Their physical and chemical characteristics were obtained by SEM, FTIR, and XPS analyses.
Exceptional Points in Photonic Grating Band Diagrams Lead to Decay-Free Radiation

We demonstrate that exceptional points in a photonic band diagram lead to constant-intensity free-space beams projected from grating couplers. Our findings pave the way for projecting spatially broad free-space beams with decay-free profiles.
Everybody Pays - - Even for Things They Didn’t Do

In November 1984, Thinner was published in a New American Library hardcover edition. Although Richard Bachman had published four previous novels, they had appeared only in cheap and unpromoted Signet paperback editions. Bachman was reported to have suffered a nearly fatal brain tumor shortly after the publication of his previous book, The Running Man, in 1982, but the photograph on the dustcover of the new book pictured a fully recovered man looking as though he would continue to live his reclusive life on a New Hampshire farm, refusing interviews or even to answer his mail. The book sold respectably, as had the four earlier novels, and by February 1985 had tallied sales of 28,000 copies.
Conclusion: Adenauer’s Party Leadership and the Reconstruction of Germany

An evaluation of Konrad Adenauer’s leadership role within the CDU must begin with an understanding of the ways in which the fragmentation of the German political structure in 1945 hindered, and of the ways in which it favored, the growth of a new political party which was literally a product of its time. It necessitates, specifically, an understanding of the obstacles which had to be overcome in unifying a party which had its origins in the disparate groups within what were originally isolated zonal enclaves, and conceptually, an understanding of the role of unifying and decentralizing institutions during a reconstruction period. Such concepts suggest themselves when one considers that Germany’s post-war situation bore striking resemblances to earlier periods of disaster, when the destruction of centralized authority resulted in the fragmentation of the larger political system.
Mathematical Models of Biological Populations

The study of development and interaction of biological species is an important direction of modern research. As one of the central parts of this study, mathematical modeling assists in understanding the behavior of populations and provides reliable forecasts and recommendations for sustainable policies and management. A variety of mathematical models of biological populations and their investigation techniques have been developed, but practice requires new models that consider, for instance, aftereffect and joint influence of different exogenous and endogenous factors. This chapter explores well-known population models that have become a foundation to contemporary models widely used in practice. Section 6.1 presents population models based on ordinary differential equations and basic elements of their analysis. Section 6.2 explores different types of interaction among species and offers a detailed analysis of predator–prey models. Section 6.3 discusses partial differential and integral models of population dynamics.
Application of the Diagnostic Evaluation for Alopecia in Traditional Veterinary Species to Laboratory Rhesus Macaques (Macaca mulatta)

Alopecia in nonhuman primates in the biomedical research setting is often attributed to compromised psychologic wellbeing. Behavioral causes, mainly hair plucking, have become the unconfirmed and exclusive default diagnosis, and the possibility that alopecia may be secondary to a primary medical or dermatologic disease is often overlooked. Although nonbehavioral causes of alopecia in nonhuman primates are described in the literature, few prospective hypothesis-based studies have investigated medical and behavioral etiologies concurrently. We therefore undertook such a study with the aim of designing a clinical diagnostic guide for approaching cases of nonhuman primate alopecia. Because most cases of alopecia in nonhuman primates in the literature and at our facility are not associated with a definitive diagnosis, the hypothesis we tested was that the well-established diagnostic evaluation for alopecia used for traditional veterinary species is not applicable to nonhuman primates. Discounting differences in histopathology and behavioral assessment, the current study revealed few clinically relevant significant differences between nonhuman primates with and without alopecia. As a result, our hypothesis was confirmed, and we conclude that the standard dermatologic diagnostic plan typically described for alopecia diagnosis in traditional veterinary species and used as the basis for assessment of alopecia in nonhuman primates should be reassessed.
Migratory paths of neurons and glia in the embryonic chick spinal cord

To study the migration of chick spinal cord neurons, we labeled individual cells in the ventricular zone with recombinant retroviruses, then identified their progeny histochemically. First, we analyzed cell mixing in the ventricular zone. Some clones labeled at early neural tube stages spread widely along both the dorsoventral and rostrocaudal axes. However, clones labeled later were confined to narrow domains along both axes. These results imply that displacement of cells within the ventricular zone becomes progressively restricted. Second, we studied the migration of cells out of the ventricular zone by infecting embryos at a fixed stage and varying the time of analysis. At first, most clones consisted of radial arrays of cells, suggesting that the initial migration is predominantly radial. In many clones, however, neurons turned orthogonally from parental radial arrays and migrated along the path of circumferentially oriented axons. By hatching, clonally related cells in the gray matter were usually distributed in narrow transverse slabs, but some white matter glial cells had migrated longitudinally for up to several segments. We conclude that the dispersal of clonally related cells results from (1) early mixing of progenitors within the neural tube; (2) radial stacking of progeny in the ventricular zone; (3) migration of progeny from the ventricular zone in spoke-like routes; (4) circumferential migration of some neurons along axons; (5) short-distance dispersal of differentiating neurons; and (6) a late, longitudinal migration of glia through white matter tracts. Finally, we show that floor plate cells differ from other spinal cord cells in both their
Transcriptome Profiling of Wild-Type and pga-Knockout Mutant Strains Reveal the Role of Exopolysaccharide in Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans.

Exopolysaccharides have a diverse set of functions in most bacteria including a mechanistic role in protecting bacteria against environmental stresses. Among the many functions attributed to the exopolysaccharides, biofilm formation, antibiotic resistance, immune evasion and colonization have been studied most extensively. The exopolysaccharide produced by many Gram positive as well as Gram negative bacteria including the oral pathogen Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans is the homopolymer of β(1,6)-linked N-acetylglucosamine. Recently, we reported that the PGA-deficient mutant of A. actinomycetemcomitans failed to colonize or induce bone resorption in a rat model of periodontal disease, and the colonization genes, apiA and aae, were significantly down regulated in the mutant strain. To understand the role of exopolysaccharide and the pga locus in the global expression of A. actinomycetemcomitans, we have used comparative transcriptome profiling to identify differentially expressed genes in the wild-type strain in relation to the PGA-deficient strain. Transcriptome analysis revealed that about 50% of the genes are differently expressed (P 1.5). Our study demonstrated that the absence of the pga locus affects the genes involved in peptidoglycan recycling, glycogen storage, and virulence. Further, using confocal microscopy and plating assays, we show that the viability of pga mutant strain is significantly reduced during biofilm growth. Thus, this study highlights the importance of pga genes and the exopolysaccharide in the virulence of A. actinomycetemcomitans.