cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Insect/plant Interactions in Integrating Trichosirocalus horridus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) and 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic Acid for Carduus Thistle Control

Interactions of a biological agent, Trichosirocalus horridus (Panzer), with a commonly used herbicide for thistle control, 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D), were examined using the thistle weevil's response to low-level 2,4-D sprays on two species of thistles at different growth stages, and thistle response to 2,4-D and weevil infestation. Two hundred sixty transplanted thistle rosettes of two thistle species at three developmental stages, naturally infested with T. horridus larvae, were randomly selected in spring; half were sprayed with 15% of the recommended field dosage of 2,4-D. Plants caged 2 d later yielded a total of 2,246 weevils within 10 wk. Number of adults emerging from sprayed plants was less than half of that from unsprayed plants. Plant age or growth stage affected time and level of adult emergence, and thistle species affected level of emergence. Yield of adults from plants sprayed with 2,4-D, however, was not different from yield derived from healthy plants of the less-preferred thistle species or developmental stage. Combination of T. horridus infestation and the reduced dosage of 2,4-D caused 85% thistle mortality compared with 7% mortality in unsprayed weevil-infested thistles and 55% mortality in weevil-free rosettes sprayed with the reduced dosage of 2,4-D.
FIELD MEASUREMENTS OF DUNE EROSION

A series of field experiments was made to evaluate the use of a laboratory derived relationship between the force in the wave uprush and the erosion of beach dunes. Measurements of the swash velocity and height at the dune face were used to compute a specific force parameter. This force term was correlated with the specific erosion of the dune. A linear relationship similar to that found in the laboratory was determined with a R squared value of .87.
Nesting Behavior of Halictus Scabiosae in Switzerland (Hymenoptera, Halictidae)

The structure and populations of seven nests ofHalictus scabiosae were studied in Geneva during July and August, 1964. Cells, containing brood of various ages, were radially arranged along the branching burrows. The one to six females in each nest did not belong to distinct worker and queen castes. This is in contrast to reports of distinct castes in what appears to be the same species from France. Most pollen collectors in the Geneva population were inseminated and some probably laid eggs.
The Leader as Chief Strategist.

Modern academic links between leadership and strategy were forged in the early 1960s with the heightened application of strategy to business planning. These links were soon dissolved by the strategy consultants who came to dominate the field of business strategy in the mid-1960s. The consultants dismissed the role of leadership in strategic planning in favor of objective analyses of the external environment that eliminated any need for leadership skills, judgment, values, or intuition. Failures to implement strategy in the 1980s led to limited roles for leaders in implementing strategies they had no role in creating, but the gulf between leadership and strategy has steadily widened. This paper traces the consequences of this widening gulf for teaching leadership and strategy in the classroom. It explores how an integrated approach to teaching leadership and strategy would better prepare today’s students for the challenges they will face as future business leaders.
Multiscale Characteristics of Surface Winds in an Area of Complex Terrain in Northwest Utah

AbstractClimatological features of the surface wind on diurnal and seasonal time scales over a 17-yr period in an area of complex terrain at Dugway Proving Ground in northwestern Utah are analyzed, and potential synoptic-scale, mesoscale, and microscale forcings on the surface wind are identified. Analysis of the wind climatology at 26 automated weather stations revealed a bimodal wind direction distribution at times when thermally driven circulations were expected to produce a single primary direction. The two modes of this distribution are referred to as the “northerly” and “southerly” regimes. The northerly regime is most frequent in May, and the southerly regime is most frequent in August. January, May, and August constitute a “tripole seasonality” of the wind evolution. Although both regimes occur in all months, the monthly changes in regime frequency are related to changes in synoptic and mesoscale phenomena including the climatological position of the primary synoptic baroclinic zone in the western...
Targeting the SUMO pathway for neuroprotection in brain ischaemia

Small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) conjugation (SUMOylation) is a post-translational protein modification that modulates almost all major cellular processes, and has been implicated in many human diseases. A growing body of evidence from in vitro and in vivo studies demonstrates that increasing global levels of SUMO conjugated proteins (global SUMOylation) protects cells against ischaemia-induced damage, while suppressing global SUMOylation promotes cell injury after ischaemia. Indeed, SUMOylation has emerged as a potential therapeutic target for neuroprotection in brain ischaemia, including global brain ischaemia and focal brain ischaemia (ischaemic stroke). Here, we summarise findings on the role of SUMOylation in human diseases, brain ischaemia in particular, and review recent developments in drug discovery targeting SUMOylation with a major focus on its neuroprotective applications.
“Arresting the Dead”: Victorian Insolvency Laws and the Novel

In a New York Times article from 4 March 2010 titled “You’re Dead? That Won’t Stop the Debt Collector,” David Streitfeld reveals that in these trying economic times collecting from the dead is expa...
Draft Genome Sequences of Five Novel Polyketide Synthetase-Containing Mouse Escherichia coli Strains.

ABSTRACT We report herein the draft genomes of five novel Escherichia coli strains isolated from surveillance and experimental mice housed at MIT and the Whitehead Institute and describe their genomic characteristics in context with the polyketide synthetase (PKS)-containing pathogenic E. coli strains NC101, IHE3034, and A192PP.
Finding Conceptual Coherence: Trends and Alignment in the Scholarship on Noncognitive Skills and Their Role in College Success and Career Readiness

Recent questions about the degree to which higher education adequately equips graduates with desired workplace skills has drawn attention to the role of noncognitive skills in college and the workplace. Yet, there is questionable alignment of these skills across higher education and employment sectors. The literature on noncognitive skills, defined here as a diverse set of social emotional and self management competencies, is varied across higher education and employment literatures, thus creating confusion and a lack of clarity. A systematic review of the literature was conducted as a means to clarify and organize a set of terms and concepts that support college and career success. This manuscript presents the findings from that review, as well as the development of a taxonomy created for analytic purposes and alignment of noncognitive skills bridging the higher education and employment literatures. The taxonomy is divided into three domains of noncognitive skills that emerged from our analysis-Approach to Learning/Work, Intrapersonal Skills, and Social Skills.
Deep neural network-based speaker embeddings for end-to-end speaker verification

In this study, we investigate an end-to-end text-independent speaker verification system. The architecture consists of a deep neural network that takes a variable length speech segment and maps it to a speaker embedding. The objective function separates same-speaker and different-speaker pairs, and is reused during verification. Similar systems have recently shown promise for text-dependent verification, but we believe that this is unexplored for the text-independent task. We show that given a large number of training speakers, the proposed system outperforms an i-vector baseline in equal error-rate (EER) and at low miss rates. Relative to the baseline, the end-to-end system reduces EER by 13% average and 29% pooled across test conditions. The fused system achieves a reduction of 32% average and 38% pooled.
Far-field coherent backscatter enhancement from random aggregations of scatterers and comparisons to backscattering from single isolated spheresa)

Coherent backscatter enhancement (CBE), a multiple scattering phenomenon, may cause an enhancement of up to a factor of two in the average intensity backscattered from a random aggregation of scatterers. In the ocean, CBE may occur when a fish school or a bubble cloud is remotely illuminated. The research reported here explored the possibility that CBE might be used to remotely discriminate between an aggregation of many scatterers and a single isolated scattering object. For this investigation, the far-field harmonic acoustic pressure backscattered from aggregations of randomly placed omnidirectional point scatterers was determined from numerical solution of the equations from Foldy [(1945) Phys. Rev. 67(3,4), 107-119], and compared to equivalent results from single spherical scatterers having hard surfaces, pressure-release surfaces, or aggregation-matched effective-medium properties. Interestingly, CBE causes a spherical aggregation to backscatter as much or more sound than a single perfectly reflecting sphere of the same size when (ka)1/2(ks)-4/5(kσs1/2)3/4 ≥ 2.3, where k is the acoustic wave number, a is the aggregation radius, s is the average spacing between scatterers, and σs is a scatterer's cross section. And, backscattered intensity samples (in dB) from all simulated aggregations followed an extreme value distribution, a finding that supports the conventional use of backscatter statistics for remote aggregation-versus-single-object discrimination.
The Nationwide Burden of Neurological Conditions Requiring Emergency Neurosurgery.

Background Neurosurgical emergencies are an important cause of disability and mortality. Objective To examine the nationwide burden of neurological conditions requiring emergency neurosurgery. Methods The Nationwide Inpatient Sample database (2002-2011) was queried to identify adult patients with a primary discharge diagnosis of a neurosurgical condition who were admitted urgently/emergently or through a trauma center and underwent surgical intervention within 2 days of admission. Diagnostic groups were ranked based on their inpatient complication and mortality burden, and their contribution to total complications, deaths, hospital charges, and length of stay (LOS) was assessed. All analyses were weighted to produce national estimates. Results After application of discharge weights, 810 404 patients who underwent emergency neurosurgery were identified. The average complication rate for the entire sample was 8.8%, the mortality rate was 11.2%, average charges were $106 802, and average LOS was 9.0 days. The top 4 diagnostic groups ranked by complication/mortality burden accounted for 76% of all complications, 96% of all deaths, 81% of all charges, and 82% of all days in the hospital for the entire study sample. This was equal to 62 648 complications, 86 683 deaths, $69 billion in charges, and 5962 932 days. These 4 diagnostic groups included (1) acute cerebrovascular disease, (2) intracranial injury, (3) spinal cord injury, and (4) occlusion or stenosis of precerebral arteries. Conclusion Acute cerebrovascular disease, intracranial injury, spinal cord injury, and occlusion/stenosis of precerebral arteries requiring emergency neurosurgery carry an important nationwide burden in terms of complications, deaths, charges, and LOS. Efforts in prevention and/or treatment of these conditions should continue.
Ontogeny of the Secretory Elements in the Vertebrate Olfactory Mucosa

The olfactory mucosa of vertebrates contains secretory elements that produce a layer of mucus that covers the surface of the olfactory epithelium (Graziadei 1971; Yamamoto 1982). The secretions presumably play a role in olfactory function by (a) providing the ionic and macromolecular environment in which odorants interact with their receptor sites on the olfactory receptor neurons (Bannister 1974; TV Cetchell and ML Getchell 1977), (b) affecting access of odorants to the epithelial surface (Mozell 1971; Bostock 1974) and (c) facilitating odorant removal (Hornung and Mozell 1981; TV Getchell et al. 1985).
Ecología crítica contemporánea

Quisiera plantear algunas preguntas sobre el contexto disciplinario e institucional en que desarrollamos nuestro trabajo. En un momento de profundo cambio en nuestra relacion con los saberes, vale la pena discutir como configuramos nuevos objetos de estudio; como nos colocamos ante la nueva difusion de la escritura academica y ensayistica; que nuevos interlocutores creamos con nuestro trabajo, especialmente desde el punto de vista de las humanidades (y su transformacion a partir de la experiencia digital e intermedial)
FTY720/fingolimod, an oral S1PR modulator, mitigates radiation induced cognitive deficits.

Abstract Purpose This study evaluates FTY720/Fingolimod, modulator of sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) receptor, as a potential mitigator of radiation-induced neurocognitive dysfunction. Methods and materials To study radiation-induced neurocognitive deficits, 6 week-old C57/Bl/6J mice received 0 or 7 Gy cranial irradiation and were treated with FTY720 or vehicle for seven weeks. Fear conditioning and Morris water maze were then employed to test learning and memory. Immunohistochemical staining for neural progenitor cells (NPCs) and mature neurons was used to assess changes in hippocampal neurogenesis. To test effects on tumor growth, mice harboring brain tumor xenografts were treated with FTY720 or vehicle for six weeks. Results In irradiated mice, learning deficits were manifested by significantly longer latency times in the Morris Water Maze compared to non-irradiated controls (p = 0.001). The deficits were fully restored by FTY720. In irradiated brains, FTY720 maintained the cytoarchitecture of the dentate gyrus granular cell layer and partially restored the pool of NPC. In mice harboring brain tumor stem cell (BTSC) xenografts FTY720 delayed tumor growth and improved survival (p = 0.012). Conclusions FTY720 mitigates radiation-induced learning dysfunction. A partial restoration of neurogenesis was observed. Furthermore, FTY720 appears to delay tumor growth and improve survival in a xenograft glioma mouse model.
An investigation of ligand effects on the visible light-induced formation of porphyrin–iron(IV)-oxo intermediates

High-valent porphyrin–iron-oxo intermediates are the central oxidizing species in heme-containing enzymes and synthetic oxidation catalysts. In this work, we investigated a new photochemical entry to porphyrin–iron(IV)-oxo derivatives in a variety of porphyrin ligands with different electronic and steric environments. In non-electron-deficient ligand systems, the visible light photolysis of porphyrin–iron(III) bromates gave porphyrin–iron(IV)-oxo radical cations (compound I analogues). In contrast, the photolysis of porphyrin–iron(III) bromates with electron-deficient and sterically encumbered ligands produced one-electron reduced iron(IV)-oxo porphyrins (compound II analogues). Formation of iron(III) μ-oxo dimers was also observed in the sterically unencumbered systems containing electron-deficient substituents. The photochemical generation of porphyrin–iron(IV)-oxo radical cations and iron(IV)-oxo porphyrins permits direct kinetic studies of their oxidations with organic reductants. As expected, more oxidized porphyrin–iron(IV)-oxo radical cations reacted 2–3 orders of magnitudes faster than the iron(IV)-oxo porphyrins, and the rate constants obtained in this work are in comparison to those of iron(IV)-oxo derivatives formed by chemical methods. A model including internal electron-transfer (ET) and comproportionation of the putative iron(V)-oxo species pathways is presented.
Chapter 17 – Use and Impacts of Whole Genome Sequencing in Retail Food Safety

Abstract Whole genome sequencing (WGS) has recently onboarded as a new tool for differentiating foodborne pathogen isolates at a higher resolution and more quickly identify foodborne disease outbreaks. In this chapter, we briefly highlight the history of sequencing and its lead-up to WGS technology. Furthermore, we outline some of the WGS-based projects that have ultimately changed the epidemiological curves of foodborne outbreaks. WGS has been used in outbreak investigations for only a few years, but it is clearly the next gold standard. It has the capacity to become a routine tool to track environmental microbial contamination originating from food systems, including retail.
Protection of Thiols

The presence of cysteine and cystine residues in many polypeptides of natural origin and the importance of these residues as either components of an ‘active site’ or in the stabilization of the native conformation of the molecule has closely aligned the development and use of sulphur protective groups with the chemical synthesis of polypeptides. This chapter will therefore deal primarily with the protection of cysteine residues and the means by which cysteine residues may be deblocked and converted to cystine or retained as the thiol.
The pathogenesis of HIV infections of the brain.

Last summer, the World Health Organization estimated that over 13 million persons worldwide were infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) (Merson 1993). From prospective studies, it is reasonable to assume that the majority of these persons already have infection of the central nervous system; therefore, HIV is the most prevalent viral infection of the nervous system. It also can be assumed that during the next decade over 50% of these patients will develop disabling neurological diseases (dementia with HIV encephalopathy, paraparesis with vacuolar myelopathy, and disabling pain with predominantly sensory neuropathy); therefore, neurological complications of the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) will be among the commonest neurological diseases of the future.
VECTOR-VALUED MEASURES RELATED TO A GENERALIZED CONTINUOUS HOMOGENEOUS RANDOM FIELD

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses vector-valued measures related to a generalized continuous homogeneous random field. It presents a decomposition for a generalized continuous homogeneous random field defined in the sense of K. Ito, using the Lebesgue decomposition theorem for a vector-valued measure obtained by J. K. Brooks and C. E. Rickart. A linear and continuous functional F : D → H is called a generalized random field. A. M. Yaglom has developed the spectral theory for generalized continuous homogeneous random fields. A generalized continuous homogeneous random field F can be decomposed as F = F(1) + F(2), where F(1), F(2) are generalized continuous homogeneous random fields having some representations.
A coupled LES-ODT model for spatially-developing turbulent reacting shear layers

Abstract Large-eddy simulation (LES) for momentum transport combined with the one-dimensional turbulence (ODT) model for momentum and reactive scalars’ transport is designed to capture subgrid scale (SGS) turbulence-chemistry interactions. An extension of the original LES-ODT formulation is developed to capture these interactions in turbulent spatially-developing reacting shear layers. The LES-ODT results are compared to results from direct numerical simulations (DNS). Lewis number parametric variations for the variable-density simulations are carried out. The validation with DNS shows that the LES-ODT approach can qualitatively and quantitatively capture important salient features of turbulent shear layers statistics, including large-scale flow patterns, shear layer growth and mean and RMS statistics of velocity and reactive scalars.
Development of Amygdala Functional Connectivity During Infancy and Its Relationship With 4-Year Behavioral Outcomes.

Abstract Background The amygdala represents a core node in the human brain’s emotional signal processing circuitry. Given its critical role, both the typical and atypical functional connectivity patterns of the amygdala have been extensively studied in adults. However, the development of amygdala functional connectivity during infancy is less well studied; thus, our understanding of the normal growth trajectory of key emotion-related brain circuits during a critical period is limited. Methods In this study, we used resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (N = 233 subjects with 334 datasets) to delineate the spatiotemporal dynamics of amygdala functional connectivity development during the first 2 years of life. Their relationships with 4-year emotional (i.e., anxiety and inhibitory self-control parent report measures) and cognitive (i.e., IQ) behavioral outcomes were also assessed using multivariate modeling. Results Our results revealed nonlinear growth of amygdala functional connectivity during the first 2 years of life, featuring dramatic synchronization during the first year followed by moderate growth or fine tuning during the second year. Importantly, functional connectivity growth during the second year had significant behavioral implications exemplified by multiple significant predictions of 4-year emotional and cognitive developmental outcomes. Conclusions The delineation of the spatiotemporal dynamics of amygdala functional connectivity development during infancy and their associations with 4-year behavioral outcomes may provide new references on the early emergence of both typical and atypical emotion processing capabilities.
A Prospective Evaluation of the Effect of Supervised Hand Therapy After Carpal Tunnel Surgery.

Background: The objective of this investigation is to examine the effect of postoperative therapy after routine carpal tunnel release. Our hypothesis was that supervised hand therapy does not impro...
In depth, thermodynamic analysis of Ca2+ binding to human cardiac troponin C: Extracting buffer-independent binding parameters.

Abstract Background Characterizing the thermodynamic parameters behind metal-biomolecule interactions is fundamental to understanding the roles metal ions play in biology. Isothermal Titration Calorimetry (ITC) is a “gold-standard” for obtaining these data. However, in addition to metal-protein binding, additional equilibria such as metal-buffer interactions must be taken into consideration prior to making meaningful comparisons between metal-binding systems. Methods In this study, the thermodynamics of Ca2+ binding to three buffers (Bis-Tris, MES, and MOPS) were obtained from Ca2+-EDTA titrations using ITC. These data were used to extract buffer-independent parameters for Ca2+ binding to human cardiac troponin C (hcTnC), an EF-hand containing protein required for heart muscle contraction. Results The number of protons released upon Ca2+ binding to the C– and N-domain of hcTnC were found to be 1.1 and 1.2, respectively. These values permitted determination of buffer-independent thermodynamic parameters of Ca2+-hcTnC binding, and the extracted data agreed well among the buffers tested. Both buffer and pH-adjusted parameters were determined for Ca2+ binding to the N-domain of hcTnC and revealed that Ca2+ binding under aqueous conditions and physiological ionic strength is both thermodynamically favorable and driven by entropy. Conclusions Taken together, the consistency of these data between buffer systems and the similarity between theoretical and experimental proton release is indicative of the reliability of the method used and the importance of extracting metal-buffer interactions in these studies. General significance The experimental approach described herein is clearly applicable to other metal ions and other EF-hand protein systems.
Video delivery of toxicology educational content versus textbook for asynchronous learning, using acetaminophen overdose as a topic.

AbstractObjectives: Advances in technology have brought with them innovations in delivery of medical educational content; for example, audio and video podcasts, flipped classroom learning, and e-bo...
Internet Research Agency Twitter activity predicted 2016 U.S. election polls

In 2016, the Internet Research Agency (IRA) deployed thousands of Twitter bots that released hundreds of thousands of English language tweets. It has been hypothesized this affected public opinion during the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Here we test that hypothesis using vector autoregression (VAR) comparing time series of election opinion polling during 2016 versus numbers of re-tweets or ‘likes’ of IRA tweets. We find that changes in opinion poll numbers for one of the candidates were consistently preceded by corresponding changes in IRA re-tweet volume, at an optimum interval of one week before. In contrast, the opinion poll numbers did not correlate with future re-tweets or ‘likes’ of the IRA tweets. We find that the release of these tweets parallel significant political events of 2016 and that approximately every 25,000 additional IRA re-tweets predicted a one percent increase in election opinion polls for one candidate. As these tweets were part of a larger, multimedia campaign, it is plausible that the IRA was successful in influencing U.S. public opinion in 2016.
Validation of a Breastfeeding History Questionnaire for the Risk of In-Hospital Formula Supplementation Among Multiparous Women:

Background:A woman’s prior breastfeeding history may influence future decisions regarding infant feeding. Few quantitative tools utilizing this information have been demonstrated to predict breastf...
Automated Test Generation for Detection of Malicious Functionality

Test generation has been widely used during pre-silicon as well as post-silicon validation to detect design bugs. By applying specific test vectors, we can compare the design outputs with the golden (expected) outputs to detect a violation. Hardware Trojans can be viewed as covert bugs that are maliciously implanted into a design such that they can be activated only under very rare conditions. Due to their stealthy nature, it is challenging to generate effective tests to detect hardware Trojans. In this chapter, we describe different test generation approaches for detection of hardware Trojans. We first introduce random test generation and formal methods based test generation, followed by two hybrid approaches: test generation using ATPG and model checking, test generation using concrete simulation and symbolic execution.
Improving Working Conditions to Support Special Educators’ Effectiveness: A Call for Leadership:

Special education teachers (SETs) are expected to use effective practices to improve outcomes for students with disabilities, yet even those who are well-prepared may not be effective in teaching t...
Simultaneous geometric error identification of rotary axis and tool setting in an ultra-precision 5-axis machine tool using on-machine measurement

Abstract This paper presents a method to identify the position independent geometric errors of rotary axis and tool setting simultaneously using on-machine measurement. Reducing geometric errors of an ultra-precision five-axis machine tool is a key to improve machining accuracy. Five-axis machines are more complicated and less rigid than three axis machine tools, which leads to inevitable geometric errors of the rotary axis. Position deviation in the process of installing a tool on the rotary axis magnifies the machining error. Moreover, an ultra-precision machine tool, which is capable of machining part within sub-micrometer accuracy, is relatively more sensitive to the errors than a conventional machine tool. To improve machining performance, the error components must be identified and compensated. While previous approaches have only measured and identified the geometric errors on the rotary axis without considering errors induced in tool setting, this study identifies the geometric errors of the rotary axis and tool setting. The error components are calculated from a geometric error model. The model presents the error components in a function of tool position and angle of the rotary axis. An approach using on-machine measurement is proposed to measure the tool position in the range of 10 s nm. Simulation is conducted to check the sensitivity of the method to noise. The model is validated through experiments. Uncertainty analysis is also presented to validate the confidence of the error identification.
Alveolar Epithelial Cells Up-Regulate microRNA-17 & microRNA-548b in Response to Cold Ischemia - Ex Vivo Reperfusion of Human Lungs

Purpose Ischemia-reperfusion injury after lung transplantation (LTx) is associated with early graft dysfunction, increased morbidity, and mortality. MicroRNA (miR) are identified as critical regulators of gene expression which could provide potential targets for novel gene therapy. Herein, we aim to examine the feasibility of using the ex vivo lung perfusion (EVLP) platform to study miR expression change in human lungs in response to cold ischemia and ex-vivo reperfusion (CI/EVR). Methods Prior to initiating the clinical EVLP program at our institution, our group has established a biobank of human lung tissue according to an approved (cellular) EVLP research protocol. Twenty-four donor lungs that did not meet the ideal criteria for LTx or did not match to an available recipient were used for this study. Samples were obtained after cold ischemia (median 6, interquartile range 5-13 hrs), and after 2 hrs of EVLP. Control samples were obtained from different 6 donors that were stored directly without cold ischemia or reperfusion. MicroRNA expression profiling of lung tissue was performed using next generation sequencing. MicroRNAs with the most significant fold change were validated and detected in the tissues using In-situ hybridization assay. Results Assessment of inflammatory response of the EVLP model using cytokines array showed significant up-regulation of IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, and TNF-α in the perfusate after 2 hours EVLP. MicroRNA sequencing identified significant expression change of a total of 21 miR after cold ischemia and 47 miR after ex-vivo reperfusion when compared to control group. Validation using quantitative PCR showed significant up-regulation of miR-17 & miR548b after CI/EVR. Downstream analysis identified abundant inflammatory and immunologic targets for miR-17 and miR-548b that are known mediators of lung injury. Expression of miR-17 in the lung tissue had a significant negative correlation with IL-8 levels in the perfusate (R = -0.8, p=0.001). In-situ hybridization assays detected positive expression of miR-17 & miR548b in alveolar epithelial cells after CI/EVR. R. Conclusion In this study, we were able to utilize EVLP model to study miR signature in human lungs after CI/EVR. The finding that alveolar epithelial cells up-regulate miR-17 & miR548b in response to CI/EVT is novel and warrant further investigation.
Differences in Racial Disparities in Firearm Homicide across Cities: The Role of Racial Residential Segregation and Gaps in Structural Disadvantage

Abstract Background/Purpose Little research has characterized racial differences in firearm homicide at the city level. In this study, we explicitly model trends from 2000 to 2017 in the gap in homicide rates between the Black and White populations of 275 U.S. cities. Methods We used latent trajectory analysis and latent multi-trajectory analysis to identify distinct groups of cities with similar trends over time in: (a) Black and White firearm homicide rates; and (b) the ratio of the Black to White firearm homicide rates. We used a hierarchical, random effects model to examine the impact of racial segregation and racial gaps in structural disadvantage on the extent of the racial disparity in firearm homicide in each city. Results We found that racial residential segregation predicts differences between cities in the magnitude of racial disparities in firearm homicide rates. Conclusion Reducing racial disparities in firearm homicide may require programs and policies that specifically address the adverse consequences of racial segregation.
A Broad Substrate Scope of Aza-Friedel-Crafts Alkylation for the Synthesis of Quaternary α-Amino Esters.

A versatile synthetic protocol of aza-Friedel-Crafts alkylation has been developed for the synthesis of quaternary α-amino esters. This operationally simple alkylation proceeds under ambient conditions with high efficiency, regioselectivity, and an exceptionally broad scope of arene nucleophiles. A key feature of this alkylation is the role associated with the silver(I) salt counteranions liberated during the reaction. Taking advantage of a phase-transfer counteranion/Bronsted acid pair mechanism, we also report a catalytic enantioselective example of the reaction.
A pivotal role for Interferon-α receptor-1 in neuronal injury induced by HIV-1.

HIV-1 infection remains a major public health concern despite effective combination antiretroviral therapy (cART). The virus enters the central nervous system (CNS) early in infection and continues to cause HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND). The pathogenic mechanisms of HIV-associated brain injury remain incompletely understood. Since HIV-1 activates the type I interferon system, which signals via interferon-α receptor (IFNAR) 1 and 2, this study investigated the potential role of IFNAR1 in HIV-induced neurotoxicity. We cross-bred HIVgp120-transgenic (tg) and IFNAR1 knockout (IFNAR1KO) mice. At 11–14 months of age, we performed a behavioral assessment and subsequently analyzed neuropathological alterations using deconvolution and quantitative immunofluorescence microscopy, quantitative RT-PCR, and bioinformatics. Western blotting of brain lysates and an in vitro neurotoxicity assay were employed for analysis of cellular signaling pathways. We show that IFNAR1KO results in partial, sex-dependent protection from neuronal injury and behavioral deficits in a transgenic model of HIV-induced brain injury. The IFNAR1KO rescues spatial memory and ameliorates loss of presynaptic terminals preferentially in female HIVgp120tg mice. Similarly, expression of genes involved in neurotransmission reveals sex-dependent effects of IFNAR1KO and HIVgp120. In contrast, IFNAR1-deficiency, independent of sex, limits damage to neuronal dendrites, microgliosis, and activation of p38 MAPK and restores ERK activity in the HIVgp120tg brain. In vitro, inhibition of p38 MAPK abrogates neurotoxicity caused similarly by blockade of ERK kinase and HIVgp120. Our findings indicate that IFNAR1 plays a pivotal role in both sex-dependent and independent processes of neuronal injury and behavioral impairment triggered by HIV-1.
STATISTICAL MECHANICS OF THE GLASS TRANSITION

ABSTRACT Statistical mechanical calculation of the configurational thermodynamics of liquids near their glass transition temperatures Tg is formulated in terms of the distribution function ω(∪) giving the number of configurations as a function of potential energy ∪. Conditions any model of liquids near Tg must meet can be inferred by deducing ω(∪) from the known experimental behavior. The ω(∪) so found indicates that behavior near Tg is anti-cooperative in the sense that configurational excitations of the lattice make new excitations in their vicinity less rather than more likely. A possible explanation is given in terms of modes of amorphous packing.
Issues of Identity and Identification

Adequate identification is an indispensable requisite for introducing anything upon the stage of discussion and deliberation. Without it we literally “do not know what we are talking about.”
Mia: A Passionate Pre-Service Bilingual Teacher

Through Mia’s testimonio, readers will meet a college student residing in the U.S., who self-identifies as Mexican. She traverses worlds and languages through her literacies as a nepantlera. “Pocha” is not a dirty word to her, but something she laughs at and embraces. Having benefited from a bilingual program in her first year in the United States at the age of 10, she is passionate about bilingual education as a pre-service teacher, because of the indelible mark her bilingual teacher has made on her family. Her testimonio highlights how her biliteracies have been (re)integrated over the course of her life, how race languaging can transpire through digital resistance literacies, and how language brokering may develop critical multilingual language awareness.
Motor Cortex Encodes A Value Function Consistent With Reinforcement Learning

Temporal difference reinforcement learning (TDRL) accurately models associative learning observed in animals where they learn to predict the reward value of an unconditioned stimulus (US) based on a conditioned stimulus (CS), such as in classical conditioning. A key component of TDRL is the value function, which captures the expected temporally discounted reward from a given state. The value function can also be modified by the animal's knowledge and certainty of its environment. Here we show that not only do primary motor cortex (M1) neurodynamics reflect a TD learning process, but M1 also encodes a value function in line with TDRL. M1 responds to the delivery of an unpredictable reward, and shifts its value related response earlier in a trial, becoming predictive of an expected reward, when reward is predictable, such as when a CS acts as a cue predicting the upcoming reward. This is observed in tasks performed manually or observed passively, as well as in tasks with explicit CS predicting reward, or simply with a predictable temporal task structure, that is a predictable environment. M1 also encodes the expected reward value associated with a CS in a multiple reward level CS-US task. The Microstimulus TD model, reported to accurately capture RL related dopaminergic activity, extends to account for M1 reward related neural activity in a multitude of tasks.
Transforaminal Endoscopic Surgical Treatment for Posterior Migration of Polyetheretherketone Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion Cage: Case Series.

Objective This study aims to report the clinical outcome of treating lumbar radiculopathy in the setting of retropulsed polyetheretherketone (PEEK) transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF) cages with transforaminal endoscopic spine surgery. Methods A retrospective study of 8 patients with lumbar radiculopathy in the setting of a retropulsed PEEK TLIF cage were included from January 2014 to January 2019. The inclusion criteria were 1) lumbar radiculopathy in the setting of a retropulsed PEEK TLIF cage causing nerve compression and 2) follow-up at least 1 year. Patients were asked to complete the following questionnaires for outcome evaluation: visual analog scales (VAS) for leg pain and the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI). Results Eight patients underwent transforaminal endoscopic surgery for treatment of radiculopathy in the setting of a retropulsed PEEK TLIF cage in the 5-year period evaluated. One year after surgery, the VAS and ODI scores showed a significant decrease: average preoperative VAS and ODI scores were 6.9 ± 1.2 and 50.5 ± 10.9, and 1-year postoperative VAS and ODI scores were 2.3 ± 1.3 and 17.3 ± 5.1. Conclusions Transforaminal endoscopic spine surgery for the treatment of a retropulsed PEEK TLIF cage is a safe and effective approach with low morbidity and acceptable complication rates for patients with radiculopathy secondary to a retropulsed PEEK TLIF cage. Compared with a more invasive approach to removing or drilling the PEEK TLIF cage, endoscopic spine surgery could achieve a similar improvement in the patient-reported outcomes with possibly fewer complications.
Reassessing the impact of tumor size on operative approach in adrenocortical carcinoma.

BACKGROUND Adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC) is often a contraindication to minimally invasive adrenalectomy (MIA). We used an administrative data set to analyze postoperative outcomes. We hypothesized that small tumors would have better short- and long-term outcomes, independent of the operative approach. METHODS The National Cancer Database (2010-2016) identified patients with ACC who underwent adrenalectomy. Tumors were grouped: 10 cm (n = 443). The primary and secondary outcomes were margin positivity and overall survival, respectively. RESULTS Nine hundred and ninety-nine patients were analyzed: 37% MIA and 63% open adrenalectomy (OA). As the size increased, the rate of attempted MIA decreased. Larger tumors were associated with conversion to open. Although tumors with local invasion and those which required conversion to open were associated with an increased likelihood of a positive margin, tumor size was not. Although "complete" MIA (vs. OA) and tumor size were not associated with differences in survival, conversion (HR = 1.83, p = .02), positive margins (HR = 1.54, p = .01), and local invasion (HR = 1.84, p < .001) were associated with poor survival. CONCLUSION Positive margins are associated with poor survival in ACC. Tumors ≥ 5 cm were associated with an increased conversion rate and subsequent increase in margin positivity. MIA may be considered for select patients with small tumors but adequate oncologic resection is critical.
Nanostructure regularity in white beetle scales for stability and strong optical scattering [Invited]

Cyphochilus white beetle scales exhibit exceptionally strong light scattering power that originates from their regular random fibrillar network nanostructure. The structure is believed to be formed by late-stage spinodal decomposition in a lipid membrane system. However, the structure is characterized by nonconstant mean curvatures and appreciable anisotropy, which are not expected from late-stage spinodal decomposition, so that the surface free energy is not minimized. Nevertheless, a high degree of regularity represented by the relatively uniform fibril dimensions and smooth fibril surfaces in the structure may result from a process similar to spinodal decomposition. In this study, we investigate the role of regularity in the Cyphochilus white beetle scale structure in realizing strong light scattering. Irregularity is computationally introduced into the structure in a systematic fashion such that its anisotropy is preserved and its surface area is kept constant. Calculations show that optical scattering power decreases as irregularity increases with a high sensitivity. This effect happens because, remarkably, irregularity on a scale much smaller than the wavelength destroys anisotropy in optical diffusion. Thus, the result shows that the in vivo process in Cyphochilus white beetle scales utilizes structural regularity and anisotropy to achieve strong light scattering at a tolerable surface free energy. In typical fabrication of random media, irregularity and multiple length scales typically increase surface area, so that durability of the nanostructures may be negatively affected. Our study indicates that regularity in anisotropic random nanostructures can achieve strong light scattering with a moderate surface free energy.
Osteopontin deficiency leads to the resolution of prostatic fibrosis and inflammation

Fibrogenic and inflammatory processes in the prostate are linked to the development of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) in men. Our previous studies identified that osteopontin (OPN), a pro-fibrotic cytokine, is abundant in the prostate of men with LUTS and its secretion is stimulated by inflammatory cytokines potentially to drive fibrosis. This study investigates whether the lack of OPN ameliorates inflammation and fibrosis in the mouse prostate. We instilled uropathogenic E. coli (UTI89) or saline (control) transurethrally to C57BL/6J (WT) or Spp1tm1Blh/J (OPN-KO) mice and collected the prostates one or 8 weeks later. We found that OPN mRNA and protein expression were significantly induced by E. coli-instillation in the dorsal prostate (DP) after one week in WT mice. Deficiency in OPN expression led to decreased inflammation and fibrosis and the prevention of urinary dysfunction after 8 weeks. RNAseq analysis identified that E. coli-instilled WT mice expressed increased levels of inflammatory and fibrotic marker RNAs compared to OPN-KO mice including Col3a1, Dpt, Lum and Mmp3 which were confirmed by RNAscope. Our results indicate that OPN is induced by inflammation and prolongs the inflammatory state; genetic blockade of OPN accelerates recovery after inflammation, including a resolution of prostate fibrosis.
A sound resolution to the food paradox in the sea

The average concentrations of biota in the ocean are generally low, presenting a critical problem for ocean consumers. In seminal experimental work in the 1970s, Lasker demonstrated that animals fed the average food concentrations measured using nets and pumps do not survive, presenting a paradox for life in the sea. Active acoustics, in contrast to more traditional tools, allow us to sample a wide range of animals at high spatial and temporal resolution. Employing a variety of platforms including ships, profilers, moorings, and autonomous vehicles to deploy acoustic sensors, often guided by the predators themselves, we find that instead of being relatively devoid of life, the ocean is peppered with narrow hot spots of activity. These features, often missed with traditional sampling tools, exist from the surface ocean to the deep sea, the tropics to the poles, in animals ranging from plankton and fish to squid and whales. These small patches of plenty have impacts on ecosystems disproportionate to their contribution to the total biomass. Small aggregations provide the key to solving experimentally demonstrated feeding paradoxes as well providing a mechanism for evolution in an apparently isotropic environment where there are no obvious barriers to gene flow, Hutchinson’s “Paradox of Plankton.”
A Review of “ Forensic Geology ”

This book is a rewrite of a book written in 1975 by the same authors, entitled “Forensic Geology: Earth Sciences and Criminal Investigation.” At the time this was practically the only treatise on the forensic aspects of geology. Surprisingly, this remains the case today with this 1992 edition.