cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Statin Intensity or Achieved LDL? Practice-based Evidence for the Evaluation of New Cholesterol Treatment Guidelines.

Background The recently updated American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association cholesterol treatment guidelines outline a paradigm shift in the approach to cardiovascular risk reduction. One major change included a recommendation that practitioners prescribe fixed dose statin regimens rather than focus on specific LDL targets. The goal of this study was to determine whether achieved LDL or statin intensity was more strongly associated with major adverse cardiac events (MACE) using practice-based data from electronic health records (EHR).
The effects of two doses of spironolactone on serum androgens and anagen hair in hirsute women

Spironolactone (S) has been used successfully for the treatment of hirsutism. We evaluated whether the effects of S on serum androgens and hair growth are dose-related and whether S affects secreted androgens to the same degree as peripherally derived androgens. Two groups of 15 hirsute patients, similarly matched, received either 100 or 200 mg S daily for 3 months. Serum total testosterone (T) decreased significantly (P less than 0.05) and to a similar degree with both dosages, whereas unbound T was unaltered. Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate was unaltered, whereas androstenedione decreased with 200 mg S (P less than 0.05). Peripherally derived serum dihydrotestosterone decreased to a similar degree with 100 and 200 mg S (P less than 0.05), whereas 5 alpha-androstane-3 alpha-17 beta-diol (3 alpha-diol) increased (P less than 0.05) similarly with both dosages. Serum 3 alpha-diol glucuronide (3 alpha-diol-G) increased with both dosages, but not significantly. Anagen hair shaft diameters decreased significantly in both groups by 19% +/- 8% and 30% +/- 4% (P less than 0.05). No correlation was found between hair growth and serum androgens. Because serum unbound T was largely unaltered by S, it is suggested that the antiandrogenic effects of S are primarily related to its peripheral effect. However, there is no good clinical marker for this effect as levels of 3 alpha-diol and 3 alpha-diol-G increase.
Cognitive Schemas as Mediating Variables of the Relationship Between the Self-Defeating Personality and Depression

The current investigation was designed to examine particular maladaptive cognitive schemas as mediating variables of the relationship between the self-defeating personality and depression. A total of 82 mildly to severely depressed adult outpatients, referred for counseling and psychotherapy services, were assessed in terms of self-defeating personality and maladaptive cognitive schema characteristics. Results indicated that 57% of the variance within depression, measured by the Beck Depression Inventory (Beck, Rush, Shaw, & Emery, 1979), was accounted for by the self-defeating personality and five maladaptive cognitive schemas: abandonment/instability; defectiveness/shame; failure; subjugation; and vulnerability to harm. Further, mediation analyses indicated that abandonment/instability and defectiveness/shame statistically mediated the relationship between the self-defeating personality and depression. Results are discussed in light of contemporary theories of depression.
AwardU: A Formal, Fair, Fun Program to Honor IT Staff

In 2014, we began to create an employee recognition program for about 110 employees in the Office of Information Technology at West Virginia University. Immediately after initiating the project, the Chief Information Officer announced that our unit would be merging with several others, more than doubling in size under the new name, Information Technology Services. We needed a way to not only recognize good work and good deeds in a timely fashion, but also to create a stronger sense of unity among these newly merged IT organizations with different cultures and practices.Over six months, a large, diverse committee built a scalable, transparent, accountable, peer-judged program aimed at improving employee morale and retention. With both positive and negative examples of past, unstructured, personality-dependent programs in mind, the AwardU Committee designed a system that is fair, unbiased and inclusive. With well thought-out definitions of recognizable excellence and three categories, we have awards that anyone in ITS can win, regardless of the nature of their duties.Determining key ITS values and principles helped us design a meaningful, rule-driven program that staff would use, appreciate and support, all within the confines of financially restrictive state ethics laws regarding employee recognition. The RockIT Awards were designed BY employees FOR employees. The program today is formal, fair and fun, complete with an awards breakfast, unique prizes and hand-poured metal trophies that travel among winners like the Stanley Cup in the NHL."This program is bigger than any of us, required all of us and is made to continue without us," Chairman Steven Marra told the committee after our first year. Six quarters in, we have a charter, functional data, formative notes and anecdotes we believe could help others emulate this program even as it continues to evolve.
The Temporal Meaning of Transcendence

Having brought into relief the ‘matters themselves’ of Heidegger’s phenomenological account of the origin of Dasein’s transcendence toward world in its essential freedom, what now needs to be considered is his account of how “the stepping-beyond entities in transcendence, which is carried out toward all its dimensions, is grounded in the ecstatic composition (Verfassung) of temporality” (MFL, 212/275). Within the context of the discussion of Heidegger’s account of the phenomenon of intentionality, the consideration of temporality, as the ground of transcendence, will serve to show precisely how he understands intentionality to have its ultimate phenomenal basis in what he calls the “ecstematic unity of the horizon of temporality”(MFL, 208/269). Heidegger’s exhibition of the latter, as the “temporal condition for the possibility of world and of world’s essential belonging to transcendence” (MFL, 208/269-70), will then be considered in its function to manifest “that (Das) and how the intentionality of consciousness is grounded in the ecstatic temporality of Dasein” (BT, 498n. 23/363n. 10).1 Proceeding in this way, the discussion will bring into bold relief the ultimate phenomenal basis for Heidegger’s calling into question, both the priority and originality, of the phenomenon of intentionality. For the purposes of the present study, Heidegger’s analysis of temporality in the The Metaphysical Foundation of Logic will form the basis for the discussion of his account of the phenomenon of time, “because here he is concerned with merely showing the implications which temporality has for the issue of intentionality.”2
Implementation of a Hematological Malignancy-Based Survivorship Clinic.

Abstract 4550 BACKGROUND There are approximately twelve million cancer survivors in the United States. Cancer survivors are at increased risk for health complications such as heart disease, secondary malignancies, and psychological distress. Reflecting the significant needs of cancer survivors as part of our health care system, the Institute of Medicine issued a seminal report, From Cancer Patient to Cancer Survivor: Lost in Transition, recognizing cancer survivorship as a “distinct phase of cancer care.” A dedicated survivorship clinic with creation of personal care plans and treatment summaries can serve the needs of this growing cohort of patients. OBJECTIVE To determine the viability of a hematological malignancy-based survivorship clinic with treatment summary and care plan for survivors. The malignancies include all lymphomas, leukemias, plasma cell dyscrasias, myeloproliferative disorders, and hematopoietic stem cell transplant patients. METHODS A literature search was initiated examining recommendations and guidelines regarding follow-up of cancer patients. We incorporated and consolidated guidelines from ASCO, NMDP, NCCN, and COG, pertinent articles from the MEDLINE/PubMed database, and the growing literature from cancer survivorship textbooks and lectures. Awareness of the program was to be initiated with letters to affiliated physicians, lecture series, patient-oriented educational handouts, and articles in the hospital literature. DATA SYNTHESIS A treatment care plan was devised for all survivorship clinic patients. This care plan summarized patients9 prior care with recommendations for follow-up – such as cardiac and cancer screening, osteoporosis, thyroid disease, and vaccination schedules–all based on our consolidative review of available evidence-based or expert guidelines. A referral base was developed with specialists focused on lymphedema, psychiatric issues (needs determined by screening tools), social work, art therapy, exercise, and nutrition. RESULTS Patients from affiliated hematologists/oncologists were seen in the survivorship clinic. Unique care plans were devised for them. A satisfaction survey was to be implemented. Preliminary satisfaction from both physicians and the patients themselves was positive. CONCLUSION A hematological-based survivorship clinic is feasible and fills an important need in our large, urban, hospital-based cancer center. Further investigation will focus on developing a computer-based treatment summary and care plan, increasing patient referrals, and developing a lecture series devoted to survivorship issues. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
A programme to create short-course chemotherapy for pulmonary Mycobacterium avium disease based on pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics and mathematical forecasting

Objectives Pulmonary Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) prevalence is on the rise worldwide. The average therapy duration is 1.5 years, which is associated with poor cure rates. Our objective was to develop a programme to design a combination therapy regimen for pulmonary MAC to be administered for 6 months or less with efficacy in > 90% of patients. Methods We performed a literature search for the following MeSH headings 'Mycobacterium avium' AND 'pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics' in PubMed up to 2016. The findings were then used to identify steps in the programme to design new regimens with faster microbial kill rates than the current standard regimen. Results First, we designed a strategy for rapid in vitro screening of all antibiotic classes for repurposing against pulmonary MAC. Secondly, we identified and compared maximal microbial kill rates (Emax), and optimal exposures of eight different antibiotics. These studies had all been performed in the hollow-fibre system model of pulmonary MAC (HFS-MAC). Thirdly, all drugs with a high Emax at clinically achievable optimal exposures will be chosen, and exposures associated with synergy or additivity for two/three drugs identified based on Bliss independence. Fourthly, the time-kill slopes and resistance suppression of the chosen combinations will be compared with those of standard combination therapy in the HFS-MAC. Finally, we will identify the clinical doses best able to achieve synergistic or additive combination exposures by taking into account pharmacokinetic variability. Conclusions Our stepwise pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics approach provides a scientific rationale and a strategy for achieving short-course chemotherapy for pulmonary MAC disease within a few years.
Propagation Effects in Optical and Wireless Communications Channels, Noise Sources, and Channel Impairments

This chapter discusses the propagation effects, noise sources, and channel impairments for wireless communications, free-space optical communications, and fiber-optics communications. The key idea of the chapter is to derive the wave equation for a given medium from Maxwell’s equation and determine its solution subject to corresponding boundary conditions. After the introduction of the vector derivatives in orthogonal curvilinear, cylindrical polar, and spherical coordinate systems, we study vectorial nature of the light, derive Snell’s law of refraction from Maxwell’s equations, study total internal reflection, and explain the light confinement in step-index optical fibers. We also describe how arbitrary polarization state can be generated by employing three basic polarizing elements, namely, polarizer, phase shifter (retarder), and rotator. We then introduce the electromagnetic potentials to simplify the study of generation of electromagnetic waves, followed by antenna theory basics. We then discuss interference, coherence, and diffraction in optics. After that the detailed description of laser beam propagation effects over the atmospheric turbulence channels is provided, including the description of simulation models. In the section on wireless communication channel effects, we study path loss, shadowing, and multipath fading propagation effects. Both ray theory-based and statistical multipath wireless communication channel models are described. We then move to signal propagation effects in optical fibers and describe (1) fiber attenuation and insertion loss, (2) chromatic dispersion effects, (3) polarization-mode dispersion effects, and (4) fiber nonlinearities. Regarding the fiber nonlinearities, both Kerr nonlinear effects (self-phase modulation, cross-phase modulation) and nonlinear scattering effects, such as stimulated Raman scattering, are described. The generalized nonlinear Schrodinger equation is then described for both single-mode and few-mode fibers as well as the corresponding split-step Fourier algorithms to solve it. The following noise sources related to optical communication are described: mode partition noise, relative intensity noise, laser phase noise, modal noise, thermal noise, spontaneous emission noise, noise beating components, quantum shot noise, dark current noise, and cross talk. Finally, in section on indoor optical wireless communications, the channel models for both infrared and visible light communications are described.
Drifting buoy and autonomous submersible designs for the scientific exploration of Titan's seas

The Cassini spacecraft has revealed that Saturn's frigid moon Titan has north polar seas of liquid methane and ethane. Titan serves as a new laboratory for physical oceanography, with familiar processes such as air-sea gas and heat exchange, and the generation of waves and circulation by wind, occurring under instructively different conditions from Earth. There are indications that Titan's seas have varied in extent due to astronomical and geological climate forcing, and shoreline and seabed deposits may bear a record of this evolution. NASA studies have begun to explore platform designs for the exploration of these seas. Particular factors that differentiate ocean exploration on Titan vs on Earth are the need for autonomy in deployment and operation, the cryogenic temperatures, the non-polar (radio-transparent and electrically-insulating) and volatile character of the liquid, and the means for communication with Earth. The relative merits of submersible and floating platforms are discussed.
Carrier-selective contact GaP/Si solar cells grown by molecular beam epitaxy

Integration of the III–V material systems on Si is an enabling technology for achieving high efficiency heterojunction Si-based photovoltaic devices. Gallium phosphide (GaP) offers numerous potential electrical, optical, and material advantages over amorphous silicon (a-Si) for the realization of several heterojunction solar cell designs. In this paper, details are given for the growth, fabrication, and characterization of different n-GaP/n-Si heterojunction solar cells to explore the effect of GaP as a carrier-selective contact. The cell performance is promising with high Si bulk lifetime (∼2.2 ms at the injection level of 1015 cm−3) and an open-circuit voltage of 618 mV and an efficiency of 13.1% in this new solar cell design. In addition to GaP as an electron-selective contact, MoOx was successfully implemented as a hole-selective contact in the n-GaP/n-Si heterojunction solar cell, increasing efficiency to 14.1% by improving the short wavelength response. The Si bulk lifetime is maintained during growth of GaP on Si by two different approaches and their effects on GaP/Si solar cell performance are also presented.
The Diophantine Equation X2 + 7 = 2n

(1987). The Diophantine Equation X2 + 7 = 2n. The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 94, No. 1, pp. 59-62.
Thoughts on Melanoma

The reputation of melanaoma as a ruthless killer and the alarming increase in the incidence of this disease have inspired controversies in its management. The author discusses arguments about incidence and etiology, premelanomatous lesions, prognosis, diagnosis, effects of biopsy, value of prophylactic lymph-node dissection, laboratory diagnosis, medicolegal implications, and therapy.
Class Certification in the Age of Aggregate Proof

Few pre-trial motions in our civil justice system elicit as much controversy as those for the certification of class actions. This Article offers the first account in the literature of the challenges faced today by courts in light of an important series of federal appellate decisions that direct the courts to resolve competing expert submissions on the class certification question in the pre-trial stage - even when the dispute overlaps with the merits of the litigation - in the course of determining the application of Rule 23.Across broad swaths of class action litigation today, proponents of class certification invoke aggregate proof - evidence, typically of an economic or statistical nature, that presupposes the cohesiveness of the aggregate unit for litigation and, from that perspective, seeks to reveal quantitatively a common wrong attributable to the defendant. Debates over the proper role of aggregate proof unite what otherwise might seem disparate disputes over class certification today across securities, antitrust, RICO, consumer fraud, and employment discrimination litigation. Too often, however, courts have taken at face value the evidentiary form that aggregate proof assumes in class certification.This Article urges a new conceptualization of the challenges facing courts in class certification today. The real question about aggregate proof in class certification is not one that speaks to the relationship between the court and the fact finder in the (usually, purely hypothetical) event of a class-wide trial. Rather, the institutional relationship that really matters is the one between the court and the legislature as expositors of governing law. Properly understood, aggregate proof offers not so much a contested view of the facts but, more fundamentally, a contested account of governing law - one eminently suited for judicial resolution and appellate correction de novo, without concern about possible intrusion into the role of the fact finder.This Article exposes how renewed attention to the judicial role to say what the law is can lend coherence to the law of class certification, offering the first extended assessment of such controversial recent litigation as the civil RICO class action against the tobacco industry concerning its marketing of light cigarettes and the largest employment discrimination class action in history against Wal-Mart concerning the pay and promotion of its hourly female employees. The Article concludes by relating the analysis of class certification to larger changes in the civil justice system to grapple with the reality of settlement, rather than trial, as the endgame of litigation.
The genetic basis of bipolar disorder

Bipolar disorder has long been known to have a strong genetic component, with heritability estimates ranging between 80–90%. However, major breakthroughs on the molecular genetic level have remained elusive. Linkage and candidate gene association studies produced a host of reports, but failed to deliver consistently replicable results. This may in part be attributed to limited sample sizes and high degrees of phenotypic and genotypic heterogeneity. The advent of genome-wide association studies (GWAS) has spurred new hopes for the identification of true susceptibility genes. After close to a century of genetic studies, bipolar disorder is emerging as a complex (non-Mendelian) disorder with a polygenic etiology. The search for common genetic variants with small effects by GWAS will probably have to be complemented by approaches that can detect rare genetic variations with larger effects, such as copy number variants. Progress would be much enhanced by improved phenotype definitions that reduce genetic heterogeneity.
Limelight v. Akamai: Limiting Induced Infringement

In Limelight Networks, Inc. v. Akamai Technologies, Inc., the Supreme Court addressed the relationship between direct infringement under § 271(a) of the Patent Act and induced infringement under § 271(b). The Court held that a defendant could be liable for inducing infringement of a patented process only if a single party would have been liable for performing all of the steps constituting direct infringement.In this short article, I provide the background to the opinion, discuss the ruling, and offer four lessons, which address: (1) the text of the Patent Act, (2) the Supreme Court’s treatment of the Federal Circuit, (3) the question of direct infringement, and (4) policy issues presented by congressional action.
Erythropoiesis: an overview

Red blood cell production in vertebrates is dynamic and tightly regulated with losses due to senescence or bleeding in normal individuals being balanced by generation of new red cells. The main function of the red cells is to transport oxygen from the lungs to tissues in all parts of the body and to transport carbon dioxide back for exchange. Healthy adult humans maintain a total of 2–3×1013 erythrocytes at any given time, with men having 5–6 million and woman having 4–5 million erythrocytes/microliter blood [1]. The normal life span of an erythrocyte is approximately 120 days in the blood requiring a daily replacement of about 1% of the circulating erythrocytes [1]. To put the numbers of red cells needed daily into perspective, in an adult human maintenance of steady-state red cell numbers requires the generation of 2×106 erythrocytes every second. Moreover, basal oxygen consumption is 4 mL/kg/min and body stores are approximately five times greater, emphasizing the need to maintain a stable red cell mass while having the capacity to increase red cells during times of tissue hypoxia [1,2]. Changes in the production of erythrocytes from a steady-level will occur in response to blood loss, increased oxygen demand, altered erythrocyte lifespan, or diseases.
Semantic SLAM for an AUV using object recognition from point clouds

Abstract This paper presents a navigation and mapping system for an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) while operating near a man-made underwater environment. The objective is to recognize objects (or object parts) and use these as landmarks for simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM). This approach is intended as the first step towards autonomous object manipulation, to be carried out at a later stage. The approach contains two main components: Object recognition from range data, and feature-based semantic SLAM. For the first component we propose an automatic method for the recognition and location of 3D objects using 3D point clouds as input, extracted from a laser scanner. Since it is common in inspection maintenance and repair (IMR) applications to have access to the 3D models of the objects of interest, the proposed method assumes a priori knowledge of the 3D models of these objects. In typical man-made environments, such objects can be distinct components of a structure, such as valves, pipes and wet-mateable connectors. The object recognition is based on recently proposed global descriptors for point clouds, that allow a compact description of the object shape, which is independent of the object view point. Once an object is recognized, its pose with respect to the AUV is determined using an ICP-based method. The second component of the approach is a feature based SLAM algorithm that uses the recognized objects as landmarks to improve the AUV navigation. The paper presents preliminary results obtained with the Girona 500 AUV, equipped with a fast laser scanner recently developed at the University of Girona. Tests conducted in a controlled environment (water tank) illustrate the suitability of the approach.
Potential for Using Borates to Mitigate the Risk of Phytophthora ramorum Spread on Douglas-Fir Logs

Abstract Phytophthora ramorum is an increasingly important tree pathogen in northern California and southern Oregon. While it has the greatest effect on tanoak, it can infect a wide range of tree species, including Douglas-fir. Oregon has instituted a quarantine area to slow the spread of this pathogen, and there are concerns that further restrictions may be imposed on log movement, including those of Douglas-fir. The potential for using boron as a log treatment to limit P. ramorum was evaluated. While boron either alone or in a glycol solution was capable of moving into the bark, there was no evidence that it could move further into the sapwood. The results suggest that bark removal would be necessary for the use of boron as a mitigation agent for the spread of P. ramorum.
CAR NK and CAR T cells versus CTL: factors limiting the sensitivity and efficiency of engineered cytolytic effectors

Factors limiting highly sensitive and efficient responses of virus- and cancer-specific CTL have been extensively studied. However, the sensitivity and effectiveness of T cells transduced with CAR specific for target molecules on cancer cells have been less characterized. We endowed NK92 cells and T cells purified from human cord blood with second generation CAR specific for High Molecular Weight Melanoma Associated Antigen (HMW-MMA) and compared the ability of CAR-NK92 and CAR-T cells to kill skin melanoma and uveal melanoma cell lines in in vitro cytolytic assay. We also evaluated the ability of established human virus-specific CTL clones to kill the same target cells presenting cognate pMHC ligands. Skin melanoma cells were more sensitive to specific lysis than uveal melanoma cells. The extent of the specific lysis strongly depended on the level of HMW-MMA expression. CTL clones appeared to be more superior effectors than CAR-NK92 or CAR-T cells as they lysed the melanoma cells that displayed much lower levels of cognate pMHC ligands. CAR-NK92 cells proliferated more vigorously than NK92 cells and maintained the level of CAR expression in culture. In contrast, CAR-CD8+T cells exhibited lower proliferative capacity than the control T cells and were losing cell surface CAR expression. We are currently evaluating the extent of TCR vs CAR clustering and co-clustering of CAR with TCR at the cell surface. We are also comparing Ca 2+ flux and granule release by CAR-NK92, CAR-CD8 T cells and CTL in response to CAR or TCR stimulation. Disparities in these parameters could account for differential sensitivity and efficiency of engineered and natural cytolytic effectors.
Carrying the misery to adulthood: the impact of childhood sexual abuse on adulthood impulse control through depression and suicidal thoughts

Childhood sexual abuse (CSA) has been linked to a wide range of negative outcomes, including the development of low impulse control in adulthood. Because previous studies have identified impulsivit...
Automated 3D recovery from very high resolution multi-view satellite images.

This paper presents an automated pipeline for processing multi-view satellite images to 3D digital surface models (DSM). The proposed pipeline performs automated geo-referencing and generates high-quality densely matched point clouds. In particular, a novel approach is developed that fuses multiple depth maps derived by stereo matching to generate high-quality 3D maps. By learning critical configurations of stereo pairs from sample LiDAR data, we rank the image pairs based on the proximity of the results to the sample data. Multiple depth maps derived from individual image pairs are fused with an adaptive 3D median filter that considers the image spectral similarities. We demonstrate that the proposed adaptive median filter generally delivers better results in general as compared to normal median filter, and achieved an accuracy of improvement of 0.36 meters RMSE in the best case. Results and analysis are introduced in detail.
Competition, Narrative, and Literary Copia in the Works of Boncompagno da Signa and Guido Faba

This study argues for the importance of competitive discourse in placing the study of the ars dictaminis within the cosmopolitan tradition of humanistic Latin literature in the Middle Ages, particularly as it is expressed in the writing of Boncompagno da Signa and Guido Faba at Bologna in the first decades of the thirteenth century. Examining cultural links and similarities to the competitive literary culture of twelfth century humanism in France and northern Europe (especially the Goliardic poets), it also compares the function and relative prestige of ars dictaminis to other studies at Bologna, especally canon law. This comparison focuses in particular on the respective ways each discipline employs narrative fictions, and this comparison establishes the humanistic literary character of the cultivation of ars dictaminis. Ronald Witt has argued that the textual culture of Bologna in Boncompagno's day is dominated by a practical legal orientation, but this study would qualify that claim by exploring the literary copiousness of Boncompagno's writing and the literary character of several of his works, including the Rota Veneris; it likewise links this literary performance to a pattern of competitive discourse that elevates ars dictaminis above other disciplines, Bologna above other studia, and Boncompagno above other masters. The study then turns to the work of Guido Faba, especially the Summa dictaminis and Dictamina rhetorica to explore how Guido deepens and broadens Boncompagno's competitive discourse, especially through the epistolary narrative sequences of the Dictamina rhetorica.
FDG-PET of mouse breast cancers on ketogenic vs. standard chow diets, with or without added rapamycin.

280 Objectives: Prior pilot studies have shown that ketogenic diets may stabilize PET 18F-FDG markers of progression in advanced cancers (1) without unsafe adverse effects and can inhibit cancer growth in vitro without adversely affecting normal cells(2). A ketogenic diet (KD) vs. a standard chow diet (SD), each with or without supplemental oral rapamycin (Rapa), were provided to mice in a model of breast cancer. The goal was to compare potential effects on PET-FDG uptake. Insulin inhibition, as is seen on a KD, can interfere with mTOR and other signaling molecules of growth and resistance to apoptosis within cancer cells. Further, ketone bodies have been demonstrated to have histone deacetylase inhibitor activity. We hypothesized that insulin inhibition due to carbohydrate restriction, as well as ketosis, would slow tumor growth vs. a standard diet. We also hypothesized that added rapamycin would have a synergistic effect on tumor inhibition. Synergies of KD with PI3K inhibitors in mouse models of cancer have also recently been published (3). Methods: Mice with spontaneous breast cancers (transgenic mouse strain FVB/N-Tg (MMTV-PyVT) 634Mul/J), at 6 weeks of life, were begun on either a KD (<1% carbohydrate-CHO) vs. SD (55% CHO) (n=3 mice each), all with 10% protein. Additional groups of mice (n=3) on KD as well as SD were also assigned to supplemental Rapa 0.4 mM and 4 mM. Mice were imaged at 35 days after arrival, when tumors were palpable. Imaging was performed after injection of 100 uCi 18F-FDG on a Siemens Inveon MicroPET scanner. Breast tumor regions of interest (ROI’s) were drawn manually, and parameters measured were total breast tumor volume (TV) and total glycolytic volume (GV). GV was calculated = mean SUV x TV. Tumor volume was obtained solely for the purpose of calculating GV. Results: Total tumor Glycolytic Volume (2857ul) on a KD was substantially and significantly (p<0.001) lower than the respective value for mice on a SD (7818ul). In mice with added rapamycin therapy, the GV for KD + R 0.4 mM was 2812ul, not significantly different from the KD without R; while the SD + R showed reduction in GV to 3005ul (from 7818ul). On 4 mM R, total GV for mice on the KD +R was 2233ul compared to GV for SD +R at 1930ul. Conclusions: A ketogenic diet reduces the rate of tumor growth in mice with spontaneous breast tumors compared with standard mouse chow, as hypothesized. Adding orally ingested rapamycin further slowed growth rates of both groups, but differences due to the diets vanished. Rapamycin dominates the cancer inhibiting effects on glycolytic volume when added to a ketogenic diet as measured on 18F-FDG PET FDG scans.
Physician Practice Location: An Examination of Physician Workforce Data Sources, Their Spatial Concordance and Reliability

Purpose: This study compares and contrasts locational identification (physician practice ZIP code) between several physician demographic databases and a research team-verified ZIP code to determine spatial concordance. Accuracy of physician location data is critical for both successful national physician workforce planning and for assessing the fulfillment of distinct regional medical school missions. Methods: Three physician databases; the American Medical Association’s Physician Masterfile, the National Provider and Plan Enumeration System (NPPES), and the Minnesota Board of Medical Practice’s Licensure File were compared against each other as well as a set of actively verified practice location ZIP codes. A sampling frame of medical school alumni from 2003 to 2014 was selected. The sample included alumni from both regional and main campuses. From this alumni sample, a random sample of four hundred individuals were selected for closer examination. Descriptive frequencies are presented for the concordance of ZIP codes for the sample of four hundred alumni. Findings: From an initial cohort of 2,605 University of Minnesota medical school alumni, a sample of 400 who also possessed a Minnesota medical license were randomly selected to examine concordance rates. The highest rate of concordance was the verified ZIP code and the Minnesota Licensure Board practice ZIP code at 68.8%. Only 42.0% of practice location ZIP codes matched across all databases. Conclusions: The concordance rate across practice ZIP codes in the databases does not inspire confidence in ability to characterize true physician practice location. Some of the difficulties in defining, identifying and maintaining information on physician practice location are discussed. Without accurate and precise practice location information, the development and implementation of comprehensive national health policies for the United States may face difficulties. The lack of reliable physician practice location data also presents a challenge to regional medical school campuses that depend upon accurate physician location data to evaluate progress toward mission-directed workforce goals.
Understanding Geographic Variation in Systemic Overuse Among the Privately Insured.

BACKGROUND Medical care overuse is a significant source of patient harm and wasteful spending. Understanding the drivers of overuse is essential to the design of effective interventions. OBJECTIVE We tested the association between structural factors of the health care delivery system and regional differences systemic overuse. RESEARCH DESIGN We conducted a retrospective analysis of deidentified claims for 18- to 64-year-old adults from the IBM MarketScan Commercial Claims and Encounters Database. We calculated a semiannual Johns Hopkins Overuse Index for each of the 375 Metropolitan Statistical Areas in the United States, from January 2011 to June 2015. We fit an ordinary least squares regression to model the Johns Hopkins Overuse Index as a function of regional characteristics of the health care system, adjusted for confounders and time. RESULTS The supply of regional health care resources was associated with systemic overuse in commercially insured beneficiaries. Regional characteristics associated with systemic overuse included number of physicians per 1000 residents (P=0.001) and higher Medicare malpractice geographic price cost index (P<0.001). Regions with a higher density of primary care physicians (P=0.008) and a higher proportion of hospital-based providers (P=0.016) had less systemic overuse. Differences in hospital and insurer market power were inversely associated with systemic overuse. CONCLUSIONS Systemic overuse is associated with observable, structural characteristics of the regional health care system. These findings suggest that interventions that aim to improve care efficiency via reductions in overuse should focus on the structural drivers of this phenomenon, rather than on the eradication of individual overused procedures.
Genetic Diversity and Conservation Status of Helianthus verticillatus, an Endangered Sunflower of the Southern United States

Evaluating species diversity and patterns of population genetic variation is an essential aspect of conservation biology to determine appropriate management strategies and preserve the biodiversity of native plants. Habitat fragmentation and potential habitat loss are often an outcome of a reduction in naturally occurring wildfires and controlled prescribed burning, as seen in Helianthus verticillatus (whorled sunflower). This endangered, wild relative of the common sunflower, Helianthus annuus, is endemic to four locations in Alabama, Georgia, and Tennessee, United States. Despite its endangered status, there is no recovery plan for H. verticillatus, and knowledge related to its basic plant biology and importance in ecosystem services is mostly unknown. In this study, we utilized 14 microsatellite loci to investigate fine-scale population structure and genetic diversity of H. verticillatus individuals found on two sampling sites within the Georgia population. Our results indicated moderate genetic diversity and the presence of two distinct genetic clusters. Analyses of molecular variance indicated that the majority of variance was individually based, thus confirming high genetic differentiation and limited gene flow between H. verticillatus collection sites. The evidence of a population bottleneck in these sites suggests a recent reduction in population size that could be explained by habitat loss and population fragmentation. Also, high levels of linkage disequilibrium were detected, putatively suggesting clonal reproduction among these individuals. Our study provides a better understanding of fine-scale genetic diversity and spatial distribution of H. verticillatus populations in Georgia. Our results can underpin an original recovery plan for H. verticillatus that could be utilized for the conservation of this endangered species and to promote its persistence in the wild.
Uterine sarcomas, insight into its risk factors: A systematic review.

e23540Background: Uterine sarcomas are rare and aggressive malignant tumors that arise from the smooth muscle or connective tissue cells of the uterus. They account for approximately 1% of the fema...
Ethical Considerations in Designing Virtual and Augmented Reality Products--Virtual and Augmented Reality Design with Students in Mind: Designers' Perceptions.

Developers and designers of virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR) products are expressing concerns regarding accountability for ethical design and use of VR/AR products in virtual learning environm...
Predicting transphobia among cisgender women and men: The roles of feminist identification and gender conformity

Introduction: This study examined feminist identification and conformity to traditional gender norms as predictors of transphobic attitudes. Method: Data was collected among an online, MTurk sample...
BamSnap: a lightweight viewer for sequencing reads in BAM files

Summary Despite the improvement in variant detection algorithms, visual inspection of the read-level data remains an essential step for accurate identification of variants in genome analysis. We developed BamSnap, an efficient BAM file viewer utilizing a graphics library and BAM indexing. In contrast to existing viewers, BamSnap can generate high-quality snapshots rapidly, with customized tracks and layout. As an example, we produced read-level images at 1000 genomic loci for >2500 whole-genomes. Availability BamSnap is freely available at https://github.com/parklab/bamsnap. Supplementary information Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Detection and Grading of Multiple Fruits and Vegetables Using Machine Vision

Quality of fruits and vegetables has much relevance in the modern health consortium. Grading of fruits based on the quality is the prime solution. But traditional fruit grading mechanisms are not feasible due to the mass production of fruits and vegetables. Technological advancements in the field of agriculture can help to increase productivity and thereby reduce the selling of damaged or defective products. We propose a real-time fruit and vegetable grading system using Machine Vision to help all users to choose the ideal fruit or vegetable for consumption. Our proposed model will also predict the shelf life of the identified fruit. An Android application is used to scan the fruit or vegetable image in real-time. The features of the objects are extracted, and the data is processed. The chemical ripening in the fruit/vegetable is also detected. Our experimental results show that this mobile application will be useful to the common people for estimating the fruit /vegetable quality along with its shelf life.
Glycosaminoglycans Modulate Long-Range Mechanical Communication Between Cells in Collagen Networks

Cells can sense and respond to mechanical forces in fibrous extracellular matrices (ECM) over distances much greater than their size. This phenomenon, termed long-range force transmission, is enabled by the realignment (buckling) of collagen fibers along directions where the forces are tensile (compressive). However, whether other key structural components of the ECM, in particular glycosaminoglycans (GAGs), can affect the efficiency of cellular force transmission remains unclear. Here we developed a theoretical model of force transmission in collagen networks with interpenetrating GAGs, capturing the competition between tension-driven collagen-fiber alignment and the swelling pressure induced by GAGs. Using this model, we show that the swelling pressure provided by GAGs increases the stiffness of the collagen network by stretching the fibers in an isotropic manner. We found that the GAG-induced swelling pressure can help collagen fibers resist buckling as the cells exert contractile forces. This mechanism impedes the alignment of collagen fibers and decreases long-range cellular mechanical communication. We experimentally validated the theoretical predictions by comparing collagen fiber alignment between cellular spheroids cultured on collagen gels versus collagen-GAG co-gels. We found significantly less alignment of collagen in collagen-GAG co-gels, consistent with the prediction that GAGs can prevent collagen fiber alignment. The roles of GAGs in modulating force transmission uncovered in this work can be extended to understand pathological processes such as the formation of fibrotic scars and cancer metastasis, where cells communicate in the presence of abnormally high concentrations of GAGs. Statement of significanceGlycosaminoglycans (GAGs) are carbohydrates that are expressed ubiquitously in the human body and are among the key macromolecules that influence development, homeostasis, and pathology of native tissues. Abnormal accumulation of GAGs has been observed in metabolic disorders, solid tumors, and fibrotic tissues. Here we theoretically and experimentally show that tissue swelling caused by the highly polar nature of GAGs significantly affects the mechanical interactions between resident cells by altering the organization and alignment of the collagenous extracellular matrix. The roles of GAGs in modulating cellular force transmission revealed here can guide the design of biomaterial scaffolds in regenerative medicine and provides insights on the role of cell-cell communication in tumor progression and fibrosis.
Stable isotope tracing to assess tumor metabolism in vivo.

Cancer cells undergo diverse metabolic adaptations to meet the energetic demands imposed by dysregulated growth and proliferation. Assessing metabolism in intact tumors allows the investigator to observe the combined metabolic effects of numerous cancer cell-intrinsic and -extrinsic factors that cannot be fully captured in culture models. We have developed methods to use stable isotope-labeled nutrients (e.g., [13C]glucose) to probe metabolic activity within intact tumors in vivo, in mice and humans. In these methods, the labeled nutrient is introduced to the circulation through an intravenous catheter prior to surgical resection of the tumor and adjacent nonmalignant tissue. Metabolism within these tissues during the infusion transfers the isotope label into metabolic intermediates from pathways supplied by the infused nutrient. Extracting metabolites from surgical specimens and analyzing their isotope labeling patterns provides information about metabolism in the tissue. We provide detailed information about this technique, from introduction of the labeled tracer through data analysis and interpretation, including streamlined approaches to quantify isotope labeling in informative metabolites extracted from tissue samples. We focus on infusions with [13C]glucose and the application of mass spectrometry to assess isotope labeling in intermediates from central metabolic pathways, including glycolysis, the tricarboxylic acid cycle and nonessential amino acid synthesis. We outline practical considerations to apply these methods to human subjects undergoing surgical resections of solid tumors. We also discuss the method’s versatility and consider the relative advantages and limitations of alternative approaches to introduce the tracer, harvest the tissue and analyze the data. Dysregulated growth and proliferation of tumors is related to metabolic changes. This protocol assesses metabolism in intact tumors using stable isotope-labeled nutrients delivered via bolus injection and continuous infusion in mice and humans.