cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Characterization of the RNA Chaperone Activity of Hantavirus Nucleocapsid Protein

Hantaviruses are tripartite negative-sense RNA viruses and members of the Bunyaviridae family. The nucleocapsid (N) protein, encoded by the smallest of the three genome segments (S), has nonspecific RNA chaperone activity. This activity results in transient dissociation of misfolded RNA structures, may be required for facilitating correct higher-order RNA structure, and may function in viral genome replication. We carried out a series of experiments to further characterize the ability of N to dissociate RNA duplexes. As might be expected, N dissociated RNA duplexes but not DNA duplexes or RNA-DNA heteroduplexes. The RNA-destabilizing activity of N is ATP independent, has a pH optimum of 7.5, and has an Mg2+ concentration optimum of 1 to 2 mM. N protein is unable to unwind the RNA duplexes that are completely double stranded. However, in the presence of an adjoining single-stranded region, helix unwinding takes place in the 3′-to-5′ direction through an unknown mechanism. The N protein trimer specifically recognizes and unwinds the terminal panhandle structure in the viral RNA and remains associated with unwound 5′ terminus. We suggest that hantaviral nucleocapsid protein has an active role in hantaviral replication by working cooperatively with viral RNA polymerase. After specific recognition of the panhandle structure by N protein, the unwound 5′ terminus likely remains transiently bound to N protein, creating an opportunity for the viral polymerase to initiate transcription at the accessible 3′ terminus.
The Severity of Historical ASA/NSAID-Induced Asthma Attacks Does Not Correlate with Severity of Asthma Induced During Oral ASA Challenges

Attacks Does Not Correlate with Severity of Asthma Induced During Oral ASA Challenges A. N. Williams, R. A. Simon, K. M. Woessner, D. D. Stevenson; Scripps Clinic, San Diego, CA. RATIONALE: Historical aspirin (ASA) or nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug (NSAID)-induced reactions might provide predictive information about the severity of reactions in patients with aspirin exacerbated respiratory disease (AERD) undergoing oral ASA challenges (OAC). METHODS: The provoking doses, treatments, and treatment settings of the historical ASA/NSAID-induced asthma attacks was obtained from 210 consecutive patients with suspected AERD referred for OAC and ASA desensitization. RESULTS: Of 210 subjects, 147 (70%) reported seeking acute medical care for their historical ASA/NSAID-induced asthma attacks. Of these 147, 101 (69%) were treated in ERs and released and 46 (31%) required hospitalization. During OAC in these 147 subjects, 37 (25%) had a >20% decline and 14 (10%) had a >30% decline in FEV1 values. Of the 46 patients previously hospitalized for ASA/NSAID-induced asthma attacks, 15 (33%) had a >20% decline and 6 (13%) had a >30% decline in FEV1 during OAC. By contrast, of the 63 patients who treated their prior ASA/NSAID-induced reactions at home, 10 (16%) had a >20% decline and 5 (8%) had a >30% decline in FEV1 during OAC (p value NS for both). The average provoking doses of ASA were 550 mg for the historical reaction and 62 mg during OAC. CONCLUSIONS: The severity of the historical ASA/NSAID-induced asthma attack was not helpful in predicting asthma severity during OAC. Even though 70% of patients sought acute medical care for asthma attacks provoked by therapeutic doses of ASA/NSAID, a minority had clinically significant asthma during low-dose OAC. These data provide further reassurance regarding the safety of outpatient ASA desensitization. Funding: General Clinical Research Center, Scripps Clinic
Hepatitis B Virus and Hepatitis D Virus Entry, Species Specificity, and Tissue Tropism

Abstract Entry of hepatitis B (HBV) and hepatitis D viruses (HDV) into a host cell represents the initial step of infection. This process requires multiple steps, including the low-affinity attachment of the virus to the cell surface, followed by high-affinity attachment to specific receptor(s), and subsequent endocytosis-mediated internalization. Within the viral envelope, the preS1 region is involved in receptor binding. Recently, sodium taurocholate cotransporting polypeptide (NTCP) has been identified as an entry receptor of HBV and HDV by affinity purification using a preS1 peptide. NTCP is mainly or exclusively expressed in the liver, and this membrane protein is at least one of the factors determining the narrow species specificity and hepatotropism of HBV and HDV. However, there are likely other factors that mediate the species and tissue tropism of HBV. This review summarizes the current understanding of the mechanisms of HBV/HDV entry.
GEOGRAPHY AND MORPHOLOGY OF THE BROMUS CARINATUS (POACEAE: BROMEAE) COMPLEX

The Bromus carinatus complex comprises several cleistogamous taxa that have been recognized at a variety of taxonomic levels. Our study focused on three taxa: B. carinatus s.s., B. marginatus, and B. polyanthus, that have received varied taxonomic treatment. We mapped the collection sites of 673 specimens belonging to these taxa to determine whether their geographic distribution would support their recognition as species. We examined the characters customarily used to distinguish among the three entities: longevity, blade width, awn length, sheath vestiture, and lemma vestiture. The geographic data do not support the value of blade width as a taxonomic character but provide some support for use of awn length and the two vestiture characters. Of the three taxa, B. polyanthus, characterized as having glabrous sheaths and lemmas and, usually, short awns, was the most geographically distinct taxon. Bromus carinatus sensu stricto and B. marginatus showed some separation, the former being primarily a coastal taxon and the latter primarily an inland taxon. Based on our observations and published molecular data, we propose that B. carinatus and B. marginatus be treated as B. carinatus var. carinatus and B. carinatus var. marginatus (Nees ex Steud.) Barkworth & Anderton, comb. nov. respectively, and that B. polyanthus be treated as a species.
A novel method for amorphous metal micromolding using Carbon MEMS

Here we describe a novel method for Bulk Metallic Glass (BMG) micro molding using carbon templates obtained from pyrolyzed SU-8 photoresist. BMGs refer to a class of metal alloys which exhibit high strength, large elastic strain limit, and high corrosion resistance owing to their amorphous nature. They are isotropic, homogeneous, and free from any crystalline defects down to atomic scales. We have employed the Carbon MEMS (C-MEMS) technique to derive molds of different geometries and dimensions. Resultant carbon structures are stable at very high temperatures and have sufficient mechanical strength to be used as master molds for the thermoplastic forming of BMGs.
Generation of Relativistic Electron Bunches with Arbitrary Current Distribution via Transverse-to-Longitudinal Phase Space Exchange

We propose a general method for tailoring the current distribution of relativistic electron bunches. The technique relies on a recently proposed method to exchange the longitudinal phase space emittance with one of the transverse emittances. The method consists of transversely shaping the bunch and then converting its transverse profile into a current profile via a transverse-to-longitudinal phase-space-exchange beamline. We show that it is possible to tailor the current profile to follow, in principle, any desired distributions. We demonstrate, via computer simulations, the application of the method to generate trains of microbunches with tunable spacing and linearly-ramped current profiles. We also briefly explore potential applications of the technique.
Lesbian Psychoanalytic Foremothers Making Waves

ABSTRACT The progress lesbians have made within psychoanalysis is in its infancy since the first wave of gay/lesbian affirmative literature be-Suzanne Iasenza, PhD, is Associate Professor of Counseling at John Jay CollegeCity University of New York. She is on the faculties of the Institute for Contemporary Psychotherapy and the Institute for Human Identity. She maintains a private practice in psychotherapy and sex therapy in New York City. gan to surface in the early 1990s. The author stresses the need to document the history of the development of this long overdue movement. Three lesbian psychoanalytic foremothers are interviewed who offer glimpses into the psychoanalytic community from the early 1970s to the present giving us a deeper understanding of courageous acts that helped create gay and lesbian affirmative space within psychoanalysis.
Raindrop Oscillations: Evaluation of a Potential Flow Model with Gravity

Abstract Potential flow oscillations about an equilibrium raindrop distortion were modeled for ellipsoidal variations driven by changes in surface and gravitational potential energy with linear dissipation of kinetic energy. The model was found to be quantitatively similar to the Navier-Stokes results of G. B. Foote for axisymmetric oscillations without gravity. Computed frequencies and average axis ratios for vertical and horizontal oscillations with gravity were compared to wind tunnel observations of oscillating water drops and raindrop camera data. Simple formulas with good accuracy were developed for the time variation and time average axis ratios as a function of oscillation amplitude.
Clinical and laboratory characteristics associated with a high optical density anti-platelet factor 4 ELISA test

Diagnosing heparin-induced thrombocytopenia, a potentially catastrophic immune-mediated disorder, continues to pose significant challenges for clinicians, as both clinical and laboratory tools lack specificity. There is mounting evidence supporting a positive correlation between definitive heparin-induced thrombocytopenia and optical density (OD) positivity from the widely available anti-platelet factor 4 enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (PF4 ELISAs). However, the clinical features distinguishing these patients remain poorly understood.To better characterize this group, we conducted a case-controlled, retrospective chart review of patients from two large, urban academic institutions who underwent a PF4 ELISA at a central laboratory. Associations between OD and 18 clinical characteristics were calculated using the Fisher's exact test for categorical variables and Wilcoxon rank-sum test for continuous variables.In total, 184 negative patients (OD 0.7), including 74 low-positive patients (0.7 1.4) were identified. Several clinical variables were significantly different in the negative group compared with the positive group, including hospital day (P 1.4 form a distinct clinical group and support the clinical utility of the 4T score.
Genetic Nomenclature, Bacteria

Bacterial genes and mutants are named by a standard set of nomenclature rules. The basic rules of bacterial genetic nomenclature are described.
Experimental Approaches Using Kallikrein Gene Therapy for Hypertension

The kallikrein gene family is a set of closely related serine proteinases that exhibit limited proteolysis of specific substrates [1–4]. All mammals studied have two types of kallikreins: plasma kallikrein and tissue kallikrein. They differ in primary structure, physico-chemical properties, immunological properties, substrate specificity, susceptibility to inhibitors, site of synthesis and biological function. Plasma kallikrein which is synthesized in the liver participates in blood coagulationand fibrinolysis in the circulation. Tissue kallikreins which are synthesized in various exocrine and endocrine organs, are involved in the processing of polypeptide hormones and growth factors [5]. Plasma kallikrein cleaves high molecular weight kininogen to produce bradykinin. Tissue kallikrein cleaves human and bovine low molecular weight kininogens to produce lysyl-bradykinin (kallidin) and in the rat it releases bradykinin from kininogen (Figure 1). Kinin binds to its receptorin target tissues and exhibits a broad spectrum of biological effects including: vasodilation, blood pressure reduction, smooth muscle relaxation and contraction, pain induction and inflammation [1,6]. There are two types of kinin receptors, B1 and B2 which differ in pharmacological properties, biological activities and primal) structures [6–11]. The B1 receptor binds weakly to intact kinin but strongly to kinin’s metabolites desArg9- bradykininand des-Arg10-kallidin, which are generated by kininase I. In contrast, the B2 receptor has a greater affinity to intact bradykinin and kallidin than to kinin’s metabolites [10]. The B1 receptor seems to be absent in normal mammalian tissues, but appears in pathological states such as inflammation and trauma while the B2 receptor is widely distributed throughout tissues [10,11].
International Marketing Ethics: A Literature Review and Research Agenda

Globalization has changed the nature of business in the twenty-first century (Doh et al. in Bus Ethics Q 20(3):481–502, 2010). With the increased internationalization of multinational corporations, the need to address international marketing ethics arises (Carrigan et al. in Int Market Rev 22(5):481–493, 2005). Given the diversity of environments and cultures, ethical issues are numerous and complicated (Iyer in J Bus Ethics 31(1):3–24, 2001). The understanding of international marketing ethics is critical to academics as well as practitioners. This paper is a literature review (1960s through 2013) of the study of ethics in international marketing. In order to develop a comprehensive review of articles, we review topics such as ethical problems, moral philosophies, and culture and ethics. We also discuss the methodological procedures that are used in international marketing ethics. Researchers and practitioners alike can use this research on international marketing ethics to discuss the phenomena and subsequently lead to future work research.
Role of Mitochondrial Membrane Spherules in Flock House Virus Replication

UNLABELLED Viruses that generate double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) during replication must overcome host defense systems designed to detect this infection intermediate. All positive-sense RNA viruses studied to date modify host membranes to help facilitate the sequestration of dsRNA from host defenses and concentrate replication factors to enhance RNA production. Flock House virus (FHV) is an attractive model for the study of these processes since it is well characterized and infects Drosophila cells, which are known to have a highly effective RNA silencing system. During infection, FHV modifies the outer membrane of host mitochondria to form numerous membrane invaginations, called spherules, that are ∼50 nm in diameter and known to be the site of viral RNA replication. While previous studies have outlined basic structural features of these invaginations, very little is known about the mechanism underlying their formation. Here we describe the optimization of an experimental system for the analysis of FHV host membrane modifications using crude mitochondrial preparations from infected Drosophila cells. These preparations can be programmed to synthesize both single- and double-stranded FHV RNA. The system was used to demonstrate that dsRNA is protected from nuclease digestion by virus-induced membrane invaginations and that spherules play an important role in stimulating RNA replication. Finally, we show that spherules generated during FHV infection appear to be dynamic as evidenced by their ability to form or disperse based on the presence or absence of RNA synthesis. IMPORTANCE It is well established that positive-sense RNA viruses induce significant membrane rearrangements in infected cells. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying these rearrangements, particularly membrane invagination and spherule formation, remain essentially unknown. How the formation of spherules enhances viral RNA synthesis is also not understood, although it is assumed to be partly a result of evading host defense pathways. To help interrogate some of these issues, we optimized a cell-free replication system consisting of mitochondria isolated from Flock House virus-infected Drosophila cells for use in biochemical and structural studies. Our data suggest that spherules generated during Flock House virus replication are dynamic, protect double-stranded RNA, and enhance RNA replication in general. Cryo-electron microscopy suggests that the samples are amenable to detailed structural analyses of spherules engaged in RNA synthesis. This system thus provides a foundation for understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying spherule formation, maintenance, and function during positive-sense viral RNA replication.
Using Vector Quantization of Hough Transform for Circle Detection

Circles are important patterns in many automatic image inspection applications. The Hough Transform (HT) is a popular method for extracting shapes from original images. It was first introduced for the recognition of straight lines, and later extended to circles. The drawbacks of standard Hough Transform for circle detection are the large computational and storage requirements. In this paper, we propose a modified HT called Vector Quantization of Hough Transform (VQHT) to detect circles more efficiently. The basic idea is to first decompose the edge image into many sub-images by using Vector Quantization algorithm based on their natural spatial relationship. The edge points resided in each sub-image are considered as one circle candidate group. Then the VQHT algorithm is applied for fast circle detection. Experimental results show that the proposed algorithm can quickly and accurately detect multiple circles from the noisy background.
Passive transfer with circulating leukocytes of delayed hypersensitivity to cat scratch antigen.

SummaryDelayed type hypersensitivity to cat scratch disease can be passively transferred by blood leukocytes, but not by plasma from hypersensitive donors convalescent from the disease.
The roles of phosphotyrosines-294, -404, and -451 in RET/PTC1-induced thyroid tumor formation

RET/PTC1 is a rearranged form of the RET proto-oncogene detected in human papillary thyroid carcinomas. We previously showed that thyroid-targeted expression of RET/PTC1 leads to thyroid tumor formation in Tg-PTC1 transgenic mice. Signal transduction pathways mediated by phosphotyrosine 294, 404, or 451 in RET/PTC1 have been shown to be critical for RET-induced transforming activity in vitro. To investigate the contribution of these signaling pathways in RET/PTC1-induced thyroid tumor formation in vivo, we generated and characterized transgenic mice expressing thyroid-targeted RET/PTC1 mutants carrying a site-directed mutation changing tyrosine (Y) to phenylalanine (F) at the residue 294, 404, or 451. In contrast to the 100% tumor formation rate in Tg-PTC1 transgenic mice, tumor formation rates were significantly decreased in Tg-PTC1-Y294F (6%), Tg-PTC1-Y404F (41%), and Tg-PTC1-Y451F (30%) transgenic mice. This indicates that signaling pathways mediated by pY294, pY404, and pY451 do play a role in RET/PTC1-induced tumor formation. However, as tumors are still able to form in some mice within these three mutant transgenic groups, it indicates that none of the signaling pathways mediated by pY294, pY404, or pY451, are solely essential for RET/PTC1-induced tumor formation.
Is the no-minimum claim true ? Reply to Cullison

Is the no-minimum claim true? I have argued that it is not. Andrew Cullison contends that my argument fails, since human sentience is variable; while Michael Schrynemakers has contended that the failure is my neglect of vagueness. Both, I argue, are wrong.
Leaf Pubescence of Wheat as a Deterrent to the Cereal Leaf Beetle, Oulema melanopus

Ovipositional behavior, viability of eggs, and growth and survival of the young larvae of Oulema melanopus (L.) were adversely affected by the density of pubescence of wheat leaves. Gravid females were reluctant to lay eggs on densely haired leaves, and the number of eggs laid was significantly reduced by greater density of pubescence. Eggs laid or placed on leaves with dense pubescence were susceptible to desiccation, and less than 10% hatched. Only 20% of the first-instar larvae restricted to densely pubescent leaves were alive after 3 days. Also, young larvae restricted to wheats with dense, moderate, or slight pubescence, or glabrous wheats, gained significantly less weight as the number of hairs increased. Third-instar and fourth-instar larvae used wheats with greater pubescence more efficiently than did younger larvae.
Study on Blasting Seismic Dynamic Effect for Tunnels with Close Interval in Bedded Rock Mass

The influence of blasting vibration from the excavation of new tunnel on the adjacent existed tunnel in nature is a blasting optimizing question,which key is to find the method of reducing the blasting vibration.In order to insure the safety and stability of existed tunnel,the blasting dynamic effect in double line tunnels constructed in stratified rock mass is analyzed based on the numerical simulation and site blasting test.Result shows that the maximum vibration speed and reflecting tensile stress occur on tunnel wall and arch section facing the blasting side,and the velocities decrease nonlinearly along with the increase of distance away from the explosion source.The vibration velocities have distinct directional effect,and the radial velocities are much greater than those in tangential direction.Radial vibration velocities have the controlling effects on the damage of rock mass of existed tunnels.Finally,the explosion parameters are optimized by the comprehensive consideration of vibration damage induced by explosion and its influence on existed tunnel,and measures for reducing the blasting vibration are proposed.7figs.,4tabs.,8refs.
Off-the-Shelf CNN Features for Fine-Grained Classification of Vessels in a Maritime Environment

Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) have recently achie- ved spectacular performance on standard image classification benchmarks. Moreover, CNNs trained using large datasets such as ImageNet have performed effectively even on other recognition tasks and have been used as generic feature extraction tool for off-the-shelf classifiers. This paper, presents an experimental study to investigate the ability of off-the-shelf CNN features catch discriminative details of maritime vessels for fine-grained classification. An off-the-shelf classification scheme utilizing a linear support vector machine is applied to the high-level convolution features that come before fully connected layers in popular deep learning architectures. Extensive experimental evaluation compared OverFeat, GoogLeNet, VGG, and AlexNet architectures for feature extraction. Results showed that OverFeat features outperform the other architectures with a mAP = 0.7021 on the nine class fine-grained problem which was almost 0.02 better than its closest competitor, GoogLeNet, which performed best on smaller vessel types.
DPP: An agent-based approach for distributed process planning

A changing shop floor environment characterized by larger variety of products in smaller batch sizes requires creating an intelligent and dynamic process planning system that is responsive and adaptive to the rapid adjustment of production capacity and functionality. In response to the requirement, this research proposes a new methodology of distributed process planning (DPP). The primary focus of this paper is on the architecture of the new process planning approach, using multi-agent negotiation and cooperation. The secondary focus is on the other supporting technologies such as machining feature-based planning and function block-based control. Different from traditional methods, the proposed approach uses two-level decision-making—supervisory planning and operation planning. The former focuses on product data analysis, machine selection, and machining sequence planning, while the latter considers the detailed working steps of the machining operations inside of each process plan and is accomplished by intelligent NC controllers. By the nature of decentralization, the DPP shows promise of improving system performance within the continually changing shop floor environment.
Wind dispersal is predicted by tree, not diaspore, traits in comparisons of Neotropical species

Summary The seed shadow created by wind dispersal around parent trees may be affected by functional traits, as well as wind conditions and surrounding vegetation. This study of one mature tree each of 12 Neotropical species determined the extent to which species variation in diaspore traits vs. tree height and crop size explains (i) rate of diaspore descent in still air, (ii) distributions of diaspores dispersed from a 40-m tower in the forest, and (iii) natural seed shadows around the parent tree. A model of diaspore wing-loading to a fitted power explained 66·9% of the variation among species in the geometric mean rate of descent in still air. For a subset of four species, expected dispersal distance was not correlated with actual dispersal distance from the forest tower. For a subset of seven species, variation in wing-loading0·5 of individual diaspores explained ≤4·3% of the dispersal distance from the parent tree. Measured seed shadows, particularly their distribution edges and area, differed significantly among the 12 species (range in maximum tree height 19–42 m) and were best fit by 12 separate anisotropic dispersal kernels and surveyed fecundities. Measured mean distance was highly correlated with simulated distances from the kernels. The best models, explaining 57·6% of the variation among species in shadow area, and 59·6, 61·6 and 61·7% of variation in mean, median and maximum distances, included maximum tree height, either alone or in combination with crop size, and not diaspore rate of descent. Among 10 species, seed shadow area was not related to rank of seedling shade tolerance. In their highly skewed distributions, most seeds were much closer than the distance of greatest seedling recruitment and in very high density, thus enhancing later density- and/or distance-related seedling mortality. Tree functional traits, rather than the historically emphasized diaspore traits, explain distance distributions of these wind-dispersed species. Additional exploration of diaspore abscission in relation to wind and the influence of wind patterns after release are needed. A lay summary is available for this article.
Novel Role of PUFAs as Essential Cofactors for TRPV4 Function

Blood pressure regulation relies on the ability of membrane proteins to transduce variations in physical and chemical stimuli into electrical signals. The transient receptor potential vanilloid 4 (TRPV4) is a cation channel that has been implicated in endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation and modulation of systemic blood pressure. TRPV4 is widely expressed in the vasculature, being found in smooth muscles, vascular endothelial cells, and perivascular sensory neurons. Activation of TRPV4 downstream of cell swelling via polyunsaturated fatty acids-derived mediators promotes arterial vasodilation. The precise mechanism by which polyunsaturated fatty acids and eicosanoids regulate TRPV4 function remains elusive. Here, we use C. elegans to precisely alter fatty acid content in vivo; worms allow for easy and accurate manipulation of lipid content, have the ability to incorporate lipids back via diet supplementation, and a collection of lipid-deficient mutants. We show that chemical activation of a transgenic worm that expresses rat (r) TRPV4 in the sensory amphid neurons (ASH) by GSK1016790A (TRPV4 selective agonist), but not wild type, elicits withdrawal responses; therefore, providing a chemical strategy to study the activation mechanism of TRPV4 using C. elegans. Using this assay, we determine that TRPV4 is not functional in the background of lipid-deficient mutant's worms (fat-3, lacking long polyunsaturated fatty acids; PUFAs). These results suggest that PUFAs are obligatory cofactors of TRPV4 function. Using confocal microscopy, we established that channel distribution and morphology of ASH neurons are indistinguishable between TRPV4::GFP and TRPV4::GFP; fat-3 worms. Moreover, diet supplementation experiments suggest that EET rescues 20 % less the withdrawal responses of TRPV4; fat-3 mutants when compared to arachidonic acid (AA), implicating AA as a key fatty acid for TRPV4 function. By knocking down lysophospholipid acyltransferase enzyme (MBO-6), we found that membranes phospholipids lacking AA negatively regulate TRPV4 function. Our results support a model whereby membrane composition and lipid metabolism modulates TRPV4 function.
Heterogeneous sharpness for cross-spectral face recognition

Matching images acquired in different electromagnetic bands remains a challenging problem. An example of this type of comparison is matching active or passive infrared (IR) against a gallery of visible face images, known as cross-spectral face recognition. Among many unsolved issues is the one of quality disparity of the heterogeneous images. Images acquired in different spectral bands are of unequal image quality due to distinct imaging mechanism, standoff distances, or imaging environment, etc. To reduce the effect of quality disparity on the recognition performance, one can manipulate images to either improve the quality of poor-quality images or to degrade the high-quality images to the level of the quality of their heterogeneous counterparts. To estimate the level of discrepancy in quality of two heterogeneous images a quality metric such as image sharpness is needed. It provides a guidance in how much quality improvement or degradation is appropriate. In this work we consider sharpness as a relative measure of heterogeneous image quality. We propose a generalized definition of sharpness by first achieving image quality parity and then finding and building a relationship between the image quality of two heterogeneous images. Therefore, the new sharpness metric is named heterogeneous sharpness. Image quality parity is achieved by experimentally finding the optimal cross-spectral face recognition performance where quality of the heterogeneous images is varied using a Gaussian smoothing function with different standard deviation. This relationship is established using two models; one of them involves a regression model and the other involves a neural network. To train, test and validate the model, we use composite operators developed in our lab to extract features from heterogeneous face images and use the sharpness metric to evaluate the face image quality within each band. Images from three different spectral bands visible light, near infrared, and short-wave infrared are considered in this work. Both error of a regression model and validation error of a neural network are analyzed.
Labor Market Disparities Between African Americans and Afro Caribbeans: Reexamining the Role of Immigrant Selectivity

Black immigrants from the Caribbean have long attained greater labor market success than African Americans. The most recent studies show that Afro Caribbeans have earnings that are approximately 16% greater than African Americans and that Afro Caribbeans are as much as 21% more likely to be employed than African Americans. The most prominent explanation for greater Afro Caribbean success is that, because they have chosen to migrate, Afro Caribbeans are positively self-selected on characteristics that are key for success in the U.S. labor market. Proponents of immigrant selectivity argue that migrants have greater levels of both hard and soft skills than nonmigrants. Using data from the National Survey of American Life—the first social survey to provide a nationally representative sample of both African Americans and Afro Caribbeans—this study finds that Afro Caribbeans have greater hard skills than African Americans but split the difference on two measures of soft skills: African Americans and Afro Caribbeans are matched on John Henryism, but African Americans have greater personal mastery than Afro Caribbeans. Contrary to expectations, controlling for differences in hard and soft skills does not provide for a meaningful reduction in labor market disparities between African Americans and Afro Caribbeans.
Low temperature Si0.85 Ge0.15 oxynitridation in wet-nitric oxide ambient

Nitric oxide (NO) aided Si0.85Ge0.15 wet-oxynitridation has been performed at 400 700°C, while the wet-NO feed gas was preheated to higher temperatures before entering the reaction zone. X-Ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) data suggests that both nitrogen and oxygen incorporation increases within the dielectric bulk with increasing wet-oxynitridation temperature, while there is no apparent germanium segregation towards the dielectric/substrate interface at all temperatures studied. Angle-resolved XPS analysis shows that increase in wetoxynitridation temperature above 600°C is likely to volatilize some germanium oxide from the surface region. Nitrogen incorporation is found to hinder germanium segregation. These results are discussed in the context of an overall mechanism of SiGe wet-oxynitridation.
Rapid increase of near atomic resolution virus capsid structures determined by cryo-electron microscopy

The recent technological advances in electron microscopes, detectors, as well as image processing and reconstruction software have brought single particle cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) into prominence for determining structures of bio-molecules at near atomic resolution. This has been particularly true for virus capsids, ribosomes, and other large assemblies, which have been the ideal specimens for structural studies by cryo-EM approaches. An analysis of time series metadata of virus structures on the methods of structure determination, resolution of the structures, and size of the virus particles revealed a rapid increase in the virus structures determined by cryo-EM at near atomic resolution since 2010. In addition, the data highlight the median resolution (∼3.0 A) and size (∼310.0 A in diameter) of the virus particles determined by X-ray crystallography while no such limits exist for cryo-EM structures, which have a median diameter of 508 A. Notably, cryo-EM virus structures in the last four years have a median resolution of 3.9 A. Taken together with minimal sample requirements, not needing diffraction quality crystals, and being able to achieve similar resolutions of the crystal structures makes cryo-EM the method of choice for current and future virus capsid structure determinations.
Abstract 34: Wee1 inhibition sensitizes tumor cells with variable antigenicity to T cell mediated lysis

Antigen-specific elimination of tumor cells by cytotoxic T-lymphocytes (CTL) inherently relies upon the sensitivity of target cells to effector products such as granzyme B, TNFa, TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL), and Fas ligand (FasL). Cell cycle progression is critically required for granzyme B and TNF superfamily-induced apoptosis. Thus, we hypothesized that inhibition of Wee1 with AZD1775 would release the G2/M cell cycle checkpoint and enhance sensitivity of oral cavity cancer cells to CTL killing. To explore this hypothesis, we stably transduced murine oral cancer 1 (MOC1) cells with a construct encoding the fluorescent protein mKate2 and SIINFEKL, the H2-Kb-restricted epitope of ovalbumin (MOC1mK2SIIN). Using in-vitro generated SIINFEKL-specific OT-1 CTLs as effectors, we demonstrated in a real-time, impedance-based assay of cytotoxicity that physiologic concentrations of AZD1775 (250 nM) significantly sensitized MOC1mK2SIIN cells to CTL killing at low E:T ratios. The same concentration of AZD1775 had negligible effects on the MOC1mK2SIIN cells alone, and OT-1 CTL cytotoxicity was antigen-specific as OT-1 effectors did not kill parental MOC1 cells with or without AZD1775 treatment. This effect was partially reversed with the perforin inhibitor concanamycin A, implicating involvement of granzyme B. Further, by mixing MOC1mK2SIIN and parental MOC1 cells, we could alter the ratio of antigen clonality present within the target cell population. Inhibition of Wee1 with AZD1775 significantly enhanced OT-1 CTL control of target cell populations where 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 50% lack SIINFEKL antigen. Treatment of MOC1mK2SIIN and parental MOC1 cells with recombinant TNFa, TRAIL and FasL with and without AZD1775 confirmed enhanced TNF superfamily-induced tumor cell control following Wee1 inhibition. These data suggest that Wee1 inhibition broadly sensitizes antigen positive and negative cells to CTL effector products and that AZD1775 may induce “bystander killing” of antigen negative cells in target cell populations with mixed antigenicity. Experiments combining AZD1775 with immune-activating therapies in vivo are underway. Citation Format: Ellen Moore, Lillian Sun, Jay Friedman, Carter Van Waes, Clint Allen. Wee1 inhibition sensitizes tumor cells with variable antigenicity to T cell mediated lysis [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR-AHNS Head and Neck Cancer Conference: Optimizing Survival and Quality of Life through Basic, Clinical, and Translational Research; April 23-25, 2017; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Clin Cancer Res 2017;23(23_Suppl):Abstract nr 34.
Reading First, Libraries Last: An Historical Perspective on the Absence of Libraries in Reading Education Policy:

Reading education has been high on the public policy agenda in the United States. This article addresses the question of why public and school libraries have not been actively involved in legislati...
Long-term Management of the Arterial Switch Patient

This review paper describes the management of patients with dextro-transposition of the great arteries (D-TGA) with a focus on the complications seen and the appropriate care required to identify and prevent adverse events. D-TGA is a form of cyanotic congenital heart disease (CHD) representing ~ 3% of all CHD and almost 20% of all cyanotic CHD. Since the late 1980s, standard of care is to repair these patients with an arterial switch operation (ASO) as opposed to a Mustard/Senning operation. The long-term survival and complication rates are superior in the ASO. Long-term follow-up is recommended for all D-TGA patients and includes management with adult congenital heart disease specialists and the use of echocardiography and advanced imaging with CT or MRI. The most common complications seen are pulmonary stenosis, coronary artery stenosis, and neo-aortic regurgitation. Careful evaluation of new symptoms or declining function is essential in preventing and treating these long-term sequelae.
Board of directors leadership and structure: control and performance implications

Research examining the association of corporate governance structures and firm performance has relied almost exclusively on the large-scale firm. This may, however, be a limited forum for questions...
Three Modes of Communication in the Nervous System

How excitable cells communicate with each other has been the subject of continued study over the past 50 years. Much of the research done thus far has focused on a form of communication which occurs at specialized junctions between contiguous elements. The junctions are called “synapses”, the communication is known as “synaptic transmission” and the substance mediating the event is called a “neurotransmitter”. The ready availability of preparations appropriate to observe this communication and the development of techniques to study the details involved have gradually led to a more complete understanding of synaptic transmission. Since it is the most widely and intensively studied form of cell-cell signaling in the nervous system, many investigators have assumed that all intercellular communication is similar and that all substances which can be extracted from neuronal tissue and which bind to neuronal membranes or have pharmacological effects are a priori “neurotransmitters”. The logic implicit in this generalization likely reflects both the relatively well-understood nature of the communication and the natural desire to simplify neuronal function into an understandable form.
Forecast Precision and Forecast Accuracy from Moving Average and Moving Median Methods on Skewed Lognormal Time Series

We examine the forecast precision and accuracy for forecasts from moving average and moving median methods on skewed i.i.d. time series following various lognormal probability distributions. Overall, we recommend the Moving Average method, MA, when forecasting time series that follow lognormal distributions.
Natural Supports in the Workplace: A Reexamination of Supported Employment:

The purpose of this article is to examine some of the basic premises of supported employment initiatives. In particular, the role of agency-sponsored job coaches in supporting employees with severe disabilities in integrated work environments is discussed. A broader concept of supported employment is proposed, based on studies of the supports and informal interactions characteristic of natural work environments. Alternative support options, entitled the Mentor Option, the Training Consultant Option, the Job Sharing Option, and the Attendant Option, which involve the active participation of supervisors and co-workers, are presented with suggestions for implementation.
Ángel que se las trae

Las esquinas del viento . Antologia. Hector Rojas Herazo (seleccion y prologo de Juan Manuel Roca y Felipe Agudelo). Fondo Editorial Universidad Eafit, Medellin, 2001, 155 pags.
THROMBOCYTOSIS TO THROMBOCYTOPENIA: A RARE CASE OF HIT IN ESSENTIAL THROMBOCYTOSIS

Heparin induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) has been rarely reported in patients with essential thrombocytosis (ET). Precise diagnosis requires high index of suspicion due to elevated platelet count in patients with ET. A 73 year old male patient was admitted for acute exacerbation of heart failure with
Financialization at work: Shareholder primacy and stagnant wages in the United States:

Financialization has been ‘at work’ in the United States for nearly half of a century, as corporate executives have increasingly prioritized shareholder payments over other productive uses of corpo...
Aliasing-free Beam Steering from an Optical Array Emitter with Half-wavelength Pitch

We present an OPA with uniform half-wavelength pitch and grating emitters. Aliasing-free beam steering over ∼ 120° field-of-view is measured. Evanescent coupling between closely spaced emitters is suppressed by extreme skin-depth cladding structures.
Insecticide resistance in California populations of the glassy‐winged sharpshooter Homalodisca vitripennis

BACKGROUND The glassy-winged sharpshooter, Homalodisca vitripennis (Germar), is a primary vector of Pierce's disease of grapes in California. Systemic imidacloprid treatments have been the mainstay of area-wide treatment programs that were established in the Central Valley (Kern and Tulare Counties) and Southern California (Riverside County) during the 1990s to combat the pest. The programs helped to suppress populations on citrus, a major sharpshooter host, to levels that significantly reduced migration into adjacent vineyards. However, beginning in 2012, there has been a resurgence of glassy-winged sharpshooter populations in Kern and Tulare counties, and hitherto successful treatment strategies have not been as effective. This study investigated the possibility that insecticide resistance was a contributing factor to the population resurgence. RESULTS Topical application bioassays detected high levels of resistance to imidacloprid in Kern and Tulare populations, and lower levels of resistance (perhaps due to cross-resistance) to the foliar neonicotinoid acetamiprid (20-fold), the pyrethroid fenpropathrin (7.4-fold), and the butenolide flupyradifurone (4-fold). Samples of glassy-winged sharpshooters from citrus groves under organic management also exhibited high levels of imidacloprid resistance. CONCLUSION The long-term use of imidacloprid has selected for resistance in glassy-winged sharpshooters. The most resistant populations also exhibited resistance to the foliar neonicotinoid acetamiprid, the pyrethroid fenpropathrin, and the butenolide flupyradifurone. High levels of imidacloprid resistance in insects sampled from organic groves indicate that resistant insects are migrating from nearby conventional groves, which could compromise the control of sharpshooters in organic systems with insecticides affected by cross-resistance. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.
Defining the Role of Attention in Hierarchical Auditory Processing

Communication in noise is a complex process requiring efficient neural encoding throughout the entire auditory pathway as well as contributions from higher-order cognitive processes (i.e., attention) to extract speech cues for perception. Thus, identifying effective clinical interventions for individuals with speech-in-noise deficits relies on the disentanglement of bottom-up (sensory) and top-down (cognitive) factors to appropriately determine the area of deficit; yet, how attention may interact with early encoding of sensory inputs remains unclear. For decades, attentional theorists have attempted to address this question with cleverly designed behavioral studies, but the neural processes and interactions underlying attention’s role in speech perception remain unresolved. While anatomical and electrophysiological studies have investigated the neurological structures contributing to attentional processes and revealed relevant brain–behavior relationships, recent electrophysiological techniques (i.e., simultaneous recording of brainstem and cortical responses) may provide novel insight regarding the relationship between early sensory processing and top-down attentional influences. In this article, we review relevant theories that guide our present understanding of attentional processes, discuss current electrophysiological evidence of attentional involvement in auditory processing across subcortical and cortical levels, and propose areas for future study that will inform the development of more targeted and effective clinical interventions for individuals with speech-in-noise deficits.
Deficient Leptin Cellular Signaling Plays a Key Role in Brain Ultrastructural Remodeling in Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

The triad of obesity, metabolic syndrome (MetS), Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and advancing age are currently global societal problems that are expected to grow over the coming decades. This triad is associated with multiple end-organ complications of diabetic vasculopathy (maco-microvessel disease), neuropathy, retinopathy, nephropathy, cardiomyopathy, cognopathy encephalopathy and/or late-onset Alzheimer's disease. Further, obesity, MetS, T2DM and their complications are associated with economical and individual family burdens. This review with original data focuses on the white adipose tissue-derived adipokine/hormone leptin and how its deficient signaling is associated with brain remodeling in hyperphagic, obese, or hyperglycemic female mice. Specifically, the ultrastructural remodeling of the capillary neurovascular unit, brain endothelial cells (BECs) and their endothelial glycocalyx (ecGCx), the blood-brain barrier (BBB), the ventricular ependymal cells, choroid plexus, blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier (BCSFB), and tanycytes are examined in female mice with impaired leptin signaling from either dysfunction of the leptin receptor (DIO and db/db models) or the novel leptin deficiency (BTBR ob/ob model).
The hypothalamus coordinates diverse escape strategies from threat.

The neural circuits orchestrating complex behavioral response strategies to threat are not understood. In this issue of Neuron, Wang et al. (2021) establish the hypothalamic dorsal premammillary nucleus as a critical node that communicates with thalamic and midbrain regions to coordinate diverse escape strategies.