cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Outcomes of two‐drug maintenance immunosuppression for pediatric renal transplantation: 10‐yr follow‐up in a single center

Minimizing IS to reduce side effects without compromising long-term renal transplant survival is the goal of all IS protocols. We conducted a retrospective study of pediatric renal transplants performed August 1988 to July 2008 and treated with two-drug maintenance therapy by one of three protocols: prednisone/cyclosporine without induction (SB) or with daclizumab induction (SBI), or tacrolimus/mycophenolate with daclizumab induction (SF). Kaplan-Meier survival curves were used to determine graft and patient survival at one, three, five, and 10 yr. Associations between graft survival and patient/transplant characteristics were determined using log-rank test and CPH model adjusting for treatment group. About 208 patients were included in the analysis (96 SB, 97 SBI, 15 SF; 148 DD, 60 LD, 37 pre-emptive). Overall graft and patient survival at one, three, five, and 10 yr were similar to the previously published results of pediatric renal transplants in similar years treated predominantly with three-drug maintenance therapy (https://web.emmes.com/study/ped/annlrept/2010). Only biopsy-proven TG was significantly associated with worse graft survival (HR 11.5, 95% CI: 3.4, 38.7). Malignancy rate was low (2.4%) with little PTLD (0.5%). Few opportunistic or other infections occurred (<5% patients). Minimizing IS to a two-drug maintenance regimen had no adverse effect on long-term transplant outcome and had low malignancy and infection rates.
Diabetes in the Department of Veterans Affairs

A core mission of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Epidemiologic Research and Information Centers (ERICs) is to contribute to knowledge on the frequency and causes of health conditions and their outcomes in U.S. veterans. The Seattle ERIC selected the growing burden of diabetes in veterans as a priority area and with our colleagues prepared this supplement. Our goals are 1 ) to provide an overview of VA services, benefits, and diabetes advances to the diabetes community and 2 ) to describe research findings based on our veterans with diabetes. The VA is the second largest of the 15 U.S. cabinet departments and operates nationwide programs for health care, financial assistance, and burial benefits. VA 2003 budget projections included $32.8 billion for benefits, $25.9 billion for health care, and $909 million for all VA construction, administration, and cemetery operations (1). Veterans have a distinct sociodemographic profile that reflects their entry into military service in times of peace and conflict. Among those discharged from military service (veterans), the priority for VA health care goes first to those with service-connected disabilities and then to others based on income and medical need. VA financial benefits are provided to 3.3 million people. About 2.7 …
Escherichia coli CdtB mediates cytolethal distending toxin cell cycle arrest.

We previously reported that the CdtB polypeptide of Escherichia coli cytolethal distending toxin (CDT) shares significant pattern-specific homology with mammalian type I DNases. In addition, the DNase-related residues of CdtB are required for cellular toxicity. Here we demonstrate that purified CdtB converts supercoiled plasmid DNA to relaxed and linear forms and promotes cell cycle arrest when combined with an E. coli extract containing CdtA and CdtC. CdtB alone had no effect on HeLa cells, however; introduction of the polypeptide into HeLa cells by electroporation resulted in cellular distension, chromatin fragmentation, and cell cycle arrest, all of which are consequences of CDT action. In contrast to these findings, purified CdtBH154A lacked both DNA-nicking and cell cycle arrest activities. These results suggest a functional relationship between DNase-related residues in CdtB and CDT biological activity.
Improved Deposition of Oxycarotenoids in Egg Yolks by Dietary Cottonseed Oil

Abstract The effect of added dietary fat on the pigmentation of egg yolks was investigated by substituting cottonseed oil (0, 2, 4, and 6%) isocalorically for corn starch in a basal diet of white corn, soybean meal, and starch amended with a stabilized, saponified extract of marigold (Tagetes erecta) to provide 70 μg of trans- lutein per g of 0% added fat diet. Two groups of 30 hens per treatment were depleted of carotenoid stores prior to the experiment by feeding the unamended basal diet for 3 wk. After the hens had been fed the experimental diets for 21 days, five replicates of 4 eggs per pen were collected and were analyzed by HPLC for oxycarotenoid content. The diets with 0, 2, 4, and 6% fat yielded egg yolks with 45.42, 68.56, 75.57, and 80.89 μg of total oxycarotenoids per g yolk of which trans-lutein was 75, 76, 76, and 77% of the total, respectively. The minor oxycarotenoids detected were trans-lutein monoesters, trans-3′-oxolutein, trans-zeaxanthin, and cis-luteins. The yolks from hens fed the diets with 0, 2, 4, and 6% fat had scores of 10.3, 12.8, 13.2, and 13.3, respectively, according to the Roche Yolk Colour fan. Most earlier reports of positive, negative, and no effects for added dietary fat on yolk pigmentation can now be reconciled.
A multivariate principal component regression analysis of NIR data

The analysis of near-infrared (NIR) data arising from NIR experiments in which there exists more than one response variable of interest is discussed, with focus on the investigation of the relationship of response variables. A multivariate regression procedure based on principal component regression (PCR), one of the most commonly used methods in NIR analysis, is described. The presented method gives a simultaneous analysis of response variables of interest and is referred to as multivariate principal component regression (MPCR). The idea behind MPCR is the same as that behind PCR, but MPCR could serve as a tool to study the relationship of response variables. MPCR also makes use of the correlation information of the response variables and thus could save a great of computational effort if the response variables are highly correlated. To illustrate MPCR, its application to a set of NIR data arising from an NIR experiment is briefly discussed.
Estimating water discharge from large radar altimetry datasets

Abstract. The objective of this study is to evaluate the potential of large altimetry datasets as a complementary gauging network capable of providing water discharge in ungauged regions. A rating curve-based methodology is adopted to derive water discharge from altimetric data provided by the Envisat satellite at 475 virtual stations (VS) within the Amazon basin. From a global-scale perspective, the stage–discharge relations at VS are built based on radar altimetry and outputs from a modeling system composed of a land surface model and a global river routing scheme. In order to quantify the impact of model uncertainties on rating-curve based discharges, a second experiment is performed using outputs from a simulation where daily observed discharges at 135 gauging stations are introduced in the modeling system. Discharge estimates at 90 VS are evaluated against observations during the curve fitting calibration (2002–2005) and evaluation (2006–2008) periods, resulting in mean normalized RMS errors as high as 39 and 15% for experiments without and with direct insertion of data, respectively. Without direct insertion, uncertainty of discharge estimates can be mostly attributed to forcing errors at smaller scales, generating a positive correlation between performance and drainage area. Mean relative streamflow volume errors (RE) of altimetry-based discharges varied from 15 to 84% for large and small drainage areas, respectively. Rating curves produced a mean RE of 51% versus 68% from model outputs. Inserting discharge data into the modeling system decreases the mean RE from 51 to 18%, and mean NRMSE from 24 to 9%. These results demonstrate the feasibility of applying the proposed methodology to the continental or global scales.
HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder

Neurological involvement in HIV is often associated with cognitive impairment. Although severe and progressive neurocognitive impairment has become rare in HIV clinics in the era of potent antiretroviral therapy, most patients with HIV worldwide have poor outcomes on formal neurocognitive tests. In this Review, we describe the manifestations of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder in the era of effective HIV therapy, outline diagnosis and treatment recommendations, and explore the research questions that remain. Although comorbid disorders, such as hepatitis C infection or epilepsy, might cause some impairment, their prevalence is insufficient to explain the frequency with which it is encountered. HIV disease markers, such as viral load and CD4 cell counts, are not strongly associated with ongoing impairment on treatment, whereas cardiovascular disease markers and inflammatory markers are. New cerebrospinal fluid and neuroimaging biomarkers are needed to detect and follow impairment. Ongoing research efforts to optimise HIV therapy within the CNS, and potentially to intervene in downstream mechanisms of neurotoxicity, remain important avenues for future investigation. Ultimately, the full control of virus in the brain is a necessary step in the goal of HIV eradication.
Experimental and first-principles studies on the elastic properties of α-hafnium metal under pressure

Compressional and shear wave velocities of the α phase of hafnium have been measured up to 10.4 GPa at room temperature using ultrasonic interferometry in a multi-anvil apparatus. A finite strain equation of state analysis yielded Ks0=110.4 (5) GPa, G0 =54.7(5) GPa, Ks0′=3.7, and G0′=0.6 for the elastic bulk and shear moduli and their pressure derivatives at ambient conditions. Complementary to the experimental data, the single crystal elastic constants, the elastic anisotropy, and the unit cell axial ratio c/a of α-hafnium at high pressures were investigated by Density Functional Theory (DFT) based first principles calculations. A c/a value of 1.605 is predicted for α-Hf at 40 GPa, which is in excellent agreement with previous experimental results. The low-pressure derivative of the shear modulus observed in our experimental data up to 10 GPa was found to originate from the elastic constant C44, which exhibits negligible pressure dependence within the current experimental pressure range. At higher press...
Design and analyses of open-ended pipe piles in cohesionless soils

Large open-ended pipe pile has been found to be advantageous for use in transportation projects. The current design method, however, is not adequately developed. To close this practice gap, this paper first summarized different design methods for open-ended pipe piles in sandy soils. A major factor for all the design codes is to properly account for the formation and effects of soil plug. The comparison indicates that there is a large variation in the base capacity evaluation among different methods due to the complex behaviors of soil plug. To close the knowledge gap, discrete element method (DEM) was used to simulate the soil plugging process and provide insight on the plugging mechanism. The simulation results show that the arching effect significantly increases the internal unit shear resistance along pipe piles. The porosity distribution and particle contact force distribution from DEM model indicate a large stress concentration occurs at the bottom of the soil plug. Besides, nearly 90% of the plug resistance is provided by the bottom half portion of the soil column. The soil-pile friction coefficient has a significant effect on the magnitude of plug resistance, with the major transition occurred for friction coefficient between 0.3 and 0.4.
"We Always Tried to Be Good People": Respectability, Crazy Water Crystals, and Hillbilly Music on the Air, 1933-1935.

If you are easily exhausted, or too nervous, you have headaches or backaches or can't sleep as you should, if your complexion is sallow or your tongue coated; maybe you're just being warned by Nature that the troubles with far more serious names may be on the way. Faulty elimination, the sluggish and delayed passage of waste throughout the system, causes many serious disorders, disorders with all kinds of names.... Don't give up to pain and illness.... Why all you need is determination, ordinary drinking water, and Crazy Water Crystals. Won't you try it? -Crazy Water Crystals radio advertisement
New Rhodamine Nitroxide Based Fluorescent Probes for Intracellular Hydroxyl Radical Identification in Living Cells

The synthesis, characteristics, and biological applications of a series of new rhodamine nitroxide fluorescent probes that enable imaging of hydroxyl radicals (•OH) in living cells are described. These probes are highly selective for •OH in aqueous solution, avoiding interference from other reactive oxygen species (ROS), and they facilitate •OH imaging in biologically active samples. The robust nature of these probes (high specificity and selectivity, and facile synthesis) offer distinct advantages over previous methods for •OH detection.
Electronic Excitation-Induced Surface Chemistry and Electron-Beam-Assisted Chemical Vapor Deposition

Selective area deposition of thin films and surface structures with precise control over their composition is possible in UHV by using low energy electron beams to induce electronic excitations in adsorbed molecular layers. Upon electron impact, adsorbed/co-adsorbed molecules decompose into reactive species, resulting in film growth. The composition of the film reflects that of the adsorbed molecular layer, which at cryogenic temperatures can sensitively be controlled by the partial pressure of the reactant gases. We present results of detailed studies of adsorption, thermal and electron-beam-induced dissociation of disilane and ammonia on silicon. We show that by proper choice of temperature, gas phase composition and electron beam, amorphous silicon, silicon nitride, oxide, silicon oxinitride films can be grown with nearly monolayer thickness resolution.
Urban political ecology II The abolitionist century

Attention to the urban and metropolitan growth of nature can no longer be denied. Nor can the intense scrutiny of racialized, postcolonial and indigenous perspectives on the press and pulse of unev...
Clustering of cardiovascular risk factors in the patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus of rural communities in Henan province

Objective: To investigate the clustering and characters of cardiovascular risk factors in the patients with T2DM of rural communities for prevention and control of cardiovascular. Methods: 16 953 participants aged from 35 to 74 years old participated in a cross sectional study in a Henan rural area were performed questionnaire interview,physical examination and biochemical test in July,2007 and July,2008. Results: 1 490 participants were diagnosed T2DM,prevalence of T2DM was 8.79%.The percent of the clustering level of cardiovascular risk factors from 0 to 4 in T2DM patients was 12.35%,32.89%,35.84%,17.04%,1.88%,respectively.The percent of the clustering level from 1 to 3 of cardiovascular risk factors was higher than that of participants without T2DM(P 0.01).The clustering level of cardiovascular risk factors clustering increased significantly with age among T2DM patients aged from 35-65(P0.01). Conclusion: The clustering level of cardiovascular risk factors has reached an epidemic level.
Origins of Density Gradient Centrifugation

The events that brought about the mutually profitable merger of biochemistry and cytology led to the development of density gradient centrifugation. This chapter discusses the origin of density gradient centrifugation. The evolution of density gradient centrifugation set in motion was inspired by the hope that preparative centrifugation could physically separate particles with the same resolution as seen in the analytical cell. However, by the mid-1950s, it became evident that density gradient centrifugation was in principle superior to the moving boundary method employed in the analytical ultracentrifuge. One important factor was that interaction among different particle populations, which was known to affect sedimentation rates, was eliminated as soon as particle zones were separated from one another. By 1960, density gradient centrifugation had come of age.
A Theological Framework for Multicultural Religious Education

In the practice of multicultural religious education a conflict arises between two competing understandings of the term multicultural. In one understanding multicultural religious education means the incorporation of racial and ethnic diversity into a Western, European paradigm of Christianity. In another understanding, multicultural religious education means the implementation of theological and educational procedures and rationales that would account for the reality of social structural differences within the diversity of society, allow those differences to shape the content and form of the Christian tradition, and, therefore, challenge the Western paradigm as the dominant expression of Christianity. This article expresses the conviction that the term multicultural is most appropriately understood as that which embraces the reality of diversity and social structural difference. Based on this conviction, the article makes the case that theologies of liberation provide an important theological framework for a multicultural religious education that embraces both diversity and difference.
The Sperm Epigenome: Implications for the Embryo

Recent advances, including the human genome project and numerous studies of cancer and other diseases, have shown that the genetic code is not simply limited to the sequence of the four bases of DNA but also includes epigenetic programming, heritable changes that affect gene expression [Riggs A, Martinssen R, Russo V (2007) Introduction. In: Riggs A, Martinssen R, Russo V (eds) Epigenetics mechanisms of gene regulation. Cold Spring Harbor Press, New York]. The science of epigenetics is important in understanding many diseases and biological processes, including in identifying the causes of disease and better understanding the mechanisms by which the environment can affect gene expression [Carrell Fertil Steril 97 (2):267–274, 2012]. This chapter will focus on the epigenome of sperm and particularly highlight the potential role of the sperm epigenome in embryogenesis.
van der Waals epitaxy of CdS thin films on single-crystalline graphene

van der Waals epitaxy (vdWE) of three-dimensional CdS thin films on both single-crystalline graphene/Cu(111)/spinel(111) and single-crystalline graphene/SiO2/Si substrates is achieved via thermal evaporation. X-ray and electron backscatter diffraction pole figures reveal that the CdS films are a Wurtzite structure with a weak epitaxy on graphene and accompanied with a fiber texture background. The epitaxial alignment between CdS and graphene is observed to be an unusual non-parallel epitaxial relationship with a 30° rotation between the unit vectors of CdS and graphene. A geometrical model based on the minimization of superlattice area mismatch is employed to calculate possible interface lattice arrangement. It is found that the 30° rotation between CdS and graphene is indeed the most probable interface epitaxial lattice alignment. The vdWE of CdS on graphene, transferrable to arbitrary substrates, may represent a step forward for the growth of quality CdS thin films on arbitrary substrates through a grap...
Evolutionary search for paths on protein energy landscapes

Proteins are in perpetual motion, switching between structures to regulate interactions with molecular partners. These motions correspond to hops in an energy landscape that organizes the structures available to a protein by their potential energies. Here we introduce an evolutionary algorithm (EA) that computes structural excursions of a protein without the need to reconstruct its energy landscape a priori. The preliminary results are promising and suggest further directions of research.
Composite bottom panel slamming of a fast planing hull via tightly coupled fluid-structure interaction simulations and sea trials

Abstract The paper presents partitioned tightly coupled fluid-structure interaction (FSI) simulations for composite panel slamming of a high-speed planing hull, including comparison with full-scale experiments. Panels with different layout/stiffness are investigated. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is performed using the URANS code CFDShip-Iowa. Computational structural dynamics (CSD) uses modal expansion by ANSYS finite elements. One- and two-way tightly coupled FSI is performed. The complexity of sea-trial conditions is reduced by statistical/frequency analysis, allowing for a simplified representation by one regular wave. Simulations provide details of slamming, including correlation of re-entering pressure peaks with motions and strain peaks. Numerical/modeling issues are discussed. Expected value and associated uncertainty of experimental pressure/strain peak and duration are used for validation. The difference of panels’ dynamics is well predicted. Validation errors and uncertainties (average 25% and 14%) are quite large. Nevertheless, errors always fall within one standard deviation of experimental-data individual readings. Results are promising especially if compared to earlier slamming studies for regular/irregular waves in controlled towing tank tests, which show average error and validation uncertainty of 25% and 10%. The current study lays the groundwork for research on high-fidelity CFD/CSD FSI of real-world geometry slamming and ultimately multidisciplinary design optimization of structural and hull-form parameters.
Cerebral Gray Matter Volumes in Cocaine Dependence: Clinical and Functional Implications

Cocaine abuse is associated with neuroinflammation. Cocaine also has powerful vasoactive effects. Both cause loss of neurons and changes in cerebral gray matter volume (GMV) and deficits in cognitive and affective functions. Magnetic resonance imaging has provided a wealth of information on altered brain activation and structures in individuals addicted to cocaine. In this chapter, studies of cerebral morphometry are reviewed, highlighting a study of voxel-based morphometry of cocaine-dependent (CD) individuals. Overall, compared with healthy controls (HCs), CD individuals showed decreased GMV in multiple brain regions, including the frontal and temporal cortices, middle/posterior cingulate cortex, and the cerebellum. The GMV of the bilateral superior frontal gyrus (SFG) and cingulate cortices were negatively correlated with years of cocaine use, with women showing a steeper loss in the right SFG in association with duration of use. In contrast, the right ventral putamen showed increased GMV in CD individuals compared with HCs. The findings and potential implications of GMV loss for cognitive and affective functions in cocaine addicts are also discussed.
A Distance Of 24 Seconds

On my first day at UHS, I was told that there were no more keys to the staff bathroom. It was my first challenge as a new teacher in the school. Students immediately tested me with breaking dress code, texting during class, and using language I never thought that a child would say to an adult. Others were friendly, eager, and wanted to know what brought me to their school. My lesson plans were all ready and I was eager to get started, but with all of the paperwork and with so many students coming and going, nothing really got off the ground. I had so many emotions, but all I could think about all morning was “What am I going to do if I have to go to the bathroom?” Luckily, with the help of very supportive colleagues, I survived that first day. I even got a black market key to the bathroom before the day was done.
Public Disclosure and Price Fragility

I derive a firm’s optimal public disclosure policy aimed at minimizing its cost of raising capital from the equity market. Following the public disclosure, the institutional investors offer incentive contracts to their buy-side analysts to acquire independent private information. Due to the imperfections in evaluating the analysts' performance, the investors rationally demand less private information following good public news and demand more following bad ones. Heterogeneity in cost of information acquisition implies more demand for private information results in more information asymmetry among the investors. Therefore, the overall effect of more transparency on the cost of capital is ambiguous. Furthermore, depending on the public signal and the information structure of the signals available to the analysts, there is either complementarity or substitutability in private information acquisition among the investors. This strategic complementarity results in price discontinuity in the firm's choice of public message. Therefore, to avoid such sharp price drops, firms optimally smooth their earnings reports, as is empirically observed. Finally, there is a positive relationship between the shareholders' liquidity demand and the firm's level of transparency. It might provide a justification why bigger public firms are more transparent. This setting allows studying the effect of selective disclosure and the recent policy changes on the firm’s cost of capital.
Testing Factorial Invariance With Unbalanced Samples

In testing the factorial invariance of a measure across groups, the groups are often of different sizes. Large imbalances in group size might affect the results of factorial invariance studies and ...
Validating extremism: Strategic use of authority appeals in al-Naba’ infographics

Daesh’s centralized media operations provide a steady stream of media products to citizens living in and around its controlled territories, with the result that several nations occupied or adjacent to the group have emerged as many of the most fruitful recruiting grounds for new members. To better understand the argumentation strategies targeting such audiences, this study examines the 119 infographics in the first 50 issues of Daesh’s official weekly Arabic newsletter, al-Naba’. The findings suggest that through a patterned application of statistical, historical, religious, and scientific arguments from authority to predictable topical areas, the infographics in al-Naba’ reinforce Daesh as a key source of information for the citizenry of the proclaimed caliphate.
Secure Base Representations in Children With Asthma: Links With Symptoms, Family Asthma Management, and Cytokine Regulation

Children's perceptions of caregivers as a secure base have been linked with socioemotional outcomes, but little is known about connections to physical health. We examined whether secure base representations are associated with children's symptoms, family management strategies, and inflammatory processes in children with asthma. Participants included 308 children (ages 8-17) and one parent. Children completed a blood draw to measure asthma-related immune functions and reported on perceptions of their mothers as a secure base and their asthma symptoms. Dyads completed interviews about asthma management. Analyses revealed that children's secure base perceptions were associated with better family asthma management and lower Type 2 T-helper cell cytokine production. These findings suggest that secure base representations may be protective for children with asthma.
Phenylpropanoid Metabolism: Biosynthesis of Monolignols, Lignans and Neolignans, Lignins and Suberins

During the growth and development of vascular plants, specific phenylpropanoid metabolites differentially accumulate in particular tissues and/or cells of specialized function(s). Examples include the deposition of lignins in xylem tissue and vascular bundles and suberins in suberized cells, the accumulation of flavonoids in vacuolar and sometimes in wall compartments, and the ester attachment of hydroxycinnamic acids to arabinoxylans in the cell wall. Many of these metabolites confer unique properties to particular tissues or cells without which the competitive survival of vascular plants would be severely, if not fatally, compromised.
Sustainability and the anthropogenic alteration of evolutionary processes

Persuasive evidence indicates that Earth is now experiencing a major biotic crisis. Even if humankind ceases severe stress on natural systems, the crisis will probably disrupt the basic evo- lutionary processes that characterized the period preceding the agricultural and industrial revolu- tions. Proliferation of drug and pesticide resistant species and opportunistic species that thrive in human-dominated ecosystems will become increasingly common. The effect on humankind of alter- ing basic evolutionary processes is uncertain because the understanding of these processes is not robust. The probable result will not be an environment as favorable to humans as the one that has existed for most of human history. Humans probably have altered the environment since Homo sapi- ens first appeared. However, only in the last two centuries has the degree and rate of change reached levels now considered by many people to be 'normal', even though the record shows they are not. Greatly improved technology has facilitated increased exploitation of natural resources to unsustain- able levels. This exploitation, in turn, has led to exponential human population growth, which has depleted natural capital (living systems and the services they provide). Economic globalization has ensured that ecosystems far distant from consumers can be and are profitably exploited. Economic growth has become a universal mantra that is coupled with a conviction that such growth can con- tinue indefinitely on a finite planet. A major paradigm shift is essential if sustainable use of the planet is to become a reality.
Molecular Mechanisms of Transformation by Epstein-Barr Virus

The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is associated with the development of malignancies (lymphomas and carcinomas of the nasopharynx) in both lymphoid and epithelial cells. Primary infection of the oropharyngeal epithelium results in virus replication, production of virions, and ultimately the destruction of the infected cell. In contrast to the normal cytolytic consequences of epithelial infection, EBV infection in lymphocytes remains latent yet achieves rapid and efficient cell immortalization.(1,2) The EBV-infected subset of B lymphocytes in peripheral blood will grow indefinitely when explanted to culture medium. Besides the long-established association of EBV with African Burkitt’s lymphoma (BL), the virus has more recently been linked to B-cell lymphomas arising in immunosuppressed persons, apparently a result of EBV-driven polyclonal lymphoproliferation unchecked by the immune response. Ironically, in BL, the disease that originally led to the discovery of EBV, the expectation of an etiological role for the virus has diminished. Although endemic African BL consistently contains EBV genomes, they are often not present in non-African tumors. Universal and more likely as a common etiological factor in BL is a chromosomal translocation placing the c-myc protooncogene (from chromosome 8) in a position where its expression could be influenced by its new proximity to the immunoglobulin enhancer or other Ig regulatory elements on chromosomes 2, 14, or 22.(3,4) Interestingly, EBV’s association with African BL correlates with the consistent usage of a single breakpoint location on chromosome 8, in contrast to EBV-negative American lymphomas in which a variety of breakpoint locations can be found. Through stimulation of cell proliferation, EBV may help boost the likelihood of certain translocations.(5) It has been suggested that this particular structural arrangement at the breakpoint may require an EBV function to achieve deregulation of the c-myc gene. The idea that an EBV gene product might mediate translocation, although appealing, has not been sustained. An enhancer region near the c-myc gene has some functional similarities to the EBV origin of plasmid replication (ori-P), raising the possibility that, under the right circumstances, this sequence could interact with the EBV origin-binding protein, Epstein-Barr nuclear antigen 1 (EBNA-1).(4)
Spontaneous bacterial empyema: an elusive diagnosis in a patient with cirrhosis

Hepatic hydrothorax refers to the presence of a pleural effusion (usually >500 mL) in a patient with cirrhosis in whom other causes of pleural effusion, such as cardiopulmonary causes, pleural disease or malignancy have been excluded. It is seen in 5%–10% of patients with end-stage liver disease. A subset of these patients can develop infection of the hepatic hydrothorax, called spontaneous bacterial empyema. They may present with fever, chills and dyspnoea. We present the case of an 83-year-old man with a history of cirrhosis who developed a large right-sided pleural effusion, confirmed to be empyema by pleural fluid analysis. We aim to highlight the occurrence of spontaneous bacterial empyema. While less common that spontaneous bacterial peritonitis as a complication of cirrhosis, it is equally serious with potential for adverse outcomes.
Running ethnography: Engaging the culture and landscapes of rural Japan

This report reflects on the use of endurance running as an intentional fieldwork method to engage with the farmers and landscapes of rural Japan. It provides a unique means of interacting with those landscapes while taking researchers into places and communities otherwise difficult to reach. Exploration via endurance running results in a restructured researcher-informant relationship, a greater sensual attunement to place-ness, and a more astute interpretation of oral histories and the social construction of rural places. A theoretical and empirical explanation of this method of experiencing and interacting with and within place and then applying the resulting more educated phenomenological sensibility to engage the rural social worlds of Japan is a contribution of this report. This method would similarly benefit researchers embedded in other agricultural, rural, or geographical contexts.
The evolution of regret: decision-making for parents of children with cancer.

Parents of children with cancer make treatment decisions in highly emotional states while feeling overwhelmed with information. In previous work, 1 in 6 parents demonstrated heightened decisional regret regarding treatment at diagnosis. However, it is unclear how regret evolves over time. We aimed to determine whether parents of children with cancer experience decisional regret over time and to identify parental characteristics and clinician behaviors associated with longitudinal regret. Prospective, questionnaire-based cohort study of parents of children with cancer at two academic pediatric hospitals. Parents reported decisional regret at diagnosis, 4 months, and 12 months. At baseline, 13% of parents (21/158) reported heightened regret, 11% (17/158) at 4 months (p = 0.43, McNemar’s test relative to baseline), and 11% (16/158) at 12 months (p = 0.35 relative to baseline and p = 0.84 relative to 4 months). In multivariable analysis using generalized estimating equations adjusted for the time point of survey completion, heightened regret was associated with non-white race/ethnicity (OR 11.57, 95% CI 3.53 to 41.05, p < .0001) and high anxiety (OR 2.01, 95% CI 1.04 to 3.90, p = .04). Parents with high peace of mind (OR 0.24, 95% CI 0.09 to 0.62, p = .003) and those reporting high-quality information (OR 0.22, 95% CI 0.07 to 0.69, p = 0.01) had lower odds of heightened regret. We found no association between heightened regret and the time point of survey administration. A small, significant proportion of parents experience heightened regret throughout the first year of their child’s cancer treatment; non-white parents are at higher risk. Effective communication may protect against regret.
GDF15 Is an Inflammation-Induced Central Mediator of Tissue Tolerance.

Summary Growth and differentiation factor 15 (GDF15) is an inflammation-associated hormone with poorly defined biology. Here, we investigated the role of GDF15 in bacterial and viral infections. We found that inflammation induced GDF15, and that GDF15 was necessary for surviving both bacterial and viral infections, as well as sepsis. The protective effects of GDF15 were largely independent of pathogen control or the magnitude of inflammatory response, suggesting a role in disease tolerance. Indeed, we found that GDF15 was required for hepatic sympathetic outflow and triglyceride metabolism. Failure to defend the lower limit of plasma triglyceride levels was associated with impaired cardiac function and maintenance of body temperature, effects that could be rescued by exogenous administration of lipids. Together, we show that GDF15 coordinates tolerance to inflammatory damage through regulation of triglyceride metabolism.
Rhetoric’s “Distinguished” pitfalls: A plática

At this specific moment, the issue likely needs no introduction; but some day, years from now, it will. In June 2019, the National Communication Association (NCA) erupted in controversy when Martin...
Scientific Review Committees as part of institutional review of human participant research: Initial implementation at institutions with Clinical and Translational Science Awards.

Introduction Scientific quality and feasibility are part of ethics review by Institutional Review Boards (IRBs). Scientific Review Committees (SRCs) were proposed to facilitate this assessment by the Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) SRC Consensus Group. This study assessed SRC feasibility and impact at CTSA-affiliated academic health centers (AHCs). Methods SRC implementation at 10 AHCs was assessed pre/post-intervention using quantitative and qualitative methods. Pre-intervention, four AHCs had no SRC, and six had at least one SRC needing modifications to better align with Consensus Group recommendations. Results Facilitators of successful SRC implementation included broad-based communication, an external motivator, senior-level support, and committed SRC reviewers. Barriers included limited resources and staffing, variable local mandates, limited SRC authority, lack of anticipated benefit, and operational challenges. Research protocol quality did not differ significantly between study periods, but respondents suggested positive effects. During intervention, median total review duration did not lengthen for the 40% of protocols approved within 3 weeks. For the 60% under review after 3 weeks, review was lengthened primarily due to longer IRB review for SRC-reviewed protocols. Site interviews recommended designing locally effective SRC processes, building buy-in by communication or by mandate, allowing time for planning and sharing best practices, and connecting SRC and IRB procedures. Conclusions The CTSA SRC Consensus Group recommendations appear feasible. Although not conclusive in this relatively short initial implementation, sites perceived positive impact by SRCs on study quality. Optimal benefit will require local or federal mandate for implementation, adapting processes to local contexts, and employing SRC stipulations.
2 – Conceptual Integration

Publisher Summary This chapter introduces an educational environment where learning occurs by factual questions and process questions. The integrated character of the Earth system provides a broadly relevant framework for teaching about the open-ended and dynamic nature of inquiry. This chapter explores the earth as an interconnected environmental system. Furthermore, interdisciplinary approaches involve qualitative and quantitative tools for interpreting relationships. Qualitative tool is a field of information for the purpose of illustrating the general connections whereas quantitative tool provide pathways for interpreting dynamic links among the sources and sinks of materials cycling through the Earth system. The chapter explains models that represent the dynamic relationships between connected reservoirs. The chapter concludes that interdisciplinary inquiry propels individuals toward understanding the complexity of the increasingly scientific and technological world.
Regional variations in cardiovascular risk factors and access to care among US veterans with cardiovascular disease.

Background It remains unclear whether cardiovascular risk factors and access to healthcare for veterans with cardiovascular disease (CVD) vary among US regions. This study sought to determine the extent of regional variations in cardiovascular risk factors and access to medical care in a cohort of veterans with CVD in the USA. Methods The 2016 Centers for Disease Control Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey was utilized to identify a cohort of veteran patients with CVD. Participants were classified based on four US regions: (1) Northeast, (2) Midwest, (3) South, and (4) West. We compared demographic data, medical history, and access to care for veterans of each US region. The outcomes of interest included financial barriers to medical care and annual medical checkup. Results Among the 13 835 veterans, 18.3% were from the Northeast, while 23.5, 37.1, and 21.1% were from the Midwest, South, and West, respectively. Veterans of each region differed significantly with respect to demographic characteristics, prior medical history, and access to care. Rates of financial barriers to medical care were similar across the four regions (7.3 vs. 7.1 vs. 8.0 vs. 6.9%, P = 0.203). Veterans from the West had the lowest rates of medical checkup within the past year (91.7 vs. 89.5 vs. 91.4 vs. 86.6%). On multivariate analysis, the Midwest [odds ratio (OR) 0.69; 95% CI, 0.53-0.89] and West (OR 0.53; 95% CI 0.41-0.68) regions were independently associated with lower rates of medical checkup within the past year compared to the Northeast. Conclusions In this observational study involving US veterans with CVD, cardiovascular risk factors and frequency of annual medical checkup differed amongst each US region. Further large-scale studies examining the prevalence of impaired access to care and quality of care in US veterans with CVD are warranted.
Electrostatic charging and deflection of droplets for drop-on-demand 3D printing within confinements

Abstract The ability to precisely manipulate and control extruded materials is essential in the additive manufacturing industry. In addition to the gravity force acting on the extruded medium, here we demonstrate that the employment of a Coulomb force which results from a strategically applied electric field holds a great promise to enhance three-dimensional (3D) printing systems and derive new products. In particular, it is shown experimentally and theoretically that a strategically applied electric field can be used to pre-charge low-volume droplets (non-contact and direct methods), enhancing control during printing. Selectively applying the electric field (E.F.) allows a modified printer more flexibility during a multi-layered print on nearly any chosen substrate. For testing, droplets created on-demand from orifices within inkjet printing parameters were subjected to a transverse electric field. The electric field was generated by retrofitting electrodes to a direct writing (DW)-based 3D printer. The application of electrodes to the print head not only reduced the need for mechanical motion during printing but also revealed novel solutions to problematic printing applications, namely, 3D printing within confinements. These results divulge a plethora of new design opportunities for ink droplet control in 3D printing processes.
Single shot scene recovery via the bispectrum

Speckle imaging has long been used for recovery images of static scenes distorted by atmospheric optical turbulence. One limitation of speckle imaging is the need for multiple image frames where the scene is static and corrupted by independent turbulence realizations. This is a critical limitation when observing scenes containing moving objects. In this work, I use view-point images from simulated light-fields as inputs to a bispectrum-based speckle imaging algorithm. I find that near diffraction-limited imagery can be recovered from a single light-field exposure.
At the Table: A Reflexive Essay on Research Dispositions

In response to a call for submissions for a theme issue of Studies in Art Education, I examine concepts of orientations, dispositions, and habitus, combining personal reflections with analysis of r...
Ilioinguinal/Iliohypogastric versus quadratus lumborum nerve blockade for elective open inguinal herniorrhaphy: a prospective, randomized, double-blinded, equivalency trial.

Background Open inguinal herniorrhaphy (OIH) is a commonly performed surgical procedure with expected postoperative pain. Historically, an option for regional analgesia has been an ilioinguinal and iliohypogastric nerve block (IINB). More recently, the transmuscular quadratus lumborum block (QLB) has been used as an analgesic technique for a variety of abdominal and truncal surgical procedures. Given our own institutional experiences with the performance of QLB combined with the body of literature supporting the proximal blockade of the ilioinguinal and iliohypogastric nerves via this approach, we compared the analgesia provided by an IINB to a QLB. We hypothesized that the two blocks would provide equivalent analgesia, as defined by a difference of less than±2 points on the pain scale (0–10 numeric rating scale (NRS)), for patients undergoing OIH. Methods Sixty patients scheduled for elective outpatient OIH under general anesthesia were randomized to preoperatively receive either an IINB or a transmuscular QLB with 0.25% bupivacaine/epinephrine/clonidine for postoperative analgesia. The primary endpoint was movement NRS pain scores at 8 hours. Secondary outcomes included resting NRS pain scores at 8 and 24 hours, movement NRS pain scores at 24 hours, incidence of opioid related side effects (nausea, vomiting, pruritus), time-to-first oral opioid analgesic, and total opioid consumption at 24 hours. Results Fifty-nine patients were analyzed per an intention-to-treat approach (one patient was excluded because the surgical procedure was canceled). Movement pain scores at 8 hours were equivalent (IINB 5.10±3.02 vs QLB 5.03±3.01 (mean NRS±SD); two one-sided test mean difference (90% CI), 0.07 (−1.24 to 1.38), p ≤0.01). There were no differences between groups for any of the secondary endpoints. Conclusion An IINB and a transmuscular QLB are equivalent with regards to their ability to provide postoperative analgesia after OIH.
Herding an evolving biological population with quantum control tools

Populations of organisms can be regarded as clouds of genetic variants evolving passively in response to mutation and natural selection. Counterdiabatic driving — a tool borrowed from quantum control — now offers the possibility of actively controlling both the rate and route followed by an evolving population.
Post-CMOS Compatible Aluminum Scandium Nitride/2D Channel Ferroelectric Field-Effect-Transistor Memory

Recent advances in oxide ferroelectric (FE) materials have rejuvenated the field of low-power, nonvolatile memories and made FE memories a commercial reality. Despite these advances, progress on commercial FE-RAM based on lead zirconium titanate has stalled due to process challenges. The recent discovery of ferroelectricity in scandium-doped aluminum nitride (AlScN) presents new opportunities for direct memory integration with logic transistors due to the low temperature of AlScN deposition (approximately 350 °C), making it compatible with back end of the line integration on silicon logic. Here, we present a FE-FET device composed of an FE-AlScN dielectric layer integrated with a two-dimensional MoS2 channel. Our devices show an ON/OFF ratio of ∼106, concurrent with a normalized memory window of 0.3 V/nm. The devices also demonstrate stable memory states up to 104 cycles and state retention up to 105 s. Our results suggest that the FE-AlScN/2D combination is ideal for embedded memory and memory-based computing architectures.
True Colors: Whiteness in Bioethics.

In a plenary presentation on structural racism at the 2019 American Society of Bioethics and Humanities Annual Meeting, invited speaker Mary T. Bassett asserted that there is no solidarity without ...