cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Chest Wall Stabilization Leads to Shortened Chest Tube Stay Time in Rib Fracture Patients after Traumatic Chest Wall Injury

Rib fixation has become a strategy for patients with displaced rib fractures and hemo/pneumothoraces (HTX/PTX). Rib plating improves pain control and respiratory mechanics, thereby reducing recovery times and morbidity/mortality. Current treatment consists of chest tube placement, pain control, and pulmonary toilet. The addition of rib plating should reduce time till HTX/PTX resolution and chest tube removal. The study compares chest tube stay time in rib-plated patients with those managed with current treatment. We hypothesize that patients undergoing rib plating will have a reduction in chest tube stay times. A retrospective review of a Level 1 trauma registry was performed. Rib-plated patients (n = 70) from 2013 to 2015 were compared with a randomly selected, nonoperative, injury-matched, historical (2003-2008) control group (n = 60). Demographics were obtained. Independent variables analyzed include Injury Severity Score (ISS), intensive care unit days, length of stay, and chest tube stay times. 60 control patients had an average ISS of 19 and age of 51 years, compared with ISS of 20 and age of 56 years in plated patients. Plated patients had a reduction in chest tube days, 6.5 versus 8.4 days, P value = 0.02. Plated patients had 14 intensive care unit days versus 19 days, P value = 0.09. T tests were performed to confirm significance. Reduction in chest tube days improves patient pain and allows for improved ambulation and pulmonary toilet, helping reduce respiratory complications. Our review shows that plating may prove beneficial in reducing complications associated with management of HTX/PTX in the setting of rib fractures.
Embedding communication symbols in radar clutter on an intrapulse basis

The concept of RCEC has been proposed, with the prospect of various different communication symbol and receive filter design strategies. Several of these symbol/filter designs were examined from the perspective of spectral containment, processing gain, probability of detection, and SER. Of the three proposed symbol designs, it was shown that the DP method of embedding communication symbols into clutter is the most effective from the perspectives of detectability, SER, and interference at the radar receiver. This symbol design offers significant improvements over a traditional DSSS design strategy. Finally, simulation results show that the DLDF provides the most robust performance for all symbol designs, independent of the incident clutter power.
Sarāghāz-e Pezeshkinegāri-ye Matbuʿāti, be Enzemām-e Nashriyeh-hā-ye Tebbi-ye Iran Zamāneh-ye Qajar (Beginnings of Medical Journalism in Iran: Medical Periodicals in the Qajar period): Sayyed Farid Qāsemi (ed.), Qom and Tehran: Nashr-e Movarrekh in collaboration with Tehran University Central Library and Documentation Center, 1398 (2019), ISBN 879–022-0066-54- 2, Paperback (National Library Registration: 5975144), 225 pp.

The book under review is a welcome research tool for the study of medicine and public health in modern Iran, focusing for the most part on the late Qajar period. The book consists of a Preface (pp....
Introduction: Plasma for Cancer Therapy

Plasma is an ionized gas that is typically formed under high-temperature laboratory conditions. Recent progress in atmospheric plasmas has led to non-thermal or cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) devices with ion temperatures close to room temperature. CAP demonstrated significant potential in cancer therapy. In contrast to many existing anti-cancer approaches, CAP is a selective anti-cancer modality. This book written by key researchers in the field will provide a comprehensive analysis and overview of the state-of-the-art plasma-based cancer therapy. We will also present some recent advances in the field, the primary challenges, and future directions. This book is meant for a broad audience, from students to engineers and scientists, who are interested in the emerging field of plasma medical application.
Achieving Operational Scalability Using Razee Continuous Deployment Model and Kubernetes Operators.

Recent advancements in the cloud computing domain have resulted in huge strides toward simplifying the procurement of hardware and software for diverse needs. By moving enterprise workloads to managed cloud offerings (private, public, hybrid), customers are delegating mundane tasks and labor-intensive maintenance activities related to network connectivity, procurement of cloud resource, application deployment, software patches, and upgrades, etc., This often translates to benefits such as high availability and reduced cost. The popularity of container and micro-services-based deployment has made Kubernetes the de-facto standard to deliver applications. However, even with Kubernetes orchestration, cloud service providers frequently have operational scalability issues due to lack of Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment (CICD) automation and increased demand for human operators when managing a large number of software deployments across multiple data centers/availability zones. Kubernetes solves this in a novel way by creating and managing custom applications using Operators. Agile methodology advocates incremental CICD which are adopted by cloud providers. However, ironically, it is this same continuous delivery feature of application updates, Kubernetes cluster upgrades, etc., that is also a bane to cloud providers. In this paper, we will demonstrate the use of IBM open-source project Razee as a scalable continuous deployment framework to deploy open-source RStudio and Nginx Operators. We will discuss how IBM Watson SaaS application Operator, Blockchain applications, and Kubernetes resources updates, etc., can be deployed similarly and the use of Operators to perform application life cycle management. We assert that using Razee in conjunction with Operators on Kubernetes simplifies application life cycle management and increases scalability.
The road from Rous sarcoma virus to precision medicine

In 1911, more than a century ago, Peyton Rous described a curious observation, later explained by a virus named for him that led to the discovery of oncogenes, the modern era of cancer research, and the emergent field of precision medicine (1911. J. Exp. Med. https://doi.org/10.1084/jem.13.4.397).
Beyond Bostock: Justice Gorsuch's Free Exercise Jurisprudence as a Model in Addressing the Contemporary Crisis in Religious Liberty

This piece is designed to be first a summary of the holding in Bostock, focussing on the religious liberty concerns that some have raised in response to that case's holding. Following a summary of that case, the article lays out Justice Gorsuch’s view of religious liberty in a number of areas. Justice Gorsuch's opinions while on the 10th Circuit elucidate his concern to protect unpopular beliefs and religions from the possible tyranny of the majority voice. The piece focusses, however, on what Gorsuch wrote this past term that highlighted the critical importance of religious liberty in a pluralistic society. Gorsuch has repeatedly emphasized the need to respect unpopular beliefs and the need to be solicitous in our defense of fundamental rights. He has critiqued distinctions between religious belief and practice and urged courts to vigilantly protect religious liberty, even in times of Crisis. Gorsuch's jurisprudence culminated in the truth that while “we may not shelter in place when the Constitution is under attack. Things never go well when we do.” Following this deep dive into one Justice's jurisprudence, the piece will describe what Gorsuch is likely to do in response to a religious liberty response to Bostock, or a similar clash between free exercise and discrimination protections, arguing that strong protection of religious liberty is not only the response Gorsuch is likely to take to such a challenge, but the constitutionally necessary response to such a crisis.
A Previously Unrecognized Granulomatous Variant of Gamma-Delta T-Cell Lymphoma.

Primary cutaneous γδ T-cell lymphoma (PCGD-TCL) is an extremely rare and aggressive T-cell neoplasm with complex heterogeneity. We present a series of two patients who presented with firm, subcutaneous nodules and were diagnosed with PCGD-TCL. In both cases, biopsies demonstrated a both superficial and deep adnexotropic infiltrate comprised of angiocentric, medium- to large-sized atypical lymphocytes. The infiltrate extended into the panniculus. Immuno–histochemical stains highlighted atypical lymphocytes that expressed CD3, CD8 and CD56 but were negative for EBV ISH. A brisk histiocytic response with focal aggregation into granulomas was highlighted with a PG-M1 stain. The atypical lymphocytes were positive for gene rearrangements on a TCR delta stain and negative for βF-1. CT and PET scan in one of the two patients demonstrated diffuse, subcutaneous, ground-glass foci; hypermetabolic soft tissue nodules; and lymphadenopathy in the lungs, as well as splenomegaly. A diagnosis of histiocyte-rich PCGD-TCL was rendered. A histiocyte-rich, granulomatous variant of γδ T-cell lymphoma is extremely rare. Its potentially misleading resemblance to inflammatory granulomatous conditions could pose a diagnostic pitfall in this already challenging condition. This variant may resemble granulomatous mycosis fungoides and granulomatous slack skin syndrome, but it has a distinct, aggressive clinical outcome.
Non-obstetric Complications in Pregnancy: Role of Imaging

Imaging evaluation of the pregnant patient for non-obstetrical symptoms or complication is challenging. Radiographic imaging has to be considered keeping in mind the effects of radiation on the developing fetus. A lack of understanding of the true risks to the fetus resulting from exposure to ionizing radiation by the managing clinician and the radiologist can be harmful to the pregnant patient and may result in delay in appropriate imaging for conditions affecting the pregnant woman. This is compounded by the fear of exposure to radiation by the patient and her family. A detailed description of the true risk of radiation exposure is presented. The current guidelines by the professional societies for appropriate use of imaging to evaluate symptoms and clinical findings in pregnant patients is discussed. The most common indication for imaging in pregnancy is abdominal and pelvic pain, other indications include investigation of an abdominal or pelvic mass, imaging of trauma, and renal colic. Appropriate and timely imaging is critical to avoid resultant morbidity and mortality of the pregnant woman as well as the fetus. Surgical intervention is associated with an increased risk of premature labor. Accurate diagnosis is important therefore to avoid unnecessary surgical intervention to safeguard the health of both the mother and the developing fetus. Diagnostic radiological examinations are generally safe to be performed during pregnancy, but careful consideration has to be given so as to tailor the examination to the clinical symptoms and to utilize nonradiological examinations such as ultrasound as the initial imaging technique. When radiological modalities are utilized, the exposure of the gravid abdomen to ionizing radiation has to be kept as low as reasonably possible. Informed consent prior to such imaging studies is important so that the patient understands the risks and benefit of undergoing radiological investigations. Radiation risk considerations from use of diagnostic imaging in pregnancy Imaging in the evaluation of non-obstetrical complications in pregnancy Pelvic mass Abdominal pain Renal colic Trauma
Maximizing the subtonsillar transcerebellomedullary approach to suprasellar cistern: how I do it.

BACKGROUND The subtonsillar transcerebellomedullary approach (STA) has been well established as one of the surgical options to access lesions in the foramen of Luschka. The middle cerebellar peduncle has been defined as the superior limit of this corridor, and tumors extending beyond this landmark were often approached through combined accesses. METHOD We illustrate the access to the suprasellar cistern, from a purely STA for a large tumor arising from the foramen of Luschka. CONCLUSION This manuscript demonstrates the STA as a valid alternative for certain tumors of the foramen of Luschka, which extend into crural and suprasellar cisterns.
Antibodies to Na,K-ATPase: Characterization and Use in Cell-Free Synthesis Studies

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the characterization and use of antibodies to the enzyme Na, K–ATPase in cell-free synthesis studies. To examine the regulation of the rates of transcription and translation of Na, K–ATPase and to study the processing and assembly of the subunit, development of a cell-free synthesis system for the enzyme would be advantageous. Detection of translational products is dependent upon the availability of antibodies specific for the α- and β-subunits of the enzyme. These antibodies provide useful probes for the analysis of enzyme structure-function relationships.
Scanning Spectro-Microscopy with 250 to 800 eV X-Rays

We describe spectromicroscopy experiments at the X1A facility at the National Synchrotron Light Source. In these efforts, two scanning x-ray microscopes based on zone plate optics are utilized. One of these is an ultrahigh vacuum scanning photoemission microscope (SPEM) solely intended for surface characterization, while the other is a scanning transmission x-ray microscope (STXM). The former was substantially modified during the last few years and recently completed the first tests. We will describe its performance and outline further improvements. STXM has been utilized to provide chemical contrast via absorption spectroscopy in studies of a variety of polymeric materials in transmission. A spatial resolution of 30-40 ran and an energy resolution of 400 meV could be achieved in these experiments.
Concealing the Trading Footprint: Optimal Execution Horizon

Multiple empirical studies have shown that Order Flow Imbalance has predictive power over the trading range.The PIN Theory (Easley et al. [1996]) reveals the Microstructure mechanism by which: Market Makers adjust their trading range to avoid being adversely selected by Informed Traders; Informed Traders reveal their future trading intentions when they alter the Order Flow; Consequently, Market Makers’ trading range is a function of the Order Flow imbalance.The Optimal Execution Horizon (OEH) algorithm presented here takes into account order imbalance to determine the optimal participation rate.
The Lenses Structure & Dynamics Survey

The Lenses Structure & Dynamics (LSD) Survey aims at studying the internal structure of luminous and dark matter - as well as their evolution - of field earlytype (E/SO) galaxies to z ∼ 1. In particular, E/S0 lens galaxies are studied by combining gravitational lensing, photometric and kinematic data obtained with ground-based (VLA/Keck/VLT) and space-based telescopes (HST). Here, we report on preliminary results from the LSD Survey, in particular on (i) the constraints set on the luminous and dark-matter distributions in the inner several R eff of E/S0 galaxies, (ii) the evolution of their stellar component and (iii) the constraints set on the value of H0 from time-delay systems by combining lensing and kinematic data to break degeneracies in gravitational-lens models.
Trace Elements In Water, Fish and Sediment from Tuskegee Lake, Southeastern Usa

The concentrations of trace elements in water, sediment and fish samples from Tuskegee Lake located in Southeastern United States were investigated in this study. The Lake is utilized both as a source for municipal drinking water, and for recreational fishing. The water quality characteristics over two sampling periods, the speciation of metals in the Lake sediments, the risk to water column contamination and levels of heavy metals in largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) samples from the Lake were evaluated. The Lake water quality characteristics were mostly below the recommended drinking water standards by the United StatesEnvironmental Protection Agency (US EPA) and the European Union (EU) except for aluminum, iron, manganese and thallium. In addition, the average values of Cr, As, Mn, Zn and Cl- in the water samples analyzed were higher than the respective reference values for fresh water. To study the speciation of metals in the Lake sediments, ten elements (Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, V, and Zn) in four grain sizes (< 710 μm – 250 μm, < 250 μm – 75 μm, < 75 μm – 53μm, and < 53 μm) were subjected to sequential extractions. Irrespective of grain size, the elements analyzed were distributed in both the non-residual and residual phases except Ni that was found only in the residual fraction. The potential risk to Lake water contamination was highest downstream (Sites 1 and 2) based on the calculated global contamination factors. From the calculated individual contamination factors, Mn and Pb followed by Zn, Cu, Cr, Co and V posed the highest risk to water contamination. Based on this study, the human health risks for heavy metals in fish caught from Tuskegee Lake are low for now, and irrespective of the source of fish, concentrations of metals in muscle tissues were all below the recommended Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) maximum limits for Pb (0.5 mg Kg-1), Cd (0.5 mg Kg-1), Cu (30 mg Kg-1), and Zn (30 mg Kg-1) in fish.
CHAPTER 1 – Getting Started

Publisher Summary This chapter presents an introduction to Mathematica, which is a system for doing mathematics on a computer. It combines symbolic manipulation, numerical mathematics, outstanding graphics, and a sophisticated programming language. Because of its versatility, Mathematica has established itself as the computer algebra system of choice for many computer users. Among the over 100,000 users of Mathematica, 28% are engineers, 21% are computer scientists, 20% are physical scientists, 12% are mathematical scientists, and 12% are business, social, and life scientists. Two-thirds of the users are in industry and government with a small but growing number of student users. However, because of its special nature and sophistication, beginning users need to be aware of the special syntax required to make Mathematica perform in the way intended. The chapter presents a guide to beginning users of Mathematica and users who do not intend to take advantage of the more specialized applications of Mathematica. It discusses calculations and sequences of calculations most frequently used by beginning users along with many typical examples.
Biological production of methyl bromide by cultures of marine phytoplankton

Methyl bromide production was followed in cultures of a selection of marine phytoplankton species throughout their growth cycle. The cultures were species common to coastal and(or) open ocean areas, as well as originating from various latitudinal bands. Methyl bromide was produced by 13 out of 19 species tested, with production rates ranging from 1.7 to 30.1 pg CH3Br µg−1 Chl a d−1. Species that are strictly coastal or more abundant in coastal areas appeared to be stronger producers of CH,Br than species that are more abundant in open ocean areas. The prymnesiophyte Phaeocystis sp., a bloom-forming, ubiquitous species, showed the highest daily production rate normalized to Chl a of 30.1 pg CH3Br µg−1 Chl a d−1. The range of methyl bromide production by the phytoplankton cultures tested suggests that the input of methyl bromide by marine phytoplankton can be significant in coastal oceans.
Independent Self‐Construal

Self-construal refers to a person's perception of the self in relation to others. A self-definition that emphasizes one's personal attributes, including traits (e.g., “I am outgoing”), preferences (“I like surrealist art”), abilities (“I am a good listener”), and feeling states (“I get bored easily”) constitutes an independent self-construal. By constructing an identity based largely on one's constellation of stable, internal characteristics, independent self-construals encourage perceiving the self as consistent across situations and fundamentally different and separate from others, even relationship partners and ingroup members. In this sense, an independent self-construal involves thinking about “me” in the singular rather than “we.” Keywords: collectivism; individualism; self and identity
Parallel Performance of a Zonal Navier-Stokes Code on a Missile Flowfield

While in theory parallel computing can produce very high levels of performance, it remains clear that for several reasons the track record for parallel computing has been inconsistent. Some of these reasons are parallel systems are difficult to program; performance gains are failing to live up to expectations; and many of the current generation of RISC-based parallel computers have delivered low levels of performance. The chapter discusses the highly innovative techniques that are used to overcome all of these obstacles. A time-marching, Navier-Stokes code, successfully used over a decade for projectile aerodynamics, is chosen as a test case and optimized to run on modern RISC-based parallel computers. As part of the validation process, the parallelized version of the code is used to compute the three-dimensional (3-D) turbulent supersonic flow over a generic, ogive-cylinder, missile configuration. These results are compared to those obtained with the original version of the code on a Cray C-90. Considerable performance gain is achieved by the optimization of the serial code on a single processor. Parallelization of the optimized serial code, which uses loop-level parallelism, leads to additional gains in performance. Runs on 128-processor Origin 2000 have produced speedups in the range of 10-26 over that achieved when using a single processor on a Cray C-90. The parallelized code is then used to compute the turbulent flow over various projectile configurations at transonic and supersonic speeds.
Africa Reclaiming Herself

Achille Mbembe On the Postcolony. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2001. vi. 274 pp.
A Novel Mathematical Model of Targeted Cancer Therapy along p53 Proteasomal Degradation Pathways

Overzealous MDM2-mediated ubiquitination of p53 characterizesand sustains over 50% of all human cancers. Successful targeted cancer therapyhinges on a thorough understanding of the ubiquitination process.Unfortunately, current steady-state enzyme kinetic models fail to accuratelydescribe the ubiquitin-proteasome system, due to the assumption that the enzyme(E3 ligase) is expressed at infinitesimally smaller concentrations than thesubstrates (E2 conjugase and target protein). This limitation of the quasi-steadystate assumption prohibits the use of steady-state models when analyzing thecancerous consequences of extreme ubiquitin-ligase overexpression. This paperderives a novel non-steady-state mathematical model of ternary complex enzymekinetics, which can be used to simulate the behavioral response of theubiquitin-proteasome system to specific variations in the cellularconcentrations of targeted the E2 conjugase, E3 ligase, and target protein.Computer simulations of the model were used to study the effects of E2D3 andMDM2 concentrations on the rates of p53 ubiquitination at differenttemperatures. At each temperature, it was observed that the ubiquitin-ligaseMDM2 accelerates the dangerous degradation process, while the ubiquitinconjugating-enzyme E2D3 inhibits it. It was also discovered that E2D3 is a moreeffective inhibitor of p53 ubiquitination at higher body temperatures, whereas MDM2 is then a less-effective catalyst. The derived model therefore suggests MDM2 as a prospective target for cancer therapy. In addition, the findings of this project propose recombinant E2D3 as a new promising protein-basedanticancer drug and a potential tumor suppressor protein. The mathematical model successfully reproduced the experimentally observed p53-MDM2 interaction. Further in vivo experimentation is necessary for additional validation of thecomputational results. The derived model can suggest new therapeutic solutions for decreasing the harmful effects of many human cancers, bacterial infections,and inflammatory diseases (such as rheumatoid arthritis) characterized by an overzealous ubiquitin-proteasome system.
What Californians Understand about Privacy Online

The volume of online commerce grows every year, in absence of a federal law setting baseline protections for the collection, use, and disclosure of personal information. Instead, information collected by websites are governed by individual privacy policies.In order to gauge Californians' understanding of privacy policies and default rules in the online environment, we commissioned a representative survey of adults in the State (N=991). The telephonic survey of Spanish and English speakers was conducted by the Survey Research Center of University of California, Berkeley.A gulf exists between California consumers' understanding of online rules and common business practices. For instance, Californians who shop online believe that privacy policies prohibit third-party information sharing. A majority of Californians believes that privacy policies create the right to require a website to delete personal information upon request, a general right to sue for damages, a right to be informed of security breaches, a right to assistance if identity theft occurs, and a right to access and correct data.These findings show that California consumers overvalue the mere fact that a website has a privacy policy, and assume that websites carrying the label have strong, default rules to protect personal data. In a way, consumers interpret "privacy policy" as a quality seal that denotes adherence to some set of standards. Website operators have little incentive to correct this misperception, thus limiting the ability of the market to produce outcomes consistent with consumers' expectations. Drawing upon earlier work, we conclude that because the term "privacy policy" has taken on a specific meaning in the minds of consumers, its use should be limited to contexts where businesses provide a set of protections that meet consumers' expectations.
ARAB DI-­NATIONALISM

This paper presents a new conception of "Arab nationalism", which conventionally means pan-Arab nationalism and defines an Arab as an "Arabic speaker". Yet the term "Arabic" is elusive, as is the generic "Arabic speaker"...
MO‐E‐224C‐07: Time‐Resolved 4D Dynamic Arc Therapy

Purpose: To develop a 4D dynamic arc therapy with the capability of MLC‐shaped irradiation field tracking for moving tumor targets. Method and Materials: 4D CTimages at 10 different breathing phases were acquired and transferred to a treatment planning system. The tumor target was contoured and a 3D conformal arc therapy (3DCAT) plan was generated for each phase. For each 3DCAT plan, the selected control points (gantry angles) and the MLC‐defined conformal apertures were correlated to the patient's respiration phases. A program was developed to obtain a 4D DMLC leaf sequence with the capability of tracking the target motion based on the ten 3DCAT DMLC leaf sequence files. To evaluate the 4D plan, a deformable registration was adopted to combine dose distributions and DVHs and the results were compared with those obtained using the conventional 3D and gating plans. Five lungcancer cases and film measurements embedded in a moving phantom were used to investigate the feasibility of the proposed technique. Results: An efficient 4D dynamic arc therapy was implemented. Experimental measurements indicated that the dose distribution in the moving target delivered using the proposed technique is equivalent to that in a static target delivered using a conventional 3D arc therapy. Compared with the 3D plans, the target received more conformal doses and the sensitive structures, especially the lung, were better spared in the 4D plans for all the test cases. The treatment time for the 4D plan is comparable to the 3DCAT plan, much more efficient than the gating treatment. Conclusion: It is feasible to incorporate the intra‐fraction organ motion into a 4D dynamic arc treatment planning to track the moving targets. Compared with conventional treatment strategies, this technique has great potentials to provide more conformal dose distribution and better sensitive structure sparing with extremely high efficiency.
Telecommuting as viewed through cultural lenses: an empirical investigation of the discourses of utopia, identity, and mystery

Prior telecommuting research has focused both on teleworkers without comparison to other employee groups and on pragmatic implications of this work arrangement across organizations. In contrast, this investigation situated telecommuting as a socially constructed process and practice within the context of a specific hybrid (federal agency and private sector) organizational culture. We used Martin's (1992) three cultural lenses as a framework for analyzing in-house and telecommuting employees' discourses. These three cultural lenses illuminated how and why telecommuting functions paradoxically in organizations. In the integration lens, members framed FEDSIM as a coherent, innovative, and “employee-centric” utopian culture. Differentiation subcultures diverged from the telecommuter and in-house distinctions that we anticipated based on previous research. Instead, differentiation discourses revealed complex divisions between promotable and non-promotable employees who adhered to different spatio-temporal orie...
Constructive suggestions for the practical education of professional life counselors

Professional life counselors will serve an increasingly important role in the life quality of global citizens in the 21st century. The optimal preparation of service providers will reflect basic principles of human development, professional helping, and educational processes. The dynamic systems appreciations of constructivism offer valuable scaffoldings for mentoring and apprenticeship in human helping. Suggestions are made for practical refinements in professional education.
Progression from beryllium exposure to chronic beryllium disease: an analytic model.

BackgroundUnderstanding the progression from beryllium exposure (BeE) to chronic beryllium disease (CBD) is essential for optimizing screening and early intervention to prevent CBD.MethodsWe develo...
The Effects of Graphing a Second Observer’s Data on Judgments of Functional Relations in A–B–A–B Graphs

Collection of interobserver agreement data and reporting the results with summary statistics are standard practices in single-case research. An alternative to summary statistics is plotting the second observer’s data on the same graph as the primary observer. In this study, we evaluated whether plotting the second observer’s data differentially influenced the judgments about functional relations for A–B–A–B designs. Participants were graduate students and experts. Results suggested that (a) experts made more accurate judgments than graduate students, (b) raters made more accurate judgments for graphs with 1 rather than 2 primary data paths, and (c) raters were not influenced differentially in their judgments of functional relations by the presence or absence of the second observer’s plotted data. In addition to standard hypothesis testing, equivalence testing was performed and showed accuracy of judgments was equivalent for graphs with and without the second observers’ data being added.
Simultaneous bidirectional propagation of cold atoms in a "stadium" shaped magnetic waveguide ring

We report the bidirectional propagation of atom sample around a "stadium" shaped magnetic waveguide. The atoms are cooled and trapped at one side of the magnetic "stadium". Optical standing-wave can evenly divide the atoms to propagate in opposite directions around the ring, which recombine at starting position after traversing the same closed path. The ring encloses an area of 8.0 cm2. The flux density of the guided atoms reaches 1011 sec-1cm-2
HIV Protease Inhibitors Are Inhibitors but Not Substrates of the Human Breast Cancer Resistance Protein (BCRP/ABCG2)

Breast cancer resistance protein (BCRP) is a recently discovered ATP-binding cassette drug transporter. Hence, the full spectrum of therapeutic agents that interact with BCRP remains to be elucidated. Because human immunodeficiency virus protease inhibitors (HPIs) are well known P-glycoprotein (P-gp) substrates, and there is an overlap in substrate specificity between P-gp and BCRP, this study was performed to investigate whether HPIs are substrates and/or inhibitors of BCRP. First, the effect of HPIs on BCRP efflux activity in human embryonic kidney (HEK) cells stably expressing wild-type BCRP (482R) and its two mutants (482T and 482G) was studied by measuring intracellular mitoxantrone fluorescence using flow cytometry. We found that ritonavir, saquinavir, and nelfinavir were effective inhibitors of wild-type BCRP (482R) with IC50 values of 19.5 +/- 0.8 microM, 19.5 +/- 7.6 microM, and 12.5 +/- 4.1 microM, respectively. Ritonavir, saquinavir, and nelfinavir inhibited 482T and 482G with IC50 values that were approximately 2 times greater than that for 482R. Indinavir and amprenavir had no significant inhibition on BCRP activity. Direct efflux of radiolabeled HPIs in HEK cells was measured to determine whether the HPIs are substrates of BCRP. None of the HPIs were found to be transported by BCRP. Together, ritonavir, saquinavir, nelfinavir, indinavir, and amprenavir are not substrates for BCRP. However, ritonavir, saquinavir, and nelfinavir are effective inhibitors of the transporter. These results suggest that BCRP may play an important role in drug-drug interactions involving coadministration of the HPIs with drugs that are substrates of the transporter.
The substrate recognition domains of the N-end rule pathway.

The N-end rule pathway is a ubiquitin-dependent system where E3 ligases called N-recognins, including UBR1 and UBR2, recognize type-1 (basic) and type-2 (bulky hydrophobic) N-terminal residues as part of N-degrons. We have recently reported an E3 family (termed UBR1 through UBR7) characterized by the 70-residue UBR box, among which UBR1, UBR2, UBR4, and UBR5 were captured during affinity-based proteomics with synthetic degrons. Here we characterized substrate binding specificity and recognition domains of UBR proteins. Pull-down assays with recombinant UBR proteins suggest that 570-kDa UBR4 and 300-kDa UBR5 bind N-degron, whereas UBR3, UBR6, and UBR7 do not. Binding assays with 24 UBR1 deletion mutants and 31 site-directed UBR1 mutations narrow down the degron-binding activity to a 72-residue UBR box-only fragment that recognizes type-1 but not type-2 residues. A surface plasmon resonance assay shows that the UBR box binds to the type-1 substrate Arg-peptide with Kd of ∼3.4 μm. Downstream from the UBR box, we identify a second substrate recognition domain, termed the N-domain, required for type-2 substrate recognition. The ∼80-residue N-domain shows structural and functional similarity to 106-residue Escherichia coli ClpS, a bacterial N-recognin. We propose a model where the 70-residue UBR box functions as a common structural element essential for binding to all known destabilizing N-terminal residues, whereas specific residues localized in the UBR box (for type 1) or the N-domain (for type 2) provide substrate selectivity through interaction with the side group of an N-terminal amino acid. Our work provides new insights into substrate recognition in the N-end rule pathway.
Characterization of polar lipids of Listeria monocytogenes by HCD and low-energy CAD linear ion-trap mass spectrometry with electrospray ionization

Listeria monocytogenes (L. monocytogenes) is a facultative, Gram-positive, food-borne bacterium, which causes serious infections. Although it is known that lipids play important roles in the survival of Listeria, the detailed structures of these lipids have not been established. In this contribution, we described linear ion-trap multiple-stage mass spectrometric approaches with high-resolution mass spectrometry toward complete structural analysis including the identities of the fatty acid substituents and their position on the glycerol backbone of the polar lipids, mainly phosphatidylglycerol, cardiolipin (CL), and lysyl-CL from L. monocytogenes. The location of the methyl side group along the fatty acid chain in each lipid family was characterized by a charge-switch strategy. This is achieved by first alkaline hydrolysis to release the fatty acid substituents, followed by tandem mass spectrometry on their N-(4-aminomethylphenyl) pyridinium (AMPP) derivatives as the M+ ions. Several findings in this study are unique: (1) we confirm the presence of a plasmalogen PG family that has not been previous reported; (2) an ion arising from a rare internal loss of lysylglycerol residue was observed in the MS2 spectrum of lysyl-CL, permitting its distinction from other CL subfamilies.
Measurement of transmission characteristics of plastic fiber

Using Cyclic Transparent Optical Polymer (CYTOP), a perfluorinated graded index fiber, different transmission characteristics were investigated. Graded index perfluorinated fibers can support multi-Gb/s date rates form 0.83 um to 1.3 um. High bit rates can be obtained over 0.5 um wavelength range where optical transmitter and receivers technologies are already matured. A distributed feedback laser source at 1.3 um and a low cost InGaAs detector had been used in an error free transmission for both modulated multichannel transmission and directly modulated digital transmission for both modulated multichannel transmission and directly modulated digital transmission at 2 Gb/s. Two data channels at 145 Mb/s are mixed using binary phase shift keying BPSK modulation technique index of 5.3 percent. Also, the dispersion power penalty of the CYTOP fiber was measured and found to be less than 1 dB suggesting that the fiber induced distortion is small.
The presence of a pituitary tumor in patients with prostate cancer is not a contraindication for leuprolide therapy

Gonadotropin analogs like leuprolide play an important role in the management of prostate cancer. Pituitary apoplexy has been reported after leuprolide therapy. This report examines whether the presence of a pituitary tumor is a contraindication for leuprolide therapy in patients with prostate cancer. Two patients with prostate cancer and pituitary tumors were treated with leuprolide and radiation therapy. The first patient with a previously unknown pituitary adenoma had a leuprolide injection for prostate gland downsizing prior to brachytherapy. The second patient with a known pituitary microadenoma had a biochemical recurrence and was treated with leuprolide and radiation therapy. The first patient developed symptoms of apoplexy a few hours after the leuprolide injection. He underwent a transsphenoidal resection of the sellar mass with complete neurologic recovery. The second patient did not have any adverse events after leuprolide with follow-up MRI scans showing no growth of the microadenomas. The presence of a pituitary tumor is not a contraindication for leuprolide therapy. While patients with a macroadenoma should have surgery first, those with a microadenoma may be considered for leuprolide therapy after careful evaluation by a multidisciplinary team.
Predictive Value of Electrophoretically Detected Lipoprotein(a) for Coronary Heart Disease and Cerebrovascular Disease in a Community-Based Cohort of 9936 Men and Women

Background Elevated lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] levels have been associated with the presence of atherosclerotic disease. However, the results of prospective studies of Lp(a) and cardiovascular disease have been contradictory. Methods and Results From 1968 through 1982, lipoprotein analysis was performed in 11 335 Olmsted County residents. Quantitative cholesterol and triglycerides were obtained along with semiquantitative Lp(a) levels based on electrophoretic pattern. Lp(a) bands were scored from 0 (absent) to 3 (increased). A cohort of 4967 men and 4968 women with no prior history of atherosclerotic disease who had baseline Lp(a) determinations were followed up for 14 years for development of coronary artery disease (CAD) and cerebrovascular disease (CVD). During 131 330 person-years of follow-up, there were 1848 CAD events and 841 CVD events. Age, diabetes, hypertension, cholesterol, and triglycerides were significantly and independently associated with an increased risk of CAD and CVD in men and women. There was a significant increase in the adjusted hazards ratio for CAD with increasing Lp(a) levels for men and women. For Lp(a) level 3, the hazard ratio was 1.9 (range, 1.3 to 2.9) in women and 1.6 (range, 1.0 to 2.5) in men. The adjusted hazard ratio for CVD showed an irregular association with Lp(a) levels in men and no association in women. Conclusions In this cohort of 9936 men and women initially free of cardiovascular disease who were followed up for 14 years, Lp(a) was a significant predictor of risk of future CAD. Lp(a) was a weak risk factor for CVD in men and was not a significant predictor of CVD risk in women.
Sea-level records at ∼ 80 ka from tectonically stable platforms: Florida and Bermuda

Studies from tectonically active coasts on New Guinea and Barbados have suggested that sea level at ∼ 80 ka was significantly lower than present, whereas data from the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of North America indicate an ∼ 80 ka sea level close to that of the present. We determined ages of corals from a shallow submerged reef off the Florida Keys and an emergent marine deposit on Bermuda. Both localities are on tectonically stable platforms distant from plate boundaries. Uranium-series ages show that corals at both localities grew during the ∼80 ka sea-level highstand, and geologic data show that sea level at that time was no lower than 7–9 m below present (Florida) and may have been 1–2 m above present (Bermuda). The ice-volume discrepancy of the 80 ka sea-level estimates is greater than the volume of the Greenland or West Antarctic ice sheets. Comparison of our ages with high-latitude insolation values indicates that the sea-level stand near the present at ∼80 ka could have been orbitally forced.
Fragmentation of deprotonated ions of oligodeoxynucleotides carrying a 5-formyluracil or 2-aminoimidazolone.

2-Aminoimidazolone and 5-formyluracil are major one-electron photooxidation products of guanine and thymine in oligodeoxynucleotides (ODNs). Herein we report the HPLC isolation and tandem mass spectrometric characterization of ODNs carrying those types of base modifications. Collision-activated dissociation (CAD) of the deprotonated ODN ions leads to cleavages of the 3′ C-O bond adjacent to the modification site, which provides enough information for locating the sites of modification. The cleavage 3′ to 5-formyl-2′-deoxyuridine is in contrast to the observation that there is no cleavage 3′ to an unmodified thymidine under similar conditions. In addition we observed that at high charge states, the loss of 5-formyluracil as an anion and the resulting strand cleavage is predominant over cleavages at other sites.
Exact distributions of XY for some bivariate exponential distributions

The distribution of products of random variables is of interest in many areas of the sciences, engineering and medicine. This has increased the need to have available the widest possible range of statistical results on products of random variables. In this article, the exact distributions of P = XY and the corresponding moment properties are derived when X and Y follow six flexible bivariate exponential distributions. The expressions turn out to involve several special functions.
Chronic Kidney Disease Among Agricultural Workers in Central America

A letter to the editor is presented in response to the article "The Epidemic of Chronic Kidney Disease of Unknown Etiology in Mesoamerica: A Call for Interdisciplinary Research and Action" by C. Wesseling, J. Crow, C. Hagstedt et al. in a 2013 issue.
In vitro generation of three-dimensional functional ovarian structures

INTRODUCTION: The ovary contains cells that secrete hormones, which maintain female sexual characteristics as well as egg production. Loss of ovarian tissue function due to various endocrine and fertility disorders requires chronic estrogen and progesterone administration. While conventional hormone replacement therapy is able to maintain female sexual characteristics, this therapy is unable to restore ovarian tissue function, which includes the production of eggs. This is critical for premenopausal women who desire to conceive.
Effects of temporal hydrostatic pressure on tissue-engineered bovine articular cartilage constructs.

The objective of this study was to determine the effects of temporal hydrostatic pressure (HP) on the properties of scaffoldless bovine articular cartilage constructs. The study was organized in three phases: First, a suitable control for HP application was identified. Second, 10 MPa static HP was applied at three different timepoints (6–10 days, 10–14 days, and 14–18 days) to identify a window in construct development when HP application would be most beneficial. Third, the temporal effects of 10–14-day static HP application, as determined in phase II, were assessed at 2, 4, and 8 weeks. Compressive and tensile mechanical properties, GAG and collagen content, histology for GAG and collagen, and immunohistochemistry for collagen types I and II were assessed. When a culture control identified in phase I was used in phase II, HP application from 10 to 14 days resulted in a significant 1.4-fold increase in aggregate modulus, accompanied by an increase in GAG content, while HP application at all timepoints en...
Annotated bibliography of Toxorhynchites (Diptera: Culicidae): supplement I.

This first supplement to the “Annotated bibliography of Toxorhynchites (Diptera: Culicidae)” (Steffan et al. 1980) contains 452 additional references to Toxorhynchites . Each citation is cross-indexed to taxonomic categories, key words (e.g., systematics, bionomics, virus studies, ecology), and distribution. Abbreviations of journal titles and a gazetteer for countries not included in the original bibliography are contained in separate sections. An “Addenda et Corrigenda” to the original bibliography is included at the end of this work. As in the original bibliography, all entries herein are designed for eventual entry in an electronic storage and retrieval system.
DoDAF limitations and enhancements for the Capability Test Methodology

The Joint Test and Evaluation Methodology (JTEM) joint test & evaluation (JT&E) program is currently developing an enterprise-level Capability Test Methodology (CTM) to deliver high quality joint capability assessments and evaluations across the acquisition life cycle. A key component of the JTEM program approach is the incorporation and refinement of CTM-related Department of Defense Architecture Framework (DoDAF) data models and representations to best support system of systems test evaluation at a joint mission level. To further mature the CTM before applying it to actual test event planning in 2007, the JTEM team has conducted a series of "rock drills", or rehearsals, of each process within the overall methodology during 2006. One of the major process anomaly reports (PARs) coming from these rock drills highlights the need for joint mission system of systems (SoS)-level DoDAF products for test plan development. In order to enhance DoDAF's ability to support capability assessments supporting joint missions, JTEM is developing executable product recommendations and extensions for DoDAF 1.5, as well as a capability evaluation metamodel (CEM) to provide DoDAF schema enhancements. These enhanced DoDAF products will better support the CTM's evaluation approach incorporating measurement at system of systems, task, and mission performance levels.
Blood Lead Is a Predictor of Homocysteine Levels in a Population-Based Study of Older Adults

Lead and homocysteine are both associated with cardiovascular disease and cognitive dysfunction. We evaluated the relations among blood lead, tibia lead, and homocysteine levels by cross-sectional ...