cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Antimalarial activity of a new family of analogues of manzamine A.

Manzamine A represents an important lead structure for the development of novel antimalarial chemotherapies. The synthesis and biological evaluation of a group of simplified analogues of manzamine A, which were designed to examine the roles of the A and D rings and of both the relative stereochemistry and the orientation of the β-carboline heterocycle on the antimalarial activity of manzamine A, are described.
Structural and chemical trends in doped silicon nanocrystals: First-principles calculations

Electronic and structural properties of substitutional group-V donors (N, P, As, Sb) and group-III acceptors (B, Al, Ga, In) in silicon nanocrystals with hydrogen passivation are explored using first-principles calculations based on hybrid density functional theory with complete geometrical optimization. The bonding near the impurity is similar to that found for the impurity in bulk crystalline silicon, with some quantitative differences. The N case shows large local distortions, as it does in the bulk, characteristic of a deep trap. For the other impurities, no evidence is found for a transition to atomic scale localization induced by the small size of the nanocrystal. The chemical trends of the donor and acceptor binding energies and the donor excited state energies in doped nanocrystals are similar to those in the bulk; however, the absolute magnitudes are substantially larger. The increase in the magnitude of the binding energy is mainly due to the quantum confinement effect combined with the reduced screening of the impurity potential in small nanocrystals. The screening of the impurity potential is carefully examined using the self-consistent electrostatic potential from the full calculations. Strong chemical and local-field effects are seen within the radius of the first neighbor bonds to the impurity atom. This explains the large increase in the donor excited state energy level splittings and the relative importance of the central cell contributions to the binding energies. The acceptor and donor orbitals have different atomic character on the impurity site, leading to substantially different acceptor and donor energy level splittings.
Note making a K 4 -free graph bipartite

We show that every K 4-free graph G with n vertices can be made bipartite by deleting at most n 2/9 edges. Moreover, the only extremal graph which requires deletion of that many edges is a complete 3-partite graph with parts of size n/3. This proves an old conjecture of P. Erdős.
Incidence and the risk of neonatal mortality due to meconium aspiration syndrome among African American and White infants with birth weights >= 2.5 kg. † 1249

Using Linked Infant Birth and Death data for the years 1990 and 1991, we compared incidence and the risk for neonatal mortality due to meconium aspiration syndrome (MEC-ASP) of infants born with birth weights >= 2.5 kg to African American and White mothers (N=7,054,404). Results of logistic regression models which included variables controlling for race of the mother and birth weight categories, showed that infants born to African American mothers were at an approximately 56% greater risk for a birth complicated by MEC-ASP [Adjusted Odds Ratio (OR): 1.56, 95% C.I., 1.50 - 1.61] as compared with White infants. In addition, for both racial groups, there was a significant increase in the risk for MEC-ASP as birth weight of the infants increased. For example, infants who weighed >= 4 kg had about a 54% increased risk for MEC-ASP as compared with infants who weighed 2.5 - 3.0 kg, after controlling for the effect of maternal race [Adjusted OR: 1.54, 95% C.I., 1.46 - 1.62]. For both African American and White infants, MEC-ASP was associated with an approximately 10 fold increase in the risk for neonatal mortality after adjustment for birth weight [Adjusted OR: 10.23, 95% C.I., 8.98 - 11.64). African Americans remained at 32% higher risk for neonatal mortality [Adjusted OR: 1.32, 95% C.I., 1.26 - 1.39) after controlling for the effects of birth weight and MEC-ASP.
Improving Third-Party Decisions at Choice Points: A Cyprus Case Study

Third parties are often required to make process decisions under considerable psychological pressure, within the stressful view of interested parties, often with high stakes and inadequate information, on very short notice, and without an opportunity for extended research or even much reflection. Therefore, a valuable goal in preparing for intervention is to develop the ability to spot patterns or cues in the context of the dispute that can immediately suggest techniques or process options that could be successful. This essay focuses on conditions at important choice points in an intervention and the third-party decisions made in response. It discusses how third parties make decisions on process issues and suggests ways to learn how to make better decisions. Next, it applies this decision framework to an actual intervention, using an effort by a co-author to build interaction between the Greek and Turkish communities in Cyprus during the mid-1990s. Finally, the authors jointly evaluate the Cyprus experience to capture lessons learned for improving third-party conflict resolution practice.
Workplace Incivility in Schools

This paper investigates the prevalence of coworker and supervisor incivility in the context of K-12 schools and incivilityâ€™s possible link to teachersâ€™ commitment to the school and turnover intent. The data were collected via surveys from 94 middle school teachers in the United States. Results indicated that 85% of the teachers experienced coworker incivility over the past year; 71% experienced supervisor incivility. MANOVA results suggested no statistically significant differences in incivility by gender or ethnicity. Hierarchical regression results suggested that supervisor incivility was associated negatively with commitment and positively associated with turnover intent. Coworker incivility was not a significant predictor in the regression equations. Macro- and micro-level human resource strategies are offered as possible tools to lessen the likelihood of uncivil behavior.
Encoding of Rules by Neurons in the Human Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex

We use rules to extend learned behavior beyond specific instances to general scenarios. The prefrontal cortex (PFC) is thought to play an important role in representing rules, as evidenced by subjects who have difficulty in following rules after PFC damage and by animal studies demonstrating rule sensitivity of individual PFC neurons. How rules are instantiated at the single-neuronal level in the human brain, however, remains unclear. Here, we recorded from individual neurons in the human dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) as subjects performed a task in which they evaluated pairs of images using either of 2 abstract rules. We find that DLPFC neurons selectively encoded these rules while carrying little information about the subjects’ responses or the sensory cues used to guide their decisions.
Feminist-Informed Critical Multiculturalism: Considerations for Family Research

In this article, the authors draw from feminist, critical, and multicultural research traditions to identify fundamental assumptions for researching from a feminist-informed, critical, multicultural stance. Core considerations include amplifying marginalized voices, interrogating the politics of knowledge production, ensuring research benefits to those at the center of analysis, attending to culture and context, holding ourselves accountable as researchers for our own multicultural competence, and using diverse methodologies to support social equity. They offer examples of critical multicultural research and argue for the potential of this approach to contribute to a corrective research agenda in the field of family studies.
Proper Evaluation and Management of Acute Embolic versus Thrombotic Limb Ischemia

Acute limb ischemia is one of the most potentially devastating but treatable diseases faced by the vascular surgeon. It is crucial to identify the ischemic process early, as the outcomes of early intervention can lead to limb salvage, whereas late recognition places the patient at risk for limb loss and potential mortality. This article emphasizes the importance of properly evaluating the acutely ischemic extremity to ascertain whether the etiology is embolic or thrombotic. Appropriate treatment and management of the limb are determined by the underlying cause of the ischemia. The authors will review the clinical features, angiographic findings, and strategies for management for these similar but distinct etiologies: acute embolic versus thrombotic limb ischemia.
Development of a psychiatric pharmacy elective track

Abstract Introduction Development of expertise in new pharmacy graduates is the gradual transition from novice to expert. Information on the development of specialty knowledge at the student level in pharmacy curricula has not been published extensively. Methods This paper reports an overview of the development of a psychiatric pharmacy elective track at the University of Oklahoma College of Pharmacy to help professional pharmacy students gain expertise in a selected area of interest. Results An elective track in psychiatric pharmacy with didactic and advanced pharmacy practice experiences is described. Curricular development is outlined and includes lessons learned. Advanced pharmacy practice experiences, both patient-based and research-focused, are discussed. Personal investment in the process by interested students and faculty, in addition to the resources needed to foster the process toward expertise, are highlighted. Conclusions Professional development is an integral part of the advancement from novice to expert. Elective tracks with focused areas of study may facilitate this development.
Incentives and integration in scientific software production

Science policy makers are looking for approaches to increase the extent of collaboration in the production of scientific software, looking to open collaborations in open source software for inspiration. We examine the software ecosystem surrounding BLAST, a key bioinformatics tool, identifying outside improvements and interviewing their authors. We find that academic credit is a powerful motivator for the production and revealing of improvements. Yet surprisingly, we also find that improvements motivated by academic credit are less likely to be integrated than those with other motivations, including financial gain. We argue that this is because integration makes it harder to see who has contributed what and thereby undermines the ability of reputation to function as a reward for collaboration. We consider how open source avoids these issues and conclude with policy approaches to promoting wider collaboration by addressing incentives for integration.
The Unique Dioxygen Activation Mechanism of Human Indoleamine 2,3-Dioxygenase

Human indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (hIDO) is an intracellular heme-containing enzyme, which catalyzes the initial and rate-determining step of L-tryptophan (L-Trp) metabolism via the kynurenine pathway in nonhepatic tissues. We have employed stopped-flow methods to study the L-Trp and oxygen binding kinetics of hIDO and the associated oxygen chemistry at pH 7.4 and 20 oC. We found that the binding rate constants of L-Trp to ferric and ferrous hIDO are 5.5∗10(3) and 1.2∗10(5) M-1s-1, respectively. In contrast to other dioxygenases or monooxygenases studied to date, under physiological conditions, most of hIDO binds dioxygen to form the oxy species first with a rate of 5.3∗10(5) M-1s-1. It is followed by rapid binding of the substrate, L-Trp, with a rate of ca. 9.0∗10(6) M-1s-1, to form the ternary complex, L-Trp-bound oxy species of hIDO.
The edge of the polar plateau for galactic cosmic rays and their charged albedo

Lin et al. [1963] have reported observations on the spatial distribution of the sum of the absolute intensities of primary galactic cosmic rays and of their charged-particle secondaries (albedo) using a shielded Geiger tube in Explorer 7 in the latitude range ±50.5°, in the longitude range 170°E to 305°E in the northern hemisphere and 100°E to 170°E in the southern hemisphere, in the altitude range 550 to 1100 km, and over the 16-month period October 1959 to February 1961. Two of their specific results that are pertinent to the present paper are (1) The counting rate (after subtraction of the contribution of trapped particles) of the detector in both northern and southern hemispheres and within the above specified geographic regions was represented in a simple and coherent manner as a function of a single parameter, the magnetic shell parameter L [McIlwain, 1961]. (2) The counting rate increased monotonically with increasing L and had an accurately constant value for L > 2.9. Thus the ‘edge of the cosmic-ray plateau’ was found to be along the contour L = 2.9. (Note that the ‘knee of the latitude curve’ as conventionally defined, was at the slightly lower value L = 2.6.)
Process compilation of thin film microdevices

This paper describes a systematic method for the automatic generation of fabrication processes of thin film devices. The method uses a partially ordered set (poset) representation of device topology describing the order between its various components in the form of a directed acyclic graph. The sequence in which these components are fabricated is determined from the poset linear extensions, and the component sequence is expanded into a corresponding process flow. The graph-theoretic synthesis method is powerful enough to establish existence and multiplicity of flows thus creating a design space D suitable for optimization. The cardinality /spl par/D/spl par/ for a device with N components is large with a worst case /spl par/D/spl par//spl les/(N-1)! yielding in general a combinatorial explosion of solutions. The number of solutions is controlled through a priori estimates of /spl par/D/spl par/ and condensation of the device graph. The method has been implemented in the computer program MISTIC (Michigan Synthesis Tools for Integrated Circuits) which calculates specific process parameters using an internal database of process modules and materials. Currently, MISTIC includes process modules for deposition, lithography, etching, ion implantation, coupled simultaneous diffusions, and reactive growth. The compilation procedure was applied to several device structures. For a double metal twin-well BiCMOS structure, the compiler generated 168 complete process flows.
Societal Regulation of the Marketing Function: Does the Patchwork Create a Quilt?

Abstract A wide variety of laws and sources regulate the marketing function. Although some laws were adopted specifically to regulate marketing, others were adopted primarily for other purposes. Despite the many differences, there appears to be an underlying and unifying theme to marketing regulation. However, clarification could improve the consistency of marketing regulation.
Further characterization of PNK-E: A monoclonal antibody enhancing porcine natural killer cell activity

Monoclonal antibody PNK-E binds to approximately 15% of porcine peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) which are PT4 negative and PT8 positive. When cells from tissues of adult pigs are treated with PNK-E, enhancement of natural killer (NK) cell activity is observed from PBL and spleen cells, and a dramatic induction of NK activity is observed from bone marrow cells. With cells derived from tissues of neonatal piglets, PNK-E induces NK activity from PBL and bone marrow cells. To investigate the mechanism of PNK-E-mediated enhancement of NK, proliferation assays, calcium-pulse assays, single-cell assays, and kinetic analyses were performed. PNK-E did not induce proliferation of PBL. PNK-E could be added as late as 30 min prior to termination of Ca(2+)-pulse assays and still enhance NK activity. Using kinetic analysis PNK-E was found to increase the rate of NK lysis (Vmax) and rate of lytic programming per NK cell (k2). In addition, results from single-cell assays indicate that PNK-E activates a population of normally inactive effector cells. These results indicate that PNK-E enhances the lytic capacity of mature NK cells and induces a population of nonlytic cells to become highly cytolytic cells. Furthermore, the enhancing effects are immediate and do not require an induction period. Thus, PNK-E recognizes and activates a unique triggering molecule that is present on NK cells.
Development, characterization, and use of monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies against the myxosporean, Ceratomyxa shasta

Both monoclonal and polyclonal antisera were produced against Ceratomyxa shasta. Ascites containing trophozoites of the parasite was collected from infected fish and used as antigen for immunization of mice. The resulting monoclonal antibodies reacted specifically with trophozoite and sporoblast stages but did not react with C. shasta spores by either indirect fluorescent antibody techniques or in Western blots. This indicates that some C. shasta antigens are specific to certain life stages of the parasite. Polyclonal antiserum was produced in a rabbit by injecting a spore protein electro-eluted from an SDS-polyacrylamide gel. This antiserum reacted with both trophozoites and spores by indirect fluorescent antibody techniques and in Western blots. All antisera were tested for cross-reactivity to trout white blood cells, a contaminant of the ascites, and to other myxosporea. Two monoclonal antibodies reacted with white blood cells and myxosporea of the genera Sphaerospora and Myxobilatus. One hybridoma produced antibodies of high specificity for C. shasta pre-spore stages. This is the first report of a monoclonal antibody produced against a myxosporean parasite.
Processing of global, but not local, motion direction is deficient in schizophrenia.

Visual motion processing is compromised in a substantial proportion of schizophrenic patients, but precise neural mechanisms underlying the motion-processing deficit have not yet been elaborated. The visual motion pathway includes a local and a global processing stage, each of which has distinct neural substrates. Here, we attempt to identify the stage(s) that are implicated in impaired motion processing of schizophrenia—local, global, or both. For schizophrenia patients (n=23) and normal controls (n=26), we measured (1) the thresholds for detecting the motion direction of a random dot pattern, a task that requires global motion processing, and (2) the thresholds for detecting the motion direction of a grating, a task that requires only local motion processing, using psychophysical methods. Schizophrenia patients showed elevated thresholds for detecting the direction of coherent motion, particularly for the high dot-density target. In contrast, schizophrenia patients showed normal thresholds for detecting the direction of motion of a grating. The results indicate that the global, but not the local, processing stage of the visual motionsystemiscompromisedinschizophreniapatients,thusimplicatingmotion-sensitivebrainareasthatpossesslargereceptive fields for spatial and temporal integration, such as Middle Temporal Area/Medial Superior Temporal Area. D 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Practical Considerations for Ventilating Calf Barns in Winter

The use of air sampling devices to measure the concentrations of airborne bacteria in clinical investigations and research trials in calf barns has indicated that traditional systems of ventilation are problematic in cold weather. Individual pen designs should have two solid sides, but the front and rear should be as open as possible. Thermal stress should be managed by providing deep bedding and not by enclosing the pen. Air hygiene can be improved by reducing stocking density and using supplemental positive-pressure ventilation systems to deliver small amounts of air to each pen. Implementation of these recommendations can produce calf barns that seem to equal calf hutches in minimizing disease and provide better working conditions for the caregivers.
Filtering of Calcium Transients by the Endoplasmic Reticulum in Pancreatic β-Cells

Calcium handling in pancreatic β-cells is important for intracellular signaling, the control of electrical activity, and insulin secretion. The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is a key organelle involved in the storage and release of intracellular Ca2+. Using mathematical modeling, we analyze the filtering properties of the ER and clarify the dual role that it plays as both a Ca2+ source and a Ca2+ sink. We demonstrate that recent time-dependent data on the free Ca2+ concentration in pancreatic islets and β-cell clusters can be explained with a model that uses a passive ER that takes up Ca2+ when the cell is depolarized and the cytosolic Ca2+ concentration is elevated, and releases Ca2+ when the cell is repolarized and the cytosolic Ca2+ is at a lower concentration. We find that Ca2+-induced Ca2+ release is not necessary to explain the data, and indeed the model is inconsistent with the data if Ca2+-induced Ca2+ release is a dominating factor. Finally, we show that a three-compartment model that includes a subspace compartment between the ER and the plasma membrane provides the best agreement with the experimental Ca2+ data.
Effect of exercise on insulin action, glucose tolerance, and insulin secretion in aging.

To assess the effect of exercise training on the insulin resistance and impaired pancreatic B-cell function of aging, we studied 13 healthy older men (ages 61-82 yr) before and after 6 mo intensive...
Slavery: Annual bibliographical supplement (1993)

(1994). Slavery: Annual bibliographical supplement (1993) Slavery & Abolition: Vol. 15, No. 3, pp. 134-197.
A Load-weighted Statistical Average Model of Fatigue Reliability

Stress-strength interference (SSI) analysis method has been applied to reliability estimation of a broad range of structural components under a variety of loading conditions. This method is successful for static strength failure. For fatigue failure, some of the current methods use SSI technique directly, assuming that the distributions of applied stress and fatigue strength corresponding to specific number of cycles to failure are known. However, the exact distribution of fatigue strength at specific number of cycles to failure cannot be obtained from a test. Alternatively, methods to determine fatigue strength distribution from fatigue life distribution were proposed.
Theory of MRI contrast in the annulus fibrosus of the intervertebral disc

Here we develop a three-dimensional analytic model for MR image contrast of collagen lamellae in the annulus fibrosus of the intervertebral disc of the spine, based on the dependence of the MRI signal on collagen fiber orientation. High-resolution MRI scans were performed at 1.5 and 7 T on intact whole disc specimens from ovine, bovine, and human spines. An analytic model that approximates the three-dimensional curvature of the disc lamellae was developed to explain inter-lamellar contrast and intensity variations in the annulus. The model is based on the known anisotropic dipolar relaxation of water in tissues with ordered collagen. Simulated MRI data were generated that reproduced many features of the actual MRI data. The calculated inter-lamellar image contrast demonstrated a strong dependence on the collagen fiber angle and on the circumferential location within the annulus. This analytic model may be useful for interpreting MR images of the disc and for predicting experimental conditions that will optimize MR image contrast in the annulus fibrosus.
Temporal search: detecting hidden malware timebombs with virtual machines

Worms, viruses, and other malware can be ticking bombs counting down to a specific time, when they might, for example, delete files or download new instructions from a public web server. We propose a novel virtual-machine-based analysis technique to automatically discover the timetable of a piece of malware, or when events will be triggered, so that other types of analysis can discern what those events are. This information can be invaluable for responding to rapid malware, and automating its discovery can provide more accurate information with less delay than careful human analysis.Developing an automated system that produces the timetable of a piece of malware is a challenging research problem. In this paper, we describe our implementation of a key component of such a system: the discovery of timers without making assumptions about the integrity of the infected system's kernel. Our technique runs a virtual machine at slightly different rates of perceived time (time as seen by the virtual machine), and identifies time counters by correlating memory write frequency to timer interrupt frequency.We also analyze real malware to assess the feasibility of using full-system, machine-level symbolic execution on these timers to discover predicates. Because of the intricacies of the Gregorian calendar (leap years, different number of days in each month, etc.) these predicates will not be direct expressions on the timer but instead an annotated trace; so we formalize the calculation of a timetable as a weakest precondition calculation. Our analysis of six real worms sheds light on two challenges for future work: 1) time-dependent malware behavior often does not follow a linear timetable; and 2) that an attacker with knowledge of the analysis technique can evade analysis. Our current results are promising in that with simple symbolic execution we are able to discover predicates on the day of the month for four real worms. Then through more traditional manual analysis we conclude that a more control-flow-sensitive symbolic execution implementation would discover all predicates for the malware we analyzed.
The Web as an Implicit Training Set: Application to Noun Compounds Syntax and Semantics

An important characteristic of English written text is the abundance of noun compounds—sequences of nouns acting as a single noun, e.g., colon cancer tumor suppressor protein. While eventually mastered by domain experts, their interpretation poses a major challenge for automated analysis. Understanding noun compounds' syntax and semantics is important for many natural language applications, including question answering, machine translation, information retrieval, and information extraction. For example, a question answering system might need to know whether 'protein acting as a tumor suppressor' is an acceptable paraphrase of the noun compound tumor suppressor protein, and an information extraction system might need to decide if the terms neck vein thrombosis and neck thrombosis can possibly co-refer when used in the same document. Similarly, a phrase-based machine translation system facing the unknown phrase WTO Geneva headquarters, could benefit from being able to paraphrase it as Geneva headquarters of the WTO or WTO headquarters located in Geneva. Given a query like migraine treatment , an information retrieval system could use paraphrasing verbs like relieve and prevent for page ranking and query refinement. I address the problem of noun compounds syntax by means of novel, highly accurate unsupervised and lightly supervised algorithms using the Web as a corpus and search engines as interfaces to that corpus. Traditionally the Web has been viewed as a source of page hit counts, used as an estimate for n-gram word frequencies. I extend this approach by introducing novel surface features and paraphrases, which yield state-of-the-art results for the task of noun compound bracketing. I also show how these kinds of features can be applied to other structural ambiguity problems, like prepositional phrase attachment and noun phrase coordination. I address noun compound semantics by automatically generating paraphrasing verbs and prepositions that make explicit the hidden semantic relations between the nouns in a noun compound. I also demonstrate how these paraphrasing verbs can be used to solve various relational similarity problems, and how paraphrasing noun compounds can improve machine translation.
Autoignition and Combustion of Fuels In Diesel Engines Under Low Ambient Temperatures

Autoallumage et combustion des carburants dans les moteurs diesel aux basses temperatures ambiantes
CBER’s New Managed Review Process: A Managed and Integrated Regulatory Process which is Continuous from Discovery to Post Marketing

One of the goals of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research’s (CBER’s) strategic vision for 2004 is: “a managed and integrated regulatory process which is continuous from discovery through post marketing.” A strategy utilized to reach this goal is to apply the principles of managed review to the entire regulatory process. Managed review principles include the design of a review process which is streamlined, consistent, and efficient. Control of this review process is through performance goals in the form of review events which move the process forward. CBER has extended and enhanced its current Managed Review Process, thereby achieving this goal. This new Managed Review Process is presently being implemented in the center. It spans from discovery to post marketing, includes all regulatory mechanisms used for submission review and approval, proposes a change in the review team leadership structure, reinforces the importance of project management activities, and enhances performance goals through the addition of new review milestones and target dates.
Virtualisation of Network Functions and the SDN: Improving the Economics of the Network

A 'telco' or telecommunications service provider’s network is both the source of its high cost base and source of differentiation. Telcos incur the high capital and operational costs of customised, vendor-proprietary hardware as they seek differentiation through network capacity addition, service quality and coverage improvement. These decisions to invest in the network are motivated by supply-side competition and demand particularly cross-segment demand for data services, much of which is for ‘over-the-top’ social networking and video streaming services that the telco can only partially monetise. This has created a dichotomy of margin erosion a high cost to serve with diminishing returns on additional capacity investments. However, an approach that blends IT, networking and data centre technologies promises to improve this equation, as evidenced by primary research, surveys and proof-of-concepts by Hewlett Packard. Network Functions Virtualisation (NFV) offers to immediately lower the capital and operational cost base by implementing a growing set of previously closed network platforms and functions on standard IT hardware. This will set the scene in the next few years for faster software-defined network (SDN) additions which will improve utilisation of network assets and allow lower-cost experiments to flex and scale capacity to improve network services and introduce new innovations. This article provides an introductory view of these emergent developments.
The Resource-Based Relative Value Scale: Methods, Results and Impacts on Urology

AbstractIncreased concern for rising health care costs in the United States has led to the passage of legislation to reform physician payment for Medicare services based on resource inputs. In January 1992 the Health Care Financing Administration began implementing the new law, which replaces the existing Medicare system of physician payment with a fee schedule based on the resource-based relative value scale (RBRVS). We summarize the methods and data used to derive the RBRVS for urology.A national random sample of 115 practicing urologists completed structured telephone surveys to provide ratings of physician time and work required before, during and after most frequently performed urological services. Subsequent survey cycles with urologists provided further refinement. Urologists then participated in a cross-specialty physician panel to link services from all specialties onto a common scale. This common scale was adjusted for geographic differences in practice overhead costs and malpractice insurance p...
Weight loss maintenance strategies among rural breast cancer survivors: The rural women connecting for better health trial.

Objective Obesity is a risk factor for breast cancer recurrence. Rural women have higher obesity rates compared with urban women and are in need of distance-based interventions that promote long-term weight loss. Methods In this two-phase trial, rural breast cancer survivors who lost >5% of their starting weight during a 6-month lifestyle intervention (delivered through weekly group conference calls) were randomized to one of two 12-month interventions for weight loss maintenance: continued biweekly phone-based group counseling or mailed newsletters. The primary outcome was weight regain from 6 to 18 months. Secondary outcomes included dichotomous measures of weight change and costs. Results Mean weight loss at 6 months was 14.0 ± 5.1%. Participants in the group phone condition regained less weight (3.3 ± 4.8 kg) compared with participants in the newsletter condition (4.9 ± 4.8 kg; P = 0.03). At 18 months, 75.3% of participants in the group phone condition remained ≥5% below baseline weight compared with 57.8% in the newsletter condition (P = 0.02). Incremental cost-effectiveness ratios were $882 to keep one more person ≥5% below baseline weight. Conclusions A lifestyle intervention incorporating group phone-based support improved the magnitude of weight loss maintained and increased the proportion of survivors who maintained clinically significant reductions.
An Experimentally-Validated Distributed-Parameters Model of a Ferrofluid Based Energy Harvester

This paper develops a distributed-parameters nonlinear model, which governs the electro-magneto-hydrodynamics of an electromagnetic ferrofluid-based energy harvester. An approximate analytical solution of the model is then obtained using per-turbation methods and the results are compared to experimental findings illustrating good qualitative agreement.Copyright © 2016 by ASME
StrAuto: automation and parallelization of STRUCTURE analysis.

Population structure inference using the software STRUCTURE has become an integral part of population genetic studies covering a broad spectrum of taxa including humans. The ever-expanding size of genetic data sets poses computational challenges for this analysis. Although at least one tool currently implements parallel computing to reduce computational overload of this analysis, it does not fully automate the use of replicate STRUCTURE analysis runs required for downstream inference of optimal K. There is pressing need for a tool that can deploy population structure analysis on high performance computing clusters. We present an updated version of the popular Python program StrAuto, to streamline population structure analysis using parallel computing. StrAuto implements a pipeline that combines STRUCTURE analysis with the Evanno Δ K analysis and visualization of results using STRUCTURE HARVESTER. Using benchmarking tests, we demonstrate that StrAuto significantly reduces the computational time needed to perform iterative STRUCTURE analysis by distributing runs over two or more processors. StrAuto is the first tool to integrate STRUCTURE analysis with post-processing using a pipeline approach in addition to implementing parallel computation – a set up ideal for deployment on computing clusters. StrAuto is distributed under the GNU GPL (General Public License) and available to download from http://strauto.popgen.org .
Long-term survival after resection of sarcomatoid carcinoma of the pancreas: an updated experience

Abstract Background Sarcomatoid carcinoma of the pancreas (SCP) is a rare histologic subtype of undifferentiated pancreatic carcinoma. Historically, this has been associated with a worse overall prognosis than adenocarcinoma. However, the clinical course and surgical outcomes of SCP remain poorly characterized owing to its rarity. Methods A single-institution, prospectively maintained database was queried for patients who underwent pancreatic resection with a final diagnosis of SCP. We describe their histology, clinicopathologic features, and perioperative outcomes. Survival data are highlighted, and common traits of long-term survivors are examined. Results Over a 25-year period, 7009 patents underwent pancreatic resection at our institution. Eight (0.11%) were diagnosed with SCP on final histopathology. R0 resection was achieved in six patients (75%). Four patients had early recurrence leading to death ( 5 years), with the longest surviving nearly 16 years despite the presence of lymph node metastasis. There were no deaths attributed to perioperative complications. Both long-term survivors had disease in the body/tail of the pancreas and received adjuvant radiotherapy. One also received adjuvant gemcitabine-based chemotherapy. Conclusions SCP is a rarely appreciated subset of pancreatic malignancy that does not necessarily portend to a uniformly dismal prognosis. Although some have rapid recurrence and an early demise, long-term survival may be possible. Future studies are needed to better define the cohort with potential for long-term survival so that aggressive therapies may be tailored appropriately in this patient subset.
A Switched-Capacitor-Controlled Digital-Current Modulated Class-E Transmitter

An envelope elimination and restoration transmitter that comprises a class-E power amplifier (PA) and a digitally controlled current digital-to-analog converter (DAC) modulator are presented. A switched-capacitor DAC is designed to control an open-loop transconductor that operates as a current modulator, modulating the amplitude of the current supplied to a class-E PA. Such a topology allows for increased filtering of the quantization noise that is problematic in most digital PAs (DPA). The system measurements yield a peak output power and system efficiency (SE) of 22.5 dBm and 23.6%, respectively. When applying a local thermal equilibrium signal, the measured error vector magnitude is 3.72% and the adjacent channel leakage ratio is −30.2 dBc, while outputting 18.1 dBm at 10.6% SE.
Interferon research: impact on understanding transcriptional control.

Celebrations are certainly in order for the 50th anniversary of the Isaacs/Lindenmann discovery of interferon as a secreted substance of probable cellular origin that conferred resistance to at least four viruses of distinctly different character—influenza, Sendai, Newcastle’s disease, and vaccinia. Personal pride, excusable, I hope, leads me to recall also that following the trail of how interferon works its magic led 15 years ago this year to the discovery of the STATs and their activation by the Jak kinases. These later findings were stimulated by and in turn further stimulated an ever deepening interest in how transcription figured in changing cell behavior. Here are presented some further reflections on these topics.
A pre-post study testing a lung cancer screening decision aid in primary care.

The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) issued recommendations for older, heavy lifetime smokers to complete annual low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) scans of the chest as screening for lung cancer. The USPSTF recommends and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services require shared decision making using a decision aid for lung cancer screening with annual LDCT. Little is known about how decision aids affect screening knowledge, preferences, and behavior. Thus, we tested a lung cancer screening decision aid video in screening-eligible primary care patients. We conducted a single-group study with surveys before and after decision aid viewing and medical record review at 3 months. Participants were active patients of a large US academic primary care practice who were current or former smokers, ages 55–80 years, and eligible for screening based on current screening guidelines. Outcomes assessed pre-post decision aid viewing were screening-related knowledge score (9 items about screening-related harms of false positives and overdiagnosis, likelihood of benefit; score range = 0–9) and preference (preferred screening vs. not). Screening behavior measures, assessed via chart review, included provider visits, screening discussion, LDCT ordering, and LDCT completion within 3 months. Among 50 participants, knowledge increased from pre- to post-decision aid viewing (mean = 2.6 vs. 5.5, difference = 2.8; 95% CI 2.1, 3.6, p < 0.001). Preferences across the overall sample remained similar such that 54% preferred screening at baseline and 50% after viewing; however, 28% of participants changed their preference (to or away from screening) from baseline to after viewing. We assessed screening behavior for 36 participants who had a primary care visit during the 3-month period following enrollment. Eighteen of 36 preferred screening after decision aid viewing. Of these 18, 10 discussed screening, 8 had a test ordered, and 6 completed LDCT. Among the 18 who preferred no screening, 7 discussed screening, 5 had a test ordered, and 4 completed LDCT. In primary care patients, a lung cancer screening decision aid improved knowledge regarding screening-related benefits and harms. Screening preferences and behavior were heterogeneous. This study is registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov . NCT03077230 (registered retrospectively,November 22, 2016).
Connection experiments in neurobiology

Accounts of causal explanation are standard in philosophy of science. Less common are accounts of experimentation to investigate causal relations: detailed discussions of the specific kinds of experiments scientists design and run. Silva, Landreth, and Bickle’s (SLB) (Engineering the next revolution in neuroscience: the new science of experiment planning, Oxford University Press, New York, 2014) account of “connection experiments” derives directly from landmark experiments in “molecular and cellular cognition.” We start with its key components, and then using a detailed case study from recent social neuroscience we emphasize and extend three features of SLB’s account: (1) a division of distinct types of connection experiments, each providing a different type of evidence for a hypothesized causal relationship; (2) the typically downward-looking nature (in the sense of componentry) of the experimental search for mediating causes in mainstream neurobiology; and most importantly, (3) the centrality of multiple-experiment research programs, with each experiment designed such that if successful its results can be integrated with the others, toward the goal of confirming multiple-phenomena causal pathways. Our extension of SLB’s account complements existing philosophical work on experimentation in neurobiology.
Instance-Specific algorithm configuration as a method for non-model-based portfolio generation

Instance-specific algorithm configuration generalizes both instance-oblivious algorithm tuning as well as algorithm portfolio generation. ISAC is a recently proposed non-model-based approach for tuning solver parameters dependent on the specific instance that needs to be solved. While ISAC has been compared with instance-oblivious algorithm tuning systems before, to date a comparison with portfolio generators and other instance-specific algorithm configurators is crucially missing. In this paper, among others, we provide a comparison with SATzilla, as well as three other algorithm configurators: Hydra, DCM and ArgoSmart. Our experimental comparison shows that non-model-based ISAC significantly outperforms prior state-of-the-art algorithm selectors and configurators. The following study was the foundation for the best sequential portfolio at the 2011 SAT Competition.
The androgen derivative 5alpha-androstane-3beta,17beta-diol (3beta-Adiol) inhibits migration of prostate cancer cell by activation of the estrogen receptor beta.

297 In earlier stages, prostate cancer (PC) depends on androgens and may be reduced with androgen blockade. Androgen-ablation therapy often induces androgen-independent PC, characterized by an increased invasiveness. We have found that the the testosterone derivative, dihydrotestosterone inhibits cell migration with an androgen receptor (AR)-independent mechanism. This effect has been linked to its metabolite 5alpha-androstane-3beta,17beta-diol (3beta-Adiol), a steroid which does not bind AR, but interact with the estrogen receptor beta (ERbeta). 3beta-Adiol inhibits cell migration of PC through the activation of the ERbeta signalling, while estradiol is not active, suggesting the existence of different pathways for ERbeta activation in PC cells. Moreover, 3beta-Adiol induces the expression of E-cadherin, a protein known to be capable to reduce metastasis formation of breast cancer and PC cells. The inhibitory effects of 3beta-Adiol on PC cell migration is counteracted by siRNA against E-cadherin. The present data demonstrated that 1) testosterone may exert an estrogenic effects downstream in the catabolic process present in the prostate; 2) the estrogenic effect of testosterone derivatives (ERbeta-dependent) inhihits cell migration, although it is apparently different from that linked to estradiol on the same receptor and may be protective against PC invasion and metastasis. These results may help to explain some clinical observations which reported that alterations in gene coding for 3beta-HSDs (the enzymes responsible for 3beta-Adiol formation) are strongly correlated with hereditary PC.
Circulating mitochondrial DNA: New indices of type 2 diabetes-related cognitive impairment in Mexican Americans.

Mitochondrial function has been implicated and studied in numerous complex age-related diseases. Understanding the potential role of mitochondria in disease pathophysiology is of importance due to the rise in prevalence of complex age-related diseases, such as type 2 diabetes (T2D) and Alzheimer’s disease (AD). These two diseases specifically share common pathophysiological characteristics which potentially point to a common root cause or factors for disease exacerbation. Studying the shared phenomena in Mexican Americans is of particular importance due to the disproportionate prevalence of both T2D and AD in this population. Here, we assessed the potential role of mitochondria in T2D and cognitive impairment (CI) in a Mexican American cohort by analyzing blood-based indices of mitochondrial DNA copy number (mtDNACN) and cell-free mitochondrial DNA (CFmtDNA). These mitochondrial metrics were also analyzed for correlation with relevant neuropsychological variables and physiological data collected as indicators of disease and/or disease progression. We found mtDNACN to be significantly decreased in individuals with CI, while CFmtDNA was significantly elevated in T2D; further, CFmtDNA elevation was significantly exacerbated in individuals with both diseases. MtDNACN was found to negatively correlate with age and fatty acid binding protein concentration, while positively correlating with CFmtDNA as well as CERAD total recall score. Candidate gene SNP-set analysis was performed on genes previously implicated in maintenance and control of mitochondrial dynamics to determine if nuclear variants may account for variability in mtDNACN. The results point to a single significant locus, in the LRRK2/MUC19 region, encoding leucine rich repeat kinase 2 and mucin 19. This locus has been previously implicated in Parkinson’s disease, among others; rs7302859 was the driver SNP. These combined findings further indicate that mitochondrial dysfunction (as assessed by proxy via mtDNACN) is intimately linked to both T2D and CI phenotypes as well as aging.