cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
AIDS and Ophthalmology: The First Quarter Century

Purpose To describe changes in the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) epidemic that are important to ophthalmologists, to provide an overview of issues relevant to current evaluation and treatment of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-related eye disease, and to identify problems related to the eye and vision that require continued study. Design Literature review and commentary. Methods Selected articles from the medical literature and the author's clinical and research experiences over 25 years were reviewed critically. Results The AIDS epidemic has had a profound impact on ophthalmology since the ophthalmic manifestations of AIDS were first described in 1982. The introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has markedly reduced the incidence of cytomegalovirus (CMV) retinitis, but has not eliminated new cases altogether. Treatment strategies for CMV retinitis have evolved over the past decade. Current issues of importance include choice of initial anti-CMV drugs; time at which anti-CMV drug treatment is discontinued in patients who achieve immune recovery; strategies for monitoring patients at risk for disease reactivation; and management of complications (retinal detachment, immune recovery uveitis). Attention also is being directed to the problem of visual disturbances (reduced contrast sensitivity, altered color vision, visual field abnormalities) that can occur in HIV-infected individuals without infectious retinopathies. Conclusions Ocular disorders associated with HIV disease remain important problems in the United States, despite HAART, and increasingly are important worldwide. The approach to management of CMV retinitis has evolved from short-term treatment of a preterminal infection to the long-term management of what has become a chronic disease. Many challenges remain to be addressed.
Sequential greedy approximation for certain convex optimization problems

A greedy algorithm for a class of convex optimization problems is presented. The algorithm is motivated from function approximation using a sparse combination of basis functions as well as some of its variants. We derive a bound on the rate of approximate minimization for this algorithm, and present examples of its application. Our analysis generalizes a number of earlier studies.
Transient boiling heat transfer to water

Abstract Experimental transient boiling heat transfer in water for exponential heat inputs to thin metallic ribbons of 0.015 × 106 e t t 0 Btu/ft2h are compared with steady state predictions. The nominal values of controlled variables included velocity: ⩽ 1, 14 ft/s; pressure; 14.7, 500, 1000, 2000 psia; subcooling: ⩽ 10,42,112°F; exponential period : 5,15,50 ms.
A Group of Friends: The Las Americas Network, Virtual Studios, and Distance Education in Architecture

This paper celebrates the human factor by describing how our collective vocation towards innovation in design education has inspired the development of an active network across the Americas. Ten years after its creation, the Las Americas Digital Research Network has generated a stream of innovative implementations. This is the first time that the main stream of these research activities is articulated into a peer-reviewed journal publication. The narrative of the paper follows a time-line that starts with the creation of the Las Americas Digital Research Network in 1996. Supported by such a framework the paper continues to describe the implementation of virtual design studios as collaborations nested at the core of the network. Finally, the paper explains how the virtual design studios provide fundamental feasibility for the development of network-mediated distance education curricula in architecture and the opening of a new dimension in the development and deployment of collaborative networks.
Challenges to Improving Combat Casualty Survival on the Battlefield

Abstract : The United States has achieved unprecedented survival rates (as high as 98 percent) for casualties arriving alive to a combat hospital. 1 Official briefings, informal communications, and even television documentaries such as CNN Presents Combat Hospital highlight the remarkable surgical care taking place overseas. Military physicians, medics, corpsmen, and other providers of battlefield medical care are rightly proud of this achievement. Commanders and their troops can be confident that once a wounded Service - member reaches the combat hospital, his or her care will be the best in the world. Combat casualty care, however, does not begin at the hospital. It begins in the field at the point of injury and continues through evacuation to the combat hospital or forward surgery. This prehospital phase of care is the first link in the chain of survival for those injured in combat and represents the next frontier for making significant improvements in battlefield trauma care. Even with superb in-hospital care, recent evidence suggests that up to 25 percent of deaths on the battlefield are potentially preventable. The vast majority of these deaths happen in the prehospital setting. The indisputable conclusion is that any meaningful future improvement in combat casualty outcomes depends on closing the gap in prehospital survival. Improving pre - hospital combat casualty care, however, may be significantly more challenging than improving hospital-based casualty care because of significant structural challenges facing the military medical establishment. I describe five key challenges and a plan to overcome them.
Vagal esophageal receptors in anesthetized dogs: mechanical and chemical responsiveness.

This study was performed to evaluate the characteristics of esophageal receptors in anesthetized and artificially ventilated dogs. The electrical activity of the esophageal afferents was recorded from the peripheral cut end of the cervical vagus nerve. A cuffed catheter was inserted into the esophagus at the level of the third tracheal ring and was used to establish the esophageal location of the endings. Most of the receptors were localized in the intrathoracic portion of the esophagus. The majority of the receptors studied (36 of 43) showed a slow adaptation to a maintained stretch of the esophageal wall. Vagal cooling blocked receptor activity at temperatures ranging from 3.5 to 25°C. Twenty-eight of 43 receptors, including 4 rapidly adapting endings (RAR), were challenged with saline, HCl + pepsin (HCl-P; pH 1) and distilled water (8 ml, 37°C). HCl-P solutions specifically stimulated only three receptors; saline or water did not. Five slowly adapting receptors and two RARs were also challenged with topically applied capsaicin; only one RAR was stimulated. To ascertain a possible effect of smooth muscle contraction, 17 receptors were tested with intravenous injections of ACh and/or asphyxia; only 4 were stimulated. These characteristics do not support an important reflexogenic role of the esophagus in response to chemical stimuli.
Muckland Potato Spraying Experiments

In an experiment to determine the relative merits of spraying muckland potatoes with bordeaux alone and combined with calcium or lead arsenates, the largest yields were obtained from plants sprayed with lead arsenate and bordeaux mixture. All treatments gave significant increases in yields over unsprayed plants. Wheel injury while less severe than horse, wheel and tank injury combined showed yield decreases below uninjured rows. These decreases in yields due to the spraying operations were more than compensated by the increases obtained as a result of the treatments.
Three-Dimensional Numerical Modeling of Tip Leakage Flow over a Cylinder

Flow field in the plane of symmetry upstream of circular cylinder mounted perpendicular to a flat plate with varying clearance between the cylinder tip and the flat plate is numerically investigated. The results were compared with an experimental study of the configuration. The existence of a multiple vortex system with characteristics similar to that of end-wall flows of surface-mounted obstacles with zero gap was captured by the numerical method. The influence of gap size and Reynolds numbers was also investigated. The results were in good comparison with the experimental data. It has been found that the vortex system structure depends on the free stream Reynolds number; and an increase in the tip gap size caused a shift in the location of vortex system and bifurcation streamline due to increase tip leakage flow.
Construction of AIDS Testing Network Laboratory and Its Quality Control in Suqian City

[Objective]To understand the construction of AIDS testing network laboratory and its quality control in Suqian City,so as to improve the network and conduct AIDS surveillance.[Methods] Questionnaire survey and on-site investigation method were adopted to conduct survey on infrastructure,bio-safety and quality control of 14 AIDS network laboratories.[Results]Equipment in AIDS network laboratory of Suqian City was relatively complete,but only 8 units had biological safety level Ⅱ cabinet,the rest used console cabinet to conduct test.A hundred percent of the laboratory used external control as quality control.Laboratories were operating well,and accorded with the requirements of the building.[Conclusion]AIDS network construction needs to be further strengthened,and the concept of quality control and bio-safety awareness in laboratory staff need to be improved.
A software module for implementing auditory and visual feedback on a video-based eye tracking system

We describe here the design and implementation of a software module that provides both auditory and visual feedback of the eye position measured by a commercially available eye tracking system. The present audio-visual feedback module (AVFM) serves as an extension to the Arrington Research ViewPoint EyeTracker, but it can be easily modified for use with other similar systems. Two modes of audio feedback and one mode of visual feedback are provided in reference to a circular area-of-interest (AOI). Auditory feedback can be either a click tone emitted when the user’s gaze point enters or leaves the AOI, or a sinusoidal waveform with frequency inversely proportional to the distance from the gaze point to the center of the AOI. Visual feedback is in the form of a small circular light patch that is presented whenever the gaze-point is within the AOI. The AVFM processes data that are sent to a dynamic-link library by the EyeTracker. The AVFM’s multithreaded implementation also allows real-time data collection (1 kHz sampling rate) and graphics processing that allow display of the current/past gaze-points as well as the AOI. The feedback provided by the AVFM described here has applications in military target acquisition and personnel training, as well as in visual experimentation, clinical research, marketing research, and sports training.
Dual effect of the serotonin agonist, sumatriptan, on peripheral neurogenic inflammation.

Background and Objectives Sumatriptan is a novel drug for migraine headache pain, which, on the basis of its mechanism of action, may have therapeutic potential in other pain states. Sumatriptan inhibits neurogenic inflammation in dural vessels by activating the 5-HTIB and 5-HTID inhibitory serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine [5-HT]) receptor subtypes on terminals of trigeminal neurons. This study was designed to determine the role of sumatriptan in peripheral pain mechanisms by detecting whether 5-HT1B and 5-HT1D receptors and the recently cloned excitatory 5-HT7 receptor, for which sumatriptan displays moderate binding affinity, are present in peripheral sensory neurons, and by determining the effect of sumatriptan on peripheral neurogenic inflammation. Methods A polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique was used to detect mRNA for 5-HT receptors in rat lumbar dorsal root ganglia. Rat knee joint plasma extravasation was used to determine the effect of sumatriptan on peripheral neurogenic inflammation. Results The mRNA for the sumatriptan-activated receptors 5-HT1B, 5-HT1D, and 5-HT7, was detected in lumbar dorsal root ganglia. In rat knee joint, capsaicin-activated C-fibers stimulated plasma extravasation to 273 ± 62% of baseline. Low-concentration sumatriptan (50 nM) significantly inhibited capsaicin-induced plasma extravasation to 106 ± 6% of baseline. High-concentration sumatriptan (1 μM) significantly enhanced capsaicin-induced plasma extravasation to 572 ± 55% of baseline. Conclusions Sumatriptan inhibits peripheral neurogenic inflammation, probably via 5-HT1B/1D receptors, and may be a novel therapy for inflammatory pain states. However, high concentrations (> 200 nM) may enhance neurogenic inflammation, possibly by activation of 5-HT7 receptors, which may explain lack of migraine relief and excessive injection site pain in 20-30% of patients treated with sumatriptan.
Unique strong and attractor of a three dimensional globally modified Cahn-Hilliard-Navier-Stokes model

In this article, we study a globally modified Cahn–Hilliard–Navier–Stokes system in a three-dimensional domain. The model consists of the globally modified Navier–Stokes equations proposed, coupled with a Cahn–Hilliard model. We prove the existence and uniqueness of strong solutions. Using the flattening property, we also prove the existence of global attractors for the model. Using a limiting argument, we derive the existence of bounded entire weak solutions for the three-dimensional coupled Cahn–Hilliard–Navier–Stokes system with time-independent forcing.
Re-writing Myths of Creativity: Pygmalionism, Galatea Figures, and the Revenge of the Muse in Late Victorian Literature by Women

Recent criticism suggests that the second half of the Victorian era marked the golden age of the myth of Pygmalion in Britain. To name but a few, adaptations of Ovid’s tale across the arts in late nineteenth-century British poetry and drama include Robert Buchanan’s ‘Pygmalion the Sculptor’ (Undertones, 1863), William Morris’ ‘Pygmalion and the Image’ (The Earthly Paradise, 1868), W.S. Gilbert’s Pygmalion and Galatea, an Original Mythological Comedy (1871), Robert Browning’s ‘Beatrice Signorini’ (Asolando, 1889), and Thomas Hardy’s ‘The Well-Beloved’ (Poems of the Past and Present, 1901). In the well-known marmoreal painted female figures of D.G. Rossetti, Albert Moore, Frederic Leighton, or Lawrence Alma-Tadema, one also recognizes the Cypriot sculptor’s fascination for his statue. Similarly, late Victorian criticism and fiction are replete with reprisals of the myth. As J. Hillis Miller has pointed out, many late Victorian literary protagonists ‘do […] something like falling in love with a statue’.
Terahertz probes of transient conducting and insulating phases in quasi-2D electron-hole gases

We employ ultrafast terahertz (THz) pulses to study the dynamical interplay of optically-induced excitons and unbound electron-hole pairs in GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells. A distinct low-energy oscillator appears upon resonant excitation of heavy-hole excitons, linked to transitions between their internal degrees of freedom. Time-resolving changes in the THz conductivity, we can observe dynamical transitions between conducting and insulating phases as excitons form or ionize on ultrashort timescales.
Improved Eye Plaque Brachytherapy Dosimetry Using Monte Carlo Methods

Eye plaque brachytherapy is a sight-preserving medical procedure in which radioactive sources are reproducibly arranged within a collimating source backing and temporarily sutured to the eye. The p...
That's not what you said the first time: A theoretical account of the relationship between consistency and accuracy of recall.

Over multiple response opportunities, recall may be inconsistent. For example, an eyewitness may report information at trial that was not reported during initial questioning—a phenomenon called reminiscence. Such inconsistencies are often assumed by lawyers to be inaccurate and are sometimes interpreted as evidence of the general unreliability of the rememberer. In two experiments, we examined the output-bound accuracy of inconsistent memories and found that reminisced memories were indeed less accurate than memories that were reported consistently over multiple opportunities. However, reminisced memories were just as accurate as memories that were reported initially but not later, indicating that it is the inconsistency of recall, and not the later addition to the recall output, that predicts lower accuracy. Finally, rememberers who exhibited more inconsistent recall were less accurate overall, which, if confirmed by more ecologically valid studies, may indicate that the common legal assumption may be correct: Witnesses who provide inconsistent testimony provide generally less trustworthy information overall.
Silicon-microresonator-based mid-infrared dual-comb source

We demonstrate a microresonator-based dual-comb source. Operation is achieved in the mid-infrared with a single continuous-wave pump source using two silicon microresonators that are each modelocked using thermal control and free-carrier injection.
Novel 5-arylthio-5H-chromenopyridines as a new class of anti-fibrotic agents ☆

Liver fibrosis is a critical wound healing response to chronic liver injury such as hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. If persistent, liver fibrosis can lead to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The development of new therapies for preventing liver fibrosis and its progression to cancer associated with HCV infection remains a critical challenge. Identification of novel anti-fibrotic compounds will provide opportunities for innovative therapeutic intervention of HCV-mediated liver fibrosis. We designed and synthesized a focused set of 5-arylthio-5H-chromenopyridines as a new class of anti-fibrotic agents. Liver fibrosis assays demonstrated that the compounds 3a and 3c show inhibitory activity towards human hepatic stellate cells (LX2) activation at 10μM. The HCV NS3 and NS5A proteins in HCV subgenome-expressing cells were also significantly reduced in cells treated with 3a and 3c, suggesting the possible inhibitory role of the compounds in HCV translation/replication activities. We have also examined the reactivity of these compounds with medicinally-relevant metal compounds such as platinum and gold. The reactivity of these complexes with metals and during Mass Spectrometry suggests that CS bond cleavage is relatively facile.
Community forestry and its mitigation potential in the Anthropocene: The importance of land tenure governance and the threat of privatization

Abstract This paper highlights the key role of community forestry in enhancing the sustainability of forest ecosystems and their provision of environmental goods and services, while also analyzing the tensions facing land tenure governance in the Anthropocene. While rural communities and indigenous peoples make a significant contribution to the preservation of the Earth System along the mitigation pathway proposed by Steffen et al. (2007), their access rights to community and ancestral forestland are contested. Climate change, technological innovation, rising commodity prices and neoliberal deregulation have paved the way for an acceleration of the processes of land-grabbing and accumulation by dispossession (Harvey, 2003, 2004). The struggle of three Argentine wichi indigenous communities in the Salta province of Argentina illuminates the situation of many peasant and indigenous peoples in Latin America, confronting powerful transnational businesses that dispute access to their land and possession of natural resources. Fragile institutions fail to enforce communities' rights that have been recognized by international and national regulations, thus perpetuating inequities and exclusion.
Resource-efficient Bell state preparation using Quantum Zeno dynamics in superconducting circuits.

Quantum Zeno Dynamics is a generalization of the Zeno effect, where the evolution of a quantum system is restricted to a chosen subspace. This allows for coherent preparation of a Bell-state without two-qubit-gates or feedback.
Liquid marble: A novel liquid nanofoam structure for energy absorption

The liquid nanofoam (LN), a system composed of liquid and hydrophobic nanoporous particles, is a promising energy absorbing material. Despite its excellent energy absorbing capabilities under quasi-static conditions, the LN’s performance is limited under dynamic impacts due to its heterogeneity. We hypothesize that the energy absorption capacity of the LN can be increased by reconfiguration of the material into a liquid marble form. To test this hypothesis, we have prepared the LN sample in two different configurations, one with the heterogeneous layered structure and the other with a macroscopically homogeneous liquid marble structure. The mechanical behavior of these two types of LN was examined by quasi-static compression tests and dynamic impact tests. We demonstrated that although both types of LN exhibited comparable quasi-static energy absorption capacity, the liquid marble form of LN showed better performance under dynamic impacts. These findings suggest that the liquid marble form is the preferre...
DETERMINATION OF ELASTIC COMPLIANCES OF CYLINDRICALLY AEOLOTROPIC PLATES

A method for the determination of elastic compliances of cylindrically aeolotropic plates is developed. It consists of subjecting a simply supported circular plate to an eccentric concentrated transverse load. The solution of the differential equation of flexure of a thin plate for the prescribed boundary condition is derived, and the results are presented in detail. Substitution of measured values of transverse deflections into the deflection equation provides a set of simultaneous equations for the determination of the compliances. A particularly simple method for calculating the shear modulus is also presented.
The human papillomavirus E6 oncoprotein targets USP15 and TRIM25 to suppress RIG-I-mediated innate immune signaling

Retinoic acid-inducible gene I (RIG-I) is a key pattern recognition receptor that senses viral RNA and interacts with the mitochondrial adaptor MAVS, triggering a signaling cascade that results in the production of type I interferons (IFNs). This signaling axis is initiated by K63-linked ubiquitination of RIG-I mediated by the E3 ubiquitin ligase TRIM25, which promotes the interaction of RIG-I with MAVS. USP15 was recently identified as an upstream regulator of TRIM25, stabilizing the enzyme through removal of degradative K48-linked polyubiquitin, ultimately promoting RIG-I-dependent cytokine responses. Here, we show that the E6 oncoprotein of human papillomavirus type 16 (HPV16) as well as of other HPV types form a complex with TRIM25 and USP15 in human cells. In the presence of E6, the K48-linked ubiquitination of TRIM25 was markedly increased, and in line with this, TRIM25 degradation was enhanced. Our results further showed that E6 inhibited the TRIM25-mediated K63-linked ubiquitination of RIG-I and its CARD-dependent interaction with MAVS. HPV16 E6, but not E7, suppressed the RIG-I-mediated induction of IFN-β, chemokines, and IFN-stimulated genes (ISGs). Finally, CRISPR-Cas9 gene targeting in human keratinocytes showed that the TRIM25-RIG-I-MAVS triad is important for eliciting an antiviral immune response to HPV16 infection. Our study thus identifies a novel immune escape mechanism that is conserved among different HPV strains and further indicates that the RIG-I signaling pathway plays an important role in the innate immune response to HPV infection.IMPORTANCE Persistent infection and tumorigenesis by HPVs are known to require viral manipulation of a variety of cellular processes, including those involved in innate immune responses. Here, we show that the HPV E6 oncoprotein antagonizes the activation of the cytoplasmic innate immune sensor RIG-I by targeting its upstream regulatory enzymes TRIM25 and USP15. We further show that the RIG-I signaling cascade is important for an antiviral innate immune response to HPV16 infection, providing evidence that RIG-I, whose role in sensing RNA virus infections has been well characterized, also plays a crucial role in the antiviral host response to small DNA viruses of the Papillomaviridae family.
Characteristics of Tables for Disseminating Biobehavioral Results.

BACKGROUND To report the complexity and richness of study variables within biological nursing research, authors often use tables; however, the ease with which consumers understand, synthesize, evaluate, and build upon findings depends partly upon table design. OBJECTIVES To assess and compare table characteristics within research and review articles published in Biological Research for Nursing and Nursing Research. METHOD A total of 10 elements in tables from 48 biobehavioral or biological research or review articles were analyzed. To test six hypotheses, a two-level hierarchical linear model was used for each of the continuous table elements, and a two-level hierarchical generalized linear model was used for each of the categorical table elements. Additionally, the inclusion of probability values in statistical tables was examined. RESULTS The mean number of tables per article was 3. Tables in research articles were more likely to contain quantitative content, while tables in review articles were more likely to contain both quantitative and qualitative content. Tables in research articles had a greater number of rows, columns, and column-heading levels than tables in review articles. More than one half of statistical tables in research articles had a separate probability column or had probability values within the table, whereas approximately one fourth had probability notes. CONCLUSIONS Authors and journal editorial staff may be generating tables that better depict biobehavioral content than those identified in specific style guidelines. However, authors and journal editorial staff may want to consider table design in terms of audience, including alternative visual displays.
Small manufacturing businesses: their interest in securing contracts from public agencies

A national survey of small manufacturing businesses (fewer than 100 employees) reveals prevailing attitudes about doing business with public agencies. Respondents describe a two tiered, nine variable model as representative of the public sector procurement process. Findings provide government agencies and private sector marketers with operational clues on what may help initiate and sustain procurement relationships with smaller suppliers.
Psychosis screening practices in schools: A survey of school‐based mental health providers

Aim Many school districts in the United States employ mental health professionals to provide assessment, counselling and crisis interventions within the school setting; however, little is known about actual clinical practices of psychosis screening in schools. The aim of the present study is to examine attitudes and practices regarding psychosis screening among school mental health providers in metropolitan Boston, Massachusetts. Methods School-based mental health clinicians (N = 100) completed an anonymous survey assessing familiarity, screening, and involvement with psychosis and psychosis risk prior to attending trainings on psychosis. Results Providers reported screening for psychosis less often than other mental health problems and rated themselves as less confident treating psychosis relative to other mental health concerns. Frequency of screening for psychosis was significantly associated with familiarity with psychosis assessment and case management, confidence providing treatment for individuals experiencing psychosis, and the number of students with or at risk for psychosis with whom providers had been involved. Frequency of screening for psychosis was not associated with years of practice, suggesting that both novice and experienced school-based providers may benefit from training on this issue. Conclusions Community outreach via school-based provider training on assessment and management of psychosis may help to increase providers' understanding of psychosis and increase the practice of verbal or written screening for psychosis and psychosis risk within schools.
Characteristics of Surface Urban Heat Island (SUHI) over the Gangetic Plain of Bihar, India

The rapid urbanisation impacts on environment, climate, agriculture, water resources trigger several problems to human beings. The present study is carried out to estimate intensity and trend of Urban Heat Island (UHI) as Surface UHI (SUHI) over towns/cities of the Gangetic plain of the state of Bihar, India, in which urban areas show relatively greater Land Surface Temperature (LST) than its rural surroundings especially during night times. The LST data (2001-14) of Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) is used for five major towns/cities of Bihar namely, Bhagalpur, Gaya, Patna, Purnea and Muzzaffarpur. Each city is classified into Urban, Suburban and Rural zones as per land cover of the area. During winter months (January, February, November and December), UHI is more intense over all towns/cities. Mann-Kendall Test is applied on Surface Urban Heat Island Intensity (SUHII) in which MK-Test Statistic (S) shows a significant increasing trend. This trend would alarm a risk to increase in air pollution, heat related biohazards, energy demand in the region. This study shows the need of urban greening and proper town planning over the considered areas to mitigate the changes.
Kelvin–Helmholtz Waves in Precipitating Midlatitude Cyclones

AbstractThis study examines Kelvin–Helmholtz (KH) waves observed by dual-polarization radar in several precipitating midlatitude cyclones during the Olympic Mountains Experiment (OLYMPEX) field cam...
Is brain death a legal fiction

Summary Franklin Miller, Robert Truog, and Seema Shah claim that brain death is not really death and that interest in organ transplantation was the primary motivation behind its acceptance as a criterion for determining death. Since it is unlikely that these “facts” can remain hidden from the public much longer, they are concerned that, if the truth becomes widely known, the public may reject transplantation from brain-dead donors as a violation of the “dead donor rule.” However, in their view, transplantation from brain-dead donors should continue, since no harm is done to the donors and the recipients of the organs benefit greatly from the transplantation. They therefore propose that we accept brain death as a kind of “legal fiction” and become more transparent about how this fiction may be useful and ethically appropriate in permitting vital organ transplantation. In this paper, I maintain that Miller, Truog, and Shah's view is seriously flawed. I argue that, because brain death (total brain failure) is a true criterion for determining death, it is not a fiction at all and therefore cannot be a “legal fiction.” Organ transplantation from brain-dead donors should continue because those donors are really dead.
Bioequivalence Study Methods with Pharmacokinetic Endpoints for Topical Ophthalmic Corticosteroid Suspensions and Effects of Subject Demographics

To establish bioequivalence for topical ophthalmic corticosteroid suspensions, some of U.S. product-specific guidances (PSGs) for generic drug products recommend evaluation of aqueous humor (AH) pharmacokinetics (PK). However, the AH PK study is complex because the relationships among AH PK, subject demographics, ocular anatomy, physiology and the compounds’ physicochemical characteristics are not well understood. The objective of this research is to provide an overview of the in vivo human AH studies submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for ophthalmic corticosteroid suspensions and to investigate the impact of subject demographics on the human AH PK. We summarized demographic data, sampling time points, sample size per time point and PK parameters to investigate correlations in the studies submitted to the FDA. In the evaluation of subject-specific covariates, the area under the concentration-time curves (AUC) and maximum concentrations (Cmax) were significantly different among ethnicities and age groups. Gender was not primarily associated with differences in AH PK. Our results suggest that the difference in ethnicity and age of the study population play an important role in the AH PK profiles of topical ophthalmic corticosteroid suspensions. Considering the subject-specific covariate effects in designing bioequivalence studies with AH PK endpoints could reduce bias from covariate imbalance and help identify true effects of formulation differences.
Electronics-Free Pneumatic Logic Circuits for Localized Feedback Control of Multi-Actuator Soft Robots

The vision of creating entirely-soft robots capable of performing complex tasks will be accomplished only when the controllers required for autonomous operation can be fully implemented on soft components. Despite recent advances in compliant fluidic circuitry for mechanical signal processing, the applicability of this technology for soft robot control has been limited by complicated fabrication and tuning processes, and also the need for external signals such as clocks and digital references. We propose a method to develop pneumatic soft robots in which coordinated interactions between multiple actuators are performed using controllers implemented on components distributedly embedded in the soft structures of the system. In this approach, the notions of binary and multi-valued actuator logic states are introduced. In this way, the physical local dynamical couplings between the analog states of the actuators, established using soft valves of a new type, can be thought of as logic-gate-based mappings acting on discretized representations of the actuator states. Consequently, techniques for digital logic design can be applied to derive the architectures of the localized mechanical couplings that intelligently coordinate the oscillation patterns of the actuator responses. For the purposes of controller tuning, the soft valves are conceived so that their main physical parameters can be adjusted from the exterior of the robot through simple geometrical changes of the corresponding structural elements. To demonstrate the proposed approach, we present the development of a six-state locomoting soft robot.
Sensory-evoked extracellular vesicle release and targeting

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are emerging as a universal means of cell to cell communication and hold great potential in diagnostics and regenerative therapies. The urgent need of the field is precise understanding of physiological mechanisms driving EV generation and function. Ciliary EVs act as signaling devices in Chlamydomonas and C. elegans. Mammalian cilia shed EVs to eliminate unwanted receptors or in the process of cilia retraction when cultured cells enter the cell cycle. Here we used our established C. elegans model to study sensory evoked ciliary EV release and targeting using a fluorescently labeled EV cargo polycystin-2 (PKD-2). In C. elegans and mammals, the Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease (ADPKD) gene products polycystin-1 and polycystin-2 localize to both cilia and EVs, act in the same genetic pathway, and function in a sensory capacity, suggesting ancient conservation. We find that males deposit PKD-2::GFP carrying EVs onto the vulva of the hermaphrodite during mating. We also show that mechanical stimulation triggers release of PKD-2::GFP carrying EVs from cilia. To our knowledge this is the first report of mechanoresponsive nature of the ciliary EV release and of ciliary EV directional transfer from one animal to another animal. Since the polycystins are evolutionary conserved ciliary EV cargoes, our findings suggest that similar mechanisms for EV release and targeting may occur in other animals.
Neuroimaging and cognitive profile in RVCL-S: Possible new insights into pathogenesis?

Retinal vasculopathy with cerebral leukoencephalopathy and systemic manifestations (RVCL-S) is a rare (≈200 patients worldwide), autosomal dominant microvasculopathy (Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man 192315). The neurologic phenotype is severe and characterized by vision loss and progressive neurocognitive decline in the fourth to sixth decades followed by death within 10 years of symptom onset.1 Brain MRI findings are variable and include white matter lesions with or without nodular enhancement, white matter calcifications, and rim-enhancing mass lesions that can be confused with neoplasm.2 Some patients may have systemic features such as Raynaud syndrome, mild liver and kidney dysfunction, hypertension, and anemia.3,4
Anatomic Total Shoulder Arthroplasty with All-Polyethylene Glenoid Component for Primary Osteoarthritis with Glenoid Deficiencies.

This study evaluated the ability of shoulder arthroplasty using a standard glenoid component to improve patient self-assessed comfort and function and to correct preoperative humeral-head decentering on the face of the glenoid in patients with primary glenohumeral arthritis and type-B2 or B3 glenoids. Methods We identified 66 shoulders with type-B2 glenoids (n = 40) or type-B3 glenoids (n = 26) undergoing total shoulder arthroplasties with a non-augmented glenoid component inserted without attempting to normalize glenoid version and with clinical and radiographic follow-up that was a minimum of 2 years. The Simple Shoulder Test (SST), the percentage of humeral-head decentering on the glenoid face, and bone ingrowth into the central peg were the main outcome variables of interest. Similar analyses were made for concurrent patients with type-A1, A2, B1, and D glenoid pathoanatomy to determine if the outcomes for type-B2 and B3 glenoids were inferior to those for the other types. Results The SST score (and standard deviation) improved from 3.2 ± 2.1 points preoperatively to 9.9 ± 2.4 points postoperatively (p 0.05) from preoperative glenoid version. The mean humeral-head decentering on the glenoid face was reduced for type-B2 glenoids from -14% ± 7% preoperatively to -1% ± 2% postoperatively (p Conclusions Shoulder arthroplasty with a standard glenoid inserted without changing version can significantly improve patient comfort and function and consistently center the humeral head on the glenoid face in shoulders with type-B2 and B3 glenoids, achieving >80% osseous integration into the central peg. These clinical and radiographic outcomes for type-B2 and B3 glenoids were not inferior to those outcomes for other glenoid types. Level of evidence Therapeutic Level IV. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.
Effects of Implementing an Interactive Substance Use Disorders Workshop on a Family Medicine Clerkship.

Background and objectives Substance use disorders (SUD) remain a public health crisis and training has been insufficient to provide the skills necessary to combat this crisis. We aimed to create and study an interactive, destigmatizing, skills-based workshop for medical students to evaluate if this changes students' self-reported knowledge, skills, and attitudes toward patients with SUD. Methods We surveyed students on a required family medicine outpatient rotation at a Pacific Northwest medical school during clerkship orientation on their views regarding SUDs utilizing the validated Drug and Drug Problems Perceptions Questionnaire containing a 7-point Likert scale. After attending a substance use disorder workshop, they repeated the survey. We calculated differences between the paired pre- to postsurveys. Results We collected the pre- and postdata for 118 students who attended the workshop and showed statistically significant positive differences on all items. Conclusions The positive change in the medical students' reported attitudes suggests both necessity and feasibility in teaching SUD skills in a destigmatizing way in medical training. Positive changes also suggest a role of exposing students to family medicine and/or primary care as a strategy to learn competent care for patients with substance use disorders.
Tannic acid attenuates vascular calcification-induced proximal tubular cells damage through paracrine signaling

Vascular calcification is common in chronic kidney disease; however, the extent to which such condition can affect the renal microvasculature and the neighboring cell types is unclear. Our induced-calcification model in renal proximal tubular (PT) cells exhibited endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and oxidative damage, leading to apoptosis. Here, we utilized such calcification in mouse vascular smooth muscle (MOVAS-1) cells as a vascular calcification model, because it exhibited reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, ER and oxidative stress, inflammatory, and apoptotic gene expressions. To demonstrate whether the vascular calcification condition can dictate the function of the adjacent PT cell layer, we utilized a Transwell multilayer culture system by combining those MOVAS-1 cells in the bottom chamber and polarized PT cells in the upper chamber to show the dimensional cross-signaling effect. Interestingly, calcification of MOVAS-1 cells, in this co-culture, induced H2O2 and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release leading to store-operated Ca2+ entry, ROS generation, and activation of oxidative, inflammatory, and apoptotic gene expressions in PT cells through paracrine signaling. Interestingly, application of tannic acid (TA) to either calcified MOVAS-1 or uncalcified PT cells diminished such detrimental pathway activation. Furthermore, the TA-mediated protection was much higher in the PT cells when applied on the calcified MOVAS-1 cells, and the delayed the pathological effects in neighboring PT cells can well be via paracrine signaling. Together, these results provide evidence of vascular calcification-induced PT cell damage, and the protective role of TA in preventing such pathological consequences, which can potentially be used as a nephroprotective remedy.
A New Design of Smart Plug for Real-time IoT Malware Detection

While Internet of Things (IoT) services are becoming pervasive, the cyber-attacks against IoT devices are in a sharp rise as well. Tailored for IoT devices, a low-cost, universal and real-time malware detection system is proposed that audits the side-channel power consumption data and extracts the distinguishable power features to detect malicious behaviors. In this paper, a new design of smart plug which is a core component of the system is designed, developed and prototyped to enable real-time power data collection, preprocessing and streaming for IoT malware detection on the fly. Our results demonstrate the promising performance of the smart plug in achieving real-time power auditing and high accuracy malware detection.
Deep Inferior Epigastric Vessels

Selection and dissection of recipient site vessels is critical for a successful free tissue transfer. This chapter describes the applied anatomy and various surgical approaches to exposing the deep inferior epigastric vessels for use as recipient in microsurgical reconstruction.
Accurate determination of characteristic relative permeability curves

Abstract A recently developed technique to accurately characterize sub-core scale heterogeneity is applied to investigate the factors responsible for flowrate-dependent effective relative permeability curves measured on core samples in the laboratory. The dependency of laboratory measured relative permeability on flowrate has long been both supported and challenged by a number of investigators. Studies have shown that this apparent flowrate dependency is a result of both sub-core scale heterogeneity and outlet boundary effects. However this has only been demonstrated numerically for highly simplified models of porous media. In this paper, flowrate dependency of effective relative permeability is demonstrated using two rock cores, a Berea Sandstone and a heterogeneous sandstone from the Otway Basin Pilot Project in Australia. Numerical simulations of steady-state coreflooding experiments are conducted at a number of injection rates using a single set of input characteristic relative permeability curves. Effective relative permeability is then calculated from the simulation data using standard interpretation methods for calculating relative permeability from steady-state tests. Results show that simplified approaches may be used to determine flowrate-independent characteristic relative permeability provided flow rate is sufficiently high, and the core heterogeneity is relatively low. It is also shown that characteristic relative permeability can be determined at any typical flowrate, and even for geologically complex models, when using accurate three-dimensional models.
IL-13 heteroreceptor and Th1 cells: the race for control of neonatal immunity (CCR5P.256)

Neonates are susceptible to microbial infections because they lack Th1 cells, the major effectors against microbes. Also, newborns are prone to allergic reactions perhaps due to their tendency to develop Th2 biased immunity. Fine analysis of primary neonatal immunity indicated a balance among Th1 and Th2 cells but the former display an unusual expression of IL-13 receptor alpha 1 (IL-13Rα1). Furthermore, this chain heterodimerizes with IL-4Rα and the resulting IL-4α/IL-13Rα1 provides a death receptor through which IL-4 of Th2 cells drives apoptosis of Th1 counterparts during secondary immunity. Herein, we observed that IL-4 and IL-13 signaling through the heteroreceptor shifts antigen-induced activation towards the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway by recruiting interferon-regulatory factor 1 (IRF-1). Further investigation of heteroreceptor signaling of neonatal Th1 cells should yield information useful for the development of pediatric vaccines and drugs against allergies.
Optimal downlink power-control design methodology for a mobile radio DS-CDMA system

A design methodology for a downlink power-control technique that maximizes the user-capacity of a DS-CDMA cellular system is proposed. First, the downlink beam-forming weights for the base-station antenna-array are designed based on the maximum SIR criterion. Then by optimizing the downlink power-control algorithm subject to a fixed total transmit power constraint, we further increase the SINR at the mobile terminal, thus increasing the capacity of the system. Due to the quasi-convex property of the SINR expression, we formulate the power optimization process as a feasibility problem with linear constraints, which can be solved efficiently by linear programming methods. With the same methodology, we can also minimize the required transmit power while satisfying the SINR threshold constraints. Computer simulations are given to evaluate the optimized downlink capacity, received SINR, and the required transmit power of a DS-CDMA system using antenna-arrays at the base-station.
Critical Current Measurements on an Nbti Superconducting Wire Standard Reference Material

The National Bureau of Standards is producing a standard reference material (SRM) for the measurement of the superconducting critical current (Ic). This SRM and the recently adopted American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) standard test method (B714-82) will aid both the commerce and technology of superconductors through the promotion of more uniform measurements. The SRM will serve as an artifact for interlaboratory comparison to further advance the consensus and evolution of the new test method. The general use and philosophy of an SRM are given in Ref. 1.
Effect of planar impurities on the superfluid density of striped cuprates

We propose a mechanism for superconductivity suppression in stripe-correlated cuprates based on the pinning of the stripes by impurities, such as Zn. The suppression of superfluid density occurs in the vicinity of the impurity due to the low dimensional character of superfluid carriers on the stripes. Simple geometric argument about the planar fraction of the carriers, affected by stripe pinning, leads to prediction for impurity critical concentration $z_c \sim T^2_c$ and for the linear $T_c$ suppression by Zn doping. We show that our results reproduce the Uemura relation in the pure system and we predict the behavior of the superfluidy density as a function of Zn concentration. We compare our results with available data.