cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Pharmacologic Doppler stress testing in coronary artery disease

It has been over a decade since the initial studies confirming that transcutaneous Doppler ultrasound could be used to accurately assess ascending aortic blood flow velocities [1–3]. As described in detail elsewhere in this book, a number of parameters derived from the aortic velocity profile accurately reflect global left ventricular systolic function (Figure 1). In fact, Doppler evaluation of aortic blood flow velocities provides one of the few non-invasive methods by which beat-to-beat changes in left ventricular function may be assessed.
NAD-dependent 11 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase in cultured human colonic epithelial cells.

The inactivation of physiological glucocorticoids by 11 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (11 beta-HSD) confers mineralocorticoid specificity to certain aldosterone target tissues. However, 11 beta-HSD activity in a human mineralocorticoid-responsive tissue has never been characterized. The present studies describe the features of 11 beta-HSD in the cultured human colonic epithelial cell line, T84. The 11 beta-HSD activity of T84 cells resided in the microsomal fraction and showed a marked preference for NAD rather than NADP as cofactor. NAD or NADP (200 microM) increased the conversion of corticosterone to 11-dehydrocorticosterone by 24.1 +/- 2.1 and 0.5 +/- 0.7 pmol.mg protein-1.20 min-1, respectively, indicating a > 40-fold preference for NAD vs. NADP. The Michaelis constant values for corticosterone and cortisol were 11.3 +/- 1.5 and 79.8 +/- 10 nM, respectively. The T84 11 beta-HSD was inhibited by 11-dehydrocorticosterone in a noncompetitive fashion [inhibition constant (Ki) = 180 +/- 9.6 nM] and by carbenoxolone in a competitive fashion (Ki = 17.4 +/- 1.3 nM). The expression of mineralocorticoid receptors in these cells was demonstrated by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction of mRNA isolated from T84 cells and by [3H]aldosterone binding studies. The coexpression of this NAD-dependent isoform of 11 beta-HSD and mineralocorticoid receptors is consistent with the view that the NAD-dependent isoform is responsible for the specificity of mineralocorticoid responses.
Optical measurement of stimulus-evoked membrane dynamics in single pancreatic acinar cells

Stimulation of pancreatic acinar cells induces the release of digestive enzymes via the exocytotic fusion of zymogen granules and activates postfusion granule membrane retrieval and receptor cycling. In the present study, changes in membrane surface area of rat single pancreatic acinar cells were monitored by cell membrane capacitance (Cm) measurements and by the membrane fluorescent dye FM1-43. When measured with the Cm method, agonist treatment evoked a graded, transient increase in acinar cell surface area averaging 3. 5%. In contrast, a 13% increase in surface area was estimated using FM1-43, corresponding to the fusion of 48 zymogen granules at a rate of 0.5 s-1. After removal of FM1-43 from the surface-accessible membrane, a residual fluorescence signal was shown by confocal microscopy to be localized in endosome-like structures and confined to the apical regions of acinar cells. The development of an optical method for monitoring the membrane turnover of single acinar cells, in combination with measurements of Cm changes, reveals coincidence of exocytotic and endocytotic activity in acinar cells after hormonal stimulation.
Justice and the Rule of Law

Kant’s Metaphysical Elements of Justice (Rechtslehre) is largely devoted to what is surely the basic problem of political ethics: the nature and justification of coercion. And this is a problem which Kant, given his presentation of freedom as the basic value of morality, must come to grips with in a careful way. For Kant’s defence of freedom has in effect been an attempt to establish a formal principle for locating the burden of proof in discussions of coercion. Kant quite clearly believes that freedom does not stand in need of any positive justification, for it is good in itself. Rather it is coercion, bad in itself, which must be defended.1 The burden of proof lies on the man who would interfere with the freedom of another. But this is not yet to say very much of political substance; for, after locating the burden of proof, we still need to know when that burden has been successfully borne by the man who would advocate coercion.
Citrate-based fluorescent materials for low-cost chloride sensing in the diagnosis of cystic fibrosis

Chloride is an essential electrolyte that maintains homeostasis within the body, where abnormal chloride levels in biological fluids may indicate various diseases such as cystic fibrosis. However, current analytical solutions for chloride detection fail to meet the clinical needs of both high performance and low material or labor costs, hindering translation into clinical settings. Here we present a new class of fluorescence chloride sensors derived from a facile citrate-based synthesis platform that utilize dynamic quenching mechanisms. Based on this low-cost platform, we demonstrate for the first time a selective sensing strategy that uses a single fluorophore to detect multiple halides simultaneously, promising both selectivity and automation to improve performance and reduce labor costs. We also demonstrate the clinical utility of citrate-based sensors as a new sweat chloride test method for the diagnosis of cystic fibrosis by performing analytical validation with sweat controls and clinical validation with sweat from individuals with or without cystic fibrosis. Lastly, molecular modeling studies reveal the structural mechanism behind chloride sensing, serving to expand this class of fluorescence sensors with improved chloride sensitivities. Thus citrate-based fluorescent materials may enable low-cost, automated multi-analysis systems for simpler, yet accurate, point-of-care diagnostics that can be readily translated into clinical settings. More broadly, a wide range of medical, industrial, and environmental applications can be achieved with such a facile synthesis platform, demonstrated in our citrate-based biodegradable polymers with intrinsic fluorescence sensing.
The empirical prediction of ground motion

abstract Recent additions to the strong-motion data set, primarily from earthquakes in California and Italy, are responsible for a large number of papers examining the prediction of ground-motion measures using regression methods. Peak acceleration is still the most common measure being considered, but increasing attention is being given to peak velocity and spectral amplitudes. Although direct comparisons among the studies are hampered by differing definitions of distance and magnitude, in general the various studies give similar answers for peak acceleration in the region of distance and magnitude space in which most of the data are concentrated. As might be expected, the differences are most pronouced for large magnitudes and distances close to the fault, where data are few. Even so, widely differing assumptions about the form of the regression equation and differences in the composition and weighting of the data set can give similar answers. This was true in recent studies by Campbell (1981b) and Joyner and Boore (1981), where the predicted accelerations for large earthquakes at close distances differed by less than 40 per cent. This seemingly large uncertainty is small compared to the scatter in the data about the regression lines. A Monte Carlo study shows that the question of whether the shape of the attenuation curves is magnitude-dependent cannot be resolved by existing data.
Integrin αvβ3 Is Involved in the Stabilization of Ultra Long von Willebrand Factor Strings under Fluid Shear Stress on Human Endothelial Cells.

Abstract Von Willebrand factor (VWF) multimers attached to endothelial cells can provide a platform for thrombosis, especially when accompanied by ADAMTS13 deficiency. We characterized the structural features of ultralarge VWF (ULVWF) molecules acutely secreted from Weibel-Palade bodies and identified a receptor responsible for their binding to the surface of cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Using fluorescence microscopy on live cells, VWF multimers formed extended strings within minutes after stimulation. String formation did not require exogenous platelets and occurred over a range of shear stress from 2.5 dyn/cm2 to 40 dyn/cm2. A subset of ULVWF strings spontaneously bound formalin-fixed platelets via platelet GPIb. Quick-freeze, deep-etch electron microscopy showed that ULVWF strings often merged to form bundles and networks. Each string was tethered to the endothelial membrane by a limited number of anchorage sites, many of them located on small membrane projections, suggesting a specific mode of interaction. Several independent approaches implicated integrin αvβ3 in anchoring ULVWF strings to the HUVEC surface. Either “RGDS” peptide or function blocking antibody (LM609) to integrin αvβ3 specifically and dose dependently inhibited ULVWF string formation 62 ± 0.7% and 53 ± 4%, respectively. Furthermore, integrin αv was seen decorating the extending ULVWF strings using a non-functional blocking antibody (LM142) in live-cell immunofluorescence. In addition, a lentiviral vector encoding shRNA against integrin αv resulted in approximately 70% reduction in cell surface αv expression by FACS analysis with antibody LM609. HUVEC infected with this lentivirus were significantly impaired in their ability to form ULVWF strings compared to cells infected with a control virus. In multiple experiments, shRNA knockdown of αv expression reduced ULVWF strings 75.3 ± 4.4% at 2.5dyn/cm2 and 81.6 ± 2% at 7.5dyn/cm2. These results indicated that ULVWF strings bind tightly to endothelial cells via very few anchorage sites and are relatively resistant to fluid shear stress. Although integrin αvβ3 does not appear to be required to stabilize ULVWF strings on mouse endothelium, these data suggest that integrin αvβ3 may participate in the stabilization of ULVWF strings on human endothelial cell surfaces.
It is the Business of Laws to Govern

Non-Humean accounts of lawhood are said to founder on the Inference Problem, which is the problem of saying how laws that go beyond the regularities can entail the regularities. I argue that the Inference Problem has a simple solution – the Axiomatic Solution – on which the non-Humean only needs to outfit her laws with a law-to-regularity axiom. There is a remaining Epistemic Bulge, as to why one should believe that the posit-so-axiomatized is to be found in nature, but the non-Humean can flatten the bulge. Lawhood serves as a case study of how fundamental posits can do their business.
cyvcf2: fast, flexible variant analysis with Python

Motivation Variant call format (VCF) files document the genetic variation observed after DNA sequencing, alignment and variant calling of a sample cohort. Given the complexity of the VCF format as well as the diverse variant annotations and genotype metadata, there is a need for fast, flexible methods enabling intuitive analysis of the variant data within VCF and BCF files. Results We introduce cyvcf2 , a Python library and software package for fast parsing and querying of VCF and BCF files and illustrate its speed, simplicity and utility. Contact bpederse@gmail.com or aaronquinlan@gmail.com. Availability and implementation cyvcf2 is available from https://github.com/brentp/cyvcf2 under the MIT license and from common python package managers. Detailed documentation is available at http://brentp.github.io/cyvcf2/.
Jesus' Table Fellowship, Baptism, and the Eucharist

The practice of communion without baptism has become more prevalent within the Episcopal Church. Proponents of this practice use scripture extensively in their argument for a change in the traditio...
Basic Research in A Natural Setting: Auditing or Social Comparison behavior As a Function of Class Rank

Previous findings on social comparison behavior established in a laboratory setting were extended to a natural setting. The research strategy to accomplish this represents an intermediate point on the dimension from basic laboratory research to basic research in the natural setting. The research depended on the natural environment for the independent variable (grades in a college class) but had the advantage of a controlled experimental chamber, arbitrary responses, and an automated apparatus for the dependent measure. Cumulative points earned on assignments by college students were entered in an apparatus that students used one-at-a-time to check their scores in a room adjoining the classroom. Cumulative points were changed weekly over a 7-week course. Automatically recorded button-press responses by the students (audit responses) allowed access to self-, other person, and standard scores (i.e., scores indicating A, B, and C grade levels). Self-scores were audited most consistently and standard scores were checked more than any other person’s score. Persons in middle positions with respect to point totals emitted more self-, coactor, and standard audits than persons in the high or low ranks. The middle position provided the most information about availability of the major reinforcer, being ahead, because in the middle position a student’s cumulative score had a greater chance of fluctuating over all three positions.
Effects of recycled HDPE and nanoclay on stress cracking of HDPE by correlating J c with slow crack growth

The effects of recycled high density polyethylene (HDPE) and nanoclay on the stress crack resistance (SCR) of pristine HDPE were evaluated using the Notched Constant Ligament Stress (NCLS) test. The test data were analyzed by both linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM) and elastic plastic fracture mechanics (EPFM). The LEFM approach uses the stress intensity factor K to define the two failure mechanisms: creep and slow crack growth (SCG). In contrast, using the J-integral in EPFM, which emphasizes the nonlinear elastic-plastic strain field at the crack-tip, revealed a short-term failure stage prior to the creep failure. In this article, a power law correlation between the fracture toughness Jc and SCG was found under a plane-strain condition. Increasing recycled HDPE content lowered the SCG resistance of pristine HDPE by decreasing Jc. Adding nanoclay up to 6 wt% also decreased Jc while simultaneously, lowering the stress relaxation of nanocomposites, leading to longer SCG failure times at low J values. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2017. Published [2017]. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.
Neurite Development and Neurotoxicity

Abstract Neurites as unique structures have been intensively and extensively studied in efforts to bridge the knowledge gap between molecular signaling pathways and cell morphology, biology, physiology, and pathophysiology. This chapter builds upon a similar chapter in the first edition by addressing molecular mechanisms and genetic modulations underlying neurite development. Cell death mechanisms and stem cell applications with respect to aspects of neurite growth are highlighted along with some of the state-of-the-art approaches to studying neurite development including high-content imaging, three-dimensional (3D) modeling, nanotechnology, and bioengineering. Applications in neurotoxicology are provided for convenient reference.
Entrepreneurial community in Kansas City: From fragmented to collaborative?

A small set of metropolitan areas in the United States can be considered second-tier life sciences or technology regions. Kansas City is such an emerging second-tier region. The Kansas City metropolitan area was able to grow a small but specialized knowledge economy because of the presence of large firms and subsequent efforts to strengthen entrepreneurship. This paper presents data from twenty interviews conducted in the summer of 2012 with regional experts, venture capitalists, and entrepreneurs who have successfully raised risk capital.The analysis of Kansas City’s entrepreneurial community shows, first, that large firms’ role as incubators of entrepreneurial startup companies seems to have diminished, and that there are weak connections between existing large firms and entrepreneurial ventures. Second, entrepreneurial exits in the form of mergers and acquisitions have increased and a small number of cashed-out entrepreneurs are reinvesting their funds and becoming engaged. Yet this process seems to be still in its beginning stages. Third, the region’s entrepreneurial community does not exhibit strong networking and collaboration. Rather, entrepreneurial ventures and industry connections exist much like “islands of excellence” without strong interconnections. Fourth, although the availability of funding has increased, local entrepreneurs perceive the accessibility and availability of funds - and the capacity local venture investors bring to the table - as limiting factors. At the same time, while the number of investment groups has increased, the investor community is still fragmented and not well connected. Fifth, the energy and collective effort to improve the Kansas City entrepreneurial community has increased and strengthened significantly since 2006 when a similar study was conducted.Various groups and organizations have ensured a thickening of the entrepreneurial support infrastructure in the form of creation of incubators, establishment of financial incentives to invest in entrepreneurial ventures (i.e. angel tax credits), and the addition of effective mentoring and networking events. Yet the analysis of the data shows that Kansas City faces the drawbacks of a region characterized by organizational thinness in the form of weak endowment of firms and organizations that can fuel the entrepreneurial pipeline and a lack of interaction and networks among key members of the entrepreneurial community, which keeps the entrepreneurial economy fragmented. To overcome organizational thinness and fragmentation, this paper suggests focusing policy efforts on connecting key actors in the entrepreneurial economy such as existing large firms, entrepreneurial ventures, universities, and funding and mentoring organizations.
Competing Models of Stability in Complex, Evolving Systems: Kauffman vs. Simon

I criticize Herbert Simon's argument for the claim that complex natural systems must constitute decomposable, mereological or functional hierarchies. The argument depends on certain assumptions about the requirements for the successful evolution of complex systems, most importantly, the existence of stable, intermediate stages in evolution. Simon offers an abstract model of any process that succeeds in meeting these requirements. This model necessarily involves construction through a decomposable hierarchy, and thus suggests that any complex, natural, i.e., evolved, system is constituted by a decomposable hierarchy. I argue that Stuart Kauffman's recent models of genetic regulatory networks succeed in specifying processes that could meet Simon's requirements for evolvability without requiring construction through a decomposable hierarchy. Since Kauffman's models are at least as plausible as Simon's model, Simon's argument that complex natural systems must constitute decomposable, mereological or functional hierarchies does not succeed.
Photoacoustic Oxygenation Quantification in Patients with Raynaud's: First-in-Human Results

Abstract The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of photoacoustic imaging for quantifying fingertip oxygenation as an approach to diagnosing and monitoring Raynaud's phenomenon. After 30 min of acclimation to room temperature, 22 patients (7 patients with secondary Raynaud's associated to Scleroderma and 15 healthy controls) provided informed consent to undergo fingertip Doppler imaging and high-frequency photoacoustic imaging before and 5, 15 and 30 min after cold stimulus (submerged hand in a 15 °C water bath for 1 min). High-frequency ultrasound and photoacoustic imaging was performed on the nail bed of each patient's second through fifth finger on their dominant hand, using a Vevo 2100 LAZR system with an LZ-250 probe (Fujifilm VisualSonics, Toronto, ON, Canada) in oxy-hemoglobin quantification mode. During each exam, volumetric data across a 3-mm span of data was acquired to produce a volumetric image of percent oxygenation and hemoglobin concentration. Changes in fingertip oxygenation between Raynaud's patients and healthy volunteers were compared, using receiver operator characteristic (ROC) analysis. Photoacoustic signal was detected in both the nail bed and nailfold in all study participants. Doppler ultrasound resulted in poor differentiation of Raynaud's patients from healthy volunteers, with an area under the ROC curve (Az) of 0.51. Photoacoustic imaging demonstrated improved accuracy at baseline (Az = 0.72), which improved when quantifying normalized changes after cold stimulus (Az = 0.89 5-min post stimulus, Az = 0.91 15-min post stimulus, and Az = 0.85 after stimulus). Oxygenation levels derived using photoacoustic imaging are able to identify patients with Raynaud's and safely evaluate their response to a cold stimulus over time.
CSF pulsatility in hydrocephalus: respiratory effect on pulse wave slope as an indicator of intracranial compliance

The effect of inspiration and expiration on the systolic slope of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pulse wave has been studied in 83 shunted and non-shunted patients undergoing diagnostic tests for suspected hydrocephalus. A ratio of the systolic CSF pulse slope on inspiration to the same in expiration (I/E ratio or index) has proved statistically valid in identifying non-hydrocephalic patients from hydrocephalic patients and in separating hydrocephalic patients into arrested, communicating and aqueductal stenosis hydrocephalus. The I/E ratio depends on the comparative damping effect of intracranial venous venting on the systolic CSF pulse slope during inspiration (I) when venous volume is evacuated from the cranium by negative mediastinal pressure, and during expiration (E) when cranial venous volume flow to heart is minimal due to positive mediastinal pressure. The low cranial venous outflow on expiration produces little effect on the normal damping of the systolic CSF pulse slope. The high venous outflow on inspiration produces a loss of damping, causing a high systolic CSF pulse slope. Therefore, exhausted cranial venous volume, or exhausted intracranial compliance, produces an I/E ratio approaching 1.0, whereas a normal I/E ratio is between 2.0 and 3.0. The I/E ratio can presumably be used to assess intracranial compliance changes occurring before the dangerous late intracranial pressure (ICP) upward surge related to the volume-pressure curve in all clinical problems of increasing ICP. The I/E ratio may be used likewise to assess the urgency of treatment for any hydrocephalus and increased intracranial pressure problem, i.e. the closer to unity the greater the urgency.
Color from a Systems Point of View

As we begin to explore the perception of color, it is important to understand the attributes of our environment, our tools, and our visual system which influence the perception of color. We begin with a walk in the wild to explore our changing perception of color. We explore this experience, describing color in a three-dimensional space, which changes as illumination changes. This experiential exploration emphasizes the fact that is important to describe color, not just in a two-dimensional space but a three-dimensional space which includes a luminance dimension. From the real world to the virtual world, we discuss the need for color accuracy in virtual experiences from retail to medicine. The purpose of this chapter is to define the system components and some of their attributes which influence the perception of color. We will then expand on each of these influences in subsequent chapters to provide a holistic view of color perception. This information is used to help understand the advantage of multi-primary color displays.
Distributed Data Analytics Framework for Smart Transportation

As the amount data from IoT devices on transportation systems increases, developing a robust pipeline to stream, store and process data became critical. In this study, We explore prediction accuracy and computational performance of various supervised and unsupervised algorithms perform on distributed systems for developing a smart transportation data pipeline. Using a subset of New York City Taxi \& Limousine Commission data, we evaluate Logistic Regression, Random Forrest Regressors and Classifiers, Principal Component Analysis, and Gradient Boosted Regression and Classification Tree machine learning techniques on a commodity computer as well as on a distributed system. Employing Amazon S3, EC2 and EMR, MongoDB, and Spark, we identify the conditions—data size and algorithm—under which the performance of distributed systems excel.
Coordinates For Lines: An Enrichment Activity.

STUDENTS like to be startled. An ap parent strangeness in mathematics tickles their fancy and plays on their imagination. Enrichment activities possessing the char acteristic of novelty often have the nice po tential of capturing the interest of the stu dent and leading to creative exploration in mathematics. One example of such a novel activity is the coordinatization of the plane in a way different from the usual Cartesian ap proach of labeling points with ordered pairs. The activity developed below labels lines instead of points in the plane with ordered pairs. The problem-solving activity has the potential of involving students be cause of the out-of-the-ordinary context. Most students at the second-year algebra level of mathematical maturity find naming lines with ordered pairs rather than points to be novel.
Theoretical and Practical Advantages and Limitations of Techniques Used in Functional Pharmacological Classification of Drug Receptors

Abstract This paper outlines the pharmacological techniques currently used to classify drugs and receptors and also how these techniques sometimes can yield ambiguous data. Specifically with G-protein linked receptors, the dual recognition nature of the receptors (ie. ability to bind both drugs and membrane bound effector couplers) make the ascription of affinity and efficacy to drug receptor pairs sometimes suspect. The potential for masked efficacy of antagonists and receptor pre-coupling is also relevant to the Schild technique for the quantification of antagonist potency. The recently described technique of resultant analysis may allow discriminaton of single site competitiveness and allotopic effects. In general, there is a basis for caution in the interpretation of tissue differences in binding and functional studies as resulting soleley from receptor differences.
Local Voices on Health Care Communication Issues and Insights on Latino Cultural Constructs

Structural issues in the health care delivery system can disproportionately affect language minority patients who require interpretation services. This qualitative study addresses the issues Spanis...
Differentiating the Differentiation Syndrome Associated with IDH Inhibitors in AML

Isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) inhibitors have clinical activity in acute myeloid leukemia, in part, by differentiating blasts to mature myeloid cells. In the largest systematic analysis to date, differentiation syndrome was seen in 19% of patients treated with IDH inhibitors. Early recognition with uniform diagnostic criteria, as utilized in acute promyelocytic leukemia, may reduce subsequent complications.See related article by Norsworthy et al., p. 4280.
Developing a Predictive Model for Asthma-Related Hospital Encounters in Patients With Asthma in a Large, Integrated Health Care System: Secondary Analysis.

Background: Asthma causes numerous hospital encounters annually, including emergency department visits and hospitalizations. To improve patient outcomes and reduce the number of these encounters, predictive models are widely used to prospectively pinpoint high-risk patients with asthma for preventive care via care management. However, previous models do not have adequate accuracy to achieve this goal well. Adopting the modeling guideline for checking extensive candidate features, we recently constructed a machine learning model on Intermountain Healthcare data to predict asthma-related hospital encounters in patients with asthma. Although this model is more accurate than the previous models, whether our modeling guideline is generalizable to other health care systems remains unknown. Objective: This study aims to assess the generalizability of our modeling guideline to Kaiser Permanente Southern California (KPSC). Methods: The patient cohort included a random sample of 70.00% (397,858/568,369) of patients with asthma who were enrolled in a KPSC health plan for any duration between 2015 and 2018. We produced a machine learning model via a secondary analysis of 987,506 KPSC data instances from 2012 to 2017 and by checking 337 candidate features to project asthma-related hospital encounters in the following 12-month period in patients with asthma. Results: Our model reached an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.820. When the cutoff point for binary classification was placed at the top 10.00% (20,474/204,744) of patients with asthma having the largest predicted risk, our model achieved an accuracy of 90.08% (184,435/204,744), a sensitivity of 51.90% (2259/4353), and a specificity of 90.91% (182,176/200,391). Conclusions: Our modeling guideline exhibited acceptable generalizability to KPSC and resulted in a model that is more accurate than those formerly built by others. After further enhancement, our model could be used to guide asthma care management.
Altered tissue specialized pro-resolving mediators in chronic rhinosinusitis.

Abstract Current literature implicates arachidonic acid-derived leukotrienes and prostaglandins in the pathogenesis of chronic rhinosinusitis. However, other omega-3 and omega-6 derived lipid mediators, such as specialized pro-resolving mediators (SPMs), may also be important in chronic inflammatory disorders of the upper airway. We hypothesize that SPMs differ among CRS subtypes compared to controls and in relation to sinonasal microbiota. Ethmoid sinus tissue and middle meatal swabs were collected from a convenience sample of 66 subjects, including non-CRS controls, CRS with polyps (CRSwNP), and CRS without polyps (CRSsNP). Lipid mediator pathways were analyzed by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry. Bacterial taxa were profiled in parallel by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Resolvin D2 was elevated in both CRSwNP (p = 0.00076) and CRSsNP (p = 0.030) compared with non-CRS controls. Lipoxin A4 was significantly increased in CRSwNP compared with CRSsNP (p = 0.000033) and controls (p = 0.044). Cigarette smoking was associated with significantly lower concentrations of several 15-lipoxygenase metabolites including resolvin D1 (p = 0.0091) and resolvin D2 (p = 0.0097), compared with never-smokers. Several of the lipid compounds also correlated with components of the sinonasal mucosal microbiota, including bacterial pathogens such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa. These data suggest that dysfunctional lipid mediator pathways in CRS extend beyond the traditional descriptions of leukotrienes and prostaglandins and include SPMs. Furthermore, dysregulated SPM signaling may contribute to persistent inflammation and bacterial colonization in CRS.
Impact of an oral amino acid provision on Achilles peritendinous amino acid concentrations in young and older adults

Recent studies have indicated that consumption of amino acid-rich compounds can increase tendon collagen content and enhance biomechanical function. Still, it is not clear as to what extent oral consumption of amino acids alters peritendinous amino acid concentrations. Whether aging alters the delivery of amino acids to tendon tissue after oral consumption is also not known. Using microdialysis, we determined the impact of a single oral essential amino acid bolus on Achilles peritendinous amino acid concentrations in younger (n=7; 27{+/-}1 yr.) and older adults (n=6; 68{+/-}2 yrs.) over four hours. The peritendinous concentration of all amino acids in the beverage except methionine (p=0.136) and glycine (p=0.087) increased with time (p<0.05). Additionally, the concentrations of glycine and arginine were greater in older adults (p[≤]0.05). We also accessed the impact of amino acid consumption on peritendinous concentrations of pro-collagen I1, a marker of collagen synthesis. Pro-collagen I1 tended to change with time (p=0.071) but was not altered age (p=0.226). We demonstrate that an oral amino acid bolus leads to modest increases in Achilles peritendinous amino acid concentrations in young and older adults. The concentration of some amino acids was also greater in older adults. However, the amino acid bolus did not significantly impact peritendinous pro-collagen concentrations.
Ideal Material Selection for Vocal Fold Augmentation

The ideal material for a vocal fold injection augmentation for unilateral vocal fold immobility depends on the immobile vocal fold’s likelihood to recover function through natural nerve healing. In cases of permanent immobility from an issue related to arytenoid joint pathology or paralysis due to a neurologic injury or illness, durable or permanent materials are chosen. Shorter acting augmentation materials can be utilized in the setting of immobility when (1) the permanence of the condition is yet to be determined, or (2) due to coexisting other glottic pathology, the outcome of unilateral injection augmentation is unclear (Mallur and Rosen. Clin Exp Otorhinolaryngol. 3(4):177-82; 2010). This chapter will cover the materials available for vocal fold augmentation, focusing on non-autologous injectables that are available “off-the-shelf.”
War, Strategy, and Military Effectiveness

This collection of articles represents Professor Williamson Murray's efforts to elucidate the role that history should play in thinking about both the present and the future. They reflect three disparate themes in Professor Murray's work: his deep fascination with history and those who have acted in the past; his fascination with the similarities in human behavior between the past and the present; and his belief that the study of military and strategic history can be of real use to those who will confront the daunting problems of war and peace in the twenty-first century. The first group of essays addresses the relevance of history to an understanding of the present and to an understanding of the possibilities of the future. The second addresses the possible direct uses of history to think through the problems involved in the creation of effective military institutions. The final group represents historical case studies that serve to illuminate the present.
Mitral Valve Devices

The MitraClip (Fig. 6.1) is a percutaneous mitral valve repair system from Abbott Vascular. The device incorporates a steerable guide catheter that traverses the interatrial septum and enables accurate positioning and trajectory of the clip (Fig. 6.2).
Every Site Counts: Submitting Transcription Factor-Binding Site Information through the CollecTF Portal.

ABSTRACT Experimentally verified transcription factor-binding sites represent an information-rich and highly applicable data type that aptly summarizes the results of time-consuming experiments and inference processes. Currently, there is no centralized repository for this type of data, which is routinely embedded in articles and extremely hard to mine. CollecTF provides the first standardized resource for submission and deposition of these data into the NCBI RefSeq database, maximizing its accessibility and prompting the community to adopt direct submission policies.
Application analysis and resource mapping for heterogeneous network processor architectures

In this chapter, an annotated, directed, acyclic graph is introduced to represent application characteristics and dependencies in architecture independent fashion. A methodology is developed to automatically derive this annotated directed acyclic graph (ADAG) from run-time instruction traces that can be obtained easily from simulations. To consider the natural clustering of instructions within an application, maximum local ratio cut (MLRC) is used to group instruction blocks and reduce the overall ADAG size. For four network processing applications, such ADAGs are presented and how the inherent parallelism (multiprocessing or pipelining) can be observed is shown. Using the ADAG representation, processing steps can be allocated to processing resources using a heuristic that uses node criticality as a metric. This is an important step towards automatically analyzing applications and mapping processing tasks to heterogeneous network processor architectures. Finally, it is necessary to develop a robust methodology for automatically identifying processing blocks for coprocessors and hardware accelerators.
Suitable indicator for the presence of sewage sludge in marine sediments

Traditionally, coastal communities dispose of waste water in the ocean. California has many sewage outfalls that discharge into the Pacific Ocean. The increased use of beaches and tidal areas for recreational activities and commercial shell fishing, coupled with the increased volume of sewage being discharged into the ocean has heightened interest in the problem of marine contamination. This is especially true in areas such as Southern California and the Mediterranean which have experienced tremendous population growth. This study examined marine sediment cores collected from various depths of water and distances from the White's Point's sewage outfall to determine the presence and vertical distribution of selected microorganisms of public health significance. A logarithmic decrease of the indicator bacteria populations with increasing depth in the sediment was observed. Random isolations of Aeromonas occurred but none of the enteric pathogens or viruses included in this study were detected. The classic indicator bacteria were of little value in predicting the presence of enteric pathogens. Clostridium perfringens populations may be a suitable indicator for the presence of sewage sludge in marine sediments and provide a historical record of the deposition and movement of sewage particulates but Clostridium perfringens populations were not related to the presence of pathogens in sediments. Results suggest that the persistence of pathogens in marine sediments are related to abiotic factors and may vary geographically.
Transition Metal-Catalyzed Reactions Using N-Heterocyclic Carbene Ligands (Besides Pd- and Ru-Catalyzed Reactions)

Major advances in transition-metal catalyzed reactions have taken place since the discovery of N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs). This review provides a summery of recent M-NHC catalyzed reactions including cycloadditions, rearrangements, coupling reactions, polymerizations, and the additions of H-X.
Radiopharmaceuticals and Methods of Radiolabeling

A radiopharmaceutical is a radioactive compound used for the diagnosis and therapeutic treatment of human diseases. In nuclear medicine nearly 95% of the radiopharmaceuticals are used for diagnostic purposes, while the rest are used for therapeutic treatment. Radiopharmaceuticals usually have minimal pharmacologic effect, because in most cases they are used in tracer quantities. Therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals can cause tissue damage by radiation. Because they are administered to humans, they should be sterile and pyrogen free, and should undergo all quality control measures required of a conventional drug. A radiopharmaceutical may be a radioactive element such as 133Xe, or a labeled compound such as 131I-iodinated proteins and 99mTc-labeled compounds.
Exploiting multiprocessors: issues and options

This paper examines problems involved in moving applications programs to multiprocessors and outlines strategies currently being considered to resolve these problems. We first identify problems encountered in programming the HEP and Cray X-MP multiprocessors and explain why these problems are likely to exist on any of the multiprocessors available for use at the national laboratories. We then survey a spectrum of possible approaches and identify the costs and remaining research issues associated with each. The bottom line is that we do not currently have any easy solutions; significant planning must begin now if we are to effectively use these new systems.
Mortality rate and longevity of food-restricted exercising male rats: a reevaluation

Holloszy, John O. Mortality rate and longevity of food-restricted exercising male rats: a reevaluation.J. Appl. Physiol. 82(2): 399–403, 1997.—Food restriction increases the maximal longevity of ra...
Structures of Community and Democratic Practices in Graduate Teacher Education, Teacher Change, and Linkages Facilitating Change.

Abstract The authors describe practices in a constructivist graduate program in teacher education, document changes in teachers and their practice, and analyze connections between program practices and teacher change. The authors also develop a model for constructivist teacher education with linkages between community and democratic practices and teacher change.
Calcium-independent Phospholipase A2 (iPLA2β)-mediated Ceramide Generation Plays a Key Role in the Cross-talk between the Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER) and Mitochondria during ER Stress-induced Insulin-secreting Cell Apoptosis

Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress induces INS-1 cell apoptosis by a pathway involving Ca2+-independent phospholipase A2 (iPLA2β)-mediated ceramide generation, but the mechanism by which iPLA2β and ceramides contribute to apoptosis is not well understood. We report here that both caspase-12 and caspase-3 are activated in INS-1 cells following induction of ER stress with thapsigargin, but only caspase-3 cleavage is amplified in iPLA2β overexpressing INS-1 cells (OE), relative to empty vector-transfected cells, and is suppressed by iPLA2β inhibition. ER stress also led to the release of cytochrome c and Smac and, unexpectedly, their accumulation in the cytosol is amplified in OE cells. These findings raise the likelihood that iPLA2β participates in ER stress-induced apoptosis by activating the intrinsic apoptotic pathway. Consistent with this possibility, we find that ER stress promotes iPLA2β accumulation in the mitochondria, opening of mitochondrial permeability transition pore, and loss in mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨ) in INS-1 cells and that these changes are amplified in OE cells. ER stress also led to greater ceramide generation in ER and mitochondria fractions of OE cells. Exposure to ceramide alone induces loss in ΔΨ and apoptosis and these are suppressed by forskolin. ER stress-induced mitochondrial dysfunction and apoptosis are also inhibited by forskolin, as well as by inactivation of iPLA2β or NSMase, suggesting that iPLA2β-mediated generation of ceramides via sphingomyelin hydrolysis during ER stress affect the mitochondria. In support, inhibition of iPLA2β or NSMase prevents cytochrome c release. Collectively, our findings indicate that the iPLA2β-ceramide axis plays a critical role in activating the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway in insulin-secreting cells during ER stress.
Optimal control of linear distributed-parameter systems via polynomial series

A method for finding the optimal control of linear distributed-parameter systems using polynomial series is discussed. It is known that any polynomial series basis vector can be transformed into a Taylor polynomial by the use of a suitable transformation. In this paper, the optimal control of a distributed-parameter system is simplified into the solution of a linear two-point boundary value problem, and, as a result, the optimal control is obtained via a Taylor series. It is shown that the implementation of Taylor series for this problem involves the use of an ill-conditioned matrix commonly known as the Hilbert matrix. The optimal control of linear distributed-parameter systems using other polynomial series is then calculated by transforming the properties of the Taylor series into other polynomial series. The formulation is straightforward and convenient for digital computation. An illustrative example is given.
Simple algorithms for decoding systematic Reed–Solomon codes

A simple algorithm for decoding nonsystematic Reed–Solomon codewords was proposed by A. Shiozaki and independently by S. Gao. We first exhibit the companion algorithm for decoding systematic Reed–Solomon codes. Next, we improve this algorithm into one that is identical to traditional Reed–Solomon decoding. The algorithm will then be adjusted to work with nonstandard Reed–Solomon codes. Finally, we modify the algorithm into one that decodes Reed–Solomon codes with erasures that is slightly more efficient than existing techniques.
REMOTELY POWERED, HERMETIC RF MEMS PRESSURE SENSOR

We have recently successfully developed a remote powered wireless MEMS pressure sensors for sensing pressure in remote locations without wiring or tether. The sensor is hermetically sealed, self-powered using RF energy, and has the ability to auto-compensate to remove various error sources. This constitutes a highly innovative approach to remote sensing while removing major limitations of RFID like sensors.Copyright © 2008 by ASME
Area and shape changes of the carpal tunnel in response to tunnel pressure.

Carpal tunnel mechanics is relevant to our understanding of median nerve compression in the tunnel. The compliant characteristics of the tunnel strongly influence its mechanical environment. We investigated the distensibility of the carpal tunnel in response to tunnel pressure. A custom balloon device was designed to apply controlled pressure. Tunnel cross sections were obtained using magnetic resonance imaging to derive the relationship between carpal tunnel pressure and morphological parameters at the hook of hamate. The results showed that the cross-sectional area (CSA) at the level of the hook of hamate increased, on average, by 9.2% and 14.8% at 100 and 200 mmHg, respectively. The increased CSA was attained by a shape change of the cross section, displaying increased circularity. The increase in CSA was mainly attributable to the increase of area in the carpal arch region formed by the transverse carpal ligament. The narrowing of the carpal arch width was associated with an increase in the carpal arch. We concluded that the carpal tunnel is compliant to accommodate physiological variations of the carpal tunnel pressure, and that the increase in tunnel CSA is achieved by increasing the circularity of the cross section. © 2011 Orthopaedic Research Society Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 29:1951–1956, 2011
Design of multi-stage screening procedures for a serial production system

Abstract A serial production process consists of consecutive stages through which items being manufactured must pass in order to become finished products. At the termination of each production stage, all the items are inspected prior to being processed in the next stage. The items that do not conform to predetermined screening specifications are scrapped. The decision of whether to pass an item to the next stage should be based on the item's current quality, the production conditions and costs in later stages, and the cost of rejection at the current stage. The information available on the current quality depends on the inspection method and information processing structure used by the producer. Two cases are considered in this paper. In the first case, acceptance inspection is used; consequently, the exact values of the characteristics are not available. In the second case, variable inspection is used, and the exact values of the quality characteristics are measured and maintained during the course of production. Multi-stage models are formulated for these cases. A simulation study indicates that the two multi-stage models have little cost difference but have a significant economical advantage over the approach which treats inspection stage independently.