cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Observations of scanning electron microscopy detected abnormalities of non-lubricated latex condoms.

Abstract To describe surface abnormalities found by scanning electron microscopy of non-lubricated latex condoms, thirty samples of 15 condoms were photographed at low (26–94x), medium (240–940x) and high (>1000x) magnification. Each sample was initially scanned at low magnification to determine the presence and location of surface abnormalities. Photographs taken at medium and high magnification were of the area most representative of the abnormality. Nine samples (30%) were completely normal at all magnifications. Of the total viewed at low power, 18 (60%) were normal, 11 (37%) revealed ridging and 1 (3%) revealed melting. Of the total viewed at medium power, 14 (47%) were normal, 3 (10%) showed cracking, 2 (7%) showed melting or a combination of ridging and cracking, and 11 (37%) showed ridging. At high power, 10 (34%) were normal, 11 (38%) revealed either melting or a combination of two defects, 5 (17%) showed ridging, and 3 (10%) revealed cracking. Fifteen (50%) of the samples revealed a surface abnormality (cracking or melting) other than ridging. The majority of condoms viewed under scanning electron microscopy revealed surface abnormalities. The implication of the detected abnormalities needs further evaluations. While ridging may represent a minor abnormality associated with condom handling, multiple abnormalities or melting may represent a more significant atypicality.
Special Treatment Issues

This chapter of the Lung Cancer Guidelines addresses patients with particular forms of non-small cell lung cancer that require special considerations. This includes patients with Pancoast tumors, T4N0,1M0 tumors, satellite nodules in the same lobe, synchronous and metachronous multiple primary lung cancers (MPLC), and solitary metastases. For patients with a Pancoast tumor, a multimodality approach, involving chemoradiotherapy and surgical resection, appears optimal provided appropriate staging has been carried out. Patients with central T4 tumors that do not have mediastinal node involvement are uncommon. When carefully staged and selected, however, such patients appear to benefit from resection as part of the treatment as opposed to chemoradiotherapy alone. Patients with a satellite lesion in the same lobe as the primary tumor have a good prognosis and require no modification of the approach to evaluation and treatment from what would be dictated by the primary tumor alone. On the other hand, it is difficult to know how best to treat patients with a focus of the same type of cancer in a different lobe. Although MPLC do occur, the survival results after resection for either a synchronous presentation or a metachronous presentation with an interval of < 4 years between tumors are variable and generally poor, suggesting that many of these patients may have had a pulmonary metastasis rather than a second primary lung cancer. A thorough and careful evaluation of these patients is warranted to try to differentiate between patients with a metastasis and those with a second primary lung cancer, although criteria to distinguish them have not been defined. Finally, some patients with a solitary focus of metastatic disease in the brain or adrenal gland appear to benefit substantially from resection.
Revolution on the pampas : a social history of Argentine wheat, 1860-1910

unexpectedly heavy attention. That the Colorado Delta and its exploitation by irrigation agriculture dominate the discussion of the modern economy is perhapsjustified by the importance of the region in the Mexican economy. Consideration of only the Mexican side of the delta might be justified from the standpoint of political economy, but it makes impossible a clear exposition of the extraordinary topography and attendant water-management problems. The many maps and tables, some borrowed directly but most of them assembled by the author, give the work the aspect of an official publication or handbook. A sound geographic understanding, however, has guided the selection of material for inclusion, even if the lack of intimate familiarity with the region has allowed errors to creep in. As a genre the explorational Ldnderkunde has survived among German geographers. It must be distinguished from the regional study whose author knows the area intimately through long residence or recurring visits. Rather, an exotic area is visited for geographic investigation, the intensity of which must vary inversely with the size and complexity of the area; the literature is combed for relevant material before and after the trip; as expeditiously as possible a monograph is prepared and published. In America such activity might be pursued tor a doctoral dissertation, but professional geographers are likely to devote themselves to studies focused on a particular theme, regionally or systematically defined, and to attempt regional syntheses only of areas large enough to promise textbook sale. As a result, although support for geographic fieldwork and its pursuit in the far corners of the earth has expanded enormously in the United States in the past two decades, it is unusual to find a modern comprehensive geography in English of even the most popular foci of study. Often the tourist's guidebook or the introductory chapter in an ethnography provides the only coverage more detailed than that of an encyclopedia or gazetteer. Although dressed up with interesting maps and excellent photographs, Gierloff-Emden's study of Baja California must be assessed as a pedestrian compilation. It adds little or nothing to what is known and published on the peninsula, nor does it offer new geographic insights. It nevertheless has its utility: a competent professional has selected sound information, has checked it to some degree against the impressions he as a keen observer could form in a quick tour, and has made it available in one place. I am bound to cite this book the next time I am asked, as I have been in the past, "What is the best general work on the geography of Baja California?" It is the first book for a serious student of the area to read.-HOMER ASCHMANN
Vibration induced droplet generation on textured surfaces

We report a new method to create droplets from a large drop by using surface texture and vibration. Drops are vibrated on a PDMS substrate textured with ring shaped mesa structures. The vibrating contact line is modeled as a parametric oscillator. Droplets are created under the effect of pinning of the contact line, Laplace pressure difference on the mesa and inside the well and the spring force pulling the contact line back during vibration. We created droplets of 0.1-0.3 muL from a 0.5 mL drop by vibrating the drop at its third mode shape. Droplets are generated at the frequency of contact line oscillation of the drop.
High-density lipoprotein cholesterol in diabetes: Is higher always better?

Background Recent data suggest that highly elevated high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) may not always protect against cardiovascular disease. To what degree this is true in type 1 diabetes is unknown, although cardiovascular risk is increased despite elevated mean HDL-C. Objective To reassess the association between HDL-C and its subfractions with coronary artery disease (CAD) in childhood-onset type 1 diabetes. Methods Epidemiology of Diabetes Complications study participants free of CAD at baseline (301 men, 298 women; mean age, 27.1 and diabetes duration, 18.9 years) were studied. CAD was defined as angina, ischemic electrocardiogram changes, confirmed myocardial infarction, angiographic stenosis ≥50%, revascularization, or CAD death. Cholesterol in the HDL fraction and HDL3 cholesterol subfraction was measured enzymatically after precipitation with heparin/manganese and dextran sulfate, respectively. Results During 18 years of follow-up, 29.5% of men and 25.5% of women developed CAD. Although a linear decrease in incidence was observed with increasing HDL-C concentration in men, incidence increased in women at less than 47 mg/dL and greater than 80 mg/dL. These patterns largely reflected the HDL3 cholesterol-CAD association. After multivariable adjustment, the linear, inverse, HDL-C/CAD association persisted in men (hazard ratio [HR] 0.97, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.94–0.99); in women, the U-shaped relationship lost significance. HDL3 cholesterol remained multivariably associated with CAD in both men (linear association, P = .03) and women (HR 2.31 (95% CI 1.31–4.08) and HR 1.80 (95% CI 1.01–3.23) for the lowest and highest versus the middle quintiles, respectively). Conclusion The increased CAD risk in women for an HDL-C >80 mg/dL in type 1 diabetes merits further study. Gender specificity could not be determined as only two men had HDL-C >80 mg/dL.
Prospective longitudinal study of coagulation profiles in children with hypoplastic left heart syndrome from stage I through Fontan completion.

Objective The risk for thrombosis is increased after the Fontan operation. It is unknown whether children with univentricular heart disease have an intrinsic coagulation anomaly or acquire a defect in coagulation during the course of the staged repair. This prospective, longitudinal study evaluated changes in coagulation profiles in a cohort of patients with hypoplastic left heart syndrome from stage I palliation through completion of the Fontan operation. Methods Thirty-seven patients with hypoplastic left heart syndrome were enrolled prospectively, and the concentration of factors II, V, VII, VIII, IX, X, proteins C and S, fibrinogen, antithrombin, serum albumin, and liver enzymes were measured before stage I palliation (mean age 4 ± 2 days), before bidirectional Glenn (mean age 5.9 ± 1.8 months), before the Fontan procedure (mean age 27.1 ± 6.6 months), and after the Fontan procedure (mean age 49 ± 17.6months). Healthy children were used as age-matched controls for coagulation factors. Demographic, hemodynamic variables, and elapsed time after the Fontan procedure were evaluated as possible predictors of coagulation abnormalities. Results Significantly lower levels of both procoagulation and anticoagulation factors were demonstrated through to completion of the Fontan procedure. After the Fontan procedure, there was a significantly higher factor VIII level ( P Conclusion This longitudinal study in patients with identical cardiac disease and staged surgical procedures confirms the increase in factor VIII level after the Fontan procedure. This is an acquired defect, and although the cause remains to be determined, monitoring factor VIII levels after the Fontan operation could indicate a subset of patients at risk for thrombosis.
Storage proteins in vespid wasps: characterization, developmental pattern, and occurrence in adults

Wasps of family Vespidae contain three types of major proteins that have the size, amino acid composition, subunit composition, immunological reactivity, and pattern of occurrence characteristic of storage proteins. The three types of storage protein, which have been identified in other Hymenoptera, are very high density lipoprotein, high glutamine/glutamic acid protein, and hexamerin. The predominant pattern of occurrence for these proteins is as known from most or all Holometabola: synthesis during the last larval instar and utilization as an amino acid source during metamorphosis. Hexamerin also occurred in a large young adult female Monobia quadridens but not a small one, which suggests that carry-over into adult females is a reaction norm response to quantity of larval provisions, because these wasps could not have fed as adults. In two paper wasp species of the genus Polistes, hexamerin was present in large adult females which emerged during the colony cycle phase when reproductive females are typically produced, but not in adult female offspring that emerged earlier in the colony cycle or in adult females that were workers. It cannot be confirmed by these data that the hexamerin in the adult paper wasps represented carry-over from metamorphosis rather than post-emergence feeding, but the pattern of occurrence suggests that presence of storage protein may play a role in caste differentiation in paper wasps. No storage protein was found in any adult Vespula maculifrons, a yellowjacket wasp, suggesting that caste differentiation in vespine wasps does not incorporate storage protein as a component.
Development of the pharyngeal arch skeleton in Catostomus commersonii (Teleostei: Cypriniformes).

Skeletal elements of the gill arches of adult cypriniform fishes vary widely in number, size, and shape and are important characters in morphologically based phylogenetic studies. Understanding the developmental basis for this variation is thus phylogenetically significant but also important in relation to the many developmental genetic and molecularly based studies of the early developing and hence experimentally tractable gill arches in the zebrafish, a cyprinid cypriniform. We describe the sequence of the chondrification and ossification of the pharyngeal arches and associated dermal bones from Catostomus commersonii (Catostomidae, Cypriniformes) and make selected comparisons to other similarly described pharyngeal arches. We noted shared spatial trends in arch development including the formation of ventral cartilages before dorsal and anterior cartilages before posterior. Qualitatively variable gill arch elements in Cypriniformes including pharyngobranchial 1, pharyngobranchial 4, and the sublingual are the last such elements to chondrify in C. commersonii. We show that the sublingual bone in C. commersonii has two cartilaginous precursors that fuse and ossify to form the single bone in adults. This indicates homology of the sublingual in catostomids to the two sublingual bones in the adults of cobitids and balitorids. Intriguing patterns of fusion and segmentation of the cartilages in the pharyngeal arches were discovered. These include the individuation of the basihyal and anterior copula through segmentation of a single cartilage rod, fusion of cartilaginous basibranchials 4 and 5, and fusion of hypobranchial 4 with ceratobranchial 4. Such “fluidity” in cartilage patterning may be widespread in fishes and requires further comparative developmental studies. J. Morphol., 2009. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Screening Petting Zoo Animals for the Presence of Potentially Pathogenic Escherichia Coli

Several outbreaks of Escherichia coli O157 have been reported in petting zoos, resulting in hospitalization of many children. At present, no standard procedure has been adopted to monitor the presence of enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) or Shiga-toxin–producing E. coli (STEC) in petting zoo animals. Direct detection of these strains from rectal swabs of animals in petting zoos was developed and obviated the need to culture the organisms. DNA extracted from bacteria in the swabs was tested for the presence of wecA gene specific for E. coli by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The wecA positive samples were further tested for Shiga-toxin genes stx1 and stx2, and the intimin eae by multiplex PCR and for the presence of O157 and H7. Swabs (n = 104) from 15 animal species in a petting zoo were tested; 7 goats and 3 cows were found to carry STEC. The method is rapid and convenient for monitoring potentially pathogenic E. coli in petting zoo animals.
Intertester Reliability of Clinical Judgments of Medial Knee Ligament Integrity

The purpose of this study was to determine the intertester reliability of judgments based on tibiofemoral joint abduction (TFJA) tests of the medial collateral ligament (MCL). The TFJA tests were performed by three physical therapists on 50 patients with unilateral knee problems. The therapists used the techniques they normally use in clinical practice and tested TFJA with the knee in both 0 and 30 degrees of flexion. Three variables were evaluated: the amount of TFJA, pain elicited during the test, and the type of end-feel. When the test was performed with the subjects' knees in 0 degrees of flexion, the weighted Kappa value for judgments of motion was .06, the Kappa value for judgments of whether pain was elicited was .40, and the Kappa value for end-feel was .00. For the 30-degree test position, the weighted Kappa value for judgments of the amount of TFJA was .16, and the Kappa values for judgments of pain and end-feel were .33 and .38, respectively. The results suggest that judgments based on TFJA tests may not be reliable when taken in a clinical setting by physical therapists.
Interferon-Gamma Release Assays

Diagnosis of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) should be targeted toward individuals and groups with high risk of progression to active tuberculosis (TB). Low-risk populations should not be screened. Interferon-gamma release assays (IGRAs) perform as well or better than the tuberculin skin test in most targeted populations. IGRAs are preferred for bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG)-vaccinated populations. A positive IGRA in a person at low risk for TB exposure should be confirmed with a repeat test or another method before recommending LTBI treatment. The choice of which IGRA to use is generally based on the costs and feasibility of performing the test.
Purification of the LysR family regulator, ClcR, and its interaction with the Pseudomonas putida clcABD chlorocatechol operon promoter.

Previous studies have shown that the clcABD operon is under the transcriptional control of the LysR-type activator ClcR. In this study, the conditions leading to its aggregation were avoided and ClcR was purified and confirmed by amino-terminal sequencing. Gel filtration indicated that ClcR exists as a dimer in solution. The DNase I footprint of ClcR was determined. The binding properties of ClcR and the catechol operon regulator, CatR, were compared. Images
Predictability and Forecast Skill in NMME

AbstractForecast skill and potential predictability of 2-m temperature, precipitation rate, and sea surface temperature are assessed using 29 yr of hindcast data from models included in phase 1 of the North American Multimodel Ensemble (NMME) project. Forecast skill is examined using the anomaly correlation (AC); skill of the bias-corrected ensemble means (EMs) of the individual models and of the NMME 7-model EM are verified against the observed value. Forecast skill is also assessed using the root-mean-square error. The models’ representation of the size of forecast anomalies is also studied. Predictability was considered from two angles: homogeneous, where one model is verified against a single member from its own ensemble, and heterogeneous, where a model’s EM is compared to a single member from another model. This study provides insight both into the physical predictability of the three fields and into the NMME and its contributing models.Most of the models in the NMME have fairly realistic spread, as...
Enhanced Interleukin Production and Alveolar Macrophage Ia Expression After Asbestos Inhalation

Exposure to asbestos is associated with striking alterations of immunological function (Kagan 1981). Clinical studies of asbestos workers have demonstrated a variety of immunological abnormalities in such individuals. These aberrations have included elevations of serum and secretory immunoglobulins (Kagan 1977; Lange 1974), a high frequency of non organ-specific and lymphocytotoxic autoantibodies (Kagan 1977; Lange 1974; Turner-Warwick 1973), an increased incidence of detectable circulating immune complexes (Lange 1983), elevations of the normal helper:suppressor T cell ratios among blood (Miller 1983) and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) lymphocytes, loss of suppressor T cell immuno-regulation (Gaumer 1981) and an increased frequency of non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas (Kagan 1983).
Application of simulation software in teaching system dynamics related courses

This paper analyzes the Matlab/Simulink software package for simulating dynamic systems. Specifically, its capability and applicability to a basic system dynamics course is considered. The notable ease of learning the basics of this software package, and its capability to simulate highly complex linear, nonlinear, and discrete systems, makes it a useful teaching aid. This teaching aid is not the substitute, but rather a valuable contribution to hands-on laboratory exercises.
Volatilization of DDT-14C and lindane-14C from treated surfaces, and metabolism of DDT-14C by house fly pupae.

Measurement of radioactivity immediately after application on house fly puparia was found to be the most accurate measure of the weight of radioactive insecticide applied topically and resulted in precise evaluation of the data. Use of radioactive chemicals and microcoulometric determinations indicates that considerable quantities of DDT- 14 C, heptachlor epoxide - 14 C, and lindane- 14 C, volatilize from applied surfaces, a factor which should not be neglected during penetration studies. Metabolites of DDT were studied by GLC. Only DDE was obtained from flies which emerged from treated puparia of a DDT-resistant strain. Puparial washing 24 hours after treatment yielded some DDE indicating partial metabolism of DDT to DDE on the surface of the cuticle.
Detecting Spatiotemporal Changes of Corn Developmental Stages in the U.S. Corn Belt Using MODIS WDRVI Data

The dates of crop developmental stages are important variables for many applications including assessment of the impact of abnormal weather on crop yield. Time-series 250-m vegetation-index (VI) data acquired from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) provide valuable information for monitoring the spatiotemporal changes of corn growth across large geographic areas. The goal of this study is to evaluate the performance of a new crop phenology detection method, namely, two-step filtering (TSF), for revealing the spatiotemporal pattern of specific corn developmental stages (early vegetative: V2.5; silking: R1; dent: R5; mature: R6) over an eight-year period (2001-2008) across Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana using MODIS derived Wide Dynamic Range VI data. Weekly crop progress reports produced by the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) were used to assess the accuracy of TSF-based estimates of corn developmental stages. The results showed that the corn developmental stages could be estimated with high accuracy (the root mean squared error ranged from 4.1 to 5.5 days, the determination coefficient ranged from 0.66 to 0.84, and the coefficient of variation ranged from 2.1% to 3.7%) based on NASS-derived statistics on an agricultural statistics district level. In particular, the annual changes in the spatiotemporal patterns of the estimated silking stage had a high level of agreement with those of the NASS-derived statistics. These results suggested that the TSF method could provide local-scale information of corn phenological stages, which had an advantage over the NASS-derived statistics particularly in terms of the spatial resolution.
ADANSONIA IS A BAOBAB TREE, NOT A THERIDIID SPIDER

Abstract The name Adansonia Saville-Kent was erroneously introduced into spider taxonomy by Bonnet in 1939 and still appears in the literature. Saville-Kent was referring to a tree, not describing a spider.
Psychosocial and Cognitive Determinants of Early Gender-Role Development

(1995). Psychosocial and Cognitive Determinants of Early Gender-Role Development. Annual Review of Sex Research: Vol. 6, No. 1, pp. 1-31.
Theorems in School: From History, Epistemology, and Cognition to Classroom Practice

To understand the motivation and the contribution of Theorems in schools: From history, epistemology, and cognition to classroom practice (edited by Paolo Boero), it is helpful to consider the envi...
MEMS and the cell: how nature creates microscale motion

ABSTRACT For those working in the MEMS field, creating microscale motion with improved functionalityand efficacy is the challenge ahead. This challenge can be met through biomimeticsimitatingnature. Nature, after all, has had almost four billion years to perfect its mastery, whereas MEMSengineers and chemists have been at it for no more than a few decades. Nature's solution to thechallenge of microscale movement appears to be the polymer-gel phase-transition. The cytoplasmis a gelit exhibits all ofthe gels' signature characteristics. By undergoing phase-transition, gelsgenerate both solvent and solute movement. It is argued that cells do the same. Two examplesare given: the secretory system and the muscle-contraction system. In each case it is shown thatthe characteristic motions are created as proteins and water undergo transition from an expanded,hydrated state to a contracted, dehydrated state. This transition displaces solutes and solvent. Byexploiting these natural principles, MEMS may have the capacity to generate microscale motionsof unprecedented efficacy and simplicity.Keywords: Cell, MEMS, gel, polymer, movement, phase-transition, water, cooperativity, musclecontraction.1. INTRODUCTION
Markov Chain Monte Carlo Methods for Hierarchical Bayesian Expert Systems

In a hierarchical Bayesian expert system, the probabilities relating the variables are not known precisely; rather, imprecise knowledge of these probabilities is described by placing prior distributions on them. After obtaining data, one would like to update those distributions to reflect the new information gained; however, this can prove difficult computationally if the observed data are incomplete. This paper describes a way around these difficulties—use of Markov chain Monte Carlo methods.
For1ation of Zeolites: A Molecular Description

Raman spectroscopy of the solution, solid and gel phases present during crystallization of zeolite X was investigated. The vibrational data indicate that an amorphous aluminosilicate solid, composed primarily of four membered aluminosilicate rings is in contact with monomeric silicate ions during the prenucleation stages of the zeolite formation. No intermediate building blocks specific to zeolite X could be discerned from the vibrational spectra. The influence of a series of monovalent cations on the crystallization process was also examined, and a model of zeolite formation has been proposed.
Twentieth century Atlantic meridional overturning circulation as an indicator of global ocean multidecadal variability: influences on sea level anomalies and small pelagic fishery synchronies

The Atlantic dipole phosphate utilization (ADPU) index, derived through statistical conversion of 20th century Atlantic basin subpolar sea surface temperatures, is used as a fingerprint of Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) variability and as an indicator of global Meridional Overturing Circulation (MOC) variability. ADPU index correlations with differences in sea level anomalies (SLAs) between Canada and the UK and across the Isthmus of Panama demonstrate intrabasin and interbasin associations with MOC variability. Cross-correlation analyses of ADPU index, SLAs, and sardine (S) and anchovy (A) catch differences [S2 A] (normalized sardine catch minus normalized anchovy catch) confirm strong correlations between ADPU and [S2 A] off Japan, California, Peru and Southwest Africa (Benguela). Statistically significant cross correlations also exist between the ADPU index and SLAs for Japan, California, Peru and Benguela, and for SLAs and [S2 A] for Japan, California and Peru, but the short time-series lengths compared with the length of the multidecadal cycle limit the interpretationof the observed lead-lags. Though correlation is not causality, the correlation analyses developedhere are useful in support of hypothesis generation. The proposedhypothesis to explain the observed small pelagic fishery synchronies asserts: (i) ocean bathymetry and continental distributions interact withmultidecadal variations inMOC strength that occur along the conceptual global conveyor belt to generate changes in global oceanic planetarywaves andmesoscale eddies that propagate through theworld ocean; (ii) each small pelagic fishery regionhas aunique spatial relationshipwithpertinentoceanicplanetarywave andmesoscale eddy source regions that affect the timing and strength of the waves and eddies that influence the nearby boundary current; (iii) synchronous changes or phasing among global fisheriesdependonhowandwhenMOCvariabilitymediatedbyoceanicplanetarywaves andmesoscale eddies reaches eachfishery region; (iv) oceanic planetary waves and/or mesoscale eddies influence the strength or meandering of the boundary current adjacent to a small pelagic fishery region to change local SLAs and environmental conditions to favour sardine or anchovy populations at different times.
HTML5: Not Just a Substitute for Flash

HTML5 is an under-development markup language used to structure and present web content via browser. HTML5 makes several significant breaks from HTML 4, some of which clean up syntax and some of which extend the capabilities of HTML. Recent controversies pitting HTML5 against Adobe Flash could have created the false impression that HTML5 is a Flash analog, but HTML5 is both more and less than Flash.
Use of colloidal silica solution in the isolation of spores of Glomus mosseae

were not formed by F. poae (Peck) Wollenw., F. tricinctum (Corda) Sacc., and F. avenaceum. In most cases chlamydospore formation occurred earlier when a large piece from an actively growing culture was used to inoculate the soil agar in a Petri dish. Chlamydospore formation occurred primarily in the original piece of inoculum with very few forming in the soil agar itself. Growth of many Fusarium species was poor when initiated from single conidia or hyphal tips on soil agar. This medium is helpful in promoting rapid chlamydospore formation in a number of Fusarium species. It is a definite aid in identifying such species as F. nygamai, F. dlamini, and F. acuminatum.
The Change and Significance of CD4~+ CD25~+ T Regulatory Cell and T Lymphocyte Subpopulation in Children with Primary Nephritic Syndrome

Objective To investigate the change and significance of CD4+ CD25+ T regulatory(reg) and T lymphocyte subpopulation in the children with PNS.Methods Thirty-three patients with PNS were divided into the simple NS group(20 cases) and nephritis NS group(13 cases),16 healthy children were taken as the controls.Before and after the treatment with prednisone,FCM was used for to detecting the percentage of CD4+ CD25+ T reg and T lymphocyte subpopulation(including CD3+ CD4+,CD3+ CD8+ T cells).Results Compared with the controls,the percentage of CD3+ CD4+ 、CD3+ CD8+ T cells in patients with PNS there was no change(P0.05),but the percentage of CD4+ CD25+ T reg in both the simple NS group and the nephritis NS group was lower than that in the control group.The percentage of CD4+ CD25+ T reg in the simple NS group was significantly higher after treatment with prednisone than before(P0.01),in the nephritis NS group,the same result was found in those patients who got remission 4 weeks after the prednisone therapy,but there was not any significant change in those who did not get remission.Conclusion The decrease of CD4+ CD25+ T reg might play a pathological role in the PNS development,and glucocorticoid may have immunotherapeutic effect by up-regulating CD4+ CD25+ T reg ratio in PNS.
Electromagnetic Influence of Normally Operating AC Power Transmission Line on Gas/Oil Pipeline Parallel to Transmission Line

By means of calculation and analysis of a model that is established for long distance gas/oil transmitting pipeline parallelly adjacent to AC power transmission line, the distribution law of induced potential to ground and leakage current along the pipeline under normal operation of AC transmission line is obtained. Through the comparison to the pipeline with finite length, the difference between the electromagnetic influence on pipeline with infinite length caused by AC transmission line and that on pipeline with finite length is discoursed upon. The authors propose that it is more reasonable to analyze the electromagnetic influence of AC transmission line on long distance gas/oil transmitting pipeline by use of the pipeline with infinite length.
SOLAR ULTRAVIOLET EXPOSURE AND MORTALITY FROM SKIN TUMORS

Solar UV radiation (UVR) exposure is clearly associated with increased mortality from nonmelanoma skin cancer—usually squamous cell carcinoma. However, the association with cutaneous melanoma is unclear from the evidence in ecologic studies and several analytic studies have conflicting results regarding the effect of high levels of intermittent UV exposure prior to diagnosis on mortality. Understanding this conundrum is critical to present coherent public health messages and to improve the mortality rates from melanoma.
Impaired vocal cord mobility in T2N0 glottic carcinoma: Suboptimal local control with Radiation alone

Background T2 glottic cancer with impaired vocal cord mobility (T2b) is known to have higher local failure rates when compared with T2 cancers without impaired cord mobility (T2a) treated with radiotherapy (RT) alone. Methods In this retrospective review, we identified and compared the local control rates of 3 groups: T2aN0 treated with RT; T2bN0 treated with RT; and T2b-3N0-2 treated with chemoradiotherapy (CRT). Results The 3-year local control rate was 95.1% for T2aN0, 73.2% for T2bN0 treated with RT, and 91.5% for the CRT group (p = .01). On univariate analysis, T2bN0 disease versus T2aN0 treated with RT alone (p = .03) was significantly associated with inferior local control. Conclusion Patients with glottic cancer with impaired vocal cord mobility (T2b) have a high rate of local failure with RT alone. The addition of concurrent chemotherapy should be considered for patients highly motivated toward larynx preservation and willing to accept the potential toxicity. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck, 2016
Sequential Nitrene Transfers to an Organometallic Half-Sandwich Iridium Complex

Nitrene transfer to an iridium(Cp*) complex with a pyridyl-amide bidentate ligand drives an unexpected outer-sphere C–H activation and amide functionalization reaction mediated by this metal center. This is a significant departure from C–N bond-forming processes in mononuclear rhodium and iridium catalysts, which require C–H activation at the metal center prior to nitrene transfer and insertion (an inner-sphere C–H insertion pathway). The mechanism likely involves a high oxidation state iridium-imido reactive species capable of hydrogen atom abstraction and a radical-based rearrangement during the formation of the ultimate iridium product.
Development and Comparison of Beam Models for Two-Media Ultrasonic Inspection

This paper reports on an effort to model the radiation pattern of a submerged ultrasonic transducer exciting a beam which is incident on a liquid-solid interface. The important aspects of this process are the diffraction of the beam as it propagates in the liquid and solid media, focussing of the beam due to a lens at the transducer face and/or the curvature of the interface, and aberrations induced by refraction at the interface.
Racist humor: then and now

While recent scholarship has examined the capacity of race-based humor to “upend” racial inequalities, or has focused on comedic “heroes” who use humor “subversively” to challenge racism, less attention has been paid to the evolution of racist humor and its continued role in supporting dominant racial ideologies. This article reviews key works on the historical and current functions of racist humor in the United States, in order to situate racist humor as a social practice that has contributed to the development, maintenance, and contestation of an ideology of white supremacy. First, I review the historical role of racist humor in supporting pro-slavery ideology, in order to see that racist humor played a critical role in racial formation and domination. I focus on literature that examines the way racial ridicule operated in the pre-civil rights era (e.g., blackface) and the way such race-based comedy was used as a cultural form of racialization that supported the development of an ideology of white supremacy throughout this period. Then, I point to how the widespread use of racist humor of the pre-civil rights era was challenged by the civil rights movement, and how this changed the ways in which racist humor was perceived/operated, in public and private, in the post-civil rights era. Finally, I conclude by suggesting some areas where an examination of racist humor is in need of critical attention and analysis in the current era of “color-blindness.”
Single-carrier 1-Tb/s signal generation using high-speed InP MUX-DACs and an integrated CSRZ-OTDM modulator

We generated a 1-Tb/s single-carrier PDM-16QAM optical signal using InP MUX-DAC modules and an integrated CSRZ-OTDM modulator. The high symbol rate of 125 Gbaud was achieved by combining electronic and optical time-domain multiplexing.
Learning Task Relational Structure for Multi-task Feature Learning

In multi-task learning, it is paramount to discover the relational structure of tasks and utilize the learned task structure. Previous works have been using the low-rank latent feature subspace to capture the task relations, and some of them aim to learn the group based relational structure of tasks. However, in many cases, the low-rank subspace may not exist for the specific group of tasks, thus using this paradigm would not work. To discover the task relational structures, we propose a novel multi-task learning method using the structured sparsity-inducing norms to automatically uncover the relations of tasks. Instead of imposing the low-rank constraint, our new model uses a more meaningful assumption, in which the tasks from the same relational group should share the common feature subspace. We can discover the group relational structure of tasks and learn the shared feature subspace for each task group, which help to improve the predictive performance. Our proposed algorithm avoids the high computational complexity of integer programming, thus it converges very fast. Empirical studies conducted on both synthetic and real-world data show that our method consistently outperforms related multi-task learning methods.
Autoreactive helper T cells alleviate the need for intrinsic TLR signaling in autoreactive B cell activation

T cells play a significant role in the pathogenesis of systemic autoimmune diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus; however, there is relatively little information on the nature and specificity of autoreactive T cells. Identifying such cells has been technically difficult because they are likely to be rare and low affinity. Here, we report a method for identifying autoreactive T cell clones that recognize proteins contained in autoantibody immune complexes, providing direct evidence that functional autoreactive helper T cells exist in the periphery of normal mice. These T cells significantly enhanced autoreactive B cell proliferation and altered B cell differentiation in vivo. Most importantly, these autoreactive T cells were able to rescue many aspects of the TLR-deficient AM14 (anti-IgG2a rheumatoid factor) B cell response, suggesting that TLR requirements can be bypassed. This result has implications for the efficacy of TLR-targeted therapy in the treatment of ongoing disease.
Fischer–Tropsch synthesis. Compositional changes in an iron catalyst during activation and use

The equilibrium phase compositions of iron have been calculated for gas compositions that could be encountered during the Fischer–Tropsch synthesis. The gas compositions measured experimentally for CO conversion levels in the 30–90% range show that iron should be present as the carbide phase. However, experimental characterization of iron catalysts show that a significant fraction of the iron is present as Fe3O4 following synthesis for several days. A model that can account for the experimental catalyst phase composition and the gases present in the reactor would have a core of Fe3O4 and an outer layer of iron carbides.
Abstract P6-09-35: Proposal for a new breast cancer staging classification: Incorporating clinical and biologic factors

Background: The current breast cancer staging system, based on anatomy, does not always reflect the variable clinical course outcomes seen in the clinic. Other important and known determinants of prognosis and survival in breast cancer are age, grade, and receptor subtypes. In this analysis, we sought to demonstrate that these additional factors were important determinants of breast cancer specific and overall survival with an intention to propose a new staging classification. Methods: Through a prospectively maintained electronic database at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, we identified patients with newly diagnosed invasive breast cancer, stage I-IV, who received surgery as an initial treatment from 1997 to 2014. Data points for the earliest invasive breast cancer event were recorded: age, pathologic stage (7th edition AJCC), grade, ER status, PR status, HER2-neu status, adjuvant treatment history, and outcomes (breast cancer-specific survival [BCSS] and overall survival [OS]). Cox proportional hazards model was used for the statistical analysis. Results: Of 22,131 patients, 99% were women in the following age groups (median age at surgery, 53 years [range, 16-98 years]): age 70 (11%). Pathologic stages were: I: 50%, II: 39%, III: 9% and IV: 2%; 768 (3.5%) patients had bilateral breast cancer. Biological subtypes were as follows: Triple-negative (TN): 6%, Hormone receptor-positive/HER2-negative (HR+/HER2-): 70%, HER2-positive (HER2+): 24% (HR+, 9%; HR- 15%). Median follow-up was 7.9 years (95% CI, 7.8-8.0). In multivariate Cox regression modeling, age, grade, and clinical biomarker-based subtypes were significantly associated with breast cancer specific survival (BCSS). Conclusion: More individualized prediction of outcomes for breast cancer is possible by considering clinical and biologic characteristics in addition to anatomic stage. We intend to integrate pathologic stage, age, and biologic factors into a novel prognostic model to propose a new staging classification for breast cancer. Citation Format: Murthy RK, Song J, Raghavendra AS, Li Y, Hsu L, Barcenas CH, Tripathy D, Berry D, Hortobagyi GN. Proposal for a new breast cancer staging classification: Incorporating clinical and biologic factors [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2016 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2016 Dec 6-10; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(4 Suppl):Abstract nr P6-09-35.
On a functional equation related to convex bodies with SU (2)-congruent projections

Let K and L be two convex bodies in \({{\mathbb {R}}^5}\). Assume that their orthogonal projections K|H and L|H onto every 4-dimensional subspace H are directly SU(2)-congruent, i.e., they coincide up to a SU(2)-rotation for some complex structure in H and a translation in H. We prove that the bodies coincide up to a translation and a reflection in the origin, provided that the set of diameters of one of the bodies is contained in a finite union of two-dimensional subspaces of \({{\mathbb {R}}^5}\). We obtain this result as a consequence of a more general statement about a functional equation on the unit sphere.
Parameter Identification and Adaptive Control for Blood Pressure

Abstract The on-line identification of the defining parameters and the closed-loop adaptive control of the blood pressure response of anesthetized dogs to the infusion rate of a vasoactive drug is considered. The response of mean arterial pressure to the infusion rate of sodium nitroprusside is modelled as a single-input single-output ARMAX process with known delay. Recursive least squares and maximum likelihood techniques are employed for parameter estimation and closed loop control is provided by a minimum variance algorithm. Simulation results and animal experiments indicate that the behavior of the various adaptive controllers is predicted well by theoretical considerations and that the closed loop performance is excellent.
Low Social Support and Major Depression: Research, Theory and Methodological Issues

Publisher Summary Existing research on social support and depression has been guided by stress and coping social support theory that states that social support is a stable resource that protects people from depression by buffering the effects of stress through social support's effects on coping and appraisal. This chapter reviews research on social support and depression with an emphasis on testing social support theory. Low social support has been linked to a wide range of mental health constructs, including non-specific psychological distress, post-traumatic stress disorder, eating disorders, low self-esteem, and clinical depression. Depression is determined through formal diagnostic criteria, based on the information derived from structured interviews. Commonly used diagnostic criteria are the Diagnostic and Statistic Manual of Mental Disorders, Research Diagnostic Criteria, and the Bedford College criteria. Commonly used structured interviews included the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM disorders, the Present State Examination, and in several important studies of depression in adolescents, the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children. Alternative theories of social support's link to depression and methods appropriate for testing those theories are reviewed.
Creating an Environment for Creativity: Positive steps that nourish both research and technological progress

(1968). Creating an Environment for Creativity: Positive steps that nourish both research and technological progress. Research Management: Vol. 11, No. 4, pp. 231-240.
Core hydrophobicity tuning of a self-assembled particle results in efficient lipid reduction and favorable organ distribution

Atherosclerosis, the deadliest disease in the United States, arises due to the build up of plaques in the arteries as a result of excessive cholesterol deposition and an impaired cholesterol removal process. High density lipoproteins (HDL), popularly known as “good cholesterol”, are naturally occurring nano-sized particles that, along with apolipoproteins, are deployed to maintain cholesterol homeostasis in the body. Both cholesterol efflux, from the fat-laden macrophages in the arteries, and intracellular lipid transport, to deliver cholesterol to the mitochondria of liver cells for metabolism, hold key responsibilities to maintain healthy lipid levels inside the body. We designed a library of nine mitochondria targeted polymer–lipid hybrid nanoparticles (NPs), comprised of completely synthetic yet biodegradable components, that are capable of performing HDL-like functions. Using this library, we optimized a superior mitochondria targeted NP candidate, which can show favourable organ distribution, therapeutic potential, and non-toxic properties. Two targeted NP formulations with optimum NP size, zeta potential, and cholesterol binding and release properties were identified. Lipid reduction and anti-oxidative properties of these two NPs demonstrated cholesterol removal ability. In vivo therapeutic evaluation of the targeted-NP formulations in apolipoprotein E knockout (apoE−/−) mice indicated lipid reduction and anti-inflammatory properties compared to non-targeted NPs. This synthetic targeted NP with potential abilities to participate in both extra- and intracellular cholesterol transport might potentiate therapeutic interventions for heart diseases.