cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Abstract 23: Immunosuppression with FTY720 Reverses Cardiac Dysfunction to Prevent Chronic Heart Failure in Mice that Survive Diet-induced Myocardial Infarction

We recently reported that immunosuppression with FTY720 improves cardiac function and extends longevity in the HypoE/SR-BI-/- mouse model of diet-induced coronary atherosclerosis and myocardial infarction (MI). In this study we tested whether FTY720 could also reverse cardiac dysfunction in mice that survive MI and subsequently develop chronic heart failure (CHF). HypoE/SR-BI-/- mice were bred to Mx1-Cre mice and offspring were fed a high fat diet (HFD) for 21 days to provoke hyperlipidemia, coronary atherosclerosis and recurrent MIs. HypoE/SR-BI-/-Mx1-Cre mice were subsequently given oral FTY720 in drinking water or not. Hyperlipidemia was permanently reversed by inducible Cre-mediated gene repair of the HypoE allele (also known as the Apoeh/h allele) that rapidly restores normal apoE expression in all tissues and by switching mice to a normal chow diet. In cohorts of mice that survived this period of HFD, left ventricular (LV) function was monitored using serial echocardiography for up to 15 weeks. In untreated mice, LV performance progressively deteriorated. Although FTY720 treatment did not initially prevent a decline of heart function among HypoE/SR-BI-/-Mx1-Cre mice six weeks after Cre-mediated gene repair, it almost completely restored normal LV function in these mice by 15 weeks after cessation of HFD. Reversal of heart failure did not result from reduced atherosclerosis as the burden of both aortic and coronary atherosclerosis increased to similar levels in both groups of mice. Rather, FTY720 caused systemic immunosuppression as assessed by reduced numbers of circulating T and B lymphocytes. In the heart, FTY720 led to reduced expression of MMP-2 along with the expression of genes involved in Type I innate inflammation that we have recently demonstrated as major contributors to heart failure. Our data demonstrate the benefit of immunosuppression with FTY720 post MI to prevent progressive pathological remodeling of the heart, which leads to CHF.
High-spin states and band structure in /sup 76/Se

High-spin states of $^{76}\mathrm{Se}$ have been investigated through observations of $\ensuremath{\gamma}$ rays produced in the $^{71}\mathrm{Ga}(^{7}\mathrm{Li}, 2n)$ reaction by bombarding an enriched $^{71}\mathrm{Ga}$ target with 15- to 22-MeV $^{7}\mathrm{Li}$ ions. Measurements were made of $\ensuremath{\gamma}$-ray singles and $\ensuremath{\gamma}\ensuremath{-}\ensuremath{\gamma}$ coincidence spectra, excitation functions, $\ensuremath{\gamma}$-ray angular distributions, $\ensuremath{\gamma}\ensuremath{-}\ensuremath{\gamma}$ angular correlations, and Doppler broadening of photopeaks. Level energies, decay modes, spins and parities, $\ensuremath{\gamma}$-ray branching ratios, $\ensuremath{\gamma}$-ray radiative admixtures, and lifetimes were deduced. There is evidence for a strongly excited quasirotational band with the highest member observed being a ${12}^{+}$ state at 5432 keV, for an odd-parity band built on a ${5}^{\ensuremath{-}}$ state, and for a $\ensuremath{\Delta}J=1$ band which has the characteristics of a $\ensuremath{\gamma}$-vibrational band in a deformed nucleus. Interacting boson approximation model calculations are compared with the experimental results.NUCLEAR REACTIONS $^{71}\mathrm{Ga}(^{7}\mathrm{Li}, 2n)$ $E=15\ensuremath{-}22$ MeV; measured ${E}_{\ensuremath{\gamma}}$, ${I}_{\ensuremath{\gamma}}$, $\ensuremath{\gamma}(\ensuremath{\theta})$, $\ensuremath{\gamma}\ensuremath{\gamma}(\ensuremath{\theta})$, $\ensuremath{\Delta}{E}_{\ensuremath{\gamma}}(\ensuremath{\tau})$; $^{76}\mathrm{Se}$ deduced levels, $J$, $\ensuremath{\pi}$, $\ensuremath{\delta}$, $\ensuremath{\tau}$, $\ensuremath{\gamma}$ branching.
miRNAs as potential biomarkers in early breast cancer detection following mammography

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among American women, except for skin cancers. About 12 % women in the United States will develop invasive breast cancer during their lifetime. Currently one of the most accepted model/theories is that ductal breast cancer (most common type of breast cancer) follows a linear progression: from normal breast epithelial cells to ductal hyperplasia to atypical ductal hyperplasia (ADH) to ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), and finally to invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC). Distinguishing pure ADH diagnosis from DCIS and/or IDC on mammography, and even combined with follow-up core needle biopsy (CNB) is still a challenge. Therefore subsequent surgical excision cannot be avoided to make a definitive diagnosis. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a highly abundant class of endogenous non-coding RNAs, which contribute to cancer initiation and progression, and are differentially expressed between normal and cancer tissues. They can function as either tumor suppressors or oncogenes. With accumulating evidence of the role of miRNAs in breast cancer progression, including our own studies, we sought to summarize the nature of early breast lesions and the potential use of miRNA molecules as biomarkers in early breast cancer detection. In particular, miRNA biomarkers may potentially serve as a companion tool following mammography screening and CNB. In the long-term, a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the miRNA signatures associated with breast cancer development could potentially result in the development of novel strategies for disease prevention and therapy.
Austerity, abundance, and the investor states: The political economy of sovereign wealth funds

Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs) are not new, but their foreign investment created concerns among many states in 2005 and 2006. Many policy makers argued that the ownership of foreign governments in specific areas may expose their countries to various risks. The concerns in the United States were from a national security perspective, while Europe was more worried about the lack of reciprocity and established standards. The political economy literature lacks a suitable framework for the study of investor states. The mainstream economic view contends that SWFs are a result of balance of payments surpluses and are used for economic smoothing purposes. This dissertation identifies three alternative theoretical perspectives - drawn from major political economic theories - to explain the potential goals investor states may pursue through their SWFs. It also addresses the gap in the literature by proposing a systematic methodology for the study of these funds, and subsequently applying it to four major SWFs: the Government Pension Fund-Global (Norway), the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (United Arab Emirates), Temasek (Singapore), and the National Wealth Fund (Russia). This research revealed that the dominant conception that investor states are in pursuit of political power over another state is unjustified. The assertion that SWFs are used for balance of payments corrections is equally unfounded. None of the funds was shown to have attempted to exert political power over another state. The national system of political economy of investor states defines the purpose of SWFs. Some states act as economic agents or entrepreneurs in order to increase the value of their assets. For others, accumulating sufficient resources required for domestic compensation is the immediate goal. Therefore, it would be wrong to treat all funds equally, as most of the analysts and policy makers do. In fact, investments by SWFs create interdependencies between the investor and the recipient states. A critical and yet hardly-discussed issue is that vulnerabilities can go both ways in these interdependent relationships. This means investor states, too, are exposed to various risks. In summary, we need a "paradigm shift" in our approach to the study of SWFs.
A comparative guide to controlled hydrophobization of cellulose nanocrystals via surface esterification

Surface esterification methods of cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) using acid anhydrides, acid chlorides, acid catalyzed carboxylic acids, and 1′1-carbonyldiimidazole (CDI) activated carboxylic acids were evaluated with acetyl-, hexanoyl-, dodecanoyl-, oleoyl-, and methacryloyl-functionalization. Their grafting efficiency was investigated using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and 13C solid state NMR spectroscopy. Acid anhydride and CDI were found to be the most applicable reagents to graft short and long chain aliphatic carbons, respectively. The preservation of structural morphology and crystallinity of grafted CNCs were confirmed using transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The hydrophobicity of grafted CNCs was evaluated by dispersing them in organic solvents with different Hansen’s solubility parameters. The dispersibility of grafted CNCs in organic solvents was improved by using never-dried CNCs as source materials and keep CNCs wet in their washing solvents after grafting, thus increasing the solvency range to disperse CNCs.
Attitudes Toward Work Schedules: Construct Definition, Instrument Development, and Validation

In this article the authors discuss research they conducted that was designed to develop a set of scales that determine empolyees' attitudes towards various work schedules. They hope that the creat...
A Note on the Relationship Between a Sedimentary Basin's Basement Topography and the Damage Pattern of Earthquakes: Chaos and Order

The phenomenon of localized resonance in sedimentary basins with irregular basement topography (Rial et al. , 1992) was recently independently confirmed by Moczo et al. (1996) in a numerical study that shows how a single, concave upwards trough in the basement of an otherwise horizontal layer of sediment overlying rock can give rise to localized resonance. In an effort to complement these studies this note turns to the opposite effect: localized de-amplification, as created by a convex section of the sediment/rock interface. It is shown here that de-amplification is indeed localized, being strongest directly above convexities in the basement whereby seismic risk should be substantially reduced. Further, it is found that even a small increase in topographic height of a convex segment of the sediment/rock interface can produce orders of magnitude decrease (nonlinear de-amplification) in ground motion amplitude at the site directly above it, especially if the contrast in elastic impedances between bedrock and sediment is high. Thus, it becomes possible, at least theoretically, to identify areas that will stand safe, as it is to identify areas of high seismic risk, provided the topography of the basement is known.
Spatial and Temporal Distribution of Vesicular-Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi Associated with Uniola Paniculata in Florida Foredunes

The abundance and diversity of vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizal (VAM) fungi in pioneer dune populations of Uniola paniculata were determined. Samples were obtained in November, 1983, and May, August, and November, 1984, from two locations in northeastern Florida. Roots of sea oats were well colonized by a diverse populaton of VAM fungi. Three species of Glomus and two species each of Acaulospora and Gigaspora were collected. Total spore densities ranged from 0 to 677 per 100 g of sand. The frequency distributions of spore counts were best described by the negative binomial model, suggesting spores were aggregated in the dunes. There was no trend in spore populations through the 1984 season; highest spore numbers were found in May for one species, August for three species, and November for two species. Spore densities in non-vegetated areas adjacent to vegetated dunes averaged less than 6% of the spore densities found in the root zone of sea oats. The length of all fungal hyphae in the dunes was estimated at 12 m g-l sand or 592 m cm-1 of colonized root length. Seventy-eight percent of the hyphae observed were non-septate.
Use of temporary nurses and nurse and patient safety outcomes in acute care hospital units.

Background To deal with nursing shortages and inadequate hospital nurse staffing, many solutions have been tried, including utilizing temporary nurses. Relatively little attention has been given to use of temporary nurses and its association with both nurse and patients outcomes. Purpose : The purpose of this study is to investigate the association between use of temporary nurses and nurse (needlesticks and back injuries) and patient (patient falls and medication errors) safety outcomes at the nursing unit level. Methodology/approach Data came from a large organizational study which investigated the relationship between registered nurse (RN) staffing adequacy, work environments, organizational, and patient outcomes. The sample for this study was 4,954 RNs on 277 nursing units in 142 hospitals. Findings Nurses working on nursing units with high levels (more than 15%) of external temporary RN hours were more likely to report back injuries than nurses working on nursing units that did not use external temporary RNs. Nurses working on these nursing units also reported greater levels of patient falls compared with those who did not use temporary RNs. This study found that nurses working on nursing units with moderate levels (5-15%) of external temporary RN hours reported fewer medication errors than those without using any external temporary RNs. Practice implications Hospitals need to monitor the levels of temporary nurse use and maintain a level of approximately 15% to ensure both nurse and patient safety outcomes. The temporary nurse use to manage nursing shortfall may provide both benefit and harm to nurse and patient safety depending on the level of the use.
Analysis on Reactive Power and Voltage of Commonly Used Wind Turbines Interconnected to Power Grid

The impact of parallel operation of wind turbines on power flow is analyzed, in which the squirrel cage induction motors are used as the constant speed wind turbine and the double fed induction motors are used as variable speed wind turbine. The voltage and reactive power control characteristics of variable speed wind turbine under different control modes are compared. Simulation results show that the variable speed wind turbine with constant voltage control possesses obvious superiority in maintaining system voltage after the wind turbine is interconnected to power system.
Mining consumer health vocabulary from community-generated text

Community-generated text corpora can be a valuable resource to extract consumer health vocabulary (CHV) and link them to professional terminologies and alternative variants. In this research, we propose a pattern-based text-mining approach to identify pairs of CHV and professional terms from Wikipedia, a large text corpus created and maintained by the community. A novel measure, leveraging the ratio of frequency of occurrence, was used to differentiate consumer terms from professional terms. We empirically evaluated the applicability of this approach using a large data sample consisting of MedLine abstracts and all posts from an online health forum, MedHelp. The results show that the proposed approach is able to identify synonymous pairs and label the terms as either consumer or professional term with high accuracy. We conclude that the proposed approach provides great potential to produce a high quality CHV to improve the performance of computational applications in processing consumer-generated health text.
Polyphosphoinositides are the major source of inositol phosphates in carbamoylcholine-stimulated SK-N-SH neuroblastoma cells.

The contribution of polyphosphoinositides to muscarinic receptor-stimulated phosphoinositide turnover has been evaluated for intact and digitonin-permeabilized human SK-N-SH neuroblastoma cells. Addition of carbamoylcholine to [3H]inositol-prelabeled intact cells resulted in a rapid (5-10 sec) loss of phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate and the concomitant appearance of radiolabeled inositol-1,4,5-trisphosphate, inositol-1,3,4-trisphosphate, and inositol tetrakisphosphate. In the presence of the agonist, production of these inositol polyphosphates remained enhanced for up to 45 min. Inositol mono- and bisphosphates steadily accumulated in response to receptor activation and in the presence of Li+ comprised greater than 95% of agonist-stimulated inositol phosphate formation at incubation times greater than 5 min. The major inositol bisphosphate isomer was the 1,4-species. Of the two inositol monophosphates produced, radioactivity recovered in inositol-4-monophosphate increased continuously, whereas that in the inositol-1-monophosphate/inositol-3-monophosphate fraction was delayed in appearance but thereafter progressively accumulated. Omission of Ca2+ reduced carbamoylcholine-stimulated inositol phosphate release by greater than 50% but did not significantly influence the ratio of inositol monophosphates formed. Upon addition of atropine to agonist-pretreated cells, radioactivity was lost from inositol phosphates in the following order: inositol-1,4,5-trisphosphate greater than inositol-1,3,4-trisphosphate greater than inositol-1,4-bisphosphate = inositol-4-monophosphate greater than inositol-1-monophosphate/inositol-3-monophosphate. Although carbamoylcholine addition to digitonin-permeabilized cells also resulted in a sustained release of inositol monophosphates, relatively more inositol-4-monophosphate was produced in these preparations. Omission of ATP from permeabilized cell incubations inhibited carbamoylcholine-stimulated 9inositol phosphate formation by greater than 70%. Whole homogenates of SK-N-SH cells metabolized added inositol-1,4,5-trisphosphate and inositol-1,4-bisphosphate exclusively to inositol-4-monophosphate, whereas inositol-1,3,4,5-tetrakisphosphate was degraded to inositol-1- or 3-monophosphate. Measurement of inositol trisphosphate 39-kinase and 59-phosphatase activities revealed that, following permeabilization, 39-kinase activity was diminished, whereas that of 59-phosphatase was enhanced. The results indicate that occupancy of muscarinic cholinergic receptors in SK-N-SH cells elicits a continuous Ca2(+)-dependent breakdown of the polyphosphoinositides rather than of phosphatidylinositol.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
The Status of Deterrence: Start and other Factors

Nuclear deterrence and US nuclear strategy entered some time ago what is at once an intellectual stagnation and a political crisis. Until recently there has been little prospect that new ideas would emerge to help resolve what had become telling faults in the edifice of traditional deterrence theory and practice. While public concern with nuclear weapons remained significant, the threat of war had receded enough so that popularly forced radical change seemed unlikely.
Opportunistische Infektionen: „Bauch“

Opportunistische Infektionen des Gastrointestinaltrakts sind beim AIDS haufig. In Tabelle 1 ist eine Auflistung der Hauptinfektionen bei 16 458 Patienten mit AIDS von den CDC wiedergegeben, die nicht prospektiv gewonnen wurden. Man sieht, das die Pneumocystis carinii-Pneumonie, die Candida-Osophagitis, die Cytomegalic-Virus-Infektion (CMV) und die Kryptokokkose die vier wichtigsten Infektionen darstellen. Berucksichtigt man Autopsiebefunde (Tabelle 2), so kommt man zu ganz anderen Zahlen. Das zeigt, das eine grosere Zahl von Infektionen zweifellos in vivo nicht diagnostiziert worden ist, und daruber hinaus auch, das diese Divergenzen zum Teil durch Unterschiede der Datenkollektion bedingt sind. Es bleibt festzuhalten, das abgesehen von der Soor-Osophagitis die vier Infektionen durch Pneumocystis carinii, CMV, Kryptokokkose und Toxoplasmose aufgrund dieser Erhebungen die haufigsten sind, und von diesen konnen Candida, CMV und Kryptokokkose zu Manifestationen am Gastro-intestinaltrakt fuhren.
Using reflective writing to enhance student engagement, inquiry, critical thinking, and learning

Student engagement is often touted as a key component of enhancing student’s ability to learn and helping students becomes lifelong learners. But engaging students, helping them invest in the class, making their learning more visible, and helping them see how various course components connect can be challenging, particularly in active learning classes. One approach is to implement more reflection and reflective writing throughout our courses and assignments. This session will explore a range of strategies for integrating student reflection throughout complex writing assignments or long-term projects and throughout the course to enhance engagement and intrinsic motivation, facilitate critical thinking, help students be more aware and in control of their learning and learning processes, and facilitate learning transfer. While focused on practices developed in composition and literature classes, particularly in a Students as Scholars based research-writing class, these strategies can be successfully implemented in any course.
Initial Treatment of Unresectable Neuroendocrine Tumor Liver Metastases with Transarterial Chemoembolization using Streptozotocin: A 20-Year Experience.

The majority of patients with neuroendocrine tumor liver metastases (NELM) present with multifocal disease and are not surgical candidates. We present our 20-year experience with transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) using streptozotocin (STZ) in patients with initially unresectable NELM. Patients with unresectable NELM treated with TACE using STZ at a single institution from 1995 to 2015 were identified after institutional board approval. Imaging was independently reviewed by a radiologist to evaluate for RECIST 1.1 responses. Ninety-one patients with NELM who underwent 474 TACE treatments during the past 20 years were identified. Median age was 62 years, and 54 % of the patients were females. Median number of TACE treatments per patient was four (range 1–22). TACE treatment with STZ was very well tolerated with 10.3 % of treatments being associated with side effects, predominantly transient, including hyper/hypotension, bradycardia, or postembolization syndrome. Median overall survival from the start of TACE was 44 months (5-year OS from TACE 40.8 % and 5-year PFS 20.3 %), and 54 % of the patients who had carcinoid syndrome reported improved symptoms after TACE treatments. Age, grade, liver tumor burden, and ability to undergo multiple TACE treatments were independent predictors of overall survival in multivariable analysis. Chromogranin A levels >115 ng/ml were associated with worse overall survival (p < 0.001). In patients with unresectable NELM, TACE with STZ is well tolerated with minimal toxicity and can lead to diminished carcinoid syndrome and long-term survival. This is a novel, conservative approach for the initial treatment of unresectable NELM.
Initial operation of a wideband gyro-TWT amplifier

Stable operation of a dielectric-loaded wideband gyro-TWT is experimentally demonstrated. For a 100 kV, 5 A, /spl alpha/=/spl upsisub /spl perpspl upsisub Z/=0.6 electron beam, a peak output power of 55 kW with 11% efficiency, 27 dB saturated gain and an unprecedented constant-drive bandwidth of 11% has been achieved in the X-band frequency proof-of-principle experiment. As predicted by simulation studies, the amplifier's performance can be further enhanced with improved beam quality. >
The superior fovea triangle approach: a novel safe entry zone to the brainstem

The authors describe a safe entry zone, the superior fovea triangle, on the floor of the fourth ventricle for resection of deep dorsal pontine lesions at the level of the facial colliculus. Clinical data from a patient undergoing a suboccipital telovelar transsuperior fovea triangle approach to a deep pontine cavernous malformation were reviewed and supplemented with 6 formalin-fixed adult human brainstem and 2 silicone-injected adult human cadaveric heads using the fiber dissection technique to illustrate the utility of this novel safe entry zone. The superior fovea has a triangular shape that is an important landmark for the motor nucleus of the trigeminal, abducens, and facial nerves. The inferior half of the superior fovea triangle may be incised to remove deep dorsal pontine lesions through the floor of the fourth ventricle. The superior fovea triangle may be used as a safe entry zone for dorsally located lesions at the level of the facial colliculus.
Is plus size equal? The positive impact of average and plus-sized media fashion models on women’s cognitive resource allocation, social comparisons, and body satisfaction

ABSTRACTDuring individual laboratory sessions, 49 women with an actual-ideal self-discrepancy randomly viewed 12 images of media fashion models varying in body types. Heart rate was recorded during image exposure. Self-report social comparisons and body satisfaction were measured following exposure to each image. A visual recognition test was administered following the last image. The results indicated that women reported the greatest body satisfaction and the least amount of social comparisons when viewing plus size models, but body satisfaction decreased and social comparisons increased when viewing average sized followed by thin size models. Further, as social comparisons increased (e.g., internal processing), external resource allocation and encoding decreased. The theoretical and applied implications from these findings are discussed.
Assessing oxygen depletion in the Northeastern Pacific Ocean during the last deglaciation using I/Ca ratios from multiple benthic foraminiferal species

Paleo-redox proxies are crucial for reconstructing past bottom water oxygen concentration changes brought about by ocean circulation and marine productivity shifts in response to climate forcing. Carbonate I/Ca ratios of multiple benthic foraminifera species from ODP Hole 1017E – a core drilled within the Californian oxygen minimum zone (OMZ), on the continental slope – are employed to re-examine the transition from the well oxygenated last glacial into poorly oxygenated modern conditions. The redox and export productivity history of this site is constrained by numerous proxies, used to assess sensitivity of I/Ca ratios of benthic foraminifera to changes in bottom- and pore water O2 concentrations. Reconstructed iodate (IO3-) availability from the I/Ca ratio of epifaunal (Cibicidoides sp.), shallow infaunal (Uvigerina peregrina), and deep infaunal (Bolivina spissa) foraminifera. The reconstructed IO3- availability profile is used to determine the contribution of bottom water O2 relative to oxidant demand on pore water O2 concentrations. These results suggest that high export productivity on the California Margin drove pore low water O2 concentrations during the Bolling. In contrast low bottom water O2 concentrations at 950 m water depth only contributed to reduced sediments during the Allerod. Increased contribution of modified North Pacific Intermediate Water to the California Current System ventilated the California OMZ during the late glacial and the Younger Dryas such that water overlying the site was oxygenated. These results highlight the promising potential of this new proxy for understanding the relative influence of bottom water O2 concentration and pore water oxidant demand on OMZs.
Challenges in micro-channel heat transfer experiments: Insight on conjugate heat transfer effects

A numerical study was performed to obtain insight into conduction/convection conjugate heat transfer processes during a typical experiments performed at the micro scale. The experimental work of Wang et al. [1] was used as a baseline to quantify such effects. It consisted of a 225 μm × 18.5 mm × 1.5 mm microchannel with a pillar, which had jet slits. Commercially available software package, Star CCM+, was used for the simulations. Fluid, solid and heater regions were modeled together with heat transfer interfaces at the contact surfaces. Reynolds number of 123, 200, and 280 were simulated. Each case includes jet introduction to the flow quantified with momentum coefficient of 3%, 5%, and 10%. The numerical model was verified by the Grid Convergence Index methods using three different grids and agreed with experimental results within a 10% discrepancy. The discrepancies between numerical and experimental results were found in terms of heat transfer distribution and heat transfer coefficients, which were mainly due to inevitable assumptions made while post processing the experimental data. Therefore, the main aim of this study is to decouple the heat transfer processes inside the three different regions and to provide guidance for future micro scale experimental studies in terms of experimentally non-measurable parameters, such as heat flux paths, local heat transfer coefficients, local boundary heat fluxes, and local temperature values on the heater surfaces.
Cell biology: The persistence of memory

Live imaging reveals that whether or not a daughter cell proliferates is influenced by two molecular factors inherited from its mother, providing insight into how the behaviour of a newly born cell can be predetermined. See Letter p.404
Nocardia infections in the transplanted host

BACKGROUND Nocardia are uncommon pathogens that disproportionately afflict the immunocompromised host. Epidemiology and outcome data of Nocardia infections in transplant recipients are limited. METHODS We performed a retrospective chart review of all patients at Duke University Hospital with a history of solid organ transplant (SOT) or hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT) and at least one positive culture for Nocardia between 1996 and 2013. Our aim was to describe the epidemiology and outcomes of Nocardia infections in the transplanted host. RESULTS During the 18-year study period, 51 patients (14 HCT and 37 SOT recipients) had Nocardia infection. Nocardia incidence was stable during the study period in all populations except heart transplants, whose incidence declined. Infection occurred earlier in the HCT group than the SOT group (median time to diagnosis of 153 and 370 days, respectively). In both groups, the most common site involved was the lung. Outcomes were overall poor, especially in the HCT group with a cure rate of 29%. Heart transplant recipients had significantly better overall survival (P < .05) than other patients. Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX) prophylaxis did not provide complete protection from Nocardia infections, nor did it appear to select for resistant Nocardia isolates. CONCLUSIONS Infections with Nocardia are typically a late post-transplant complication. The use of TMP-SMX prophylaxis was not associated with TMP-SMX-resistant Nocardia. Overall outcomes remain poor.
Gamete Interruptus: A Novel Calcium-Dependent Kinase Is Essential for Malaria Sexual Reproduction

Malaria parasites undergo sexual fertilization minutes after the bloodmeal enters the mosquito midgut. In this issue of Cell, Billker et al. (2004) describe a new Plasmodium calcium-dependent protein kinase essential for gamete formation, and show that it is required for parasite transmission.
Facial injuries in basketball players

As the popularity of basketball increases and the style of the game becomes more physical, there is an increasing number of basketball-related injuries. Although most facial injuries sustained while playing basketball are relatively minor, severe and permanent injuries do occur. This article reviews the most common facial injuries incurred by basketball players with emphasis on diagnosis, early treatment, and prevention.
Developing a Sustainable Agricultural Curriculum in Malawi: Reconciling a Colonial Legacy with Indigenous Knowledge and Practices

A profit motive of the colonial system stole respect of nature from the culture of Africans. Animals were hunted and killed with no thought for the future. Bushes were cleared for tea plantations, and a new system of agriculture [was established] based on monoculture. Arable cropping was introduced which later ensured ecological degradation (cited in Glasson et al. 2006, p. 671).
Aptamer-displaying peptide amphiphile micelles as a cell-targeted delivery vehicle of peptide cargoes

Peptide amphiphile micelles (PAMs) are attractive vehicles for the delivery of a variety of therapeutic and prophylactic peptides. However, a key limitation of PAMs is their lack of preferential targeting ability. In this paper, we describe our design of a PAM system that incorporates a DNA oligonucleotide amphiphile (antitail amphiphile-AA) to form A/PAMs. A cell-targeting DNA aptamer with a 3' extension sequence (tail) complementary to the AA is annealed to the surface to form aptamer-displaying PAMs (Aptamer~A/PAMs). Aptamer~A/PAMs are small, anionic, stable nanoparticles capable of delivering a large mass percentage peptide amphiphile (PA) compared to targeting DNA components. Aptamer~A/PAMs are stable for over 4 h in the presence of biological fluids. Additionally, the aptamer retains its cell-targeting properties when annealed to the A/PAM, thus leading to enhanced delivery to a specifically-targeted B-cell leukemia cell line. This exciting modular technology can be readily used with a library of different targeting aptamers and PAs, capable of improving the bioavailability and potency of the peptide cargo.
Thermodynamic and Structural Study of the Copper-Aluminum System by the Electrochemical Method Using a Copper-Selective Beta″ Alumina Membrane

The liquid phase thermodynamics of mixing of the copper-aluminum binary system are investigated as a function of temperature and composition using the electrochemical potential difference method. A copper-selective beta″ alumina is used as a solid electrolyte, synthesized through ion exchange, sintering from base oxide powders, and the floating zone method of crystal growth. Measured thermodynamics of mixing data were used to inform short-range ordering in copper-aluminum melts through Darken’s factor for excess stability and Bhatia–Thornton structure factors, revealing a strong departure from ideality and pronounced ordering. Mixing properties were used to predict viscosity and self-diffusion coefficients. Features observed in calculated electronic entropy of mixing for copper-aluminum were compared with trends in viscosity, demonstrating the utility of electronic properties of mixing in the description of structure–properties in this liquid binary system.
Introduction – ‘You Are What You Eat’

The trivial word ‘You are what you eat’ (YAWYE) actually applies also to fish and aquatic invertebrates; however, not literally, but in a more hidden, subtle manner. This introductory chapter will briefly address the content of Volume I of Aquatic Animal Nutrition: Chapter 2 recalls basic textbook knowledge and discusses dietary impacts on morphology and functioning of the intestine. Chapter 3 focuses on the central significance of the intestinal microbiota, the forgotten ecosystem. Central in Chap. 4 is the message that dietary restriction and starvation are natural occurrences and do not necessarily kill the individuals which often respond with compensatory growth and improved Darwinian fitness – even of their offspring. Chapter 5 discusses the circadian rhythmicity of digestive and biotransformation gene transcription and questions the paradigm of ‘antinutritional factors’. Chapter 6 addresses transgenerational dietary effects including starvation resistance; and the last Chapter shows that diets can be the basis for sympatric speciation whereby not only genetical, but also epigenetical mechanisms likely apply.
Applications of Water Ice Blasting for Removal of Surface Contaminants

Abstract The use of water ice (or ice blasting) has been developed as a non-solvent, dry method for removing surface contaminants in a variety of cleaning applications. The basic principle is based on the impact of ice particles on the surface of the part. Contaminants on the surface are displaced by impact energy and the melting ice flushes away the debris. A discussion of the process is provided along with description of the cleaning systems employing ice blasting. The advantages and disadvantages of ice blasting are discussed, along with cost considerations. Several applications of ice blasting in different industries are described.
HPV infections and cytologic abnormalities in vaccinated women 21-34 years of age: Results from the baseline phase of the Onclarity trial

Abstract Objectives Countries with school-based human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination have seen significant reductions in vaccine-targeted HPV infections, cytologic abnormalities, and high-grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (≥CIN2). However, the impact of HPV vaccination in the United States (where vaccination is largely opportunistic) may be less due to lower coverage rates and vaccination in patients at ages beyond the recommended routine vaccination age. Methods The Onclarity trial enrolled 33,858 subjects ≥21 years who were screened with cytology and the BD Onclarity HPV Assay. HPV positive women or those with cytologic abnormalities underwent colposcopy and biopsy. The prevalence of HPV, cytologic abnormalities, and ≥CIN2 was compared in a subset of 14,153, vaccinated and unvaccinated women, 21–34 years. Results were compared by vaccination status; Mantel-Haenszel analysis was performed to determine the association between vaccination status and prevalence, adjusting for age. Results The prevalence of overall HPV, HPV16, 18, 31, and 33/58 were all lower in vaccinated women for each age group; a significant difference (p Conclusions Women with a prior history of HPV vaccination have a lower prevalence of any high-risk HPV, HPV 16, 18, 31, and 33/58; a cytology result of ≥LSIL, and ≥CIN2 associated with HPV 16/18 compared to unvaccinated women. A lower HPV prevalence in older, vaccinated women suggests that "catch-up" vaccination provides benefit.
Visualization of Sequential Treatments in Metastatic Breast Cancer.

PURPOSETreatment sequencing of metastatic breast cancer (MBC) is heterogeneous. The primary objective of this study was to develop a visualization technique to understand population-level treatment...
Using Machine Learning to Predict the Information Seeking Behavior of Clinicians Using an Electronic Medical Record System

Poor electronic medical record (EMR) usability is detrimental to both clinicians and patients. A better EMR would provide concise, context sensitive patient data, but doing so entails the difficult task of knowing which data are relevant. To determine the relevance of patient data in different contexts, we collect and model the information seeking behavior of clinicians using a learning EMR (LEMR) system. Sufficient data were collected to train predictive models for 80 different targets (e.g., glucose level, heparin administration) and 27 of them had AUROC values of greater than 0.7. These results are encouraging considering the high variation in information seeking behavior (intraclass correlation 0.40). We plan to apply these models to a new set of patient cases and adapt the LEMR interface to highlight relevant patient data, and thus provide concise, context sensitive data.
Models, Devices, Properties, and Verification of Artificial Pancreas Systems

In this chapter, we present the interplay between models of human physiology, closed-loop medical devices, correctness specifications, and verification algorithms in the context of the artificial pancreas. The artificial pancreas refers to a series of increasingly sophisticated closed-loop medical devices that automate the delivery of insulin to people with type 1 diabetes. On the one hand, they hold the promise of easing the everyday burden of managing type 1 diabetes. On the other hand, they expose the patient to potentially deadly consequences of incorrect insulin delivery that could lead to coma or even death in the short term, or damage to critical organs such as the eyes, kidneys, and the heart in the longer term. Verifying the correctness of these devices involves a careful modeling of human physiology, the medical device, and the surrounding disturbances at the right level of abstraction. We first provide a brief overview of insulin–glucose regulation and the spectrum of associated mathematical models. At one end are physiological models that try to capture the transport, metabolism, uptake, and interactions of insulin and glucose. On the end are data-driven models which include time series models and neural networks. The first part of the chapter examines some of these models in detail in order to provide a basis for verifying medical devices. Next, we present some of the devices which are commonly used in blood glucose control, followed by a specification of key correctness properties and performance measures. Finally, we examine the application of some of the state-of-the-art approaches to verification and falsification of these properties to the models and devices considered. We conclude with a brief presentation on future directions for next generation artificial pancreas and the challenges involved in reasoning about them.
Abstract 2797: Accumulation of neutrophils in the tumor microenvironment promotes resistance to immunotherapy in pancreatic cancer

The prognosis for pancreatic cancer patients is unequivocally poor. This is due in part to the fibrotic and immunosuppressive microenvironment of pancreatic tumors, which serves as a physical barrier to chemotherapy and immunotherapy. Intratumoral genetic alterations can cause remodeling of the immune environment through distinct cellular mechanisms. Oncogenic Kras gene mutations are the most frequently occurring genetic event in pancreatic cancer, followed by transforming alterations in TP53. We show that CRISPR/Cas engineered KrasG12D;Trp53R172H pancreatic ductal tumors have a distinct immune profile characterized by an increase in neutrophils and a concomitant decrease in cytotoxic and Th1+ T cells. In addition, KrasG12D;Trp53R172H pancreatic ductal tumors have an increase in CXCL5, a chemokine involved in neutrophil accumulation. Analysis of publicly available datasets shows that increased neutrophil numbers significantly correlate with decreased survival in pancreatic cancer patients. Of clinical relevance, p53-Crispr/Cas engineered pancreatic tumors in mice are resistant to immunotherapy/chemotherapy combination treatment. This data supports the possibility of personalizing immunotherapy treatments based on immune profiles. Citation Format: Despina Siolas, Emily Vucic, Jane Cullis, Mark Choi, Dafna Bar-Sagi. Accumulation of neutrophils in the tumor microenvironment promotes resistance to immunotherapy in pancreatic cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 2797.
Sleep-related disorders in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus: current insights.

Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) is an autoimmune condition that results from destruction of beta cells in the pancreas. Several reviews have concluded that sleep contributes to poor glycemic control, diabetes management, and diabetes-related complications in individuals with T1DM and represents an untapped opportunity for intervention. However, at the current juncture, the American Diabetes Association’s Standards of Medical Care are devoid of recommendations about how to address sleep in the management of T1DM. This article summarizes reviews of sleep in youth and adults with T1DM and empirical studies that have examined various sleep parameters ranging from sleep disturbances (general, perceived sleep quality, sleepiness, awakenings, and sleep efficiency), sleep duration, sleep consistency, sleep-disordered breathing (SDB), and sleep architecture. The data show that many individuals with T1DM sleep less than recommendations; individuals with the poorest sleep have difficulties with diabetes management; and sleep deficiency including SDB often corresponds to several disease morbidities (neuropathy, nephropathy, etc). Mixed findings exist regarding direct associations of various sleep parameters and glycemic control. SDB appears to be just as prevalent, if not more, than other conditions that have been recommended for universal screening in individuals with T1DM. The article concludes with recommendations for collaborative research efforts to further elucidate the role of sleep in diabetes-related outcomes; investigations to test behavioral strategies to increase sleep quantity and consistency; and considerations for clinical care to address sleep.
Morphiceptin ( beta-casomorphin (1-4) amide): a peptide opioid antagonist in the field stimulated rat vas deferens.

The effect of Morphiceptin (H-Tyr-Pro-Phe-Pro-NH2) on opioid inhibition of field stimulated rat vas deferens (RVD) was studied. The morphiceptin was found to produce a weak inhibition of the twitch response of the RVD. In addition morphiceptin antagonized full agonists acting on the same receptor system (i.e. beta-endorphin selective antagonist for the delta receptor system of RVD by virtue of being a weak partial agonist.
Reverse Debugging of Kernel Failures in Deployed Systems

Post-mortem diagnosis of kernel failures is crucial for operating system vendors because kernel failures impact the reliability and security of the whole system. However, debugging kernel failures in deployed systems remains a challenge because developers have to speculate the conditions leading to the failure based on limited information such as memory dumps. In this paper, we present Kernel REPT, the first practical reverse debugging solution for kernel failures that is highly efficient, imposes small memory footprint and requires no extra software layer. To meet this goal, Kernel REPT employs efficient hardware tracing to record the kernel’s control flow on each processor, recognizes the control flow of each software thread based on the context switch history, and recovers its data flow by emulating machine instructions and hardware events such as interrupts and exceptions. We design, implement, and deploy Kernel REPT on Microsoft Windows. We show that developers can use Kernel REPT to do interactive reverse debugging and find the root cause of real-world kernel failures. Kernel REPT also enables automatic root-cause analysis for certain kernel failures that were hard to debug even manually. Furthermore, Kernel REPT can proactively identify kernel bugs by checking the reconstructed execution history against a set of predetermined invariants.