cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Danazol-induced factor VIII and IX by passing activity in hemophiliacs

Abstract Danazol, a synthetic androgen reported to increase factor VIII and IX activity levels, was given to 6 hemophiliacs. With danazol therapy (600 mg/da) the APTTs shortened by 30–45% of pre-treatment times. However, the activity levels of the deficient factors did not increase significantly nor consistently with the APTT change. The prothrombin times and activity levels of factors XI and XII also did not change during the study period. Addition of plasma from danazol-treated patients to plasma with a known factor VIII inhibitor and to plasma from an untreated severe hemophilia A patient caused a similar shortening of the respective APTTs. Absorption of the danazol plasma with precipitating antibody against factor VIII and IX did not remove the APTT correcting principal. The data suggest that danazol may cause the de novo appearance of an intrinsic coagulation pathway activator having factor VIII and IX bypassing activity.
On an elliptic boundary value problem at double resonance

Abstract Let Ω be a bounded domain in R n (n ⩾ 2) with smooth boundary ∂Ω. We discuss the existence and multiplicity of solutions of the boundary value problem −Δu = p(x, u) in Ω, u = 0 on ∂Ω , roughly speaking, under the assumption that λ l ⩽ lim t → ± ∞ ( p(x, t) t ) ⩽ λ l + 1 for two distinct consecutive eigenvalues λl, λl + 1 of the first boundary value problem of −Δ.
Postpartum diabetes testing among women with recent gestational diabetes mellitus: PRAMS 2009-2010

The objective of this study was to estimate rates of and factors associated with postpartum diabetes testing in women with recent gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Secondary data analysis was conducted using data from the 2009 and 2010 Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System from three states and one city (Colorado, Minnesota, Utah, and New York City). Frequency of postpartum diabetes testing was estimated overall and among women who attended a postpartum visit. Multivariable logistic regression was used to determine factors associated with postpartum diabetes testing. Approximately 8.2 % [95 % confidence interval (CI) 7.5–8.9] of women self-reported a history of GDM (n = 829), of which 48.5 % (43.9–53.1) reported being tested for diabetes postpartum. Among the 90.0 % (86.5–93.4) of women with recent GDM who attended the postpartum visit, 51.7 % (46.1–57.2) reported being tested for diabetes postpartum. Women who received inadequate/intermediate prenatal care were half as likely to report postpartum testing compared with women who received adequate prenatal care [odds ratio 0.45 (95 % CI 0.25–0.83)]. Women with a prepregnancy body mass index classified as obese were over twice as likely to report postpartum testing compared to normal weight women. Women with GDM are at increased risk of persistent glucose intolerance after delivery, yet postpartum testing rates remain around 50 %, regardless of attendance to the postpartum visit. Improving adequacy of prenatal care might further increase postpartum testing rates. Continued efforts to translate postpartum testing into practice are needed among these women at risk for future type 2 diabetes.
Acute effects of moderate alcohol on psychomotor, set shifting, and working memory function in older and younger social drinkers.

Objective:Despite substantial attention being paid to the health benefits of moderate alcohol intake as a lifestyle, the acute effects of alcohol on psychomotor and working memory function in older adults are poorly understood.Method:The effects of low to moderate doses of alcohol on neurobehavioral function were investigated in 39 older (55–70 years; 15 men) and 51 younger (25–35 years; 31 men) social drinkers. Subjects received one of three randomly assigned doses (placebo, .04 g/dl, or .065 g/dl target breath alcohol concentration). After beverage consumption, they completed the Trail Making Test Parts A and B and a working memory task requiring participants to determine whether probe stimuli were novel or had been presented in a preceding set of cue stimuli. Efficiency of working memory task performance was derived from accuracy and reaction time measures.Results:Alcohol was associated with poorer Trail Making Test Part B performance for older subjects. Working memory task results suggested an Age × D...
Explaining Surgical Evangelism in Colonial Southern Africa: Teeth, Pain and Faith

Southern Africans configured missionaries as medical, bodily practitioners because of the meaning of ritual specialization in southern Africa. At the same time, ‘practicing medicine’ often meant minor surgery to missionaries, who lagged behind Europe's medical advances at the turn of the century. Whereas southern Africans located their well-being in the nexus of person and community, missionaries' surgery attacked this nexus. Surgery implied, and missionaries asserted, that healing derived from a resolution of interior somatic conflicts, in which troublesome body parts might be removed. A new way of speaking about certain kinds of physical pain was developed, whereby the body briefly became a total site for illness and healing. At the same time, Nonconformist evangelism demanded that individuals rid their interior selves of unsavory forces and extract themselves from those aspects of their communal lives which generated such influences. Because both Africans and missionaries moralized illness, and because some forms of surgery, like tooth-pulling, ‘worked’ for Africans, surgery marked a rite of passage to a new group of peers: Christians, who could recontextualize the catharsis of getting well.
Filial nationalism among Chinese teenagers with global identities

In this article, I look at the apparent contradiction between Chinese teenagers' nationalism and their identification with a global imagined community that deemed China inferior. I examine how teenagers I knew in Dalian City, China, attempted to resolve this contradiction through the idiom of filial devotion, which they found more convincing than state-sponsored discourses of nationalism that emphasized China's admirability. Despite their admiration for wealthier societies, they maintained a strong sense of filial nationalism, which they saw as analogous to their unconditional loyalty to their parents. Such nationalism could not be nullified by their disgust with China's low status in the capitalist world system.
Gendered and racialised discourses of national identity in Baz Luhrmann's Australia

Abstract Nations are more than geopolitical bodies. They are, to quote Benedict Anderson, ‘imagined communities,’ constituted in part by cultural representations of national belonging, or discourses of national identity. These are the stories that all nations tell themselves: stories about the nation's origins, its character, its values. Such stories are found in a wide range of cultural texts, from parades to t-shirts to popular music and film, and they often carry meanings about gender and race. This article examines Baz Luhrmann's 2008 film Australia for gendered and racialised discourses of Australian national identity. It argues that such discourses are underpinned by material relations and potentially have material consequences for the nation.
Shattering Slave Life Portrayals: Uncovering Subjugated Knowledge in U.S. Plantation Sites in South Carolina and Florida

ABSTRACT There is an ongoing dialogue about slavery that is moored to ideological, social, and physical remnants of plantations. Scholars are active participants in creating and interpreting representations of postbellum plantations as public heritage sites that shape national memory. What tools and theoretical approaches can inform how we interpret, analyze, and represent characterizations of plantation life today? In this article, I talk about the historical moment in which plantations existed (transatlantic slavery), descendent interpretations, and ways in which descendent memories instruct reconfiguration of systems of categorization today. Research conducted in the three postbellum plantation communities in the U.S. South that are referenced in this analysis—Boone Hall and Snee Farm in South Carolina and Kingsley Plantation in Florida—inform this discussion.
Endograft Migration: Incidence, Causes, and Clinical Significance

Endovascular device migration is approximately 2% at 1 year using each of the Food and Drug Administration-approved devices (Medtronic AneuRx, Gore Excluder, Cook Zenith). In this report, we review the incidence, causes, and clinical importance of endograft migration over a 5-year period after endovascular aneurysm repair with the AneuRx stent graft. In a multicenter United States clinical trial of the AneuRx device, migration was identified in 8% (94/1119) of patients over a mean follow up time of 30 ′ 11 months. A Kaplan-Meier analysis determined migration rates were 1.4% at 1 year, 6.6% at 2 years, and 18.8% at 3 years. The significant factors in device migration appeared to be proximal fixation length (P = .005), renal artery to stent-graft distance (P = .001), and the clinical site (P <.001). Preimplantation aortic neck length, neck diameter, degree of device oversizing, device type (stiff vs flexible), placement of proximal extender cuffs at the original procedure, and postprocedure endoleak were not significant predictors of migration. These results highlight the importance of technical precision in stent-graft deployment as critical in preventing late AneuRx stent graft migration.
An iterative phase-space explicit discontinuous Galerkin method for stellar radiative transfer in extended atmospheres☆

Abstract A phase-space discontinuous Galerkin (PSDG) method is presented for the solution of stellar radiative transfer problems. It allows for greater adaptivity than competing methods without sacrificing generality. The method is extensively tested on a spherically symmetric, static, inverse-power-law scattering atmosphere. Results for different sizes of atmospheres and intensities of scattering agreed with asymptotic values. The exponentially decaying behavior of the radiative field in the diffusive-transparent transition region, and the forward peaking behavior at the surface of extended atmospheres were accurately captured. The integrodifferential equation of radiation transfer is solved iteratively by alternating between the radiative pressure equation and the original equation with the integral term treated as an energy density source term. In each iteration, the equations are solved via an explicit, flux-conserving, discontinuous Galerkin method. Finite elements are ordered in wave fronts perpendicular to the characteristic curves so that elemental linear algebraic systems are solved quickly by sweeping the phase space element by element. Two implementations of a diffusive boundary condition at the origin are demonstrated wherein the finite discontinuity in the radiation intensity is accurately captured by the proposed method. This allows for a consistent mechanism to preserve photon luminosity. The method was proved to be robust and fast, and a case is made for the adequacy of parallel processing. In addition to classical two-dimensional plots, results of normalized radiation intensity were mapped onto a log-polar surface exhibiting all distinguishing features of the problem studied.
Material properties of articular cartilage in the rabbit tibial plateau

The material properties of articular cartilage in the rabbit tibial plateau were determined using biphasic indentation creep tests. Cartilage specimens from matched-pair hind limbs of rabbits approximately 4 months of age and greater than 12 months of age were tested on two locations within each compartment using a custom built materials testing apparatus. A three-way ANOVA was used to determine the effect of leg, compartment, and test location on the material properties (aggregate modulus, permeability, and Poisson's ratio) and thickness of the cartilage for each set of specimens. While no differences were observed in cartilage properties between the left and right legs, differences between compartments were found in each set of specimens. For cartilage from the adolescent group, values for aggregate modulus were 40% less in the medial compartment compared to the lateral compartment, while values for permeability and thickness were greater in the medial compartment compared to the lateral compartment (57% and 30%, respectively). Values for Poisson's ratio were 19% less in the medial compartment compared to the lateral compartment. There was also a strong trend for thickness to differ between test locations. Similar findings were observed for cartilage from the mature group with values for permeability and thickness being greater in the medial compartment compared to the lateral compartment (66% and 34%, respectively). Values for Poisson's ratio were 22% less in the medial compartment compared to the lateral compartment.
High-power, single-beam plasma wave tube

Short-pulse, ultra-broadband sources of RF radiation are needed for a variety of new applications. To meet this demand, we have developed and optimized a single-beam Plasma Wave Tube (PWT), The PWT is a unique microwave/millimeter-wave source which utilizes the interaction between beamexcited electron plasma waves to generate kilowatt-power (/spl sim/10 kW) radiation at microwave to millimeter-wave frequencies with a beam-to-radiation conversion efficiency of /spl ges/0.4%. In a single-beam PWT, an electron beam (/spl les/40 kV, /spl ges/200 A, 5-to-20-/spl mu/s pulse width) is injected into a gas-filled (e,g., hydrogen) cylindrical waveguide. The beam first ionizes the gas to generate a plasma, and then nonlinearly interacts with the plasma to generate radiation from 6-to-60 GHz. Slew rates of up to 7 GHz//spl mu/s have been measured during a single beam pulse. The radiation has a wide instantaneous bandwidth, typically 10 GHz or wider. Electron-beam transport through the waveguide is accomplished with no externally applied magnetic fields because the beam space charge is cancelled by the background plasma. >
The Basics of Intraoperative Diagnosis in Neuropathology

Intraoperative pathologic consultation continues to be an essential tool during neurosurgical procedures, helping to ensure adequacy of material for achieving a pathologic diagnosis and to guide surgeons. For pathologists, successful consultation with central nervous system lesions involves not only a basic familiarity with the pathologic features of such lesions but also an understanding of their clinical and radiologic context. This review discusses a basic approach to intraoperative diagnosis for practicing pathologists, including preparation for, performance of, and interpretation of an intraoperative neuropathologic evaluation. The cytologic and frozen section features of select examples of common pathologic entities are described.
Direct and Indirect Excitation of Laterodorsal Tegmental Neurons by Hypocretin/Orexin Peptides: Implications for Wakefulness and Narcolepsy

Compelling evidence links the recently discovered hypothalamic peptides Hypocretin/Orexin (Hcrt/Orx) to rapid eye movement sleep (REM) control and the sleep disorder narcolepsy, yet how they influence sleep-related systems is not well understood. We investigated the action of Hcrt/Orx on mesopontine cholinergic (MPCh) neurons of the laterodorsal tegmental nucleus (LDT), a target group whose function is altered in canine narcolepsy and appears pivotal for normal REM and wakefulness. Extracellular recordings from mouse brainstem slices revealed that Hcrt/Orx evoked prolonged firing of LDT neurons. Whole-cell recordings revealed that Hcrt/Orx had actions on both presynaptic neurons and at postsynaptic sites. Hcrt/Orx produced an increase in frequency and amplitude of spontaneous EPSCs without equivalent effect on IPSCs, by triggering action potentials and enhancing spike-evoked synaptic transmission in glutamatergic afferents. Postsynaptically, Hcrt/Orx produced an inward current and an increase in membrane current noise, which were accompanied by a conductance increase. These persisted in TTX, ionotropic glutamate receptor antagonists, and low extracellular calcium. Both presynaptic and postsynaptic actions were specific because they were not mimicked by an Hcrt/Orx fragment, and both actions were observed for cholinergic and noncholinergic LDT neurons. Finally, extracellular recordings during postsynaptic potential blockade demonstrated that postsynaptic actions of Hcrt/Orx alone could evoke prolonged firing. In the context of other recent work, our findings suggest that Hcrt/Orx neurons may coordinate the activity of the entire reticular activating system during waking. Moreover, these findings address specific hypotheses regarding the cellular mechanisms underlying REM disregulation in narcolepsy.
Using Markov Chain and Nearest Neighbor Criteria in an Experience Based Study Planning System with Linear Time Search and Scalability

Most automated rule-based expert systems developed to aid student study planning and advising have appeared to be ephemeral due to the dynamic property in the ever-changing curricular requirements and rules. We propose a novel case-based study planning system with the search criteria based on the experience-indicated probability in Markov chains and the nearest-neighbor measurement for matches. We provide query results of course sequences to students who need to meet certain constraints such as to graduate within a certain number of academic terms, maintaining a minimal grade-point average, etc., all drawn from past graduate records. We use a collection of well-formed course-study sequences from past graduates as advised curriculum patterns for new students to reference as his or her study plan. When given a set of study constraints, We implement a type of case-based reasoning by searching for the nearest-neighbor vector indices in the past records first, then by selectively listing the similar records according to their Markov-chain probabilities passing a desired threshold. Hence, we identify the similarity in the historic records to the set of constraints queried with a desired probability. The time complexity of computing the nearest-neighbor indices to find the maximum similarity can be very large. Our implementation method achieves a linear-time complexity in both searching and scaling the system. When updating with a new record, each parametric combination represented by a sorted list of the records is linearly looked up, and the new record value is inserted to keep the list sorted.
Genome-scale hypomethylation in the cord blood DNAs associated with early onset preeclampsia

Background Preeclampsia is one of the leading causes of fetal and maternal morbidity and mortality worldwide. Preterm babies of mothers with early onset preeclampsia (EOPE) are at higher risks for various diseases later on in life, including cardiovascular diseases. We hypothesized that genome-wide epigenetic alterations occur in cord blood DNAs in association with EOPE and conducted a case control study to compare the genome-scale methylome differences in cord blood DNAs between 12 EOPE-associated and 8 normal births.
Bilingual Spanish/English–Speaking Children's Sentence Reading Comprehension

A number of factors were examined to determine which were associated with 40 bilingual Spanish/English–speaking children's sentence reading comprehension (SRC). In our study, 40 bilingual Spanish/English–speaking children, age ranged from 8.07 to 14.96 years, completed nonword repetition, spoken language, receptive vocabulary, single word reading (SWR), and novel word discrimination tests, with all language and reading tests administered in English. Parents' occupations, the report of the language used in interaction with friends (English vs. Spanish), age, and academic grade were also considered as possible factors for SRC. Our results found that receptive vocabulary and SWR accounted for intact SRC. Findings revealed that 13 of the 40 bilingual children (32.5%) presented with SRC difficulties. However, only 2 of these 13 children were identified with reading difficulties prior to their participation in this study, suggesting that early screening is essential to prevent later literacy difficulties.
Abatement of Aircraft Noise and Related Regulatory Actions

In conformance with the Noise Control Act of 1972, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for promulgation eleven regulations for the control of aircraft noise and is considering several more. The EPA's proposed regulations logically fall into three categories defined by the segment of the aviation community that would be regulated, that is, manufacturers, aircraft operators, and airport operators. Those categories can be interpreted, with some liberties taken to suit the subject (aviation), to represent the source, path, and receiver noise control options which are commonly used in the discipline of acoustics as a technique for subdividing complex noise control problems into managable parts. Also, where noise control capability is highly dependent upon technology, which is always true for source control of aircraft noise, the EPA's proposed regulations are time-phased. That is, the noise requirements are based upon the results of past, present, and future programs of research, development, and demonstration which can be classified in terms of current, available, and future noise control technology. The concepts of abating aircraft noise by exercising the source, path, and receiver noise control options taken together as a system and by time-phased regulations are described. Regulations proposed by the EPA designed to implement those concepts are presented as examples. Specific regulations which are time-phased in terms of current, available, and future noise control technology are examined in more detail and the economic consequences discussed.
Overuse Injuries in High School Athletes

Purpose. To evaluate relationships between seasonal patterns of athletic participation and overuse injuries in high school athletes. Methods. Self-reported survey of sports played and injuries sustained during the preceding 12 months administered anonymously to 9th-12th graders in school. Results. Females suffered more overuse injuries than males. Overuse injuries increased slightly with age and with seasons of sports played per calendar year. Students who played sports all year long had 42% increased risk of overuse injury compared to those who played fewer than 4 seasons. Conclusions. Reducing the number of sport seasons played by high school athletes could decrease their rate of overuse injuries, with the greatest gains potentially achieved by taking at least one season off from sports entirely each calendar year.
Effects of bonding structure on the properties of plasma immersion ion processed diamondlike carbon films

Hydrogenated diamondlike carbon (a-C:H DLC) films were prepared on different substrates by using C{sub 2}H{sub 2}-Ar plasma immersion ion processing (PIIP), and their bonding structure was modified by changing deposition parameters of the chamber pressure and the gas composition. The influence of the bonding structure on the properties of the DLC films was investigated by using ion-beam analysis techniques and Raman, infrared, and ultraviolet/visible spectroscopies and by analyzing the measured properties. The increases in density, hardness, and refractive index were found to correlate with the increase of the sp{sup 3}-bonded structure and the concurrent decrease of both the C-H bonds and the average size of sp{sup 2}-bonded domains in the films. An optimal combination of optical and mechanical properties was highly dependent on the hydrogen status existing in DLC films that can be adjusted by means of modulation of the synthesis parameters. The prepared DLC films exhibited desirable properties, which included a hardness above 28 GPa, a density above 2.3 g cm-3, a refractive index above 1.94, and band gap energies in the range of 1.8-1.85 eV. (c) 2000 Materials Research Society.
Relationship between the synthesis rates and mRNA levels of the α and β cardiac myosin heavy chains in normal and thyrotoxic rabbits

The role of transcription in the expression of cardiac myosin heavy chains (HC’s) α and β has been investigated by comparing the relative synthesis rates and mRNA levels of these proteins in normal and thyrotoxic rabbits. The synthesis rates were determined in vivo from the incorporation of 3H-leucine into each heavy chain after a continuous IV infusion of the labeled amino acid for 1 hour. We show that the synthesis rate of HCα increased 3-fold while that of HCβ was decreased at 1 and 2 days after administration of L-thyroxine. The relative amounts of mRNA were determined by S1 nuclease mapping using cloned cDNA sequences corresponding to the mRNAs of HCα and HCβ. The data show a close correlation between the relative amounts of the mRNAs and the relative synthesis rates for each heavy chain. This is consistent with pretranslational processes playing a major role in regulating the expression of myosin in the ventricles in both the euthyroid and thyrotoxic states.
'Baton Bullying': Understanding Multi-Aggressor Rotation in Anti-Harassment Cases

Schools are increasingly expected to intervene to prevent the sorts of bullying behavior that can interfere with education. If they do so inadequately, as a number of recent cases show, school districts may be held liable under Title IX for their “deliberate indifference” to harassment that effectively prevents the victim from receiving the benefits of public education. In popular imagination, “bullying” usually consists of one aggressor terrorizing one victim, sometimes with the assistance or tacit approval of other students. But least with respect to the many cases of students being targeted because they were, or were perceived to be, gay, this perception is overly narrow. In virtually all of the cases on record over the past dozen or so years, the anti-gay aggression has rotated among differing perpetrators even while the victimized student remained constant. This poses challenges for lawyers seeking to aid students who are harassed in school for being lesbian, gay or bisexual, and may require a new conceptualization of how harassment and violence manifest themselves in school settings.
CONGENITAL HEART BLOCK DUE TO A LESION IN THE CONDUCTION SYSTEM

The cardiac conduction system of an infant with congenital complete heart block was studied at postmortem examination by subserial sections of the interatrial and interventricular septa. A localized area of necrosis in the central fibrous body interrupted the penetrating portion of the bundle of His. The cardiac structure was intact, with no abnormality other than the lesions in the fibrous tissue. The lesion is interpreted as the result of an acquired inflammation late in intrauterine life, with damage localized to the cardiac central fibrous body.
Successful rapid desensitization to temozolomide: A case series.

Clinical Implications Females (%) 8 (57) Desensitization for temozolomide: primary indication Oligodendroglioma (%) 4 (28) Glioblastoma (%) 3 (21) Glioma (%) 2 (14) Oligoastrocytoma (%) 2 (14) Temozolomide is a first-line therapy for primary brain tumors. Cutaneous hypersensitivity reactions are common and may preclude its use. A protocol for rapid oral desensitization is presented that when used in the correct setting may afford valuable therapy.
Proper functions defended

Ruth Millikan's biological view of language and thought depicts language devices as being like biological devices in two related respects: they are members of reproductively established families (henceforth, 'REFs'), and in virtue of being so, they have proper functions. That is, they are produced by being (in some way) copied from previous similar individual devices, and this copying has continued up through the present token because (among other things) previous tokens performed, at least often enough, a particular useful role or roles.1 But a given heart is not produced by being copied, directly, from a previous heart. Instead my heart is produced by a certain segment of my genome, which in its turn was copied from a segment or segments of previous genomes. It is (so Millikan says) these successive genetic segments which in the basic sense belong to a REF and which might be said to be characterized, by virtue of that membership, by a proper function of producing hearts. The hearts themselves could then be said to make up a REF in a derivative sense they compose, that is, a secondorder REF and could be assigned the traditional proper function of pumping blood. But it is just here that Paul Davies charges that Millikan's account of proper functions is open to a fatal objection, one which brings down the entire account of language and thought as well.2 To attribute a proper function to my heart, Davies points out, Millikan must assume that there is a particular segment of my genome which is especially responsible for the development, in me, of this heart, and must assume that this segment belongs in a first-order REE Even if one grants that there is such a segment, Davies argues a claim which it requires some delicacy to defend, he maintains it is simply not credible that that segment belongs in a first order REF For my genes are copied from the genes of two parents, not just one. Hence it is reasonable to suppose that the segment of my genome that is responsible for my having my particular heart is copied, in half its extent,
Prevention and control analysis of β-agonists residues in animal-derived products

Objective To know the situation of β-agonists residues in animal-derived products,and analyze how to prevent and control the residues. Methods Qualitative and quantitative analysis were carried out on clenbuterol,ractopamine,salbutamol,cimaterol and terbutaline in pig urine,hair and liver by GC-MS to find out the usage situation of β-agonists in the products of animal origin. Results Clenbuterol,salbutamol and ractopamine were detected in 215 samples,the positive rate was16. 7%,and the other 2 kinds of β-agonists were not detected. The positive rates of β-agonists in urine,liver and hair were16. 3%,17. 4% and 16. 7%,respectively. Mixed use of clenbuterol,ractopamine and salbutamol in dosage and period were also found in animal-derived products. Conclusion Repeated illegal use of β-agonists in animal-derived products need the well-established veterinary drug residue inspect system to monitor the β-agonists use in livestock to ensure food safety.
It's TIME for a biomarker-driven approach to cancer immunotherapy.

Cancer immunotherapy has clearly taken its place in the clinic as one pillar of cancer care. Immune checkpoint blockade, which unleashes the activity of pre-existing T cells at the tumor site, is transforming cancer treatment. The FDA approval of the cytotoxic T lymphocyte antigen-4 (CTLA-4)
CLINICAL PROBLEM-SOLVING. A Bruising Loss.

A 32-year-old woman presented to her physician with a 3-week history of spontaneous bruising on her arms, legs, and back. The bruising began shortly after she had had sore throat, coryza, and malaise for several days, symptoms that had resolved without intervention.
Use of a homecare electronic health record to find associations between patient characteristics and re-hospitalizations in patients with heart failure using telehealth:

Data from homecare electronic health records were used to explore the association of patient characteristics with re-hospitalizations of patients with heart failure (HF) during a 60-day period of t...
Process Modeling and Simulation

A process model is a mathematical representation of a process in the form of an expression that correctly relates how the various product and process variables can affect the process outcome. Many food processes involve complex biochemical reactions, which are functions of time, temperature, and concentration under conditions of heat and mass transfer that are governed by various process and product conditions. The development of such models requires the expertise of food engineers who have extensive training in engineering science and mathematics in addition to basic food science.
BMI1–UBR5 axis regulates transcriptional repression at damaged chromatin

BMI1 is a component of the Polycomb Repressive Complex 1 (PRC1), which plays a key role in maintaining epigenetic silencing during development. BMI1 also participates in gene silencing during DNA damage response, but the precise downstream function of BMI1 in gene silencing is unclear. Here we identified the UBR5 E3 ligase as a downstream factor of BMI1. We found that UBR5 forms damage-inducible nuclear foci in a manner dependent on the PRC1 components BMI1, RNF1 (RING1a), and RNF2 (RING1b). Whereas transcription is repressed at UV-induced lesions on chromatin, depletion of the PRC1 members or UBR5 alone derepressed transcription elongation at these sites, suggesting that UBR5 functions in a linear pathway with PRC1 in inducing gene silencing at lesions. Mass spectrometry (MS) analysis revealed that UBR5 associates with BMI1 as well as FACT components SPT16 and SSRP1. We found that UBR5 localizes to the UV-induced lesions along with SPT16. We show that UBR5 ubiquitinates SPT16, and depletion of UBR5 or BMI1 leads to an enlargement of SPT16 foci size at UV lesions, suggesting that UBR5 and BMI1 repress SPT16 enrichment at the damaged sites. Consistently, depletion of the FACT components effectively reversed the transcriptional derepression incurred in the UBR5 and BMI1 KO cells. Finally, UBR5 and BMI1 KO cells are hypersensitive to UV, which supports the notion that faulty RNA synthesis at damaged sites is harmful to the cell fitness. Altogether, these results suggest that BMI1 and UBR5 repress the polymerase II (Pol II)-mediated transcription at damaged sites, by negatively regulating the FACT-dependent Pol II elongation.
Can Lay Community Advisors Improve the Clarity of Research Participant Recruitment Materials and Increase the Likelihood of Participation

Despite decades of effort, lower income people and ethnic minorities continue to be underrepresented as participants in health research. A group of racially and ethnically diverse, lower income community members (Community Advisors on Research Design and Strategies: CARDS®) was trained to review study designs and procedures and provide recommendations to researchers for increasing participation and making research materials more understandable to members of underrepresented communities. In this mixed methods study, one participant group (n = 55) was shown research materials (recruitment documents and a consent form) developed by a research team and approved by the local IRB. A second group (n = 45) was shown the same materials after they had also been reviewed and revised by CARDS. Interviews, which included both fixed-response and open-ended questions, were used to assess reactions of participants in both groups to the materials, including their hypothetical willingness to volunteer for the research described. Group differences were examined using the Chi-square distribution test. Proportional difference effect sizes were estimated using arcsine transformation. The qualitative data were subjected to conventional content analysis. Participants in the group shown the recruitment materials revised by CARDS were more likely to say they understood the documents, more likely to ask for more information about the study, and more likely to say they would participate in the research. Results of content analysis suggested a four-phase sequential process for deciding whether to participate in the research. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
A framework for multi-site distributed simulation and application to complex structural systems

In this technical note, the development of a framework for multi-site distributed simulations is presented. The algorithm is suitable for any combination of physical (laboratory) and analytical (computer) distributed simulations of structures, their foundations and the underlying sub-strata subjected to static and dynamic loading. Two examples of multi-site testing and multi-platform simulation are given. The main contribution in this note is the separation between time-step integration and stiffness formulation, which enables the use of static analysis and testing as modules of the main control module referred to as the simulation coordinator. The approach proposed is intuitive, simple and efficient. It is therefore recommended for use in distributed analysis using different programs, distributed testing facilities (e.g. the NEES equipment sites) or a combination of analysis and testing.
Collecting Social Things

How might collections preserve and reflect what is on offer by way of social practice, which includes, among other things, interactive installations, architectural propositions, public actions, community organising, the preparation and serving of food, and even policy reform? Do we collect documentation meant to evoke a past instance of socially created meaning, or something symbolic meant to communicate a poetics of a former work around a particular issue? What is the “object,” so to speak, of social engagement? What is the thing that is being collected, presented, or interpreted exactly? Things associated with social practice are entering major museum collections, at any rate, so how might these collection practices reflect this unwieldy field?
A Web-Based Platform for Distributed Annotation of Computerized Tomography Scans

Computer Aided Diagnosis (CAD) systems are adopting advancements at the forefront of computer vision and machine learning towards assisting medical experts with providing faster diagnoses. The success of CAD systems heavily relies on the availability of high-quality annotated data. Towards supporting the annotation process among teams of medical experts, we present a web-based platform developed for distributed annotation of medical images. We capitalize on the HTML5 canvas to allow for medical experts to quickly perform segmentation of regions of interest. Experimental evaluation of the proposed platform show a significant reduction in the time required to perform the annotation of abdominal computerized tomography images. Furthermore, we evaluate the relationship between the size of the harvested regions and the quality of the annotations. Finally, we present additional functionality of the developed platform for the closer examination of 3D point clouds for kidney cancer.
Mistakes Were Made: Strict Curricular Focus and Student Retention in Academic Libraries

In a world where libraries are searching for ways to justify their very existence, this article provides an argument toward one such justification. The author asserts that, by providing leisure materials to students, the academic library can help to improve rates of student success, thereby bolstering retention. Leisure reading has been shown to reduce stress, which is one of the many causes linked to students dropping out of school. It is also more likely that students will read this type of material if they are within close proximity of a leisure reading collection. Library use is linked with student success and it is possible that leisure reading could draw students to the library and make them feel more comfortable using it. Reading itself is also linked with academic success. This paper examines the cyclical relationship between leisure reading and student retention and argues that such reading materials should be part of a collection that provides holistic support to students and not merely curricular support.
Young Children With Behavior Disorders in Low-Income Families: The Role of Clinic Observations in the Assessment of Parenting

ABSTRACTChildren from low-income families are at elevated risk of meeting diagnostic criteria for behavior disorders. Although mastery-based behavioral parent training (BPT) programs have a robust evidence base for reducing disruptive behaviors of young children, socioeconomically disadvantaged families are more likely to drop out of treatment and, in turn, are less likely to benefit. Therefore, efficient assessment and treatment may be needed. Less research, however, has addressed the value of time-consuming behavioral observations relative to caregiver-report of problem behaviors in the assessment of this at-risk and underserved group. In the current study, 43 low-income parents and their clinic-referred child were observed during a standard mastery-based BPT interaction task (Child’s Game) at baseline. Findings revealed that parents were observed to display an extremely high proportion of maladaptive behaviors targeted for reduction by subsequent treatment (Instructions plus Questions) relative to beha...
Exploring functional clinical attributes for macular dystrophy detection

Macular Dystrophy is a rare, genetic eye disorder, which affects the retina. For example, Stargardt Disease (STGD) is a juvenile form of retina dystrophy that can result in loss of central vision, adversely affecting patients' daily activities. Often to catch the onset of eye diseases, such as STGD, or to track the disease progression, patients can do eye test evaluations at home via smartphone/tablet application. It would be extremely useful for people prone to eye diseases if the test evaluations came with an application such that it acted as an automatic home prediction system to alert users of a developing eye condition.Hence, in this paper, we explore the discriminatory power of five medical attributes that are used to study eye diseases, which are similar to STGD. Using these attributes, we want to examine how to differentiate between eyes that are affected with STGD (diseased) and those that are not. Our main aim is to find the attribute set that is most suitable for the automatic home prediction system. Experiments are also done to identify a suitable classification method for the application. The results we found are interesting and promising.
A Low-Cost Comparator-Based Method for Accurate Decomposition of Deterministic Jitter in High-Speed Links

Jitter decomposition is a key tool to identify root causes of jitters in a high-speed digital communication system. It is a huge challenge in balancing the test cost and precision for conventional decomposition methods implemented in instruments where the time interval error (TIE) data are necessary. In this paper, we propose a deterministic jitter decomposition method using Boolean output from a network of simple low-cost comparators to identify the deviation of current sampling position from the ideal sampling position instead of TIE data. The new method simultaneously separates intersymbol interference (ISI), periodic jitter (PJ), and duty cycle distortion (DCD). Simulation and measurement results demonstrate that the proposed method can estimate the ISI, PJ, and DCD with sufficient accuracy using significantly fewer data samples than the state-of-the-art instrument test, and thus, reduce test cost greatly. Furthermore, the comparators have extremely relaxed design requirements, offering potential for possible on-chip implementation for built-in self-test or background test.
Current utilization and procedural practices in pediatric whole-body MRI.

Whole-body magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is an evolving and increasingly powerful imaging tool with a variety of applications in the pediatric patient population. Variability exists among radiology practices in how this MRI tool is used and how it is performed. Our objective was to gain an improved understanding of technical and utilization practices in pediatric whole-body MRI across North America by exploring indications for exam performance, determining referral patterns, and assessing technical protocols and procedures. A 19-question survey was generated in Survey Monkey and distributed in 2016 to the Society for Pediatric Radiology membership. The survey asked questions that included practice type, imaging modality preferences for diseases commonly evaluated with whole-body MRI, MRI field strength and sequence selection, and billing practices. Data were obtained from 62 unique responses to the survey, representing 471 physicians. The majority (93%) practice in an academic institution or private practice with academic affiliation and most practices have utilized whole-body MRI for less than 6 years. Whole-body MRI is performed in pediatric patients 0 to 18 years of age, and was the preferred imaging modality for diagnosis/staging/follow-up in neurofibromatosis, type 1 (75%), chronic recurrent multifocal osteomyelitis (CRMO) (74%), cancer predisposition syndromes (75%), vasculopathies (50%) and disseminated/multifocal infection (49%). The most commonly utilized sequences are coronal short tau inversion recovery (STIR) (90%), coronal T1 with or without fat saturation (65%), and axial diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) (48%). No preference was shown for either 1.5-T or 3-T systems. Wide variability was seen in preference for billing code utilization, though the majority use chest/abdomen/pelvis (57%) or unlisted MRI (37%) codes. Radiology practitioners – represented by the Society for Pediatric Radiology pediatric radiologists – are using whole-body MRI in the imaging care of pediatric patients for a variety of indications. Survey results reveal some variability in exam utilization and technical performance practices among those pediatric radiologists who perform whole-body MRI.
Expression of Hox Genes in the Nervous System of Vertebrates

The vertebrate nervous system is a major site of Hox gene expression and function. Studies on the patterns of expression, regulation and function of the vertebrate Hox gene family have played a key role in aiding our understanding of the basic ground plan of the CNS and processes that control how unique regional character is established and maintained in this complex organ system. This chapter will document the nature of the ordered patterns of Hox expression and link them with their regulation and functional roles in the nervous system.
Alternative Perspectives on Bank Behavior

What is a bank, exactly? All observers agree that a bank is unambiguously one among several types of financial intermediary . Such an intermediary is an institution that acts as a middleman in channeling funds from savers to entrepreneurs or other businesspeople who make capital investments or to individuals or families who purchase durable goods or tangible assets such as houses or condominiums. Savers who lend funds to financial intermediaries such as banks otherwise could have chosen to engage in direct finance by lending their funds to businesses or households without utilizing the intermediaries’ services. Instead, customers of banks opt to engage in indirect finance by lending their funds to banks and other financial intermediaries in exchange for promised flows of returns on those funds. Banks and other intermediaries aim to profit from revenues derived from lending net of costs they incur by engaging in financial intermediation.