cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy of a premixed ethylene–air flame in a dual-mode scramjet

Abstract As part of a broader effort to provide detailed measurements of turbulent flames in dual-mode scramjets, promote a deeper understanding of the relevant combustion physics, and aid appropriate computational model development, a high-subsonic cavity-stabilized premixed ethylene–air flame (typical of ramjet operation) is studied using coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy. This technique provides simultaneous measurements of temperature, separate O 2 temperature, and mole fraction of N 2 , O 2 , CO, CO 2 , and C 2 H 4 . The experiments reveal a highly unsteady turbulent flame, approximately two-dimensional in the mean, which propagates downstream from the cavity and towards the observation wall. Measurements in the flame region reveal a flow that is largely divided into reactants (freestream fluid) and (nearly) equilibrium products, separated by flames that cannot be resolved by the CARS measurement volume, which is about 1 mm long. Mean and standard deviation of the resolved fluctuations of the temperature and mole fractions of species are quantified. The peak standard deviation in each profile across the flame occurs where the mean gradient is steepest, and is about 37% the difference between reactants (freestream) and products conditions. Several cases were investigated including limiting combustion cases near the lean fuel and low air temperature blowouts; in all cases the flame propagation angles are the same and distributions of suitably normalized mean and fluctuation parameters are similar at all locations and for all cases.
The Editor's Corner

(1978). The Editor's Corner. The Journal of the American Forensic Association: Vol. 14, No. 4, pp. 234-239.
Effects of non-individual head-related transfer functions and visual mismatch on speech recognition in virtual acoustic environments

There is widespread research and clinical interest in quantifying how the acoustics of real-world environments, such as background noise and reverberation, impede a listener’s ability to recognize speech. Conventional methods used to quantify these effects include dichotic listening via headphones in sound-attenuated booths or loudspeakers in anechoic or low-reverberant environments, which lack the capability of manipulating room acoustics. Using a state-of-the-art Variable Room Acoustics System housed in a virtual sound room (ViSoR), this study aims to systematically assess the effects of non-individual head-related transfer functions (HRTFs) and mismatched visual perception on speech recognition in virtual acoustic environments. Young adults listened to and repeated sentences presented amidst a co-located two-talker speech competitor with reverberation times ranging from 0.4 to 1.25 s. Sentences were presented in three listening conditions: through a loudspeaker array in ViSoR with the participants’ own HRTFs (Condition 1); via headphones in a sound-attenuated booth with non-individual HRTFs (Condition 2); and using the same binaural reproduction as Condition 2 in ViSoR (Condition 3). Condition 3 serves as a control condition, allowing us to quantify the separate effects of non-individual HRTFs and visual mismatch on speech recognition. Discussion will address the validity and use of virtual acoustics in research and clinical settings.
Pyruvate carboxylase in genetic obesity

Immunoblotting and protein microsequencing were used to identify several adipocyte proteins expressed in an obesity-related fashion in the Zucker rat. One of these was a 116-kDa particulate protein...
Quantifying the Sequential Structure of Psychotic Behavior

In its simplest form, a random reinforcement, choice task experiment is one in which the subject makes choices in an attempt to guess the outcome of a random number generator. The subject does not know that the pattern is random and will try to construct different strategies to increase the frequency of correct guesses. Differences in the pattern of choices are observed when clinical populations are compared against healthy controls. Additionally, the choice sequences of animals obtained before and after the administration of drugs can show marked differences. This contribution identifies mathematical methods from symbolic dynamics that can be used to provide a quantitative characterization of the sequential structure of behavior.
Adapting physical carrier sensing to maximize spatial reuse in 802.11 mesh networks: Research Articles

Spatial reuse in a mesh network can allow multiple communications to proceed simultaneously, hence proportionally improve the overall network throughput. To maximize spatial reuse, the MAC protocol must enable simultaneous transmitters to maintain the minimal separation distance that is sufficient to avoid interference. This paper demonstrates that physical carrier sensing enhanced with a tunable sensing threshold is effective at avoiding interference in 802.11 mesh networks without requiring the use of virtual carrier sensing. We present an analytical model for deriving the optimal sensing threshold given network topology, reception power and data rate. A distributed adaptive scheme is also presented to dynamically adjust the physical carrier sensing threshold based on periodic estimation of channel conditions in the network. Simulation results are shown for large-scale 802.11b and 802.11a networks to validate both the analytical model and the adaptation scheme. It is demonstrated that the enhanced physical carrier sensing mechanism effectively improves network throughput by maximizing the potential of spatial reuse. With dynamically tuned physical carrier sensing, the end to end throughput approaches 90p of the predicted theoretical upper-bound assuming a perfect MAC protocol, for a regular chain topology of 90 nodes. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Predominant Contribution of Superior Rectus-Levator Complex Enlargement to Optic Neuropathy and Inferior Visual Field Defects in Thyroid Eye Disease.

Purpose To compare extraocular muscle volumes in thyroid eye disease patients with and without compressive optic neuropathy. Methods A retrospective review of 44 orbital CT scans (28 orbits without compressive disease and 16 orbits with compressive optic neuropathy) was conducted. The extraocular muscle volumes, summated soft tissue volumes, and optic nerve volumes were calculated at a section in the posterior 1/3 of the orbit. The visual fields of the orbits with compressive optic neuropathy were analyzed. Results The mean combined extraocular muscle/summated soft tissue volume ratio and the mean superior rectus-levator complex/summated soft tissue volume ratio were greater in those with compressive optic neuropathy than in those without compressive optic neuropathy (p = 0.02, 0.008, respectively). The ratio of the mean inferior, medial, or lateral rectus/summated soft tissue volume did not differ significantly between patients with or without compressive optic neuropathy (p values of 0.315, 0.615, and 0.254, respectively). Visual field analysis of the compressive optic neuropathy group demonstrated that 58% of the orbits with visual field defects had inferior field defects. Conclusions When measured at a section near the orbital apex, the mean combined muscle/summated soft tissue volume ratio and the mean superior rectus-levator complex/summated soft tissue volume ratio are greater in those with compressive disease than those without. This suggests that the specific enlargement of the superior rectus-levator complex makes a significant contribution to thyroid eye disease-compressive optic neuropathy and may explain the inferior visual field deficits classically found in this group of patients.
Redox Chemistry of Bis(oxazolinyl)cyclopentadienyl and -fluorenyl Rhodium and Iridium Organometallic Compounds

Rhodium and iridium compounds supported by 1-cyclopentadienyl-1,1-bis(4,4-dimethyl-2-oxazolinyl)ethane (MeC(OxMe2)2(C5H4); BoMCp) form the 18-electron piano-stool compounds {BoMCp}ML2 (L = C2H4, C8...
A Xenopus tadpole alternative model to study innate-like T cell-mediated anti-mycobacterial immunity.

Abstract Owing to the high incidence of multi-drug resistance and challenges posed by the complex and long duration of treatments, Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) infections remain a significant clinical burden, which would benefit from development of novel immuno-therapeutic-based treatment strategies. Among early immune effectors, invariant or innate-like (i)T cells are attracting attention because of their potential regulatory activity, which can shape anti-mycobacterial immune responses. Unlike conventional T cells, iT cells express a semi-invariant T cell receptor, and respond rapidly and robustly to molecular patterns presented by MHC class I-like molecules. To date, functional studies of iT cells in vivo has been problematic and the role of iT cells in anti-Mtb responses remains unclear. Here, after reviewing the recent literature on anti-mycobacterial iT cell immunity, we describe a novel alternative model system in the amphibian Xenopus laevis tadpoles during infection with Mycobacterium marinum (Mm). X. laevis tadpoles rely mostly on a few distinct prominent innate-like (i)T cell subsets, whose development and function are governed by distinct MHC class I-like molecules. Thus, X. laevis tadpoles provide a convenient and cost-effective in vivo model uniquely suited to investigate the roles of iT cells during mycobacterial infections. We have developed reverse genetics and MHC tetramer technology to characterize this MHC-like/iT system in tadpoles. Our study in X. laevis provides evidence of a conserved convergent function of iT cells in host defenses against mycobacteria between mammals and amphibians.
Prevention and Treatment of Opioid Misuse and Addiction: A Review.

Importance More than 42 000 Americans died of opioid overdoses in 2016, and the fatalities continue to increase. This review analyzes the factors that triggered the opioid crisis and its further evolution, along with the interventions to manage and prevent opioid use disorder (OUD), which are fundamental for curtailing the opioid crisis. Observations Opioid drugs are among the most powerful analgesics but also among the most addictive. The current opioid crisis, initially triggered by overprescription of opioid analgesics, which facilitated their diversion and misuse, has now expanded to heroin and illicit synthetic opioids (fentanyl and its analogues), the potency of which further increases their addictiveness and lethality. Although there are effective medications to treat OUD (methadone hydrochloride, buprenorphine, and naltrexone hydrochloride), these medications are underused, and the risk of relapse is still high. Strategies to expand medication use and treatment retention include greater involvement of health care professionals (including psychiatrists) and approaches to address comorbidities. In particular, the high prevalence of depression and suicidality among patients with OUD, if untreated, contributes to relapse and increases the risk of overdose fatalities. Prevention interventions include screening and early detection of psychiatric disorders, which increase the risk of substance use disorders, including OUD. Conclusions and Relevance Although overprescription of opioid medications triggered the opioid crisis, improving opioid prescription practices for pain management, although important for addressing the opioid crisis, is no longer sufficient. In parallel, strategies to expand access to medication for OUD and improve treatment retention, including a more active involvement of psychiatrists who are optimally trained to address psychiatric comorbidities, are fundamental to preventing fatalities and achieving recovery. Research into new treatments for OUD, models of care for OUD management that include health care, and interventions to prevent OUD may further help resolve the opioid crisis and prevent it from happening again.
‘It was networking, all networking’: the Irish republican movement's survival in Cold War America

This article examines the Irish Republican movement's public fundraising arm on US soil, the Irish Northern Aid Committee (Noraid), which operated as a legal organisation during Northern Ireland's ...
Normalized field autocorrelation function-based optical coherence tomography 3D angiography

Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) has been widely used for en face visualization of vasculatures but challenged for real 3D topologic imaging due to the ‘tail’ artifacts that appear below large vessel because of multiple scattered light within the vessel. We introduce a normalized field autocorrelation function-based OCTA (𝒈𝟏-OCTA) which minimizes the projection artifacts and is capable of 3D topologic vasculature imaging. 𝒈𝟏(τ) is calculated from repeated OCT acquisitions for each spatial location. The largest decay of 𝒈𝟏(τ) is retrieved to represent the dynamics for each voxel. To account for the small 𝒈𝟏(τ) decay in capillaries where red blood cells (RBCs) are flowing slowly and discontinuously, Intralipid is injected to enhance the OCT signal. With the Intralipid-enhanced signal and shorter decorrelation time processing, we demonstrate that the proposed technique realized 3D OCTA with high signal-to-noise ratio and a negligible ‘tail’ projection. In addition, compared to regular OCTA, the proposed 𝒈𝟏-OCTA doubles the imaging depth. By reducing ‘tail’ artifacts, this technique provides a more accurate rendering of the vascular anatomy for more quantitative characterization of the vascular networks.
Walking as an Opportunity for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention.

Introduction Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in the United States, and increasing physical activity can help prevent and manage disease. Walking is an easy way for most adults to be more active and may help people at risk for CVD avoid inactivity, increase their physical activity levels, and improve their cardiovascular health. To guide efforts that promote walking for CVD prevention and management, we estimated the prevalence of walking among US adults by CVD risk status. Methods Nationally representative data on walking from participants (N = 29,742) in the 2015 National Health Interview Survey Cancer Control Supplement were analyzed. We estimated prevalence of walking (ie, any, transportation, and leisure) overall and by CVD status. We defined CVD status as either not having CVD and not at risk for CVD; being at risk for CVD (overweight or having obesity plus 1 or more additional risk factors); or having CVD. We defined additional risk factors as diabetes, high cholesterol, or hypertension. Odds ratios were estimated by using logistic regression models adjusted for respondent characteristics. Results Prevalence of any walking decreased with increasing CVD risk (no CVD/not at risk, 66.6%; at risk: overweight or has obesity with 1 risk factor, 63.0%; with 2 risk factors, 59.5%; with 3 risk factors, 53.6%; has CVD, 50.2%). After adjusting for respondent characteristics, the odds of any walking and leisure walking decreased with increasing CVD risk. However, CVD risk was not associated with walking for transportation. Conclusions Promoting walking may be a way to help adults avoid inactivity and encourage an active lifestyle for CVD prevention and management.
AirDraw: Leveraging smart watch motion sensors for mobile human computer interactions

Wearable computing is one of the fastest growing technology markets today, with smart watches poised to take over at least of half the wearable device market. Approaches to text entry on smart watches and other wrist worn systems, independent of the small screen, is of importance to the further growth of wearable systems. The consistent user interaction and hands-free, heads-up operation of smart watches paves the way for gesture recognition methods for text entry. This paper proposes a new text input method for smart watches, which utilizes motion sensor data and machine learning approaches to detect letters written in the air by a user. This method is less computationally intensive, less expensive, and unaffected by lighting factors, when compared to computer vision approaches. The AirDraw system prototype developed to test this approach is presented, along with experimental results with close to 71% accuracy in letter recognition.
Live streaming and the perils of proximity

This essay aims to disturb the popular (and sometimes critical) claim that the primary utility of live streaming’s particular set of affordances is the collapsing of distance and creation of proxim...
Targeting CD4+ Cells with Anti-CD4 Conjugated Mertansine-Loaded Nanogels

CD4+ T lymphocytes play an important role in controlling many malignancies. The modulation of CD4+ T cells through immunomodulatory or cytotoxic drugs could change the course of disease progression for disorders such as autoimmunity, immunodeficiency, and cancer. Here, we demonstrate that anti-CD4 conjugated polymeric nanogels can deliver a small molecule cargo to primary CD4+ T cells and a CD4high T cell lymphoma. The antibody conjugation not only increased the uptake efficiency of the nanogel (NG) by CD4+ T cells but also decreased the non-specific uptake of the NG by CD4- lymphocytes. For T lymphoma cell lines, the mertansine-loaded conjugate displayed a dose-dependent cell growth inhibition at 17 ng/mL antibody concentration. On the other hand, antibody-drug conjugate (ADC)-type formulation of the anti-CD4 reached similar levels of cell growth inhibition only at the significantly higher concentration of 1.8 μg/mL. NG and antibody conjugates have the advantage of carrying a large payload to a defined target in a more efficient manner as it needs far less antibody to achieve a similar outcome.
Chapter 17 – Cytokines

Cytokines are small proteins secreted by cells of both innate and adaptive immune systems and can regulate diverse functions in the immune response. Dysregulation of cytokine secretion and their consequent signaling networks is an important component of the pathogenesis of autoimmune disease. In systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a number of cytokines are aberrantly expressed and through their effects on immune cells contribute to autoimmunity, facilitate abnormal cellular and humoral responses, and also directly mediate tissue pathology and damage. A key feature of lupus is the presence of autoantibodies, and therefore T-cell-driven activation of B cells is a central aspect of lupus pathogenesis. Therefore, cytokines that promote the aberrant activation and function of T and B cells and their interactions are crucial drivers of disease.
Role of multidimensional assessment in refractory asthma of children

Refractory asthma is an inevitable clinical difficulty that is often faced by pediatricians in the promotion of standardized diagnosis and treatment of asthma.In this paper, the important role of multidimensional assessment (MDA) in the diagnosis of refractory asthma is emphasized, and the method of MDA is described in detail at first.Then foreign and domestic research on the internal mechanism of truly refractory asthma in recent years is syste-matically reviewed, which shows the progress of research on the internal phenotypes, biomarkers and targeted treatment of refractory asthma to the readers, with a view to developing the pediatricians′ ideas and further improving the diagnosis and treatment level of asthma by taking precision medical treatment as the goal. Key words: Child; Asthma; Refractory asthma; Assessment; Treatment
Zearalenone (ZEN) in Livestock and Poultry: Dose, Toxicokinetics, Toxicity and Estrogenicity

One of the concerns when using grain ingredients in feed formulation for livestock and poultry diets is mycotoxin contamination. Aflatoxin, fumonisin, ochratoxin, trichothecene (deoxynivalenol, T-2 and HT-2) and zearalenone (ZEN) are mycotoxins that have been frequently reported in animal feed. ZEN, which has raised additional concern due to its estrogenic response in animals, is mainly produced by Fusarium graminearum (F. graminearum), F. culmorum, F. cerealis, F. equiseti, F. crookwellense and F. semitectums, and often co-occurs with deoxynivalenol in grains. The commonly elaborated derivatives of ZEN are α-zearalenol, β-zearalenol, zearalanone, α-zearalanol, and β-zearalanol. Other modified and masked forms of ZEN (including the extractable conjugated and non-extractable bound derivatives of ZEN) have also been quantified. In this review, common dose of ZEN in animal feed was summarized. The absorption rate, distribution (“carry-over”), major metabolites, toxicity and estrogenicity of ZEN related to poultry, swine and ruminants are discussed.
FPGA-Based Gesture Recognition with Capacitive Sensor Array using Recurrent Neural Networks

This work presents a prototype of an FPGA-based hand motion recognition system using a capacitive sensor array (CSA). The prototype system is being developed as a tool to evaluate upper-limb motor skills for assistive or rehabilitative applications. A light-weight gesture segmentation algorithm was developed that uses summation and moving average filtering of quantized capacitive sensing data to segment motions. The time-series hand motions are then recognized through a recurrent classifier based on long short-term memory (LSTM) neural networks. The classifier model is trained on uni-stroke hand written digit ('0'–'9') samples obtained from four volunteers. A total of 12,000 hand motion samples are collected. The accuracy of 10-fold and leave-one-user-out cross-validation accuracy is respectively 97.5% and 91.3% using a two-layer LSTM network. The LSTM classifier is implemented on a Zynq FPGA device. The experiment demonstrated that the FPGA implementation of the LSTM-based classifier can achieve real-time gesture classification with capacitive sensor data.
Living conditions and health care usage of Haitian families in the Dominican Republic: A comparison of urban and rural/peri-urban households.

Previous research has drawn attention to the health risks and poor living conditions that families of Haitian descent contend with in the Dominican Republic, particularly in rural, agricultural com...
Decision Outcomes in Sport: Influence of Type and Level of Stress.

In two experiments, the authors investigated the influence of stress type (i.e., low/no stress, mental, and physical), level (i.e., low, moderate, and high), and Type × Level interaction on intuitive decision frequency, decision quality, and decision speed. Participants were exposed to mental (i.e., color word task, mental arithmetic) and/or physical stress (i.e., running) and then required to make decisions regarding videotaped offensive situations in basketball. Intuitive decision frequency, decision quality, and decision speed were measured for each trial. Study 1 used a between-subjects design whereby 20 participants were randomly assigned to each of the five stress conditions. Results revealed that moderate stress was associated with faster decisions. Study 2 replicated the design and aim of Study 1 using a within-subject methodology (n = 42). Results suggested that moderate stress levels produced better, faster decisions. In conclusion, moderate levels of stress were associated with the most desirable decision outcomes.
Old-Fashioned Modernism: Rural Masculinity and Midwestern Literature

Review of: Old-Fashioned Modernism: Rural Masculinity and Midwestern Literature, by Andy Oler
Staffing the Higher Education Classroom

We discuss some centrally important decisions faced by colleges and universities regarding how to staff their undergraduate classrooms. We describe the multitasking problem faced by research-intensive institutions and explore the degree to which there may be a trade-off between research and teaching excellence using matched student-faculty-level data from Northwestern University. We present two alternative measures of teaching effectivenessâ€”one capturing â€œdeep learningâ€ and one capturing â€œinspirationâ€ â€”and demonstrate that neither is correlated with measures of research success. We discuss the move toward contingent faculty in US universities and show that on average, contingent faculty outperform tenure-line faculty in the introductory classroom, a pattern driven by the lowest-performing instructors according to our measures. We also present some of the ways in which instructor gender, race, and ethnicity might matter. Together, these pieces of evidence show that several institutional objectives associated with staffing undergraduate classrooms may be in tension with one another.
Ok Google, What Am I Doing?: Acoustic Activity Recognition Bounded by Conversational Assistant Interactions

Conversational assistants in the form of stand-alone devices such as Amazon Echo and Google Home have become popular and embraced by millions of people. By serving as a natural interface to services ranging from home automation to media players, conversational assistants help people perform many tasks with ease, such as setting timers, playing music and managing to-do lists. While these systems offer useful capabilities, they are largely passive and unaware of the human behavioral context in which they are used. In this work, we explore how off-the-shelf conversational assistants can be enhanced with acoustic-based human activity recognition by leveraging the short interval after a voice command is given to the device. Since always-on audio recording can pose privacy concerns, our method is unique in that it does not require capturing and analyzing any audio other than the speech-based interactions between people and their conversational assistants. In particular, we leverage background environmental sounds present in these short duration voice-based interactions to recognize activities of daily living. We conducted a study with 14 participants in 3 different locations in their own homes. We showed that our method can recognize 19 different activities of daily living with average precision of 84.85% and average recall of 85.67% in a leave-one-participant-out performance evaluation with 30-second audio clips bound by the voice interactions.
Awareness, Knowledge, and Misperceptions Related to Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in a Community Sample of Mexican-Origin Women: A Mixed Methods Study.

Introduction: Mexican-origin women suffer disproportionate rates of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and research on how to tailor NAFLD treatment interventions for this population is lacking. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess awareness, knowledge, perceptions, and information sources related to NAFLD in a community-based sample of Mexican-origin women. Methods: This study employed a convergent parallel mixed-methods approach and consisted of a brief questionnaire (n = 194) and interviews (n = 26) among Mexican-origin women recruited from community-based settings including health fairs, churches, and community events. Participants were eligible if they identified as Mexican-origin, had a BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2, were 18–64 years of age, had the ability to speak, read, and write in English and/or Spanish, and provided informed consent. A purposeful sampling approach was used to recruit a subset of women (n = 26) with confirmed liver steatosis indicative of NAFLD (controlled attenuation parameter ≥280 dB/m) who completed the questionnaire. The twenty-six participants then completed one on one, in-depth semi-structured interviews to ascertain their knowledge and understanding of NAFLD. Results: Qualitative findings revealed low awareness of risk factors for liver disease, NAFLD specifically. Knowledge of liver disease tended to center around cirrhosis, a condition many participants reported was prevalent in their families. Quantitative and qualitative findings both found information sources for NAFLD and liver disease to be predominantly friends, family, and media. Interviews revealed a misperception related to NAFLD risk that liver disease was only caused by high alcohol intake. Conclusion: Low levels of NAFLD awareness and knowledge warrant the need for greater efforts to educate the general population, perhaps by integrating NAFLD education into existing type 2 diabetes educational campaigns and prevention interventions. Additionally, further elicitation research conducted in Mexican-origin adults is needed to elucidate key factors within behavioral-theory constructs that can be targeted in future interventions tailored to this unique population.
Captive Common Marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) Are Colonized throughout Their Lives by a Community of Bifidobacterium Species with Species-Specific Genomic Content That Can Support Adaptation to Distinct Metabolic Niches.

The common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) is an omnivorous New World primate whose diet in the wild includes large amounts of fruit, seeds, flowers, and a variety of lizards and invertebrates. Marmosets also feed heavily on tree gums and exudates, and they have evolved unique morphological and anatomical characteristics to facilitate gum feeding (gummivory). In this study, we characterized the fecal microbiomes of adult and infant animals from a captive population of common marmosets at the Callitrichid Research Center at the University of Nebraska at Omaha under their normal dietary and environmental conditions. The microbiomes of adult animals were dominated by species of Bifidobacterium, Bacteroides, Prevotella, Phascolarctobacterium, Megamonas, and Megasphaera. Culturing and genomic analysis of the Bifidobacterium populations from adult animals identified four known marmoset-associated species (B. reuteri, B. aesculapii, B. myosotis, and B. hapali) and three unclassified taxa of Bifidobacterium that are phylogenetically distinct. Species-specific quantitative PCR (qPCR) confirmed that these same species of Bifidobacterium are abundant members of the microbiome throughout the lives of the animals. Genomic loci in each Bifidobacterium species encode enzymes to support growth and major marmoset milk oligosaccharides during breastfeeding; however, metabolic islands that can support growth on complex polysaccharide substrates in the diets of captive adults (pectin, xyloglucan, and xylan), including loci in B. aesculapii that can support its unique ability to grow on arabinogalactan-rich tree gums, were species-specific. IMPORTANCE Bifidobacterium species are recognized as important, beneficial microbes in the human gut microbiome, and their ability colonize individuals at different stages of life is influenced by host, dietary, environmental, and ecological factors, which is poorly understood. The common marmoset is an emerging nonhuman primate model with a short maturation period, making this model amenable to study the microbiome throughout a life history. Features of the microbiome in captive marmosets are also shared with human gut microbiomes, including abundant populations of Bifidobacterium species. Our studies show that several species of Bifidobacterium are dominant members of the captive marmoset microbiome throughout their life history. Metabolic capacities in genomes of the marmoset Bifidobacterium species suggest species-specific adaptations to different components of the captive marmoset diet, including the unique capacity in B. aesculapii for degradation of gum arabic, suggesting that regular dietary exposure in captivity may be important for preserving gum-degrading species in the microbiome.
Same Day Discharge Versus Overnight Observation Protocols - Similar Outcomes Following Artificial Urinary Sphincter Surgery.

ABSTRACT Objectives To analyze our institutional experience transitioning from overnight observation (OBS) to same day surgery (SDS) for artificial urinary sphincter (AUS) procedures. Prior research has questioned the need for OBS following AUS surgery. Methods We retrospectively reviewed AUS surgeries performed by a single surgeon at our tertiary academic medical center between 08/2013 and 01/2020. Patients were grouped based on discharge status: OBS vs SDS. Cost savings associated with SDS were estimated using room and bed charges from a contemporary group of AUS patients. Results We identified 525 AUS cases that met inclusion criteria. Men in the SDS group (n = 318) were more likely to have undergone a virgin AUS insertion and were slightly younger and healthier. Men in the OBS group (n = 207) were more likely to suffer an immediate postoperative complication (1% vs 0%, P Conclusion SDS for AUS insertion is safe, effective, and associated with significant cost savings. Routine overnight observation after AUS insertion appears to be unnecessary.
Lightning Protection Performance of Long Span Section in ±1100kV UHVDC Transmission Line

According to the operation statistics of HVDC transmission lines in China, the blocking accidents caused by lightning strike on single and double poles of HVDC transmission lines occur from time to time. Lightning accidents have always been in the first place of all kinds of faults, and lightning damage has become a huge hidden danger affecting the safe operation of UHVDC transmission equipment. Lightning protection must be paid enough attention to in line construction and operation and maintenance work. For long span high tower of ± 1100kV UHVDC transmission line, due to its high tower height, long span, high lightning probability, and lightning accident is not easy to repair, its lightning protection performance is one of the key issues of transmission line lightning protection. Scientific evaluation of lightning protection characteristics of ± 1100kV UHVDC transmission line in long span section and improving the effectiveness of lightning protection design of transmission line have become the research hotspot and difficulty to be solved. In this paper, the lightning withstand performance of long span section in ± 1100kV UHVDC transmission line is studied, and the calculation method of lightning withstand performance of ± 1100kV long span section is proposed. The shielding failure flashover rate, strike back flashover rate and lightning withstand level of strike back are obtained. Because the span tower adopts the protection angle of -5.9° and the tower head gap is controlled by the working voltage gap, the actual gap of lightning flashover is larger, and the shielding lightning protection performance is better. The mean time between shielding failures of ± 1100kV UHVDC Yangtze River long span is greater than 64 years. The strike back lightning withstand level of each tower is above 260kA. The strike back lightning withstand level of each tower of ± 1100kV Yangtze River span is relatively high, and the average time without fault is long. The mean time between lightning stroke fault of ±1100kV UHVDC Yangtze River long span section is 52 years, equivalent to lightning flashover rate is 0.656 times/(100km•a), which is larger than the index of mean time between lightning stroke fault of 50 years. The tower design of ±1100kV UHVDC Yangtze River long span section meets the requirements of lightning protection.
Epigenetics of bipolar disorder

Abstract Bipolar disorder (BD) is a complex and potentially severe psychiatric disorder associated with high heritability estimates and a multifactorial polygenic genetic basis. Although the latest genome-wide association studies have successfully suggested many common genetic variants to be involved with BD, its genetic basis remains only partly explained and does not fully incorporate relevant information regarding ‘gene by environment’ interactions thought to play a key role in this disorder. In this chapter, we review and discuss evidence of epigenetic alterations in patients with BD, focusing on alterations reported in both central and peripheral tissues involving changes to DNA, histone proteins, and the regulatory role of non-coding RNAs. As discussed in details, these mechanisms are not only thought to underlie important pathophysiological features of disease, but also to play important roles in the mechanisms of action of mood stabilizers and antipsychotic medications.
Cellular Size, Gap Junctions, and Sodium Channel Properties Govern Developmental Changes in Cardiac Conduction.

Electrical conduction in cardiac ventricular tissue is regulated via sodium (Na+) channels and gap junctions (GJs). We and others have recently shown that Na+ channels preferentially localize at the site of cell-cell junctions, the intercalated disc (ID), in adult cardiac tissue, facilitating coupling via the formation of intercellular Na+ nanodomains, also termed ephaptic coupling (EpC). Several properties governing EpC vary with age, including Na+ channel and GJ expression and distribution and cell size. Prior work has shown that neonatal cardiomyocytes have immature IDs with Na+ channels and GJs diffusively distributed throughout the sarcolemma, while adult cells have mature IDs with preferentially localized Na+ channels and GJs. In this study, we perform an in silico investigation of key age-dependent properties to determine developmental regulation of cardiac conduction. Simulations predict that conduction velocity (CV) biphasically depends on cell size, depending on the strength of GJ coupling. Total cell Na+ channel conductance is predictive of CV in cardiac tissue with high GJ coupling, but not correlated with CV for low GJ coupling. We find that ephaptic effects are greatest for larger cells with low GJ coupling typically associated with intermediate developmental stages. Finally, simulations illustrate how variability in cellular properties during different developmental stages can result in a range of possible CV values, with a narrow range for both neonatal and adult myocardium but a much wider range for an intermediate developmental stage. Thus, we find that developmental changes predict associated changes in cardiac conduction.
INFLUENCES OF KNOWLEDGE ON BEHAVIOR IN AUTOMOBILES

Behaviors are generally a function of desired effects and knowledge about means of producing those effects. In using automobiles for the general activity of transportation, individuals may also have an implicit concern with maintaining their safety and their passengers' safety. This study involved self-reported practices and knowledge of procedures important for maximizing the safe use of automobiles. Subjects described their behaviors and evaluated some warnings used to provide safety information. They were also asked to indicate how relevant they thought the information in the warnings would be for them. Responses indicated support for previous findings that warnings employing standard procedures were more likely to be effective but also suggested many individuals were unaware of some existing warnings, as well as other sorts of safety information. Results are discussed in terms of the need for improving safety information, including warnings.
A literature review on community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in the United States: clinical information for primary care nurse practitioners.

Purpose: To analyze the state of the science of community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) in the United States to support the integration of current knowledge for primary care nurse practitioners’ (PCNP) practice. Data sources: Published research limited to U.S. studies in MEDLINE, CINAHL, and Cochrane Review from 1950 to the week of September 4, 2008. Investigations were identified through electronic search engines and databases. Manual searches were done of hard copy references in journal articles. Citations and reference lists for English language research studies of CA-MRSA in the United States were reviewed to identify additional research that fit evaluation criteria for this analysis. Conclusions: Until the late 1990s, healthcare-associated MRSA (HA-MRSA) was the predominant cause of serious infections. Recently, CA-MRSA has caused infections in previously healthy nonhospitalized people. Major demographic and epidemiological differences exist between the two types of resistant bacteria; the emergence of CA-MRSA suggests new implications for primary care. Implications for practice: PCNPs will undoubtedly treat MRSA infections and need a comprehensive understanding of the pathogenicity, diagnosis, and management of CA-MRSA to ensure expedient and appropriate treatment. This will help to prevent invasive disease as a result of improperly treated infections.
Control of phosphoenolpyruvate synthesis by substrate level phosphorylation in guinea pig liver mitochondria.

Control of P-enolpyruvate synthesis has been studied in guinea pig liver mitochondria with respect to the relative rates of GTP generation directly from substrate level phosphorylation or indirectly from ATP via nucleoside diphosphate kinase. With malate or pyruvate plus malate as substrates, P-enolpyruvate production was greatly decreased in State 3 by addition of fluorocitrate (an inhibitor of aconitase) to prevent flux through substrate level phosphorylation. On the other hand, when ATP production by the electron transport chain was prevented by use of an uncoupling agent (together with oligomycin to inhibit ATPase activity), rates of P-enolpyruvate production from α-ketoglutarate were the same as in State 3, and were also unaffected by addition of fluorocitrate. In the absence of oxidative phosphorylation and with fluorocitrate present together with malate or pyruvate plus malate, addition of exogenous ATP was much less effective than α-ketoglutarate in promoting P-enolpyruvate synthesis. Intramitochondrial GTP levels and rates of P-enolpyruvate formation were consistently lower in State 4, State 3, and the uncoupled plus oligomycin state with pyruvate plus malate than with α-ketoglutarate plus malate as substrate when fluorocitrate was present, indicating a limitation in the rate of phosphorylation of GDP by intramitochondrial ATP for optimal rates of P-enolpyruvate synthesis. The maximal rate of conversion of ATP to GTP by nucleoside diphosphate kinase in the intact mitochondria was estimated to be 2 to 3 nmoles per min per mg of protein compared with a maximal rate of P-enolpyruvate formation of about 22 nmoles per min per mg of protein obtained with α-ketoglutarate plus malate as substrate. It is concluded that provision of GTP by substrate level phosphorylation is essential to support rates of P-enol-pyruvate formation by guinea pig liver mitochondria greater than 3 nmoles per min per mg of protein.
Prolonged cholestasis and progressive hepatic fibrosis following imipramine therapy.

Abstract This report describes a middle-aged female who received imipramine for 7 days, developed severe cholestatic jaundice with features similar to primary biliary cirrhosis, and then improved clinically over the next 12 mo. Biochemical and histologic abnormalities persisted over a 14-yr period of follow-up, though subsequent administration of haloperidol may have influenced the long-term course. High levels of circulating immune complexes were also found 14 yr later, which raises questions about the relationship of primary biliary cirrhosis to drug-induced liver injury. A review of the literature on imipramine- and phenothiazine-related hepatic injuries reveals multiple similarities, and this case provides further evidence for a common hepatic reaction to the two drugs.
Monthly Output Index for the U.S. Transportation Sector

We develop a monthly output index of the U.S. Transportation sector over 1980:1-2002:4 covering air, rail, water, truck, transit and pipeline activities. Separate indices for freight and passenger are also constructed. Our total transportation output index matches very well with the annual transportation output figures produced by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). The strong cyclical movements in the transportation output appear to be more synchronized with the growth slowdowns rather than full-fledged recessions of the U.S. economy. The index has led the peaks and troughs of the NBER defined growth cycles with an average lead-time of 5 months at peaks and 7 months at troughs with no false signals.
Flavin-sulfite complexes and their structures.

Abstract The interaction of free flavocoenzymes with sulfite is described. The synthesis of a few flavin sulfite complexes isolated in the crystalline state and the elucidation of their structure by light and infrared absorption spectroscopy are described. It was found that sulfite binds at the N-5 position of the flavin molecule. Elemental analysis data show that one sulfite molecule is bound per flavin molecule. The flavin sulfite adduct formation is dependent on the absolute concentrations of the reactants, temperature, and pH but is not affected by oxygen or light. The reacting nucleophile species was found to be SO3= rather than HSO3-. The adduct formation reaction is reversible in the pH range g2. At pH l0 the flavin sulfite complex is hydrolyzed yielding a sulfate flavin ratio of 0.95. The light absorption spectrum of the flavin adduct is similar to but not identical with that of the 1,5-dihydroflavin, the latter showing considerable absorption in the visible region whereas the former shows only very little absorption. A number of flavin derivatives were investigated and the dissociation constants of the adducts and the rate constant of the formation of the complex determined. A good correlation was found between the dissociation constants of the sulfite adducts and the oxidation reduction potentials of the corresponding flavoquinones. The mechanism of the formation of the adduct and the possible biological significance of these findings is discussed. The flavin sulfite interaction is also compared with the sulfite interaction occurring with other compounds of biological interest.
Reflections on Section 5 of the FTC Act and the FTC’s Case against Intel

This paper explores the policy implications of the FTC's decision to file its enforcement action against Intel under Section 5 of the FTC Act and declare that it has the power to go further under Section 5's "unfair competition" prong than it could under Section 2 of the Sherman Act. It argues that Intel is an inappropriate case for the Commission to make a bid for Section 5 independence since none of the Commission's institutional advantages over Article III courts justifies a departure from ordinary Section 2 norms in this case. Indeed, the Intel case has the potential to set back the Commission's enforcement powers by prompting a reviewing court to chastise the Commission for overreaching and rejecting a broad view of Section 5.
Absence of deterioration of vascular function of the donor limb at late follow-up after radial artery harvesting

Objective Radial artery harvesting has been questioned because of purported long-term circulatory consequences. Previous midterm Doppler ultrasonographic results are inconsistent regarding ulnar arterial effects. Flow-mediated vasodilatation more sensitively measures response to shear stress as index of arterial reactivity and function. Methods We contacted 231 patients who had undergone radial artery harvesting at least 10 years previously (mean follow-up, 12.9 ± 0.8 years). Subcohort of 25 volunteers (mean age, 69.2 ± 8.4 years) underwent ultrasonographic evaluation of ipsilateral (harvest) and contralateral (control) ulnar arteries. Flow-mediated vasodilatation compared changes in ulnar arterial diameters before and after occlusion. Results In subcohort, peak systolic velocity of harvest ulnar artery was 0.82 ± 0.15 m/s, versus 0.63 ± 0.23 m/s on control side ( P P = .763) or presence of atherosclerotic plaques ( P = .364). Baseline diameter of harvest ulnar artery was 3.0 ± 0.5 mm, versus 2.7 ± 0.6 mm on control side ( P = .007). Postocclusion diameter of harvest ulnar artery was 3.2 ± 0.5 mm, versus 2.9 ± 0.6 mm on control side ( P = .001). No differences were seen in preocclusion and postocclusion absolute and percentage changes in ulnar arterial diameter (Table 1). Conclusions Despite increased shear stress, no deterioration in either ulnar arterial structure or functional reactivity was measured by flow-mediated vasodilatation more than 10 years after radial artery harvesting. With appropriate preoperative evaluation, radial arterial grafting for coronary artery bypass grafting is not associated with long-term donor limb vascular insufficiency.