cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Hereditary overexpression of adenosine deaminase in erythrocytes: studies in erythroid cell lines and transgenic mice.

Overexpression of adenosine deaminase (ADA) in red blood cells is characterized by a marked, tissue-specific increase in levels of structurally normal ADA mRNA and enzymatic activity in the erythrocytes of affected individuals, leading to adenosine triphosphate (ATP) depletion and hemolytic anemia. This autosomal dominant trait is linked to the ADA gene. To investigate the molecular mechanism responsible for this disorder, we examined relative reporter gene activity using constructs containing 10.6 kb of 5′ flanking sequence and 12.3 kb of the first intron of the ADA gene from the normal and mutant alleles. No differences in chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT) activity were found in transient transfection experiments using erythroleukemia cell lines. Transgenic mice containing the ADA constructs expressed CAT in the appropriate tissue-specific fashion, with 10(2)- to 10(4)-fold higher activity in the thymus. However, CAT activities in erythrocytes and bone marrow of mice containing high transgene copy numbers did not differ between the normal and mutant alleles. These results indicate that the mutation responsible for ADA overexpression is unlikely to reside in the 5′ and promoter regions or in the regulatory regions of the first intron. It is possible that the erythroid-specific overexpression of ADA results from a mutation at some distance from the gene or requires an interaction of a proximal mutation with more distal DNA elements.
Scaling laws for gas breakdown for nanoscale to microscale gaps at atmospheric pressure

Electronics miniaturization motivates gas breakdown predictions for microscale and smaller gaps, since traditional breakdown theory fails when gap size, d, is smaller than ∼15 μm at atmospheric pressure, patm. We perform a matched asymptotic analysis to derive analytic expressions for breakdown voltage, Vb, at patm for 1 nm ≤ d ≤ 35 μm. We obtain excellent agreement between numerical, analytic, and particle-in-cell simulations for argon, and show Vb decreasing as d → 0, instead of increasing as predicted by Paschen's law. This work provides an analytic framework for determining Vb at atmospheric pressure for various gap distances that may be extended to other gases.
Improved kinetic neoclassical transport calculation for a low-collisionality QH-mode pedestal

The role of neoclassical, anomalous and neutral transport to the overall H-mode pedestal and scrape-off layer (SOL) structure in an ELM-free QH-mode discharge on DIII-D is explored using XGC0, a 5D full-f multi-species particle-in-cell drift-kinetic solver with self-consistent neutral recycling and sheath potentials. The work in this paper builds on previous work aimed at achieving quantitative agreement between the flux-driven simulation and the experimental electron density, impurity density and orthogonal measurements of impurity temperature and flow profiles. Improved quantitative agreement is achieved by performing the calculations with a more realistic electron mass, larger neutral density and including finite-Larmor-radius corrections self-consistently in the drift-kinetic motion of the particles. Consequently, the simulations provide stronger evidence that the radial electric field (E-r) in the pedestal is primarily established by the required balance between the loss of high-energy tail main ions against a pinch of colder main ions and impurities. The kinetic loss of a small population of ions carrying a large proportion of energy and momentum leads to a separation of the particle and energy transport rates and introduces a source of intrinsic edge torque. Ion orbit loss and finite orbit width effects drive the energy distributions away from Maxwellian, and describe themore » anisotropy, poloidal asymmetry and local minimum near the separatrix observed in the T-i profile.« less
The States System

Ludwig Dehio has argued that “It is possible to imagine a history of the Western world that relates all events to the two principles of unity and diversity.” He continues:
Maintenance communication in superior‐subordinate relationships: An exploratory investigation of group social context and the “Pelz effect”

This study explored effects of the larger organizational context of the work group on the use of maintenance communication behaviors in the superior‐subordinate relationship. Findings suggest that group social context and the “Pelz effect” have significant impacts on how individuals (subordinates) enact their communication behaviors in escalating, deteriorating, and routine strategic maintenance situations when attempting to maintain their superior‐subordinate relationships.
Phonon thermal transport in transition-metal and rare-earth nitride semiconductors from first principles

The thermal properties of three transition metal and rare-earth nitride compounds, ScN, YN, and LuN, have been studied using a first principles approach, in which a $\mathrm{DFT}+U$ treatment is guided by accurate hybrid functional calculations of electronic structure. The phonon dispersions for the three compounds show large longitudinal optic--transverse optic (LO-TO) splitting and soft TO modes. The resulting strong anharmonic scattering between acoustic and TO phonons reduces the lattice thermal conductivities, ${\ensuremath{\kappa}}_{\mathrm{L}}$, of these compounds. The room temperature ${\ensuremath{\kappa}}_{\mathrm{L}}$ values of YN and LuN are more than an order of magnitude smaller than that found for the weakly polar III-V compound boron bismuth ($350\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}\mathrm{W}{\mathrm{m}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}{\mathrm{K}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$), in spite of the latter having much larger average atomic mass and smaller acoustic phonon velocities. This paper demonstrates the utility of first principles calculations in understanding the thermal properties of materials, and it highlights the importance of optic phonons in reducing ${\ensuremath{\kappa}}_{\mathrm{L}}$.
Design study of a practical-entire-torso PET (PET-PET) with low-cost detector designs

This is a design and Monte Carlo (MC) study of a practical entire torso PET (PET-PET) with 1-meter axial field-of-view (AFOV) for imaging the head-&-torso simultaneously. Our studies show that PET-PET would image the entire body in 2-3 minutes with a 3-4 mCi FDG injected dose, which would reduce whole-body cancer-imaging cost and the low dose may justify its use for cancer screening. It can capture dynamic whole-body time-activity and arterial input from the heart/aorta to create quantitative metabolic rate-constant images of the entire body. It uses low-cost BGO crystals with/without depth-of-interaction (DOI) detection. In the DOI implementations, a sparse quadrant-sharing SiPM readout design is used to reduce SiPM related cost, thus enabling the cost to approach that of current clinical PET with LYSO in a 25-cm AFOV. The Dichotomous Offset-Quadrant-Sharing (DO-QS) DOI detector design has a crystal-to-SiPM ratio of 2:1; it has unique crystal-column decoding (X-Y) without analog-decoding errors. The DOI detector would improve the transaxial radial resolution and may also improve the axial resolution. The non-DOI detector design uses 4 SiPM (3-mm) at the four corners of a 5×5 (6×6) BGO array to achieve a crystal-to-SiPM ratio of 6.25:1 (9:1); it uses mirror film of difference sizes and shapes between crystals to distribute scintillation light for analog crystal decoding. For the DO-QS DOI detector design, MC studies showed DOI resolution of 5 mm with each 3.24×3.24×20 mm3 BGO pixel columns divided into 4-layers along the 20-mm depth; the time resolution (FWHM) is 1.6 ns. Resolution and NES were estimated with MC simulations for point sources and extended whole-body Turkington phantom (extended to 80-cm in axial length), which showed the transaxial resolution to be 2.8 to 3.3 mm (DO-QS). The NES result showed 2-3 minutes whole-body imaging with 3-4 mCi FDG injection would be comparable to current clinical PET with 10-mCi injection and 20-min imaging.
Abstract 218: Pericytic Laminin Regulates Blood-Brain Barrier Integrity in an Age-Dependent Manner

Introduction: Laminin, a major component of the basement membrane, plays an important role in blood brain barrier (BBB) regulation. At the neurovascular unit, astrocytes, brain endothelial cells, a...
The G protein-coupled receptor Gpr161 regulates forelimb formation, limb patterning and skeletal morphogenesis in a primary cilium-dependent manner

The role of basal suppression of the sonic hedgehog (Shh) pathway and its interaction with Indian hedgehog (Ihh) signaling during limb/skeletal morphogenesis is not well understood. The orphan G protein-coupled receptor Gpr161 localizes to primary cilia and functions as a negative regulator of Shh signaling by promoting Gli transcriptional repressor versus activator formation. Here, we show that forelimb buds are not formed in Gpr161 knockout mouse embryos despite establishment of prospective limb fields. Limb-specific deletion of Gpr161 resulted in prematurely expanded Shh signaling and ectopic Shh-dependent patterning defects resulting in polysyndactyly. In addition, endochondral bone formation in forearms, including formation of both trabecular bone and bone collar was prevented. Endochondral bone formation defects resulted from accumulation of proliferating round/periarticular-like chondrocytes, lack of differentiation into columnar chondrocytes, and corresponding absence of Ihh signaling. Gpr161 deficiency in craniofacial mesenchyme also prevented intramembranous bone formation in calvarium. Defects in limb patterning, endochondral and intramembranous skeletal morphogenesis were suppressed in the absence of cilia. Overall, Gpr161 promotes forelimb formation, regulates limb patterning, prevents periarticular chondrocyte proliferation and drives osteoblastogenesis in intramembranous bones in a cilium-dependent manner.
AND/OR branch-and-bound for graphical models

The paper presents and evaluates the power of a new framework for optimization in graphical models, based on AND/OR search spaces. The virtue of the AND/OR representation of the search space is that its size may be far smaller than that of a traditional OR representation. We develop our work on Constraint Optimization Problems (COP) and introduce a new generation of depth-first Branch-and-Bound algorithms that explore an AND/OR search space and use static and dynamic mini-bucket heuristics to guide the search. We focus on two optimization problems, solvingWeighted CSPs (WCSP) and finding theMost Probable Explanation (MPE) in belief networks. We show that the new AND/OR approach improves considerably over the classic OR space, on a variety of benchmarks including random and real-world problems. We also demonstrate the impact of different lower bounding heuristics on Branch-and-Bound exploring AND/OR spaces.
Atmospheric Electricity in the Real World

Attempts to separate global and local effects in atmospheric electricity observations and to define “fair weather” are briefly reviewed. It is shown that commonly used definitions contain an inherent bias which depends on instrumentation, the parameters observed, and the interests of the observer. Reasons are adduced to encourage the study of local or “non-fair-weather” effects themselves. Atmospheric pollution is discussed in its relation to electrical observables. It is shown that the effect of pollution on conductivity is obvious, on electric field is ambiguous, and on vertical current density is such as to impart the properties of a useful index. The diminution of conductivity before and during fog is explored, the extensive literature on the subject is examined, and the conclusion is expounded that conductivity measurement is a forecasting tool ready for immediate application. The surface-electrode effect is shown to have two dominant length scales for electrical studies, and the problems inherent in measurements within the planetary boundary layer are analyzed. Relationships are shown between the Kolmogorov spectrum of atmospheric turbulence and spectra of atmospheric electricity observables. Data from the solar eclipses of 1970 and 1973 are presented which provide corroboration of the picture presented of the turbulent electrode layer. In conclusion the interrelations and interactions of all the phenomena discussed are emphasized, and directions for further investigations are indicated.
Dephasing optimization through coherence order pathway selection (DOTCOPS) for improved crusher schemes in MR spectroscopy.

PURPOSE To develop an algorithm which can robustly eliminate all unwanted coherence pathways for an arbitrary magnetic resonance spectroscopy experiment through the adjustment of the relative amplitudes of crusher gradients, thereby reducing the effects of spurious echoes and mislocalization. THEORY AND METHODS The effect of crushing gradients for all coherence pathways was modeled according to the associated physics, and a cost function was optimized which maximally crushes all unwanted coherence pathways, while unaffecting the desired coherence pathway(s). The efficacy of the method was tested versus literature schemes from 2 separate MR spectroscopy (MRS) sequences: sLASER and MEGA-sLASER with both phantom and in vivo experiments. RESULTS Improved crushing power for 2 separate MRS sequences was demonstrated for 2 crushing schemes adopted from the literature in both phantom and in vivo data. CONCLUSION A novel algorithm and associated software was developed based on rigorous treatment of all coherence pathways, which can be applied to any arbitrary magnetic resonance spectroscopic pulse sequence of interest and any arbitrary coupled spin system. This developed method solves a long-standing problem in in vivo MRS and is expected to critically improve the data quality of virtually all MRS applications.
Applications to Economics

Optimal control theory has been extensively applied to the solution of economic problems since the early papers that appeared in Shell (1967) and the works of Arrow (1968) and Shell (1969) . The field is too vast to be surveyed in detail here, however.
Construction Injury and Soil Compaction

Publisher Summary The detrimental effects of people's activities on soil structure cause considerable losses of shade trees. This chapter discusses the types of activities resulting in construction injury, soil compaction, and their prevention and treatment. The construction activities cause a complex series of site changes that lead to the decline and eventual death of established trees. Most injuries result from the change of grade and mechanical injury to the trunk and roots. In most construction projects, land around new buildings or roads is graded level or into a gentle slope. The natural ground level to which established trees have adjusted the growth of their root system is uneven; therefore, grade changes around trees occur. To achieve the desired site preparation, the builder may either raise or lower the grade around trees. These changes in the original grade cause considerable injury and the eventual death of the affected trees. Raising the grade or filling over the roots of trees results in suffocation of the roots. The effects of fill are not distinctive and can be easily confused with a variety of infectious and noninfectious root stresses.
Surgical Technique for a Cervical Disc Arthroplasty

Total disc replacement in the cervical spine is an excellent treatment for patients with symptoms of cervical radiculopathy or myelopathy with concordant findings on advance imaging studies (computed tomography (CT) myelogram or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)) at two or fewer levels. For operative planning, upright anterior-posterior (AP), lateral, flexion, and extension radiographs should be obtained. To be a candidate for a CDR, patients should have a neutral or lordotic cervical spine without significant spondylosis. Specifically, patients should have no bridging osteophytes, signs of instability, or loss of more than 50% of the disc height at a normal level. Additionally, it is critical that all compression is at the intervertebral disc space, because the decompression for a CDR does not allow for resection of portions of the vertebral body. For patients who meet these criteria, a cervical disc replacement can provide excellent improvements in health-related quality of life.
Socioeconomically Distressed Communities Associated With Long-term Mortality After Bariatric Surgery.

Abstract Background Surgical outcomes are affected by socioeconomic status, yet these factors are poorly accounted for in clinical databases. We sought to determine if the Distressed Communities Index (DCI), a composite ranking by zip code that quantifies socioeconomic risk, was associated with long-term survival after bariatric surgery. Methods All patients undergoing Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (1985-2004) at a single institution were paired with DCI. Scores range from 0 (no distress) to 100 (severe distress) and account for unemployment, education, poverty, median income, housing vacancies, job growth, and business establishment growth. Distressed communities, defined as DCI ≥75, were compared with all other patients. Regression modeling was used to evaluate the effect of DCI on 10-year bariatric outcomes, whereas Cox Proportional Hazards and Kaplan–Meier analysis examined long-term survival. Results Gastric bypass patients (n = 681) come from more distressed communities compared with the general public (DCI 60.5 ± 23.8 versus 50 ± 10; P Conclusions Patients with low socioeconomic status, as determined by the DCI, have equivalent outcomes after bariatric surgery despite worse long-term survival. Future quality improvement efforts should focus on these persistent disparities in health care.
Investigations concerning the organolanthanide and group 3 metallocene-catalyzed cyclization–functionalization of nitrogen-containing dienes

Abstract Organolanthanide catalyzed cyclization–silylation of nitrogen-containing polyunsaturated systems allows access to core structures commonly found in naturally occurring alkaloids. Nitrogen-containing dienes with various substitution patterns were investigated. The method was most successful for substrates with terminal alkenes. Cyclization upon pendant 1,1-disubstituted olefins was not realized under various conditions. Interestingly, sterically hindered sulfonamides, which were previously believed to render the catalyst inactive, were actually compatible with the catalyst, thus affording the cyclized products after prolonged reaction times. Variations using fused ring systems were also investigated.
Machine Learning-Based Modeling of Big Clinical Trials Data for Adverse Outcome Prediction: A Case Study of Death Events

It is known that clinical trials have potential risks for participants, which could result in unexpected adverse events. To quantify and predict the risk of adverse outcomes, we leverage a large amount of clinical reports to build machine learning models to predict adverse outcomes. We focused on death events as the predicting target in this study. From Clinicaltrial.gov, we collected 28,340 reports and transformed the data into vectorized machine learning features. These features were harmonized across studies using semantic mapping and feature selection techniques. The resulting selected clinical trial features were used to build five machine learning models for prediction. We evaluated and compared relative model performances for the prediction task. Results show that the logistic regression algorithm achieved the best overall receiver operating characteristic score at 0.7344. This exploratory study showed that it is feasible to use clinical trial factors to predict adverse outcomes. We demonstrated the approach by focusing on building machine learning models to predict death outcomes. Predicting adverse outcomes could help clinical trials estimate harmful risks and design better mechanisms to protect participants. We hope by using our models, a clinical trial expert will be able to assess whether serious adverse events are likely to occur in a clinical trial at the early stage and to estimate what potential trial factors could contribute to the potential serious adverse events.
Relevance of cerebrospinal fluid findings in patients with multiple sclerosis and seizures.

Abstract Seizures occur 2–3 times more frequently in Multiple Sclerosis (MS) patients compared to the general population. The prevalence of seizures is reported to be 1.5–7.8% in MS population. However, it is unclear if seizure is an indirect symptom of neuroinflammation in MS. In our study, we explored the relevance of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) findings in this unique patient cohort with MS and seizures. We retrospectively reviewed the charts of 32 MS patients with subsequent seizures (MSSS) and 12 patients with seizures followed by MS (SFMS). These two study groups were compared with two control groups - MS without seizures (MSNOS) and seizures without MS (SNOMS). Clinical characteristics and CSF findings between these groups were compared using boot strapped independent t-test. The CSF lymphocyte percentage of the SFMS group (95.6 ± 3) was significantly higher compared to MSNOS (66.0 ± 36.9, p = .04) and SNOMS (81.7 ± 10.0, p = .03). The CSF IgG index was significantly higher in SFMS group (1.9 ± 1.2, p = .02) as compared to MSSS group (0.99 ± 0.4). Patients with seizures as initial symptom of MS may have higher degree of CNS inflammation. Nonspecific clinical symptoms and atypical imaging findings in patients presenting with seizures may warrant close monitoring for development of MS.
Cardiac Surgery After Extraanatomic Esophageal Reconstruction: A Single Institution's Experience.

Background Extraanatomic retrosternal and presternal esophageal reconstruction performed after esophagectomy poses a significant technical challenge to those patients who require cardiac surgery. This study reviewed a single-center experience with cardiac surgical procedures in patients with extraanatomic esophageal conduits, to examine the relative advantages of median sternotomy and thoracotomy approaches. Methods This case series identified patients who underwent cardiac surgery after extraanatomic esophageal reconstruction between January 1, 1999 and October 1, 2019 at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. Electronic medical records were reviewed for patient demographics, surgical indications, characteristics, and outcomes. Continuous variables were reported as the mean or as the median and range, as appropriate. Results Seven individual patients had 8 cardiac surgical procedures after extraanatomic esophageal reconstruction (5 retrosternal, 2 presternal). All were male, with a median age of 65.5 years (range, 51 to 71 years). Preoperative computed tomography was obtained in all but 1 patient. Median sternotomy was performed in 4 patients, left thoracotomy in 2, right thoracotomy in 1, and right anterior thoracotomy in 1. Median bypass time was 91 minutes (interquartile range, 113.5 minutes). The median cross-clamp time was 57.5 minutes (interquartile range, 27.0 minutes). There was 1 delayed injury to a retrosternal conduit after median sternotomy approach. There were no injuries to the blood supply of any conduit. In-hospital mortality was 0%. The median length of stay was 7.5 days (range, 5 to 34 days). Conclusions Different cardiac surgical procedures can be performed safely in patients with extraanatomic esophageal reconstructions through median sternotomy or thoracotomy. Preoperative planning with computed tomography with intravenous contrast enhancement of the chest, abdomen, and pelvis is essential for individualization of the surgical approach.
A unifying perspective on linear continuum equations prevalent in science. Part IV: Canonical forms for equations involving higher order gradients

Enlarging on Parts I, II, and III we write more equations in the desired format of the extended abstract theory of composites. We focus on a multitude of equations involving higher order derivatives. The motivation is that results and methods in the theory of composites then extend to these equations.
Early vs late cardiac surgery in patients with native valve endocarditis-United States Nationwide Inpatient database

Objective Although the standard treatment of infective endocarditis (IE) is antimicrobial therapy, surgical intervention is required in some cases. However, the optimal timing of surgery remains unclear. Hence, we conducted a population-based analysis using the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) database to assess the outcomes of early versus late surgery in patients with native valve IE. Methods We queried the NIS database for all hospitalized patients between 2006 and 2016 with a primary diagnosis of IE who had cardiac surgery. We stratified surgery as early ≤7 or late >7 days of admission. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to assess in-hospital mortality and postoperative complications. Length of stay (LOS) and total hospital cost (HC) were evaluated using multivariable log-normal regression models. Results A total of 13 056 patients (57.6% in the early group and 42.4% in the late group) were included. The in-hospital mortality rate in the early group was 5.0% compared to 5.4% in the late intervention group (adjusted odds ratio, 1.20, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.79-1.81). Overall median LOS was reduced in the early group by 48.2% (95% CI, 46.5%-49.9%, 12.4 days in the early group and 25.9 days in late group), as well as HC which was reduced in the early group by 28.3% (95% CI, 26.0%-30.6%). Conclusion Among patients with native valve IE who needed cardiac surgery, the time of surgical intervention did not affect the in-hospital mortality. However, early surgery was associated with significantly shorter LOS and lower HC.
High Resolution X-Ray Spectroscopy of The Gas Surrounding M87 and NGC1275: Emission Line Detection and Evidence for Radiatively Regulated Accretion

The topic of this paper really falls somewhere between this session on active galaxies and the session on clusters. What I will report is really a cluster phenomenon but one which depends on the presence of a dominant, massive galaxy in the cluster. Specifically, we have detected several X-ray emission lines from the vicinity of M87 in the Virgo Cluster and NGC 1275 in Perseus. The lines are indicative of material which is cooler than the bulk of the intracluster gas. This material is most likely accreting onto the central galaxy with the accretion rate controlled by the rate of radiative cooling. The observations I am reporting were made with the Focal Plane Crystal Spectrometer (FPCS)on the Einstein Observatory. The instrument is a Bragg crystal spectrometer which has a resolving power (E/ΔE) of 50 to 500 over the energy range of 0.2 to 3 keV. It operates much like an optical scanner in that it has a narrow passband which is swept over some restricted spectral range containing an emission line. Detailed descriptions are given elsewhere (Canizares et al. 1977, 1979, Giacconi et al. 1979).
A Spitzer Study of Debris Disks In The Young Nearby Cluster NGC 2232: Icy Planets Are Common Around ~ 1.5--3 Solar-Mass Stars

We describe Spitzer IRAC and MIPS observations of the nearby 25 Myr-old open cluster NGC 2232. Combining these data with ROSAT All-Sky Survey observations, proper motions, and optical photometry/spectroscopy, we construct a list of highly probable cluster members. We identify 1 A-type star, HD 45435, with definite excess emission at 4.5--24 micron indicative of debris from terrestrial planet formation. We also identify 2--4 late-type stars with possible 8 micron excesses, and 8 early-type stars with definite 24 micron excesses. Constraints on the dust luminosity and temperature suggest that the detected excesses are produced by debris disks. From our sample of B and A stars, stellar rotation appears correlated with 24 micron excess, a result expected if massive primordial disks evolve into massive debris disks. To explore the evolution of the frequency and magnitude of debris around A-type stars, we combine our results with data for other young clusters. The frequency of debris disks around A-type stars appears to increase from ~ 25% at 5 Myr to ~ 50--60% at 20--25 Myr. Older A-type stars have smaller debris disk frequencies: ~ 20% at 50--100 Myr. For these ages, the typical level of debris emission rises from 5--20 Myr and then declines. Because 24 micron dust emission probes icy planet formation around A-type stars, our results suggest that the frequency of icy planet formation is eta(i) > 0.5--0.6. Thus, most A-type stars (approx. 1.5--3 Msun) produce icy planets.
The Performance of Acquisitions in the Real Estate Investment Trust Industry

This study examines the performance of acquisitions in the Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) industry around the acquisition announcement and in the long-run. The results suggest that the acquiri...
Repair of Tractional Retinal Detachment

Thorough preoperative evaluation should be performed including extent of ischemia and neovascularization on fluorescein angiography and delineation of potential surgical planes and fovea status on optical coherence tomography. The patient should then undergo a thorough informed consent process including the need for an expedient repair and the risks involved with vitrectomy-based surgery. Preoperative considerations include staged phacoemulsification surgery, systemic optimization, preoperative panretinal photocoagulation (weeks preoperatively), and/or intravitreal anti-VEGF (1–3 days preoperatively) therapy. There is great heterogeneity in the management of diabetic tractional retinal detachments, and this segment delineates our typical practice pattern and thus is certainly not the only method for tackling these challenging cases.
Carotid Artery Disease

Atherosclerosis with carotid plaque-induced luminal narrowing causes asymptomatic carotid artery stenosis (ACAS) in ~10% of older adults and the vast majority remain undetected (de Weerd et al., Stroke 40(4):1105–1113, 2009; O’Leary et al., Stroke 23(12):1752–1760, 1992). Medical advancements in recent decades have increased life expectancy substantially, leading to an increased incidence of carotid disease, since the prevalence of carotid stenosis increases steeply with advanced age (Fairhead and Rothwell, Br Med J 333(7567):525–527, 2006). The advent of new imaging modalities such as computed tomography angiography (CTA), magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), cerebral angiography, and carotid Doppler ultrasound (CDUS) made it possible to diagnose patients with carotid disease prior to the onset of symptoms.
Characterization of Protein-Protein and Protein-Peptide Interactions: Implication for Biologics Design

In many cellular and signaling processes protein-protein and protein -peptide interactions are responsible for many biological activities, such as DNA replication and repair, gene regulation and transcription. At the interaction interface, only a small fraction of interacting interface residues termed as hot spots contribute most to the binding free energy of an interaction. Identification and characterization of hot spots is important to explore the underlying binding mechanism and the stability of protein–protein interactions. As the experimental screenings to identify and characterize hot spots are not feasible to carry out in reasonable time, there is a need to employ computational approaches to predict hot spots. These hot spots can be easily predicted using computational methods such as alanine scanning. In this work, we have extensively carried out Ala scan approaches to various benchmarking data sets of protein and peptides and predicted hot spots. Using the analysis of hot spots an attempt has been made to elucidate differences among protein-protein and protein peptide interactions. The knowledge of differences has implications for the molecular design of biologics.
Teaching and learning mathematics with Prolog

Procedural computer languages have long been used in many aspects of mathematics pedagogy. In this work, we examine the use of Prolog, a declarative language for the same purpose. We find the facts+rules aspect of Prolog to be a novel platform for developing coding lessons to supplement the learning of mathematics. Specific examples are presented.
Lower Dosing of Bupivacaine Spinal Anesthesia Is Not Associated With Improved Perioperative Outcomes After Total Joint Arthroplasty

Background The choice of anesthesia plays a significant role in the success of total joint arthroplasty (TJA). Isobaric bupivacaine spinal anesthesia is often used. However, dosing of bupivacaine has not been extensively studied and is usually at the discretion of the treating anesthesiologist and surgeon. The goal of this study was to determine what, if any, effect the dose of bupivacaine spinal anesthesia had on perioperative outcomes in TJA. Methods A total of 761 TJAs performed with bupivacaine spinal anesthesia by arthroplasty surgeons were retrospectively reviewed. Perioperative outcomes evaluated were operation duration, estimated blood loss, length of stay (LOS) in the postanesthesia care unit, hospital LOS, discharge disposition, episodes of intraoperative hypotension, postoperative nausea and vomiting, and missed physical therapy sessions because of postoperative symptoms of hypotension. A Student's t-test was used for continuous variables, and a chi-squared test was used for categorical variables. Results Of the 761 patients, 499 (65.6%) received 15 mg isobaric bupivacaine while 262 (34.4%) received <15 mg (range = 7.5-14.5 mg, median = 12.5 mg). With the numbers available in this cohort, lower doses of bupivacaine were not associated with any significant differences between groups for any of the studied perioperative outcomes, including proportion of patients discharged home or LOS. Conclusion Dosage of bupivacaine spinal anesthetic did not affect perioperative outcomes. Bupivacaine may not have a dose-related response curve in this regard, and if seeking to perform same-day or outpatient TJA, other agents may need to be considered, rather than smaller doses of bupivacaine.
Psychiatric and Substance Use Disorders and Related Service Use in the Diverse Black Sub-Populations in the United States

Purpose Existing literature on the epidemiology of psychiatric and substance use disorders and service use among African Americans in the USA has not fully addressed the heterogeneity of Black populations. This study compares the proportions and diverse characteristics of these sub-populations, their mental and substance use diagnoses, and related service use. Methods The data for this study was obtained from the restricted version of the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions Wave III (NESARC-III). Participants who identified as Black/African Americans were categorized into four groups: African-born, Caribbean-born, US-born with at least one immigrant parent, and US-born with both parents born in the USA. Effect sizes were used to evaluate bivariate between-group differences and multinomial logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors that independently differentiated each of the first three groups from the reference group termed US-born. Results This exploratory analysis strengthened the notion of the immigrant paradox as African- and Caribbean-born Black individuals scored significantly higher on all measures of quality of life and had fewer mental health and substance use diagnoses, but this advantage was not observed in the children of immigrants born in the USA. There were few significant differences in service use across the groups after adjusting for clinical characteristics. Conclusion The differences observed in the diverse Black populations of the USA, across measures of mental and physical health, and substance use, deserve attention in future research, policy, and program development.
Regarding Age as a Disability: Conceptualizing Age Discrimination at Work as (Mis)perception of Disability Discrimination

Age discrimination often intersects with disability discrimination. However, there is considerable evidence that older people often do not use disability to pursue rights. This Article examines the intersection between age and disability discrimination in the context of work and shows that older people do not use disability to pursue rights as frequently as one would expect. Because recent Supreme Court decisions narrowly interpret the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), older people face challenges when they try to remedy employment discrimination. However, older people often have another option—to use the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to remedy discrimination. They can do so because they often qualify as disabled under the ADA and some of the barriers to successful litigation that the ADEA poses are not present under the ADA. However, individual case examples and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charge data show that older people do not use disability to remedy employment discrimination as frequently as they could.
Return to sport: Does excellent 6-month strength and function following ACL reconstruction predict midterm outcomes?

Purpose The purpose of this study was to determine whether patients with excellent 6-month functional testing after ACL reconstruction had (1) higher risk of subsequent ACL tears, (2) superior knee function, and (3) increased activity levels compared to those with delayed clearance for return to sports at midterm follow-up.
Cancellation Theory in Free Products with Amalgamation

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the cancellation theory in free products with amalgamation. There are two principal methods in the study of free groups, free products, free products with amalgamation, HNN extensions, and similar group constructions. One is the method of cancellation arguments, already used extensively by Nielsen. The second, equally old but less systematically used until recently, derives from topology and is often described as using covering space arguments. One could say that the cancellation arguments are based on nothing more than the sheer group axioms, while covering space arguments employ elaborations of Cayley's observation that every abstract group can be realized as a group of transformations of a suitable object. The chapter also discusses the derivation of a form of the Karrass-Solitar Subgroup Theorem for free products with amalgamation, using the method of Zieschang.
Performance and mass optimization of thermoelectric microcoolers

Abstract We report a scalable and parametric analysis of thermoelectric (TE) microcoolers for hotspot cooling based on analytic formulations. Design for minimizing cooling power and least mass or cost of TE material is an ultimate goal for electronic devices that require spot cooling beyond that provided by passive heat transport to the thermal ground. Performance of thermoelectric hotspot cooling on electronic devices depends on external thermal resistances, physical dimension (thickness) of the thermoelectric element, and the applied drive current. Active cooling located at the hotspot minimizes the cooling power and the internal heat generation from the TE element and also minimizes the additional driving power used for heat rejection with a preexisting air-cooling fan or a liquid-cooling pump. Electronic devices are required to operate below a specific temperature for functionality and high reliability. The hotspot cooler must be designed to deal with the amount of heat generated from the heat source with this temperature constraint. We investigate two design cases: 1) the maximum cooling and 2) the minimum drive current for a given hotspot temperature to obtain an improved coefficient-of-performance (COP). The study explores the impact of individual thermoelectric material properties, i.e. Seebeck coefficient, electrical conductivity, and thermal conductivity to find the direction that should be taken with engineered materials. We show that COP up to 8 is possible for hotspot heat fluxes of about 80 W/cm 2 , if TE leg thickness is optimized to ∼20–30 microns with today's Bi 2 Te 3 material. Model shows that COP > 2–3 is possible for hotspot heat fluxes bigger than 200–300 W/cm 2 . We find that lowering the thermal conductivity have the greatest impact, resulting in a thinner element (and therefore lower cost) while maintaining the same figure-of-merit (ZT).
Asp383 in the second transmembrane domain of the lutropin receptor is important for high affinity hormone binding and cAMP production.

Abstract The lutropin (LH), follitropin, and thyrotropin receptors belong to the superfamily of G-protein coupled receptors and have some unique structural features. These glycoprotein hormone receptors comprise a C-terminal half and an N-terminal half of similar size. The C-terminal half is equivalent to the entire structure of other G-protein coupled receptors and has seven transmembrane domains, three cytoplasmic loops, three exoplasmic loops, and a C terminus. In contrast, the hydrophilic N-terminal half is exoplasmic and unique to the glycoprotein hormone receptors. This large N-terminal half of the LH receptor has recently been shown to be capable of binding the hormone. Therefore, these glycoprotein hormone receptors are structurally and functionally different from other G-protein coupled receptors. In an attempt to define the role of the membrane-associated C-terminal half of the LH receptor, we have prepared several mutant receptors in which an Asp or Glu in the seven transmembrane domains has been converted to Asn or Gln, respectively. These include Asp383----Asn in the second transmembrane domain, Glu410----Gln in the third transmembrane domain, and Asp556----Asn in the sixth transmembrane domain. All these mutant receptors were successfully expressed in Cos 7A cells. The Glu410----Gln and Asp556----Asn mutants maintained normal affinities for hormone binding and cAMP production, but the Asp383----Asn mutant showed significantly lower affinities. Although Asp383 of the LH receptor is conserved in all G-protein coupled receptors cloned to date except the substance P receptor, which has Glu in the place of the Asp residue, this is the first observation of the critical role of the Asp in hormone binding and subsequent stimulation of cAMP production.
Chemokine-Based Pathogenetic Mechanisms in Cancer

The chemokine system has evolved primarily to control the trafficking of leukocytes during immune or inflammatory responses. However, through their expression of chemokine ligands and receptors, cancers have commandeered various aspects of this host defence system in order to enhance their growth. Although engineered over-expression of some tumour-derived chemokines can stimulate host antitumour respones, this is unlikely to be the reason that tumour cells express them. Rather, a growing body of clinical and laboratory evidence indicates that cancer cells may secrete chemokines in order to attract host cells that supply the tumours with growth and angiogenic factors. In addition, chemokine receptor expression by tumour cells may permit them to use the host's pre-existing leukocyte trafficking system to invade target tissues during metastatic spread. Together, these observations suggest that therapies directed against chemokine ligands or receptors may be beneficial in cancer.
Molecular Imaging for Oncology

ED-05 Although most clinical diagnostic imaging studies employ anatomic techniques such as computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging, much of radiology research currently focuses on adapting these conventional methods to physiologic imaging as well as on introducing new techniques and probes for studying processes at the cellular and molecular levels in vivo , i.e. molecular imaging. Molecular imaging promises to provide new methods for the early detection of disease and support for personalized therapy. Although molecular imaging has been practiced in various incarnations for over 20 years in the context of nuclear medicine, other imaging modalities have only recently been applied to the noninvasive assessment of physiology and molecular events. Nevertheless, there has been sufficient experience with specifically targeted contrast agents and high-resolution techniques for MR imaging and other modalities that we must begin moving these new technologies from the laboratory to the clinic. This brief overview will outline molecular imaging from probe development to clinical translation, with a focus on translational (small animal) and early clinical imaging of cancer. We will discuss the ability for molecular imaging to assess specific signal transduction cascades, which are increasingly the targets of newer, cytostatic therapeutic agents, and provide examples of how existing or readily accessible molecular tracers and techniques can provide insight into rather complex biological phenomena in vivo .
Abstract 14928: Adverse Outcomes Following Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR) in Patients with Low Flow-Low Gradient (LFLG) Aortic Stenosis (AS)

Introduction: LFLG severe AS (stroke volume index Hypothesis: Patients with LFLG severe AS undergoing TAVR will have a higher rate of adverse clinical outcomes. Methods: In a retrospective single center registry, we analyzed the clinical, 2D doppler-echocardiographic and outcome data in consecutive patients who underwent TAVR with the Edwards Sapien transcatheter aortic valve for symptomatic severe AS at our tertiary care hospital from March 2012 to April 2014. Patients with LFLG were compared to non-LFLG patients. Background medical data, clinical endpoints (defined by the Valve Academic Research Consortium-2), length of stay (LOS), readmissions and mortality, were compared between the two groups. Wilcoxon rank-sum and Fisher’s exact tests were used to evaluate the hypothesis. Results: LFLG was found in 66 (32%) out of 206 patients. Baseline characteristics were comparable between the LFLG and non-LFLG group, except significant difference in STS scores (12.1±8 vs. 9.9±8, p=0.011), prior aortic valve surgery (16.7% vs. 6.4%, p=0.041) and atrial fibrillation/flutter (57.6% vs. 29.3% (p Conclusions: LFLG patients had higher co-morbidities but comparable peri-procedural complications and short-term mortality. However this group was associated with longer hospitalizations and higher 1-year all-cause-mortality following TAVR. Further studies are needed to fully define outcomes in LFLG patients.
High-power 1.3-/spl mu/m InGaAsP/InP lasers and amplifiers with tapered gain regions

Summary form only given. We have previously reported tapered lasers at 1.3 /spl mu/m with cw output powers of 0.5 W of which nearly 80% was in the central lobe of a nearly diffraction-limited far field. Here we report laser and amplifier results on devices fabricated using improved processing techniques and a new device design. The new device incorporates a ridge waveguide section with the tapered gain region as illustrated and is similar to that reported earlier for 980-nm tapered lasers and amplifiers. The material used for these devices is a stepped separate-confinement heterostructure with three compressively strained InGaAsP-InP quantum wells.
On the contractive nature of autoencoders: application to missing sensor restoration

The neural network autoencoder is a useful tool for the restoration of missing sensors when enough known sensors with some relation to those missing are available. Through the idea of a contraction mapping, this paper provides some insight into the convergence of several iterative methods of sensor restoration using the autoencoder to some unique answer given a specific operating point (i.e., the known sensor values), regardless of how the missing sensor values are initialized.