cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Physician employment status and practice patterns.

Background Many physicians today are employed by another physician, group, hospital, HMO, or other organization. However, the differences in the characteristics, practice patterns, and patient outcomes of self-employed and employed physicians are not well understood. Methods The practices of 108 community family physicians in northeast Ohio were assessed using a multimethod cross-sectional design. Physician characteristics were assessed by questionnaire. Direct observation of 3536 consecutive patient visits was used to measure time use and the delivery of preventive services recommended by the US Preventive Services Task Force. Patient satisfaction was assessed with the Medical Outcomes Study (MOS) 9-item Visit Rating Form. Results Employed physicians were more likely to be female, in group practice, work fewer hours, and see fewer patients. Job satisfaction was similar between the two groups, but employed physicians reported greater satisfaction with leisure and family time. Employed physicians spent more time per patient visit, scheduled a larger percentage of well-care visits, and were more likely to refer to specialists. Employed physicians also spent a greater proportion of their patients' visit time performing history-taking and eliciting family information, and a lesser proportion of time on physical examination, planning treatment, providing health education, and chatting. Recommended screening and health habits counseling preventive services were more likely to be delivered by employed physicians. Patient satisfaction was similar for the two groups. Conclusions Primary care physician characteristics and practice patterns differ by employment status. The consequences of the trend toward a largely employed physician workforce as reported in this study should be carefully considered.
Dynamics of Oxidation of Well-Defined Adsorbed CO Phases on Pt(111) in Aqueous Acidic Electrolytes: Simultaneous in Situ Second Harmonic Generation and Differential Reflectance Spectroscopy

The oxidation dynamics of the well-defined (2 × 2)-3CO (θCO = 0.75) and √19 × √19R23.4°-13CO (θCO = 0.68) CO adlayer phases on quasi-perfect Pt(111) facets have been examined in CO-saturated 0.1 M H2SO4 aqueous solutions via a combination of simultaneous, in situ, time-resolved, second harmonic generation (SHG, λinc = 590 nm), normalized differential reflectance spectroscopy (ΔR/R, λinc = 633 nm), and potential step techniques. For both of these phases, the onset of oxidation of COads was found to be delayed with respect to the time at which the potential was stepped to values positive enough, Eox, to promote oxidation of the entire CO adlayers. This induction time, τind, was much longer for the (2 × 2)-3CO (few tens of milliseconds) compared to the √19 × √19R23.4°-13CO phase (few milliseconds) and decreased monotonically for both of the phases as Eox was increased. Furthermore, for a fixed Eox, the oxidation rates, as measured by the optical techniques, were higher for the √19 × √19R23.4°-13CO compared t...
Observations on Tabanidae (Horseflies) in Louisiana

The observations here given in brief supplement the reports of Professor J. S. Hine on the Tabanidae or horseflies of Louisiana. Fourteen additional species have been taken. The larvae of ten species have been collected in the fieldand reared to the adult stage. During 1922 Tabanus pumilus was the worst stock pest of all tabanids in the vicinity of Baton Rouge. Two species of dipterous parasites have been reared from tabanid larvae.
mTor signaling is required for the formation of proliferating Müller glia-derived progenitor cells in the chick retina.

We investigate the roles of mTor signaling in the formation of Muller glia-derived progenitor cells (MGPCs) in the chick retina. During embryonic development, pS6 (a readout of active mTor signaling) is present in early-stage retinal progenitors, differentiating amacrine and ganglion cells, and late-stage progenitors or maturing Muller glia. By contrast, pS6 is present at low levels in a few scattered cell types in mature, healthy retina. Following retinal damage, in which MGPCs are known to form, mTor signaling is rapidly activated in Muller glia. Inhibition of mTor in damaged retinas prevented the accumulation of pS6 in Muller glia and reduced numbers of proliferating MGPCs. Inhibition of mTor had no effect on MAPK signaling or on upregulation of the stem cell factor Klf4, whereas Pax6 upregulation was significantly reduced. Inhibition of mTor potently blocked the MGPC-promoting effects of Hedgehog, Wnt and glucocorticoid signaling in damaged retinas. In the absence of retinal damage, insulin, IGF1 and FGF2 induced pS6 in Muller glia, and this was blocked by mTor inhibitor. In FGF2-treated retinas, in which MGPCs are known to form, inhibition of mTor blocked the accumulation of pS6, the upregulation of Pax6 and the formation of proliferating MGPCs. We conclude that mTor signaling is required, but not sufficient, to stimulate Muller glia to give rise to proliferating progenitors, and the network of signaling pathways that drive the formation of MGPCs requires activation of mTor.
The pH of inflammatory exudates

SummaryInflammatory exudates were collected at various times in small chambers adhered over skin wounds of normal rabbits. The exudate pH was compared with the blood pH. At termination of each experiment the lesions were excised for histologic study. The blood pH remained unchanged. The pH of the exudate decreased with time showing a definite fall at 24 hr and reaching the lowest value at 72 hr without appreciable further change at 96 hr. The inflammatory cell response in the lesions was slight. Exudation of cells had subsided at 24 hr and thereafter only reparative processes were present. An increase of the H-ion concentration apparently confined to the lesion occurred within the first 24 hr of inflammation and persisted during wound healing. A correlation between the histology of the inflammatory reaction and the pH of the exudate was not apparent.
47 IMPROVING HEALTH CARE ACCESS FOR UNDOCUMENTED LATINO IMMIGRANTS IN KING COUNTY, WASHINGTON.

Background King County has a large Latino immigrant population, some of whom are undocumented. Many undocumented immigrants do not receive medical care due to fear of deportation, language barriers, or lack of knowledge of health care resources. Lack of primary care in this population is associated with more emergency department visits for preventable conditions, more hospitalizations, and increased spread of infection. To address the lack of health care access in undocumented immigrants, a brochure was created describing undocumented immigrants9 right to health care and the commitment of a local community health center to provide medical services to all people. Methods The project idea emerged from a community assessment, conversations with Latino immigrants in the clinic and discussions with administrators about health care gaps in the community. The brochure was directed towards undocumented Latino immigrants because Latinos represent 70% of the undocumented immigrants in this country. These brochures, written in Spanish, will be available to the community health center, and will be given to community leaders such as priests who can provide the brochures in the community. Summary Undocumented Latino immigrants face barriers to receiving primary care for a variety of reasons. In an attempt to increase health care access for this population, an educational brochure was created. The two main objectives for the brochure were to let undocumented immigrants know that it is safe, from an immigration perspective, to receive care at a local community health center and to describe the available resources at the health center. It is hoped that the brochure will reach the target population and help increase primary health care utilization among this underserved group.
Autophagy and urothelial carcinoma of the bladder: A review

The incidence of urothelial carcinoma of the urinary bladder (bladder cancer) remains high. While other solid organ malignancies have seen significant improvement in morbidity and mortality, there has been little change in bladder cancer mortality in the past few decades. The mortality is mainly driven by muscle invasive bladder cancer, but the cancer burden remains high even in nonmuscle invasive bladder cancer due to high recurrence rates and risk of progression. While apoptosis deregulation has long been an established pathway for cancer progression, nonapoptotic pathways have gained prominence of late. Recent research in the role of autophagy in other malignancies, including its role in treatment resistance, has led to greater interest in the role of autophagy in bladder cancer. Herein, we summarize the literature regarding the role of autophagy in bladder cancer progression and treatment resistance. We address it by systematically reviewing treatment modalities for nonmuscle invasive and muscle invasive bladder cancer.
“I have to constantly prove to myself, to people, that I fit the bill”: Perspectives on weight and shape control behaviors among low-income, ethnically diverse young transgender women

Abstract The impact of societal femininity ideals on disordered eating behaviors in non-transgender women has been well described, but scant research has explored these processes among transgender women. The present study explored weight and shape control behaviors among low-income, ethnically diverse young transgender women at high risk for HIV or living with HIV in a Northeastern metropolitan area. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with 21 participants (ages 18–31 years; mean annual income
Basic Concepts and Models

In this chapter: the regimes of mechanical response; nonlinear elastic compression; stress tensors; the Hugoniot elastic limit; elastic-plastic deformation; hydrodynamic flow; phase transformation; release waves; other mechanical aspects of shock propagation; first-order and second-order behaviors.
Clinicopathological characteristics of invasive gastric Helicobacter pylori

Helicobacter pylori organisms have been observed deep within the stomach mucosa with an "intracellular" appearance, although the clinicopathological characteristics of such cases remain poorly understood. We analyzed 18 cases of deep mucosal H pylori and associated clinical (sex, age, history of H pylori infection, or proton pump inhibitor [PPI] use, medications, smoking, alcohol use, comorbidities, treatment response) and pathological (presence of lymphoid aggregates, intestinal metaplasia, PPI effect, active and/or chronic inflammation, quantity of invasive versus surface H pylori) characteristics. Electron microscopy was performed on 6 cases with the highest burden of invasive H pylori. Within our sample, 3 of 16 had a history of H pylori infection, 10 of 15 were receiving PPIs at the time of biopsy, and 12 of 13 had a negative posttreatment follow-up. Histology revealed that invasive H pylori were more commonly associated with chronic inflammation, in both the antrum (15/15 chronic, 8/15 acute) and fundus (17/18 chronic, 8/18 acute). Electron microscopy showed organisms within intercellular and luminal spaces, but no intracellular organisms. Deep mucosal H pylori often have an intracellular appearance but are contained within intercellular and luminal spaces and are responsive to standard therapy.
A regenerative concept for thermoelectric power generation

Abstract This paper presents a regenerative concept for thermoelectric (TE) based waste heat recovery systems called thermoelectric generators (TEGs). TEG is usually a modified heat exchanger with the addition of thermoelectric modules (TEMs) to recover waste heat for power generation. To utilize heat from high temperature heat sources, current researches have largely been focused on the development of high temperature TE materials. In this study, we describe a regeneration concept in which a precooler is used to lower the temperature of the hot gas and at the same time regenerate hot air from the cold air supply for Bi2Te3-based TEGs, avoiding the use of high-temperature thermoelectric materials. It is found that the regenerative TEGs can achieve a similar power output compared with TEGs using high temperature TE materials such as filled-skutterudites (combined filled skutterudites and Bi2Te3 TE materials) through obtaining a higher heat scavenging rate. Thus, the regenerative TEGs also have a similar absolute efficiency, defined according to the total available enthalpy from the hot gas. This could represent a paradigm shift in the TEG research and development, that much lower-cost, reliable, and readily available TE materials and modules can be used for high temperature applications, and will ultimately enable wide spread deployment of TEGs for real world waste heat recovery applications.
Parametric Study of Low-Ductility Concentrically Braced Frames under Cyclic Static Loading

AbstractIn moderate seismic regions, engineers are permitted to use a response modification coefficient, R, of 3 in the design of steel systems without any specific seismic detailing or proportioni...
Electrical injury drills: Approaches, learnings, and best practices

Occupational electrical injuries are low frequency/high consequence events. What this means for an industrial facility's electrical safety professional is that a facility's emergency response team may have never needed to respond to an electrical injury case. If an electrical incident were to occur, however, an electrical injury is more likely to be fatal than most other types of occupational injuries. This fact highlights the need for facilities to have a specific electrical emergency response plan to ensure timely and appropriate actions are taken in case of an incident. Conducting periodic electrical injury drills will test a facility's emergency readiness and identify learning and growth opportunities. When planning an electrical injury drill, the scenario and type of drill selected can vary depending on the type and frequency of electrical activities performed at the site, emergency response team training, and facility resources. Using data and observations from electrical emergency drills conducted at different industrial sites, this paper examines a variety of approaches to electrical injury drills as well as the learnings and best practices which resulted.
Comparative roles of Zr4+ and Ni2+ Wells-Dawson hetero-metal substituted polyoxometalates on oxidation of chemical contaminants

Abstract Rapid oxidation of a persistent organophosphate chemical warfare agent (CWA) analogue by aqueous 15 wt% hydrogen peroxide solutions containing hetero-metal substituted Wells-Dawson polyoxometalates (POMs), [Zr(α 2 -P 2 W 17 O 61 ) 2 ] 16− and [Ni(α 2 -P 2 W 17 O 61 )] 8− , was accomplished. A novel decontamination method was employed in which oxidation reactions were performed via direct application of aqueous POM solutions onto the CWA analogue, notably without the use of surfactants to promote POM solubility in organic media. POM facilitated reactions occurred at the interface of the aqueous decontamination solution and organic contaminant, the biphasic nature of which affords easy separation and recovery of the POM catalyst for future use. Oxidation of Demeton- S with 15 wt% hydrogen peroxide alone was slow with a reaction half-life of 40.9 min. Incorporation of Ni 2+ and Zr 4+ POMs increased the oxidation rate significantly and reduced the reaction half-lives to 20.5 and 2.2 min, respectively. The Ni 2+ POM increased the rate of reactive species formation by decomposing hydrogen peroxide. The Zr 4+ POM when dissolved in 15 wt% hydrogen peroxide resulted in a beneficial in situ structural rearrangement, generating the Zr 4+ POM species [Zr(H 2 O) 3 (α 2 -P 2 W 17 O 61 )] 6− and the Venturello complex ([PO 4 {W(O)(O 2 ) 2 } 4 ] 3− ), with other tungsten peroxo species. The combination of these highly active compounds in solution increased the reaction rate 20-fold over hydrogen peroxide alone, with a half-life of 2.2 min.
Topical capsaicin formulations in the management of neuropathic pain.

This chapter reviews the scientific and clinical evidence supporting the use of topical formulations containing the pungent principle of chili peppers—capsaicin, for the treatment of peripheral neuropathic pain. Given the limitations of current oral and parenteral therapies for the management of pain arising from various forms of nerve injury, alternate therapeutic approaches that are not associated with systemic adverse events that limit quality of life, impair function, or threaten respiratory depression are critically needed. Moreover, neuropathic conditions can be complicated by progressive changes in the central and peripheral nervous system, leading to persistent reorganization of pain pathways and chronic neuropathic pain. Recent advances in the use of high-dose topical capsaicin preparations hold promise in managing a wide range of painful conditions associated with peripheral neuropathies and may in fact help reduce suffering by reversing progressive changes in the nervous system associated with chronic neuropathic pain conditions.
Shared behavioral responses and predation risk of anuran larvae and adults exposed to a novel predator

Invasive species are a regional and global threat to biological diversity. In order to evaluate an invasive predator species’ potential to harm populations of native prey species, it is critical to evaluate the behavioral responses of all life stages of the native prey species to the novel predator. The invasion of the African clawed frog (Xenopus laevis) into southern California provides an opportunity to evaluate the predation risk and behavioral responses of native amphibians. We performed predation trials and explored prey behavioral responses to determine how this invasive predator may impact native amphibian populations using Pacific chorus frogs (Pseudacris regilla) as a representative native California prey species. We found that X. laevis will readily prey upon larval and adult life stages of P. regilla. Behavior trials indicated that both larval and adult P. regilla exhibit prey response behaviors and will spatially avoid the novel invasive predator. The results suggest that native anurans may have a redundant predator response in both the larval and adult life stages, which could reduce the predatory impact of X. laevis but also drive emigration of native amphibians from invaded habitat.
Unmasking of Urinary-pubic Symphysis Fistula After Implantation of Artificial Urinary Sphincter in Prostate Cancer Survivors-User Beware.

Objective To describe the dramatic and rapid unmasking of urinary-pubic symphysis fistula (UPF) and chronic osteomyelitis after artificial urinary sphincter (AUS) implantation. This has never been reported as UPF is usually an insidious sequelae of radiotherapy or energy ablation for prostate cancer. Methods We prospectively identified men who underwent rapid clinical decline due to UPF soon after AUS implantation at our institution in the previous 24 months. Chart and imaging was reviewed to assess preoperative and postoperative factors. Results Three patients were identified. All men had undergone radiation therapy for prostate cancer and all had undergone prior manipulation of the posterior urethra for complications of radiotherapy. Radiation cystitis was present and all had a low cystometric bladder capacity before surgery. All patients declined rapidly after surgery. UPF was diagnosed in 2 men after activation of AUS at 6-7 weeks postoperatively and 1 patient presented before activation at 3 weeks postoperatively. UPF tract was demonstrated with magnetic resonance imaging in the acute phase in all 3 cases. Two patients have undergone cystectomy and loop diversion with resolution of symptoms and one patient is awaiting definitive surgery. Conclusion Unmasking of occult UPF resulted in rapid clinical decline after AUS implantation. Increased intravesical filling pressure from increased urethral resistance likely resulted in opening of occult fistula tracts. UPF should be in the differential diagnosis if there is history of radiotherapy or urethral instrumentation. An underlying and undiagnosed UPF may lead to grave consequences after AUS implantation.
Interprofessional interactions study

Abstract: This small scale study explored the interprofessional interactions that occur in practice between students and other professionals. The students completed a one week structured diary of their contact with other professionals, using these two proximity categories: Proximity 1 – within speaking distance but no interaction with the other professional or Proximity 2 – having direct interaction with the other professional. Eight students participated in the study and 31 different professionals were listed. The results varied between students from different year groups and on different courses. Each student recorded different experiences and there was a large variety in the interprofessional interactions that were recorded. The data collected will allow real experiences from practice to be used in interprofessional learning sessions and the results of this study can be used to illustrate to students which professional groups they are likely to encounter in practice. Keywords: Interprofessional education; Health and social care education; Communication; Interactions
Blood pressure changes during orthostatic stress: evidence of gender differences in neuroeffector distribution.

Background: Research has demonstrated that exogenous adrenergic agonists produce dose-related vasoconstriction in men but not women. This suggests that the distribution of adrenergic receptor sites differ with gender. Women may have a higher density of receptor sites in the arterioles (fast acting with low gain) while men may have higher density in the larger vessels (slow acting with high gain). Methods: To partially test this hypothesis, the time course in beat-to-beat responses in systolic and diastolic BP, and heart rate was compared between six men and six women during the transition from a supine to an upright posture and during prolonged standing. Results: The transient change in systolic and diastolic BP was very rapid in women, but completed within 15 to 30 s after assuming an upright position. Men increased BP at a much slower rate, but continued to produce higher BPs over the complete testing session (up to 15 min). The rate of change for men (15 mm Hg systolic and 10 mm Hg diastolic) was approximately half that for women (30 mm Hg systolic and 15 mm Hg diastolic) during the first 30 s of upright posture. However, after 60 s of standing, absolute change in systolic BP for the men exceeded that of the women by approximately 5 mm Hg for both systolic and diastolic BP. While men's heart rate remained relatively constant during standing, women compensated for the lower change in BP by a continual increase in heart rate throughout the duration of the test. Although both men and women demonstrated increases in norepinephrine at 5 and 15 min during standing, no difference between genders was observed. Similarly, there were no differences in dominant periodicity of heart rate during standing, although women demonstrated slightly higher beat-to-beat variation (RMS) than men. Conclusion: The results support the hypothesis of distributional differences in neuroeffector responses between men and women and have implications for how men and women respond to orthostatic stress across a variety of environmental conditions.
The Human Virome

In this chapter we discuss changing approaches to viral discovery and human health, summarize the current understanding of the human-associated viral community, and review contemporary methods in viral metagenomics. The virome is the community of viruses that populate an organism or ecosystem at any given time. This includes the “core” set of commensal viruses that do not give rise to clinical symptoms or viremia, combined with any acute or persistent infections that may be present. Recent technological advances enable us to sequence viral genomes without culturing or cloning. These methods permit not only the discovery of a wider range of viral pathogens, but also a broader assessment of the human virome in the absence of clinically recognized disease. A new focus in contemporary virology is the natural viral community of the human body. This will provide a background for recognition of emerging and previously unrecognized viruses. It should be possible to detect viral infection before the emergence of symptoms, which will have significant implications for health-care delivery.
Rural versus urban perspective on coastal flooding: The insights from the U.S. Mid-Atlantic communities

Abstract This paper identifies the underlying complexities and contextual influences that shape the responses to chronic and episodic coastal flooding in rural and urban communities along the Mid Atlantic seaboard. It elucidates stakeholders’ perspectives on the contemporary and emerging coastal challenges, adaptation and hazard mitigation options, the possibility of relocation, and the risk information needs. Twenty-six semi-structured interviews were conducted in different urban and rural coastal jurisdictions on the Eastern Shore of Maryland and Hampton Roads in Virginia in May 2015. The core inquiries focused on the risk perceptions of evolving coastal hazards such as sea level rise and nuisance flooding; preferences for different response strategies; support for relocation; data and information needs, and barriers and opportunities for proactive adaptation. The results show a significant heterogeneity in risk perceptions and support for different response strategies, including relocation, mostly reflecting unique contextual dimensions of individual localities. Even though the majority of participants admit that the problem exists, they diverge on what exactly the problem is, how relevant it is for their household and the community, what needs to be done about it, and what are the best mechanisms to address it. Relocation is more frequently acknowledged as a viable and even inevitable response strategy by professionals working in the emergency and floodplain management than by the local decision-makers and residents. The findings suggest that the coastal flooding response efforts should focus on increasing the adaptive and coping capacity in synergy with other local demographic, socioeconomic, and development trends.
Technology Acceptance under Contingent Authority Adoption Decisions

Prior research has documented that perceived usefulness and ease of use are important determinants of individuals’ decisions to adopt new information technologies (ITs). However, in the organizatio...
Linearisation during language production: evidence from scene meaning and saliency maps

ABSTRACTSpeaking (1989) inspired research on topics such as word selection, syntactic formulation, and dialogue, but an issue that remains understudied is linearisation: the question of how speaker...
Phospholipid Levels Predict the Tissue Distribution of Poly- and Perfluoroalkyl Substances in a Marine Mammal

Exposure to poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) has been linked to many negative health impacts in humans and wildlife. Unlike neutral hydrophobic organic pollutants, many PFASs are ionic a...
Evi1 Promotes Leukemogenesis by Anti-Apoptotic Rather Than Differentiation-Blocking Effects in Murine MLL-AF9 Leukemia

In a search for molecular targets in MLL -leukemias, we found that transformed hematopoietic stem cells in knock-in MLL-AF9 mice expressed high levels of Evi1 compared to their wild type counterparts (Chen et al, Cancer Cell, 2008). About 50% of human AMLs with MLL rearrangements also express Evi1 and Evi1-expressing human leukemias are associated with an aggressive disease. The current experiments were designed to study mechanisms in which Evi1 is important for the pathogenesis of leukemia. To investigate its role in MLL-AF9 leukemia, we studied the effect of Evi1 knock-down in a cell line derived from a leukemic MLL-AF9 knock-in mouse. This cell line (4166) displays a myelo-monocytic phenotype, similar to human MLL-AF9 leukemias and induces leukemia with high efficiency when transplanted in wild type mice. To knock down Evi1, we screened multiple shRNA constructs cloned into a lentivirus expression vector (The RNAi Consortium/Open Biosystems). Of five shRNAs screened, two clones (E95 and E97) consistently inhibited cell growth in a dose dependent manner at multiplicities of infection (MOI) of 10 or greater. In one representative experiment, at 5 days post transduction at an MOI of 100, growth of E95 transduced 4166 cells was decreased by >80% compared to control-virus transduced cells. Evi1 mRNA was decreased in E95 transduced cells by >70% compared to controls at 48 hours. When cultured in semi-solid methylcellulose media for 7 days, E95 transduced cells formed significantly fewer colonies than control virus transduced cells (457.8 ± 24.7 and 847.8 ± 92.9 colonies per 1000 cells respectively, p integrin alpha-L , integrin beta-5 , lysozyme , Csf-1 ). In Evi1 knock-down cells, analysis of DNA content by flow cytometry at 48 hours showed no change in the proportions of cells in the G1/G0, S and G2/M phases of the cell cycle. In contrast to lack of an effect on differentiation, there was an increase in apoptosis with Evi1 knock-down as evidenced by an increase in the proportion of cells stained with Annexin V and Propidium iodide (51% vs. 29%) or a pan activated-caspase-marker and Propidium iodide (41% vs. 15%, E95 vs. control virus transduced cells respectively). To investigate the role of Evi1 in leukemia in vivo , 10 5 cells transduced with either E95 or control virus were injected into irradiated wild type mice. Establishment of leukemia was confirmed by leukocytosis, splenomegaly and evidence of malignant infiltrates in the spleen by morphology and FACS. Eight of nine mice that received control virus transduced cells died of leukemia by day 170 while all those given E95 transduced cells were alive. Leukemia development was significantly delayed in the animals receiving E95 transduced cells (p
Impact of variant reclassification in the clinical setting of cardiovascular genetics

Genetic testing for cardiovascular disease (CVD) has advanced over the past ten years, but these advancements have posed new challenges in variant classification. To address these challenges, ACMG/AMP published guidelines for variant interpretation in 2015. This study aimed to determine what impact these guidelines have on variant classification in clinical cardiovascular genetics. A retrospective chart review identified patients who underwent clinical genetic testing and had a variant identified in a gene associated with CVD. For each variant, systematic evidence review was performed and ACMG guidelines were applied for classification. These classifications were compared to those provided on patients' genetic test reports. This study identified 223 unique variants in 237 patients. Seventy-nine (35%) of the variants had classifications that differed from their clinical reports. Twenty-eight (35%) of these reclassifications would have changed medical management recommendations for 38 patients. Application of these guidelines resulted in reclassification for approximately one-third of the variants in this study. Clinicians can have a more active role in the process of variant classification. Variant classifications should be updated over time in the clinical CVD setting due to the impact reclassifications can have on clinical screening recommendations.
Recurrent limbic seizures do not cause hippocampal neuronal loss: A prolonged laboratory study.

Abstract Purpose It remains controversial whether neuronal damage and synaptic reorganization found in some forms of epilepsy are the result of an initial injury and potentially contributory to the epileptic condition or are the cumulative affect of repeated seizures. A number of reports of human and animal pathology suggest that at least some neuronal loss precedes the onset of seizures, but there is debate over whether there is further damage over time from intermittent seizures. In support of this latter hypothesis are MRI studies in people that show reduced hippocampal volumes and cortical thickness with longer durations of the disease. In this study we addressed the question of neuronal loss from intermittent seizures using kindled rats (no initial injury) and rats with limbic epilepsy (initial injury). Methods Supragranular mossy fiber sprouting, hippocampal neuronal densities, and subfield area measurements were determined in rats with chronic limbic epilepsy (CLE) that developed following an episode of limbic status epilepticus (n = 25), in kindled rats (n = 15), and in age matched controls (n = 20). To determine whether age or seizure frequency played a role in the changes, CLE and kindled rats were further classified by seizure frequency (low/high) and the duration of the seizure disorder (young/old). Results Overall there was no evidence for progressive neuronal loss from recurrent seizures. Compared with control and kindled rats, CLE animals showed increased mossy fiber sprouting, decreased neuronal numbers in multiple regions and regional atrophy. In CLE, but not kindled rats: 1) Higher seizure frequency was associated with greater mossy fiber sprouting and granule cell dispersion; and 2) greater age with seizures was associated with decreased hilar densities, and increased hilar areas. There was no evidence for progressive neuronal loss, even with more than 1000 seizures. Conclusion These findings suggest that the neuronal loss associated with limbic epilepsy precedes the onset of the seizures and is not a consequence of recurrent seizures. However, intermittent seizures do cause other structural changes in the brain, the functional consequences of which are unclear.
Improved aerodynamic fuel savings predictions for heavy-duty vehicles using route-specific wind simulations

Abstract A simulation methodology is introduced to provide improved estimates of the true efficiency gains that can be achieved using aerodynamic drag-reduction technologies for ground vehicles, with a particular application to heavy-duty-vehicle operations. The approach is based on a stochastic simulation methodology that applies route-specific wind conditions to predefined duty cycles, using wind-climate data calculated from publicly-accessible data sets. The simulation tool accounts for vehicle duty-cycle, seasonal wind conditions, the direction of travel, and diurnal effects to generate resultant-velocity and yaw-angle predictions along a specified route. Aerodynamic drag and associated fuel-use predictions are then made based on vehicle aerodynamic performance models generated from sources such as wind-tunnel measurements, road/track measurements, or computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. The simulation software was used to evaluate the benefits of drag-reduction technologies associated with heavy-duty vehicles (HDV) travelling at low speeds on two major routes in Canada. The fuel-savings rate was determined for several drag-reduction technologies and tractor-trailer-height-matching approaches on two highway routes, and at vehicle ground speeds of 50 ​km/h, 80 ​km/h, and 100 ​km/h. This approach provides a representative range of fuel savings that considers the effect of different wind climates on the performance of the drag-reduction strategies. The results suggest that drag-reduction technologies, and particularly height-matching approaches, can have important contributions to reducing fuel use and the associated greenhouse gas emissions at speeds as low as 50 ​km/h. Vehicle weights ranging from 13,600 ​kg (30,000 lb) to 54,500 ​kg (120,000 lb) were evaluated to identify the relative contributions of rolling resistance and aerodynamic drag on a vehicle’s total fuel consumption. Although the proportion of a vehicle’s total fuel consumption from aerodynamics is reduced at low speeds, the fuel savings that can be achieved with standard drag reduction approaches can provide a meaningful reduction in fuel use, a reduction in fuel costs, and a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
Effects of Coarse-Graining on Molecular Simulations of Mechanical Properties of Glassy Polymers

We simulate the mechanical response of polystyrene glasses using the models with different levels of coarse-graining but the same structural correlations at thermal equilibrium. The stress level du...
NASA space safety standards and procedures for human-rating requirements

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration of the United States of America (NASA) has arguably led this planet in space exploration and certainly has been one of two major leaders in those endeavors. NASA governance is institutionalized and managed in a series documents arranged in a hierarchy and flowing down to the work levels. A document tree of NASA s documentation in its totality would likely overwhelm and not be very informative. Taken in segments related to the various business topics and focusing in those segments, however, provides a logical and understandable relationship and flow of requirements and processes. That is the nature of this chapter, a selection of NASA documentation pertaining to space exploration and a description of how those documents together form the plan by which NASA business for space exploration is conducted. Information presented herein is taken from NASA publications and is available publicly and no information herein is protected by copyright or security regulations. While NASA documents are the source of information presented herein, any and all views expressed herein and any misrepresentations of NASA data that may occur herein are those of the author and should not be considered NASA official positions or statements, nor should NASA endorsement of anything presented in this work be assumed.
Organization and Expression of the hrp Gene Cluster in Pseudomonas Syringae Pv. Phaseolicola

Lindgren et al. (1986) described a group of genes designated hrp, which control the ability of the halo blight pathogen, Pseudomonas syringae pv. phaseolicola, to elicit the hypersensitive reaction (HR) on tobacco and other non-host plants and its ability to produce the primary disease symptoms (watersoaked lesions) on bean, its normal host. Subsequent studies (Lindgren, to be published; Grimm and Panopoulos, unpublished data) showed that hrp DNA sequence are conserved among several pathovars of P. syringae and that functional homologues of several hrp genes exist in closely related members of this group. In P. syringae pv. phaseolicola NPS3121 the hrp genes are organized in 2 linkage groups. One of these apparently comprises a single locus, mutations in which lead to a mucoid morphology. The other group, which comprises the majority of known hrp genes, defines a region of approximately 22 kb which is referred to as the “hrp cluster”. This region has been analyzed further by insertional mutagenesis with “reporter” transposons, marker exchange, complementation and DNA sequence analysis. The hpr cluster consists of two sub-clusters of hrp genes separated by a short (ca. 0.1–1.0 kb) segment that does not control pathogenicity or HR.
Response of chick parathyroid glands to the vitamin D metabolites, 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol and 24,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol.

Under conditions of chronic hypocalcemia, e.g. in vitamin D depletion, the parathyroid glands undergo marked hypertrophy and hyperplasia. Seven days of treatment ( 100 lU/day; 6.5 nmoles ) with cholecalciferol (CC) decreased parathyroid gland weight significantly from vitamin D depleted controls while increasing serum Ca from 6.3 to 8.6 mg/100 ml. 1,25-Dihydroxycholecalciferol (1.3 nmoles/day) also increased serum Ca to 8.6, but had no effect on gland weight. Both CC and 1,25dihydroxycholecalciferol stimulated the production of intestinal calcium binding protein. This same dose of 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol in com bination with small amounts of 24R,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol was as effective as CC in reducing parathyroid gland weight, but 24R,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol alone had no effect on gland weight or on calcium binding protein synthesis. When chicks received a twoto four-fold larger dose of 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol, parathyroid gland weight was sig nificantly reduced relative to vitamin D depleted controls. A time course of the action of CC indicated that 4 days treatment was sufficient for sig nificant parathyroid gland size reduction. Decreases in gland wet weight caused by CC were paralleled by decreases in dry weight, and loss of DNA and protein. It is concluded that parathyroid gland regression, involving loss of cells, occurs within a few days of treatment with vitamin D metab olites and that gland regression does not obligatorily follow an increase in serum Ca. At low doses, 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol requires the presence of 24R,25-dihydroxycholecalciferoI to cause gland regression (but not in testinal calcium binding protein production), whereas it is effective alone at higher doses. These results suggest that the dihy droxy lated vitamin D metabolites may play a role in modulating parathyroid gland as well as intestinal function. J. Nutr. 107: 1918-1926, 1977. INDEXING
Fault Prediction Modeling for Software Quality Estimation: Comparing Commonly Used Techniques

High-assurance and complex mission-critical software systems are heavily dependent on reliability of their underlying software applications. An early software fault prediction is a proven technique in achieving high software reliability. Prediction models based on software metrics can predict number of faults in software modules. Timely predictions of such models can be used to direct cost-effective quality enhancement efforts to modules that are likely to have a high number of faults. We evaluate the predictive performance of six commonly used fault prediction techniques: CART-LS (least squares), CART-LAD (least absolute deviation), S-PLUS, multiple linear regression, artificial neural networks, and case-based reasoning. The case study consists of software metrics collected over four releases of a very large telecommunications system. Performance metrics, average absolute and average relative errors, are utilized to gauge the accuracy of different prediction models. Models were built using both, original software metrics (RAW) and their principle components (PCA). Two-way ANOVA randomized-complete block design models with two blocking variables are designed with average absolute and average relative errors as response variables. System release and the model type (RAW or PCA) form the blocking variables and the prediction technique is treated as a factor. Using multiple-pairwise comparisons, the performance order of prediction models is determined. We observe that for both average absolute and average relative errors, the CART-LAD model performs the best while the S-PLUS model is ranked sixth.
Algorithmic Aspects of Web Search Engines

Web search engines have emerged as one of the central applications on the internet. In fact, search has become one of the most important activities that people engage in on the Internet. Even beyond becoming the number one source of information, a growing number of businesses are depending on web search engines for customer acquisition. In this talk I will brief review the history of web search engines: The first generation of web search engines used text-only retrieval techniques. Google revolutionized the field by deploying the PageRank technology – an eigenvector-based analysis of the hyperlink structure- to analyze the web in order to produce relevant results. Moving forward, our goal is to achieve a better understanding of a page with a view towards producing even more relevant results.
Formation of Extracellular Sphingolipids by Microorganisms: IV. Pilot-Plant Production of Tetraacetylphytosphingosine by Hansenula ciferrii

Tetraacetylphytosphingosine (TAPS) formation by the F-60-10 mating type strain of the yeast Hansenula ciferrii, previously observed on agar plates, has been shown to take place in submerged cultures. The optimal conditions for TAPS formation, and the correlation of TAPS production and sugar utilization under aerobic conditions, were studied in 10-liter fermentors. For each gram of glucose consumed, 5 mg of TAPS were formed; for each gram of yeast solids produced, 15 mg of TAPS were synthesized. A 750-liter pilot-plant run yielded 175 g of crude TAPS, which were obtained by hexane extraction of centrifuged yeast cells.
Health issues relating to monosodium glutamate use in the diet.

Publisher Summary Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) improves the taste acceptability of foods with lowered salt content, suggesting that its use in low-salt foods will make it easier for people to establish and maintain a low-salt diet. It is the sodium salt of Glutamic Acid (GLU), a non-essential amino acid for humans and other mammals. It is the dominant amino acid in dietary proteins, comprising about 10% of the total amino acid content. In the body, GLU serves a number of important functions, aside from its role in taste. However, despite the “indispensability” of GLU to the normal functioning of the body, its use in food as a flavor enhancer (primarily as MSG) has been reputed in the past to be toxic, leading to brain damage and a host of other adverse effects in humans and animals. If such is the case, this chapter presents the questions how its use can be permitted as a food additive, and more to the point, how the body can “survive” the flood of GLU that enters every day as a natural constituent of foods. The chapter provides answers to these questions. The issue of GLU (and MSG) safety in food was raised over 35 years ago. In the intervening period, a great deal of research has been conducted on this issue, particularly in humans, and has led to the broad conclusion that GLU and MSG are safe to consume. The chapter provides an overview of the GLU content of foods, discusses the two broad issues that have been the primary foci of concern about dietary MSG safety over the past 35 years: (a) effects of dietary GLU and MSG on nervous system development and function and (b) allergic and non-specific effects of dietary MSG.
Quantifying carbon‐nitrogen feedbacks in the Community Land Model (CLM4)

[1] Recent studies indicate that nitrogen biogeochemistry affects the carbon cycle feedback in climate simulations. We use the Community Land Model version 4 (CLM4) with carbon-only and carbon-nitrogen biogeochemistry to assess the influence of nitrogen on the land carbon budget for 1973–2004. Carbon-only simulations show that the carbon gain from increasing atmospheric CO2 (the concentration-carbon feedback) is four times greater than the warming-induced carbon loss (the climate-carbon feedback) over the period 1973–2004. Nitrogen reduces both feedbacks compared with carbon-only biogeochemistry. The decrease in the concentration-carbon feedback is three times greater than the effect on the climate-carbon feedback. Thus, the influence of nitrogen on the CLM4 concentration-carbon feedback is of greater importance for near-term climate change simulations than its effect on the climate-carbon feedback. Furthermore, the land use carbon flux greatly exceeds these carbon-nitrogen biogeochemical feedbacks.