cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A Congenital Defect in the Spinal Cord of the Manx Cat

The lumbar part of the spinal cords of two Manx kittens showed syringomyelia associated with spina bifida occulta. The syringomyelia may have been caused by a secondary mechanism, such as occlusion of blood vessels, that occurrcd after formation of the spinal cord. There was no apparent hyperplasia of neural tissue. Incomplete fusion of vertebral arches map also have been caused in part by such a vascular defect. The term 'spina bifida' refers to a group of developmental defects characterized by failure of fusion of vertebral arches with or without protrusion and dysplasia of the spinal cord or its membranes. Past investigators have examined this type of defect in congenital cases ; however, as these were usually isolated lesions that were fully formed when recognized, little was added to our knowledge of their etiology. PATTEN (ll, 121, after studying serial sections of human embryos with spina bifida, concluded that the defect was due to an overgrowth or hyperplasia of the cells of the neural tube which hindered closing of the neural tube and adjacent vertebral arches. An older, somewhat less popular theory holds that rupture of the already closed neural tube causes the spina bifida. This latter concept, although overshadowed by the overgrowth theory, has been revived by the work of GARDNER (3) and more recently by the review of PADGET (lo). In an attempt to examine the development of spina bifida, several workers have induced the defect utilizing a variety of methods: the application of teratogenic drugs such as trypan blue (4, 151, variation in maternal diet (16), and surgical intervention, such as splitting the roof plate of the neural tube (2). Unfortunately the results obtained from their experiments have also failed to explain the mechanism of the developmental defect.
The binding and processing of plasminogen by Balb/c 3T3 and SV3T3 cells.

The binding and processing of plasminogen by Balb/c 3T3 and SV3T3 cells was studied using 125I-labeled canine plasminogen. Throughout a 3-day period, 125I-plasminogen in the incubation medium bound to the cells and was degraded, first to intermediate-sized macromolecules that were the same size as the large (74,600-dalton) and small (25,000-dalton) chains of active plasmin, and to smaller fragments including 3-iodo-L-tyrosine. Binding to SV3T3 cells was independent of the protease-dependent morphological change (PDMC)1 characteristic of these and many other transformed cells. The SV3T3, and to a somewhat lesser extent, the 3T3 cells, both accumulated and released into the incubation medium 3-iodo-L-tyrosine, a terminal lysozymal digestion product. The results of a sublethal cell-surface trypsinization assay suggest that the cell-associated plasminogen was primarily bound to the surfaces of the 3T3 and SV3T3 cells while the macromolecular degradation products including active plasmin were inside the cells. The rate of 125I plasminogen degradation exhibited by SV3T3 cells was approximately two times greater than that of 3T3 cells, which presumably reflects differences in endocytosis or lysosomal hydrolysis, or both. The rates were unaffected by addition of pancreatic or soybean trypsin inhibitor sufficient to inhibit PDMC. In the incubation medium, plasminogen was activated to plasmin by SV3T3, but not by 3T3 cells. However, 95–100% of plasmin covalently bound to a 47,000-dalton canine serum component, which could be dissociated from plasmin by hydroxylamine: 95–100% of the plasmin was inactive to reaction with DF32P. Thus the serum component is a plasmin inhibitor. The plasmin-containing complex in the medium had an apparent molecular weight of 212,000. Under denaturing conditions, the complex dissociated into two covalently modified plasmin-containing species of 153,000 and 127,000 daltons. In addition to forming a complex with a serum component, the plasmin is cleaved into two small fragments (∼10,000 and 12,000 daltons) by as-yet uncharacterized serum factors.
Flux Dynamics, ac Losses, and Activation Energies in (Ba $$_{0.6}$$ 0.6 K $$_{0.4})$$ 0.4 ) Fe $$_{2}$$ 2 As $$_{2}$$ 2 Bulk Superconductor

Flux pinning and thermally assisted flux flow are studied in a (Ba $$_{0.6}$$ K $$_{0.4})$$ Fe $$_{2}$$ As $$_{2}(T_\mathrm{c}$$ =38.3 K) bulk samples in magnetic fields up to 18 T via ac susceptibility measurements. Ac susceptibility curves shift to higher temperatures as the frequency is increased from 75 to 1,997 Hz in all fields. The frequency ( $$f)$$ shift of the susceptibility curves is modeled by the Anderson-Kim Arrhenius law $$f = f_{0}\mathrm{exp}(-E_\mathrm{a}{ /kT})$$ to determine flux activation energy $$E_\mathrm{a}/k$$ as a function of ac field $$H_\mathrm{ac}$$ and dc magnetic flux density $$\mu $$ $$_\mathrm{0} H_\mathrm{dc}$$ . $$E_\mathrm{a}/k$$ ranges from 8,822 K (761 meV) at $$\mu $$ $$_{0} H_{dc}$$ = 0 T to 1,100 K (95 meV) at 18 T for $$H_\mathrm{ac}=$$ 80 A/m (1 Oe). The energies drop very quickly in a non-linear manner as $$\mu $$ $$_{0} H_\mathrm{dc}$$ increases from 0 to 1 T, and more gradually, in a linear-like manner, as $$\mu $$ $$_{0} H_\mathrm{dc}$$ increases further to 18 T, suggesting some kind of vortex transition. For ac fields of 400 A/m (5 Oe) and higher, the Arrhenius model starts breaking down, at around $$\mu $$ $$_{0} H_{ \mathrm dc}$$ = 2 T. As the dc magnetic flux density increases further, this breakdown becomes significant for $$\mu _{0} H_\mathrm{dc}$$ = 15 and 18 T at ac fields of 400 A/m and higher. Extensive mapping of the de-pinning, or irreversibility, lines shows broad dependence on the magnitude of the ac field, frequency, in addition to the dc magnetic flux density.
Boosting based conditional quantile estimation for regression and binary classification

We introduce Quantile Boost (QBoost) algorithms which predict conditional quantiles of the interested response for regression and binary classification. Quantile Boost Regression (QBR) performs gradient descent in functional space to minimize the objective function used by quantile regression (QReg). In the classification scenario, the class label is defined via a hidden variable, and the quantiles of the class label are estimated by fitting the corresponding quantiles of the hidden variable. An equivalent form of the definition of quantile is introduced, whose smoothed version is employed as the objective function, which is maximized by gradient ascent in functional space to get the Quantile Boost Classification (QBC) algorithm. Extensive experiments show that QBoost performs better than the original QReg and other alternatives for regression and classification. Furthermore, QBoost is more robust to noisy predictors.
Daily and Seasonal Patterns in Abdominal Color in Diaphorina citri (Hemiptera: Psyllidae)

Diaphorina citri Kuwayama, a psyllid vector of huanglongbing (citrus greening disease), exhibits three more or less distinct abdominal colors in the adult psyllid: gray/brown, blue/green, and orange/yellow. We explored the daily (in individuals in the laboratory) and seasonal (in a field population) patterns in abdominal color of adult D. citri to clarify the biology of this species in relation to abdominal color and investigated the relationship between abdominal color and the reproductive state of adults (i.e., whether an individual is reproductively mature, has mated, or—in females—is gravid). Females were predominantly blue/green throughout their lives, with a small portion of individuals being gray/brown, especially just after emergence. Approximately 86% of mated females developed an orange/yellow abdominal color after mating, but they ultimately turned back to blue/green within several days to 1 mo after mating. Only 31% of virgin females turned orange/yellow. Males were predominantly blue/green early in life, but a greater portion of males relative to females were gray/brown. The orange/yellow color in females reflected the presence of eggs in the abdomen; in males it seemed to derive from the color of the internal reproductive organs, and it was generally only evident in older males. The preponderance of blue/green females, rarity of gray/brown females relative to gray/brown males, and rarity of orange/yellow males and females was largely reflected in sticky card trap captures from the field. Abdominal color is of essentially no value in discerning the state of sexual maturity and of only limited value in discerning whether females have mated.
Teacher Satisfaction and Turnover in Charter Schools: Examining the Variations and Possibilities for Collective Bargaining in State Laws

Charter schools see as many as one in four teachers leave annually, and recent evidence attributes much of this turnover to provisions affected by collective bargaining processes and state laws such as salary, benefits, job security, and working hours. There have been many recent efforts to improve teacher voice in charter schools (Kahlenberg & Potter, 2014), including engaging in some form of collective bargaining, but we know little about the possibilities dictated by state laws. Therefore, this article describes the possibilities and variations for collective bargaining by state and for different charter types (e.g., conversion vs. newly created charters), as well as laws that have the potential to improve teacher satisfaction in charter schools. Ideally, state laws and the collective bargaining process should provide the appropriate balance between flexibility for charter school leaders, teacher voice, and protections for teachers.
Renormalization Group and Critical Phenomena. I. Renormalization Group and the Kadanoff Scaling Picture

The Kadanoff theory of scaling near the critical point for an Ising ferromagnet is cast in differential form. The resulting differential equations are an example of the differential equations of the renormalization group. It is shown that the Widom-Kadanoff scaling laws arise naturally from these differential equations if the coefficients in the equations are analytic at the critical point. A generalization of the Kadanoff scaling picture involving an "irrelevant" variable is considered; in this case the scaling laws result from the renormalization-group equations only if the solution of the equations goes asymptotically to a fixed point.
Production of Sulfolipids from Cyanobacteria in Photobioreactors

Sulfolipids are compounds found in association with the photosynthetic apparatus in most photoautotrophic organisms, although there have been no quantitative studies on how environmental and biological factors influence the production of sulfolipids. They are of interest due to their possible pharmaceutical use (anti-tumor and anti-HIV) and also as an interesting new class of lipids. In this study, we are investigating the kinetics of growth and sulfolipid production using the cyanobacterium Synechocystis PCC 6803. The cyanobacteria are grown in a 2-L, fed-batch photobioreactor under well-defined conditions. We obtained a final biomass concentration of 5 g/L after 20 days and an overall sulfolipid productivity of 0.24 mg/(L-hr) at a light intensity of 216 µE/m2/s.
Progress in the Prevention and Treatment of RSV Infection

At long last, gratifying progress is evident on many fronts in combating respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection. RSV was discovered in 1956 as an agent causing coryza in chimpanzees.1 Its clinical effects became evident shortly thereafter through a strong epidemiologic association of RSV infection with bronchiolitis and pneumonia in young infants.2 In the almost 60 years since the virus was identified, the highlights of RSV research have been relatively few, in spite of dedicated groups working in this field. The reasons for this include the difficulty of working with RSV in the laboratory; the confinement of RSV replication in humans . . .
Cytotoxicity of Tumor necrosis factor related apoptosis-inducing ligand towards Ewing's sarcoma cell lines.

Death ligands of the Tumor Necrosis Factor (TNF) family are known to induce apoptosis upon binding to their cognate receptors. However, the clinical utility of these cytokines as anticancer agents has been limited due to unacceptable toxicity. TRAIL is a recently isolated death ligand that possesses selective anti-tumor activity against a number of cancer cell lines without significant systemic toxicity. In this report we present evidence that cell lines derived from Ewing's Sarcoma (ES) are uniformly sensitive to TRAIL-mediated apoptosis. Furthermore, unlike TNF-α, treatment with TRAIL fails to induce the anti-apoptotic and pro-inflammatory NF-κB pathway in the ES cell lines. Our results suggest that TRAIL may prove to be a useful agent for the treatment of Ewing's sarcoma and related peripheral neuroectodermal tumors.
An Efficient Localized RBF Meshless Method Applied to FLuid Flow and Conjugate Heat Transfer

A localized radial basis function (RBF) meshless method is developed for coupled viscous fluid flow and convective heat transfer problems. The method is based on new localized radial-basis function (RBF) expansions using Hardy Multiquadrics for the sought-after unknowns. An efficient set of formulae are derived to compute the RBF interpolation in terms of vector products thus providing a substantial computational savings over traditional meshless methods. Moreover, the approach developed in this paper is applicable to explicit or implicit time marching schemes as well as steady-state iterative methods. We apply the method to viscous fluid flow and conjugate heat transfer (CHT) modeling. The incompressible Navier-Stokes are time marched using a Helmholtz potential decomposition for the velocity field. When CHT is considered, the same RBF expansion is used to solve the heat conduction problem in the solid regions enforcing temperature and heat flux continuity of the solid/fluid interfaces. The computation is accelerated by distributing the load over several processors via a domain decomposition along with an interface interpolation tailored to pass information through each of the domain interfaces to ensure conservation of field variables and derivatives. Numerical results are presented for several cases including channel flow, flow in a channel with a square step obstruction, and a jet flow into a square cavity. Results are compared with commercial computational fluid dynamics code predictions. The proposed localized meshless method approach is shown to produce accurate results while requiring a much-reduced effort in problem preparation in comparison to other traditional numerical methods.Copyright © 2005 by ASME
(Z, E)-9, 12-Tetradecadien-l-ol: A Component of the Sex Pheromone of Ephestia elutella (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)

Pheromone emanating from calling Ephestia elutella (Hubner) females was found to contain ( Z, E )-9, 12-tetradecadien-1-ol (ZETOH) and ( Z, E )-9, l2-tetradecadien-1-ol acetate (ZETA) at levels of ca. 300 pg and 3 ng per female, respectively. A bath consisting of both ZETOH and ZETA was much more effective in attracting moths than was ZETA, although ZETOH was ineffective as a trap bait alone. The ratio of the two components did not seem to be critical since no differences were found in number of moths caught at concentrations of 20 or 50% of ZETOH in ZETA.
Defining the molecular signals of early lymphoid priming in human bone marrow

P1177 MYELOID LINEAGE CHOICE IS NOT CONTROLLED BY THE PU.1 GATA1 SWITCH Philipp Hoppe, Michael Schwarzfischer, Claus Nerlov, Fabian Theis, and Timm Schroeder Stem Cell Dynamics Research Unit, Helmholtz Center Munich German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany; Institute of Bioinformatics and Systems Biology, Helmholtz Center Munich German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany; Institute for Stem Cell Research, MRC Centre for Regenerative Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK; Department of Mathematics, Technische Universit€at M€unchen, Munich, Germany; Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, Basel, Switzerland
Intracranial pressure monitoring during adult spinal deformity correction in a patient with critical venous occlusive disease and superior vena cava syndrome: A technical note

BACKGROUND Intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring is not routinely used during complex spinal deformity correction surgery. The authors report a 66-year-old male who during thoracolumbar deformity surgery required the placement of an ICP monitor due to the underlying history of a superior vena cava syndrome (e.g., s/p right jugular stent). CASE DESCRIPTION A 66-year-old male with multiple prior lumbar spinal procedures presented with lower back and bilateral lower extremity pain, paresthesias, and weakness. He had a history of chronic left internal jugular and brachiocephalic venous occlusion (e.g., he had a right internal jugular stent). During deformity surgery, a frontal intraparenchymal ICP monitor was placed. During the early portion of the operation, bed adjustments (increasing reverse trendelenburg position) were required to compensate for ICP elevations as high as 30 mm Hg. A subsequent inadvertent durotomy during decompression lowered the ICP to <5 mm Hg; no further ICP spikes occurred. His postoperative course was uneventful, and 14-month later, he was dramatically improved. CONCLUSION ICP monitoring may be a useful adjunct for patient safety in selected patients who are at risk for developing intracranial hypertension during extensive spinal deformity surgery.
Management of dysrhythmias associated with acute myocardial infarction. 1.

Among patients with dysrhythmias characterized by electric instability, potential electric instability, or associated pump failure, those in the third group present the greatest and most controversial therapeutic challenge. These patients are likely to be elderly and to have extensive coronary artery disease.
Stable Adaptive Neural Control of Partially Observable Dynamic Systems

This chapter contains sections titled: Introduction Background Stability Bias Example Application References ]]>
Antimicrobial Drug Efflux Pumps in Other Gram-Positive Bacteria

Gram-positive bacteria have a more ancient and primitive membrane structure than their Gram-negative counterparts which generally results in higher levels of intrinsic susceptibility to various lipophilic and amphiphilic antimicrobial drugs. Nonetheless, these bacteria encode similar numbers of efflux pumps in their respective genomes. In this chapter, we provide a historical overview of the identification and current understanding of such systems in Gram-positive genera of practical and industrial significance – including some clinically relevant organisms not covered elsewhere in this book. In general, these systems have been less thoroughly investigated than their Gram-negative counterparts with respect to transporter and substrate identification and their associated regulation. However, some key findings in the progression of the bacterial drug efflux field were first identified in less clinically relevant organisms such as Bacillus subtilis and Lactococcus lactis. Given this framework, the physiological relevance of efflux has become increasingly significant with concepts involving the innate immune response, metabolites, and bactericidal host-derived resistance and “natural” substrates.
ATOM : Efficient Tracking, Monitoring, and Orchestration of Cloud Resources

The emergence of Infrastructure as a Service framework brings new opportunities, which also accompanies with new challenges in auto scaling, resource allocation, and security. A fundamental challenge underpinning these problems is the continuous tracking and monitoring of resource usage in the system. In this paper, we present ATOM , an efficient and effective framework to automatically track, monitor, and orchestrate resource usage in an Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) system that is widely used in cloud infrastructure. We use novel tracking method to continuously track important system usage metrics with low overhead, and develop a Principal Component Analysis (PCA) based approach to continuously monitor and automatically find anomalies based on the approximated tracking results. We show how to dynamically set the tracking threshold based on the detection results, and further, how to adjust tracking algorithm to ensure its optimality under dynamic workloads. Lastly, when potential anomalies are identified, we use introspection tools to perform memory forensics on VMs guided by analyzed results from tracking and monitoring to identify malicious behavior inside a VM. We demonstrate the extensibility of ATOM through virtual machine (VM) clustering. The performance of our framework is evaluated in an open source IaaS system.
Diurnal Variations in Severe Weather Forecast Parameters of Rapid Update Cycle-2 Tornado Proximity Environments

AbstractNocturnal tornadoes are disproportionately dangerous compared with their daytime counterparts; thus, it is imperative to improve the forecasting of these tornadoes. This study uses a large (194 cases) and geographically expansive dataset of Rapid Update Cycle tornado proximity (within 80 km of initial tornado touchdown) soundings from 2003 to 2011 to investigate tornado forecast parameter differences between F1–F2 (weak) and F3+ (strong) nocturnal and daytime tornadoes. The findings suggest that, when considered alone, 0–1- and 0–3-km wind shears show the highest skill in distinguishing environments associated with weak and strong tornadoes, with 0–1-km shear being most effective at night and 0–3-km shear showing the most skill during the day. The results also indicate that combining most unstable CAPE with 0–3-km shear and 0–1-km shear with 3–9-km shear resulted in the most skillful daytime and nighttime forecasts, respectively.
Mass Burning Rate of Syngas/Air Mixtures and Gas to Liquid Fuel Auto-Ignition at High Temperatures and Pressures

Mass burning speed and onset of auto-ignition of premixed syngas/air and gas to liquid (GTL)/air mixtures respectively, have been determined at high temperatures and pressures over a wide range of fuel-air equivalence ratios. The experimental facilities consist of two spherical and cylindrical vessels. The spherical vessel was used to collect pressure data to measure the burning speed, mass burning rate and determine the onset of auto-ignition and cylindrical vessel was used to take pictures of flame propagation with a high speed CMOS camera up to 40,000 frame per second located in a Schlieren system. Effect of cellular flames on mass burning rate have been determined. Critical pressures and temperature for different fuel air equivalence ratios at which auto-ignition takes place have been measured. In this paper, mass burning rate of syngas is calculated for a wide range of equivalence ratio from 0.6 to 2, unburned temperature from 400 to 680 K and initial pressure from 2 to 25 atm. A power law correlation has been developed as a function of equivalence ratio, temperature and pressure. The onset of auto-ignition for GTL/air mixture has been identified for equivalence ratio of 0.8 to 1.2.Copyright © 2016 by ASME
Stereochemistry of Dopamine Receptor Agonists

In order to help understand the mode of binding of dopamine agonists to their receptors, four agonists of the 2-aminotetralin series were resolved into (+)- and (−)-enantiomers, their absolute configurations were determined, and their receptor affinities were evaluated in binding assays. The most important result seen was an inversion of stereochemical requirement which is governed by the location of hydroxyl groups in the aromatic ring. Thus, 5- and 5,6-dihydroxyl compounds require the 2S configuration while 7- and 6,7-dihydroxyl compounds must be 2R. This implies a specific orientation of such ligands to the receptor, for which a model is proposed.
Improving in vivo outcomes of decellularized vascular grafts via incorporation of a novel extracellular matrix

Each year, hundreds of thousands coronary bypass procedures are performed in the US, yet there currently exists no off-the-shelf alternative to autologous vessel transplant. In the present study, we investigated the use of mouse thrombospondin-2 knockout (TSP2 KO) cells, which secrete a non-thrombogenic and pro-migratory extracellular matrix (TSP2 KO ECM), to modify small diameter vascular grafts. To accomplish this, we first optimized the incorporation of TSP2 KO ECM on decellularized rat aortas. Because MMP levels are known to be elevated in TSP2 KO cell culture, it was necessary to probe the effect of the modification process on the graft's mechanical properties. However, no differences were found in suture retention, Young's modulus, or ultimate tensile strength between modified and unmodified grafts. Platelet studies were then performed to determine the time point at which the TSP2 KO ECM sufficiently reduced thrombogenicity. Finally, grafts modified by either TSP2 KO or WT cells or unmodified grafts, were implanted in an abdominal aortic interposition model in rats. After 4 weeks, grafts with incorporated TSP2 KO ECM showed improved endothelial and mural cell recruitment, and a decreased failure rate compared to control grafts. Therefore, our studies show that TSP2 KO ECM could enable the production of off-the-shelf vascular grafts while promoting reconstruction of native vessels.
Estimation of jugular venous O2 saturation from cerebral oximetry or arterial O2 saturation during isocapnic hypoxia.

Objective.Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) has the potential forproviding valuable information about oxygen delivery to the brain. However,questions have been raised about the accuracy of these measurements. Thisstudy was undertaken to compare noninvasive cerebral saturation measurementsto jugular venous saturation under conditions of hypoxia and hypercapnia.Methods.Data was obtain on forty-two subjects. Cerebral oxygenationwas measured with a Somanetics INVOS 4100-SSA placed on the forehead of thesubjects. PETCO2 was controlled to approximately 2 and 7 mmHg aboveresting values and PETO2 was controlled to 80, 45, 60 and 41 mmHgconsecutively for four of five minutes each. Internal jugular blood gasmeasurements were made via a retrograde catheter. Results.Both thecerebral oximetry measured saturation (rSO2) and the jugular venoussaturation (Sj\(\bar v \)O2) were significantly increasedby increasing the PETCO2 at all levels of hypoxia. The increase inthe rSO2 was less than the increase inSj\(\bar v\)O2. The rSO2 had a bias of 5.2%and a precision of 10.7% compared to the measuredSj\(\bar v\)O2. Discussion.Cerebral oxygensaturation measured by cerebral oximetry compares well to the measuredSj\(\bar v\)O2 in normal subjects, despite multiplephysiological reasons for differences. The closer relationship ofSj\(\bar v\)O2 to rSO2 than SaO2under the conditions of these experiments indicates that the measurementreflects primarily intracranial saturation. However, outcome studies underclinical conditions are needed to determine the clinical utility of cerebraloximetry.
P1.10 Oral fluid based rapid syphilis testing

Introduction Point-of-care syphilis testing currently uses fingerstick blood to identify Treponema pallidum (TP) antibodies by qualitative immunoassay. However, oral fluid testing is highly preferred by patients. We aimed to determine if rapid tests intended for whole blood could be used to detect treponemal antibody in oral fluid. Methods Oral fluid was collected at the UCLA Care Clinic from 49 participants using Oasis SuperSAL (Vancouver, WA). The device uses an absorbent cylindrical pad to collect and filter ~1 mL of oral fluid. Oral fluid filtrate was evaluated with 3 rapid syphilis tests: SD Bioline Syphilis 3.0 (SD), MedMira Reveal TP (MM), and First Response Anti-TP (FR) following manufacturer directions for whole blood. Reference test results, TP particle agglutination (TPPA) and rapid plasma reagin (RPR), were extracted from participants’ medical records. We used 3 different definitions as a reference standard. Definition 1: TPPA reactive. Definition 2: TPPA and RPR reactive. Definition 3: TPPA reactive and RPR titer >1:4. Specimens nonreactive on both the TPPA and RPR were considered negative. We calculated specificity and sensitivity for each definition, and used the exact binomial method to determine 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results With definitions 1, 2 and 3 respectively, SD sensitivity was 86.4% (CI: 65.1, 97.1), 93% (CI: 66.1,99.8), 100% (CI: 59.0,100); MM sensitivity was 6.3% (CI: 0.2,30.2), 9.1% (CI: 0.2,41.2), 16.7% (CI: 0.4,64.1); and FR sensitivity was 25% (CI: 8.7,49.1), 25% (CI: 5.5,57.2), 14.3% (CI: 0.4,57.9). SD specificity was 56% (CI: 36.5,75.5), MM specificity was 100% (CI: 35.9,99.6) and FR specificity was 100% (CI: 83.9,100). Conclusion The high sensitivity of the SD test suggests a strong potential for oral fluid-based rapid syphilis testing. SD sensitivity increased with RPR titer. False positive results may be associated with the presence of non-venereal treponemal antibodies in oral fluid. The MM and FR tests had low sensitivity, perhaps due to differences in treponemal targets. Further research and development are needed.
Spatial Organization and Molecular Interactions of the Schizosaccharomyces pombe Ccq1–Tpz1–Poz1 Shelterin Complex

The shelterin complex is a macromolecular assembly of proteins that binds to and protects telomeric DNA, which composes the ends of all linear chromosomes. Shelterin proteins prevent chromosome ends from fusing together and from eliciting erroneous induction of DNA damage response pathways. In addition, shelterin proteins play key roles in regulating the recruitment and activation of telomerase, an enzyme that extends telomeric DNA. In fission yeast, Schizosaccharomyces pombe, interactions between the shelterin proteins Ccq1, Tpz1, and Poz1 are important for regulating telomerase-mediated telomere synthesis and thus telomere length homeostasis. Here, we used electron microscopy combined with genetic labeling to define the three-dimensional arrangement of the S. pombe Ccq1-Tpz1-Poz1 (CTP) complex. Crosslinking mass spectrometry was used to identify individual residues that are in proximity to the protein-protein interfaces of the assembled CTP complex. Together, our data provide a first glimpse into the architectural design of the CTP complex and reveals unique interactions that are important in maintaining the S. pombe telomere in a non-extendible state.
MIB-1 Is Required for Spermatogenesis and Facilitates LIN-12 and GLP-1 Activity in Caenorhabditis Elegans

Covalent attachment of ubiquitin to substrate proteins changes their function or marks them for proteolysis, and the specificity of ubiquitin attachment is mediated by the numerous E3 ligases encoded by animals. Mind Bomb is an essential E3 ligase during Notch pathway signaling in insects and vertebrates. While Caenorhabditis elegans encodes a Mind Bomb homolog (mib-1), it has never been recovered in the extensive Notch suppressor/enhancer screens that have identified numerous pathway components. Here, we show that C. elegans mib-1 null mutants have a spermatogenesis-defective phenotype that results in a heterogeneous mixture of arrested spermatocytes, defective spermatids, and motility-impaired spermatozoa. mib-1 mutants also have chromosome segregation defects during meiosis, molecular null mutants are intrinsically temperature-sensitive, and many mib-1 spermatids contain large amounts of tubulin. These phenotypic features are similar to the endogenous RNA intereference (RNAi) mutants, but mib-1 mutants do not affect RNAi. MIB-1 protein is expressed throughout the germ line with peak expression in spermatocytes followed by segregation into the residual body during spermatid formation. C. elegans mib-1 expression, while upregulated during spermatogenesis, also occurs somatically, including in vulva precursor cells. Here, we show that mib-1 mutants suppress both lin-12 and glp-1 (C. elegans Notch) gain-of-function mutants, restoring anchor cell formation and a functional vulva to the former and partly restoring oocyte production to the latter. However, suppressed hermaphrodites are only observed when grown at 25°, and they are self-sterile. This probably explains why mib-1 was not previously recovered as a Notch pathway component in suppressor/enhancer selection experiments.
US Diplomacy Within Europe and NATO on the Greek Question

In much the same way that the two US administrations faced opposition from domestic political opponents and public opinion to their modus vivendi with the Greek colonels, they also were forced to contend with significant opposition both from certain North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) allies and from European public more generally. This chapter addresses the difficulties the United States faced in dealing with these challenges. While some NATO allies (e.g., the UK, France, and West Germany) reconciled themselves to more or less friendly relations with the Greek regime, others (especially the Netherlands, Denmark, and Norway) were sources of vocal opposition to any accommodation with Greece. Containing, managing, and placating this opposition became a primary task of US diplomacy in Europe, with the US arguing the paramount need for NATO unity and cohesiveness in the face of ongoing Cold War threats.
British Equine Veterinary Association (BEVA) response

Given the resources and expertise that BEVA has put into improving the safety of equine vets it is disappointing to read Jill Butterworth’s letter which completely misrepresents BEVA’s work. Perhaps a closer examination of BEVA’s guidance, its origins, authors, and aims would provide a more objective interpretation. Concerned about equine practitioner safety, BEVA and the Veterinary Defence Society commissioned, at significant expense, research into the occupational risks of working with horses. The peer-reviewed results of this work are published free online.1 It is worth noting that 85 per cent of all reported injuries did not affect the head and that 77 per cent of individual’s …
Abstract 1901: Structural basis for selective therapeutic targeting of BFL-1 in cancer by a covalent stapled peptide inhibitor

BCL-2 family proteins are master regulators of the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway and dictate whether a cell will live or die in response to stress. Cancer cells hijack the anti-apoptotic arm of this signaling network, overexpressing BCL-2, MCL-1, and BFL-1, to enforce cellular immortality. Whereas BCL-2 has been drugged by the selective small-molecule inhibitor, venetoclax, and new MCL-1 inhibitor molecules have just entered phase I clinical testing, anti-apoptotic BFL-1 remains undrugged. Importantly, the expression of BFL-1 can cause resistance to these molecules and has been independently linked to the pathogenesis and chemoresistance of human cancers, including melanomas and hematologic malignancies. Given the emergence of BCL-2 family proteins as high-priority cancer targets, solving their structures, alone and in complex with their natural BH3 domain ligands, yields important blueprints for drug design. Whereas the structures of numerous “BH3-in-groove” complexes have been solved, the corresponding panel of apo structures remains incomplete. Here, we report the crystal structure of apo BFL-1 at 1.69 A resolution, revealing similarities and key differences among unliganded anti-apoptotic targets. Unlike all other BCL-2 proteins, apo BFL-1 contains a surface-accessible cysteine within its BH3-binding groove, allowing for selective covalent targeting by BH3-based stapled peptide inhibitors. The crystal structure of a complex between BFL-1 and a cysteine-reactive and stapled NOXA BH3 α-helix demonstrated the sulfhydryl bond and fortuitous interactions between the acrylamide-bearing moiety and a newly formed hydrophobic cavity. Comparison of the apo and BH3-liganded structures further revealed an induced conformational change. The two BFL-1 structures expand our understanding of the surface landscapes available for selective targeting of BFL-1, and inform a new therapeutic strategy for overcoming BFL-1-dependent apoptotic blockades in human cancer. Citation Format: Edward P. Harvey, Hyuk-Soo Seo, Rachel M. Guerra, Gregory H. Bird, Sirano Dhe-Paganon, Loren D. Walensky. Structural basis for selective therapeutic targeting of BFL-1 in cancer by a covalent stapled peptide inhibitor [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2018; 2018 Apr 14-18; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2018;78(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 1901.
Mobile Lifelogger – Recording, Indexing, and Understanding a Mobile User’s Life

Lifelog system involves capturing personal experiences in the form of digital multimedia during an entire lifespan. Recent advancements in mobile sensor technologies have helped to develop these systems using commercial smart phones. These systems have the potential to act as a secondary memory and also aid people who struggle with episodic memory impairment (EMI). Despite their huge potential, there are major challenges that need to be addressed to make them useful. One of them is how to index the inherently large lifelog data so that the person can efficiently retrieve the log segments that interest him / her most. In this paper, we present an ongoing research of using mobile phones to record and index lifelogs using activity language. By converting sensory data such as accelerometer and GPS readings into activity language, we are able to apply statistical natural language processing techniques to index, recognize, segment, cluster, retrieve, and infer high-level semantic meanings of the collected lifelogs. Based on this indexing approach, our lifelog system supports easy retrieval of log segments representing past similar activities and automatic lifelog segmentation for efficient browsing and activity summarization.
Elastic Plastic Toughness of Irradiated Steels with the Single Specimen Compliance Technique

J-R curve trends of irradiated A533-B submerged arc weld metal containing a high copper impurity level have been characterized with the single specimen compliance technique. The R curve for these steels exhibits a power law behavior. This non-linearity precludes both an exact determination of JIc by the proposed ASTM multispecimen standard as well as the calculation of a single value of tearing modulus T in the region of J-controlled growth. A new experimental definition of JIc is proposed which accounts for the curvature in the R curve. The use of side grooves promotes a straight crack-front extension which results in T values which are less than those produced by smooth specimens. With side-grooved specimens irradiation has reduced T by a factor of 2.5 while a smaller reduction in JIc was observed under the same conditions. The phenomenon of an R curve interrupted by cleavage in the upper shelf region is also discussed.
Phase II study of intravenous Doxil in malignant pleural mesothelioma.

Twenty-four patients with pleural mesotheliomareceived 50 mg/m2 of Doxil® every four weeks.At follow-up, the disease had stabilized in 43% percent ofpatients and had progressed in 57%. No objective responses wereobserved. Estimated median survival of all patients was 37 weeks.Major toxicities were erythrodysesthesia of hands and feet andmyelosuppression. No cardiac toxicity was observed. We concludedthat Doxil® at this dosage and schedule is inactiveagainst pleural mesothelioma.
Seeking a Balanced Perspective

Recently, I received a letter from a high school student who lives in Pennsylvania. She was writing a research paper and wanted our help. The title was, “Pesticide Abuse and Pesticide Danger.”
Korean Nationalism and the Anti-American Sentiment in the Post-Cold War Era

The purpose of this thesis is to research on the process how the interaction between the United States and South Korea during the Cold War period had formed Korean nationalism and how that Korean nationalism has been transformed in the post Cold War period with the recent anti-American sentiment in Korea. The end of the Cold war makes the characteristics of Korean nationalism different. Before the end of the Cold war Korean nationalism can be characterized as "state-centered" nationalism. Park, Chung-hee regime especially put so much emphasis on the "developmental state" strategy that people and all the resources were highly mobilized and exploited by the government. Moreover, under the atmosphere of the Cold war period South Korea had nothing but to keep good relationship with other states to get aids from those countries, especially the US, against the possible threat of North Korea. In the post-Cold war era, however, South Korea and the US have changed their attitudes toward each other and even nationalist demonstration, such as anti-American sentiment, has occurred in South Korea. For instance, in 2002 when two Korean middle school girls were killed in a traffic accident by American GIs, it accelerated anti-American sentiment and strong nationalism in South Korea. The "external collective identities" of two actors are formulated in the process of the interaction and so do South Korean people and the USFK. In their interaction by giving and taking identities they also form and sometimes change their "internal collective identities". In this learning process, Korean people formulate and sometimes change their "external collective identity" toward the "other" - the US, as well as the "internal collective identity" of themselves.
Polarity-dependent modulation of multi-spectral neuronal activity by transcranial direct current stimulation.

Abstract The ability to preferentially deploy neural resources to the visual space is an important component of normative cognitive function, however, the population-level cortical dynamics that sub-serve this ability are not fully understood. Specifically, rhythmic activity in the occipital cortices (e.g., theta, alpha, and gamma oscillations) has been strongly implicated in this cognitive process, but these neural responses are difficult to non-invasively manipulate in a systematic manner. In this study, transcranial direct-current stimulation (tDCS) was used to modulate brain activity, while high-density magnetoencephalography (MEG) was employed to quantify changes in rhythm-specific neural activity in the occipital cortices of 57 adults performing a visuospatial processing paradigm. All MEG data was analyzed using advanced source reconstruction and oscillatory analysis methods. Our results indicated that basal levels of occipital alpha activity were increased by an occipital-anodal/supraorbital-cathodal tDCS montage, while basal gamma levels in the same cortices were decreased by tDCS using the same montage with its polarity reversed (occipital-cathodal/supraorbital-anodal). In other words, stimulation with the occipital-anodal montage increased local spontaneous alpha (10–16 Hz) activity, while stimulation with the occipital-cathodal montage selectively decreased local gamma (64–90 Hz) activity. Neither polarity affected stimulus-induced oscillations in the alpha or gamma range. Additionally, these modulations strongly predicted the subsequent formation of fronto-visual functional connectivity within distinct oscillatory rhythms, as well as behavior on the visuospatial discrimination task. These findings provide insight into the multifaceted effects of tDCS on cortical activity, as well as the dynamic oscillatory coding of salient information in the human brain.
Stability of anti‐A blood group titers among blood group B renal transplant candidates

Background As deceased donor kidney allocation is based in part on blood type compatibility, group B candidates are disadvantaged due to their disproportionate representation on the wait list compared to the group B donor pool. To mitigate this discrepancy, group B candidates can receive group A2 or A2 B donor kidneys if their anti-A titers are below a predetermined cutoff. Currently, eligibility is reverified quarterly to UNet based on individual center protocols, which can vary due to a lack of set guidelines for monitoring ABO titers in these patients. Our goal was to assess the stability of anti-A titers in blood group B renal transplant candidates over time to provide data that could aid in the development of standardized ABO titer protocols. Study design and methods Titers performed between January 2011 and December 2015 were assessed for 191 group B patients with two or more documented titers. Results Fifty patients (26%) were ineligible, as the first titer exceeded the cutoff of 8. Of the remaining 141 patients, 19 (13%) became ineligible as the second titer exceeded 8. Thirty-nine patients (28%) had no change in titer between samples, while 71 (50%) had a titer change that never exceeded 8. Only 12 patients (8.5% of total) experienced a titer change that affected eligibility after the second test. Conclusion Although patients experience some variability in anti-A titers over time, in most cases, stability did not affect candidate eligibility. Our results indicate that regular testing beyond the second titer may be unnecessary and represent test overutilization.
Preferred Product Attributes of Potential Multipurpose Prevention Technologies for Unintended Pregnancy and Sexually Transmitted Infections or HIV Among U.S. Women.

Background: Multipurpose prevention technologies (MPTs) are being developed to simultaneously protect women from unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) or human immunodeficiency virus. This study aims to determine MPT characteristics desired by young women in the United States (U.S.). Materials and Methods: This is a cross-sectional national survey administered online by MTurk. Eligibility criteria included female sex, age 18-29 years, U.S. residence, and sexual activity with a male partner in the past 3 months. MPT characteristics were rated for importance. Odds ratios were generated to explore associations between demographics, sexual behaviors, and prior contraceptive use and likelihood of using various MPT formulations. Results: Of 835 women, the largest proportion reported being likely to use MPTs in the form of injectables (45.6%), followed by vaginal gels (33.7%), vaginal rings (26.3%) and diaphragms (17.3%). Women with prior experience using a specific method of contraception appeared more likely to try an MPT of the same form. Women concerned about STIs and unwanted pregnancy, or with a history of such undesirable outcomes, expressed higher likelihood of use for a broad range of products. Women indicated that safety and efficacy at preventing pregnancy were the most important product characteristics when choosing an MPT. Conclusions: MPTs in the form of injectables are most highly desired, but many women would use vaginal methods, highlighting the importance of developing different delivery methods. Women desire safety and emphasize contraceptive efficacy over infection prevention. MPT preferences must be considered during product development to promote future acceptance among young women in the U.S.