cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
PHYLOGENETIC DIVERSIFICATION WITHIN THE SOREX CINEREUS GROUP (SORICIDAE)

Phylogenetic relationships among 8 members of the Sorex cinereus group (S. camtschatica, S. cinereus, S. haydeni, S. jacksoni, S. portenkoi, S. preblei, S. pribilofensis, and S. ugyunak) and S. longirostris were estimated using DNA sequence data from 2 mitochondrial genes, cytochrome b (1,140 base pairs) and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide dehydrogenase 4 (582 base pairs). S. hoyi, S. monticolus, S. palustris, S. tenellus, S. trowbridgii, and S. vagrans also were included in our analyses. Phylogenetic analyses of the combined data recovered 2 major clades within the species group: a northern clade that includes the Beringian species (S. camtschatica, S. jacksoni, S. portenkoi, S. pribilofensis, and S. ugyunak), S. haydeni, and S. preblei and a southern clade that includes S. cinereus and S. longirostris. Mitochondrial DNA clades generally corresponded to previously identified morphological groups with 2 exceptions: inclusion of S. longirostris with S. cinereus in the southern clade and inclusion of S. preblei within the northern clade. With the exception of the 5 Beringian species, taxa were readily differentiated with strong bootstrap support in our topologies. We also noted phylogenetic concordance with the general ecological affiliations of each species; the northern clade generally includes xeric-affiliated species, whereas the southern clade includes species with mesic habitat affinities.
Local-Global Tension in the Ideological Construction of English Language Education Policy in Nepal

In this chapter, I analyze ideologies of the de facto English-as-the-medium-of-instruction policy in Nepal’s school level education system. By situating the current language policy in Nepal’s multilingual context, I also discuss how this policy reproduces social inequalities between the rich and the poor, and how it negatively affects children’s access to the academic content. My analysis shows that the current de facto English language policy is shaped by two major ideologies – English-as-a-global-language and English-as-social-capital – that ignore the local multilingual and multicultural realities surrounding students’ everyday lives and disregard the evidence that students’ home languages can be a resource for learning both content and language. More importantly, the analysis reveals increased tensions between the local and global ideologies by showing that the English language policy contradicts the Ministry of Education’s mother-tongue-based multilingual education (MTB-MLE) policy, the latter of which aims to promote the use of local languages as the medium of instruction up to Grade 3.
Role of NPY in Brown Adipocytes and Obesity

Neuropeptide Y (NPY) plays an important role in maintaining energy homeostasis. Within the hypothalamus, Npy is primarily expressed in the arcuate nucleus (Arc) and the dorsomedial hypothalamus (DMH). ARC NPY acts as an orexigenic neuromodulator integrating energy-related systemic signals (such as the adiposity signal leptin) to modulate food intake and energy balance. In contrast, DMH NPY acts independently of leptin. In addition to its feeding effects, DMH NPY has specific actions on brown adipocyte formation and thermoregulation. Knockdown of NPY in the DMH promotes development of brown adipocytes in white adipose tissue and increases brown adipocyte activity, leading to increased energy expenditure and lowered fat contents. DMH NPY knockdown prevents high-fat diet-induced obesity. Peripheral NPY also directly acts on adipose tissue and promotes white adipogenesis. Overall, NPY plays critical roles in the control of energy balance through affecting food intake, body adiposity, and energy expenditure. These actions provide evidence for the potential target(s) for combatting obesity and diabetes.
Estrogen mediated regulation of TGFβ pathway signaling in cardiac hypertrophy (795.4)

It is well documented that pre-menopausal women are protected from heart disease, in part through the effects of estrogen. It has been established that estrogen treatment prevents cardiomyocyte hypertrophy and that estrogen attenuates the prohypertrophy TGFBeta (TGFb) signaling family. However, it has yet to be established whether estrogen is in part mediating its cardioprotective effects via the silencing of TGFb signaling. To address the differential control of the TGFb family member expression in female vs. male mice in the setting of cardiac hypertrophy, we performed transaortic constriction (TAC) to induce hypertrophy. We then analyzed gene and miRNA expression for TGFb family members and potential targeting miRNAs, several of which are known to be induced by estrogen. Next Generation Sequencing was performed to establish miRNA profiles in male and female following the TAC. Differential expression of TGFb targeting miRNAs was confirmed by TaqMan assays. TaqMan also revealed that many of the TGFb fami...
Unpacking Novelty: The Anatomy of Vision Advantages

The Strength of Weak Ties and Brokerage Theory rely on the argument that weak bridging ties deliver novel information to brokers. Yet our conceptualization of novelty itself is fundamentally underdeveloped. We therefore develop a theory of how three distinct types of novelty – diversity, total non-redundancy and uniqueness – combine with network structure to create vision advantages. We test our theory using panel data on an evolving corporate email network in a medium-sized digital media firm over twelve months. Three main results emerge from our analysis. First, we confirm the Diversity-Bandwidth Tradeoff at the heart of the vision advantage. As brokers networks become more diverse, their channel bandwidth contracts, creating countervailing effects on access to novel information. Second, we uncover the mechanisms driving the Diversity-Bandwidth Tradeoff and highlight differences in vision advantages across ties. Strong cohesive ties deliver greater information diversity and more total non-redundant information, while weak bridging ties contribute the greatest uniqueness – information which is most different from what other contacts deliver. Third, we find network diversity (or inversely, network constraint) is the dominant factor in the relationship between network structure and longitudinal entropy. This result suggests that weak bridging ties, which provide unique information through low bandwidth, structurally diverse channels, contribute the most to the aggregation of novel information over time.
Eicosanoid regulation of the renal vasculature

Even though it has been recognized that arachidonic acid metabolites, eicosanoids, play an important role in the control of renal blood flow and glomerular filtration, several key observations have...
Molecular dynamics study of water over Pt/TiO2 Surfaces

Abstract Titanium dioxide based catalysts, such as Pt/TiO 2 , have shown promise as water splitting photocatalysts and have been extensively studied experimentally. However, there are only few computational studies which are essential to understand the mechanistic aspects. We employ Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations to establish a nanoscale atomistic model of the interfacial interactions of water on anatase (101) and rutile (110) surfaces with Pt atoms adsorbed. The highlight of our model is the large scale: we have simulated systems approximately 30 nm x 30 nm x 3 nm for a time interval spanning over 4 ns.
Achtung! The Information Processing of Foreign Words in Advertising

This article explains the use of foreign words in advertising from an information processing perspective. The ability of such distinctive words to enhance an advertisement's effectiveness derives f...
Reasoning Against Discrimination: The Analysis of Professional and Executive Work in Federal Antibias Regulation

The article reviews the book “Reasoning Against Discrimination: The Analysis of Professional and Executive Work in Federal Antibias Regulation,” by Richard A. Lester.
Beginning the Dialogue on the e-Transformation: Behavior Analysis' First Massive Open Online Course (MOOC).

The e-Transformation in higher education, in which Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are playing a pivotal role, has had an impact on the modality in which behavior analysis is taught. In this paper, we survey the history and implications of online education including MOOCs and describe the implementation and results for the discipline’s first MOOC, delivered at Southern Illinois University in spring 2015. Implications for the globalization and free access of higher education are discussed, as well as the parallel between MOOCs and Skinner’s teaching machines.
Karyotypes on two species of freshwater mollusk:Cipangopaludina cathayensis and Lamprotula leai

The karyotypes of freshwater mollusk Cipangopaludina cathayensisa and Lamprotula leai were analyzed using injection of CoCl_2 and treatment of colchicines solution in vivo.The diploid chromosome number was observed as the following: C.cathayensisa 18 and L.leai 38.The mitotic chromosome complement of C.cathayensisa has four metacentric pairs and five submetacentric pairs and the fundamental chromosome number(NF) is 36.L.leai shows twelve metacentric pairs,six submetacentric pairs and two telocentric pairs,and NF is 74.The satellite chromosome and sex chromosome were not observed in the two species.
Racial differences in the predictive role of high depressive symptoms on incident heart disease over 18 years: Results from the health and retirement study

Background: Studies have investigated racial differences in the relationship between depression and CVD mortality. Objectives: This study tested the hypothesis that race moderates the effect of baseline depressive symptoms on subsequent heart disease among a nationally representative sample of Black and White older Americans. Patients and Methods: Data came from ten waves of the health and retirement study (HRS), a nationally representative longitudi- nal study of US adults over age 50. The present study followed 7,444 Black and White individuals without a diagnosis of heart disease at baseline for up to 18 years for incident heart disease. Elevated depressive symptoms at baseline was the independent variable, time to incident heart disease was the dependent variable, while baseline sociodemographics, health risk behaviors, obesity, and chronic medical conditions were controls. We used Cox proportional hazards models in the pooled sample and stratified by race to test the effect of elevated depressive symptoms on the outcome net of other risk factors. Results: In the pooled sample, a significant positive interaction was found between the effect of elevated depressive symptoms and Black race (hazard ratio, 1.29; 95% CI = 1.01 -1.65), suggesting a stronger effect for Blacks compared to Whites. In fully adjusted race- stratified models, elevated depressive symptoms increased the risk of developing heart disease for Blacks (hazard ratio, 1.47; 95% CI = 1.04 - 2.07) but not Whites (hazard ratio, 1.13; 95% CI = 0.97 -1.32). Conclusions: Black and White older adults differ in the effect of depressive symptoms on subsequent heart disease over a long period of follow up. Elevated depressive symptoms are associated with a larger risk of incident heart disease among Black but not White older individuals.
Urticaria: diagnostic work-up and management.

One aspect of management of urticaria noteworthy for its lack of value is extensive scratch testing. Some 10 to 20 percent of cases of hives are thought to be emotional in origin. Recognized causes include drugs (chiefly penicillin and aspirin), foods, insect stings, inhalants, cold, heat, sunlight, pressure and water. Recent studies suggest that candidal organisms and food yeasts may be important in 20 percent of cases of chronic urticaria. Rarely, urticaria is inherited.
Freak Ocean Waves and Refraction of Gaussian Seas

Rogue or freak waves sink ships at an alarming rate — estimated at one large ship every few weeks worldwide. It is thought that vulnerable ships (light cargo ships) simply break in two when they plough into a 60 foot wave preceded by a 40 foot hole in the sea, as some sailors that have survived such experiences have called it. Wave refraction due to current eddies (which are ubiquitous in the oceans) has long been suspected to play a role in concentrating wave energy into rogue waves. Existing theories have been based on refraction of plane waves, not the stochastic Gaussian seas one finds in practice. Gaussian seas ruin the dramatic focal caustic concentration of energy, and this fact has discouraged further investigations. Although it was thought that chaos, or the extreme sensitivity to initial conditions displayed by individual ray trajectories would quickly wipe out all significant fluctuations, we show that this is incorrect, and the fluctuations are “structually stable” entities. Significant “lumps” of energy survive the averaging over wave directions and wavelengths. We furthermore demonstrate that the probability of freak waves increases dramatically in the presence of these lumps, even though most parameters, such as the significant wave height, are unchanged. We show here that a single dimensionless parameter determines the potential for freak waves; this is the “freak index” of the current eddies — a typical angular deflection in one focal distance, divided by the initial angular uncertainty of the incoming waveset. If the freak index is greater than 2 or so, truly spectacular enhancements of freak index waves can result, even though the caustics are washed out by the Gaussian nature of the impinging sea.
The Gastrointestinal System and Metabolism

This chapter gives an overview of the anatomy of the mouse digestive system. In addition, physiological aspects of regulation of food intake, digestion and absorption and pathways of intermediary metabolism are discussed. Finally, differences in metabolism are reviewed.
Ethical Concerns for Stem Cell Research

Publisher Summary This chapter attempts to categorize ethical concerns for various areas of stem cell research. The research areas are assigned to one of the three categories of ethical concern: low, moderate, and high. For each of the levels of ethical concern, two types of experiments are discussed in the chapter. The first involving the derivation or source of stem cells and the second is the proposed experimental uses of those cells. Animal research has also been included in this discussion to parallel the human studies and because several of the categories include the mixing of human and animal cells. Over and above that consideration lies= the mandate to treat experimental animals humanely. To illustrate the different levels of concern, examples of research activity in the scientific literature have been included when available.
Molecular Ligands Control Superlattice Structure and Crystallite Orientation in Colloidal Quantum Dot Solids

Colloidal quantum dot solids represent a new materials platform that has garnered interest for a variety of electronic, optoelectronic, and photovoltaic applications. In such solids, individual quantum dots must be coupled with each other to facilitate charge transport through the solid. Past improvements on charge transport of colloidal quantum dot solids have been achieved primarily through the control of the interparticle spacing. However, the role of morphological ordering of the crystalline facets of individual quantum dots on the charge transport of the quantum dot solid is unknown. Here, we show for the first time that small passivating ligand molecules around the quantum dots can control the arrangement of different facets of quantum dots within the quantum dot solid. The insights from this study provide important directions for future enhancement in orientation of quantum dots in colloidal quantum dot solids.
Exploiting Causality to Engineer Elastic Distributed Software

This goal of this paper is to anchor elasticity in terms of causality in distributed applications. Assuming a large-scale distributed application architected as a set of interacting components, we motivate the need for (1) analyzing causality between interactions, and (2) estimating casual probability that an increase in the frequency of interaction i1 can increase the frequency of interaction i2 caused by i1. We present algorithms to estimate causality and causal probability by combining well known sampling, program analysis, path profiling and dynamic slicing algorithms. We apply our algorithms for causal probability to three large-scale distributed applications, to evaluate (a) their effectiveness in the timely provisioning and de-provisioning of compute resources and (b) whether causality and causal probability present a fundamental and widely-applicable way of engineering auto-elasticity.
Practice Patterns of Venous Thromboembolism Prophylaxis in Underweight, Critically Ill Patients with Neurologic Injury.

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) prophylaxis in underweight patients with neurologic injury remains unaddressed by guidelines and primary literature. This study aimed to describe VTE prophylaxis strategies employed in this population and compare the impact of underweight and non-obese patients on thrombotic and bleeding events. A retrospective review of adults admitted with a diagnosis of neurologic injury to a neurology/neurosurgery intensive care unit (ICU) over 6 years. Patients admitted ≥72 h with an order for VTE prophylaxis during admission, and a body mass index (BMI) 150 units/kg/day of UFH displayed a trend toward increased risk of bleeding (9.7 vs. 4.2%; p = 0.064). Current practice does not reflect dose reductions for neurologically injured, underweight patients. Caution should be considered when using increased doses of UFH in neurologically injured patients that are underweight and/or may be exposed to >150 units/kg/day of UFH. Continued assessment of VTE prophylaxis is needed to confirm these findings.
Aeration waste heat for membrane evaporation of desalination brine concentrate

Abstract The desalination processes produces highly concentrated brine effluent which is costly to dispose of for inland desalination facilities. The current study uses a membrane evaporation process to reduce brine volumes. Membrane evaporation was evaluated at the bench scale for different brine flow rates, airflow rates and air temperatures, extent of fouling and possible means to control fouling. The evaporation rate was found to increase with airflow rate and air temperature and decrease with brine flow rate. Model predictions, derived based upon literature values for heat and mass transfer correlations, agree well with the measured evaporation rate. The economics of membrane evaporation appears only marginally competitive with deep well injection if only disposal of brine is considered. However, in this application a high quality permeate is produced and comparisons are more favorable if water production costs are considered. Fouling was observed in experiments for brines with and without ferrous iron. Cleaning of the membranes by flushing the fibers with brine at higher flow rates was not able to alleviate fouling. Fouling could be alleviated when the pH of the brine solution was lowered for the durations of the studies conducted. Full evaluation of the process will require longer-term studies and future studies should also consider possible sources of supplemental waste heat to increase the overall amount of water treated.
Gradual Onset Diseases: Misperception of Disease Onset.

Purpose Gradual onset diseases (eg, carpal tunnel syndrome, cubital tunnel syndrome, and trapeziometacarpal arthrosis) tend to go unnoticed for years. When a slowly progressive disease transitions from asymptomatic to symptomatic, it may seem like an acute event. The primary aim of this study was to determine the percentage of patients who perceive the slowly progressive disease as having started within 1 year. We also hypothesized that (1) there would be no factors associated with perception of an onset of disease within 1 year, more specifically among patients with advanced disease; and (2) there would be no difference in a decision to pursue operative treatment between patients who perceived the onset of the disease to be recent and those who perceived it to be long-standing. Methods In this retrospective study, we reviewed the medical records of 732 patients newly diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome (n = 114), cubital tunnel syndrome (n = 276), or trapeziometacarpal arthrosis (n = 342), for the onset of symptoms. Multiple factors were assessed for (1) association with perception of disease onset within 1 year, and (2) choice for operative treatment in bivariate and multivariable analyses. Results A total of 69% of all subjects and 68% of patients with advanced disease perceived the disease as having started within 1 year. A perceived provocation (such as an injury or surgery) was associated with a perception of recent onset. A decision to pursue operative treatment was not different between the 2 groups. Conclusions Slowly progressive diseases are often misperceived as relatively new. Clinical relevance Effective communication strategies are important to ensure that people make choices consistent with their values and not based on misconceptions.
Biology and Etiology of Young-Onset Breast Cancers among Premenopausal African American Women: Results from the AMBER Consortium

Background: African American (AA) women have higher incidence of aggressive, young-onset (<40 years) breast cancers. Young- and older-onset disease may have distinct tumor biologies and etiologies; however, studies investigating age differences among AA women have been rare and generally underpowered.Methods: We examined tumor characteristics and breast cancer risk factors associated with premenopausal young (<40) vs. older (≥40) AA women's breast cancer in the African American Breast Cancer Epidemiology and Risk Consortium (2,008 cases and 5,144 controls). Unconditional logistic regression models assessed heterogeneity of tumor biology and risk factor associations by age, overall, and by estrogen receptor status.Results: Premenopausal AA women <40 years had higher frequency of poorer-prognosis tumor characteristics compared with older women, including negative estrogen and progesterone receptor status, triple-negative subtype, higher grade, higher stage, and larger tumors. Adiposity (i.e., waist-to-hip ratio) and family history of breast cancer were more strongly associated with young-onset disease [case-control OR = 1.46, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.04-2.05; OR = 3.10, 95% CI = 2.08-4.63, respectively] compared with older-onset disease (OR = 1.11, 95% CI = 0.91-1.35; OR = 1.57, 95% CI = 1.26-1.94). Breastfeeding showed a slight inverse risk association among young women (OR = 0.70, 95% CI = 0.43-1.16). Oral contraceptive use was associated with increased risk regardless of age. Considering various cutoff points for young age (<40, <45, <50), age-related heterogeneity was greatest when <40 was used.Conclusions: Among premenopausal AA women, diagnosis before age 40 is associated with more aggressive breast tumor biology and some etiologic differences.Impact: Modifiable risk factors including breastfeeding, adiposity, and oral contraceptive use may be important targets for mitigating harms of young-onset breast cancer. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 26(12); 1722-9. ©2017 AACR.
Handling Many-To-One UNK Translation for Neural Machine Translation

Neural machine translation has achieved remarkable progress recently, but it is restricted by a limited vocabulary due to the computation complexity. All words out of the vocabulary are replaced with a single UNK, and the UNK in translation results will hurt the quality of translation. In this paper, a UNK translation method is proposed to handle the unknown word issue in neural machine translation. It uses n-best source alignment candidates for UNK translation, and can handle both word level (one-to-one) and phrase level (many-to-one) source-UNK alignment. Experiments on Chinese-to-English task shows that our method achieves a +0.73 BLEU improvement over the NMT baseline that has already employed a good UNK translation module.
Analysis of the thermal-mechanical redox stability of Nb2TiO7 and Nb1.33Ti0.67O4 for SOFC application

Abstract Nb2TiO7 and Nb1.33Ti0.67O4 was reported as a potential anode materials for Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFCs) based on their stable reversible phase transformation and high electronic conductivity. A high-temperature redox dilatometry test was developed to monitor the linear expansion or contraction of Nb2TiO7 and Nb1.33Ti0.67O4 synthesized through a solid-state route. XRD analysis confirmed the phase purity. It was found that Nb2TiO7 contracts linearly up to 0.006% in a reducing atmosphere and this contraction is reversible in nature whereas Nb1.33Ti0.67O4 expands linearly up to 1.9% in an oxidizing atmosphere which is irreversible in nature at 800 °C. In addition, the electrical conductivity of the materials was analyzed in redox atmospheres. At 800 °C, Nb2TiO7 showed an electrical conductivity of 1.35 S/cm in forming gas (5%H2/95%N2) which increases to 85 S/cm upon the reduction of Nb2TiO7 to Nb1.33Ti0.67O4. This study emphasizes the importance of high-temperature redox dilatometry in the development of SOFC electrode materials.
Impact of module geometry on the ultrafiltration behavior of capsular polysaccharides for vaccines

Abstract Ultrafiltration is an important step in the downstream processing of polysaccharide-based vaccines. The objective of this paper was to examine the ultrafiltration behavior of several native polysaccharide serotypes (Pn3, Pn9V, and Pn14) in different membrane modules. The transmission of Pn9V and Pn14 are governed by concentration polarization effects, with the greatest extent of polarization seen in the stirred cell followed by the hollow fiber module and then the tangential flow filtration (TFF) cassette as expected. In contrast, transmission of the highly charged Pn3 serotype in the hollow fiber and TFF cassette reached a maximum value of only about 20% due to membrane fouling, even though data in the stirred cell showed no effects of fouling on the sieving coefficient under otherwise identical conditions. The high degree of fouling by Pn3 appears to be associated with elongation of this high molecular weight polysaccharide in the high shear environment in the tangential flow modules. Rheological data for Pn3, which was the most highly charged and largest molecular weight polysaccharide examined in this work, showed a high degree of shear-thinning. These results provide important insights into the effects of polarization, fouling, and module design on the ultrafiltration behavior of these important polysaccharides.
The Effects of Partisan Trespassing Strategies Across Candidate Sex

Candidates frequently engage in partisan trespassing strategies where a candidate will highlight issues and traits associated with stereotypes of the opposing political party. Successful trespassing messages should lead voters to associate candidates with qualities that fit into stereotypes about both Democrats and Republicans, increase electoral support for a candidate, and expand a candidate’s base of support. Few studies, however, investigate whether there are differences in the effects of trespassing strategies across candidate sex. Through three survey experiments, I show that trespassing strategies have both positive and negative effects for female candidates. Voters associate female candidates who trespass with more issues and traits associated with the opposing political party, but voters also associate female candidates with fewer partisan qualities. This trade-off is one that both female and male candidates experience. Male candidates, unlike female candidates, can successfully attract more electoral support from out-partisan voters with trespassing strategies. These findings have broad implications for the viability of female candidates in national and state elections where candidates must secure support across a broad coalition of partisan and out-partisan voters.
Correction of Adult Penile Curvature with a Nesbit Operation

AbstractNesbit’s technique of excising ellipses of tunica albuginea has been effective in correcting chordee in children. We have used this technique successfully in adults for the correction of 19 congenital and traumatic curvatures, as well as those resulting from stable Peyronie’s disease. All patients retained potency and reported excellent correction of the deformities. We believe that Nesbit’s operation is the procedure of choice for the correction of disabling adult penile curvature.
NMR Spectroscopy Unchained: Attaining the Highest Signal Enhancements in Dissolution Dynamic Nuclear Polarization

Dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) via the dissolution method is one of the most successful methods for alleviating the inherently low Boltzmann-dictated sensitivity in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. This emerging technology has already begun to positively impact chemical and metabolic research by providing the much-needed enhancement of the liquid-state NMR signals of insensitive nuclei such as 13C by several thousand-fold. In this Perspective, we present our viewpoints regarding the key elements needed to maximize the NMR signal enhancements in dissolution DNP, from the very core of the DNP process at cryogenic temperatures, DNP instrumental conditions, and chemical tuning in sample preparation to current developments in minimizing hyperpolarization losses during the dissolution transfer process. The optimization steps discussed herein could potentially provide important experimental and theoretical considerations in harnessing the best possible sensitivity gains in NMR spectroscopy as a...
Role of SigB and Staphyloxanthin in Radiation Survival of Staphylococcus aureus

Staphylococcus aureus is a potent human pathogen. The virulence of this bacterium depends on a multitude of factors that it produces. One such virulence factor is the golden pigment, staphyloxanthin, which has been shown to protect the bacterium from oxidative stress. Expression of the staphyloxanthin biosynthetic pathway is dependent on SigB, a global stress response regulator in S. aureus. This study investigated the role of staphyloxanthin and SigB in protection of S. aureus from radiation damage. Using stationary-phase bacterial cells, it was determined that the staphyloxanthin-deficient (crt mutant) strain was significantly sensitive to UV radiation (~ threefold), but not sensitive to X-radiation. However, a SigB-deficient S. aureus that also lacks staphyloxanthin, was significantly sensitive to both UV- and X-radiation. To confirm that protection from X-radiation was due to hydroxyl radicals, effect of 3 M glycerol, a known hydroxyl scavenger, was also investigated. Glycerol increased the survival of the S. aureus sigB mutant to the wild-type level suggesting that the X-radiation sensitivity of these mutants was due to deficiency in scavenging hydroxyl radicals. In summary, SigB is critical for protection of S. aureus cells from radiation damage.
Can Neck Contusions in Unexplained Pediatric Deaths be Explained by Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation

The distribution of cutaneous contusions in infants may raise the possibility of maltreatment. Neck contusions are particularly problematic since they seldom occur outside the setting of abuse, while cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)-related maneuvers may involve the neck. To address the role of CPR in neck findings, we examined 260 consecutive pediatric autopsies in which CPR was attempted. No neck contusions were identified in manners of death classified as natural, undetermined, or suicide. Contusions were present in two of 80 deaths classified as accident and had obvious accidental causes. About 26% of deaths classified as homicide had neck contusions with no explanation provided by the caregiver (p < 0.0001). In conclusion, neck contusions in deceased children with no apparent explanation should be regarded as suspicious for abuse and investigated accordingly. CPR is not a plausible explanation for neck contusions in children.
The use of bauxite waste mud in the heap leaching of gold ores

Gold heap leach operations often process low grade ores with little margin for cost increases. The advantage of heap leach operations is the considerable savings in both capital and operating costs. This paper looks at an alternative pH modifier to lime in the heap leach process, namely bauxite waste mud or red mud. The red mud can contain trace amounts of gold and was found to be an excellent source of slow release sodium hydroxide for long-term pH modification. Column cyanide leaches showed that 25 kgt−1 of red mud provided a higher pH and longer pH modification than 0.25 kgt−1 of lime. Contaminants leached from the red mud hampered the adsorption of the aurocyanide complex onto activated carbon.
Photophysical properties of 1,3,6,8-tetraarylpyrenes and their cation radicals

Abstract The synthesis of 1,3,6,8-tetraaryl substituted pyrenes is described. The substituents on the aryl groups influence the optoelectronic properties of the pyrene core indicating a strong coupling between the aryl groups and the pyrene core. Electronic absroption spectra of the cation radicals generated in solution by the single electron oxidation of pyrenes reaffirmed the coupling of the aryl rings with the pyrene. The aryl groups at 1,3,6,8-positions completely inhibit the π-stacking of pyrene core in solution. Crystal structure of the cation radical salt of tetraphenyl shows charge delocalization between neutral pyrene unit and two cationic pyrene cores. Complete inhibition of the pyrene core stacking is observed in the solid state of cation radical when the dendritic pentaphenyl groups surround the pyrene core.
Tobacco smoke exposure as a risk factor for human papillomavirus infections in women 18-26 years old in the United States.

Background Although tobacco smoke has been associated with many infections, little is known of its association with human papillomavirus (HPV) infections among young adult women. The aim of the study was to explore the association of tobacco smoke exposure on HPV infections in young adult women in the United States. It was hypothesized that tobacco smoke exposure (both active and passive) as objectively measured by cotinine levels was associated with increased HPV infection in a national sample of 18 and 26 year-old women in the United States. Study methods and findings The NHANES 2007-2012 dataset was used in the analyses. A national representative sample of women 18 to 26 year old (N = 1,414) was included in the study. Infection with any HPV was determined by PCR while tobacco smoke exposure was determined by measuring serum cotinine levels. Women with cotinine levels = 0.05 were considered as exposed. Exposed women were further categorized as passive smokers (cotinine levels 0.05- 10ng/mL). Data were analyzed by descriptive statistics and multiple logistic regression analysis. Exposed women (passive smokers with cotinine levels > = 0.05ng/mL-10ng/mL) were almost 2 times (64% vs 35%) more likely to be infected with any HPV type than their unexposed counterparts (cotinine levels = 10 ng/mL) were more than twice more likely (75%) to be infected with the virus than the unexposed counterparts. The relationship held true even after controlling for various socio-demographics. Indeed in the multiple regression analyses controlling for the various confounders, compared to their unexposed counterparts, women exposed to second hand smoke were more than twice more likely to have HPV infections (OR: 2.45; 95% C.I = 1.34-4.48). When compared to their unexposed counterparts, actively smoking women were more than 3.5 times more likely to be infected with HPV (OR = 3.56; 95% CI 1.23-10.30). Finally, a strong dose-response relationship was further demonstrated with increasing risk of HPV with each quartile of cotinine levels even after controlling for various confounders. The risk of HPV was lowest in the lowest quartile (Referent OR = 1) and increased steadily with each quartile of cotinine levels until the risk was highest among women with cotinine levels in the 4th quartile (OR = 4.16; 95% C.I. = 1.36-12.67). Conclusion Both passive and active tobacco smoking were strongly associated with any HPV infection in 18 to 26 year old young women with a significant dose-response relationship. Future studies should explore the effect of tobacco smoke exposure among younger women less than 18 years of age.
Dapagliflozin Effects on Biomarkers, Symptoms, and Functional Status in Patients With Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction

Background: Outcome trials in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus have demonstrated reduced hospitalizations for heart failure (HF) with sodium-glucose co-transporter-2 inhibitors. However, few ...
Biology of the human blood-nerve barrier in health and disease.

A highly regulated endoneurial microenvironment is required for normal axonal function in peripheral nerves and nerve roots, which structurally consist of an outer collagenous epineurium, inner perineurium consisting of multiple concentric layers of specialized epithelioid myofibroblasts that surround the innermost endoneurium, which consists of myelinated and unmyelinated axons embedded in a looser mesh of collagen fibers. Endoneurial homeostasis is achieved by tight junction-forming endoneurial microvessels that control ion, solute, water, nutrient, macromolecule and leukocyte influx and efflux between the bloodstream and endoneurium, and the innermost layers of the perineurium that control interstitial fluid component flux between the freely permeable epineurium and endoneurium. Strictly speaking, endoneurial microvascular endothelium should be considered the blood-nerve barrier (BNB) due to direct communication with circulating blood. The mammalian BNB is considered the second most restrictive vascular system after the blood-brain barrier (BBB) based on classic in situ permeability studies. Structural alterations in endoneurial microvessels or interactions with hematogenous leukocytes have been described in several human peripheral neuropathies; however major advances in BNB biology in health and disease have been limited over the past 50 years. Guided by transcriptome and proteome studies of normal and pathologic human peripheral nerves, purified primary and immortalized human endoneurial endothelial cells that form the BNB and leukocytes from patients with well-characterized peripheral neuropathies, validated by in situ or ex vivo protein expression studies, data are emerging on the molecular and functional characteristics of the human BNB in health and in specific peripheral neuropathies, as well as chronic neuropathic pain. These early advancements have the potential to not only increase our understanding of how the BNB works and adapts or fails to adapt to varying insult, but provide insights relevant to pathogenic leukocyte trafficking, with translational potential and specific therapeutic application for chronic peripheral neuropathies and neuropathic pain.
The genomic architecture of fitness drives population viability during rapid environmental change

The rapid global loss of biodiversity calls for improved predictions of how population will evolve and respond demographically to ongoing environmental change. The heritability (h2) of selected traits has long been known to affect evolutionary and demographic responses to environmental change. Here, we show with novel deterministic models and stochastic simulations that the genetic architecture underlying h2 can dramatically affect population viability during environmental change. Polygenic trait architectures (many loci, each with a small phenotypic effect) conferred higher population viability than when large-effect loci were present under a wide range of scenarios. Population viability depended strongly on the initial frequency of large-effect beneficial alleles, with already-frequent and rare large-effect beneficial alleles conferring lower viability than moderately-low initial allele frequencies. These results suggest that understanding and predicting population responses to human-driven environmental change requires explicitly accounting for the initial h2 and the underlying genetic architecture of selected traits.
Validating the SumMean 18F-FDG PET Textural Feature as a Prognostic Marker in an Independent Cohort of Locally Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Patients Undergoing Concurrent Chemoradiation Therapy.

Abstract Purpose Analyses from the ACRIN6668/RTOG0235 trial data identified the SumMean textural feature, calculated from 18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography for tumors with a metabolic tumor volume >93 cm3, as a predictor of overall survival (OS) for patients with locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer (LA-NSCLC) receiving concurrent chemoradiation therapy. Here, we validated that finding in a completely independent patient cohort from a single institution. Methods and Materials We identified patients with LA-NSCLC who underwent staging 18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography and received definitive chemoradiation therapy at our institution between 2007 and 2018. Primary tumors were segmented semiautomatically, and SumMean score was calculated for each tumor and categorized according to the previously proposed cutoff of 0.018. In patients with metabolic tumor volume >93 cm3, SumMean was evaluated as a predictor of progression-free survival (PFS) and OS using log rank and Cox proportional hazards testing. Results One hundred forty-eight patients met inclusion criteria, and 34 had large tumors (>93 cm3). Twelve (35%) had high SumMean, and 22 (65%) had low SumMean. SumMean was not significantly associated with other clinical variables. Median PFS for patients with large tumors and low SumMean was 5.8 months, compared with 41.1 months for patients with large tumors and high SumMean (log rank P = .022). Median OS for patients with large tumors and low SumMean was 15.0 months; median OS was not reached for patients with large tumors and high SumMean (log rank P = .014). In multivariable analysis, high SumMean was an independent predictor of improved OS (hazard ratio, 0.26; 95% confidence interval, 0.07-0.94; P = .041) and PFS (hazard ratio, 0.30; 95% confidence interval, 0.10-0.86; P = .026). Conclusions We externally validated SumMean as a prognostic marker for patients with LA-NSCLC treated with chemoradiation therapy in an independent patient cohort. Future studies will explore potential mechanisms for this association and how textural features may help guide treatment decisions.
Abnormalities in the Von Willebrand-Angiopoietin Axis Contribute to Dysregulated Angiogenesis and Angiodysplasia in Children With a Glenn Circulation

Summary Children with a bidirectional superior cavopulmonary (Glenn) circulation develop angiodysplasia and pulmonary arteriovenous malformations (AVMs). The von Willebrand factor (vWF)–angiopoietin axis plays a major role in AVM formation in multiple diseases. We observed derangements in global angiogenic signaling, vWF metabolism, angiopoietins, and in vitro angiogenesis in children with a Glenn circulation versus controls and within Glenn pulmonary versus systemic circulations. These findings support the novel hypothesis that abnormalities in the vWF-angiopoietin axis may dysregulate angiogenesis and contribute to Glenn pulmonary AVMs. The vWF-angiopoietin axis may be a target to correct angiogenic imbalance in Glenn patients, for whom no targeted therapy exists.
Nonparametric Binary Classification to Distinguish Closely Related versus Unrelated P. Falciparum Parasites

Assessing genetic relatedness of Plasmodium falciparum genotypes is a key component of antimalarial efficacy trials. Previous methods have focused on determining a priori definitions of the level of genetic similarity sufficient to classify two infections as sharing the same strain. However, factors such as mixed-strain infections, allelic suppression, imprecise typing methods, and heterozygosity complicate comparisons of apicomplexan genotypes. Here, we introduce a novel method for nonparametric statistical testing of relatedness for P. falciparum parasites. First, the background distribution of genetic distance between unrelated strains is computed. Second, a threshold genetic distance is computed from this empiric distribution of distances to demarcate genetic distances that are unlikely to have arisen by chance. Third, the genetic distance between paired samples is computed, and paired samples with genetic distances below the threshold are classified as related. The method is designed to work with any arbitrary genetic distance definition. We validated this procedure using two independent approaches to calculating genetic distance. We assessed the concordance of the novel nonparametric classification with a gold-standard Bayesian approach for 175 pairs of recurrent P. falciparum episodes from previously published malaria efficacy trials with microsatellite data from five studies in Guinea and Angola. The novel nonparametric approach was 98% sensitive and 84-89% specific in correctly identifying related genotypes compared with a gold-standard Bayesian algorithm. The approach provides a unified and systematic method to statistically assess relatedness of P. falciparum parasites using arbitrary genetic distance methodologies.
Immediate reactions following the first dose of the SARS-CoV2 mRNA vaccines do not preclude second dose administration.

Addressing COVID19 vaccine hesitancy and minimizing potential vaccine contraindications are critical to combat the ongoing pandemic. We describe a practical approach to immediate adverse events after the first dose of the SARS-CoV2 mRNA vaccines, focusing on allergic reactions with respect to their diagnosis and management.
Nested-solution facility location models

Classical facility location models can generate solutions that do not maintain consistency in the set of utilized facilities as the number of utilized facilities is varied. We introduce the concept of nested facility locations, in which the solution utilizing p facilities is a subset of the solution utilizing q facilities, for all $$i \le p < q \le j$$ , given some lower limit i and upper limit j on r, the number of facilities that will be utilized in the future. This approach is demonstrated with application to the p-median model, with computational testing showing these new models achieve reductions in both average regret and worst-case regret when $$r \ne p$$ facilities are actually utilized.
Radial artery access anatomy: considerations for neuroendovascular procedures

Although enthusiasm for transradial access for neurointerventional procedures has grown, a unique set of considerations bear emphasis to preserve safety and minimize complications. In the first part of this review series, we will review important anatomical considerations for safe and easy neuroendovascular procedures from a transradial approach. These include normal and variant radial artery anatomy, the anatomic snuffbox, as well as axillary, brachial, and great vessel arterial anatomy that is imperative for the neuroendovascular surgeon to be intimately familiar prior to pursuing transradial access procedures. In the next part of the review series, we will focus on safety and complications specific to a transradial approach.
The Power Method, Deflation, Inverse Iteration

We now discuss a method for determining the dominant characteristic root of a matrix, it being assumed that there is only one α i say α 1 with |α i | = ϱ(A). This method, then, will always work when A>0.