Availability of Recreation Facilities and Parks In Relation to Adolescent Participation in Organized Sports and Activity Programs.

Most adolescents do not meet physical activity guidelines, so understanding facilitators and barriers is important. This study used surveys and geocoded location data to examine associations of availability of parks and recreation facilities with adolescent-reported participation in organized team sports and physical activity classes. The study was conducted with 928 adolescents aged 12-17 years, plus one parent/caretaker, recruited from two regions of the US.

International evaluation of the Microscale Audit of Pedestrian Streetscapes (MAPS) Global instrument: comparative assessment between local and remote online observers.

Objectives: The use of online imagery by non-local observers to conduct remote, centralized collection of streetscape audit data in international studies has the potential to enhance efficiency of collection and comparability of such data for research on built environments and health. The objectives of the study were to measure (1) the consistency in responses between local in-field observers and non-local remote online observers and (2) the reliability between in-country online observers and non-local remote online observers using the Microscale Audit of Pedestrian Streetscapes Global tool to characterize pedestrian-related features along streets in five countries.

Methods: Consistency and inter-rater reliability were analyzed between local and non-local observers on a pooled database of 200 routes in five study regions (Melbourne, Australia; Ghent, Belgium; Curitiba, Brazil; Hong Kong, China; and Valencia, Spain) for microscale environmental feature subscales and item-level variables using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC).

Heterozygous loss-of-function variants significantly expand the phenotypes associated with loss of GDF11.

Purpose: Growth differentiation factor 11 (GDF11) is a key signaling protein required for proper development of many organ systems. Only one prior study has associated an inherited GDF11 variant with a dominant human disease in a family with variable craniofacial and vertebral abnormalities. Here, we expand the phenotypic spectrum associated with GDF11 variants and document the nature of the variants.

Active travel and social justice: Addressing disparities and promoting health equity through a novel approach to Regional Transportation Planning.

Public health impacts of transportation policies and infrastructure investment are becoming better understood, particularly for those associated with physical activity. Yet health impacts are not routinely evaluated within the context of the development of a Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) and subsequent programming and investment processes. This is particularly concerning because the spatial distribution of planned transportation infrastructure potentially has significant health equity implications for vulnerable populations at greater risk of chronic disease.

Comparing spatial regression to random forests for large environmental data sets.

Environmental data may be "large" due to number of records, number of covariates, or both. Random forests has a reputation for good predictive performance when using many covariates with nonlinear relationships, whereas spatial regression, when using reduced rank methods, has a reputation for good predictive performance when using many records that are spatially autocorrelated. In this study, we compare these two techniques using a data set containing the macroinvertebrate multimetric index (MMI) at 1859 stream sites with over 200 landscape covariates.

Estimating the Distribution of Harvested Estuarine Bivalves with Natural-History-Based Habitat Suitability Models.

Habitat suitability models are useful to estimate the potential distribution of a species of interest, particularly in the case of infaunal bivalves. Sampling for these bivalves is time- and cost-intensive, which is increasingly difficult for organizations or agencies that are limited by personnel and funds. Consequently, we developed a framework to identify suitable bivalve habitat in estuaries (FISBHE) - a habitat suitability index (HSI) modeling framework for NE Pacific estuaries that was parameterized with published natural-hi story information and existing habitat datasets, without requiring extensive field sampling of bivalves.

The Health and economic effects of light rail lines: design, methods, and protocol for a natural experiment.

Background: The health impacts of community design have been studied extensively over the past two decades. In particular, public transportation use is associated with more walking between transit stops and shops, work, home and other destinations. Change in transit access has been linked with physical activity and obesity but seldom to health outcomes and associated costs, especially within a causal framework.

Perioperative and Anesthetic Management of Coarctation of the Aorta.

Isolated coarctation of the aorta is a relatively common form of congenital heart disease that is characterized by variable degrees of obstruction to aortic outflow. The clinical presentation varies from asymptomatic arterial hypertension to cardiogenic shock. The treatment options include surgical repair or interventional therapy with aortic balloon dilation and stent placement.

Indoximod: An Immunometabolic Adjuvant That Empowers T Cell Activity in Cancer.

Exploding interest in immunometabolism as a source of new cancer therapeutics has been driven in large part by studies of tryptophan catabolism mediated by IDO/TDO enzymes. A chief focus in the field is IDO1, a pro-inflammatory modifier that is widely overexpressed in cancers where it blunts immunosurveillance and enables neovascularization and metastasis. The simple racemic compound 1-methyl-D,L-tryptophan (1MT) is an extensively used probe of IDO/TDO pathways that exerts a variety of complex inhibitory effects.

Bringing health into transportation and land use scenario planning: Creating a National Public Health Assessment Model (N-PHAM).

There is mounting evidence linking land development and transportation investments to physical activity with resulting implications for chronic disease prevention. Links between the physical environment and health have traditionally focused on harmful exposures such as air pollution, noise, and traffic injury. Given limited funds and competition for how and where investments are made, there is a need to prioritize and target resources to maximize health benefits that can include activity related chronic disease prevention.

Linking green space to neighborhood social capital in older adults: The role of perceived safety.

This study examines the moderating effect of perceived safety on the association of green space with neighborhood social capital in older adults. Green space may play an important role for promoting neighborhood social capital and health for older adults; however, safety remains a significant challenge in maximizing the benefits of green space. Data were drawn from 647 independent-living seniors who participated in the Senior Neighborhood Quality of Life Study in the Seattle/King County and Baltimore/Washington DC region.

Development and reliability of a streetscape observation instrument for international use: MAPS-global.

Background: Relationships between several built environment factors and physical activity and walking behavior are well established, but internationally-comparable built environment measures are lacking. The Microscale Audit of Pedestrian Streetscapes (MAPS)-Global is an observational measure of detailed streetscape features relevant to physical activity that was developed for international use. This study examined the inter-observer reliability of the instrument in five countries.

Predictive mapping of the biotic condition of conterminous U.S. rivers and streams.

Understanding and mapping the spatial variation in stream biological condition could provide an important tool for conservation, assessment, and restoration of stream ecosystems. The USEPA's 2008-2009 National Rivers and Streams Assessment (NRSA) summarizes the percentage of stream lengths within the conterminous United States that are in good, fair, or poor biological condition based on a multimetric index of benthic invertebrate assemblages. However, condition is usually summarized at regional or national scales, and these assessments do not provide substantial insight into the spatial distribution of conditions at unsampled locations.

Assessing the accuracy and stability of variable selection methods for random forest modeling in ecology.

Random forest (RF) modeling has emerged as an important statistical learning method in ecology due to its exceptional predictive performance. However, for large and complex ecological data sets, there is limited guidance on variable selection methods for RF modeling. Typically, either a preselected set of predictor variables are used or stepwise procedures are employed which iteratively remove variables according to their importance measures.

International comparison of observation-specific spatial buffers: maximizing the ability to estimate physical activity.

Background: Advancements in geographic information systems over the past two decades have increased the specificity by which an individual's neighborhood environment may be spatially defined for physical activity and health research. This study investigated how different types of street network buffering methods compared in measuring a set of commonly used built environment measures (BEMs) and tested their performance on associations with physical activity outcomes.

Methods: An internationally-developed set of objective BEMs using three different spatial buffering techniques were used to evaluate the relative differences in resulting explanatory power on self-reported physical activity outcomes.

A Case of Nivolumab-Induced Myositis.

Nivolumab (Opdivo) is a monoclonal antibody classified as an immune modulator. A case is presented of nivolumab-induced myositis, an unlisted side effect.

Influence of solvent on ion aggregation and transport in PY15TFSI ionic liquid-aprotic solvent mixtures.

Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations using a many-body polarizable APPLE&P force field have been performed on mixtures of the N-methyl-N-pentylpyrrolidinium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide (PY15TFSI) ionic liquid (IL) with three molecular solvents: propylene carbonate (PC), dimethyl carbonate (DMC), and acetonitrile (AN). The MD simulations predict density, viscosity, and ionic conductivity values that agree well with the experimental results. In the solvent-rich regime, the ionic conductivity of the PY15TFSI-AN mixtures was found to be significantly higher than the conductivity of the corresponding -PC and -DMC mixtures, despite the similar viscosity values obtained from both the MD simulations and experiments for the -DMC and -AN mixtures.

Ionic liquids behave as dilute electrolyte solutions.

We combine direct surface force measurements with thermodynamic arguments to demonstrate that pure ionic liquids are expected to behave as dilute weak electrolyte solutions, with typical effective dissociated ion concentrations of less than 0.1% at room temperature. We performed equilibrium force-distance measurements across the common ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide ([C4mim][NTf2]) using a surface forces apparatus with in situ electrochemical control and quantitatively modeled these measurements using the van der Waals and electrostatic double-layer forces of the Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek theory with an additive repulsive steric (entropic) ion-surface binding force.

Diffusion Coefficients from (13)C PGSE NMR Measurements-Fluorine-Free Ionic Liquids with the DCTA(-) Anion.

Pulsed-field gradient spin-echo (PGSE) NMR is a widely used method for the determination of molecular and ionic self-diffusion coefficients. The analysis has thus far been limited largely to (1)H, (7)Li, (19)F, and (31)P nuclei. This limitation handicaps the analysis of materials without these nuclei or for which these nuclei are insufficient for complete characterization.

Cadmium down-regulates expression of XIAP at the post-transcriptional level in prostate cancer cells through an NF-kappaB-independent, proteasome-mediated mechanism.

Background: Cadmium has been classified as a human carcinogen, affecting health through occupational and environmental exposure. Cadmium has a long biological half-life (>25 years), due to the flat kinetics of its excretion. The prostate is one of the organs with highest levels of cadmium accumulation.

Relational frame theory: an overview of the controversy.

Although Skinner's Verbal Behavior (1957) was published over 50 years ago, behavior-analytic research on human language and cognition has been slow to develop. In recent years, a new behavioral approach to language known as relational frame theory (RFT) has generated considerable attention, research, and debate. The controversy surrounding RFT can be difficult to fully appreciate, partly because of the complexity of the theory itself and partly because the debate has spanned several years and several journals.

Using video technology to disseminate behavioral procedures: a review of Functional Analysis: a Guide for Understanding Challenging Behavior (DVD).

Although applied behavior analysis has generated many highly effective behavior-change procedures, the procedures have not always been effectively disseminated. One solution to this problem is the use of video technology, which has been facilitated by the ready availability of video production equipment and software and multiple distribution methods (e.g.

Pathologic concordance of sporadic synchronous bilateral renal masses.

Objectives: To review the collective experience evaluating pathologic concordance rates of sporadic bilateral synchronous renal tumors reported in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database and the published English literature and treated at Fox Chase Cancer Center; specifically, to analyze concordance rates of malignant versus benign disease, histologic type, tumor stage, and nuclear grade.

Methods: We reviewed the SEER database, the published English language literature, and our own institutional tumor registry to identify all cases of sporadic, synchronous localized (cT1-3N0M0) bilateral renal masses. Malignant and benign concordance rates were defined as agreement of any benign or malignant tumor type bilaterally.

Delayed intervention of sporadic renal masses undergoing active surveillance.

Background: Prompt surgical management remains the standard of care for renal cell carcinoma (RCC). Occasionally, it is necessary to postpone or delay surgical treatment. The authors of this report assessed whether delayed intervention following a period of active surveillance altered minimally invasive or nephron-sparing treatment plans, increased the risk of stage progression, and/or decreased recurrence-free survival rates.