To Withdraw or Not to Withdraw: Reviewability of an Agency\u27s Withdrawn Proposed Rule

Federal agencies propose thousands of regulations in any given year. The Administrative Procedure Act requires such agencies to follow certain procedures when enacting rules and regulations. However, when an agency proposes a new rule that is purely discretionary—not mandated by Congress—it may withdraw the proposed rule at any point before the rule is finalized. In October 2017, the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) withdrew a proposed rule that, if enacted, would have required long-term care facilities to recognize out of state same-sex marriages as a condition of Medicare and Medicaid participation. In its formal withdrawal published in the Federal Register, CMS reasoned that the proposed rule was no longer necessary due to the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Obergefell v. Hodges. This Comment examines the circumstances under which a district court can review an agency’s withdrawal of a discretionary proposed rule. For nearly forty years, the D.C. Circuit has held that withdrawn discretionary rules may be ripe for judicial review if two requirements are met: (1) the withdrawal signals final agency action and (2) the agency created an adequate and precise record pursuant to informal notice-and-comment rulemaking. However, some commentators, notably former Ninth Circuit Judge Alex Kozinski, argue that an agency’s decision to withdraw a proposed rule is wholly discretionary and thus unreviewable in light of the U.S. Supreme Court decision Heckler v. Chaney. This Comment concludes by arguing that judicial review of withdrawn discretionary proposed rules is necessary to prevent arbitrary and capricious agency action. Moreover, despite Judge Kozinski’s concerns, arbitrary and capricious review supplies a reviewing court with the critical tools to review withdrawn discretionary rules

Residential Mobility in the Late Pre-hispanic Osmore Drainage: Isotopic Analyses of Hair from the Estuquiña

I examine, through isotopic analyses, individual and regional interactions in Peru following the collapse of the large polity, Tiwanaku. After its collapse in the 11th century, former territories experienced violent instability, as new communities formed during the Late Intermediate Period, or LIP (1000-1400s AD). I analyze naturally mummified human hair from the later LIP Estuquiña (1250-1470s AD) in the Moquegua Valley of southern Peru to examine patterns of regional mobility in the aftermath of political fragmentation. Reconstructing residential mobility through isotope analyses is methodologically established, and has been instrumental in understanding mobility, exchange, colonization, and regional interactions during Tiwanaku’s height. However, less is known about these processes following the disbursement of individuals and groups of people after the early LIP when instability transitioned into a different form of uncertainty, caused by environmental factors. Using heavy isotope analysis, I test the oral tradition and ethnohistoric accounts of the origins of members of the LIP Estuquiña cultural group, which suggested populations moved from around the southern Lake Titicaca region into the middle Moquegua Valley of Southern Peru during the Late LIP. I analyzed bulk samples of archaeological hair from ten naturally mummified individuals from the site of Estuquiña, located in the middle Moquegua Valley, Peru. I characterized 87Sr/86Sr and 206Pb/204Pb, 207Pb/204Pb, and 208Pb (206,7,8Pb/204Pb for brevity). Additionally, I analyzed ratios of the same isotopes in a subset of individuals (N = 2), using 1cm increments from roughly thirty strands of hair per individual, aligned by the hair follicles. This allowed me to examine incremental variation in isotope ratios during each month or so leading up to death. Hair 87Sr/86Sr and 206,7,8Pb/204Pb results indicate that only one individual, M6-4203, was distinctly from the altiplano, while two more individuals may have also been from outside, but near to, the region. Most individuals appear to have been locals, isotopically speaking, to the middle Moquegua Valley. These data support recent work by Sutter and Sharratt (2019) arguing that the Estuquiña inhabitants were a contiguous population extending back to the Middle Horizon, rather than a replacement community from highland Lupaqa cultures or other far-flung regions

Mapping the interaction of B cell Leukemia 3 (BCL-3) and nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) p50 identifies a BCL-3-mimetic anti-inflammatory peptide

The NF-κB transcriptional response is tightly regulated by a number of processes including the phosphorylation, ubiquitination, and subsequent proteasomal degradation of NF-κB subunits. The IκB family protein BCL-3 stabilizes a NF-κB p50 homodimer·DNA complex through inhibition of p50 ubiquitination. This complex inhibits the binding of the transcriptionally active NF-κB subunits p65 and c-Rel on the promoters of NF-κB target genes and functions to suppress inflammatory gene expression. We have previously shown that the direct interaction between p50 and BCL-3 is required for BCL-3-mediated inhibition of pro-inflammatory gene expression. In this study we have used immobilized peptide array technology to define regions of BCl-3 that mediate interaction with p50 homodimers. Our data show that BCL-3 makes extensive contacts with p50 homodimers and in particular with ankyrin repeats (ANK) 1, 6, and 7, and the N-terminal region of Bcl-3. Using these data we have designed a BCL-3 mimetic peptide based on a region of the ANK1 of BCL-3 that interacts with p50 and shares low sequence similarity with other IκB proteins. When fused to a cargo carrying peptide sequence this BCL-3-derived peptide, but not a mutated peptide, inhibited Toll-like receptor-induced cytokine expression in vitro. The BCL-3 mimetic peptide was also effective in preventing inflammation in vivo in the carrageenan-induced paw edema mouse model. This study demonstrates that therapeutic strategies aimed at mimicking the functional activity of BCL-3 may be effective in the treatment of inflammatory disease

Simulation and optimisation of terahertz emission from InGaAs and InP photoconductive switches

We simulate the terahertz emission from laterally-biased InGaAs and InP using a three-dimensional carrier dynamics model in order to optimise the semiconductor material. Incident pump-pulse parameters of current Ti:Sapphire and Er:fibre lasers are chosen, and the simulation models the semiconductor's bandstructure using parabolic Gamma, L and X valleys, and heavy holes. The emitted terahertz radiation is propagated within the semiconductor and into free space using a model based on the Drude-Lorentz dielectric function. As the InGaAs alloy approaches InAs an increase in the emitted power is observed, and this is attributed to a greater electron mobility. Additionally, low-temperature grown and ion-implanted InGaAs are modelled using a finite carrier trapping time. At sub-picosecond trapping times the terahertz bandwidth is found to increase significantly at the cost of a reduced emission power.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figure

Genetic evidence of human adaptation to a cooked diet

Humans have been argued to be biologically adapted to a cooked diet, but this hypothesis has not been tested at the molecular level. Here, we combine controlled feeding experiments in mice with comparative primate genomics to show that consumption of a cooked diet influences gene expression and that affected genes bear signals of positive selection in the human lineage. Liver gene expression profiles in mice fed standardized diets of meat or tuber were affected by food type and cooking, but not by caloric intake or consumer energy balance. Genes affected by cooking were highly correlated with genes known to be differentially expressed in liver between humans and other primates, and more genes in this overlap set show signals of positive selection in humans than would be expected by chance. Sequence changes in the genes under selection appear before the split between modern humans and two archaic human groups, Neandertals and Denisovans, supporting the idea that human adaptation to a cooked diet had begun by at least 275,000 years ago

The Effects of Resistance Exercise Training on Quality of Life and Muscle Strength in Patients Undergoing Cancer Treatment: A Systematic Review

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer and prostate cancer are two of the most common cancers seen in females and males respectively worldwide. Treatments such as chemotherapy, radiation, and androgen deprivation therapy are essential to combat cancerous cells. However, the lasting side effects of these lifesaving treatments can impact an individual’s quality of life and muscle strength without appropriate intervention. While exercise has been shown to be beneficial for patients with cancer, there is limited understanding of the effects of resistance training when performed concurrently with medical interventions. PURPOSE: The purpose of this systematic review was to evaluate the impact of resistance training on quality of life and muscle strength in patients with breast and prostate cancer undergoing cancer treatment. METHODS: An academic search was conducted beginning August of 2020 and ending January 2021. The databases searched consisted of PubMed, EBSCO, Academic Search Ultimate, CINAHL, and Medline. This search yielded 18 randomized controlled trials, 11 pertaining to breast cancer and 7 pertaining to prostate cancer. RESULTS: All articles utilized a myriad of outcome measures to see changes in QoL and muscle strength. Studies evaluated resulted in either a positive short term or no improvement during the period of active intervention. However, some studies did note a lack of long-term significant differences in outcome measures between the intervention and control groups. Review of the literature did not reveal patient attrition was due to adverse effects of the intervention. CONCLUSION: Resistance training can be a safe and effective intervention to improve quality and life and muscle strength in patients undergoing cancer treatment. Current studies demonstrate the need for physical therapists to be included in the interdisciplinary approach from the moment of a cancer diagnosis.https://digitalcommons.misericordia.edu/research_posters2021/1044/thumbnail.jp

The IκB-protein BCL-3 controls toll-like receptor-induced MAPK activity by promoting TPL-2 degradation in the nucleus

Proinflammatory responses induced by Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are dependent on the activation of the NF-ĸB and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways, which coordinate the transcription and synthesis of proinflammatory cytokines. We demonstrate that BCL-3, a nuclear IĸB protein that regulates NF-ĸB, also controls TLR-induced MAPK activity by regulating the stability of the TPL-2 kinase. TPL-2 is essential for MAPK activation by TLR ligands, and the rapid proteasomal degradation of active TPL-2 is a critical mechanism limiting TLR-induced MAPK activity. We reveal that TPL-2 is a nucleocytoplasmic shuttling protein and identify the nucleus as the primary site for TPL-2 degradation. BCL-3 interacts with TPL-2 and promotes its degradation by promoting its nuclear localization. As a consequence, Bcl3−/− macrophages have increased TPL-2 stability following TLR stimulation, leading to increased MAPK activity and MAPK-dependent responses. Moreover, BCL-3–mediated regulation of TPL-2 stability sets the MAPK activation threshold and determines the amount of TLR ligand required to initiate the production of inflammatory cytokines. Thus, the nucleus is a key site in the regulation of TLR-induced MAPK activity. BCL-3 links control of the MAPK and NF-ĸB pathways in the nucleus, and BCL-3–mediated TPL-2 regulation impacts on the cellular decision to initiate proinflammatory cytokine production in response to TLR activation

Robotic-assisted laparoscopic donor nephrectomy: Decreasing length of stay

Background: The number of robotic operations performed with the da Vinci Surgical System has increased during the past decade. This system allows for greater maneuverability and control than hand-assisted laparoscopic procedures, resulting in less tissue manipulation and irritation