Does Edaravone slow disease progression in patients with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis?

Objective: The objective of this EBM review is to determine whether or not Edaravone is effective at slowing disease progression in patients with ALS. Study Design: Review of three randomized control trials. Data Source: All articles were published in English between 2014 and 2019. Articles were obtained from peer-reviewed journals and databases using Cochrane Collaboration, PubMed, Medline, and Embase. Outcomes: The outcome measured was physical function assessed by the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Assessment and Questionnaire 40 Revised (ALSAQ-40R). Patients are asked to provide a perceived ability rating on a scale of 0 to 100, with 0 indicating perfect health and 100 a total loss of function. Results: The Double bind RCTs of both Abe et al. (Amyotroph Lateral Scler Frontotemporal Degener. 2014;15:610-617. Doi: 10.3109/21678421.2014959024.) as well as The Writing Group on behalf of the Edaravone (MCI-186) ALS 17 Study Group. (Amyotroph Lateral Scler Frontotemporal Degener. 2017;18:20-31. Doi: 10.1080/21678421.2017.1362000) failed to demonstrate Edaravone efficacy against placebo (p=0.892 and p=0.1651, respectively). Final trial conducted by The Writing Group on behalf of the Edaravone (MCI-186) ALS 19 Study Group. (Lancet Neurol. 2017;15:505-512. Doi: 10.106/S1474-4422(17)30115-1) found that Edaravone was more effective at slowing disease progression than placebo in a well-defined patient population (p=0.0309). Conclusion: A summation of results from three articles reviewed here would indicate that Edaravone does not slow disease progression in patients with ALS. There does appear to be some utility in early disease patients, but this finding requires further evaluation

Leaders Yearning For Excellence: How Motivation and Self-Determination Benefits a Diverse Group of Student Athletes

Many athletic departments within Predominately White Institutions (PWI’s) have a culmination of competition, academic support, and an abundance of campus support. With this, comes an expected tradition of athletic prestige. Winning athletic contests is culturally derived attitude. At the same time, improving academic motivation and success of student athletes should be an equally important, culturally derived attitude as well. Given the need to improve academic outcomes of diverse student athletes, the emphasis to improve holistic development is imperative in encouraging academic growth while leading student athletes to recognize, understand, and critique social situations. This study highlights a diverse group of student athletes at PWI’s, and their motivational factors that influenced academic and athletic outcomes. This study also utilizes Critical Race Theory (CRT) as a lens to thoroughly examine and explain the athletic and academic experiences of diverse student athletes at PWI’s. The necessary tenet within CRT in order to explore this study is the interest convergence principle

W-band waveguide-packaged InP HEMT reflection grid amplifier

This letter presents a 79-GHz broadband reflection-type grid amplifier using spatial power combining to combine the power of 64 unit cells. Each unit cell uses a two-stage cascade configuration with InP HEMTs arranged as a differential pair. A broadband orthogonal mode transducer (OMT) separates two orthogonally polarized input and output signals over a 75 to 85GHz range. In conjunction with the OMT, a mode converter with quadruple-ridged apertures was designed to enhance the field uniformity over the active grid. Measurements show 5-dB small signal gain at 79GHz and an 800-MHz 3-dB bandwidth. The amplifier generates an output power of 264mW with little evidence of saturation

Exploring how Student Athletes Balance Athletic, Academic, and Personal Needs Through Learned Needs Theory.

The attempt to balance the requirements of athletic and academic demands prompts extensive research agendas from higher education and athletic stakeholders to examine how extrinsic and socio-environmental factors affect the desired outcomes of student athletes. Reputable motivation literature describes needs as the starting point of motivation and influences behaviors embedded within cultural and systematic structures. Thus, the purpose of this study is to understand how sport participation influences athletic and academic performance through Learned Needs Theory (LNT). This study provides insight to processes of motivation that contribute to knowledge, practical implications, and research that translates to research-based approaches to increase and consider varying need fulfillment of student athletes

Stability of grid amplifiers

We present a stability model for quasi-optical grid amplifiers. This model is useful for predicting and suppressing the common-mode oscillations that often occur in amplifier grids. Three stabilization techniques will be discussed. The first technique uses a capacitor to stabilize the grid. The second approach employs resistance to suppress the oscillations. The final technique stabilizes the grid by reducing the on-chip common-mode resistance, allowing greatly increased amplifier efficiencies. Experimental evidence will be presented to confirm the validity of our stability model

Alien Tort Cases Will Survive Supreme Court Trim, Write Commentators

For over four decades, the Alien Tort Statute has served as a central battleground in some of the country’s (and world’s) most significant international human rights litigation. Following a trend in its ATS jurisprudence that started with its opinion in Sosa v. Alvarez-Machain, the Supreme Court recently trimmed the statute’s scope yet further. In Jesner v. Arab Bank PLC, the Court held that suits arising under the ATS did not extend to claims against corporations (at least some of them, a nuance explained below). Once again, postdecisional commentary decried the demise of ATS suits and a blow, more generally, to the cause of human rights. The reality, however, is much more complex. Despite Jesner’s holding, several potentially viable avenues for ATS litigation remain. This essay maps out three anticipated battlegrounds in future ATS litigation in the wake of Jesner

A 100-Element MODFET Grid Amplifier

A 100-element quasi-optical amplifier is presented. The active devices are custom-fabricated modulation-doped field-effect transistors (MODFETs). Common-mode oscillations were suppressed using resistors in the input gate leads. The grid has 9 dB of gain at 10.1 GHz. The 3-dB bandwidth is 1.2 GHz. We present a model for the gain of the grid versus frequency and compare measurement with theory

A Java Program for LRE-Based Real-Time qPCR that Enables Large-Scale Absolute Quantification

Background: Linear regression of efficiency (LRE) introduced a new paradigm for real-time qPCR that enables large-scale absolute quantification by eliminating the need for standard curves. Developed through the application of sigmoidal mathematics to SYBR Green I-based assays, target quantity is derived directly from fluorescence readings within the central region of an amplification profile. However, a major challenge of implementing LRE quantification is the labor intensive nature of the analysis. Findings: Utilizing the extensive resources that are available for developing Java-based software, the LRE Analyzer was written using the NetBeans IDE, and is built on top of the modular architecture and windowing system provided by the NetBeans Platform. This fully featured desktop application determines the number of target molecules within a sample with little or no intervention by the user, in addition to providing extensive database capabilities. MS Excel is used to import data, allowing LRE quantification to be conducted with any real-time PCR instrument that provides access to the raw fluorescence readings. An extensive help set also provides an in-depth introduction to LRE, in addition to guidelines on how to implement LRE quantification. Conclusions: The LRE Analyzer provides the automated analysis and data storage capabilities required by large-scale qPCR projects wanting to exploit the many advantages of absolute quantification. Foremost is the universal perspective afforded by absolute quantification, which among other attributes, provides the ability to directly compare quantitative data produced by different assays and/or instruments. Furthermore, absolute quantification has important implications for gene expression profiling in that it provides the foundation for comparing transcript quantities produced by any gene with any other gene, within and between samples

Oxidation and protection of fiberglass-epoxy composite masts for photovoltaic arrays in the low Earth orbital environment

Fiberglass-epoxy composites are considered for use as structural members for the mast of the space station solar array panel. The low Earth orbital environment in which space station is to operate is composed mainly of atomic oxygen, which has been shown to cause erosion of many organic materials and some metals. Ground based testing in a plasma asher was performed to determine the extent of degradation of fiberglass-epoxy composites when exposed to a simulated atomic oxygen environment. During exposure, the epoxy at the surface of the composite was oxidized, exposing individual glass fibers which could easily be removed. Several methods of protecting the composite were evaluated in an atomic oxygen environment and with thermal cycling and flexing. The protection techniques evaluated to date include an aluminum braid covering, an indium-tin eutectic and a silicone based paint. The open aluminum braid offered little protection while the CV-1144 coating offered some initial protection against atomic oxygen, but appears to develop cracks which accelerate degradation when flexed. Coatings such as the In-Sn eutectic may provide adequate protection by containing the glass fibers even though mass loss still occurs