Midway College

In situ production of metals from lunar regolith is essential for the long-term utilization of the Moon’s surface. Molten regolith electrolysis (MRE) offers a promising approach for lunar construction and in situ resource utilization (ISRU). However, MRE operates at temperatures around 1600 °C and involves molten regolith consisting of oxides of ten different cations, posing significant challenges in selecting or developing suitable refractory materials. This study surveys a range of candidate materials, including Al 2 O 3 , ZrO 2 , BN, Si 3 N 4 , SiC, AlN, and graphite, to evaluate their compatibility with molten highlands lunar regolith simulant (CSM-LHT-1) under reducing conditions. A more detailed investigation was performed on dense Al 2 O 3 , BN, and stabilized ZrO 2 , with their corrosion behavior analyzed through X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). The results revealed the highly corrosive nature of molten lunar regolith, which caused rapid dissolution and recrystallization in alumina. Zirconia exhibited limited chemical interactions with the regolith but experienced destabilization due to thermal cycling. Boron nitride, under the low-oxygen conditions tested, appeared structurally stable, with no visible dissolution or infiltration; however, the presence of reduced iron and silicon at the interface suggests borothermal reduction reactions. The findings from this work inform refractory selection for MRE reactors, highlighting the challenges posed by chemically aggressive melts and the necessity of materials capable of withstanding extreme environments. • Wetting of lunar regolith simulant at 1500 °C. • Corrosion of ceramics by molten lunar regolith simulant.

This study evaluated rates of treatment-emergent resistance-associated mutations (TE-RAMs) and discontinuation due to adverse events (DC-AEs) across integrase strand transfer inhibitor (INSTI)-based single-tablet regimens and injectable cabotegravir + rilpivirine (CAB + RPV) in virologically suppressed people with HIV. A systematic literature review was conducted for phase 2-4 randomized controlled trials with ≥48 weeks of follow-up involving virologically suppressed people with HIV aged ≥12 years and published January 2003-March 2024. A random-effects network meta-analysis estimated comparative rates of TE-RAMs and DC-AEs among regimens at 48 weeks. Risk of bias and strength of evidence were assessed using Cochrane RoB and CINeMA, respectively. Fourteen (7509 participants) and nine (4656 participants) studies were included in the TE-RAMs and DC-AEs analyses, respectively. No significant differences in rates of TE-RAMs were observed; risk ratios (RRs) for TE-RAMs for bictegravir/emtricitabine/tenofovir alafenamide (B/F/TAF), dolutegravir/abacavir/lamivudine (DTG/ABC/3TC) and CAB + RPV every 4 weeks (Q4W) versus CAB + RPV every 8 weeks (Q8W) were 0.22 (95% CI, 0.02-2.04), 0.22 (95% CI, 0.00-19.85) and 0.40 (95% CI, 0.14-1.09). Compared with CAB + RPV Q4W and Q8W, DC-AEs were significantly lower with B/F/TAF (RR, 0.15 [95% CI, 0.03-0.75] and RR, 0.16 [95% CI, 0.04-0.67], respectively) and DTG/ABC/3TC (RR, 0.05 [95% CI, 0.01-0.48] and RR, 0.05 [95% CI, 0.01-0.46], respectively). In virologically suppressed people with HIV, switching to CAB + RPV Q8W yielded a non-significant increased risk of TE-RAMs compared with INSTI-based 2- and 3-drug regimens and CAB + RPV Q4W. Both CAB + RPV Q4W and Q8W had significantly higher risks of DC-AEs than B/F/TAF and DTG/ABC/3TC. Findings highlight the importance of considering both resistance and tolerability when switching regimens.

Abstract Aromatherapy has been used in holistic medicine to improve relaxation in humans; however, there are limited studies on its use in horses. This study investigated the potential of aromatherapy on relaxation responses in horses using two common essential oils geranium (Pelargonium asperum) and clary sage (Salvia sclarea). We hypothesized that aromatherapy using essential oils would improve relaxation responses in horses. Geranium aromatherapy (GA) and clary-sage aromatherapy (CA) were tested against a control (CO; deionized water only) in a replicated 3 x 3 Latin square with three treatments, three horses (584 ± 9 kg of body weight and 11 ± 1 yr old), and three experimental periods. The experiment was replicated using the same horses, and the two experimental replicates were considered the square blocking factor. Aromatherapy session involved a 5-min acclimation period followed by 15 min of aromatherapy using a diffusor. Heart rate and respiration rate at min 0, 7 and 15, and average counts for body position and facial expressions from min 0 to 7 and from 7 to 15 (early and late session, respectively) were used as measure of relaxation. Aromatherapy improved eye expression over time (P = 0.01), with GA and CA horses showing significantly increased durations of relaxed eyes from early to late session (2.8 min vs. 5.3 min for GA and 3.7 min vs. 4.8 min for CA), while horses on CO showed reduced duration from early to late session (2.7 min vs. 1.2 min), indicating increased level of alertness and tension. Aromatherapy tended (P = 0.07) to improve ear expression. Horses receiving CA tended to show longer durations of relaxed ears compared with CO (4.33 min vs. 1.25 min), while GA (3.25 min) did not differ from CA and CO. Aromatherapy did not affect (P > 0.05) measures of body posture and heart and respiratory rates. Although not all relaxation responses were improved by aromatherapy, the results indicate that aromatherapy has potential for improving relaxation in horses as indicated by facial expressions.

Abstract For five decades now the various levels of government in the United States, through the use of affirmative action and diversity policies, have sought a more racially and gender-wise equitable society with respect to equal employment opportunity. Governments established hiring goals for women and racial minorities. Goals became quotas as state and local governments (and private employers) that were dependent on federal money made certain that goals produced desired results by preferring people based on their race or gender. This article is a case study of how the Commonwealth’s welfare cabinet over two decades ago used long-standing civil service regulations and policies to pursue preferential employment practices while conterminously pursuing greater societal equity by reducing governmental oversight of welfare programs. All this foreshadowed President Biden’s iteration of affirmative action—federal equity directives regarding employment preferences and greater conditions of equality. After the events described herein, Democratic Kentucky transformed itself into a Republican state.

BackgroundPeople with HIV (PWH) who are initiated on guidelines-recommended first-line INSTI-based antiretroviral therapy routinely achieve rapid virologic suppression; however, those with a high baseline (BL) HIV-1 RNA and/or low CD4 count may be more challenging to manage in the short- and long-term. To further characterize long-term outcomes over 5 years in select subgroups, we analyzed results from two studies examining B/F/TAF as initial treatment stratified by BL HIV-1 RNA and/or CD4 count.MethodsAdults with HIV were randomized to receive blinded initial treatment with B/F/TAF versus dolutegravir [DTG]/abacavir/lamivudine (Study 1489) or DTG+F/TAF (1490) for 144 weeks (W) of blinded treatment followed by an optional switch to open-label B/F/TAF for 96W. We present virologic response (HIV-1 RNA < 50 c/mL, missing=excluded and missing=failure) and study drug-related adverse events (DRAE) from a pooled analysis of participants originally randomized to B/F/TAF who had BL HIV-1 RNA 100,00-400,000 copies(c)/mL, HIV-1 RNA >400,000 c/mL and/or CD4 count < 200 cells/µL through W240.Results634 adults (median age 32 years, 89% men, 33% Black/African descent, 24% Hispanic/LatinX) originally randomized to B/F/TAF were included for analysis. At BL, 80 participants had a BL CD4 count < 200 cells/µL and 119 participants had HIV-1 RNA >100,000 c/mL, of whom, 20 had HIV-1 RNA >400,000 c/mL. At W240, virologic suppression was high for the low CD4 count and/or high HIV-1 RNA subgroups (Table). No participant in the final resistance analysis developed virologic resistance to any component of B/F/TAF. Across the subgroups, the most common DRAEs were nausea, headache and diarrhea and there were no serious DRAEs. There was only one discontinuation due to a DRAE in the low CD4 count subgroup, and none in the high HIV-1 RNA subgroup.ConclusionInitial treatment with B/F/TAF was safe and efficacious over 5 years of follow-up in people with a high BL HIV-1 RNA and/or low CD4 count. These outcomes provide additional evidence that B/F/TAF is an effective and durable regimen for a broad range of PWH, including those with advanced disease.DisclosuresMoti Ramgopal, MD, FACP, FIDSA, Gilead Sciences: Advisor/Consultant|Gilead Sciences: Speakers Bureau|Janssen: Advisor/Consultant|Janssen: Speakers Bureau|Merck: Advisor/Consultant|Merck: Speakers Bureau|ViiV: Advisor/Consultant|ViiV: Speakers Bureau Axel Baumgarten, MD, AbbVie: Honoraria|Gilead Sciences: Honoraria|Janssen: Honoraria|MSD: Honoraria|ViiV: Honoraria Anton Pozniak, MD, FRCP, Gilead: Grant/Research Support|Gilead: Honoraria|Janssen: Grant/Research Support|Janssen: Honoraria|Merck: Honoraria|theratec: Honoraria|ViiV: Grant/Research Support|ViiV: Honoraria Chloe Orkin, MBChB, FRCP, MD, Gilead Sciences: Honoraria|GSK: Honoraria|Janssen: Honoraria|MSD: Honoraria Juan Manuel Tiraboschi, PhD, Gilead Sciences: Advisor/Consultant|Gilead Sciences: Grant/Research Support|Janssen: Advisor/Consultant|Janssen: Grant/Research Support|MSD: Advisor/Consultant|MSD: Grant/Research Support|ViiV Healthcare: Advisor/Consultant|ViiV Healthcare: Grant/Research Support Debbie P. Hagins, MD, FAPCR, AAHIVS, Gilead Sciences: Advisor/Consultant|Gilead Sciences: Grant/Research Support|Gilead Sciences: Speakers Bureau|Janssen: Grant/Research Support|Merck: Advisor/Consultant|Merck: Grant/Research Support|ViiV: Advisor/Consultant|ViiV: Grant/Research Support Hailin Huang, PhD, Gilead Sciences, Inc.: Employer|Gilead Sciences, Inc.: Stocks/Bonds Kristin Andreatta, MSc, Gilead Sciences, Inc: Employee of Gilead Sciences|Gilead Sciences, Inc: Stocks/Bonds Nathan Unger, PharmD, AAHIVP, Gilead Sciences: Employee|Gilead Sciences: Stocks/Bonds Jason Hindman, PharmD, MBA, Gilead Sciences: Employee|Gilead Sciences: Stocks/Bonds Hal Martin, MD, Gilead Sciences: employee|Gilead Sciences: Stocks/Bonds Jared Baeten, MD, PhD, Gilead Sciences: Employee|Gilead Sciences: Stocks/Bonds Olayemi Osiyemi, MD, Gilead: Advisor/Consultant|gsk: Advisor/Consultant|viiv: Advisor/Consultant.

A Rubik's Snake is a toy that has been around for more than 40 years. It can be twisted to many interesting shapes. In particular a Rubik's Snake can be twisted to form a knot. The trefoil knot is the simplest non-trivial knot. In this paper we study how many blocks are needed to form a trefoil knot for the original version of the Rubik's Snake with integer multiple of 90 degree rotations for joints. We also study how many blocks are needed to form a trefoil knot using the tube version of the Rubik's Snake.

BackgroundBlack and Hispanic/Latinx gay and other men who have sex with men (MSM), transgender women (TGW), transgender men (TGM), and gender nonbinary individuals (GNB) have been historically underrepresented in HIV prevention trials despite being disproportionately affected by the disease. Therefore, studies of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), a highly effective intervention for reducing HIV incidence, should include these individuals, and doing so would promote generalizability of the findings.MethodsPURPOSE 2 (GS-US-528-9023) will evaluate a twice-yearly long-acting subcutaneous, first in class capsid inhibitor, lenacapavir, for PrEP in MSM, TGW, TGM, and GNB in the US, Brazil, Peru, and South Africa. The study team adopted a multifactorial approach to address historic underrepresentation. This included a literature review to assess successful evidence-based approaches for increasing enrollment of Black and Hispanic/ LatinX MSM, TG, and GNB individuals. We engaged with community and patient advocates as well as key stakeholders to solicit feedback prior to protocol development.ResultsWe established a trial-specific Global Community Advisory Group and implemented their recommendations for site selection, investigator and staff diversity, and strong linkage with community-based organizations. We recruited new community-based research sites and principal investigators (PIs) to mirror historically underrepresented populations and emphasized mentorship of junior sub-Is by seasoned PIs to support enrollment and retention. We developed required trainings for all study and site staff on good participatory practices for PrEP, anti-racism and transgender cultural humility. We established recruitment goals of 50% Black and 20% Hispanic/LatinX MSM in the US, and 20% TGW study-wide. Our strategy to ensure achievement of these overall goals involves nuanced site-specific recruitment goals considering site capacity, local demographics, and HIV incidence data. We will review metrics weekly during enrollment and make any necessary adjustments. ConclusionUsing novel approaches, we have carefully chosen with whom, where, and how we will collaborate to increase the diversity, equity, and inclusion in the PURPOSE 2 trial.DisclosuresMichelle Cespedes, MD, MS, Gilead Sciences Inc. (Scientific Research Study Investigator, Advisor or Review Panel member, Research Grant or Support)GlaxoSmithKline (Scientific Research Study Investigator, Research Grant or Support) Jill Blumenthal, MD, Gilead Sciences (Grant/Research Support, Scientific Research Study Investigator) Karam Mounzer, MD, Epividian (Advisor or Review Panel member)Gilead Sciences Inc. (Consultant, Scientific Research Study Investigator, Research Grant or Support, Speaker’s Bureau)Janssen (Consultant, Research Grant or Support, Speaker’s Bureau)Merck (Research Grant or Support, Speaker’s Bureau)ViiV Healthcare (Consultant, Speaker’s Bureau) Moti Ramgopal, MD FACP FIDSA, Abbvie (Scientific Research Study Investigator, Speaker’s Bureau)Gilead (Consultant, Scientific Research Study Investigator, Speaker’s Bureau)Janssen (Consultant, Scientific Research Study Investigator, Research Grant or Support, Speaker’s Bureau)Merck (Consultant, Scientific Research Study Investigator)ViiV (Consultant, Scientific Research Study Investigator, Speaker’s Bureau) Ayana Elliott, DNP, APRN, FNP-C, NEA-BC, Gilead Sciences Inc. (Employee, Shareholder) A.C. Demidont, MD, Gilead Sciences Inc. (Employee, Shareholder) C. Chauncey Watson, MD, Gilead Sciences Inc. (Employee, Shareholder) Christoph C. Carter, MD, Gilead Sciences Inc. (Employee, Shareholder) Alex Kintu, MD, ScD, Gilead Sciences Inc. (Employee, Shareholder) Moupali Das, MD, Gilead Sciences Inc. (Employee, Shareholder) Jared Baeten, MD, PHD, Gilead Sciences Inc. (Employee, Shareholder) Onyema Ogbuagu, MD, Gilead Sciences Inc. (Scientific Research Study Investigator, Advisor or Review Panel member, Research Grant or Support, Other Financial or Material Support)ViiV Healthcare (Advisor or Review Panel member)

A Rubik’s Snake is an interesting toy which can be thought as a serial chain with applications in the construction of reconfigurable modular robots. In this paper, we present some theorems related to a Rubik’s snake with palindromic, periodic and Möbius properties. Examples are given for shape design using such properties.