cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Duration of overlap during lumbar fusion does not predict outcomes.

Abstract Introduction The relationship between degree of surgical overlap and adverse postoperative outcomes remains poorly defined. This study aims to evaluate the impact of increasing duration of overlap on lumbar fusion outcomes. Patients and methods 1302 adult patients undergoing overlapping surgery during single-level, posterior-only lumbar fusion at a multi-hospital, university health system were retrospectively assessed. Amount of overlap was calculated as a percentage of total overlap time. Patients were separated into groups with the most (top 10% of patients) and least amounts of overlap (bottom 40% of patients). Using Coarsened Exact Matching, patients with the most and least amounts of overlap were matched on demographics alone, then on both demographics and attending surgeon. Univariate analysis was performed for the whole population and both matched cohorts to compare amount of overlap to risk of adverse postsurgical events. Significance for all analyses was p-value Results Duration of overlap was not associated with outcomes in the whole population, demographic-matched, or surgeon-matched analyses. Before exact matching, patients with the most amount of overlap had a significantly higher CCI score (p = 0.031) and shorter length of surgery (p = 0.006). In the demographic matched cohort, patients with increased overlap had a significantly shorter length of surgery (p = 0.001) only. In the surgeon matched cohort, there were no differences in length of surgery or CCI score. Conclusions Duration of surgical overlap does not predict adverse outcomes following lumbar fusion. These results suggest that overlapping surgery is a safe practice within this common neurosurgical indication.
Bonds and signals underlie the music learning experience

The music learning environment is a context in which fundamental forces and values underlying human musicality may be evident. Social bonding within music-making groups is characterized by a high degree of complexity whereas issues of clarity, accuracy, and coordination remain the focus of learning. Physical and cognitive impairments that compromise music learning opportunities offer a critical test of music's link to social bonding.
Cross-functional policy development for a Data Repository

Policy can articulate the scope of work. For repositories that house data, policy can help users manage expectations, especially for individuals who are new to data sharing, or where expectations for sharing data have changed. We cover some of the current literature around the process for writing policy, specifically focusing on policy for data collections and repositories, factors that encouraged us to create a repository policy, our collaborative process for creating the policy, and lessons learned. We hope that others can use our processes to build their own policy that reflects the needs of their campuses and scholars and further moves the needle toward the “Library as Publisher” model.
A University Skating Rink

(1939). A University Skating Rink. The Journal of Health and Physical Education: Vol. 10, No. 2, pp. 85-118.
Collective Effects in Charge Density Waves

In this talk I will discuss the classical deformable model of charge density wave (CDW) transport, which has been investigated extensively since its introduction by Fukuyama and Lee (1978) and Lee and Rice (1979) (here referred to as FLR). In a one hour talk it is totally impossible to review the field adequately, so these notes will necessarily present a small (and biased) selection of the work that has been done.
Selective inhibition of PARP10 using a chemical genetics strategy

The lack of inhibitors that are selective for individual poly-ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) family members has limited our understanding of their roles in cells. Here, we describe a chemical genetics approach for generating selective inhibitors of an engineered variant of PARP10. We synthesized a series of C-7 substituted 3,4-dihydroisoquinolin-1(2H)-one (dq) analogues designed to selectively inhibit a mutant of PARP10 (LG-PARP10) that contains a unique pocket in its active site. A dq analogue containing a bromo at the C-7 position demonstrated a 10-fold selectivity for LG-PARP10 compared to its WT counterpart. This study provides a platform for the development of selective inhibitors of individual PARP family members that will be useful for decoding their cellular functions.
The Dynamics ofPlasmodium falciparumBlood-stage Infection

We develop a system of ordinary differential equations to model the dynamics of the blood-stages of the malaria parasite,Plasmodium falciparum. Variants of the model allow the study of a set of hypotheses about the interaction of the parasite with the host immune system, in particular with regard to the stimulation of the immune response and the regulation of the rate of conversion from the pathogenic, asexual to the transmissible, sexual blood stage. The values of several parameters of our models can be estimated from previous empirical work. Although the dynamics of the variants differ somewhat, in each variant some set of values of the three unconstrained parameters, different from one variant to the next, produces a range of behaviours quantitatively consistent with those reported from clinical studies. Some parameter values produce infections which quickly terminate, while others approach a chronic equilibrium level or produce oscillations, with repeated severe peaks separated by periods of undetectable parasitemia. We examine these and several other distinctions that might be used to assess model variants and focus further empirical research.
Can we Prepare Geriatric Social Workers to Collaborate in Primary Care Practices

This article reports the results of a qualitative study of the professional identities, roles, and relationships of a variety of geriatric case managers located in nine demonstration sites around the United States. Beginning with an overview of social work and nursing roles in health care settings, the authors provide background on the study and its methods, followed by results that highlight the voices of persons interviewed. They conclude with implications for social work education in five areas: articulating social work's great tradition, developing career opportunities, building alliances with students and educators in other professional schools, engaging in ongoing faculty development, and infusing the social work curriculum with geriatric content.
Child and Adolescent Psychotherapies

Like adults, children and adolescents may also suffer from mental health difficulties. Over the years, a variety of psychotherapeutic techniques and methods have been used to help children and adolescents who are experiencing emotional and behavioral difficulties. This entry provides an overview of the most common interventions used with children and adolescents who are experiencing a wide range of psychological problems, including but not limited to depression, anxiety, autism spectrum disorders, and other behavioral problems. A basic overview of cognitive behavioral therapy, acceptance and mindfulness-based therapies, social skills intervention, behavioral therapy, play therapy, family-focused therapies, interpersonal psychotherapy, and psychopharmacological therapy for children and adolescents is included in this entry. Keywords: mental health; adolescence; children; family; therapy
Finite dimensional controller design via the largest robust stability radius

Consideration is given to the space of transfer matrices with entries in the quotient field of H-infinity, in which the gap metric is defined. The largest robust stability radius of a transfer matrix is defined as the radius of the largest ball centered at the transfer matrix which can be stabilized by a single controller. There are two schemes presented for designing finite dimensional stabilizing controllers by means of the largest robust stability radius. Both schemes guarantee that the finite dimensional controllers stabilize the original infinite dimensional system. Moreover, the closed-loop response can be estimated. >
Ibutilide and the treatment of atrial arrhythmias. A new drug--almost unheralded--is now available to US physicians.

The concept that drugs that prolong ventricular repolarization, and hence refractoriness, might be effective antiarrhythmics was first advanced over 25 years ago.1 Agents such as quinidine, sotalol, and amiodarone all prolong refractory periods in cardiac tissue at least partially through this mechanism, often termed a “class III” action. However, since these compounds also exert other important pharmacological actions, such as conduction slowing (by depression of sodium current or other mechanisms) or antiadrenergic effects, it has not been possible to establish that action potential prolongation is in fact antiarrhythmic in human subjects. The development of drugs whose sole pharmacological action is to prolong the cardiac action potential has now provided a tool to address this question, and indeed small clinical trials testing these agents do indicate antiarrhythmic activity.2 3 In this issue of Circulation , Stambler and colleagues4 report the results of a large, placebo-controlled, blinded trial of ibutilide, a “pure” action potential–prolonging agent, in patients with atrial fibrillation and flutter. The demonstration that ibutilide infusion can terminate atrial fibrillation or flutter was pivotal in the recent decision by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to approve marketing of the drug for this indication. Thus, ibutilide is the first of the “pure” action potential–prolonging agents to be available to practicing physicians. The patients reported by Stambler and colleagues represent a rather typical group of patients for whom conversion to sinus rhythm might be contemplated: 75% had a history of heart disease other than atrial fibrillation or flutter, 83% had an enlarged left atrium, 55% had depressed left ventricular systolic function, and 71% had valvular heart disease. Duration of arrhythmia and extent of underlying heart disease are known to exert a profound impact on the outcome of therapy for these arrhythmias: Only patients who had atrial fibrillation or flutter …
Gamma Rhythms in the Brain

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. This work was supported in part by a grant from the National Institutes of Health to AK (EY016774). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.
Modular synthesis of triaroylbenzene-derived crownophanes

Abstract An isomeric series of homologous crownophanes (i.e., macrocycles possessing structural features of crown ethers and cyclophanes) has been prepared via a concise and modular synthetic route. Macrocyclization is achieved in reasonable yield during the course of an enaminone-triggered benzannulation with bis(aryl ethynyl ketone) reaction partners. The crownophanes examined were active alkali cation binding agents in the gas phase, but failed to exhibit ionophoric properties in solution. On the basis of X-ray crystallographic analysis, it is concluded that the cyclophane framework of these macrocycles is too large and rigid to allow efficient interaction with the cations examined.
Comparison of standardized patients and real patients as an experiential teaching strategy in a nutrition counseling course for dietetic students

Abstract Objectives To compare the quality of communication and behavioral change skills among dietetic students having two nutrition encounters with either a real patient or a standardized patient in the simulation laboratory at Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, United States. Methods A retrospective analysis of video recordings (n = 138) containing nutrition encounters of dietetic students (n = 75) meeting with a standardized patient (SP) or a real patient (RP). Trained raters evaluated communication skills with the 28 item Calgary Cambridge Observation Guide (CCOG) and skills promoting behavior change using the 11 item Behavior Change Counseling Index (BECCI) tool. Results Using the CCOG, there was a significantly greater mean score in the SP group for the category of “Gathering Information” in encounter one (p = 0.020). There were good to excellent ratings in all categories of the CCOG and the BECCI scores for the SP and the RP groups at both encounters. There was no significant differences in change scores from encounter one to encounter two between groups. Conclusions Encounters with SPs and RPs are both effective strategies for dietetic students to demonstrate their communication and behavior change skills. Practice implications Utilizing SPs is an effective experiential strategy for nutrition counseling curricula.
The visual evoked response: a comparison of bright and dull children.

Abstract Visual evoked responses were recorded from central and occipital scalp of twenty bright children (Full Scale WISC scores ranging from 120 to 140, X = 130 ) and twenty dull children (Full Scale WISC scores ranging from 70 to 90, X = 79 ). All subjects were 10 or 11 years old and each group was composed of ten boys and ten girls. Results were: (1) The late components (100–250 msec) of responses recorded from both occipital and central scalp were reliably larger for the bright children. (2) Dull children demonstrated essentially no hemispheric differences between the amplitudes of the right and left central responses. The bright subjects had right central responses which were consistently larger than responses from the late components of the left scalp. This finding was consistent at several stimulus intensities. Differences between the bright and dull children did not appear to be simply a function of the maturational process. The bright children's VER amplitudes were similar to normal 13- and 14-year-old children's; however, the dull children's VER amplitudes were smaller than those of either younger children or normal children their own age.
Longitudinal HIV risk behavior among the Drug Abuse Treatment Outcome Studies (DATOS) adult sample.

Longitudinal trajectories for HIV risk were examined over five years following treatment among 1,393 patients who participated in the nationwide Drug Abuse Treatment Outcome studies (DATOS). Both injection drug use and sexual risk behavior declined over time, with most of the decline occurring between intake and the first year follow-up. However, results of the application of growth mixture models for both sets of trajectories indicated a subgroup of individuals reverted to a high-risk behavior over time, with a higher level of risk at the 5-year follow-up than their original risk level at intake. Of clients who were engaged in regular injection drug use at intake, 76% continued to inject drug at a Moderate/stable or Increased rate over the 5-year follow-up.
Functional role of TGFβ in Alzheimer's disease microvascular injury: lessons from transgenic mice

Recent studies have implicated pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines as integral to Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathogenesis. Among them, transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) is emerging as an important factor in regulating inflammatory responses. This multifunctional cytokine might be centrally involved in several aspects of AD pathogenesis by regulating beta-amyloid precursor protein synthesis and processing, plaque formation, astroglial and microglial response and neuronal cell death. Among all of these potential roles, studies in transgenic and infusion animal models have shown that TGF-beta may primarily contribute to AD pathogenesis by influencing A beta production and deposition, which in turn might result in damage to the brain microvasculature. The lessons learned from these models are of great interest not only for understanding of the role of TGF-beta in AD, but also for future treatments where testing of anti-inflammatory agents such as ibuprofen and an amyloid vaccine hold great promise. In this regard, further elucidation of the signal pathways by which TGF-beta exerts its effect in AD might lead to specific targets for further therapeutic intervention.
Comparison of the effect of two human milk fortifiers on clinical outcomes in premature infants

The use of human milk fortifiers (HMF) helps to meet the high nutritional requirements of the human milk-fed premature infant. Previously available powdered products have not met the protein requirements of the preterm infant population and many neonatologists add powder protein modulars to help meet protein needs. The use of powdered products is discouraged in neonatal intensive care units (NICU) due to concern for invasive infection. The use of a commercially available acidified liquid product with higher protein content was implemented to address these two concerns. During the course of this implementation, poor growth and clinically significant acidosis of infants on Acidified Liquid HMF (ALHMF) was observed. The purpose of this study was to quantify those observations by comparing infant outcomes between groups receiving the ALHMF vs. infants receiving powdered HMF (PHMF). A retrospective chart review compared outcomes of human milk-fed premature infants<2000 g receiving the ALHMF (n=23) and the PHMF (n=46). Infant growth, enteral feeding tolerance and provision, and incidence of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), metabolic acidosis, and diaper dermatitis were compared between the two groups. No infants were excluded from this study based on acuity. Use of ALHMF resulted in a higher incidence of metabolic acidosis (p=0.002). Growth while on HMF as measured in both g/kg/day (10.59 vs. 15.37, p<0.0001) and in g/day (23.66 vs. 31.27, p=0.0001) was slower in the ALHMF group, on increased mean cal/kg/day (128.7 vs. 117.3, p=0.13) with nearly twice as many infants on the ALHMF requiring increased fortification of enteral feedings beyond 24 cal/ounce to promote adequate growth (48% vs. 26%, p=0.10). Although we were not powered to study NEC as a primary outcome, NEC was significantly increased in the ALHMF group. (13% vs. 0%, p=0.03). Use of a LHMF in an unrestricted NICU population resulted in an increase in clinical complications within a high-acuity NICU, including metabolic acidosis and poor growth. Although further research is needed to assess outcomes among infants with a variety of clinical acuities, gestational ages, and weights to confirm these findings, based on this experience, caution is urged to avoid potential risks.
Equational reasoning about nondeterministic processes

A deterministic message-communicating process can be characterised by a “continuous” functionf which describes the relationship between the inputs and the outputs of the process. The operational behaviour of a network of deterministic processes can be deduced from the least fixpoint of a functiong, whereg is obtained from the functions that characterise the component processes of the network. We show in this paper that a nondeter-ministic process can be characterised by a “description” consisting of a pair of functions. The behaviour of a network consisting of such processes can be obtained from the “smooth” solutions of the descriptions characterising its component processes. The notion of smooth solution is a generalisation of least fixpoint. Descriptions enjoy the crucial property that a variable may be replaced by its definition.
Measuring a superconductor's gap anisotropy with EELS

A method of measuring the angle-resolved magnitude and relative phase of the energy gap in a high-temperature superconductor is suggested for electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS).
Influence of melt stability on the crystallization of bis(4‐aminophenoxy)benzene‐oxydiphthalic anhydride based polyimides

Novel high performance semicrystalline polyimides, based on controlled molecular weight phthalic anhydride (PA) endcapped 1,4-bis(4-aminophenoxy)benzene (TPEQ diamine) and oxydiphthalic dianhydride (ODPA), were synthesized. They exhibited excellent thermal stability in nitrogen and air atmospheres as determined by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The glass transition temperatures (T g ) for these polymers ranged from 225°C for the 10,000 M n (10K) polymer, to 238°C for the 30,000 (30K) M n material. The observed melting temperatures for all the polymers were ∼420°C. The crystallization behavior of these polymers showed a strong molecular weight dependence, as illustrated by the observation that the 10K and 12.5K polymers crystallized with relative ease, whereas the 15K, 20K, and 30K polymers showed little or no ability to undergo thermal recrystallization. The thermal stability of these polymers above T m was investigated by studying the effect of time and temperature in the melt on the cold crystallization and melting of these polymers. Increased time and temperature in the melt resulted in lower crystallinity because of melt state degradation, such as crosslinking and branching, as evidenced by an increase in melt viscosity, which was more prominent for the higher molecular weight polymers.
Mutation in Salmonella typhimurium recovered from livers and spleens of mice

Abstract Balb/c mice were inoculated intraperitoneally with TA2662, a smooth derivative of the Salmonella typhimurium Ames tester strain (TA102) which carries the mutable hisG locus on a multicopy plasmid, or TA103, which carries the same hisG gene on the chromosome. The bacteria were recovered at various times from the liver and spleens of the infected mice. Total numbers of bacteria were determined and the mutant frequency was estimated. The frequency of occurence of histidine prototrops in experiments using TA2662 was substantially above tha average found with this strain grown in vitro. The mutant frequencies in experiments using TA103 recovered from mice were also highly significantly increased above background. We did not identify factors which might suggest selection in vivo for histidine prototrophs. There is sufficient histidine in body fluids of the host for the growth of His− bacteria. The His− and His+ derivatives were found to grow equally well in vitro in the presence of amounts of histidine approximating concentrations known to exist in vivo. It is probable that mutations in TA2662 are greatly underestimated, since the hisG-containing plasmid is lost at relatively high frequency during incubation in a variety of conditions.
Comparative Inter-strain Sequence Analysis of the Putative Regulatory Region of Murine Psychostimulant-regulated Gene GNB1 (G Protein β1 Subunit Gene)

We isolated a cDNA clone from a murine genomic library of C57BL/6 strain, carrying 13.8 kb of nucleotides including exon 1 of heterotrimeric GTP-binding protein β1 subunit gene (genetic symbol, GNB1) and 10.6 kb of the 5′ flanking region. Sequence comparison with GNB1 gene locus from 129Sv strain revealed a 0.2% divergence in a 13.2 kb common region between these two strains. The divergence consisted of eight single nucleotide polymorphisms, three insertions and one deletion, with 129Sv used as the reference. The exon 1 and the putative regulation elements, such as cyclic AMP response element, AP1, AP2, Sp1 and nuclear factor-κB recognition sites, were perfectly conserved. The expression of GNB1 mRNA was significantly increased in mouse striatum 2 h after single methamphetamine administration with an approximately 150% expression level compared with the basal level. In contrast, no change in the expression level was observed in the cerebral cortex. After the chronic methamphetamine treatment regimen, the ...
Congenital Lymphedema with Tuberous Sclerosis and Clinical Hirschsprung Disease

Case of an 18-month-old child with congenital lymphedema subsequently diagnosed with tuberous sclerosis and Hirschsprung disease.
Using Informational Connectivity to Measure the Synchronous Emergence of fMRI Multi-voxel Information Across Time

It is now appreciated that condition-relevant information can be present within distributed patterns of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) brain activity, even for conditions with similar levels of univariate activation. Multi-voxel pattern (MVP) analysis has been used to decode this information with great success. FMRI investigators also often seek to understand how brain regions interact in interconnected networks, and use functional connectivity (FC) to identify regions that have correlated responses over time. Just as univariate analyses can be insensitive to information in MVPs, FC may not fully characterize the brain networks that process conditions with characteristic MVP signatures. The method described here, informational connectivity (IC), can identify regions with correlated changes in MVP-discriminability across time, revealing connectivity that is not accessible to FC. The method can be exploratory, using searchlights to identify seed-connected areas, or planned, between pre-selected regions-of-interest. The results can elucidate networks of regions that process MVP-related conditions, can breakdown MVPA searchlight maps into separate networks, or can be compared across tasks and patient groups.
miR-138 overexpression is more powerful than hTERT knockdown to potentiate apigenin for apoptosis in neuroblastoma in vitro and in vivo

Decrease in expression of the tumor suppressor microRNA-138 (miR-138) correlates well with an increase in telomerase activity in many human cancers. The ability of almost all human cancer cells to grow indefinitely is dependent on presence of telomerase activity. The catalytic component of human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) regulates telomerase activity in most of the human cancers including malignant neuroblastoma. We observed an indirect increase in the expression of miR-138 after the transfection with hTERT short hairpin RNA (shRNA) plasmid in human malignant neuroblastoma SK-N-DZ and SK-N-BE2 cell lines. Transfection with hTERT shRNA plasmid followed by treatment with the flavonoid apigenin (APG) further increased expression of miR-138. Direct transfection with miR-138 mimic was more powerful than transfection with hTERT shRNA plasmid in potentiating efficacy of APG for decreasing cell viability and colony formation capability of both cell lines. Upregulation of miR-138 was also more effective than down regulation of hTERT in enhancing efficacy of APG for induction of apoptosis in malignant neuroblastoma cells in vitro and in vivo. We delineated that apoptosis occurred with induction of molecular components of the extrinsic and intrinsic pathways in SK-N-DZ and SK-N-BE2 cells both in vitro and in vivo. In conclusion, these results demonstrate that direct miR-138 overexpression is more powerful than hTERT down regulation in enhancing pro-apoptotic effect of APG for controlling growth of human malignant neuroblastoma in cell culture and animal models.
Monitoring of bolt preload using piezoelectric active devices

It is estimated that 70% of all mechanical failures are related to fastener failure. One important mode of fastener failure is self-loosening of bolted joints. Self-loosening is especially problematic when the bolted joint is in an inaccessible location, a hostile environment, or a part of a machine whose shutdown would be costly. In this study, a piezoelectric (PZT) active-sensing device was used to detect the self-loosening mode in bolted joint connections. PZT enhanced washers were used to continuously monitor the condition of the joint by monitoring its dynamic characteristics. The mechanical impedance matching between the PZT enhanced devices and the joint connections was used as a key feature to monitor the preload changes and prevent further failure. The dynamic response was readily measured using electromechanical coupling property of the PZT patch, in which its electrical impedance is coupled with the mechanical impedance of the structure. This paper summarizes experimental results, the considerations needed in experimental procedures and design and several issues that can be used as a guideline for future investigation.
MUFOLD: A new solution for protein 3D structure prediction

There have been steady improvements in protein structure prediction during the past 2 decades. However, current methods are still far from consistently predicting structural models accurately with computing power accessible to common users. Toward achieving more accurate and efficient structure prediction, we developed a number of novel methods and integrated them into a software package, MUFOLD. First, a systematic protocol was developed to identify useful templates and fragments from Protein Data Bank for a given target protein. Then, an efficient process was applied for iterative coarse-grain model generation and evaluation at the Cα or backbone level. In this process, we construct models using interresidue spatial restraints derived from alignments by multidimensional scaling, evaluate and select models through clustering and static scoring functions, and iteratively improve the selected models by integrating spatial restraints and previous models. Finally, the full-atom models were evaluated using molecular dynamics simulations based on structural changes under simulated heating. We have continuously improved the performance of MUFOLD by using a benchmark of 200 proteins from the Astral database, where no template with >25% sequence identity to any target protein is included. The average root-mean-square deviation of the best models from the native structures is 4.28 A, which shows significant and systematic improvement over our previous methods. The computing time of MUFOLD is much shorter than many other tools, such as Rosetta. MUFOLD demonstrated some success in the 2008 community-wide experiment for protein structure prediction CASP8.
Block diagonally dominant positive definite approximate filters and smoothers

Abstract We examine stochastic dynamical systems where the transition matrix, ∅, and the system noise, ГQГT, covariance are nearly block diagonal. When HTR−1H is also nearly block diagonal, where R is the observation noise covariance and H is the observation matrix, our suboptimal filter/smoothers are always positive semidefinite, and have improved numerical properties. Applications for distributed dynamical systems with time dependent pixel imaging are discussed.
Assessment of agreement under nonstandard conditions using regression models for mean and variance.

Summary The total deviation index of Lin (2000, Statistics in Medicine19, 255–270) and Lin et al. (2002, Journal of the American Statistical Association97, 257–270) is an intuitive approach for the assessment of agreement between two methods of measurement. It assumes that the differences of the paired measurements are a random sample from a normal distribution and works essentially by constructing a probability content tolerance interval for this distribution. We generalize this approach to the case when differences may not have identical distributions—a common scenario in applications. In particular, we use the regression approach to model the mean and the variance of differences as functions of observed values of the average of the paired measurements, and describe two methods based on asymptotic theory of maximum likelihood estimators for constructing a simultaneous probability content tolerance band. The first method uses bootstrap to approximate the critical point and the second method is an analytical approximation. Simulation shows that the first method works well for sample sizes as small as 30 and the second method is preferable for large sample sizes. We also extend the methodology for the case when the mean function is modeled using penalized splines via a mixed model representation. Two real data applications are presented.
A forward look at therapy for pediatric movement disorders

The mainstay of current therapy for pediatric movement disorders is oral symptomatic medication, unless a reversible etiology can be found. However, this approach is apt to pale in comparison with innovative strategies on the clinical forefront. Classical pharmacotherapy is restricted by the blood-brain barrier, which prevents access to the brain of potentially therapeutic molecules. Recent developments in molecular biotechnology include antibody-mediated drug release, feedback-responsive delivery systems, carrier-mediated transport, microspheres composed of polymers and liposomes, permeabilizers, and selective delivery to localized sites and vectors. Neuroprotective strategies for delivering neurotrophic factors and antiapoptotic and antioxidant molecules in neurodegenerative disorders are currently under study in clinical trials. Stem cell transplantation has great potential for tissue engineering and also as a carrier for gene therapy, although its use raises complex societal issues. These approaches, together with a plethora of transgenic knockout animal models of neurodegenerative disorders, offer real promise for a previously untreatable group of movement disorders.
Optimal progressive transmission of wavelet-packet-compressed images

Progressive transmission is one of the most important performance factors for wavelet/subband based coding schemes. Depending on the applications, an image is first decomposed using the wavelet packet, or the pyramidal paradigm, and then wavelet coefficients can be quantized and coded into a bit stream. Moreover, selective compression, as well as browsing are important functions for many applications. these important functions rely on an efficient labeling scheme of subbands, so that they can be navigated efficiently. Because of the sequential nature of the wavelet decomposition/reconstruction, image subbands must be carefully ordered for efficient image retrieval, transmission, and parallelization. The importance of subband management cannot be overestimated for processing of mega/tera-byte images. In this paper we propose a stack based data structure for recursive ordering of wavelet subbands. Based on our scheme, one can easily optimize placement of subbands, so that different subbands can be efficiently reconstructed or navigated to avoid performance bottlenecks.© (1997) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
The arginine-stimulated insulin response is impaired in congenital duck hepatitis B virus infection

Duck hepatitis B virus (DHBV) infects both A (glucagon-containing) and B (insulin-containing) islet cells. To examine the effect of this infection on islet cell function, baseline and secretagogue-augmented plasma insulin and glucagon levels as well as the pancreatic content of insulin and glucagon were compared in congenitally DHBV- and noninfected ducks. No difference in baseline plasma levels or the pancreatic content of insulin or glucagon was detected. However, the magnitude of the second phase of the biphasic arginine-stimulated insulin response was markedly diminished in infected ducks.
Permanent pacing through a persistent left superior vena cava: an approach and report of dual-chambered lead placement

The patient with a persistent left superior vena cava who requires permanent pacing presents difficulties if no right superior vena cava is present or if it is encountered unexpectedly at pacemaker implantation. A case is presented that illustrates potential problems and suggests a general approach to this situation. Successful transvenous universal pacemaker insertion through a persistent left superior vena cava is reported.
Topical Prophylaxis for HIV Prevention in Women: Becoming a Reality

Strategies to protect against sexual transmission of HIV include the development of products formulated for topical application, which limit the toxicities associated with systemic oral pre-exposure prophylaxis. Following several clinical trial failures, attention is now focused on antiretroviral (ARV) agents. Highly potent ARV topical formulations provide a female-controlled, targeted, and feasible option for HIV prevention. A recently completed tenofovir gel trial was the first to demonstrate significant protection against HIV acquisition. Topical ARVs have the advantage of delivering high concentration of drug at the site of transmission of HIV, with low systemic absorption. Sustained-release formulations, such as intravaginal rings, will likely improve adherence and can be designed to provide controlled and continuous delivery of ARV combinations. Further studies to test alternative dosing strategies and pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic relationships in the genital tract will provide valuable information as the field strives to improve upon the promising tenofovir gel trial results.
The Role of Worker Support and Religious Support in African American Special Needs Adoption: The Bennett Chapel Experience

Between 1998 and 2003 members and friends of Bennett Chapel Missionary Baptist Church in rural East Texas adopted 70 African American special needs children. Data from surveys of 113 Texas and Loui...
Molecular properties of cytosolic and nuclear TCDD receptor complexes from mouse hepatoma cell lines

Abstract Wild-type mouse Hepa 1c1c7 cells are responsive to the effects of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin and related compounds. This cell line and nonresponsive mutants (TAOc1BPrc1 and BPrc1) have been used to study properties of cytosolic (unactivated and activated) and nuclear Ah receptor-[3H]TCDD complexes as a model for investigating the molecular mechanism of action of halogenated aromatic hydrocarbons. Incubation of cytosolic [3H]TCDD-aryl hydrocarbon (Ah) complexes from wild-type Hepa 1c1c7 cell for 16h at 4° C in 0.4 M KCl resulted in the formation of transformed specifically-bound receptor complexes which exhibited increased binding affinity on DNA-Sepharose columns. The elution properties of the peak with the highest DNA binding affinity were similar to the elution profiles of the nuclear receptor complex isolated from wild-type cells. Comparable in vitro transformation and DNA binding properties were also observed using hepatic cytosol from C57BL/6J mice. TAOc1BPrc1 (class I) nonresponsive mutant cells were characterized by relatively low levels of the cytosolic and nuclear Ah receptor complexes. The cytosolic TCDD-Ah receptor complex did not undergo in vitro transformation. The BPrc1 (class II) variant cell lines contained levels of cytosolic receptor which were comparable to those observed in the wild type cells, but there were significantly reduced levels of nuclear receptor complex in the class II variant cell line. Incubation of the cytosolic receptor complex from these mutant cells at 4° C for 16 h or 20° C for 2 h did not result in transformation of the cytosolic receptor complex into forms which exhibit increased retention on DNA-Sepharose columns.
Admission for nephrolithiasis in pregnancy and risk of adverse birth outcomes.

OBJECTIVE: Nephrolithiasis occurring during pregnancy may be associated with an elevated risk of preterm delivery and other adverse birth outcomes. The goal of this study was to describe the association between these outcomes and admission for nephrolithiasis during pregnancy. METHODS: We performed a retrospective cohort study using birth certificate records linked to Washington State hospital discharge data from 1987-2003 to compare pregnant women admitted for nephrolithiasis and randomly selected pregnant women without nephrolithiasis. The main outcomes of interest were preterm delivery, premature rupture of membranes at term or before 37 weeks of gestation, low birth weight, and infant death. RESULTS: A total of 2,239 women were admitted for nephrolithiasis, yielding a cumulative incidence of 1.7 admissions per 1,000 deliveries. Women admitted for nephrolithiasis during pregnancy had nearly double the risk of preterm delivery compared with women without stones (adjusted odds ratio 1.8, 95% confidence interval 1.5-2.1). However, they were not at higher risk for the other outcomes investigated. A total of 471 (25.9%) women had one or more procedures for kidney stones during prenatal hospitalization. Undergoing a procedure and the trimester of admission did not affect the risk of preterm delivery. CONCLUSION: Although the incidence of nephrolithiasis requiring hospital admission during pregnancy is relatively low, these women have an increased risk of preterm delivery. This has potential implications for counseling of pregnant women with kidney stones requiring hospital admission. Additionally, it may prompt definitive treatment of small, asymptomatic stones in women during reproductive years.
A physical interpretation of the ionic fluxes in excitable membranes.

Abstract A mechanism is proposed for the ionic fluxes in excitable membranes based on recent studies of monolayer permeation and of interfacial ionic transport. The excitable membrane is assumed to be a homogeneous lipid bilayer with anionic groups on the inner and outer surfaces and nonselectively adsorbed cations at these sites. The bound ions are in high concentration at the membrane surface and they cause the enhanced ionic fluxes when released during activity. The free ions, which are in equilibrium with the adsorbed ions, give rise to the resting ionic fluxes. Starting with the steady state ionic concentration gradients, the current due to “depolarizing electrodes” causes the concentration of potassium ions near the outer surface to increase, and it is assumed that these ions exchange with and release the bound sodium ions. Because of the increased sodium concentration at the membrane surface, there is an increased sodium ion flux across the membrane. This flux causes a release and a reverse flux of potassium ions by a similar process. The fluxes have been calculated in terms of several membrane parameters, and they can account qualitatively for the ion fluxes and permeability ratios at rest and during activity, the actions of some ions and pharmacologic agents, the effects of ion depletion, etc. Therefore, the mechanism provides a basis for explaining the ionic events at excitable membranes in terms of physical processes at the membrane level.
Electron‐transfer polymers. XXVIII. Synthesis of vinyl hydroquinone derivatives by means of the wittig reaction

The Wittig reaction has been applied to unsubstituted, monomethyl-, 3,6-dimethyl-, and trimethyl-2,5-dimethoxybenzyl chlorides to produce in quantitative to good yields the corresponding vinyl monomers, unsubstituted, monomethyl-, 3,6-dimethyl-, and trimethyl-2,5-dimethoxystyrenes. The reaction is applicable also to 2,5-dimethoxy-4-methylbenzaldehyde, and to O,O′-bis-(methoxymethyl)resorcinol-4-aldehyde to yield the corresponding vinyl monomers. The reaction is particularly suitable with all these compounds because it is run at room temperature or below and gives good to quantitative yields.
LeFort colpocleisis and stress incontinence: weighing the risk of voiding dysfunction with sling placement

Introduction and hypothesis This study aims to evaluate clinical outcomes of concomitant suburethral sling with LeFort colpocleisis including its effect on postoperative voiding.
Secular change in long bone length and proportion in the United States, 1800-1970.

We examine secular change in long bone lengths and allometry of Americans dating from the mid-19th century to the 1970s. Skeletal samples were derived from the Huntington Collection, Terry Collection, World War II casualties, and the Forensic Anthropology Data Bank. Regression of bone length on year of birth allowed evaluation of the secular change in bone length. Size was computed as the geometric mean of all bone lengths, and shape as the ratio of each bone to size. These variables were then regressed on year of birth, allowing evaluation of allometric secular change. The results revealed a pattern of change that can be summarized as follows: male secular change is stronger than female, lower limb bone secular change is more pronounced than upper limb bone change, and distal bones change more than proximal bones, particularly in the lower limb. In males, white changes are uniformly higher than black but these differences do not rise to the level of statistical significance. Environmental forces, such as nutrition and disease, are the usual causes of secular changes in overall size. This paper shows that long bone proportions also respond to these same environmental factors. Moreover, the changes in body proportion are likely to be due to allometric consequences of growth changes that occur early in life. Am J Phys Anthropol 110:57-67, 1999.
Arthroscopic subacromial decompression with an intact rotator cuff

Abstract Arthroscopic subacromial decompression is an effective treatment for rotator cuff tendinosis and impingementsyndrome refractory to nonoperative measures. Often, a concomitant posterior capsular release is required, as posterior capsular contracture is a near universal finding in this patient population. The procedure itself is usually easily performed, although there are some technical pearls and pitfalls. Recovery is rapid and most patients can return to their usual work or sport by 3 to 6 months postoperative.
Effects of percent relief and number of N-R transitions on extinction in relief conditioning

Forty rats were trained for 10 acquisition and 20 extinction trials in a cold-water relief conditioning apparatus. Two levels of percent relief (30% vs. 70%) and number of transitions from nonrelief (N) to relief (R) trials (1 vs. 3) were factorially combined. Resistance to extinction was found to be a function of percent relief rather than number of N-R transitions.
Molecular epidemiology of leptospirosis in the Amazon.

Leptospirosis is a zoonotic infectious disease that is transmitted from animals to humans primarily via water [1]. The causative agent is a bacterial spirochete that colonizes the renal tubules of infected animals and is shed in the urine for varying periods of time, depending on whether the animal is an accidental or reservoir host for that serovar (see Glossary). Rats are reservoir hosts for serovars of Leptospira interrogans (Figure 1) belonging to the Icterohaemorrhagiae serogroup, and infected rats probably remain infected, and infectious, for life [2]. A total of 17 species of Leptospira and hundreds of serovars have been described [3]. All leptospires are well suited to life in water. In fact, several leptospiral species, such as L. biflexa, are saprophytic organisms that are exclusively aquatic. However, even pathogenic species can survive for months in a nutrient-poor aqueous environment while waiting to encounter a new host [4]. Figure 1 Scanning Electron Micrograph of Leptospira interrogans (Strain RGA) In tropical regions of the world, leptospirosis is a widespread public health problem [5]. The disease is endemic wherever open sewers or agricultural practices lead to contamination of water with animal urine. Although most human leptospirosis infections are self-limited, complications are common, involving hepatorenal failure, pulmonary hemorrhage, and death in 10%–50% of severe cases [6]. Large outbreaks of leptospirosis occur when heavy rainfall and inadequate civil engineering result in urban flooding [7]. Rat-borne L. interrogans species are typically isolated from patients in urban settings, but—until the publication today of a study by Vinetz and colleagues in PLoS Medicine [8]—little was known about the species present in environmental water sources in either urban or rural settings. Given the laborious nature of leptospiral isolation and culture techniques, particularly from environmental samples, there was previously no systematic method available to determine the identity, spectrum, and density of leptospires in water samples.
Bare-Minimum Fluorous Mixture Synthesis of a Stereoisomer Library of 4,8,12-Trimethylnonadecanols and Predictions of NMR Spectra of Saturated Oligoisoprenoid Stereoisomers

All four diastereomers of a typical saturated oligoisoprenoid, 4,8,12-trimethylnonadecanol, are made by an iterative three-step cycle with the aid of traceless thionocarbonate fluorous tags to encode configurations. The tags have a minimum number of total fluorine atoms, starting at zero and increasing in increments of one. With suitable acquisition and data processing, each diastereomer exhibits characteristic chemical shifts of methyl resonances in its 1H and 13C NMR spectra. Together, these shifts provide a basis to predict the appearance of the methyl region of the spectrum of every stereoisomer of higher saturated oligoisoprenoids.