cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Ability of tryptophan derivatives to mimic melatonin's action upon the Syrian hamster reproductive system.

Abstract The ability of 18 different tryptophan derivatives to induce gonadal regression in Syrian hamsters when injected daily at either midday or late evening has been examined. The compounds chosen have either been identified within mammalian pineal glands or are thought to be possible metabolic derivatives of melatonin. Of the compounds tested, only melatonin and 5-methoxytryptamine were found to possess antigonadotropic activity. 5-Methoxytryptamine's potency, however, was 1/10th that of melatonin and, like melatonin, 5-methoxytryptamine was effective when injected in the evening but not when injected during midday. In addition to the general survey of tryptophan derivatives for antigonadal capability when injected, 5-methoxytryptamine, melatonin, and 5-methoxytryptophol were compared relative to their abilities to prevent photo-induced gonadal regression when administered within beeswax implants. Again 5-methoxytryptamine and melatonin, but not 5-methoxytryptophol, were effective with 5-methoxytryptamine's potency being less than that of melatonin. These results indirectly support the contention that melatonin is the pineal product which mediates photoperiodic effects upon the Syrian hamster reproductive system.
Conference on Electrical Insulation and Dielectric Phenomena the 1983 J. B. Whitehead Memorial Lecture

The first theories of dielectric breakdown in solids derived expressions for critical fields that were intrinsic properties of the dielectric. These theories dealt with collision ionization from valence band to conduction band, but they did not consider the way in which the charges produced by the ionization would modify the electric field between the electrodes. It is the purpose of this review to follow some of the developments of space charge limited theories, especially in so far as they shed light on the thickness dependence of the breakdown strength.
Comment on: “The Casimir force on a piston in the spacetime with extra compactified dimensions” [Phys. Lett. B 668 (2008) 72]

We offer a clarification of the significance of the indicated paper of H. Cheng. Cheng's conclusions about the attractive nature of Casimir forces between parallel plates are valid beyond the particular model in which he derived them; they are likely to be relevant to other recent literature on the effects of hidden dimensions on Casimir forces.
Evolutionary and Systematic Significance of Crocodilian Nesting Habits

DIFFERENT species of crocodilians build one of two kinds of nest. For example, the Nile crocodile (Crocodylus niloticus) lays its eggs in a simple hole in the earth, usually sand or loose gravel, which is then covered over with the excavated material to the level of the surrounding ground1–6, whereas the American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) constructs a mound of vegetation, cleared from the surrounding area, in which it lays its eggs7–13. Schmidt14 suggested that nesting habits might be indicative of relationship, but his idea failed to gain acceptance. One reason for this might be the belief, most recently expressed in an authoritative monograph in 195315, that the differences in nesting habits are not sharp but instead show all possible intermediate stages. In pursuing Schmidt's idea, however, I have reviewed nearly all the literature on crocodilian nesting habits (summarized in Table 1) and conclude that there are absolute differences in these nesting habits and, as I hope to show, these differences are also closely correlated with the evolution and systematics of the group.
Two-Body Problem With High Tangential Speeds and Quadratic Drag

This paper considers the restricted two-body problem with atmospheric drag, and its results apply to arcs of orbits in which the tangential speed is much greater than the radial speed. In principle this treatment applies to certain arcs of any near-Keplerian orbit but its usefulness is primarily restricted to near-circular orbits. The atmospheric density is approximated by a model that enables us to derive closed-form solutions for the radial distance of a satellite in orbit that are more accurate than other closed-form solutions found in previous works. However, these new formulas for the orbit do not retain the similarity to those of the two-body problem without drag as much as the previous ones, and require the determination of two additional parameters. Nevertheless, the increase in accuracy is significant.
The kinetics of myokinase. II. Studies of heat denaturation, the effects of salts and the state of equilibrium.

Abstract Purification of myokinase sharply reduces the enzyme's stability toward heat (Table I). Using highly purified myokinase, it has been confirmed that Mg ions cause the optimum pH for activity to shift from neutral toward acid values (Fig. 1). The equilibrium constant for the reversible dismutation of ADP catalyzed by myokinase increases and then decreases as the concentration of Mg is increased (Fig. 2).
Topical p38 MAPK inhibition reduces bacterial growth in an in vivo burn wound model.

Background Although the inflammatory response is a prerequisite for wound healing, excessive activation of the innate immune system can induce epithelial cell damage and apoptosis, which may further compromise dermal integrity. In a noninfectious burn wound model, we previously demonstrated that topical inhibition of p38 MAPK, an important inflammatory signaling pathway, attenuated epithelial cell damage and apoptosis. We now question whether attenuating local inflammation would weaken bacterial wound resistance and compromise host defense. Methods Rats received 30% total body surface area burn, and the wound was treated with topical application of a p38 MAPK inhibitor or vehicle. At 24 hours after injury, burn wounds were inoculated with Pseudomonas aeruginosa . At 48 hours postinjury, animals were sacrificed, and the burn wound was analyzed. Results Inoculating burn wounds induced significant bacterial growth. Dermal inflammatory changes were markedly accentuated in the inoculated animals. Topical p38 MAPK inhibition reduced the proinflammatory cytokine expression in the burn wounds and neutrophil sequestration with or without bacterial inoculation. Interestingly, the bacterial wound growth was significantly attenuated in animals treated with topical p38 MAPK inhibitor. Conclusions Topical p38 MAPK inhibition attenuated wound inflammation without interfering with bacterial host defense. Attenuation of excessive burn wound inflammatory signaling may prevent secondary damage of the dermal barrier and reduce the growth of opportunistic pathogens.
The removal rates of234Th and228Th from waters of the New York Bight

Abstract The mean residence time (τ) of thorium with respect to non-radioactive removal from water was determined as a function of location in three traverses of the New York Bight using both 234 Th/ 238 U and 228 Th/ 228 Ra. τ correlates well with salinity increasing from about ten days near shore to 70 days at the shelf break. It shows a much weaker correlation with suspended matter concentrations both because suspended matter varies in its scavenging efficiency and because salinity is a longer-term integrator of scavenging potential. τ's computed from 228 Th/ 228 Ra were often higher than those computed from 234 Th/ 238 U either because of the detrital matter present as reflected in the 232 Th concentrations or because the water parcels had recently arrived from environments of lower scavenging efficiency. Anomalous isotopic concentrations found in three adjacent samples can best be explained as the result of an episodic release of 228 Ra from bottom sediments at a rate 200 times the normal one.
The synergistic effect of benzhydrylation and iodination of the flammability of alpha-cellulose

Cellulose samples modified by iodination, benzhydrylation, and benzhydrylation followed by iodination were pyrolyzed to investigate the potential flame retardance of such treatments. Their effect on crystallinity, rate of thermal degradation, char production, and pyrolysis products was determined. Results indicate that in general the crystallinity index varies inversely with the percentage of substitution, rate of weight loss, and amount of residual char. Although the rates of weight loss of the substituted samples increased from 0.3%/min to 108%/min, depending on the type and percentage of substitution, the overall weight loss pattern of the treated cellulose was similar to that of the untreated samples. Of the three treatments, iodination appears to offer the best flame retardance in that the residual char is increased by a much larger factor for a given weight loss rate. On the other hand, addition of the benzhydryl to the iodinated sample decreases the char. All three treatments drastically reduce the number of degradation products of molecular weights lower than 150; untreated cellulose gave 59 components, whereas the substituted cellulose produced five major compounds: water, acetic acid, furfural, 5-methyl-2-furaldehyde, and 1,5-anhydro-2,3-deoxy-β-D-pent-2-eno-furanose. Of these, water and the furanose derivatives were the major components.
Simulated Rarefied Entry of the Galileo Probe into the Jovian Atmosphere

Flowfield properties and aerodynamics are computed with a direct simulation Monte Carlo method in the rarefied flow regime during entry of the Galileo Probe into the atmosphere of Jupiter. The objective is to predict accurately the vehicle's drag coefficient, which is needed to assess atmospheric properties from the onboard atmospheric structure experiment, where highly sensitive accelerometers will measure the drag effects to within 10~5 m/s2 during the initial entry phase at high altitudes. The corresponding flow rarefaction extends from the free-molecule limit to the near-continuum transition regime (Re^ < 1000). Simulation results, employing a simple radiative equilibrium surface model, indicate that CD varies from 2.1 at the free-molecule limit down to 1.6 at Re^ = 1000. Results compared very well to those from ballistic-range experiments. Detailed material response of the carbonphenolic heat shield was then coupled directly into the DSMC code to account accurately for conductivity, heat capacity, and pyrolysis, and the simulations were repeated. The predicted pyrolysis mass efflux was 8-14 times higher than the incident freestream mass flux and had significant effects on the drag.
A dual mechanosensory and chemosensory neuron in Caenorhabditis elegans.

Abstract After light touch to its nose, the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans halts forward locomotion and initiates backing. Here we show that three classes of neurons (ASH, FLP, and OLQ) sense touch to the nose and hence are required for this avoidance response. ASH, FLP, and OLQ have sensory endings that contain axonemal cilia. Mutant animals that have defective ciliated sensory endings as well as laser-operated animals that lack ASH, FLP, and OLQ fail to respond to touch to the nose. Together with the previous work of others, these results demonstrate that C. elegans has at least five morphologically distinct classes of mechanosensory neurons. Interestingly, the ASH neuron also acts as a chemosensory neuron; it mediates the avoidance of noxious chemicals. Since ASH possesses both chemosensory and mechanosensory modalities, this neuron might be functionally analogous to vertebrate nociceptors, which mediate the sensation of pain.
Sprouting of aberrant neuropeptide Y-immunoreactive sympathetic nerves into neonatally denervated smooth muscle.

Abstract Sympathetic nerves normally project ipsilaterally to lateral cranial targets. Following unilateral superior cervical ganglionectomy in neonatal rats, however, neurons from the contralateral superior cervical ganglion sprout into the denervated region. In the present study we examined neuropeptide Y immunoreactivity (NPY-ir) of neurons comprising ipsilateral (control) and denervation-induced contralateral pathways to the superior tarsal smooth muscle of the eyelid. Fluoro-Gold injection of the control muscle retrogradely labelled 133 ± 18 neurons in the ipsilateral superior cervical ganglion; of these, 21 ± 3% displayed detectable NPY-ir. Fluoro-Gold injections of the reinnervated muscle labelled 20 ± 4 neurons in the contralateral superior cervical ganglion, of which 85 ± 3% contained detectable NPY-ir. Examination of the control tarsal muscle revealed DBH-ir noradrenergic nerves throughout the muscle and vasculature, while NPY-ir nerves were present primarily around blood vessels. In the reinnervated preparation, NPY-ir fibers innervated both blood vessels and tarsal muscle in a pattern similar to that of DBH-ir innervation. Acute excision of the remaining superior cervical ganglion eliminated all DBH-ir fibers bilaterally; NPY-ir was reduced markedly in the reinnervated preparations, though some fibers remained. We conclude that, following neonatal denervation, the tarsal muscle is reinnervated by a subpopulation of sympathetic neurons that differs in neuropeptide phenotype from that of the normal ipsilateral innervation.
MAINTAINING EQUAL OPERATING CONDITIONS FOR ALL CELLS IN A FUEL CELL STACK USING AN EXTERNAL FLOW DISTRIBUTOR

Abstract This paper presents a novel fuel cell stack architecture that allows each fuel cell to work at the same condition, maintaining the same performance from each individual cell and creating a maximum power output from the cell stack. A fuel cell stack having four PEM fuel cells was fabricated to experimentally compare its performance when fuel and air supplying/distribution schemes are different. The performance of the fuel cell stack and individual cells in the stack is measured to achieve a detailed evaluation of the effect of the different fuel and air supplying schemes. Experimental data shows that non-uniform flow distribution to individual cells has a considerable influence on individual cell performance, which affects the power output of the fuel cell stack. The fuel cell stack with the novel approach of fuel and air feeding shows a better power output performance compared to a different fuel and air feeding approach to the fuel cell stack.
Coronary arteriovenous‐arterial fistula

A case of multiple arteriovenous fistulae is described in an adult with coronary artery disease. One of these fistulae drained into the anterior interventricular vein, which in turn communicated with and perfused an obstructed left anterior descending coronary artery.
Should ileoanal pouch surgery be staged for patients with mucosal ulcerative colitis on immunosuppressives

Introduction and objective Much debate has revolved around whether patients with mucosal ulcerative colitis (MUC) receiving immunosuppression should be weaned off immunosuppressives before undergoing ileal pouch surgery. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the affect of immunosuppressive drugs on postoperative complications after ileoanal pouch surgery.
Vitamin D-Regulated, ATP-Dependent Calcium Transport by Intestinal Golgi Vesicles during Maturation in the Rat

ABSTRACT: The developmental aspects of Calcium uptake by intestinal Golgi vesicles was determined using highly purified Golgi vesicles from enterocytes of suckling (2 wk old), weanling (3 wk old), and adolescent (6 wk old) rats. Calcium uptake by Golgi vesicles at all age groups represented transport into the intravesicular space as evident by temperature dependency and by calcium ionophore A23187-induced calcium efflux studies. Calcium uptake was driven by ATP at all age groups, however, maximal uptake at 15 min was significantly greater in Golgi vesicles of adolescent rats compared to mean values in Golgi vesicles of suckling rats (p < 0.001). Calcium uptake in the absence of ATP was minimal. The requirement for the adenine base and the hydrolysis of the β-γ-phosphodiester was tested by replacement of ATP in the incubation media by CTP and the nonhydrolyzable ATP analogue, adenylyl-(β-γ-methylendiphosphonate). Both agents had no stimulatory effect on calcium uptake. Calcium uptake was linear up to 40 s. Kinetic parameters of calcium uptake at free calcium concentrations of 0.04 to 1.0 µM showed a maximal transport capacity of 0.99 ± 0.05, 0.55 ± 0.04, and 0.29 ± 0.03 nmol/mg protein/15 s for adolescent, weanling, and suckling rats, respectively. Km values were 0.16 ± 0.02, 0.12 ± 0.03, and 0.07 ± 0.02 µM for adolescent, weanling and suckling rats, respectively. Km and Vmax were 0.16 ± 0.02, 0.12 ± 0.03, and 0.07 ± 0.02 µM for adolescent, weanlin and suckling rats, respectively. Km and Vmax values were significantly different between adolescent and suckling rats (p < 0.01). The calcium regulatory protein calmodulin has no effect on calcium uptake by Golgi vesicles. Vitamin D deficiency in all age groups decreased ATP-dependent calcium uptake. Administration of 1,25-(OH)2 vitamin D3 8 h before death enhanced ATP-dependent calcium uptake in all age groups studied. This enhancement was the result of increase in maximal transport capacity of ATP-dependent calcium uptake. This study demonstrates a vitamin D-regulated ATP-driven calcium uptake by intestinal Golgi vesicles at all age groups including the suckling period. This transport system shows developmental patterns in regard to its kinetic parameters.
The Effects of Interaction and Visual Fidelity on Learning Outcomes for a Virtual Pediatric Patient System

One of the most common clinical education methods for teaching patient interaction skills to nursing students is role-playing established scenarios with their classmates. Unfortunately, this is far from simulating real world experiences that they will soon face, and does not provide the immediate, impartial feedback necessary for interviewing skills development. We developed a system for Scaffolded Interviews Developed by Nurses In Education (SIDNIE) that supports baccalaureate nursing education by providing multiple guided interview practice sessions with virtual characters. During the development and evaluation of SIDNIE we realized the importance of determining the visual and interaction fidelity requirements necessary for proper learning. In this paper we report on two fidelity studies conducted with nursing students. The goal of the visual fidelity study was to determine if our virtual characters containing life-like animations would have an effect on learning or if we would get the same effect using a stationary image of our virtual environment. The second study focused on the interaction fidelity of our system and the goal was to determine if the interaction modality had an effect on the learning outcome. In particular we evaluated the effect of voice input as compared to a standard mouse-click input for question selection.
Measuring neutrino masses and dark energy

We review some recent efforts in determining the absolute neutrino mass scale in cosmology. We illustrate in particular how distance measurements such as the baryon acoustic oscillations and the galaxy weak lensing can break the degeneracy between the neutrino mass and dark energy equation of state parameters.
Could googling take down a president

Everything we do online is known and knowable and can be combined with everything else that is known and knowable.
Estimation of uncertainty bounds for individual particle image velocimetry measurements from cross-correlation peak ratio

Numerous studies have established firmly that particle image velocimetry (PIV) is a robust method for non-invasive, quantitative measurements of fluid velocity, and that when carefully conducted, typical measurements can accurately detect displacements in digital images with a resolution well below a single pixel (in some cases well below a hundredth of a pixel). However, to date, these estimates have only been able to provide guidance on the expected error for an average measurement under specific image quality and flow conditions. This paper demonstrates a new method for estimating the uncertainty bounds to within a given confidence interval for a specific, individual measurement. Here, cross-correlation peak ratio, the ratio of primary to secondary peak height, is shown to correlate strongly with the range of observed error values for a given measurement, regardless of flow condition or image quality. This relationship is significantly stronger for phase-only generalized cross-correlation PIV processing, while the standard correlation approach showed weaker performance. Using an analytical model of the relationship derived from synthetic data sets, the uncertainty bounds at a 95% confidence interval are then computed for several artificial and experimental flow fields, and the resulting errors are shown to match closely to the predicted uncertainties. While this method stops short of being able to predict the true error for a given measurement, knowledge of the uncertainty level for a PIV experiment should provide great benefits when applying the results of PIV analysis to engineering design studies and computational fluid dynamics validation efforts. Moreover, this approach is exceptionally simple to implement and requires negligible additional computational cost.
Host-selective toxins produced by Stagonospora nodorum confer disease susceptibility in adult wheat plants under field conditions.

Stagonospora nodorum, causal agent of Stagonospora nodorum blotch (SNB), is a destructive pathogen of wheat worldwide. As is true for many necrotrophic host–pathogen systems, the wheat-S. nodorum system is complex and resistance to SNB is usually quantitatively inherited. We recently showed that S. nodorum produces at least four proteinaceous host-selective toxins that interact with dominant host sensitivity/susceptibility gene products to induce SNB in seedlings. Here, we evaluated a population of wheat recombinant inbred lines that segregates for Tsn1, Snn2, and Snn3, which confer sensitivity to the toxins SnToxA, SnTox2, and SnTox3, respectively, to determine if compatible host–toxin interactions are associated with adult plant susceptibility to SNB foliar disease under field conditions. Artificial inoculation of the population in 2 years and two locations with a fungal isolate known to produce SnToxA and SnTox2 indicated that compatible SnToxA–Tsn1 and SnTox2–Snn2 interactions accounted for as much as 18 and 15% of the variation in disease severity on the flag leaf, respectively. As previously reported for seedlings, the effects of these two interactions in conferring adult plant susceptibility were largely additive. Additional adult plant resistance QTLs were identified on chromosomes 1B, 4B, and 5A, of which, the 1B and 5A QTLs were previously reported to be associated with seedling resistance to SNB. Therefore, in this population, some of the same QTLs are responsible for seedling and adult plant resistance/susceptibility. This is the first report showing that host-selective toxins confer susceptibility of adult plants to SNB, further substantiating the importance of compatible toxin–host interactions in the wheat-S. nodorum pathosystem.
Synchrotron-radiation-induced photoelectron study of some dilute Agsub1-xMnx alloys.

Ultraviolet photoemission has been used to investigate the Mn local moment in ${\mathrm{Ag}}_{1\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}\mathrm{x}}$${\mathrm{Mn}}_{\mathrm{x}}$ alloys for x=0.02, 0.05, 0.10, and 0.15. Both angle-resolved and angle-integrated spectra were obtained. A picture of the local moment as a scattering center emerges which is consistent with known transport properties of these alloys. On the other hand, the screening cloud around the Mn ion is sufficiently localized to exist in an S=(5/2) spin state. The state is delocalized to the point that no super-Coster-Kronig transition can neutralize a 3p core hole, although an autoionization resonance is observed at the 3p core threshold. This is in contrast to metallic Mn and Mn in certain other compounds.
Formation and Solid-State Characterization of a Salt-Induced Metastable Polymorph of Flufenamic Acid

Using additives is one of more recent and special methods to obtain a desirable polymorph. However, for pharmaceuticals, additives are usually limited to structurally related organic compounds. In this study, we have shown the potential of using a salt additive to induce crystallization of the metastable polymorph V of flufenamic acid (FFA). Additionally, it was found that FFA V undergoes a rapid interface mediated polymorphic transformation. Therefore, the slow evaporation method which can decrease the contact of the solvent during crystallization was chosen to delay the polymorphic transformation. It can be concluded that understanding the system is a prerequisite for using additives to obtain the desired polymorph.
Leaching of bromacil and norflurazon as affected by herbicide mixture

It is a common practice to apply herbicides as mixtures of two or more products ; however, no information is available about the effect of the mixture on leaching of each herbicide in soils. This study was designed to evaluate the effect of tank mixed herbicide combinations on the leaching potential of bromacil (5-Bromo-3-sec-butyl-6-methyluracil) and norflurazon [4-chloro-5-(methylamino)-2-(a,a,a-trifluoro-m-tolyl)-3(2H)-pyridazinone]. Leaching of bromacil or norflurazon in soil columns under different increments of water application was measured using a radioactive tracer method. Metolachlor [2-chloro-N-(2-ethyl-6-methylphenyl)-N-(2-methoxy-1-methyl-ethyl)acetamide] and terbacil (3-tert-Butyl-5-chloro-6-methyluracil) significantly decreased the leaching of norflurazon when the amount of water application was equivalent to two or more pore volumes. Oxadiazon [2-tert-butyl-4-(2,4-dichloro-5-isopropoxyphenyl)-Δ 2 -1,3,4-oxadiazolin-5-one] and simazine [2-chloro-4,6-bis(ethylamino)-s-triazine] significantly reduced the leaching of norflurazon when three and four pore volumes of water were applied. Trifluralin (α,α,α-Trifluoro-2,6-dinitro-N,N-dipropyl-p-toluidine) significantly decreased the leaching of norflurazon when two or three pore volumes of water were applied. The combining herbicides with bromacil had no effect on bromacil leaching except for diuron 4L formulation and napropamide, which decreased bromacil leaching under certain levels of water application. None of the herbicides tested significantly increased the leaching of bromacil or norflurazon.
Microheterogeneity and phosphoamino acids in the carboxy-terminal half of myelin basic protein.

—Three chromatographically distinct peptic peptides (F80-1, F80-2 and F80-3) derived from the C-terminal half of the bovine and guinea-pig myelin basic proteins were characterized. The three peptides of each animal species had the same N-terminal residue (phenylalanine) and essentially the same amino acid composition, but they differed in electrophoretic mobility at alkaline pH. The least basic peptide (F80-3) differed from the others in showing a deficit of C-terminal arginine residues and in containing phosphorus, 0·37 and 0·46 g-atom/mol of bovine and guinea-pig peptides, respectively. Other peptic peptides. derived from the N-terminal half of the basic protein, were essentially phosphorus-frcc. Analyses of partial acid hydrolyzates of peptide F80-3 by high voltage electrophoresis showed the presence of both phosphoserine and phosphothreonine. After incubation with E. coli alkaline phosphatase (EC 3.1.3.1). 34 and 40% of the bovine and guinea-pig F80-3 peptides. respectively, were converted to peptide F80-1. This reaction involved the loss of 2 net negative charges, and its extent corresponded to loss of essentially all of the phosphate originally present in the peptide. This result indicated that the phosphorylated species of peptide F80-3 contained one phosphate group per molecule.
Craving is associated with amygdala volumes in adolescent marijuana users during abstinence

AbstractBackground: Amygdala volume abnormalities have been reported in relation to craving in substance-dependent adults, but it remains unclear if these effects are seen in adolescent marijuana (MJ) users, particularly following abstinence. Objectives: The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between amygdala volume and craving during 28 days of abstinence in adolescent MJ users. Methods: MJ-using adolescents (n = 22) aged 16–19 were recruited as part of a larger study on brain function in teen drug users. Craving measures were collected twice per week throughout a 28-day abstinence period. High-resolution anatomical magnetic resonance imaging data were collected at the end of the 28 days of confirmed abstinence. Left and right amygdala volumes were traced by hand (ICC > 0.86). Composite scores for self-reported craving and withdrawal symptoms throughout the 28-day abstinence period were calculated to provide four composite measures of total craving, mood, sleep, and somatic complaints. Res...
Plasmon emission quantum yield of single gold nanorods as a function of aspect ratio.

We report on the one-photon photoluminescence of gold nanorods with different aspect ratios. We measured photoluminescence and scattering spectra from 82 gold nanorods using single-particle spectroscopy. We found that the emission and scattering spectra closely resemble each other independent of the nanorod aspect ratio. We assign the photoluminescence to the radiative decay of the longitudinal surface plasmon generated after fast interconversion from excited electron–hole pairs that were initially created by 532 nm excitation. The emission intensity was converted to the quantum yield and was found to approximately exponentially decrease as the energy difference between the excitation and emission wavelength increased for gold nanorods with plasmon resonances between 600 and 800 nm. We compare this plasmon emission to its molecular analogue, fluorescence.
Perspective Taking Shapes the Impact of Significant-other Representations

Past research has shown that people's reported beliefs come to correspond with the apparent beliefs of salient significant others (e.g., Andersen & Chen, 2002; Baldwin, 1997). The current research extends this work by examining the degree to which such effects are influenced by perspective taking. In a modification of the classic paradigm used by Baldwin and Holmes (1987), 96 undergraduates (33 males, 62 females, and 1 unreported) were primed to perspective take or given a neutral prime before visualizing an older family member and reading an article about sexual dreams. As predicted, perspective taking enhanced the effect of significant other priming; participants who took the perspective of an older family member liked the sex article less than those who did not perspective take. Experiment 2 (39 males and 28 female undergraduates) demonstrated that this consequence of perspective taking was limited to significant others and did not extend to category exemplars.
Osteoprotegerin ligand and osteoprotegerin: novel implications for osteoclast biology and bone metabolism.

The integrity of the skeleton depends upon bone remodeling, the permanent and controlled resorption of bone by osteoclasts (OC) and its subsequent replacement by bone-forming osteoblasts. An imbalance between bone resorption and bone formation results in osteoporosis (if bone resorption exceeds bone formation) or osteopetrosis (if bone formation exceeds bone resorption). The regulation of the balance between osteoblastic and osteoclastic activity is critical for the understanding of normal bone cell biology and forms the cellular basis of the pathogenesis of metabolic bone diseases. A variety of local growth factors and cytokines as well as systemic peptide and steroid hormones regulate the differentiation of immature precursor cells and the activity of mature cells in both the osteoblastic and the osteoclastic lineage (1–7). The differentiation of OC precursors from a macrophage-like stem cell into the mature multinucleated OC (osteoclastogenesis) depends on various local factors secreted by bone marrowresiding pluripotent stromal cells and mature osteoblasts (1–3, 7). Regulation of osteoclastogenesis (and OC activity) by osteoblastic factors may therefore couple osteoclastic bone resorption to osteoblastic bone formation, and may constitute a local regulatory mechanism for bone remodeling. During the last decade evidence has emerged that osteoclastogenesis requires the presence of stromal cells, 1a,25-dihyroxyvitamin D3 (1a,25-(OH)2D3) and glucocorticoids in vitro (1–3, 7). Although extensive in vitro studies and animal experiments using knock-out or transgenic mice have identified various candidate cytokines that are capable of regulating osteoclastogenesis (and are variably produced by stromal cells treated with 1a,25-(OH)2D3 and/or glucocorticoids), until recently no single cytokine has been identified that is both necessary and sufficient to induce osteoclastogenesis. The recent discovery of osteoprotegerin (OPG)/ osteoclastogenesis inhibitory factor (OCIF) (8, 9), a soluble member of the tumor necrosis factor (TNF) receptor (TNFR) superfamily, and the subsequent identification of its cognate ligand, osteoprotegerin ligand (OPG-L)/osteoclast differentiation factor (ODF) (10, 11) (Table 1), has provided new insights into the regulation of osteoclastogenesis. TNF-related ligands and their receptors are critical for various aspects of cell survival and cell death (12). This review summarizes the rapidly evolving progress made in our understanding of OPG/OCIF and OPG-L/ ODF, including their protein and gene organization, their expression and regulation, and their effects both in vitro and in vivo. These novel findings have led to a new paradigm of osteoclast biology with major novel implications for bone metabolism and the pathogenesis of metabolic bone diseases.
Effect of Thyroid Status and Thiocyanate on Absorption and Excretion of Iodine by Cattle

Effects of throidectomy or iodine-131, thyroprotein feeding, and thiocyanate dosing on radioiodine metabolism in the bovine were studied in 34 animals. Two thyroidectomized calves excreted 44% more radioiodine in urine and 38% less in feces than two thyroid-tact calves. Oral thiocyanate increased urinary radioiodine 32% in throidectomized and 46% in intact calves while reducing fecal radioiodine 48% in throidectomize and 11% in intact calves. Urninary radioiodine clearance of two heifers was increased 52% by thiocyanate, but urine flow was not affected. Percentages of radioiodine doses cycled through the abomasum daily and recovered from digestive tracts at slaughter, respectively, were: 12 thyroid-intact cows, 468 and 77; two intact cows fed 10 g sodium thiocyanate daily,64 and 41; 10 thyroid-damagedcows, 506 and 149; and four thyroid-damaged cows fed 8 g thyroprotein daily, 372 and 93. Thyroid damage had little effect on gastric radioiodine secretion but increased total digestive tract radioiodine because of greater volume of tract contents. Inhibition of gastric radioiodine secretion by thiocyanate reduced the digestive tract radioiodine pool. The digestive tract iodine pool may conserve iodine by reducing loss in urine.
Spectral shift of infrared LEDs and resistive sources

The Space Chambers at the Arnold Engineering Development Center (AEDC) are continually exploring new technologies to improve their characterization, calibration, and mission simulation testing capabilities for imaging sensors. Part of this task is to develop and integrate methods to simulate high-temperature sources (on the order of 3,000 K) while maintaining the integrity of the low radiometric background within the cryovacuum chambers. The High Temperature Source Simulator project at AEDC is exploring the use of laser diodes, LEDs, and resistive sources of varying IR wavelengths to simulate these high-temperature sources within AEDC's Space Chambers. A brief summary of previous work will be presented with a more detailed discussion of the recent cryospectral shift of the tested sources. We found that the IR LEDs spectrally shift up to about 20% from their ambient center wavelength while the resistive sources do not shift at all (as expected). Several different resistive sources as well as LEDs of varying wavelengths have been procured and will continue to be tested.
Immature and Differentiated Neoplastic Populations in Acute Lymphoid Leukemia of Childhood: Biological and Clinical Implications

Despite significant improvement in the therapy for acute lymphoid leukemia (ALL) of childhood, approximately 30% of patients relapse. Unfortunately, since no successful treatment for recurrent disease has been developed, the majority of these patients die. Recently, we presented evidence consistent with the presence of a limited program of differentiation in B-precursor ALL that is reminiscent of normal B-cell development. We found that ALL cell populations consist of both a subpopulation of progenitors with the immunophenotype of normal B-cell precursors that has self-renewal capability and a second subpopulation with a more mature early B-cell immunophenotype that is without self-renewal capability but can proliferate to a limited extent. In our recent studies we were able to grow the progenitor cells in the ALL blast colony assay and establish their leukemic origin using the polymerase chain reaction. Our results suggest that these progenitors are the cells that sustain the disease. We hypothesize that...
Bumpy Particle Adhesion and Removal in Turbulent Flows Including Electrostatic and Capillary Forces

The effect of electrostatic and capillary forces on bumpy particle adhesion and removal in turbulent flows is studied. We use the JKR theory and account for the increase of adhesion by capillary force. The effects of electrostatic forces and nonlinear hydrodynamic drag are included in the analyses. The criteria for incipient rolling and sliding detachments and electrostatic lifting removal are evaluated. A turbulence burst model is used for evaluating the peak air velocity near the substrate. The critical shear velocities for detaching particles of different sizes under different conditions are evaluated. The electric field strength needed for electrostatic removal of particles with different charges is also estimated. The results are compared with those obtained in the absence of the capillary force. Comparisons of the model predictions with the available experimental data are also presented.
A Zero-Sequence Voltage Injection-Based Control Strategy for a Parallel Hybrid Modular Multilevel HVDC Converter System

A parallel hybrid modular multilevel converter (PHMMC) belongs to the class of modular multilevel converters, which have become potential candidates for high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) transmission systems. Due to the circuit topology of a PHMMC, the dc bus voltage contains low-order harmonics and cannot be fully regulated at a constant dc voltage. The dc bus voltage, if not properly controlled, leads to improper power transfer and increases the magnitude of dc current ripple on the dc transmission line. This paper proposes a zero-sequence voltage injection (ZSVI)-based model predictive control (MPC) strategy to control the dc current/power flow and simultaneously minimize the dc current ripple. The proposed strategy takes advantage of a cost function minimization technique to determine and inject the optimal zero-sequence voltage components into the dc- bus voltage of a PHMMC system. This paper derives a discrete-time dynamic model of the dc transmission-line current and, correspondingly, develops a predictive model. The predictive model is used to inject the appropriate amount of zero-sequence voltage components to the dc bus reference voltage waveform. Compared with the existing triplen harmonics injection method, the proposed ZSVI-MPC strategy improves the performance of a PHMMC system in terms of minimization of the dc current/voltage ripple. Performance of the proposed strategy for a 21-level PHMMC-based HVDC station system is evaluated based on time-domain simulation studies in the PSCAD/EMTDC software environment. The reported results demonstrate superior performance of the PHMMC-HVDC station operating based on the proposed ZSVI-MPC strategy, under various operating conditions, as opposed to the existing triplen harmonics injection method.
Ventral incisional hernia recurrence.

During the period October 1993 to December 1996, 31 patients were operated on by the author for primary or recurrent ventral incisional hernia (VIH). Three patients were excluded from analysis because their records were unavailable for review. The median age of the 28 remaining patients at their initial procedure was 57.5 years (range, 37-78 years). The repair was performed with interrupted O-Ethibond sutures in all but 3 cases where Prolene suture was used secondary to noniatrogenic contamination or recurrent hernia. There were no unplanned enterotomies in the entire series and prophylactic intravenous antibiotics were used in all cases. The only significant complications were skin hyperemia after five repairs in 3 patients who were treated empirically with intravenous antibiotics, and 1 patient who had an antibiotic-associated rash. There were no 30-day mortalities. Prolene mesh was used exclusively in all repairs performed with mesh. Seven of these repairs (25%) were for recurrent VIH. Three of these seven patients had previous mesh repairs. Six of these seven patients who presented with recurrent VIH had a mesh repair and four developed a recurrence. Five of seven were active smokers, with one having severe obstructive lung disease. Four of seven related significant occupational lifting. Of the 21 patients having initial repair of VIH, mesh was used in 8 (38%). After a median follow-up of 13 months, there were 2 recurrent hernias (25%). The remaining 13 patients had primary closure of their hernias. After median follow-up of 25 months, there were 5 recurrences (38%). A total of 34 VIH repairs were performed on these 28 patients, of which 13 were for recurrent hernias. Five of thirteen (38%) of the mesh repairs for recurrent VIH failed. The median body mass index (BMI) for the 13 patients having primary repair was 26.4, and that for all 21 cases having mesh repair was 28.8. Patients with recurrent VIH frequently recur despite use of mesh, avoidance of contamination, and consistent technique. No difference in BMI was apparent in those who recurred. Continued smoking and occupational lifting may be important risk factors for recurrent VIH.
Conformational flexibility, internal hydrogen bonding, and passive membrane permeability: successful in silico prediction of the relative permeabilities of cyclic peptides.

We report an atomistic physical model for the passive membrane permeability of cyclic peptides. The computational modeling was performed in advance of the experiments and did not involve the use of “training data”. The model explicitly treats the conformational flexibility of the peptides by extensive conformational sampling in low (membrane) and high (water) dielectric environments. The passive membrane permeabilities of 11 cyclic peptides were obtained experimentally using a parallel artificial membrane permeability assay (PAMPA) and showed a linear correlation with the computational results with R2 = 0.96. In general, the results support the hypothesis, already well established in the literature, that the ability to form internal hydrogen bonds is critical for passive membrane permeability and can be the distinguishing factor among closely related compounds, such as those studied here. However, we have found that the number of internal hydrogen bonds that can form in the membrane and the solvent-expose...
Estrogen attenuates over-expression of β-amyloid precursor protein messager RNA in an animal model of focal ischemia

Cerebral ischemia is a risk factor for late onset Alzheimer's disease. Since estrogen replacement therapy benefits the outcome of cerebral stroke in post-menopausal women, we designed the present study to investigate the effects of estrogen on the expression of beta-amyloid precursor protein (APP) mRNA following focal ischemia in female rats. Female rats were ovariectomized (OVX) for two weeks. A single dose of 17 beta-estradiol (E2) (100 microgram/kg) was injected s.c. two hours before a unilateral middle cerebral artery (MCA) occlusion. Brain samples were harvested from ischemic core and penumbra of cortices at one hour and twenty-four hours following MCA occlusion. The expression of APP mRNA was assessed by RT-PCR. At one hour after MCA occlusion, OVX rats had a 67.9% (p<0.05) increase in APP mRNA in the penumbra. E2 treatment reduced this APP mRNA over-expression by 26.3% at that region. At twenty four hours following MCA occlusion, OVX rats had increases in APP mRNA of 52.9% and 57.0% (p<0.05) in the core and penumbra, respectively. E2 treatment reduced the APP mRNA over-expression by 61.0% and 48.6% (p<0.05) in these two regions, respectively. These effects appeared to reflect an interaction between hormonal environment and ischemia, since in the absence of MCA occlusion, there were no significant differences in APP mRNA expression among OVX, OVX-E2 treated and intact female rats. The present study demonstrates that estrogen may have an important role in reducing the over-expression of APP mRNA following focal ischemia.
Point process modeling on decoding and encoding for Brain Machine Interfaces

Point process modeling has the potential to capture the specificity of neural firing where the information is contained in the spike time occurrence. We aim at building an adaptive signal processing framework for Brain Machine Interfaces working directly in the spike domain. However, the signal processing tools for continuous stochastic processes faces challenge when implemented directly on point processes. Under the Bayesian formulation, the effectiveness of the decoding algorithm and the accuracy of the encoding model will affect each other recursively on kinematics reconstruction. The finer time resolution of point process raises a higher computational complexity. This paper will review our recent work addressing these concerns. We implemented an instantaneous tuning model into a sequential Monte Carlo point process estimation to better reconstruct kinematics from neural spike trains for Brain Machine Interfaces.
Single mutation induced H3N2 hemagglutinin antibody neutralization: a free energy perturbation study.

The single mutation effect on the binding affinity of H3N2 viral protein hemagglutinin (HA) with the monoclonical antibody fragment (Fab) is studied in this paper using the free energy perturbation (FEP) simulations. An all-atom protein model with explicit solvents is used to perform an aggregate of several microsecond FEP molecular dynamics simulations. A recent experiment shows that a single mutation in H3N2 HA, T131I, increases the antibody−antigen dissociation constant Kd by a factor of ∼4000 (equivalent to a binding affinity decrease of ∼5 kcal/mol), thus introducing an escape of the antibody (Ab) neutralization. Our FEP result confirms this experimental finding by estimating the HA−Ab binding affinity decrease of 5.2 ± 0.9 kcal/mol but with a somewhat different molecular mechanism from the experimental findings. Detailed analysis reveals that this large binding affinity decrease in the T131I mutant is mainly due to the displacement of two bridge water molecules otherwise present in the wild-type HA/...