cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Association of withdrawal features with nicotine dependence as measured by the Fagerström Test for Nicotine Dependence (FTND)

Abstract The aim of this study was to advance our understanding of how nicotine dependence level, defined by the Fagerstrom Test of Nicotine Dependence (FTND), relates to nicotine withdrawal features. We classified nicotine dependence in two categories, 1) low dependence (LD; FTND
Raman study of rutile (TiO2) at high pressures

Abstract The Raman spectra and polymorphism of rutile have been investigated under hydrostatic pressures up to 90 kbar at room temperature. A transition previously observed in rutile at 30 kbar in a Drickamer-type cell under nonhydrostatic conditions was observed to begin at approximately 70 kbar in a 4:1 mixture of methanol and ethanol. The small amount (10–20%) of the high-pressure phase synthesized from rutile, however, did not increase even though the sample was left under pressure for a period of 1 month at ambient temperature. On the basis of factor group analysis, in situ powder x-ray diffraction data, and comparison of the Raman spectrum of the high-pressure modification with that of TiO2-II (α-PbO2-type structure synthesized from anatase powder at 40 kbar and 400°C), it is evident that a high pressures rutile transforms irreversibly to TiO2-II.
Chromatography of quaternary nitrogen compounds on buffered cation-exchange resins

Abstract Quaternary nitroge ncompounds and their amine analogues were separated by chromatography on columns of a uniformly sized, pulverized, sulfonated polystyrene resin using buffers for elution. Substances of biological interest thus separated and determined by the ultraviolet absorption of their periodide derivatives include betaine, stachydrine, choline, trigonelline, N-methylnicotinamide, and carnitine. Better separation of these compounds is obtained with buffered eluents than with hydrochloric acid because of greater differences in degrees of ionization in the buffer system. Corn grain extracts were rapidly analyzed by the procedure.
WAY-200070, a selective agonist of estrogen receptor beta as a potential novel anxiolytic/antidepressant agent.

Abstract Recent studies have reported that estrogen has antidepressant-like effects in animal models. In this study we used the highly selective ERβ agonist, WAY-200070, to examine the role of ERβ activation on brain neurochemistry and activity in antidepressant and anxiolytic models in male mice. Within 15 min of administration, WAY-200070 (30 mg/kg s.c.) caused the nuclear translocation of striatal ERβ receptors from the cytosol. WAY-200070 also increased c-fos activation 4 h, but not 15 min after administration. Both nuclear translocation and c-fos induction effects of WAY-200070 demonstrate that WAY-200070 has bound to estrogen receptors and triggered downstream events. The absence of these effects in the ERβKO mice confirms that WAY-200070 was targeting ERβ. Administration of WAY-200070 (30 mg/kg s.c.) produced a delayed ∼50% increase in dopamine in the striatum of wild type mice. The effect was significant and maintained from 90 to 240 min. This increase was absent in ERβKO mice. In wild type mice, WAY-200070 (30 mg/kg s.c.) also produced a delayed and transient ∼100% increase in 5-HT. To further investigate the role of ERβ receptors on serotonergic function, 5-HTP accumulation was measured. ERβKO mice were found to have reduced frontal cortex levels of 5-HTP, indicating reduced tryptophan hydroxylase activity. WAY-200070 (3–30 mg/kg s.c.) was also tested in behavioural models. WAY-200070 (30 mg/kg s.c.) reduced immobility time in the mouse tail suspension test indicating an antidepressant-like effect. WAY-200070 (30 mg/kg) showed anxiolytic-like effects in the four-plate test (increased punished crossings) and stress-induced hyperthermia (attenuation of hyperthermic response). The effects of the selective ERβ agonist, WAY-200070, on dopamine and serotonin, the anxiolytic-like and antidepressant-like effects as well as the genotype specific effects on neurochemistry support that positive modulation of ERβ function may provide a novel treatment for affective disorders.
Abstract 3213: GRHL2 enhances hTERT transcription by inhibiting promoter DNA methylation at 5’ CpG island

Proceedings: AACR 101st Annual Meeting 2010‐‐ Apr 17‐21, 2010; Washington, DC We recently identified Grainyhead-like 2 (GRHL2), a mammalian homologue of Grainyhead in Drosophila, to be a novel transcription factor that binds to and regulates the activity of the human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) gene promoter. In the current study, we investigated the biological function of GRHL2 in normal human keratinocytes (NHK) and elucidated the molecular mechanism underlying GRHL2 regulation of hTERT gene expression. Primary NHK were infected with retroviral vectors expressing GRHL2 or the empty vector. GRHL2 transduction led to significant extension of the replicative lifespan of NHK by evading the senescence block. However, GRHL2 failed to cause immortalization of NHK, alone or in combination with Bmi-1, a polycomb group protein that bestows extended replication capacity to NHK. Enhanced proliferation of cells transduced with GRHL2 was also observed in three dimensional organotypic raft culture. Telomerase activity was detected in replicating NHK while it was rapidly lost during senescence. GRHL2 transduction increased the expression of hTERT and maintained detectable telomerase activity for extended time period, suggesting that GRHL2 positively influences the hTERT expression and telomerase activity in NHK. Upon knockdown of endogenous GRHL2, hTERT mRNA expression and telomerase activity were notably reduced. We previously showed that hTERT expression in NHK is regulated in part by promoter methylation at the 5’ CpG island. Thus, we determined the effects of GRHL2 on the methylation status of hTERT promoter by methylation-specific PCR (MSP). Loss of hTERT expression in the control NHK occurred with hTERT promoter hypermethylation. On the contrary, GRHL2 transduction notably reduced the extent of promoter methylation in NHK. This effect was not linked with enhanced cell proliferation because Bmi-1 transduction in NHK, which allowed prolonged cell proliferation, showed no effect on the hTERT promoter methylation. These data indicate that GRHL2 inhibits the promoter DNA methylation, thereby delaying hTERT gene inactivation and senescence of NHK. This study was supported by the grants R01DE18295, K02DE18959 from NIDCR/NIH. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 3213.
Transmembrane flux and receptor desensitization measured with membrane vesicles. Homogeneity of vesicles investigated by computer simulation

The use of membrane vesicles to make quantitative studies of transmembrane transport and exchange processes involves an assumption of homogeneity of the membrane vesicles. In studies of 86Rb+ exchange mediated by acetylcholine receptor from the electric organ of Electrophorus electricus and of 36Cl- exchange mediated by GABA receptor from rat brain, measurements of ion exchange and receptor desensitization precisely followed first order kinetics in support of this assumption. In other measurements a biphasic decay of receptor activity was seen. To elucidate the molecular properties of receptors from such measurements it is important to appreciate what the requirements of vesicle monodispersity are for meaningful results and what the effect of vesicle heterogeneity would be. The experiments were simulated with single vesicle populations with variable defined size distributions as well as with mixtures of different populations of vesicles. The properties of the receptors and their density in the membrane could be varied. Different receptors could be present on the same or different membrane vesicles. The simulated measurements were not very sensitive to size dispersity. A very broad size distribution of a single vesicle population was necessary to give rise to detectable deviations from first order kinetics or errors in the determined kinetic constants. Errors could become significant with mixtures of different vesicle populations, where the dispersity in initial ion exchange rate constant, proportional to the receptor concentration per internal volume, became large. In this case the apparent rate of receptor desensitization would diverge in opposite directions from the input value when measured by two different methods, suggesting an experimental test for such kinetic heterogeneity. A biphasic decrease of receptor activity could not be attributed to vesicle heterogeneity and must be due to desensitization processes with different rates. Significant errors would not arise from the size dispersity apparent in subpopulations of vesicles seen by imaging techniques in membrane preparations.
New version of the generic mapping tools

An updated, new version (3.0) of the Generic Mapping Tools (GMT) has just been released. GMT is a public domain collection of UNIX tools that contains programs to manipulate (x,y) and (x,y,z) data and to generate PostScript illustrations, including simple x-y diagrams, contour maps, color images, and artificially illuminated, perspective, shaded-relief plots using a variety of map projections [Wessel and Smith, 1991]. GMT has been installed on super computers, workstations and personal computers, all running some flavor of UNIX. We estimate that approximately 5000 scientists worldwide are currently using GMT in their work.
Donor and acceptor properties of some trisubstituted oxy compounds of the group IV elements

The donor and acceptor properties of the compounds R3MOC6H5 (where R = CH3 or C2H5 and M = C, Si, Ge, Sn and Pb) and C6H5)3MOH were investigated in detail. The results cannot be correlated with the “new” electronegativity scale proposed for the Group IV elements. Changes in the extent of π-bonding between the central element and oxygen are proposed as the dominant effect giving rise to the observed trends. Contrary to previous reports no hydrogen bonding interaction could be detected between (C6H5)3SnOH or (C6H5)3PbOH and (C2H5)2O. The donors (C2H5)2O. (CH3)2SO and HC(O)N(CH3)2 were all investigated in this study. In every instance a reversible dehydration reaction occurred. The infrared spectra of these systems is discussed. It was found that the compounds R3MOH (where R is CH3 or C2H5 and M is tin or lead) could be titrated with phenol in the presence of molecular sieves. This procedure may be of value in the synthesis of group IV compounds which are sensitive to light and heat.
Dennis Ager, Motivation in language planning and language policy. Clevedon, England: Multilingual Matters, 2001. Pp. vi, 210. Pb. $24.95; Kas Deprez & Theo du Plessis, eds., Multilingualism and government: Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland, former Yugoslavia, South Africa. (Studies in language policy in South Africa.) Pretoria: Van Schaik, 2000. Pp. xii, 179.

The two books under review, Motivation in language planning and language policy (MLPP) and Multilingualism and government (M&G), are both about language policy, at least at one level, and both are, or claim to be, based on case studies. That is the end of any similarity between them.
Effect of task decision on P300.

Abstract Previous studies have shown that the structure of an experimental task may modulate P300 (P3) responsiveness to task-related test stimuli. In this study, four tasks were compared to study possible effects of decision type on P3s to rare and frequent visual word stimuli. One or three oddballs were designated in two separate experiments. Subjects in each experiment viewed randomized and repeated presentations of nine 5- to 8-letter words, and performed each of four target detection and choice discrimination tasks: (1) silent counting of oddball(s), (2) button-press to oddball(s), (3) choice response (‘yes’ or ‘no’) to oddball(s) and frequents, and (4) choice button-press to oddball(s) and frequents. Although oddball stimuli elicited characteristic ‘target’ P3s over the parietaL scalp, there was no significant effect of task type on the oddball-evoked P3. Frequents tended to elicit larger P3s in the choice discrimination tasks (yes/no, go/go) than in target-detection tasks (counting, go/no-go), indicating a selective effect of decision type on P3s to frequent-category events.
Progress toward unifying the discipline of subsurface sensing and imaging systems

The development of a unified discipline of subsurface sensing and imaging is a key to progress in imaging solutions in the underground, underwater, and bio-medical domains. We present a systems approach to the identification of research thrusts to create and apply this unified framework to solve pressing societal problems in the bio- medical and civil-environmental areas.© (2000) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Novel surgical approach ‘intrapulmonary-artery septation’ for Fontan candidates with unilateral pulmonary arterial hypoplasia or pulmonary venous obstruction

It is difficult to manage patients with single ventricular physiology and unbalanced pulmonary arteries. Since 1998, we started a novel approach [Intrapulmonary-artery Septation (IPAS)] to improve the result for those with severe unbalanced pulmonary arteries consisting of a well-grown pulmonary artery and an inadequately-grown pulmonary artery. The inadequately-grown pulmonary artery includes severe pulmonary arterial hypoplasia and pulmonary venous obstruction. This approach is based on the following concepts: (1) A reliable blood source should be secured to recover the inadequately-grown pulmonary artery; (2) Wasteful volume-load should be prevented for the heart; (3) Long stenosis or non-confluence of pulmonary artery should be avoided. IPAS primarily consists of (A) a Glenn shunt; (B) a systemic-pulmonary artery shunt; and (C) a septation-patch. Both (A) and (B) are adjoined on a well-grown pulmonary artery, and (C) is placed between (A) and (B). PAS brings two separate blood flows of a Glenn shunt to the well-grown side and SPS on the inadequately-grown side. IPAS was performed in 20 patients. Seventeen reached the Fontan operation. Eleven underwent postoperative catheterization and seven had acceptable-balanced pulmonary blood flow distribution. IPAS can pilot more complicated cases having severe unbalanced pulmonary arteries to the Fontan circulation.
Environmental pressures and marketing in the 1970s

Abstract Leadership in both private and public institutions is devoting considerable attention to the effects of rapidly increasing rates of environmental change on its areas of responsibility. To fulfill the requirements of their obligations to customers and the firm, marketing executives, particularly, must be aware of and responsive to events external to the business. The study upon which this article is based, sought to uncover the perceptions of senior marketing executives in leading U.S. industrial corporations concerning the importance of several environmental issues to their marketing strategies, tactics and operating performance expectations for the 1970s. Awareness and response tendencies of executives to the following items were investigated: (1) the role of marketing in the firm; (2) consumerism; (3) air and water pollution; (4) urban substandard housing; (5) deterioration of downtown areas; (6) consumer market changes; (7) distribution system changes; (8) civil rights movement; (9) nature and intensity of competition. The competition was completed just prior to the emergence of the energy crisis and the removal of price controls in the U.S.
Thermal-environmental testing of a 30-cm engineering model thruster

An experimental test program was carried out to document all 30-cm electron bombardment Hg ion bombardment thruster functions and characteristics over the thermal environment of several proposed missions. An engineering model thruster was placed in a thermal test facility equipped with -196 C walls and solar simulation. The thruster was cold soaked and exposed to simulated eclipses lasting in duration from 17 to 72 minutes. The thruster was operated at quarter, to full beam power in various thermal configurations which simulated multiple thruster operation, and was also exposed to 1 and 2 suns solar simulation. Thruster control characteristics and constraints; performance, including thrust magnitude and direction; and structural integrity were evaluated over the range of thermal environments tested.
Manner and Meaning of Susceptibility Testing of Ampicillin-Resistant Haemophilus influenzae

Abstract We examined ampicillin-resistant strains of Haemophilus influenzae to compare the percentage of resistant organisms in each strain with the susceptibility to ampicillin by an agar dilution method. Using an inoculum of 104 colony-forming units, the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) increased with the percentage of resistant organisms in the strain. Laboratory-manipulated strains composed of different proportions of a susceptible and a resistant strain behaved similarly. The survival of isolated colony-forming units (colony MIC) was then determined by spreading inocula over the surface of a set of MIC plates, resulting in separation of individual colonies. This modification of the susceptibility test to the colony level gave end points that were clear and reproducible and that did not vary with changes in incubation time or temperature. True differences in susceptibility among strains were demonstrated by this method, whereas results of the conventional MIC test may reflect only the number of resistant organisms present in the inoculum.
AN EXAMINATION OF THE SEX OFFENDER REGISTRATION AND NOTIFICATION ACT AS APPLIED TO JUVENILES Evaluating the Ability to Predict Sexual Recidivism

The recently enacted Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act will expand and standardize the registration of adolescent sex offenders. To evaluate the effectiveness of this and similar legislation, the authors assessed 91 juvenile males who had been adjudicated for a sexual felony offense and 174 juvenile males who had no history of sexual offending with several risk measures. On admission to treatment, all participants were assessed with the Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL:YV; A. E. Forth, D. Kosson, & R. D. Hare, 2003). The Juvenile Sex Offender Assessment Protocol–II (J-SOAP–II; R. A. Prentky & S. Righthand, 2003), 3 state-developed risk protocols (from Wisconsin, Texas, and New Jersey), and the tier designation embedded in the federal Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act of 2006 (SORNA) were coded from the sex offender participants’ records. Participants were followed for an average of 71.6 months (SD 18.1 months) to determine charges for general, violent, and sexual offenses. Results showed inconsistencies in risk designations between the J-SOAP–II, SORNA tier, and state risk measures, and none, except for the PCL:YV, significantly predicted new general, violent, or sexual offense charges. Policy and legal implications concerning the assessment of adolescent sex offenders are discussed.
Low-Temperature Thermoelectric Properties of Co0.9Fe0.1Sb3-Based Skutterudite Nanocomposites with FeSb2 Nanoinclusions

Bulk thermoelectric nanocomposite materials have great potential to exhibit higher ZT due to effects arising from their nanostructure. Herein, we report low-temperature thermoelectric properties of Co0.9Fe0.1Sb3-based skutterudite nanocomposites containing FeSb2 nanoinclusions. These nanocomposites can be easily synthesized by melting and rapid water quenching. The nanoscale FeSb2 precipitates are well dispersed in the skutterudite matrix and reduce the lattice thermal conductivity due to additional phonon scattering from nanoscopic interfaces. Moreover, the nanocomposite samples also exhibit enhanced Seebeck coefficients relative to regular iron-substituted skutterudite samples. As a result, our best nanocomposite sample boasts a ZT = 0.041 at 300 K, which is nearly three times as large as that for Co0.9Fe0.1Sb3 previously reported.
Expected charge states of energetic ions in the magnetosphere

Major developments in magnetospheric heavy ion physics during the period 1974-1977 are reviewed with emphasis on charge state aspects. Particular attention is given to the high energy component at energies above tens of keV per ion. Also considered are charge exchange processes with application to the inner magnetosphere, a comparison between theory and measurements, and a survey of heavy ion and charge state observations in the outer magnetosphere, magnetosheath and the surrounding space.
CCL5/RANTES Gene Deletion Attenuates Opioid-Induced Increases in Glial CCL2/MCP-1 Immunoreactivity and Activation in HIV-1 Tat-Exposed Mice

To assess the role of CC-chemokine ligand 5 (CCL5)/RANTES in opiate drug abuse and human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) comorbidity, the effects of systemic morphine and intrastriatal HIV-1 Tat on macrophage/microglial and astroglial activation were assessed in wild-type and CCL5 knockout mice. Mice were injected intrastriatally with vehicle or Tat and assessed after 7 days. Morphine was administered to some Tat-injected mice via time-release implant (5 mg/day, s.c. for 5 days) starting at 2 days post injection. Glial activation was significantly reduced in CCL5(−/−) compared to wild-type mice at 7 days following combined Tat and morphine exposure. Moreover, the percentage of 3-nitrotyrosine immunopositive macrophages/microglia was markedly reduced in CCL5(−/−) mice injected with Tat ± morphine compared to wild-type counterparts, suggesting that CCL5 contributes to nitrosative stress in HIV-1 encephalitis. In CCL5(−/−) mice, the reductions in Tat ± morphine-induced gliosis coincided with significant declines in the proportion of CCL2/MCP-1-immunoreactive astrocytes and macrophages/microglia compared to wild-type counterparts. In knockout mice, neither Tat alone nor in combination with morphine increased the proportion of CCL2-immunoreactive astrocytes above percentages seen in vehicle-injected controls. Macrophages/microglia differed showing modest, albeit significant, increases in the proportion of CCL2-positive cells with combined Tat and morphine exposure, suggesting that CCL5 preferentially affects CCL2 expression by astroglia. Thus, CCL5 mediates glial activation caused by Tat and morphine, thereby aggravating HIV-1 neuropathogenesis in opiate abusers and non-abusers. CCL5 is implicated as mediating the cytokine-driven amplification of CCL2 production by astrocytes and resultant macrophage/microglial recruitment and activation.
Optimum PN sequences for CDMA systems

Most known methods for the design of hopping patterns for frequency-hopped code-division multiple-access (CDMA) systems and for the design of signature sequences for direct-sequence CDMA systems provide sequences that can be viewed as codewords (or the images of codewords) from low-rate Reed-Solomon codes. This paper surveys sequence designs for CDMA systems from this viewpoint. >
FAK Inhibition with Small Molecule Inhibitor Y15 Decreases Viability, Clonogenicity, and Cell Attachment in Thyroid Cancer Cell Lines and Synergizes with Targeted Therapeutics

// Shalana O’Brien MD 1 , 2 , Vita M. Golubovskaya PhD 1 , Jeffrey Conroy 3 , Song Liu PhD 4 , Dan Wang MA 4 , Biao Liu PhD 4 , William G. Cance MD 1 1 Department of Surgical Oncology; Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY 2 University at Buffalo/State University of New York, Buffalo, NY 3 Genomics Shared Resource, Center for Personalized Medicine, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY 4 Bioinformatics Core, Biostatistics, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY Correspondence to: Dr. Vita Golubovskaya, e-mail: Vita.Golubovskaya@roswellpark.org Dr. William G. Cance, e-mail: William.Cance@roswellpark.org Received: June 18, 2014 Accepted: August 22, 2014 Published: August 25, 2014 ABSTRACT Focal adhesion kinase (FAK) is up-regulated in thyroid cancer and small molecule FAK scaffolding inhibitor, Y15, was shown to decrease cancer growth in vitro and in vivo. We sought to test the effectiveness of Y15 in thyroid cancer cell lines, profile gene expression with Y15 compared with clinical trial FAK inhibitor PF-04554878, and use Y15 in novel drug combinations. Cell viability was decreased in a dose dependent manner in four thyroid cancer cell lines with Y15 and with higher doses in PF-04554878. Y397 FAK and total FAK were decreased with Y15 and decreased less with PF-04554878. Detachment and necrosis were increased in a dose-dependent manner in all cell lines with Y15. Clonogenicity was decreased in a dose-dependent manner for both Y15 and PF-04554878. We compared gene profiles between papillary thyroid cell lines, TPC1, BCPAP and K1, and 380, 109, and 74 genes were significantly >2-fold changed with Y15 treatment, respectively. Common up-regulated genes were involved in apoptosis, cell cycle, transcription and heat shock; down-regulated genes were involved in cell cycle, cell-to-cell interactions, and cancer stem cell markers. We also compared gene profiles of TT cells treated with Y15 versus PF-04554878. Y15 caused 144 genes to change over 4 fold and PF-04554878 caused 208 gene changes >4-fold (p<0.05). Among genes changed 4 fold, 11 were shared between the treatments, including those involved in metabolism, cell cycle, migration and transcription. Y15 demonstrated synergy with PF-04554878 in TT cells and also synergy with Cabozantinib, Sorafenib, Pazopanib, and strong synergy with Sunitinib in resistant K1 cells. This report revealed the biological effect of Y15 inhibitor, detected the unique and common gene signature profiles in response to Y15 in 4 different thyroid cancer cell lines, demonstrated differential response changes with Y15 and PF-04554878 treatment, and showed the synergy of Y15 with PF-04554878, Cabozantinib, Sorafenib, Pazopanib, and Sunitinib.
Antagonisms between cadmium and zinc toxicity and manganese limitation in a coastal diatom

Long-term growth and metal (Mn and Cd) uptake experiments and short-term uptake kinetic experiments with the coastal diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana revealed antagonistic interactions between toxic metals (Zn and Cd) and the micronutrient manganese. Cd and Zn inhibited algal growth rate only at low Mn ion concentrations, an effect that could be totally accounted for by an inhibition of cellular Mn uptake by the toxic metals and the resultant generation of Mn-deficient cells. Mn and Zn inhibited cellular Cd uptake, indicating reciprocal effects among the metals with respect to uptake. Saturation kinetics modeling of the uptake data was consistent with all three metals competing with each other for binding to the Mn uptake system and with both Cd and Mn being transported into the cell by that system (uptake of Zn was not measured). Mathematical modeling of Mn and Cd uptake data revealed evidence for a Cd efflux system that was induced only at high cellular Cd concentrations and prevented cellular Cd from reaching toxic levels.
High-bandwidth laser-pulse generator using continuous-wave lasers

A laser-pulse generator for the transfer of continous-wave (cw) absolute radiometric calibrations to high-speed pulse photodetectors is described. The cw input lasers are modulated by a spinning polygon mirror in a ring cavity to produce high-speed, constant-amplitude, constant-shape laser pulses. Constant-amplitude outputs range temporally from cw to 15-ns full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) Gaussian pulses. An all-reflective optical design permits operation of the device from the visible to the far-infrared spectral regions. Design and performance estimates for the pulse generator as well as experimental verification are presented.
Partial order embedding with multiple kernels

We consider the problem of embedding arbitrary objects (e.g., images, audio, documents) into Euclidean space subject to a partial order over pair-wise distances. Partial order constraints arise naturally when modeling human perception of similarity. Our partial order framework enables the use of graph-theoretic tools to more efficiently produce the embedding, and exploit global structure within the constraint set.We present an embedding algorithm based on semidefinite programming, which can be parameterized by multiple kernels to yield a unified space from heterogeneous features.
Mutations in the linker domain affect phospho-STAT3 function and suggest targets for interrupting STAT3 activity

Crystallography of the cores of phosphotyrosine-activated dimers of STAT1 (132–713) and STAT3 (127–722) bound to a similar double-stranded deoxyoligonucleotide established the domain structure of the STATs and the structural basis for activation through tyrosine phosphorylation and dimerization. We reported earlier that mutants in the linker domain of STAT1 that connect the DNA-binding domain and SH2 domain can prevent transcriptional activation. Because of the pervasive importance of persistently activated STAT3 in many human cancers and the difficulty of finding useful drug candidates aimed at disrupting the pY interchange in active STAT3 dimers, we have examined effects of an array of mutants in the STAT3 linker domain. We have found several STAT3 linker domain mutants to have profound effects of inhibiting STAT3 transcriptional activation. From these results, we propose (i) there is definite functional interaction of the linker both with the DNA binding domain and with the SH2 domain, and (ii) these putative contacts provide potential new targets for small molecule-induced pSTAT3 inhibition.
Competition and Transparency in Financial Markets

Is competition sufficient to induce transparency in financialmarkets or is regulation necessary to achieve this? We examine this question taking into consideration that competition in financial markets frequently resembles a tournament, where superior relative performance and greater visibility are rewarded with convex payoffs. We show under fairly general conditions (i.e., model variations) that higher competition for this renumeration often makes discretionary disclosure less likely. In the limit when the market is perfectly competitive, transparency is minimized. This analysis implies that competition might be unreliable as a driver of transparency and self-regulation in financial markets, especially in settings where tournament-style renumeration takes place.
Greener Solvents: Room Temperature Ionic Liquids from Biorenewable Sources

Room temperature ionic liquids (RTILs) have attracted a great deal of interest as environmentally benign (green) solvents for organic synthesis. More recently, RTILs that are chiral, less expensive, or functionalized (protic or Lewis basic) have been developed. In many cases, these new solvents are based on the modification of natural products. This paper is an overview of these new biorenewable RTILs.
Human research review of the taser® electronic control device

TASER Electronic Control Devices have become mainstream methods of applying electricity to control unruly suspects. There has been speculation that they may be associated with worsening human physiology or death. The lay impressions that these devices are unsafe are not founded on known human research findings. This presentation briefly reviews the most pertinent human research on this subject.
A case of difficulty predicting neurological deficit during thoracoabdominal aortic surgery

Perioperative spinal cord injury associated with thoracoabdominal aorta (TAAA) surgery is a devastating complication. With variable results, the intraoperative use of neurophysiologic monitoring has been employed for the diagnosis and prevention of spinal cord ischemia. We present a case report of a patient undergoing TAAA surgery with the use of evoked potential monitoring. Intraoperatively, both sensory and motor evoked potentials were utilized and consequently the patient experienced changes in monitoring consistent with a new neurologic deficit. However, postoperatively these changes in evoked potentials never manifested in neurologic injury. We examine the utility of neurophysiologic monitoring as it pertains to TAAA surgery.
VRI : 3D QSAR AT VARIABLE RESOLUTION

VRI Variable Resolution Invariants is a new approach to quantitative structure)activity relations that makes use of three-dimensional features of molecules at different levels of spatial resolution as well as levels of resolution in atomic properties. These descriptors are independent of any numbering of the atoms of a molecule. They are also independent of rigid translation and rotation of a given conformer, which avoids problems with aligning different molecules or docking them with a receptor site model. Steric effects, stereospecificity, substituent effects, lipophilicity, and conformational flexibility are all dealt with in a single, natural formalism. Simple datasets can be fitted using a small number of descriptors corresponding to low-resolution descriptions of the molecules. More complicated data can require additional descriptors that recognize finer details of three-dimensional structure and physico-chemical properties. Overfitting due to the large number of descriptors is handled by partial least-squares analysis with crossvalidation. Performance in fitting and predicting is demonstrated on some simple illustrative cases, and on three standard sets of real data: steroids binding to human corticosteroid binding globulin and testosterone binding globulin, and inhibitors of dihydrofolate reductase. Q 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Comput Chem 20: 1577)1585, 1999
Recovery of a human natural antibody against the noncollagenous-1 domain of type IV collagen using humanized models

Anti-glomerular basement membrane nephritis and Goodpasture syndrome result from autoantibody (Ab)-mediated destruction of kidney and lung. Ab target the noncollagenous 1 (NC1) domain of alpha3(IV) collagen, but little is known about Ab origins or structure. This ignorance is due in part to the inability to recover monoclonal Ab by transformation of patients’ blood cells. The aim of this study was to assess the suitability of two humanized models for this purpose. NOD-scid-gamma immunodeficient mice were engrafted either with human CD34+ hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) (Hu-HSC mice) and immunized with alpha3(IV)NC1 collagen containing the Goodpasture epitopes or with nephritis patients’ peripheral blood leukocytes (PBL) (Hu-PBL mice). After in vivo immune cell development and/or expansion, recovered human B cells were Epstein Barr virus (EBV)-transformed, screened for antigen (Ag) binding, electrofused with a mouse–human heterohybridoma, subcloned, and human Ab RNA sequenced by PCR after reverse transcription to cDNA. Flow cytometry was used to assess human B cell markers and differentiation in Hu-PBL mice. Sequence analysis of a human Ab derived from an immunized Hu-HSC mouse and reactive with alpha3(IV)NC1 collagen reveals that it is encoded by unmutated heavy and light chain genes. The heavy chain complementarity determining region 3, a major determinant of Ag binding, contains uncommon motifs, including an N-region somatically-introduced highly hydrophobic tetrapeptide and dual cysteines encoded by a uniquely human IGHD2-2 Ab gene segment that lacks a murine counterpart. Comparison of human and mouse autoantibodies suggests that structurally similar murine Ab may arise by convergent selection. In contrast to the Hu-HSC model, transformed human B cells are rarely recovered from Hu-PBL mice, in which human B cells terminally differentiate and lose expression of EBV receptor CD21, thus precluding their transformation and recovery. Hu-HSC mice reveal that potentially pathogenic B cells bearing unmutated Ig receptors reactive with the NC1 domain on alpha3(IV) collagen can be generated in, and not purged from, the human preimmune repertoire. Uniquely human gene elements are recruited to generate the antigen binding site in at least a subset of these autoantibodies, indicating that humanized models may provide insights inaccessible using conventional mouse models.
Selected case studies in clinical biofeedback.

Described five cases (4 out- and 1 inpatient) in which biofeedback was employed as treatment. Emphasis was placed on the history of the problem, the amount of biofeedback training, and the individual patient's response to treatment. Several suggestions for routine clinical practice and future work were offered.
Clinically relevant intronic splicing enhancer mutation in myelin proteolipid protein leads to progressive microglia and astrocyte activation in white and gray matter regions of the brain

Introduction Mutations in proteolipid protein (PLP), the most abundant myelin protein in the CNS, cause the X-linked dysmyelinating leukodystrophies, Pelizaeus-Merzbacher disease (PMD) and spastic paraplegia type 2 (SPG2). Point mutations, deletion, and duplication of the PLP1 gene cause PMD/SPG2 with varying clinical presentation. Deletion of an intronic splicing enhancer (ISEdel) within intron 3 of the PLP1 gene is associated with a mild form of PMD. Clinical and preclinical studies have indicated that mutations in myelin proteins, including PLP, can induce neuroinflammation, but the temporal and spatial onset of the reactive glia response in a clinically relevant mild form of PMD has not been defined.
Inter-Party Mobility among Parliamentary Candidates in Post-Communist East Central Europe:

The development of stable partisan commitments among political elites is crucial for party-system institutionalization in the new democracies of post-communist Europe. Little is known, however, abo...
Genescapes: The Ecology of Genetic Engineering

Genescapes: The Ecology of Genetic Engineering Stephen Nottingham. London: Zed Books, 2002 .
“Hillary Clinton is the Only Man in the Obama Administration”: Dual Character Concepts, Generics, and Gender

An acquaintance of mine once remarked, “Hillary Clinton is the only man in the Obama administration”. This acquaintance was not confused about basic descriptive facts concerning the Obama administration, but rather was offering a colorful, negative evaluation of the members of the administration. With this comment, the speaker managed to derogate both the male members of the administration by deeming them not to be men, and Hillary Clinton by deeming her to be a man, and thus not really a woman. The comment is primarily insulting to the male members of the administration – implying that they are weak, passive, and ineffectual -- but is also insulting to Hillary Clinton, suggesting that she has taken on mannish characteristics to the point where she is no longer a woman. The comment further demeans women in general, associating them with undesirable features such as passivity and weakness -- yet at the same time, it cautions women against rejecting these features, lest they end up like the mannish Hillary Clinton.
Moving toward the Market and Away from Public Service? Effects of Resource Dependency and Academic Capitalism.

Research-extensive land-grant institutions face the unique challenge of asking faculty to fulfill a historic mission of public service in a time of scarce resources. This article discusses the parallel between the effects of resource dependency and academic capitalism on the research enterprise and on public service endeavors through the perceptions of faculty at a research-extensive land-grant institution. Results confirm that the nature of faculty public service work is shifting in scope, scale, process, and audience due to the scarcity of resources for public service and subsequent changes in faculty behavior. Perhaps the most difficult, as well as the most enduring, question of public service is the question of how we can afford it-or indeed whether we can afford not to do it (P. H. Crosson, Public Service in Higher Education: Practices and Priorities).
Impurity and defect engineering approaches for realization of 18% commercial silicon solar cells

The Silicon Materials Program, managed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) for the US Department of Energy (DOE), emphasizes basic research issues in solar cell technologies that are critical to achieving 18% efficient commercial silicon solar cells in the near future. This program supports subcontracted research teams in topics of analysis of commercial silicon, clarification of the physics of point defect processes, and application of these processes in new device fabrication techniques. The program also includes in-house projects in crystal growth, investigation of advanced processes, materials characterization, and development of characterization techniques. In this paper, we provide an overview of significant results and indicate planned directions for future research in the program.
Paralysis of the Serratus Anterior Due to Electric Shock Relieved by Transplantation of the Pectoralis Major Muscle

An unusual case of isolated serratus anterior paralysis is presented. The various muscle transplants for improvement of this syndrome are reviewed and a detailed illustrated discussion of a technique for the transplantation of the costosternal portion of the pectoralis major muscle is described. This transplant is the procedure of choice in an isolated serratus anterior paralysis.
Modulation of Neuronal Activity in the Visual Cortex of Awake Rabbits By Various Nonvisual Stimuli

Questions of multisensory convergence of nerve impulses in various areas of the cerebral cortex have recently attracted the attention of many investigators (2, 8, 9, 21, 22, et al.). These investigations have demonstrated that convergence of impulses of various modalities takes place not only in the cortical association areas, but also in the primary receptive areas of the cortex.
Abstract LB-178: Analysis of restored FFPE samples on Infinium methylation arrays

Millions of Formalin Fixed Paraffin Embedded (FFPE) cancer tissue samples currently present in the US and worldwide provide an enormous, invaluable repository to the discovery of biomarkers in cancer research, drug development, diagnosis and treatment of diseases. However, the processes of fixation and storage of FFPE samples leads to degradation and base modification with chemical residues. This degraded FFPE DNA is inefficiently amplified by the Infinium® whole genome amplification (WGA) step leading to poor performance in genome wide methylation analysis. In this study, purified FFPE DNA or crude lysates (200–500 ng input) were bisulfite converted and restored through Illumina9s Infinium HD DNA Restoration kit consisting of a combination of treatment with a DNA polymerase, a repair enzyme, and a ligase. Results of methylation analysis on high density HumanMethylation450 BeadChip®, featuring over 450,000 assays indicated that even highly degraded samples which show initial call rates (genes detected p =0.01) of 50–70% can be successfully restored to a state that achieved call rates of greater than 90%. Direct comparison of frozen and FFPE samples from the same tumors showed an R2 correlation of beta values of greater than 95.0% between fresh frozen (FF) and FFPE samples. We also developed a method to assess FFPE sample quality based on a 90 bp qPCR assay (Infinium HD FFPE QC kit). In this assay FFPE samples exhibiting a Ct (Cq) difference of less than six relative to an intact standard are considered to pass the QC test and generally perform well in the assay. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 102nd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2011 Apr 2-6; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2011;71(8 Suppl):Abstract nr LB-178. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2011-LB-178
Novel Fiber Lasers in the Visible, SWIR, and MWIR

This presentation will provide an overview of novel fiber laser sources in the visible, short-wave infrared (SWIR), and mid-wave infrared (MWIR) portions of the optical spectrum. Additionally, recent work in the long-wave infrared (LWIR) will be presented.
Study on the Relationship between Respiratory Syncytial Virus and Asthma in Children

Objective:To explore the role of respiratory syncytial virus(RSV)in asthma and the relative pathogenesis.Methods:RSV-IgM,IgG,and IgE were detected by ELISA in131children with asthma and30healthy children.All RSV positive patients and controls were detected for levels of serum RSV-IgE and IFN-γ.Results:Ninety-two patients(70.2%)were diagnosed RSV-IgM or RSV-IgG positive by ELISA in asthma group,and there was a significant difference compared with control group(P0.05).The levels of serum RSV-IgE in asthmatic group were higher than those in control group(P0.05),and the levels of serum IFN-γhad a adverse result(P0.05).Conclusion:The asthma in children has a close relationship with RSV infection,RSV can cause tissue destruction and reduce the levels of serum IFN-γ.Type I allergic reaction to the infection may play an important role in pathogenesis of RSV-induced exacerbations of asthma.
Correlation of prostate cancer nuclear deoxyribonucleic acid, size, shape and Gleason grade with pathological stage at radical prostatectomy.

AbstractUsing image cytometry and a video planimetry unit, various deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) measurements, nuclear size and shape factors, and Gleason grade were correlated with capsular penetration, seminal vesicle invasion and lymph node involvement in 113 radical prostatectomy specimens. Percentage of nondiploid cells was the best DNA measurement and standard deviation of nuclear area was the best size measurement correlating with capsular penetration. However, stepwise regression analysis demonstrated that Gleason grade was the only independent predictor of capsular penetration. The only parameter that independently predicted seminal vesicle invasion in a stepwise regression analysis was percentage of tetraploid cells. The mode of optical density was the best DNA measurement for predicting lymph node involvement, although stepwise regression analysis found that Gleason grade was the only independent predictor. DNA ploidy was not as predictive of pathological stage. In summary, DNA measurements and n...
Detection of occult gastrinomas with iodine 125-labeled lanreotide and intraoperative gamma detection.

BACKGROUND: Surgical exploration for gastrinoma has a high failure rate because of small primary tumors and occult metastasis. Despite extensive preoperative and intraoperative tumor localization, only 30% to 40% of patients with gastrinoma are cured by surgery. Two patients with unlocalized gastrinomas were studied with intraoperative gamma detection of an iodine 125-labeled somatostatin analog, lanreotide, to localize their tumors. METHODS: Both patients were challenged before operation with 100 micrograms of octreotide acetate, and both had circulating gastrin levels suppressed by greater than 50%. Iodine 125-labeled lanreotide (100 to 150 muCi) was injected during exploration, and an intraoperative gamma detector was used to detect tumor binding of the analog. RESULTS: In patient 1 a single source of increased counts was discovered in a retroduodenal lymph node, which was excised; no other tissue was removed. Histologic study of this node failed to demonstrate tumor; however, the patient's gastrin level was normal (63 pg/ml) 4 months after operation. In patient 2 five areas of increased counts were discovered and excised. Three of these five areas had visible tumor on microscopic examination. Three months after operation the patient's fasting gastrin level was 103 pg/ml. CONCLUSIONS: Intraoperative gamma detection of radiolabeled peptides may allow the localization of occult tumors that contain specific peptide receptors.