cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Tau induces formation of α-synuclein filaments with distinct molecular conformations.

Abstract Recent structural investigation of amyloid filaments extracted from human patients demonstrated that the ex vivo filaments associated with different disease phenotypes adopt diverse molecular conformations, which are different from those of in vitro amyloid filaments. A very recent cryo-EM structural study also revealed that ex vivo α-synuclein filaments extracted from multiple system atrophy patients adopt distinct molecular structures from those of in vitro α-synuclein filaments, suggesting the presence of co-factors for α-synuclein aggregation in vivo. Here, we report structural characterizations of α-synuclein filaments formed in the presence of a potential co-factor, tau, using cryo-EM and solid-state NMR. Our cryo-EM structure of the tau-promoted α-synuclein filaments reveals some similarities to one of the previously reported polymorphs of in vitro α-synuclein filaments in the core region, while illustrating distinct conformations in the N- and C-terminal regions. The structural study highlights the conformational plasticity of α-synuclein filaments and the importance of the co-factors, requiring additional structural investigation of not only more ex vivo α-synuclein filaments, but also in vitro α-synuclein filaments formed in the presence of diverse co-factors. The comparative structural analyses will help better understand molecular basis of diverse structures of α-synuclein filaments and possible relevance of each structure to the disease phenotype.
Increased maritime traffic in the Arctic: Implications for governance of Arctic sea routes

Abstract Climate change is producing maritime navigation opportunities in the Arctic. Melting sea ice in the summer months is increasing shipping and other vessel traffic. A well-developed body of literature investigates the viability of the two main shipping routes: the Northern Sea Route (NSR) and Northwest Passage (NWP). This article explores the impact increased maritime traffic will have on the governance of these routes. Despite lying within the Arctic region, each route has its own geophysical, legal, and political features that will shape the character of its governance regime. The NSR lies within Russia’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Although international reconciliation on the level of authority that Russia should have over the NSR is preferable, the route’s future political viability is not at risk as much as the NWP’s. Russia has long exerted, and will continue to exert, control over the NSR in accordance with its established governance system and in the name of environmental stewardship. In contrast, the legal status of the NWP in the Canadian archipelago, currently debated, will continue to be important to resolve as traffic increases. The viability of the NWP rests on international agreement, particularly since the entire route passes through the EEZs of multiple countries – the United States, Canada, and the Kingdom of Denmark. Russia exerts authority over NSR traffic regardless of legal and political contentions, while Canada does not exercise a similar level of control over the NWP due to the ongoing conflict over the legal status of the route.
Phase 1/2 trial of vorinostat in patients with sickle cell disease who have not benefitted from hydroxyurea

To the editor: Worldwide, over 200 000 babies are born annually with sickle cell disease (SCD). In the United States, over 90 000 people have SCD.[1][1] Induction of fetal hemoglobin (HbF) is a well-established strategy to inhibit sickle hemoglobin polymerization.[2][2] To date, hydroxyurea,
An overview of empirical research on ethics in entrepreneurial firms within the United States

Scholars recognise that entrepreneurs may encounter different ethical issues and pressures than managers in larger corporations. This has fostered empirical research aimed at assessing ethics in entrepreneurial settings in the United States. Our emphasis on empirical research with little attention paid to purely conceptual papers allows us to highlight the narrow definition of entrepreneurship used in the US and how US researchers distinguish between entrepreneurship and other types of small businesses. This differs greatly from many other countries, especially those in which researchers equate entrepreneurship with the study of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). Researchers in the US often distinguish ethics from corporate social responsibility (CSR), corporate social performance (CSP), stakeholder theory and stakeholder management with different theoretical models proposed in each of these areas. After discussing these various definitional issues, we review the empirical research on ethics in entrepreneurial firms, discussing what the results tell us, identifying gaps in prior research and concluding with recommendations for future research that draws more heavily on theoretical frameworks in the field of ethics.
Abstract 20127: Race and Insurance Status as Determinants of Prolonged Total Ischemic Time in ST Elevation Myocardial Infarction

Introduction: In STEMI, early reperfusion is imperative to preserve viability. The interval between steady ischemic symptom onset to first medical contact time (ST1) is a component of total ischemic time (IT) that has a large margin for improvement. Hypothesis: We hypothesized that ST1 is the main contributor to IT and can be influenced by specific patient demographics, characteristics and socio-economical status. Methods: We queried the database from an experienced urban-based STEMI accredited receiving center in Houston, TX from 2011 to 2014. We included only patients with STEMI who presented directly from the community to our hospital via EMS. IT was defined as the sum of ST1, first medical contact (FMC) to hospital arrival and arrival to first device activation (FDA) times. Patients transferred from outside facilities or without documented symptom onset, FMC or FDA times were excluded. Results: 263 patients met the inclusion criteria: 52% White, 28% Black and 17% Hispanic. 48% had private insurance, 38% Medicare and 8% Medicaid. Mean ST1 was 117, FMC to arrival 49 and arrival to FDA 58 min. Mean ST1 comprised 41.7% of IT. Compared to other groups, the Black race was independently associated with the longest ST1 time at 156 ± 234 min (p = 0.05), Similarly, Medicaid insurance status showed the highest ST1 time at 283 ± 396 min (p Conclusions: 1. Symptoms onset to first medical contact time (ST1) has the largest impact on total ischemic time in STEMI. 2. Black race and Medicaid insurance status are associated with a longer ST1 time. 3. Continued public education regarding prolonged myocardial ischemia is needed.
High frequency characteristics of nanocomposite thin film "supercapacitors" and their suitability for embedded decoupling

Embedded decoupling capacitor problem has been pursued by several groups and industry around the world over the past decade. Currently popular ceramic-polymer composites can only provide limited capacitance, typically within 10 nF/cm. With the reliability and processing constraints imposed, the capacitance density would be much lower. Newer capacitor concepts such as supercapacitors can overcome the limitations of existing polymer based capacitors and are now being considered by some groups. These concepts rely on nanostructured electrodes for high surface area per unit volume resulting in ultrahigh capacitance densities and unconventional polarization mechanisms such as electrical double layer and interfacial polarization. Supercapacitive structures lead to ultrahigh capacitance densities of the order of 100s of microfarads. However, manufacturers report that the properties are unstable at high frequencies, typically even at 10s of MHz. To adapt these structures for mid-to-high-frequency decoupling, it is hence essential to systematically characterize the high frequency dielectric properties of the thin nanocomposite films and nanostructured electrodes. This work reports complete electrical characterization of a part of such system, carbon black-epoxy nanocomposites. The high-frequency properties of the cured films were evaluated with a multiline calibration technique by measuring s-parameters of transmission lines fabricated on the top of the dielectrics. Though the nanostructured carbon black epoxy composites showed high dielectric constant of 1000 at low frequencies, the high frequency (0.5-4.5 GHz) dielectric constant was found to be only up to 10/spl times/ that of the base polymer matrix. The measured dielectric constant at GHz frequencies increased from 15-30 when the filler content was increased from 3.8 % to 6.5 %, with excessive leakage currents. Based on these measurements, conduction and polarization relaxation mechanisms will be assessed and the suitability of the thin film supercapacitors for high-frequency decoupling applications will be discussed.
Physics-based ultra-wideband channel modeling for tunnel/mining environments

Understanding wireless channels in mining environments is critical for designing optimized wireless systems in these complex environments. In this paper, we propose a physics-based deterministic UWB channel model for characterizing wireless channels in mining/tunnel environments. Both the time domain Channel Impulse Response (CIR) and frequency domain channel transfer function for tunnel environments are derived in an analytical form. The derived CIR and transfer function are validated by RF measurements at different frequencies.
The Minimal Buffering Requirements of Congestion Controlled Interactive Multimedia Applications

This paper uses analysis and experiments to study the minimal buffering requirements of congestion controlled multimedia applications. Applications in the Internet must use congestion control protocols, which vary transmission rates according to network conditions. To produce a smooth perceptual quality, multimedia applications use buffering and rate adaptations to compensate these rate oscillations. While several adaptation policies are available, they require different amounts of buffering at end-hosts. We study the relationship between buffering requirements and adaptation policies. In particular, we focus on a widely pursued policy that adapts an application's sending rate exactly to the average available bandwidth to maximize throughput. Under this adaptation policy, at least a minimal amount of buffering is required to smooth the rate oscillation inherent in congestion control, and we view this minimal buffering requirement as a cost of maximizing throughput. We derive the minimal buffering requirement for this policy assuming that applications use an additive-increase-and-multiplicative-decrease (AIMD) algorithm for congestion control. The result shows the relationship between parameters of AIMD algorithms and the delay cost. We show that the buffering requirement is proportional to the parameters of the AIMD algorithm and quadratic to the application's sending rate and round-trip-time. We verify this relationship through experiments. Our results indicate that adaptation policies that maximize throughput are not suitable for interactive applications with high bit rates or long round-trip-times.
Human embryonic myosin heavy chain cDNA: Interspecies sequence conservation of the myosin rod, chromosomal locus and isoform specific transcription of the gene

Abstract A 3.6 kilobase cDNA clone coding for the human embryonic myosin heavy chain has been isolated and characterized from an expression library prepared from human fetal skeletal muscle. The derived amino acid sequence for the entire rod part of myosin shows 97% sequence homology between human and rat and a striking interspecies sequence conservation among the charged amino acid residues. The single copy gene is localized to human chromosome 17 and its expression in fetal skeletal muscle is developmentally regulated. The sequence information permits the design of isoform-specific probes for studies on the structure of the gene and its role in normal and defective human myogenesis. Myosin heavy chain cDNA; Nucleotide sequence; Amino acid sequence; Myosin rod; Chromosomal mapping; Gene transcription; (Human embryo)
A crossword puzzle generator using genetic algorithms with Wisdom of Artificial Crowds

NP-hard problems, such as generating crossword puzzles, are candidates for solution by genetic algorithms (GAs). A combination of both a genetic algorithms and a Wisdom of Artificial Crowds (WoAC) aggregation method was developed for the purpose of creating crossword puzzles given a particular outline. The program was written using a GPL Hunspell wrapper NHunspell for word verification and suggestion. In American-style crossword puzzles, we saw performance improvements of around 20% in reaching a local optima, with a 6% improvement in the number of successful words found by a GA + WoAC algorithm over the baseline genetic algorithm.
An Investigation of the Role of Project Culture in Team Efficacy and Success in Project-Based Work

We examined the effect of project team culture on the evolution of team efficacy in a sample of 118 project teams. Little is known about the factors responsible for the development of team efficacy — the collective belief of a project team that it can be effective. Results reveal that culture in project-based work, is related to the project team’s efficacy, and the project team’s efficacy is related to success. Our findings provide project leaders with an alternative informal lever to enhance project success, by influencing team efficacy in project-based work.
Infrastructure, Geographical Disadvantage, and Transport Costs

The authors use three different data sets to investigate how transport depends on geography and infrastructure. Landlocked countries have high transport costs, which can be substantially reduced by improving the quality of their infrastructure and that of transit countries. Analysis of bilateral trade data confirms the importance of infrastructure. The authors estimate the elasticity of trade flows with regard to transport costs to be high, at about -2.5. This means that: 1) The median landlocked country has only 30 percent of the trade volume of the median coastal economy. 2) Halving transport costs increases the volume of trade by a factor of five. 3) Improving infrastructure from the 75th to the 50th percentile increases trade by 50 percent. Using their results and a basic gravity model to study Sub-Saharan African trade, both internally and with the rest of the world, the authors find that infrastructure problems largely explain the relatively low levels of African trade.
MasterCases. Spine Surgery.

Alexander R. Vaccaro and Todd J. Albert, editors. New York: Thieme; 2001. 552 pages. $149.00. This book has an unusual format that may be very useful and educational for many readers. Numerous well‐known spine surgeons and their younger colleagues present a series of cases (including the medical history and the clinical and radiographic findings), which include “pearls” and “pitfalls,” a review of treatment options, …
Keeping House in Lusaka

Keeping House in Lusaka. Karen Tranberg Hansen. New York: Columbia University Press, 1997. 228 pp.
Resistance to Heterodera schachtii in patellares section of the genus Beta

Fifty-two accessions of the section Patellares wild beet (including 26 Beta patellaris Moq., 13 B. procumbens Chr. Sm and 13 B. webbiana Moq.) and 14 progeny families were selected and tested against sugarbeet cyst nematode, Heterodera schachtii Schm. All Patellares species tested were highly resistant, but not immune, to the development of H. schachtii, after infection. This is the first report that mature female nematodes developed in the roots of B. webbiana plants. The occasional development of nematode cysts in roots of juvenile wild beets was, however, not a heritable genetic factor.
Effects of Recombinant Baculoviruses on Three Nontarget Heliothine Predators

Abstract Genetically engineered baculoviruses, relative to their wild-type progenitors, have successfully improved the time-to-kill of these arthropod-specific biopesticides. Beneficial arthropods that prey on targeted pest insects are likely the first nontarget organisms to be adversely affected by the applications of such biopesticides. The goals of this project were to assess potential risks of the recombinant baculoviruses on Solenopsis invicta, Geocoris punctipes, and Hippodamia convergens, all of which are common predators of heliothines in Texas cotton. Four recombinant Autographa californica nuclear polyhedrosis viruses (AcNPV), one Helicoverpa zea nuclear polyhedrosis virus (HzNPV), and two corresponding wild-type NPVs were used in this risk assessment study. Risks associated with these baculoviruses were determined by possible shifts in predator life history traits (rate of food consumption, travel speed, fecundity, and survival) when fed prey infected with recombinant viruses compared to prey infected with wild-type viruses or to healthy prey. We also tested for possible transmission of these viruses by predators using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). No significant shifts in life history characteristics were detected in predators fed Heliothis virescens larvae infected with any of the seven viruses. Viral DNA was discovered using PCR in 2.3% of fire ant workers, but not from any of the queens or eggs. In G. punctipes, 13.4% of adults and 0.5% of eggs scored positive for viruses. Twelve percent of H. convergens adults were found PCR positive. Residency in all three predators tested provides a pathway which could increase the persistence of recombinant viral particles in the environment and thus may produce an indeterminable amount of risk associated with their inadvertent movement.
Synthesis and Characterization of Flexible Hydrogel Electrodes for Electrochemical Impedance Measurements of Protective Coatings on Metal Sculptures

A novel conductive anionic hydrogel was synthesized for use as a solid electrolyte for electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) characterization of the barrier properties of protective coatings on outdoor metalworks, such as bronze sculptures. The AMPS-co-PAA hydrogel was soaked in a variety of aqueous salt solutions and characterized by swelling capacity and conductivity in order to determine the most appropriate gel/liquid electrolyte combination for use on culturally significant objects. K2PIPES-equilibrated hydrogels were selected as the preferred electrodes for this particular application and were used to measure the impedance of a coated substrate, yielding spectra similar to those from standard liquid cells.
On sets of integers, none of which divides the product of k others

This paper is a continuation of previous work by Gyori, Sarkozy, and the author, concerning the maximal number of integers that can be selected from {1,2,...,N} so that none of them divides the product of k others.
Brain peptidases: conversion and inactivation of kinin hormones.

— Two enzymes that selectively hydrolyse kinins at pH 7.5 were obtained in partially purified form from the supernatant fraction of homogenates of previously frozen rabbit brain by gel filtration on Sephadex G-100. The enzymes were detected and their activity estimated by bioassay with the isolated guinea pig ileum The products of the enzymic reactions were identified by high voltage electrophoresis at pH 3.5 and by the determination with the amino acid analyser of the amino acids released from the kinins. One enzyme, kinin-converting enzyme, catalyses the hydrolysis of kinin-10 (Lysbradykinin) and kinin-11 (Met-Lys-bradykinin) into kinin-9 (bradykinin). It also hydrolyses the aminoacyl-8-naphthylamides of methionine, lysine, arginine and leucine. The conversion of kinin-10 to kinin-9 was inhibited by puromycin (Ki 3.5 × 10−5 M) These properties are similar to those of brain arylamidases described in the literature. Kininase, the second enzyme, inactives kinins 9, 10 and 11 by peptide-bond hydrolysis. Similar rates of release of arginine and phenylalanine were observed for the three kinins, suggesting that kininase acts at the carboxy-terminus of these peptides. Our results suggest that brain contains proteases which apparently selectively metabolize polypeptide hormones that exert definite pharmacological effects on the central and peripheral nervous systems.
Lesions and inactivation implicate dorsolateral hindbrain in MFB self-stimulation.

Abstract Two experiments explored the role of the motor nucleus of the trigeminal nerve (Mo5) and surrounding area in the rewarding effects of medial forebrain bundle (MFB) stimulation. In the first, eight rats received serial bilateral lesions of the target region. The reward value of MFB stimulation was assessed at 200, 400, and 800 μA using the rate–frequency curve shift paradigm. In five rats, no lesions affecting the motor nucleus or its surrounding area affected the frequency required to maintain half-maximal response rate at any current. One rat with a relatively ventrally placed lesion showed substantial enhancement of stimulation reward value at two currents, while two rats with lesions affecting the area around the descending fibers of the superior cerebellar peduncle (scp) showed substantial increases in required frequency. In the second experiment, six rats received uni- and bilateral injections of lidocaine to temporarily inactivate the target area. Two rats with injections centered near the descending fibers of the scp showed substantial increases in required frequency, as great as 0.30 log 10 units. Two rats with injections slightly rostral to these showed little change in required frequency. Two rats with injections in the ventral cerebellum, just lateral to the fastigial nucleus, showed increases in required frequency, particularly following injections contralateral to the MFB stimulation site. These data are interpreted to imply a role for the area around the lateral pole of the scp, perhaps including axons arising from the cerebellum, in MFB stimulation reward.
Fermentation parameters of Peptostreptococcus productus on gaseous substrates (CO, H2/CO2)

Intrinsic growth and substrate uptake parameters were obtained for Peptostreptococcus productus, strain U-1, using carbon monoxide as the limiting substrate. A modified Monod model with substrate inhibition was used for modeling. In addition, a product yield of 0.25 mol acetate/mol CO and a cell yield of 0.034 g cells/g CO were obtained. While CO was found to be the primary substrate, P. productus is able to produce acetate from CO2 and H2, although this substrate could not sustain growth. Yeast extract was found to also be a growth substrate. A yield of 0.017 g cell/g yeast extract and a product yield of 0.14 g acetate/g yeast extract were obtained. In the presence of acetate, the maximum specific CO uptake rate was increased by 40% compared to the maximum without acetate present. Cell replication was inhibited at acetate concentrations of 30 g/l. Methionine was found to be an essential nutrient for growth and CO uptake by P. productus. A minimum amount of a complex medium such as yeast extract (0.01%) is, however, required.
The Importance of DT-Diaphorase in Mitomycin C Resistance in Human Colon Cancer Cell Lines

Abstract Background.Prior studies have suggested the multifactorial nature of mitomycin C (MMC) resistance. However, the relative importance of the different resistance mechanisms is unknown. Materials and methods.A panel of colon cancer cell lines with levels of MMC resistance from 2- to 15-fold compared to the parent line HT-29 was produced by repeated MMC exposure. Cell survival was measured using clonogenic assay. Glutathione and related enzymes and DT-diaphorase were measured using biochemical assays. P-glycoprotein expression was measured using flow cytometry. Topoisomerase II activity was measured using the pBR322 DNA relaxation assay. Results.Multiple drug resistance mechanisms were altered in the resistant cell lines (glutathione reductase, glutathione peroxidase, topoisomerase II). However, the level of DT-diaphorase correlated best with the degree of MMC resistance. The importance of DT-diaphorase was confirmed by using BMY 25282, an MMC analogue which is less dependent on DT-diaphorase for activation. Resistance in the HT-29R54 cell line was 15-fold with MMC compared to 5-fold with BMY 25282. P-glycoprotein-mediated resistance does not appear important in this model. Conclusions.Although MMC resistance appears to be multifactorial, the results of this study strongly suggest that DT-diaphorase is the major contributor to MMC resistance under aerobic conditions. Strategies to enhance drug activation may therefore be useful for reversing MMC resistance.
Sur un nouvel anticoagulant extrait du tissu musculaire de lapin

Resume Un nouvel anticoagulant biologique a ete extrait et purifie a partir d'extraits de muscle de lapin. Il retarde la coagulation du plasma a des taux de 1 γ pour 0.2 ml de plasma. Il inhibe la conversion de la prothrombine en thrombine et agit donc sur le premier temps du processus de la coagulation. Il prolonge le temps de prothrombine mesure par la methode en un temps. Il exerce une action antagoniste sur la thromboplastine et est considere comme un agent antithromboplastine, mais ne parait pas agir sur la prothrombine elle-meme. Il est inactif sur le deuxieme temps de la coagulation. Ses effets ne sont pas inhibes par la protamine. L'anticoagulant musculaire est thermolabile et parait etre une proteine. Aucun compose lipidique actif n'a pu en etre separe et il semble etre different des inhibiteurs tissulaires decrits precedemment.
Internal brain herniation in a patient with Apert's syndrome

Patients with Apert's syndrome typically exhibit craniosynostosis, exorbitism, midface hypoplasia, and symmetric syndactyly. There have also been occasional descriptions of the variable dysmorphology of the inner surface of the calvarium. We present a patient with Apert's syndrome who had an intracranial herniation of a portion of the frontal lobe through a ridge of ossified dura. The ridge and the gliotic cortical tissue were removed when the patient underwent repair of the hypertelorism at age six. Bone grafts for this repair were fashioned in part from the resected ridge. We believe this finding may be the result of a small dural tear that occurred during prior surgery.
Novel aspects of tetramer assembly and N-terminal domain structure and function are revealed by recombinant expression of human AMP deaminase isoforms.

AMP deaminase isoforms purified from endogenous sources display smaller than predicted subunit molecular masses, whereas baculoviral expression of human AMPD1 (isoform M) and AMPD3 (isoform E) cDNAs produces full-sized recombinant enzymes. However, nearly 100 N-terminal amino acid residues are cleaved from each recombinant polypeptide during storage at 4 °C. Expression of N-truncated cDNAs (ΔL96AMPD1and ΔM90AMPD3) produces stable recombinant enzymes exhibiting subunit molecular masses and kinetic properties that are similar to those reported for purified isoforms M and E. Conversely, wild type recombinant isoforms display significantly higherK m(app) values in the absence of ATP. Gel filtration analysis demonstrates native tetrameric structures for all recombinant proteins, except the wild type AMPD1 enzyme, which forms aggregates of tetramers that disperse upon cleavage of N-terminal residues at 4 °C. These data: 1) confirm that available literature on AMP deaminase is likely derived from N-truncated enzymes and 2) are inconsistent with a new model proposing native trimeric structure of an N-truncated rabbit skeletal muscle AMP deaminase (Ranieri-Raggi, M., Montali, U., Ronca, F., Sabbatini, A., Brown, P. E., Moir, A. J. G., and Raggi, A. (1997)Biochem. J. 326, 641–648). N-terminal residues also influence actomyosin-binding properties of the enzyme, which are enhanced and suppressed by AMPD1 and AMPD3sequences, respectively. Finally, co-expression of AMPD1and AMPD3 recombinant polypeptides produces tetrameric enzymes with either isoform-specific or mixed subunits, and also reveals that tetramer assembly is driven by relative polypeptide abundance with no apparent preference for like subunits.
Turnover of Phosphatidylcholine in Saccharomyces cerevisiae THE ROLE OF THE CDP-CHOLINE PATHWAY

The regulation of phosphatidylcholine degradation as a function of the route of phosphatidylcholine (PC) synthesis and changing environmental conditions has been investigated in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. In the wild-type strains studied, deacylation of phosphatidylcholine to glycerophosphocholine is induced when choline is supplied to the culture medium and, also, when the culture temperature is raised from 30 to 37 degrees C. In strains bearing mutations in any of the genes encoding enzymes of the CDP-choline pathway for phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis (CKI1, choline kinase; CPT1, 1, 2-diacylglycerol choline phosphotransferase; PCT1, CTP:phosphocholine cytidylyltransferase), no induction of phosphatidylcholine turnover and glycerophosphocholine production is seen in response to choline availability or elevated temperature. In contrast, the induction of phosphatidylcholine deacylation does occur in a strain bearing mutations in genes encoding enzymes of the methylation pathway for phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis (i.e. CHO2/PEM1 and OPI3/PEM2). Whereas the synthesis of PC via CDP-choline is accelerated when shifted from 30 to 37 degrees C, synthesis of PC via the methylation pathway is largely unaffected by the temperature shift. These results suggest that the deacylation of PC to GroPC requires an active CDP-choline pathway for PC biosynthesis but not an active methylation pathway. Furthermore, the data indicate that the synthesis and turnover of CDP-choline-derived PC, but not methylation pathway-derived PC, are accelerated by the stress of elevated temperature.
Calculation of back stress decrease caused by climb of Orowan loops in a dispersion hardened alloy

Abstract The distribution of the Orowan loops around spherical particles in a dispersion hardened material has been calculated from an analysis dealing with kinetics of the climb of the loops through the dislocation pipe diffusion. The Orowan loop distribution has been converted to an eigen-strain distribution inside the particle. After approximating the eigenstrain with the sum of a constant and a term proportional to the square of a coordinate, the back stress has been calculated by applying an inclusion problem of continuum mechanics. The calculation has been compared with experimental data of a Cu-SiO2 alloy and has been found to be in good agreement.
Effects of differential rotation on the gravitational figures of Jupiter and Saturn

It is assumed that observed zonal currents in the atmospheres of Jupiter and Saturn correspond to a state of permanent rotation, and that the angular velocity is constant on cylindrical surfaces parallel to the rotation axis. The equation of hydrostatic equilibrium for a rotating planet is solved under these restrictive assumptions, and the effect of the hypothesized rotation state on the planet's gravity harmonics and external shape is investigated. Spacecraft data on zonal currents are used to derive nearly model-independent corrections to the first four zonal gravity harmonic coefficients, which can be used to correct observed gravity harmonics to values appropriate for solid-body rotation. If the assumed rotation state is applicable, then zonal currents lead to measurable topography of isopycnic surfaces with respect to the reference figure defined by the magnetospheric rotation period and the gravity harmonics. The amplitude of the topography is on the order of 5 km for Jupiter and 60 km for Saturn.
Survival of two species of amphipods in aqueous extracts of petroleum oils

Abstract Aqueous extracts of two petroleum oils, No. 2 fuel oil and Southern Louisiana crude, were tested on two amphipods, Gammarus muccronatus and Amphithoe valida, for survival. The oils were toxic at concentrations of 0.8 ppm (fuel oil) and 2.4 ppm (S. Louisiana crude). Mortalities increased with the concentration and length of exposure. Few or no young were produced at these and higher concentrations (breeding adults were decreasing rapidly in numbers). The amphipods are more sensitive to aqueous extracts of these oils than benthic polychaetes and shrimp, for which data are available.
Structure Based Drug Design in Novel Druggable Pockets on Rho Family GTPases

Rho GTPases are conformational switches that control a wide variety of signaling pathways critical for eukaryotic cell development and proliferation. They represent attractive targets for drug design as their aberrant function and up-regulation is associated with many human diseases including cancer. Extensive high-resolution structures and mutagenesis studies have laid the foundation for the design of new structure-based chemotherapeutic strategies. We describe the application of molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, principal component analysis, sequence conservation analysis, fragment mapping and ensemble small-molecule docking to provide a complete mapping of potential small-molecule binding pockets.View Large Image | View Hi-Res Image | Download PowerPoint SlideCharacterized sites include novel pockets in the vicinity of conformationaly responsive switch regions as well as distal sites that appear to be allosterically linked to the nucleotide and effecter binding regions. Intensive virtual screening and docking calculations applied to these specific novel sites revealed promising compounds candidates for experimental assays. Furthermore, the use of a single accelerated MD simulation, advanced MD method that extends the accessible time-scale of conventional simulations, reveals a distribution of binding sites equivalent to the sum of the accumulated crystal structures including transient binding sites that are practically impossible to observe with conventional MD.
Tumorigenicity and the quantity of virus DNA in polyoma-transformed and revertant cell lines.

Abstract The amount of virus DNA per cell was compared with the tumorigenicity of a polyoma-transformed line of mouse cells and two revertant lines selected for low saturation density after treatment with concanavalin A. The amount of virus DNA in cells of a tumor produced by inoculating the parent transformed line into syngeneic mice was also determined. Analysis of the reassociation kinetics suggests that all of these cells contain one copy of 35% of the virus genome per diploid quantity of cell DNA.
Synovial cysts: to fuse or not to fuse?

COMMENTARY ON: Bydon A, Xu R, Parker SL, et al. Recurrent back and leg pain and cyst reformation after surgical resection of spinal synovial cysts: systemic review of reported postoperative outcomes. Spine J 2010;10:820–826 ( in this issue ).
P-015 Initial experience with a coaxial dual-lumen balloon catheter for wide-neck aneurysm coil embolization

Introduction Techniques for coil-embolization of wide-neck cerebral aneurysms include the use of stents and temporary occlusion with compliant non-detachable balloons to achieve safe and densely packed coil positioning. We describe the use of a new balloon device for wide-neck aneurysm treatment. Methods A single institution neuroendovascular device inventory was accessed to identify cases in which the Ascent balloon (Micrus Endovascular, San Jose, California, USA) was used for aneurysm coil embolization. Clinical, demographic, and angiographic data were obtained through chart review. Results Six cerebral aneurysm cases were treated using the Ascent balloon during the first 8-month period that the new device was available at our institution. Two of the patients presented with ruptured aneurysms. All aneurysms were large (maximum diameter 7 mm or greater) with an average neck length of 6.1 mm. Complete occlusion with coil embolization (Raymond class I) was achieved in all cases. The Ascent balloon was successfully positioned across the neck of the aneurysm in five patients, while delivery to the aneurysm neck was unsuccessful due to vessel tortuosity in one patient. Conclusions This initial experience demonstrates the feasibility, initial outcomes, and short-term follow-up results of a coaxial dual-lumen design balloon catheter used as an assistive device in coil embolization of wide-neck cerebral aneurysms. This new device contributes to the growing number of options for treatment of complex cerebral aneurysms.
A tunable three layer phase mask for single laser exposure 3D photonic crystal generations: bandgap simulation and holographic fabrication

Through the use of a multi-layer phase mask to produce five-beam interference, three-dimensional photonic crystals can be formed through single exposure to a photoresist. In these holographically formed structures, the interconnectivity is controlled by the relative phase difference among contributing beams. Photonic band gaps are calculated and the simulation shows a maximum bandgap of 18% of the middle gap frequency when the phase difference is optimized. A three-layer phase mask is fabricated by placing a spacer layer between two orthogonally-orientated gratings. The phase difference is controlled by thermal-tuning of the spacer thickness. Photonic crystal templates are holographically fabricated in a photosensitive polymer using the phase mask.
Identification of the binding site for fondaparinux on Beta2-glycoprotein I

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is an autoimmune disease with clinical manifestations of thrombosis and pregnancy complications. Beta2-glycoprotein I (β2GPI) is the major antigen for the APS-related antibodies. Heparin, low-molecular weight heparin and the synthetic pentasaccharide fondaparinux are commonly used for prophylaxis and treatment of thrombosis in patients with antiphospholipid syndrome. These antithrombotic drugs bind and activate antithrombin III to inactivate blood clotting proteases. Heparin and heparin derivatives might have a direct beneficial effect in APS via binding to β2GPI and interfering with prothrombotic properties of β2GPI/antibody complexes. We compared fondaparinux to heparin regarding its ability to bind β2GPI and inhibit the binding of β2GPI/antibody complexes to negatively charged phospholipids and endothelial cells. Although heparin and fondaparinux bind β2GPI at therapeutically relevant doses, neither fondaparinux nor heparin was efficient in inhibition of the binding of β2GPI/antibody complexes to negatively charged phospholipids and endothelial cells. Our studies suggest that these drugs do not act on pathological properties of β2GPI/antibody complexes, emphasizing the need for a new treatment specific for β2GPI-related thrombosis in APS. We observed that the binding interface of fondaparinux on β2GPI does not include the lysine residues known to be critical for binding of heparin. The docking model of the β2GPI complex with fondaparinux is in agreement with multiple experimental observations.
An orientation preserving fixed point free homeomorphism of the plane which admits no closed invariant line

Abstract Though fixed point free homeomorphisms of the plane would appear to exhibit the simplest dynamical behavior, we show that the minimal sets can be quite complex. Every homeomorphism which is conjugate to a translation must have a closed invariant line. However we construct an orientation preserving fixed point free homeomorphism of the plane which admits no closed invariant line. We verify that no such line exists by considering the ‘fundamental regions” of our example. Fundamental regions, studied first by Stephen Andrea, are equivalence classes of points in the plane associated with a given homeomorphism. Two points are said to be in the same equivalence class if they can be connected by an arc which diverges to infinity under both the forward and backward iterates of the homeomorphism. Our example contains no invariant fundamental regions.
Novel Communications in Diabetes: Another Small but Significant Step for Diabetes Care

In my commentary “ Diabetes Care : ‘State of the Union’” that appeared in the January 2013 issue of Diabetes Care , I gave a comprehensive listing of the progress made to date for the first year for our current editorial team (1). At that time, and also at the beginning of our term over a year ago, I continued to stress that our goal as an editorial team was to adhere to “a strategy to continue the momentum and make changes only as required to allow the journal to thrive” (1,2). With this commentary, I wanted to inform our readers, authors, and reviewers that we have taken yet another small but significant step toward that goal. In brief, these steps involve the elimination of one manuscript category (Brief Report), the introduction of a new category for author consideration and submission (Novel Communications in Diabetes), and the addition of a former manuscript interest area (Emerging Technologies and Therapeutics). To understand why we are implementing these changes, one has to look no further than what has happened to the diabetes landscape over the last few years. There is no question that there are tremendous advancements in clinical care, clinical research, and translation of findings. We have and will continue to readily review and publish the top articles in these areas and, in many cases, actively seek and request submission of the truly unique manuscripts to our journal. Clearly, the incredible changes occurring in technology cannot be overstated. It is truly amazing how things have changed in the way we now obtain information from scientific journals in general, and this …
Efficient Two-Step Synthesis of Biodiesel from Greases†

Biodiesel (BD) is an alternative diesel fuel derived from both vegetable oils and animal fats. Currently, most BD is made by alkali-catalyzed transesterification of a refined oil or fat, the cost of which is the major expenditure in producing BD. Yellow and brown greases are readily available renewable fats that are less expensive and hence represent attractive feedstocks for the production of BD. The high free fatty acid (FFA) content of these feedstocks, however, makes it difficult to produce BD using base-catalyzed transesterification. In this paper, we report the use of a series of diarylammonium catalysts that are highly effective in catalyzing the esterification of the FFA present in greases (12–40 wt % FFA). At a catalyst loading of 2–3 mol %, high conversions of FFA to esters (95−99%) were achieved by treating the greases with 5–20 equiv of methanol at 95 °C for 2 h. The treated greases had a final FFA content of 0.5–1 wt %. We also incorporated these diarylammonium catalysts into insoluble porous...
Peripheral administration of PYY3–36 produces conditioned taste aversion in mice

Peptide YY (PYY) is a postprandially released gut hormone. Peripheral administration of one form of the peptide PYY3-36 produces a short-term reduction in food intake in rodents. Initial reports suggested that effects of PYY3-36 on food intake are mediated by increasing the anorexigenic drive from melanocortin neurons in the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus. However, more recent data have demonstrated that the anorexigenic activity of PYY3-36 is not dependent on melanocortin ligands or their receptors in the CNS. We demonstrate here that the anorexigenic actions of PYY3-36 are also not dependent on the vagus nerve, a common pathway of satiety signaling. Peripherally administered PYY3-36 activates neurons in the area postrema and nucleus tractus solitarius, brainstem areas known to mediate effects of certain aversive stimuli. Furthermore, peripheral administration of PYY3-36 causes conditioned taste aversion in mice. Thus, inhibition of food intake by PYY3-36 may result in part from induction of an aversive response.
Intrinsic fluorescence changes associated with the conformational state of silk fibroin in biomaterial matrices

Silk fibroin is emerging as an important biomaterial for tissue engineering applications. The ability to monitor non-invasively the structural conformation of silk matrices prior to and following cell seeding could provide important insights with regards to matrix remodeling and cell-matrix interactions that are critical for the functional development of silk-based engineered tissues. Thus, we examined the potential of intrinsic fluorescence as a tool for assessing the structural conformation of silk proteins. Specifically, we characterized the intrinsic fluorescence spectra of silk in solution, gel and scaffold configurations for excitation in the 250 to 335 nm range and emission from 265 to 600 nm. We have identified spectral components that are attributed to tyrosine, tryptophan and crosslinks based on their excitation-emission profiles. We have discovered significant spectral shifts in the emission profiles and relative contributions of these components among the silk solution, gel and scaffold samples that represent enhancements in the levels of crosslinking, hydrophobic and intermolecular interactions that are consistent with an increase in the levels of ss-sheet formation and stacking. This information can be easily utilized for the development of simple, non-invasive, ratiometric methods to assess and monitor the structural conformation of silk in engineered tissues.
Pharmacology of Propylthiouracil (PTU) in Pregnant Hyperthyroid Women: Correlation of Maternal PTU Concentrations with Cord Serum Thyroid Function Tests*

Previous studies have characterized the pharmacology of propylthiouracil (PTU) in normal and hyperthyroid subjects, but there is little information available regarding PTU pharmacokinetics in pregnant hyperthyroid women. We investigated the serum PTU response to an oral dose of PTU in six hyperthyroid pregnant women both ante- and postpartum. The serum PTU profile during the third trimester of pregnancy was qualitatively similar to that in nonpregnant subjects, but serum PTU concentrations were consistently lower in the late third trimester compared with postpartum values. Cord serum PTU concentrations were consistently higher than simultaneously obtained maternal serum PTU concentrations, suggesting slower PTU clearance in the fetus. There was a significant inverse correlation (r = -0.92; P = 0.026) between the maternal serum PTU area under the curve in the third trimester and the cord serum free T4 index.
Generic Infrared System Model With Dynamic Image Generation

A thermal imaging computer simulation was developed for use in design studies of airborne forward-looking infrared (FLIR) systems. This simulation dynamically generates in-flight imagery while modeling flight scenarios, thereby facilitating the evaluation of end-to-end system performance. Program flexibility, which was a major concern, is realized through a modular code design as well as user specification of all critical imager parameters, the scenario geometry, and flight characteristics. A standard type of faceted target model and a generic platform model are used. The simulation includes a nonuniform background, atmospheric path transmission and radiance, and additive noise, as well as system image degradation. Realistic optical and electronic characteristics are modeled using an equivalent Gaussian point spread function (PSF) in the image domain convolved with the spatially oversampled image. The oversampled image implementation uses spatial overlap techniques in place of standard "z-buffering" to ensure proper image plane irradiance distributions. The detector responses are computed by performing spectral radiance integrals across the detector bandpass, weighted by a user-defined specific detectivity. The resulting two-dimensional detector image may then be used to test target detection, recognition, and tracking algorithms. To improve computational efficiency, the relative platform-target geometry is considered so that time-consuming rotations and projections of the target data bases are performed only when physically relevant changes occur.