cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Commitment to total quality management: Is there a relationship with firm performance?

Abstract Much has been written about Total Quality Management (TQM) but, to date, there has been relatively little empirical investigation. Therefore, this work addresses the overarching question of whether or not TQM measurably improves firm performance. For a sample of sixty firms, that have demonstrated a commitment to TQM for a period of at least five years, we find that the strategy is associated with superior stock-market performance (on a market- and risk-adjusted basis) and improved profit margins.
Differential privacy as a protocol constraint

Differential privacy, introduced in 2006, has become a standard definition of privacy for statistical computations. Most of the research on differential privacy has explored questions arising in the client-server setting, where privacy guarantees are one-sided and cover data held by just one of the protocol participants. We observe that differential privacy complements the classic definition of secure multi-party computations by allowing one to quantify information leaked through the output of the computation. This view leads to a number of interesting questions, where differential privacy is treated as a constraint on the protocol. We survey the state-of-the-art of differential privacy in a multi-party setting and formulate several open problems.
Ultrasonic potentiation of the sporicidal activity of glutaraldehyde.

Abstract The potentiation of sporicidal activity of glutaraldehyde by incorporating ultrasound in dental cleaning was evaluated. The data showed a 4.8-fold lowering of the exposure times required to kill a 20,000 bacterial spore inoculum with cavitated glutaraldehyde. Tests performed to determine the extent of airborne contamination with the open tank method showed that bacterial spores were not retrieved from the vapor collected by passive vacuum during cavitation of inoculated glutaraldehyde.
Use of superabsorbent polymer gels for surface decontamination of Bacillus anthracis spores

Aims: This study evaluated the inactivation of Bacillus anthracis Vollum spores dried on a nonporous surface using a superabsorbent polymer (SAP) gel containing commercially available liquid decontaminants. Methods and Results: The first phase determining the availability of the liquid decontaminant within the SAP showed that the SAP gel containing pH-adjusted sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) inhibited B. anthracis growth while the water control SAP gel had no affect on growth. For testing surface decontamination, B. anthracis spores were dried onto steel coupons painted with chemical agent resistant coating and exposed to SAP containing either pH-adjusted NaOCl, chlorine dioxide (ClO2) or hydrogen peroxide/peracetic acid (H2O2/PA) for 5 and 30 min. At contact times of both 5 and 30 min, all of the SAP gels containing pH-adjusted NaOCl, ClO2 or H2O2/PA inactivated B. anthracis spores at levels ranging from 2·2 to ≥7·6 log reductions. Conclusions: Incorporation of three commercially available decontaminant technologies into a SAP gel promotes inactivation of B. anthracis spores without observable physical damage to the test surface. Significance and Impact of the Study: This work provides preliminary data for the feasibility of using SAP in inactivating B. anthracis spores on a nonporous surface, supporting the potential use of SAP in surface decontamination.
Reassurance in the Management of Benign Hypertensive Disease

The therapeutic improvement achieved by administration of drugs in arterial hypertension and other disease states is widely recognized to be due to the potency of reassurance and suggestion as well as the possible pharmacologic action of the drugs employed. In this article Dr. Goldring and his associates evaluate the effectiveness of a calculated and deliberately dramatized regimen of reassurance on the blood pressure and on the symptoms in patients with benign hypertensive disease. These results help to explain why nonscientific treatment sometimes seems to be crowned with therapeutic success.
A Flexible Framework for Throttling-Enabled Multicore Management (TEMM)

Hardware execution throttling mechanisms such as duty cycle modulation and voltage/frequency scaling can effectively control core or chip-level resource consumption and hence have been advocated to manage multicore resource competition. However, finding the right throttle setting is challenging since the configuration space grows exponentially as the number of cores increases, making the naive approach of exhaustive search untenable. This paper proposes a flexible framework for Throttling-Enabled Multicore Management (TEMM) that efficiently finds a high-quality hardware execution throttling configuration for a user-specified resource management objective. In a manner similar to the Newton-Raphson method in numerical analysis, TEMM employs an iterative method to continuously improve the configuration search quality by leveraging the search results from previous iterations. Within each iteration, TEMM extrapolates the effects of throttling from reference configurations, searches for a high-quality throttling configuration based on model predictions (accelerated by hill climbing), sample-runs the selected configuration, and adds the measured performance and recorded execution statistics of interest as a new reference. Our evaluations show TEMM can quickly arrive at the exact or close to optimal throttling configuration.
Temporal and Spatial Regulation of Chemotaxis

The ability to sense and respond to shallow gradients of extracellular signals is remarkably similar in Dictyostelium discoideum amoebae and mammalian leukocytes. Chemoattractant receptors and G proteins are fairly evenly distributed along the cell surface. Receptor occupancy generates local excitatory and global inhibitory processes that balance to control the chemotactic response. Uniform stimuli transiently recruit PI3Ks to, and release PTEN from, the plasma membrane, while gradients of chemoattractant cause the two enzymes to bind to the membrane at the front and back of the cell, respectively. Interference with PI3Ks alters chemotaxis, and disruption of PTEN broadens PI localization and actin polymerization in parallel. Thus, counteracting signals from the upstream elements of the pathway converge to regulate the key enzymes of PI metabolism, localize these lipids, and direct pseudopod formation.
Precipitation and streamwater chemistry from undisturbed watersheds in the cascade mountains of Oregon

Long-term records of precipitation and streamwater chemistry are rare; such records from forested watersheds relatively free of acidic deposition are even rarer. Precipitation and streamwater chemistry have been measured on two undisturbed forested watersheds at the H. J. Andrews Experimental Forest located on the western slopes of the Cascade Mountains of Oregon. Data from one watershed spans the period 1973–1985, the other 1969–1985. The mean annual pH of precipitation was 5.5 with a range of 4.7 to 6.0. HCO3 − was the dominant anion; Ca2+ and Na+ were the dominant cations. The mean annual pH of streamwater was 7.3, and was dominated by HCO3 − and Ca2+. These data contrast sharply with data from other calibrated watersheds in the north Cascade Mountains of Washington and British Columbia, and with data from New Hampshire and North Carolina where pH of precipitation averages 4.14 and 4.43, respectively, with SO4 2− the dominant anion.
Alternative splicing in the nervous system: an emerging source of diversity and regulation

Alternative splicing is emerging as a major mechanism of functional regulation in the human genome. Previously considered to be an unusual event, it has been detected by many genomics studies in 40%-60% of human genes. Moreover, it appears to be of central importance for neuronal genes and other genes involved in "information processing" functions. In this review, we will summarize alternative splicing's effects on mRNA transcripts, protein products, biological function, and human disease, focusing on genes of neuropsychiatric interest. We will also describe the latest experimental methods and database resources that can help neuroscientists make use of alternative splicing in their own research.
Formation of the 3' end of histone mRNA by post-transcriptional processing.

The specific 3′ termini of a number of eukaryotic mRNAs have been shown to be generated by the post-transcriptional processing of primary transcripts or pre-mRNAs1–4. The sequence AAUAAA, present in the 3′ region of nearly all eukaryotic mRNAs, appears to be involved in the cleavage and subsequent polyadenylation of the primary transcript5. An exception to this general rule is the case of the histone mRNAs, which lack the AAUAAA sequence and are not normally polyadenylated. Histone mRNAs do, however, contain a highly conserved 23 base pair sequence at their 3′ termini6, which is required for correct 3′ end formation7. The similarity between this conserved sequence, which can be drawn as a hairpin loop, and bacterial transcription terminators8 has led several investigators to suggest that the specific 3′ end of histone mRNA is formed by termination of transcription9,10. So far, however, experimental results have not been presented which make it possible to distinguish between a post-transcriptional processing or a transcription termination mechanism for the formation of histone mRNA 3′ termini. We have investigated this issue by synthesizing in vitro unprocessed histone pre-mRNAs that extend past the normal 3′ terminus. These in vitro synthesized pre-mRNAS were injected into frog oocyte nuclei to study their fate. The results demonstrate that correct 3′ ends of chicken histone H2B mRNAs can be formed by RNA processing of longer synthetic pre-mRNAs.
Refining the association between education and health: the effects of quantity, credential, and selectivity.

We refine the established association between education and health by distinguishing three aspects of a person s education (quantity, credential, and selectivity) and by examining the mechanisms through which they may correlate with health. Data are from the 1995 Aging, Status, and the Sense of Control Survey, a representative U.S. national telephone survey of 2,593 respondents aged 18 to 95, with an oversample of elderly. Results show that physical functioning and perceived health increase significantly with years of formal education and with college selectivity for those with a bachelor s or higher degree, adjusting for age, sex, race, marital status, and parental education. The credential of a college degree has no net association with physical functioning and perceived health beyond the amount attributable to the additional years of schooling. Of the three aspects of education, years of schooling has the largest effect. Most of that association appears attributable to its correlation with work and economic conditions, social psychological resources, and health lifestyle. A large portion of the net association of college selectivity with physical functioning and perceived health appears attributable to health lifestyle.
Prediction of femoral fracture load using automated finite element modeling.

Abstract Hip fracture is an important cause of morbidity and mortality among the elderly. Current methods of assessing a patient’s risk of hip fracture involve local estimates of bone density (densitometry), and are limited by their inability to account for the complex structural features of the femur. In an effort to improve clinical and research tools for assessing hip fracture risk, this study investigated whether automatically generated, computed tomographic (CT) scan-based finite element (FE) models can be used to estimate femoral fracture load in vitro. Eighteen pairs of femora were examined under two loading conditions — one similar to loading during the stance phase of gait, and one simulating impact from a fall. The femora were then mechanically tested to failure and regression analyses between measured fracture load and FE-predicted fracture load were performed. For comparison, densitometry measures were also examined. Significant relationships were found between measured fracture load and FE-predicted fracture load (r=0.87, stance; r=0.95, fall; r=0.97, stance and fall data pooled) and between measured fracture load and densitometry data (r=0.78, stance; r=0.91, fall). These results indicate that this sophisticated technique, which is still early in its development, can achieve precision comparable to that of densitometry and can predict femoral fracture load to within −40% to +60% with 95% confidence. Therefore, clinical use of this approach, which would require additional X-ray exposure and expenditure for a CT scan, is not justified at this point. Even so, the potential advantages of this CT/FE technique support further research in this area.
Mitral Valve Prolapse in Marfan Syndrome: An Old Topic Revisited

BACKGROUND The echocardiographic features of mitral valve prolapse (MVP) in Marfan syndrome have been well described, and the incidence of MVP in Marfan syndrome is reported to be 40-80%. However, most of the original research was performed in the late 1980s and early 1990s, when the diagnostic criteria for MVP were less specific. Our goal was to investigate the characteristics of MVP associated with Marfan syndrome using currently accepted diagnostic criteria for MVP. METHODS Between January 1990 and March 2004, 90 patients with definitive diagnosis of Marfan syndrome (based on standardized criteria with or without genetic testing) were referred to Massachusetts General Hospital for transthoracic echocardiography. Patients' gender, age, weight, height, and body surface area at initial examination were recorded. Mitral valve thickness and motion, the degree of mitral regurgitation and aortic regurgitation, and aortic dimensions were quantified blinded to patients' clinical information. RESULTS There were 25 patients (28%) with MVP, among whom 80% had symmetrical bileaflet MVP. Patients with MVP had thicker mitral leaflets (5.0 +/- 1.0 mm vs. 1.8 +/- 0.5 mm, P < 0.001), more mitral regurgitation (using a scale of 1-4, 2.2 +/- 1.0 vs. 0.90 +/- 0.60, P < 0.0001), larger LVEDD, and larger dimensions of sinus of Valsalva, sinotubular junction, aortic arch, and descending aorta indexed to square root body surface area, when compared with those without MVP. When echocardiographic features of patients younger than 18 years of age and those of patients older than 18 were compared, adult Marfan patients had larger LA dimension (indexed to square root body surface area), larger sinotubular junction (indexed to square root body surface area), and more mitral regurgitation and aortic regurgitation. CONCLUSIONS The prevalence of MVP in Marfan syndrome is lower than previously reported. The large majority of patients with MVP have bileaflet involvement, and those with MVP have significantly larger aortic root diameters, suggesting a diffuse disease process.
Spray impingement cooling with single- and multiple-nozzle arrays. Part II: Visualization and empirical models

Abstract The performance of single- and multiple-nozzle sprays for high heat flux electronics cooling using nitrogen-saturated FC-72 was studied in a multi-chip module (MCM) test setup, similar to MCM’s used in current high-end computer systems. An additional facility was constructed for visualization of the sprays and heat transfer behavior using clear heating elements coated with an indium tin oxide (ITO) film. Using both the heat transfer and visualization data, it was determined that the heat transfer could be broken down into two or three components: a dominant single-phase component in and around the droplet impact region, a two-phase liquid film boiling component in the corners away from this region, and, for the multiple-nozzle sprays, a single-phase drainage flow component. Empirical models were generated based on this conceptual model, and the correlations predict the data to within about 6%. In addition, a phenomenological critical heat flux (CHF) model was generated based on previous work with thin liquid-film boiling that suggests CHF in thin films occurs due to a homogeneous nucleation mechanism. This model predicts the current data to within about 12% for both single- and four-nozzle arrays.
Banda Sea surface-layer divergence

Sea-surface temperature (SST) within the Banda Sea varies from a low of 26.5 °C in August to a high of 29.5 °C in December and May. Ekman upwelling reaches a maximum in May and June of approximately 2.5 Sv (Sv=106 m3 s−1) with Ekman downwelling at a maximum in February of approximately 1.0 Sv. The Ekman pumping annual average is 0.75 Sv upwelling. During the upwelling period, from April through December the average Ekman upwelling velocity is 2.36 × 10−6 m s−1 (1.27 Sv). ENSO modulation is generally within 0.5 Sv of the mean Ekman curve, with weaker (stronger) July to October upwelling during El Nino (La Nina). Combined TOPEX/POSEIDON and ERS 1993–1999 altimeter data reveal a 33 cm maximum range of sea level. Steric effects are minor, with well over 80% of the sea level change due to mass divergence (some bias due to unresolved tidal aliasing may still be present). The annual and interannual sea level behavior follows the monsoonal and ENSO phenomena, respectively. Lower (higher) sea level occurs in the southeast (northwest) monsoon and during El Nino (La Nina) events. The surface-layer volume anomaly and the surface-layer divergence, assuming a two-layer ocean, are estimated. Maximum divergence is attained during the transitional monsoon months of October/November: 1.7 Sv gain (convergence), with matching loss (divergence) in the April/May. During the El Nino growth period of 1997 the surface layer is divergent, but in 1998 when the El Nino was on the wane, the average rate of change is convergent. Surface-layer divergence attains values as high as 4 Sv. Banda Sea surface-water divergence correlates reasonably well with the 3-month lagged export of surface (upper 100 m) water into the Indian Ocean as estimated by a shallow pressure gauge array. It is concluded that the Banda Sea surface-layer divergence influences the timing and transport profile of the Indonesian throughflow export into the Indian Ocean, as proposed by Wyrtki in 1958, and that satellite altimetry may serve as an effective means of monitoring this phenomena.
Visual field defects and retinal nerve fiber layer defects in eyes with buried optic nerve drusen.

Purpose To evaluate the visual field with the use of automated perimetry and to evaluate the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) with optical coherence tomography (OCT) in patients with buried optic nerve drusen (OND). Design Observational case control study. Methods Eyes with buried OND were defined as eyes with ultrasound-proved drusen that were not visible with indirect slit-lamp biomicroscopy. All eyes underwent automated perimetry. Some eyes underwent OCT to evaluate the RNFL. Results Fifty-eight eyes of 41 patients with buried OND were evaluated. Three eyes (5%) had inferior arcuate scotomas. The other 55 eyes did not have visual field defects. Twenty-one of the eyes without visual field defects underwent RNFL analysis with OCT. All 21 eyes had normal average RNFL thickness. Some eyes had focal RNFL defects, but it is not clear whether these defects were clinically significant. Conclusion Visual field defects are uncommon in eyes with buried OND. Eyes with buried OND may have focal RNFL defects but have normal average RNFL thickness. In patients with buried OND and a visual field defect, consideration should be given to searching for other causes of the defect, especially if the defect is substantial.
Cord blood transplant: current and future issues.

Cord blood as the source of hematopoietic stem cells has several advantages over bone marrow cells for transplant purpose. It is readily available, and causes no physical harm or inconveniences to the donor in the processing of harvesting cells. Waiting time between initiating the search and the time to transplant from an unrelated donor is much shorter with cord blood than with unrelated donor bone marrow. The incidence of graft-versus-host diseases is much less. Because of these advantages, cord blood has been increasingly used as the source of stem cells. As of this writing, more than 200 cord blood transplants have been done in patients with hematological malignancies, solid tumors, hematological diseases, immunodeficiency syndromes, and metabolic diseases. One of the limitations inherent in the cord blood is its limited number of hematopoietic stem cells. Thus it has been primarily used for pediatric patients, though more recently, adult patients also have been transplanted with cord blood as people have become more experienced in harvesting cord blood thus yielding a large number of stem cells in a given specimen. Efforts have been made to amplify stem cellsin vitro following harvesting cord blood stem cells, so that adult recipients also would routinely benefit from this resource. Cord blood lymphocytes are functionally “naive”, do not generate vigorous mixed lymphocyte culture reactivities. The low incidence of graft-versus-host disease in the recipients of cord blood is due to this particular property. It is highly desirable that the world wide cord blood registry, similar to the international bone marrow registry would be instituted, but there are logistic, ethical and financial problems that need to be resolved. Cord blood is one of the best stem cell sources, and its application is quite wide.
Brush border membrane aminopeptidase-n in the midgut of the gypsy moth serves as the receptor for the CryIA(c) δ-endotoxin of Bacillus thuringiensis

Aminopeptidase-N (AP-N) was purified from gypsy moth (Lymantria dispar, L.) brush border membrane vesicles (BBMV) proteins by mono-Q chromatography and Superdex-75 gel filtration in the presence of the zwitterionic detergent, CHAPS, using FPLC. The purified AP-N, identified by its enzymatic activity, had an apparent size of 100 kDa, and was identified as the unique Bacillus thuringiensis insecticidal toxin, CryIA(c), binding protein. AP-N clearly displayed strong binding to CryIA(c), exhibiting little or no binding to CryIA(a) or CryIA(b), and showing no binding for the coleopteran-specific toxin, CryIIIA. Protein blots of the BBMV proteins probed with biotin-labeled and 125I-labeled insecticidal proteins revealed that CryIAc binds only to 120 kDa protein which is a slightly larger size in comparison to purified AP-N. Antibodies raised against the gypsy moth AP-N demonstrated that the purified AP-N and the 120 kDa CryIA(c) binding protein of total BBMV proteins are antigenically identical.
Products of alkaline peroxide attack on wheat straw, oak, and kenaf

Wheat straw, oak, and kenaf were partially delignified by treatment with hydrogen peroxide at pH 11.0, and the water-soluble degradation products were characterized. Forty to sixty percent of the solubilized products were larger than 1000 molecular weight (MW), as determined by membrane ultrafiltration. Lignin degradation products in the low-molecular-weight fraction (<1000) consisted primarily of aromatic and aliphatic carboxylic acids.
Effects of prolonged irradiation of mice with fluorescent light.

SummaryTwo groups of 48 albino strain C mice were placed directly under the light of two Westinghouse “Daylight” fluorescent lamps for periods of 4 or 6 hours a day, 6 days a week, for one year. The ears of one of the groups were painted with mineral oil before raying to facilitate the penetration of the rays into the skin. Although the total amount of radiant energy applied over the total period was considerable, the intensity of ultraviolet radiations in the 3125 A band was very low. There was no evidence of erythema, or neoplastic changes of the skin, or of irritation of the cornea.
Effectiveness of Hydrostatic Testing for High Strength Pipe Material

Pipeline systems are typically subjected to hydrostatic testing to help ensure pipeline integrity. It can be desirable to use the highest feasible test pressure to eliminate as many defects as possible. It is widely accepted that safe control of yielding can be achieved during hydrostatic testing and that the hydrostatic testing does not create a stress state that is less safe from the standpoint of pre-existing flaws. For a small percentage of cases, however, hydrostatic testing can produce flaws that were longer than the ones removed. In these few cases, the flaws can then fail at a lower test pressure than the original hydrostatic test. The low probability of these events, however, means that the effectiveness of the hydrostatic test is not significantly diminished in this case. Because crack growth from a pre-existing flaw is retarded in a plastically deformed material, it is also typically assumed that hydrostatic testing should not lead to accelerated crack growth. However, this does not take into account that the hydrostatic testing itself can cause some increment in crack growth and that for many higher strength pipe materials significantly large defects can survive hydrostatic testing. These longer defects can potentially grow after surviving a hydrostatic test. This paper discusses this difference in crack growth rates for cracks that have survived hydrostatic testing in different grade pipeline steels and the implications for hydrostatic testing.Copyright © 2010 by ASME
Nonlinear excitation fluorescence microscopy: source considerations for biological applications

Ultra-short-pulse solid-state laser sources have improved contrast within fluorescence imaging and also opened new windows of investigation in biological imaging applications. Additionally, the pulsed illumination enables harmonic scattering microscopy which yields intrinsic structure, symmetry and contrast from viable embryos, cells and tissues. Numerous human diseases are being investigated by the combination of (more) intact dynamic tissue imaging of cellular function with gene-targeted specificity and electrophysiology context. The major limitation to more widespread use of multi-photon microscopy has been the complete system cost and added complexity above and beyond commercial camera and confocal systems. The current status of all-solid-state ultrafast lasers as excitation sources will be reviewed since these lasers offer tremendous potential for affordable, reliable, "turnkey" multiphoton imaging systems. This effort highlights the single box laser systems currently commercially available, with defined suggestions for the ranges for individual laser parameters as derived from a biological and fluorophore limited perspective. The standard two-photon dose is defined by 800nm, 10mW, 200fs, and 80Mhz - at the sample plane for tissue culture cells, i.e. after the full scanning microscope system. Selected application-derived excitation wavelengths are well represented by 700nm, 780nm, ~830nm, ~960nm, 1050nm, and 1250nm. Many of the one-box lasers have fixed or very limited excitation wavelengths available, so the lasers will be lumped near 780nm, 800nm, 900nm, 1050nm, and 1250nm. The following laser parameter ranges are discussed: average power from 200mW to 2W, pulse duration from 70fs to 700fs, pulse repetition rate from 20MHz to 200MHz, with the laser output linearly polarized with an extinction ratio at least 100:1.© (2008) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
The precision of the U.S.P. assay for protamine zinc insulin.

The precision of the U. S. P. assay of protamine zinc insulin has been tested statistically with the data from duplicate assays in different laboratories of 24 preparations of protamine zinc insulin. Both the mean difference of six periodic bleedings and the trend of these differences with time were significantly greater than the residual or sampling error. The mean differences from two independent assays of the same preparation were not correlated. For these reasons, within the tolerance limits provided by the U. S. P., the mean difference could be attributed to minor variations in laboratory procedure rather than real differences in potency. Since the trend with time was correlated significantly in parallel assays from different laboratories, the trend must represent, at least partially, a real characteristic of a given preparation of protamine zinc insulin. It should appear that the assay for this insulin form is capable of distinguishing finer differences than it is called upon to make in actual practice.
Consequences of needle tract seeding of hepatocellular cancer after liver transplant

Although liver biopsy is a relatively safe procedure, needle tract seeding (NTS) of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is described in up to 5% of patients after liver biopsy. The rate of NTS in patients with HCC who had liver transplantation is unknown. We performed a retrospective analysis of 759 HCC cases from August 1992 to August 2011. Demographics, ethnicities, risk factors, tumor characteristics, treatments, recurrence, and survival were collected. Patients who underwent percutaneous liver biopsy, resection, and transplant were identified. In all, 359 underwent biopsy to diagnose HCC and 42 patients underwent liver transplant. None of 171 patients who underwent radiofrequency ablation alone had seeding. None of the 11 patients who had biopsy and radiofrequency ablation performed in a single session developed NTS; however, two of 12 patients who had biopsy and radiofrequency ablation performed at separate sessions had NTS. Two patients underwent liver transplantation and subsequently developed needle tract seeding eventually died from HCC. Although the incidence of needle tract seeding was low in liver transplant patients, it can potentially change a curative therapy into a non-curative one. Single-session liver biopsy and radiofrequency ablation may reduce the risk of needle tract seeding of HCC.
The role of doping type in setback layers on wafer-fused AlGaAs/GaAs/GaN HBTs

The role of doping type in the setback layer of wafer fused AlGaAs/GaAs/GaN HBTs has been investigated. The calculation assuming an ideal GaAs/GaN interface indicates that the current blocking effect due to the conduction band discontinuity between GaAs and GaN can be effectively alleviated by inserting a lightly doped GaAs setback layer with either n-type or p-type doping. And the n-type setback is expected to work better than the p-type setback for the same doping concentration. In experiments encouraging current gain of ∼ 8 was observed in wafer fused HBTs containing 30 nm GaAs setback layers of either n-type or p-type doping, substantially improved from the HBTs without any setback, but still much smaller than annealed as-grown AlGaAs/GaAs/GaAs HBTs. It was proposed that the non-ideal fused interface with a thin disordered material and interface charges/traps dominates the device performance, and that likely both types of fused HBTs (setback doping concentration is ∼ 1 × 1017 cm–3) have similar band diagrams after taking into account impurity redistribution near the interface. (© 2008 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Changes in nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations of silicon-fertilized rice grown on organic soil

Abstract Rice grown on the organic soils of the Everglades is routinely fertilized with silicon (Si). The objective of this research was to investigate changes in nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentration in various plant parts in response to Si fertilization. Two cultivars were grown in lysimeters filled with low‐Si soil. Half the lysimeters were fertilized with calcium silicate to provide 2Mg Si ha‐1 and the other lysimeters remained unfertilized as a control. Nitrogen concentration decreased in all plant parts with Si fertilization. Phosphorus concentration increased with Si. Maturity was earlier in the Si fertilized rice.
Principal Component Analysis for Protein Folding Dynamics

Abstract Protein folding is considered here by studying the dynamics of the folding of the triple β-strand WW domain from the Formin-binding protein 28. Starting from the unfolded state and ending either in the native or nonnative conformational states, trajectories are generated with the coarse-grained united residue (UNRES) force field. The effectiveness of principal components analysis (PCA), an already established mathematical technique for finding global, correlated motions in atomic simulations of proteins, is evaluated here for coarse-grained trajectories. The problems related to PCA and their solutions are discussed. The folding and nonfolding of proteins are examined with free-energy landscapes. Detailed analyses of many folding and nonfolding trajectories at different temperatures show that PCA is very efficient for characterizing the general folding and nonfolding features of proteins. It is shown that the first principal component captures and describes in detail the dynamics of a system. Anomalous diffusion in the folding/nonfolding dynamics is examined by the mean-square displacement (MSD) and the fractional diffusion and fractional kinetic equations. The collisionless (or ballistic) behavior of a polypeptide undergoing Brownian motion along the first few principal components is accounted for.
Future employability, a new approach to cost-effectiveness analysis of antipsychotic therapy.

Abstract Objective : Schizophrenia patients pose a substantial burden in terms of indirect costs, much of which is attributable to loss of employment. We present a new approach to assess the cost-effectiveness (CE) of risperidone vs. haloperidol using employability as an outcome measure. Methods : A decision analytic CE model was developed to compare the two treatments over a 1-year period including all direct medical costs and the number of employable persons as a measure of effectiveness. A measure of executive functioning, the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test Category score (WCST-Cat score), was used as an intermediate endpoint from which employability was modeled. A Monte Carlo procedure, using WCST-Cat score sampling distributions from clinical trials, simulated the WCST-Cat score distribution for a cohort of 10,000 patients. A clinically stable patient, with a Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) score increase of at least 20% and a WCST-Cat score of ≥3.5 was assumed to be employable. Sensitivity analysis was performed for key values. Results : The base case per-patient cost of risperidone and haloperidol was US$6422 and US$4989, respectively, and the number of employable persons was 3258 (32.58%) and 2517 (25.17%), respectively, which translates to an incremental CE ratio of US$19,609 per employable person for risperidone. Risperidone remained cost increasing and had higher number of employable persons over all the ranges used in the sensitivity analysis. The incremental CE ratio ranged from a high of US$1,000,000 to a low of US$3000 per employable persons when the rates of clinical stability for risperidone and haloperidol therapy were varied. Conclusion : Gains from earning rates for employed persons with schizophrenia, savings in informal caregiver costs and other human benefits could justify an incremental cost of US$19,609 for each additional employable person prescribed risperidone.
Dynamics of body water during freezing and thawing in a freeze-tolerant frog (Rana sylvatica)

Abstract 1. 1.|Calorimetric analyses showed that wood frogs ( Rana sylvatica ) frozen to −2.5°C contained 7.8 g ice, as 65.4% of the body water had frozen. 2. 2.|During 24 h of freezing, water content decreased in liver (58.9%), intestine (58.6%) and skeletal muscle (22–36%). Complete rehydration during thawing at 3.5°C required from 3 to >;48 h, depending on the organ. 3. 3.|Because organs dehydrate, increases in tissue metabolite concentrations associated with freezing, if calculated on a per wet-weight basis, may be greatly exaggerated. 4. 4.|Reversible organ dehydration during freezing may enhance freeze tolerance of R. sylvatica by concentrating cryoprotectant and reducing cryoinjury to tissues.
Tkachenko modes of vortex lattices in rapidly rotating bose-einstein condensates.

We calculate the in-plane modes of the vortex lattice in a rotating Bose condensate, from the slowly rotating to mean-field quantum Hall limits. The Tkachenko mode frequency, linear in wave vector $k$ for lattice rotational velocities $\ensuremath{\Omega}$ much smaller than the lowest sound wave frequency in a finite system, becomes quadratic in $k$ in the opposite limit. The system also supports an inertial mode of frequency $\ensuremath{\ge}2\ensuremath{\Omega}$. The calculated frequencies are in excellent agreement with recent observations of Tkachenko modes by I. Coddington, P. Engels, V. Schweikhard, and E. A. Cornell, Phys. Rev. Lett. 91, 100402 (2003).
Skeletal morphogenesis in the urodele skull: I. Postembryonic development in the hemidactyliini (Amphibia: Plethodontidae)

The metamorphic species Eurycea bislineata is presented as a standard for evaluating the relationship between cranial ontogeny and life history in hemidactyliine plethodontid urodeles. Past and present descriptions are combined into a comprehensive summary of postembryonic skull development for this species, and the sequence, sizes of onset, and morphogenetic pathways are documented for all major remodelling events. Developmental series are also compared intraspecifically, between two populations of E. bislineata that differ in metamorphic size, and interspecifically, with species having different larval periods (Hemidactylium scutatum, Gyrinophilus porphyriticus, Pseudotriton ruber, E. wilderae, E. longicauda guttolineata) and with epigean (E. tynerensis, E. nana, and E. neotenes) and subterranean perennibranchiates (Haideotriton wallacei and Typhlomolge rathbuni). Cranial ontogeny is largely conserved in these hemidactyliines despite their disparate life histories. Outside the dichotomy of metamorphic and perennibranchiate development, variation is limited to interspecific differences involving the nasolacrimal duct, the repeated loss of the scleral cartilage, and minor dissociation of several metamorphic and postmetamorphic remodelling events. Some, but not all, of this variation is consistent with evolutionary differences in metamorphic size and age. The comparison of metamorphic and perennibranchiate hemidactyliines reveals a unique cranial ontogeny for urodeles, characterized by the abrupt and synchronous timing of almost all postembryonic remodelling, including the nasal skeleton, and the complete absence of these events in perennibranchiate forms. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Fipronil–amitraz–S‐methoprene‐triggered pemphigus foliaceus in 21 dogs: clinical, histological and immunological characteristics

Background A recently launched topical ectoparasiticide containing fipronil, amitraz and S-methoprene has been associated with the development of an acantholytic pustular dermatitis similar to that of Promeris-triggered pemphigus foliaceus (PF). Hypothesis/Objectives Our objectives were to describe the clinical, histological and immunological features of this PF-like cutaneous adverse drug reaction. Animals Twenty-one dogs with a probable or definitive diagnosis of PF-like cutaneous adverse drug reaction were identified between May 2012 and February 2013. Material and Methods Histology, direct and indirect immunofluorescence were employed to address the study objectives. Results Most dogs were middle-aged or older (median, 9 years) and of large size (median, 23 kg). In six dogs (29%), the PF-like lesions remained confined to the site of application, while 15 dogs (71%) exhibited lesions at distant sites. One or two applications of the ectoparasiticide were sufficient to trigger PF-like lesions in seven (33%) and six (29%) dogs, respectively. Systemic signs were reported in nine dogs (43%), all with lesions extending to sites distant from application areas. Tissue-bound antikeratinocyte IgG was detected in the lesional epidermis of eight of 19 (42%) cases by direct immunofluorescence, while serum antikeratinocyte IgG was detected in 10 of 14 (71%) cases by indirect immunofluorescence. Autoantibodies were found to target canine desmocollin-1 in 11 of 14 dogs (79%), but not canine desmoglein-1, by indirect immunofluorescence on transfected cells. These immunological findings were similar in cases with localized and distant disease. Conclusions and clinical importance This new topical ectoparasiticide containing fipronil, amitraz and S-methoprene is capable of triggering the development of an acantholytic pustular dermatosis that is a clinical, histological and immunological close match for Promeris-triggered PF and naturally occurring autoimmune PF in dogs.
Computational Study of the Self-Initiation Mechanism in Thermal Polymerization of Methyl Acrylate

This computational study deals with the mechanism of spontaneous initiation in thermal polymerization of alkyl acrylates (e.g., methyl, ethyl, and n-butyl acrylate). The mechanism is presently still unknown. Density-functional theory (DFT) and Moller−Plesset (MP2) calculations are used to explore the Flory and Mayo mechanisms of self-initiation in methyl acrylate. On the singlet surface, a low-barrier, concerted [4 + 2] Diels−Alder mechanism for the formation of a dihydropyran adduct (DA) and a high-barrier nonconcerted [2 + 2] diradical (•M2s•) mechanism for the formation of dimethyl cyclobutane-1,2-dicarboxylate (DCD) were found using B3LYP/6-31G*. Several levels of theory were used to validate the transition states, and the pathways for the DA and DCD formations on the singlet surface were determined using intrinsic reaction coordinate (IRC) calculations. On the triplet surface, a triplet diradical intermediate (•M2t•) was identified that is structurally similar to •M2s• but lower in energy. The spin−o...
Retrograde abdominal visceral perfusion: Is it beneficial?

Background. It is proposed that retrograde abdominal perfusion be used in combination with retrograde cerebral perfusion to provide total body visceral protection during aortic reconstruction; however, its physiologic effects remain unknown. Methods. We compared the effect of superior vena caval perfusion alone with that of combined superior and inferior vena caval perfusion on the liver and kidney in 6 mongrel dogs. Organ blood flow was measured using ultrasonic flow probes on the hepatic artery, the portal vein, and the renal artery. Regional tissue blood flow to the liver and the kidney was assessed using colored microspheres and pH probes. Anesthetized dogs were placed on total cardiopulmonary bypass. After cooling to 20°C, retrograde perfusion was begun with 30 minutes of superior vena caval perfusion followed by another 30 minutes of bicaval perfusion, or vice versa. Results. Very little renal blood flow was measured with either method of retrograde perfusion. Although the liver received more blood flow in comparison to the kidney, there was no significant difference between superior vena caval perfusion alone and bicaval perfusion. The addition of inferior vena caval perfusion results in portal hypertension, hepatic congestion, ascites, and bowel edema. Conclusions. In the canine model, bicaval perfusion does not provide superior protection to the liver and kidneys when compared with superior vena caval perfusion alone.
Sexually dimorphic perforant path long-term potentiation (LTP) in urethane-anesthetized rats

Sex differences in perforant path long-term potentiation (LTP) have been reported in pentobarbital-anesthetized rats. Because this effect may be due to the prominent sex difference in barbiturate sensitivity, the present report examined perforant path-dentate granule cell synaptic transmission and long-term potentiation (LTP) in adult male and female rats anesthetized with urethane. Spectral analysis of hippocampal electroencephalographic (EEG) activity indicated that urethane induced similar levels of anesthesia in male and female rats, and there were no sex differences in the latency or amplitude of extracellular field potentials evoked in the dentate gyrus following perforant path stimulation. In contrast, there was a robust sex difference in the magnitude of LTP induced in the dentate gyrus following high-frequency stimulation (HFS) of the perforant path. This sex difference in LTP was paralleled by a sex difference in the magnitude of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor activation generated by perforant path HFS. These results demonstrate a sex difference in hippocampal LTP that cannot be explained by a sex difference in level of anesthesia.
Overview of the Preclinical Development of an Antiretroviral Drug, 2′,3′-Dideoxyinosine

AIDS has remained a significant and worsening medical problem since its first description as a new clinical entity in 1981. In the past 6 years, substantial progress has been made in the chemotherapy for this disease; such progress is likely to exert a major effect on the epidemic of human immunodeficiency virus infection in the coming decade. In this article, we overview the preclinical development of an antiretroviral drug, 2',3'-dideoxyinosine (didanosine; ddI), which has recently been shown in early phase I studies to have activity against human immunodeficiency virus in patients with AIDS or AIDS-related complex. Although we will not know the full clinical potential of ddI until we have the results of ongoing controlled clinical trials, this drug appears to possess desirable features for clinical use.
Effects of hydralazine and sodium nitroprusside on plasma catecholamines and heart rate

Hydralazine and sodium nitroprusside induce different effects on systemic hemodynamics, but their effects on sympathetic neuronal activity have not been compared. Five hypertensive subjects receiving only hydrochlorothiazide were studied during two sessions. During one session, four doses of hydralazine, 0.1 to 0.6 mg/kg, were given intravenously at least 3 days apart, and during the other session, sodium nitroprusside was infused in stepwise doses, 0.05 to 4.8 micrograms/kg/min for 10 min per dose. Mean arterial pressure (MAP), heart rate (HR), and plasma norepinephrine (NE) and epinephrine concentrations were determined before and after dosing. The following correlated linearly for hydralazine and sodium nitroprusside: delta HR/delta MAP, delta NE/delta MAP, and delta HR/delta NE. Comparison of these relationships, however, indicated significant differences between the sympathetic neuronal and hemodynamic responses to hydralazine and sodium nitroprusside. Increase in HR relative to decrease in MAP was greater for hydralazine than for sodium nitroprusside. There were greater increases in plasma NE concentration relative to falls in MAP with sodium nitroprusside than with hydralazine, but increases in HR relative to increases in plasma NE concentration were smaller for sodium nitroprusside than for hydralazine. Such responses may reflect differential effects of hydralazine and sodium nitroprusside on the systemic clearance of NE or of the activity of cardiopulmonary baroreceptors.
On model calculations of neutron widths and strength functions

Abstract A procedure for calculating the neutron strength function as advanced by B. Block and H. Feshbach is considered. Methods are developed which relate the calculation of the strength function to the usual concepts of the shell model and nuclear optical model. Specific consideration is given to the isotopes of lead and tin and the agreement with experiment is good. Further, it is also shown that the neutron widths calculated for very simple excitations can be quite small for heavy nuclei due to cancellations which appear in a certain overlap integral. This result implies that the observation of a resonance of very small width does not necessarily imply the formation of a compound state of great complexity. The simple excitations were consider are a reasonable approximation to the virtual states of a compound nucleus such as Pb 209 , and in this case, the calculated widths agree in order of magnitude with the widths found experimentally.