cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Time-dependent effect of p-Aminophenol (PAP) toxicity in renal slices and development of oxidative stress

p-Aminophenol (PAP), a metabolite of acetaminophen, is nephrotoxic. This study investigated PAP-mediated changes as a function of time that occur prior to loss of membrane integrity. Experiments further evaluated the development of oxidative stress by PAP. Renal slices from male Fischer 344 (F344) rats (N = 4-6) were exposed to 0.1, 0.25, and 0.5 mM PAP for 15-120 min under oxygen and constant shaking at 37 {sup o}C. Pyruvate-stimulated gluconeogenesis, adenine nucleotide levels, and total glutathione (GSH) levels were diminished in a concentration- and time-dependent manner prior to detection of a rise in lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) leakage. Glutathione disulfide (GSSG) levels were increased by PAP suggesting the induction of oxidative stress. Western blot analysis confirmed a rise in 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE)-adducted proteins in tissues exposed to 0.1 and 0.25 mM PAP for 90 min. The appearance of 4-HNE-adducted proteins at the 0.1 mM concentration of PAP occurred prior to development of increased LDH leakage. Pretreatment with 1 mM glutathione (GSH) for 30 min only partially reduced PAP toxicity as LDH values were less severely depleted relative to tissues not pretreated with GSH. In contrast, pretreatment for 15 min with 2 mM ascorbic acid completely protected against PAP toxicity. Further studies showedmore » that ascorbic acid pretreatment prevented PAP-mediated depletion of GSH. In summary, PAP rapidly depletes GSH and adenine nucleotides and inhibits gluconeogenesis prior to a rise in LDH leakage. PAP induces oxidative stress as indicated by an increase in GSSG and 4-HNE-adducted proteins. Ascorbic acid pretreatment prevents PAP toxicity by maintaining GSH status.« less
Vibrational mode contributions to molecular third order polarizabilities

Third order polarizabilities for fluorinated methanes and sulphur hexafluoride, derived from three non-linear optical processes are compared. Significant differences beyond those estimated for dispersion are ascribed to vibrational effects. Estimates of the vibrational mode contributions using spectroscopic data, while crude, are consistent with the experimental values. It is concluded that vibrational contributions to third order polarizabilities are significant in specific cases.
Totalitarian Visual “Monologue”: Reading Soviet Posters with Bakhtin

Contemporary scholarship has noted Mikhail M. Bakhtin's apparent animosity toward rhetoric. Bakhtin's distinction between monologue and dialogue helps to explain his view of rhetoric, which is both hostile and receptive—hostile to monologic rhetoric but receptive to a dialogic rhetoric that is responsive to others. This article reads Bakhtin's account of monologue and dialogue as a reaction to the pervasive totalitarian visual rhetoric of the Soviet state. Drawing on Bakhtin's descriptions of authoritative and internally persuasive discourses and various kinds of double-voiced discourse—parody, satire, and polemic—the article analyzes the workings of Soviet visual rhetoric as both monologic and potentially dialogic and recovers the various forms of otherness displaced by this rhetoric.
NUTRITIONAL EVALUATION OF FULL-FAT SOY FLOUR PRODUCED BY DRY HEAT ROASTING

Full fat soy flour was made by roasting whole soybeans in a heated agitated salt bed followed by dehulling and grinding. PER's of 2.11–2.31 compared to 2.50 for reference casein were achieved with roasting bed temperatures of 206–234°C and treatment times of 15–24 sec. The process reduced the level of anti-trypsin activity 75–90% under these roasting conditions. The results demonstrate the utility of this dry heat process in making full-fat soy flour with a high protein quality. The potential advantages of the process in developing countries are discussed.
Mitosis in sand dollar embryos is inhibited by antibodies directed against the calcium transport enzyme of muscle

Monospecific antibodies to the calcium transport enzyme (alpha-Ca pump) inhibit mitosis when microinjected into sand dollar embryos. Immunoglobulins were raised against the calcium transport enzyme (Ca pump) of sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) from rat skeletal muscle and guinea pig ileum smooth muscle. Specific antibodies were further isolated from IgG fractions by using electrophoretically purified SR Ca-pump protein as the immobilized ligand for immunoaffinity chromatography. ELISA demonstrated that common antigenic determinants are shared by SR, SR Ca pump (of rat skeletal and guinea pig ileum smooth muscle), and isolated membrane containing "native" mitotic apparatus (MA). Preimmune sera gave negative results in identical control assays. Triton X-100 extraction of MA removes the Ca-pump antigen. SR Ca pump and the MA Ca pump have nearly identical molecular masses as determined by NaDodSO4/PAGE. These alpha-SR Ca-pump IgGs inhibit ATP-dependent Ca2+ sequestration by purified SR and MA membranes. Indirect immunofluorescence of isolated native MA demonstrated coincident localization of the MA Ca pump, sequestered calcium, and membrane vesicles. Fluorescent foci were regionally concentrated within the volumes of the asters and spindle. Microinjection of the anti-Ca-pump IgGs into one of two sister blastomeres at second metaphase resulted in mitotic arrest of the injected cell accompanied by a rapid loss of spindle birefringence. Karyomeres formed and fused to form nuclei either at the site of the metaphase plate or at the position the chromosomes occupied during anaphase A. The cleavage furrow did not develop in the injected cell, while the sister and neighbor cells continued normal mitotic cycling. Injection later in mitosis yielded cells with two nuclei whose cleavage furrow relaxed completely. Routine control injections of boiled immune IgG, preimmune IgG, Wesson oil, buffer, or goat anti-rabbit IgG did not affect mitosis, birefringence of the MA, or cleavage furrow activity.
A device for absolute velocity measurement of R.F. modulated beams

Abstract A method of measurement of the velocity of r.f. modulated charged particle beams is described which can provide accuracies of the order of 0.1%. A measurement of the frequency and a measurement of the phase of the r.f. signals induced in two separated cavities is used to provide an accurate time of flight determination. When combined with a measurement of the cavities separation, the velocity is determined. Sources of error and limitations of the method are discussed.
The effects of high fluoride diets on developing enamel and dentin in the incisors of rats

Three groups of ten rats each were placed on diets containing 0.025, 0.05, and 0.1% sodium fluoride, and killed in pairs at intervals of 1, 2, 4, 8 and 16 weeks. Their maxillary incisors were embedded in methacrylate, transverse and longitudinal sections were cut, and microradiographs prepared. A few teeth were demineralized, embedded in paraffin, and sectioned transversely. These demineralized sections were stained with histochemical methods for polysaccharide-protein complexes. In the dentin, four abnormalities were commonly seen; striations, hypoplastic defects, hypomineralized interglobular spaces, and gross deformations of the external outline of the dentin. The number and severity of these abnormalities increased with increasing fluoride levels in the diets, and with increasing time on the diets. Both hypo- and hypermineralized striations were seen in the microradiographs. The previously hypomineralized layers and interglobular spaces stained weakly for polysaccharide-protein complexes in the demineralized sections. In the enamel, a hypermineralized surface layer covered a diffuse zone in which mineralization was inhibited. Hypoplastic defects were also common. In the description of the effects of fluoride, these abnormalities form part of a continuum of changes from the histologically distinct and well characterized responses to injected fluoride, to the subtle changes seen in human chronic endemic dental fluorosis.
Study of proton coupled electron transfer in a biomimetic dimanganese water oxidation catalyst with terminal water ligands

The oxomanganese complex [H2O(terpy)MnIII(μ-O)2MnIV(terpy)H2O]3+ (1, terpy = 2,2′:6-2′′-terpyridine) is a biomimetic model of the oxygen-evolving complex of photosystem II with terminal water ligands. When bound to TiO2 surfaces, 1 is activated by primary oxidants (e.g., Ce4+(aq) or oxone in acetate buffers) to catalyze the oxidation of water yielding O2 evolution [G. Li et al. Energy Environ. Sci. 2009, 2, 230−238]. The activation is thought to involve oxidation of the inorganic core [MnIII(μ-O)2MnIV]3+ to generate the [MnIV(μ-O)2MnIV]4+ state 1ox first and then the highly reactive Mn oxyl species MnIVO• through proton coupled electron transfer (PCET). Here, we investigate the step 1 → 1ox as compared to the analogous conversion in an oxomanganese complex without terminal water ligands, the [(bpy)2 MnIII(μ-O)2 MnIV (bpy)2]3+ complex (2, bpy = 2,2′-bipyridyl). We characterize the oxidation in terms of free energy calculations of redox potentials and pKa’s as directly compared to cyclic voltammogram measur...
Phosphoenzyme decomposition in sarcoplasmic reticulum isolated from cat caudofemoralis, tibialis and soleus.

Abstract Decomposition of phosphoenzyme (E ∼ P) in sarcoplasmic reticulum isolated from caudofemoralis, tibialis and soleus of cat hind leg skeletal muscles was studied under various conditions of monovalent cations. In the presence of Li+, Na+ and K+ chosen for E ∼ P formation and decomposition after quenching of E ∼ P with EGTA, E ∼ P in the caudofemoralis and tibialis sarcoplasmic reticulum decomposed faster than that in the soleus sarcoplasmic reticulum. Quenching the E ∼ P formation with EGTA and ADP revealed that 30–40% of the total E ∼ P formed in all types of sarcoplasmic reticulum was ‘ADP sensitive’. Decomposition of the remaining E ∼ P in caudofemoralis and tibialis sarcoplasmic reticulum was enhanced by ADP, which resulted in a multiphasic decomposition pattern. A larger portion of the remaining E ∼ P in the soleus sarcoplasmic reticulum, on the other hand, decomposed in a monophasic manner and was not significantly influenced by ADP. The data on E ∼ P decomposition clearly differentiate between the fast and slow muscle types.
Thickness dependence of the properties of plasma-deposited a-Si:H films — NMR studies

Abstract Both the NMR spectrum and spin-lattice relaxation time, T 1 , have been measured on plasma-deposited a-Si:H films of different thickness, t, varying from 0.1 μm to 10 μm, prepared on heated substrates under similar conditions. The NMR spectrum shows the standard two-component line in all samples with substantial differences in H content with thickness: ≈ 10 atomic % for films with t ⩾ 1 μ m, the normal result, but ≈ 30% for t = 0.1 μ m. This indicates that the thin sample is similar to films that have been prepared on room temperature substrates and have poor electronic properties. The NMR T 1 versus temperature exhibits the standard u-shaped curve with a minimum near 50K for all samples, due to the presence of a small amount of molecular H 2 trapped in voids. The thin sample (t = 0.1 μ m) shows an additional relaxation mechanism, not present in the samples with t ⩾ 1 μ m, that causes T 1 to drop exponentially as the temperature is raised from 200K to 300K. This is most likely due to an electronic relaxation mechanism present in the thin samples but not in the thicker materials.
The Relationships of Trait Anxiety, Audience Nonverbal Feedback, and Attributions to Public Speaking State Anxiety

This study investigated the relationships among trait anxiety, audience nonverbal feedback, attributions, and public speaking state anxiety. Fifty-nine (N = 59) undergraduate students randomly assigned to either a positive or negative condition of audience nonverbal feedback delivered an impromptu speech and completed a trait anxiety measure, state anxiety scale, and attributional questionnaire about audience nonverbal feedback. The results provided some support for a path model indicating that negative nonverbal feedback increased external attributions, which, in turn, increased state anxiety. Trait anxiety was not more predictive of state anxiety than nonverbal feedback.
Mechanistic Enzymology of the Radical SAM Enzyme DesII

DesII is a member of the radical SAM family of enzymes that catalyzes radical-mediated transformations of TDP-4-amino-4,6-didexoy-D-glucose as well as other sugar nucleotide diphosphates. Like nearly all radical SAM enzymes, the reactions begin with the reductive homolysis of SAM to produce a 5'-deoxyadenosyl radical which is followed by regiospecific hydrogen atom abstraction from the substrate. What happens next, however, depends on the nature of the substrate radical so produced. In the case of the biosynthetically relevant substrate, a radical-mediated deamination ensues; however, when this amino group is replaced with a hydroxyl, one instead observes dehydrogenation. The factors that govern the fate of the initially generated substrate radical as well as the mechanistic details underlying these transformations have been a key focus of research into the chemistry of DesII. This review will discuss recent discoveries pertaining to the enzymology of DesII, how it may relate to understanding other radical-mediated lyases and dehydrogenases and the working hypotheses currently being investigated regarding the mechanism of DesII catalysis.
Establishment of a 3.83-Ga magmatic age for the Akilia tonalite (southern West Greenland)

A recurring challenge to ion microprobe U^Pb zircon geochronology has been to discriminate between preservation of original igneous zircon populations and inherited grains. This has proved particularly problematic in studying the polyphase metamorphic rocks that dominate Early Archean gneissic terranes. For example, differing interpretations exist for the origin of complex zircon populations investigated by U^Pb ion microprobe zircon geochronology from a granitoid (orthogneiss) body, previously used to establish a minimum age for a supracrustal enclave on Akilia (island) in southern West Greenland. We describe a method whereby the geochemistry of the Akilia orthogneiss, coupled with a U^Th^Pb vs. age depth profile in a zircon from the same rock, permits direct assessment of zircon inheritance. Results reveal evidence for three phases of concentric zircon growth at 3.83 Ga, V3.6 Ga and 2.7^2.5 Ga; zircon growth at both V3.6 Ga and 2.7^2.5 Ga is consistent with precipitation from a metamorphic fluid. Depth profile U^Th^Pb data demonstrate that only the s 3.8-Ga zircon core could have crystallized from the host rock. We conclude that the magmatic age of this rock is 3.83 7 0.01 Ga, not V3.65 Ga as has been previously proposed. The U^Th^Pb zircon depth profile technique has wider applications to resolving other geochronological debates in highgrade metamorphic terranes where zircons populations are diverse and individual grains record complex overgrowth and dissolution/re-precipitation features. : 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Unconjugated Man5GlcNAc occurs in vegetative tissues of tomato

Abstract Unconjugated Man α1 → 6(Man α1 → 3)Man α1 → 6(Man α1 → 3)Man β1 → 4GlcNAc (Man 5 Glc NAc) delayed ripening when added exogenously at 10 ng g −1 fr. wt to both whole tomato fruit and excised pericarp tissue discs. In addition, Man 5 GlcNAc was one of 10 unconjugated N -glycans purified from tomato pericarp tissue. When applied exogenously at a concentration of 10 nM, Man 5 GlcNAc prevented the delay of ripening induced by tunicamycin, an inhibitor of its de novo synthesis. Since it was possible that this unconjugated N -glycan might be specifically related to ripening, we checked to see if it also occurred in fully expanded leaf and stem tissues using high-pH anion-exchange chromatography with pulsed amperometric detection. This method allowed us to detect 1 ng of oligosaccharide and to quantify accurately amounts in the range 60–600 ng per injection, significantly more sensitive than the amine-bonded HPLC method previously used to separate and quantify unconjugated N -glycans in tomato fruit pericarp tissue. Four high-mannosyl type unconjugated N-glycans were detected in tomato vegetative tissues, including Man 5 GlcNAc. These results support a potential role of Man 5 GlcNAc and/or other unconjugated N -glycans in plant developmental processes, in addition to its apparent role as a modulator of senescence of fruit. However, an initial experiment showed no effect of Man 5 GlcNAc on senescence of tomato leaf discs, as measured by chlorophyll loss.
Hemodynamic comparison of microsurgical closures for longitudinal arteriotomies.

Twenty-four femoral arteries in 12 rats were used to compare longitudinal and transverse closures in blood vessels ∼ 1 mm in diameter. The closure techniques were applied to a simple longitudinal slit, 1 mm long, and to a longitudinal defect, 0.5 mm wide and 1 mm long. Comparisons were made of the change in pre- and postrepair flow velocities, recorded every 5 min using a 20-MHz pulsed Doppler velocimeter. Maximum reductions in flow velocity (linearly related to volume flow) were 10% and 29% for the longitudinal and transverse repairs, respectively, when applied to the longitudinal slit, and 65% and 19%, respectively, when applied to the larger arteriotomy. An analysis of variance indicates that the differences in the normalization of flow velocities during the immediate postrepair period are significant (P < 0.05). We conclude that optimal flow normalization is achieved by applying the longitudinal repair to the simple slit and the transverse repair to the larger arteriotomy. © 1993 Wiley-Liss Inc.
The Use of Race in Medical Research

To the Editor. —The Commentary entitled "The Use of Race in Medical Research" by Drs Osborne and Feit 1 is an articulate response to a question asked with some frequency in medical research today: Is race a valid characteristic by which to describe health status and health outcome? The authors' response is no. They conclude that race is highly correlated with social, economic, and political factors and therefore has no separate value in medical research. However, it is just that relationship of race to economic and social factors in our society that makes race a meaningful variable by which to describe and analyze health outcomes. Countless studies show significant racial and ethnic disparities in every aspect of health from infant mortality, to chronic disease prevalence and disability, to life-styles and health habits, to access to quality health care. 2 Race is a powerful correlate of health outcomes and points to
Biscoumarin Derivatives from Edgeworthia gardneri that Inhibit the Lyase Activity of DNA Polymerase β

Bioassay-guided fractionation of an active methyl ethyl ketone extract of Edgeworthia gardneri, using an assay to monitor DNA polymerase β lyase inhibition, resulted in the isolation of three known biscoumarin derivatives, 7-hydroxy-3,7‘-dicoumaryl ether (edgeworin, 1), 7-hydroxy-6-methoxy-3,7‘-dicoumaryl ether (daphnoretin, 2), and 6,7-dihydroxy-3,7‘-dicoumaryl ether (edgeworthin, 3). Compounds 1−3 inhibited the lyase activity of DNA polymerase β with IC50 values of 7.3 μg/mL (22.5 μM), 43.0 μg/mL (122.3 μM), and 32.1 μg/mL (94.8 μM), respectively.
Production and characterization of the cores of the "R" strain of mosquito iridescent virus.

Abstract Cores of “R” strain of mosquito iridescent virus (RMIV) were produced in vitro by reacting intact virus with chymotrypsin. Isolation of the cores from undegraded virus and outer capsid protein was accomplished by density gradient and differential centrifugations. Negatively stained core particles had a diameter of 176.1 ± 6.0 nm when examined in the electron microscope. The density of the particles as measured in cesium chloride gradients was 1.33, and the s 20,w was 3126 as measured in the analytical centrifuge. The molecular weight of the cores was calculated to be 1.84 × 10 9 daltons. Protein, DNA, and lipid analysis of the cores accounted for all but 48.0% of the protein of intact virus particles. SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of the cores compared with that of intact virus showed that only a 55,000 molecular-weight protein was absent in the former. The cores did not infect larvae or an Aedes aegypti cell line, and serological comparisons of intact virus and cores showed the two did not share common surface antigens.
Conflict, Terrorism, and the Socialization of Human Rights Norms: The Spiral Model Revisited

This article examines the issue of state compliance with universal human rights norms, focusing on a social constructivist model suggested by Thomas Risse, Stephen Ropp, and Kathryn Sikkink (1999). This spiral model outlines five stages of socialization in which different forces work together to bring a change in the policies of repressive governments. I argue that the model suffers from three major theoretical shortcomings. It (1) is overdeterministic and idealistic in its proposition that once progress toward human rights compliance has started there is no turning back; (2) treats a country's human rights practices as a homogenous block and does not leave room for disaggregation of different practices; and (3) fails to sufficiently account for the role of serious conflicts and security threats in shaping state's repressive policies. Nevertheless, drawing largely on the Israeli case I show that the spiral model should not be discarded. When substantially modified and complemented with other sociological and international relations approaches, the model remains useful for understanding the processes of change in specific violations.
Comparative antimicrobial activity of ABT-773, a novel ketolide, tested against drug-resistant Gram-positive cocci and Haemophilus influenzae

Abstract The antimicrobial activity of ABT-773, a novel ketolide, was tested against 618 Gram-positive strains collected from various surveillance programmes between 1997 and 2000. ABT-773 has potent activity against Streptococcus pneumoniae (MIC 90 , ≤0.03–0.12 mg/l), β-haemolytic streptococci (MIC 90 , ≤0.03 mg/l) and viridans group streptococci (MIC 90 , ≤0.03 mg/l), including erythromycin-resistant strains. In contrast, ABT-773 was less active against erythromycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (31% susceptible at ≤0.25 mg/l), coagulase-negative staphylococci (41% susceptible) and enterococci (30% susceptible). Haemophilus influenzae (MIC 90, 4 mg/l) was less inhibited by the two ketolides tested, and ABT-773 was generally two- to fourfold more potent than telithromycin. The ketolides appear to have potential clinical use against some Gram-positive species resistant to macrolides.
Type 1 Aortic Dissection Complicated by Lower Extremity and Renal Ischemia Treated with Surgical Aortic Replacement and Percutaneous Balloon Fenestration: A Case Report

After successful replacement of the ascending aorta and the aortic arch for a Type 1 aortic dissection, a persistent intimal tear resulted in expansion of the false lumen and in lower extremity and renal ischemia. This was successfully treated with percutaneous fenestration of the suprarenal abdominal aorta by means of a transseptal needle and balloon angioplasty. There were no complications, and benefits continued to result from the procedure at 4 months' follow-up.
Reserve Size and Fragmentation Alter Community Assembly, Diversity, and Dynamics

AbstractResearchers have disputed whether a single large habitat reserve will support more species than many small reserves. However, relatively little is known from a theoretical perspective about how reserve size affects competitive communities structured by spatial abiotic gradients. We investigate how reserve size affects theoretical communities whose assembly is governed by dispersal limitation, abiotic niche differentiation, and source-sink dynamics. Simulations were conducted with varying scales of dispersal across landscapes with variable environmental spatial autocorrelation. Landscapes were inhabited by simulated trees with seedling and adult stages. For a fixed total area in reserves, we found that small reserve systems increased the distance between environments dominated by different species, diminishing the effects of source-sink dynamics. As reserve size decreased, environmental limitations to community assembly became stronger, α species richness decreased, and γ richness increased. When d...
Factor Analysis Applied to Fourier Transform Infrared Spectra

The feasibility of applying the methods of factor analysis to Fourier transform infrared spectra is examined. The method is designed to determine the number of components contributing to a spectral region. The technique has been applied to a model system consisting of solutions of p-, o-, and m-xylenes. The method has also been used for calculating the number of independently absorbing species in several polymer systems. Spectral requirements and the general applicability of factor analysis are also discussed.
ET-1 and TNF-α in HPS: Analysis in prehepatic portal hypertension and biliary and nonbiliary cirrhosis in rats

Common bile duct ligation (CBDL) triggers a molecular cascade resulting in the hepatopulmonary syndrome (HPS). Both increased hepatic endothelin-1 (ET-1) production and pulmonary vascular ETB recep...
Acute Lung Injury Following Treatment With High-Dose Cyclophosphamide, Cisplatin, and Carmustine: Pharmacodynamic Evaluation of Carmustine

BACKGROUND Therapy with high-dose cyclophosphamide, cisplatin, and carmustine (BCNU) plus autologous bone marrow transplantation has been extensively studied as treatment for patients with stage II or III breast cancer who have a 70% or greater risk of developing metastatic disease. This therapy is being used in a cooperative intergroup phase III clinical trial. In the cyclophosphamide-cisplatin-BCNU regimen, cyclophosphamide and BCNU, but not cisplatin, have been reported to cause acute lung injury, suggesting that either cyclophosphamide or BCNU may contribute to this injury. PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to analyze clinical and pharmacokinetic data from our ongoing phase II trials and to determine whether there is an association between BCNU pharmacokinetics and acute lung injury following cyclophosphamide-cisplatin-BCNU therapy. METHODS We performed a retrospective study of 38 patients treated following induction therapy or relapse, 29 with stage II-IV breast cancer and nine with intermediate and high-grade stage III-IV non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. These patients received therapy with cyclophosphamide at a dose of 1875 mg/m2 daily as a 1-hour intravenous infusion for 3 days, cisplatin at 55 mg/m2 per day as a 72-hour continuous intravenous infusion, and BCNU at 600 mg/m2 as a 2-hour infusion immediately following completion of the cisplatin infusion. Data from analysis of blood samples were used to calculate pharmacokinetic parameters for BCNU, and acute lung injury was determined on the basis of pulmonary function test results and histologic examination of lung biopsy specimens. RESULTS Our analysis showed that 20 (53%) of the 38 patients developed pulmonary injury following treatment. Twelve (60%) of the 20 had values for area under the curve (AUC) for BCNU concentration x time that exceeded 600 (micrograms/mL) x minute, whereas only two (11%) of the 18 without pulmonary injury had values above this level (P < .03). Thus, 12 (86%) of 14 patients with BCNU AUC greater than 600 (micrograms/mL) x minute developed lung injury. CONCLUSIONS These results suggest that BCNU exposure greater than 600 (micrograms/mL) x minute is associated with increased risk of acute lung injury after cyclophosphamide-cisplatin-BCNU therapy and may be a major cause of pulmonary drug injury following this regimen. IMPLICATIONS Strategies aimed at more uniform drug exposure or selective neutralization of chlorethylisocyanate, one of the two major hydrolysis products of BCNU, might reduce the incidence of acute lung injury following this regimen without major compromise of antitumor effect.
Dying, mourning, and spirituality: a psychological perspective.

Based in an unfortunate tradition that stretches back in time to Watson's behaviorism and Freud's psychoanalysis, psychology has tended to reject and to pathologize matters of the spirit. In the past 30 years, however, with the advent of what has been termed the cognitive revolution, psychology has greatly expanded the scope of its subject matter. Psychologists and thanatologists have begun to unravel the cognitive underpinnings of our assumptive world and the transformation of those underpinnings in times of crisis and stress. This article examines the cognitive basis of the spiritual experience and the use of cognitive assimilation, accommodation strategies during the process of mourning the death of a loved one, as well as during the process of living our own dying. Of special importance to mental health professionals and clergy, new research on dying, mourning, and spirituality suggests that the specific ways in which people rediscover meaning-such as belief in traditional religious doctrine, the afte...
Wild-Type Male Offspring of fmr-1 +/− Mothers Exhibit Characteristics of the Fragile X Phenotype

Wild-Type Male Offspring of fmr-1 +/− Mothers Exhibit Characteristics of the Fragile X Phenotype
System analysis techniques applied to the Forrester world model. Part II: Bang-bang control

Abstract A bang-bang control policy operating with the capital-investment generation normal of the Forrester World Model is formulated for use in stabilizing population and creating other desirable effects in the behavior of the world system. A large cost is found to be associated with the substantial change or the long implementation time required to alter system behavior. An optimal policy and cost function need to be developed to insure the best combination of control bang magnitude and switching times.
Double-permutation sequences and pseudoline transversals

In joint work with Ricky Pollack about 25 years ago we defined an encoding of a configuration of points in the plane by what we called its circular sequence of permutations. This notion was subsequently used, both by us and others, to study an array of problems in combinatorial geometry.Recently we noticed that a similar technique can be used to encode combinatorial properties of a collection of mutually disjoint compact convex sets in the plane, and that we can use it, for example, to give a new proof of the Edelsbrunner-Sharir "(2n-2)-theorem" on the maximum number of geometric permutations of a collection of such sets. At the same time this new proof generalizes the Edelsbrunner-Sharir result to the case of a family of compact connected sets in the plane, separated by pseudolines, every two having four double-tangent pseudolines, with all the pseudolines together forming an arrangement. In this talk we will describe the encoding, define the notion of geometric permutation for such a collection, and discuss the proof.The same encoding, which associates to a family of n sets a sequence of permutations of 1, 1, 2, 2,..., n, n, shows promise of being applicable to a number of other problems concerning combinatorial properties of collections of convex sets.The talk is based on ongoing joint work with Ricky Pollack.
Superior laryngeal neurons directly excite cardiac vagal neurons within the nucleus ambiguus

The aim of this study was to test whether superior laryngeal neurons have axon collaterals that synapse upon cardiac vagal neurons. Superior laryngeal neurons were tested as likely mediators of cardio-respiratory interaction because these neurons are active in post-inspiration, co-localized with cardiac vagal neurons, and have many axon collaterals within the nucleus ambiguus. Nontoxic fluorescent tracers were utilized to identify, in vitro, both superior laryngeal neurons that innervated the crico-thyroid muscle, and cardiac vagal neurons that projected to cardiac ganglia. Co-localization of these two populations of neurons demonstrated that cardiac vagal and superior laryngeal neurons are both co-localized in the nucleus ambiguus. Simultaneous dual patch clamp recordings were used to either inject depolarizing current and evoke an action potential (current clamp configuration) or control the voltage and depolarize an identified single superior laryngeal neuron (voltage clamp configuration) while simultaneously recording from a cardiac vagal neuron. Depolarization of some, but not all, individual superior laryngeal neurons elicited post-synaptic excitatory currents in cardiac vagal neurons, indicating that at least some superior laryngeal neurons monosynaptically synapse upon cardiac vagal neurons within the nucleus ambiguus.
A Near‐Infrared Mechano Responsive Polymer System

A new type of crosslinked polyarylamide based film with a fibrillar morphology that is photomechanically responsive has been created. Without any additive or need of pre-alignment, these films can actuate under NIR stimulation. By constructing the photoresponsive film on top of a piezoelectric poly(vinylidene difluoride) film, electrical energy can be generated under NIR excitation. This is the first polymer system that exhibits NIR response without any conventional photosensitive moieties.
Design of Over-Stress Life-Test Experiments When Failure Times Have the Two-Parameter Weibull Distribution

This paper deals with estimation of reliability parameters when life testing is conducted at stress levels above that which would normally be applied in standard usage. A range of stress for testing is prescribed, and a two-parameter Weibull model for failure times is assumed. The logarithm of the Weibull scale parameter is assumed to be a polynomial function of known degree k of the reciprocal of stress level. The Weibull shape parameter is assumed to be independent of stress level. The problem considered is that of determining the design for obtaining the least-squares-curve intercept with minimum variance at the nominal testing level. The design obtained specifies the number and location of stress levels in the prescribed range at which the life tests will be conducted and proportion of the total sample of specified size to be randomly allocated to each testing level.
On the Cowen-Douglas Class for Banach Space Operators

In [3], M. J. Cowen and R. G. Douglas prove that the adjoint of a Hilbert space operator T is in the class \({\mathcal{B}}_n(\Omega)\) if and only if T is unitarily equivalent with the operator M z on a Hilbert space \({\mathcal{H}}\,{\rm of}\,{\mathbb{C}}^n\)-valued analytic functions, where M z denotes the operator of multiplication by the independent variable. The proof involves holomorphic vector bundles and Grauert’s theorem.
Storage of Methane and Freon by Interstitial van der Waals Confinement

A known host-guest assembly, organized only by means of relatively weak dispersive forces, exhibits hitherto unappreciated thermal stability. The hexagonal close-packed arrangement of calix[4]arene contains lattice voids that can occlude small, highly volatile molecules. This host-guest system can be exploited to retain a range of freons, as well as methane, not only well above their normal boiling points, but also at relatively high temperatures and low pressures. The usually overlooked van der Waals interactions in organic crystals can indeed be used in a highly stable supramolecular system for gas storage.
Hepatitis delta virus: the molecular basis of laboratory diagnosis.

Infection with hepatitis delta virus (HDV), a satellite virus of hepatitis B virus (HBV), is associated with severe and sometimes fulminant hepatitis. The traditional methods for the diagnosis of HDV infection, such as detection of serum anti-HD antibodies, are sufficient for the clinical diagnosis of delta infection. However, such techniques lack the sensitivity and specificity required to more accurately characterize the nature of HDV infection and to assess the efficacy of therapies. Recent improvements in molecular techniques, such as HDV RNA hybridization and RT-PCR, have provided increased diagnostic precision and a more thorough understanding of the natural course of HDV infection. These advances have enhanced the clinician's ability to accurately evaluate the stage of HDV infection, response to therapy, and occurrence of reinfection after orthotopic liver transplant. This review focuses on the recent advances in the understanding of the molecular biology of HDV and in the laboratory diagnosis of H...
Graphs from Projective Planes

The orthogonality relation among subspaces of a finite vector space is studied here by means of the corresponding graph. In the case we consider, this graph has some highly symmetric induced subgraphs. We find three infinite families of graphs of girth 3, and two infinite families of graphs of girth 5, whose automorphism groups are transitive on ordered pairs of adjacent points. Special cases are the Petersen graph, a 28-point cubic 3-transitive graph of girth 7 due to H. S. M. Coxeter, and a 36-point quintic 2-transitive graph of girth 5. The algebraic representations obtained for these graphs afford easy computation of their properties, and show that their automorphism groups are respectively the projective orthogonal groups PC/3 (5), P6 3 (7), and a semidirect product P~3 (9)# Z z. Our study is in the spirit of Coxeter's paper 'Self-dual configurations and regular graphs' [4]. In that paper, many interesting graphs were obtained as the Levi graphs of geometric configurations. A configuration (m c, ha) is a set ofm points and n lines in a plane, with dpoints on each line and c lines through each point. The configuration is self-dual if it has a duality (incidence-preserving bijection interchanging points and lines). The Levi graph is the red-blue bipartite graph joining each point (red vertex) to each line (blue vertex) incident to it in the configuration. This graph always has even girth. A polarity n is a duality such that 7~ 2 is the identity. We start from a configuration self-dual via a polarity n. Instead of the Levi graph, we use a 'polarity graph' whose vertices are the points X, Y,... of the configuration, and where X is adjacent to Y in the graph ifX-~ Yand X is on n(Y), the polar line of Y. Our configuration consists of the points and lines of the finite projective plane PG(2, q), where q is a prime power. The points and lines may be identified with the I-dimensional and 2-dimensional subspaces of the 3-dimensional vector space over the finite field F= GF(q). We let n (X) be the orthogonal complement of X. The resulting polarity graph is denoted by G(q).
Definition of a consensus transportin-specific nucleocytoplasmic transport signal.

The low cytoplasmic and high nuclear concentration of the GTP-bound form of Ran provides directionality for both nuclear protein import and export. Both import and export factors bind RanGTP directly, yet this interaction produces opposite effects; in the former case, RanGTP binding induces nuclear cargo release, whereas in the latter, RanGTP binding induces nuclear cargo assembly. Therefore, nuclear import and export receptors and their protein recognition sites are predicted to be distinct. Nevertheless, the ∼38-amino acid M9 sequence present in heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein A1 has been reported to serve as both a nuclear localization signal and a nuclear export signal, even though only one protein, the nuclear import factor transportin, has been shown to bind M9 directly. We have used a combination of mutational randomization followed by selection for transportin binding to exhaustively define amino acids in M9 that are critical for transportin binding in vivo. As expected, the resultant ∼12-amino acid transportin-binding consensus sequence is also predictive of nuclear localization signal activity. Surprisingly, however, this extensive mutational analysis failed to dissect M9 nuclear localization signal and nuclear export signal function. Nevertheless, transportin appears unlikely to be the M9 export receptor, as RanGTP can be shown to block M9 binding by transportin not only in vitro, but also in the nucleus in vivo. This analysis therefore predicts the existence of a nuclear export receptor distinct from transportin that nevertheless shares a common protein-binding site on heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein A1.
Model Calibration Based on Random Environmental Fluctuations

A simple model‐calibration technique that takes into account the random fluctuations of field measurements and yields probability distribution of the model input parameters is tested. This technique is based on the following concept. A large number of model simulations is conducted using a wide range of model input parameter values. The specific values of each input parameter in a given simulation are randomly selected from specified probability distributions. Only a subset of all simulations will yield outputs that are satisfactorily close to the field observations. The input parameters used in this subset of simulations can then be analyzed and their mean and variance are computed. It is shown that this calibration procedure is a useful tool to determine the mean values of model input parameters that dominate the variance of the model's output. If the variance of the model's output is completely dominated by a single, uncorrelated parameter, the mean and variance of this parameter can be estimated corre...
Lipoic acid increases heat shock protein expression and inhibits stress kinase activation to improve insulin signaling in skeletal muscle from high-fat-fed rats

The antioxidant α-lipoic acid (LA) has been shown to improve insulin action in high-fat (HF)-fed animal models, yet little is known about its underlying mechanisms of action. We hypothesize that LA...
Health Reform and the Constitutionality of the Individual Mandate

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) of 2010 is landmark legislation designed to expand access to health care for virtually all legal U.S. residents. A vital but controversial provision of the ACA requires individuals to maintain health insurance coverage or face a tax penalty—the individual mandate. We examine the constitutionality of the individual mandate by analyzing relevant court decisions. A critical issue has been defining the “activities” Congress is authorized to regulate. Some judges determined that the mandate was constitutional because the decision to go without health insurance, that is, to self-insure, is an activity with substantial economic effects within the overall scheme of the ACA. Opponents suggest that Congress overstepped its authority by regulating “inactivity,” that is, compelling people to purchase insurance when they otherwise would not. The U.S. Supreme Court is set to review the issues and the final ruling will shape the effectiveness of health reform.
Differential activation of wild-type estrogen receptor α and C-terminal deletion mutants by estrogens, antiestrogens and xenoestrogens in breast cancer cells

Abstract 17β-Estradiol (E2), diethylstilbestrol (DES) and several synthetic (or xenoestrogenic) compounds induced transactivation in MCF-7 or MDA-MB-231 cells transfected with wild-type estrogen receptor α (ERα) and a construct (pERE 3 ) containing three tandem estrogen responsive elements (EREs) linked to a luciferase gene. In contrast, the antiestrogens ICI 182,780 and 4-hydroxytamoxifen (4-OHT) were inactive in this assay. We have investigated the effects of these compounds and several structurally-diverse estrogenic compounds on transactivation in cells transfected with pERE 3 and wild-type ERα, mutant ERα (1-553), and ERα (1-537) containing deletions of amino acids 595-554 and 595-538, respectively. These constructs were used to develop an in vitro assay to distinguish between different structural classes of estrogenic compounds. The results obtained using these constructs were highly cell context- and structure-dependent. Neither E2- nor diethylstilbestrol-induced transactivation in MCF-7 (or MDA-MB-231) cells transfected with pERE 3 /ERα (1-537) due to partial deletion of helix 12; however, octylphenol and nonlylphenol, resveratrol (a phytoestrogen), kepone and 2′,3′,4′,5′-tetrachloro-4-biphenylol were “estrogenic” in MCF-7 cells transfected with pERE 3 /ERα (1-537). Moreover, the structure-dependent estrogenic activities of several synthetic estrogens (xenoestrogens) in MDA-MB-231 cells were different than those observed in MCF-7 cells. These results demonstrate that the estrogenic activity of many synthetic compounds do not require activation function 2 (AF-2) of ERα and are mechanistically different from E2. These data suggest that xenoestrogens are selective ER modulators (SERMs).
Proliferation Kinetics of X-irradiated Mouse L Cells Studied with Time-lapse Photography. II

SummaryProliferation kinetics of x-irradiated mouse L-P59 fibroblasts were studied by constructing cell pedigrees from photographic records. Parameters of proliferation showed marked age dependence; early G1 cells were most resistant and late S-G2 cells were most sensitive in terms of reduction in probability of division, increase in generation time, and induction of abnormal mitotic figures (multipolar and incomplete mitoses). Division probabilities were higher at first division than at subsequent divisions, and cell death in some pedigrees was absent until the fourth generation or later. Prolongation in generation time occurred during several post-irradiation divisions, most noticeably in abortive clones. The idea that chromosome damage may not be the major cause of cell killing is suggested by the observations that (1) frequency of first division lethal sectoring showed no age dependence; (2) multipolar mitosis appeared to account for a significant proportion of non-surviving clones at low doses.
Legal Requirements for Drug Information Resources Maintained by Pharmacies

Drug information (DI) resource requirements differ between states and practice setting or specialty. The objective of this study was to determine each state’s legal requirements for maintaining DI resources in a pharmacy according to general or specialty practice. All 50 states in the United States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico were targeted to identify their mandated DI resources. General resources were required by 50 boards of pharmacy (or jurisdictions) (96.2%), whereas 43 (82.6%) specified site- or practice-specific resources. Minnesota and South Dakota (3.8%) required print references. Forty (76.9%) required current laws or regulations. Other specifications include allowances far journals (7.7%), requirements for herbal medicine information (7.7%). and a resource in support of immunization administration (5.8%). This study details DI references mandated in the United States. Pharmacists should be aware that their state and area of practice may dictate which DI resources they must maintain to he in compliance with relevant laws.
Occurrence and morphology of bead-on-string structures in centrifugal forcespun PA6 fibers

This research aimed at investigating the morphology and frequency of bead-on-string occurrences on forcespun nano- and sub-micron fibers. The formation of bead-on-string structures was observed on a range of fiber samples forcespun in varied conditions from PA6 solutions of different concentrations. Bead-on-string structures were characterized for morphology using SEM micrographs, and were counted on all samples. Two major factors appeared to affect both the morphology and the bead count, namely spinning solution concentration, i.e. viscosity, and spinning needle gage or diameter. Low viscosity solutions resulted in large numbers of mostly spherical beads. Solutions with higher viscosity appeared to suppress the fluid jet instability thus resulting in significantly fewer beads with exclusively elongated spindle-like shapes. Spinning needle diameter also had a significant impact on beading behavior, with the larger diameter exhibiting higher bead counts. A significant interaction between the two factors wa...