cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Dynamical representation of odors by oscillating and evolving neural assemblies

Abstract Although smells are some of the most evocative and emotionally charged sensory inputs known to us, we still understand relatively little about olfactory processing and odor representation in the brain. This review summarizes physiological results obtained from an insect olfactory system and presents a functional scheme for odor coding that is compatible with data from other animals, including mammals. This coding scheme consists of three main and concurrent odor-induced phenomena: 20–30 Hz oscillatory mass activity; patterned and odor-specific neuronal responses; and transient, dynamic synchronization of odor-specific neural assemblies. When these phenomena are considered together, odors appear to be represented combinatorially by dynamical neural assemblies, defined partly by the transient but stimulus-specific synchronization of their neuronal components. Trends Neurosci . (1996) 19, 489–496
Chasing A Receding Zero: Impact of the Zero Threshold Concept on Actions of Regulatory Officials

The principle of toxicological threshold was stated in 1564 by Paracelsus as “All things are poisonous, yet nothing is poisonous. Dosage alone determines poisoning.” This principle remains valid, even with consideration of today's public concern with low-dosage effects of compounds that are categorized as carcinogens, mutagens and teratogens. Modern laboratory methods enable detection of increasingly small traces of such compounds in foods. The search for these has been termed “Chasing a receding zero, ” and this quest has been stimulated by statements that no one knows how small an amount of a carcinogen, taken for how short a time, can induce cancer, and that even one molecule of a carcinogen, acting on a single cell, can transform a normal cell into a cancer cell.This latter proposal is a stochastic impossibility. Every cell contains millions of carcinogenic molecules. Examples are arsenic, cadmium and chromium. In addition, there are estrogens and other steroid hormones present in each cell and needed...
Assessing the ethical weight of cultural, religious and spiritual claims in the clinical context

The aim of this paper is to expand upon the conclusions reached by Orr and Genesen in their 1997 article (published in this journal), Requests for ‘inappropriate’ treatment based on religious beliefs. 1 Assuming, with Orr and Genesen, that claims made in the name of religion are not absolute, I will propose some principles for determining when claims based on religious beliefs or cultural sensibilities “trump” other considerations and when they do not.
Racial discrepancies in the association between paternal vs. maternal educational level and risk of low birthweight in Washington State

Background The role of paternal factors in determining the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes has received less attention than maternal factors. Similarly, the interaction between the effects of race and socioeconomic status (SES) on pregnancy outcomes is not well known. Our objective was to assess the relative importance of paternal vs. maternal education in relation to risk of low birth weight (LBW) across different racial groups.
Inhibitory effects of acyclic nucleoside phosphonate analogs, including (S)-1-(3-hydroxy-2-phosphonylmethoxypropyl)cytosine, on Epstein-Barr virus replication.

(S)-9-(3-Hydroxy-2-phosphonylmethoxypropyl)adenine [(S)-HPMPA], (S)-9-(3-hydroxy-2-phosphonylmethoxypropyl)-2,6-diaminopurine [(S)-HPMPDAP], cyclic (S)-HPMPA [(S)-cHPMPA], 9-(2-phosphonylmethoxyethoxyethyl)-2,6-diaminopurine (PMEDAP), and (S)-1-(3-hydroxy-2-phosphonylmethoxypropyl)cytosine [(S)-HPMPC] were examined for their inhibitory effects on Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) replication. The 50% effective concentrations for inhibition of viral DNA replication were 0.16, 0.03, 2.0, 1.5, and 0.08 microM for PMEDAP, (S)-HPMPC, (S)-HPMPDAP, (S)-cHPMPA, and (S)-HPMPA, respectively. The relative efficacies based on the in vitro therapeutic index was (S)-HPMPC (5,000) greater than PMEDAP (1,000) = (S)-HPMPA (1,000) greater than (S)-cHPMPA (136) greater than (S)-HPMPDAP (78). Certain ratios of combinations of (S)-HPMPC with 39-azido-39-deoxythymidine produced a synergistic inhibitory effect on EBV genome replication, but others exhibited an antagonistic effect. These results indicate that this series of acyclic nucleoside phosphonate analogs, and in particular (S)-HPMPC, are potent and selective anti-EBV agents in vitro.
Two year effects of food allergen immunotherapy on quality of life in caregivers of children with food allergies

Food allergy (FA) can have serious psychosocial and economic repercussions on food-allergic children and their caregivers and be associated with negative effects on their quality of life. Food allergen immunotherapy (IT) is a promising experimental therapy but can be linked to anxiety. This study investigated the effects of IT on FA-specific health-related quality of life (HRQL) over a 24 month-follow-up in caregivers of children with single and multiple food allergies. We hypothesized that characteristics such as age, asthma at baseline and respiratory allergic reactions during therapy were key characteristics that influenced HRQL scores. A validated Food Allergy Quality of Life – Parental Burden Questionnaire (FAQL-PB) was used to assess HRQL. It was randomly distributed to and filled out by caregivers of 57 food-allergic children enrolled in clinical trials of IT. The same parent answered the FABQL-PB questionnaire at baseline and for 6-month, 12- month, 18- month, and 24-month time points on IT. Caregiver HRQL improved significantly (change < - 0.5, p <0.0001) at each follow-up time point compared to baseline. The percentages of caregivers with improvement in HRQL progressively increased (92% at 24 month-follow-up time point compared to baseline). HRQL improved more in caregivers of participants older than 10 years or desensitized to more than 4 food allergens than those who were not (p <0.0001). Caregivers of participants with pre-existing asthma or dose-related respiratory allergic reactions had less improvement in HRQL than those who did not (p <0.01). IT lead to improvement in caregiver HRQL. Certain characteristics were associated with greater improvements in caregiver HRQL.
Pore Growth during Initial-Stage Sintering

A quantitative model for pore growth during initial-stage sintering is proposed. During initial-stage sintering, neck formation leads to surface rounding of the pores, thereby causing a decrease in the surface area of the system. The decrease in surface area, without a concomitant decrease in pore volume, leads to a spurious increase in pore size, as calculated by the gas adsorption technique. Geometrical calculations predict a final pore size that is a function of the initial (green) density of the compact. For the 62% dense compacts of the present study, the model predicts a factor of 1.28 increase in pore size, compared to the factor of 1.27, which is experimentally observed. Interestingly, a common, constant factor of 1.27 can also be observed in pore growth data reported by a number of other researchers.
Surface pressure-dependent conformation change of apolipoprotein-derived amphipathic α-helices.

Amphipathic α-helices (AαH) are the primary structural motif of exchangeable apolipoproteins. AαHs in exchangeable apolipoproteins adsorb, remodel, and desorb at the surface of plasma lipoproteins in response to changes in their size or composition. A triolein/water (TO/W) interface was used as a model surface to study adsorption and desorption of AαHs at a lipoprotein-like interface. We previously reported that AαH peptides spontaneously adsorb to a TO/W interface, but they only partially desorb from the surface when the excess peptide was removed from the system. This finding suggests that “exchangeable” apolipoproteins are in fact partially exchangeable and only desorb from a surface in response to compression or change in composition. Here, we develop a thermodynamic and kinetic model to describe this phenomenon based on the change in the interfacial pressure (Π) of the C-terminal 46 amino acids of apolipoprotein A-I (C46) at a TO/W interface. This model suggests that apolipoproteins have at least two interfacial conformations that are in a surface concentration and Π-dependent equilibrium. This two-state surface equilibrium model, which is based on experimental data and is consistent with dynamic changes in Π(t), provides insights into the selective metabolism and clearance of plasma lipoproteins and the process of lipoprotein remodeling.
Structure and mechanism of the tripartite CusCBA heavy-metal efflux complex

Gram-negative bacteria frequently expel toxic chemicals through tripartite efflux pumps that span both the inner and outer membranes. The three parts are the inner membrane, substrate-binding transporter (or pump); a periplasmic membrane fusion protein (MFP, or adaptor); and an outer membrane-anchored channel. The fusion protein connects the transporter to the channel within the periplasmic space. One such efflux system CusCBA is responsible for extruding biocidal Cu(I) and Ag(I) ions. We previously described the crystal structures of both the inner membrane transporter CusA and the MFP CusB of Escherichia coli. We also determined the co-crystal structure of the CusBA adaptor-transporter efflux complex, showing that the transporter CusA, which is present as a trimer, interacts with six CusB protomers and that the periplasmic domain of CusA is involved in these interactions. Here, we summarize the structural information of these efflux proteins, and present the accumulated evidence that this efflux system uses methionine residues to bind and export Cu(I) and Ag(I). Genetic and structural analyses suggest that the CusA pump is capable of picking up the metal ions from both the periplasm and the cytoplasm. We propose a stepwise shuttle mechanism for this pump to export metal ions from the cell.
PAMcast : programmable any-multicast for scalable message delivery

The rapid growth of the Internet has led to much interest in communication paradigms that support scalability, including multicast and anycast. In this paper, we propose a new message delivery service - Programmable Any-Multicast (PAMcast) - which generalizes both anycast and multicast, by providing a message delivery service to m out of the total n group members, where 1 < m < n. Such a service has potential applications in a number of areas, including fault tolerant repositories, parallel cache queries, and parallel server downloads. Our architecture is based on a shared tree and managed by a group management protocol with similarities to IGMP. To explore what is possible with limited state and computation at the routers, we consider the implementation of two specific modes of delivery that control how the m receivers are selected. Our balanced mode aims for equal distribution of messages over receivers over time. We find that with relatively little state and computation we can achieve this goal. Our closest mode aims to deliver a packet to the m group members closest (by hop count) to the root of the distribution tree. We find that with modest state and computation we can achieve a probabilistic form of the closest mode.
Can indirect cost funding be improved

Like the tax laws many possible loopholes are in these proposed changes and therefore they have to be considered very carefully. If there is such a thing as a collective wisdom, it should be brought to bear on this problem. With strong and well-considered actions, which would be implemented in a controlled way, the mechanisms for funding research could be improved to encourage efficient use of funds.
Convergence of the phase field model to its sharp interface limits

We consider the distinguished limits of the phase field equations and prove that the corresponding free boundary problem is attained in each case. These include the classical Stefan model, the surface tension model (with or without kinetics), the surface tension model with zero specific heat, the two phase Hele–Shaw, or quasi-static, model. The Hele–Shaw model is also a limit of the Cahn–Hilliard equation, which is itself a limit of the phase field equations. Also included in the distinguished limits is the motion by mean curvature model that is a limit of the Allen–Cahn equation, which can in turn be attained from the phase field equations.
Effects of surfactants on mass transfer during spray drying

A study was conducted to investigate the effects of added surfactants on mass transfer during spray drying. Measurements were made of retention of volatile components and amount of water evaporation at various points near the atomizer inside a spray dryer of pilot plant scale. Experimental data indicate that surfactants can have a substantial effect on transport processes when certain types of liquid solutions are spray dried. Experimental results are interpreted in terms of transport mechanisms and are compared with relevant previous studies on non-spray systems.
Increased catalase expression improves muscle function in mdx mice

It has been well established that oxidative stress contributes to pathology associated with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). I hypothesized that overexpression of the antioxidant enzyme catalase would improve muscle function in the mdx mouse, the mouse model of DMD. To test this hypothesis, neonatal mdx mice were injected with a recombinant adeno-associated virus driving the catalase transgene. Animals were killed 4 or 6 weeks or 6 months following injection. Muscle function was generally improved by catalase overexpression. Four weeks following injection, extensor digitorum longus specific tension was improved twofold, while soleus was similar between groups. Resistance to contraction-induced injury was similar between groups; however, resistance to fatigue was increased 25% in catalase-treated soleus compared with control muscle. Six weeks following injection, extensor digitorum longus specific tension was increased 15%, while soleus specific tension was similar between treated and untreated limbs. Catalase overexpression reduced contraction-induced injury by 30–45% and fatigue by 20% compared with control limbs. Six months following injection, diaphragm specific tension was similar between groups, but resistance to contraction-induced injury was improved by 35% and fatigue by 25%. Taken together, these data indicate that catalase can improve a subset of parameters of muscle function in dystrophin-deficient skeletal muscle.
Game theory-based defense mechanisms against DDoS attacks on TCP/TCP-friendly flows

While there are significant advances in information technology and infrastructure which offer new opportunities, cyberspace is still far from completely secured. In many cases, the employed security solutions are ad hoc and lack a quantitative decision framework. To this end, game theory poses huge potential in building a defense architecture based on a solid analytical setting. In this paper, we explore the applicability of game theoretic approaches to the cyber security problem while keeping the focus on active bandwidth depletion attacks on TCP/TCP-friendly flows. We model the interaction between the attacker and the defender as a game in two attack scenarios: (i) one single attacking node for Denial of Service (DoS) and (ii) multiple attacking nodes for Distributed DoS (DDoS). The defender's challenge is to determine optimal firewall settings to block rogue traffic while allowing legitimate ones. Our analysis considers the worst-case scenario where the attacker also attempts to find the most effective sending rate or botnet size. In either case, we build a static game model to compute the Nash equilibrium that represents the best strategy for the defender. We validate the effectiveness of our game theoretic defense mechanisms via extensive simulation.
Authoritarian and homophobic attitudes: gender and adult attachment style differences.

This study explored the relations of gender and adult attachment styles to college students' scores on several measures of authoritarian attitudes (e.g., right-wing authoritarianism, ethnocentrism, homophobia, and religious fundamentalism). A multivariate analysis of authoritarian attitudes yielded significant main and interaction effects involving students' gender and their (categorical) attachment style scores. Relative to women, men reported higher levels of homophobia, ethnocentrism, and right-wing authoritarianism. Gender differences in homophobia were additionally conditioned by participants' adult attachment styles: Men with dismissing styles evidenced the highest levels of homophobia, whereas women with dismissing styles demonstrated the lowest levels; that is, a fear of intimacy seemed to contribute to homophobic attitudes found among heterosexual men. This was the first U.S. study of the relationship between adult attachment styles and right-wing authoritarianism, and further investigation is wa...
Plant cell suspension culture rheology.

The results of rheological measurements on 10 different plant cell suspension cultures are presented. Nicotiana tabacum (tobacco) suspension cultures grown in serial batch subculture display high viscosity and power law rheology. This "undesirable" rheology is shown to be a result of elongated cell morphology. The rheology of Papaver somniferum (poppy) cell suspensions is quite different; poppy suspensions behave as Newtonian fluids and have relatively low viscosity (less than 15 cP) at fresh cell densities up to 250 g/L. This flow behavior can be attributed to a lack of elongation in batch-grown poppy cells. A simple correlation for the viscosity as a function of cell density is developed for poppy suspensions up to 300 g fresh weight (FW)/L. It is shown that tobacco cells do not elongate when grown in semicontinuous culture (daily media replacement). These semicontinuously cultured cells have rheological behavior that is indistinguishable from that of poppy, further confirming the dependence of rheology on plant cell morphology. The rheology of a wide variety of other plant suspensions at 200 g FW/L is presented. Most cell suspensions, including soybean, cotton, bindweed, and potato, display low viscosities similar to poppy suspensions. Only carrot and atriplex exhibit slight pseudoplastic behavior which corresponded to a slight degree of cellular elongation for these cultures. This demonstrates that complex rheology associated with elongated cell morphology is much less common than low-viscosity Newtonian behavior. High viscosity in plant cell culture is therefore not an intrinsic characteristic of plant cells but, instead, is a result of the ability to grow cultures to extremely high cell densities due to low biological oxygen demand.
Bacterial expansins and related proteins from the world of microbes

The discovery of microbial expansins emerged from studies of the mechanism of plant cell growth and the molecular basis of plant cell wall extensibility. Expansins are wall-loosening proteins that are universal in the plant kingdom and are also found in a small set of phylogenetically diverse bacteria, fungi, and other organisms, most of which colonize plant surfaces. They loosen plant cell walls without detectable lytic activity. Bacterial expansins have attracted considerable attention recently for their potential use in cellulosic biomass conversion for biofuel production, as a means to disaggregate cellulosic structures by nonlytic means (“amorphogenesis”). Evolutionary analysis indicates that microbial expansins originated by multiple horizontal gene transfers from plants. Crystallographic analysis of BsEXLX1, the expansin from Bacillus subtilis, shows that microbial expansins consist of two tightly packed domains: the N-terminal domain D1 has a double-ψ β-barrel fold similar to glycosyl hydrolase family-45 enzymes but lacks catalytic residues usually required for hydrolysis; the C-terminal domain D2 has a unique β-sandwich fold with three co-linear aromatic residues that bind β-1,4-glucans by hydrophobic interactions. Genetic deletion of expansin in Bacillus and Clavibacter cripples their ability to colonize plant tissues. We assess reports that expansin addition enhances cellulose breakdown by cellulase and compare expansins with distantly related proteins named swollenin, cerato-platanin, and loosenin. We end in a speculative vein about the biological roles of microbial expansins and their potential applications. Advances in this field will be aided by a deeper understanding of how these proteins modify cellulosic structures.
A Community Responds to Collective Trauma: An Ecological Analysis of the James Byrd Murder in Jasper, Texas

The brutal murder of James Byrd Jr. in June 1998 unleashed a storm of media, interest groups, high profile individuals and criticism on the Southeast Texas community of Jasper. The crime and subsequent response—from within the community as well as across the world—engulfed the entire town in a collective trauma. Using natural disaster literature/theory and employing an ecological approach, Jasper, Texas was investigated via an interrupted time series analysis to identify how the community changed as compared to a control community (Center, Texas) on crime, economic, health, educational, and social capital measures collected at multiple pre- and post-crime time points between 1995 and 2003. Differences-in-differences (DD) analysis revealed significant post-event changes in Jasper, as well as a surprising degree of resilience and lack of negative consequences. Interviews with residents conducted between March 2005 and 2007 identified how the community responded to the crisis and augmented quantitative findings with qualitative, field-informed interpretation. Interviews suggest the intervention of external organizations exacerbated the severity of the events. However, using strengths of specific local social institutions—including faith based, law enforcement, media, business sector and civic government organizations—the community effectively responded to the initial threat and to the potential negative ramifications of external entities.
Human Vertical Eye Movement Responses to Earth Horizontal Pitch

The vertical eye movements in humans produced in response to head-over-heels constant velocity pitch rotation about a horizontal axis resemble those from other species. At 60 degrees/s these are persistent and tend to have non-reversing slow components that are compensatory to the direction of rotation. In most, but not all subjects, the slow component velocity was well characterized by a rapid build-up followed by an exponential decay to a non-zero baseline. Super-imposed was a cyclic or modulation component whose frequency corresponded to the time for one revolution and whose maximum amplitude occurred during a specific head orientation. All response components (exponential decay, baseline and modulation) were larger during pitch backward compared to pitch forward runs. Decay time constants were shorter during the backward runs, thus, unlike left to right yaw axis rotation, pitch responses display significant asymmetries between paired forward and backward runs.
Developmental Risk Factors in Postpartum Women with Urine Tests Positive for Cocaine

The aim of the study was to ascertain whether there was a difference in developmental experiences between two groups of inner city postpartum patients, those who used cocaine during pregnancy and those who did not. A retrospective structured interview was administered to 80 postpartum women examining demographic characteristics, adaptive function, drug use patterns, and selected risk factors for adult substance abuse encountered before age 16. The sample was divided into two cohorts of women: 40 women identified by urine tests of their babies as using cocaine shortly before delivery and a comparison group of 40 women not identified by positive urines. Comparisons between the two cohorts revealed that the cocaine identified women had significantly higher overall past and present use of a broad range of drugs, particularly crack and other forms of cocaine, as well as lower levels of general adaptive functioning despite the fact that they were demographically comparable. When compared to the nonusers, they d...
A theoretical basis for increasing current estimates of the amino acid requirements in adult man, with experimental support.

Estimates ofthe minimum (obligatory) rates ofloss ofindispensable acids via irreversible oxidation in healthy young adults are predicted from published data for obligatory nitrogen losses and from published values for whole-body protein turnover and the efficiency of amino acid recycling. The estimates obtained by these two different approaches are consis- tent and equal to or in most cases considerably higher than current values for the upper range ofthe individual amino acid requirements in healthy adults. From these estimates ofthe oblig- atory, or minimum, rates ofamino acid oxidation, the minimum requirements for indispens- abbe amino acids are predicted. These are about two to three times higher than current require- ment figures. Experimental support for these higher requirement figures is presented, based on published ' 3C-labeled amino acid tracer studies. When these revised estimates are expressed per unit of protein need, the amino acid pattern is similar to the 1985 Food and Agriculture Organization/World Health Organization/United Nations University amino acid scoring pat- tern for the preschool child (aged 2-5 y). Am J C/in Nutr 1989;50:80-92.
Profit-based grassroots design and retrofit of water networks in process plants

In this paper, we present a methodology for the grassroots design and/or retrofit of water utilization systems using mathematical optimization to maximize net present value (NPV) and/or return of investment (ROI) instead of minimizing freshwater consumption. The examples show that the solutions where savings and/or profit are maximized can be different from those where freshwater is minimized. They also differ from each other when ROI or NPV are used. In addition, when the NPV objective is used, the optimum solutions also vary depending on the interest rate used to calculate the discount factor.
Near-Surface Currents in DeSoto Canyon (1997–99): Comparison of Current Meters, Satellite Observation, and Model Simulation

This study evaluates a data-assimilated model simulation of near-surface circulation in DeSoto Canyon (DSC), Gulf of Mexico, with emphasis on analyzing moored current-meter observations and comparing them with satellite data and model results. The study period is for two years from April 1997 to April 1999. The model results are from a high-resolution Gulf of Mexico model forced by analyzed wind and surface heat flux. Two types of data are used to deduce near-surface circulation: moored current meters at 13 locations in the DSC, and satellite sea level anomaly. The moored currents are mapped through multivariate objective analysis to produce surface currents and surface geopotentials, against which satellite- and model-derived sea surface heights and geostrophic currents are compared. Coupled patterns between the observations, model results, and satellite data are obtained using the singular value decomposition (SVD) analysis. There are two dominant modes: a ‘‘single-eddy’’ mode, in which currents are concentrated at the foot of the canyon, and an ‘‘eddy-pair’’ mode, in which one eddy is at the foot of the canyon and the other, a counterrotating eddy, is over the head of canyon. Mode 1 appears to be associated with the mesoscale eddy traveling around the Loop Current crest and trough, and mode 2 is associated with the intrusion of Loop Current crest and trough over the west Florida shelf. The observed and model currents are in good agreement about the means and variances. The model currents also appear to be well constrained by the steep topography. However, the model velocity field contains only the first mode. The satellite-derived velocity field, on the other hand, contains both the first and second modes; though, the satellite field does not adequately resolve the velocity structures over the slope.
Mount Laurel III: The New Jersey Supreme Court's Judicious Retreat

In Hills Development Co. v. Township of Bernards (popularly denoted Mount Laurel III), the Supreme Court of New Jersey wholeheartedly withdrew, if only temporarily, from the controversial area of affordable housing.
Where Do We Go from Here? Improving Disparities in Respiratory Health

In the United States, the economically disadvantaged and members of certain ethnic minority groups (African Americans and Hispanics) have a shorter average lifespan (by as much as one to two decades (Commission Metro Map. Digital map. Commission to Build a Healthier America. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), 2009)) than affluent or non-Hispanic white persons. This finding is explained by underlying disparities in health (including respiratory health) across these demographic groups.
Hemispheric white matter lesions in the elderly prone to falling.

Brain computed tomography studies of two groups of elderly (mean age 83.3 years, SE 1.7) with no neurologic diagnoses were compared. Sixteen of the subjects were non-fallers and the remaining 17 had frequent unexplained falls. The group of fallers had a significantly greater degree of white-matter hypodensity of the elderly (Student's t-test = 2.7, p less than 0.01). Language: en
Measurement of flight tone differences between female Aedes aegypti and A. albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae)

Mosquito flight tone was amplified and digitally sampled at 20,000 samples per second (Hz). Resampling of the resulting sound files at 1,000, 5,000, and 10,000 Hz allowed comparison of flight tone frequency distributions for males and females of Aedes aegypti (L.) and A. albopictus (Skuse). Frequency distributions for females of the two species did not overlap at sampling rates of 5,000 Hz or higher, whereas considerable overlap was observed at the 1,000 Hz sampling rate. Males of the two species produced flight tones higher in frequency than those of females, but similar to each other. At the highest sampling rate, seven flight tone harmonics were measured for each species. Close correspondence of the means of the flight tone harmonics (corrected for harmonic number) demonstrated that any of the harmonics may be used accurately and precisely to calculate flight tone frequency. These data indicate that flight tone differences have been selected in these species and could act as an isolating mechanism for mating.
Chromosomal Number of Sorosphaera veronicae (Plasmodiophoromycetes) Based on Ultrastructural Analysis of Synaptonemal Complexes

Plasmodiophoromycetes are endobiotic, obligate, fungal parasites of vascular plants, algae, and other fungi and may induce hypertrophy of host cells or tissues. Although the life cycles of these parasites have been subject to inconsistent and often conflicting interpretations, the following, brief generalized life cycle of plasmodiophoraceous fungi (Karling, 1968) delimits aspects pertinent to this study. Two phases are apparent in the life cycles: (1) the sporangiogenous phase terminates with the production of thin-walled zoosporangia, and (2) the cystogenous phase culminates in the production of thick-walled resting spores (cysts). Vegetative forms in both phases are plasmodia with prominent, centrally located nucleoli in interphase nuclei. During the growing period, nuclei undergo cruciform divisions, i.e., divisions during which nucleoli persist and elongate at right angles to the metaphase plates. With the cessation of growth in cystogenous plasmodia, the nucleoli disperse, causing the nuclei to be less evident. Earlier workers (Horne, 1930; Cook, 1933; Webb, 1935) described this stage as "akaryotic" or "transitional." Cleavage into cysts is accompanied by two noncruciform divisions during which no nucleoli are present. Some earlier light microscopists interpreted these noncruciform divisions as meiosis (Horne, 1930; Cook, 1933; Webb, 1935), but others did not report meiosis or disputed the occurrence of
Multidisciplinary Design Optimization of Medium-Range Transonic Truss-Braced Wing Aircraft with Flutter Constraint

This study pursues designs for a medium-range, transonic transport aircraft using a multidisciplinary optimization approach which uses the flutter speed as a constraint in addition to the other constraints. The aim is to use the flutter constraint for the study of truss-braced wing aircraft configurations having a cruise Mach of 0.7 and a flight mission that is similar to that of a Boeing 737-800NG. The basic multidisciplinary tools presented here have been used previously to obtain designs for aircraft with a cruise Mach of 0.78 and 0.85; however these designs were not obtained with the current flutter constraint. The objective function considered here is to minimize the take-off gross weight. Results obtained in this study show that the flutter constraint is active for the truss-braced wing configurations, and these aircraft configurations undergo 1% penalty on their takeoff weight to satisfy the flutter constraint. This work is important since it documents the weight penalties associated with satisfying the flutter constraint when the objective is to minimize the take-off gross weight of the aircraft. Thus, the designer can decide if active flutter suppression can be implemented to obtain a lighter aircraft.
Renovascular Hypertension: A Noninvasive Screening Approach Using Captopril Renography

Background: Noninvasive cost-effective screening of hypertensive patients for renovascular hypertension is a desirable approach to a rare disorder. Currently many patients are screened with angiography, which is both invasive and expensive. Methods: A MEDLINE search from 1985 through July 1994 using the key words “renovascular hypertension,” “noninvasive,” “screening” generated 16 references. We reviewed these references, as well as several additional references, in an effort to find a reliable noninvasive screening test for renovascular hypertension. Results and Conclusions: To date, the most reliable noninvasive screening test for renovascular hypertension is captopril renography. Results of captopril renography allow the physician to diagnose renovascular hypertension with an accuracy of greater than 90 percent. Cost-effectiveness requires appropriate selection of high-risk hypertensive patients for subsequent investigation with captopril renography. Hypertensive patients who have fibromuscular dysplasia, which is most commonly found in young white women, have the best treatment outcomes.
mTOR Signaling in Cortical Network Development

Disruptions in the development of cortical networks through alterations to proliferation, migration, and integration can result in disabling consequences, including seizures and cognitive dysfunction. Hyperactive mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling is known to disrupt multiple stages of cortical development. This is evidenced in part by mTOR's association with malformations of cortical development. Additionally, mTOR has also been tied to a wide range of neurological and psychiatric disorders, including autism, schizophrenia, and neurodegenerative diseases. In order to better understand how mTOR can induce cortical developmental aberrations, we focally alter the developing cortex using in utero electroporation, allowing us to investigate basic functions of mTOR and model disease states.
Effects of antiandrogens (cyproterone acetate and flutamide) on the activity of nuclear protein phosphokinases and phosphatases of rat ventral prostate.

The effect of in vivo administration of the antiandrogens flutamide and cyproterone acetate on the activities of prostatic chromatin-associated protein phosphokinases (toward endogenous and exogenous substrates) and nuclear phosphatase activities was studied. Intact male rats (315-335 g) were treated daily for up to 48 hr with either flutamide or cyproterone acetate producing both time- and dose-dependent declines in acidic-phosphoprotein kinase activity (dephosphophosvitin as protein substrate). At a daily dose of 10 mg of antiandrogen for 48 hr, the decline in activity was 33% for cyproterone acetate and 36% for flutamide. The ability of the antiandrogens to compete with testosterone in relation to effects on prostatic chromatin-associated acidic-phosphoprotein kinase activity and phosphorylation of endogenous chromosomal proteins was examined by simultaneous treatment of castrated rats with antiandrogen and testosterone in vivo. A dose of 0.01 mg testosterone propionate/100 g body wt/day was found sufficient to maintain the chromatin-associated acidic-phosphoprotein kinase activity at the level of the intact animal. Both antiandrogens were effective in competing with the androgen. At a dose 100-fold greater than testosterone propionate (on a molar basis), flutamide gave 55% and cyproterone acetate 27% reduction in acidic-phosphoprotein kinase activity compared with the control treated with testosterone and oil vehicle. Under the same treatment regimen, phosphorylation of endogenous proteins in chromatin was decreased 69% with flutamide and 65% with cyproterone acetate. Histone kinase activity of prostatic chromatin, compared with kinase activity toward dephosphophosvitin, was affected less by orchiectomy or by antiandrogen treatment of intact animals. Protein phosphatase activities, measured with 32P-labeled phosvitin or lysine-rich histone as substrates, demonstrated a small decline in activity following treatment with antiandrogens (10-mg dose) for 48 hr, if these activities were expressed per unit of nuclear protein. A decline of about 50% in activity was evident when specific activity was expressed per unit nuclear DNA. This effect on nuclear protein phosphatase specific activities partially reflects the decline in the protein:DNA ratio observed following antiandrogen treatment. The alkaline phosphatase activity of the prostatic nucleus increased over twofold following 48 hr antiandrogen treatment (10-mg dose), as was also found 48 hr after orchiectomy. The use of antiandrogens produces an effect comparable to orchiectomy on the protein phosphokinase reactions of prostatic chromatin, especially those involving acidic protein or endogenous protein substrates, which suggests that these enzymes are under the control of events mediated via the 5α-dihydrotestosterone-receptor complex system.
A decade of changes: Within-group analysis of LGBTQ individuals' perceptions of their community context and the relevance for social service providers

ABSTRACTThe previous decade has seen a drastic shift in the social environment for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people. It is not surprising then to find that the perceived “best” and “worst” aspects of life for nonmetropolitan LGBTQ individuals have also changed. We use data from two cohorts of the Rainbow Illinois survey to examine differences between responses in 2000 and 2011. Furthermore, we examine demographic differences in the perception of what is “best” and “worst” among the 2011 cohort. Results suggest that although the general social climate has improved for some, it remains problematic for others. Implications for social service providers are thoroughly discussed.
On videocameralistics: the geopolitics of failed states, the CNN International and (UN)governmentality

The discourse of state failure is a post-Cold War era phenomenon which provides a point of entry into the problematic of global regulation and governance after the Cold War. The mass media spectacles of chaos in the 1990s-in Iraq, Somalia and Rwanda-are windows into three overlap ping dynamics which are re-mastering regulation and governance in the post-Cold War world. The first of these dynamics is the specter of state failure in international politics. The second is the power of global media machines as omnipresent visualization technologies, which are infecting and disrupting the political project of envisioning global order by hegemonic institutions and actors. The third dynamic is the regulatory imperatives of economic growth and political stability exerted by hege monic states and institutions upon the strong and the weak alike. This article seeks to theorize critically the webs of power spun by all three, elaborating in the process a Foucauldian-inspired concept-videocamer alistics-to describe thei...
Anomalous Perturbation of the O2 Sensitivity of Poly(aromatic) Hydrocarbons by Magnetic Quantum Dots

Molecular oxygen is known to be an efficient quencher of the excited states of organic molecules. This fact has been exploited to develop fluorescent O2 sensors, which is topical for cancer screening and many other applications. In this regard, our group and others have reported the development of robust, ratiometrically reporting chemosensors by conjugating O2-sensitive organic chromophores to inorganic quantum dots. Recently, an attempt was made to prepare a multifunctional sensor system by attaching the emissive poly(aromatic) hydrocarbons pyrene and perylene to magnetic nanomaterials, specifically CdSe/CdMnZnS and ZnSe/ZnMnS/ZnS quantum dots. However, the fluorescence of both dyes became invariant to oxygen levels even if the solutions were fully saturated. We ruled out any material dependency beyond the presence of Mn2+ ions by studying control samples, while molecular dynamics simulations negated any possibility of spatial sequestration of O2 by the magnetic fields. In the case of pyrene, the proxim...
Pelvic limb kinematics in the dog with and without a stifle orthosis

Objective To report a method of evaluating 3-dimensional joint motion in dogs with a stifle orthosis. Study design Experimental. Animals Six healthy dogs. Methods Three-dimensional pelvic limb joint motion was recorded with and without a stifle orthosis. Kinematic data were collected from dogs at a walk and trot for the hip, stifle, and tarsus prior to, and after application of, a stifle orthosis. Data were also obtained for the orthosis alone. Comparisons were made between the braced and unbraced limb, and between the braced limb and the orthosis alone. Complete waveforms, kinematic, and temporospatial variables were compared. Results Gait waveforms differed between braced and unbraced limbs for all joints and planes of motion (P < .05), as well as between the braced stifles and the orthosis alone at both a walk and trot. However, joint ROM was inconsistently altered. The effect of bracing on stifle ROM was limited to a reduced extension at the end of stance. Adjacent joint ROM was affected by the stifle orthosis. Temporospatial variables were predominantly affected while walking. Conclusions The restrictive motion of the stifle orthosis is not fully translated to the underlying joint, based on the limited differences between the motion of braced and unbraced stifles. This effect varies with plane of motion and phase of the gait cycle, with most changes in stifle motion being detected during the stance phase. The stifle orthosis had an equal or greater effect on the motion of adjacent joints, especially the tarsus.
Catalytic cracking of fast and tail gas reactive pyrolysis bio-oils over HZSM-5

Abstract Hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) of pyrolysis oil is well understood as an upgrading method; however, the high processing pressures associated with it alone justify the exploration of alternative upgrading solutions, especially those that could adapt pyrolysis oils into the existing refinery infrastructure. Catalytic cracking is one such alternative industrial practice that can be carried out at near-atmospheric pressure using zeolite-based FCC catalysts. The present study focuses on the catalytic cracking of pyrolysis oil of different starting compositions over HZSM-5 to inform the extent of upgrading in the liquid phase. After establishing a catalyst bed temperature of 500 °C as the optimum operating condition with regard to deoxygenation and yield of mono-aromatics in the products obtained, the performances of conventional pyrolysis and tail gas reactive pyrolysis (TGRP) bio-oils as starting liquids for the cracking were compared. The results indicate that the formation of naphthalenes was favored, while the formation of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes (BTEX) compounds was slightly depressed in the case of the TGRP oil. We attribute this finding to the formation of naphthalenes from BTEX molecules already found in the TGRP oil. Subsequent reuse of the catalysts showed that the cracking of TGRP bio-oil exhibited slightly greater deactivation after a third cycle, likely due to the increased formation of naphthalenes and coke which can block HZSM-5 pores. The results obtained from this study will help determine the issues that need to be addressed when developing a catalytic cracker with HZSM-5 for regular pyrolysis oil and TGRP oil.
Hardware-Software Co-design to Mitigate DRAM Refresh Overheads: A Case for Refresh-Aware Process Scheduling

DRAM cells need periodic refresh to maintain data integrity. With high capacity DRAMs, DRAM refresh poses a significant performance bottleneck as the number of rows to be refreshed (and hence the refresh cycle time, tRFC) with each refresh command increases. Modern day DRAMs perform refresh at a rank-level, while LPDDRs used in mobile environments support refresh at a per-bank level. Rank-level refresh degrades the performance significantly since none of the banks in a rank can serve the on-demand requests. Per-bank refresh alleviates some of the performance bottlenecks as the other banks in a rank are available for on-demand requests. Typical DRAM retention time is in the order several of milliseconds, viz, 64msec for environments operating in temperatures below 85 deg C and 32msec for environments operating above 85 deg C.With systems moving towards increased consolidation (ex: virtualized environments), DRAM refresh becomes a significant bottleneck as it reduces the available overall DRAM bandwidth per task. In this work, we propose a hardware-software co-design to mitigate DRAM refresh overheads by exposing the hardware address mapping and DRAM refresh schedule to the Operating System. We propose a novel DRAM refresh-aware process scheduling algorithm in OS which schedules applications on cores such that none of the on-demand requests from the application are stalled by refreshes. Extensive evaluation of our proposed co-design on multi-programmed SPEC CPU2006 workloads show significant performance improvement compared to the previously proposed hardware only approaches.
Unsteady Field Element Method with Embedded Euler Domain for Transonic Pitching Airfoil Flows

An equation zonal scheme for unsteady transonic flow computations has been developed. In this scheme, the unsteady Euler equations in a moving frame of reference are solved in a small embedded domain (inner domain) around the airfoil using an implicit approximately factored finite-volume method. The unsteady full-potential equation in the same frame of reference is solved in the outer domain using the integral equation method to provide the boundary conditions for the inner Euler domain. The solution procedure is a time-marching procedure, where the outer boundary conditions are updated using the integral equation solution. The equation zonal scheme is applied to unsteady transonic flow around a pitching airfoil. The results have been compared with those of an implicit Euler equations solver throughout.