cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The noncoding RNAs: a genomic symphony of transcripts

Imagine you are playing a piano. Your fingers sequentially move from one end of the keyboard to the other. Now imagine there is another person, playing the same keys in the opposite direction. Add yet another set of hands, which start and stop playing different keys within the center of the keyboard. Now imagine the room has many pianos, each with thousands of keys, and imagine each piano with thousands of players. The sound delicately balanced in sequence, with some melodies played very loud and others played very softly. So too, are the many transcripts of the genome, especially those of the class of noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs). The regulation of protein production has many more checks and balances than previously imagined. At the heart of this control lies the ncRNAs, which include the familiar tRNAs and rRNAs as well as the more recently discovered microRNAs (miRNAs) and piRNAs (Table 1). The transcriptome has proven to be much more complex than the initial sequencing estimates of approximately 20,000 protein-coding genes in the human genome. Studies have estimated that almost all of the transcriptional output of the human genome is RNAs that do not encode proteins (Mattick 2005). The articles in this issue focus on many aspects of the regulation and functions of miRNAs and other ncRNAs in the mammalian genome. Table 1 General classes of short noncoding RNAs in mammals. The miRNA genes Since the first identification of miRNAs by Victor Ambros and colleagues (Lee et al. 1993), a novel mechanism for controlling translation was discovered. MiRNAs are a group of small ncRNA molecules that are distinct from, but related to, small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) and that have been identified in a variety of organisms (Ambros 2003; Bartel 2004; He and Hannon 2004). These small 19–24 nucleotides (nt) RNAs are transcribed as parts of longer molecules, several kilobases (kb) in length, which are then capped and polyadenylated. These pri-miRNA transcripts are processed in the nucleus into hairpin RNAs of 70–100 nt by the ribonuclease Drosha and the RNA binding protein Pasha (Cullen 2004; Gregory et al. 2004). The hairpin RNAs are transported to the cytoplasm via an exportin-5 dependent mechanism; there they are digested by the double-strand-specific ribonuclease, Dicer. In animals, single-stranded miRNA binds specific messenger RNA (mRNA) through sequences that are complementary to the target mRNA, mainly to the 3’ untranslated region (3’ UTR). By a mechanism that is not fully characterized, the bound mRNA remains untranslated, resulting in reduced levels of the corresponding protein; alternatively, if the sequence match between the microRNA and its target is exact, the bound mRNA can be degraded, resulting in reduced levels of both the corresponding transcript and its encoded protein.
A study on division of primordial germ cells in the early chick embryo

The purpose was to determine the sites, times and frequency of mitotic activity in primordial germ cells in the white Leghorn chick embryo during the period of migration. Colchicine was employed to facilitate the identification of dividing germ cells in embryos ranging in age from 18 hours to five days of incubation (stages 3–27). An increase in the number of germ cells was observed during the period of migration, due primarily to proliferation of intraembryonic cells, since no significant increase in the number of extra-embryonic germ cells was seen during this period. The number of germ cells during this period ranged from 43 at 18 hours to 2211 at 120 hours. Two periods of intense proliferation were observed, the first between 48 and 72, the second between 96 and 120 hours. This coincided with a simultaneous increase in the number of germ cells during these periods. Dividing germ cells were present in the extraembryonic blood vessels anterior, lateral and posterior to the embryo at 28, 48 and 72 hours and within the intra-embryonic circulatory network at 48, 72, 96 and 120 hours. At 72, 96 and 120 hours, dividing germ cells were numerous in the tissues of the dorsal mesentery adjacent to the developing gonads and within the gonads. Dividing germ cells were also located in head mesenchyme, limb buds and mesenchyme surrounding the notochord-neural tube complex. Dividing germ cells were found in the chick embryo throughout the entire migratory period.
Jewishness and Masculinity from the Modern to the Postmodern

Michael Chabon plays with a range of Jewish and goyishe masculinities in The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay (2000): on the Jewish side the 98-pound, weak-legged queer Sammy Clay juxtaposes a...
What defines an intruder? An intelligent approach

All attacks in a computer network begin with an intruder's action of affecting the services provided to legitimate users. Hence, intrusion detection is vital for preserving integrity, confidentiality, and availability in a computer network. Intrusion detection faces many challenges, such as the need for large amount of data to discriminate between intruders and non-intruders, and the overlapping of user behavior to that of the intruders. This paper aims to target both of these challenges, by employing a distributed intrusion prevention system based on the Binary Partitle Swarm Optimization (BPSO) and Probabilistic Neural Network (PNN) algorithms. Such a system is capable of: 1) locally classifying actions as intruder or non-intruder type, and 2) consulting neighbors for casting a majority vote, upon finding high ambiguity on a decision. The algorithm uses an evolutionary computation approach to select the best features that can help classify intruders, while using fewer amounts of data. Furthermore, the approach uses concepts from semi-supervised learning to improve and adapt over time, to any network infrastructure. To demonstrate the viability of the proposed approach, a random set of data has been selected from the KDD-99 dataset. Such a set contained capture data from both users and attackers. Results have been compared with traditional data mining algorithms from previous work, demonstrating that such a system can have high accuracy, while maintaining a low false alarm rate.
Hydrological controls on chemical export from an undisturbed old-growth Chilean forest

Abstract Stream water chemical concentrations from an undisturbed, temperate, old-growth Chilean forest were analyzed to gain insights into hydrological controls on watershed-scale losses of different nutrients and chemical elements. Our goal was to understand how hydrological and biogeochemical processes interact to control patterns of export of dissolved chemicals from these types of forested watersheds. The study is unique in that the monitored watershed lies in a part of the world that receives very little anthropogenic influence and this is the first study of its type in this part of the world. A small, densely forested, montane watershed was continuously monitored for stream discharge and precipitation and was sampled biweekly for stream-, precipitation-, and soil-water chemistry. Three different forms of hydrological controls were used to describe how concentrations of different elements changed as a function of increased stream water discharge: dilution of elements due to decreased relative contributions by baseflow sources, increased concentration due to enhanced hydrological access to elements in to shallow soil horizons, and no net effect, i.e. hydrologically constant. A hyperbolic relationship was used to describe element concentration as a function of stream discharge to quantify the variations for major ions, cations, and organic forms of nutrients. In general, this hydro-biogeochemical system showed the most distinct dilution and enhanced hydrological access for chemicals with large concentration differences between deep and shallow soil water. Deep soil water sources were most distinct for Ca2+ and Si, both of which demonstrated dilution. In contrast, variations in H+ concentrations resembled enhanced hydrological access indicating shallow soil sources, coupled with the consumption of acidity by weathering or cation exchange in deeper soil layers. Rainwater sometimes enhanced and sometimes tempered the observed trends. Potassium was the least hydrologically variable element (hydrologically constant) in this study, possibly due to strong biological mechanisms internal to the watershed. The approach used here is a simple method to identify the importance of hydrologic variations in controlling streamwater chemistry relative to internal biogeochemical sources and processes.
Technology and Data-Intensive Science in the Beginning of the 21st Century

Abstract This article is a summary of the technology issues and challenges of data-intensive science and cloud computing as discussed in the Data-Intensive Science (DIS) workshop in Seattle, September 19–20, 2010.
Assessing compensation for insect damage in mixed plantings of resistant and susceptible potatoes

Plant mixtures have been proposed for pesticidal transgenic potatoes as a means to reduce selection intensity favoring resistant insect genotypes. Colorado potato beetle,Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say), defoliation was simulated in mixed plantings of susceptible and resistant potato “mimics” to evaluate yield compensation. Various mixtures of susceptible and resistant potato were planted at two densities and two locations in eastern North Carolina. Resistant plants were undamaged throughout the season whereas susceptible plants were completely defoliated by hand either during early or late bloom. The ability of non-defoliated plants to compensate for neighboring defoliated plants was investigated through single-plant and smallplot field experiments for 2 years.
Classifying sex biased congenital anomalies

The reasons for sex biases in congenital anomalies that arise before structural or hormonal dimorphisms are established has long been unclear. A review of such disorders shows that patterning and tissue anomalies are female biased, and structural findings are more common in males. This suggests different gender dependent susceptibilities to developmental disturbances, with female vulnerabilities focused on early blastogenesis/determination, while males are more likely to involve later organogenesis/morphogenesis. A dual origin for some anomalies explains paradoxical reductions of sex biases with greater severity (i.e., multiple rather than single malformations), presumably as more severe events increase the involvement of an otherwise minor process with opposite biases to those of the primary mechanism. The cause for these sex differences is unknown, but early dimorphisms, such as differences in growth or presence of H-Y antigen, may be responsible. This model provides a useful rationale for understanding and classifying sex-biased congenital anomalies.
The biomechanical effects of low-intensity ultrasound on healing tendons

The effect of low-intensity ultrasound on the healing strength of tendons was studied in experimentally tenotomized, repaired and immobilized right tendo calcaneus (Achilles tendon) of 24 rabbits. Ten tendons were sonicated in continuous waves at a space-averaged intensity of 0.5 W cm-2 for 5 min every day. The remaining 14 tendons were mock-sonicated as controls. After nine consecutive treatments, the tendons were excised under anesthesia and compared for differences in tensile strength, tensile stress and energy absorption capacity. Sonication at 0.5 W cm-2 induced a significant increase in the tensile strength (p less than .02), tensile stress (p less than .005) and energy absorption capacity (p less than .001) of the tendons. These findings suggest that high-intensity sonication may not be necessary to augment the healing strength of tendons and that sonication at similarly low intensities may enhance the healing process of surgically repaired human tendo calcaneus.
Cuba's Attack on Women's Second Shift 1974-1976

As the first generation of Marxist theoreticians wrestled with the "woman question," two men, Frederick Engels and V. I. Lenin, emphasized women's incorporation into social production and the transformation of domestic economy into large-scale socialist economy. It took a woman, Clara Zetkin, to bring up the obvious immediate way to emancipate women from their barbarous drudgery men's participation in household chores. A generation later and hemisphere away, Fidel Castro spurs on socialist Cuba1 to change both the "objective factors" of social organization of housework, of which Engels and Lenin spoke, and the "subjective factors" involving attitudes of men and women toward the division of labor. By 1974 much progress had been made in both areas; as women entered the work force in large numbers, social services catered to the needs of working mothers, and men became accustomed and even proud of women's accomplishments in the cane fields and factories. But persistent problems began to alarm Cuba's leaders. The biggest problem for women was the "second shift," or sobrecargo, familiar to women in many countries, whereby women carry their full eight-hour workday load and then return home to virtually all the domestic chores and child-rearing responsibilities. Cuba began perhaps the world's first direct assault on the second shift with the drafting of a Family Code in July, 1974. Among other items, the Code would require men to do half of the housework and share equally in education and care of the children.
Postcataract endophthalmitis caused by Mycobacterium goodii

This is the first reported case of delayed-onset postcataract endophthalmitis caused by Mycobacterium goodii, confirmed by multiple cultures. The patient had uneventful cataract removal by phacoemulsification with implantation of a posterior chamber intraocular lens (IOL). One month later, he developed redness, pain, a hypopyon, and a decrease in visual acuity to finger counting in the affected eye. A vitreous biopsy was performed for suspected endophthalmitis; culture results showed rapidly growing bacteria identified by DNA sequencing as Mycobacterium goodii. The eye ultimately required IOL explantation but had a good final outcome with 20/40 uncorrected vision. Mycobacterium goodii is a rapidly growing Mycobacterium with isolates more commonly occurring in cellulitis, osteomyelitis, and respiratory disease. Single-drug antibiotic therapy for nonocular disease is often sufficient if the correct antimicrobial agent is used. The newer fluoroquinolones are promising against rapidly growing Mycobacterium.
National Patterns of Medication Treatment for Depression, 1987 to 2001.

Background: We investigated trends in antidepressant use, as well as broader changes in depression treatment, following the availability of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). Method: Using data from the National Disease and Therapeutic Index, a nationally representative survey of U.S. office-based physicians conducted by IMS HEALTH, we analyzed trends in antidepressant prescribing patterns from 1987 through the third quarter of 2001. Annual sample sizes of physician visits by patients reported to have depression ranged from 3901 visits in 1987 to 6639 in 1998. Outcomes examined included the frequency of depression visits, the likelihood of antidepressant therapy, and the use of specific medications. Results: The estimated national number of physician visits by patients with depression increased from 14.4 million visits in 1987 to 24.5 million in 2001 (annualized). The rate of antidepressant medication treatment in these patients also increased from 70% in 1987 to 89% in 2001. In 1987, tricyclic antidepressants were prescribed to 47% of patients with depression. The most common individual antidepressants were amitriptyline (14%), trazodone (12%), doxepin (8%), and desipramine (6%). In 1989, a year after its introduction, fluoxetine was prescribed to 21% of patients with depression. The introduction of other SSRIs led aggregate SSRI use to grow to 38% in 1992, 60% in 1996, and 69% in 2000. In 2001, sertraline (18%), paroxetine (16%), fluoxetine (14%), citalopram (13%), and bupropion (9%) were the leading antidepressants, while tricyclics were used in only 2% of patients. The use of benzodiazepines in depression declined from 21% of patients in 1987 to 8% in 2001. Conclusion: The increasing therapeutic dominance of SSRIs may have contributed to other changes in depression treatment, including declining benzodiazepine use, increased aggregate antidepressant treatment rates, and increased reporting of depression.
High Prevalence of Oxacillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Isolates from Hospitalized Patients in Asia-Pacific and South Africa: Results from SENTRY Antimicrobial Surveillance Program, 1998-1999

As part of the SENTRY antimicrobial surveillance program, we examined the prevalence rates, types, and antibiograms of oxacillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus from hospitalized patients from 17 institutions in eight countries in Asia-Pacific and South Africa (APAC). From April 1998 to December 1999, a total of 1,711 isolates of S. aureus (814 from blood, 392 from the respiratory tract, 467 from skin and skin structures, and 38 from urine) were collected from hospitalized patients within the APAC region. Multidrug-resistant oxacillin-resistant S. aureus (MORSA) isolates, defined as strains with three or more resistances to drug classes other than β-lactams, were the most common type of oxacillin-resistant S. aureus (ORSA). They were the most frequently identified pathogen in wound infections and were common in bloodstream and lower respiratory tract infections. In all contributing institutions combined, more than 45% (range, 4 to 74%) of S. aureus isolates were oxacillin resistant, and in six institutions, this rate exceeded 60%. MORSA accounted for 91.2% of all oxacillin-resistant isolates. Distinct resistance patterns predominated at various sites within the APAC region, suggesting the local evolution of resistant clones. Non-multidrug-resistant strains were frequent in one part of Australia. No vancomycin-intermediate strains were detected, and no strains were resistant to linezolid or quinupristin-dalfopristin. MORSA strains are a very common cause of infection in hospitalized patients in the APAC region.
Lexicalized Grammar 101

This paper presents a simple and versatile tree-rewriting lexicalized grammar formalism, TAGLET, that provides an effective scaffold for introducing advanced topics in a survey course on natural language processing (NLP). Students who implement a strong competence TAGLET parser and generator simultaneously get experience with central computer science ideas and develop an effective starting point for their own subsequent projects in data-intensive and interactive NLP.
THE EFFECT OF A SUMMER VACATION ON STUDENTS' KNOWLEDGE OF FRENCH

Author's summary.— Tests given to a limited number of boys indicated comparatively little loss during the summer, particularly in the case of boys with high I. Q. and those who had made high scores in June.
SUBSEQUENT RESPONSE TO EARLY DIET CHOLESTEROL AND FEED RESTRICTION IN SWINE

Abstract Three four-way cross (Chester White × Landrace × Large White × Yorkshire) female pigs from each of twelve litters were used. One pig from each trio remained with its primiparous dam and its other littermates to age 28 d. Two pigs from each trio were removed to individual boxes at age 24 to 36 h and fed liquid sow-milk substitute containing low cholesterol (14 mg/100 g) or high cholesterol (151 mg/100 g) to age 28 d. All pigs were weaned to a dry diet containing 182 mg cholesterol/100 g to age 12 wk and 115 mg cholesterol/100 g from age 12 wk to 20 wk. Carcass measurements and organ weights were recorded at slaughter (20 wk) and liver was analyzed for cholesterol. Body weights were recorded weekly to 28 d and bi-weekly thereafter; serum total cholesterol was determined on d 1, 28, 56, 84, 112 and 136. Sow-reared (SR) pigs were heavier (P
The molecular weight distribution for chain polymerization plus side reaction

The kinetics of chain polymerization is investigated for the case of complicating side reaction. In addition to the polymerization reaction, A i + M → A i+1 , there is a reversible side reaction, A i + Q ↔ B i . Initiation is assumed to be instantaneous. The monomer concentration M, and the concentration of the reacting species Q, are assumed to be constant. The reaction kinetics are solved exactly, yielding the distribution of living and dormant polymer, as well as the molecular weight distribution, as explicit functions of the reaction rate constants and the time.
Histopathologic and trypsin digestion studies of the retina in incontinentia pigmenti.

Objective To report the ocular histopathologic features of a 55-year-old patient with incontinentia pigmenti retinopathy. Design Observational case report. Participant A 55-year-old patient with incontinentia pigmenti retinopathy. Methods Examination of eyes by light microscopy and retinal trypsin digestion. Main Outcome Measures Clinical and histopathological findings. Results Histopathologic examination disclosed inner retinal ischemic atrophy, capillary beading, arteriolar–venous anastomoses, preretinal neovascularization, vasculopathy located at the junction of central vascular and peripheral avascular retina, retinal tears, and tractional retinoschisis. Conclusions Patients with retinal manifestations of incontinentia pigmenti may progress to proliferative vitreoretinopathy or retinal detachment and should be observed closely over the course of their lifetime.
Ergonomic/Economic Redesign of a Visual Inspection Workplace

An aided visual inspection workstation was ergonomically redesigned according to company economic constraints. Predesign research included observational analysis, task analysis and experimentation. The previous poor posture was eliminated by reducing a required 45° angle of the head. This involved supporting the elbows with a flexible mechanism. Workplace aids and a documented training program complimented the entire design effort.
Sexual Dimorphism: The Aging Kidney, Involvement of Nitric Oxide Deficiency, and Angiotensin II Overactivity

Females develop less age-dependent loss of renal function, which may be in part due to cardiorenal protective effects of estrogens. The impact of androgen level on cardiovascular–renal health is controversial. Estrogen acts through multiple mechanisms, sometimes beneficial, sometimes damaging, which makes it difficult to predict the effect of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in an aging population. Nitric oxide (NO) deficiency occurs in aging and contributes to age-dependent cardiovascular risk and kidney damage. The increased oxidative stress of aging has effects at multiple sites in the NO biosynthetic pathway to lower NO production/action. Loss of NO together with activated angiotensin promotes some of the decrements in cardiovascular–renal function seen with age, which may be related to actions of the sex steroids.
Invited commentary: "race," racism, and the practice of epidemiology.

Imagine that you are an epidemiologist investigating the health status of the city Metropolis. You document that the east side of the city has twice the prevalence of disease X as the west side of the city. You become interested in the determinants of disease X. How will you proceed? 1. Vigorously explore the basis of the east-west difference in the prevalence of disease X, using all currently available data and collecting new data as necessary. 2. Focus on understanding other determinants of disease X in Metropolis, adjusting for the side of the city from which subjects come or restricting analyses to just one side of the city. Most readers would agree that option 1 is the preferable response to the findings in Metropolis. That is because option 1 treats the large east-west difference as an important clue to understanding the etiology of disease X, and it attempts to vigorously explore the basis of that difference. Option 2, on the other hand, merely treats the east-west difference as a confounder in understanding other determinants of disease X. Under option 2, the basis of the large east-west difference goes unexamined and therefore is likely to remain unknown. So consider now how we as epidemiologists typically deal with differences in health status observed by “race.” Race-associated differences in health outcomes are routinely documented in this country (1‐4), yet for the most part their basis remains poorly explained. Instead of vigorously investigating the basis of these differences, we tend to simply adjust for race in our analyses or restrict our studies to a single “racial” group (5). In this issue of the Journal, Kaufman and Cooper (6) provide guidelines for the appropriate use of race and ethnicity in etiologic research. However, their discussion is limited in two important ways. First, even as Kaufman and Cooper admit that race is a social construct and not a biologic reality (7, 8), they still conceptualize race as an individual characteristic and a matter of self-identity akin to ethnicity. Second, even as they thoughtfully assess the potential validity of five different uses of race by epidemiologists, they do not discuss how two of these uses that they judge to have high validity may actually diminish our ability to understand root causes of racial disparities. In this invited commentary, I discuss the meanings of race and make the case that race is a contextual variable, not a characteristic of the person. I also examine the practice of epidemiology with regard to the use of race and place the five uses of race discussed by Kaufman and Cooper in the larger context of the questions that we decide or neglect to ask. Finally, I urge epidemiologists to take an interest in elucidating the underlying causes of race-associated differences in health outcomes and conclude with eight recommendations for practice that will move us toward that goal.
Effect of waste anesthetic gas and vapor exposure on reproductive outcome in veterinary personnel.

Elevated rates of adverse reproductive outcome among medical and dental personnel exposed to waste anesthetic gas and vapor have been noted in the literature. NIOSH issued recommended standards for occupational exposure to these agents in a criteria document published in 1977. This study was designed to investigate adverse reproductive outcome in veterinary personnel who are exposed to waste anesthetic gas and vapors at levels near the NIOSH recommended standards. This epidemiologic study employed case-control methodology using a national sample of male veterinarians, female veterinarians and female veterinary assistants. Occupational exposure to waste anesthetic gas and vapors was not found to be associated significantly with adverse reproductive outcome at the 95% confidence level for female veterinary personnel when adjustment was made for use of diagnostic x-rays. Use of diagnostic x-rays in veterinary practice was associated with a statistically significant increase in odds ratios for spontaneous, ab...
Mobile Code: The Future of the Internet

Use of the Internet has exploded in recent years with the appearance of the World-Wide Web. In this paper, we show how current technological trends necessarily lead to a system based substantially on mobile code, and in many cases, mobile agents. We discuss several technical and non-technical hurdles along the path to that eventuality. Finally, we predict that, within five years, nearly all major Internet sites will be capable of hosting and willing to host some form of mobile agents.
Commentary on ''Perceptions of Health Among Immigrant Latino Adolescents From Mexico''

arcia, Duckett, Saewyc, and Bearinger’s (2007)study of perceptions of health by Latino adoles-cents from Mexico employs a method of data collec-tion not often used—photography. Through it, theauthors were able to capture aspects of their partici-pants’perceptions of health that would probably havegone unnoticed if only verbal data collection methodshad been used. The authors are commended for theirinsight and vision into the possibilities that photogra-phy created. Photographs made accessible deepermeanings of health.Photographs shared during the second interviewsshowed how the environment influences participants’perceptions of health, both positively and negatively.This finding is consistent with disciplines such asecopsychology and human geography (therapeuticlandscapes) that nursing could draw on more fre-quently. In each arena, the environmental impacton health and our perception of health is meaningfuland important in that it shows how our relationshipwith the environment immediately and directly affectshealth.Findings from Garcia et al. (2007) illuminate theimportance of family and relationships to Latinoadolescents from Mexico that could be exploited. Forexample, because we know that Latino adolescentsfrom Mexico highly regard information gained fromparents and peers, more so than teachers (althoughteachers were present as knowledge disseminators),nurses can spend more time educating parents who canthen educate their adolescent children. Alternatively,nurses can educate adolescents not only for their ownpersonal knowledge but also to function as peer sup-porters or advisers. Because the family and peerinfluence are greater than teachers’ and health careproviders’, educating family and peers could affectthe health of adolescents.
Effects of Pinatubo aerosol on stratospheric ozone at mid-latitudes

Mid-latitude ozone data from ER-2 aircraft measurements in 1989, 1991, and 1992 were examined to determine how sulfate aerosols from the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo had affected ozone at about 18 km. N2O was used as a tracer to help distinguish between chemical and dynamical aerosol effects. At 20-45 deg N in February 1992, ozone was about 10-20% lower than February 1989 and 1991, with respect to N2O. Data from Aug. 1991 - Mar. 1992 showed changes in ozone with respect to N2O, but the magnitude of those changes was not correlated with the magnitude of the changes in aerosol surface area density.
Central regulation of sodium appetite

Sodium appetite, the behavioural drive to ingest salt, is stimulated by prolonged physiological sodium deficiency in many animal species. The same neural mechanisms that are responsible for sodium appetite in laboratory animals may influence human behaviour as well, with particular relevance to the dietary salt intake of patients with diseases such as heart failure, renal failure, liver failure and salt-sensitive hypertension. Since the original experimental work of Curt Richter in the 1930s, much has been learned about the regulation of salt-ingestive behaviour. Here, we review data from physiology, pharmacology, neuroanatomy and neurobehavioural investigations into the stimulatory and inhibitory signals that regulate sodium appetite. A rudimentary framework is proposed for the brain circuits that integrate peripheral information representing the need for sodium with neural signals for the gustatory detection of salt in order to drive a motivated ingestive response. Based on this model, areas of remaining uncertainty are highlighted where future information would allow a more detailed understanding of the neural circuitry responsible for sodium appetite.
Joubert syndrome: A haplotype segregation strategy and exclusion of the zinc finger protein of cerebellum 1 (ZIC1) gene

Joubert syndrome (JS) is a rare autosomal recessive malformation syndrome, involving dysgenesis of the cerebellar vermis with accompanying brainstem malformations (comprising the molar tooth sign). JS is characterized by hypotonia, developmental delay, intermittent hyperpnea and apnea, and abnormal eye movements. A single locus for JS was previously identified on 9q34 in a consanguineous family of Arabian origin. However, linkage to this locus has subsequently been shown to be rare. We have ascertained 35 JS pedigrees for haplotype segregation analysis of genetic loci for genes with a putative role in cerebellar development. We examined the ZIC1 gene as a functional candidate for JS as Zic1(-/-) null mice have a phenotype reminiscent of JS. We undertook mutational analysis of ZIC1 by standard mutational analysis (dideoxy-fingerprinting (ddf)) of 47 JS probands, and fully sequenced the coding region in five of these probands. By these means, ZIC1 was excluded from playing a causal role in most cases of JS as no disease-associated mutations were identified. Further, linkage to the ZIC1 genetic locus (3q24) was excluded in 21 of 35 pedigrees by haplotype segregation analysis of closely spaced markers. The remaining 14 of 35 pedigrees were consistent with linkage. However, this number does not significantly depart from that expected by random chance (16.5) for this cohort. Therefore, this systematic approach has been validated as a means to prioritize functional candidate genes and enables us to confine mutational analysis to only those probands whose segregation is consistent with linkage to any given locus.
Biomineral Coating Increases Bone Formation by Ex Vivo BMP-7 Gene Therapy in Rapid Prototyped Poly(l-lactic acid) (PLLA) and Poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) Porous Scaffolds

Porousbiodegradable polymer scaffolds are widely utilized for bone tissue engineering, but are not osteoconductive like calcium phosphate scaffolds. We combine indirect solid freeform fabrication (SFF), ex vivo gene therapy, with biomineral coating to compare the effect of biomineral coating on bone regeneration for Poly (L-lactic acid) (PLLA) and Poly (e-caprolactone) (PCL) scaffolds with the same porous architecture. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) and micro-computed tomography (μ-CT) demonstrate PLLA and PCL scaffolds have the same porous architecture and are completely coated. All scaffolds are seeded with human gingival fibroblasts (HGF) transduced with adenovirus encoded with either bone morphogenetic protein 7 (BMP-7) or green fluorescent protein (GFP), and implanted into mice subcutaneously for 3 and 10 weeks. Only scaffolds with BMP-7 transduced HGFs show mineralized tissue formation. At 3 weeks some blood vessel-like structures are observed in coated PLLA and PCL scaffolds, but there is no significant difference in bone ingrowth between the coated and uncoated scaffolds for either PLLA or PCL. At 10 weeks, however, coated scaffolds (both PLLA and PCL) have significantly more bone ingrowth than uncoated scaffolds, which have more fibrous tissue. Coated PLLA scaffolds have improved mechanical properties compared with uncoated PLLA scaffolds due to increased bone ingrowth.
Education Desegregation and Cognitive Change in African American Older Adults

OBJECTIVES The present study examined the relationship between desegregated schooling and cognitive change in a sample of 420 community-dwelling African American elders (mean age = 68.6; SD = 9.1). METHOD Participants were recruited for the Baltimore Study of Black Aging - Patterns of Cognitive Aging. Cognitive measures from six domains of function were administered at baseline and follow-up 33 months later. Repeated measures multivariate analysis of covariance was conducted; the between subjects factors were schooling type and age cohort, and the within subjects factor was time. Analyses controlled for age, years of education, and sex, and follow-up univariate analyses were used to determine which individual cognitive scores drove the multivariate effects. RESULTS There were significant multivariate within-group, between-group, and interaction effects (p < .05). Univariate analyses indicated that the desegregated schooling group scored significantly better on Language and Perceptual Speed (p < .01), and the youngest age cohort (50- to 59-year-olds) performed better on measures of Perceptual Speed. There were no significant univariate interactions between schooling group or age cohort and cognitive change over time. DISCUSSION Overall, these findings suggest a slight advantage of desegregated schooling for cognitive performance, but no advantage of desegregated schooling on the rate of cognitive change over time in this sample.
Block Detection of Multiple Symbol DPSK in a Statistically Unknown Time-Varying Channel

We present a detection scheme for multiple-symbol DPSK for use in a statistically unknown time-varying channel. The scheme relies on a parametric representation of the time-varying channel, resulting in a reduction in the number of parameters required to be determined by optimizing a maximum likelihood sequence estimation (MLSE) type cost function. We also present a reduced-complexity version of the detection scheme based on sphere decoding. Analysis and simulations show good performance in Rayleigh fading over varying degrees of channel time-variation for an appropriately selected channel parameterization.
Opportunities in magnetic anisotropy and magnetostriction

Abstract Our present understanding of magnetic anisotropy and magnetostriction is very briefly reviewed. Some of the major problems immediately before us in these areas are highlighted with considerable subjectivity. Particular attention is given to problems that may control future technologies. Anisotropic magnetic interactions in very thin films, surfaces and interfaces appear to offer the greatest challenges and opportunities.
The Microplastic Behavior of Several Precious Metal Electrical Contact Alloys

Measurements have been made of the microyield and transient creep behavior of three commonly used precious alloy spring contact materials. These tests were done to determine how resistant the alloys were to contact force loss while stored for long times in a stressed condition. The alloys studied were Neyoro G, Paliney 7, and Neyoro 28A. Test temperatures from -58°F(223K) to 212°F(373K) and stresses up to the proportional limit were studied. Neyoro G and Paliney 7 in the age hardened condition were both found to be very resistant to microplastic deformation. Even for stresses equaling the proportional limit, contact force relaxation over several years is predicted to be only a few percent. Neyoro 28A is much less resistant to deformation.
A low power PSK receiver for space applications in 0.35-/spl mu/m SOI CMOS

An all-digital and low power PSK baseband receiver circuit using silicon on insulator technology (SOI) is designed for space applications. The receiver employs double differential detection to improve the receiver's robustness to Doppler effect as well as a 1 bit A/D at the front to reduce complexity and power. Operating at a UHF frequency (435 MHz), the receiver supports a wide range of data rates (0.1-100 kb/s). From test results, the power consumption of the baseband circuit, including the 1 bit A/D converter is below 1 mW for data rates up to 100 kb/s.
Fighting Corruption of the Historical Record: Nazi-Looted Art Litigation

Judicial opinions comprise part of the historical record. Thus, judicial attention to historical context is important, because it will influence how future generations interpret historical events. Generalist judges often have difficulty facing and interpreting difficult historical facts. The recent wave of litigation concerning Holocaust-era art demonstrates the phenomenon particularly well. Modern day judges deciding motions to dismiss under the Twombly and Iqbal standards must determine which claims are “plausible.” They bring their common sense to the decision-making process. The problem is that the Third Reich was a time and place where common sense did not reign. Nor was the international art market during or after World War II. Thus, some claimants’ true narratives seem to be fantastical, rather than entirely plausible. This Article assesses the state of claims to Holocaust-era art, concludes that claims have been dismissed improperly because they did not reconcile with judicial notions of common sense, and recommends that judges actively seek the input of historians while remaining vigilant not to allow the historical record to become politicized and biased in the advocacy process.
Examination of the total pressure over hypostoichiometric uranium dioxide

The standard free energy of formation of stoichiometric UO$sub 2$ is reevaluated. An altered valent cation model, descriptive of the oxygen potential throughout the hypostoichiometric domain of urania, is integrated analytically so that activities of (U) and of (UO$sub 2$) and the free energies of formation of [UO/sub 2-x/] can be evaluated. By including separately determined values for the vapor pressure of uranium and the free energy of formation of (UO$sub 3$) and by imposing the independence of composition of $delta$G$sup 0$/sub integral/(UO) as a condition, the latter and p$sup 0$(UO$sub 2$) are determined from observations of the total pressure of uranium bearing species. This resolution of the total pressure of uranium-bearing species plus the starting equations for the oxygen potential enable determination of the congruently vaporizing compositions, which are found to be much nearer stoichiometry than are experimental results. By including separately determined mass spectrometric observations of (I$sup +$T) at the lower phase boundary, evaluations are made of the instrument sensitivities for the various species in the gas phase. While the model well describes the observations of oxygen potential, it leads to obviously erroneous contributions to the enthalpy of stoichiometric uranium dioxide. 11 figures, 60 references. (auth)
2,5-anhydro-D-mannitol: a fructose analogue that increases food intake in rats

We examined the effects on food intake and plasma fuels of 2,5-anhydro-D-mannitol (2,5-AM; 2-deoxy-D-fructose), a fructose analogue that inhibits hepatocyte gluconeogenesis and glycogenolysis in vitro. 2,5-AM (50-800 mg/kg po) given to rats during the diurnal fast produced a dose-related increase in food intake during the 2 h after administration. A 200-mg/kg dose of 2,5-AM decreased plasma glucose, increased plasma ketone bodies, free fatty acids, and glycerol, and had no effect on triglycerides. Normal and diabetic rats given 2,5-AM (200 mg/kg ip) increased food intake to the same extent. These results suggest that, unlike other substrate analogues that increase food intake, 2,5-AM increases feeding by creating a metabolic state that resembles fasting.
Glucocorticoid Steroid and Alendronate Treatment Alleviates Dystrophic Phenotype with Enhanced Functional Glycosylation of α-Dystroglycan in Mouse Model of Limb-Girdle Muscular Dystrophy with FKRPP448L Mutation

Fukutin-related protein-muscular dystrophy is characterized by defects in glycosylation of α-dystroglycan with variable clinical phenotypes, most commonly as limb-girdle muscular dystrophy 2I. There is no effective therapy available. Glucocorticoid steroids have become the standard treatment for Duchenne and other muscular dystrophies with serious adverse effects, including excessive weight gain, immune suppression, and bone loss. Bisphosphonates have been used to treat Duchenne muscular dystrophy for prevention of osteoporosis. Herein, we evaluated prednisolone and alendronate for their therapeutic potential in the FKRPP448L- mutant mouse representing moderate limb-girdle muscular dystrophy 2I. Mice were treated with prednisolone, alendronate, and both in combination for up to 6 months. Prednisolone improved muscle pathology with significant reduction in muscle degeneration, but had no effect on serum creatine kinase levels and muscle strength. Alendronate treatment did not ameliorate muscle degeneration, but demonstrated a limited enhancement on muscle function test. Combined treatment of prednisolone and alendronate provided best improvement in muscle pathology with normalized fiber size distribution and significantly reduced serum creatine kinase levels, but had limited effect on muscle force generation. The use of alendronate significantly mitigated the bone loss. Prednisolone alone and in combination with alendronate enhance functionally glycosylated α-dystroglycan. These results, for the first time, demonstrate the efficacy and feasibility of this alliance treatment of the two drugs for fukutin-related protein-muscular dystrophy.
Changes in nutrition knowledge among first- and second-year medical students following implementation of an integrated nutrition curriculum.

Abstract Existing studies suggest that many of the objectives called for by the National Academy of Sciences in its 1985 report are not being addressed in medical student education. Members of the Nutrition Curriculum Working Group at the UCLA School of Medicine prepared a list of proficiencies in nutrition and developed a coordinated, vertically integrated, two‐year nutrition education curriculum to address those objectives. To assess the impact of the curriculum on students’ knowledge, the authors tested a cohort of students at repeated intervals over a two‐year period using a Nutrition Progress Survey drawn from the Nutrition Test‐Item Bank developed at the University of Alabama. There was a significant increase in knowledge over the three administrations of the Progress Survey as measured by total score. This was largely accounted for by an increase in the number of correct responses, which rose from 39% at pre‐test to 62% at delayed follow‐up. In spite of a significant increase in nutrition knowledge...
An Opening: The Death Penalty in an Era of Democratization

The end of the Cold War brought an opening, as African countries restored civilian rule, multiparty politics, and market economies. New constitutional orders provided the best opportunity since independence to renegotiate capital punishment, most famously after the end of apartheid in South Africa. As countries such as Sierra Leone and Rwanda emerged from devastating conflict, another dimension of the death penalty debate emerged in the context of transitional justice. A new continental jurisprudence came from the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, which found violations of the right to a fair trial in several famous decisions. Finally, an emerging anti-death penalty civil society placed capital punishment on domestic human rights agendas beginning in the 1990s as a space opened for promising human rights litigation.
Selection Rules for Baryon Number Nonconservation in Gauge Models

We discuss the selection rules for baryon number nonconserving processes in the context of various gauge models with partial and complete unification of all elementary particle forces. Three separate cases are discussed: (a) Δ(B−L) = 0, Δ(B+L) ≠ 0; (b) Δ(B−L) ≠ 0, Δ(B+L) = 0; and (c) Δ(B−L) ≠ 0 and Δ(B+L) ≠ 0. Observation of \(n - \bar n\) “oscillation” without proton decay with a life-time of ≳ 1030 years would be evidence of “partial unification” with an intermediate mass scale of ~108–109 GeV.