cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The novel tumor suppressor gene Hint1 may play a role in DNA damage responses by modulating the activity of Tip60

1084 In previous studies we demonstrated that Hint1, which encodes a histidine triad protein, is a novel haploinsufficient tumor suppressor gene (Li, H., et al., Oncogene25, 713-721, 2006). In subsequent studies we have obtained evidence that the HINT1 protein plays a role in chromosome stability and the response of cells to DNA damage. Thus, we found that when compared to wild type (+/+) mouse embryo fibroblasts (MEF) Hint1 (+/-) and Hint1 (-/-) MEFs displayed frequent formation of micronuclei, unequal division, bulging, chromatin bridges, and multinucleation. Furthermore, after induction of DNA double strand breaks by ionizing radiation the Hint1 deficient cells had decreased levels of ATM acetylation, when compared to the wild type cells.The Hint1 deficient cells also displayed impaired activation of the ATM/ATR-Chk1/Chk2 DNA damage response pathways. In addition, the Hint1 deficient cells showed altered patterns of histone modifications after ionizing radiation, including decreased acetyl-H2AX foci formation and prolonged retention of phospho-H2AX foci. The Tip60 protein has been implicated in acetylation of ATM and H2AX. In addition HINT1 is a component of the Tip60 histone acetyltransferase complex (Weiske, J. and Huber, O. J. Biol. Chem.281, 27356-27366, 2006). Therefore, we postulate that HINT1 plays a role in chromatin remodeling and cellular responses to DNA double strand breaks by modulating the protein acetylating activity of Tip60. This function of Hint1 may contribute to its role as a tumor suppressor gene.
Immunotherapy for MIS-C - IVIG, Glucocorticoids, and Biologics.

Since the sudden emergence of multisystem inflammatory disease in children (MIS-C) in April 2020 as a novel and severe presentation of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), nearly 4000 cases of MIS-...
Power of variance component linkage analysis-II. Discrete traits.

Summary We determine the power of variance component linkage analysis in the case of discrete, dichotomous traits analyzed under a classical liability threshold model. For simplicity we consider randomly ascertained samples and an additive model of variation incorporating a qtl, residual additive genetic factors, and individual-specific random environmental effects. We derive an expression for the power of variance component linkage analysis in arbitrary relative pairs, and compare the power of discrete and quantitative trait linkage analysis in the specific case of sibpairs. The predicted sample sizes required in linkage analysis of sibpairs are confirmed by analysis of simulated data. Unlike the affected-sibpair method, the power of discrete trait variance component analysis increases with trait prevalence. The relative efficiency of a discrete trait for linkage analysis increases with population trait prevalence, but does not exceed about 40% and is typically much less.
High-resolution direction finding in the presence of multipath: A frequency-domain smoothing approach

In this paper a new high-resolution method is presented for direction finding in the presence of multipath. The new method, called coherent wide-band modified forward-backward linear prediction (CWB-MFBLP), is based on the idea of the frequency-domain smoothing [1] to remove the singularity of the correlation matrix of the completely correlated signals. Simulation results are provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the new method, and a discussion and comparison of the frequency-domain smoothing approach and spatial smoothing is also included.
Theoretical Dynamical Studies of Metal Clusters and Cluster-Ligand Systems

Metal-ligand interactions constitute the subject of a variety of disciplines that include organo- and inorganometallic chemistry, surface science, and the rapidly developing field of cluster research. In what follows we use the term clusterto designate a cohesive group of like atoms (molecules), i.e., bare (“neet”, “naked”) clusters. More generally, the term is also used for organo- and inorganometallic compounds, i.e., ligated clusters. Although the approaches and techniques used by the various disciplines to study metal-ligand interactions are quite different, many of the central subjects and issues are common for them. The common subjects include possible geometric structures and isomeric forms, structural (isomerization) transitions, stability, fluxionality, structure-reactivity correlation (or lack of it), role of coordination, etc. However, the precise interpretation of these issues and the details emphasized by the different disciplines are dictated by the nature of the objects studied and may not, therefore, be identical. For example, questions regarding structures, isomerization transitions, fluxionality or even melting of metal clusters refer to the state and properties of the metal network itself. The same questions, when asked in connection with organo- and inorganometallic compounds, often refer to the arrangements and rearrangements of the ligands attached to a metal framework of a fixed structure. Of course, when required, the state of and changes in the metal framework are considered as well. The fields of metalcontaining molecular compounds, surface science, and physics and chemistry of clusters furnish complementary information on a broad variety of metal-ligand systems. A comprehensive understanding of the nature and properties of these systems, as defined by the type and number of metal atoms and ligands involved, can be achieved only through a mutual awareness of and continuing progress in all of these research areas.
Latitudinal anisotropy in ring current energetic neutral atoms

[1] Stereo energetic neutral atom (ENA) images obtained by Two Wide-angle Imaging Neutral-atom Spectrometers (TWINS) are analyzed to quantify the latitudinal anisotropy of ring current ENAs, and by implication, the system-level pitch-angle response during a moderate geomagnetic storm on 6 April 2010. During a 15-min interval just after midday, TWINS 1 and 2 were at similar local times but different latitudes, and thus were able to simultaneously sample two different pitch angles from selected locations. The observations show a global dawn-dusk asymmetry in the ring current ENA latitudinal anisotropy, the dusk side being ∼1–2 orders of magnitude more anisotropic than the dawn side. The latitudinal dependence of the ENAs implies a duskside ion distribution that is more equatorial than isotropic; this anisotropy becomes less pronounced with increasing energy. The observed dawn-dusk ENA anisotropy may be caused by ring current ions drifting adiabatically in self-consistently varying electric and (nondipolar) magnetic fields.
An internal pilot design for prospective cancer screening trials with unknown disease prevalence

For studies that compare the diagnostic accuracy of two screening tests, the sample size depends on the prevalence of disease in the study population, and on the variance of the outcome. Both parameters may be unknown during the design stage, which makes finding an accurate sample size difficult. To solve this problem, we propose adapting an internal pilot design. In this adapted design, researchers will accrue some percentage of the planned sample size, then estimate both the disease prevalence and the variances of the screening tests. The updated estimates of the disease prevalence and variance are used to conduct a more accurate power and sample size calculation. We demonstrate that in large samples, the adapted internal pilot design produces no Type I inflation. For small samples (N less than 50), we introduce a novel adjustment of the critical value to control the Type I error rate. We apply the method to two proposed prospective cancer screening studies: 1) a small oral cancer screening study in individuals with Fanconi anemia and 2) a large oral cancer screening trial. Conducting an internal pilot study without adjusting the critical value can cause Type I error rate inflation in small samples, but not in large samples. An internal pilot approach usually achieves goal power and, for most studies with sample size greater than 50, requires no Type I error correction. Further, we have provided a flexible and accurate approach to bound Type I error below a goal level for studies with small sample size.
Methylphenidate and μ opioid receptor interactions: A pharmacological target for prevention of stimulant abuse

Methylphenidate (MPH) is one of the most commonly used and highly effective treatments for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children and adults. As the therapeutic use of MPH has increased, so has its abuse and illicit street-use. Yet, the mechanisms associated with development of MPH-associated abuse and dependence are not well understood making it difficult to develop methods to help its mitigation. As a result, many ADHD patients especially children and youth, that could benefit from MPH treatment do not receive it and risk lifelong disabilities associated with untreated ADHD. Therefore, understanding the mechanisms associated with development of MPH addiction and designing methods to prevent it assume high public health significance. Using a mouse model we show that supra-therapeutic doses of MPH produce rewarding effects (surrogate measure for addiction in humans) in a conditioned place preference paradigm and upregulate μ opioid receptor (MOPR) activity in the striatum and nucleus accumbens, brain regions associated with reward circuitry. Co-administration of naltrexone, a non-selective opioid receptor antagonist, prevents MPH-induced MOPR activation and the rewarding effects. The MPH-induced MOPR activation and rewarding effect require activation of the dopamine D1 but not the D2-receptor. These findings identify the MOPR as a potential target for attenuating rewarding effects of MPH and suggest that a formulation that combines naltrexone with MPH could be a useful pharmaceutical approach to alleviate abuse potential of MPH and other stimulants.
Role of estrogen receptor α and β in preserving hippocampal function during aging.

The expression of the ERα and ERβ estrogen receptors in the hippocampus may be important in the etiology of age-related cognitive decline. To examine the role of ERα and ERβ in regulating transcription and learning, ovariectomized wild-type (WT) and ERα and ERβ knockout (KO) mice were used. Hippocampal gene transcription in young ERαKO mice was similar to WT mice 6 h after a single estradiol treatment. In middle-age ERαKO mice, hormone deprivation was associated with a decrease in the expression of select genes associated with the blood–brain barrier; cyclic estradiol treatment increased transcription of these select genes and improved learning in these mice. In contrast to ERαKO mice, ERβKO mice exhibited a basal hippocampal gene profile similar to WT mice treated with estradiol and, in the absence of estradiol treatment, young and middle-age ERβKO mice exhibited preserved learning on the water maze. The preserved memory performance of middle-age ERβKO mice could be reversed by lentiviral delivery of ERβ to the hippocampus. These results suggest that one function of ERβ is to regulate ERα-mediated transcription in the hippocampus. This model is supported by our observations that knockout of ERβ under conditions of low estradiol allowed ERα-mediated transcription. As estradiol levels increased in the absence of ERα, we observed that other mechanisms, likely including ERβ, regulated transcription and maintained hippocampal-dependent memory. Thus, our results indicate that ERα and ERβ interact with hormone levels to regulate transcription involved in maintaining hippocampal function during aging.
Composite statistical method for modeling wind gusts for aircraft simulation

This paper discusses the application of three statistical methods in combination to model wind gusts for use in aircraft flight simulation. The approach combines principal components analysis, time series analysis and probability distribution model to analyze and simulate wind gust components. Comparisons are given between wind gust components generated by the model and components measured onboard an aircraft.
Effects of association area lesions on auditory frequency discrimination in cat

Two groups of cats, one normal and one with prior bilateral ablation of cortical association response areas, were trained on two different types of auditory frequency discrimination. Both groups first learned an “absolute” procedure requiring response to a 250 cps tone and no response to a 2000 cps tone. They were then trained on a “repetitive” procedure where the 250 cps tone was presented as an alternation with a continuously repeated 2000 cps tone. The normal group learned both procedures equally well. The lesion group learned the absolute discrimination but were unable to learn the repetitive discrimination. This result is completely opposite to the effects of auditory cortex lesions on frequency discrimination learning.
Task characteristics, reward contingency, and intrinsic motivation

Abstract A factorial laboratory study investigated the effects of task characteristics and reward contingency upon intrinsic task motivation. Task characteristics were varied along the core dimensions suggested by Hackman and Lawler 1971 with three levels used: Low, High except for Feedback, and High including Feedback. Two levels of reward contingency were used: Contingent (piece-rate) and Noncontingent (hourly). Intrinsic task motivation was measured by the subjects volunteering for a nonrewarded work session and by productivity data. It was hypothesized, following Deci 1972, that contingent pay would lead to decreased intrinsic motivation due to a change in subjects' attributions of the causes of task motivation and performance. Neither the psychological process nor the behavior prediction was supported. Contingent pay did result in higher levels of productivity. It was also hypothesized that the High on Core Dimensions conditions would lead to higher levels of intrinsic motivation than the Low condition. This hypothesis received some support. It was concluded that contingent reward systems combined with tasks designed to be high on the core dimensions appeared to be both extrinsically and intrinsically motivating to task performers.
Extended schedule transfer of ethanol discrimination

Stimulus control was established in rats with ethanol (600 mg/kg) and saline by employing a two-lever response choice task and an FR10 schedule of food reinforcement. Subjects were then tested with an extended schedule procedure in which lever selection and its perseverance were measured under the training conditions and after the administration of pentobarbital at doses of 2 to 12 mg/kg. With decreasing doses of pentobarbital, drug-lever selection was observed to decline. The dose at which initial lever selection was evenly distributed between the two levers (ED50) was determined to be 4 mg/kg. However, at this dose the perseverance on the ethanol-appropriate lever was not significantly different than that observed after the training dose of ethanol. In addition, the perseverance of saline-lever selection produced by saline was observed to be greater than that produced by the training dose of ethanol on the ethanol-lever. The advantages inherent in employing the extended schedule performance procedure in transfer experiments are discussed.
Brain Basis of Developmental Change in Visuospatial Working Memory

Although brain changes associated with the acquisition of cognitive abilities in early childhood involve increasing localized specialization, little is known about the brain changes associated with the refinement of existing cognitive abilities that reach maturity in adolescence. The goal of this study was to investigate developmental changes in functional brain circuitry that support improvements in visuospatial working memory from childhood to adulthood. We tested thirty 8- to 47-year-olds in an oculomotor delayed response task. Developmental transitions in brain circuitry included both quantitative changes in the recruitment of necessary working memory regions and qualitative changes in the specific regions recruited into the functional working memory circuitry. Children recruited limited activation from core working memory regions (dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex [DLPFC] and parietal regions) and relied primarily on ventromedial regions (caudate nucleus and anterior insula). With adolescence emerged a more diffuse network (DLPFC, anterior cingulate, posterior parietal, anterior insula) that included the functional integration of premotor response preparation and execution circuitry. Finally, adults recruited the most specialized network of localized regions together with additional performance-enhancing regions, including left-lateralized DLPFC, ventrolateral prefrontal cortex, and supramarginal gyrus. These results suggest that the maturation of adult-level cognition involves a combination of increasing localization within necessary regions and their integration with performance-enhancing regions.
Blood volume and blood pressure in infants with respiratory distress

Mean aortic blood pressure and blood volume were measured in true premature infants with respiratory distress syndrome. Seven infants had Type I RDS (hyaline membrane disease) and ten had transient tachypnea of the newborn (Type II RDS). Blood volume in the infants with Type I RDS was significantly lower than in the infants with Type II RDS. The difference was due to a low red cell volume. Mean aortic blood pressure was within the range of normal in all infants and therefore did not reflect the low blood volume of infants with Type I RDS. Normal mean aortic blood pressure does not indicate normal blood volume or normal circulation in infants with RDS.
Caring for patients with celiac disease: the role of the pharmacist.

Objective To review the epidemiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis, treatment, and complications of celiac disease, in order to provide guidance to pharmacists. Data sources Published articles identified through Medline using search terms such as celiac disease, gluten sensitivity, and gluten enteropathy. Additional resources were identified from personal bibliographies collected by the authors and bibliographies from gathered articles. Data synthesis Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder that is characterized by intolerance to gluten and affects approximately 3 million Americans. Although the most common manifestations of the disease are gastrointestinal, including diarrhea, steatorrhea, and weight loss, the disease is a multisystem disorder. Malabsorption is common, often leading to vitamin and mineral deficiencies and resulting in anemia and osteoporosis. Diagnosis is initiated through serology testing and confirmed by intestinal biopsy. The only treatment for celiac disease is strict, lifelong adherence to a gluten-free diet, which includes avoidance of foods, prescription and nonprescription pharmaceutical products, and cosmetics containing wheat, barley, and rye. Adherence to the gluten-free diet will promote intestinal healing and symptom relief and usually prevent complications of celiac disease. Conclusion Pharmacists can play an important role by identifying patients who may have celiac disease, providing information for gluten-free foods and pharmaceutical products, and encouraging adherence to the gluten-free diet.
Supplier connection: a supply-chain ecosystem for small business job growth

The promotion and growth of small business is crucial to improving the economic vitality of the United States. This paper introduces Supplier Connection, an initiative led by the IBM International Foundation in collaboration with six Fortune 500 corporations with the objective of providing economic opportunities to small businesses in order to spur U.S. job growth. This challenge requires much more than the efforts of any one company, and this paper describes a successful approach to business transformation across many companies. Large corporations normally operate independently when seeking suppliers, creating unique processes that require precious resources from small businesses and that discourage them from pursuing large enterprise contracts. Supplier Connection provides a common supplier application process and a free social business platform where small businesses have the opportunity to present their goods and services to many companies at one time with the goal of winning contracts, growing their businesses, and creating jobs. Supplier Connection is designed to bridge the gap between small businesses seeking new opportunities and large corporations seeking innovative new ideas and diversity in their supply chain partners while creating process efficiencies and business benefits for all participants.
F1: the fault-tolerant distributed RDBMS supporting google's ad business

Many of the services that are critical to Google's ad business have historically been backed by MySQL. We have recently migrated several of these services to F1, a new RDBMS developed at Google. F1 implements rich relational database features, including a strictly enforced schema, a powerful parallel SQL query engine, general transactions, change tracking and notification, and indexing, and is built on top of a highly distributed storage system that scales on standard hardware in Google data centers. The store is dynamically sharded, supports transactionally-consistent replication across data centers, and is able to handle data center outages without data loss.The strong consistency properties of F1 and its storage system come at the cost of higher write latencies compared to MySQL. Having successfully migrated a rich customer-facing application suite at the heart of Google's ad business to F1, with no downtime, we will describe how we restructured schema and applications to largely hide this increased latency from external users. The distributed nature of F1 also allows it to scale easily and to support significantly higher throughput for batch workloads than a traditional RDBMS.With F1, we have built a novel hybrid system that combines the scalability, fault tolerance, transparent sharding, and cost benefits so far available only in "NoSQL" systems with the usability, familiarity, and transactional guarantees expected from an RDBMS.
Milestones in chloroplast genetic engineering: an environmentally friendly era in biotechnology

Chloroplast genomes defied the laws of Mendelian inheritance at the dawn of plant genetics, and continue to defy the mainstream approach to biotechnology, leading the field in an environmentally friendly direction. Recent success in engineering the chloroplast genome for resistance to herbicides, insects, disease and drought, and for production of biopharmaceuticals, has opened the door to a new era in biotechnology. The successful engineering of tomato chromoplasts for high-level transgene expression in fruits, coupled to hyper-expression of vaccine antigens, and the use of plant-derived antibiotic-free selectable markers, augur well for oral delivery of edible vaccines and biopharmaceuticals that are currently beyond the reach of those who need them most.
Robust imaging strategies in time-resolved optical tomography

Time-resolved imaging has been well-established as the most powerful imaging paradigm in optical tomography by providing rich information datasets for both functional and fluorescence tomography. The practical implementations of time-resolved imaging platforms however are limited by lengthy acquisition times and demand highly stable instrumentation for collection of robust datasets. In recent years, wide-field imaging strategies have been implemented for time-resolved imaging allowing a fast acquisition of spatially- and temporally- rich datasets within short acquisition times. In this work, we present wide-field illumination and processing strategies which significantly improve the signal-to-noise ratio of time-resolved measurements. First, we demonstrate the impact of temporal and photon noise on timeresolved measurements and compare the performance of various born-normalization schemes designed to improve the robustness of the time-resolved data-types used for reconstruction. Secondly, we present a de-noising algorithm design for time-gated data types which reduce errors arising due to noise and conclude with experimental validation of the approach. The adoption of these strategies alleviates some of the limitations associated with time-resolved imaging, especially when using more advanced data types such as early gates, thus allowing the wider acceptance of timeresolved methods for biomedical applications.
Analysis of chromatin repeat units in logarithmically and stationary growing cells of paramecium aurelia and tetrahymena pyriformis

Abstract We have used micrococcal nuclease as a probe of the repeating structure of chromatin isolated from the macronuclei of logarithmically and stationary grown Paramecium aurelia and Tetrahymena pyriformis . For both these lower eukaryotes, the monomer size is shown to vary depending on the stage in the growth cycle. P. aurelia exhibits a monomer size of 153±7 bp and 178±6 bp and T. pyriformis 207±10 bp and 230±10 bp in logarithmic and stationary cells, respectively. Both exhibit a nucleosome size of 140 bp. We discuss the possible association of these changes with histone content and nuclear activity changes, and also a possible reason for the divergence from the size pattern of monomer repeats seen in lower eukaryotes by T. pyriformis .
Transcriptional Regulation of Tlr11 Gene Expression in Epithelial Cells

As sensors of invading microorganisms, Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are expressed not only on macrophages and dendritic cells (DCs) but also on epithelial cells. In the TLR family, Tlr11 appears to have the unique feature in that it is expressed primarily on epithelial cells, although it is also expressed on DCs and macrophages. Here, we demonstrate that transcription of the Tlr11 gene is regulated through two cis-acting elements, one Ets-binding site and one interferon regulatory factor (IRF)-binding site. The Ets element interacts with the epithelium-specific transcription factors, ESE-1 and ESE-3, and the IRF motif interacts with IRF-8. Thus, Tlr11 expression on epithelial cells is regulated by the transcription factors that are presumably distinct from transcription factors that regulate the expression of TLRs in innate immune cells such as macrophages and DCs. Our results imply that the distinctive transcription regulatory machinery for TLRs on epithelium may represent a promising new avenue for the development of epithelia-specific therapeutic interventions.
Racial Identity Status Profiles and Expressions of Anger in Black Americans: An Exploratory Study.

The relationship between Black adult racial identity status profiles and anger expression was examined. Two profiles, Undifferentiated and Immersion-Emersion, emerged. A comparison of modes of anger expression revealed that the Immersion-Emersion dominant profile was associated with higher scores on Anger-Out and lower scores on Anger-Control. Implications for research and counseling are discussed. Se examino la relacion entre los perfiles del estado de la identidad racial de individuos Negros adultos y la expresion de ira. Surgieron dos perfiles, indiferenciado e inmersion-emersion. Una comparacion de los modos de expresion de la ira revelo que el perfil dominante de Inmersion-Emersion estaba asociado a registros mas altos en Ira-Fuera y mas bajos en Control de la ira. Se discuten las implicaciones para la investigacion y la consejeria.
A comparison of targeted and systematic fire-scar sampling for estimating historical fire frequency in south-western ponderosa pine forests

Fire history researchers employ various forms of search-based sampling to target specimens that contain visible evidence of well preserved fire scars. Targeted sampling is considered to be the most efficient way to increase the completeness and length of the fire-scar record, but the accuracy of this method for estimating landscape-scale fire frequency parameters compared with probabilistic (i.e. systematic and random) sampling is poorly understood. In this study we compared metrics of temporal and spatial fire occurrence reconstructed independently from targeted and probabilistic fire-scar sampling to identify potential differences in parameter estimation in south-western ponderosa pine forests. Data were analysed for three case studies spanning a broad geographic range of ponderosa pine ecosystems across the US Southwest at multiple spatial scales: Centennial Forest in northern Arizona (100ha); Monument Canyon Research NaturalArea(RNA)incentralNewMexico(256ha);andMicaMountaininsouthernArizona(2780ha).Wefoundthatthe percentage of available samples that recorded individual fire years (i.e. fire-scar synchrony) was correlated strongly between targeted and probabilistic datasets at all three study areas (r ¼0.85, 0.96 and 0.91 respectively). These strong positive correlations resulted predictably insimilar estimates of commonlyused statistical measures of fire frequency and cumulative area burned, including Mean Fire Return Interval (MFI) and Natural Fire Rotation (NFR). Consistent with theoretical expectations, targeted fire-scar sampling resulted in greater overall sampling efficiency and lower rates of sample attrition. Our findings demonstrate that targeted sampling in these systems can produce accurate estimates of landscape-scale fire frequency parameters relative to intensive probabilistic sampling. Received 16 February 2013, accepted 3 April 2013, published online 6 September 2013
In Search of a Profound Answer: Mainstream Scripts and the Marginalization of Advanced-Track Urban Students ☆

Abstract This is a microethnographic study that examines talk among junior and senior level non-mainstream urban students and their mainstream teachers in two advanced-track classrooms. To investigate students’ ability to engage in the dominant linguistic and cultural codes of the classroom, our analysis focuses on the student contributions that were praised by teachers. We show that student contributions which do not follow dominant codes are not rewarded, and that although students ask their teachers for guidance in using these codes appropriately, their requests are not effectively addressed. Consequently, these students struggle at the margins of the classroom because they do not demonstrate facility with discursive practices which would lead to academic success. We advocate that teachers help students to acquire these codes in order to experience success, not for the purpose of acculturation, but rather to give them the tools with which they might critique these dominant codes.
Practical Theory: A Reply to Sandelands

L'A. examine de facon critique la these defendue par L. E. Sandelands selon laquelle une theorie ne saurait en aucun cas prendre un aspect pratique. Selon Sandelands, la theorie et la pratique sont des categories incommensurables et a ce titre on ne saurait passer, sur le plan logique, d'un domaine a l'autre. L'A. replique en montrant que la theorie et la pratique doivent etre concues en interaction. Il montre que l'application d'une theorie releve du jugement pratique, de la competence et non de la logique formelle. Il estime que la question des rapports entre theorie et pratique est analogue a celle des pratiques reflexives au sein du monde social
Particle acceleration mechanisms in compact sources

Abstract Various mechanisms capable of accelerating particles to the energies of 1016 eV or higher that are required to produce ultra-high-energy γ-rays are discussed. The models for sources of VHE and UHE γ-rays which incorporate these mechanisms assume that the acceleration power source is either accretion or neutron star rotation. The current status of the theory will be reviewed in light of the observational requirements on both power and maximum energy of the accelerated particles. Acceleration of protons in a pulsar wind shock seems to be the only model capable of generating both the power and particle energy required to explain UHE emission from Cyg X-3. This mechanism, capable of operating both in supernova remnants and in binary systems containing pulsars, will be discussed in some detail. γ-rays from interactions of protons accelerated by pulsar wind shocks may be detectable from SN1987A as well as several known binary pulsars.
Metabolic systems analysis to advance algal biotechnology

Algal fuel sources promise unsurpassed yields in a carbon neutral manner that minimizes resource competition between agriculture and fuel crops. Many challenges must be addressed before algal biofuels can be accepted as a component of the fossil fuel replacement strategy. One significant challenge is that the cost of algal fuel production must become competitive with existing fuel alternatives. Algal biofuel production presents the opportunity to fine-tune microbial metabolic machinery for an optimal blend of biomass constituents and desired fuel molecules. Genome-scale model-driven algal metabolic design promises to facilitate both goals by directing the utilization of metabolites in the complex, interconnected metabolic networks to optimize production of the compounds of interest. Network analysis can direct microbial development efforts towards successful strategies and enable quantitative fine-tuning of the network for optimal product yields while maintaining the robustness of the production microbe. Metabolic modeling yields insights into microbial function, guides experiments by generating testable hypotheses, and enables the refinement of knowledge on the specific organism. While the application of such analytical approaches to algal systems is limited to date, metabolic network analysis can improve understanding of algal metabolic systems and play an important role in expediting the adoption of new biofuel technologies.
Construindo uma política feminista translocal da tradução

Nosso projeto coletivo Translocalities/Translocalidades: Feminist Politics of Translation in the Latin/a Americas (Politicas Feministas de Traducao na America Latina) explora como discursos e praticas feministas viajam por uma variedade de lugares e direcoes e acabam se tornando paradigmas interpretativos para a leitura/escrita de questoes de classe, genero, sexualidade, migracao, saude, cidadania, politica e circulacao de identidades e textos. Sustentamos que a traducao e politica e teoricamente indispensavel para forjar epistemologias e aliancas politicas feministas, antirracistas e pos-coloniais/pos-ocidentais, pois as Americas Latinas - enquanto formacao cultural transfronteirica e nao territorialmente delimitada - devem ser entendidas como translocais em dois sentidos. O primeiro sentido que usamos - o de translocalidade - parte de movimentos alem das concepcoes da "politica da localizacao" empregadas pelo feminismo terceiro-mundista estadunidense. Mais do que "migrar" e "se assimilar", muitas pessoas nas Americas Latinas cada vez mais se movem de um lado para outro entre localidades, entre lugares historicamente situados e culturalmente especificos, ainda que porosos, atravessando multiplas fronteiras, e nao apenas entre nacoes (como deixa a entender o termo "migracao transnacional", por exemplo). Empregamos a expressao translocal, entao, em um segundo sentido, que chamamos de translocalidades, precisamente para capturar esses cruzamentos e movimentos multidirecionais
Identification of a novel human leucocyte antigen‐A*01‐restricted cytotoxic T‐lymphocyte epitope in the respiratory syncytial virus fusion protein

Summary Virus-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) play a major role in the clearance of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection. To begin monitoring the immunological response to infection, especially in infants, it is important to identify human leucocyte antigen (HLA)-restricted CTL epitopes. Herein, we used a novel, comprehensive peptide panel containing all possible 8-, 9- and 10-mer peptides spanning the RSV fusion protein to screen for novel HLA-restricted T-cell epitopes. These peptide sets were synthesized as 10-mer peptides overlapping by nine amino acids and contained corresponding 8- and 9-mer peptides generated by C-terminal truncation. Unselected and uncultured peripheral blood mononuclear cells from healthy adult subjects were screened by interferon-γ (IFN-γ) Elispot assays against the peptide panel. Seven of 19 subjects displayed positive responses against 10 of the 565 peptides analysed. An HLA-A*01-restricted CTL epitope detected in three healthy adult subjects is characterized. This is the first RSV-specific memory CTL response identified in the fusion protein of RSV.
Isochroman Structures in Lignin: a New β-1 Pathway

New aryl isochroman structures have been identified in isolated softwood lignins by a combination of diagnostic NMR experiments. Such structural units were recently identified in lignin-derived trimers from wood degraded by the DFRC (derivatization followed by reductive cleavage) method, and have a plausible mechanism for their biosynthesis.
Geometrical interpretation of negative radiation forces of acoustical Bessel beams on spheres

Various researchers have predicted situations where the acoustical or optical radiation force on a sphere centered on a Bessel beam is opposite the direction of beam propagation. We develop the analogy between acoustical and optical radiation forces of arbitrary-order helicoidal and ordinary Bessel beams to gain insight into negative radiation forces. The radiation force is expressed in terms of the asymmetry of the scattered field, the scattered power, the absorbed power, and the conic angle of the Bessel beam and is related to the partial-wave coefficients for the scattering. Negative forces only occur when the scattering into the backward hemisphere is suppressed relative to the scattering into the forward hemisphere. Absorbed power degrades negative radiation forces.
What''s the excuse? Image repair in Austrian German

This paper examines the patterns found in repair-work behavior (e.g., apologies, excuses) in Austrian German as they relate to situational variables and cultural themes. Data for this study were collected from 100 Austrian university students using 12 closed role-play situations. The results reveal a complex interplay of situational variables that inform the repair-work behavior. This points to both research and teaching approaches that do not seek to determine a set of rules for repair work, but rather focus on the role that cultural attitudes and contextual factors play in making linguistic decisions.
Measuring Women's Sport Interest in Response to Title IX

An approach is described whereby universities may respond to Title IX inquiries from the Office of Civil Rights regarding women's sport equity. This responds to that portion of the law that requires that institutions meet women's sport interest in equal measure to men's. The survey provides results useful for institutional decision making and helps address the specific needs and interests of the student body.
Is it possible to predict the outcome of peripheral nerve injuries? A probability model based on prospects for regenerating neurites.

Abstract The long term functional consequences of peripheral nerve injuries are notoriously unpredictable. We hypothesized that considering the individual regrowth of the elementary components of a nerve (the neurites) rather than the global regeneration of the organ could lead to a better understanding of the mechanisms of nerve repair. Our basic assumptions were that (a) regrowth was random and (b) regrowth of any individual neurite could be defined in terms of its influence on recovery; this influence could be either valid, neutral or invalid. We designed a probability model describing the prospects of regrowth for nerves composed of several types of fibers. Our goal was to propose a general explanation of nerve healing rather than to predict the outcome in individual situations. The results suggested that this model satisfactorily described the events taking place in a healing nerve.
Phylogenomics, molecular evolution, and estimated ages of lineages from the deep phylogeny of Poaceae

The deeply diverging subfamilies of grasses: Anomochlooideae, Pharoideae, and Puelioideae, today inhabit tropical forest floors as sparsely distributed depauperate lineages. The BEP/PACMAD grasses, which make up the majority of the family, are the result of a more recent radiation. Species in the deeply diverging subfamilies were here investigated to better understand molecular evolutionary processes and ages of divergence. Complete chloroplast genomes (plastomes) of Pharus latifolius L., P. lappulaceus Aubl., and Puelia olyriformis (Franch.) Clayton were determined. Four plastome loci from seven species of the deep subfamilies were also sequenced. Phylogenetic and mutation analyses and divergence estimations were conducted on all sequences together with homologous sequences from other Poaceae. Mutation analyses surveyed insertion/deletion mutations across the plastomes, clarified a trend in the molecular evolution of the rpoC2 locus, and indicated unique pseudogenizations in the plastomes of Pharus and Puelia. Phylogenetic analyses largely confirmed earlier multi-gene phylogenies. Phylogenomic and divergence analyses produced estimated origins of the crown nodes of Anomochlooideae at 65–104 Ma, Pharoideae at 44–71 Ma, and Puelioideae at 62–96 Ma. The upper ends of our estimated ranges are in general agreement with previous estimates. However, the lower ends of our ranges are considerably older than previous estimates, reflecting the influence of the less commonly used oldest fossil calibration point. The deeply diverging subfamilies exhibited the accumulation of numerous substitution and indel mutations consistent with a long evolutionary history that predated the radiation of the BEP/PACMAD grasses. We hypothesize that relatively rapid warming and drying in Africa at 55–56.5 Ma may have acted as selective forces stimulating adaptive radiations of grasses from the African tropical forests into diverse habitats.
De Sitter space and eternity

This paper explores infrared quantum effects in the de Sitter space. The notion of “eternal manifolds” is introduced and it is shown that in most cases the de Sitter space does not belong to this class. It is unstable under small perturbations which may cause a breakdown of the de Sitter symmetry. The de Sitter string sigma model is discussed. It is argued that the gauge theory at the complex coupling is dual to the matrix elements of vertex operators in the de Sitter space, taken between the Bunch–Davies vacuum and the “out” state without particles. The described infrared effects are likely to screen away the cosmological constant.
Nanostructured Polymeric Scaffolds for Orthopaedic Regenerative Engineering

Successful regeneration necessitates the development of three-dimensional (3-D) tissue-inducing scaffolds that mimic the hierarchical architecture of native tissue extracellular matrix (ECM). Cells in nature recognize and interact with the surface topography they are exposed to via ECM proteins. The interaction of cells with nanotopographical features such as pores, ridges, groves, fibers, nodes, and their combinations has proven to be an important signaling modality in controlling cellular processes. Integrating nanotopographical cues is especially important in engineering complex tissues that have multiple cell types and require precisely defined cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions on the nanoscale. Thus, in a regenerative engineering approach, nanoscale materials/scaffolds play a paramount role in controlling cell fate and the consequent regenerative capacity. Advances in nanotechnology have generated a new toolbox for the fabrication of tissue-specific nanostructured scaffolds. For example, biodegradable polymers such as polyesters, polyphosphazenes, polymer blends and composites can be electrospun into ECM-mimicking matrices composed of nanofibers, which provide high surface area for cell attachment, growth, and differentiation. This review provides the fundamental guidelines for the design and development of nanostructured scaffolds for the regeneration of various tissue types in human upper and lower extremities such as skin, ligament, tendon, and bone. Examples focusing on the collective work of our laboratory in those areas are discussed to demonstrate the regenerative efficacy of this approach. Furthermore, preliminary strategies and significant challenges to integrate these individual tissues into one complex organ through regenerative engineering-based integrated graft systems are also discussed.
Letters of recommendation: rating, writing, and reading by clerkship directors of internal medicine.

Background: Letters of Recommendations (LORs) are used for applications to medical school and graduate medical education, but how they are used by current internal medicine educators is unknown. Description: In 2006, the Clerkship Directors of Internal Medicine conducted its annual, voluntary survey, and one section pertained to LORs. Survey items were categorized into questions regarding rating, writing, and reading LORs with answers on 3- to 5-point scales. Evaluation: The response rate for the 110 institution members was 75%. When rating LORs, the most important factor was depth of understanding of the trainee (98% essential or important), followed by a numerical comparison to other students (94%), grade distribution (92%), and summary statement (91%). Although most (78%) agreed that reading LORs in general were important for trainee selection, few agreed that this was because of the ability to discern marginal performance (31%) or predict future performance (25%). Conclusions: LORs remain an important...
Effectiveness of Hirsutella minnesotensis and H. rhossiliensis in control of the soybean cyst nematode in four soils with various pH, texture, and organic matter

Abstract The parasitism of soybean cyst nematode, Heterodera glycines, by the fungi Hirsutella rhossiliensis and Hirsutella minnesotensis and their biocontrol effectiveness against the nematode were investigated in four soils with various pH, texture, and organic matter. Fungal parasitism was assayed in the soils in 25 mL vials. As expected, percentage of H. glycines second-stage juveniles (J2) parasitized by either fungus increased with increasing number of fungus-colonized J2 initially added into the soils. Parasitism of J2 by the fungi was negatively related with soil pH. Both positive and negative relationships with fungal parasitism were observed for soil sandiness and organic matter. In greenhouse study, both fungi at 0.2–0.8 g fresh mycelium of liquid culture per 0.3 L pot and 1% corn-grits culture effectively reduced nematode population density. The relationship between biocontrol effectiveness and the soil factors depended on fungal species and inoculation levels. In general, percentage reduction...
Robust image coding with EBCOT and RVLC

EBCOT is an efficient image coding technique, which divides each subband into independently coded blocks. It is therefore inherently more error resilient than many other wavelet-based schemes. However, the loss of data of a block in any lower frequency subband in EBCOT can still degrade the perceptual image quality considerably. This paper discusses the use of reversible variable length codes (RVLC) and data partitioning for coding lower frequency subbands in EBCOT, instead of the use of arithmetic codes. RVLCs are known to have superior error recovery properties due to their two-way decode capability. It is demonstrated that the proposed approach has very little additional bit-rate overhead and significantly improved the performance in the presence of errors.
Preparation of antibody-conjugated gold nanoparticles

Abstract We here describe a method for the simple synthesis of gold nanoparticles (~ 10 nm in diameter) conjugated with antibody to E. coli O157:H7. Gold nanoparticles with pendant carboxylic acid and alcohol functional groups were synthesized and characterized using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and infrared spectroscopy. These nanoparticles were then reacted with anti- E. coli O157:H7, using EDC coupling chemistry, and the product was characterized with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Furthermore, binding of the antibody-gold conjugates to E. coli O157:H7 was demonstrated using transmission electron microscopy.