cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A genetic polymorphism evolving in parallel in two cell compartments and in two clades.

The enzyme phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase, PEPCK, occurs in its guanosine-nucleotide-using form in animals and a few prokaryotes. We study its natural genetic variation in Colias (Lepidoptera, Pieridae). PEPCK offers a route, alternative to pyruvate kinase, for carbon skeletons to move between cytosolic glycolysis and mitochondrial Krebs cycle reactions. PEPCK is expressed in both cytosol and mitochondrion, but differently in diverse animal clades. In vertebrates and independently in Drosophila, compartment-specific paralogous genes occur. In a contrasting expression strategy, compartment-specific PEPCKs of Colias and of the silkmoth, Bombyx, differ only in their first, 5′, exons; these are alternatively spliced onto a common series of following exons. In two Colias species from distinct clades, PEPCK sequence is highly variable at nonsynonymous and synonymous sites, mainly in its common exons. Three major amino acid polymorphisms, Gly 335 ↔ Ser, Asp 503 ↔ Glu, and Ile 629 ↔ Val occur in both species, and in the first two cases are similar in frequency between species. Homology-based structural modelling shows that the variants can alter hydrogen bonding, salt bridging, or van der Waals interactions of amino acid side chains, locally or at one another’s sites which are distant in PEPCK’s structure, and thus may affect its enzyme function. We ask, using coalescent simulations, if these polymorphisms’ cross-species similarities are compatible with neutral evolution by genetic drift, but find the probability of this null hypothesis is 0.001 ≤ P ≤ 0.006 under differing scenarios. Our results make the null hypothesis of neutrality of these PEPCK polymorphisms quite unlikely, but support an alternative hypothesis that they are maintained by natural selection in parallel in the two species. This alternative can now be justifiably tested further via studies of PEPCK genotypes’ effects on function, organismal performance, and fitness. This case emphasizes the importance, for evolutionary insight, of studying gene-specific mechanisms affected by natural genetic variation as an essential complement to surveys of such variation.
Radiation damage to protein specimens from electron beam imaging and diffraction: a mini-review of anti-damage approaches, with special reference to synchrotron X-ray crystallography.

Recent research progress using X-ray cryo-crystallography with the photon beams from third-generation synchrotron sources has resulted in recognition that this intense radiation commonly damages protein samples even when they are held at 100 K. Other structural biologists examining thin protein crystals or single particle specimens encounter similar radiation damage problems during electron diffraction and imaging, but have developed some effective countermeasures. The aim of this concise review is to examine whether analogous approaches can be utilized to alleviate the X-ray radiation damage problem in synchrotron macromolecular crystallography. The critical discussion of this question is preceded by presentation of background material on modern technical procedures with electron beam instruments using 300–400 kV accelerating voltage, low-dose exposures for data recording, and protection of protein specimens by cryogenic cooling; these practical approaches to dealing with electron radiation damage currently permit best resolution levels of 6 A (0.6 nm) for single particle specimens, and of 1.9 A for two-dimensional membrane protein crystals. Final determination of the potential effectiveness and practical value of using such new or unconventional ideas will necessitate showing, by experimental testing, that these produce significantly improved protection of three-dimensional protein crystals during synchrotron X-ray diffraction.
Pharmacokinetics of Diphenhydramine and a Demethylated Metabolite Following Intravenous And Oral Administration

Ten healthy volunteers received a single 50-mg dose of diphenhydramine (DP) hydrochloride intravenously and orally on two separate occasions. Kinetics of DP and a major demethylated metabolite (DMDP) were determined from multiple plasma samples drawn during a 24- to 48-hour period after dosage. Modification of a gas chromatographic (GC) technique allowed simultaneous quantitation of DP and DMDP. Mean kinetic variables for DP after intravenous (IV) dosage were: volume of distribution, 4.5 L/kg; elimination half-life, 8.4 hours; clearance, 6.2 mL/min/kg. After oral DP administration, a peak plasma level of 66 ng/mL was reached 2.3 hours after dosage. Systemic availability was 72%, nearly identical to the predicted estimate (71%) based on clearance of IV DP relative to hepatic blood flow. Appearance of the metabolite, DMDP, mirrored disappearance of DP; the area under the plasma concentration-time curve (AUC) for DMDP was highly correlated (r = .79, P less than .05) with a clearance of IV DP. However, metabolite AUC was significantly higher after oral as opposed to IV DP (218 vs 145 hr-ng/mL, P less than .05). Because DP and DMDP elute nearly identically on standard GC systems, methodologic modifications are needed to resolve them. Coelution of the two compounds could bias kinetic data based on plasma concentration presumed to be specific for intact DP.
Stark spectroscopy and Autler-Townes interactions in four-level cesium atoms

Scalar and tensor polarizabilities of cesium 5f and 7d states were measured by three-color multiphoton excitation techniques. The low-field results were quadratic and were in good agreement with calculated values. The oscillator strength for the 5f-5g transition was measured to be 0.0336\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.0003, in close agreement with theory. At higher electric fields, we clearly resolved Autler-Townes avoided crossings between 5f levels and dressed 7d states. The observed doublet-component separations scaled linearly with Rabi frequency for the 7d-5f transitions, supporting a two-level model for the four-level experiment. The results are interesting because the observed spectra were independent of Rabi frequencies for the 6s-6p and 6p-7d transitions. Angular momentum forbidden transitions from 7d, ${J}_{z}$=(1/2) to 5f, ${J}_{z}$=(5/2) were observed at higher dc fields. These are attributed to dc-field-induced mixing between nearly degenerate 5f and 5g states.
Development of the Retina and Optic Pathway

Our understanding of the development of the retina and visual pathways has seen enormous advances during the past 25years. New imaging technologies, coupled with advances in molecular biology, have permitted a fuller appreciation of the histotypical events associated with proliferation, fate determination, migration, differentiation, pathway navigation, target innervation, synaptogenesis and cell death, and in many instances, in understanding the genetic, molecular, cellular and activity-dependent mechanisms underlying those developmental changes. The present review considers those advances associated with the lineal relationships between retinal nerve cells, the production of retinal nerve cell diversity, the migration, patterning and differentiation of different types of retinal nerve cells, the determinants of the decussation pattern at the optic chiasm, the formation of the retinotopic map, and the establishment of ocular domains within the thalamus.
Modulation of intestinal vitamin D receptor by ovariectomy, estrogen and growth hormone.

Age-related decline in intestinal calcium (Ca) absorption often occur in postmenopausal osteoporotic women. The impaired Ca absorption can be corrected by estrogen (E2) therapy. Growth hormone (GH) therapy has also been reported to increase intestinal absorption of calcium. Since 1,25-dyhydroxyvitamin D (1,25(OH)2D) is the primary regulator of calcium absorption, we explored whether the mechanisms by which E2 and GH enhance Ca absorption involves the vitamin D endocrine system. We measured serum 1,25(OH)2D concentrations and determined the binding characteristics of intestinal vitamin D receptors (VDRs) in four groups of female rats: sham operated (sham), ovariectomized (ovx), ovx+E2, and ovx+GH. Serum 1,25(OH)2D levels were 42.4±3.4 and 42.5±3.2 pg/ml in sham and ovx rats, respectively, and decreased by 63 and 34% (P<0.001) in ovx+E2 and ovx+GH-treated rats, respectively. The numbers of total, unoccupied and occupied VDRs were 116.9±2.0, 72.1±1.1 and 44.8±1.9 fmol/mg protein, respectively, in sham operated rats, and decreased significantly following ovariectomy by 24, 27 and 19% (P<0.01), respectively. E2 therapy not only significantly increased total, unoccupied and occupied VDRs above those of ovx rats by 55, 58 and 49% respectively, but it increased the levels above those of sham operated controls as well (P<0.01). In contrast, GH administration prevented the decrease that occurred in ovx rats in the number of total and unoccupied VDRs (111.2±3.3; 72.6±1.4 fmol/mg protein, respectively), but it had no significant effect on the number of occupied VDRs. The dissociation constant (Kd) of intestinal VDRs was unaltered by ovariectomy, E2 and GH. We conclude that down regulation of intestinal VDRs may contribute to the Ca malabsorption that occurs in ovarian hormone deficient states such as postmenopausal osteoporosis, and that the stimulation of Ca absorption by E2 and GH may result, in part, from up regulation of intestinal VDRs.
The effect of hydrogen partial pressure on uniaxial creep of 3Y-TZP/50 vol.% Pd cermet membranes

Abstract This study investigated the effect of hydrogen partial pressure ( p H 2 ) on the creep behavior of (3 mol% Y-TZP)/50 vol.% Pd cermet (YSZ/Pd), a hydrogen permeable material under development for separating hydrogen from mixed gases. Samples were subjected to uniaxial compression creep under both an inert (pure argon) atmosphere and p H 2 = 10 − 2 to 0.5 atm (balance Ar), in the temperature and stress ranges of 1150–1250 °C and 10–30 MPa, respectively. The creep measurements in Ar atmosphere yielded stress exponent and activation energy of n ≈ 2 and E = 582 kJ/mol, respectively, which is in good agreement with superplastic deformation of pure YSZ. The composite exhibits a tendency of decreasing n values with increase in p H 2 , reaching n ≈ 1.5 at p H 2 = 0.5 atm . The effect of hydrogen partial pressure on creep can be described by an exponent of r ≈ 1/6, resulting in an increase in creep rate by a factor of 2.5 upon switching from Ar to p H 2 = 0.5 atm .
Relationship between gas flows and film composition in organometallic vapor phase epitaxy of In1−xGaxAs

Abstract Relationship between the flow rates of the precursor gases and the composition of In1−xGaxAs epilayers on InP has been examined. Based on experimental data a linear model has been developed to predict this relationship. This model has been used to obtain lattice matching to better than 1.2 × 10-4.
Randomised controlled trial of cisapride in preterm infants.

Editor—I read with great interest the study by McClure et al 1reporting delayed gastric emptying and a non-significant increase in whole gut transit time in premature infants treated with cisapride.1 In contrast, placebo controlled studies evaluating cisapride in paediatrics have almost consistently reported improvement in symptoms of gastro-oesophageal reflux diseases or improvement in oesophageal pH results and/or manometry.2As acknowledged by the authors, other studies in premature infants have reported a reduction in gastric residue and improved feed tolerance. In addition, we have reported a reduction in gastro-oesophageal reflux in premature infants.3 In this latest trial the authors chose hydroxypropylmethyl cellulose as a placebo, given at the “same volume” as cisapride; however, the actual quantity administered is not clear. Cellulose derivatives are commonly employed as laxatives, where it …
The dosimetric feasibility of gold nanoparticle-aided radiation therapy (GNRT) via brachytherapy using low-energy gamma-/x-ray sources

The preferential accumulation of gold nanoparticles within tumors and the increased photoelectric absorption due to the high atomic number of gold cooperatively account for the possibility of significant tumor dose enhancement during gold nanoparticle-aided radiation therapy (GNRT). Among the many conceivable ways to implement GNRT clinically, a brachytherapy approach using low-energy gamma-/x-ray sources (i.e. Eavg 40%) could be achievable using 125I, 50 kVp and 169Yb sources and gold nanoparticles. When calculated at 1.0 cm from the center of the source within a tumor loaded with 18 mg Au g−1, macroscopic dose enhancement was 116, 92 and 108% for 125I, 50 kVp and 169Yb, respectively. For a tumor loaded with 7 mg Au g−1, it was 68, 57 and 44% at 1 cm from the center of the source for 125I, 50 kVp and 169Yb, respectively. The estimated MDEF values for 169Yb were remarkably larger than those for 192Ir, on average by up to about 70 and 30%, for 18 mg Au and 7 mg Au cases, respectively. The current MC study also shows a remarkable change in the photoelectron fluence and spectrum (e.g. more than two orders of magnitude) and a significant production (e.g. comparable to the number of photoelectrons) of the Auger electrons within the tumor region due to the presence of gold nanoparticles during low-energy gamma-/x-ray irradiation. The radiation sources considered in this study are currently available and tumor gold concentration levels considered in this investigation are deemed achievable. Therefore, the current results strongly suggest that GNRT can be successfully implemented via brachytherapy with low energy gamma-/x-ray sources, especially with a high dose rate 169Yb source.
Some Principles of the Theory of Testing Hypotheses

The likelihood ratio principle. The development of a theory of hypothesis testing (as contrasted with the consideration of particular cases), may be said to have begun with the 1928 paper of Neyman and Pearson [16]. For in this paper the fundamental fact is pointed out that in selecting a suitable test one must take into account not only the hypothesis but also the alternatives against which the hypothesis is to be tested, and on this basis the likelihood ratio principle is proposed as a generally applicable criterion. This principle has proved extremely successful; nearly all tests now in use for testing parametric hypotheses are likelihood ratio tests, (for an extension to the non-parametric case see [33]), and many of them have been shown to possess various optimum properties.
Feasibility of using PRESAGE® for relative 3D dosimetry of small proton fields

Small field dosimetry is challenging due to the finite size of the conventional detectors that underestimate the dose distribution. With the fast development of the dynamic proton beam delivery system, it is essential to find a dosimeter which can be used for 3D dosimetry of small proton fields. We investigated the feasibility of using a proton formula PRESAGE® for 3D dosimetry of small fields in a uniform scanning proton beam delivery system with dose layer stacking technology. The relationship between optical density and the absorbed dose was found to be linear through small volume cuvette studies for both photon and proton irradiation. Two circular fields and three patient-specific fields were used for proton treatment planning calculation and beam delivery. The measured results were compared with the calculated results in the form of lateral dose profiles, depth dose, isodose plots and gamma index analysis. For the circular field study, lateral dose profile comparison showed that the relative PRESAGE® profile falls within ± 5% from the calculated profile for most of the spatial range. For unmodulated depth dose comparison, the agreement between the measured and calculated results was within 3% in the beam entrance region before the Bragg peak. However, at the Bragg peak, there was about 20% underestimation of the absorbed dose from PRESAGE®. For patient-specific field 3D dosimetry, most of the data points within the target volume passed gamma analysis for 3% relative dose difference and 3 mm distance to agreement criteria. Our results suggest that this proton formula PRESAGE® dosimeter has the potential for 3D dosimetry of small fields in proton therapy, but further investigation is needed to improve the dose under-response of the PRESAGE® in the Bragg peak region.
Nursing students' perceptions of cultural competence

Cultural competence is becoming more a necessity than an option due to the change in the face of cultural populations in the USA. Nurses care for many populations of people and therefore their level of cultural awareness is paramount to the care they deliver. Cultural competence in the nursing profession begins with the nursing student. A university engaged a group of nursing students in a free clinic which served cultures of people not indigenous to the native culture. Student nurses perceived the experience revealing of the care they provided and revealing of the affect of that care on the recipients.
Nanomaterial toxicity testing in the 21st century: use of a predictive toxicological approach and high-throughput screening.

The production of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) is a sci-entific breakthrough in material design and the development of new consumer products. While the successful implementation of nanotechnology is important for the growth of the global economy, we also need to consider the possible environmental health and safety (EHS) impact as a result of the novel physicochemical properties that could generate hazardous biological outcomes. In order to assess ENM hazard, reliable and reproducible screening approaches are needed to test the basic materials as well as nanoenabled products. A platform is required to investigate the potentially endless number of biophysicochemical interactions at the nano/bio interface, in response to which we have developed a predictive toxicological approach. We define a predictive toxicological approach as the use of mechanisms-based high-throughput screening in vitro to make predictions about the physicochemical properties of ENMs that may lead to the generation of pathology or di...
A comparison of SNOTEL and AMSR-E snow water equivalent datasets in western U.S. watersheds

It is a consensus among earth scientists that climate change will result in an increased frequency of extreme events (e.g., precipitation, snow). Streamflow forecasts and flood/drought analyses, given this high variability in the climatic driver (snowpack), are vital in the western United States. However, the ability to produce accurate forecasts and analyses is dependent upon the quality (accuracy) of these predictors (snowpack). Current snowpack datasets are based upon in-situ telemetry. Recent satellite deployments offer an alternative remote sensing data source of snowpack. The proposed research will investigate (compare) remote sensing datasets in western U.S. watersheds in which snowpack is the primary driver of streamflow. A comparison is made between snow water equivalent (SWE) data from in-situ snowpack telemetry (SNOTEL) sites and the advanced microwave scanning radiometer -- earth observing system (AMSR-E) aboard NASA's Aqua satellite. Principal component techniques and Singular Value Decomposition are applied to determine similarities and differences between the datasets and investigate regional snowpack behaviors. Given the challenges (including costs, operation and maintenance) of deploying SNOTEL stations, the objective of the research is to determine if satellite based remote sensed SWE data provide a comparable option to in-situ datasets. Watersheds investigated include the North Platte River, the Upper Green River, and the Upper Colorado River. The time period analyzed is 2003--2008, due to the recent deployment of the NASA Aqua satellite. Two distinct snow regions were found to behave similarly between both datasets using principal component analysis. Singular Value Decomposition linked both data products with streamflow in the region and found similar behaviors among datasets. However, only 11 of the 84 SNOTEL sites investigated correlated at a significance of 90% or greater with its corresponding AMSR-E cell. Also, when comparing SNOTEL data with the corresponding satellite cell, there was a consistent difference in the magnitude (Snow Water Equivalent) of the datasets. Finally, both datasets were utilized and compared in a statistically based streamflow forecast of several gages.
Genomic instability in bone marrow failure syndromes.

Aneuploidy is frequently seen in leukemia and myelodysplasia (MDS) but was thought to be uncommon in aplastic anemia (AA). We examined marrow cells from 96 unselected patients with bone marrow failure syndromes to assess the frequency of undetected aneuploidy for chromosomes 7 and 8 by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) as compared to routine cytogenetic analysis. Twenty-eight percent (27/96) of patients had an abnormal karyotype. FISH identified an additional 27 patients with undetected monosomy 7 or trisomy 8. Those patients with undetected monosomy 7 generally had a poor clinical outcome, suffering from lack of response to medical therapy or early death. In one AA/MDS patient with normal cytogenetics, FISH identified a large population of monosomy 7 cells, which clearly heralded a clinical relapse. In another patient, FISH studies were used to delineate instability of chromosome 8, with apparent disease progression from AA to MDS. We conclude that undetected aneuploidy exists in marrow cells of a significant percentage of patients with bone marrow failure syndromes. Am. J. Hematol. 76:220–224, 2004. Published 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
The progressive presidents : Roosevelt, Wilson, Roosevelt, Johnson

Advocates of a strong versus a weak presidency have struggled throughout American history, but never so fiercely as in the twentieth century, which saw the rise of progressivism. This is the story of four progressive presidents, from the first Roosevelt, who himself brought plenty of backbone to the office, to Woodrow Wilson , who articulated the theory of a progressive presidency, to FDR, who brought it unique power, and, finally, to Lyndon Johnson, who provided perhaps its last great surge in our century. In a time of progressive malaise, it is important to know the history, to see the benefits as well as the liabilities, in the progressive presidential tradition. That is the aim and achievement of this book.
Getting patients the services they need using a computer-assisted system for patient assessment and referral--CASPAR.

The two goals of this technology transfer study were to: (1) increase the number and appropriateness of services received by substance abuse patients, and thereby (2) give clinical meaning and value to research-based assessment information. A software-based Resource Guide was developed to allow counselors to easily identify local resources for referral of their patients to additional clinical and social services. Two hours of training were provided on the use of the guide. It was hoped that this software and training would provide the counselors with a concrete method of linking the Addiction Severity Index (ASI) assessment information on patient problems to appropriate, available community services. We expected improved treatment planning, increased problem services matching, better patient–counselor rapport/satisfaction and better patient-performance during treatment. Data were analyzed from 131 patients of 33 counselors from 9 treatment programs, randomly assigned to 2 groups—Standard Assessment (SA) or Enhanced Assessment (EA). Patients of counselors in the EA group (1) had treatment plans that were better matched to their needs, (2) received significantly more and better-matched services than patients in the SA group, and (3) were less likely to leave treatment against medical advice and more likely to complete the full course of treatment than patients of counselors in the SA group. They did not have higher levels of patient satisfaction or helping alliance scores. These findings are discussed with regard to integrating empirically supported procedures into contemporary, community-based substance abuse treatment.
Consumer Durable Goods Expenditures, with Major Emphasis on the Role of Assets, Credit and Intentions

Abstract Previous use of credit appears to be a significant discriminator of subsequent durable goods purchasing behavior and still more important as a discriminator of the financing method used by durable good purchasers, according to an analysis of reinterview data from the 1957 and 1958 Surveys of Consumer Finances. The relation of liquid asset holdings to subsequent purchasing behavior seems to be related to the type of such asset holdings, to previous and to current credit use. These and other relationships with respect to intentions to purchase suggest that surveys more pointedly focussed on the specific questions related to consumer durable goods purchasing behavior could yield better results than those yet attained.
Free Vibration Analysis of Thin Cylindrical Shells by the Differential Quadrature Method

By introducing the application of the differential quadrature method (DQM) to the dynamic analysis of thin circular cylindrical shells, the work of this paper makes a step forward in furthering the potential of the DQM in the area of structural mechanics. The problem is identified by an eighth-order system of coupled partial differential equations in terms of the three displacement components. The proposed differential quadrature solution is semi-analytical in that Fluegge`s representation of the displacement components by trigonometric sine and cosine functions of the circumferential coordinate is employed. The results of the differential quadrature solutions of the natural frequencies of various shell cases are compared and shown to be in excellent agreement with the published, and also some recalculated, results of exact solutions for freely supported, clamped-clamped, clamped-free, and free-free shells. Comparisons are also made with the published experimental data of clamped-clamped and clamped-free shells.
GBshape: a genome browser database for DNA shape annotations

Many regulatory mechanisms require a high degree of specificity in protein-DNA binding. Nucleotide sequence does not provide an answer to the question of why a protein binds only to a small subset of the many putative binding sites in the genome that share the same core motif. Whereas higher-order effects, such as chromatin accessibility, cooperativity and cofactors, have been described, DNA shape recently gained attention as another feature that fine-tunes the DNA binding specificities of some transcription factor families. Our Genome Browser for DNA shape annotations (GBshape; freely available at http://rohslab.cmb.usc.edu/GBshape/) provides minor groove width, propeller twist, roll, helix twist and hydroxyl radical cleavage predictions for the entire genomes of 94 organisms. Additional genomes can easily be added using the GBshape framework. GBshape can be used to visualize DNA shape annotations qualitatively in a genome browser track format, and to download quantitative values of DNA shape features as a function of genomic position at nucleotide resolution. As biological applications, we illustrate the periodicity of DNA shape features that are present in nucleosome-occupied sequences from human, fly and worm, and we demonstrate structural similarities between transcription start sites in the genomes of four Drosophila species.
METABOLIC SYNDROME IN HEALTHY OBESE, OVERWEIGHT AND NORMAL WEIGHT INDIVIDUALS: THE ATHEROSCLEROSIS RISK IN COMMUNITIES STUDY

There is recent interest in characterizing the subset of obese individuals who have healthy metabolic profiles yet only two studies have examined this group prospectively but not in racially diverse populations. We analyzed factors associated with the prevalence and incidence of metabolic syndrome (MetSyn) among individuals grouped by body mass index (BMI) categories in a multi-center, community-based cohort of 14,663 African-American and white men and women aged 45-64 years at recruitment in 1987-1989, the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study. Logistic and proportional hazards regression were utilized to estimate odds ratios (OR) for the prevalence and hazard ratios (HR) for incidence of MetSyn with 95% confidence intervals (CI). At visit 1, MetSyn was positively associated with age, female gender, African-American race, and inversely related to education, associations being more pronounced among normal weight (NW) subjects. Among those without MetSyn at visit 1, obese (OB) subjects were more likely to develop MetSyn compared with NW [HR (95% CI): 4.53 (4.09-5.01)]. Several factors were associated with incident MetSyn among NW, including older age [per year: 1.05 (1.03-1.06)], female gender [vs. male: 1.29 (1.10-1.52)], heavy alcohol intake [vs. never: 0.75 (0.59-0.94)] and physical activity [tertile 3 vs. tertile 1: 0.71 (0.58-0.86)] but not OB. Weight gain (>5%) was also more highly associated with MetSyn in NW [1.61 (1.28-2.02)] compared with OB [1.01 (0.85-1.20)]. We conclude that lifestyle factors may play a stronger role in development of MetSyn in NW individuals compared with OB and that metabolically healthy obesity may not be a stable condition.
Effect of continuous cooling rate on the precipitation of gamma prime in nickel-based superalloys

Many components in gas turbine engines are subjected to high temperatures and stresses. Currently, nickel-base superalloys supply the necessary mechanical and thermal properties for most high temperature engine applications. These alloys derive their unique strength characteristics from a dispersion of fine second-phase precipitate denoted {gamma}{prime} which has a composition Ni{sub 3}(Al,Ti). The finest particles are called cooling {gamma}{prime} because they form upon quenching. Coarse, primary {gamma}{prime} is also often present in the matrix. The volume fraction modified model is the best model for predicting cooling {gamma}{prime} size for isothermal heat treatments. For predicting {gamma}{prime} size for continuous cooling, no improvements on the basic model were seen because all the corrective efforts were based on coarsening theory alone and the evidence points to the existence of another mechanism in addition to coarsening. This mechanism is proposed to be the cooling rate dependent addition of {gamma}{prime} formers to existing particles directly from solution. A method to account for these additions needs to be established to predict cooling {gamma}{prime} size for continuous cooling.
Expression and Characterization of Glycolipid-Anchored B7-1 (CD80) from Baculovirus-Infected Insect Cells: Protein Transfer onto Tumor Cells

Tumor cells can be modified to express immunostimulatory molecules such as B7-1 by protein transfer using purified glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored B7-1 (GPI-B7-1). In this study recombinant baculovirus encoding GPI-B7-1 (vBacB7-1GPI) was established to obtain large quantities of purified GPI-B7-1 to modify tumor cells by protein transfer. vBacB7-1GPI-infected insect cells showed high-level cell surface expression of GPI-B7-1 that was susceptible to PIPLC treatment. GPI-B7-1 expressed in insect cells (Bac-GPI-B7-1) mediated T cell proliferation, indicating that the GPI-B7-1 retains costimulatory activity. Moreover, Bac-GPI-B7-1 was completely solubilized in Triton X-100 at 4°C compared to 22% solubilization of GPI-B7-1 expressed in CHOK1 cells, suggesting that GPI-anchored proteins expressed in insect cells may not be clustered into the detergent-insoluble fraction. SDS–PAGE analysis of Bac-GPI-B7-1 showed faster mobility (45 kDa) compared to GPI-B7-1 from CHOK1 (68 kDa) and this difference may be due to a difference in glycosylation. Cell binding assays showed that immunoaffinity-purified Bac-GPI-B7-1 retained its functional ability to bind CD28+ cells. Moreover, when human tumor cells were incubated with this functionally active purified GPI-B7-1, an efficient transfer of B7-1 onto tumor cells was observed. These results demonstrate that GPI-B7-1 can be expressed in insect cells in a functionally active form and can be used to modify tumor cells for immunotherapeutic applications.
Formulation Protocol and Dicationic Salts Affect Protein Functionality of Model System Beef Batters

ABSTRACT: The objective of this study was to determine if addition, and order of addition, of CaCl 2 and MgCl 2 affected protein functionality of lean beef preblends. Four treatments were applied to non-preblended (NPB) bat-ters prior to thermal processing. Six treatments were applied to preblended (PB) batters 12 h prior to thermalprocessing. All treatments contained 2% NaCl. Dicationic salts decreased raw pH in NPB and PB batters, whilecooked pH was unaffected. Magnesium chloride in NPB and CaCl 2 + MgCl 2 in PB batters resulted in the highest totalsoluble protein (TSP). Calcium chloride + MgCl 2 in NPB batters resulted in firmer gels compared to the control.Magnesium chloride, in both NPB and PB, caused the greatest increase in soluble myosin, and preblending de-creased myosin solubility.Keywords: dicationic salts, beef batters, protein functionality, formulation, myosin Introduction L OWERING SODIUM AND FAT IN THE DIET HAS BEEN RECOM -mended as a means of decreasing hypertension, obesity, car-diovascular disease, stroke, and renal failure. Sodium chloride andfat are nonetheless important ingredients in processed food prod-ucts. In processed meats, NaCl solubilizes proteins, provides fla-vor, improves texture, and controls microbial growth (Barbut andMittal 1988). Several approaches to reduce sodium in processedmeats have been evaluated. Terrell (1983) reduced NaCl by re-placing some of it with other chloride salts and altering processingmethods. Substitution of NaCl with divalent chloride salts such asCaCl
An efficient signal subspace algorithm for source localization in noise fields with unknown covariance

The authors present a covariance differencing algorithm for bearing estimation in situations where the noise covariance matrix is unknown. Conventional covariance differencing methods acquire a set of vectors which are orthogonal to the direction vectors by obtaining an eigenvalue decomposition of the difference of the covariance matrices of two measurements of the array. Eigendecomposition algorithms, however, involve a considerable computational burden. The authors also consider a procedure which does not require eigenvalue decomposition and is thus computationally more efficient. Results of simulation studies are included to show that the proposed approach performs nearly as well as the more conventional covariance differencing techniques in terms of signal resolution and estimation error. >
Evaluation of potential integral at singularity of exact kernel in thin-wire calculations

A technique is presented for calculating the potential integral of thin-wire theory at the singularity of the exact kernel in cases where the current is representable as piecewise constant and/or piecewise linear over an interval containing the singularity. The integral of the rapidly varying portion of the kernel is converted to a highly convergent power series. Examples of how one employs the results in computations are given.
Thrombophilia and Pediatric Stroke

Thrombophilia refers to a systemic predisposition to thrombosis, including stroke. Thrombophilia may be genetic (eg, factor V Leiden) or acquired (eg, antiphospholipid antibodies). Approximately 60% of thrombosis risk is attributable to genetic factors.1 Thrombosis is a disease for which there is a relatively well-defined management strategy in adults but less so in children. Thrombophilia is not a disease but a susceptibility to thrombosis, and its management strategy is less well defined in adults and not at all defined in children. Currently, the role of thrombophilia in pediatric stroke is poorly characterized. Article see p 1838 The extensive published literature on stroke in adult patients cannot be assumed to apply to children because common underlying mechanisms of adult stroke, such as atherosclerosis, hypertension, smoking, atrial fibrillation, and diabetes mellitus, are infrequently involved in pediatric stroke. Known underlying mechanisms of pediatric stroke include perinatal placental thromboembolic events through a physiologically patent foramen ovale, congenital heart disease, sickle cell disease, arterial dissection, trauma, infection, inflammation, immobilization, dehydration, metabolic syndromes, moyamoya, and vasculitis. An increasing number of large pediatric centers now have dedicated multidisciplinary stroke services, which include neurology, hematology, neuroradiology, interventional radiology, neurosurgery, and physical, occupational, and speech therapists. Stroke as a diagnosis should be restricted to patients with cerebral infarction (see Figure, top). Multiple additional conditions with predisposition to stroke or cerebral vasculopathy may also be seen by these multidisciplinary groups, including cerebral sinovenous thrombosis (CSVT) (see Figure, bottom), moyamoya, vasculitis, transient ischemic attacks, complex migraine, and nontraumatic intracranial hemorrhage. Figure. AIS (top) and CSVT (bottom). Top left, Magnetic resonance angiogram. Top right, Axial T2 magnetic resonance image. Bottom left, Sagittal T1 magnetic resonance image. Bottom right, Time-of-flight magnetic resonance venography. Arrows highlight abnormalities. The incidence of pediatric arterial ischemic stroke (AIS) …
Selling Rooms: Hotels vs. Third-Party Websites

Hotels have a variety of internet distribution channels to help them sell rooms, including sites that have come to be called online travel agents (OTAs), or third-party websites, but the cost of using these intermediaries is considerable. This article examines how hotels can sell room inventory while maximizing net room revenues—chiefly, by steering customers to their own sites, rather than to the OTAs. Even though hotels want to sell rooms via their own channels, the hotel industry relies heavily on efficient and convenient OTAs to sell rooms. Based on eleven interviews (nine hotels, one third-party website, and one airline), we recommend the following ways to strengthen sales on hotels’ websites: maintain a best-rate guarantee, optimize the website for search engines, mine data from customer profiles to provide custom offers, retain premium rooms for sale on the hotel website, offer discounts or other promotions to customers who book on the hotel website, offer incentives for returning guests who book o...
Criminal Behavior and the Physical Environment: A Perspective

From Jeffery, C.R. (1976). Criminal behavior and the physical environment: A perspective. American Behavioral Scientist, 20, 149-174.Recent years have witnessed a revival of interest in environmental approaches to criminal behavior. In criminology we can trace three different sources of interest in criminal behavior and the physical environment. From the academic community we have a book on crime prevention and environmental design (Jeffery 1971), a book on the geography of crime (Harries 1974), and a book on the spatial analysis of crime (Pyle et al. 1974). Harries and Pyle are geographers, not criminologists.
Divine Foreknowledge and Human Free Will

If God knows everything he must know the future, and if he knows the future he must know the future acts of his creatures. But then his creatures must act as he knows they will act. How then can they be free? This dilemma has a long history in Christian philosophy and is now as hotly disputed as ever. The medieval scholastics were virtually unanimous in claiming both that God is omniscient and that humans have free will, though they disagreed in their accounts of how the two are compatible. With the Reformation the debate became even more lively since there were Protestant philosophers who denied both claims, and many philosophers ever since have either thought it impossible to reconcile them or have thought it possible only because they weaken one or the other.
Design-point determination for the commercial spherical tokamak, ARIES-ST

Motivations and constraints regarding the identification of DT-fueled, 1,000-MWe-class commercial power-plant embodiments of the (low-aspect-ratio) spherical tokamak (ST) are summarized in the context of ongoing ARIES studies. Key design drivers are identified and the prospects of this approach to magnetic fusion energy are considered.
Definition of the plate boundary along the East Pacific Rise off Mexico

Tectonic and volcanic activity along the East Pacific Rise near Lat. 21°N is generally restricted to a 3–4‐km‐wide area centered over the rise axis. The East Pacific Rise is a medium‐rate (60 mm/yr) spreading center characterized by modest (100–200 m) relief of hills and seapeaks across the crestal region that is typical for such spreading centers. Few tectonic features appear in an axial volcanic zone 600–1, 200 m wide characterized by fresh, glassy pillow basalt and little or no sediment cover. This volcanic terrain is commonly flanked by tectonic zones where older lavas are cut by numerous normal faults bounding horst and graben systems and open fissures; these tectonic zones are commonly of unequal width on each side of the central volcanic zone and locally may be absent on one side. Bottom photographs and visual observations from a manned submersible indicate that most faults and fissures in the tectonic zones are young. Farther than 2 or 3 km from the axial volcanic zone, recent tectonic activity ap...
Gas sorption environments in poly(2,6‐dimethyl‐1,4‐phenylene oxide) by xenon‐129 nuclear magnetic resonance: Effects of processing

One- and two-dimensional xenon-129 nuclear magnetic resonance ( 129 Xe NMR) experiments were performed on a series of poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4-phenylene oxide) (PXE) samples to characterize the sorption environments and the relative mobility of xenon in the samples. Samples of PXE in sealed NMR tubes pressurized with xenon were studied as a function of temperature, pressure, and processing. In a dense cast film of PXE, the shift relative to the free gas resonance is smaller than that observed for typical glassy polymers, indicating a higher free volume environment. Solubility rises rapidly as temperature decreases. The lower shift and rapid increase in solubility with decreasing temperature are consistent with a relatively high free volume environment for gas sorption. If PXE is antiplasticized, the shift is slightly larger, the increase in signal intensity with decreasing temperature is smaller, and the line widths are greater. This sample is a better packed glass with less free volume and slower diffusion. Samples of PXE produced by rapid precipitation have broad lines and even lower shifts corresponding to a wide distribution of higher free volume environments. The appearance of two lines at low temperatures is consistent with the presence of a bimodal distribution of environments similar to what has been observed with positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy. The resonance closest to the free gas resonance is associated with very large free volume elements relative to those of traditional glassy polymers. In two-dimensional experiments, there is a rapid exchange of xenon by diffusion between the two environments, indicating the close spatial proximity of the environments. Two-dimensional experiments and one-dimensional progressive saturation experiments reflect a rapid exchange of xenon between the sorbed state and the free gas resonance for the precipitated samples. At low temperatures, the high field peak exchanges more rapidly with the free gas.
Cutaneous paraneoplastic syndromes in dogs and cats: a review of the literature

Cutaneous paraneoplastic syndromes are a group of noncancerous dermatoses associated with internal malignancy. Their recognition can facilitate detection and timely treatment of underlying cancer. More than 30 such disorders have been identified in the human scientific literature, whereas only a few are described in veterinary medicine. This may reflect a lower incidence in animals than in people or may be the result of failure to recognize an association between certain skin lesions and neoplasia. Establishing a relationship between a cutaneous disorder and neoplasia can be difficult unless the skin lesions are rare and almost always associated with a particular tumour type, as is the case for most recognized veterinary paraneoplastic dermatoses. Among these are feline paraneoplastic alopecia, feline thymoma-associated exfoliative dermatitis, nodular dermatofibrosis, feminization syndrome associated with testicular tumours, superficial necrolytic dermatitis and paraneoplastic pemphigus. The aetiology of most cutaneous paraneoplastic syndromes has remained elusive in both people and animals.
In men and women with COPD the presence of urinary incontinence is associated with poorer quality of life.

Commentary on: Hrisanfow E, Hagglund D. Impact of cough and urinary incontinence on quality of life in women and men with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. J Clin Nurs 2013;22:97–105.[OpenUrl][1][CrossRef][2][PubMed][3] It is estimated that worldwide, over 200 million people are living with UI.1 UI is linked to an increase in social detachment, falls and fractures, depression, decreased ability to concentrate, increased anxiety, and admissions to nursing homes, resulting in immeasurable economic and quality-of-life deficits. … [1]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DJ%2BClin%2BNurs%26rft.volume%253D22%26rft.spage%253D97%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Adoi%252F10.1111%252Fj.1365-2702.2012.04143.x%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Apmid%252F22805299%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx [2]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=10.1111/j.1365-2702.2012.04143.x&link_type=DOI [3]: /lookup/external-ref?access_num=22805299&link_type=MED&atom=%2Febnurs%2F17%2F1%2F22.atom
BUCS - a bottom-up cache structure for networked storage servers

This paper introduces a new caching structure to improve server performance by minimizing data traffic over the system bus. The idea is to form a bottom-up caching hierarchy in a networked storage server. The bottom level cache is located on an embedded controller that is a combination of a network interface card (NIC) and a storage host bus adapter (HBA). Storage data coming from or going to a network are cached at this bottom level cache and meta-data related to these data are passed to the host for processing. When cached data exceed the capacity of the bottom level cache, some data are moved to the host RAM that is usually larger than the bottom level cache. This new cache hierarchy is referred to as bottom-up cache structure (BUGS) in contrast to a traditional CPU-centric top-down cache where the top-level cache is the smallest and fastest, and the lower in the hierarchy the larger and slower the cache. Such data caching at the controller level dramatically reduces bus traffic and leads to great performance improvement for networked storages. We have implemented a proof-of-concept prototype using Intel's IQ80310 reference board and Linux network block device. Through performance measurements on the prototype implementation, we observed up to 3 times performance improvement of BUCS over traditional systems in terms of response time and system throughput.