cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Measuring Affinities of Fission Yeast Spindle Pole Body Proteins in Live Cells across the Cell Cycle

Characterizing protein-protein interactions is essential for understanding molecular mechanisms, although reproducing cellular conditions in vitro is challenging and some proteins are difficult to purify. We developed a method to measure binding to cellular structures using fission yeast cells as reaction vessels. We varied the concentrations of Sid2p and Mob1p (proteins of the septation initiation network) and measured their binding to spindle pole bodies (SPBs), the centrosome equivalent of yeast. From our measurements we infer that Sid2p and Mob1p both exist as monomeric, heterodimeric, and homodimeric species throughout the cell cycle. During interphase these species have widely different affinities for their common receptor Cdc11p on the SPB. The data support a model with a subset of Cdc11p binding the heterodimeric species with a Kd 10 μM during interphase and somewhat stronger during mitosis. These measurements allowed us to account for the fluctuations in Sid2p binding to SPBs throughout the cell cycle.
Effects of binary encoding on pattern recognition and library matching of spectral data

Abstract Scott, D.R., 1988. Effects of binary encoding on pattern recognition and library matching of spectral data. Chemometrics and Intelligent Laboratory Systems , 4: 47–63. Binary encoding is frequently employed in pattern recognition studies and matching of unknown against library spectral data. In this study the effect of binary encoding on pattern recognition and library searches is determined using the Hamming and Euclidean distance metrics. The effect on a full intensity spectrum is to compress the total information into a qualitative spectral data vector, the most basic information in the full spectrum. Geometrically, binary encoding of unit normalized spectral data can be visualized as shifting spectral points on the faces of the measurement space hypercube to the corners of a Hamming hypercube. A new classification scheme for comparison of analytical spectra based on their binary encoded spectra is introduced. Quantitative expressions for the effect of binary encoding on general Euclidean distances between spectral points are derived and shown to depend upon their spectral classification. Generally binary encoding increases the interclass distances in pattern recognition and may decrease the intraclass distances. This effect is illustrated with a mass spectral pattern recognition example. The effect of binary encoding on library searches is to produce possible false compound identification in identity searches and to flag spectrally similar compounds in structure searches. A scheme which uses both the Hamming and the Euclidean metrics is proposed for improved library searches. This scheme is illustrated with searches of a small mass spectral library for benzene and p -dioxane spectra.
Role of Nursing Students at Rural Nurse-Managed Clinics

With stiff competition for clinical sites, one Midwestern university partners nursing students with faculty who provide primary healthcare to clients in 2 rural nurse-managed clinics. Some students are also assigned to follow select clients during weekly home visit rotations for their public health clinical course. The result has been a successful faculty practice and preceptor model that benefits rural communities, a clinical setting that provides opportunities for students to experience client care needs of the underinsured or uninsured in small communities, and student exposure to the financial burdens and challenges of today's healthcare environment in the United States.
Responses of discretized systems under narrow band nonstationary random excitations. Part 2: nonlinear problems

In a companion paper, the extended stochastic central difference (ESCD) method was presented for computation of responses of linear multi-degrees-of-freedom (mdof) systems under narrow band stationary and nonstationary random excitations. The present paper is concerned with the generalization of the ESCD method for computation of nonlinear mdof systems. The generalization is based on a combination of the ESCD method with statistical linearization (SL) technique, modified adaptive time scheme (ATS), and time coordinate transformation (TCT). Unlike the conventional SL technique, the generalized ESCD method is applicable to mdof systems with large nonlinearities. Comparison is made of the computed results applying the generalized ESCD method to those obtained by the Monte Carlo simulation (MCS). Excellent agreements were obtained. It was observed that the proposed method is very efficient compared with the MCS.
Far-infrared spectral observations of Saturn and its rings

The spectrum of Saturn and its rings between 45 and 115 microns has been measured at an average resolving power of 14 from the NASA Lear Jet. The combined brightness temperature of the rings and planetary disk decreases beyond 65 microns, in disagreement with previous results. A brightness temperature of 65 + or - 10 K is obtained for the planetary disk in the 80-110-micron wavelength range if a large-particle, constant-emissivity model is assumed for the rings. The possible effects of small particles in the rings are briefly considered.
The nearest neighbor problem in an abstract metric space

Given a database of relational models, we would like to select those models that are closest to an unknown relational description. Since relational distance is expensive to compute, we want to minimize our distance calculations. In this paper we present a new method for achieving this goal in an abstract metric space.
The incidence of nephrogenic systemic fibrosis in subjects receiving gadoversetamide for cardiovascular magnetic resonance

Summary The incidence of nephrogenic systemic fibrosis in subjects receiving gadoversetamide for cardiovascular magnetic resonance is low (0.026% overall and 1.274% in those subjects with CKD Stage 5 on hemodialysis). Background Since 2006, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recommended restricting gadolinium based contrast agents (GBCAs) for magnetic resonance in patients with renal impairment due to an association of GBCA use with nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF). The multiple FDA warnings have listed different glomerular filtration rate (GFR) cut-off values for restricting GBCA use. Consequently, hospital policies vary in renal impairment screening criteria and restrictions for both agent-specific and GFR cut-off values for GBCA use. Determining the incidence of developing NSF after exposure to specific GBCAs, and when stratified by chronic kidney disease (CKD) stage, may clarify which agents and patients are at highest risk for developing NSF. Currently, the incidence of developing NSF after exposure to gadoversetamide (Covidien, Mansfield MA) is unknown. The objective of this study was to determine the incidence and patients at highest risk of developing NSF in a large cohort of patients with suspected cardiovascular disease receiving gadoversetamide. Methods
An Evaluation of Variable Plot Sampling in Shrub and Herbaceous Vegetation

In the incessant search for new and simpler techniques of vegetation analysis, truly original ideas are rare. One such idea, the Bitterlich variable plot (or plotless) method, has continued to grow in usefulness for a dozen years. Proposed for estimating tree basal area, it has been adapted to determination of timber volume, and is now widely used in routine forest inventory. Modification of Bitterlich's geometry permits the variable plot technique to be used for direct estimation of shrub cover in open shrub communities. At each of several sampling points, those shrubs whose horizontal crown spread appears larger than the crossarm of a hand-held angle gage are counted, while those covered by the crossarm are ignored. The angle gage is so constructed that the count at each sampling point, divided by an appropriate factor, is an estimate of the percentage of the ground surface occupied by the projected area of shrub crowns. Details of gage dimensions and an outline of the theory were published earlier (Cooper 1957). As commonly used, the gage consists of a wooden base on which a perpendicular crossarm 4 15/64 inches long is mounted 30 inches from the eye. The count obtained with an instrument of these proportions must be divided .by 2 to give a point estimate of ground cover. There is no accepted name for this divisor. It seems appropriate to designate it the coq cr percentage factor, analogous to the basal area factor used in plotless timber cruising.
The ups and downs of Myc biology

The basic helix-loop-helix protein Myc is a renowned transcription factor controlling disparate aspects of cell physiology that, together, allow efficient proliferation of somatic cells. This ability, together with the observation that its deregulated expression occurs in the majority of human cancers, suggests that Myc could be a good therapeutic target. However, several aspects of Myc biology remain elusive: what is the major difference between oncogenic and physiological Myc? How does oncogenic Myc evade the intrinsic tumor surveillance pathways provided by evolution? If Myc inhibition were even possible, what would be the consequences for the homeostasis of normal proliferating tissues versus the fate of cancer cells? Here we summarize the latest works addressing these issues.
The biomechanics of patient room standardization.

Background:The prevailing focus on cognitive load reduction in healthcare environment standardization excludes a domain of healthcare delivery that could contribute significantly to safety and effi...
Price Variability Under Price Level Stability—A Study of Sierra Leone's Price Dynamics Using Micro-Level Price Data

This paper offers a unique insight into price dynamics and pricing behavior in Sierra Leone. It examines micro-level price data during a period when the price level remained constant while relative prices displayed considerable volatility. We find that the key factors to explain differences in the average frequency of price changes are inflation volatility and product diversification. Inflation inertia is not significant empirically, except during an earlier period. We show that the variability of relative prices is largely due to a few items that are weighted heavily in the consumer price index. The empirical evidence further suggests that producers in Sierra Leone are more likely to adjust their prices in response to events rather than at fixed intervals. Inflation volatility has also weakened monetary policy effectiveness in Sierra Leone, which could be remedied by introducing a core inflation measure that would exclude volatile product prices.
Highly reliable BEOL-transistor with oxygen-controlled InGaZnO and Gate/Drain offset design for high/low voltage bridging I/O operations

Reliability of BEOL-transistors with a wide-gap oxide semiconductor InGaZnO (IGZO) film, integrated on LSI Cu-interconnects, is intensively discussed in terms of application to on-chip bridging I/Os between low and high voltage interactive operations (Fig. 1). Oxygen control in the thin IGZO film was found to be important to stabilize the device characteristics. A conventional IGZO tends to contain deep-level donor-states, which cause temperature and bias instabilities. The oxygen control in IGZO reduces these deep donor-states to improve operation instability. A gate/drain offset structure effectively suppresses the hot-carrier generation, resulting in a stable operation at high V d bias condition (∼20V). The oxygen-controlled IGZO and gate/drain offset structure are important for making the BEOL-transistors applicable to high/low voltage I/Os bridging.
Animal models of osteopetrosis: the impact of recent molecular developments on novel strategies for the therapeutic intervention

Osteopetrosis comprises a group of rare metabolic diseases of skeletal development that are characterized by a generalized increase in skeletal mass resulting from reduced osteoclast-mediated bone resorption. Specific immune regulators and growth factors that influence osteoclast ontogeny and/or activation have been implicated in the pathogenesis of some of the naturally occurring mutations associated with osteopetrosis in animals. Most recently, loss-of-function experiments using transgenic mice with targeted disruptions of the c-src or c-fos proto-oncogenes have resulted in different osteoclast abnormalities that produce osteopetrosis. The information gained from these mutations in animals should continue to provide new understanding of the molecular defects associated with osteopetrosis, and to broader aspects of skeletal pathology; this should result in more effective therapeutic intervention in humans.
Bolometric detector on the basis of single-wall carbon nanotube/polymer composite

Abstract Infrared imaging sensors that operate without cryogenic cooling have the potential to provide the military or civilian users with infrared vision capabilities packaged in a camera of extremely small size, weight and power consumption. We present here the uncooled bolometric sensor on the basis of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) polymer composite with enhanced sensitivity. The voltage responsivity of device working at room temperatures exceeds 150 V/W. The absorption coefficient of single-wall carbon nanotubes was increased by involving Forster type energy transfer from polymer film to dispersed SWNT. The temperature gradient of resistivity was substantially improved by chemical functionalization of SWNT.
Prevalence, correlates, and associated outcomes of potentially inappropriate psychotropic use in the community-dwelling elderly

Abstract Background: Previous applications of the Beers criteria have shown significant prescribing of potentially inappropriate psychotropic agents for the community-dwelling elderly. However, there is limited information at the national level on potentially inappropriate psychotropic use, the characteristics of elderly persons at risk, and the impact of this inappropriate use on health care outcomes. Objective: This study addressed the prevalence, correlates, and associated outcomes of potentially inappropriate psychotropic use among community-dwelling elderly persons in the United States who were receiving psychotropic medications. Methods: Data from the 1996 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) were employed to examine the use of psychotropic medications that generally should be avoided in the elderly and those that should be avoided in elderly patients with certain preexisting conditions, as defined by the Beers criteria. The MEPS sampling weights were used to derive national estimates. Cross-sectional data were analyzed by multivariate analyses to examine the correlates and associated health care outcomes (health care utilization, economic, and humanistic) of potentially inappropriate psychotropic use in the elderly. Results: An estimated 2.30 million community-dwelling elderly persons received potentially inappropriate psychotropic medications in 1996. This represented 7.14% of all community-dwelling elderly persons and 37.86% of all community-dwelling elderly persons using psychotropic agents; 32.94% of those taking psychotropic drugs received agents that were generally inappropriate, and 10.21% received agents that were inappropriate in the presence of specific conditions. The rates of potentially inappropriate psychotropic use in those receiving antidepressant, antianxiety, and sedative/hypnotic agents were 50.93%, 31.84%, and 23.49%, respectively. Multivariate analyses showed that correlates of potentially inappropriate psychotropic use in the elderly were age Conclusions: The study findings suggest that although the use of potentially inappropriate psychotropic medications is common among the community-dwelling elderly who are prescribed psychotropic agents, the unfavorable risk-benefit ratio of these inappropriate medications does not appear to influence broad measures of health care utilization, costs, or quality of life in this population.
Collision broadening and relaxation of the resonance lines of lithium and sodium in helium gas

The interaction potentials of the low-lying states of the molecules LiHe and NaHe are calculated by a model potential method and used in the impact approximation to derive the widths and the shifts of the lithium and sodium resonance lines in helium gas. The widths are about three times larger than those given by the conventional van der Waals broadening formula. Expressions are obtained for the cross sections for fine-structure and depolarizing transitions in the elastic approximation. The resulting cross sections are in satisfactory agreement with experimental data and with more elaborate calculations.
Layer-stripping reverse-time migration1

We present a layer-stripping method of migration for irregularly layered media in which first-order velocity discontinuities separate regions of constant or smoothly varying velocity. We use the reverse-time method to migrate seismic data layer by layer, from the surface downwards. As part of the migration of a given layer, the bottom boundary of the layer is defined based on power in the migrated signal, and a seismic section is collected along it. This new section serves as the boundary condition for migration in the next layer. This procedure is repeated for each layer, with the final image formed from the individual layer images. Layer-stripping migration consists of three steps: (1) layer definition, (2) wavefield extrapolation and imaging, and (3) boundary determination. The migration scheme when used with reverse-time extrapolation is similar to datuming with an imaging condition. The reverse-time method uses an explicit fourth-order time, tenth-order space, finite-difference approximation to the scalar wave equation. The advantages of layer-stripping reverse-time migration are: (1) it preserves the benefits of the reverse-time method by handling strong velocity contrasts between layers and steeply dipping structures; (2) it reduces computer memory and saves computation time in high-velocity layers, and (3) it allows interpretational control of the image. Post-stack layer-stripping reverse-time migration is illustrated with a synthetic CMP data example. Prestack migration is illustrated with a synthetic data set and with a marine seismic reflection profile across the Santa Maria Basin and the Hosgri Fault in central California.
Osmotic adaptation by gram-negative bacteria: possible role for periplasmic oligosaccharides

The cyclic (1----2)-beta-D-glucans produced by species of Agrobacterium and Rhizobium resemble the membrane-derived oligosaccharides of Escherichia coli in their periplasmic localization, intermediate size, and (1----2)-beta-D-glucan backbones. The regulation of the biosynthesis of cyclic (1----2)-beta-D-glucan by Agrobacterium tumefaciens is now shown to parallel the osmotic regulation of membrane-derived oligosaccharide biosynthesis in Escherichia coli. This result suggests a general role for periplasmic oligosaccharides in the osmotic adaptation of Gram-negative bacteria as ecologically diverse as enteric and soil bacteria.
Current Concepts in Postoperative Pain Management

Pain has become the fifth vital sign and is now a critical focus of patient care. The relief of pain has always been part of the anesthesiologist’s role in the most immediate postoperative period, and the development of acute postoperative pain services has extended this interest beyond the postanesthesia care unit. There is also increasing evidence that optimal pain management can impact outcome beyond the intraoperative period. Therefore, it is increasingly common for perioperative pain management to begin in the operating room using multimodal approaches, particularly in high-risk patients. This issue of the Anesthesiology Clinics of North America provides an update on the advances in perioperative pain management with an emphasis on multimodal approaches and special patient populations. In choosing a Guest Editor for this issue, I enlisted the expertise of Girish Premji Joshi, who is currently Professor of Anesthesiology and Pain Management and Director of Perioperative Medicine and Ambulatory Anesthesia at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. Dr. Joshi has been an extremely active investigator in the area of pain relief after surgery for over a decade, with 39 original articles and numerous book chapters and case reports to his credit. He has also been active in numerous societies—most notably the Society for Ambulatory Anesthesia, where he has served on numerous comAnesthesiology Clin N Am
High-temperature separation of binary gas mixtures using microporous ceramic membranes

Abstract Gas separations using commercial ceramic membranes with 40 A pore diameter were performed for three binary mixtures: H2/CO, H2/N2 and He/O2. The experimental conditions covered a wide range of temperatures (25 to 815°C) and pressures (3 to 38 atm). A mathematical model based upon Knudsen diffusion and intermolecular momentum transfer was developed to predict gas separation efficiency. The experimental results agreed well with the model prediction. The permeability of CO was substantially lower than the value expected from Knudsen diffusion. Nevertheless, the model developed was able to account for this phenomenon and predicted equally well for a binary mixture containing CO. The effect of key operating parameters on separation behavior was studied with the model developed.
Dealing with clutter in EMI inversion and classification schemes for buried UXO discrimination

Virtually all signal processing strategies for discrimination of buried UXO are clutter limited. Most buried UXO are to be found in the top meter of soil, and therefore produce detectable electromagnetic responses. However they also typically reside in settings with widespread metallic clutter from detonated ordnance or other sources. While generally smaller than the UXO, metallic fragments can be numerous and may be shallower than the UXO we seek. Thus clutter signals may be stronger than those from UXO, especially locally, and may cause either highly localized or diffuse obscuration of signatures. They may mask crucial UXO frequency and temporal response patterns, and may distort the otherwise revealing spatial variations of response. To deal with this, first an analytical physical model of electromagnetic induction (EMI) scattering from widespread metallic clutter is formulated and tested. The dependence of signal magnitude on antenna elevation is determined for both thin surface layers and volume layers of clutter. This dependence is different from that of a single UXO size target. In treatment of UWB EMI measurements, this difference is exploited to elicit evidence of the UXO-like target when it is screened from the sensor by a surface layer of small metallic objects. Inversions are also performed for characterizing the geometry of a UXO-like target beneath a surface layer of clutter. The test cases compare a simple least squares (SLS) and a Bayesian-inspired statistical (BIS) approach. As target depth is increased and signal to clutter ratio decreases, the BIS generally produces more consistent and accurate results.
Formulation and characterization of injectable poly(DL-lactide-co-glycolide) implants loaded with N-acetylcysteine, a MMP inhibitor.

Purpose The objective of this study was to develop poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) injectable implants (i.e., millicylinders) with microencapsulated N-acetylcysteine (NAC) for site-specific controlled NAC release, for potential chemopreventive applications in persons with previously excised head and neck cancers.
Job satisfaction and organizational commitment: validating the Arabic satisfaction and commitment questionnaire (ASCQ), testing the correlations, and investigating the effects of demographic variables in the Lebanese banking sector

The aim of this study was to assess the construct validity and the reliability of two measurement scores of organizational commitment and job satisfaction, to measure the correlation between the two variables, and to explore the effects of different demographic variables on satisfaction and commitment in a Lebanese context. A total of 298 cases from five major banks were analyzed. Rigorous forward and backward translation procedures have been applied to ensure the relevance of this instrumentation in a different cultural context. Results of exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, simple item-internal consistency estimates, and item intercorrelation analysis provided evidence that both instruments have produced reliable measurement scores with construct validity adequate to measure satisfaction and commitment in the Lebanese context. Results also showed that the constructs of satisfaction and commitment were significantly correlated and that satisfaction was a good predictor of commitmen...
Peripheral accumulation in the world economy: A cross-national analysis of the informal economy:

The persistence and growth of the informal economy have puzzled researchers and challenged mainstream explanations of the development of the informal economy. This study utilizes a world-systems approach for explaining cross-national variation in the size of the informal economy for a sample of 74 developing and developed countries observed over a recent 8-year period (1999–2007). According to this approach, the informal economy is a characteristic of peripheral accumulation in the world economy and its development is driven by unequal exchange in international trade and foreign capital penetration. Based on estimates from random and fixed-effects regression models using multiple measures of world-system position, countries in the periphery and semi-periphery of the world economy have larger informal economies than core countries. More importantly, this difference in the development of the informal economy between the core, semi-periphery, and periphery is partially explained by the effects of international trade and foreign direct investment. Overall, the findings indicate that the development and persistence of the informal economy are driven by the structure of the world economy and processes of economic globalization.
Mental simulation and meaning in life.

Mental simulation, the process of self-projection into alternate temporal, spatial, social, or hypothetical realities is a distinctively human capacity. Numerous lines of research also suggest that the tendency for mental simulation is associated with enhanced meaning. The present research tests this association specifically examining the relationship between two forms of simulation (temporal and spatial) and meaning in life. Study 1 uses neuroimaging to demonstrate that enhanced connectivity in the medial temporal lobe network, a subnetwork of the brain�s default network implicated in prospection and retrospection, correlates with self-reported meaning in life. Study 2 demonstrates that experimentally inducing people to think about the past or future versus the present enhances self-reported meaning in life, through the generation of more meaningful events. Study 3 demonstrates that experimentally inducing people to think specifically versus generally about the past or future enhances self-reported meaning in life. Study 4 turns to spatial simulation to demonstrate that experimentally inducing people to think specifically about an alternate spatial location (from the present location) increases meaning derived from this simulation compared to thinking generally about another location or specifically about one�s present location. Study 5 demonstrates that experimentally inducing people to think about an alternate spatial location versus one�s present location enhances meaning in life, through meaning derived from this simulation. Study 6 demonstrates that simply asking people to imagine completing a measure of meaning in life in an alternate location compared with asking them to do so in their present location enhances reports of meaning. This research sheds light on an important determinant of meaning in life and suggests that undirected mental simulation benefits psychological well-being. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved)
Type 1 diabetes mellitus abrogates compensatory augmentation of myocardial neuregulin-1β/ErbB in response to myocardial infarction resulting in worsening heart failure.

Diabetes mellitus (DM) patients surviving myocardial infarction (MI) exhibit a substantially higher incidence of subsequent heart failure (HF). Neuregulin (NRG)-1 and erythroblastic leukemia viral oncogene homolog (ErbB) receptors have been shown to play a critical role in maintenance of cardiac function. However, whether myocardial NRG-1/ErbB is altered during post-MI HF associated with DM remains unknown. The aim of this study was to determine the impact of type 1 DM on the myocardial NRG-1/ErbB system following MI in relation to residual left ventricular (LV) function. Type 1 DM was induced in rats via administration of streptozotocin (65 mg/kg, i.p.). Control rats were injected with citrate buffer (vehicle) only. Two weeks after induction of type 1 DM, MI was produced in DM and non-DM rats by ligation of the left coronary artery. Sham MI rats underwent the same surgical procedure with the exception that the left coronary artery was not ligated. At 4 weeks after surgery, residual in vivo LV function was assessed via echocardiography. Myocardial protein expression of NRG-1β, ErbB2 and ErbB4 receptors, and MDM2 (a downstream signaling pathway induced by NRG-1 that has been implicated in cell survival) was assessed in the remaining, viable LV myocardium by Western blotting. Changes in ErbB receptor localization in the surviving LV myocardium of diabetic and non-diabetic post-MI rats was determined using immunohistochemistry techniques. At 4 weeks post-MI, echocardiography revealed that LV fractional shortening (FS) and LV ejection fraction (EF) were significantly lower in the DM + MI group compared to the MI group (LVFS: 17.9 ± 0.7 vs. 25.2 ± 2.2; LVEF: 35.5 ± 1.4 vs. 47.5 ± 3.5, respectively; P < 0.05), indicating an increased functional severity of HF among the DM + MI rats. Up-regulation of NRG-1β and ErbB2 protein expression in the MI group was abrogated in the DM + MI group concurrent with degradation of MDM2, a downstream negative regulator of p53. ErbB2 and ErbB4 receptors re-localized to cardiac myocyte nuclei in failing type 1 diabetic post-MI hearts. Type 1 DM prevents compensatory up-regulation of myocardial NRG-1/ErbB after MI coincident with an increased severity of HF.
Acquisition and interpretation of radiographs of the equine skull

Summary The complex anatomy of the equine skull creates a radiographic challenge. However, radiographs are a commonly required tool in diagnosing dental and sinonasal disease, as well as other disorders of the equine skull. High quality, complete radiographic studies are essential for adequate evaluation. Radiographic technique and interpretation are reviewed in this paper.
UROLOGICAL LAPAROSCOPY: BASIC PHYSIOLOGICAL CONSIDERATIONS AND IMMUNOLOGICAL CONSEQUENCES

ABSTRACTPurpose: The applications of laparoscopy to urological surgery continue to grow at a steady pace. A complete understanding of the physiological and immunological changes associated with pneumoperitoneum is required. We reviewed the physiology of laparoscopy with regard to the major organ systems and summarize the effects of pneumoperitoneum on immune function.Materials and Methods: Articles published in the scientific literature from 1990 to 2004 with relevance to laparoscopic physiology and the immune response to pneumoperitoneum were reviewed using PubMed.Results: Pneumoperitoneum induces predictable pulmonary and renal responses. The cardiovascular and hemodynamic responses are phasic and dynamic in nature, and only generalizations regarding cardiac function can be made. Renal parenchymal and venous compression during pneumoperitoneum are the etiology of oliguria during laparoscopy. The effects are reversible and cause no adverse effects on renal function. There is a general trend toward system...
Heparin-degrading sulfatases in hepatocellular carcinoma: roles in pathogenesis and therapy targets.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is often diagnosed at an advanced stage for which there are limited treatment options. Two recently identified human heparin-degrading endosulfatases, named sulfatase 1 (SULF1) and sulfatase 2 (SULF2), have been found to be involved in liver carcinogenesis. SULF1 and SULF2 desulfate cell surface and extracellular matrix heparan sulfate proteoglycans (HSPGs) and modulate heparin-binding growth factor signaling in multiple cancers, including HCCs. SULF1 inhibits HCC tumor cell growth in vitro and in nude mice in vivo, partially through effects on gene expression mediated through histone H4 acetylation. While SULF1 is downregulated in the majority of HCC cell lines and approximately 30% of primary HCCs, SULF2 is up regulated in almost all HCC cell lines and in 60% of primary HCCs. In contrast to the tumor suppressor effect of SULF1, expression of SULF2 activates mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) and Akt pathways, promotes HCC cell growth in vitro and in vivo, and is associated with decreased survival of HCC patients. Targeting SULF2 or the interaction between SULF2 and SULF1 may lead to novel therapeutics for the treatment of HCCs.
Performance of Lactating Cows Fed Alfalfa Hays Graded by Relative Feed Value System

Abstract The objective was to determine if the relative feed value system of grading alfalfa hays could predict relative performance of lactating cows. In two feeding trials, 32 Holstein cows in a 4 × 4 Latin square arrangement were fed rations containing four lots of hay. All hays were chopped and fed as part of a complete ration once daily. In the first trial, two lots of a number 2 and a number 3 quality hay by relative feed value were fed as 30% of the dry matter of the rations. Measurements of production were not different among groups. In the second trial, cows were fed four rations containing hay of number 1, 2, 3, or 4 quality by relative feed value as 45% of the dry matter of the ration. Differences between groups were of milk production (30.2, 29.1, 29.0, and 27.6 kg/day), milk fat (2.96, 3.21, 3.09, and 3.17%), persistency (100, 98, 98, and 96%), and feed intake expressed as percent of body weight dry matter (3.4, 3.4, 3.4, and 3.1%). Relative feed value should be used to compare alfalfa hay instead of quality grades.
Sensory recoding via neural synchronization: integrating hue and luminance into chromatic brightness and saturation

If neural spike trains carry information in the frequency and timing of the spikes, then neural interactions—such as oscillatory synchronization—that alter spike frequency and timing can alter the encoded information. Using coupled oscillator theory, we show that synchronization-based processing can be used to integrate sensory information, resulting in new second-order sensory percepts signaled by the compromise frequency of the coupled system. If the signals to be coupled are nonlinearly compressed, the coupled system behaves as if it signals the product or ratio of the uncoupled signals, e.g., chromatic brightness can be signaled by the compromise frequency of coupled neurons responding to hue and luminance, and chromatic saturation can be signaled by the coupled frequency of neurons responding to hue and brightness, with a power- (Stevens’s) law scaling like that observed psychophysically. These emergent properties of coupled sensory systems are intriguing because multiplicative processing and power-law scaling are fundamental aspects of sensory processing.
Max Weber's Useful Ambiguities and the Problem of Defining “Popular Religion”

L'article traite des trois definitions de Max Weber de la religion populaire. L'A. compare ces trois definitions aux etudes contemporaines pour en elaborer une critique et analyser les rapports entre religion populaire et officielle.
Design of the value of imaging in enhancing the wellness of your heart (VIEW) trial and the impact of uncertainty on power.

Background Although observational evidence has suggested that the measurement of coronary artery calcium (CAC) may improve risk stratification for cardiovascular events and thus help guide the use of lipid-lowering therapy, this contention has not been evaluated within the context of a randomized trial. The Value of Imaging in Enhancing the Wellness of Your Heart (VIEW) trial is proposed as a randomized study in participants at low intermediate risk of future coronary heart disease (CHD) events to evaluate whether CAC testing leads to improved patient outcomes.Purpose To describe the challenges encountered in designing a prototypical screening trial and to examine the impact of uncertainty on power.Methods The VIEW trial was designed as an effectiveness clinical trial to examine the benefit of CAC testing to guide therapy on a primary outcome consisting of a composite of nonfatal myocardial infarction, probable or definite angina with revascularization, resuscitated cardiac arrest, nonfatal stroke (not tr...
The effects of industry growth and strategic breadth on new venture performance and strategy content

A sample of 123 independent new ventures was classified into four industry growthlstrategic breadth categories. High growth industry environments were found to provide a favorable environment for new ventures to achieve sales growth; however, the highest sales growth rates were exhibited by new ventures pursuing broad breadth strategies in high growth industries. One-way ANOVA and contrast tests were also used to identify whether specific strategic variables varied across the four industry growth/strategic breadth combinations. New ventures in high growth industries chose to enter on a larger, more aggressive scale and placed more emphasis on new product development than those entering low growth industries. Broad breadth strategy ventures had higher levels of advertising and promotion expenses and placed greater emphasis on the dominance of marketing expertise in their top management team, developing new channels of distribution, and on brand name recognition. Ventures pursuing focus strategies emphasized specialty products and were less cost conscious.
Chondrocytes from Different Zones Exhibit Characteristic Differences in High Density Culture

Superficial and middle/deep zone chondrocytes were isolated from goat femoral cartilage by a zonal abrasion method. The cells were expanded 100-fold through two passages, then seeded into agarose wells to form high-density constructs through a self-assembling process. After 4 weeks in culture, the superficial zone constructs contracted into a dense cell mass, while middle/deep zone chondrocytes formed constructs with four distinct regions. Middle/deep zone chondrocytes produced 250% more glycosaminoglycans per dry weight and more collagen per dry weight than superficial zone chondrocytes. The superficial and middle/deep zone chondrocytes were found to retain characteristic differences even after 100-fold expansion, as evidenced by construct morphology and extracellular matrix content. This study uniquely demonstrated the ability of expanded superficial and middle/deep zone chondrocytes to form constructs of distinct characteristics without a scaffold. The goal of tissue engineering different zones of cart...
Epithelioid Cell Histiocytoma with Granular Cells

Epithelioid cell histiocytoma (ECH) is regarded as a variant of fibrous histiocytoma. It is not readily recognized as fibrous histiocytoma because of its unconventional histologic features and its resemblance to Spitz nevus. The ECH reported herein was from a 50-year-old man who presented with an asymptomatic, 1.5 cm, polypoid mass of unknown duration on his posterior shoulder. Histologic examination revealed epidermal collarette and dermal sheets of epithelioid cells with granular cytoplasm. Both fine and coarse granules were noted in the cytoplasm. They were PAS positive and diastase resistant. Many dilated vessels were also noted in the lesion. A panel of immunostains including S100, vimentin, CD68, and factor 13A was done. The lesional cells were reactive with vimentin, CD68, and factor 13A, and non-reactive with S100. These results favored exclusion of Spitz nevus and granular cell tumor, and supported the histologic impression of ECH. Both fine and coarse cytoplasmic granules were reactive with CD68. The latter finding supports that the cytoplasmic granules in this ECH represent lysosomes as in granular cell tumors.
Normal Intrauterine Pregnancy Is Unlikely in Emergency Department Patients with Either Menstrual Days >38 Days or β‐hCG >3,000 mlU/mL, but without a Gestational Sac on Ultrasonography

Objective To determine whether the absence of a gestational sac on transvaginal ultrasonography in patients with a quantitative beta-human chorionic gonadotropin (beta-hCG) > 3,000 mIU/mL and/or menstrual days > 38 excludes the diagnosis of a normal intrauterine pregnancy (IUP). Methods A retrospective analysis was performed of ED patients evaluated from August 1991 to December 1994 at an urban teaching hospital. Patients presented with abdominal pain and/or vaginal bleeding and had a positive serum beta-hCG test. Patients who had transvaginal ultrasonographies performed during the ED visit that were read as indeterminate were reviewed. Menstrual days were determined by subtracting the date of the last normal menstrual period (LMP) from the ED visit date. ED beta-hCGs were quantified. Patients were excluded if the LMP or quantitative beta-hCG result was not available or if the final diagnosis could not be definitively determined. Results 248 patients met eligibility criteria; of these, 54 were excluded. Therefore, 194 patients were enrolled. Menstrual days ranged from 5 to 151, with a median of 54 days. Of 143 patients with menstrual days > 38 and no gestational sac by ultrasonography, only 4 (2.8%) had a final diagnosis of normal IUP. The menstrual days for the 4 normal IUPs were 39, 41, 42, and 59 days. beta-hCGs ranged from 19 to 151,926 mIU/mL, with a median of 2,410 mIU/mL. None of the 74 patients with a beta-hCG > 3,000 mIU/mL and no gestational sac by ultrasonography had a final diagnosis of normal IUP. Conclusion In patients with either a beta-hCG > 3,000 mIU/mL or menstrual days > 38 and no gestational sac by transvaginal ultrasonography, the likelihood of a normal IUP is low.
A bandwidth management framework for wireless camera array

Wireless 2D cameras are becoming more widely used for applications such as video surveillance and conferencing due to their easy deployment. These scenarios require multiple high quality video streams that share limited wireless channel resource. Therefore, a bandwidth management that is sensitive to application QoS requirements, content extraction and the specifics of a camera array environment is essential. This paper addresses the problem of bandwidth management to coordinate multiple video flows and to support streaming from wireless camera array. We present a bandwidth management framework that deploys a coordination scheme between the camera array and system resources. Especially, the framework explores different relations and scheduling policies between cameras and the bandwidth allocation to achieve better multi-view video delivery. The implementation uses Linux platform and IEEE 802.11b wireless ad hoc network. Our experimental results show that the bandwidth management framework helps achieving streaming differentiation while maintaining high quality video delivery.
Variable aperture sonar for mobile robots

This paper describes a system for controlling an array of sonar transducers to improve range data quality and speed of acquisition. The key element of this system is the control it exerts over the effective sensing volume of each transducer (variable aperture). A circular sonar array is arranged so that the sensing volumes of the transducers overlap each other for at least one aperture setting. The system produces range data that are more consistent over time by combining sensor arrangement, range data analysis, manipulation of sensor firings and control of sensing volumes. The result is more reflective of the targets in the environment as compared to conventional sonar array control techniques. The technique is also fast, requiring one or two firings of all sensors to provide the improved range data. >
Effects of Sodium Warfarin and Sodium Heparin Plus Anticancer Agents on Growth of Rat C6 Glioma Cells

The effects of racemic sodium warfarin (warfarin) and sodium heparin (heparin) on brain tumor cells were assessed in the rat C6 glioma cell line. After anticoagulant treatment lasting up to 5 days, cell growth was not inhibited by warfarin at low doses (10(-4) to 10(-5) M), but both cell growth and cellular adherence to culture plates were inhibited at high doses (10(-3) to 10(-2) M). Sodium heparin, even at high doses, did not affect cell growth or adherence. Warfarin (10(-3) M) significantly decreased and heparin (12.6 U/ml) had no effect on [3H]thymidine and [14C]leucine incorporation after 3- or 24-hour anticoagulant treatment. Colony formation studies examined the effects of 24-hour warfarin (10(-3) M) or heparin (12.6 U/ml) pretreatment plus a 2-hour incubation with one of seven anticancer agents. Supra-additive toxic effects were produced by warfarin plus chlorambucil, heparin plus chlorambucil, heparin plus carmustine, and heparin plus teniposide. At low doses of warfarin (10(-5) M) or heparin (0.126 U/ml), heparin plus carmustine and heparin plus teniposide remained synergistic.
Targeting the Sonic Hedgehog Signaling Pathway: Review of Smoothened and GLI Inhibitors

The sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling pathway is a major regulator of cell differentiation, cell proliferation, and tissue polarity. Aberrant activation of the Shh pathway has been shown in a variety of human cancers, including, basal cell carcinoma, malignant gliomas, medulloblastoma, leukemias, and cancers of the breast, lung, pancreas, and prostate. Tumorigenesis, tumor progression and therapeutic response have all been shown to be impacted by the Shh signaling pathway. Downstream effectors of the Shh pathway include smoothened (SMO) and glioma-associated oncogene homolog (GLI) family of zinc finger transcription factors. Both are regarded as important targets for cancer therapeutics. While most efforts have been devoted towards pharmacologically targeting SMO, developing GLI-targeted approach has its merit because of the fact that GLI proteins can be activated by both Shh ligand-dependent and -independent mechanisms. To date, two SMO inhibitors (LDE225/Sonidegib and GDC-0449/Vismodegib) have received FDA approval for treating basal cell carcinoma while many clinical trials are being conducted to evaluate the efficacy of this exciting class of targeted therapy in a variety of cancers. In this review, we provide an overview of the biology of the Shh pathway and then detail the current landscape of the Shh-SMO-GLI pathway inhibitors including those in preclinical studies and clinical trials.
Surface Interactions of NH2 Radicals in NH3 Plasmas

Using the imaging of radicals interacting with surfaces (IRIS) technique, the scattering of NH2 on a variety of substrates has been measured during NH3, NH3/H2, and NH3/SiH4 plasma processing. In most cases, NH2 surface scattering was greater than unity for 300 K substrates, suggesting that NH2 is produced through surface reactions. Removal of the charged species from the plasma molecular beam results in a significant decrease in scattered NH2 signal. We have also measured velocity distributions and translational temperatures for NH2 radicals scattering from 300 K substrates. Monte Carlo simulation methods were used to model spatially and temporally resolved profiles of scattered molecules. The model assumes an initial Gaussian distribution for radicals across the laser beam and calculates time-dependent changes in the profiles using Maxwell−Boltzmann distributions. For NH2 radicals scattering from a 300 K Si substrate, the translational temperature, ϑTsc, is 400 ± 30 K, significantly higher than the subs...