cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Regulation of Monocyte Adhesion and Migration by Nox4

We showed that metabolic disorders promote thiol oxidative stress in monocytes, priming monocytes for accelerated chemokine-induced recruitment, and accumulation at sites of vascular injury and the progression of atherosclerosis. The aim of this study was to identify both the source of reactive oxygen species (ROS) responsible for thiol oxidation in primed and dysfunctional monocytes and the molecular mechanisms through which ROS accelerate the migration and recruitment of monocyte-derived macrophages. We found that Nox4, a recently identified NADPH oxidase in monocytes and macrophages, localized to focal adhesions and the actin cytoskeleton, and associated with phospho-FAK, paxillin, and actin, implicating Nox4 in the regulation of monocyte adhesion and migration. We also identified Nox4 as a new, metabolic stress-inducible source of ROS that controls actin S-glutathionylation and turnover in monocytes and macrophages, providing a novel mechanistic link between Nox4-derived H2O2 and monocyte adhesion and migration. Actin associated with Nox4 was S-glutathionylated, and Nox4 association with actin was enhanced in metabolically-stressed monocytes. Metabolic stress induced Nox4 and accelerated monocyte adhesion and chemotaxis in a Nox4-dependent mechanism. In conclusion, our data suggest that monocytic Nox4 is a central regulator of actin dynamics, and induction of Nox4 is the rate-limiting step in metabolic stress-induced monocyte priming and dysfunction associated with accelerated atherosclerosis and the progression of atherosclerotic plaques.
The significance of first rib fractures in children.

Abstract Purpose The purpose of the study was to determine if first rib fractures are associated with an increased incidence of thoracic vascular injury in pediatric patients. Methods The medical records of all children diagnosed with a first rib fracture or a central vascular injury after blunt trauma treated at a state-designated level 1 pediatric trauma center from 2000 to 2009 were reviewed. Results Thirty-three children (0.27% of patients; mean age, 10.9 ± 0.9 years) were identified with either a first rib fracture or thoracic vascular injury owing to blunt trauma. Thirty-two children had a first rib fracture, and only 1 child (3%) had significant thoracic vascular injury. Mediastinal abnormalities (indistinct aortic knob) were identified in 3 children, 2 with first rib fracture on initial chest radiograph. Despite a normal cardiovascular examination result, 25 (74%) children with a normal mediastinum on screening chest radiograph underwent computed tomography. No child with a normal mediastinum on initial chest radiograph was found to have associated intrathoracic injuries requiring further intervention. In children with first rib fractures and a normal mediastinum by screening chest x-ray, the negative predictive value for thoracic vascular injury was 100%. Conclusions Children with first rib fractures without mediastinal abnormality on chest radiograph require no further workup for thoracic vascular injury.
Making The Qualitative Quantitative - A Discussion Of The Specification Of Visual Systems

Virtually all optical systems have some possible interpretation as a visual optical system. Often though, a detector such as a vidicon or photographic film intercedes to record the image. In such cases several quantitative methods have been devised to specify the required aberration content and fabrication tolerances for the optics used in such systems. Direct visual systems are the oldest of optical systems, but generally lack a good quantitative basis for tolerance specification. This condition has been accepted because the human eye is a remarkably adaptive organ, which will accept imagery that appears to be unacceptable by many of the accepted quantitative measures. On the other hand, the eye is bothered by such defects as scratches, digs and other cosmetic errors that are not consequential to many other optical systems.© (1979) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
A Class of Halide-Supported Trinuclear Nickel Clusters [Ni3(μ3-L)(μ3-X)(μ2-dppm)3]n+ (L = I-, Br-, CO, CNR; X = I-, Br-; n = 0, 1; dppm = Ph2PCH2PPh2): Novel Physical Properties and the Fermi Resonance of Symmetric μ3-η1 Bound Isocyanide Ligands

The dihalide capped trinuclear nickel clusters Ni3(μ3-X)2(μ2-dppm)3 (X = I (1a), Br (1b); dppm = Ph2PCH2PPh2) were synthesized and converted to their respective monocations [Ni3(μ3-X)2(μ2-dppm)3]+ ...
Defensive chemicals of the Spanisch dancer nudibranch Hexabranchus sanguineus and its egg ribbons: macrolides derived from a sponge diet

Abstract The Spanish dancer nudibranch Hexabranchus sanguineus (Ruppell et Leuckart), a large brightly colored shell-less sea slug (Gastropoda : Opisthobranchia) common to Indo-Pacific coral reefs, derives a potent chemical defense from a sponge that it eats ( Halichondria sp.). In turn, the nudibranch passes defensive compounds to its egg ribbons, which are similarly conspicuous and physically defenseless. Slices of the dorsal mantle tissue of the nudibranch were rejected in laboratory feeding assays employing two common sympatric predators: an Indo-Pacific reef fish, Thalassoma lunare (Linnaeus), and a reef hermit crab, Dardanus megistos (Herbst). The defensive metabolites, a suite of unusual oxazole-containing macrolides, were isolated from the sponge, the nudibranch, and the nudibranch egg masses at 0.14–0.38, 0.14–0.62, and 2.65% of dry weight, respectively, and were effective inhibitors of feeding by T. lunare at minimum concentrations of 0.01–0.02% dry weight of food pellet. The macrolides were concentrated in the dorsal mantle of the nudibranch, which is most vulnerable to predatory attack, and in the combined digestive gland/gonad, site of both sponge digestion and egg production. The most abundant macrolide in the sponge tissue was not present in the nudibranch or its egg masses, suggesting that chemical modification of this compound takes place upon digestion. In a reef environment dominated by visually oriented predators, the striking color pattern and behavioral responses of Hexabranchus may have arisen with a concomitant elaboration of dietarily derived chemical defenses.
Effects of Bragg peak profiles and nanoparticle sizes on the real‐space pair distribution function

A study of the effects of Bragg peak profiles and nanoparticle size broadening on the real-space pair distribution function (PDF) is presented, using `synthetic' powder diffraction data. Bragg peak profiles from both asymmetric time-of-flight (TOF) spallation neutron data and symmetric synchrotron X-ray data are considered. Due to their asymmetric peak profiles, the TOF data cause artificial shifts of the PDF peak positions towards higher pair distances. Coupled with this effect is a broadening of the PDF peak widths due to a Q-dependent spectrometer resolution, making reliable refinement of thermal parameters difficult. These effects become more pronounced as the Q resolution becomes worse. By contrast, the symmetric X-ray powder diffraction data do not cause a systematic shift of the PDF peak positions, and the broadening of the PDF peak widths has a relatively minor effect on the extraction of the thermal parameters. Finally, nanoparticle size broadening of the asymmetric neutron TOF powder diffraction data causes a shift of the PDF peak positions towards lower r values and smears the PDF intensities from one atomic shell to another.
Comparison of irradiance measurements made with the multi-filter rotating shadowband radiometer and first-class thermopile radiometers

Abstract The multi-filter rotating shadowband radiometer (MFRSR) uses a silicon photodiode sensor to measure shortwave global and diffuse horizontal irradiance from which direct normal irradiance is calculated. Silicon sensors are rugged, stable, and have a fast time response. However, silicon sensors are both thermally and spectrally sensitive. In addition they, as do all pyranometric sensors, have an imperfect cosine response, especially at high solar-incidence angles. In the MFRSR two of these sources of error are minimized: the cosine response of the MFRSR is measured, and the acquired data are corrected accordingly; an automatic heater maintains the MFRSR detector at a constant temperature near 40°C. This paper demonstrates that there is substantial agreement between first-class thermopile instruments and the MFRSR silicon sensor with the elimination of these two sources of error. Furthermore, this paper describes corrections, based on sky conditions, to lower the remaining errors. The data base for deriving and testing these corrections was collected in Albany, New York, during 1993. After correction equations are applied, the root-mean-square differences for 5 min averages of the global horizontal, diffuse horizontal, and direct normal irradiance are 8.8, 9.1, and 16.3 W/m2, respectively. The differences in time response or time keeping between silicon and thermopile instruments may explain much of the remaining root-mean-square differences.
Biological characterization of a whale-fall near Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada

Video analysis of a whale-fall discovered in the northeast Pacific Ocean, off Vancouver Island at a depth of 1288 m during ROV diving operations has identified 26 taxa of deep-sea benthic organisms inhabiting the seafloor immediately surrounding remnants of the whale skeleton. A photo-mosaic derived from high-definition video provides a quantitative visual record of the present condition of the site, the species richness, and substrate preference. Only the skull and caudal vertebrae remains of this large whale skeleton are estimated to have been approximately 16.5 m in length. Most organisms identified near the whale-fall are common benthic deep-sea fauna, typical of this water depth and seafloor composition. Much of this species richness comes from sessile suspension feeding cnidarians attached to the numerous glacial dropstones found throughout the area rather than the presence of the whale skeleton. Seep and bone specialists are rare (4 taxa) and may be, in part, a remnant population from a sulphophilic stage of whale-fall decomposition. Evidence of past colonization by Osedax sp. is visible on the remaining bones and we conclude that rapid degradation of the missing bones has occurred at this site as has been observed at whale-falls off central California in Monterey Canyon.
Physical activity and breast cancer incidence in middle-aged women: a prospective cohort study.

Many reports suggest that physically active women have a somewhat lower breast cancer incidence than physically inactive women. We hypothesized that indices of physical activity are associated inversely with breast cancer incidence after adjustment for confounders. The sample comprised 7994 women, aged 45–64, who participated in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study. Baseline physical activity was assessed by the Baecke questionnaire. Over an average follow-up of 13.1 yrs, 342 incident breast cancer cases were ascertained. After adjustment for age, race, study center, age at first live birth, age at menopause, and family history of breast cancer in a first-degree relative, there was no statistically significant association of breast cancer incidence with baseline physical activity levels for leisure, sport or work indices. Compared with the lowest quartile of physical activity, women in the highest quartile had a multivariate-adjusted hazard ratio (HR) of 1.00 (95% confidence interval (CI)=0.64–1.54) for the leisure index, 1.31 (95% CI=0.87–1.96) for the sport index and 0.87 (95% CI=0.61–1.24) for the work index. Our findings do not corroborate the majority of previous reports, which implicated physical inactivity as a risk factor for breast cancer.
Single-Biomolecule Resolution Imaging with an Optical Microscope

A Fluorescence Apertureless Near-field Scanning Optical Microscope (FANSOM) has been developed with FWHM optical resolution below 10 nm when imaging at ~600 nm wavelengths [1]. The apparatus combines an epi fluorescence optical microscope and an atomic force microscope (AFM) to obtain single-molecule sensitivity and optical resolution limited by the sharpness of the AFM probe. The AFM probe is used to stimulate or reduce the detected fluorescence emission rate depending on the AFM tip material and the polarization of the excitation light. The probe-sample interaction is described by near-field dipole-dipole physics, resulting in a stimulated emission rate that varies by r^6. When tapping the probe over the substrate being imaged, the near-field component is sharply modulated at that tapping frequency, thereby enabling separation from the far-field background during post-processing. Images of fluorescent single-molecules taken in a physiological environment will be presented.
Further Development of a Barotropic Operational Model for Predicting Paths of Tropical Storms

Abstract To enable use of aircraft winds and satellite cloud-motion vectors in the SANBAR model for prediction of tropical storm tracks, we have derived regression equations for estimating the tropospherically averaged flow from information at one, two or three levels. Two-level results represent an improvement over climatology and a third level yields substantial further improvement. We find from a study of the 1975 season in the Atlantic Basin that reduction in initial position and track-velocity errors can produce substantial improvement in position-forecast accuracy out to 72 h range. We recommend a new procedure for evaluating and using wind observations within the region influenced by the storm circulation. The new method has the potential for substantial reduction of present forecast error for storms within 24 h of landfall.
Two-in-One: Activation and Inactivation at the Intracellular Gate of a Kv Channel

N-type and P/C-type inactivation are firmly established mechanisms of inactivation in voltage-gated K+ (Kv channels). However, Kv4.x channel complexes, which undergo fast preferential closed-state inactivation (CSI; Fineberg et al., 2012, JGP 140.5:513-527), appear to use a distinct but unknown inactivation mechanism. Previously, we hypothesized that a weak interaction between the voltage sensing domain and the intracellular activation gate underlies CSI (Bahring & Covarrubias, 2011, J Physiol 589:461-79). Thus, CSI is essentially governed by the intracellular activation gate, which fails to open and adopts an inactivated conformation. To directly test this hypothesis, we investigated the heterologously expressed Kv4.1 ternary channel complex including accessory subunits KChIP1 and DPP6, and exploited the “trap-door” paradigm of the activation gate. The results show that Kv4.1 inactivation traps intracellularly applied quaternary ammonium blockers (bTBuA and TBuA) inside the channel's pore. The trapped blockers can only escape if the channels are opened again by subsequent depolarizations. By contrast, inactivation cannot trap TEA, whose binding kinetics is faster than that of channel gating. Moreover, under identical conditions, a Shaker Kv channel (ShB-T449K) known to exhibit fast P/C-type inactivation cannot trap bTBuA. These findings conclusively suggest that the intracellular activation gate of the Kv4.1 ternary channel complex plays a novel dual role, controlling both activation and inactivation. Supported in part by NIH grant R01 NS032337 (MC).
Buoyant density and satellite composition of DNA of mouse heterochromatin.

Ten per cent of mouse DNA occurs as a satellite band with a buoyant density lighter than that of the main band1. This satellite contains highly repetitious DNA2,3. It has been shown that the amount of satellite is markedly increased in DNA isolated from the heterochromatin fraction of mouse nuclei4. Furthermore, in situ hybridization studies have shown that satellite DNA is localized to the pericentromeric heterochromatin of all the mouse chromosomes except the Y5,6. These observations demonstrate an intimate association between mouse satellite DNA and heterochromatin and they raise the question: is all the DNA from mouse heterochromatin composed of satellite DNA or is a significant portion composed of non-satellite DNA?
Evaluation of hypothesis testing for comparing two populations using NONMEM analysis.

In a simulation study of inference on population pharmacokinetic parameters, two methods of performing tests of hypotheses comparing two populations using NONMEM were evaluated. These two methods are the test based upon 95% confidence intervals and the likelihood ratio test. Data were simulated according to a monoexponential model and, in that context, power curves for each test were generated for (i)the ratio of mean clearance and (ii)the ratio of the population standard deviations of clearance. To generate the power curves, a range of these parameters was employed; other pharmacokinetic parameters were selected to reflect the variability typically present in a Phase II clinical trial. For tests comparing the means, the confidence interval tests had approximately the same power as the likelihood ratio tests and were consistently more faithful to the nominal level of significance. For comparison of the standard deviations, and when the volume of information available was relatively small, however, the likelihood ratio test was more able to detect differences between the two groups. These results were then compared to results on parameter estimation in order to gain insight into the question of power. As an example, the nonnormality of estimates of the ratio of standard deviations plays an important role in explaining the low power for the confidence interval tests. We conclude that, except for the situation of modeling standard deviations with only sparse information, NONMEM produces tests of significance that are effective at detecting clinically significant differences between two populations.
Three Phases of Research in Validating Nursing Diagnoses

The purposes of this three-phase project consisting of concept analyses, nurse expert validation. and client validation were: identification of nursing definitions of anxiety and fear, validation of defining characteristics of the diagnoses by nurse experts, differentiation of the diagnoses by nurse experts, and validation of the nursing diagnosis anxiety by clients. The nurse expert sample consisted of 233 professional nurses, and the client sample consisted of 69 adult clients. Results include agreement on two critical defining characteristics ofanxiety by nurse experts and clients, the differentiation of anxiety andfearby nurse experts, the suggestion ofafear-anxiety syndrome in the literature and by nurse experts and clients, and the suggestion by nurse experts that anxiety be defined using levels ofanxiety. Recommendationsfor changes in the nursing diagnosis anxiety are discussed.
Dynamic analyses of multiple-degree-of-freedom structures using a modified heun method

Abstract A simple explicit solution technique for problems in structural dynamics, based on Heun's numerical method for ordinary differential equations, is developed. The resulting conditionally stable modified Heun method (MHM) is easily implemented and provides a more accurate dynamic response than the modified Euler's method. To examine the effectiveness, strengths, and limitations of MHM, error analyses for the natural period, the displacement, the velocity and associated phase angle for a free and undamped simple mass-spring system are derived. Numerical examples for a single-degree-of-freedom system and a multi-degree-of-freedom (MDOF) system are presented. In direct integration of MDOF systems, the amplitude decay characteristic exhibited by MHM provides a total system solution in which the low mode response is accurately calculated.
Herbicides in streams

Toxic herbicides exist at detectable levels in more than half of the streams in the midwestern United States, according to a new U.S. Geological Survey study. The testing is the first extensive search of surface water in the region for the dangerous chemicals, called triazine herbicides, which are applied to corn, soybeans, and other crops to control weeds. Ingestion of the compounds in even trace amounts can cause organ damage and cancer.
Estrogen receptor β upregulates FOXO3a and causes induction of apoptosis through PUMA in prostate cancer.

Estrogen receptor β upregulates FOXO3a and causes induction of apoptosis through PUMA in prostate cancer
Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopic method for the estimation of competitive equilibrium constants

Abstract A nuclear magnetic resonance method is described which yields precise estimates of competitive equilibrium constants for systems in which two or more complexing agents compete for common species. Chemical-shift data under rapid exchange conditions are required, but neither analytical not equilibrium concentrations are needed. The method is demonstrated by estimating equilibria of proton exchange between aniline and pyridinium ion, proton exchange between triethylamine and diisopropylammonium ion, and cyclohexaamylose exchange between m- and p-hydroxybenzoic acids. The precisions of the equilibrium constants are similar to or better than those obtained from classical methods and are relatively free from interferences.
Diffusion coefficients for binary alkane mixtures to 573 K and 3.5 MPa

An automated Taylor dispersion apparatus, designed to operate from 298 to 573 K and 101 to 3,450 kPa (14.7 to 500 psia), was used to measure diffusion coefficients at infinite dilution for the solutes n-octane, n-decane, n-dodecane, n-tetradecane, and n-hexadecane in the solvents n-heptane and n-dodecane. Dodecane viscosity and density also were measured at all conditions. Various predictive theories are tested in light of the new data, and a correlation based on the data at high temperature and pressure is presented. The data are well represented by a free-volume expression of the form . The data given here extend the available data base for alkane/alkane diffusion by 100 to 200 K, and allow evaluation of predictive theory over an extended range of temperatures.
Neuropsychological technologies in rehabilitation.

Objective: To provide an introduction and a conceptual context for the articles presented in this special edition of the Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation on neuropsychological technologies. Summary: Many clinical assessments in neuropsychology are metamorphosing from a psychometric search for a lesion to a functional image of the working brain. Behavioral probes increasingly employ technology to provide more ecologically valid stimuli to elicit diagnostically relevant responses. Intervention strategies include an expanding range of assistive devices and technologically based treatments. The advent of the microprocessor and discipline specific programming have allowed certain aspects of rehabilitation practice to incorporate these new assessment and intervention strategies. For example, the development of neuropsychological technologies has already lead to computer based prosthetics and orthotics, cognitive probes with millisecond accurate links to functional imaging, virtual reality managed ecological assessments, cognitive retraining, assistive devices, and online, and “real-time” database-driven evaluations. Emerging technologies offer the potential for personal, portable, everyday brain imaging and rehabilitation systems. Few psychologists, physiatrists, or allied health professionals are formally trained in technological development. What has emerged thus far is a collection of individual efforts that remain to be integrated into more comprehensive tools for the rehabilitation professions. The selective history of neuropsychological technologies presented here is meant to illustrate past difficulties in the emergence of this sub-specialty and point to new applications and technological integration that may prove fruitful. The convergence of neuroengineering, adaptive assessments, everyday neuroimaging, neuroinformatics, and educational neuroimaging, presage such future developments in neuropsychological technologies.
Naltrexone fails to antagonize the σ effects of PCP and SKF 10,047 in the dog

SKF 10,047, N-allylnormetazocine, a benzomorphan narcotic antagonist, and the arylcyclohexylamine anesthetic phencyclidine produced similar reflex, autonomic and behavioral effects in the chronic spinal dog which were not antagonized by naltrexone pretreatment. Naltrexone did effectively prevent the effects of morphine. These data provide further evidence that the acute effects of phencyclidine and SKF 10,047 are alike and that their principal mechanism of action does not involve opiate activity of the morphine type.
A molecular view of bond rupture

Abstract Molecular mechanisms of rupture will be discussed in the light of recent computational studies. Bonds formed by materials as diverse as simple crystalline solids, glassy polymers, and biological ligands and receptors, reveal similar behavior. When these bonds are pulled apart at constant velocity, they rupture through a series of sudden yield events during which the material reorganizes. Yield events are separated by periods of elastic deformation where the stress builds until the system becomes unstable. The nature of the structural change at yield events varies from system to system. Small cavities form in the polymer film, an additional atomic layer is formed in the crystal, and hydrogen binding sites rearrange in the biological system. The work required to rupture these bonds is determined by the full sequence of yield events.
A physical dosimetry intercomparison for BNCT

An intercomparison of physical dosimetry methods used at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Brookhaven National Laboratory was completed to enable retrospective analysis of BNCT trials. Measurements were performed under reference conditions pertinent to clinical irradiations at the epithermal neutron beam facility of the Brookhaven Medical Research Reactor (BMRR) using procedures developed at MIT during similar trials. Thermal neutron flux was determined from gold foil activation experiments and good agreement was found between the depth profiles measured in-phantom by the two groups. At a depth of 3.5 cm where the measured flux is greatest, the ratio of the MIT/BMRR measurements is 1.01+/-0.10 if the same reporting procedures are applied. Photon and fast neutron absorbed dose rates were assessed using ionization chambers with separate graphite and A-150 plastic walls. Measurement of the in-phantom photon depth dose component agreed favorably with that previously reported by the BMRR group using thermoluminescent dosimeters. At a depth of 3.5 cm the ratio of the MIT measurements to those made by the BMRR group was 0.89+/-0.12. In-air measurements of the fast neutron and photon absorbed dose rates agreed within the limits of experimental uncertainty. Additional studies were performed in the ellipsoidal water phantom regularly used for beam characterizations at MIT. No significant differences in the thermal neutron flux measured in either a solid PMMA cube or an ellipsoidal shaped water phantom were observed on the central axis of the beam. This study confirms the reproducibility and uniformity of dosimetry measurements performed by the two independent groups undertaking BNCT trials in the USA and provides the physical data necessary to compare BMRR treatment protocols with those applied at Harvard-MIT.
Spin-dependent pseudopotentials

Near degeneracies and strong spin polarization are characteristics of transition metals that offer challenges to the pseudopotential approximation. Here we investigate the spin dependence of pseudopotentials generated from atomic, all-electron density-functional calculations. Different spins are found to require different pseudopotentials for any spin-polarized atom. Ignoring this leads to significant errors in the representation of all but the nonmagnetic configurations. Including a correction that is linear in the local spin polarization results in a spin-dependent expression, which dramatically improves the transferability of the atomic pseudopotential beyond previous nonlinear core corrections.
The blockage of gravity and capillary waves by longer waves and currents

Surface waves superimposed upon a larger-scale flow are blocked at the points where the group velocities balance the convection by the larger-scale flow. Two types of blockage, capillary and gravity are investigated by using a new multiple-scale technique, in which the short waves are treated linearly and the underlaying larger scale flows are assumed steady but can have a considerably curved surface and uniform vorticity. The technique first provides a uniformly valid second-order ordinary differential equation, from which a consistent uniform asymptotic solution can readily be obtained by using a treatment suggested by the result of Smith (1975) who described the phenomenon of gravity blockage in an unsteady current with finite depth.
Stepping Beyond Message Specificity in the Study of Emotion as Mediator and Inter-Emotion Associations Across Attitude Objects: Fahrenheit 9/11, Anger, and Debate Superiority

This experimental research focuses on four distinct, but related theoretical interests regarding the study of emotion and media effects: (a) emotion serving as a potential mediator of the relationship between the consumption of multiple media messages, (b) media messages sparking emotional reactions to attitude objects not specifically referenced or identified in a message, (c) the assessment of inter-emotion relationships across distinct attitude objects, and (d) varied processes of emotion-based influence based on individual-difference attitude object preferences. This work focuses on Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11, its effects on anger felt toward President George W. Bush and Senator John F. Kerry, and subsequent perceptions of candidate debate superiority across Bush versus Kerry supporters. Moore's film was found to influence levels of anger felt toward both Bush and Kerry and these emotions were related to subsequent perceptions of debate superiority. Distinct processes of influence were found for ...
A view from Riggs: treatment resistance and patient authority--introduction to paper VIII: "Standards of care and patient autonomy".

In this eighth article in the Riggs series Marilyn Charles addresses a problem familiar to those of us who work with treatment resistant patients: What shall we do when a patient has already failed to benefit adequately from treatment consistent with the standard of care? Each of the Practice Guidelines published by the American Psychiatric Association includes a clear statement that it is not to be construed as defining the standard of care for a disorder, yet most clinicians would want to consider these recommendations in assessing the standard of care. The Practice Guidelines are extraordinarily helpful resources for all clinicians, yet several interesting things are notable that are relevant to the problem of working with treatment resistant patients. For example, although the Practice Guidelines, organized and written by disorder, often note the adverse impact of comorbidity on treatment outcome, there is no systematic definition of what constitutes treatment resistance across disorders or for any one disorder, and no section in each guideline systematically addressing the vexing treatment problem of how to deal with the significant proportion of patients who fail to respond to treatment for a given disorder. If one looks elsewhere in the field one can occasionally find definitions of treatment resistance, for example for major depressive disorder, but these are striking for their nearly exclusive focus on the failure of a sequence of biological treatments—as if psychosocial issues were neither part of the problem nor of the solution when it comes to treatment resistance. As we have been noting in this series of articles, treatment resistance may be much more than the failure of symptoms to remit when various receptors are tweaked and may represent in part a characterologically based failed adaptation to life and to functioning competently. Further, if one surveys the Practice Guidelines, the recommended treatment for most disorders for most patients is at a level of intensity offering fewer outpatient sessions (and fewer inpatient days) than
Process optimization via neural network metamodeling

Abstract Queuing systems are often used to model manufacturing or communication systems. Simulation models have been the most accurate models of such systems, but when optimizing the systems it is often impractical to simulate all possible configurations to identify the “best” choice. In the absence of mathematical approximations, one may turn to simulation metamodeling. Traditional metamodeling schemes would involve a simulation model of the entire system run over some subset of the possible configurations. A regression model is then typically fit to the results of these runs and used to predict results for the many configurations that were not simulated. Our approach is to develop an artificial neural network (ANN) metamodel of components of the entire system rather than of the entire system. The entire system is then modeled by interconnecting the ANN metamodels. Specifically, we propose the following approach. An ANN is trained via simulation to act as a single “generic” queuing node. The ANN accepts input data on inter-arrival and service distributions in the form of histograms and generates a departure distribution and a performance measure. A network of queues is then modeled by interconnecting copies of the generic queuing node. To illustrate the process, a simple manufacturing system is modeled. The ANN network model is used to select the buffer sizes in front of each process that provide a desired mix of product throughput rates, while minimizing average system sojourn time.
Predicting intentions to continue exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months: a comparison among racial/ethnic groups.

The purpose of this study was to explore how mothers of different races/ethnicities make decisions to continue exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) for 6 months under the Theory of Planned Behavior. Participants were recruited from hospitals and WIC clinics in Central Indiana and Southern New Jersey from 2008 to 2009. Mothers (N = 236: 93 non-Hispanic African American, 72 non-Hispanic white, 71 Hispanic/Latina) completed a self-administered questionnaire that measured theoretical constructs and beliefs related to their intention to practice EBF for 6 months. Intentions to continue EBF for 6 months were similar (P = 0.15) across racial/ethnic groups. Significant proportions of the intention (P < 0.001) were explained by the three theoretical constructs (attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control). The relative importance of each construct in predicting the intention varied by group. The most influential predictors (P < 0.001) were attitude for white mothers, subjective norm for African American mothers, and perceived behavioral control for Latina mothers. Latent beliefs strongly associated with attitude in white mothers were ‘bonding with the baby’ and ‘easy feeding.’ Beliefs held by family members and the general public contributed to the subjective norm of African American mothers. Perceived behavioral control in Latina mothers was highly correlated with ‘pumping breast milk’. Development of policy and intervention programs that focus on shaping strong predictors and beliefs within racial/ethnic groups could reduce disparities in EBF rates and establish EBF for 6 months as a cultural norm.
Radio frequency heating in the ion‐cyclotron range of frequencies

Both the theory of the absorption process in the ion‐cyclotron range of frequencies and some of the experiments which slow the promise and problems with radio frequency plasma heating in this range are discussed. It is shown that mode conversion is invariably involved in the process and so an extensive review of mode conversion theory, expecially as it applies to problems with back‐to‐back cutoff‐resonance pairs, is included. This includes a discussion of the tunneling equation with and without absorption effects and with and without energy conservation. The general theory is applied to various ion‐cyclotron harmonics, the two‐ion hybrid resonance, and to a case where a wave converts to a Bernstein mode at the plasma edge. The results are given analytically for a variety of cases without absorption, and empirical formulas are given for the second and third harmonics of the ion‐cyclotron frequency, which include effects of absorption. Various problem areas in the theory are also discussed with some of the limitations caused by the approximations involved. A number of experiments are also discussed which show effective heating, and some show the features of the mode conversion process, indicating that the general processes of absorption are reasonably well understood. Areas where further work is necessary, both in fundamental theory and in comparing theory with experiment, are also discussed.
Land Classification Research: A Retrospective and Agenda

Land classification is so central to geography that its use, and the use of its derivative and corresponding products, is seldom even questioned. Since its earliest implementations land classification has adapted to changes in geographic scale and in the nature of the categorical systematics upon which it is based. Land classification has changed in its techniques and in how it adapts to technological changes, particularly those related to remote sensing and geographic information systems. The adaptation of land classification to digital pixel-based classification spawned a wide range of land classification error analysis techniques. These techniques do not easily transfer to non-pixel based classification error analysis as recent research on rapid land assessment methodologies and land change error analysis has shown. This disparity suggests a need to reevaluate the very nature of land classification research. To begin such an evaluation, this lecture provides a retrospective on the roots of land classification research, examines some of the milestones of that research, and describes the divergent paths such research has taken. It examines the importance of land classification in these times of ever decreasing global resources, and reviews its potential legal, social, and economic implications. Based on this retrospective, this paper advances the need for geographic researchers to envision land classification not only as a set of techniques, but more generally to focus on systematic geography in all its facets as a research agenda in its own right.
Curvature operators which preserve normal spaces

This paper characterizes the invertible algebraic curvature operators that satisfy the Bianchi identity and also preserve normal spaces to the action of SO(n) on the space of bivectors.
Planar Near-Field Plates

This paper presents planar near-field plates that can tailor the electromagnetic near field and produce desired subwavelength focal patterns. These plates consist of concentric annular slots on a circular grounded dielectric slab excited through a coaxial connector. The annular slots are loaded with lumped element impedances which are designed to produce a prescribed subwavelength focal pattern. The procedure to design such plates is outlined. The designed plates are studied through full-wave simulation and the generation of desired subwavelength patterns is demonstrated. Several near-field plates are also fabricated and measured. It is shown that the experimental near-field patterns are in close agreement with simulation. Furthermore, experiments confirming the planar near-field plates ability to tailor the electromagnetic near field are presented. Planar near field plates may find application in near-field imaging and probing systems, biomedical targeting devices, and high density data storage.
New principles of cell plasticity

Recent discoveries demonstrating surprising cell plasticity in animals and humans call into question many long held assumptions regarding differentiative potential of adult cells. These assumptions reflect a classical paradigm of cell lineage development projected onto both prenatal development and post-natal maintenance and repair of tissues. The classical paradigm describes unidirectional, hierarchical lineages proceedings step-wise from totipotent or pluripotent stem cells through intermediate, ever more restricted progenitor cells, leading finally to 'terminally differentiated' cells. However, in light of both the recent discoveries and older clinical or experimental findings, we have suggested principles comprising a new paradigm of cell plasticity, summarized here.
The role of perceptions of task difficulty in relation to self-perceptions of ability, intrinsic value, attainment value, and performance

This study examined the role of perceptions of task difficulty in relation to self-perceptions of ability, intrinsic value, attainment value, and performance. Seventy-nine 8th graders completed surveys prior to task instruction and after the last practice session. Two days later, they completed a skill test. Participants who perceived the Lunastix task as more difficult were likely to have lower levels of self-perceptions of ability, express lower levels of interest, and obtain lower levels of performance scores on the skill test. Perceptions of task difficulty were negatively predicted by initial self-perceptions of ability. Further, for those who had more experience in obJect manipulation activities and reported higher ratings of their obJect manipulation ability, they were likely to express higher levels of initial self-perceptions of ability. When teaching a novel difficult task, teachers should relate it to other similar activities, provide students practice opportunities, and create a mastery-orient...
Wavelet-based texture classification of tissues in computed tomography

The research presented in this article is aimed at developing an automated imaging system for classification of tissues in medical images. The article focuses on using texture analysis for the classification of tissues from CT scans. The approach consists of two steps: automatic extraction of the most discriminative texture features of regions of interest in the CT medical images and creation of a classifier that will automatically identify the various tissues. A comparative study of wavelets-based texture descriptors from three families of wavelets (Haar, Daubechies, Coiflets), coupled with the implementation of a decision tree classifier based on the Classification and Regression Tree (C&RT) approach is carried on. Preliminary results for a 3D data set from normal chest and abdomen CT scans are presented.
On inference structures for fuzzy systems modeling

Fuzzy systems modeling involves the use of a fuzzy rule base to model complex systems by partitioning the input space into fuzzy regions in which the output can be more effectively represented. Typical of these situations are set of n rules of the form: if V is A/sub i/ then U is B/sub i/ where A/sub i/ and B/sub i/ are fuzzy subsets of the input and output spaces X and Y. The problem of finding the value of the output variable U given a value for the input variable V is called the fuzzy model inference or reasoning process. This process consists of the following four step algorithm: 1) determination of the relevance or matching of each rule to the current input value; 2) determination of the individual output of each rule; 3) aggregation of the individual rule outputs to obtain the overall fuzzy output; and 4) selection of some action based upon the output fuzzy set. Our purpose here is to describe the class of operators appropriate for the implementation of the rule output aggregation. Because of the strong interrelationship between all the steps in the process, we look at all the steps. >
Transcription-dependent and -independent control of neuronal survival by the PI3K-Akt signaling pathway

The PI3K-Akt signaling pathway plays a critical role in mediating survival signals in a wide range of neuronal cell types. The recent identification of a number of substrates for the serine/threonine kinase Akt suggests that it blocks cell death by both impinging on the cytoplasmic cell death machinery and by regulating the expression of genes involved in cell death and survival. In addition, recent experiments suggest that Akt may also use metabolic pathways to regulate cell survival.
Enough is enough: the effects of symbiotic ant abundance on herbivory, growth, and reproduction in an African acacia

Understanding how cooperative interactions evolve and persist remains a central challenge in biology. Many mutualisms are thought to be maintained by "partner fidelity feedback," in which each partner bases their investment on the benefits they receive. Yet, we know little about how benefits change as mutualists vary their investment, which is critical to understanding the balance between mutualism and antagonism in any given partnership. Using an obligate ant-plant mutualism, we manipulated the density of symbiotic acacia ants (Crematogaster mimosae) and examined how the costs and benefits to Acacia drepanolobium trees scaled with ant abundance. Benefits of ants to plants saturated with increasing ant abundance for protection from branch browsing by elephants and attack by branch galling midges, while varying linearly for protection from cerambycid beetles. In addition, the risk of catastrophic whole-tree herbivory by elephants was highest for trees with very low ant abundance. However, there was no relationship between ant abundance and herbivory by leaf-feeding invertebrates, nor by vertebrate browsers such as giraffe, steinbuck, and Grant's gazelle. Ant abundance did not significantly influence rates of branch growth on acacias, but there was a significant negative relationship between ant abundance and the number of fruits produced by host plants, suggesting that maintaining high-density ant colonies is costly. Because benefits to plants largely saturated with increasing colony size, while costs to plant reproduction increased, we suggest that ant colonies may achieve abundances that are higher than optimal for host plants. Our results highlight the conflicts of interest inherent in many mutualisms, and demonstrate the value of examining the shape of curves relating costs and benefits within these globally important interactions.
PEROXISOMAL β-OXIDATION AND PEROXISOME PROLIFERATOR–ACTIVATED RECEPTOR α: An Adaptive Metabolic System

▪ Abstract β-Oxidation occurs in both mitochondria and peroxisomes. Mitochondria catalyze the β-oxidation of the bulk of short-, medium-, and long-chain fatty acids derived from diet, and this pathway constitutes the major process by which fatty acids are oxidized to generate energy. Peroxisomes are involved in the β-oxidation chain shortening of long-chain and very-long-chain fatty acyl-coenzyme (CoAs), long-chain dicarboxylyl-CoAs, the CoA esters of eicosanoids, 2-methyl-branched fatty acyl-CoAs, and the CoA esters of the bile acid intermediates di- and trihydroxycoprostanoic acids, and in the process they generate H2O2. Long-chain and very-long-chain fatty acids (VLCFAs) are also metabolized by the cytochrome P450 CYP4A ω-oxidation system to dicarboxylic acids that serve as substrates for peroxisomal β-oxidation. The peroxisomal β-oxidation system consists of (a) a classical peroxisome proliferator–inducible pathway capable of catalyzing straight-chain acyl-CoAs by fatty acyl-CoA oxidase, L-bifunctiona...