cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The metabolism and swimming performance of sheepshead minnows (Cyprinodon variegatus) following thermal acclimation or acute thermal exposure.

Ectothermic animals are especially susceptible to temperature change, considering that their metabolism and core temperature are linked to the environmental temperature. As global water temperatures continue to increase, so does the need to understand the capacity of organisms to tolerate change. Sheepshead minnows (Cyprinodon variegatus) are the most eurythermic fish species known to date and can tolerate a wide range of environmental temperatures from − 1.9 to 43.0 °C. But little is known about the physiological adjustments that occur when these fish are subjected to acute thermal challenges and long-term thermal acclimation. Minnows were acclimated to 10, 21, or 32 °C for 4 weeks or acutely exposed to 10 and 32 °C and then assessed for swimming performance [maximum sustained swimming velocity (Ucrit), optimum swimming velocity (Uopt)] and metabolic endpoints (extrapolated standard and maximum metabolic rate [SMR, MMR), absolute aerobic scope (AS), and cost of transport (COT)]. Our findings show that the duration of thermal exposure (acute vs. acclimation) did not influence swimming performance. Rather, swimming performance was influenced by the exposure temperature. Swimming performance was statistically similar in fish exposed to 21 or 32 °C (approximately 7.0 BL s−1), but was drastically reduced in fish exposed to 10 °C (approximately 2.0 BL s−1), resulting in a left-skewed performance curve. There was no difference in metabolic end points between fish acutely exposed or acclimated to 10 °C. However, a different pattern was observed in fish exposed to 32 °C. MMR was similar between acutely exposed or acclimated fish, but acclimated fish had a 50% reduction in extrapolated SMR, which increased AS by 25%. However, this enhanced AS was not associated with changes in swimming performance, which opposes the oxygen-capacity limited thermal tolerance concept. Our findings suggest that sheepshead minnows may utilize two distinct acclimation strategies, resulting in different swimming performance and metabolic patterns observed between 10 and 32 °C exposures.
Cerebral Vasoconstriction After Carotid Endarterectomy and the Role of Conventional Cerebral Angiography.

Hemorrhage after carotid revascularization should prompt detailed vascular imaging such as serial conventional angiograms.
Finding His Voice.

In this narrative medicine essay, a psychologist recounts how she found her voice through writing and in patient care advocacy and research and how she helped h
Dietary therapy for gastroparesis

Abstract Symptoms of gastroparesis can significantly impact a patient’s oral intake and therefore result in nutritional compromise. Nutrition and hydration status should be optimized and maintained using oral diet strategies first, including changes to the volume of each meal, frequency of meals, consistency of food, fiber and fat content, maintaining glycemic control in the setting of diabetes, and eating behavior modifications. Because gastroparesis patients usually have a very limited capacity processing high-volume meals, daily meals need to be maximized in calories – especially in proteins and carbohydrates. High fat meals, although high in calories, slow gastric emptying and will further decrease tolerance of meals by increasing the risk for greater losses by emesis. In the presence of persistent malnutrition and severe symptoms, nutrition support may be considered, with enteral nutrition preferable over parenteral nutrition.
How Do Patients With Cirrhosis and Their Caregivers Learn About and Manage Their Health? A Review and Qualitative Study

The complexity of cirrhosis requires patients and their caregivers to be well educated to improve outcomes. Data are lacking regarding how to best educate patients and their caregivers in the setting of cirrhosis. Our aim is to understand (both through existing literature and by asking patients and their caregivers) how patients learn about their disease, barriers in their education and disease management, and self-management strategies. We performed a structured search of published articles in PubMed (1973 to 2020) using keywords "cirrhosis" plus "barriers", "education", "self-management", or "self-care". Additionally, we conducted a focus group of a representative sample of patients and their caregivers to understand how knowledge about cirrhosis is found and incorporated into self-management. Of 504 returned manuscripts, 11 pertained to barriers in cirrhosis, interventions, or educational management. Barriers are well documented and include disease complexity, medication challenges, comorbid conditions, and lack of effective education. However, data regarding addressing these barriers, especially effective educational interventions, are scarce. Current strategies include booklets and videos, patient empowerment, and in-person lectures. Without widespread use of these interventions, patients are left with suboptimal knowledge about their disease, a sentiment unanimously echoed by our focus group. Despite linkage to subspecialty care and consistent follow-up, patients remain uncertain about their disease origin, prognosis, and therapies to manage symptoms. It is clear that more data are needed to assess effective strategies to address unmet educational needs. Existing strategies need to be blended and improved, their effectiveness evaluated, and the results distributed widely.
School students’ preparation for calculus in the United States

Researchers have been interested in students’ transition to calculus since the early 1900s. One line of inquiry highlights students’ understandings of high school mathematics as impeding or supporting their successful transition to university mathematics. This paper addresses an underlying question in this line of inquiry: does school mathematics provide opportunities for students to develop productive meanings for calculus? This article reports on U.S. calculus students’ responses to items that assessed students’ variational reasoning, meanings for average rate of change, and representational use of notation—ideas ostensibly addressed in school mathematics. To make sense of students’ difficulty on these items we sought to understand the opportunities students had to reason with these ideas prior to calculus. We use two data sources to understand the likelihood that students have opportunities to construct productive meanings for function notation, variation, and average rate of change in their secondary mathematics education: meanings for these ideas supported by precalculus textbooks and meanings secondary teachers demonstrated. Our analysis revealed a disconnect between meanings productive for learning calculus and the meanings conveyed by textbooks and held by U.S. high school teachers. We include a comparison of meanings held by U.S. and Korean teachers to highlight that these meanings are culturally embedded in the U.S. educational system.
Layered lithium cobalt oxide cathodes

Lithium cobalt oxide was the first commercially successful cathode for the lithium-ion battery mass market. Its success directly led to the development of various layered-oxide compositions that dominate today’s automobile batteries.
Standards for Enjoining Teacher Strikes: The Irreparable Harm Test and its Statutory Analogues

In the late 1960s courts began to use the irreparable harm standard in proceedings to enjoin teacher strikes, instead of issuing automatic injunctions based on the illegality of strikes by public sector employees. In analyzing such judicial applications of irreparable harm and analogous standards, this article identifies several problems — from inconsistency to frequent prolongation of strikes to disregard of educational consequences — and concludes with suggested alternatives more suited to the particular context and the distinctive impacts of teacher strikes.
A B cell actomyosin arc network couples integrin co-stimulation to mechanical force-dependent immune synapse formation

B-cell activation and immune synapse (IS) formation with membrane-bound antigens are actin-dependent processes that scale positively with the strength of antigen-induced signals. Importantly, ligating the B-cell integrin, LFA-1, with ICAM-1 promotes IS formation when antigen is limiting. Whether the actin cytoskeleton plays a specific role in integrin-dependent IS formation is unknown. Here we show using super-resolution imaging of primary B cells that LFA-1: ICAM-1 interactions promote the formation of an actomyosin network that dominates the B-cell IS. This network is created by the formin mDia1, organized into concentric, contractile arcs by myosin 2A, and flows inward at the same rate as B-cell receptor (BCR): antigen clusters. Consistently, individual BCR microclusters are swept inward by individual actomyosin arcs. Under conditions where integrin is required for synapse formation, inhibiting myosin impairs synapse formation, as evidenced by reduced antigen centralization, diminished BCR signaling, and defective signaling protein distribution at the synapse. Together, these results argue that a contractile actomyosin arc network plays a key role in the mechanism by which LFA-1 co-stimulation promotes B-cell activation and IS formation.
An Experimental Study of the Density of Cryodeposited Surfaces

The formation of vacuum by condensation of gas particles on a cold surface (cryopumping) has received considerable attention as a high-capacity low-ultimate-pressure pumping technique. The physical properties of the condensed phase (cryodeposit) are necessary design criteria in many applications. Radiative properties are particularly important because of their influence’ on the thermal aspects of space simulation chambers. For this reason a number of investigations of these characteristics have been completed [1–6]. One property which has not been systematically investigated until recently is the density of the cryodeposit [6]. This parameter is of special significance because of the influence of thickness on the radiative properties.
A Computational Approach to Finding Causal Economic Laws

This paper states four realities of econometric model building and shows that an econometric model can be causal only if the interpretations given to its coefficients are consistent with these realities. A numerically stable algorithm for estimating such a model subject to equality and inequality constraints on the model parameters is presented. This algorithm is designed in such a way that it can be applied even when the matrix of observations on the model's independent variables and the covariance matrix of the model's errors are deficient in rank.
A Small Selection from among the Many Things that I Still Do Not Know about Baroque Music

After writing Baroque Music for W. W. Norton, my remaining questions include those that concern the history of the ritornello procedure, concerto-style orchestral accompaniment of homophonic choral writing, the “church aria” family of musical forms, the relation of the New Lutheran Cantata to the contemporaneous Catholic, Latin solo motet, relations among the semi-opera genres of Spain, France, and England, the source of the distinctive style features of the Spanish villancico , the notation of Spanish solo song, music for autos sacramentales , the disappearance of violins from Spain in the seventeenth century, the roles of Jewish and marrano musicians, the exactly definition of Baroque “tonality,” and current caution over the application of rhetorical terms.
Implementing the Generalist Model in Practice

Abstract Through a study of field tasks performed by MSW foundation students, the authors show an empirical relationship to the Gener-alist model of practice. Secondarily, the paper explores whether practice under managed care should be used to inform curriculum or whether standards embedded in curriculum should be used to influence current practice. Implications for student learning in field and classroom are discussed.
High density polyethylene-wood flour composite lumber: efficacy of two proprietary biocides in the control of fungal colonization and discoloration

Two proprietary biocides were compounded and extruded at three concentrations, respectively, into high density polyethylene-maple wood flour lumber (HDPE-MWL) and evaluated for their efficacy to control fungal colonization and discoloration using the ASTM Standard G 21-96. Although the silver biocide used in this study did not control fungal colonization and discoloration of HDPE-MWL, statistically significant difference was observed between the highest silver biocide concentration and those of the two lower silver biocide concentrations. The latter exhibited no significant difference with the controls. In contrast, the three levels of zinc biocides showed significant difference from each other with respect to their efficacy against fungal colonization and discoloration of HDPE-MWL. Overall, only the zinc biocide was efficacious against fungal colonization and discoloration. The biocide containing zinc as an active biocidal agent was most efficacious at 1% (by weight) concentration.
Niche expansion in bacteria: can infectious gene exchange affect the rate of evolution?

ABSTRACT Recombination occurs by infectious gene transfer in bacteria, at rates much lower than recombination by sexual reproduction in other organisms. Thus, recombination may accelerate evolution in bacteria only under restricted conditions, such as occur when mutations at several loci are required for the evolution of an expanded ecological niche. Mathematical ("chemostat") models of several such cases—evolution of independence from three limiting essential or "interactive-essential" resources; evolution of the ability to use three new substitutable resources; and evolution of resistance to three growth inhibitors—were analyzed by computer simulation. All combinations of three mutation rates ( U ) and four values for the "infectious gene transfer rate parameter" (χ) were considered. Recombination accelerated evolution most when U was low and χ was high, but was unlikely to have large effects when χ was low enough to be realistic for natural populations of Escherichia coli . Recombination had the largest effects when resources were substitutable, and in that case could have substantially reduced the chance of random loss of the favored "triple mutant" while it was still rare. The simulations also revealed some interesting features of selection for an expanded niche. Evolution of independence from essential resources occurred more rapidly when the resources were weakly complementary than when they did not interact. Selection for the ability to use all substitutable resources was weak after all intermediate types that used only one or two of the resources had arisen.
Growth of highly textured PbTiO3 films on conductive substrate under hydrothermal conditions

Perovskite structure (ABO(3)) thin films have wide applications in electronic devices due to their unique properties, including high dielectric permittivity, ferroelectricity and piezoelectric coupling. Here, we report an approach to grow highly textured thick lead titanate (PbTiO(3)) filmson conductive substrates by a two-step hydrothermal reaction. Initially, vertically aligned TiO(2) nanowire arrays are grown on fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) coated glass, which act as template crystals for conversion to the perovskite structure. The PbTiO(3) films are then converted from TiO(2) NW arrays by diffusing Pb(2+) ions into the template through a second hydrothermal reaction. The dielectric permittivity and piezoelectric coupling coefficient (d(33)) of the PbTiO(3) films are as high as 795 at 1 kHz and 52 pm V−1, respectively. The reported process can also potentially be expanded for the assembly of other complex perovskite ATiO(3) (A = Ba, Ca, Cd,etc) films by using the highly aligned TiO(2) NW arrays as templates. Therefore, the approach introduced here opens up a new door to synthesize ferroelectric thin films on conductivesubstrates for application in sensors, actuators, and ultrasonic transducers that are important in various industrial and scientific areas.
B cells expressing IFN‐γ suppress Treg‐cell differentiation and promote autoimmune experimental arthritis

Clinical efficacy in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis with anti-CD20 (Rituximab)-mediated B-cell depletion has garnered interest in the mechanisms by which B cells contribute to autoimmunity. We have reported that B-cell depletion in a murine model of proteoglycan-induced arthritis (PGIA) leads to an increase in Treg cells that correlate with decreased autoreactivity. Here, we demonstrate that the increase in Treg cells after B-cell depletion is due to an increase in the differentiation of naive CD4+ T cells into Treg cells. Since the development of PGIA is dependent on IFN-γ and B cells are reported to produce IFN-γ, we hypothesized that B-cell-specific IFN-γ plays a role in the development of PGIA. Accordingly, mice with B-cell-specific IFN-γ deficiency were as resistant to the induction of PGIA as mice that were completely IFN-γ deficient. Importantly, despite a normal frequency of IFN-γ-producing CD4+ T cells, B-cell-specific IFN-γ-deficient mice exhibited a higher percentage of Treg cells compared with that in WT mice. These data indicate that B-cell IFN-γ production inhibits Treg-cell differentiation and exacerbates arthritis. Thus, we have established that IFN-γ, specifically derived from B cells, uniquely contributes to the pathogenesis of autoimmunity through prevention of immunoregulatory mechanisms.
Optimal patterns for alignment.

Patterns with optimal autocorrelation functions are sometimes optimal for optical alignment. When the finest gratings that can be resolved exceed those that actually can be used, errors of alignment can be reduced by nearly a factor of 2 by incorporating segments of a grating into the patterns. Under some conditions, resolution of the inspecting device need not limit accuracy of alignment. Bull’s-eye patterns may be optimal for visual alignment.
Synthesis and polymerization of 4-vinylprimidine

Preparation a partir de la methyl-4 pyrimidine, via la β hydroxyethyl-4 pyrimidine. Spectres RMN C13 du polymere et des intermediaires
Modeling of CdTe(1 1 1)B/Si(0 0 1) interfaces

Abstract A detailed numerical examination is performed of a model of the CdTe(1 1 1)B/Si(0 0 1) interface previously proposed by Sporken et al. Total energies of supercells simulating several interface atomic configurations are calculated employing the extended bond orbital approximation and approximated moments methods. Results suggest that the most stable interfaces are formed when the Si substrate contains single monolayer steps. This is consistent with the observation that small substrate miscut angles produce the highest-quality epilayers.
Stress in porous thin films through absorption of polar molecules (and relevance to optical coatings)

Films of magnesium fluoride are found to be under large tensile stress following exposure to water vapour. It is shown that this stress, which varies reversibly in magnitude with the adsorption equilibrium, can be attributed to electrostatic dipole interactions between the adsorbed water molecules. The effect is not confined to magnesium fluoride, but can occur in other materials of an appropriate porous structure. Its relevance to the stability of optical coatings is discussed, together with some other applications.
Did John Hunter Give James Parkinson an Idea

Parkinson's introductory paragraph, perhaps the most famous disease description in neurology reads: "Involuntary tremulous motion, with lessened muscular power, in parts not in action and even when supported; with a propensity to bend the trunk forwards, and to pass from walking to a running pace: the senses and intellects being uninjured." 1 Most great ideas come from somewhere or someone. What or who started James Parkinson's thinking about the difference between tremor with motion and tremor at rest? Do the references in his essay tell us? Did he receive his stimulus from those he quoted, the Dutchman, Franciscus Sylvius de le Boe, or the Frenchman, Francois Boissier de la Croix de Sauvages, or from Galen, a Greco-Roman, all three ofwhom he read in Latin? Let us look at Parkinson's quotes. Sylvius de le Boe (1614-1672), a perceptive Dutchman who gained fame for introducing bedside teaching in Leiden, the Netherlands, wrote
Loss of Glutathione, Ascorbate Recycling, and Free Radical Scavenging in Human Erythrocytes Exposed to Filtered Cigarette Smoke

Exposure of human erythrocytes to filtered cigarette smoke in vitro inhibited their capacity to reduce dehydroascorbic acid (ascorbate recycling activity). Glucose uptake was not affected, implying that dehydroascorbic acid transport was not inhibited by the smoke treatment. The intracellular reduction of cationic nitroxide free radicals, which provides a measure of ascorbate recycling, was also inhibited by cigarette smoke. A major factor in the inhibition of free radical reduction was glutathione depletion. However, glutathione depletion alone could not account for the inhibition of free radical reduction because a restoration of the glutathione pool in hemolyzed cells only partially restored free radical reduction activity. Another factor inhibiting free radical reduction was a lowering of pH, which was attributed mainly to the uptake of CO2 and was reversible by restoring the physiological pH. Exogenous glutathione spared both intracellular glutathione and free radical reduction activity. The rate of depletion of intracellular glutathione was similar to that of extracellular glutathione, indicating that the erythrocyte membrane did not significantly attenuate thiol-reactive species in smoke. Protein thiols were also depleted by cigarette smoke, but to a much lesser extent than was glutathione. Ascorbate was relatively unaffected by cigarette smoke; significant intracellular ascorbate levels remained after glutathione was barely detectable. Autooxidizable reducing agents, capable of reducing both reduced piperidinyl (Tempo) and pyrrolidinyl (Proxyl) nitroxides partitioned from filtered cigarette smoke into aqueous solutions. Attempts to detect cigarette smoke-derived oxidants in buffer solutions or in cell suspensions with a prereduced Tempo nitroxide, whose oxidation properties resemble those of ascorbate, were unsuccessful. The results of this study suggest that chemical modification of glutathione is a major damage mechanism of filtered cigarette smoke, whereas free radical oxidations are relatively insignificant.
Art and Science in the Early Modern Netherlands

In Art and Science in the Early Modern Netherlands, editors Eric Jorink and Bart Ramakers have assembled a sweeping study of the strong connections that existed between art and science in the Nethe...
Formation of the YBa2Cu2NbOy phase in thin films

We report the systematic substitution of Nb at the Cu1 site of YBa2Cu3Oy in thin films to form a new phase of YBa2Cu2NbO8. These films were deposited on SrTiO3(100) crystals using pulsed laser deposition and deposited at an optimal temperature of 850 °C. Films were characterized using x-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), micro-Raman spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. XRD of these films indicate c-axis oriented YBa2Cu2NbOy formation. XPS and micro-Raman spectroscopy analysis suggests Cu exists in the +2 state.
Coupling between vorticity and pressure oscillations in combustion instability

The operation of premixed dump combustors is hindered by large-amplitude, low-frequency oscillations leading to flame flashback. The genesis of this instability is the subject of this article. A physical model that accounts for the relevant components of flow-combustion interactions in this system is formulated assuming that the combustor is an acoustically compact trough, the flow is two dimensional, the flame is a thin front, the inlet section is charged by a constant-pressure reservoir, and the exit pressure is forced. Numerical solutions at high Reynolds number are obtained using the vortex method. The nonreacting flow exhibits coherent oscillations that scale with the trough depth and inlet velocity to a Strouhal number of O(0.1). Simulations of the reacting flow show that vorticity-flame-acoustic coupling is the driving mechanism for the observed instability. In this work, the exit pressure is modulated near the frequency of the natural mode, and the amplitude of oscillation is observed to grow with increasing heat release due to phase-matched coupling between flow and heat release oscillations, in accordance with the Rayleigh criterion. This amplification ultimately leads to flow reversal and the propagation of the flame into the inlet channel. 35 refs.
Education should be free! Occupy the DOE!: teacher activists involved in the Occupy Wall Street movement

Mass discontent erupted in 2011 through the Occupy Wall Street movement (OWS) when people took to the streets expressing frustration with growing economic disparities under neoliberal policies. In this article, I document how grassroots activists in New York City used OWS to galvanize energy for educational justice. Calling themselves Occupy the Department of Education, these teacher activists (TAs) critically analyzed wealth and power stratification as well as corporate-driven, market-based education reform. Through interviews, I explore TAs' frustration with policies undermining the participation; voices; and power of parents, students, and educators and detail grassroots organizing strategies used to respond to neoliberal reform. These five strategies included unmasking the neoliberal narrative of meritocracy and choice; diverting discontent with the economic crisis toward educational justice; amplifying voices through tools that allowed for democratic participation of people silenced by current struct...
A retrospective comparison of weight, lipid, and glucose changes between risperidone- and olanzapine-treated inpatients: Metabolic outcomes after 1 year

Background: Metabolic side effects have been increasingly noted during therapy with novel antipsychotics, but there is a dearth of comprehensive comparative data in this area. The goal of this retrospective study was to examine the changes in weight parameters, fasting glucose, and fasting lipids in long-term inpatients treated with either risperidone or olanzapine. Method: A retrospective study was performed by reviewing charts of patients at Oregon State Hospital, Salem, who were treated during July and August 1999, comparing metabolic outcomes during the first year of therapy with either risperidone or olanzapine. Data were analyzed also by age, sex, and concurrent use of lithium or valproate. Included for analysis were patients at least 18 years old with baseline weights obtained within 3 weeks of drug initiation, and baseline fasting triglycerides, cholesterol, and glucose obtained within 3 months prior to drug initiation and at I year of treatment (± 4 weeks). The patients meeting these criteria in each drug cohort (risperidone, N = 47; olanzapine, N = 47) included I patient with diagnosed diabetes mellitus prior to onset of treatment. Results: Among those patients under 60 years old, olanzapine patients (N = 37) experienced significantly greater increases at 1 year in all metabolic parameters than the risperidone group (N = 39), except for weight variables: triglycerides +104.8 mg/dL (olanzapine) versus +31.7 mg/dL (risperidone) (p = .037); cholesterol +30.7 mg/dL (olanzapine) versus +7.2 mg/dL (risperidone) (p = .004); glucose +10.8 mg/dL (olanzapine) versus +0.74 mg/dL (risperidone) (p = .030). Patients under 60 years of age with concurrent use of lithium or valproate were associated with greater weight gain in both drug groups, but this difference was statistically significant only for the olanzapine cohort. Neither weight change nor use of lithium or valproate was associated with increases in glucose or lipids among those under 60 years old for either drug. Conclusion: Olanzapine therapy is associated with significantly greater increases in fasting glucose and lipid levels for nongeriatric adult patients than risperidone, and the increases are not correlated with changes in weight parameters. Appropriate monitoring of fasting glucose and serum lipid levels should be considered during extended treatment with atypical antipsychotics.
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Degrading Microorganisms in Great Lakes Sediments

Abstract Biodegradation is a chemical transformation process that may result in the decontamination of sediments. A criterion for the potential success of biode gradation is the ability of indigenous microorganisms to catabolize contaminants, such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The number of microorganisms displaying this ability may be influenced by the extent of their exposure to PAHs. In this study, microorganisms from Keweenaw Bay (Lake Superior) and Trenton Channel (Detroit River) sediments were isolated and enumerated for their abilities to oxidize PAHs. The results revealed that total viable cell counts and PAH-degrading viable cell counts were similar in samples from both sites. The number of distinct biotypes differed, however. The total biotype count was higher for Keweenaw Bay than Trenton Channel; 68 versus 57, respectively. But, Trenton Channel sediment exhibited a greater diversity of PAH-degrading biotypes; 18 compared to only 3 for Keweenaw Bay sediment with the latter being confined to the upper 0 and 15 cm depths of the sediment core. Of the biotypes tested, 12 of 40 from Keweenaw Bay and 14 of 49 from Trenton Channel possessed the ability to denitrify. However, only 1 of 3 from Keweenaw Bay while 4 of 18 PAH-degrading biotypes from Trenton Channel could denitrify. Statistical analysis indicated that the number of PAH-degrading biotypes, the majority of which were identified as Gram negative rods, was site dependent. This suggested that contaminant exposure, an apparent major difference between the two sites, influences the relative percentage of PAH-degrading biotypes in sediments.
Collagenase and proteinase induction in implants of bone matrix.

Abstract Enzymes capable of digesting collagen and non-collagenous proteins are present in implants of bone matrix. In the early stages of bone morphogenesis, implants produce relatively large amounts of trypsin-labile proteins and have high non-collagenolytic neutral proteinase and low collagenase activities. Enzymatic activity is maximal three weeks after implantation. The results indicate that increased synthesis of non-collagenous proteins and non-collagenolytic proteinases precedes the induction of significant amounts of collagenases. The importance of these findings in bone morphogenesis is discussed.
Developmental changes of the primary structure and histidine methylation in rabbit skeletal muscle myosin.

Sequence studies show that 21-day-old rabbit skeletal muscle myosin is a mixture of foetal non-methylated and adult, methylated protein, which also vary at several other positions. Comparison with cardiac myosin indicates the presence of at least three myosin genes.
Frequency and Determinants of Postprocedural Hemodynamic Instability After Carotid Angioplasty and Stenting

Background and Purpose—Hemodynamic instability can occur acutely after carotid angioplasty and stent placement (CAS). We performed this study to determine the frequency of hemodynamic instability in a series of patients who underwent CAS and to analyze factors associated with development of postprocedural hemodynamic events. Methods—We reviewed medical records and angiograms in a series of 51 patients (mean age 68.3±8.9 years) who underwent CAS for symptomatic (n=29) or asymptomatic (n=22) carotid artery stenosis. Any episodes of hypotension (systolic blood pressure 160 mm Hg), or bradycardia (heart rate <60 bpm) that occurred in the acute postprocedural period were recorded. The effect of demographic, clinical, intraprocedural, and angiographic factors on subsequent development of hemodynamic instability was analyzed by logistic regression. Results—The frequency of postprocedural hemodynamic complications in our patient series was as follows: hypotension...
Cardiovascular Response of Human Subjects to Isometric Contraction of Large and Small Muscle Groups

SummarySustained static (isometric) contraction of striated muscle to fatigue was carried out in normal, untrained, young (22 to 29 years) male subjects in order to compare the hemodynamic response of large (ankle plantar flexor) and small (little finger adductor) muscle contraction. There were pronounced increases in systolic and dia-stolic pressures and heart rates in all cases. The increases in systolic pressure were similar during static contraction of the two different muscle groups; however, diastolic pressure increases were greater and heart rate increases less with finger contraction as compared to leg contraction.Upon three weekly repetitions, the cardiovascular responses were not significantly altered although the force output was increased with repetition in the case of both muscle groups. The results indicate that (i) although the size of the muscle mass influences the diastolic pressure and heart rate response, the relative muscle tension is the major factor determining the hemodynamic result...
The effect of various substances on the antibacterial activity of bacitracin in ointments.

Abstract The stability and relative availability of bacitracin alone and in mixtures in various ointment bases was determined. An attempt was made to correlate bacitracin poency as determined by a slightly modified F. D. A. method with the antiseptic efficacy of the ointments as measured by the agar plate diffusion method.
Peirce's agape and the generality of concern

Although Charles Peirce did not speak directly to what we today call environmental questions, there are strands of his thought that suggest how we might speak to them from a Peircean point of view. Some connections between Peirce and environmentalism arise in considering Peirce's life. He claimed to be, for example, instinctively opposed to the hunting of wild animals. And he often remarked, in a somewhat transcendentalist vein, that philosophy was best done in natural settings. Peirce was also a close friend of the parents of Gifford Pinchot who were, like Peirce and his wife, residents of Milford, PA. His biographer, Joseph Brent, suggests that Peirce directly influenced Pinchot's decision to pursue forestry.1 Moreover, after Pinchot took control of the US Forest Service, Peirce continued to correspond with him occasionally suggesting mathematical practices to make the Service's work more efficient.2 It is possible even to see in Pinchot's conservationist approach to the environment something like Peirce's critical common-sensism (see CP, 5.438).3 Tracing Peirce's modest influence on Pinchot's practices might be one fruitful way of exploring his relationship to environmental questions. There is another avenue of exploration, however, through considering Peirce's critical common-sensism together with his speculative cosmology. It is an avenue that is perhaps less congenial to the anti-metaphysical spirit of the late twentieth century, but one that will tell us more, I think, about how Peirce might have been likely to approach the kinds of environmental questions that have arisen in the last eighty to one hundred years. I Peirce shared with Aristotle the belief that practice and theory ought to be distinguished, even if they were ultimately to be understood as continuous. This meant, for Peirce, that most immediate political questions - and thus some questions concerning the environment - should be handled by the common sense of the day. In this much, Peirce was decidedly un-Deweyan. However, he believed that common sense was only useful if issued 'from
Energy Calibration Algorithms for the Multiple Isotope Material Basis Set (MIMBS) Isotope Identification Method

As we show in this report, the multiple isotope material basis set (MIMBS) method for isotope identification with medium- and low-resolution gamma-ray detectors requires an accurate energy calibration to be optimally effective. Determination of the detector's energy calibration using one or more known radioisotopes is generally required for all applications. We are developing an algorithm that automatically finds the best energy calibration using one or more identified (standard) gamma spectra as input, with no effort on the part of the user other than qualitatively identifying the isotopes present in the spectrum. Instruments that suffer significant energy calibration drift, such as Nal handheld identifiers, also require some type of real time gain stabilization to keep their calibration steady. We have developed two approaches for stabilizing the energy calibration for MIMBS analyses, (1) a standard peak-based gain stabilization algorithm for use when seeded or background gamma peaks are known to be present and (2) a peak-free stabilization algorithm based on a non-linear gain optimization. In this report, we describe the calibration algorithms and evaluate their effectiveness on real and simulated gamma-ray spectra under varying measurement conditions.
Low-grade fibromyxoid sarcoma. A report of 12 cases

Twelve cases of low-grade fibromyxoid sarcoma are presented. The patients' ages ranged from 6 to 51 years; all but three were between 26 and 46 years of age. The tumor was located in the thigh or inguinal area in four patients, in the shoulder area in three patients, and in the axilla-chest wall area, the perineum, the small bowel mesentery, the neck, and the buttock in one patient each. Tumor size (maximum dimension) varied from 3.5 to 15 cm in the nine cases in which it was known (median, 9.5 cm). Histologically, the neoplasms demonstrated contrasting fibrous and myxoid areas, a swirling, whorled growth pattern (at least in part), and bland, deceptively benign-appearing fibroblastic spindle cells; cellularity was low to moderate, mitotic figures were uncommon, and nuclear pleomorphism was usually absent or slight. Focal histologic findings in a minority of the cases included increased perivascular cellularity, moderate nuclear pleomorphism (more often in recurrent tumors), and, in myxoid areas, a rich capillary vascular network (vascularity was usually not prominent). On follow-up, nine patients experienced local recurrence (from one to numerous times); recurrence was subsequently controlled in five cases but not in the remaining four. Distant metastasis occurred in seven cases, chiefly to the lungs, but two of these patients were rendered tumor-free (to latest follow-up) by excision of metastases. At latest follow-up, four patients had died of tumor at 8, 9, 31, and 31 1/2 years, respectively, three were alive with recurrent or metastatic tumor at 6 1/2, 12 1/2, and 50 years, respectively, and five were alive and tumor-free at 5 1/2, 10 1/2, 12, 22 1/2, and 44 years, respectively. One tumor, in the patient who died at 31 years, demonstrated "dedifferentiation" at 30 years. Low-grade fibromyxoid sarcoma is a distinctive, indolent soft-tissue sarcoma.
Synthesis and ubiquitination of histones during myogenesis

One and two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis have revealed that cultures of postmitotic (G0) chicken skeletal myotube cells synthesize significant but reduced quantities of histone proteins as compared to their proliferating myoblast precursors. In addition, modulation of variant synthesis within the histone H2A and H3 classes may accompany myotube formation. That the histone bands contain no nonhistone contaminants was shown by exclusion of [3H]tryptophan. It is unlikely that these results reflect synthesis of histone by contaminating replicating cells, since a single treatment with cytosine arabinoside at the time of fusion effectively removed unfused cells while suppressing synthesis of DNA in the myotube cultures. The relatively sparse incorporation of label by major variants of the H2A class in dividing myoblasts was shown to be caused by heterogeneity due to phosphorylation and extensive ubiquitination, which decline at the time of myotube formation. As determined by quantitative Western-blotting, dividing myoblasts and myotubes contain an average of 1.0 and 0.4 molecules of ubiquitinated H2A (uH2A), respectively, per 10 nucleosomes.
Mechanical testing of hydrogels and PAN gel fibers

Uniaxial and biaxial mechanical tester was developed to perform basic tests for characterization of soft, low strength polymer gels. We have considered stress/strain relationship of acrylamide-based and polyacrylonitrile (PAN) fiber and sheet gels. Acrylamide-based gels (neutral, anionic, cationic, amphoteric) were tested uniaxially, where Young's modulus estimated varies between 10 and 25 kPa. Uniaxial and biaxial tension tests were performed on PAN sheets, from which Young's modulus was estimated at 6.65MPa, which is an extraordinarily large strength than the conventionally investigated acrylamide-based gels. Its length change in response to EtOH/H 2 O solution exchange proved to be not small as an actuator material, and it was observed that PAN exhibited a deformation in response to the electric field. Two types of PAN gel fibers were tested as a bundle of 50 fibers. True stress-strain data were obtained showing similar non-linear trend in both cases. Statistical methods were used to assess fiber strength distribution.
Phosphorus Fertility Effects on the Expression of the Low Phytic Acid Barley Phenotype

Low phytic acid (LPA) barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) cultivars partition phosphorus (P) in seed tissue differently than conventional wild-type (WT) barley cultivars. A reduction in seed phytic acid (myoinositol-1,2,3,4,5,6-hexkisphosphate) is coupled with an increase in inorganic phosphorus (P i ). The response of the LPA characteristic to phosphate fertilization has not been previously investigated; therefore the effect of phosphate fertility on barley seed yield, and concentrations of seed total P, seed P i , and fl ag leaf P was investigated at four locations over two years. The LPA cultivars were hypothesized to behave similarly to WT cultivars, therefore two WT cultivars, Baronesse and Colter, were compared to one LPA cultivar, Herald (lpa1–1 mutation), and one LPA advanced breeding line, 01ID451H (mutation 640). At three locations, phosphate fertilizer (P 2 O 5 ) was applied in the form of triple superphosphate (0–45–0) at rates of 0, 56, 112, and 168 kg ha –1 . Increased P fertilization was associated with increased fl ag leaf P concentration, but no changes were observed for other measured characteristics. At a fourth location, differential soil P fertility was provided via previously established plots varying from very low to adequate P fertility. Inadequate levels of P were associated with delayed maturity, and reductions in yield, test weight, height, and total seed P concentration. The responses of LPA and WT barleys were similar, indicating the LPA traits in barley originating from the lpa1-1 and 640 mutations are stable under a wide range of soil P fertility.
Ternary complexes comprising polyphosphoramidate gene carriers with different types of charge groups improve transfection efficiency.

To understand the influence of charge groups on transfection mediated by polymer complexes, we have synthesized a series of biodegradable and cationic polyphosphoramidates (PPAs) with an identical ...
The threat of adhesive embolization: BioGlue leaks through needle holes in aortic tissue and prosthetic grafts.

Background BioGlue Surgical Adhesive (CryoLife, Inc, Kennesaw, GA) is used to reinforce anastomoses during cardiovascular operations. Previous reports have raised concerns that adhesives may leak through suture-line needle holes and that resulting intraluminal glue may embolize. The purpose of this study was to determine if BioGlue leaks through anastomotic needle holes in aortic tissue and two common prosthetic graft materials. Methods Polypropylene suture was used to create end-to-end anastomoses in gelatin-sealed woven polyester grafts (n = 45), expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE) grafts (n = 45), and fresh porcine aortas (n = 45). An additional 45 anastomoses were created in ePTFE grafts using ePTFE sutures. The outer surface of each anastomosis was covered with BioGlue. Anastomoses underwent inspection with direct magnification or histology. Results BioGlue leaked through needle holes and into the lumen in 10% of anastomoses (18 of 180). Leaks were significantly more common in fresh aorta (10 of 45, 22%) than in prosthetic grafts (8 of 135, 6%; p = 0.003). Suture size did not significantly affect the incidence of leak. The use of ePTFE sutures did not eliminate BioGlue leakage. Prosthetic graft leaks created discreet round adhesive particles. In contrast, aortic tissue leaks resulted in thin, friable flakes of glue extending along the intimal surface. Aortic histology confirmed that BioGlue reached the vessel lumen via the suture channels. Conclusions BioGlue leaked through the needle holes in fresh aortic tissue and prosthetic grafts. Intraluminal adhesive particles were easily dislodged, supporting concerns regarding embolization. The potential for adhesive embolization should be a factor when considering the relative risks and benefits of using BioGlue.
Activation using infrared light in a mammalian axon model

Infrared neural stimulation (INS) offers the potential to selectively activate very small populations of neurons. Before it will be possible to design efficient and effective INS interfaces, the mechanisms of INS need to be better understood. The presented study builds on work indicating that INS generates a significant capacitive current by the application of infrared light to cell membranes. A computational model is presented to investigate realistic spatial delivery of INS and to investigate whether axonal structure and ion channel composition are likely to facilitate INS activation through capacitive changes alone. Findings indicate that capacitance changes are unlikely to be the sole mechanism, because the determined thresholds to activation were higher than the capacitance changes observed in previously reported work [1].
Synthetic-aperture-radar imaging with a solid-state laser

We report the operation of an imaging Nd:YAG microchip-laser synthetic-aperture radar, with which we imaged two-dimensional (2-D) models of military targets. The images obtained showed spatial resolution significantly better than the diffraction limit of the real aperture in the along-track dimension. The signal processing is described, and the measurement sensitivity is both predicted and verified. In addition, 2-D images with high resolution in both dimensions were generated by using an asymmetric aperture to match the along-track synthetic-aperture resolution with the across-track diffraction-limited resolution.
Development and Validation of Value-, Outcome-, and Impression-Relevant Involvement Scales:

Despite scholarly consensus that there is more than one type of involvement, investigators have not developed measures that assess the various types across diverse contexts. The goal of this study was to develop and validate measures of value-, outcome-, and impression-relevant involvement. Items were developed for three social issues (abortion, death penalty, marijuana) and two consumer products (jeans, toothpaste). The results indicate that these items effectively distinguish the three types of involvement. In addition, evidence of construct validity was obtained. Specifically, impression-relevant involvement was associated with other-directedness, outcome-relevant involvement was more strongly associated with information seeking than either value- or impression-relevant involvement, and value-relevant involvement (but also outcome-relevant involvement) was related to attitude extremity.