cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Atlas of the Flora of New England: Magnoliidae & Hamamelidae

Abstract Dot maps are provided to depict the distribution at the county level of the taxa of Magnoliidae and Hamamelidae growing outside of cultivation in the six New England states of the northeastern United States. Of the 227 taxa treated (species, subspecies, varieties, and hybrids, but not forms), all are mapped based primarily on specimens in major herbaria of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut, with most data derived from the holdings of the New England Botanical Club Herbarium (nebc). Brief synonymy to account for names used in standard manuals and floras for the area, habitat and chromosome information, and common names are also provided.
Psi and our picture of the world

This paper examines the ways in which familiar views about the world and our place in it must change in the face of the reality of psi phenomena. It is argued that most commentators are confused on this topic. Contrary to the received opinion, the existence of psi should make almost no difference to our currently accepted body of scientific theories. Nor, as some argue, can it be of much help to a defense of dualism. But the existence of psi has profound implications regarding the pervasiveness of intentions in the world, even in connection with everyday sorts of events. The view is defended that we have no grounds for imposing antecedent restrictions on the range, magnitude, or refinement of psi. Finally, the paper discusses how the evidence for precognition forces serious consideration of a world‐view generally associated only with so‐called ‘primitive’ cultures.
Love American style and divorce Toraja style: lessons from a tale of mutual reflexivity in Indonesia

Abstract The author recounts an episode from her ethnographic research in Tana Toraja, Sulawesi, Indonesia, when she was obliged to shed her comfortably familiar ‘fieldworker’ role and stray from a pre-plotted research agenda into emotionally dangerous terrain. She explores the serendipitous insights that can emerge only when the classic division between the realm of research and one's private life is muddied. By recounting some Toraja responses to the news of her impending divorce, the author examines the unexpected and occasionally destabilising understandings that emerge from these personal exchanges. The unanticipated insights concern both Toraja and American conceptions of marriage and its unravelling, and evoke visceral appreciation for the vulnerabilities inherent in violating the borders of acceptable anthropological genres. The story shared here seeks to explore the ways cultural knowledge can derive from a personally revealing approach to fieldwork, embracing rather than fleeing the research sid...
Promoting quality through managed care.

Managed care organizations will be able to promote quality care as well as control costs by utilizing qual ity management approaches and practice guidelines. By so doing, organized systems of care could promote adherence to standards of quality and appropriate ness. Focusing on systems of care is a major compo nent of the quality improvement process and fits well with the development and utilization of practice guidelines. Practice guidelines, as well as risk man agement, quality assurance, and quality improvement techniques, can help reduce undesirable variation in practice patterns and prevent problems from occur ring. Guidelines may be based on different levels of explicitness ranging from subjective judgment to spe cific outcomes and patient preferences. The use of guidelines and quality improvement mechanisms will enhance the effectiveness of clinical decision making and enable managed care organizations to work pro ductively with physicians to promote quality.
Preliminary studies on the primary structure of rat liver dihydropteridine reductase

Cyanogen bromide cleavage of reductively alkylated homogeneous rat liver dihydropteridine reductase afforded several peptide fragments identifiable by polyacrylamide electrophoresis of which 6 (CB-1 to CB-6) could be individually isolated by C8 reverse phase HPLC. Each was characterised by N-terminal amino acid analysis and sequence information was derived for CB-1, CB-4 and CB-6. The blocked N-terminal of the holoenzyme was identified as pyroglutamate and the C-terminal sequence was obtained by sequential degradation.
I11 RIG-I signaling in RNA virus infection and immunity

RIG-I-like receptors (RLRs) are a class of cytosolic pathogen recognition receptors including RIG-I, MDA5, and LGP2. RIG-I and MDA5 are essential for trigging immunity towards distinct RNA viruses, while LGP2 may function as a cofactor or regulator of these processes. Our studies have shown that RIG-I in particular initiates immune defenses against hepatitis C virus (HCV), a major human pathogen. RIG-I engages pathogen-associated molecular pattern motif(s) within HCV RNA in infected cells to trigger innate immune defenses through its adaptor protein MAVS/IPS-1. However, HCV blocks RIG-I signaling through the viral NS3/4A protease cleavage of MAVS to support persistent infection. While MAVS resides on mitochondria and peroxisomes, how its signaling is coordinated among these organelles has been unknown. We have found that the mitochondrial-associated ER membrane (MAM), a distinct membrane subdomain which links ER to mitochondria, is a major site of MAVS localization and intracellular signaling of innate immune defenses against RNA viruses, including HCV. Upon RIG-I pathway activation, RIG-I is recruited to the MAM to bind MAVS. The MAM then dynamically organizes mitochondria and peroxisomes into MAVS-anchored synapses to regulate antiviral signaling. The importance of the MAM in anchoring these “innate immune synapses” is highlighted by the fact that the HCV NS3/4A protease cleaves MAVS on the MAM, but not the mitochondria, to evade immunity. Thus, an intracellular immune synapse anchored by the MAM coordinates innate immunity during RNA virus infection and is targeted by the HCV NS3/4A protease. While the interaction between RIG-I and MAVS at the MAM is essential for regulated innate immune signaling, it is unclear how RIG-I, a cytosolic protein, can identify and interact with MAM-localized MAVS. We have also focused on defining the mechanisms of RIG-I translocation to the MAM for intracellular signaling. We now show that RIG-I interacts with the E3 ubiquitin ligase TRIM25 and the molecular chaperone 14-3-3 e to form a translocon that moves RIG-I from cytosol to MAM during the acute phase of RNA virus infection. Our results demonstrate that RIG-I signaling is mediated through this ternary complex of RIG-I/TRIM25/14-3-3 e to mediate engagement of RIG-I with MAM to bind MAVS and initiate signaling of immunity to HCV infection. Overall, our studies indicate that the RIG-I translocon-MAM signaling network is essential for immunity against HCV and other pathogenic RNA viruses.
Airfoil boundary-layer response to an unsteady turbulent flowfield

The time-dependant boundary-layer response to a periodic turbulent flowfield has been studied for attached flow over an airfoil at laminar, transitional, and turbulent conditions.Hot-wire velocity measurements were made for nonstationary mean velocity and turbulence intensity profiles and for power spectra and cumulative power spectra plots.
A polystyrene cap for matching a silicon lens at millimeter wavelengths

A polystyrene cap for a silicon lens has been fabricated by thermal molding. The cap is 0.5mm thick, and it acts as a quarter-wave matching layer at 94GHz. The measured performance from 75GHz to 170GHz agrees with theory. The reflection loss at 94GHz is reduced by 1.5dB. This is an economical way to make a millimeter-wave anti-reflection coating. This makes a monolithic circuit with a gallium-arsenide substrate and a silicon lens much more attractive than before. The total absorption and reflection loss for a linch diameter lens with the cap should be 1.1dB.
New Perspectives on Rosa Luxemburg’s Critique of Global Capitalism

AbstractThe global economic-financial downturn has given new impetus to a re-examination of Rosa Luxemburg’s writings on capitalist accumulation and economic crisis, which pinpointed the central contradiction of capitalism in its drive for global expansion. In this article I critically engage Luxemburg’s theory of capital accumulation and crisis by evaluating it in comparison with the central categories of Volumes One and Two of Marx’s Capital on the one hand, and the quest for an alternative to capitalism in the twenty-first century on the other. I argue that Marx’s procedure in Volume Two of Capital, in which he abstracts from realization crises and foreign trade in order to discern the “law of motion” of capital freed from secondary and tertiary considerations, captures the internal dynamic of capitalist development and crises far better than its Keynesian and neo-Keynesian alternatives.
Stimulation of luteinizing hormone release in vitro by dibutyryl-cyclic-AMP and theophylline.

Abstract Dibutyryl-cyclic-AMP (1.5 × 10−3M) and theophylline (11.0 × 10−3M) each caused an increase in luteinizing hormone (LH) release by rat anterior pituitaries in vitro . When dibutyryl-cyclic-AMP and theophylline were added concomitantly, the response was synergistic. With respect to other adenine nucleotides, AMP (2.0 × 10−3M) showed some stimulatory ability, while ADP and ATP had no effect upon LH release. These data indicate that the release of LH in vitro is stimulated by cyclic AMP.
Growing up with single mothers: Occupational attainment of daughters in the early 20th century

Abstract Growing up in female-headed households has long been considered disadvantageous for children. We examine the relationship between family structure and occupational attainment in 1920, accounting for selection into the labor force. The results indicate that the attainment of daughters in mother-headed households was not significantly lower than that of their counterparts in male-headed households. Mothers’ resources alleviate some of the disadvantage experienced by working daughters. Family size and ethnicity are strongly associated with daughters’ occupational attainment, regardless of the household head's sex. The results suggest that prevailing gender norms restricted the jobs available to women in the early 20th century, regardless of their family type.
The frequency in Neurospora tetrads of multiple exchanges within short intervals

Tetrad data from short gene-marked intervals provide information on the frequency of multiple exchanges within intervals. Non-parental ditype and tetratype frequencies from 58,000 interval-tetrads of Neurospora crassa show that 4-strand double exchanges are far less frequent than would be expected in the absence of chiasma or chromatid interference. These results are in general agreement with meiotic tetrad data from other organisms, except Aspergillus nidulans. They preclude the occurrence of reciprocal meiotic exchanges as clusters unless multiples within each cluster are restricted so as not to involve all four chromatids. If this is not the case, and chromatid interference does not occur, then chiasma interference must be strongly positive within short regions. Known cases of apparent negative interference among random meiotic segregants are probably the result of non-reciprocal conversion of a middle marker, rather than of multiple reciprocal crossing over.
A constructivist in the lecture hall? helping pre-service teachers claim their voice

Abstract ‘EDUC 402: Teachers and Teaching’ and its practicum are required for all who anticipate pursuing teacher certification at the University of South Carolina. The authors describe the constructivist approach they have used to work successfully with large sections of diverse students. Shaped around the five propositions of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, the authors share power and control with students actively involved in learning. Professors use lecture, guest speakers, cooperative learning teams, reflective journals, small and large group discussions, case studies and technology projects to achieve their goals. Students contract for grades. Portfolios are used for self-evaluation. Close ties between lecture and practicum experiences, which are conducted in Professional Development Sites, are an additional distinguishing feature of this course.
Acrylamide gel electrophoresis of acid glycosaminoglycans for the study of molecular size distribution.

Abstract Chondroitin sulfates from bovine nasal septum and lamprey cartilage and keratan sulfate from human costal cartilage show a wide molecular size polydispersity by acrylamide gel electrophoresis. The number of fractions were limited only by the number of slices obtained from gel slabs after electrophoresis. The polysaccharides are probably distributed in a continuum of varying chain lengths. For the study of the size distribution of sulfated glucosaminoglycan by acrylamide gel disc electrophoresis, several buffer systems were formulated according to a general guide.
Repetitive Perforant-Path Stimulation Induces Epileptiform Bursts in Minislices of Dentate Gyrus From Rats With Kainate-Induced Epilepsy

The epileptic hippocampus has an enhanced propensity for seizure generation, but how spontaneous seizures start is poorly understood. Using whole cell and field-potential recordings, this study exp...
Correlation properties of collective motion in bacterial suspensions

The study of collective motion in bacterial suspensions has been of significant recent interest. To better understand the non-trivial spatio-temporal correlations emerging in the course of collective swimming in suspensions of motile bacteria, a simple model is employed: a bacterium is represented as a force dipole with size, through the use of a short-range repelling potential, and shape. The model emphasizes two fundamental mechanisms: dipolar hydrodynamic interactions and short-range bacterial collisions. Using direct particle simulations validated by a dedicated experiment, we show that changing the swimming speed or concentration alters the time scale of sustained collective motion, consistent with experiment. Also, the correlation length in the collective state is almost constant as concentration and swimming speed change even though increasing each greatly increases the input of energy to the system. We demonstrate that the particle shape is critical for the onset of collective effects. In addition, new experimental results are presented illustrating the onset of collective motion with an ultrasound technique. This work exemplifies the delicate balance between various physical mechanisms governing collective motion in bacterial suspensions and provides important insights into its mesoscopic nature.
Photosynthesis and Nutritive Value in Leaves of Three Warm-Season Grasses before and after Defoliation

Forage yields are influenced by plant response to defoliation. We examined the photosynthesis and nutritive value of first (first leaves) and third (third leaves) fully expanded leaves (numbered from the apex) in three warm-season (C4) grasses. Net photosynthetic rates at uniform temperature and light both before and after a 2-wk exposure to full sunlight and the effect of leaf position on nutritive value were determined on vegetative tillers in well-established swards of bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon L. (Per.) cv. Tifton 44], Caucasian bluestem [Bothriochloa caucasica (Trin.) C.E. Hubb.], and Atlantic coastal panicgrass [Panicum amarum var. amarulum (Hitchcock and Chase) P.G. Palmer] growing on a Cedl clay loam (clayey, kaolinitic, thermic Typic Hapludults). Bermudagrass had the greatest level of crude protein (CP), followed by panicgrass and bluestem. Fiber was greater in the first leaves than in the third leaves for bermudagrass and panicgrass but not for bluestem. Photosynthetic rates of panicgrass and bluestem third leaves estimated 2 wk after defoliation of the surrounding canopy were less than estimates made before defoliation in the first leaves but were similar to the third leaves before canopy defoliation. The third leaves of bermudagrass 2 wk after defoliation had lesser photosynthetic rates per unit chlorophyll than the first or third leaves before defoliation. Photosynthetic rates were correlated with hemicellulose across leaf classes and species (r 2 = 0.93). The photosynthetic decline observed in third leaves of bermudagrass compared with panicgrass and bluestem is evidence of variation in leaf response after defoliation among warm-season grasses.
Adaptive playout scheduling and loss concealment for voice communication over IP networks

The quality of service limitation of today's Internet is a major challenge for real-time voice communications. Excessive delay, packet loss, and high delay jitter all impair the communication quality. A new receiver-based playout scheduling scheme is proposed to improve the tradeoff between buffering delay and late loss for real-time voice communication over IP networks. In this scheme the network delay is estimated from past statistics and the playout time of the voice packets is adaptively adjusted. In contrast to previous work, the adjustment is not only performed between talkspurts, but also within talkspurts in a highly dynamic way. Proper reconstruction of continuous playout speech is achieved by scaling individual voice packets using a time-scale modification technique based on the Waveform Similarity Overlap-Add (WSOLA) algorithm. Results of subjective listening tests show that this operation does not impair audio quality, since the adaptation process requires infrequent scaling of the voice packets and low playout jitter is perceptually tolerable. The same time-scale modification technique is also used to conceal packet loss at very low delay, i.e., one packet time. Simulation results based on Internet measurements show that the tradeoff between buffering delay and late loss can be improved significantly. The overall audio quality is investigated based on subjective listening tests, showing typical gains of 1 on a 5-point scale of the Mean Opinion Score.
Beating a dead horse Dopamine and Parkinson disease

Our collective thinking about Parkinson disease (PD) has been heavily influenced by the dramatic response to dopamine replacement therapy. For progress to continue, however, we need to take a broad view of this disorder, which includes recognition of the following. First, substantial evidence now indicates that dopamine oxidation is unlikely to substantially contribute to the pathogenesis of PD. Second, levodopa therapy is not associated with neurotoxicity. Third, the first neurons affected in PD are nondopaminergic; the substantia nigra and other dopaminergic nuclei are affected only later in the course. Thus, PD is much more than degeneration of the dopaminergic nigrostriatal system. Fourth, in the current era, most of the disability of advancing PD is from involvement of nondopaminergic systems, including levodopa-refractory motor symptoms, dementia, and dysautonomia. Motor complications associated with levodopa therapy can be problematic, but they can be controlled in most, using available medications and deep brain stimulation surgery. We have reached the point of diminishing therapeutic returns with drugs acting on dopamine systems; more dopaminergic medications will provide only modest incremental benefit over current therapies. Finally, the benefits from transplantation surgeries aimed at restoring dopaminergic neurotransmission will be limited because later-stage PD disability comes from nondopaminergic substrates. Scale.
On the relationship between pragmatic schemas and mental logic

(1995). On the relationship between pragmatic schemas and mental logic. Thinking & Reasoning: Vol. 1, No. 4, pp. 357-364.
Perceived Stress and ADHD Symptoms in Adults

Given that ADHD has been linked to dysfunction across development and in many life domains, it is likely that individuals experiencing these symptoms are at increased risk for experiencing stress. The current study examines the association between ADHD and other psychiatric symptoms and perceived stress in a community sample of adults. Perceived stress data collected from 983 participants (M age = 45.6 years) were analyzed primarily via hierarchical multiple regression using ADHD symptom clusters, demographic variables, and anxiety and depression scale variables as predictors. ADHD symptoms positively associated with perceived stress. Inattention and sluggish cognitive tempo (SCT), as opposed to hyperactivity-impulsivity and newly proposed executive dysfunction symptoms, were the most consistent predictors. These findings reinforce that the experience of ADHD symptoms in adulthood is associated with stress and suggest that SCT could play an important role in assessing risk for negative adult outcomes.
A theory for comparing the expressive power of access control models

We present a theory for comparing the expressive power of access control models. The theory is based on simulations that preserve security properties. We perceive access control systems as state-transition systems and present two kinds of simulations, reductions and state-matching reductions. In applying the theory, we highlight four new results and discuss these results in the context of other results that can be inferred or are known. One result indicates that the access matrix scheme due to Harrison, Ruzzo and Ullman is limited in its expressive power when compared with a trust-management scheme, thereby formally establishing a conjecture from the literature. A second result is that a particular RBAC (Role-Based Access Control) scheme, ARBAC97, may be limited in its expressive power, thereby countering claims in the literature that RBAC is more expressive than DAC (Discretionary Access Control). A third result demonstrates that the ability to check for the absence of rights (in addition to the presence of rights) can cause a scheme to be more expressive. A fourth result is that a trust-management scheme is at least as expressive as RBAC with a particular administrative scheme (the URA97 component of ARBAC97).
051 Superoxide Regulates α‐SMA via p‐38 MAPK

This study was to investigate the effect of cyclic mechanical stretching on superoxide and nitric oxide production in human patellar tendon fibroblasts (HPTFs) and to establish the role of superoxide and p38 MAPK in stretching-induced α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) expression. When HPTFs were grown in deformable silicone dishes and subjected to 8% cyclic, uniaxial stretching, it was found that HPTFs markedly increased the production of superoxide and nitrite but not nitric oxide. And, cyclic stretching of HPTFs increased phosphorylation of p38 MAPK with increasing stretching magnitude. In addition, stretching duration also influenced the expression of phosphorylated p38 MAPK, where the dependence followed a pattern of cellular response in p38 MAPK activation consistent with previous studies using human mesangial cells and rat 3Y1 fibroblasts. For short stretching durations (∼15 min), the expression of phosphorylated p38 MAPK increased rapidly but decreased for longer stretching durations. Furthermore, in HPTFs treated with superoxide dismutase (SOD), which converts superoxide anions to hydrogen peroxide and an oxygen molecule, levels of stretching-induced p38 MAPK phosphorylation and α-SMA expression decreased compared to stretched fibroblasts not treated with SOD. Similarly, cells treated with SB202190, which specifically inhibits p38 MAPK activation, also decreased α-SMA expression levels. Therefore, these results suggest that superoxide regulates stretching-induced α-SMA expression via p38 MAPK activation in HPTFs subjected to cyclic stretching conditions.
Kashin-Beck disease involving the ankles

We present a case of Kashin-Beck Disease primarily affecting the ankles. Our findings are consistent with other reports of the symptoms, incidence, and progression of these diseases. At this time, our patient has chosen conservative treatment, but is considering eventual osteoarticular allografts. According to the available literature, surgical treatment is the only option that will not only alleviate her symptoms but halt her joint degeneration. Additionally, osteoarticular allografts have been shown to be an effective treatment and are able to be converted to an ankle arthrodesis if necessary.
Migration responses of outer and inner meniscus cells to applied direct current electric fields.

Injuries to the inner regions of the knee meniscus do not heal and can result in degenerative changes to the articular surface, ultimately leading to osteoarthritis. A possible stimulus to enhance meniscus healing is to use electric fields that induce galvanotaxis. In this study, a novel characterization of the effects of direct current electric fields on migration characteristics of meniscus cells was performed. Primary and passaged inner and outer meniscus cells were exposed to varying electric field strengths from 0 to 6 V/cm. Cell migration was tracked using time lapse digital photography, and cell displacement and cathodal direct velocity were quantified. Cytoskeletal staining was performed to examine actin distribution and nuclear content. Cell adhesion strength was quantified as a function of wall shear stress. Meniscus cells exhibited cathodal migration and cell elongation perpendicular to the applied electric field accompanied by actin reorganization. Outer meniscus cells migrated quicker and exhibited lower adhesion strengths when compared to inner meniscus cells. Passaged cells exhibited higher migration characteristics when compared to primary cells. Overall, this study demonstrated that electric fields can significantly enhance and direct meniscus cell migration and suggests the potential for their incorporation in strategies of meniscus repair and tissue engineering.
Service Oriented Architecture: Challenges for Business and Academia

Today, the means for attaining competitive advantage with information technology (IT) has shifted from efficiently managing the organization's operations to discovering ways to collaborate with industry partners to provide products and services to markets that are otherwise uneconomical to pursue. Current IT challenges center on ways to integrate diverse systems into function rich business processes that span organizational boundaries. Though service oriented architecture (SOA) is poised to become a mainstream technology, its success may hinge on a meeting of the minds between the architects and developers of Web services and business process modelers who map out corporate requirements. This paper defines SOA, discusses how SOA relates to business process management, and provides an illustration of enterprise SOA applied in an enterprise resource planning (ERP) environment. The paper also describes how SOA motivates change in IT governance, enumerates the fundamentals of SOA success, and reflects on implications for IT education.
Effects of brain-derived neurotrophic factor on motor dysfunction in wobbler mouse motor neuron disease

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) has been shown to promote the survival of developing motor neurons in vitro and to rescue motor neurons from axotomy-induced cell death in vivo. In this study, we examined the effects of exogenous BDNF on the progression of wobbler mouse motor neuron disease (MND). After clinical diagnosis at age 3 to 4 weeks, 20 affected mice received subcutaneous injections of recombinant human BDNF (5 mg/kg, n = 10) or vehicle (n = 10), three times a week for 4 weeks. In a separate experiment done to conduct a histometric analysis of the C-5 and C-6 ventral roots and to determine the number of myelinated nerve fibers, 7 wobbler mice received identical BDNF treatment. In the 10 BDNF-treated wobbler mice, grip strength declined at a slower rate (p < 0.03) and was twice as great as that of vehicle-treated animals at the end of treatment (p < 0.01). In vivo biceps (p < 0.01-) and in vitro muscle twitch tensions (p < 0.02) were also greater than those of vehicle-treated mice. The biceps muscle weight was 20% greater (p < 0.05) and the mean muscle fiber diameter was significantly larger in BDNF-treated mice (p < 0.001) because the number of small (denervated) muscle fibers was markedly reduced. The number of myelinated motor axons at the cervical ventral roots studied in the additional 7 affected mice was 25% greater with BDNF treatment (p < 0.0001). This study establishes that exogenous BDNF administration can retard motor dysfunction in a natural MND and diminish denervation muscle atrophy and motor axon loss.
Determination of the age distribution of sea ice from lagrangian observations of ice motion

A procedure for monitoring the local age distribution of the Arctic sea ice cover is presented. The age distribution specifies the area covered by ice in different age classes. In our approach, a regular array of grid points is defined initially on the first image of a long time series, and an ice tracker finds the positions of those points in all subsequent images of the series. These Lagrangian points mark the corners of a set of cells that move and deform with the ice cover. The area of each cell changes with each new image or time step. A positive change indicates that ice in a new age class was formed in the cell. A negative change is assumed to have ridged the youngest ice in the cell, reducing its area. The ice in each cell ages as it progresses through the time series. The area of multiyear ice in each cell is computed using an ice classification algorithm. Any area that is not accounted for by the young ice or multiyear ice is assigned to a category of older first-year ice. We thus have a fine age resolution in the young end of the age distribution, and coarse resolution for older ice. The age distribution of the young ice can be converted to a thickness distribution using a simple empirical relation between accumulated freezing-degree days and ice thickness, or using a more complicated thermodynamic model. We describe a general scheme for implementing this procedure for the Arctic Ocean from fall freeze-up until the onset of melt in the spring. The concept is illustrated with a time series of five ERS-1 SAR images spanning a period of 12 days. Such a scheme could be implemented with RADARSAT SAR imagery to provide basin-wide ice age and thickness information.
Nanoscale control of silica morphology and three-dimensional structure during diatom cell wall formation

We present a unique approach combining biological manipulation with advanced imaging tools to examine silica cell wall synthesis in the diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana. The innate capabilities of diatoms to form complex 3D silica structures on the nano- to micro-scale exceed current synthetic approaches because they use a fundamentally different formation process. Understanding the molecular details of the process requires identifying structural intermediates and correlating their formation with genes and proteins involved. This will aid in development of approaches to controllably alter structure, facilitating the use of diatoms as a direct source of nanostructured materials. In T. pseudonana, distinct silica morphologies were observed during formation of different cell wall substructures, and three different scales of structural organization were identified. At all levels, structure formation correlated with optimal design properties for the final product. These results provide a benchmark of measurements and new insights into biosilicification processes, potentially also benefiting biomimetic approaches.
Higher Education Corruption in Ukraine: Opinions and Estimates

The Constitution of Ukraine guarantees the right of education. The law says “the state guarantees free access to preschool, secondary, professional, vocational, and higher education in the state and municipal educational institutions.” In reality the positions of the free, state-funded higher education have been seriously undermined by the growing corruption in admissions, grading, and graduation. The president of Ukraine, Victor Yushchenko, pointed out corruption in education in his address to the students at Kiev National University on March 9, 2007: “We are talking about the way to eradicate corruption in higher education institutions, starting from the entry examinations; how to create an independent system of conducting competitive examinations; how to make it possible for the state funds that now extend to 54 percent of all students in higher education institutions to support those specialists requested by the state who come through truly transparent and honest competition.” Symbolically, in June 2007 the Academy of Sciences of Ukraine hosted a conference in Kiev titled “the major corruption schemes in the education system and the ways to eradicate them.”
Species-level assessment of the molecular basis of fluoroquinolone resistance among viridans group streptococci causing bacteraemia in cancer patients

Viridans group streptococci (VGS) are a major cause of bacteraemia in neutropenic cancer patients, particularly those receiving fluoroquinolone prophylaxis. In this study, we sought to understand the molecular basis for fluoroquinolone resistance in VGS causing bacteraemia in cancer patients by assigning 115 VGS bloodstream isolates to specific species using multilocus sequence analysis (MLSA), by sequencing the quinolone resistance-determining regions (QRDRs) of gyrA, gyrB, parC and parE, and by testing strain susceptibility to various fluoroquinolones. Non-susceptibility to one or more fluoroquinolones was observed for 78% of isolates, however only 68.7% of patients were receiving fluoroquinolone prophylaxis. All but one of the determinative QRDR polymorphisms occurred in GyrA or ParC, yet the pattern of determinative QRDR polymorphisms was significantly associated with the fluoroquinolone prophylaxis received. By combining MLSA and QRDR data, multiple patients infected with genetically indistinguishable fluoroquinolone-resistant Streptococcus mitis or Streptococcus oralis strains were discovered. Together these data delineate the molecular mechanisms of fluoroquinolone resistance in VGS isolates causing bacteraemia and suggest possible transmission of fluoroquinolone-resistant S. mitis and S. oralis isolates among cancer patients.
Facies and Fabric Specificity of Early Subsea Cements in Shallow Belize (British Honduras) Reefs

ABSTRACT Early subsea cement and cemented sediment are restricted to marginal facies of shallow Belize barrier and atoll reefs. In these facies cementation is not ubiquitous, but is sporadic within seaward-facing spurs and within the upper meter of the reef pavement. The presence of internal sediment, composed of well-sorted lime silt, is critical to the precipitation of rock-making cement. This lime silt is made up of Mg-calcite peloids of unknown origin and angular chips of aragonite excavated from coral and mollusk skeletons by boring sponges. In Belize the reef flat pavement, a subtidal bed of lithified coral conglomerate 1 m thick and 10 to 100 m wide, occurs in the lee of all marginal reefs. Acropora palmata fronds and logs (radiocarbon age ca. 450 years) are cemented together by a mortar of lime packstone to wackestone. In seaward-facing spurs, cavities between in situ coral and Millepora are locally filled with cemented skeletal packstone. Cemented packstone and wackestone also partially fill intraskeletal pores and borings in coral fronds lying loose on the sea floor. The predominant cement of internal sediments is Mg-calcite (14.5-18.6 mole % Mg) as micrite and bladed spar. Aragonite, although common, is found only in coral pores. The crystal form of the cement and the degree of lithification can be related to variations in the texture of the internal sediments. Mg-calcite micrite, the first cement, develops preferentially in the small pores, less than 15 µ, between lime silt grains. Mixed lime sand and lime silts, with a wider range of pore sizes, are cemented after the lime silts by thin rinds of micrite that grade outward into bladed spar. In the larger pores of grainstones, bladed spar follows thorough cementation of lime silts in the same sample.
Isolation and characterization of Bordetella bronchiseptica mutants deficient in siderophore activity.

Iron acquisition by the gram-negative pathogens Bordetella bronchiseptica and Bordetella pertussis is thought to occur by hydroxamate siderophore-mediated transport as well as an apparently siderophore-independent process by which host transferrins bind to bacterial surface receptors. We constructed B. bronchiseptica mutants deficient in siderophore activity by insertional mutagenesis with miniTn5/LacZl. The mutants could be placed into four distinct complementation groups as determined from cross-feeding assays which demonstrated restored siderophore synthesis. Mutants deficient in siderophore activity were BRM1 BRM6 and BRM9 exhibiting approximately 36 to 41% of wild-type siderophore levels and BRM3 and BRM8 which appeared to produce very little or no detectable siderophore. Mutant BRM4 was found to be a leucine auxotroph while mutants BRM2 and BRM7 could synthesize siderophore only in low-iron medium which was supplemented with various amino acids. Evaluation of all transcriptional fusions revealed an apparent lack of iron-regulated lacZ expression. Genomic regions flanking the transposable element in the siderophore mutants were homologous with B. pertussis chromosomal DNA while bioassays suggested siderophore cross-feeding between B. pertussis and B. bronchiseptica. These results indicate probable similarity between the siderophore biosynthetic and transport systems of the two species. Originally published Journal of Bacteriology Vol. 175 No. 4 Feb 1993
A Visible/Infrared Fusion Algorithm for Distributed Smart Cameras

This paper describes an algorithm for visible/infrared fusion for video surveillance. Our technique combines signal-level and decision-level multispectral information fusion. We combine several techniques: we model observations in each spectral channel by a typical pixel-level mixture-of-Gaussian-based model; we model high level factors such as confidence of each modality, motion, object area, and lighting with a hierarchical probabilistic model. Our hierarchical model improves performance under global illumination changes, random parameter failures of background subtraction, occlusion and merge/split.
Teaching the Duration of Annuities and Portfolio Net Worth from a Financial Engineering Perspective

This paper offers an easy-to-teach procedure that simultaneously introduces the idea of financially engineered synthetic securities and reduces the effort of calculating a portfolio's duration. The procedure conceives of a portfolio's net annual return as generated synthetically by a coincident purchase and forward sale of perpetuities. Using present-value weights, the duration of the portfolio's net worth can be expressed as the weighted difference of the durations of the income streams being purchased and sold.
Dysgenesis-induced instability of rosy locus transformation in Drosophila melanogaster: analysis of excision events and the selective recovery of control element deletions.

ABSTRACT Utilizing the method of P-M hybrid dysgenesis-mediated gene transfer to insert rosy locus DNA into various chromosomal locations, we recovered a transformed strain that carries an ry + transposon inserted in or near the scalloped locus in polytene section 13F on the Χ chromosome. The resultant product, when stabilized, behaves as a homozygous and hemizygous viable and fertile extreme scalloped allele associated with wild-type expression of the rosy locus. We have labeled this allele, sd ry + + . This allele has been destabilized by subsequent P-M hybrid dysgenesis, and mutations were recovered that exhibit alterations in the rosy and/or scalloped phenotypes. Representative samples of all phenotypic classes have been characterized by Southern blot analyses of restricted DNA. The most common events are excisions of DNA wholly internal to the transposon and representing sections of rosy DNA. In addition to loss of rosy locus function, such excisions affect the scalloped locus expression.—A second dysgenesis experiment was carried out involving an ry + transposon inserted in polytene section 16D on the Χ chromosome. A minimal estimate of the relative frequency of imprecise excisions, determined in this experiment is 75%.—A successful pilot experiment is described that utilizes dysgenic perturbation of the sd ryry + allele to select for small deletions of the 59 noncoding region of the rosy locus.
Impact of external pneumatic compression target inflation pressure on transcriptome-wide RNA expression in skeletal muscle.

Abstract Next-generation RNA sequencing was employed to determine the acute and subchronic impact of peristaltic pulse external pneumatic compression (PEPC) of different target inflation pressures on global gene expression in human vastus lateralis skeletal muscle biopsy samples. Eighteen (N = 18) male participants were randomly assigned to one of the three groups: (1) sham (n = 6), 2) EPC at 30-40 mmHg (LP-EPC; n = 6), and 3) EPC at 70-80 mmHg (MP-EPC; n = 6). One hour treatment with sham/EPC occurred for seven consecutive days. Vastus lateralis skeletal muscle biopsies were performed at baseline (before first treatment; PRE), 1 h following the first treatment (POST1), and 24 h following the last (7th) treatment (POST2). Changes from PRE in gene expression were analyzed via paired comparisons within each group. Genes were filtered to include only those that had an RPKM ≥ 1.0, a fold-change of ≥1.5 and a paired t-test value of <0.01. For the sham condition, two genes at POST1 and one gene at POST2 were significantly altered. For the LP-EPC condition, nine genes were up-regulated and 0 genes were down-regulated at POST1 while 39 genes were up-regulated and one gene down-regulated at POST2. For the MP-EPC condition, two genes were significantly up-regulated and 21 genes were down-regulated at POST1 and 0 genes were altered at POST2. Both LP-EPC and MP-EPC acutely alter skeletal muscle gene expression, though only LP-EPC appeared to affect gene expression with subchronic application. Moreover, the transcriptome response to EPC demonstrated marked heterogeneity (i.e., genes and directionality) with different target inflation pressures.
Fine Structural Effects of Intrauterine Contraceptives on the Human Endometrium

Of 198 endometrial biopsies performed on 82 women with Lippes loops in situ for 6 weeks to 40 months 124 were proliferative and 74 were secretory. Samples were obtained from immediately beneath the device between the loops and from areas remote from the device. Specimens of basal endometrium lower segment or endocervix were excluded. Control tissue was obtained before insertion of the device. Slides were prepared for electron microscopy. No consistent generalized pathologic change was observed in either proliferative or secretory endometria. The stroma immediately beneath the loop appeared compressed and fibrotic throughout the cycle. Proliferative epithelium maintained the normal pattern of juxtaposed light and dark (electron-dense) cells mitotic activity and distribution of microvilli and cilia. No progression of epithelial ultrastructural differences occurrred after their first appearance in the second month after IUD insertion. Precocious changes in epithelial ultrastructure included 1) the appearance of a nucleolar channel system normally considered indicative of ovulation or exogenously administered hormones in 15-29% of endometria judged to be preovulatory; 2) numerous large mitochondria usually associated with the postovulatory phase in the late-proliferative endometrium and occasionally as early as in the midproliferative; and 3) the development of confluent fields of glycogen at the end of the proliferative phase a few days earlier than in controls. The premenstrual endometrium resembled the contrl of this stage; scarcity of microvilli and other characteristic ultrastructural traits of regression were noted. Ultrastructural changes in the proliferative stroma were observed first about 1 day preovulatory when the cytoplasm appeared better differentiated than in the controls. The stromal cells were highly differentiated at the end of the first postovulatory week; the cytoplasmic complexity at Days 19 or 20 often resembled that of Day 25 controls. Premature and asynchronous development of the endometrium may affect the correlation with ovular development which is a prerequisite for normal implantation. Since the IUD creates an unfavorable environment for blastocystic attachment but does not dislodge the implanted ovum its action is considered contraceptive rather than abortifacient in the usual sense.
Description of an ethics curriculum for a medicine residency program.

Abstract This paper examines the attempts to develop and implement an ethics curriculum for the Internal Medicine Residency Program at the University of Maryland Medical Center. The objectives of the curriculum were to enhance moral reasoning skills and to promote humanistic attitudes and behavior among the residents. The diverse methodologies used to achieve these objectives included case discussions, literature reading, role playing, writing, and videos. These activities occurred predominantly within the forum of morning report sessions and ethics ward rounds. The author also describes efforts to overcome the initial constraints associated with the implementation of this curriculum and concludes by exploring future directions for the curriculum.
Usefulness of the American Heart Association's Life Simple 7 to Predict the Risk of Atrial Fibrillation (from the REasons for Geographic And Racial Differences in Stroke [REGARDS] Study).

The American Heart Association has identified metrics of ideal cardiovascular (CV) health known as Life's Simple 7 (LS7). We determined the prospective relationship between the LS7 and the incident atrial fibrillation (AF) in a biracial cohort. The REasons for Geographic And Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) study enrolled non-Hispanic black and white adults 45 years or older. This analysis included 9,576 REGARDS participants (mean age 63 ± 8.4 years; 57% women; 30% black) who were free of AF at baseline and completed a follow-up examination 9.4 years later. An overall LS7 score was calculated at baseline as the sum of the LS7 component scores and classified as inadequate (0 to 4), average (5 to 9), or optimal (10 to 14) CV health. The primary outcome was incident AF, identified at follow-up by either electrocardiogram or a self-reported medical history of a physician diagnosis. A total of 725 incident AF cases were detected. Compared with the inadequate category (n = 534), participants in the optimal category (n = 1,953) had a 32% lower odds of developing AF (odds ratio 0.68; 95% confidence interval 0.47, 0.99) in a logistic regression model adjusted for demographic characteristics, alcohol use, left ventricular hypertrophy, coronary heart disease, and stroke. A 1-point higher LS7 score was associated with a 5% lower odds of incident AF (odds ratio = 0.95; 95% confidence interval 0.91, 0.99). In conclusion, better CV health, as defined by the LS7 score, is associated with a reduction in development of AF.
Sugar Uptake by Red Blood Cells

Monosaccharides are an important metabolite in many cells. However, owing to their hydrophilic nature, these sugars tend to enter the cell slowly by simple diffusion through the hydrophobic region of the plasma membrane. Consequently, transport mechanisms have evolved which facilitate cellular monosaccharide uptake. Microorganisms have transport system which (1) couple sugar movement to proton translocation (reviewed by Eddy 1982); (2) involve translocation with concomitant phosphorylation (reviewed by Postma and Roseman 1976); and/or (3) transfer sugar by a carrier-mediated, equilizing transport mechanism (Cirillo 1968, 1981). Among phylogenetically higher organisms, the vast majority of work on sugar transport has focused on mammals and has shown that two principle mechanisms of monosaccharide transport exist. One is a concentrative mechanism found in the epithelial lining of the kidney and gut which involves the cotransport of sodium and sugar (Crane 1965; Kinne 1976). The other is found in most other tissues and is an equilizing, sodium-independent monosaccharide transport system (summarized by Stein 1967).