cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effects of a Resident Yeast from the Honeybee Gut on Immunity, Microbiota, and Nosema Disease.

The western honeybee (Apis mellifera) has a core bacterial microbiota that is well described and important for health. Honeybees also host a yeast community that is poorly understood with respect to host nutrition and immunity, and also the symbiotic bacterial microbiota. In this work, we present two studies focusing on the consequences of dysbiosis when honeybees were control-fed a yeast that was isolated from a honeybee midgut, Wickerhamomyces anomalus. Yeast augmentation for bees with developed microbiota appeared immunomodulatory (lowered immunity and hormone-related gene expression) and affected the microbial community, while yeast augmentation for newly emerged bees without an established bacterial background did not lead to decreased immunity— and hormone—related gene expression. In newly emerged bees that had a naturally occurring baseline level of W. anomalus, we observed that the addition of N. ceranae led to a decrease in yeast levels. Overall, we show that yeasts can affect the microbiome, immunity, and physiology.
Impact of a Central-Line Insertion Site Assessment (CLISA) score on localized insertion site infection to prevent central-line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI).

Objective:To assess the impact of a newly developed Central-Line Insertion Site Assessment (CLISA) score on the incidence of local inflammation or infection for CLABSI prevention.Design:A pre- and postintervention, quasi-experimental quality improvement study.Setting and participants:Adult inpatients with central venous catheters (CVCs) hospitalized in an intensive care unit or oncology ward at a large academic medical center.Methods:We evaluated CLISA score impact on insertion site inflammation and infection (CLISA score of 2 or 3) incidence in the baseline period (June 2014–January 2015) and the intervention period (April 2015–October 2017) using interrupted times series and generalized linear mixed-effects multivariable analyses. These were run separately for days-to-line removal from identification of a CLISA score of 2 or 3. CLISA score interrater reliability and photo quiz results were evaluated.Results:Among 6,957 CVCs assessed 40,846 times, percentage of lines with CLISA score of 2 or 3 in the baseline and intervention periods decreased by 78.2% (from 22.0% to 4.7%), with a significant immediate decrease in the time-series analysis (P < .001). According to the multivariable regression, the intervention was associated with lower percentage of lines with a CLISA score of 2 or 3, after adjusting for age, gender, CVC body location, and hospital unit (odds ratio, 0.15; 95% confidence interval, 0.06–0.34; P < .001). According to the multivariate regression, days to removal of lines with CLISA score of 2 or 3 was 3.19 days faster after the intervention (P < .001). Also, line dwell time decreased 37.1% from a mean of 14 days (standard deviation [SD], 10.6) to 8.8 days (SD, 9.0) (P < .001). Device utilization ratios decreased 9% from 0.64 (SD, 0.08) to 0.58 (SD, 0.06) (P = .039).Conclusions:The CLISA score creates a common language for assessing line infection risk and successfully promotes high compliance with best practices in timely line removal.
Rapid Eye-Tracking Evaluation of Language in Children and Adolescents Referred for Assessment of Neurodevelopmental Disorders.

Background: Language assessment is a key element of evaluations of children and adolescents with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs). The present study examined the validity of a gaze-based recepti...
Infrastructure and Regional Economic Growth in the One Belt and One Road Regions: A Dynamic Shift-Share Approach

The One Belt and One Road (OBOR) Initiative was introduced by the Chinese government in 2013 with the purpose of promoting regional economic cooperation and integration among more than 65 Eurasian countries. One of the objectives is to promote infrastructure development in order to facilitate international trade and promote economic growth among OBOR countries. Although the Chinese government has committed to increase infrastructure investment over the next decade, it remains unclear how regional economic growth may be affected by infrastructure investment given that such an initiative targets a wide range of diverse economies. In addition, it is unclear whether the OBOR Initiative is effective in achieving the goal of regional economic integration. This study intends to address these questions through an examination of the linkages between infrastructure and regional economic growth, with a focus on OBOR countries. Through a regional comparative analysis, we confirm that the infrastructure conditions and regional economic growth manifested by the change of employment vary substantially among different sectors and different countries. Specifically, rapid growth in the tertiary sector in some regions, such as the East and South Asia, was confirmed to have benefited from strong local competitiveness due to developed infrastructure. Conversely, regional growth in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Mid Asia, and Eastern Europe was found to lag due to the lack of local advantages. The research results suggest infrastructure development strategies need to be implemented more cautiously, with a consideration of regional competitiveness in different countries.
Aeromonas hydrophila, Bacillus thuringiensis, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa utilization of Ammonium-N, Nitrate-N and Urea-N in culture.

Abstract Agricultural drainage ditches represent a major source of nutrient pollution. Shifts in nitrogen source and use of animal manures have changed the bacterial composition both in species of bacteria and their abundance in agricultural ditches. This change affects how nitrogen is being cycled and potentially the final forms of available nutrients. In particular, animal manures often have bacteria such as Escherichia coli present, increasing the abundance of a bacterial species in ditches. Research has shown that the effect of different nitrogen sources is to change bacterial community composition (class, family). How this influences the role of an individual bacterial species is poorly understood. Thus, our question was how individual species would respond to different sources of nitrogen. We used Aeromonas hydrophila, Bacillus thuringiensis, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa that are common in agricultural ditches and exposed them to different concentrations of nitrogen in cultures of 1 × 100 and 1 × 10−1 dilutions from a stock solution of bacteria. Nitrogen sources were ammonium chloride, sodium nitrate and urea. The results showed A. hydrophila and E. coli have strong similarities particularly with nitrate-N and urea-N utilization and the response was often correlated with the amount of nutrient added. P. aeruginosa while similar did not show any strong correlation with amount of nutrient added. B. thuringiensis was different from the other three bacteria in utilization or production. Research has provided insight into the role of some bacteria in nitrogen cycling and may be valuable in the future to developing management strategies to reduce nutrients.
Can Civil Society Safeguard Rights in Asia

As the Cold War waned, civil society came to be regarded as the domain that made democracy work. Optimism and attention nevertheless faded as new democracies failed to thrive. Now, once again we fi...
Inmate Attitudes about Prison Tours for Students

Correctional facility tours are common within criminal justice programs as a way for students to experience real-world criminal justice. While tours have received praise for solidifying learning, t...
WIYN Open Cluster Study 1: Deep Photometry of NGC 188

We have employed precise V and I photometry of NGC 188 at WIYN to explore the cluster luminosity function (LF) and study the cluster white dwarfs (WDs). Our photometry is offset by V = 0.052 (fainter) from Sandage (1962) and Eggen & Sandage (1969). All published photometry for the past three decades have been based on these two calibrations, which are in error by 0.05 +- 0.01. We employ the Pinsonneault etal (1998) fiducial main sequence to derive a cluster distance modulus of 11.43 +- 0.08. We report observations that are >= 50% complete to V = 24.6 and find that the cluster central-field LF peaks at M_I ~ 3 to 4. This is unlike the solar neighborhood LF and unlike the LFs of dynamically unevolved portions of open and globular clusters, which rise continuously until M_I ~ 9.5. Although we find that >= 50% of the unresolved cluster objects are multiple systems, their presence cannot account for the shape of the NGC 188 LF. For theoretical reasons (Terlevich 1987; Vesperini & Heggie 1997) having to do with the survivability of NGC 188 we believe the cluster is highly dynamically evolved and that the missing low luminosity stars are either in the cluster outskirts or have left the cluster altogether. We identify nine candidate WDs, of which we expect three to six are bona fide cluster WDs. The luminosities of the faintest likely WD indicates an age (Bergeron, Wesemael, & Beauchamp 1995) of 1.14 +- 0.09 Gyrs. This is a lower limit to the cluster age and observations probing to V = 27 or 28 will be necessary to find the faintest cluster WDs and independently determine the cluster age. While our age limit is not surprising for this ~6 Gyr old cluster, our result demonstrates the value of the WD age technique with its very low internal errors. (abridged)
Resolving cargo-motor-track interactions with bifocal parallax single-particle tracking.

Abstract Resolving coordinated biomolecular interactions in living cellular environments is vital for understanding the mechanisms of molecular nanomachines. The conventional approach relies on localizing and tracking target biomolecules and/or subcellular organelles labeled with imaging probes. However, it is challenging to gain information on rotational dynamics, which can be more indicative of the work done by molecular motors and their dynamic binding status. Herein, a bifocal parallax single-particle tracking method using half-plane point spread functions has been developed to resolve the full-range azimuth angle (0–360°), polar angle, and three-dimensional (3D) displacement in real time under complex living cell conditions. Using this method, quantitative rotational and translational motion of the cargo in a 3D cell cytoskeleton was obtained. Not only were well-known active intracellular transport and free diffusion observed, but new interactions (tight attachment and tethered rotation) were also discovered for better interpretation of the dynamics of cargo-motor-track interactions at various types of microtubule intersections.
Abstract P199: Predictors of Early Change in PHQ-9 Depression Scores Following Acute Stroke: A Secondary Analysis of the Michigan Stroke Transitions Trial

Introduction: Predictors of changes in depression in the early transitional period following an acute stroke are not well understood. We conducted a secondary analysis of patients enrolled in the M...
Abstract 16461: Are Inducible Exercise Left Ventricular Outflow Tract Gradients Associated With Adverse Outcomes in Pediatric Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy?

Introduction: Adverse outcomes in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) includes arrhythmias, myocardial fibrosis, heart failure, and sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). These are well documented in children....
Systemic risk components and deposit insurance premia

In light of recent events, there have been proposals to establish a theory of financial system risk management analogous to portfolio risk management. One important aspect of portfolio risk management is risk attribution, the process of decomposing a risk measure into components that are attributed to individual assets or activities. The theory of portfolio risk attribution has limited applicability to systemic risk because systems can have richer structure than portfolios. This article contributes to the theory of systemic risk attribution and illuminates the design process for systemic risk attribution by developing some schemes for attributing systemic risk in an application to deposit insurance.
Private Civil Remedies: A Viable Tool for Guest Worker Empowerment

Despite the well known abuses of immigrant workers who come to the U.S. on H-2A or H-2B visas, the federal government has failed to curb exploitation within its guest worker programs. At the same time, the government has created certain private civil remedies that immigrant workers can use to address workplace abuses. Existing critique has focused on the systemic flaws of the guest worker programs and the need for government reform. This Article takes a different approach by arguing that guest workers, who are severely disadvantaged in the political arena, should take advantage of this devolution of rights from the federal government to the individual worker. In particular, it examines how private civil remedies under the Trafficking Victim Protection Act, Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, and antidiscrimination laws, are particularly well suited to address guest worker exploitation. These private civil remedies give workers agency to vindicate their rights without having to rely on governmental institutions. Further, they allow workers to participate in reshaping the boundaries of the law and produce counternarratives that can confer legitimacy on a movement’s claims. Despite certain constraints related to the use of judicial forums, this Article concludes that private civil remedies can operate as a tool for empowerment of guest workers.
Panel Summary: Computation

The past decade has seen remarkable developments in our under-standing of transition to turbulence. Much of this progress has been due to a synergistic combination of novel theory with large-scale numerical computation. In this brief overview, I would like to present some of the remaining challenges to our understanding of transition and suggest some ideas for overcoming these hurdles.
Absorption and Ingestion Toxicology

Absorption and ingestion toxicology relates to the prevalence of ambient toxins, their intake process by human being through skin (epidermal) absorption, or ingestion as foods, drinks, or drugs (narcotic or not) either taken orally or by injection, biological/neurological/behavioral reactions, related molecular and carcinogenic developments, and resulting health hazards. Keywords: air borne particulate materials; biomarkers; dosimetry; environmental carcinogenesis; environmetrics; inhalation toxicology; mutagenesis; reproductive toxicology; risk assessment
Relationship between physical fitness and selected personality traits.

Abstract In the first phase of this study, 386 high school junior and senior boys were administered a physical fitness test. The boys who finished in the upper 15 percent on the test were compared, by use of a battery of three personality tests, with the boys who were in the lower 15 per cent. Significant personality differences were found. In the second phase of the study, the low physical fitness group was divided into a control and an experimental group. A 9-month physical fitness program for the experimental group resulted in a significant gain in physical fitness. When compared with the control group changes during the experimental period, the experimental group personality trait changes were found to be significantly different on only one test item.
6‐Chloro‐2,4‐dimethoxy‐sec‐triazine

[3140-73-6] C5H6ClN3O2 (MW 175.58) InChI = 1S/C5H6ClN3O2/c1-10-4-7-3(6)8-5(9-4)11-2/h1-2H3 InChIKey = GPIQOFWTZXXOOV-UHFFFAOYSA-N (peptide coupling reagent; used to prepare active esters which can be used for the preparation of amides and esters;1 used in the reduction of carboxylic acids to aldehydes or alcohols2) Alternate Name: CDMT, 2-chloro-4,6-dimethoxy-1,3,5-triazine. Physical Data: mp 71–74°C; bp 125–128°C/66.661 Pa. Solubility: soluble in most organic solvents. Form Supplied in: white solid; commercially available. Preparative Methods: commercially available; prepared from cyanuric chloride and MeOH.3 An improved procedure for a large-scale preparation has been reported.4 Purification: commercial reagent is generally used as received. Handling, Storage, and Precautions: irritant; sternutator. Avoid inhalation. Should be handled with gloves in a fume hood. Relatively stable but should be stored under anhydrous conditions.
Adherence to nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor-based HIV therapy and virologic outcomes

Protease-based HIV treatment regimens require 95% or higher adherence to achieve optimal viral load suppression. Nachega and colleagues asked whether regimens based on nonnucleoside reverse transcr...
Prehistory and History of Arabidopsis Research

The earliest non-taxonomic appearance of Arabidopsis in the literature of botany appears to be a paper by Alexander Braun in 1873, describing a mutant plant found in a field near Berlin (7). The mutation was almost certainly in theAGAMOUS gene, now well known as one of the floral ABC regulators and cloned in 1990 (54). The next notable appearance of Arabidopsis in the experimental literature was in 1907, when Friedrich Laibach (1885–1967), a student in Strasburger's laboratory in Bonn, published an account of the chromosome number of several plants. He was attempting to find a plant with a small number of large chromosomes to be used in experiments to determine the individuality of chromosomes (23). Arabidopsis was not such a plant: the chromosomes are very small. The next relevant appearance of Arabidopsis was in a 1935 paper that resulted from a Russian expedition to find a plant that could be used in genetics and cytogenetics, as Drosophila was then used (15, 51). Although the small chromosome number (incorrectly stated by Titova to be a haploid no. of three; Laibach had correctly counted five in 1907) and rapid time to flowering were considered useful features, the small size of the plant and its parts were considered a disadvantage, as was the inability to distinguish different chromosome pairs. It does not appear that Arabidopsis was ever used in the laboratory by Titova and her colleagues.
Social norms versus social motives: the effects of social influence and motivation to control prejudiced reactions on the expression of prejudice

This study examined how individual differences in motivation to control prejudiced reactions (MCPR) affected one's sensitivity to social norms regarding the expression of gay rights attitudes. After measuring their political beliefs and MCPR, pro-gay rights and anti-gay rights participants took part in a discussion where they faced discussion groups that either opposed their position unanimously or nonunanimously (i.e., four opposing confederates vs. three opposing confederates and one undecided confederate). Anti-gay rights individuals showed more conformity overall, especially when high in MCPR. Anti-gay rights individuals also showed norm-consistent attitude change, regardless of MCPR, whereas attitude change among pro-gay rights individuals depended upon their level of MCPR.
A physical map of the Escherichia coli bio operon

Abstract The endpoints of the Escherichia coli bio DNA insertions in 24 λ bio transducing phage were mapped electron micrographically in heteroduplexes of the type λ bio /λ att 2 , which permit simultaneous measurement of the λ deletion and bio insertion endpoints. A physical map of the bio operon was constructed and correlated with the genetic map, the molecular sizes of the bio gene products, and the restriction map. The order att λ- bioA -→ p B o ← p A - bioBFCD-uvrB was confirmed. The maximum size of the bio operon was estimated at 5.5 kb, and the locus was found to be fully saturated with genes. There appears to be little space between the bioA gene and att λ, while bioD mapped within 0.7 kb from uvrB . The size of the uvrB locus was estimated not to exceed 2.6 kb
Measuring merit in animal research

Merit review of scientific projects involving laboratory animals is a central issue in the current debate over the ethics of animal experimentation. In this essay, I examine several conceptual, regulatory, and practical problems inherent in the merit review process. Contemporary challenges to the existing merit review system and suggestions for reform are also discussed. The essay concludes with comments on legal and political questions relevant to the future of merit assessment.
CHEMICAL AND METABOLIC CHANGES OF HEPATIC LIPIDS FROM RATS EXPOSED TO CHRONIC RADIAL ACCELERATION.

Changes in liver lipid metabolism of rats subjected to high-g environment obtained by centrifuging over long time periods
Observations of Hydra from a Submersible at Two Deepwater Sites in Lake Superior

During a series of submersible dives at depths of 300 m and 400 m in southeastern Lake Superior, Hydra were observed attached to a variety of hard substrates including individual rocks, the edges of large boulders, and the undersurfaces of sandstone ledges. Although widespread, populations were generally found in distinct clumps. Based strictly on morphological features, the species resembled H. littoralis or H. carnea. The finding of Hydra at depths of 400 m in Lake Superior, the deepest sounding in the Great Lakes, would indicate that Hydra are not limited by depth.
Spontaneous renal subcapsular hematoma renal angiography as a diagnostic aid.

Prior to the development of angiography, a definite diagnosis of spontaneous subcapsular renal hematoma was not often made preoperatively. The classic triad of blood loss, pain, and mass on the affected side is seldom presented by the patient. The one constant finding on scout film is an enlarged renal shadow, presenting a problem in differential diagnosis. Chief among cause of subcapsular renal hemorrhage are trauma, tumor, infarct, arteritis, and bleeding diathises. Selective renal arteriography gives specific information about the renal vascular supply and the state of the renal parenchyma not available by other means. Diagnosis of subcapsular renal hematom is facilitated by this modality. A correct diagnosis of subcapsukr renal hematoma may well spare an otherwise innocent kidney. A review of current literature was undertaken, and three documented cases of spontaneous subcapsular hematoma diagnosed prior to surgery and confirmed at surgery are presented.
Pyramidal Normalization Filter: Visual Model With Applications To Image Understanding

This paper introduces a new nonlinear filter model which has applications in low-level machine vision. We show that this model, which we designate the normalization filter, is the basis for non-directional, multiple spatial frequency channel resolved detection of image edge structure. We show that the results obtained in this procedure are in close correspondence to the zero-crossing sets of the Marr-Hildreth edge detector.6 By comparison to their model, ours has the additional feature of constant-contrast thresholding, viz., it is spatially brightness adaptive. We describe a highly efficient and flexible realization of the normalization filter based on Burt's algorithm for pyramidal filtering.18 We present illustrative experimental results that we have obtained with a computer implementation of this filter design.
Pass the Jelly Rolls

The crystal structure of the vaccinia virus D13 protein presented by Bahar et al. in this issue of Structure displays fused "virus jelly roll" folds, ubiquitous among dsDNA icosahedral viruses. Although D13 is not present in the mature virus, its structure suggests its evolutionary descent from an ancient icosahedral ancestor.
A visuospatial dysfunction following posterior cortex injury is attenuated by postinjury administration of the ACTH4-9 analog ORG 2766.

Abstract Rats were trained in a Y-shaped water maze to discriminate a light gray from a medium gray visual stimulus. The latter stimulus card cued the location of a nonvisible escape platform. The animals received either a sham operation or a large ablation in the posterior neocortex, and osmotic minipumps were implanted subcutaneously in the animal′s back. The pumps chronically administered either saline or ORG 2766 at a rate of O, 1, or 10 μg per 24 h for 14 days while the animals recovered in individual rat cages. Four weeks after surgery retention of the discrimination was tested and, for those reattaining criterion, transposition of the habit to a pairing of the medium gray card with a black stimulus card was assessed. Animals treated with 10 μg ORG 2766 reat-tained criterion on the original discrimination more rapidly than did animals treated with 0 or 1 μg. Neither the lesion nor the drug resulted in consistent influences upon transposition. There was no evidence that the drug protected neurons within the dorsal lateral geniculate nuclei. Postinjury treatment with some doses of ORG 2766 can attenuate the severity of some dysfunctions that accompany neurotrauma by influencing the development of behavioral compensation.
Assessment of the contribution of chlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans to hexachlorobenzene-induced toxicity, porphyria, changes in mixed function oxygenases, and histopathological changes.

Female rats were fed 30, 100, 300, and 1000 ppm of pure and technical grades of hexachlorobenzene (HCB) for 1 week and 30, 100, and 300 ppm of each for 4 months. Technical HCB was contaminated with 200 ppm decachlorobiphenyl and 4 ppm octachlorodibenzofuran but contained no other chlorinated dibenzofurans or dibenzo-p-dioxins (<0.5 ppm). Pure HCB contained 0.5 ppm decachlorobiphenyl but no detectable amount of any chlorodibenzo-p-dioxins. Pure and technical HCB increased aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase, aminopyrine N-demethylase, cytochrome P-450, glucuronyl transferase, and liver/body weight ratios comparably at each dose level. Neither grade of HCB shifted the peak of the CO-difference spectrum or altered the 455:430 ratios of the ethyl isocyanide difference spectra appreciably. Livers, lungs, adrenals, and hearts were evaluated histologically. Enlargement of liver cells was seen at 100 and 300 ppm HCB. Marked hypertrophy and proliferation of the lining endothelial cells of the smaller pulmonary blood vessels was observed in rats fed 100 and 300 ppm HCB. At 100 ppm, the number of affected vessels was usually greater in rats fed technical HCB than in those fed pure HCB. At 300 ppm, the pulmonary effects of pure and technical HCB were identical. The porphyria, cutaneous lesions, hyperexcitability, changes in liver enzymes, and morphological changes in the liver were identical in rats fed pure and technical HCB at all dose levels, indicating that these changes were produced by HCB, rather than chlorinated dibenzofuran or dibenzodioxin contaminants.
The RNA Binding Protein Pub1 Modulates the Stability of Transcripts Containing Upstream Open Reading Frames

The nonsense-mediated mRNA decay (NMD) pathway functions to degrade transcripts containing nonsense codons. Transcripts containing mutations that insert an upstream open reading frame (uORF) in the 5'-UTR are degraded through NMD. However, several naturally occurring uORF-containing transcripts are resistant to NMD. Here we demonstrate that the GCN4 and YAP1 mRNAs, which contain uORFs, harbor a stabilizer element (STE) that prevents rapid NMD by interacting with the RNA binding protein Pub1. Conversely, a uORF-containing mRNA that lacks an STE, such as CPA1, is degraded by the NMD pathway. These results indicate that uORFs can play a pivotal role regulating both translation and turnover and that the Pub1p is a critical factor that modulates the stability of uORF-containing transcripts.
QUANTIFICATION OF CREATINE IN NUTRITION SUPPLEMENTS BY THIN LAYER CHROMATOGRAPHY-DENSITOMETRY WITH THERMOCHEMICAL ACTIVATION OF FLUORESCENCE QUENCHING

A quantitative method using silica gel HPTLC plates with fluorescent indicator; thermochemical, reagent-free reaction to produce fluorescence quenched zones; and automated UV absorption densitometry has been developed for the determination of creatine in nutrition supplements. Eight products containing different amounts of creatine monohydrate and additional ingredients were analyzed. Accuracy was validated by analysis of a certified reference sample and precision by performing replicated analyses. Accuracy was found to be within 0.2% of the certified value, and precision was 3–4% relative standard deviation.
Axonal and Periaxonal Swelling Precede Peripheral Neurodegeneration in KCC3 Knockout Mice

We have previously reported CNS and locomotor deficits in KCC3 knockout mice, an animal model of agenesis of the corpus callosum associated with peripheral neuropathy (ACCPN) [Howard, H.C., Mount, D.B., Rochefort, D., Byun, N., Dupre, N., Lu, J., Fan, X., Song, L., Riviere, J.B., Prevost, C., Horst, J., Simonati, A., Lemcke, B., Welch, R., England, R., Zhan, F.Q., Mercado, A., Siesser, W.B., George, A.L., Jr., McDonald, M.P., Bouchard, J.P., Mathieu, J., Delpire, E., Rouleau, G.A., 2002. The K-Cl cotransporter KCC3 is mutant in a severe peripheral neuropathy associated with agenesis of the corpus callosum. Nat. Genet. 32, 384-392]. To assess the role of KCC3 in peripheral axon and/or myelin development and maintenance, we determined its expression and performed a detailed morphometric analysis of sciatic nerves. Sciatic nerves of juvenile wild-type mice, but not of adult, express KCC3. In the knockout, Schwann cell/myelin development appears normal at P3, but axons are swollen. At P8 and into P30, some fibers accumulate fluid periaxonally. These initial swelling pathologies are followed by axon and myelin degeneration in adult nerves, leading to reduction in nerve conduction velocity. Mutant mice also exhibit decreased sensitivity to noxious pain. This evidence for fluid-related axonopathy, which ultimately result in neurodegeneration, implicates cell volume regulation as a critical component of peripheral nerve maintenance.
Can Ambition Help Overcome Social Inequality in the Transition to Adulthood? Individual Agency and Societal Opportunities in Germany and the United States

The regulation of human development requires the selection of developmental goals and focused investment of resources in their pursuit. Societally institutionalized and normative conceptions about developmental tasks and deadlines regulate some of this selectivity, but in modern societies with their substantial social mobility an important part is played by the individual agent. Societies and their educational systems differ in the degree to which they constrain versus facilitate upward mobility. Accordingly, individual goal setting is most effective when closely calibrated in societies with less permeable educational and vocational career paths. In contrast, goal setting that reflects high-flying ambitions is adaptive under societal conditions that offer greater permeability between educational tracks and that foster step-wise social climbing. Exemplary findings from two longitudinal studies of the transition from school to work and college and situated in two critically different societies, Germany and ...
Decreased Fatigue Tolerance In Diaphragm Muscle Of Slow Troponin T Knockdown Mice

The loss of slow skeletal muscle troponin T (TnT) results in a severe type of nemaline myopathy in the Amish (ANM). The genes encoding TnT and troponin I (TnI) are closely linked in pairs in which the 5′-enhancer region of the slow TnT gene overlaps with the cardiac TnI gene. In a mouse line with the entire cardiac TnI gene deleted, a partial destruction of the slow TnT gene promoter produces a knockdown effect. By crossing with transgenic mouse lines that over-express a core structure of cardiac TnI (cTnI-ND) under the control of cloned alpha-MHC promoter, we rescued the postnatal lethality of the cardiac TnI gene-deleted mice with no detrimental cardiac phenotypes or leaking expression in non-cardiac tissues. The double transgenic mice exhibited decreased expression of slow TnT mRNA and protein in adult diaphragm muscle. Functional analysis of isolated muscle strips showed that the slow TnT deficient (sTnT-KD) diaphragm had significantly decreased fatigue tolerance evident by the faster decrease in force and slower rate of recovery as compared with that in wild type controls. As a consequence of slow TnT deficiency, the sTnT-KD diaphragm muscle contained a higher proportion of fast TnT, decreased slow TnI with increased fast TnI, and decreased type I myosin with increased type II myosin. Consistent with the switch toward fast myofilament contents, the sTnT-KD diaphragm muscle produced higher specific tension in twitch and tetanic contractions as well as shorter time to develop peak tension in twitch contractions. The decreased fatigue tolerance of sTnT-KD diaphragm muscle explains the terminal respiratory failure seen in virtually all ANM patients and this double transgenic mouse model provides a useful experimental system to study the pathogenesis and treatment of ANM.
The Multifactorial Nature of Extraversion-Introversion in the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and Eysenck Personality Inventory:

The study was designed to test the construct validity of extraversion-introversion and to explore the nature of the concept as measured by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and the Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI). The psychometric properties of the MBTI have been inadequately studied, whereas those of the EPI have been investigated extensively. Responses of 840 subjects to the two measures were submitted in toto to factor analysis. Of the seven factors retained, three measures of extraversion appeared: Factor 2 (a sociability component), Factor 4 (an impulsivity/non-planning component), and Factor 7 (a liveliness/risk-taking/jocularity component). Findings supported the view of extraversion-introversion as a complex construct (Eysenck and Eysenck, 1977; Guilford, 1977; Howarth, 1976). The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator-Extraversion Introversion (MBTI-EI) and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator-Judging Perceiving (MBTI-JP), scales were found, surprisingly, to be factorially valid measures of impulsivity/...
Editorial Comment—The Next 30 Years of Stroke for Patients, Providers, Planners, and Politicians

Quibble with the models or puzzle over the formula, but heed the message of Figure 1. Stroke is more common in the elderly, and the proportion of elderly in the United States is rapidly growing. When questions involve comparisons, absolute numbers are shunned in favor of crude and especially adjusted rates. But here the question is what numbers we—as providers and planners of health care—should anticipate in the coming years. Figure 1 and its rising absolute numbers should alarm us. Are we prepared for this 98% projected increase over the next 30 years, from 139 000 patients dying from stroke in 2002 to 275 000 in 2033? Considering mortality rather than morbidity underestimates the number, and many elderly are less frightened by death than by the prospect of long-term disability from stroke. Using Medicare hospital claims, the CDC estimated that during 2000 a total …
POLICING CULTURALLY DIVERSE GROUPS: CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS FOR POLICE

Policing has never been an easy task in a society where the basic rights of individuals take precedence over accusation of criminality and enforcement of the law. The police are faced with countless situations which evoke confrontation and promote disagreement. Often these situations deteriorate to the point where physical force is used, resulting in injury or death. These encounters are often between the police and individuals or groups from different cultural, racial, and ethnic backgrounds. Confronting this problem and endeavoring to change behavior, police managers’ benefit from a professional development program on aspects of policing culturally diverse groups.
Do we need to rethink fundoplication for patients who have failed proton-pump-inhibitor therapy?

This Viewpoint discusses the role of combined multichannel intraluminal impedance-pH testing in the evaluation of patients with GERD symptoms that are refractory to proton-pump-inhibitor therapy. The relationship between symptoms and reflux is important as symptoms might not be due to continuing reflux, and these patients therefore might not benefit from surgery.
A new approach to compressing ECG signals with trained overcomplete dictionary

We propose a new ECG data compression algorithm based on a learned overcomplete dictionary to exploit the correlation between signals in adjacent heart beats. The learned overcomplete dictionary is constructed by K-SVD dictionary learning algorithm, after preprocessing and normalization of length and magnitude. Using the overcomplete dictionary, the proposed algorithm can find sparse estimation, which can represent the ECG signal effectively. Experimental results on MIT-BIH arrhythmia database confirms that our proposed algorithm has high compression ratio while minimizing data distortion.
Octyl nitrite in the treatment of angina pectoris

Abstract Octyl nitrite (2-ethyl-n-hexyl-1-nitrite) is a liquid nitrite of one of the higher alcohols which, because of its volatility, can be administered by inhalation. Krantz, Carr, and Forman, 1 who first prepared this substance, state that in laboratory animals it produces a fall in systemic blood pressure and an increase in the coronary blood flow; it dilates isolated coronary artery rings, and, in normal men, the inhalation of large doses (0.2 c.c. for one minute) produces a moderate fall in blood pressure, together with a moderate increase in heart rate. As a result of their studies, the investigators concluded, "Employing cotton impregnated with octyl nitrite, the compound lends itself to medication in an inhaler in the treatment of angina pectoris, asthma, and paroxysmal hypertension." Although this drug has been available commercially for over a year, no objective studies of its efficacy in the treatment of patients are on record. The purpose of the present communication is to present objective measurements of the advantages and disadvantages of the "octrite inhaler" in the treatment of patients with angina pectoris. The methods used in this objective evaluation were presented in a previous communication, 2 and include (1) The incidence and degree of beneficial effects, as measured by an increased ability to perform work under standardized conditions after administration of the drug in the dosage and manner usually employed in the treatment of angina pectoris, (2) adequate control studies, carried out in an identical fashion with inert preparations, (3) comparison of these results with the clinical response when the drug is used in daily life, (4) electrocardiographic studies on the same patients to confirm the results obtained by the other methods, (5) studies of the toxic effects and optimal dosage, and (6) comparison of these results with those obtained with nitroglycerin.
Capillary electrophoresis of steroid conjugates

Abstract Advances in medical sciences have mandated increased separation efficiency and high level sensitivity. This is especially true when sample availability is in the ultra micro range. Because of this a study of capillary electrophoresis (CE for separation of steroid conjugates was carried out. There are few methods available to separate these molecules without first hydrolysis of the conjugates. The initial focus was on the estrogen conjugates since many of these are readily available for reference material. We avoided the use of derivative formation often necessary for optimal sensitivity.
Dentinogenesis imperfecta traceable through five generations of a part American Indian family.

Abstract A case of dentinogenesis imperfecta is reported in which the pedigree is traced through five generations with a number of multiple marriages. The histologic appearance was typical of the condition, although certain variations are recorded: both smooth and scalloped dentinoenamel junction; fracture of enamel just superficial to this junction, leaving some enamel attached to the dentin; duplication of the granular layer of Tomes; variations in the degree and distribution of the associated yellow-orange pigment. Theoretical considerations for the development of this condition are discussed.
Comparison of CONTAIN and TCE calculations for direct containment heating of Surry

Abstract This paper presents the results of several CONTAIN code calculations used to model direct containment heating (DCH) loads for the Surry plant. The results of these calculations are compared with the results obtained using the two-cell equilibrium (TCE) model for the same set of initial and boundary conditions. This comparison is important because both models have been favorably validated against the available DCH database, yet there are potentially important modeling differences. The comparisons are to quantitatively assess the impact of these differences. A major conclusion of this study is that, for the accident conditions studied and for a broad range of sensitivity cases, the peak pressures predicted by both TCE and Contain are well below the failure pressure for the Surry containment.
Antifungals to treat Candida albicans

Importance of the field: Candida species are the fourth leading cause of nosocomial bloodstream infections in the United States. They are a leading cause of invasive fungal infections and are an emerging problem in hospital medicine.Areas covered in this review: The antifungal armamentarium for the treatment of systemic fungal infections has increased in recent years and now comprises agents from four main drug classes. This article summarizes the role of antifungal agents in the treatment of infections due to Candida albicans (C. albicans).What the reader will gain: An extensive summary of currently available antifungal agents active against C. albicans. Clinical trials involving these agents will be discussed. Areas covered include drug pharmacokinetics, mechanisms of action, and toxicities.Take home message: New antifungal agents have contributed to significant advances in the treatment of C. albicans. A detailed knowledge of differences in spectrum of activity, toxicity profiles, bioavailability, form...
Experimental and postexperimental effects of posteriorly directed extraoral traction in adult Macaca fascicularis

The experimental, postexperimental, and postretention effects of continuous high-pull headgear force application to the maxilla were evaluated in four adult, nongrowing Macaca fascicularis monkeys. Force was applied at 450 grams per side to face-bows attached to cast maxillary splints with an implanted occipital plug for anchorage. The active experimental phase lasted from 84 days to 205 days, and its effects were documented histologically, cephalometrically, and with dry skull preparations. Postexperimental, retention, and postretention responses were documented cephalometrically. The findings of the present investigation lead to the following conclusions: 1. The termination active sutural growth is of little significance to the remodeling potential of the sutural articulations and the morphologic adaptability of the facial skeletal complex. 2. The length of time necessary for resorptive remodeling of the sutural bony projections is partially responsible for the slower rate of detectable skeletal movement in adult animals. 3. The sutural ligament in adult animals is initially less responsive to the effects of extraoral force application, possibly because of a diminished level of cellular activity at older ages. 4. Increases in age do not appear to affect the osteogenic potential of the periosteal envelope. 5. Retention aids in establishing a maintainable equilibrium following experimentally induced sutural and skeletal remodeling, but it is of little importance in maintaining the altered position of the denition. 6. The amount of postexperimental skeletal reorientation following force application to the maxilla may be related to the force level and the duration of force.
The RNA polymerase I transcription factor UBF is a sequence-tolerant HMG-box protein that can recognize structured nucleic acids

Upstream Binding Factor (UBF) is important for activation of ribosomal RNA transcription and belongs to a family of proteins containing nucleic acid binding domains, termed HMG-boxes, with similarity to High Mobility Group (HMG) chromosomal proteins. Proteins in this family can be sequence-specific or highly sequence-tolerant binding proteins. We show that Xenopus UBF can be classified among the sequence-tolerant class. Methylation interference assays using enhancer DNA probes failed to reveal any critical nucleotides required for UBF binding. Selection by UBF of optimal binding sites among a population of enhancer oligonucleotides with randomized sequences also failed to reveal any consensus sequence. The minor groove specific drugs chromomycin A3, distamycin A and actinomycin D competed against UBF for enhancer binding, suggesting that UBF, like other HMG-box proteins, probably interacts with the minor groove. UBF also shares with other HMG box proteins the ability to bind synthetic cruciform DNA. However, UBF appears different from other HMG-box proteins in that it can bind both RNA (tRNA) and DNA. The sequence-tolerant nature of UBF-nucleic acid interactions may accommodate the rapid evolution of ribosomal RNA gene sequences.
Three-dimensional conformal radiation therapy in locally advanced carcinoma of the prostate: preliminary results of a phase I dose-escalation study.

Abstract Purpose : The acute morbidity of doses of 64.8-75.6 Gy and preliminary observations of late complications and tumor response using 3-dimensional conformal radiation therapy in carcinoma of the prostate are assessed. Methods and Materials : 123 patients (Stage A2–12, B1–17, B2–43, C–51) were irradiated to the prostate and seminal vesicles using a 3-dimensional conformal radiation therapy technique. The median follow-up time was 15.2 months. The minimum tumor dose was 64.8–66.6 Gy in 49 patients, 70.2 Gy in 46, and 75.6 Gy in 28. Toxicity was scored according to the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group morbidity grading system. Results : This technique of 3-dimensional conformal radiation therapy was well-tolerated with minimal acute morbidity. Only 32% of patients had grade 2 or 3 acute morbidity requiring short-term medication for relief of urinary symptoms or diarrhea. Only one patient (0.8%) has so far developed a severe (grade 4) late complication. Serum prostate specific antigen concentrations normalized in 67% of patients (64/96) within 1–14 months (median 4.5 months) after treatment and were progressively decreasing at last measurement in an additional 22% (21/96). Abnormal rising prostate specific antigen levels were observed in 15 patients, 11 of whom have already developed other evidence of relapsing disease. Conclusion : Acute toxicity for the doses tested with this 3-dimensional conformal radiation therapy technique is reduced compared to traditional treatment techniques, and the initial tumor response as assessed by prostate specific antigen measurement is highly encouraging with prostate specific antigen levels returning to normal in the majority of patients. Based on these results, a further increase of the dose to 81 Gy has been implemented in accordance with the schema of an ongoing Phase I dose-escalation study.