cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Polo-like kinase 1-mediated phosphorylation of Forkhead box protein M1b antagonizes its SUMOylation and facilitates its mitotic function.

Transcription factor Forkhead box protein M1b (FoxM1b) plays an important role during mitotic entry and progression. Our previous studies identified polo-like kinase 1 (PLK1) as a major regulator of FoxM1b. During G2/M transition, PLK1 directly interacts with and phosphorylates FoxM1b, resulting in full activation of the transactivation capacity of FoxM1b. Such a vital regulatory mechanism is essential for timely mitotic entry and progression. However, the molecular mechanism by which PLK1-mediated phosphorylation enhances the transcriptional activity of FoxM1b remains to be determined. We demonstrate that FoxM1b can be SUMOylated in vitro and in vivo, preferentially by SUMO-1. SUMOylation of FoxM1b was found to occur at multiple sites, leading to suppression of FoxM1b transcriptional activity. Such a posttranslational modification of FoxM1b was antagonized by PLK1-mediated phosphorylation. By immunofluorescence staining and subcellular fractionation, we demonstrate that SUMO conjugation promotes cytosolic translocation of FoxM1b. Moreover, SUMO modification of FoxM1b facilitates the ubiquitin-mediated proteasomal degradation of FoxM1b. PLK1-mediated phosphorylation of FoxM1b abrogates the inhibitory effect on FoxM1b by SUMO modification, thereby promoting its nuclear translocation and preventing its proteolytic degradation in the cytoplasm. Such an antagonistic regulatory mechanism is essential for the mitotic function of FoxM1b, ensuring timely mitotic entry and progression. Taken together, our studies have revealed a working mechanism by which PLK1 positively regulates the activity and level of FoxM1b, which would greatly facilitate therapeutic interventions that focus on targeting the PLK1-mediated and/or FoxM1-mediated signaling network. Background: PLK1-mediated phosphorylation of FoxM1b leads to full activation of FoxM1b. Results: FoxM1b SUMOylation leads to suppression of FoxM1b activity, which is abrogated by PLK1-mediated phosphorylation. Conclusion: PLK1-mediated phosphorylation of FoxM1b antagonizes its SUMOylation and, thereby, facilitates its mitotic function. Significance: Elucidating the PLK1-mediated regulation of FoxM1b would greatly facilitate targeted therapeutic interventions.
Apical Left Ventriculotomy in Subaortic Stenosis due to a Fibromuscular Hypertrophy

A total of five patients were operated upon for subaortic stenosis due to fibromuscular hypertrophy, using a generous left ventriculotomy centered on the apex. There were no deaths or serious complications, and all patients showed a completely satisfactory functional result in the postoperative periods of 19, 17, 11, 8, and 7 months. Three patients recatheterized 16, 11, and 7 months after surgery were found to have a virtual abolition of the gradient. Pressure measurements made at the completion of surgery in all patients, indicated satisfactory removal of the obstruction. The excellent exposure afforded by this ventriculotomy and the absence of complications arising from its use, recommend it for continued trial. It must, however, stand comparison with other techniques on the basis of the durability of the relief of obstruction.
Cortical motor representation of the ipsilateral hand and arm

We sought to determine whether motor evoked potentials (MEPs) as well as silent periods could be produced in hand and shoulder muscles by transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) of the ipsilateral cerebral hemisphere and, if so, whether their cortical representations could be mapped with respect to those of contralateral muscles. In six normal subjects, we delivered ten stimuli each to a grid of sites 1 cm apart on the scalp. The EMG was recorded and averaged from the contralateral first dorsal interosseous (FDI) and risorius (facial) muscles at rest and the ipsilateral FDI muscle, which was voluntarily contracted. In four of these subjects and an additional subject, we used the same mapping technique and recorded from the deltoid muscle on the right and left sides and the contralateral FDI during activation of the ipsilateral deltoid. In all subjects, the cortical representation of the contralateral risorius was anterolateral to that of the FDI. The contralateral deltoid could be activated in only three subjects. In them, its representation was slightly medial to that of the FDI. All subjects had at least one scalp site where TMS produced MEPs in the ipsilateral FDI. Two subjects had rich ipsilateral hand representations with multiple ipsilateral MEP sites. Both had ipsilateral MEP sites near the representation of the contralateral FDI, but the largest ipsilateral MEPs occurred with TMS at more lateral sites, which were near the representation of the contralateral risorius. In these subjects, the ipsilateral deltoid was preferentially activated at sites medial and posterior to those activating the contralateral muscle. Ipsilateral TMS also produced silent periods in the FDI in all subjects. These silent periods were much more frequent than the ipsilateral MEPs and tended to occur with TMS near the representation of the contralateral FDI. The excitatory cortical representation of the ipsilateral arm muscles is accessible to TMS in normal subjects and is different from that of the homologous contralateral muscles. The hand may have two ipsilateral representations, one of which produces silent periods and the other MEPs at the same stimulus intensity.
Time- and Wavelength-Resolved Fluorescence Spectroscopy for Endoscopic Detection of Esophageal Dysplasia

Time-resolved and steady-state autofluorescence were measured in 41 patients with Barrett’s esophagus using excitation wavelengths of 337 and 400 nm. Statistical analysis of the data indicates the clinical potential of this approach for detecting esophageal dysplasia.
Multiple events associated with antigenic switching in Trypanosoma brucei

The genomic environments of six unrelated variant surface glycoprotein (VSG) gene families in the IsTaR 1 serodeme of Trypanosoma brucei were examined by Southern blot analysis of DNA resolved by conventional and pulse field gradient electrophoresis. The genomic locations of these gene family members were characterized in variants arising from 19 independent antigenic switches of which 13 represent single relapses. We have identified 9 distinct telomeric sites containing VSG genes on 7 different chromosomes ranging in size from approximately 65 kilobase pairs to greater than 3 megabase pairs. VSG genes are expressed in at least 6 of these telomeric sites. All of the observed antigenic switches can be explained by two types of processes: gene conversion and telomeric activation, with almost half (9/19) the result of combinations of these processes. The implications of these observations are discussed with particular reference to the frequencies of occurrence of each process.
Effect of loperamide, haloperidol and methadone in rats trained to discriminate morphine from saline.

In an operant procedure of lever pressing at FR10 schedule of food reinforcement, rats were trained to respond differentially in order to discriminate the effects of morphine (10 mg/kg) injection from those of saline injection. These rats learned to press a lever on one side after morphine injection and a lever on the opposite side after saline injection. In subsequent testing, these rats reliably emitted responses on the morphine lever after 10 or 20 mg/kg of morphine IP, 50 mg/kg of morphine given orally or 2 mg/kg methadone. Two mg/kg of morphine (or 10 or 20 mg/kg given orally) was recognized as saline. In contrast, after either loperamide (an antidiarrheal drug) given in doses up to 10 mg/kg or haloperidol (a neuroleptic) given in doses up to 0.32 mg/kg, all responses were made on the saline lever. Higher doses suppressed responding. Since neither the antidiarrheal activity nor the neuroleptic activity was sufficient to provide the discriminable cue associated with morphine, it is suggested that specific central effects produced only by narcotic analgesics are the basis for these morphine cues.
Intelligence: Exact computation or biofunctional cognition

What is it that makes human beings so good at fuzzy judgments and so poor at precise computation? This paper first addresses this question in the context of a biofunctional theory of how the nervous system functions and then discusses a fuzzy intelligence evaluation system for determing the intelligence of individuals.
Keeping pseudoscience out of AGU meetings

I found the editorial, “Speaking Up For Science” (Eos, 86,(24), 14 June 2005, p. 225) disturbing, but not for the reasons you intended. The Smithsonian made a mistake, but nowhere do you discuss its efforts to correct that. More troublesome to me as a member of AGU is the blatant hypocrisy contained in the editorial. How many posters or presentations have been made at AGU meetings in the last 10–20 years that support creationism, intelligent design, or other forms of pseudo-science, such as the so-called “face” on Mars?
AIRWAY COMPLICATIONS IN PATIENTS WITH INFECTION CAUSED BY HIV

Numerous problems may be identified in the airways of patients with HIV infection. In many cases, these airway conditions represent exaggerations of infections seen in the immunocompetent host. However, in other instances, they represent manifestations of unique problems, infectious and/or neoplastic, that are a consequence of the profound immunosuppression seen in the patient with infection due to HIV.
Comparative soil CO2 evolution, litter decay, and root dynamics in clearcut and uncut spruce-fir forest

Abstract An investigation was conducted in a northern spruce-fir forest to examine the impact of forest clearcutting on soil CO2 efflux, litter decay, and root dynamics in the first year following harvesting. During a 6-month sampling period from May-November, clearcut plots released 16% more carbon dioxide than did uncut spruce-fir reference plots. Aboveground litterfall was much greater in the uncut site; however, unit decay rates for Oi horizon surface litter in cut and uncut sites were similar. Thus, excess CO2 efflux from the harvested site did not result from increased decomposition of litter and forest floor organic matter. Fine root (≤ 3 mm) biomass and necromass varied over the sampling period between cut and uncut sites, and live root biomass declined steeply over the growing season in the clearcut plots. Fine root decomposition in the O horizon of harvested plots equalled 35% of the initial standing crop of fine root biomass + necromass in the forest floor of the cut site, and accounted for about one-third of total soil CO2 efflux from the clearcut site during the study period.
Herstatin inhibits heregulin-mediated breast cancer cell growth and overcomes tamoxifen resistance in breast cancer cells that overexpress HER-2

Ligands of the ErbB family of receptors and estrogens control the proliferation of breast cancer cells. Overexpression of human EGF receptor HER-2 (erbB2) leads to amplified heregulin (HRG) signaling, promoting more aggressive breast cancer that is nonresponsive to estrogen and the antiestrogenic drug tamoxifen. Herstatin (Hst), a secreted HER-2 gene product, binds to the HER-2 receptor ectodomain blocking receptor activation. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of this HER-2 inhibitor on HRG-induced signaling, proliferation, and sensitivity to tamoxifen in breast cancer cells with and without HER-2 overexpression. The expression of Hst in MCF7 cells eliminated HRG signaling through both mitogen-activated protein kinase and Akt pathways and prevented HRG-mediated proliferation. The loss in signaling corresponded to downregulation of the HRG receptors, HER-3 and HER-4, whereas HER-2 overexpression strongly stimulated the levels of both HRG receptors. Although Hst blocked HRG signaling in both parental and HER-2 transfected cells, it enhanced sensitivity to tamoxifen only in the MCF7 cells that overexpressed HER-2. To evaluate further the efficacy of Hst as an anticancer agent, His-tagged Hst was expressed in transfected insect cells, purified, and added to the breast cancer cells. As in the transfected cells, purified Hst inhibited HER-3 levels and suppressed HRG-induced proliferation of MCF7 and BT474 breast cancer cells. In contrast, the HER-2 monoclonal antibody, herceptin, downregulated HER-2, but not HER-3. These results suggest the potential use of Hst against HRG-mediated growth of breast cancers with high and low levels of HER-2 and against tamoxifen resistance in HER-2 overexpressing breast cancer.
Teaching information technology using the perry stages

Teaching Information Technology (IT) is a very challenging endeavor because of the constant changes to the software and the hardware every eighteen months to two years and major paradigm shifts every ten years. It is very difficult, if not impossible, to stay up with the current and ever changing IT technology and teach our students with some air of authority. This challenge can lead to frustration for both the teacher and the student. In the 1960s William J Perry, Jr. established his Scheme of Intellectual Development with 9 stages[1]. This model can also be used by IT instructors as a way to lead students to realizing their learning potential and to allow instructors to grow as well. His ideas actually give us a chance to teach the latest technologies without having to be an expert. We professors are also life-long learners and this scheme helps us mature as well. By demonstrating how our own IT learning takes place, we actually encourage students to begin their own journey through the Perry stages.
Modeling entity evolution for temporal record matching

Temporal record matching recognizes that if the entities represented by the records change over time, approaches that use temporal information may do better than approaches that do not. Any such temporal matching method relies at its heart on a temporal model that captures information about how entities evolve. In their pioneering work, Li {\it et al.} used an efficiently computable model that simply tries to predict if an attribute is expected to change over a given time interval. In our work, we propose and evaluate a more detailed model that focuses on the probability that a given attribute value reappears over time. The intuition here is that an entity might change its attribute value in the way that is dependent on its past values. In addition, our model considers sets of records (rather than simply pairs of records) to improve robustness and accuracy. Experimental results show that the resulting approach improves both accuracy and resistance to noise while incurring a minimal overhead.
Environmental influences on neural crest cell migration

Neural crest cells migrate extensively and interact with numerous tissues and extracellular matrix components during their movement. Cell marking techniques have shown that neural crest cells in the trunk of the avian embryo migrate through the anterior, but not posterior, half of each sclerotome and avoid the region around the notochord. A possible mechanism to account for this migratory pattern is that neural crest cells may be inhibited from entering the posterior sclerotome and the perinotochordal space. Thus, interactions with other tissue may prescribe the pattern of neural crest cell migration in the trunk. In contrast, interactions between neural crest cells and the extracellular matrix may mediate the primary interactions controlling neural crest cells migration in the head region.
A new maximality argument for a coupled fluid-structure interaction, with implications for a divergence-free finite element method

We consider a coupled PDE model of various fluid-structure interactions seen in nature. It has recently been shown by the authors [Contemp. Math. 440, 2007] that this model admits of an explicit semigroup generator representation A : D(A) ⊂ H → H, where H is the associated space of fluid-structure initial data. However, the argument for the maximality criterion was indirect, and did not provide for an explicit solution Φ ∈ D(A) of the equation (λI − A)Φ = F for given F ∈ H and λ > 0. The present work reconsiders the proof of maximality for the fluid-structure generator A, and gives an explicit method for solving the said fluid-structure equation. This involves a nonstandard usage of the Babuska–Brezzi Theorem. Subsequently, a finite element method for approximating solutions of the fluid-structure dynamics is developed, based upon our explicit proof of maximality.
Anionic synthesis of epoxy end-capped polymers

The reaction of living anions of polystyrene (PS) or poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) with epibromohydrin for the synthesis of well-defined epoxy end-functionalized polymers is reported. Polyanions were reacted with an excess of epibromohydrin in tetrahydrofuran (THF) at -78°C. The functionalities of the resulting polymers were analyzed by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS), NMR, and size exclusion chromatography (SEC). The epoxy end groups were reacted with 1,1-diphenyl- hexyllithium, and MALDI-TOF MS and NMR before and after this chemical modification were used to determine the presence of the epoxy end groups. The presence of the epoxy end group was confirmed by anionically polymerizing ethylene oxide from these epoxy end group. The formation of a block copolymer due to the epoxy end groups was proved by SEC analysis. The combined MALDI-TOF MS, 1 H NMR, and SEC results indicate that epoxy end-capped PS was obtained in quantitative yield. The method was extended to the synthesis of epoxy end-capped PMMA. With this polymer the extent of end-functionalization was high but not quantitative, with non-dimeric byproducts detected by MALDI-TOF MS.
The Great Divorce: Ethics and Identity

Significant epistemological shifts took place during the modern period that led to the exclusion of ethical constructs of the human self. Subsequently, ethics or morality was systematically divorced from reason and human identity. This has left modern psychologies with impoverished languages for understanding morality and ethics, especially as it relates to human identity. Some of these changes and their subsequent effects are chronicled. Toward this end, three unique influences of the modern era are surveyed. First, it is argued that the nature of reasoning and rationality underwent a significant shift in definition and emphasis, becoming autonomous and secular. Second, it is suggested that the scope of inquiry was restricted to the natural order, creating an immanentization of knowledge. Lastly, it is argued that modernity ushered in a promotion of and preoccupation with the individual subject. The context of each influence are explored, along with a subsection in each describing how the effects of these impacted the growing divorce between ethics and human identity.
Global Proteomic Analysis of Two Tick-Borne Emerging Zoonotic Agents: Anaplasma Phagocytophilum and Ehrlichia Chaffeensis

Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Ehrlichia chaffeensis are obligatory intracellular alpha-proteobacteria that infect human leukocytes and cause potentially fatal emerging zoonoses. In the present study, we determined global protein expression profiles of these bacteria cultured in the human promyelocytic leukemia cell line, HL-60. Mass spectrometric (MS) analyses identified a total of 1,212 A. phagocytophilum and 1,021 E. chaffeensis proteins, representing 89.3% and 92.3% of the predicted bacterial proteomes, respectively. Nearly all bacterial proteins (≥ 99%) with known functions were expressed, whereas only approximately 80% of “hypothetical” proteins were detected in infected human cells. Quantitative MS/MS analyses indicated that highly-expressed proteins in both bacteria included chaperones, enzymes involved in biosynthesis and metabolism, and outer membrane proteins, such as A. phagocytophilum P44 and E. chaffeensis P28/OMP-1. Among 113 A. phagocytophilum p44 paralogous genes, 110 of them were expressed and 88 of them were encoded by pseudogenes. In addition, bacterial infection of HL-60 cells up-regulated the expression of human proteins involved mostly in cytoskeleton components, vesicular trafficking, cell signaling, and energy metabolism, but down-regulated some pattern recognition receptors involved in innate immunity. Our proteomics data represent a comprehensive analysis of A. phagocytophilum and E. chaffeensis proteomes, and provide a quantitative view of human host protein expression profiles regulated by bacterial infection. The availability of these proteomic data will provide new insights into biology and pathogenesis of these obligatory intracellular pathogens.
Variations in experimental carcinogenesis of submandibular gland in three strains of rats

Abstract Strain-specific responses to a carcinogen were studied in 90-day old male Wistar, Sprague-Dawley and Long-Evans rats. Pellets of 9,10-dimethyl-1,2-benzanthracene were implanted in the right submandibular glands of 16 rats of each of the above strains, and responses were studied histologically for latency, susceptibility and specific tumor types. Epidermoid carcinomas, or stages which characteristically precede their formation, were observed in all animals. Microscopic study revealed that while all tumors were essentially similar in the 3 strains the Long-Evans rats developed carcinoma 3 weeks earlier than the Sprague-Dawley and Wistar rats.
An approximate method for calculating depletion and structural interactions between colloidal particles.

An approximate method is evaluated for calculating the second virial coefficient in a dilute macromolecular solution bounded by two interfaces. The approximation is essentially the superposition of the coefficients calculated independently for each surface. To test this approach, the depletion interaction between two particles in a solution of nonadsorbing, spherical macromolecules is calculated in systems with either hard-wall or long-range electrostatic interactions. In all systems tested, the interparticle interaction energy calculated with the approximation is found to be in good agreement with that calculated using the exact approach (e.g., error less than 2% at the smallest separations). The primary advantage of this approximation is a significant reduction in the computation time required for calculating the depletion interaction, especially in charged systems. The paper also shows that the expressions for predicting the depletion interaction in purely hard-sphere systems can be used in dilute ionic systems, provided the appropriate effective macromolecule size is used. For the attractive depletion interaction, this effective size is determined by the range of the particle-macromolecule interaction (as opposed to the macromolecule-macromolecule interaction).
A male with XXYY chromosomes.

Summary In a survey of mentally retarded males with small testes, a man was found whose sex chromosome complement has been interpreted as XXYY. The family history gave no indication as to the origin of the anomaly and various possibilities are discussed. Non-disjunction of the Y-chromosomes at the second meiotic division in spermatogenesis combined with some other accident producing two X-chromosomes in sperm or ovum is postulated. Clinical and pathological investigation revealed a number of physical peculiarities, including absence of most of the left epididymis associated with testicular atrophy. His stature is 6 ft. 5 in. The writers are indebted to many people who have helped them at different points in this investigation. They would like to take this opportunity of thanking Dr D. H. H. Thomas for granting facilities, Mr D. S. Morgan-Jones for obtaining biopsy material, Drs J. Munro Sherriff and I. F. Sommerville for ketosteroid and other endocrine estimations, Miss M. Mann for preparing histological sections, Dr Sarah B. Holt for examining the finger ridge patterns, Miss B. J. Warland for obtaining the family history and Mr C. Payling Wright and Mr N. Bishun for technical assistance.
β2-subunit-containing nicotinic acetylcholine receptors are critical for dopamine-dependent locomotor activation following repeated nicotine administration

Activation of the mesolimbic dopamine system is a critical component underlying addictive behaviors, including smoking. It has been hypothesized that the initial effect of nicotine on the dopamine system is to activate high affinity nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) containing the s2 subunit, but that these receptors rapidly desensitize and are not critical for ongoing dopaminergic activation. To clarify the role of s2-subunit- containing (s2*) nAChRs in activation of the dopamine system and subsequent locomotor activation by repeated nicotine administration, C57BL/6J (B6) mice were administered 200 µg/ml of nicotine in the drinking water and the onset of locomotor activation was measured. B6 mice showed an increase in locomotor activity in response to chronic nicotine which was blocked by oral administration of the dopamine receptor antagonist pimozide. Knockout mice lacking the s2 subunit of the nAChR did not show locomotor activation in response to chronic nicotine exposure, suggesting that s2 * nAChRs are critical for ongoing activation of the dopamine system by chronic nicotine administration and the resulting locomotor activation in mice.
Surveillance of ventilator-associated pneumonia in very-low-birth-weight infants.

Abstract Background: Surveillance of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is an essential part of quality patient care. Very-low-birth-weight (VLBW) infants, many with tracheal microbial colonization and bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), comprise a difficult group in whom to make a diagnosis of pneumonia with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) criteria for infants younger than 1 year. Objective: Our objective was to retrospectively compare VAP surveillance diagnoses made by the hospital infection control practitioner (ICP) with those made by a panel of experts with the same clinical and laboratory evidence and supportive radiologic data. A secondary objective was to compare radiologic diagnosis of pneumonia made by the general hospital radiologists, by the panel of experts, and by a pediatric radiologist from another hospital. Study Population: Thirty-seven VLBW infants identified as at risk for VAP by the ICP on the basis of a positive bacterial tracheal culture and the application of CDC criteria for the definition of pneumonia were studied. Methods: Clinical and laboratory evidence and routine radiologic reports made by the general radiologist were reviewed independently by a panel of experts composed of 3 experienced neonatologists. Chest x-rays from the day before, day of, and day after the surveillance date were reviewed separately by the 3 neonatologists and also by a pediatric radiologist. Results: After inter-reader reliability was found satisfactory (kappa's coefficient, 0.47-0.75; P
Physical phenomena of char–slag transition in pulverized coal gasification

Abstract Performance of entrained-flow coal gasifiers is in large part dictated by the burnout behavior of coal particles. In particular, the transition from porous, reactive char to molten, low reactive slag affects overall coal conversion. In this work, the physical phenomena associated with char–slag transition were studied for three coals using a laminar entrained-flow reactor under simulated gasification conditions. Partially oxidized particles with various conversions were prepared at temperatures above the ash fluid temperatures. The physical properties of the char and slag particles were characterized, including the particle density, size, internal surface area and morphology. Results show that at a coal-dependent critical conversion, the particles undergo remarkable physical changes, such as density increase, size reduction and surface area decrease. These phenomena indicate the char–slag transition.
A new set of population balance equations for microbial and cell cultures

Abstract Population balance equations for microbial or cell cultures contain a state-dependent fission intensity function which is such that the product of this function, evaluated at a given state, and a differential increment of time is the fraction of cells of the given state that divide in that increment of time. Ways to determine experimentally how the fission intensity function depends on cell state have been proposed but, so far as is known to the authors, no one has yet proposed a model that would predict what the state dependence of the fission intensity function is for any population. If one wants to take account of the existence of cell cycle phases, one will have to write a population balance equation for each phase, a transition intensity function for each phase will have to be introduced, and the problem of making models for these functions will arise again, and in multiplied fashion. In this paper, we describe a new and different approach which circumvents the necessity of having intensity functions for transitions between cell cycle phases, and for which the fission intensity function is state-independent.
Antigen-induced enhancement of bronchial reactivity.

Bronchial hyperreactivity as determined by the airway response to methacholine was evaluated pre- and postantigen challenge in three patients with specific antigen sensitivity. No significant change in pulmonary function was noticed after inhalation of antigen alone. However, transient but significant increase in methacholine responsiveness followed the antigen challenge. The studies indicate a need for a nonspecific inhalation challenge following a negative antigen challenge when clinically indicated.
Integrin αMβ2 Orchestrates and Accelerates Plasminogen Activation and Fibrinolysis by Neutrophils

Plasmin, the pivotal thrombolytic enzyme, is generated on the surface of many cell types, where urokinase receptor (uPAR)-bound urokinase (uPA) activates cell-bound plasminogen (Plg). It has been reported that neutrophils mediate endogenous thrombolysis involving a uPA-dependent mechanism, and we previously demonstrated that both uPAR and integrin alpha(M)beta(2) recognize uPA to control cell migration and adhesion. In the present study, we report that the alpha(M)beta(2) regulates neutrophil-dependent fibrinolysis. Phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA)-stimulated but not resting neutrophils dissolved fibrin clots, and this activity was not only uPA- and Plg-dependent but also alpha(M)beta(2)-dependent. Purified alpha(M)beta(2) directly bound uPA (K(d) = 40 nm) and Plg (K(d) = 1 microm) in a dose-dependent and saturable manner. In Plg activation assays, addition of purified alpha(M)beta(2), but not a control protein, to a single chain uPA (sc-uPA)/Plg mixture, decreased the K(m) from 2 to 0.1 microm, thereby augmenting the overall reaction efficiency by 50-fold. The binding of sc-uPA to alpha(M)beta(2) was critical for the alpha(M)beta(2)-mediated enhancement of plasmin (Plm) generation, because this effect was lost when WT-sc-uPA was replaced with a kringle-less mutant (DeltaK-sc-uPA), which does not bind to alpha(M)beta(2). Plm inactivation by alpha(2)-antiplasmin was significantly delayed when Plm was preincubated with purified, soluble alpha(M)beta(2). When Plg was added to PMA-stimulated neutrophils, both uPA and Plg were co-immunoprecipitated with alpha(M)beta(2.) Thus, assembly of Plg and uPA on integrin alpha(M)beta(2) regulates Plm activity and, thereby, plays a crucial role in neutrophil-mediated thrombolysis.
Age-related memory deficits in Swiss mice

The performance of young (3–5 months) and aged (20–21 months) Swiss mice on a step-down passive-avoidance task was compared in two separate experimental paradigms. Preliminary shock sensitivity testing demonstrated that response thresholds did not differ significantly between young and aged mice. Aged mice trained on a single-trial step-down procedure demonstrated significant retention deficits compared to young mice at a 24-hr training-testing interval, but not a 2-hr interval. Separate groups of mice were trained to a 180-sec criterion of avoidance and tested daily for retention over 10 days following acquisition training. Aged mice tended to step-down sooner than young animals. These data suggest age-related retention deficits in the Swiss mouse for step-down passive avoidance without significant alterations in shock sensitivity.
Methods of least squares and SIRT in reconstruction.

Abstract In this paper we show that a particular version of the Simultaneous Iterative Reconstruction Technique (SIRT) proposed by Gilbert in 1972 strongly resembles the Richardson least-squares algorithm. By adopting the adjustable parameters of the general Richardson algorithm, we have been able to produce generalized SIRT algorithms with improved convergence. A particular generalization of the SIRT algorithm, GSIRT, has an adjustable parameter σ and the starting picture ρ0 as input. A value 1 2 for σ and a weighted back-projection for ρ0 produce a stable algorithm. We call the SIRT-like algorithms for the solution of the weighted leastsquares problems LSIRT and present two such algorithms, LSIRT1 and LSIRT2, which have definite computational advantages over SIRT and GSIRT. We have tested these methods on mathematically simulated phantoms and find that the new SIRT methods converge faster than Gilbert's SIRT but are more sensitive to noise present in the data. However, the faster convergence rates allow termination before the noise contribution degrades the reconstructed image excessively.
A Comparison of Alternative Obstacle Avoidance Strategies for Vehicle Control

SUMMARY In Alleyne (1996) several vehicle control options were considered for Unintended Roadway Departure (URD) prevention and conclusions were drawn as to the efficacy of each method. This companion paper investigates the use of several different inputs for the control of a vehicle, in the context of Obstacle Avoidance for autonomous vehicles. In this investigation, the goal of the controller is to provide an intervention in the event of the vehicle detecting an obstacle in its path. The five types of inputs that will be considered are (i) Four Wheel Steering; (ii) Front Wheel Steering; (iii) Four Wheel Brake Steering; (iv) Front Wheel Brake Steering; and (v) Rear Wheel Brake Steering. The controller design is an LQ controller based on the simplified dynamics of a 2 degree of freedom bicycle model. However, the analysis of the different strategies are performed on a more complete, nonlinear vehicle model. A key contribution of this paper is the quantitative evaluation of the relative efficiencies of eac...
Regional Differences in Personality of Afroc-American Children

Summary This study was designed to determine whether regional differences could be found in an Afro-American population as they had been in previous studies of the general population. With the use of the Coan-Cattell Early School Questionnaire, 120 children from two different cities were compared by region, sex, and age. An analysis of variance revealed no differences within groups but found differences according to regions, along with some expected age differences. It was concluded that if geographical differences are considered along with those usually found for socioeconomic status, age, and sex, perhaps ethnicity is not nearly as important a variable as is currently maintained.
FGFs: Neurodevelopment’s Jack-of-all-Trades – How Do They Do it?

From neurulation to postnatal processes, the importance of FGF signaling in many aspects of neural precursor cell biology has been well documented. However, identifying a need for FGFs in a neurogenic process provides only an initial and superficial understanding of what FGF signaling is doing. How FGFs specify cell types in one instance, yet promote cell survival, proliferation, migration, or differentiation in other instances remains largely unknown and is key to understanding how they function. This review describes what we have learned primarily from in vivo vertebrate studies about the roles of FGF signaling in neurulation, anterior-posterior patterning of the neural plate, brain patterning from local signaling centers, and finally neocortex development as an example of continued roles for FGFs within the same brain area. The potential explanations for the diverse functions of FGFs through differential interactions with cell intrinsic and extrinsic factors is then discussed with an emphasis on how little we know about the modulation of FGF signaling in vivo. A clearer picture of the mechanisms involved, however, is nevertheless essential to understand the behavior of neural precursor cells and to potentially guide their fates for therapeutic purposes.
The Relational Motif in Participatory Qualitative Research

The relationship between researchers and the researched is at the center of qualitative research, particularly participatory research. In this article, I describe the nature of this relationship in...
Linking Contextual Affordances: Examining Racial–Ethnic Socialization and Parental Career Support Among African American College Students

This exploratory investigation examined the link between self-reported racial–ethnic socialization experiences and perceived parental career support among African American undergraduate and graduat...
Mid-Jurassic volcanic structures in the Outer Moray Firth Basin, UK

3D seismic mapping in the southern part of Quadrant 15 in the Outer Moray Firth Basin reveals an array of circular to oval downthrown blocks bound by steep ring faults. These lows affect Triassic and older strata, are approximately 1.5–2 km in diameter and 0.5–1 km deep. The footwall crests of the structures now lie at a depth of c. 2.5 km. Several alternative causal mechanisms for these circular fault blocks are examined including salt dissolution, strike-slip pull-apart and impact cratering, but in terms of geological and geometrical criteria, the most likely mechanism appears to be small calderas or diatreme-conduit collapse. Seismic data indicates that the circular structures cut Triassic, Permian and Devono-Carboniferous strata and are infilled with pre-Upper Oxfordian sediments, therefore they are broadly synchronous with Mid-Jurassic volcanism–local well control demonstrates the presence of several thousand feet of basalt tuffs and lavas. The model proposed here to account for the circular structures consists of an initial phase of diatreme/maar cratering as magmas associated with the Rattray Volcanics Member intruded shallow aquifers in the Pentland Formation fluviodeltaic rocks. These maars enlarged and deepened via conduit wall collapse, supplemented by downsag-faulting due to magma withdrawal. The post-volcanic evolution of the structures included (1) differential erosion creating accommodation space which may have been infilled with Oxfordian reservoir sands and (2) local reactivation by underlying basement faults in the Kimmeridgian.
Early history of quantum electronics

All the ideas essential to making a laser were known before 1930, but there was no operating laser before 1960. So why didn't the laser come sooner? There are several reasons. One important impedim...
Further studies on the stimulation of hepatic microsomal drug metabolizing enzymes by DDT and its analogs

DDT is a long-lasting stimulator of drug metabolism in rats. This persistence of effect may be related to the long-lasting storage of DDT in body fat. Starvation of rats previously exposed to DDT can re-induce activation of hepatic drug metabolism, apparently by mobilizing DDT from body fat. Stimulation of hepatic drug metabolism can be demonstrated in rats maintained on diets containing as little as 5 ppm of DDT. All analogs and metabolites of DDT which were tested were active as stimulators of hepatic drug metabolism in the rat. However, only DDE was equipotent as a stimulator. Metabolism of DDT beyond DDE may reduce the ability of the molecule to function as an activator of hepatic microsomal enzymes. There may be a species difference in response of hepatic enzymes to DDT or its metabolites. A stimulation of hepatic drug metabolism by DDT or its analogs given as a single or repeated (daily for 3 days) injection could not be clearly demonstrated in mice. DDT and its analogs are the only insecticides tested which show this specific difference-chlordane and related structures markedly stimulate drug metabolism in both rats and mice.
Tl-Ca-Ba-Cu-O superconducting oxides

This paper reviews structural studies of Tl-Ca-Ba-Cu-O superconducting oxides by the authors and others and points out directions for future work.
On the selection probabilities of two-stage decision procedures

Abstract This paper presents some general results on the selection probabilities of various two-stage decision procedures. Simple proofs are given for some least favorable configuration results which have hitherto required very intricate and complicated proofs. Furthermore, the results given here are more general than previous results because they allow more general distributional assumptions and more varied selection procedures. In addition, these results provide more information on the selection probabilities than has previously been available. Extensions to multistage decision procedures and stronger least favorable configuration results are discussed.
Central vs. peripheral effects of estrogen on food intake and lipoprotein lipase activity in ovariectomized rats

The effects of implants of estradiol benzoate (EB) into either the ventromedial nucleus (VMH-EB) or the paraventricular nucleus (PVN-EB) of the hypothalamus were compared to the effects of peripheral EB (Per-EB) replacement in ovariectomized rats. After three days of hormone treatment, the Per-EB group and the PVN-EB group exhibited a decrease in food intake and body weight. Adipose tissue lipoprotein lipase activity was generally suppressed for the Per-EB, PVN-EB, and VMH-EB groups in the left and right parametrial and retroperitoneal fat pads. The finding that the VMH-EB and PVN-EB groups experienced similar peripheral stimulation but differed on the food intake and body weight measures would suggest that these measures are not entirely under peripheral control. The findings support the hypothesis that estrogen exerts its effects via multiple mechanisms, both central and peripheral. In addition, the PVN is shown to be an important site for further research on the modulation of feeding and metabolism by estrogen.
Factors Influencing Rotary Performance

(1949). Factors Influencing Rotary Performance. The Journal of Psychology: Vol. 28, No. 1, pp. 65-92a.
+−Photorefractive CdSe and Gold Nanowire-Doped Liquid Crystals and Polymer-Dispersed-Liquid-Crystal Photonic Crystals

ABSTRACT We have observed enhanced photorefractive responses in CdSe doped nematic liquid crystal cells. The effective intensity dependent refractive index coefficients are on the order of 10−2 cm2/Watt. Using polymer-dispersed mixture of these NLC, 3-D photonic crystals are fabricated by short-exposure direct holographic optical illumination. The resultant structure exhibits 3-D photonic crystal Bragg diffraction and multi-color reflections that can be electronically switched at millisecond speed. Enhanced diffraction efficiency is obtained by doping the liquid crystal with gold nanowires.
SYNAPTONEMAL COMPLEX KARYOTYPING OF TRADESCANTIA ZYGOTENE NUCLEI

Zygotene synaptonemal complex karyotyping of five strains of diploid Tradescantia was carried out using the whole mount spreading technique. The presence of pairing partner switches in the zygotene preparations suggested the presence of chromosomal structural heterozygosity. Metaphase and Anaphase I analysis confirmed the presence of heterozygous translocations and inversions. Two plants analyzed had large centric fragments. In a nucleus from one the fragments were completely synapsed; in a nucleus from the other, there was very little synapsis. Difficulties arose in adapting the whole mount spreading technique to the long Tradescantia chromosomes. Variability was encountered in both the contrast obtained and in the degree to which the chromosomal axes were stretched. Possible sources of the variability are discussed. HOMOLOGOUS chromosomes become closely associated during prophase of meiosis. Electron microscopy studies have revealed that a tripartite structure occurs between these synapsed chromosomes which serves as a kind of analog of the chromosomes themselves. This structure, called the synaptonemal complex (SC), consists of two lateral and one central element. Prior to synapsis each homolog has a longitudinal axis, which will represent its pairing face. The lateral component occurs along this axis. As the SC is formed, the two lateral components of each homolog become the lateral elements (LE) of the SC. The 10S 120 nm distance between the two LE's defines the central region. The central element lies within the central region. Biochemical studies indicate that the lateral and central elements are largely proteinaceous. (For reviews, see Moses, 1968; Westergaard and von Wettstein
Response selection properties of food and brain-stimulation reinforcers in rats.

Abstract Rats were exposed to a differential conditioning procedure in which one lever-stimulus predicted a food UCS (for one group) or a brain-stimulation UCS (for 2 other groups) while a second lever-stimulus was explicitly unpaired with the UCS. A fourth group received differential training where one lever-stimulus signalled food and the other brain-stimulation. The animals reliably approached and contacted the predictive stimuli with there being no significant difference in this tendency between groups. There was, however, a significant difference in the form of the stimulus contact behavior as a function of the quality of the UCS. Rats gnawed the stimulus when the UCS was food but sniffed it when the UCS was brain-stimulation. This difference was independent of the level of food deprivation and occurred within animals in the group which received both kinds of UCS. The results indicate that properties specific to the reinforcer are important in response performance. Such effects should be considered in the analysis of performance on instrumental tasks, especially when concern is focussed on performance differences which are correlated with qualitatively different rewards.
Metabolism of trichloroethylene in the bovine.

SummaryFollowing the oral administration of 3 to 12 g of trichloroethylene to calves weighing about 100 lb, about 1% of this compound was excreted in the urine as trichloroacetic acid and from 13 to 25% as trichloro-ethanol (free and combined). Only traces of trichloroethylene were excreted in the urine. No trichloroacetaldehyde could be demonstrated in the urine with the method used. Some of the metabolic products of trichloroethylene in the bovine are the same as those produced by man and dogs.
THE RESPIRATORY CHANGES OF PRESSURE AT THE VARIOUS LEVELS OF THE POSTERIOR MEDIASTINUM.

The changes of the respiratory pressure within the esophagus, as well as within the posterior mediastinum, differ greatly in their various levels. They are best in the section between the heart and the diaphragm; they are moderate from the upper aperture of the thorax to above the tracheal bifurcation, and they are. very much reduced in the region of the bifurcation and the heart. In the latter case the normal respiratory changes are reduced in their transmission to the mediastinum by the intervention of the inelastic tissues of the bifurcation and the heart. The difference in the changes of the respiratory pressure between the low^er and the upper part of the mediastinum is due to a difference in the respiratory changes of pressure between the lower and upper parts of the lungs. The changes in the respiratory pressure which begin in the lower part of the lungs lose some of their force on their way to the apices of. the lungs. In artificial respiration by intratracheal insufflation there is no difference in the respiratory pressures between the upper and the lower parts of the lungs. This investigation supports the view, frequently entertained by clinicians, that the respiratory changes in the apices of the lungs are not as good as those of the rest of the lungs, and it disproves the claim of some physiologists that a decrease or increase of pressure at any part of the lungs must be equally distributed through all parts of the lungs, a claim based upon merely a priori physical considerations.