cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Dynamic ecological system analysis: A holistic analysis of compartmental systems.

Abstract This article develops a new mathematical method for holistic analysis of nonlinear dynamic compartmental systems in the context of ecology. The method is based on the novel dynamic system and subsystem partitioning methodologies through which compartmental systems are decomposed to the utmost level. The dynamic system and subsystem partitioning enable tracking the evolution of the initial stocks, environmental inputs, and intercompartmental system flows, as well as the associated storages derived from these stocks, inputs, and flows individually and separately within the system. Moreover, the transient and the dynamic direct, indirect, acyclic, cycling, and transfer (diact) flows and associated storages transmitted along a given flow path or from one compartment, directly or indirectly, to any other are analytically characterized, systematically classified, and mathematically formulated. Further, the article develops a dynamic technique based on the diact transactions for the quantitative classification of interspecific interactions and the determination of their strength within food webs. Major concepts and quantities of the current static network analyses are also extended to nonlinear dynamic settings and integrated with the proposed dynamic measures and indices within the proposed unifying mathematical framework. Therefore, the proposed methodology enables a holistic view and analysis of ecological systems. We consider that this methodology brings a novel complex system theory to the service of urgent and challenging environmental problems of the day and has the potential to lead the way to a more formalistic ecological science.
Completed Notes: Finding Critical Form

Performers who make work with disunified audiences try to think through how performative practices can contribute to different approaches to politics as they work with people they do not know. These performers also offer strategies to the critic for keeping this not-knowing alive on the journey so that each responds to respecting the disunified ways of becoming of the participants. And keeping the situated process going through their practice is one way they generate ways of engaging and changing. Without this change there is no energy for breath, let alone action, let alone aiming at sociopolitical formations. Discursive politics are founded on the lived changing of daily ecologies emerging through the rhetorics of performativity that generate the agencies of collaborative groups. And those ecologies are founded on the politics of practice.
Mind-Body Professionalism.

It was a September morning, and as I walked into my second-year endodontic resident’s operatory, I experienced her acting completely differently from what I had previously observed. She was moving fast, talking fast, and setting up her bracket tray at turbo speed. I was about to mentor her on her
The influence of seagrass donor source on small‐scale transplant resilience

Concern for conservation of seagrass habitat has prompted international transplantation‐style restoration efforts. A recent review of these restoration efforts has highlighted the low success associated with small‐scale restorations, yet scaling up transplantation effort may be too costly for underfunded regions. Small‐scale transplant survival can be enhanced with alleviation of two underlying issues: restoration site selection and donor site selection. To investigate appropriate donor source selection, donor site environmental influence on seagrass (Halodule wrightii) transplant survival was examined by transplanting donor cores from two environmentally disparate sites to a transplantation site with limited environmental uncertainties. Donor sites were chosen to represent either end of a benthic light gradient (high versus low) to elucidate seagrass resilience to transplantation stress, with respect to donor site conditions. After total loss of the first trial, a second trial was conducted with stabilizing mesh placed over transplants to reduce stingray bioturbation. The second trial resulted in 100% survival of high light transplants after 12 months and moderate survival (30–60%) of low light transplants for the first six months. At 18 months, the second trial ended after sediment burial from a hurricane. One year post‐burial, a patch of H. wrightii recovered at the high light transplant site; after six years the patch expanded to approximately 74 m², an area 37‐fold larger than originally planted. Results from this transplant experiment provide evidence that donor environment plays a role in transplant resilience. The transplants sourced from high light had 47% greater leaf area per shoot, were more resistant to transplantation stress, and recovered following an extreme event relative to low light transplants. Therefore, selection of donor plants with more resilience features, a transplantation site with limited environmental uncertainties, and adaptive intervention can enhance seagrass resilience at a small planting scale.
Effect of olive vegetation water and compost extracts on seed germination of four weed species

Abstract Weed management has historically been recognized as one of the main challenges in crop production systems, especially in organic farming settings. Innovative and environment-friendly weed management tools are much needed to overcome weed herbicide resistance and minimize agricultural footprint and energy use. The objective of this study was to test the effect of four dilution levels of olive vegetation water (OVW) and three pomace/compost extracts on seed germination of redroot pigweed (Amaranthus retroflexus L.), little mallow (Malva parviflora L.), common purslane (Portulaca oleracea L.), and common sowthistle (Sonchus oleraceus L.). In the first experiment, four dilutions (100 %, 75 %, 50 %, or 25 %) of OVW and a tap water control treatment were prepared. In the second experiment, extracts were prepared from raw olive pomace, olive/dairy manure mix compost or dairy manure-based compost. For each treatment and species, 100 seeds were divided into 10 Petri dishes. A 2 mL solution from each of the treatments above was applied to each Petri dish and incubated in a growth chamber for 24 days. Redroot pigweed was the most sensitive to OVW treatments, with germination rate dropping from 30 % in the control treatment to 1–4 % for all OVW levels on day 8 after application. In common sowthistle, full strength OVW (OVW100) caused a germination delay of 4 days compared to the control. In little mallow, OVW100 decreased germination rate throughout the duration of the experiment, while OVW75 slightly increased the germination rate after 12 days of application, apparently overcoming seed dormancy. For common purslane, the three higher OVW concentrations decreased germination rate during the first six days. Compost extracts had little effect on weed seed germination, with some of them initially depressing germination in some species or tending to accelerate little mallow germination in the second half of the incubation period. Overall, this study shows that OVW can be used to control weeds or otherwise stimulate their germination so that they can be controlled using other means before planting. This material could possibly be used to deplete the soil weed seed bank.
Structured and Unstructured Activities and Alcohol and Marijuana Use in Middle School: The Role of Availability and Engagement.

Background: Behavioral Theories of Choice applied to substance use suggests that use depends on availability of substances and alternative activities. Applying this theory to younger adolescents of...
Salivary Excretion of Renal‐Clearable Silver Nanoparticles

Salivary elimination is an important pathway for the body to excrete small molecules with digestive enzymes. However, very few engineered nanoparticles can be excreted through salivary glands, which often host bacteria or viruses during infection and involve in disease transmission. Herein, we report that renal clearable glutathione coated AgNPs (GS-AgNPs) can selectively accumulate in the submandibular salivary gland, followed by being excreted in its excretory duct. By conducting head-to-head comparison on in vivo transport and interactions of both GS-AgNPs and glutathione coated gold nanoparticles (GS-AuNPs) with the same sizes, we found that low-density GS-AgNPs showed much higher vascular permeability than GS-AuNPs and can rapidly penetrate into submandibular salivary glands, be efficiently taken up by striated and excretory duct cells, and eventually secreted into saliva.
Apart Yet Together: Virtual 2020 NSLS-II and CFN Users’ Meeting

The 2020 virtual Users’ Meeting highlighted the ongoing commitment to research at NSLS-II.From May 18 to 20, more than 1500 registered attendees from 37 countries around the world participated in t...
P-Rex1 Mediates Glucose-Stimulated Rac1 Activation and Insulin Secretion in Pancreatic β-Cells.

Background/aims Despite the published evidence implicating phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3-kinase) in the regulation of islet function, limited information is available on the putative contributory roles of its downstream signaling steps, including the phosphatidylinositol-3,4,5-trisphosphate-dependent Rac exchange factor 1 (P-Rex1) signaling pathway in the islet β-cell. Therefore, we investigated potential roles for P-Rex1 in glucose-stimulated Rac1 activation and insulin secretion in insulin-secreting (INS-1 832/13) β-cells. Methods Glucose-stimulated Insulin secretion (GSIS) was quantified by ELISA. Expression of endogenous P-Rex1 and RhoG was suppressed by siRNA transfection using the DharmaFect1 reagent. Total membrane and cytosolic fractions were isolated using the Mem-PER Plus Membrane Extraction Kit. The degree of activation of Rac1 was determined by the pull-down assay. Results P-Rex1 is expressed in INS-1 832/13 cells, normal rat islets and human islets. siRNA-mediated knockdown of P-Rex1 attenuated glucose-induced Rac1 activation, membrane association and insulin secretion. RhoG, which has been implicated in PI3-kinase-mediated Rac1 activation in other cell types, appears not to contribute to GSIS since the siRNA-mediated knockdown of RhoG failed to exert significant effects on GSIS. LY294002, a known inhibitor of PI3-kinase, potentiated GSIS without affecting glucose-induced Rac1 activation. Conclusion Based on these findings, we conclude that P-Rex1 plays a novel regulatory role in glucose-induced Rac1 activation and insulin secretion.
Waiver of Venue under the National Bank Act: Preferential Treatment for National Banks

In Mercantile National Bank v. Langdeau, the United States Supreme Court interpreted the venue provision of the National Bank Act to be fully effective and mandatory. Thus, national banks may be sued only in the district or county where they are established. The terms "established" and "located", within the meaning of the Act, signify only that district or county where a national bank is chartered and has its principal place of business. It has been argued that the rationale underlying the waiver of venue rule favoring national banks over other litigants is no longer viable. The retention of such a rule hinders, rather than promotes, the goal of assuring fundamental fairness to all parties. This Article will analyze the waiver of venue question in two different settings. First, the subject of branch banking will be discussed; namely, whether the establishment of a branch bank is a sufficient action to constitute a waiver. Second, other business transactions, not amounting to branch banking, will be considered. The Article also provides an analysis of the major cases representing the majority and minority views in regard to the waiver of venue issue. The final part of this Article will propose a correct solution to this troublesome and important issue.
A case study of ascertainment bias for the primary outcome in the Strategies to Reduce Injuries and Develop Confidence in Elders (STRIDE) trial.

Background/aim In clinical trials, there is potential for bias from unblinded observers that may influence ascertainment of outcomes. This issue arose in the Strategies to Reduce Injuries and Develop Confidence in Elders trial, a cluster randomized trial to test a multicomponent intervention versus enhanced usual care (control) to prevent serious fall injuries, originally defined as a fall injury leading to medical attention. An unblinded nurse falls care manager administered the intervention, while the usual care arm did not involve contact with a falls care manager. Thus, there was an opportunity for falls care managers to refer participants reporting falls to seek medical attention. Since this type of observer bias could not occur in the usual care arm, there was potential for additional falls to be reported in the intervention arm, leading to dilution of the intervention effect and a reduction in study power. We describe the clinical basis for ascertainment bias, the statistical approach used to assess it, and its effect on study power. Methods The prespecified interim monitoring plan included a decision algorithm for assessing ascertainment bias and adapting (revising) the primary outcome definition, if necessary. The original definition categorized serious fall injuries requiring medical attention into Type 1 (fracture other than thoracic/lumbar vertebral, joint dislocation, cut requiring closure) and Type 2 (head injury, sprain or strain, bruising or swelling, other). The revised definition, proposed by the monitoring plan, excluded Type 2 injuries that did not necessarily require an overnight hospitalization since these would be most subject to bias. These injuries were categorized into those with (Type 2b) and without (Type 2c) medical attention. The remaining Type 2a injuries required medical attention and an overnight hospitalization. We used the ratio of 2b/(2b + 2c) in intervention versus control as a measure of ascertainment bias; ratios > 1 indicated the likelihood of falls care manager bias. We determined the effect of ascertainment bias on study power for the revised (Types 1 and 2a) versus original definition (Types 1, 2a, and 2b). Results The estimate of ascertainment bias was 1.14 (95% confidence interval: 0.98, 1.30), providing evidence of the likelihood of falls care manager bias. We estimated that this bias diluted the hazard ratio from the hypothesized 0.80 to 0.86 and reduced power to under 80% for the original primary outcome definition. In contrast, adapting the revised definition maintained study power at nearly 90%. Conclusion There was evidence of ascertainment bias in the Strategies to Reduce Injuries and Develop Confidence in Elders trial. The decision to adapt the primary outcome definition reduced the likelihood of this bias while preserving the intervention effect and study power.
Benchmarking Unmanned Aerial Systems-Assisted Inspection of Steel Bridges for Fatigue Cracks:

Inspection agencies have been increasingly implementing unmanned aerial systems (UAS) for bridge inspections. Currently, UAS are typically used for long-range monitoring and surveillance tasks, but...
Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors and Kidney Toxicity: Advances in Diagnosis and Management

Immune checkpoint inhibitors are now approved for more than 50 indications, and increasing numbers of patients with advanced cancer are receiving immunotherapy. Immune-related adverse events that result from checkpoint inhibitors can affect any organ system. The most common kidney side effect is acute kidney injury, typically caused by acute interstitial nephritis. This review covers the most recent advances in immune checkpoint inhibitor-induced acute kidney injury. The review focuses on the differences between checkpoint inhibitor classes in causing acute kidney injury and differentiating immune checkpoint inhibitor-induced kidney damage from other causes of acute kidney injury. We describe the appropriate use of a kidney biopsy in the diagnosis of acute kidney injury and highlight the need for identification of noninvasive diagnostic and predictive biomarkers of immune checkpoint inhibitor-induced acute kidney injury. In the treatment section, approaches to corticosteroid use and the risks and benefits of rechallenging patients who experience acute kidney injury are debated. We also clarify the long-term adverse effects of immune checkpoint inhibitors on kidney function and the risk of chronic kidney disease in cancer survivors.
Daily Functionality in Adults with POTS: Predictive Factors.

Symptoms associated with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) hinder overall functionality. This study examined factors that impacted daily life and contributed to overall daily functionality in adults with POTS (n = 958, ages 18-60). Descriptive and multiple linear regression analyses indicated that participants with fewer challenges in ADLs, IADLs, work, school, leisure, and socializing had overall better functionality. Furthermore, 'younger age with exercise tolerance', 'having a job', and 'no falls in the last year' were predictors of better functionality. A comprehensive approach to addressing physical, environmental, and psychological factors could help improve overall functionality and enhance quality of life in individuals with POTS.
Heart Rate Behaviour During Partial Epileptic Seizures. An Electroclinical Study

The behaviour of the heart rate during 75 partial epilepsy seizures was studied in adult patients. Seizure occurrence and character were analyzed by combining the recording of the electrocerebral activity (scalp EEG in all cases; direct brain recording through stereotactically implanted electrodes in 5 patients) and the TV monitoring of the clinical manifestations.
Crown structure and biomass allocation strategies of three juvenile tropical tree species

We measured leaf distribution, crown shape, and biomass allocation patterns in open-grown saplings of three tree species (Cedrela odorata, Cordia alliodora, and Hyeronima alchorneoides) that differed in above-ground architecture and successional status. The objectives were to: (1) analyze the relationship between crown structure and biomass allocation in free-growing juveniles and (2) assess whether predictions that relate crown structure and biomass distribution of adult individuals can be applied to noncompeting saplings. Significant differences in crown structure and biomass allocation were found among the three species. Mean dry biomass was 990 g in Cedrela, 665 g, in Cordia, and 1281 g in Hyeronima. Cedrela allocated a greater proportion of biomass into roots than the other two species. We observed no distinct pattern of foliage angle, and no evidence of decrease in crown construction efficiency with tree size. Predictions stated by other authors for mature individuals partially explained the relationships between biomass allocation and morphological variables of non-competing saplings. We proposed two alternative biomass allocation patterns: (1) in open conditions saplings of early successional species exhibit structural characteristics more adapted for high light levels than gap-dependent species, and (2) early successional species have lower cost-benefit ratio for biomass construction and higher foliar efficiency than late successional ones. In general, crown morphometric characteristics and biomass distribution patterns of the three species studied corresponded with the two proposed patterns.
A general method for solving dynamically accelerating multiple co-linear cracks

We present a general method for analyzing dynamically accelerating multiple co-linear cracks that can be applied to the contexts of plane strain or antiplane shear in an elastic material. The difficulty in solving such problems lies in the fact that the space-time regions containing known data evolve as the crack propagates in an a priori unknown manner. Using an analog to a Dirichlet-to-Neumann map, we can find complete knowledge of the stress and displacement along the fracture plane, facilitating the application of fracture criteria that require these values away from the crack tip. The method is demonstrated for a semi-infinite or finite mode III crack as well as for a pair of cracks in elastic material, using a stress intensity factor fracture criterion for simplicity.
Essay: Professionalism - Behind the Veil of Ignorance

Lawyers should reflect on their role purged of self-interest and consider professionalism from the viewpoint of the public interest.
Dopamine-β-hydroxylase activity and ethanol-induced sleep time in selectively bred and heterogeneous stock mice

Dopamine-fS-hydroxylase (DBH), the enzyme responsible for the conversion of dopamine to norepinephrine, was measured in the plasma of two lines of mice selectively bred for differential sensitivity to hypnotic doses of ethanol. Plasma levels of DBH were measured by radioenzymatic assay in long sleep (LS) and short sleep (SS) male and female mice which had no prior exposure to ethanol. LS mice had ,significantly higher plasma DBH activity than did SS mice, although no significant sex difference was found. Fusaric acid, an inhibitor of both central and peripheral DBH, attenuated sleep time induced by either 3 or 4 g/kg ethanol in mice of a heterogeneous genetic stock. The results of these experiments may further implicate noradrenergic systems in mediating some of the depressed effects of ethanol.
First-principles calculations of atomic and electronic structure of SrTiO 3 (001) and (011) surfaces

We present and discuss the results of the calculations of surface relaxation and rumpling on ${\text{SrTiO}}_{3}$ (001) and (011) surfaces. We consider both SrO and ${\text{TiO}}_{2}$ terminations of the (001) surface, and three terminations (Sr, TiO, and O) of the polar (011) surface. The calculations are based on hybrid Hartree--Fock and density-functional theory exchange functionals by using Becke's three-parameter method combined with the nonlocal correlation functionals of Perdew and Wang. We find that all top-layer atoms for ${\text{TiO}}_{2}$ and SrO-terminated ${\text{SrTiO}}_{3}$ (001) surfaces relax inward, with the exception of SrO-terminated surface O atoms, whereas all second-layer atoms relax outward. The surface rumpling for the TiO-terminated ${\text{SrTiO}}_{3}$ (011) surface, which is 11.28% of the bulk lattice constant, is considerably larger than the relevant surface rumplings for SrO and ${\text{TiO}}_{2}$-terminated (001) surfaces. The surface rumplings for the SrO and ${\text{TiO}}_{2}$-terminated (001) surfaces are in excellent agreement with relevant low-energy electron diffraction and reflection high-energy electron diffraction experimental data, and the surface relaxation energies on both surfaces are similar. In contrast, the different terminations of the (011) surface lead to large differences in relaxation energies. The O-terminated (011) surface has the lowest surface relaxation energy $(\ensuremath{-}1.32\text{ }\text{eV})$. The TiO-terminated (011) surface has a much higher surface relaxation energy of $\ensuremath{-}1.55\text{ }\text{eV}$, while the Sr-terminated (011) surface has the highest surface relaxation energy $(\ensuremath{-}1.95\text{ }\text{eV})$. Our calculations indicate a considerable increase in the Ti-O bond covalency $(0.130e)$ near the TiO-terminated (011) surface relative to the bulk $(0.088e)$, which is much larger than that for the (001) surface $(0.118e)$. The Ti-O bond populations are considerably larger in the direction perpendicular to the TiO-terminated (011) surface $(0.188e)$ than in the plane $(0.130e)$.
Molecular Origin of Species

The making of new species is a fundamental step in evolution, and the molecular basis of this process is just beginning to be worked out, say Nei and Zhang in their Perspective. They discuss two recent examples (one reported by Ting et al. in this issue) in which the concerted evolution of interacting molecules controls reproductive isolation, the first step in the speciation process.
Strain distribution due to propagation of tears in the anterior supraspinatus tendon.

Rotator cuff tears are a significant clinical problem. Tears in the anterior supraspinatus might behave differently compared to central tears due to differences in regional structural properties. The objective of this study was to determine strain distributions for anterior supraspinatus tendon tears and the relationship to tear propagation during cyclic loading. It was hypothesized that highest maximum principal strain would be posterior to the tear, and tears would propagate in the direction of the maximum principal strain. Eight human cadaveric supraspinatus tendons with surgically created small tears in the anterior third were tested with increasing levels of cyclic loads. The position of strain markers was recorded on the bursal surface of the tendon to calculate strain. Tendons reached a 2 cm critical tendon retraction at 580 ± 181 N. Largest strains were found medial and posterior to the tear (26.1 ± 9.4%). In five tendons, the strain direction for the initial (114 ± 28°) and final loading sets (86 ± 20°) indicated the strain direction shifted from an anterior to posterior orientation (p < 0.01), corresponding to the direction of tear propagation. Based on the results, anterior supraspinatus tears would remain isolated to the supraspinatus tendon during activities of daily living. © 2014 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 32:1283–1289, 2014.
The Arkansas State University Parking Garage

This paper presents a case study based on a regional university’s decision to resolve a longstanding parking problem by constructing a parking garage. Although the garage was expected to generate an annual profit, usage of the garage and, accordingly, its revenues, fell well below expectations. The case analysis incorporates discussions of sunk costs, consumer choice theory, relevant revenues and costs, price elasticity of demand, market entry, and the use of the pricing mechanism to allocate scarce supply.
Clinical indicators of dental implant performance

The traditional clinical indicators of implant performance are mobility, pocket depth, keratinized tissue width, amount of bleeding, amount of plaque accumulation, and gingival appearance. This report examines measurements of these variables at intervals of 1 to 2 months for 36 months for 27 implants in 11 rhesus monkeys. The implants were cylindrical porous-rooted titanium alloy and were placed in premolar and molar mandibular sites using a two-stage technique. The implants were used to support both single-unit and multiple-unit restorations. Examination of traditional plots of indicator values versus time revealed no readily observable trends either for individual implants or for pooled implant data. The assumption was made that each observation may be expressed in terms of the additive relationship between the mean response of the total group of responses for an individual, the effect of time, and the error associated with the measurements. The data were analyzed using a multivariate analysis of variance with a repeated measures design (MANOVA, SPSS Inc., Chicago, Illinois). The analysis provided a control on differences between individuals because the effect of time was measured relative to the average response of the individual. The conclusions of this study are (1) that the technique applied can be useful in determining trends in the measured indicators and (2) that a difference can be observed between implants supporting single-unit restorations and those supporting multiple-unit restorations.
Calculation of geometric phases in electric dipole searches with trapped spin-1/2 particles based on direct solution of the Schrödinger equation

Pendlebury $\mathit{et}\phantom{\rule{0.28em}{0ex}}\mathit{al}.$ [Phys. Rev. A 70, 032102 (2004)] were the first to investigate the role of geometric phases in searches for an electric dipole moment (EDM) of elementary particles based on Ramsey-separated oscillatory field magnetic resonance with trapped ultracold neutrons and comagnetometer atoms. Their work was based on the Bloch equation and later work using the density matrix corroborated the results and extended the scope to describe the dynamics of spins in general fields and in bounded geometries. We solve the Schr\"odinger equation directly for cylindrical trap geometry and obtain a full description of EDM-relevant spin behavior in general fields, including the short-time transients and vertical spin oscillation in the entire range of particle velocities. We apply this method to general macroscopic fields and to the field of a microscopic magnetic dipole.
Voltage fluctuations in small conductors.

The mean-squared voltage fluctuations of an ensemble of disordered conductors, measured between probes less than an inelastic scattering length apart, are independent of the separation of the probes. The mean-squared fluctuations of the conductance can exceed ${e}^{2}$/h by many orders of magnitude. To obtain these results, it is essential to take into account that carriers can make large excursions into the voltage leads without being scattered inelastically. Our results complement recent arguments and experimental findings by Benoit et al. .AE
Evaluation of Sugar Content of Potatoes using Hyperspectral Imaging

Visible/near-infrared (VIS/NIR) hyperspectral reflectance imaging was evaluated as a technique toward rapid prediction of the glucose and sucrose percentages in two common fresh use and chipping potato cultivars. Tubers were sampled and held in multiple storage temperatures in an attempt to develop uniform and broad constituent distributions. Each tested sample was a 12.7-mm-thick slice cut uniformly from all tubers. Multiple features were extracted from samples including mean reflectance spectra and curve feature parameters yielded from an exponential model. Both glucose and sucrose ratios were measured using the Megazyme sucrose/D-glucose assay procedure as reference values. Partial least squares regression (PLSR), feed forward neural networks (FFNN), radial basis functions neural networks (RBFNN), and exact design radial basis functions (RBFNNE) neural networks were used for building calibration and prediction models. PLSR results demonstrated strongly correlated models built using mean reflectance spectra for glucose for Russet Norkotah (RN) with R (RPD) (or correlation coefficient (ratio of sample standard deviation to standard error of prediction)) values as high as 0.97 (3.58), whereas those values were 0.81 (1.70) for Frito Lay 1879 (FL). Sucrose models showed less correlation performance with R (RPD) values as high as 0.60 (1.14) for FL and 0.38 (1.00) for RN. Wavelength selection/prediction using interval partial least squares (IPLS) and genetic algorithm (GA) was conducted on the data, and PLSR and NN results were close to the full-wavelength models for the glucose and sucrose of both cultivars with a preference given to IPLS as it yields less selected variables than GA. Applying K-nearest neighbor (Knn) and partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLSDA) on mean reflectance spectra resulted in glucose misclassification errors of 14 % and 18 % for FL and RN, respectively. However, classification errors were higher for sucrose indicating lower accuracy for this sugar (34 and 30 % for FL and RN). The results in this study give promise to the possibility of measuring each of these sugars rapidly for quality control and monitoring in the potato industry.
Myoclonic seizures in Down's syndrome.

SUMMARY Three children with Down's syndrome are reported with spontaneously occurring myoclonic seizures. Electroencephalograms were markedly abnormal, but improved after medication in two cases. Seizures were controlled with drugs in two of the children, but are not well controlled in the third, despite attempts with several types of medication. The aetiology of these myoclonic seizures remains unclear. RESUME Crises myocloniques dans le mongolisme Les auteurs rapportent les cas de trois jeunes mongoliens ayant presente spontanement des crises myocloniques. Les eegetaient tres anormaux mais ameliores apres traitement dans deux cas. Les crises ont ete controlees par medication chez deux enfants, beaucoup moins bien chez le troisieme en depit de l'essai de plusieurs types de medicaments. L'etiologie de ces crises myocloniques demeure peu claire. ZUSAMMENFASSUNG Myoklonische Anfalle bei Down Syndrom Es wird uber drei Kinder mit Down Syndrom berichtet, die spontan auftretende myoklonische Anfalle hatten. Die eegs waren hochgradig abnorm, besserten sich jedoch in zwei Fallen unter der Medikation. Die Anfalle wurden bei zwei der Kinder durch Medikamente unter Kontrolle gebracht, nicht beim dritten trotz Anwendung mehrerer Medikamente. Die Atiologie dieser myoklonischen Krampfe bleibt unklar. RESUMEN Crisis mioclonicas en el sindrome de Down Se citan tres ninos con el sindrome de Down, con episodios espontaneos de mioclonias. Los eeg eran marcadamente anormales pero mejoraron en dos casos despues de la medicacion. Las crisis fueron controladas con farmacos en dos de los ninos, pero no estan bien controladas en el tercero a pesar de ensayar diversos tipos de medicacion. La etiologia de estas crisis mioclonicas no queda clara.
DNase as a component of ‘multi-enzyme complexes’ in the blood of saturniid moths☆

Abstract Five distinct bands of DNase activity can be demonstrated by zone electrophoresis of the blood of diapausing Cecropia pupae. This enzyme activity, which resembles vertebrate DNase II, and other hydrolytic enzymes were found to be closely associated with blood pigment. These pigment-enzyme complexes resist dissociation by mild means, although partial separation of different bands was achieved by varying the salt concentration of the blood. Preliminary gradient density studies of one of the complexes revealed a sedimentation constant of approximately 23 S, which is consistent with the presence of several enzyme molecules bound to a lipid molecule. The demonstration of DNase activity in the blood by histochemical means was confirmed by studies of in vitro and in vivo degradation of 14 C-labelled exogenous DNA. The patterns of appearance and disappearance of different DNase bands in the blood and tissues during the pupal-adult transformation are also reported. The possible significance of these multi-enzyme complexes and particularly DNase is discussed.
Exploring Predictors of Subjective Well-Being in Ghana: A Micro-Level Study

Subjective well-being has been studied by social scientists for decades mostly in developed countries. Little is known about determinants of subjective well-being in developing countries and more particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Using 2005–2008 World Values Survey (n = 1,533) this study adds to existing literature on well-being in developing countries focusing on Ghana. The paper explores the predictors of two measures of subjective well-being—happiness and satisfaction in life at micro-level in Ghana. The analyses are divided into two main sections. The first part describes the distribution of happiness and satisfaction in life among Ghanaians. The second section elucidates factors influencing the selected measures of subjective well-being separately. The data reveal that both happiness and life satisfaction among Ghanaians are shaped by multitude of factors including economic, cultural, social capital and health variables. Relatively, perceived health status emerged as the most salient predictor of both measures of well-being. Besides religiosity, all the religion variables emerged as significant predictors of how Ghanaians appraise their own well-being. Equally, income, ethnicity and social capital variables emerged as predictors of happiness and life satisfaction at micro-level in Ghana. Policy implications of the findings are discussed alluding to multidimensional approach to well-being promotion in the country. The outcome of the study also establishes the fact that factors predicting subjective well-being at the micro level vary in SSA context compared to the developed world.
Interaction of the Regulatory and Catalytic Subunits of cAMP-dependent Protein Kinase ELECTROSTATIC SITES ON THE TYPE Iα REGULATORY SUBUNIT

Since a basic surface on the catalytic (C) subunit of cAMP-dependent protein kinase is important for binding to the regulatory (R) subunit, acidic residues in R were sought that might contribute to R-C interaction. Using differential labeling by a water-soluble carbodiimide (Buechler, T. A., and Taylor, S. S. (1990) Biochemistry 29, 1937–1943), seven specific carboxylates in RIα were identified that were protected from chemical modification in the holoenzyme; each was then replaced with Ala. Of these, rRI(E15A/E106A/D107A)), rRI(E105A), rRI(D140A), rRI(E143A), and rRI(D258A) all were defective in holoenzyme formation and define negative electrostatic surfaces on RIα. An additional conserved carboxylate, Glu101 in RIα and the equivalent, Glu99 in RIIα were mutated to Ala. Replacement of Glu101 had no effect while rRII(E99A) was very defective. RIα and RIIα thus differ in the molecular details of how they recognize C. Unlike wild-type RI, two additional mutants, rRI(D170A) and rRI(K242A), inhibited C-subunit stoichiometrically in the presence of cAMP and show increases in both on- and off-rates. Asp170, which contributes directly to the hydrogen bonding network in cAMP-binding site A, thus contributes also to holoenzyme stability.
Brinson Review: Perspectives on the Influence of Nutrients on the Sustainability of Coastal Wetlands

Among the solutions being proposed for reversing wetland loss in the Mississippi River Delta are the creation of diversions to reintroduce suspended sediment carried in the river. In areas of rapid relative sea-level rise, as in the Mississippi Delta, it is generally accepted that a supply of sediment in flood water and mineral sedimentation are critical to sustaining wetlands. But plans to create diversions have raised questions about the collateral effects of nutrients carried in the Mississippi River, effects that may contravene the benefits of sediment. This review finds the balance of empirical and theoretical evidence supports that nutrients benefit above- and belowground plant production and that fresh water and sediment diversions can be effective and beneficial for restoring wetlands in the Delta, especially if designed to maximize sediment inputs. The input of sediment, nutrients, and fresh water will change the community composition of some wetlands and their biogeochemical processes. Most of the nitrogen input should be assimilated or denitrified. Labile organic matter is likely to degrade more quickly, but labile organic matter does not add ‘new’ soil volume and its speed of decay is of little consequence. Additional research is needed before we fully understand the consequences of nutrients on the preservation of organic matter in sediment, but building on what is known of the activities of lignin-degrading fungi and their enzymes, it is likely that refractory organic matter should increase and contribute positively to sediment accretion. This is supported by long-term studies of sediment accretion in a New England salt marsh with peat sediment, and in a mineral-dominated southeastern salt marsh, that show elevations in fertilized plots gained as much or more than in reference plots.
Macrophage cell lines use CD81 in cell growth regulation

CD81 is an integral membrane protein belonging to the tetraspanin superfamily. It has two extracellular domains that interact with cell surface proteins and two intracellular tails that contribute to cellular processes. Although there are considerable data about how CD81 affects T- and B-cell function, not much is known about how it impacts macrophages. To address this, we established four cell lines from mouse bone marrow in the presence of macrophage colony-stimulating factor and transfection with SV40 large T antigen. Two were CD81(-/-) (ASD1 and ASD2) and two were CD81(+/-) (2ASD1.10 and 2BSD1.10). Cells were Mac-2-, PU.1-, and c-fms-positive and all the cell lines were phagocytic indicating that they were macrophage-like. In mixtures of the two cell types in tissue culture, CD81(-/-) cells out competed CD81(+/-) cells with CD81-bearing cells being undetectable after 50 cell culture passages. Although cell divisions during log-phase growth were not significantly different between CD81(+/-) macrophage cells and CD81(-/-) macrophage cells, we found that CD81(-/-) macrophage cells reached a higher density at confluency than CD81(+/-) macrophage cells. CD81 transcript levels increased as cultures became confluent, but transcript levels of other tetraspanin-related molecules remained relatively constant. Transfection of CD81 into ASD1 (CD81(-/-)) cells reduced the density of confluent cultures of transformants compared to cells transfected with vector alone. These data suggest that CD81 potentially plays a role in macrophage cell line growth regulation.
Awareness of Channel Statistics for Slow Cyclic Prefix Adaptation in an OFDMA System

Conservative selection of cyclic prefix (CP) length to completely eliminate interference results in a waste of resources, while fast adaptation of CP to given values of the root mean square (RMS) delay spread incurs increased complexity. We propose a method to slowly adapt CP to the underlying lognormal statistics of the RMS delay spread in a multiuser OFDMA downlink where different users experience location dependent statistics of RMS delay spread. Employing the approximate average rate as a performance measure and incorporating the approximate average rate requirements of different users, the CP optimization is shown to involve a set of linear programming problems which are solved analytically by duality analysis. With the additional assumption of an exponential decaying power delay profile, a closed form approximation of the original problem is formulated and solved in a computationally simple manner. Finally, an online adaptation is presented to estimate the statistics of RMS delay spread from feedback whenever available.
A System Identification Technique Using Pseudo-Wavelets

Sensitivity of regular wavelets to singularity has been used to detect a suddenly occurred structural damage and estimate its location in a large-scale structure. The usage of the approach is sometimes limited by a demand to the signal that the measurement data need to include the time period when the damage occurred. In this paper a concept of pseudo-wavelet is proposed based on shifting and scaling of conventional wavelets and a related pseudo-wavelet transform (PWT) is defined. A class of pseudo-wavelets is defined based on the frequency response function of the single degree of freedom mass-spring-dashpot system. A PWT-based system identification technique is developed to estimate the system parameters, mainly the natural frequencies and the damping ratios of the structure using vibration data. The approach can be applied for structural health monitoring. Change in system parameters using any two segments of response data may suggest occurrence of structural damages. The proposed approach is illustrated for single- and multiple-degree-of-freedom mass-spring-dashpot systems using simulated vibration response data. In all the case studies, the structural parameters are successfully estimated.
Expression of metabotropic glutamate receptor 1 isoforms in the substantia nigra pars compacta of the rat

Abstract Metabotropic glutamate receptors, which are linked via G-proteins to second messenger systems, have been implicated in the physiological regulation of dopaminergic neurons of the substantia nigra pars compacta as well as in neurodegeneration. Of the eight known metabotropic glutamate receptors, metabotropic glutamate receptor 1 is the most abundant subtype in the substantia nigra pars compacta. Metabotropic glutamate receptor 1 is alternatively spliced at the carboxy terminal region to yield five variants: 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d and a form recently identified in human brain, 1g. We used an antibody recognizing metabotropic glutamate receptor 1, and another recognizing the splice form 1a only, to study the localization of these receptors in dopaminergic neurons identified by the presence of tyrosine hydroxylase. Metabotropic glutamate receptor immunoreactivity was present within the somata, axons, and dendrites of substantia nigra pars compacta neurons. The 1a splice form specific antibody, however, did not label these cells, suggesting that they express a metabotropic glutamate receptor 1 splice form different from 1a. In situ hybridization with splice form-specific oligonucleotide probes was used to determine which of the other known metabotropic glutamate receptor 1 splice forms might be present in the substantia nigra pars compacta. Each probe produced a very distinct labelling pattern in the rat brain with the exception of the 1g specific probe which produced only background signal. Substantia nigra pars compacta neurons were most intensely labelled by the metabotropic glutamate receptor 1d splice form specific probe. Metabotropic glutamate receptor 1a was expressed weakly whereas there was no detectable 1b, c, or g signal in the substantia nigra pars compacta. These data demonstrate that metabotropic glutamate receptor 1 protein is present within the perikarya and processes of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta. The majority of this protein is not the 1a splice form, which is abundant in other brain regions, and may be the 1d isoform. Since splicing alters the carboxy terminus of the receptor, it is likely to affect the interaction of the receptor with intracellular signalling systems.
Polymeric microspheres as stabilizing anchors for oligonucleotide delivery to dendritic cells

The aim of this study is to evaluate a novel microspheric vector for delivery of oligonucleotides (ODN) into dendritic cells (DC). A requirement of decoy-based modulation of transcriptional activities in DC is that the ODN would have to accumulate inside the cell. Using an ex vivo DC culture model, we demonstrate that anionic microspheres (MS) coated with an ornithine/histadine-based cationic peptide (O10H6) is an effective carrier of short ODN. This method does not disrupt the colloidal nature of the microspheric particles. The MS provide stabilizing effect on DNA and O10H6 complexation. Accumulation of ODN in DC is greatly enhanced with the surface modified MS. Taken together, these data demonstrate that the self assembly system of MS(O10H6) is an effective delivery vehicle for DNA-based modulation of DC functions.
Use of genetic and nongenetic factors in warfarin dosing algorithms

Despite the fact that warfarin has been used as an anticoagulant for many years, the safety profile for this drug has been poor. Inappropriate dosing continues to contribute to significant morbidity and mortality due to thrombotic disease and bleeding. Therefore, there is a need for the development, characterization and implementation of dosing algorithms using a patient's demographic information and genotype. Recently, polymorphisms in two genes, cytochrome P450 2C9 and vitamin K epoxide reductase complex 1, have been shown to affect warfarin's pharmacogenomics and pharmacodynamics, respectively. Adding genotypes to a dosing algorithm may enable better prediction of initial warfarin dosing than use of demographic data alone. An advisory committee of the US FDA voted on November 14, 2005, to require manufacturers of warfarin to relabel their product, indicating that genotyping is recommended prior to drug administration. The exact date when this recommendation will be enacted remains to be determined. Successful implementation of pharmacogenomics into clinical practice requires genotyping results that can be translated directly into clinical decisions. The development of a warfarin dosing algorithm that includes genotyping may be the means to achieve this goal.
Methadone Medical Maintenance in Primary Care: An Implementation Evaluation

BACKGROUND: Methadone is effective treatment for opioid addiction, but regulations restrict its use. Methadone medical maintenance treats stabilized methadone patients in a medical setting, but only experimental programs have been studied.