cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
What Predicts High Risk Acute Gvhd At Diagnosis?: Identification of Those At Highest Risk by a Novel Acute Gvhd Risk Score,

Abstract 4062 To define high risk acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) at its onset, we examined the initial GVHD stage and grade of 864 patients at the University of Minnesota who received uniform therapy with prednisone 60 mg/m2/d. We compared the prognostic utility of the Minnesota (MN) (modified from Consensus) versus Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research (CIBMTR) GVHD organ stage-derived grading systems. As neither GVHD grading system optimally predicted outcomes, a novel acute GVHD risk score was devised by combining the MN and CIBMTR systems. Using multiple regression analysis, we could dichotomize patients into (high risk, HR, n=86) acute GVHD with initial grade IIIC, IID or IVD who were significantly less likely to respond to steroid therapy by day 28 than patients with standard risk (SR, initial grade IA-IIIB, n=778) GVHD (Univariate complete response [CR]+ partial response [PR] at day 28: HR 43% [95% CI 33–53%] vs. SR 68% [95% CI 65–71%], p In multivariate analysis, patients with HR acute GVHD had a 2 fold increase risk of TRM (RR, 2.0, 95% CI, 1.4–2.8, p Disclosures: Weisdorf:Genzyme: Consultancy, Research Funding.
Digital Media Exposure in School-aged Children Decreases the Frequency of Homework Completion in a Dose Dependent Manner

Background: Digital media exposure (DME) has been linked with negative physical, behavioral and neurocognitive effects in children. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) currently recommends limiting DME time to less than two hours daily for children over age two. Childhood “flourishing,” or overall positive well-being, has been evaluated by various markers, including those related to diligence, initiative, task completion, and interpersonal relationships. Objectives: To describe the relationship between daily DME that is not schoolwork related among children between 6-17 …
Do Carbon Prices Limit Economic Growth

The most common counterargument to taxing carbon emissions is that the policy has a negative impact on economic growth. The author tests the validity of this argument by visualizing the enactment o...
Impact of Data Quality on Deep Neural Network Training.

It is well known that data is critical for training neural networks. Lot have been written about quantities of data required to train networks well. However, there is not much publications on how data quality effects convergence of such networks. There is dearth of information on what is considered good data ( for the task ). This empirical experimental study explores some impacts of data quality. Specific results are shown in the paper how simple changes can have impact on Mean Average Precision (mAP).
Nitrogen mineralization from organic amendments is variable but predictable.

To manage nitrogen (N) efficiently, organic growers must be able to predict the amount and timing of plant-available N from organic amendments. In this study, we measured N mineralization from a variety of organic amendments, including composted animal manures and plant material, pelleted and granular organic fertilizer formulations, slaughter waste products, and hydrolyzed liquid fertilizers. In a laboratory incubation, we measured net N mineralization from materials mixed with either organically or conventionally managed soil at 23°C and 60% water holding capacity after 0, 7, 21, 42, and 84 d. We found that net mineral N change in the amended soils after 84 d of incubation fell into four categories: immobilization to 5% of applied N for yard trimmings composts, 15-30% for poultry manure composts, 35-55% for granular fertilizers, and 60-90% for quick release products. However, across all amendments the amount of plant-available N after 84 d of incubation was well correlated with the carbon (C)/N ratio (R2 = 0.92). Within amendment types, the C/N ratio predicted N mineralization for yard trimmings composts (R2 = 0.91), manure composts (R2 = 0.81), and specialty fertilizer and slaughter products (R2 = 0.88) but not liquid products (R2 = 0.11). Soil management history did not consistently affect net N mineralization but may have influenced timing.
Endometrial Cancer Evaluation After Le Fort Colpocleisis

Background: Le Fort colpocleisis is a highly effective surgery for pelvic organ prolapse. One consequence of the surgery is difficulty accessing the endometrial cavity. Endometrial cancer risk incr...
La Belle et la Bête: Nadja et le Mômo

This essay examines the anti-humanism of the surrealist movement through a study of two important surrealist characters, the eponymous heroine of Andre Breton’s Nadja and Antonin Artaud’s adopted identity “Momo”. Both Nadja and Artaud compare themselves to animals to critique and resist the dehumanization they suffer due to mental illness.
Categorization of Phosphorylation Site Behavior during the Diauxic Shift in Saccharomyces cerevisiae .

Protein phosphorylation has long been recognized as an essential regulator of protein activity, structure, complex formation, and subcellular localization among other cellular mechanisms. However, interpretation of the changes in protein phosphorylation is difficult. To address this difficulty, we measured protein and phosphorylation site changes across 11 points of a time course and developed a method for categorizing phosphorylation site behavior relative to protein level changes using the diauxic shift in yeast as a model and TMT11 sample multiplexing. We classified quantified proteins into behavioral categories that reflected differences in kinase activity, protein complex structure, and growth and metabolic pathway regulation across different phases of the diauxic shift. These data also provide a valuable resource for the study of fermentative versus respiratory growth and set a new benchmark for temporal quantitative proteomics and phosphoproteomics for the diauxic shift in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD022741.
Technology-driven methodologies to collect qualitative data among youth to inform HIV prevention and care interventions

The use of technology as a platform for delivering HIV prevention interventions provides an efficient opportunity to reach those at risk for HIV with targeted and timely prevention and treatment messages. Technology-delivered HIV interventions are becoming increasingly popular and include interventions that use mobile text messaging and mobile phone apps or deliver prevention messages through telehealth platforms. Community-centered approaches of intervention development can help address the potential gap between science and practice by ensuring that interventions are appropriate and driven by community needs and desires. Common approaches to gaining community input rely on qualitative data gathered through in-person focus group discussions (FGD), in-depth interviews (IDI) and youth advisory boards (YABs). While these proven methodologies have strengths, youth engagement can be limited by structural barriers (e.g., lack of transportation, inconvenient timing) and reluctance to participate due to stigma or discomfort with group settings. This results in a number of biases that limit the quality of face-to-face qualitative data collection, i.e., social desirability bias or selection biases created by differential likelihood of recruitment and attendance. As an increasing number of HIV prevention and care interventions are successfully delivered online, innovative approaches to youth engagement in virtual spaces can also be applied across the intervention lifespan to increase the quality and validity of formative data. In this paper, we describe a range of qualitative data collection techniques that can be used via online platforms to collect qualitative data, and we outline their relative advantages over face-to-face FGD or IDI. We use four case studies to highlight the methodologies and findings and provide recommendations for researchers moving forward.
Interactions between staphylococcal enterotoxins A and D and superantigen-like proteins 1 and 5 for predicting methicillin and multidrug resistance profiles among Staphylococcus aureus ocular isolates.

Background Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and multidrug-resistant (MDR) S. aureus strains are well recognized as posing substantial problems in treating ocular infections. S. aureus has a vast array of virulence factors, including superantigens and enterotoxins. Their interactions and ability to signal antibiotics resistance have not been explored. Objectives To predict the relationship between superantigens and methicillin and multidrug resistance among S. aureus ocular isolates. Methods We used a DNA microarray to characterize the enterotoxin and superantigen gene profiles of 98 S. aureus isolates collected from common ocular sources. The outcomes contained phenotypic and genotypic expressions of MRSA. We also included the MDR status as an outcome, categorized as resistance to three or more drugs, including oxacillin, penicillin, erythromycin, clindamycin, moxifloxacin, tetracycline, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and gentamicin. We identified gene profiles that predicted each outcome through a classification analysis utilizing Random Forest machine learning techniques. Findings Our machine learning models predicted the outcomes accurately utilizing 67 enterotoxin and superantigen genes. Strong correlates predicting the genotypic expression of MRSA were enterotoxins A, D, J and R and superantigen-like proteins 1, 3, 7 and 10. Among these virulence factors, enterotoxin D and superantigen-like proteins 1, 5 and 10 were also significantly informative for predicting both MDR and MRSA in terms of phenotypic expression. Strong interactions were identified including enterotoxins A (entA) interacting with superantigen-like protein 1 (set6-var1_11), and enterotoxin D (entD) interacting with superantigen-like protein 5 (ssl05/set3_probe 1): MRSA and MDR S. aureus are associated with the presence of both entA and set6-var1_11, or both entD and ssl05/set3_probe 1, while the absence of these genes in pairs indicates non-multidrug-resistant and methicillin-susceptible S. aureus. Conclusions MRSA and MDR S. aureus show a different spectrum of ocular pathology than their non-resistant counterparts. When assessing the role of enterotoxins in predicting antibiotics resistance, it is critical to consider both main effects and interactions.
Incorporating Computer Programming into Mathematics Curricula to Enhance Learning for Low-Performing, Underserved Students

In this short research paper, we describe the outcome of our integration of computer simulations and elementary visual programming interactions with an experiential mathematics curriculum that has resulted in a system that allows students to explore conceptual and procedural knowledge within mathematics content through the interactive and exploratory nature of a particular type of simulation using mobile applications. The simulations are managed by the students using a visual programming language that we developed as a stripped-down version of MIT App Inventor. In particular, our project focused on students who were in the lower quartile of mathematics achievement, and we show how useful they found this approach in helping them better engage and explore abstract mathematics content through reflective engagement with the material. In this report, we detail the three-dimensional approach we used to adapt an existing mathematics curricular process to a process that integrates visual programming and simulations as a type of applied mathematics. We also show how the resulting pedagogical process has the potential for helping students move beyond simply mechanically and mindlessly manipulating math symbols when solving linear equations to applying visual reasoning and representational logic as the basis for problem-solving in mathematics.
Space Communication and Navigation SDR Testbed, Overview and Opportunity for Experiments

NASA has developed an experimental flight payload (referred to as the Space Communication and Navigation (SCAN) Test Bed) to investigate software defined radio (SDR) communications, networking, and navigation technologies, operationally in the space environment. The payload consists of three software defined radios each compliant to NASAs Space Telecommunications Radio System Architecture, a common software interface description standard for software defined radios. The software defined radios are new technology developments underway by NASA and industry partners launched in 2012. The payload is externally mounted to the International Space Station truss to conduct experiments representative of future mission capability. Experiment operations include in-flight reconfiguration of the SDR waveform functions and payload networking software. The flight system will communicate with NASAs orbiting satellite relay network, the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System at both S-band and Ka-band and to any Earth-based compatible S-band ground station. The system is available for experiments by industry, academia, and other government agencies to participate in the SDR technology assessments and standards advancements.
Microfluidic-photonic-dielectrophoretic integrated circuits for biophotonic sensing

This work demonstrates microfluidic-photonic-dielectrophoretic integrated circuits fabricated using a novel technology involving micromolding, polymer bonding, and channel waveguides with capillary filling. This represents a new class of circuits particularly attractive to lab-on-a-chip and biomedical applications.
A Unified Theory of Party Competition: Policy-Seeking Motivations of Parties in Two-Party Elections: Theory

Introduction In previous chapters, we have seen that both the effects of nonpolicy predispositions of voters and the threat of abstention can motivate policy divergence by candidates. In addition, such divergence may be engendered by the potential entry of third parties, the influence of party activists, or – in America – by the polarizing effects of primary elections, and the degree of divergence may be augmented by voter discounting of party positions. While the approaches already described have generated substantial study, perhaps the most widely cited motivation for policy divergence is that the competing candidates or party leaders have policy motivations – that is, that politicians seek office in order to implement desired policies, rather than proposing policies in order to win office. As Donald Wittman (1990: 66) has argued, this motivation fits comfortably within the spatial modeling framework, since it is strange to think that voters' decisions are moved by policy concerns (a key spatial modeling assumption) but that politicians do not similarly care about policies, except as a means of winning office. And indeed, empirical studies of elite decision making conclude that politicians at times attach considerable weight to pursuing policy objectives (see Fiorina 1974; Muller and Strom 1999). In this and the following chapters, we investigate the effects of parties' policy preferences on their positioning in two-party contests. In the years since Wittman's (1973, 1977, 1983) seminal articles, spatial modelers have elaborated many approaches to theorizing about policymotivated politicians' strategic choices (Cox 1984; Calvert 1985; Chappell and Keech 1986; Mitchell 1987; Brams and Merrill 1991; Londregan and Romer 1993; Kollman, Miller, and Page 1992; Groseclose 2001; Roemer 2001).
Magnetic polaron effects in CdTeCd1−xMnxTe quantum well systems

Abstract The magnetic polaron effect resulting from the exchange interaction between an electron or a hole in a CdTe Cd 1− x Mn x Te quantum well and the localized Mn-ion spins is studied theoretically. The non-linear nature of the effective Schrodinger equation for the carrier can lead, under appropriate conditions, to its localization near one of the quantum well interfaces.
Simultaneous measurement of Electroluminescence and dissipation current in cable insulation

Polymeric materials are widely used in high voltage devices such as capacitors, cables and transformers. Electroluminescence (EL), the emission of light in insulating materials subjected to high electric stress, is known to occur much before partial discharge inception. EL emission has been linked to the presence of space charge in the polymeric insulation. At high ac fields, charge injection from the electrodes into the insulation becomes dominant and the dissipation current becomes nonlinear. This paper describes the simultaneous measurement of EL emission and dissipation current in LDPE subjected to uniform ac field. It is shown that at the onset of EL emission the dissipation current waveform deviates from its sinusoidal characteristics and starts to show harmonics. The increase in the harmonic distortion of the dissipation current could indicate a change in the ac conduction mechanism.
The role of ubiquitin in neurotrophin receptor signalling and sorting.

NGF (nerve growth factor) binding to TrkA (tropomyosin receptor kinase A) induces dimerization, autophosphorylation and internalization of the receptor to signalling vesicles for delivery of differentiation signals. TrkA interacts with p75 receptor through the p62–TRAF-6 (tumour-necrosis-factor-receptor-associated factor 6) complex bridging the two receptors. The atypical protein kinase C is activated and recruited to the receptor complex as well. TrkA is Lys 63 -polyubiquitinated on Lys 485 by the E3 (ubiquitin ligase), TRAF-6, and E2 (ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme), UbcH7. Inhibition of polyubiquitination has been observed to interrupt signalling and internalization. Furthermore, an absence of p62 prevents endosomal localization and signalling. Altogether, these findings reveal Lys 63 -linked polyubiquitin chains and the shuttling protein p62 co-ordinately regulate TrkA internalization, trafficking and sorting.
Developing effective corporate consumer information programs

David A. Aaker is a professor of marA properly planned a n d e x e c u t e d c o n keting at the University of California, Berkeley. In a survey conducted by marketing educators conducted by a U n i v e r s u m e r i n f o r m a t i o n p r o g r a m b e n e f i t s c o n sity of Wisconsin research team, he was n a m e d o n e o f thirty thought l eaders in s u m e r s a n d t h e c o r p o r a t i o n , as l o n g as c e r marketing. He is the author or co-author of seven hooks, t a i n p i t f a l l s a r e a v o i d e d .
Lateral condensation in canals prepared with nickel titanium rotary instruments: an evaluation of the use of three different master cones.

Forty-five single-rooted teeth were instrumented with ProFile ISO .06 nickel-titanium rotary instruments and obturated with lateral condensation using three different master cones: an ISO-standardized gutta-percha cone (group A), a Dia-ISO(GT).06 gutta-percha cone (group B), and a size medium gutta-percha cone (group C). Obturation efficiency in each group was evaluated by recording the number of accessory cones utilized. To evaluate obturation quality in the three groups, a cross-sectional observation of the ability of the gutta-percha in each group to obliterate the prepared canal space was carried out. Results showed that obturation efficiency was significantly greater in groups B and C than in group A. There was no significant difference in obturation quality between any of the three groups.
Machine Vision System for Diagnostic Histopathology

Summary In a machine vision system for the diagnostic assessment of histopathologic sections, human diagnostic knowledge and human ability to recognize components in a complex image need to be emulated. This is attempted by three integrated expert systems, supported by a multiprocessor computer with data-driven, dynamically reconfigurable architecture.
Optimism and pessimism in political and market institutions

Buchanan and Faith1 have demonstrated that the introduction of subjective elements into the individual choice calculus behind the Rawlsian veil of ignorance can lead to differences in predictions among arrays of institutional alternatives. Their analysis implies that when individuals make subjective predictions concerning the working properties of alternative institutions, there will exist a bias toward 'pessimistic' control in the selection of the basic rules of the game. We seek to extend the analysis of subjective evaluations to democratic institutions where outcomes are determined by simple majority voting rules and individual wealth positions are known prior to voting. It is our purpose to contrast the impact of subjectiveevaluations on market and political institutions. We will argue that diversity of beliefs systematically affects political institiutions in a different manner than they affect market institutions. In particular, we contend that uncertainty with respect to either costs or benefits of new governmental programs, will determine whether the optimists or the pessimists control the outcome. Our theory offers an alternative explanation for the growth of government in our economy, and counters the Downsian conclusion that government will be too small in a democracy.2 We analyze aspects of political behavior that cannot be explained solely with reference to special interest theory. In the political marketplace we demonstrate that there is a tendency for 'extreme' opinion to dominate and, in particular, for optimists to have a disproportionate impact on the outcome of public decisions.
Data Sufficiency for Online Writer Identification: A Comparative Study of Writer-Style Space vs. Feature Space Models

A key factor in building effective writer identification/verification systems is the amount of data required to build the underlying models. In this research we systematically examine data sufficiency bounds for two broad approaches to online writer identification--feature space models vs. writer-style space models. We report results from 40 experiments conducted on two publicly available datasets and also test identification performance for the target models using two different feature functions. Our findings show that the writer-style space model gives higher identification performance for a given level of data and further, achieves high performance levels with lesser data costs. This model appears to require as less as 20 words per page to achieve identification performance close to 80% and reaches more than 90% accuracy with higher levels of data enrollment.
Sociology, Biology, and the Analysis of Social Problems

There is some evidence that sociologists have neglected biological factors. A few of the historical intellectual reasons why this is the case are discussed. Biological sciences are complex and varied, but a “systems” explanation of social behavior suggests we may have to consider biological factors. Several broad areas of mutual concern for biologists and sociologists are discussed; however, the view is put forward that genetic and chemotherapy research is especially important to social-problems research. Biological variables may be highly significant causal factors in certain forms of deviant behavior—for instance, alcoholism and homosexuality.
Boundary/Finite Element Modeling of Three-Dimensional Electromagnetic Heating During Microwave Food Processing

A three-dimensional 3D finite element-boundary integral formulation is presented for the analysis of the electric and magnetic field distribution, power absorption, and temperature distribution in electrically conductive and dielectric materials. The hybrid finite/ boundary method represents an optimal approach for modeling of large-scale electromagnetic-thermal materials processing systems in which the volume ratio of the sample over the entire computational domain is small. To further improve the efficiency, the present formulation also incorporates various efficient solvers designed specifically for the solution of large sparse systems of linear algebraic equations. The resulting algorithm with a compressed storage scheme is considered effective and efficient to meet the demand of 3D large scale electromagnetic/thermal simulations required for processing industries. Examples of 3D electromagnetic and thermal analysis are presented for induction and microwave heating systems. Numerical performance of the computer code is assessed for these systems. Computed results are presented for the electric field distribution, power absorption, and temperature distribution in a food load thermally treated in an industrial pilot scale microwave oven designed for food sterilization
Effects of Diethanolamine (DEA) on Rats Fed Atherogenic Diets.

SummaryIn rats fed hypercholesterolizing diets, DEA significantly reduced liver lipides, liver cholesterol, aortic cholesterol, and serum cholesterol, when the fat component was hydrogenated coconut oil. There was no effect of DEA when dietary fat was corn oil.
Sex and racial differences in preference for a caring morality in a corporate environment that promotes diversity and equal opportunity.

S~rtnrnary.-This study investigated the caring moral perspective of managers in a corporation recognized as being a champion of promoting diversity and equal opportunity. Caring is described as a morality of responsibility and relationship, a sensitivity to the needs of persons. The study was based on he prediction that the attachment and caring shown elsewhere to be characteristic of the morality of females would be characteristic of all managers, regardless of sex or race in this kind of corporate environment. 121 male and female. African-American and Euro-American managers responded to a survey using three subscales of a Caring Morality Inventory: caring orientation, use of intuition and feeling to make a judgment, and concern with others in decision-making. Analysis showed female managers, regardless of race, scored significnnrlv h~gher on the Caring Moraliry scale than the male managers, supporting other fiid~n~s of sex dierences in caring moral perspective and suggesting that working for a company actively promoting diversity and equal opportunity does not cancel out these diEferences. In addition, for this study it was assumed that, although African Americans, in general, may have been sensitized to lean more toward a caring rnorality, any racial diFferences in caring morality would be cancelled out by the fact that all of the managers work for the same prodiversity and, by assumption, more sensitive company. The Euro-American managers, regardless of sex, actually scored higher on the Caring Moraliry scale than did the African-American managers, with the difference being attributable solely to the greater tendency of the Euro-American managers to use intuition and feeling to make a judgment. Previous studies (Gagan, 1982; Lyons, 1983; Ford & Lowery, 1986; Stimpson, Jensen, & Neff, 1992; Jensen & Huisken, 1993; Stander & Jensen, 1993) found sex differences in moral perspectives, with women tending more toward a caring morality and men toward a justice morality. The concept of a path of moral judgment development that is based on the elaboration of relations and connection was proposed by G~Ulgan (1982) as an alternative to the justice and rights human development model that has been accepted as universal. The author had observed that using the traditional model, which tied moral development to the understanding of rights and rules, 'This study is based on a dissertation, Diversity in the Workplace: an Assessment of the Caring Morality of Mana ers in a Corporation That Promotes Diversity and Equal 0 ortunity, completed m pnrr~d klfillment of the requirement for the degree of Doctor of ~i%oso~hy in Applied Man.~jicment and Decision Sciences from Walden Universit Dr. Stephen Powers served as the author's €acuity mentor. Recommendations for further stu& can be found in the dissertation.
A queueing theoretic approach for performance evaluation of low-power multi-core embedded systems

With Moore's law supplying billions of transistors on-chip, embedded systems are undergoing a transition from single-core to multi-core to exploit this high transistor density for high performance. However, the optimal layout of these multiple cores along with the memory subsystem (caches and main memory) to satisfy power, area, and stringent real-time constraints is a challenging design endeavor. The short time-to-market constraint of embedded systems exacerbates this design challenge and necessitates the architectural modeling of embedded systems to reduce the time-to-market by expediting target applications to device/architecture mapping. In this paper, we present a queueing theoretic approach for modeling multi-core embedded systems that provides a quick and inexpensive performance evaluation both in terms of time and resources as compared to the development of multi-core simulators and running benchmarks on these simulators. We verify our queueing theoretic modeling approach by running SPLASH-2 benchmarks on the SuperESCalar simulator (SESC). Results reveal that our queueing theoretic model qualitatively evaluates multi-core architectures accurately with an average difference of 5.6% as compared to the architectures' evaluations from the SESC simulator. Our modeling approach can be used for performance per watt and performance per unit area characterizations of multi-core embedded architectures, with varying number of processor cores and cache configurations, to provide a comparative analysis. Queueing theory-based modeling technique for evaluating multi-core architectures.Enables quick and inexpensive architectural evaluation.Architectural evaluation for workloads with any computing requirements.Can be used for performance per watt & performance per unit area characterizations.Provides insights about shared last-level caches (LLCs) orchestration.
Safety and Efficacy of a Soluble P75 Tumor Necrosis Factor Receptor (Enbrel, Etanercept) in Patients With Advanced Heart Failure

Background—Although previous studies suggested that TNF may contribute to heart failure progression, it is unclear whether antagonizing TNF is beneficial in heart failure patients. Methods and Results—Eighteen NYHA class III heart failure patients were randomized into a double-blind dose-escalation study to examine the safety and potential efficacy of etanercept, a specific TNF antagonist (Enbrel). Patients received placebo (6 patients) or an escalating dose (1, 4, or 10 mg/m2) of etanercept (12 patients) given as a single intravenous infusion. Safety parameters and patient functional status were assessed at baseline and at days 1, 2, 7, and 14. There were no significant side effects or clinically significant changes in laboratory indices. There was, however, a decrease in TNF bioactivity and a significant overall increase in quality-of-life scores, 6-minute walk distance, and ejection fraction in the cohort that received 4 or 10 mg/m2 of etanercept; there was no significant change in these parameters in ...
Differential splicing across immune system lineages

Alternative splicing (AS) allows increased diversity and orthogonal regulation of the transcriptional products of mammalian genomes. To assess the distribution and variation of alternative splicing across cell lineages of the immune system, we comprehensively analyzed RNA sequencing and microarray data generated by the Immunological Genome Project Consortium. AS is pervasive: 60% of genes showed frequent AS isoforms in T or B lymphocytes, with 7,599 previously unreported isoforms. Distinct cell specificity was observed, with differential exon skipping in 5% of genes otherwise coexpressed in both B and T cells. The distribution of isoforms was mostly all or none, suggesting on/off switching as a frequent mode of AS regulation in lymphocytes. From the identification of differential exon use in the microarray data, clustering of exon inclusion/exclusion patterns across all Immunological Genome Project cell types showed that ∼70% of AS exons are distributed along a common pattern linked to lineage differentiation and cell cycling. Other AS events distinguished myeloid from lymphoid cells or affected only a small set of exons without clear lineage specificity (e.g., Ptprc). Computational analysis predicted specific associations between AS exons and splicing regulators, which were verified by detection of the hnRPLL/Ptprc connection.
Controlled Detritylation of Antisense Oligonucleotides

The last chemical step in standard oligonucleotide synthesis, the acid-catalyzed removal of 4,4‘-dimethoxytrityl (DMTr) protecting groups from the 5‘-terminus of oligonucleotides is accompanied by hydrolysis of purine nucleoside glycosidic linkages (depurination). A mild procedure for controlled DMTr removal using NaOAc (10 mM, pH 3.0) under a fixed set of conditions has been developed. The calculation of the reaction time is based on a t1/2 versus pH profile, specifically determined for each individual oligonucleotide sequence. The effect of various solvent components on the reaction kinetics has been evaluated. As a result, oligonucleotides with improved impurity profile are obtained consistently from laboratory scale to production scale.
Reply to Winston and Peters' "On the presentation and interpretation of international homicide data...".

The rationale not previously given for handling a data entry for the USA in a prior paper is carefully described, which makes clear the criticism leveled is not appropriate. Further, brief murder data were presented to illustrate "Brimelow's theory of emotional conditioning," which suggests a strong taboo against consideration of any genetic contribution to differences among races. Language: en
Validation of Hill-Type Muscle Models in Relation to Neuromuscular Recruitment and Force–Velocity Properties: Predicting Patterns of In Vivo Muscle Force

We review here the use and reliability of Hill-type muscle models to predict muscle performance under varying conditions, ranging from in situ production of isometric force to in vivo dynamics of muscle length change and force in response to activation. Muscle models are frequently used in musculoskeletal simulations of movement, particularly when applied to studies of human motor performance in which surgically implanted transducers have limited use. Musculoskeletal simulations of different animal species also are being developed to evaluate comparative and evolutionary aspects of locomotor performance. However, such models are rarely validated against direct measures of fascicle strain or recordings of muscle–tendon force. Historically, Hill-type models simplify properties of whole muscle by scaling salient properties of single fibers to whole muscles, typically accounting for a muscle’s architecture and series elasticity. Activation of the model’s single contractile element (assigned the properties of homogenous fibers) is also simplified and is often based on temporal features of myoelectric (EMG) activation recorded from the muscle. Comparison of standard one-element models with a novel two-element model and with in situ and in vivo measures of EMG, fascicle strain, and force recorded from the gastrocnemius muscles of goats shows that a two-element Hill-type model, which allows independent recruitment of slow and fast units, better predicts temporal patterns of in situ and in vivo force. Recruitment patterns of slow/fast units based on wavelet decomposition of EMG activity in frequency–time space are generally correlated with the intensity spectra of the EMG signals, the strain rates of the fascicles, and the muscle–tendon forces measured in vivo, with faster units linked to greater strain rates and to more rapid forces. Using direct measures of muscle performance to further test Hill-type models, whether traditional or more complex, remains critical for establishing their accuracy and essential for verifying their applicability to scientific and clinical studies of musculoskeletal function.
Edge Detection Algorithms in Nuclear Medicine

Camera scans of phantoms and kidneys are computer processed to extract boundaries between areas of different densities. Several methods of edge detection are critically evaluated for their ability to determine boundaries in the presence of stochastic noise. A second order polynomial fit, utilizing the nearest neighbor method was found to be the most efficient method yielding the most consistent results for varying signal to noise ratios.
Generation of neurons in the rat dentate gyrus and hippocampus: effects of prenatal and postnatal treatment with ethanol.

Neurons in the rat hippocampal formation (the dentate gyrus and the hippocampus) are born over a protracted period, from gestational day (G) 15 into adulthood. Dentate gyral neurons born prenatally are generated from the ventricular zone, whereas those born postnatally are derived from a secondary proliferative zone, the intrahilar zone. In contrast, hippocampal pyramidal neurons are generated only prenatally from the ventricular zone. In the neocortex, ethanol depresses the proliferation of cells in the ventricular zone and stimulates the proliferation of cells in the secondary proliferative zone. The present study tests the hypotheses that prenatal treatment with ethanol has a different effect on the generation of dentate gyral neurons than does postnatal ethanol treatment, and that these differences are determined by the timing of the ethanol exposure relative to the period and site of neuronal generation. Rats were treated with ethanol between G6 and G21 or between postnatal day (P) 4 and P12. They were given an injection of [3H]thymidine on G15, G18, G21, P6, P9, or P12. Rats were killed on P30–P35. The tissue was processed by standard autoradiographic methods and assessed using rigorous stereological procedures. The total number of neurons and the density of radiolabeled neurons in both the dentate gyrus and the CA1 region of the hippocampus were determined. Prenatal ethanol treatment decreased the total number of neurons in the CA1 segment of the hippocampus and had little impact on neuronal number in the dentate gyrus. Likewise, the number of hippocampal and dentate gyral neurons generated daily was significantly lower in ethanol-treated rats than in controls. Postnatal treatment to ethanol, however, significantly increased the total number of dentate gyral neurons and the density of neurons generated postnatally. These postnatal changes depended on the blood ethanol concentration (BEC). At moderate BECs, the total number of neurons in the dentate gyrus and the number of neurons generated was increased. At high BECs, however, neuronal number and neuronal generation were decreased. Postnatal ethanol treatment had no effect on the number of (total or radiolabeled) CA1 neurons. Thus, pre- and postnatal exposure to ethanol have opposite effects both on the number of neurons in the dentate gyrus and on the generation of neurons. These paradoxical effects likely result from three causes: the differential effects of ethanol on the two proliferative zones, the critical period of neuronal development, and the potentially opposite effects of moderate and high BEC.
Cyclic-3', 5'-AMP-dependent and independent protein kinase levels in normal and feline sarcoma virus transformed cells.

Abstract The results of these studies have revealed no differences in the level of the cyclic-3′,5′-AMP (cAMP) -dependent or independent protein kinases, using calf thymus histone as substrate, in normal and feline sarcoma virus transformed cells. Similarly, the degree of responsiveness of the basal protein kinase activity to cAMP was also identical in the two cell types. These experiments have been carried out in normal, bovine-derived (thymic) fibroblasts and confirmed in feline-derived, embryonic mixed cell cultures. Thus, these results are consistent with the conclusion that one of the major amplification mechanisms for cAMP is not altered following viral transformation.
A multilinear form inequality

An inequality of Interpolation type for Multilinear Forms with a two-part dependence condition is proved. It generalizes the work of Bradley and Bryc [Theorem 3.6, Multilinear forms and measures of dependence between random variables, J. Multivariate Anal. 16 (1985) 335-367] and Prakasa Rao [Bounds for rth order joint cumulant under rth order strong mixing, Statist. Probab. Lett. 43 (1999) 427-431].
A functional polymorphism, rs6280, in DRD3 is significantly associated with nicotine dependence in European-American smokers.

Nicotine enhances reward functions in the mesocorticolimbic dopamine system in general and the nucleus accumbens in particular. The genes encoding dopamine receptors are thus plausible candidates for involvement in nicotine dependence (ND). We investigated 13 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) spanning a region of the dopamine D(3) receptor gene (DRD3) to determine whether DRD3 is associated with ND. We studied a set of 2,037 subjects in 602 nuclear families representing two distinct American populations using three ND measures, namely, smoking quantity (SQ), the Heaviness of Smoking Index (HSI), and the Fagerstrom Test for ND (FTND). In the family based association study, we found that SNP rs6280 showed a strong association with ND in European-Americans (EAs) and the pooled sample, whereas SNPs rs1486012 and rs963468 had weak associations with ND in African-Americans (AAs) and the pooled sample. Further haplotype analysis with all contiguous 3-SNP groups revealed relatively weak evidence for association of DRD3 with ND in the EA and pooled samples. The results indicate that DRD3 is significantly associated with ND in EAs, and that rs6280, a functional polymorphism causing an amino acid change of serine to glycine (Ser9Gly) in the N-terminal extracellular domain of the D(3) receptor, likely is causative of the association between DRD3 and ND.
Metabolic key step discriminating nicotine producing tobacco callus strain from ineffective one

Summary Putrescine N-methyltransferase activities in effective and ineffective strains were measured with regard to nicotine biosynthesis in tobacco callus tissues. Reasonable level of putrescine N-methyltransferase activity was found in the enzyme preparates isolated from active OMT-190 callus tissues. On the other hand, no detectable activity was measured in the preparates from inactive NT-5 callus tissues. These results clearly coincided with the relation that nicotine content (3.38 % on D. W. basis) of the effective callus tissues was extremely higher than that (0.05 % on dry weight basis) of the ineffective callus tissues. The present results may indicate that incapability of nicotine biosynthesis in many tobacco callus tissues would have been derived, at least, from the lack of a metabolic step involving putrescine N-methyltransferase in the tissues.
Thermodynamic and Structural Analysis of Domain Interactions in PKR

PKR (protein kinase R) is induced by interferon and is a key component of the innate immunity antiviral pathway. Upon binding dsRNA, PKR undergoes autophosphorylation reactions that activate the kinase, leading it to phosphorylate the translational initiation factor eIF2a, thus inhibiting protein synthesis in virally-infected cells. PKR contains a dsRNA binding domain (dsRBD) and a kinase domain. The dsRBD is composed of two tandem dsRNA binding motifs. An autoinhibition model for PKR has been proposed whereby dsRNA binding activates the enzyme by inducing a conformational change that relieves the latent enzyme of the inhibition that is mediated by interaction of the dsRBD with the kinase. We have probed the importance of interdomain contacts by comparing the relative stabilities of isolated domains with the same domain in the context of the intact enzyme using equilibrium chemical denaturation experiments. The two dsRNA binding motifs fold independently, with the C-terminal motif exhibiting greater stability. The kinase domain is stabilized by about 1.5 kcal/mole in the context of the holenzyme and we detect low-affinity binding of the kinase and dsRBD constructs in solution, indicating that these domains interact weakly. The p(r) distance distribution function obtained from small angle X-ray and neutron scattering experiments reveals that PKR populates extended conformations. Structural modeling using the published coordinates for the dsRBD and the kinase domain supports a model where PKR exhibits considerable flexibility and exists in a range of open and compact conformations. Our results do not support the autoinhibition model where latent PKR is locked in a stable, closed conformation and the dsRBD interacts with the kinase domain to block substrate binding.
In situ detection of frameshift mutation in mouse cells

Abstract A reporter gene system that allows in situ detection of cells that have suffered a specific frameshift mutation was developed. To construct the reporter gene, the open reading frame of a human placental alkaline phosphatase (PLAP) gene was disrupted by insertion of either 5 or 7 G:C basepairs, which formed mutant alleles carrying 9 and 11 consecutive G residues, respectively. The mutant PLAP genes did not produce alkaline phosphatase activity in cultured mouse cells in transient transfection assays. Several cell lines that contained integrated copies of the mutant PLAP genes were made. Histochemical staining of fixed cells showed that these cell lines contained a small number of cells that expressed PLAP activity and bound antibodies directed against PLAP. Cells carrying the allele with 11 consecutive G residues (G11 allele) acquired PLAP activity at a rate between 2×10−3 and 2×10−4 events per cell per generation, depending on the cell line. Cells carrying the allele with 9 consecutive G residues (G09 allele) acquired PLAP activity at a rate between 2×10−5 and 2×10−6 events per cell per generation, depending on the cell line. Cultures of PLAP+ cells were derived from cell lines carrying PLAP mutant genes. All the cells in these cultures had PLAP activity and bound anti-PLAP antibody. PLAP mRNA levels were the same in cultures where all cells were PLAP+ and in cultures where less than 1% of the cells expressed PLAP activity. DNA sequence analysis of PLAP+ cells showed that the G11 allele reverted by losing one basepair, and the G09 allele reverted by gaining one basepair.
SPECTRAL LINES FOR POLARIZATION MEASUREMENTS OF THE CORONAL MAGNETIC FIELD. V. INFORMATION CONTENT OF MAGNETIC DIPOLE LINES

Stokes profiles of typical magnetic dipole coronal emission lines contain information on the embedded magnetic fields, but the interpretation of the lines is subject to ambiguities. The present study illuminates the information content of coronal emission line measurements that include all four Stokes parameters. The simplest case of localized emission along the line of sight, such as that from a single bright loop, is scrutinized. Knowledge of the "atomic alignment" is central to the diagnosis of magnetic fields beyond determining the field's azimuth projected on the plane of the sky. For localized emission, a method to determine the atomic alignment is presented, combining Stokes I, Q, and U observations and statistical equilibrium calculations, related to work by Querfeld. The method yields the sign of the alignment under conditions that might exist 25% of the time, thereby reducing the Van Vleck ambiguity from one of 90° to 180°. Even then, the magnitude of the alignment is sometimes ambiguous. With measurements of Stokes V, unambiguous knowledge of the alignment also yields the vector field B with just an ambiguity of 180° in the plane of the sky. In other, more general cases, neither the sign nor the magnitude of the atomic alignment can be uniquely determined. Suggestions are made as to how these more serious ambiguities might be ameliorated by assuming continuity of magnetic fields underlying the polarization maps, an idea first expressed by House in 1972. Some conclusions are offered concerning the relative merits of formal inversions, diagnosis of magnetic properties from a localized region, tomography using solar rotation, and forward modeling.