cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Interaction of bile salts with gastrointestinal mucins

The properties of three mucins were examined to identify the structural features responsible for their functional difterences. Bovine submaxillary mucin (BSM), porcine gastric mucin (PGM), and rat intestinal mucin (RIM) were each characterized, and high carbohydrate contents were found for RIM and PGM. The amino acid compositions were typical of mucin glycoproteins, with over half comprising small, neutral amino acids. Thereafter, each mucin was equilibrated with three different series of concentrations of the bile salts sodium taurocholate, sodium taurodeoxycholate, and sodium taurochenodeoxycholate. Following multiple centrifugations, the supernatant and mucin pellet concentrations of the bile salts were measured. The bile salt pellet concentration was plotted as a function of supernatant concentration, and from the slopes, the excluded volumes were calculated as 25, 29-44, and 28 55 mL/g for BSM, RIM, and PGM, respectively. The intercepts were 8-10, 2-3, and 1-3 mM for BSM, RIM, and PGM, respectively, which represents an estimate of the bound concentration of bile salt. Differences among the bile salts were observed in the excluded volume and amount bound, but no trends were evident. The bile salts may interact as aggregates with the hydrophobic areas and carbohydrate side chains of the mucins, providing favorable sites for association. The binding at low concentrations with exclusion at high concentrations is significant for modulating the absorption of lipid aggregates from the intestine. Finally, the differences among the mucins reflect the unique structure function relationship of these gastrointestinal mucins.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Cystic and Endocrine Pancreatic Neoplasms

This article describes the appearance of miscellaneous cystic and endocrine neoplasms using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Magnetic resonance imaging is a useful diagnostic modality in the assessment of various pancreatic neoplasms. Pancreatic endocrine tumors are moderately low in signal intensity on T1-weighted fat-suppressed images and moderately high in signal intensity on T2-weighted fat-suppressed images and demonstrate homogeneous, ring, or diffuse heterogeneous enhancement on immediate postgadolinium gradient echo images. Cystic pancreatic neoplasms, including intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm, are well demonstrated and subcategorized according to their characteristic cystic configurations on MRI and MR cholangiopancreatography images. Microcystic serous cystadenomas are demonstrated as a honeycombed appearance on T2-weighted images and have a central stellate scar. Mucinous cystic neoplasms usually appear as multilocular cystic masses, with benign forms of macrocystic tumors possessing uniform thickness septations and malignant forms exhibiting irregular septations and tumor nodules. The presence of tumor stroma, invasion of adjacent tissue, or liver metastases can be assessed by MRI. The connection between the pancreatic duct and the cystic tumor is usually well shown on MR cholangiopancreatography images.
On the Social Order of Cyberspace Knowledge Workers and New Creoles

Representations of cyberspace as a new social and world order fostered by a new technology replay familiar understandings of industrial society and its issues of liberation and constraint. A more comprehensive approach to the social organization of advanced information technologies needs to include their origins in the social and communicative practices as well as in the technology of science and engineering and the practical Creolization of migrating discourses, techniques of knowledge, and communication. This forges a firm link between micro- and macrosociological levels of analysis. Internationalizing more parochial before-and-after comparisons of futurists highlights the significance of "new Creoles" in the emerging postindustrial world order comparable with those who were part of its creation.
SU-FF-I-21: Dose Variation with Breast Density in Cone Beam Breast CT- a Monte Carlo Simulation Study

Purpose: By using Monte Carlo(MC) dose calculation to investigate the variation of radiation dose with the breast density (tissue composition) in cone beam breast CT, both globally and on a voxel‐by‐voxel basis. Method and Materials: To simulate cone beam breast CTimaging, we first used Rep78 to build an x‐ray spectrum for an x‐ray tube with tungsten target and a HVL of 4.08mm Al. A collimator was defined in BEAMnrc and used to form a half‐cone beam for pendant geometry used in cone beam breast CT. For validation, we compared MC dose calculations with ionization chamber measurements at 4 different locations inside the 11 cm diameter, 12 cm high cylindrical phantom under the same imaging conditions. After normalizing for the iso‐center dose, the deviations were within 3.7%. 3 cone beam CTimages were first corrected and filtered to minimize the cupping artifacts and then filtered to reduce the noise level. The processed images were then segmented using threshold method to separate the dense tissue from the adipose tissue. The segmented image sets were binned into a 100×100×80 image sets with a pixel size of 1mm for MC calculation. DOSXYZnrc was used to track 1×109 incident photons distributed over 300 projection images over 360°. The resulting radiation dose was tallied for each voxel and averaged over all voxels in the breast. Results: Results from MC calculations indicated that radiation dose was significantly higher in dense tissue structures and lower in the adipose tissue. The regions of higher dose were found to match the 3D dense tissue structures. The average breast dose was found to linearly vary with the breast density computed from the breast CT data. Conclusion: Our MC study has shown a close relationship between the radiation dose and the breast density both globally and on a voxel‐by‐voxel basis.
Exact Ground State Energy of the Strong-Coupling Polaron

The polaron has been of interest in condensed matter theory and field theory for about half a century, especially the limit of large coupling constant, a. It was not until 1983, however, that a proof of the asymptotic formula for the ground state energy was finally given by using difficult arguments involving the large deviation theory of path integrals. Here we derive the same asymptotic result, E 0~ —Cα2,and with explicit error bounds, by simple, rigorous methods applied directly to the Hamiltonian. Our method is easily generalizable to other settings, e.g., the excitonic and magnetic polarons.
Covalent hybrids of ovomucoid third domains made from one synthetic and one natural peptide chain.

We have obtained two semisynthetic covalent hybrids (Wieczorek, M. & Laskowski, M., Jr., (1983) Biochemistry 22 , 2630–2636) of turkey ovomucoid third domain by coupling the natural 19–56 peptide fragment with crude, synthetic peptides 1–18 and 6–18, respectively. We have reformed all of the disulfide bridges and then we have enzymatically synthesized the 18–19 peptide bond. The enzyme-inhibitor association constants for interaction with five different serine proteinases were the same for the semisynthetic proteins 1–56 and 6–56 and for natural proteins 1–56 and 4–56. Further, the semisynthetic 1–56 and natural 1–56 proteins were indistinguishable in analytical ion exchange and reverse-phase chromatography. This work shows that 1) making the covalent hybrids from synthetic and natural material is a facile and efficient method for preparing variants for highly quantitative sequence to reactivity studies, 2) the first five NH2-terminal residues of avian ovomucoid third domains have no effect on inhibitory activity, and 3) it is sufficient and convenient to prepare 6–56 proteins rather than 1–56 for inhibitory activity studies.
Complex time solutions with nontrivial topology and multiparticle scattering in Yang-Mills theory

Abstract A classical solution in Yang-Mills thoery is given a new semiclassical interpretation in terms of particle scattering. It solves the complex time boundary value problem which arises in the semiclassical approximation to a multiparticle transition probability in the one-instanton sector at fixed energy. The imaginary part of the action of the solution on the complex time contour and its topological charge obey the same relation as the self-dual Euclidean configurations. Hence the solution is relevant for the problem of tunneling with fermion number violation in the electroweak theory. It describes transitions from an initial state with a smaller number of particles to a final state with a larger umber of particles. The implications of these results for multiparticle production in the electroweak theory are also discussed.
A very rapid instrumental neutron activation analysis method for the forensic comparasion of bullet-lead specimens

Since speed of attainment of results is often essential in actual case work in crime investigation, a new and much faster instrumental neutron activation analysis method has been developed for the intercomparison of bullet-lead specimens. It utilizes the 93-sec124m 1Sb, 24.4-sec110Ag, and 5.10-min66Cu induced activities, and requires only about three minutes per sample. The method has already been employed in a number of criminal cases.
The relation of mild traumatic brain injury to chronic lapses of attention

We assessed the extent to which failures in sustained attention were associated with chronic mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) deficits in cognitive control among college-age young adults with and without a history of sport-related concussion. Participants completed the ImPACT computer-based assessment and a modified flanker task. Results indicated that a history of mTBI, relative to healthy controls, was associated with inferior overall flanker task performance with a greater number of omission errors and more frequent sequentially occurring omission errors. Accordingly, these findings suggest that failures in the ability to maintain attentional vigilance may, in part, underlie mTBI-related cognition deficits.
Enhancing nurse-physician collaboration using pediatric simulation.

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to determine the level of nurse-physician collaboration during simulation training. METHODS A human patient simulator (HPS) of three mock codes with life-threatening scenarios in children, an understudied population, was used. A set of standardized measures and observational techniques were used to determine levels of nurse-physician collaboration and interaction on multiple dimensions found to improve patient outcomes. RESULTS High levels of group cohesion (GC) and collaboration and satisfaction with patient care decisions (CSPCD) were identified among both physicians and nurses. The male respondents, regardless of discipline, had significantly higher GC scores (p = .029) and significantly higher CSPCD scores (p = .005) than the female respondents. Although the nurses and physicians self-reported good collaboration following the scenarios, analysis of the videotapes revealed that collaboration improved over time. CONCLUSION The results of this study hold promise for this critical area of science that seeks to improve the outcomes of patients who experience life-threatening events.
Experimental determination of the interfacial heat transfer during cooling and solidification of molten metal droplets impacting on a metallic substrate: effect of roughness and superheat

Abstract The interfacial heat transfer between a solidifying molten metal and a metallic substrate is critical in many processes such as strip casting and spray deposition. As the molten metal cools down and solidifies, the interface undergoes a change from the initial liquid/solid contact to a solid/solid contact, leading to very dynamic variations in the rate of interfacial heat transfer. This article presents the results of an experimental study of the contact heat transfer when molten nickel or copper droplets are dropped on an inclined metallic substrate. The interfacial heat transfer coefficient, h, between the melt and the substrate is evaluated by matching model calculations with the top splat surface temperature history measured by a fast-response pyrometer. The results suggest that a high value of the interfacial heat transfer coefficient h (104 to 3×105 W/m2 K) is achieved when the molten splat is in contact with the substrate, followed by a smaller value (
War Zones and Game Sinks in Lewis and Clark's West

The journals of Lewis and Clark reveal a major difference in the taxa, numbers, and bebavior of megafauna on eitber side of the Rocky Mountains in western Nortb America. Two prior events set the stage for wbat Lewis and Clark would find. The first was the extinction around 13,000 years ago of two-tbirds of the native megafauna of the American West. The second was the effects on Indians of deadly new diseases and new technologies brougbt by Europeans in the post-Columbian era. Populations of large animals, which were preferred prey for native people, were not immune to European influence. Along the Columbia River corridor west of the Rockies, tens of tbousands of people lived in a game sink. Here Lewis and Clark's party found too few animals to live off the land by bunting. They adapted poorly to the local diet offisb and roots offered by the Nez Perce and bougbt dogs and borses to sustain tbemselves. To the east, uninbabited lands along the Upper Missouri and the Yellowstone rivers supported an abundance of wild game, especially bison, elk, deer, prongborn, and wolves. This game source occupied part of a buffer zone of 120,000 km2 probed by various Indian war parties, some of them armed witb muskets. William Clark recognized the relationsbip and near the end of tbeir journey be wrote that they found large numbers of large animals in the land be- tween nations that were at war. Botb the abundance of game in buffer or war zones and scarcity of big game in sinks bave been misinterpreted as a natural or typical condition. Altbough efforts to restore ecosystems to wbat is described in early journals may have merit, they are aimed at a flickering target. Long before these journals were written, the land bad been stripped of most of its native megafauna tbrougb buman influence. In the absence of bumans, we predict that mucb larger populations of bison, elk, deer, and wolves would have ranged the West than were reported in bistoric documents.
Polarization effects in high-energy weak interactions

The cross-section for the production of a polarized lepton and baryon in the reaction neutrino+nucleon → lepton+baryon is computed exactly to lowest order in the weak interaction. Results are given (a) in covariant form, and (b) in the center-of-mass system of the reaction, expressed directly in terms of the lepton and baryon decay asymmetries. The results are discussed with special emphasis on determining the form factors in the strangeness-changing weak interactions, on isolating induced scalar and induced pseudoscalar effects, and on testing time-reversal invariance in high-energy weak interactions.
How Does the Plant Plasma Membrane H+-ATPase Pump Protons?

In this review, we will attempt to address specific issues regarding the mechanism of energy coupling to proton transport by plant plasma membrane ATPase. As this process is so closely tied to the enzymatic reaction mechanism for ATP hydrolysis and structure of protein, we will begin with brief discussion of these topics
Potential environmental chemical hazards part III. Industrial and miscellaneous agents

Abstract We have examined but a small number of selected chemical agents from a spectra of environmental areas, viz. , drugs 1 ; feed medicants and pesticides 2 ; polymer and plastic ingredients, rubber additives, brightening agents and industrial chemicals with a view toward elaborating their potential hazard via a primary consideration of their structural analogies to known carcinogens, mutagens and/or teratogens. Efforts were made to cite where possible, the areas of primary environmental concern to man in terms of water, soil, air and food residues and attendant portals of entry of these agents as well as to stress their known biological and toxicological effects. Recognition was also made wherever feasible to the interrelationships and commonality of metabolites and degradation products from within the classes of compounds examined. We stress the fact that not only are chemical pollutants (both synthetic and naturally occurring, as well as their metabolic and/or degradation products) capable of producing any one or more of a variety of acute and chronic toxicities, but they may also interact in vitro and in vivo to produce synergistic or potentiating effects. Clearly the problem is staggering when one considers the myriad of new agents introduced into the environment annually on top of an already staggering number of present and potential hazards, but the time may also be short in eliciting the hazards of these agents to man.
Platelet‐activating factor induces cell death in cultured astrocytes and oligodendrocytes: Involvement of caspase‐3

The biologically active lipid metabolite, platelet-activating factor (PAF), is thought to contribute to inflammatory processes and tissue damage in a variety of central nervous system (CNS) injuries. In previous studies, we found that after contusion spinal cord injury, treatment with a PAF antagonist led to significantly increased white matter tissue sparing as well as decreased mRNA levels for pro-inflammatory cytokines. Some studies suggest that PAF can also have toxic effects on neurons in vitro. Few studies, however, have examined the effects of PAF on glial cells of the CNS. In the present study, the potential for PAF to act as a toxin to cultured astrocytes was examined. Also investigated were the effects of PAF on oligodendrocytes at two different stages of development. Treatment with 0.02–2 μM PAF for 72 h resulted in significant levels of cell death in both cell types (P < 0.05), an effect that was blocked by the PAF receptor antagonists, WEB 2170 and BN 52021. To investigate PAF-induced glial cell death further, we looked for activation of the enzyme, caspase-3, which can be indicative of apoptosis. Immunocytochemistry demonstrated that PAF at all concentrations caused activation of caspase-3 at 24, 48, and 72 h after treatment in both cell types. Caspase-3-dependent cell death was further confirmed using knockout mice (−/−) deficient in the caspase-3 gene. Toxicity was lost when astrocytes (−/−) were exposed to 0.02–2 μM PAF (P < 0.01). Oligodendrocytes (−/−) were not susceptible to toxicity at 2 μM PAF (P < 0.001). The results demonstrate that the pro-inflammatory molecule, PAF, induces cell death in cultured CNS glial cells and that this effect is, in part, dependent on caspase-3 activation. GLIA 38:228–239, 2002. © 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Endocannabinoid hedonic hotspot for sensory pleasure: Anandamide in nucleus accumbens shell enhances 'liking' of a sweet reward

Cannabinoid drugs such as Δ9-THC are euphoric and rewarding, and also stimulate food intake in humans and animals. Little is known about how naturally occurring endogenous brain cannabinoids mediate pleasure from food or other natural sensory rewards. The taste reactivity paradigm measures effects of brain manipulations on affective orofacial reactions to intraorally administered pleasant and unpleasant tastes. Here we tested if anandamide microinjection into medial nucleus accumbens shell enhances these affective reactions to sweet and bitter tastes in rats. Anandamide doubled the number of positive ‘liking’ reactions elicited by intraoral sucrose, without altering negative ‘disliking’ reactions to bitter quinine. Anandamide microinjections produced Fos plumes of approximately 0.02–1 mm3 volume. Plume-based maps, integrated with behavioral data, identified the medial shell of accumbens as the anatomical hotspot responsible for hedonic amplification. Anandamide produced especially intense hedonic enhancement in a roughly 1.6 mm3 ‘hedonic hotspot’ in dorsal medial shell, where anandamide also stimulated eating behavior. These results demonstrate that endocannabinoid signals within medial accumbens shell specifically amplify the positive hedonic impact of a natural reward (though identification of the receptor specificity of this effect will require future studies). Identification of an endocannabinoid hotspot for sensory pleasure gives insight into brain mechanisms of natural reward, and may be relevant to understanding the neural effects of cannabinoid drugs of abuse and therapeutic agents.
Loss of Endothelium and Receptor-Mediated Dilation in Pial Arterioles of Rats Fed a Short-Term High Salt Diet

A high salt diet often is regarded as an accessory risk factor in hypertension, coincidental to the deleterious effect of high blood pressure on vasodilator function. The aim of this study was to determine whether short-term ingestion of a high salt diet per se impairs vasodilator function in the cerebral circulation independent of blood pressure changes. Adult Sprague-Dawley rats were fed a normal salt (0.8%) or high salt (4%) diet for 3 days. Mean arterial pressures were similar in the normal and high salt groups (123+/-2 and 125+/-2 mm Hg, respectively). Subsequently, the responses of the in situ pial arterioles to acetylcholine, iloprost, and sodium nitroprusside were determined in cranial windows using intravital videomicroscopy. Pial arterioles of rats fed normal and high salt diets showed similar resting diameters of 69+/-2 and 72+/-3 microm, respectively, but their reactivity patterns to vasodilator stimuli were markedly different. Arterioles of rats fed a normal salt diet dilated progressively up to 17+/-3% in response to the endothelium-dependent agent acetylcholine (10(-9) to 10(-6) mol/L) and dilated by 22+/-2% in response to the prostaglandin I2 receptor agonist iloprost (3x10(-11) mol/L). In contrast, pial arterioles of rats fed a high salt diet constricted by 4+/-3% and 8+/-2% in response to acetylcholine and iloprost, respectively. Sodium nitroprusside (10(-6) mol/L), a nitric oxide donor, dilated pial arterioles of rats fed low and high salt diets by a similar amount (19+/-3% and 16+/-2%, respectively), suggesting that signaling mechanisms for dilation distal to the vascular smooth muscle membrane were intact after high salt intake. These results provide the first evidence that the short-term ingestion of a high salt diet may severely impair the vasodilator function of the in situ cerebral microcirculation independent of blood pressure elevation.
SOCIOCULTURAL CONCEPTIONS OF THE BORDERLINE PERSONALITY

Although sympathetic to most analytic conceptions of the origins of borderline personality disorder, an addendum reflecting the recent and divisive impact of rapid social and cultural changes is proposed. Specifically noted are social customs that exacerbate rather than remediate early errant parent-child relationships and the diminished power of once reparative institutions that no longer compensate for these ubiquitous early problems.
Phase unwrapping for multidimensional rational and finite-length sequences

A direct relationship between a multidimensional time series with finite support and its unwrapped phase is shown. This relationship shows that the unwrapped phase of a multidimensional sequence is unique in the sense that once the phase at the origin is specified the phase everywhere in the frequency domain follows. Additionally, the uniqueness of the unwrapped phase for multidimensional sequences which have a rational Z transform is shown. In either case, the unwrapped phase at a given point is shown to be compatible using a real 1-d finite-length phase unwrapping procedure based on Sturm sequence polynomials. >
Jamming and counter-measure strategies in parallel Gaussian fading channels with channel state information

Consider a parallel Gaussian channel with M subchannels each of which experiences independent flat fading. There exists a smart jammer which is capable of intercepting the feedback channel message such that channel state information (CSI) measured and sent back by a receiver can be perfectly known to the jammer, as well. We formulate a novel two-layer two-person zero-sum game. Under this zero-sum game framework, the following three fundamental questions are addressed. The first one is about whether to hop or to spread power over M frequency bands given the full CSI at both transmitter and jammer sides. We prove that spreading versus spreading is the Nash equilibrium point. The second question is about the impact of sending back CSI on the overall throughput, to feedback or not to feedback, considering the presence of a smart jammer capable to exploit CSI for its malicious purpose. We show that possessing the full CSI enables a better means to defend against the jammerpsilas attacks. The last question is about whether the amount of feedback information can be reduced given the mutual restrictions between transmitter and jammer. We prove that the receiver should also get involved by adaptively sending CSI without compromising the sum rate at the equilibrium point.
What is so special about smell? Olfaction as a model system in neurobiology

Neurobiology studies mechanisms of cell signalling. A key question is how cells recognise specific signals. In this context, olfaction has become an important experimental system over the past 25 years. The olfactory system responds to an array of structurally diverse stimuli. The discovery of the olfactory receptors (ORs), recognising these stimuli, established the olfactory pathway as part of a greater group of signalling mechanisms mediated by G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). GPCRs are the largest protein family in the mammalian genome and involved in numerous fundamental physiological processes. The OR family exhibits two characteristics that make them an excellent model system to understand GPCRs: its size and the structural diversity of its members. Research on the OR binding site investigates what amino acid sequences determine the receptor-binding capacity. This promises a better understanding of how the basic genetic makeup of GPCRs relates to their diversification in ligand-binding capacities.
Thermal Energy Storage and Power Generation for the Manned Outpost using Processed Lunar Regolith as Thermal Mass Materials

[Abstract] This paper presents the results of an evaluation of the use of thermal energy reservoirs, using processed lunar regolith as the thermal mass, for electrical power generation during periods of darkness at a human-occupied outpost on the Moon. The reference conceptual approach utilizes propellant tanks from the Altair Lunar Lander plus thermal mass materials produced as by-products of oxygen production from an In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) plant. Propellant tanks would be loaded with spheroidically shaped thermal bricks from the ISRU plant and configured to function as heat sources and intermediate heat sinks. During periods of sunlight, solar energy would be concentrated and stored as thermal energy in high temperature, thermal energy reservoirs and then used for power generation during periods of darkness through the operation of Stirling cycle heat engines, intermediate heat sinks and radiators. We calculate that the storage volume obtained from the tankage of one Altair Descent Stage can support net power generation at an average rate of 8.0 kWe during the longest period of darkness currently anticipated at Site A of Shackleton Crater, a site in discu ssion as a possible location for a manned lunar outpost. The power density, based upon the additional mass that must be transported to the Moon for this configuration, is estimated to be between 8 and 11 W e/kg.
Reframing the Historical Problematic of Insurgency: How the Professional Military Literature Created a New History and Missed the Past

Abstract This article explores how current professional military scholarship on insurgency and counterinsurgency (COIN) uses history to frame its arguments. It then attempts to reframe the current historical problematic surrounding insurgency. First, the article shows that the historical narrative of professional military scholarship on insurgency and its theoretical grounding are highly flawed. They are both parochial and profoundly ahistorical. Second, the paper constructs an alternative narrative of insurgency beginning from the ideas of the German legal philosopher Carl Schmitt (1888–1985), returning insurgency to history. This alternative narrative emphasizes the critical role played by the fall of European public law (jus publicum Europaeum). As a consequence of this and other historically contingent events, war in Europe lost its relative autonomy from society during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. In turn, insurgency became an increasingly prominent and normatively accepted form of warfare...
Critical thresholds in a relaxation system with resonance of characteristic speeds

We study critical threshold phenomena in a dynamic continuum traffic flow model known as the Payne and Whitham (PW) model. This model is a quasi-linear hyperbolic relaxation system, and when equilibrium velocity is specifically associated with pressure, the equilibrium characteristic speed resonates with one characteristic speed of the full relaxation system. For a scenario of physical interest we identify a lower threshold for finite time singularity in solutions and an upper threshold for the global existence of the smooth solution. The set of initial data leading to global smooth solutions is large, in particular allowing initial velocity of negative slope.
On Baker's Persons and Bodies

Lynne Baker's Persons and Bodies is an impressive and thought-provoking work. Baker's development of her notion of constitution without identity is insightful and valuable, and her application of this notion to the relation I have to my body is provocative. Her challenges to opposing positions on the nature of constitution are strong, especially her criticisms of the contention that a concrete individual and any such individual wholly spatially coincident with it must be identical. The disagreements I have on these foundational issues are compatible with retention of her position as the right sort of foundation on which to build. Baker's application of this notion to the relation between me and my body requires, crucially, an answer to the question: What am I? Any substantive answer to this question will be controversial, and indeed Baker's does not disappoint on this score. I take issue with her position, but I am convinced that it is important and interesting, and that it has a serious chance of being right in its general conception.
Threshold Response of Initiation of Blood Coagulation by Tissue Factor in Patterned Microfluidic Capillaries Is Controlled by Shear Rate

Objective—Blood flow is considered one of the important parameters that contribute to venous thrombosis. We quantitatively test the relationship between initiation of coagulation and shear rate and suggest a biophysical mechanism to understand this relationship. Methods and Results—Flowing human blood and plasma were exposed to cylindrical surfaces patterned with patches of tissue factor (TF) by using microfluidics. Initiation of coagulation of normal pooled plasma depended on shear rate, not volumetric flow rate or flow velocity, and coagulation initiated only at shear rates below a critical value. Initiation of coagulation of platelet-rich plasma and whole blood showed similar behavior. At constant shear rate, coagulation of plasma also showed a threshold response to the size of a patch of TF, consistent with our previous work in the absence of flow. Conclusion—Initiation of coagulation of flowing blood displays a threshold response to shear rate and to the size of a surface patch of TF. Combined with the results of others, these results set the range of shear rates that limit initiation of coagulation by small surface areas of TF and by shear activation of platelets. This range fits the relatively narrow range of physiological shear rates described by Murray’s law. (Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 2008;28:2035-2041)
Parental Perspectives on the Diagnostic Process for Duchenne and Becker Muscular Dystrophy.

Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophy (DBMD) are allelic, X-linked recessive, neuromuscular disorders characterized by progressive loss of muscle function. Despite technological advances in diagnostic genetic testing, the mean age at diagnosis (4.7 years) has remained unchanged for decades. The purpose of the study was to characterize parental perceptions of the diagnostic process and identify factors that influence the timeline. Data collection for this qualitative study consisted of six individual and five group interviews. Participants (N = 30) included Hispanic, non-Hispanic black, and non-Hispanic white parents whose son was diagnosed with DBMD. The “help-seeking behavior model” provided an analytical framework to analyze the data. Parents did not move through help-seeking stages unidirectionally as described in other studies. Delays existed at each stage. We identified personal, familial, social, cultural, and provider factors that impeded earlier diagnosis. These barriers prolonged movement through a stage or led families to repeat previous stages. Results should initiate debate among system administrators, patient advocates, and healthcare providers regarding which barriers may be most modifiable and which interventions may reduce the time to diagnosis and limit parental emotional distress. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): An emerging challenge to accounting education

Abstract The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA; 1990) opens an academic door on two levels which will affect the way we provide educational services. First, employment practices for staff and faculty will require a review. Second, there will be more disabled students in our classroom. This article summarizes relevant provisions of the ADA and offers recommendations for compliance. A significant issue considered is faculty employment practices. Each of the three typical performance areas of faculty activity (research, service, and teaching) are examined. The Act also creates a new environment for instruction for the students. Access to the classroom, office hours, examination locations, research facilities, computer labs, etc., must be made available in a manner that is normally provided for all students. This article presents a graphic paradigm providing a structure for evaluation of the institutional and instructional impacts.
Environmental stresses can alleviate the average deleterious effect of mutations

Background: Fundamental questions in evolutionary genetics, including the possible advantage of sexual reproduction, depend critically on the effects of deleterious mutations on fitness. Limited existing experimental evidence suggests that, on average, such effects tend to be aggravated under environmental stresses, consistent with the perception that stress diminishes the organism’s ability to tolerate deleterious mutations. Here, we ask whether there are also stresses with the opposite influence, under which the organism becomes more tolerant to mutations. Results: We developed a technique, based on bioluminescence, which allows accurate automated measurements of bacterial growth rates at very low cell densities. Using this system, we measured growth rates of Escherichia coli mutants under a diverse set of environmental stresses. In contrast to the perception that stress always reduces the organism’s ability to tolerate mutations, our measurements identified stresses that do the opposite - that is, despite decreasing wild-type growth, they alleviate on average the effect of deleterious mutations. Conclusions: Our results show a qualitative difference between various environmental stresses ranging from alleviation to aggravation of the average effect of mutations. We further show how the existence of stresses that are biased towards alleviation of the effects of mutations may imply the existence of average epistatic interactions between mutations. The results thus offer a connection between the two main factors controlling the effects of deleterious mutations: environmental conditions and epistatic interactions.
Uniform asymptotic expansions for Charlier polynomials: 93

The asymptotic behaviour of the Charlier polynomials C^(^a^)"n(x) as n->~ is examined. These polynomials satisfy a discrete orthogonality relation and, unlike classical orthogonal polynomials, do not satisfy a second-order linear differential equation with respect to the independent variable x. As such, previous results on their asymptotic behaviour have been restricted to integral methods and consequently have been quite limited in their scope. In this paper a new approach is used, where the polynomials C^(^a^)"n(x) are not regarded as a functions of x with a as a parameter, but rather with the roles reversed via a second-order linear differential equation in which a is the (real or complex-valued) independent variable and x is a parameter. This equation has two turning points in the a plane which depend on x, and are either positive or complex conjugates, according to the values of x. Moreover, the turning points can coalesce with one another, or one with a singularity of the equation, for certain critical values of x. By using two general asymptotic theories of differential equations, one for intervals free of turning points and the other for intervals containing a double pole and a coalescing turning point, expansions are derived for C^(^a^)"n(x) involving either elementary functions or Bessel functions. Taken together, the results are uniformly valid for -~
Fantasy orientation constructs and related executive function development in preschool: Developmental benefits to executive functions by being a fantasy-oriented child

This study explored unique constructs of fantasy orientation and whether there are developmental benefits for fantasy-oriented children. By age 3, children begin developing executive functions, with some children exhibiting high fantasy orientation in their cognitions and behaviors. Preschoolers (n = 106) completed fantasy orientation measures and executive function tasks, including parent and teacher questionnaires. Principal Component Analysis revealed four specific constructs within fantasy orientation (FO). Relations were examined between children’s FO constructs and executive functions to determine if developmental benefits exist with being fantasy-oriented. Hierarchical linear regressions suggested that certain FO constructs are uniquely related to specific executive functions, such that there are potentially specific developmental benefits to being a fantasy-oriented child (i.e., inhibition and attention shift positively related to fantastical cognitions).
Differentiation of D- and L-Thyroxine by the plasma protein prealbumin

We present empirical energy calculations on the binding of thyroxine analogs to the plasma protein prealbumin. The results of the calculations suggest a stronger binding affinity for the L isomer than the D, consistent with observed binding affinities. These calculations allow us to rationalize the significantly stronger binding of des-NH3+ than des-COO− analogs of the hormone to the protein.
MAGNESIUM UTILIZATION IN WETHERS FED DIETS WITH VARYING RATIOS OF NITROGEN TO READILY FERMENTABLE CARBOHYDRATE

Two experiments were conducted to study magnesium utilization in wether lambs fed diets with varying ratios of nitrogen to readily fermentable carbohydrate (N:RFC). Semipurified diets fed to the lambs contained about 4.1% nitrogen (25.6% crude protein), .08% magnesium, .4% calcium, 2.4% potassium and varied amounts of readily fermentable carbohydrate provided mainly as either starch (experiment 1) or sucrose (experiment 2). Dietary ratios of N:RFC were .2, .4, .7 and .9 in experiment 1 (five lambs/treatment), and .2 and 1.6 in experiment 2 (nine lambs/treatment). In experiment 1, ruminal fluid ammonia-nitrogen levels increased as starch intake decreased, but differences between treatments were not significant (P>.05). Apparent absorption, retention and plasma concentration of magnesium were not affected (P>.05) by decreased starch intake. In experiment 2, ruminal ammonia levels increased (P<.05) as sucrose intake decreased. Urinary excretion (P<.05) and apparent absorption (P<.1) of magnesium were higher in lambs fed supplementary sucrose than in those fed the diet without added sucrose; plasma magnesium levels were similar in both groups. Results of experiment 2 support the hypothesis that supplemental energy may enhance the availability of dietary magnesium to ruminants.
An analytical model for high electron mobility transistors

In this paper we present a new model for HEMT's which is based on a single analytical function that describes the electron concentrations in the two dimensional electron gas and in the AlGaAs layer. Besides accounting for the AlGaAs conduction, the model includes the effect of mobility degradation, channel length modulation in the saturation region and the series resistances R/sub S/ and R/sub D/. The model results in closed form expressions for the current, transconductance, output conductance and gate capacitance. Finally, the theoretical predictions of the model are compared with the experimental data and shown to be in good agreement over a wide range of bias conditions. >
Frequency allotment capability concept development study

The frequency-allotment function bridges the gap between the national and international frequency allocation tables and the actual frequency assignments for various radio networks. The tables of allocation define the permitted type of operation in various portions of the spectrum; assignments specify the specific frequency in use by a link or net. This paper discusses a scheme for determining the way to define the required frequency complement for a net/network and how the frequencies should be spread out to allow for optimum use of the spectrum by the radio system. >
The light curve of the nucleus of comet d'Arrest

This paper reports new photoelectric photometry of the nucleus of P/d'Arrest (1976e) during August 4, 5, and 6, 1976 (UT), just before perihelion passage. The comet appeared as a bright stellar nucleus with a faint surrounding coma. The average visual magnitude from the nuclear region (16-arcsec diaphragm) was 11.60. The visual brightness varies with an amplitude of 0.15 plus or minus 0.02 mag. There is evidence for a period of 5.17 plus or minus 0.01 hr. We interpret such a periodic variation as due to the rotation of the nucleus. The colors of the nuclear region are very similar to those of a solar-type star, and they do not vary significantly with aspect angle.
Diindolylmethane Alters Gene Expression in Human Keratinocytes In Vitro

Indole-3-carbinol (13C) and its dimer 3,3'-diindolylmethane (DIM), obtained from dietary consumption of cruciferous vegetables, have multiple biochemical activities. Both compounds have been effective clinically in treating precancerous lesions of the cervix and laryngeal papillomas, pathologies with a human papillomavirus (HPV) component. Using cDNA microarrays, we examined early changes in gene expression after treatment with 100 μmol/L DIM in C33A and CaSki cervical cancer cells and in an immortalized human epithelial cell line (HaCat), as well as in normal human foreskin keratinocytes (HFK). Multiple analyses were done after treating C33A cells for 6 h; other analyses included 4- and 12-h treatments of C33A and 6-h treatments of CaSki, HaCat and HFK cells. DIM consistently altered the expression of >100 genes at least twofold. Many of the stimulated genes encode transcription factors and proteins involved in signaling, stress response and growth. Results were comparable between transformed cells with and without integrated HPV sequences, and many of the same genes were induced in these cancer-derived cells and in noncancer cells. Eight genes encoding bZip proteins were among the most consistently and robustly induced, including the stress-associated immediate early gene GADD153 (>50 fold in C33A) and nuclear factor-interleukin 6 (NF-IL6), also known as c/EBPβ, (>5 fold in C33A), which has been shown to reduce expression of HPV oncogenes. Induction of GADD153, NF-IL6 and ATF3 was confirmed by Western analysis. In functional analyses, DIM not only suppressed transcription of a luciferase gene driven by the HPV11 upstream regulatory region (URR) in C33A, CaSki, HaCat and HFK cells from >2-fold to 37-fold depending on the type of cells, but also reduced endogenous transcription of HPV16 oncogenes to undetectable levels in CaSki cells as determined by an RNase protection assay. Ectopic expression of GADD153 or NF-IL6 suppressed transcription in a dose-dependent manner driven by the HPV11 URR in C33A, CaSki, HaCat and HFK cells. These results identify unexpected ways in which dietary I3C and DIM invoke cellular responses and are consistent with a potential antiviral effect of DIM on keratinocytes, but they do not explain the differential sensitivity of transformed keratinocytes to apoptosis by DIM.
Effect of biogenic amines, FSH-releasing factor (FRF) and other substances on the release of FSH by pituitaries incubated in vitro.

A variety of amines and peptides were evaluated in an in vitro system for their effect on the release of FSH which was assayed by the HCG-augmentation method of Steelman and Pohley. Of the monoamines tested, both epinephrine and norepinephrine enhanced release of FSH at high doses (10 /μg/ml of incubation medium), although epinephrine appeared to be the more potent of the two. Dopamine was ineffective except at the higher doses (10 μg/ml), which inactivated the FSH released. Histamine was also active at higher doses (10 μg/ml), but serotonin failed to alter FSH release at all doses tested. Putrescine, a diamine, was virtually inactive except at the highest dose (100 μg/ml), which had a weak FSH-releasing effect, whereas cadaverine, another diamine, was active at doses of 10 μg/ml or more and produced a more markedeffect. Of the polyamines tested, spermidine was highly active at doses of 10 μg/ml or more, whereas spermine was without effect at all doses tested. Arginine-vasopressin at a very high concentra...
Continuous Left Atrial Pressure Monitoring During MitraClip: Assessing the Immediate Hemodynamic Response.

We describe the novel use of continuous left atrial pressure (LAP) monitoring to guide the MitraClip (Abbott Vascular, Santa Clara, California) procedure. In addition to transesophageal echocardiography, we have found that direct measurement of LAP is also a useful tool to determine the hemodynamic
Duration of opioid receptor blockade determines biotherapeutic response

Historically, studies on endogenous and exogenous opioids and their receptors focused on the mediation of pain, with excess opiate consumption leading to addiction. Opioid antagonists such as naloxone and naltrexone blocked these interactions, and still are widely used to reverse drug and alcohol overdose. Although specific opioid antagonists have been designed for mu, delta, and kappa opioid receptors, the general antagonists remain the most effective. With the discovery of the opioid growth factor (OGF)-OGF receptor (OGFr) axis as a novel biological pathway involved in homeostasis of replicating cells and tissues, the role of opioid receptor antagonists was expanded. An intermittent OGFr blockade by low dosages of naltrexone resulted in depressed cell replication, whereas high (or sustained) dosages of naltrexone that conferred a continuous OGFr blockade resulted in enhanced growth. More than 3 decades of research have confirmed that the duration of opioid receptor blockade, not specifically the dosage, by general opioid antagonists determines the biotherapeutic outcome. Dysregulation of the OGF-OGFr pathway is apparent in a number of human disorders including diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and cancer, and thus opioid antagonist disruption of interaction prevails as a therapeutic intervention. We review evidence that the duration of opioid receptor blockade is correlated with the magnitude and direction of response, and discuss the potential therapeutic effectiveness of continuous receptor blockade for treatment of diabetic complications such as corneal defects and skin wounds, and of intermittent receptor blockade by low dosages of naltrexone for treatment of autoimmune diseases and cancer.