cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Early-Life Air Pollution Exposure, Neighborhood Poverty, and Childhood Asthma in the United States, 1990–2014

Ambient air pollution is a well-known risk factor of various asthma-related outcomes, however, past research has often focused on acute exacerbations rather than asthma development. This study draws on a population-based, multigenerational panel dataset from the United States to assess the association of childhood asthma risk with census block-level, annual-average air pollution exposure measured during the prenatal and early postnatal periods, as well as effect modification by neighborhood poverty. Findings suggest that early-life exposures to nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), a marker of traffic-related pollution, and fine particulate matter (PM2.5), a mixture of industrial and other pollutants, are positively associated with subsequent childhood asthma diagnosis (OR = 1.25, 95% CI = 1.10⁻1.41 and OR = 1.25, 95% CI = 1.06⁻1.46, respectively, per interquartile range (IQR) increase in each pollutant (NO₂ IQR = 8.51 ppb and PM2.5 IQR = 4.43 µ/m³)). These effects are modified by early-life neighborhood poverty exposure, with no or weaker effects in moderate- and low- (versus high-) poverty areas. This work underscores the importance of a holistic, developmental approach to elucidating the interplay of social and environmental contexts that may create conditions for racial-ethnic and socioeconomic disparities in childhood asthma risk.
An Efficient Quantile Spatial Scan Statistic for Finding Unusual Regions in Continuous Spatial Data with Covariates

Domains such as citizen science biodiversity monitoring and real estate are producing spatial data with a continuous response and also an associated vector of covariates (i.e. features) associated with each spatial data point. A common data analysis task involves finding unusual regions that differ from the surrounding area. Existing techniques are intended for simpler data (e.g. point process data) and they compare regions according to the means of their distributions to measure "unusualness". Comparing means is not only vulnerable to outliers, but it is also restrictive as an analyst may want to compare other parts of the probability distributions. For instance, a real-estate analyst interested in unusual areas for high-end homes would be more interested in the 90th percentile of home sales prices than in the mean. We introduce the Quantile Spatial Scan Statistic (QSSS), which finds unusual regions in spatial data by comparing quantiles of data distributions while accounting for covariates at each data point. We also develop an exact incremental update of the underlying hypothesis test used by the QSSS, which results a massive speedup over a naive implementation.
Geography and engagement with UN development goals: Rethinking development or perpetuating the status quo?

It is sensible to assert that geographers ought to participate in an ongoing discussion about the UN development goals because development will be better for it. I largely agree with this sentiment...
T Cell Co-regulatory Signals and Their Role in Cancer Therapy

T cell activation is initiated by signaling through the TCR after binding to MHC-presented antigen. Both positive and negative co-regulatory signaling can modify this original activating signal. T cell co-regulation is provided by receptors on the T cell surface membrane. Inhibitory signals are provided by CTLA4 or PD-1, while co-stimulation is provided by CD28, 4-1BB, OX40, or GITR. These signals are being studied in the laboratory and at the clinical level in order to therapeutically modulate T cell responses to tumor cells. T cells can recognize tumor antigens in the same way that these immune cells recognize bacteria, viral antigens, and other foreign peptides. If appropriately activated by the tumor antigen, the immune system can mediate an antitumor gene response. Unfortunately, immune cells with antitumor specificity are not present in abundance and are often inhibited by tumor expression of CTLA4 or PD-1 ligands. Thus manipulation of co-regulatory signals can be used as a strategy by which to strengthen the immune response, via augmentation of T cell co-stimulation and/or blockade of inhibitory signals, in order to effectively treat cancer. In this chapter we review the basic principles and science as well as the ongoing clinical efforts in this area that have had recent success and offer additional promise.
INVARIANT SETS FOR EVOLUTION SYSTEMS

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses invariant sets for evolution systems in general Banach spaces. Many results have been obtained concerning the determination and characterization of invariant sets for ordinary differential equations, both in finite dimensional spaces and in general Banach spaces. The chapter presents the development of criteria that assure that C is invariant for U, that is, U(t, s) : C → C for all 0 ≤ s ≤ t.
Schrecken: An Ideological War against the Jews Everywhere

And thy life shall hang in doubt before thee; and thou shalt fear night and day, and shalt have no assurance of thy life. In the morning thou shalt say: "would it were even!" and at even thou shalt say: "Would it were morning!" for the fear of thy heart which thou shalt fear, and for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see. This Deuteronomic text effectively underscores the conditions and milieu that confronted European Jews under National Socialist rule. The impetus that led to this unpredictable episode in human history and the tragic carnage evident in its aftermath is the subject of Lucy S. Dawidowicz novel "The War Against the Jews." In her analysis, Dawidowicz carefully documents a number of precursors that slowly corrupted and shaped the moral conscience of German society into a bizarre ideological acceptance of racial superiority unmatched in the annals of history.
Selective and Stable Non-Noble-Metal Intermetallic Compound Catalyst for the Direct Dehydrogenation of Propane to Propylene.

A non-noble intermetallic compound catalyst consisting of Ni3Ga nanoparticles supported on Al2O3 that exhibits high selectivity (∼94%), comparable activity (TOF = 4.7 × 10–2 s–1), good stability (∼94% to 81% over the 82 h test), and regenerability in the direct dehydrogenation of propane to propylene at 600 °C has been developed. Through synthesis techniques that stabilize the Ni3Ga phase, the surface composition of the catalytic nanoparticles could be tuned by Ni and Ga loading such that improved selectivity toward propylene may be achieved. Comparisons with well-defined silica-supported Ni3Ga and NiGa catalysts and Ni3Ga/Al2O3 with a range of Ni:Ga loading suggested that a specific surface composition range was most promising for propylene production. The presence of Ni at the active particle surface was also found to be critical to drive dehydrogenation and enhance conversion, whereas the presence of Ga was necessary to attenuate the reactivity of the surface to improve selectivity and catalyst stability.
Facilitating mechanisms for integrating care to promote health equity across the life course: reflections from social work trainees

Integrated care is a promising practice to promote health equity and improve population health across the life course, but the mechanisms needed to integrate services remain nebulous. This study ai...
Eye Drops for Delivery of Bioactive Compounds and BrdU to Stimulate Proliferation and Label Mitotically Active Cells in the Adult Rodent Retina

Eye drop treatments are typically used to apply drugs to the anterior structures of the eye. Recently, however, studies have demonstrated that eye drops can reach the retina in the back of the eye if pharmacological agents are carried in appropriate vehicles. Here, we introduce an eye drop procedure to deliver a drug (PNU-282987), in combination with BrdU, to stimulate cell cycle re-entry and label dividing cells in the retinas of adult rodents. This procedure avoids potential systemic complications of repeated intraperitoneal injections, as well as the retinal damage that is induced by repeated intravitreal injections. Although the delivery of PNU-282987 and BrdU is the focus of this article, many different proliferating compounds could be delivered to the retina using this procedure.
Analysis of Airborne Antennas Using Hybrid Computational Techniques

With growing communications, nowadays there are increasingly sophisticated antenna systems with associated electronics aboard aircrafts. Advances in electromagnetic (EM) simulations have significantly improved the design process for such systems, resulting in reduced testing time and costs. In this paper, we will review hybrid computational techniques that are becoming popular to analyze and optimize antenna designs as well as antenna placement on air borne platforms. Accuracy of simulations using hybrid full wave and asymptotic techniques will be presented.
Conflicts of Home-Making: Strategies of Survival and the Politics of Assimilation

Latinx communities that shape the US cultural landscape and assimilationists who reject this influence each have a desire to feel at home in the US. Nevertheless, people hold conflicting intuitions...
Predictive and Accelerated Formulation Design Using Synchrotron Methods

Predictive formulation design and accelerated formulation design can lead to the discovery of useful formulations to support drug clinical studies and successful drug approval. Predictive formulation design can also lead to discovery of a path for commercialization, especially for poorly soluble drugs, when the target product profile is well defined and a "learning before doing" approach is implemented. One of the key components of predictive/accelerated formulation design is to understand and leverage the material properties of drug substance including solubility, BCS classification, polymorphs, salt formation, amorphous form, amorphous complex, and stability. In addition, utilizing synchrotron-based PDF (pair distribution function) analysis can provide important structural information for the formulation. This knowledge allows control of physical and chemical stability of the designed product. Finally, formulation design should link to process development following Quality by Design principles, and solid-state chemistry should play a critical role in many of the steps required to achieve Quality by Design, which can lead to successful product development.
Legacy Institutions and Political Order in Weak States: Evidence from Chad

Author(s): Thissen, Paul | Advisor(s): Arriola, Leonardo | Abstract: This dissertation investigates variation in the ability of non-state institutions to produce political order in weak states. In countries with weak central governments, non-state institutions, such as chieftaincies, are often seen performing many of the functions of a state: enforcing legal codes, collecting taxes, guaranteeing property rights, and ensuring security. However, while some chieftaincies demonstrate an impressive command over their followers, in other places, residents feel free to disobey their chief's edicts. I ask: Why do people in some places comply with their local chief, while in other places they do not?Such chieftaincy institutions are often referred to as "traditional," "customary," or "informal," institutions. However these conceptual labels are inappropriate for the full range of institutions to which they are applied. Some of which have nothing to do with local traditions or customs, while some have written legal codes and official state recognition. Accordingly I consider them to be legacy institutions, based upon the historical legacy of their community.I develop a theory of institutional time-dependent reputation and how it affects individuals' compliance decisions. I explain how centuries-old institutions can command greater compliance than newer institutions, because people grow up knowing the institution's reputation, believing they will be punished if they disobey its leader. In contrast, people are still formulating their beliefs about newer institutions, because they are unsure whether newer institutions are capable of following through with consequences.I corroborate this theoretical argument with new evidence collected via immersive research in Chad. Using in-depth interviews with chiefs and a survey of 2,300 Chadian villagers across peripheral regions of Chad, I find that residents have higher expectations of compliance in areas where there are older institutions with established reputations. This finding that is robust to a variety of analytical approaches and statistical models.
EP1348 Reconstruction of the vulva and vagina with a lotus flap after resection of cancer of the Bartholin gland

Introduction/Background The majority of flaps used in reconstruction of the vulva are local flaps with a random blood supply and consist of the skin and subcutaneous tissue. They include the V-Y advancement flap, the transposition flap and the rhomboid flap. The lotus flap is a transpositional flap with the blood supply from the perineal branches of the internal pudendal artery. It has an axial blood supply at the base and a random blood supply at the tip. It can be 4 times longer than its width and can be rotated more than 90 degrees. The type of flap chosen is based on the size and location of the defect. The V-Y is best for lateral defects, the rhomboid is best for perineal defects and the lotus can be used for anterior lateral or posterior defects. Methodology The video will show the defect in the vulva and lower vagina that needs to be covered. It will show the harvesting of the flap, rotating it under the vulva tunnel, preparing the recipient graft site and sewing the graft into place. Results The patient healed primarily. She received 4400 cGy of radiation postop. She did not have stricture or skin breakdown. Photos of the result are shown. She is alive without disease at 2 years. Conclusion The lotus flap is an excellent flap for reconstruction of the vulva or the lower and mid vagina. Disclosure Nothing to disclose
Comparison of core neuromuscular control and lower extremity postural stability in athletes with and without shoulder injuries.

Abstract Background The kinetic chain theory is widely used as a rationale for the inclusion of core stability training in athletes. Core stability (muscle capacity and neuromuscular control) impairments may result in less than optimal performance and abnormal force dissipation to the shoulder complex that could lead to shoulder injuries. However, a paucity of literature exists to support this relationship, and no previous studies have investigated the relationship between isolated core neuromuscular control and shoulder injuries. Additionally, lower extremity postural stability has been associated with athletic function and may also be associated with shoulder injuries. The purpose of this study was to compare biomechanical measures of isolated core neuromuscular control and lower extremity postural stability between athletes with and without non-traumatic shoulder injuries. Methods Eighty athletes (55 males, age: 21.2 ± 3.3 years, 40 with a current shoulder injury) completed biomechanical measures of isolated core neuromuscular control and lower extremity postural stability. Athletes were matched by age, gender, body mass index, and sport type. MANOVAs were used to assess differences between measures of core neuromuscular control and lower extremity postural stability between groups. Findings There were no statistically significant differences between athletes with and without shoulder injuries for the static core neuromuscular control measures, F(4,75) = 0.45, P = 0.78, η2 = 0.02; dynamic core neuromuscular control measures, F(4,75) = 0.81, P = 0.52, η2 = 0.04; or lower extremity postural stability measures, F(8,61) = 0.85, P = 0.56, η2 = 0.10. Interpretation Although core stability is widely incorporated in rehabilitation of athletes with shoulder injuries, athletes with current non-traumatic shoulder injuries may not present with impairments in core neuromuscular control or lower extremity postural stability.
The LRRC8A:C Heteromeric Channel Is a cGAMP Transporter and the Dominant cGAMP Importer in Human Vasculature Cells

SUMMARY Extracellular 2’3’-cyclic-GMP-AMP (cGAMP) is an immunotransmitter secreted by cancer cells and taken up by host cells to activate the anti-cancer STING pathway. No cGAMP exporter has been identified, and SLC19A1, a recently identified cGAMP importer, does not account for the import activity in most cell types. Here, we identify the LRRC8A:C heteromeric channel, a volume-regulated anion channel (VRAC), as a cGAMP transporter. This channel mediates cGAMP import or export depending on the cGAMP chemical gradient, and channel activation or inhibition modulates cGAMP transport. Other 2’3’-cyclic dinucleotides are also transported by LRRC8A:C channels, including the investigational cancer therapeutic ADU-S100. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the LRRC8A-containing channel is the dominant cGAMP importer in primary human vasculature cells. Given tumor vasculature’s regulation of immune infiltration and its disruption in response to STING agonists, we have uncovered a leading molecular mechanism for extracellular cGAMP signaling in this important anti-cancer target.
People with schizophrenia do not show the normal benefits of social versus nonsocial attentional cues.

Objective Schizophrenia is associated with impairments in social motivation. Social attention has been proposed as an underlying mechanism for social motivation. However, studies in schizophrenia have rarely examined social attention, and none of these studies examined the effects with rapidly presented stimuli. Method The current study examined whether individuals with schizophrenia have reduced social attention and whether reduced social attention was related to social motivation deficits (measured with the Clinical Assessment Interview for Negative Symptoms) and decreased social functioning (Role Functioning Scale). Thirty-seven outpatients with schizophrenia and 29 healthy participants completed a gaze cueing task with directional social cues (eye gaze) and nonsocial cues (arrows) at varying stimulus onset asynchronies. Results As predicted, schizophrenia participants had reduced social attention relative to nonsocial attention, compared with healthy participants. Healthy participants were quicker to respond to social cues than nonsocial cues, but schizophrenia participants did not exhibit this same pattern. Schizophrenia participants showed higher accuracy when targets appeared in the same location as a directional cue (i.e., congruency) for nonsocial, but not social, cues. Contrary to expectations, reduced social attention was not significantly correlated with clinically rated social motivation deficits or decreased social functioning in the schizophrenia group. Conclusion These findings provide evidence for social attention deficits in schizophrenia, but without a clear mapping of its influence on social motivation. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).
Abstract 4861: Loss of YAP1 activates Wnt/beta-Catenin signaling in prostate cancer

Prostate cancer (PCa) is the most common non-cutaneous cancer among American men. In 2019, 174,650 new patients will be diagnosed from this disease. Most patients with localized PCa could be treated successfully. However, when PCa develops into castrate-resistant prostate cancer (CRPCa), the five-year survival rate drops below 30%. Neuroendocrine prostate cancer (NEPCa) is an aggressive subtype of PCa observed in 20%-30% CRPCa patients. Understanding how NEPCa progressed from prostate adenocarcinoma could reveal novel therapeutic targets. Previous studies indicate that activation of Wnt/beta-Catenin signaling promotes the progression to CRPCa with an increased NE differentiation. Additionally, animal studies suggest that Wnt/beta-Catenin signaling is active in NEPCa. Here we explored the mechanisms that promote Wnt/beta-Catenin signaling in NEPCa. Using TRAMP mice, which develop NEPCa after castration, we assessed the expression of Wnt-related genes and found that after androgen deprivation, the expression of Wnt7A is increased in prostate derived from both wild type and TRAMP mice but the expression of DKK1, a Wnt inhibitor, is decreased in wild type prostate but not in TRAMP prostate. The elevated expression of Wnt7a in combination with the lack of induction of Dkk1 in TRAMP tumors provides a mechanism to activate Wnt/beta-Catenin signaling in these tumors. Furthermore, we found the expression of YES-associated Protein (YAP1), a key transcriptional coactivator of Hippo pathway, is lost in NEPCa, in contrast to the elevated expression of YAP1 in high-grade prostate adenocarcinoma. YAP1 knockdown activated Wnt/beta-Catenin activity in PCa PC3 and 22Rv1 cells, indicating that the loss of YAP1 expression provides another mechanism to activate Wnt/beta-Catenin signaling, promoting NEPCa phenotype in PCa cells. Funding: This study is supported by: FWCC/Foundation Legacy Funds, DOD New Investigator Award, The Office of Research SEED awards, NIH R01 AND R03. Citation Format: Siyuan Cheng, Shu Yang, Nestor Prieto-Dominguez, Zachary M. Connelly, Yingli Shi, Xiuping Yu. Loss of YAP1 activates Wnt/beta-Catenin signaling in prostate cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research 2020; 2020 Apr 27-28 and Jun 22-24. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2020;80(16 Suppl):Abstract nr 4861.
Toward lower-diameter large-scale HPC and data center networks with co-packaged optics

We investigate the advantages of using co-packaged optics for building low-diameter, large-scale high-performance computing (HPC) and data center networks. The increased escape bandwidth offered by co-packaged optics can enable high-radix switch implementations of more than 150 switch ports, which can be combined with data rates of up to 400 Gb/s per port. From the network architecture perspective, the key benefits of using co-packaged optics in future fat-tree networks include (a) the ability to implement large-scale topologies of ${\gt}{11}{,}{000}$>11,000 end points by eliminating the need for a third switching layer and (b) the ability to provide up to ${4\times}$4× higher bisection bandwidth compared to existing solutions, reducing at the same time the number of required switch application-specific integrated circuits by ${\gt}{80}\%$>80%. From the network operation perspective, both reduced energy consumption and lower packet delays can be achieved since fewer hops are required; i.e., packets need to traverse fewer serializer/deserializer lanes and fewer switch buffers, which reduces the probability of contending with other packets and improves the tolerance of network congestion. The performance of the proposed architecture is evaluated via discrete-event simulations for a wide range of representative HPC synthetic-traffic cases that include both hotspot and non-hotspot scenarios. The simulation results suggest that co-packaged optics form a promising solution to keep up with bandwidth scaling in future networks, while the reduced number of switching layers can lead to significant mean packet delay improvements that start from 30% and reach up to 74% for high-load conditions.
A Search for Line Shape and Depth Variations in 51 Pegasi and Tau Bootis

Spectroscopic observations of 51 Pegasi and tau Bootis show no periodic changes in the shapes of their line profiles; these results for 51 Peg are in significant conflict with those reported by Gray and Hatzes (1997). Our detection limits are small enough to rule out nonradial pulsations as the cause of the variability in tau Boo, but not in 51 Peg. The absence of line shape changes is consistent with these stars' radial velocity variability arising from planetary-mass companions.
Taxonomic resolution affects host-parasite association model performance.

Identifying the factors that structure host–parasite interactions is fundamental to understand the drivers of species distributions and to predict novel cross-species transmission events. More phylogenetically related host species tend to have more similar parasite associations, but parasite specificity may vary as a function of transmission mode, parasite taxonomy or life history. Accordingly, analyses that attempt to infer host−parasite associations using combined data on different parasite groups may perform quite differently relative to analyses on each parasite subset. In essence, are more data always better when predicting host−parasite associations, or does parasite taxonomic resolution matter? Here, we explore how taxonomic resolution affects predictive models of host−parasite associations using the London Natural History Museum's database of host–helminth interactions. Using boosted regression trees, we demonstrate that taxon-specific models (i.e. of Acanthocephalans, Nematodes and Platyhelminthes) consistently outperform full models in predicting mammal-helminth associations. At finer spatial resolutions, full and taxon-specific model performance does not vary, suggesting tradeoffs between phylogenetic and spatial scales of analysis. Although all models identify similar host and parasite covariates as important to such patterns, our results emphasize the importance of phylogenetic scale in the study of host–parasite interactions and suggest that using taxonomic subsets of data may improve predictions of parasite distributions and cross-species transmission. Predictive models of host–pathogen interactions should thus attempt to encompass the spatial resolution and phylogenetic scale desired for inference and prediction and potentially use model averaging or ensemble models to combine predictions from separately trained models.
International students’ experiences with changing policy: A qualitative study from middle Tennessee

This qualitative study utilizes seventeen international students’ experiences in the U.S. Specifically, we examine the aspects of immigration regulations and policies regarding international students and the students’ reactions to those policies—from becoming a legal alien, to maintaining lawful status, to job planning after graduation. This research suggests the current United States administration has created a moral panic over immigration, or the threat of immigration. As a result, these political rhetoric impact a negative feeling to F-1 international students as well as decision making after graduation.
Unitarity constraints on meson electroproduction at backward angles

At large virtuality ${Q}^{2}$, the coupling to the $\ensuremath{\rho}$ meson production channels provides us with a natural explanation of the surprisingly large cross section of the $\ensuremath{\omega}$, as well as the ${\ensuremath{\pi}}^{+}$, meson electroproduction recently measured at backward angles, without destroying the good agreement between the Regge pole model and the data at the real photon point. Together with elastic re-scattering of the outgoing meson it also provides us with a way to explain why the node, that appears at $u\ensuremath{\sim}\ensuremath{-}0.15\phantom{\rule{4pt}{0ex}}{\mathrm{GeV}}^{2}$ at the real photon point, disappears at moderate virtuality ${Q}^{2}$. Predictions are given for the electroproduction of the ${\ensuremath{\pi}}^{0}$ meson.
The Politics of Western Immigration

Not surprisingly, immigration remains a central issue in politics around the world, particularly in western developed countries. While most societies embrace immigrants and the benefits that a healthy immigration policy can yield, the politics of fear, hatred, and racism inevitably enter into the picture. Immigrant groups often find themselves associated with increases in crime and unemployment, as well as social fragmentation. Thus, countries of the world are left to come to terms with these types of competing elements in their immigration policies. This paper highlights some of the recent developments in the politics of immigration arising in the western democracies of Europe and North America.
Deliberation and Security Design in Bankruptcy

We consider negotiations among the claimants of a bankrupt firm in which claimants have private information about various operational restructuring alternatives, and can communicate prior to a proposal. Our setup differs from typical bargaining games with incomplete information in two ways. First, the proposals can be made using securities. Second, the negotiations are over two interdependent issues: what to do with the firm and who gets what. In line with Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings we first analyze the case in which both issues are negotiated simultaneously. We show that simultaneous negotiation leads to efficient operational restructuring. Moreover, any efficient equilibrium requires that the original senior claimants receive senior securities of the reorganized firm. Next, we analyze the cases in which the two issues are negotiated sequentially. If the first issue is what to do with the firm, then efficient operational restructuring is not possible. In contrast, if the first issue is who gets what, then sequential negotiation is efficient. In comparison to simultaneous negotiation, efficient sequential negotiation may result in junior claimant capturing a larger surplus.
Purification and Properties of l-Lysine Monooxygenase from Pseudomonas fluorescens

Abstract l-Lysine monooxygenase has been isolated in nearly pure form from a lysine adapted strain of Pseudomonas fluorescens. The enzyme, which catalyzes the oxidative decarboxylation of l-lysine to form δ-aminovaleramide, has a molecular weight of approximately 246,000, and contains four subunits of equal size and four FAD prosthetic groups. Enzymic activity is greatly inhibited by a variety of buffers at low lysine concentrations, while at saturating l-lysine levels, this sensitivity is lost, and buffers have very little effect on the activity. The absorption spectrum is typical of a simple flavoprotein, with absorption maxima at 276, 385, and 462 nm. Two electron equivalents per mole are required to completely reduce the enzyme-bound flavin by dithionite, indicating that FAD is the only electron acceptor associated with the enzyme. During the course of reduction by dithionite, the semiquinone form of the flavin is produced. The ionization state of this species is a function of pH, with red or anionic semiquinone seen at pH values above 8 and the blue or neutral form at pH 5.5. l-Lysine monooxygenase, then, is one of the few flavoproteins exhibiting a pK near neutrality for the semiquinone oxidation state. The fluorescence properties of this enzyme are also unusual in that while the oxidized state is practically devoid of visible fluorescence, the reduced state exhibits flavin fluorescence, with an emission maximum at 505 nm and an excitation maximum at 360 nm. This reduced enzyme fluorescence is quenched by the addition of the substrates l-lysine or l-ornithine.
Naturalistic Decision Making, Expertise, and Homeland Security

The effectiveness of performance on Homeland Security (HS) tasks depends on the knowledge and skill of individuals and teams. Consequently, a robust understanding of the nature of human expertise and how this is applied in complex real world decision making tasks can help to guide the development of HS systems and prepare HS personnel for their tasks. This chapter reviews the Naturalistic Decision Making research tradition and describes how this set of theories, methods and findings can contribute to HS efforts. Keywords: expertise; expertise; naturalistic decision making; teams; teamwork; cognitive task analysis
A cysteine protease encoded by the baculovirus Bombyx mori nuclear polyhedrosis virus.

Sequence analysis of the BamHI F fragment of the genome of Bombyx mori nuclear polyhedrosis virus (BmNPV) revealed an open reading frame whose deduced amino acid sequence had homology to those of cysteine proteases of the papain superfamily. The putative cysteine protease sequence (BmNPV-CP) was 323 amino acids long and showed 35% identity to a cysteine proteinase precursor from Trypanosoma brucei. Of 36 residues conserved among cathepsins B, H, L, and S and papain, 31 were identical in BmNPV-CP. In order to determine the activity and function of the putative cysteine protease, a BmNPV mutant (BmCysPD) was constructed by homologous recombination of the protease gene with a beta-galactosidase gene cassette. BmCysPD-infected BmN cell extracts were significantly reduced in acid protease activity compared with wild-type virus-infected cell extracts. The cysteine protease inhibitor E-64 [trans-epoxysuccinylleucylamido-(4-guanidino)butane] inhibited wild-type virus-expressed protease activity. Deletion of the cysteine protease gene had no significant effect on viral growth or polyhedron production in BmN cells, indicating that the cysteine protease was not essential for viral replication in vitro. However, B. mori larvae infected with BmCysPD showed symptoms different from those of wild-type BmNPV-infected larvae, e.g., less degradation of the body, including fat body cells, white body surface color due presumably to undegraded epidermal cells, and an increase in the number of polyhedra released into the hemolymph. This is the first report of (i) a virus-encoded protease with activity on general substrates and (ii) evidence that a virus-encoded protease may play a role in degradation of infected larvae to facilitate horizontal transmission of the virus.
How we learnt about iron acquisition in Pseudomonas aeruginosa: a series of very fortunate events

The ferric uptake repressor (Fur) of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and a wide assortment of other prokaryotic organisms, has been mostly regarded as a negative regulator (repressor) of genes involved in iron acquisition (e.g., expression and utilization of siderophores) or of iron-regulated genes involved in virulence (e.g., toxins). However, there is an emerging picture of an even broader role for this protein in basic bacterial biology. Evidence has now accumulated indicating that Fur acts in a positive manner as well, and that it has a considerably wider impact on gene expression than originally perceived. We discovered that in P. aeruginosa Fur directly (i.e., negatively) regulates the expression of two, nearly identical tandem small (<200nt) RNA transcripts (sRNA). Our initial experiments showed that these Fur-regulated sRNAs (PrrF) affected expression of certain genes we initially thought might be directly, but positively, regulated by Fur. However, with discovery of the Fur-regulated sRNAs, first in Escherichia coli and then in P. aeruginosa, it became clear that Fur, in at least some cases, exerts its positive regulatory effect on gene expression by repressing the expression a negative regulatory factor (i.e., PrrF), which acts at the posttranscriptional level. While a clear picture was already available regarding the function of genes (see above) that are directly repressed by Fur (negative regulation), the functional classes of genes that are influenced by Fur-repressed sRNAs (positive regulation) had not been identified for P. aeruginosa. Accordingly we established a set of rigorous criteria, based on microarray experimental data, to identify the cohort of genes that are likely to be directly influenced by Fur-regulated PrrFs. More than 60 genes that fulfilled these strict criteria were identified. These include genes encoding proteins required for the sequestration of iron (e.g., bacterioferritins) and genes encoding enzymes (superoxide dismutase) vital to defense against iron catalyzed oxidative stress. More notably however, we identified more than 30 genes encoding proteins involved in carbon catabolism and aerobic or anaerobic respiration that are regulated by PrrFs. A significant number of genes encoding enzymes (e.g., aconitase, citrate synthase) involved in the TCA cycle are controlled by the PrrFs however, in quite a few instances there are genes encoding proteins with redundant functions (i.e., aconitase, citrate synthase) that do not appear to be influenced in any way by PrrFs. Based on our microarray experiments, as well as on phenotypic data, we propose that the Fur regulated sRNAs (i.e., PrrFs) exert a powerful regulatory influence that permits the sparing of vital metabolic compounds (e.g., citrate) during periods of iron limitation. These and other data to be presented indicate that Fur controlled gene expression in bacteria like P. aeruginosa is considerably more imperative and intricate than previously appreciated.
Pulsed neutrons: One year of experience with the new source at Argonne National Laboratory

Abstract The Intense Pulsed Neutron Source (IPNS) at Argonne National Laboratory is a spallation neutron source based on a 500 MeV proton accelerator operating at 30 Hz and with an average proton current of ≈ 10 μA. Neutron scattering instruments for elastic scattering include two powder diffractometers, a single-crystal diffractometer based on the Laue method and employing a large (30 x 30 cm) position-sensitive scintillation detector, a small-angle diffractometer using a position-sensitive detector, and a polarized-neutron diffractometer which will utilize the spin-refrigerator device to obtain a beam of white polarized neutrons. For inelastic scattering we presently have the crystal-analyzer spectrometer, and two chopper spectrometers capable of providing monoenergetic incident neutron beams of between 100 and 600 meV. From its inception IPNS has been operating in a user mode and the selection of experiments is made by a Program Committee twice a year on the basis of the scientifi cmerit of submitted proposals.
Narratives: A Window on the Oral Substrate of Written Language Disabilities.

Oral precursors underlying competence with literacy activities are approached through a review of studies on narrative comprehension and production in children identified as language learning disabled (LLD). Areas addressed include a general overview of narrative types, the kinds of narrative knowledge that are acquired, the nature of story organization, and developmental acquisitions in story recall and generation. Nine studies on the oral comprehension and production of language learning disabled children are then compared with respect to methodological issues and patterns of performance. Implications from these studies are discussed in terms of their potential insight for subtypes of a LLD including the value of oral narratives in identifying precursors for competence with written language.
Craniofacial growth after iatrogenic cleft palate repair in a fetal ovine model.

Abstract Controversy exists over the impact of scar formation on craniofacial growth after cleft palate repair. The fetal ovine model presents an opportunity to study a group of animals with little or no scar using cephalometric studies of craniofacial growth after iatrogenic cleft palate repair. Grossly evident scar is formed in the palates of lambs repaired at 118 days or later in gestation, while those animals operated at 70 and 77 days' gestation exhibited no scar grossly and minimal scar histologically in the submucosa with normal nasal and oral mucosal surfaces. For this study, 15 lambs were studied: four were unoperated, three were operated at 70 days, one at 77 days, and seven had clefts produced and repaired at 118 to 133 days' gestation. The animals were euthanized at 1 month of age and the heads removed and frozen until analyzed. Computerized tomography of the heads was used to create voxel (volume pixel) data sets, and volume rendering and measurement software (Voxblast) was used to create a t...
Assessing and Improving Students' Learning Strategies.

Teaching is only half of the story in the college classroom. Helping students understand and more efficiently use their learning strategies recognizes the importance of this other half of the equation.
In situ generation of carboxylate: an efficient strategy for a one-pot synthesis of homo- and heterometallic polynuclear complexes.

An efficient strategy for synthesis of a wide range of homo- and heterometallic polynuclear complexes is proposed. The synthesis protocol consists of a two-step one-pot reaction. The first step is the in situ generation of carboxylate anions via oxidation of aromatic aldehydes by metal nitrates in air. The aldehydes act as solvents and are also involved in redox processes. Solutions containing solely transition metal cations and aromatic carboxylates are obtained following this procedure. The second step is a tunable "a la carte" formation of a series of various polynuclear carboxylato complexes from solutions obtained at the former stage upon addition of different solvents. The polarity and donor properties of the solvents play a key role in determination of the nuclearities of the complexes. Hydrolytic processes can induce the formation of oxo- or hydroxo-bridges inside the polynuclear core as well. Complexes of various nuclearities are obtained: from discrete tri-, hexa-, or octanuclear units to 1D polymers. This protocol can be adapted with disconcerting simplicity to the synthesis of heterometallic species with similar molecular structures to their homometallic analogues starting from stoichiometric mixture of metal nitrates under the same reaction conditions. Detailed description of synthesis and the molecular structure of one representative complex for each series are presented in this paper. The temperature dependence of magnetic susceptibility of the heterometallic 1-D MnCo chain reveals typical behavior of a ferrimagnetic chain. The low-temperature investigations on single crystals show significant Ising type magnetic anisotropy.
Bone marrow cells adopt the phenotype of other cells by spontaneous cell fusion

Recent studies have demonstrated that transplanted bone marrow cells can turn into unexpected lineages including myocytes, hepatocytes, neurons and many others. A potential problem, however, is that reports discussing such 'transdifferentiation' in vivo tend to conclude donor origin of transdifferentiated cells on the basis of the existence of donor-specific genes such as Y-chromosome markers. Here we demonstrate that mouse bone marrow cells can fuse spontaneously with embryonic stem cells in culture in vitro that contains interleukin-3. Moreover, spontaneously fused bone marrow cells can subsequently adopt the phenotype of the recipient cells, which, without detailed genetic analysis, might be interpreted as 'dedifferentiation' or transdifferentiation.
Fetal pancreas transplantation in miniature swine. V. The functional and immunodulatory effects of ultraviolet light on fetal pig islets.

We have used the pig as a large animal model for studies of fetal pancreas transplantation. Fetal pig pancreas (FPP) has also been proposed as a potential source of endocrine cells for the treatment of diabetes mellitus. Among the approaches to prevent rejection, the irradiation of donor islets with ultraviolet B light has been used for its immunomodulating properties. Our goal was to study in vitro the effects of UV-B irradiation of FPP on the function and immunogenicity of the tissue. FPP were collagenase-digested and cultured for 1-29 days prior to UV-B irradiation. Static incubation tests were used to measure glucose-theophylline stimulated insulin release. Data obtained at 300 J/m2 revealed no impairment of insulin release (78% to 129% of controls, P = ns). At 500 J/m2, a significant reduction of glucose-theophylline stimulated insulin release was observed with 50-60-day-old FPP (35% to 66% of controls, P 200 days. The immunogenicity of irradiated tissues was determined in vitro with allogeneic mixed islet-lymphocyte cultures (MILC). Proliferative responses of allogeneic lymphocytes to UV-irradiated FPP were very significantly decreased by 52-91% at both 300 and 500 J/m2 doses. This effect was observed from 1 to 10 days following UV irradiation and was not modulated by exposure of the tissues to gamma-interferon. We conclude that UVB-irradiation of FPP at a dose of 300 J/m2 does not alter its endocrine function and growth and is effective in reducing tissue immunogenicity. This treatment may be a useful approach for fetal islet transplantation in large animal models.
Does brand spelling influence memory? The case of auditorily presented brand names

Abstract We present a framework based on psycholinguistic theory to explain how individuals spell auditorily-presented information. We use the framework to predict and test how spelling-related characteristics of brand names and factors related to the context in which brand names are presented (e.g., spelling primes) will make the brands more or less memorable. Further, we reveal the process through which spelling-related linguistic variables influence brand recall: the dual-code (both written and auditory) that results from spelling a brand correctly leads to greater ability to later recall the brand. Our framework identifies two routes that interact when individuals have to transcribe a brand: the lexical (top-down) route and the sublexical (bottom-up) route.
The Effect of Age on Glucose Tolerance: Studies in a Micronesian Population with a High Prevalence of Diabetes

Venous plasma glucose concentrations before and two hours after a 75 g carbohydrate load were determined on 597 Nauruans, a Micronesian population with one of the highest diabetes prevalence rates yet recorded in the literature. A marked increase in both the mean fasting and postload plasma glucose concentrations with age for both sexes was noted for the total population. In this population the frequency distributions of fasting and two-hour plasma glucose show bimodality, separating the population into normal and hyperglycemic subpopulations. Analysis of mean fasting and two-hour glucose concentrations of subjects in the normal and hyperglycemic components shows that the increase in mean glucose with age in the Nauruan population is mainly the result of an increasing proportion of subjects falling into the hyperglycemic (diabetic) component with increasing age. Only small changes in mean glucose concentrations with age were noted in subjects in the normal component. Percentile distributions of both fasting and postload glucose concentrations indicate that there is a dramatic age-related increase in glucose concentrations in the higher percentiles (70th and 90th) in both males and females. This finding is consistent with the hypothesis of two subpopulations in which the glucose concentrations increase significantly with age in one (higher percentiles) and remain relatively constant in the other (lower percentiles). The data indicate that, while there is a rise in glucose concentrations with increasing age, it does not necessarily represent diabetes. The major contribution to this age-related rise is due to the increasing number of diabetics with age, and the diabetics can be separated from the rest of the population on the basis of percentile analysis and bimodality of glucose distributions.
Effects of β,β′-iminodipropionitrile on cerebral constituents and on cortical electrical activity

Abstract Mice made hyperactive with β,β′-iminodipropionitrile (IDPN) were frozen in liquid nitrogen and the brains analyzed for thirty constituents, including free amino acids and related compounds, acetylcholine, lactic acid, and acid-soluble phosphate fractions. Only two significant differences from control levels were observed: (1) a decrease in valine, and (2) a tendency toward increased phosphorylation of nucleosides, manifested by an increase in triphosphates and a corresponding decrease in diphosphates. In cats and dogs, the symptoms of IDPN toxicity included severe ataxia, depression, anorexia, and occasionally retropulsion, but not hyperactivity. EEG studies in cats showed that the symptoms sometimes developed with no discernible electrographic alterations; in other instances the amount and amplitude of slow wave activity were increased.