cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Electrochemistry of some N-substituted phospha-λ5 azenes in acetonitrile: Mechanistic aspects, electrophoric group behavior, and substituent effects

Abstract Cyclic voltammetry (CV) data are presented for the oxidation and reduction of a series of N-aryl-P,P,P-triphenylphospha-λ5-azenes. The electrochemical behavior of these compounds is compared with the corresponding N-sulphonyl- and N-acyl-compound series. In all three cases, the electronic influence of the substituent. R, in the aryl ring system is quantified in terms of Zuman plots of the CV oxidation or reduction potential vs. the Hammett substituent constant. It is shown that insertion of the SO2 and CO spacer groups between the aryl ring system and the N reaction site attenuates the electronic influence of R on the electrochemical oxidation response. The latter, therefore, is largely centered at the N reaction site. By way of contrast, the influence of R on the reduction response is minimal. These observations lead to the categorization of two types of electrochemical responses. One is intrinsic to the molecule as a whole, and the other is caused by the presence of an ‘electrophoric” group. We show herein how these N-substituted phospha-λ5-azenes represent good model systems for defining and illustrating the concept of an electrophoric group; i.e. a portion of a molecule giving rise to an electrochemical response that is characteristic (fingerprint) of that moiety itself rather than of the molecule as a whole. Finally, the oxidation mechanism involving dimerization of the parent compound in the N-aryl series is elucidated via the combined use of CV, constant potential coulometry, 31P NMR spectroscopy, and HPLC. Similarities in the oxidation behavior of this compound with anilines are pointed out.
Cunning Folk and Familiar Spirits: Shamanistic Visionary Traditions in Early Modern British Witchcraft and Magic

Reviewed Medium: book Authors: Emma Wilby Year: 2005 Pages: 317 Publisher: Sussex Academic Press ISBN: 1-84519-079-3 (soft cover). Prices: $27.95 USD(soft cover).
Inflammation Attenuates Adaptive Thermogenesis via Autophagy and ER Stress-Associated Mechanism

Adaptive thermogenesis and browning of white adipose tissue (WAT) is the cellular process to generate heat in response to environmental stimuli including cold temperature. Decrease of adaptive ther...
Properties of yeast pyruvate decarboxylase and their modification by proteolytic enzymes : I. Stability of decarboxylases from wild-type and mutant strains

Abstract High concentrations of inorganic phosphate and ammonium sulfate stabilize yeast pyruvate decarboxylase to heating at 60 ° for long periods of time in the presence of TPP and Mg + . When heated at 60 ° in phosphate concentrations above 1.6 m , addition of cofactors is not necessary to stabilize native enzyme. TPP alone, in the absence of divalent cations, is sufficient to stabilize enzyme resolved for cofactors when the enzyme is heated at 60 ° in 1.0 m phosphate. High concentrations of TPP are capable of activating resolved enzyme for ability to decarboxylate pyruvate without added divalent cations. Pyruvate decarboxylase present in extracts of a mutant yeast strain was found to be unstable in acetaldehyde-forming capacity but relatively stable in ability to synthesize acetylmethylcarbinol (AMC).
Remembrance of Things Past

We form memories of all our daily encounters with events and objects, yet some of these experiences we remember and others we forget. There has been much debate about which regions of the brain9s medial temporal lobe (MTL) are involved in encoding the experience and then forming memories of it. In their Perspective, Schacter and Wagner discuss new findings ( Fernandez et al.) that implicate both the anterior and posterior MTL in the memorizing of words and their subsequent recall.
A Streptomyces coelicolor Antibiotic Regulatory Gene, absB, Encodes an RNase III Homolog

Streptomyces coelicolor produces four genetically and structurally distinct antibiotics in a growth-phase-dependent manner. S. coelicolor mutants globally deficient in antibiotic production (Abs− phenotype) have previously been isolated, and some of these were found to define the absB locus. In this study, we isolated absB-complementing DNA and show that it encodes the S. coelicolor homolog of RNase III (rnc). Several lines of evidence indicate that the absB mutant global defect in antibiotic synthesis is due to a deficiency in RNase III. In marker exchange experiments, the S. coelicolor rnc gene rescued absB mutants, restoring antibiotic production. Sequencing the DNA of absB mutants confirmed that the absB mutations lay in the rnc open reading frame. Constructed disruptions of rnc in both S. coelicolor 1501 and Streptomyces lividans 1326 caused an Abs− phenotype. An absB mutation caused accumulation of 30S rRNA precursors, as had previously been reported for E. coli rnc mutants. The absB gene is widely conserved in streptomycetes. We speculate on why an RNase III deficiency could globally affect the synthesis of antibiotics.
Interactions of Escherichia coli membrane lipoproteins with the murein sacculus.

Abstract Bifunctional cross-linking reagents were used to identify cell envelope proteins that interacted with the murein sacculus. This revealed that a number of [3H]leucine-labeled proteins and [3H]palmitate-labeled lipoproteins were reproducibly cross-linked to the sacculus in plasmolyzed cells. The results suggested that most of the cell envelope lipoproteins, and not only the murein lipoprotein, mediate interactions between the murein sacculus and the inner and/or outer membrane of the cell.
Separation and purification of lecithins by high pressure liquid chromatography

Ten different synthetic lecithins have been analyzed by reverse-phase high pressure liquid chromatography. An empirical lecithin “carbon number” that depends on the total number of carbons and double bonds in the fatty acyl chains in a useful index in predicting retention volumes of lecithins on a nonpolar octadecyl fatty acid column. Commercial egg lecithin is separated into its components by this technique.
Simulated Ischemia Induces Renal Tubular Cell Apoptosis Through a Nuclear Factor-κB Dependent Mechanism

Purpose: Ischemia-reperfusion injury is a relatively common cause of renal tubular cell death and acute renal failure. While nuclear factor-κB has been implicated in the pathophysiology of renal ischemia-reperfusion injury, the effect of nuclear factor-κB inhibition on ischemia induced renal tubular cell death remains unknown.Materials and Methods: Renal tubular cells (LLC-PK1) were exposed to simulated ischemia in the presence or absence of 10 μM. pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate (nuclear factor-κB inhibitor). Nuclear factor-κB activation (electrophoretic mobility shift assay and immunohistochemistry) and the effect of pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate on nuclear factor-κB activation (electrophoretic mobility shift assay) and ischemia induced apoptosis (terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated deoxyuridine triphosphate nick end-labeling) were determined.Results: Simulated ischemia induced nuclear factor-κB activation and renal tubular cell apoptosis versus controls (mean plus or minus standard error of mean 6...
Kaon Production in Heavy-Ion Collisions and Maximum Mass of Neutron Stars

We determine an ``empirical'' kaon dispersion relation by analyzing and fitting recent experimental data on kaon production in heavy-ion collisions. We then investigate its effects on the hadronic equation of state at high densities and on neutron star properties. We find that the maximum mass of neutron stars can be lowered by about ${0.4M}_{\ensuremath{\bigodot}}$ once kaon condensation as constrained by our empirical dispersion relation is introduced. We emphasize the growing interplay between hadron physics, relativistic heavy-ion physics, and the physics of compact objects in astrophysics.
‘Some Stirring or Changing of Place’: Vision, Judgement and Mobility in Pictures of Galleries

Esprit or ‘ingenuity’ was one of the principle qualities sought by the connoisseurs who populate seventeenth‐century Flemish pictures of collections. This essay scrutinizes the ways in which the flourishing discipline of connoisseurship was depicted, explored and fashioned in Antwerp gallery interiors. Placing these images within the context of Early Modern writings on discernment, Gage explores the ways in which the directed gazes, postures and gestures of cognoscenti reflect the growth of trained artistic judgement within the period’s elite, concluding that such images exemplify a major social and epistemological shift in which one can make apparent one’s universal understanding and keen judgement, and to rightly claim membership in a nobility, no longer defined solely by lineage, but also by learning.
The Metaphorical Representation of Affect

Philosophers and psycholinguists have argued that abstract concepts like affect are represented via the mechanism of metaphor. This review investigates this contention, specifically within the context of social-cognition and clinical psychology research that has studied the link between affect and brightness, vertical position, and distance between the self and an object. The review will be particularly concerned with automatic and incidental linkages between affect and perception and their relevance for a variety of affective phenomena related to evaluation, mood, and emotional behavior. The cumulative data reveal that the metaphorical representation of affect has considerable merit. For this reason, the review suggests an expanded research agenda including (a) other perceptual experiences (such as those related to taste and temperature), (b) potential cultural variations, (c) neuroimaging research, and (d) the elucidation of "real world" consequences.
Improved MATXUF: On-line uncertainty calculation and Benjamin detector unfolding

Abstract The previously reported MATXUF on-line unfolding procedure for proton recoil detectors has been extended to calculate, on-line, the experimental uncertainties in the unfolded result and to unfolding data collected with hydrogen filled, Benjamin-type detectors.
INSULIN-LIKE GROWTH FACTORS I AND II IN SYSTEMIC ONSET JUVENILE ARTHRITIS

Systemic onset juvenile arthritis (SJA) has been associated with growth failure in children treated with or without steroids. Growth hormone secretion in SJA is reported to be normal; however, insulin-like growth factor (IGF) has not been examined. To assess the possible role of IGF's in growth failure in SJA, we measured concentrations of IGF-I and II at different stages of activity in patients receiving either steroid or non-steroid therapy. IGF-I and II concentrations were determined in 2 samples from 10 patients who had not received steroids for at least 6 months and 5 patients receiving prednisone. Mean IGF-I and II concentrations in patients receiving steroids were 53% and 61% of normal mean for age.In patients receiving non-steroid therapy; mean IGF-I and II concentrations were 46% and 64% of normal mean for age. Growth failure during periods of active disease was observed in both groups as only 3/11 pre-pubertal patients had growth ≥ 4.5 cm/year. Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) was compared with concentrations of IGF-I and II in both groups. A statistically significant correlation of IGF-I and II with ESR was observed in those patients receiving non-steroid therapy Rs=.56 and .59 (p=.02, ≤ .01). In the group of patients receiving prednisone at greater than 5 mg/m2/day, ESR showed a statistically significant correlation with IGF-I (Rs=.68, p< .05) but not IGF-II. Thus, low concentrations of IGF-I and II may contribute to growth failure in children with SJA whether or not they receive steroids.
The Cultural Context of Social Support and Support Networks

Social support promotes mental and physical well-being. Yet research on it and on the social networks in which it occurs remains problematic. Focusing on the role that culturally based assumptions and expectations play in defining the meaning of social support and in the mobilization of support networks begins to clarify unresolved questions. Studies of support and support networks among the elderly exemplify this perspective.
Simulation of radiation damage in zircon

Abstract Radiation damage in natural zircon minerals due to alpha decay over geologic time has been simulated in laboratory studies extending over 5.5 years using Pu-doped synthetic zircon. These studies confirm for the first time that laboratory testing of actinide-doped materials can accurately predict the radiation-damage behavior of radioactive waste forms over geologic time and also provide new insights into interpretation of radiation damage in natural minerals.
Models for molecular mechanisms in drug—receptor interactions. Serotonin and 5-hydroxyindole complexes with imidazolium cation

The interaction of 5-hydroxytryptamine and 5-hydroxyindole with theimidazolium cation is studied in the light of previously obtained reactivity characteristics of indolealkylamines in order to identify molecular determinants for the interaction of tryptamines with biological receptors. The complexes are calculated by a pseudopotential method. Results from this method are shown to be in excellent agreement with ab initio calculations on the separated molecules. At an interplanar interaction distance of 3.3 A, suggested by crystallographic studies on the complexes of serotonin, the interaction is found to be mainly electrostatic: the transfer of charge to the imidazolium cation is negligible; the mutual polarization of the molecule is the major component of the electron charge redistribution. The degree of polarization affects the stabilization energy of the complex and is dependent on the mutual orientation of the molecules. The favorable orientation coincides with the interaction geometry predicted by electrostatic reactivity criteria derived for the separated molecules. The nature and localization of the stabilizing polarization serves as a first indication of the possible electronic mechanisms involved in the triggering of a biological receptor by drugs from the tryptamine series.
PATHOGENESIS OF HYPOGLYCEMIA IN CHILDHOOD DUMPING SYNDROME

Reports of pediatric patients with dumping syndrome (DS) are few and the mechanisms of disturbed glucose homeostasis have not been studied. We evaluated 3 children presenting with severe hypoglycemic reactions secondary to DS; Pt 1 developed DS after fundoplication at 30 mo of age. Pt 2 diagnosed at 4 mo of age, had central hypoventilation, Hirschsprung's Disease, and generalized autonomic dysfunction. Pt 3 was 6 mo old when diagnosed and developed DS from malplacement of a feeding gastrostomy tube. Blood glucose levels during and after 2-5 meals in each child showed hyperglyceraia-375±97 mg% (m±SD) 30 min post-prandially and hypoglycemia-35±10 mg% >120 min later. Swings in glucose were proportional to volume of meals. Insulin and glucagon levels were followed during a single meal challenge test during which glucose rose to 356±59 mg% 30 min postprandially and fell to 32±11 mg% at 150±30 min. Hormonal analyses indicated (1) inappropriate early release of glucagon(300 pg/ml @ 15 min) in Pt 1, (2) exuberant early release of insulin (max 190±15 uU/ml) resulting in rapid fall in glucose in all patients, (3) prolonged cellular glucose uptake in the absence of circulating insulin leading to hypoglycemia in Pt 2, and (4) inadequate glucagon response to hypoglycemia resulting in sustained hypoglycemia in Pts 1 and 2. These data indicate that gross disturbances of the insulin-glucagon axis attend childhood dumping syndrome.
Time-dependent glassy behavior of interface states in Al-AlOx-Al tunnel junctions

We present results of a study of tunnel junction aging in which the early time dynamics are captured by in situ room-temperature monitoring of electrical properties of $\mathrm{Al}\text{\ensuremath{-}}\mathrm{Al}{\mathrm{O}}_{x}\text{\ensuremath{-}}\mathrm{Al}$ planar tunnel junctions beginning when the deposition of the counterelectrode is complete. The observed stretched exponential dependences of the conductance and the capacitance, which are established over a dynamic range in frequency of ${10}^{9}$, manifest off-equilibrium dynamics imposed by annealing and correlated relaxations of interface traps. Bias voltage is used as a control parameter to create bias-dependent aging trajectories that exhibit memory and age-dependent relaxations that are typical for glasses. Simple tunnel barrier modeling using circuit parameters that depend only on the interface provide a comprehensive understanding of this unexpected glassy behavior.
Comorbidities and breast cancer survival: a report from the Shanghai Breast Cancer Survival Study

We investigated the association of major comorbidities with breast cancer outcomes using the Shanghai Breast Cancer Survival Study, a population-based, prospective cohort study of Chinese women diagnosed with breast cancer. Analyses included 4,664 women diagnosed with stage I–III incident breast cancer aged 20–75 years (median age = 51) during 2002–2006. Women were interviewed at 3–11 months post-diagnosis (median = 6.4) and followed up by in-person interviews and linkage with the vital statistics registry. Multivariable hazard ratios (HRs) and (95 % confidence intervals (CIs)) for the associations of comorbidities with breast cancer outcomes were estimated using Cox regression models. After a median follow-up of 5.3 years (range: 0.64–8.9), 647 women died (516 from breast cancer) and 632 recurrence/metastases were documented. The main comorbidities reported included: hypertension (22.4 %), chronic gastritis (14.3 %), diabetes mellitus (6.2 %), chronic bronchitis/asthma (5.8 %), coronary heart disease (5.0 %), and stroke (2.2 %). Diabetes was associated with increased risk of total mortality (adjusted HR: 1.40 (1.06–1.85)) and non-breast cancer mortality (adjusted HR: 2.64 (1.63–4.27)), but not breast cancer-specific mortality (adjusted HR: 0.98 (0.68–1.41)), adjusting for socio-demographics, clinical characteristics, selected lifestyle factors, and other comorbidities. Women with a history of stroke had a non-significant increased risk of total mortality (adjusted HR: 1.42 (0.91–2.22)) and a significant increased risk of non-breast cancer mortality (adjusted HR: 2.52 (1.33–4.78)), but not breast cancer-specific mortality (adjusted HR: 0.78 (0.38–1.62)). Overall, none of the comorbidities investigated were significantly associated with recurrence. In this large prospective cohort of breast cancer survivors, diabetes was significantly associated with increased risk of total and non-breast cancer mortality, and history of stroke was associated with increased risk of non-breast cancer mortality.
Physiology of cytokine pathways in rheumatoid arthritis

This review has summarized the physiology of some cytokine pathways in RA, emphasizing the redundant and synergistic nature of this network. However, it is important to understand that this system is self-regulating through the action of anti-inflammatory cytokines, opposing cytokines, cytokine receptor antagonists, and possibly naturally occurring antibodies to cytokines (Figure 1). Disease results when an imbalance in the cytokine network develops, either from excess production of pro-inflammatory cytokines or from inadequate presence of natural anti-inflammatory mechanisms. The current therapeutic approaches to RA that are aimed at restoring this balance include the use of monoclonal antibodies to TNFalpha, soluble TNFalpha receptors, and IL-1Ra. Other therapeutic agents that interfere with the cytokine network are in various stages of preclinical and clinical evaluation.
Preparation of Cationic Cyclopentadienyl Diene Molybdenum Complexes through Hydride Abstraction Effected by Di- or Triarylmethyl Halides in the Presence of Hexafluoro-2-propanol

Hydride abstraction from the model system (η5-cyclopentadienyl)dicarbonyl[(1−3-η)-1-cyclohexen-3-yl]molybdenum (1) was effected using halides such as Ph3CCl (3b), Ph3CBr (3a), and (4-MeOC6H4)2CHBr ...
Immune complexes bind preferentially to specific subpopulations of human erythrocytes.

Abstract Primate erythrocytes have complement receptors (CR1) that, both in vivo and in vitro, bind immune complexes (IC) opsonized with C3b. The present study was undertaken to determine whether the ability of human erythrocytes to bind IC is a characteristic shared by all erythrocytes. Binding of IC to erythrocytes probably involves the interaction of several C3b molecules with several CR1 clustered in small areas of the erythrocyte surface. To identify IC binding CR1 clusters, we first assessed the binding to erythrocytes of fluorescein-labeled polystyrene beads coated with monoclonal anti-CR1 antibodies (anti-CR1-beads) and second, preformed IC. The binding of these ligands to erythrocytes was evaluated by immunofluorescence microscopy and flow cytometry. We found that only a fraction of erythrocytes from normal individuals bound anti-CR1-beads specifically and the percentage of erythrocytes able to bind beads increased with increasing numbers of CR1 per erythrocyte. However, the number of anti-CR1-beads bound per erythrocyte varied among cells from the same individual. We demonstrated further that the erythrocyte binding sites for anti-CR1-beads are also binding sites for opsonized IC. This was shown by demonstrating that anti-CR1-beads inhibited the binding of opsonized IC to erythrocytes and opsonized IC inhibited the binding of anti-CR1-beads to erythrocytes. Incubation of erythrocytes with opsonized IC, followed by FITC-labeled secondary antibodies, confirmed that indeed only a fraction of erythrocytes is capable of binding opsonized IC and that the binding sites for IC occupy small regions on the erythrocyte membrane. By contrast, we demonstrated that greater than 90% of erythrocytes express CR1. In conclusion, only some erythrocytes have the capacity to bind IC. Differences in the ability of erythrocytes to bind IC are probably related to differences in the clustering of CR1 in the erythrocyte membrane. Anti-CR1-beads identify erythrocyte binding sites for IC. These beads should prove useful to assess the changes that occur in the erythrocyte CR1 after exposure to IC in vivo.
Computation of the optical properties of nonideal multilayer structures.

A general computer program was developed to calculate the reflectivity, transmissivity, and absorptivity of nonideal multilayer structure devices. The program allows for error-based variation in layer thicknesses and also for the formation of interfacial layers between the primary layers. The main text of the program consists of the calculation of the matrix elements of the characteristic matrix T for any given two-component layer structure. The treatment is not restricted to any particular range of wavelength, type of material forming the layer structure, or number of layers in the chosen system. The pertinent parameters entering the calculations are the thicknesses of the individual layers (which are permitted to vary randomly within limit of error); the thicknesses of the interfacial layers; the complex indices of refraction of the sub-some strate, the pertinent layers, and the surrounding ambience; and the structural makeup of the layer stacking.
Transitioning from Teaching Lean Tools To Teaching Lean Transformation

The application of Lean principles to create value, improve efficiency and reduce costs is well documented. But, the number of Lean transformations that have actually achieved and maintained improved performance is not as great as the investment would suggest. After nearly four decades of implementing Lean in North America the challenge of teaching Lean principles that result in transforming enterprises still eludes many. Perhaps this is due to the fact that most of the Lean implementations to date have been focused at the operational level of the organization when it should be focused at the enterprise level. Many of the same factors cited in organization's inability to reach full potential apply to Lean Transformations as well. Adults need to know why they are learning something and are motivated to learn by both extrinsic and intrinsic motivators. Both are directed at adults placing a value on what they learn. This is at odds with traditional Lean training where the emphasis is on how to use Lean tools...
Age Changes in Adenine Nucleotides in Flight Muscle of Male House Fly

Under standard conditions of temperature, humidity, and (artificial) diet, loss in flight ability is paralleled by a decline of up to 66⅔ percent in activity of enzymes dephosphorylating organophosphorous compounds in the thoracic flight muscle. Concomitantly, the content of adenosine triphosphate in the flight muscle increases five times, while the content of adenosine monophosphate correspondingly diminishes.
Management of low back pain

#### Summary points Back pain is the leading cause of occupational disability in the world and the most common cause of missed workdays. As the population ages and our lives become more sedentary, this situation is unlikely to change. We aim here to provide an evidence based overview of low back pain aimed at primary care physicians. The most frequently quoted epidemiological studies cite lifetime adult prevalence rates varying from 50% to 80%, and point prevalence rates from 15% to 30%.1 Yet even these statistics may underestimate the problem. A recent prospective study of 154 reserve soldiers with no prior history of back pain found that 64% of this low risk group developed at least moderate back pain over an 18 month period when queried monthly.w1 This suggests that reported prevalence rates may be a function of the type and frequency of surveillance. ### History Box 1 lists the causes of low back pain. The origin of pain can be broadly classified as mechanical, neuropathic, or secondary to another cause. Mechanical back pain implies that the source of pain is in the spine or its supporting structures. Neuropathic back pain denotes the presence of symptoms that stem from irritation of a nerve root(s). #### Box 1 Common causes of low back pain* ##### Mechanical (80-90%)
Proto-oncogenes in the regulatory circuit for myogenesis

Skeletal muscle cells have provided an auspicious system for dissecting the mechanisms through which growth factor signals disrupt programs for cellular differentiation. Insight into the molecular mechanisms that control muscle differentiation has recently been obtained through the cloning of a family of muscle-specific transcription factors, often referred to as the MyoD family, that can activate myogenesis. The expression and activity of these factors are negatively regulated by growth factor signals and by activated oncogenes whose products transduce growth signals from the cell membrane to the nucleus. This review will focus on the role of proto-oncogenes in the transduction of growth factor signals that regulate myogenesis and on the cross-talk between the regulatory circuits that control myoblast proliferation and differentiation.
Biodegradable microspheres containing group B Streptococcus vaccine: immune response in mice.

Abstract Objective: This study seeks to show the feasibility of producing a group B Streptococcus (GBS) vaccine, which is capable of producing both a local IgA immune response at the mucosal surface where GBS is colonized and a humoral IgG response, which is capable of transplacental passive immunization. Study Design: Inactivated GBS antigen was microencapsulated in poly (D, L-lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLG) with a water-in-oil-in-water double emulsion technique. Immunostimulatory synthetic oligodeoxynucleotides containing cytidine-phosphate-guanosine (CpG) motifs were coencapsulated as a potent adjuvant. The ICR strain of mouse was used in these studies. Female mice with normal immune systems were immunized with the PLG microparticles containing GBS type III polysaccharide (GBS PS) vaccine and CpG adjuvant (PLG/GBS/CpG) via the oral, vaginal, or nasal routes or by the intramuscular or intraperitoneal routes. Booster doses were administered 4 weeks after the initial immunization. Vaginal washings and blood samples were obtained 3 weeks after the booster dose and examined for both IgG and secretory IgA (sIgA) GBS antibodies with the use of an enzyme-linked immunoabsorbent assay method. Results: PLG/GBS/CpG microparticles elicited a significantly higher GBS antibody response when compared with nonencapsulated GBS antigen or PLG-encapsulated GBS PS vaccine without the addition of the CpG adjuvant. IgG and secretory IgA (sIgA) antibodies to GBS antigen were documented in both the vaginal washings and blood samples. Conclusion: Preliminary findings indicate that this novel PLG/GBS/CpG vaccine elicited both IgA and IgG antibody responses to the GBS PS antigen studied. This antibody response may provide both protection against maternal GBS colonization and passive transplacental immunization for the fetus and neonate. (Am J Obstet Gynecol 2001;185:1174-9.)
Community Control and Care of Scientific Information

Two midwestern cities were studied to evaluate how support for the basic values of widespread information and the use of specialized knowledge by the public and leaders is related to community structure as measured by homogeneity and heterogeneity. The public in the more heterogeneous community was more likely to support wide distribution and use of information. There were fewer differences between leaders in the two communities. The authors suggest that as social differentiation increases, information is evaluated in terms of perceived relevance for specific social ends.
Factors associated with variability in rifampin plasma pharmacokinetics and the relationship between rifampin concentrations and induction of efavirenz clearance.

Rifampin is an essential component of short-course chemotherapy for tuberculosis (TB).1 Findings from randomized clinical studies demonstrate that the addition of rifampin to treatment regimens during the induction and the continuation phases of TB treatment reduce rates of treatment failure and relapse.2,3 In vitro studies suggest that rifampin demonstrates concentration-dependent killing of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, with the rifampin area under the concentration-time curve (AUC) to minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) ratio identified as the best parameter that correlated best with reduction in bacterial counts.4, 5 In the hollow-fiber model of TB, maximal microbial killing was achieved by rifampin daily AUC0-24h/MIC ratio of 24.14 and rifampin prevented resistance to itself at peak concentration (Cmax) to MIC ratio of ≥ 175.4 Clinically, low plasma exposure to the rifamycins has been associated with TB treatment failure and emergence of rifamycin resistance.6-8 The organic anion transporter polypeptide 1B1 (OATP1B1) encoded by the solute carrier organic anion transporter family member 1B1 (SLCO1B1) gene mediates the hepatic uptake and elimination of a range of drugs, including rifampin.9 Data from recent studies show that SLCO1B1 c.463C→A and rs4149032 polymorphisms are associated with low rifampin plasma concentrations.10, 11 While these findings are novel, they are yet to be replicated or confirmed in other studies. Taken together, genetic testing and clinical information may be used to identify patients at risk of low rifampin plasma exposure and could enable individualized dosing designed to optimize treatment outcomes. Concomitant administration of rifampin with efavirenz-containing antiretroviral therapy in HIV and TB co-infected patients is necessary to reduce mortality rates.12-14 Rifampin is a potent inducer of hepatic cytochrome P450 enzyme activity, and concomitant administration with efavirenz results in reduced efavirenz concentrations in some, but not all patients.15-17 The variable effect of rifampin on efavirenz plasma pharmacokinetics may be due, in part, to inter-individual variations in rifampin plasma concentrations or uptake of rifampin into hepatocytes, but this hypothesis has not been previously evaluated, to the best of our knowledge. Using stored samples and data from subjects in a previous drug-drug interaction study,16 we sought to identify factors associated with variable rifampin pharmacokinetics. In addition, we explored the relationship between variable rifampin pharmacokinetics and change in efavirenz plasma exposure and clearance.
Optical fibers for remote spectrometry of alkali elements in the dc arc

An optical fiber cable is designed, characterized, and applied to the remote spectrometric analysis of alkali elements as impurities in plutonium by dc arc emission. The analytical performance of the dc arc/ optical fiber/polychromator system is tested by the establishment of analytical working curves for sodium, potassium, and rubidium from a set of standards. Accuracy, determined by the use of control samples of known concentration, is found to be 10% or better. The new analytical system provides improvement in both accuracy and efficiency compared to the previously used spectrographic technique.
Optimism and pessimism in children: A study of parenting correlates:

The present study investigated the relation between mothers' generalised expectancies, mothers' selfreported parenting practices, and their children's optimism, pessimism, and depressive symptoms. A community sample of 81 children, 8-12 years old, and their mothers participated. Questionnaires were used to assess four parenting dimensions (control, structure, support, and autonomy granting), as well as mothers' and children's optimism, pessimism, and depressive symptoms. Results showed that maternal pessimism correlated with child pessimism, and that maternal depressive symptoms correlated negatively with child optimism. Multiple regressions indicated that mothers who were moderately controlling had children who showed the most optimism, whereas those who allowed their children little autonomy in problem solving had children with the highest level of depressive symptoms.
Treatment of anal canal carcinoma.

The treatment philosophy of anal canal carcinoma is changing. Abdominoperineal resection (APR) with a permanent colostomy is beginning to be replaced by lesser surgical techniques, such as excisional biopsy in a multimodality approach. Radical radiation therapy is capable of eradicating the primary tumor and yielding a high survival rate. External radiation therapy alone has been reported to result in 80% local control and 79% 5-year actuarial survival. Combining external radiation therapy with brachytherapy has yielded a 65% 5-year disease-free survival. Combined chemotherapy and radiation therapy, i.e., preoperative 5-fluorouracil and mitomycin C, with 3000 rad pelvic irradiation, allowed over 50% of the patients in each of two previous studies to be spared an APR. Close examination of the data shows that APR may not have been necessary in those who had it. Frequently, no disease was found in the resected specimen. When disease was present, there was a high rate of local recurrence in spite of APR. Although the ideal treatment may not be devised, patients are beginning to be cured of this disease while still retaining a functional anal sphincter.
Unidirectional Reproductive Incompatibility between Aedes (Protomacleaya) brelandi and A. (P.) hendersoni (Diptera: Culicidae)

Forced mating was used to determine reproductive compatibility between two species in the Triseriatus Group of Aedes (Protomacleaya) . In the cross between A. hendersoni Cockerell females and A. brelandi Zavortink males, only 7% of the females laid eggs that developed embryos. Furthermore, 80% of the eggs from those females became embryonated. Approximately 80% of the females were inseminated in both of the reciprocal crosses. No chromosomal abnormalities were observed in the hybrids. Incompatibility between the A. brelandi male genome and the A. hendersoni female cytoplasm appeared to be the cause of the reduced fertility.
Blood Preservatives for the Glutathione Stability Test

WHEN red cells deficient in glucose-6-phosphate (G-6-PD) are incubated with acetylphenylhydrazine under standardized conditions, there is a marked drop in concentration of reduced glutathione (GSH). Under the same conditions, the GSH of normal cells is relatively unaffected1. This procedure, the glutathione stability test, has been widely used in the diagnosis of G-6-PD deficiency2.
Human Rights as Reputation Builder: Compliance with the Convention Against Torture

A strong record of human rights protections is an important factor for a state to maintain a positive international reputation. In this article, we suggest that states will use compliance with human rights treaties as a mechanism by which to improve their reputations to help achieve their foreign policy goals. We hypothesize that international human rights compliance is a means to improve a state’s reputation in three specific situations: when the state is facing regional pressures as the result of a desire to join a regional organization; when the state is facing regional pressures not to run afoul of a court within a regional organization; or when a state seeks foreign assistance from an entity with human rights requirements for the receipt of such assistance. We examine our theory by analyzing human rights reports regarding state compliance with specific treaty obligations outlined in the Convention Against Torture (CAT). While the evidence for our hypotheses is mixed, we do find some support for our assertion that state compliance is linked to reputational concerns. In particular, states comply with the CAT when they are part of a regional organization that has a human rights court, and when they are receiving conditional aid from the European Union.
Reactivity of heat-treated coals in carbon dioxide at 900 °C

Abstract Reactivities of sixteen 40 × 100 (U.S.) mesh U.S. coals charred to 1000 °C were measured in carbon dioxide at 900 °C. Chars derived from coals with less than 80% carbon, on a dry-ash-free basis, were the most reactive. These chars also gave the widest spread in reactivity. Plots of inorganic element content in the chars versus reactivity showed that magnesium and calcium are important to char reactivity. Six coals were acid-washed with hydrochloric acid and four coals were further demineralized with hydrofluoric acid. Most acid-treated coals showed a decrease in reactivity; but two coals of high rank increased in reactivity. This increase in reactivity is attributed to the creation of additional porosity as a result of mineral matter removal and thus a reduction in resistance to carbon dioxide diffusion to reactive sites. Two demineralized and two original coals were divided into four size ranges and chars were produced from each size of each coal. Gasification rates increased monotonically with decreasing particle size reacted.
The Coming of Parliamentary Television: The Lords and the Senate Compared

Subscribing to a Burkean view of representation, legislators have long tended to resist constant public scrutiny. In recent years, however, they have overcome this reluctance in a large number of countries and voted to allow the televising of their proceedings. But why they did so remains a mystery. Some media theorists argue that television exposure is a ‘great democratizer’. It demystifies public authority figures and obliges them to become more accountable for their actions. The experience of the British House of Lords and the United States Senate suggests instead that television was invited in by rational political actors as a means of achieving their goals in a time of change. In this view, television is best seen not as a force in its own right, but as a medium of communication that can be strategically deployed by goal-oriented political elites responding to different political circumstances and institutional incentive structures.
Stress impairs α1A adrenoceptor-mediated noradrenergic facilitation of GABAergic transmission in the basolateral amygdala

Intense or chronic stress can produce pathophysiological alterations in the systems involved in the stress response. The amygdala is a key component of the brain's neuronal network that processes and assigns emotional value to life's experiences, consolidates the memory of emotionally significant events, and organizes the behavioral response to these events. Clinical evidence indicates that certain stress-related affective disorders are associated with changes in the amygdala's excitability, implicating a possible dysfunction of the GABAergic system. An important modulator of the GABAergic synaptic transmission, and one that is also central to the stress response is norepinephrine (NE). In the present study, we examined the hypothesis that stress impairs the noradrenergic modulation of GABAergic transmission in the basolateral amygdala (BLA). In control rats, NE (10 μM) facilitated spontaneous, evoked, and miniature IPSCs in the presence of β and α2 adrenoceptor antagonists. The effects of NE were not blocked by α1D and α1B adrenoceptor antagonists, and were mimicked by the α1A agonist, A61603 (1 μM). In restrain/tail-shock stressed rats, NE or A61603 had no significant effects on GABAergic transmission. Thus, in the BLA, NE acting via presynaptic α1A adrenoceptors facilitates GABAergic inhibition, and this effect is severely impaired by stress. This is the first direct evidence of stress-induced impairment in the modulation of GABAergic synaptic transmission. The present findings provide an insight into possible mechanisms underlying the antiepileptogenic effects of NE in temporal lobe epilepsy, the hyperexcitability and hyper-responsiveness of the amygdala in certain stress-related affective disorders, and the stress-induced exacerbation of seizure activity in epileptic patients.
Plasma 6-keto prostaglandin F1α and thromboxane B2 in sick preterm neonates

To determined if vascular abnormalities in preterm neonates might be related to vasoactive prostaglandins, stable prostacyclin(6-KPGF1α)andthromboxaneA2(TxB2) metabolites in arterial blood were measured at < 6 hours after birth and at 24, 48, and 72 hours using a radioimmunoassay. Neonates of <32 weeks gestation (N=26) were diagnosed as having either the idiopathic respiratory distress syndrome (IRDS, N=15) or pulmonary edema (PE, N=11), and were also grouped according to the presence or absence of intracranial hemorrhage (ICH, N=11) or patent ductus arteriosus (PDA, N=10). Initial plasma 6-KPGFla was greater in neonates with ICH (0.23 ± 0.04 ng/ml, mean + SE) than without ICH (0.11 ± 0.04, p < 0.05). Neonates with both ICH and IRDS (N=8)had significantly elevated TxB2 at all sampling times compared to neonates with IRDS and no ICH (N=7). Both TxB2 and 6-KPGFla increased with time in those with major ICH. Among neonates without ICH, 7 with IRDS had higher initial 6-KPGFla (0.19 + 0.07 ng/ml) and lower TxB2(0.15 + 0.04 ng/ml) than 8 with PE (0.04 +0.01 and 0.37 + 0.09 ng/ml, respectively).The initial 6-KPGFlα (0.024 + 0.003 ng/ml), measured in neonates with PE and without PDA or ICH (N=6), was significantly less than the corresponding value in the other neonates (0.201 + 0.036 ng/ml) (N=20).
A GPU Laplacian solver for diffusion curves and Poisson image editing

We present a new Laplacian solver for minimal surfaces---surfaces having a mean curvature of zero everywhere except at some fixed (Dirichlet) boundary conditions. Our solution has two main contributions: First, we provide a robust rasterization technique to transform continuous boundary values (diffusion curves) to a discrete domain. Second, we define a variable stencil size diffusion solver that solves the minimal surface problem. We prove that the solver converges to the right solution, and demonstrate that it is at least as fast as commonly proposed multigrid solvers, but much simpler to implement. It also works for arbitrary image resolutions, as well as 8 bit data. We show examples of robust diffusion curve rendering where our curve rasterization and diffusion solver eliminate the strobing artifacts present in previous methods. We also show results for real-time seamless cloning and stitching of large image panoramas.
Taxpayers, the arts, and public policy: A review essay

These two books explore various aspects of public and private support for the arts. Both assume that the arts play an important role in American society and that public policy not only should provide direct aid but should also work to stimulate private giving. In this sense both are works of advocacy as well as of analysis. While their specific recommendations differ somewhat, both support an increased role for the federal government in establishing basic arts policy and in underwriting expenses. At the same time, neither book proposes drastic changes in the basic organization of our system of largely private, nonprofit, art institutions; policy suggestions are largely incremental and well within the framework of American political traditions and expectations. The Arts and Public Policy in the United States is an outgrowth of the Sixty-seventh American Assembly, a meeting of artists, arts managers and arts funders sponsored by Columbia University in the spring of 1984. The book consists of an Introduction by the editor, in which he traces the changes in funding patterns and policy influences since the beginning of Ford Foundation involvement in 1957; three essays on policy, two by academics and one by a retired museum director; and an edited transcript of a symposium held in New York City in late 1983 on the issue of policy formulation for the arts. The first paper in the collection is by legal historian Stanley N. Katz, who argues that the American tradition of federalism and, until recently, the reluctance of
A constraint for saturation binding energy in nuclear matter

Abstract In Dirac-Brueckner-Hartree-Fock calculations for nuclear matter, the average binding energy per nucleon versus density curve is not uniquely defined if coupling to anti-particles is neglected. The requirement that the nucleon separation energy equal the Fermi energy at saturation density, i.e. Hugenholtz-Van Hove (HV) theorem, places a constraint on the possible curves obtainable. We have developed a new self-consistency scheme for the RBBG theory by applying the HV theorem which guarantees the first law of thermodynamics at the saturation point. Using the Bonn interaction, we show that making the phenomenological choice that the binding energy per nucleon is−15.8MeV leads to momentum-independent self-energies and effective mass, at a density of 1.41 fm−1, consistent with previous calculations.
The Committee's Report: punishment, power and subject in twentieth-century Panamá

My dissertation, The Committee's Report, analyses punishment, power and subject formation in three historical settings in twentieth-century Panama. Instead of an omniscient narrator, I use fictional narrators, who interpret the archival documents, and debate their meaning. The text as a whole is therefore a pastiche, combining fictional and historical narrative. Chapter One, below, analyzes the construction of the penal colony on the Island of Coiba and its first years (1919–1930). The narrators disagree about the most appropriate historical framework with which to explain this project, and the historical depiction the reader encounters is therefore one of conflict.