cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Abstract 3795: Cabozantinib affects multiple signaling pathways in glioblastoma and is effective in a subset of xenograft tumors

Proceedings: AACR Annual Meeting 2014; April 5-9, 2014; San Diego, CA Background: Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common and aggressive form of brain tumor characterized by poor prognosis and high recurrence rate. Several new targeted agents are being considered for the adjuvant treatment of GBMs. Cabozantinib, a multi-kinase currently in clinical trials for several malignancies, including glioblastoma, targets c-Met and VEGFR2 receptors, as well as Ret, Kit, Flt-1/3/4, Tie2, and AXL. Our goal is to first evaluate sensitivity and molecular response of patient-derived GBM cancer stem cells (CSCs) to XL184 in vitro. Anti-tumor efficacy of cabozantinib as a single agent and in combination with the DNA-alkylating agent temozolomide (TMZ) in orthotopic xenografts was then evaluated. Methods: Neurospheres enriched in CSCs were cultured from resected GBM tumors. Sensitivity to cabozantinib was determined in vitro. Cells were treated (IC40) in triplicate, and cell lysates were analyzed by reverse phase protein microarrays. GBM CSCs were implanted intracranially into nude mice. Cabozantinib was administered by oral gavage at a dose of 60mg/kg for 4 weeks (5 days/week) as a single agent or in combination with 40mg/kg TMZ. Tumor growth and response to treatment were monitored by non-invasive in vivo biolumiescent imaging (BLI) using the Xenogen IVIS System (Caliper Life Sciences), and overall survival. Results: Sensitivity to cabozantinib treatment varied for the different GBM CSCs. From 70 proteins and phosphoproteins measured, 29 distributed among several signaling pathways were significantly altered after treatment in both resistant and sensitive GBM CSCs. Cabozantinib single agent treatment reduced GBM tumor growth and increased mouse survival in two xenograft lines. Cabozantinib monotherapy reduced tumor size, as measured by BLI, but had no significant effect on overall survival for another xenograft line, however, the combination treatment resulted in sensitization of these xenografts to TMZ treatment. Conclusion: The use of multi-kinase inhibitors is a promising strategy for GBMs, and given the range of responses, identifying predictive biomarkers, though challenging, will be invaluable for patient stratification. Citation Format: Ana C. deCarvalho, Kimberly Arnold, Claudius Mueller, Emanuel F. Petricoin, Laila M. Poisson, Tom Mikkelsen. Cabozantinib affects multiple signaling pathways in glioblastoma and is effective in a subset of xenograft tumors. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 3795. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-3795
A pilot study of fully covered self-expandable metal stents prior to neoadjuvant therapy for locally advanced esophageal cancer

Self-expandable metal stents (SEMS) have been mostly reserved for palliation of dysphagia because of advanced esophageal cancer. Fully covered SEMS (FCSEMS) (ALIMAXX-E, Alveolus Inc, Charlotte, NC, USA) offer the choice of removability if complications occur or maximum therapeutic benefit is achieved. To our knowledge, their use has not been studied in patients undergoing neoadjuvant therapy. The objectives of this study were the following: (i) to evaluate whether FCSEMS are useful in patients receiving neoadjuvant therapy; and (ii) to assess ease of removability and tissue reaction to FCSEMS. FCSEMS (ALIMAXX-E, Alveolus Inc) were deployed in consecutive patients with locally advanced esophageal cancer over a period of 14 months. All patients were referred for neoadjuvant chemoradiation therapy after stenting. Dysphagia scores were assessed at 0 month, 1 month, 3 months, and 6 months. Barium swallow and endoscopy were performed for new symptoms and follow-up. Eleven patients were treated with FCSEMS prior to neoadjuvant therapy (mean age 60.5 years, 55% white, 91% male). All but one stent were successfully placed. Strictures were located in the upper esophagus (n= 1), middle esophagus (n= 4), lower esophagus (n= 2), and gastroesophageal junction (n= 4). Dysphagia was significantly improved at 1 month (mean difference 3.12; 2.53-3.79 95% confidence interval [CI]), 3 months (mean difference 2.86, 2.19-3.53 95% CI), and 6 months (mean difference 2.56, 1.79-3.34 95% CI) compared with baseline. Three patients (27%) experienced chest pain or heartburn immediately following deployment. Only two patients ultimately underwent surgical resection. The others were diagnosed with metastatic disease prior to surgery, had disease progression in spite of neoadjuvant treatment, or died with the stent in place. Three patients developed delayed complications: recurrent dysphagia (n= 2) and tracheal-esophageal fistula (n= 1). Eight (73%) stents were subsequently removed, one because of complication (tracheal-esophageal fistula), one because of migration (recurrent dysphagia), one was incorrectly deployed, and five were felt to have satisfied their purpose. Stents remained in place for a mean duration of 100.36 days (range 0-105, median 84). Removal was characterized as very easy in all cases. Upon removal, ulcerations at the proximal or distal edge of stents were noted in six patients (75%), polyps in four (50%), and granulation in six (75%). One stent (13%) became embedded but was easily lifted from tissue. There were no perforations. Neoadjuvant treatment may have contributed to improvement in dysphagia scores. FCSEMS can be used to re-establish esophageal luminal patency in patients undergoing neoadjuvant therapy for locally advanced esophageal cancer, resulting in significant improvement in dysphagia over baseline. Tissue reaction to stents occurs but does not appear to impair removability.
Acid response to gastrin and related peptides.

Summary Histamine, gastrin II, and several peptides related to gastrin were compared as stimulants of gastric secretion of acid in dogs with both Heidenhain pouches and gastric fistulas. The maximal response of the Heidenhain pouch to gastrin and the peptides was lower than to histamine. The maximal response of the gastric fistula (vagally innervated) was about 20% higher with gastrin than with histamine, a finding similar to that reported for the intact stomach of man. Three peptides related to gastrin were studied. These were the C-terminal tetrapeptide of gastrin, Try.Met .Asp.Phe. NH 2 , and the carbamoyl and β-alanyl derivatives of that tetrapeptide. Although all of these peptides were more potent than histamine on a weight basis, none was as potent as gastrin and only the β-alanyl pentapeptide gave a maximal response equal to that of gastrin.
Comparison of the Capillary Tube and Explant Methods for the In Vitro Assay of Tuberculin

Purified antigens prepared from mycobacteria were tested for nonspecific toxicity and tuberculin activity by two in vitro methods. One technique utilized measurements of macrophage migration in 4-day-old cultures of spleen from normal and tuberculin-sensitive rabbits. The other method was a modification of the capillary tube technique. To obtain enough peritoneal macrophages for good quantitation, changes were made in the method of harvesting cells, and in some instances exudates from two or more Wright strain no. 13 guinea pigs were combined. The capillary tube method was as sensitive as the explant method for detecting nonspecific toxicity. Each tuberculin assay included a group of control cultures of cells from sensitive animals, test groups containing two widely spaced concentrations of a standard tuberculin, PPD-S, and one or more concentration of the tuberculin to be tested. Macrophages from tuberculin-sensitive animals were regularly inhibited by 0.25 μg of PPD-S per ml with both in vitro methods. The potency of the test tuberculins relative to that of PPD-S was somewhat greater in capillary tube assays than in explant cultures. A purified tuberculopolysaccharide was equally inhibitory for both normal and tuberculin-sensitive cells in both culture systems.
Quality of Life After Small Intestinal Transplantation and Among Home Parenteral Nutrition Patients

Background The purpose of the study was to quantify changes in the quality of life of small bowel recipients before and after transplantation and of home parenteral nutrition (HPN)-dependent patients before and after therapy. We examined quality of life across multiple areas of function including physical, social, and emotional indices. Methods The Quality of Life Instrument in the form of a self-administered questionnaire was completed voluntarily by the recipients of small intestinal transplants and by a cohort of HPN-dependent patients. Results Small intestinal transplant recipients reported significant improvement in the quality of their life and function. They also rated their quality of life and function during the pretransplant, TPN-dependent period to be worse than before the development of chronic intestinal failure. Similarly, HPN recipients reported significant worsening across most areas of quality of life when they compared their premorbid period to the HPN-dependent state. Conclusions TPN dependence causes significant impairment in the quality of life in most areas of functioning. In contrast, small intestinal transplantation restores the quality of life among recipients with functioning grafts.
The value of the specialist: Empirical evidence from the CBOE

Abstract Using intraday options data, this paper analyzes the “natural experiment” of the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) superimposing a specialist system on an existing multiple market maker system during 1999. We find support for the demand uncertainty literature which states that specialists are better able to resolve uncertainty about investor preferences. In particular, we find that quoted, current, and effective spreads decrease following the specialist system adoption. This translates into a $221 million annual savings for investors. We further find that following the switch, the market share of the CBOE increases significantly, suggesting that specialists use spreads to attract order flow.
Lower extremity-specific measures of disability and outcomes in orthopaedic surgery.

Outcome measures may consist of simple questions or they may be more complex instruments that evaluate multiple interrelated domains that influence patient function. Outcome measures should be relevant to patients, easy to use, reliable, valid, and responsive to clinical changes. The Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand score can be used to measure disability for any region of the upper limb. Joint and disease-specific outcome measures have been developed for the shoulder, the elbow, and the wrist and hand. Many of these measures would benefit from further research into their validity, reliability, and optimal applicability.
Age-associated changes in the B-cell repertoire: effect of age on RAG-1 gene expression in murine bone marrow.

Abstract The available repertoire of B cells that develop early or late in life reflects the restricted recombination of 5′ immunoglobulin heavy chain variable region genes. In addition, autoantibody reactivity is overrepresented in the preferentially recombined 3′ Vh gene families, resulting in over representation of autoreactive antibody specificities. The preferential utilization of 3′ Vh gene families is associated with, and perhaps caused by, the reduced expression of the RAG-1 gene. One can only speculate what effect the induction of RAG-1 activity in the bone marrow of old mice would have on their antibody repertoire.
Designing for Climate Variability

Hurricanes, blizzards, and floods. The atmosphere has visited extreme weather in the United States over the last five years. Is this climate change or climatic variability? Is the distinction important in the context of infrastructure design and planning? To address these questions, the meaning and relevance of the notions of climate change and climate variability must be clearly established in the context of natural hazards, and infrastructure engineering. Multidecadal time scales (whether natural or anthropogenically induced) have been firmly identified in the climate record. Compelling evidence of this variability has been found in data sources as diverse as tree rings, and cores taken from coral reefs, sediments, and glaciers across the globe. It is therefore submitted that the criteria used in engineering design of lifeline infrastructures, land-use planning, and water resources management among others must incorporate this knowledge.
Learning-Based Power Modeling of System-Level Black-Box IPs

Virtual platform prototypes are widely utilized to enable early system-level design space exploration. Accurate power models for hardware components at high levels of abstraction are needed to enable system-level power analysis and optimization. However, the limited observability of third party IPs renders traditional power modeling methods challenging and inaccurate. In this paper, we present a novel approach for extending behavioral models of black-box hardware IPs with an accurate power estimate. We leverage state-of-the-art-machine learning techniques to synthesize an abstract power model. Our model uses input and output history to track data-dependent pipeline behavior. Furthermore, we introduce a specialized ensemble learning that is composed out of individually selected cycle-by-cycle models to reduce overall complexity and further increase estimation accuracy. Results of applying our approach to various industrial-strength design examples shows that our models predict average power consumption to within 3% of a commercial gate-level power estimation tool, all while running several orders of magnitude faster.
Samelson products and exponents of homotopy groups

This paper is an introduction to homotopy groups with coefficients, their Samelson products, and their main applications to higher order torsion in the homotopy groups of Moore spaces and to exponents of the homotopy groups of spheres. All this material is treated in the author’s book (Neisendorfer in Algebraic methods in unstable homotopy theory, Cambridge University Press, 2009). Other useful references are the author’s memoir, Primary homotopy theory (Neisendorfer in Mem AMS 232, American Mathematical Society, 1980), and the author’s paper, Homotopy groups with coefficients (Neisendorfer in J Fixed Point Theory Appl 8:247–338, 2010).
Intensification of a suppressive HAART regimen increases CD4 counts and decreases CD8+ T-cell activation

Abstract A significant proportion of HIV-1-infected individuals on suppressive HAART regimens do not reconstitute CD4 counts well. If viral reservoirs persist and impact on CD4 reconstitution in a percentage of cases then addition of another antiretroviral agent could further suppress these reservoirs resulting in enhanced CD4 recovery. To evaluate this possibility, we studied the effect of adding abacavir to a chronically suppressive NNRTI containing HAART regimen for 8 patients on their CD4 count and expression of activation markers. Over the first 24 weeks of intensification, CD4 counts increased significantly (p = 0.028). This increase continued after a year in follow-up with a significant rate of change in CD4 T-cells of 0.959 ± 1.27 per week. In addition, during intensification changes in the percentage of CD38+CD8+ T-cells over time were significantly negatively correlated with changes in CD4 cell number over time above increases predicted without intensification (r2 = 0.716, p = 0.008). These data support the possibility that in certain cases where suboptimal CD4 reconstitution occurs that intensification of the regimen can impact immunologic parameters.
Whitman in Translation: A Seminar

Transcription of a two-day seminar dealing with the problems and challenges of translating Whitman into other languages, held at the University of Iowa Obermann Center for Advanced Studies on March 30-31, 1992, with Fernando Alegria, Gay Wilson Allen, Carl L. Anderson, Roger Asselineau, V. K. Chari, Ed Folsom, Ezra Greenspan, Walter Gruenzweig, Guiyou Huang, Maria Clara Bonetti Paro, M. Wynn Thomas, and Li Yeguang.
Distorted geometries at carbon

Abstract The changes in energy resulting from deforming methane have been calculated. Tetrahedral geometry does not have the lowest electronic energy, but does have the smallest nuclear repulsion energy. The latter plays a major role in determining the changes in energy when methane is deformed. Some properties of small ring compounds are considered from the standpoint of bond angle deformation.
Wind tunnel blockage corrections: Review and application to Savonius vertical-axis wind turbines

An investigation into wake and solid blockage effects of vertical axis wind turbines (VAWTs) in closed test-section wind tunnel testing is described. Static wall pressures have been used to derive velocity increments along wind tunnel test section which in turn are applied to provide evidence of wake interference characteristics of rotating bodies interacting within this spatially restricted domain. Vertical-axis wind turbines present a unique aerodynamic obstruction in wind tunnel testing, whose blockage effects have not yet extensively investigated. The flowfield surrounding these wind turbines is asymmetric, periodic, unsteady, separated and highly turbulent. Static pressure measurements are taken along a test-section sidewall to provide a pressure signature of the test models under varying rotor tip-speed ratios (freestream conditions and model RPMs). Wake characteristics and VAWT performance produced by the same vertical-axis wind turbine concept tested at different physical scales and in two different wind tunnels are investigated in an attempt to provide some guidance on the scaling of the combined effects on blockage. This investigation provides evidence of the effects of large wall interactions and wake propagation caused by these models at well below generally accepted standard blockage figures.
A model for the social sciences and medicine: the case for hypertension.

Abstract The interaction of the social and medical sciences lacks an adequate integrative model for facilitating inter-disciplinary research. An attempt is made to synthesize findings in the area of hypertension from the disciplines of sociology and psychology toward formulating a single model for guiding future research. The intervening role of perception for studying social and psychological factors in hypertension is explored. Using the proposed model for subsequent research in diseases with social factors implicated as etiological, may be a step toward furthering understanding of these disease processes.
Ocean warming and seabird communities of the southern California Current System (1987–98): response at multiple temporal scales

Declines in ocean productivity and shifts in species assemblages along the West Coast of North America during the second half of the XXth century have been attributed to the concurrent warming of the California Current. This paper addresses changes in the avifauna off southern California between May 1987 and September 1998, in response to shifting water mass distributions over short (<1 year) and long (interannual) temporal scales. More specifically, our research focuses on the relative importance of distinct foraging guilds and species assemblages with an affinity for warm and cold water. Over the long term, the avifauna off southern California shifted from a ‘high-productivity’ community typical of eastern boundary upwelling systems, to a ‘low-productivity’ assemblage similar to those inhabiting the subtropical gyres. Overall seabird abundance decreased; the relative importance of cold-water seabirds that dive in pursuit of prey declined; and warm-water species that feed at the surface and plunge to capture prey became more numerous. These community-level changes are consistent with the northward shifts in species ranges and the declining ocean productivity anticipated as a result of global warming. However, the response of individual taxa with an affinity for warm-water and cold-water conditions has been more difficult to predict, due to differences in species-specific responses to ocean warming. The three cold-water species investigated (Sooty Shearwater Puffinus griseus, Cassin's Auklet Ptychoramphus aleuticus, and Rhinoceros Auklet Cerorhinca monocerata) decreased in abundance during this study. On the other hand, only one of the six warm-water species considered (Pink-footed Shearwater, Puffinus creatopus) increased significantly over the long term. Yet, the warm-water Leach's Storm-petrel (Oceanodroma leucorhoa) increased between 1987 and 1993, and then declined between 1994 and 1998. Moreover, cross-correlations between seasonally adjusted anomalies of bird abundance and ocean temperature revealed that seabirds responded differently to ocean warming over intermediate (1–8 years), and long (8–12 years) time scales. We hypothesize that this nonlinear behavior of seabird populations in response to ocean warming is caused by the juxtaposition of distinct behavioral and demographic responses operating at different temporal scales.
Optimizing stimuli order in marketing experiments: A comparison of four orders using six criteria

For consumer experiments, if stimuli are balanced across subjects, what order of stimuli within subjects is optimal? In this study, four stimulus orders were tested within subjects, all balanced across subjects. Stimulus orders were tested in a similarity judgment task and were evaluated based on six criteria. The best overall performance was achieved from a non-balanced order, wherein subjects saw all stimuli first and judged similarities as desired. A commonly used within-subject balanced order performed relatively worse, and was no better than a stimulus order proposed over 100 years ago.
BRANCHING ENZYME IN ERYTHROCYTES: DETECTION OF TYPE IV GLYCOGENOSIS HETEROZYGOTES

A 2 year-old boy with hepatosplenomegaly and muscular hypotonia showed a deficient branching enzyme activity (BE) in fibroblasts (diagnosis confirmed by B. Brown, USA). We have investigated BE in erythrocytes (erys) by determination of phosphates released from glucose-1-p in the mixture containing phosphorylase. BE in erys was well measureable as debranching enzyme and phosphorylases. BE in erys of the patient was deficient (0-0.2 umol/min/g Hb vs. 4-16 in controls, n=75). Glycogen was not elevated in erys of the patient(4 mg/ dL; normal, 0-10). BE in erys from his mother was app. 50 % of the normal range (2.92). Type IV glycogenosis was suspected by the pathological examination in a female patient who died of the respiratory distress syndrome 1 day after birth. BE in erys of his parents was 2.55 and 2.22 and in fibroblasts 0.14 and 0.35 umol/min/mg protein respectively (control fibroblasts, 0.4-1.4, n=8). These results show that easily accessible heparinized blood is an excellent source for the homo-and heterozygote detection of type IV glycogenosis.
Priests of creation, mediators of order: the human person as a cultural being in Thomas F. Torrance's theological anthropology

Salient features of Thomas F. Torrance's theological anthropology are presented in order to recommend that he be read as not only a scientific theologian, but also a theologian of culture. It will be shown that Torrance understands the imago Dei to imply a cluster of relations and dynamics that suggest the human person is essentially a socio-cultural being, created in a particular way in order to fulfil a particular task. An interpretative proposal is then made suggesting that this feature of his anthropological thought may be usefully applied in order to understand more fully the goals and objectives of his theological and scientific work.
Change in attachment patterns and reflective function in a randomized control trial of transference-focused psychotherapy for borderline personality disorder.

Changes in attachment organization and reflective function (RF) were assessed as putative mechanisms of change in 1 of 3 year-long psychotherapy treatments for patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD). Ninety patients reliably diagnosed with BPD were randomized to transference-focused psychotherapy (TFP), dialectical behavior therapy, or a modified psychodynamic supportive psychotherapy. Attachment organization was assessed with the Adult Attachment Interview and the RF coding scale. After 12 months of treatment, participants showed a significant increase in the number classified secure with respect to attachment state of mind for TFP but not for the other 2 treatments. Significant changes in narrative coherence and RF were found as a function of treatment, with TFP showing increases in both constructs during treatment. No changes in resolution of loss or trauma were observed across treatments. Findings suggest that 1 year of intensive TFP can increase patients’ narrative coherence and RF. Future research should establish the relationship between these 2 constructs and relevant psychopathology, identify treatment components responsible for effecting these changes, and examine the long-term outcome of these changes.
Advanced component architectures for detection and communication systems

Future military and commercial communication systems and sensors require a new generation of circuits with cognitive, deployable, agile, versatile, survivable and sustainable capabilities. These characteristics can be achieved by systems that are autonomous and have the ability to reconfigure in real-time so they adapt to unexpected changes to the electromagnetic environment or to signals with arbitrary bandwidths. Cognitive matching is a key feature in this architecture. To be able to match in real time and under dynamic operating conditions, the architecture of the matching network has to be designed to provide continuous adaptivity to the incoming signal in order to ensure proper reception and decoding. The requirement to accommodate arbitrary-bandwidth signals, poses significant challenges to traditional time-invariant matching networks because of the gain-bandwidth restrictions and their inability to ensure a linear phase response for broadband pulse-based inputs. To address this need a time-variant matching network architecture that is incorporating high-Q passives is particularly suited for pulse-based systems.
Dopamine antagonists and brief vision distinguish lens-induced- and form-deprivation-induced myopia

In eyes wearing negative lenses, the D2 dopamine antagonist spiperone was only partly effective in preventing the ameliorative effects of brief periods of vision (Nickla et al., 2010), in contrast to reports from studies using form-deprivation. The present study was done to directly compare the effects of spiperone, and the D1 antagonist SCH-23390, on the two different myopiagenic paradigms. 12-day old chickens wore monocular diffusers (form-deprivation) or -10 D lenses attached to the feathers with matching rings of Velcro. Each day for 4 days, 10 μl intravitreal injections of the dopamine D2/D4 antagonist spiperone (5 nmoles) or the D1 antagonist SCH-23390, were given under isoflurane anesthesia, and the diffusers (n = 16; n = 5, respectively) or lenses (n = 20; n = 6) were removed for 2 h immediately after. Saline injections prior to vision were done as controls (form-deprivation: n = 11; lenses: n = 10). Two other saline-injected groups wore the lenses (n = 12) or diffusers (n = 4) continuously. Axial dimensions were measured by high frequency A-scan ultrasonography at the start, and on the last day immediately prior to, and 3 h after the injection. Refractive errors were measured at the end of the experiment using a Hartinger's refractometer. In form-deprived eyes, spiperone, but not SCH-23390, prevented the ocular growth inhibition normally effected by the brief periods of vision (change in vitreous chamber depth, spiperone vs saline: 322 vs 211 μm; p = 0.01). By contrast, neither had any effect on negative lens-wearing eyes given similar unrestricted vision (210 and 234 μm respectively, vs 264 μm). The increased elongation in the spiperone-injected form-deprived eyes did not, however, result in a myopic shift, probably due to the inhibitory effect of the drug on anterior chamber growth (drug vs saline: 96 vs 160 μm; p < 0.01). Finally, spiperone inhibited the vision-induced transient choroidal thickening in form-deprived eyes, while SCH-23390 did not. These results indicate that the dopaminergic mechanisms mediating the protective effects of brief periods of unrestricted vision differ for form-deprivation versus negative lens-wear, which may imply different growth control mechanisms between the two.
Textile Analysis of Heavy Weight, Mid-Weight, and Light Weight Polypropylene Mesh in a Porcine Ventral Hernia Model

Background The purpose of this study was to assess the burst strength and stiffness of heavy weight (HW), mid-weight (MW), and light weight (LW) polypropylene mesh pre-implantation and 5 months post-implantation in a porcine ventral hernia model. Materials and methods HW (95 g/cm 2 ), MW (45 g/cm 2 ), and LW (28 g/cm 2 ) polypropylene were tested as dry samples ( n = 8/mesh) before implantation using a stamp strain machine. Three weeks after creating four hernia defects in each mini-pig ( n = 18), the polypropylene meshes (8 × 10 cm; 24/mesh type) were implanted in the preperitoneal space, ensuring 2 cm overlap circumferentially. At 5 months, the mesh was harvested en bloc with the abdominal wall. Testing of burst strength and stiffness was repeated on the ex vivo specimens. Results After implantation in the pig for 5 months, the mean burst strength and stiffness of HW and MW meshes remains the same. LW mesh with an absorbable monofilament in its weave has significant reductions in mean burst strength ( P = 0.01) and mean stiffness ( P Conclusion A reduction in mean burst strength and stiffness occurs after 5 months implantation of LW polypropylene mesh with an absorbable monofilament. All meshes exhibited burst strengths that were much greater than the burst strength of the abdominal wall fascia alone. After tissue incorporation, the LW polypropylene mesh maintains mean burst strength comparable to MW polypropylene mesh, while becoming less stiff than HW mesh. Long-term, this may contribute to more physiological abdominal wall compliance after LW polypropylene mesh implantation.
Positivity of the energy in Einstein theory

Using the results of Deser and Teitelboim on the positivity of the energy in (quantum) supergravity, we show that in classical Einstein theory the energy functional is positive.
Therapeutic effects of If blockade: Evidence and perspective

Heart rate slowing has been accepted for decades as a primary therapeutic approach to prevention (and even to treatment) of angina pectoris. Pure heart rate slowing has not been achieved with previously available rate-slowing pharmacological agents (beta adrenergic blockers, certain calcium channel blockers), all of which have other pharmacological effects that may be beneficial but also may underlie adverse drug effects. Modulation of heart rate is a function of variation in the I(f) current, a sodium-potassium mediated membrane phenomenon that is active physiologically only in the heart's sinoatrial node. Though the current first was described more than 25 years ago, a practical pharmacological method for its inhibition only recently has been developed, tested and approved for use in Europe. The effective drug, ivabradine, has demonstrated anti-anginal, anti-ischemic efficacy and now is being tested for its effect on survival in patients with coronary artery disease and impaired left ventricular function, as well as for heart failure. The data supporting the use of the drug for angina prevention, and the potential for additional applications, are reviewed in this article.
Vaccinia virus induces strong immunoregulatory cytokine production in healthy human epidermal keratinocytes: a novel strategy for immune evasion.

Iatrogenic cutaneous infection with vaccinia virus (VV) and naturally occurring systemic infection with variola virus both lead to the characteristic skin “pox” lesions. Despite significant medical experience with both viruses, surprisingly little is understood about the interactions between these poxviruses and healthy resident skin cells. In recent years, it has become clear that skin plays an essential role in modulating both innate and adaptive immune responses, in part by producing and responding to a variety of cytokines and chemokines upon stimulation. Antagonists of many of these compounds are encoded in poxvirus genomes. Infection of skin cells with poxvirus may lead to a unique pattern of cytokine and chemokine production that might alter the cutaneous immune surveillance function. In this study, we infected primary cultures of human skin cells with VV and monitored antigen expression, virus replication, and cytokine production from the infected cells. While T cells, Langerhans cells, and dermal dendritic cells were infected abortively, keratinocytes, dermal fibroblasts, and dermal microvascular endothelial cells (HMVEC-d) all supported the complete virus life cycle. In contrast to the robust viral replication in fibroblasts and HMVEC-d, only limited viral replication was observed in keratinocytes. Importantly, VV infection of keratinocytes led to up-regulation of immunoregulatory and Th2 cytokines, including transforming growth factor β, interleukin-10 (IL-10), and IL-13. We propose that the rapid induction of keratinocyte Th2 and immunoregulatory cytokines represents a poxvirus strategy to evade immune surveillance, and the limited viral multiplication in keratinocytes may be a protective mechanism to help the immune system “win the race.”
1064 nm dispersive multichannel Raman spectroscopy for the analysis of plant lignin

The mixed phenylpropanoid polymer lignin is one of the most abundant biopolymers on the planet and is used in the paper, pulp and biorenewable industries. For many downstream applications, the lignin monomeric composition is required, but traditional methods for performing this analysis do not necessarily represent the lignin composition as it existed in the plant. Herein, it is shown that Raman spectroscopy can be used to measure the lignin monomer composition. The use of 1064 nm excitation is needed for lignin analyses since high fluorescence backgrounds are measured at wavelengths as long as 785 nm. The instrument used for these measurements is a 1064 nm dispersive multichannel Raman spectrometer that is suitable for applications outside of the laboratory, for example in-field or in-line analyses and using remote sensing fiber optics. This spectrometer has the capability of acquiring toluene/acetonitrile spectra with 800 cm(-1) spectral coverage, 6.5 cm(-1) spectral resolution and 54 S/N ratio in 10s using 280 mW incident laser powers. The 1135-1350 cm(-1) and 1560-1650 cm(-1) regions of the lignin spectrum can be used to distinguish among the three primary model lignin monomers: coumaric, ferulic and sinapic acids. Mixtures of the three model monomers and first derivative spectra or partial least squares analysis of the phenyl ring breathing modes around 1600 cm(-1) are used to determine sugarcane lignin monomer composition. Lignin extracted from sugarcane is shown to have a predominant dimethoxylated and monomethoxylated phenylpropanoid content with a lesser amount of non-methoxylated phenol, which is consistent with sugarcane's classification as a non-woody angiosperm. The location of the phenyl ring breathing mode peaks do not shift in ethanol, methanol, isopropanol, 1,4 dioxane or acetone.
A National Study of Autopsy Consent Practices:An Analysis of Consent Forms From U.S. Teaching Hospitals ♦ 167

A National Study of Autopsy Consent Practices:An Analysis of Consent Forms From U.S. Teaching Hospitals ♦ 167
Single-Chain Conformational Analysis on the Dynamic Main Chain Expansion of a Tethered Perfluoropolyether Boundary Lubricant Film

Ab initio quantum chemical computations on model perfluoropolyether (PFPE) boundary lubricant film structures are used to study the effect of main chain confinement on dynamic main chain expansion in the direction perpendicular to the underlying surface. The simulations are conducted on single-chain PFPE structures that contain a pendant branch in the middle of the main chain anchored to the underlying surface. Results indicate a substantial increase in the energy required to expand the branched chain compared to an identical but unbranched main chain. Conformational analyses as a function of main chain expansion indicate the removal of low energy torsional pathways in the branched main chain that could otherwise provide low energy pathways for conformational rearrangement to allow the main chain expansion.
MILITARY SERVICE IN THE CHURCH ORDERS

The debate concerning the approach of the early Christians to the military can be advanced by paying attention to a genre of literature that scholars have largely ignored: the church orders. These documents - the Apostolic Tradition, Canons of Hippolytus, Testament of Our Lord, and Apostolic Constitutions - are illuminating in that they deal with ethics within comprehensive treatments of worship, catechesis and pastoral life. They also are useful in that they, as variations upon a common original, are means of monitoring change across the third and fourth centuries. This article uses the church orders to assess four elements of a "new consensus" (David Hunter) on Christians in the military. By and large it confirms these, but at times it alters emphases and adds nuances. It argues that: (1) the church orders viewed killing as the big problem for Christians in the legions, not idolatry; (2) the church orders confirm that the pre-Christendom church was divided on Christian participation in the legions; (3) the church orders provide evidence for both discontinuity and continuity on the issue across the centuries, although the deepest continuity, based on John the Baptist's "rule" of Luke 3.14, is between the pre-Constantinian laity and later theologians; (4) the church orders confirm a regional variation in attitude and practice. The church orders' authority in practice is never clear.
Gender openness in managerial education: a sport management focus

Purpose – The purpose of this research paper is to examine the effect of gender openness on female student representation within sport management preparation programs.Design/methodology/approach – A questionnaire was sent to 172 undergraduate and graduate sport management preparation programs within North America and 72 completed surveys were returned. These data were used to test confirmatory factor and structural equation models at the undergraduate (n=47) and graduate levels (n=47).Findings – Results show that gender openness progresses sequentially and is an effect of programmatic size.Research limitations/implications – The primary limitation of this research investigation was the utilization of a cross‐sectional design given the topic sensitivity. Despite its cross‐sectional focus, the study offers important insight about gender openness and inclusion for female students within sport management education.Originality/value – This study utilized a non‐standard approach by examining programs relative t...
Rhizosphere priming effect of Populus fremontii obscures the temperature sensitivity of soil organic carbon respiration

Abstract C efflux from soils is a large component of the global C exchange between the biosphere and the atmosphere. However, our understanding of soil C efflux is complicated by the “rhizosphere priming effect,” in which the presence of live roots may accelerate or suppress the decomposition of soil organic C. Due to technical obstacles, the rhizosphere priming effect is under-studied, and we know little about rhizosphere priming in tree species. We measured the rates of soil-derived C mineralization in root-free soil and in soil planted with cottonwood (Populus fremontii) trees. Live cottonwood roots greatly accelerated (a rhizosphere priming effect) or suppressed (a negative rhizosphere priming effect) the mineralization of soil organic C, depending upon the time of the year. At its maximum, soil organic C was mineralized nine times faster in the presence of cottonwood roots than in the unplanted controls. Over the course of the experiment, approximately twice as much soil organic C was mineralized in pots planted with cottonwoods compared to unplanted control pots. Soil organic C mineralization rates in the unplanted controls were temperature-sensitive. In contrast, soil organic C mineralization in the cottonwood rhizosphere was unresponsive to seasonal temperature changes, due to the strength of the rhizosphere priming effect. The rhizosphere priming effect is of key importance to our understanding of soil C mineralization, because it means that the total soil respiration is not a simple additive function of soil-derived and plant-derived respiration.
An economic analysis of transplanting versus direct seeding of selected medicinal herbs in New Mexico

ABSTRACT Transplanted and direct-seeded Nepeta cataria L., Urtica dioica L., Calendula officinalis L., Melissa officinalis L., and Sphaeralcea incana Torr. ex Gray were evaluated at two sites in New Mexico. In Las Cruces, the Nepeta cataria, Melissa officinalis, and Sphaeralcea incana earned a positive return to land and risk from transplanting and direct seeding, although in each case transplants resulted in a higher return to land and risk. Transplanted Urtica dioica and Calendula officinalis at the Las Cruces site resulted in a negative return to land and risk, but at the Alcalde site the Nepeta cataria earned a positive return from transplanting and direct seeding. Transplanted Melissa officinalis and direct seeded Calendula officinalis in Alcalde generated a positive return. Direct seeded Urtica dioica and Sphaeralcea incana did not survive in Alcalde.
Transposon-mediated mutagenesis of a baculovirus

Abstract Spontaneous mutants of insect nuclear polyhedrosis viruses of Autographa californica (AcMNPV) and Galleria mellonella (GmMNPV) were analyzed. These mutants produce few polyhedra in infected cells and have insertions of host cell DNA. All the insertions mapped to two adjacent sites in the genome. The junctions between two host insertions and the viral DNA were sequenced. One of the insertions contained a perfect 7-bp inverted terminal repeat, and had caused a direct duplication of 4 by of viral DNA at the point of insertion. Therefore, this insertion sequence has properties of a transposon of the host cell Trichoplusia ni.
Huntington's Disease: Their loss is our gain?

Abstract ‘Knockout' mice have been developed that lack the Huntington's disease gene, in an effort to gain insight into the disorder and into the pathophysiological effects of tri-nucleotide repeat expansion.
Compatibilization of thermoplastic composites based on blends of polypropylene with two liquid crystalline polymers

Abstract In an earlier paper we considered the effect of polypropylene modified with maleic anhydride (MAGPP) on the properties of in situ composites based on polypropylene (PP) and a thermotropic copolyesteramide (Vectra B). In this paper we consider the effect of MAGPP on the properties of in situ composites based on PP and two different thermotropic copolyesters. It was observed that the MAGPP was nearly as effective in improving the properties for the copolyester systems as it was for the copolyesteramide system. The addition of MAGPP leads to finer and better dispersed fibrils of liquid crystalline polymer relative to the blends with no MAGPP added. These results were somewhat unexpected based on earlier reports which suggested that compatibility would be detrimental to the formation of fibrils.
Place and action in children's representations of stories

Abstract The purpose of the four experiments was to examine the prominence of place and action information in the story representations of second (7-year-old), fifth (10-year-old), and sixth (11-year-old) grade children and college students. The subjects were read short stories in which the information in a premise and an outcome sentence were consistent or inconsistent in describing place or action information. Judgments about story adequacy and the conditional probability of an inadequacy judgment given inconsistency detection were measures of prominence in the story representation, and prominence was manipulated by providing place titles, action titles, or no titles. The results showed that place inconsisteny is more important than action inconsistency in children's judgments of story adequacy, except when the action involves the story theme. Developmental differences in story judgments generally were larger for inconsistent actions than for inconsistent places, perhaps due to children's problems in abstracting an action theme early in story processing.
The Immunodominant Region on Human Thyroid Peroxidase Recognized by Autoantibodies Does not Contain the Monoclonal Antibody 47/c21 Linear Epitope*

We performed studies to determine whether the binding sites on thyroid peroxidase (TPO) of immunoglobulin antigen binding fragments (Fabs) representing more than 80% of the human autoantibody repertoire overlap with the binding site of monoclonal antibody (Mab) 47, the only Mab whose partial epitope has been defined at the amino acid level (residues 713-721). We also investigated whether these Fabs preferentially recognize native or denatured TPO. None of the Fabs, when bound to radiolabeled TPO, interfered with the ability of Mab 47 to bind to this material. In enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay experiments, the binding of TPO autoantibody Fabs SP1.5, WR1.7, TR1.8, and TR1.9 was greatly diminished by denaturation of TPO. In contrast, binding of Mab 47 was higher to denatured TPO than to intact TPO. Our studies indicate that the Mab 47/C21 epitope lies outside the immunodominant region on TPO. Further, the data confirm that the majority of epitopes for TPO autoantibodies are highly conformational (dependen...
Mechanism of Action, Pharmacokinetic and Pharmacodynamic Profile, and Clinical Applications of Nitrogen-containing Bisphosphonates

Nitrogen-containing bisphosphonates (nBPs) are bone-specific agents that inhibit farnesyl diphosphate synthase. nBPs' strong affinity for bone, and not for other tissues, makes them potent inhibitors of bone resorption and bone remodeling activity, with limited potential for side-effects in non-skeletal tissues. Five nBPs are currently approved in the United States. The primary indications are for treatment of osteoporosis (alendronate, ibandronate, and risedronate) and treatment/prevention of skeletal-related events (SREs) in multiple myeloma and breast and prostate cancer patients (ibandronate, pamidronate, and zoledronic acid). nBPs are the most efficacious drugs available for these diseases, reducing osteoporotic fracture risk by 50-60% in persons with low bone mass or prior osteoporotic fracture, and SREs by one-third in cancer patients. The absorbed nBP dose for cancer patients is from seven to ten times that in osteoporosis patients. nBPs are unique in that they first exert profound pharmacodynamic effects long after their blood levels reach zero. Current pharmacokinetic studies indicate that approximately half of any nBP dose reaches the skeleton, with an early half-life of ten days, and a terminal half-life of about ten years. Practical study design limitations and theoretical considerations suggest that both the half-life and the amount of nBP retained in the skeletons of patients on long-term nBP therapy are substantially overestimated by extrapolation directly from current pharmacokinetic data. In fact, the amount of nBP being released from skeletal tissues of long-term-treated patients, particularly in osteoporosis patients, becomes insufficient to maintain full pharmacodynamic efficacy relatively soon after dosing is interrupted.
EFFECT OF FILTRATION PRESSURE ON ANALYSES FOR CHLOROPHYLL

: Nine samples, each with different kinds and numbers of algae, were filtered at five pressures from 5 to 75 pounds per square inch and the amounts of chlorophylls a and b were measured. Pressures in the range tested had no effect on the measured amounts.
Buying books online: follow-up.

In a sample of 72 undergraduates, purchasing books online was predicted by their computer/Internet skills.