cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Spatial-Temporal Dynamics of Collective Chemosensing

Although chemosensing by individual cells is stochastic, multi-cellular organisms exhibit highly regulated response to stimulations. The key elements to understand orders in chemosensing are cellular communications and the existence of pacemakers. To study the collective behaviors in chemosensing induced by these two factors, we studied spatial-temporal calcium dynamics of fibroblast cells in response to ATP in microfluidic devices. We found gap junction communications led to faster, more synchronized, and correlated responses compared to isolated cells. We demonstrated the existence of pacemakers and how they dictated the initial responses in the presence of gap junctions. By further studying the calcium dynamics of cells embedded in a thin hydrogel film, where cellular communications were only through diffusing molecules, we conclude that gap junctions are essential to generate prompt, synchronized and highly correlated responses. In addition, both communication channels lead to calcium oscillations following the elevation by external ATP in high density cell colonies. While the calcium oscillations associated with gap junctions were transient, the calcium oscillations in the hydrogel persisted more than 10 minutes and demonstrated rich structures in the Fourier spectrum. Further study is needed to understand the ATP-triggered collective behavior within the hydrogel.View Large Image | View Hi-Res Image | Download PowerPoint Slide
Doing Liberal Political Economy: James M. Buchanan as Exemplar

We argue James M. Buchanan’s scholarship provides us an exemplary model for doing liberal political economy. Levy (2014) argues there are irreconcilable tensions within liberalism between rationalism and pluralism. Buchanan navigates these tensions in a way that powered one of the most important research programs in 20th century social science. Buchanan’s political economy contains both rationalist and pluralist elements, and it is this synthesis-without-solution that makes his political economy contributions perpetually relevant. We document Buchanan’s affinities for rationalism and pluralism, show how they informed specific portions of his research agenda, and describe how this agenda is being carried forward today.
Participation and the Ecology of Environmental Awareness and Action

This chapter takes up two questions essential to participatory environmental education: What experiences prepare children to be aware of their environment and to take action on its behalf? And, how can communities support children’s environmental learning and action? I suggest answers to these questions based on an ecological approach to psychology and show how research on the significant life experiences of people committed to environmental education and action can be understood within this framework. I also argue that environmental education can most productively encourage children to know, value, and protect the diversity of life on this planet if it builds on a theoretical foundation that embeds human development in an ecological context.
The Role of Within-Trip Dynamics and Shopper Purchase History on Unplanned Purchase Behavior

The recent surge in the importance of shopper marketing has led to an increased need to understand the drivers of unplanned purchases. This research addresses this issue by examining how elements of the current shopping trip (e.g., lagged unplanned purchase and cumulative purchases) and past purchases (e.g., average historical price paid by the shopper) determine unplanned versus planned purchases on the current trip. Using a grocery field study and frequent shopper data, we estimate competing models to test behavioral hypotheses using a hierarchical-Bayesian probit model with state dependence and serially correlated errors. Our results indicate that shoppers with smaller trip budgets tend to exhibit behavior consistent with a self-regulation model – an unplanned purchase decreases the probability of a subsequent unplanned purchase – but this effect reverses later in the trip. In contrast, shoppers with medium trip budgets tend to exhibit behavior consistent with a cueing theory model – an unplanned purchase increases the probability of a subsequent unplanned purchase – and this effect increases as the trip wears on. Further, factors from previous shopping trips predict unplanned purchases in the current trip, suggesting that retailers can use their frequent shopper program data to create customized shopping lists and improve the targeting of mobile app-based promotions.
Radiation Risk from Medical Imaging in Children

■ Medical radiation currently accounts for an increasing percentage (approximately 50%) of the total radiation exposure for the US population (previously about 15%) (moderate evidence).
Response of the Cladoceran Community to Trophic State Change in Lake Apopka, Florida

A paleolimnological evaluation of cladoceran microfossils was initiated to study limnological changes in Lake Apopka, a large (125 km2), shallow (mean depth = 1.6 m), warm, polymictic lake in central Florida. The lake switched from macrophyte to algal dominance in the late 1940s, creating a Sediment Discontinuity Layer (SDL) that can be visually used to separate sediments derived from macrophytes and phytoplankton. Cladoceran microfossils were enumerated as a means of corroborating extant eutrophication data from the sediment record. Inferences about the timing and trajectory of eutrophication were made using the cladoceran-based paleo-reconstruction. The cladoceran community of Lake Apopka began to change abruptly in both total abundance and relative percent abundance just before the lake shifted from macrophyte to algal dominance. Alona affinis, a mud-vegetation associated cladoceran, disappeared before the SDL was formed. Planktonic and benthic species also began to increase below the SDL, indicating an increase in production of both planktonic and benthic species. Chydorus cf. sphaericus, an indicator of nutrient loading, increased relative to all other cladocerans beginning in the layer below the SDL and continuing upcore. Changes in the transitional sediment layer formed before the lake switched to phytoplankton dominance, including an increase in total phosphorus concentration, suggest a more gradual eutrophication process than previously reported. Data from this study supported conclusions from other paleolimnological studies that suggested anthropogenic phosphorus loading was the key factor in the hypereutrophication of Lake Apopka.
Biochemical and cellular monitoring of the activity of the ecto-5′-nucleotidase (CD73), a key cancer modulator using HTS-formatted Bioluminescent Technology

The ecto-5′-nucleotidase (CD73) is glycosyl phosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchored cell surface protein that is involved in switching on adenosinergic signaling. Its enzymatic and nonenzymatic activit...
Child Psychotherapy Training in the United States: A National Survey of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Fellowship Program Directors

Training in child and adolescent psychotherapy continues to be emphasized by accrediting organizations (ACGME and ABPN) but it is not known how these skills are taught and what types of therapy are highlighted in fellowships across the United States. A 16-question anonymous online survey was developed by the authors and covered six main areas: demographics, the priority of psychotherapy in training, the competency goals for different psychotherapy modalities, training strategies, types of supervision, and program directors’ satisfaction of their training implementation and assessment of trainees. The survey was sent to every identified CAP program director during a three-month period in early 2017. Data was gathered from 53 of the 131 program directors surveyed, giving a 40% response rate. Ninety percent of CAP program directors strongly agree or agree that it is important to preserve and promote training and practice of psychotherapy. Most (83%) program directors indicated competence or expertise as a training goal for CBT with more variability among programs for other psychotherapies. Seventy percent of program directors agree that their program provides adequate time for learning and practicing psychotherapy but the allotted time for psychotherapy is low across majority of programs over both years of training. These results indicate that there is a gap between the goals of providing optimal training in psychotherapy with the low amount of protected time for the practice of psychotherapy. These results should provide a foundation for program directors to learn from each other about developing, improving, and implementing effective psychotherapy training.
Antihomosexual Acts on Trial: The Poetics of Justice in Uganda

Reading across artistic, political, and legal expressions of LGBT activism in and from Uganda reveals an aesthetics of silence. These moments of silence serve as a strategy of deferral that enables...
Midinfrared Imaging of α Orionis

We have imaged the M2Iab supergiant star α Ori at 11.7 and 17.9 μm using the Hale 5 m telescope and an array camera with subarcsecond angular resolution. Our images reveal the circumstellar dust shell extending out to ~5'' from the star. By fitting two multiparameter models to the data, we find values for the dust shell inner radius, the temperature at this radius, the percentage flux produced by the circumstellar material at each of our wavelengths, and the radial dependence of the dust mass density. We present profiles of the mean surface brightness as a function of radius and the power detected from within annular rings as a function of radius.
An Experimental Study of the Effects of Climate Conditions on Thermography and Pavement Assessment

This paper presents a testing set-up that helps to observe and quantify the effects of different weather conditions on the thermal profiles related to the surface crack on concrete infrastructures....
Exploring the dimensionality of kindergarten written composition

Despite increasing pressure for children to learn to write at younger ages, there are many unanswered questions about composition skills in early elementary school. The goal of this research was to examine the dimensionality of composition skills in kindergarten children, thereby adding to current knowledge about the measurement of young children’s writing and its component skills. The writing of 282 kindergarten children were assessed using three different scoring methods. Confirmatory factor analyses were used to investigate the dimensionality of various methods of scoring. Results indicated that a qualitative scoring system and a productivity scoring system capture distinct dimensions of kindergartners’ compositions. A scoring system for curriculum-based measurement could not attain acceptable fit, which may suggest that CBM is ill-suited for capturing the important components of composition for kindergartners. This study indicated that the measurement and components of composition in kindergarten may be qualitatively different from the compositions of older children.
Value of Coronary Artery Calcium Scanning in Association With the Net Benefit of Aspirin in Primary Prevention of Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease.

Importance Higher coronary artery calcium (CAC) identifies individuals at increased atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk. Whether it can also identify individuals likely to derive net benefit from aspirin therapy is unclear. Objective To examine the association between CAC, bleeding, and ASCVD and explore the net estimated effect of aspirin at different CAC thresholds. Design, Setting, and Participants Prospective population-based cohort study of Dallas Heart Study participants, free from ASCVD and not taking aspirin at baseline. Data were analyzed between February 1, 2020, and July 15, 2020. Exposures Coronary artery calcium score in the following categories: 0, 1-99, and 100 or higher. Main Outcomes and Measures Major bleeding and ASCVD events were identified fromInternational Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, Ninth Revision codes. Meta-analysis–derived aspirin effect estimates were applied to observed ASCVD and bleeding rates to model the net effect of aspirin at different CAC thresholds. Results A total of 2191 participants (mean [SD], age 44 [9.1] years, 1247 women [57%], and 1039 black individuals [47%]) had 116 major bleeding and 123 ASCVD events over a median follow-up of 12.2 years. Higher CAC categories (CAC 1-99 and ≥100 vs CAC 0) were associated with both ASCVD and bleeding events (hazard ratio [HR], 1.6; 95% CI, 1.1-2.4; HR, 2.6; 95% CI, 1.5-4.3; HR, 4.8; 95% CI, 2.8-8.2;P Conclusions and Relevance Higher CAC is associated with both ASCVD and bleeding events, with a stronger association with ASCVD. A high CAC score identifies individuals estimated to derive net benefit from primary prevention aspirin therapy from those who would not, but only in the setting of lower bleeding risk and estimated ASCVD risk that is not low.
Risk Analysis and Risk Management

It is interesting to note that humanity’s basic attitudes to risks and their relation to t e quality of life seem to be ageless and unchanging. To quote Horace, the Roman poet of 2000 years ago: “From hour to hour of one of us Takes thought of his peculiar doom; Bold sailors dread the Bosporus Nor heed what other fate may loom…”
Outcomes of Mechanical Circulatory Support for Giant Cell Myocarditis: A Systematic Review.

Treatment of giant cell myocarditis (GCM) can require bridging to orthotopic heart transplantation (OHT) or recovery with mechanical circulatory support (MCS). Since the roles of MCS and immunotherapy are not well-defined in GCM, we sought to analyze outcomes of patients with GCM who required MCS. A systematic search was performed in June 2019 to identify all studies of biopsy-proven GCM requiring MCS after 2009. We identified 27 studies with 43 patients. Patient-level data were extracted for analysis. Median patient age was 45 (interquartile range (IQR): 32–57) years. 42.1% (16/38) were female. 34.9% (15/43) presented in acute heart failure. 20.9% (9/43) presented in cardiogenic shock. Biventricular (BiVAD) MCS was required in 76.7% (33/43) of cases. Of the 62.8% (27/43) of patients who received immunotherapy, 81.5% (22/27) used steroids combined with at least one other immunosuppressant. Cyclosporine was the most common non-steroidal agent, used in 40.7% (11/27) of regimens. Immunosuppression was initiated before MCS in 59.3% (16/27) of cases, after MCS in 29.6% (8/27), and not specified in 11.1% (3/27). Immunosuppression started prior to MCS was associated with significantly better survival than MCS alone (p = 0.006); 60.5% (26/43) of patients received bridge-to-transplant MCS; 39.5% (17/43) received bridge-to-recovery MCS; 58.5% (24/41) underwent OHT a median of 104 (58–255) days from diagnosis. GCM recurrence after OHT was reported in 8.3% (2/24) of transplanted cases. BiVAD predominates in mechanically supported patients with GCM. Survival and bridge to recovery appear better in patients on immunosuppression, especially if initiated before MCS.
Indios y burros : Rethinking “la India María” as Ethnographic Cinema

This article traces the origins of Maria Elena Velasco’s comic character “la India Maria” through what Fatimah Tobing Rony has labeled ethnographic film. It explores how Velasco’s first film, Tonta, tonta, pero no tanto (dir. Fernando Cortes, Mexico, 1972), borrows conventional linguistic and performative representations from the so-called Indigenista films of Emilio “Indio” Fernandez and Benito Alazraki. The essay also studies how popular discourses regarding Indigenous intelligence and the trope of illiterate Natives as “burros” coincide with the state ideologies behind comic representations of Indigenous characters. Resumen Este ensayo traza los origenes del personaje comico de Maria Elena Velasco, la “India” Maria, a traves de lo que Fatimah Tobing Rony denomina cine etnografico. Explora las maneras en que la primera obra filmica de Velasco, Tonta, tonta, pero no tanto (1972), adopta las convenciones linguisticas y performativas de representaciones del cine indigenista de Emilio “Indio” Fernandez y Benito Alazraki. Tambien se estudian los efectos de discursos populares sobre la incapacidad intelectual y el lugar comun del nativo como “burro”, y sus coincidencias con las ideologias estatales detras de las representaciones comicas de personajes indigenas.
A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of ondansetron for the treatment of cocaine use disorder with post hoc pharmacogenetic analysis.

Abstract Background Cocaine use disorder (CUD) has significant consequences and there remain no FDA-approved pharmacotherapies. Ondansetron is an indirect dopaminergic modulator that has shown efficacy in alcohol use disorder, particularly in phenotypic and genotypic subgroups, and was found to be efficacious in a pilot dose-finding trial for CUD. Methods One-hundred eight (108) adults with CUD were randomized to ondansetron 4 mg twice daily or placebo for 9 weeks and assessed up to thrice weekly to evaluate self-reported cocaine use and urine benzoylecgonine. Participants received cognitive-behavioral therapy and brief behavioral compliance enhancement therapy. Consenting participants (N = 79) provided blood samples for exploratory pharmacogenetic analyses. Results Participants in both arms reduced cocaine use over time, but there was no statistically significant difference on percentage of cocaine-free days (PCFD; p = 0.972) or percentage of cocaine-free urine samples (PCFU; p = 0.909). Participants with early-onset CUD had greater improvement regardless of study arm (p = 0.002). Post hoc pharmacogenetic analyses demonstrated an interaction effect between treatment and rs1176713 SNP on PCFU in the total sample (p = 0.040) and African ancestry subset (p = 0.03). Constipation, fatigue, and somnolence were more common among ondansetron-treated participants (Fisher exact p Conclusions Ondansetron did not demonstrate efficacy in the treatment of CUD. However, these preliminary results suggest a genotype-based variance in response to ondansetron in African ancestry individuals with CUD. Further studies are needed to validate findings for developing a personalized genomic approach for CUD treatment in racially and ethnically diverse populations.
Activation of programmed (apoptotic) cell death for the treatment of prostate cancer.

Publisher Summary A survey report in 1995 based on certain researches declared that there would be a possibility of one in every six American men to be diagnosed with prostate cancer during their lifetime. As Americans live longer, there continues to be a corresponding rise in the number of prostate cancers with an expected 60% increase. If discovered early when it is still localized within the gland, prostate cancer can be cured surgically via a radical prostatectomy or with localized radiation therapy in approximately 90% of cases. Improved techniques have significantly decreased the complications associated with both of these procedures. Initially, it was found that androgen withdrawal therapy was useful in the surgical or chemical treatment of prostate cancer with the help of induced castration process. But, the cancer eventually relapsed. It was therefore concluded to kill both androgen-dependent and androgen-independent cancer cells. In the growth of cancer, if the rate of cell proliferation is lower than the rate of cell death, then regression of the cancer occurs. In vitro cell culture studies have demonstrated that when androgen-independent, metastatic, prostatic cancer cells are rapidly proliferating; these cells are highly sensitive to the induction of programmed cell death via exposure to the same antiproliferative chemotherapeutic agent that are of limited value when used in vivo in prostatic cancer patients. The paradox between the in vitro and in vivo responsiveness to the same chemotherapeutic agents by androgen-independent prostatic cancer cells is because of major differences in the rate of proliferation occurring in the two states.
A Review of “The Laboring of Communication: Will Knowledge Workers of the World Unite?“

“The fight is never about grapes or lettuce. It is always about people.” (Cesar Chavez) The Laboring of Communication: Will Knowledge Workers of the World Unite? bears witness to the implications o...
High Resolution Gene Expression Analysis in Mice Using Genetically Inserted Reporter Genes

Detailed analysis of the temporal and spatial patterns of expression of a gene in situ can provide a wealth of knowledge regarding the potential functional roles of a gene product. However, such detailed analysis of gene expression patterns represents a great challenge to biologists. Classical approaches such as northern blotting, RNAse protection, PCR assays and western blotting are highly reliable and sensitive means of detecting expression, but thesemethods completely lack spatial information indicating where the gene is expressed. Spatial information can be obtained by the use of similar approaches such as in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry on tissue sections or whole tissue preparations. These methods, however, are limited by the availability of robust and reliable probes for the gene of interest as well as the availability of appropriately prepared tissues to probe. Even under optimal conditions, such approaches are not practical when the aim is to undertake an exhaustive screen to discover rare sites of expression in a range of ages. The use of genetically inserted reporter genes with optimal detection characteristics, most notably the bacterial LacZ gene encoding ˇgalactosidase (ˇ-Gal), in vivo by either targeted or transgenic insertion, allows one to screen a diverse array of tissues and developmental stages rapidly and easily, and to observe domains of expression with extremely high resolution. Coupling of reporter gene insertion with gene targeting and inactivation in mice represents an extremely powerful tool for elucidating gene function, allowing high resolution analysis of domains of expression coupled with the potential loss-of-function phenotypes of the gene of interest. This approach has been used with a great deal of success over the past 10 years in genetargeting, and considerably longer (but without the phenotypic component and with significant limitations) using
The sea urchin endomesoderm gene regulatory network, an encoded logic map for early development

The regulatory program for animal development is "wired" into the cis-regulatory networks of the genome. At the DNA level these networks consist of the clusters of cis-regulatory transcription factor target sites (modules) that direct the spatial and temporal expression of each phase of activity of those genes; and the linkages amongst them. Here "linkage" refers to the relation between genes encoding transcription factors and the target sites of genes which they control, and between the genes encoding elements of signal systems and their ultimate target genes. We are engaged in an effort to define at the genomic sequence level the gene regulatory network (GRN) controlling endomesoderm specification in sea urchin embryos. The proposed GRN is based on the following information: spatial and temporal expression patterns of all genes included; constraints from experimental embryology; and a massive perturbation analysis in which expression of every relevant gene is perturbed and the effects on all other genes measured. The GRN consists of predicted inputs into the cis-regulatory modules controlling the endomesoderm expression of the genes involved. These predictions can be tested at the cis-regulatory level: here several such tests are presented. They show that the perturbation analysis is a surprisingly informative predictor of DNA sequence-level regulatory transactions.
Histology and Morphology of the Brain Subarachnoid Trabeculae

The interface between the brain and the skull consists of three fibrous tissue layers, dura mater, arachnoid, and pia mater, known as the meninges, and strands of collagen tissues connecting the arachnoid to the pia mater, known as trabeculae. The space between the arachnoid and the pia mater is filled with cerebrospinal fluid which stabilizes the shape and position of the brain during head movements or impacts. The histology and architecture of the subarachnoid space trabeculae in the brain are not well established in the literature. The only recognized fact about the trabeculae is that they are made of collagen fibers surrounded by fibroblast cells and they have pillar- and veil-like structures. In this work the histology and the architecture of the brain trabeculae were studied, via a series of in vivo and in vitro experiments using cadaveric and animal tissue. In the cadaveric study fluorescence and bright field microscopy were employed while scanning and transmission electron microscopy were used for the animal studies. The results of this study reveal that the trabeculae are collagen based type I, and their architecture is in the form of tree-shaped rods, pillars, and plates and, in some regions, they have a complex network morphology.
Cost-aware WWW proxy caching algorithms

Web caches can not only reduce network traffic and downloading latency, but can also affect the distribution of web traffic over the network through cost-aware caching. This paper introduces GreedyDual-Size, which incorporates locality with cost and size concerns in a simple and non-parameterized fashion for high performance. Trace-driven simulations show that with the appropriate cost definition, GreedyDual-Size outperforms existing web cache replacement algorithms in many aspects, including hit ratios, latency reduction and network cost reduction. In addition, GreedyDual-Size can potentially improve the performance of main-memory caching of Web documents.
Physiological ecology of Methanobrevibacter cuticularis sp. nov. and Methanobrevibacter curvatus sp. nov., isolated from the hindgut of the termite Reticulitermes flavipes.

Two morphologically distinct, H2- and CO2-utilizing methanogens were isolated from gut homogenates of the subterranean termite, Reticulitermes-flavipes (Kollar) (Rhinotermitidae). Strain RFM-1 was a short straight rod (0.4 by 1.2 micron), whereas strain RFM-2 was a slightly curved rod (0.34 by 1.6 microns) that possessed polar fibers. Their morphology, gram-positive staining reaction, resistance to cell lysis by chemical agents, and narrow range of utilizable substracts were typical of species belonging to the family Methanobacteriaceae. Analysis of the nearly complete sequences of the small-subunit rRNA-encoding genes confirmed this affiliation and supported their recognition as new species of Methanobrevibacter: M. cuticularis (RFM-1) and M. curvatus (RFM-2). The per cell rates of methanogenesis by strains RFM-1 and RFM-2 in vitro, taken together with their in situ population densities (ca. 10(6) cells.gut-1; equivalent to 10(9) cells . ml of gut fluid-1), could fully account for the rate of methane emission by the live termites. UV epifluorescence and electron microscopy confirmed that RFM-1- and RFM-2-type cells were the dominant methanogens in R.flavipes collected in Michigan (but were not the only methanogens associated with this species) and that they colonized the peripheral, microoxic region of the hindgut, i.e., residing on or near the hindgut epithelium and also attached to filamentous prokaryotes associated with the gut wall. An examination of their oxygen tolerance revealed that both strains possessed catalase-like activity. Moreover, when dispersed in tubes or agar medium under H2-CO2-O2 (75: 18.8:6.2, vol/vol/vol), both strains grew to form a thin plate about 6 mm below the meniscus, just beneath the oxic-anoxic interface. Such growth plates were capable of mediating a net consumption of O2 that otherwise penetrated much deeper into uninoculated control tubes. Similar results were obtained with an authentic strain of Methanobrevibacter arboriphilicus. This is the first detailed description of an important and often cited but poorly understood component of the termite gut microbiota.
Identification of poor responders to erythropoietin among children undergoing hemodialysis

Abstract Objectives: To identify the factors determining a high recombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEPO) dose requirement and associated side effects in children undergoing hemodialysis. Study design: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 23 children (aged 5-20 years) undergoing long-term hemodialysis. All subjects received intravenous rHuEPO to maintain hemoglobin levels ≥10 g/dL and had iron supplement. Subjects were divided into 2 groups: those receiving high-dose rHuEPO (≥450 U/kg/wk) and those receiving an average dose (
A preschool's experience with Stake's responsive evaluation model

Do teachers use evaluation information? The experiences of the Children's Center with Stake's responsive evaluation model demonstrate that there is a wide gulf to be bridged in translating concerns into desirable behaviors for effecting change in a formative decision-making process.
Effects of radiolabelled murine antibody infusion on TNF‐α, IL‐1β, and soluble IL‐2 receptor in cancer patients

This study evaluates the plasma levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta), and soluble IL-2 receptor (sIL-2R) in cancer patients infused with radiolabelled murine monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) for the purpose of imaging and dosimetry. Blood samples were collected from 13 patients (10 with colon cancer and 3 with lung cancer) before and at 4 and 7 days after infusion of either conventional intact 111In-MAb or a bifunctional antibody delivery system. For all subjects, except one, this was the first exposure to murine MAb. Before infusion, higher levels of TNF-alpha, IL-1 beta, and sIL-2R than the average expected in the plasma of healthy individuals were found. A significant decrease was noted in TNF-alpha when preinfusion concentrations were compared to 4 day (P < 0.01) or to 7 day (P < 0.05) postinfusion values. A 50% or greater decrease in IL-1 beta was also observed in most individuals with time after infusion. In contrast, sIL-2R concentrations remained relatively stable during the 1 week follow-up period. However, strikingly different patterns in the IL-1 beta and sIL-2R levels were noted in the subject who had received two previous murine antibody infusions. Our data show that the administration of radiolabelled murine antibodies, either conventional or bifunctional, can significantly alter plasma levels of TNF-alpha and IL-1 beta. These cytokines are important in immunoregulation and, perhaps also, in modulation of neoplastic growth.
Ischemic optic neuropathy following lumbar spine surgery: Case report

This 48-year-old hypertensive man, a cigarette smoker, awoke in the recovery room with visual loss in the right eye after uncomplicated lumbar spine surgery. His intraoperative blood pressure had been maintained at relatively low levels to reduce bleeding; a loss of 1500 cc of blood was reported. Postoperative hemoglobin was 4.2 g/dl less than the preoperative hemoglobin; however, the patient did not receive a blood transfusion. A postoperative ophthalmological examination revealed decreased visual acuity, color vision, and visual field in the right eye. The right optic nerve and retina were initially normal but the patient eventually developed optic nerve atrophy consistent with the clinical diagnosis of ischemic optic neuropathy. Neurosurgeons should be aware that this condition may follow uncomplicated lumbar spine surgery and should obtain prompt ophthalmological consultation when patients develop postoperative visual loss. Aggressive and rapid correction of blood pressure and hematocrit may be helpful in individuals who develop ischemic optic neuropathy after lumbar spine surgery.
Ductile ordered intermetallic alloys

Many ordered intermetallic alloys have attractive high-temperature properties; however, low ductility and brittle fracture limit their use for structural applications. The embrittlement in these alloys is mainly caused by an insufficient number of slip systems (bulk brittleness) and poor grain-boundary cohesion. Recent studies have shown that the ductility and fabricability of ordered intermetallics can be substantially improved by alloying processes and control of microstructural features through rapid solidification and thermomechanical treatments. These results demonstrate that the brittleness problem associated with ordered intermetallics can be overcome by using physical metallurgical principles. Application of these principles will be illustrated by results on Ni(3)Al and Ni(3)V-Co(3)V-Fe(3)V. The potential for developing these alloys as a new class of high-temperature structural materials is discussed.
Calcium signaling and polycystin-2.

Polycystic kidney disease (PKD) is caused by mutations in two genes, PKD1 and PKD2, which encode for the proteins, polycystin-1 (PC1) and polycystin-2 (PC2), respectively. Although disease-associated mutations have been identified in these two proteins, the sequence of molecular events leading up to clinical symptoms is still unknown. PC1 resides in the plasma membrane and it is thought to function in cell–cell and cell–matrix interactions, whereas PC2 is a calcium (Ca2+) permeable cation channel concentrated in the endoplasmic reticulum. Both proteins localize to the primary cilia where they function as a mechanosensitive receptor complex allowing the entry of Ca2+ into the cell. The downstream signaling pathway involves activation of intracellular Ca2+ release channels, especially the ryanodine receptor (RyR), but subsequent steps are still to be identified. Elucidation of the signaling pathway involved in normal PC1/PC2 function, the functional consequences of PC1/PC2 mutation, and the role of Ca2+ signaling will all help to unravel the molecular mechanisms of cystogenesis in PKD.
Electrochemical reaction rates in terms of electrochemical affinities and potentials-case of hydrogen overvoltage☆

Abstract On the basis of previously presented ideas, rate expressions are written for the various possible rate-determining steps of the hydrogen overvoltage mechanism in terms of the corresponding electrochemical affinities and potentials. This is done for two types of cases, according to whether the overall electrochemical affinity is concentrated in one step or distributed between two or more steps. The equality of the anodic and cathodic transfer coefficients is shown to imply the local equilibrium H2 ⇌ H + H+ + e− at the actual reaction sites, this step being otherwise the rate-determining one of the Heyrovsky-Horiuti mechanism. The cases of both transfer coefficients equal to 1 or to 1/2 are examined. The presentation is to be regarded as covering only some aspects of a general treatment characterized by the use of Marcelin-De Donder or MD formulae.
Disease, Social Identity, and Risk: Rethinking the Geography of AIDS

The emergence of new diseases and the re-emergence of ‘old’ diseases necessitates a relook at what shapes vulnerability to ill health. A framework is proposed that combines a realist approach to mapping vulnerability with feminist and post-structural approaches that focus more attention upon the role of social identities and cultural framings of disease. Too often investigations of disease focus either upon structural determinants of risk such as political policy and the economy, or on discursive definitions of disease that impact its experience. A combination of these approaches would result in a more effective framework for evaluating vulnerability, and subsequently for generating effective disease prevention strategies. The social, economic, political, and cultural context of HIV/AIDS in Malawi is given as an illustration of this framework.
Protein synthesis in fat body of Trichoplusia ni during the course of a nuclear polyhedrosis virus infection

Abstract Protein synthesis in fat body of cabbage looper, Trichoplusia ni , larvae was investigated during the course of a nuclear polyhedrosis virus infection. Fat body total protein concentration increased late in the disease due to a large increase in the saline-insoluble protein fraction. Incorporation of 14 C-leucine into fat body proteins in vitro revealed a slight increase in synthesis of both retained and released proteins on the first day of the disease followed by a rapid decrease in protein synthesis. The rate of decrease was more rapid in released than in retained proteins. Fat body soluble proteins of healthy larvae were separated into 22 bands by disc acrylamide gel electrophoresis. In diseased larvae, the concentration of major protein bands decreased during late stages of the disease. Electropherograms of the soluble fraction following 14 C-leucine incorporation revealed most protein synthesized in the fifth instar of healthy larvae was in 2 zones close to the origin of the gels. These proteins were rapidly released following synthesis and accounted for all but trace amounts of the released protein. Synthesis of these major proteins decreased rapidly in diseased larvae after the first day as did synthesis of released proteins. Radioactivity in other areas of the gels was well maintained in retained proteins of diseased larvae until the fourth day when little radioactivity was present in any area of the gel.
Reliable cooperative communications: A signal processing approach

We consider cooperative communications where nodes forward information for each other to achieve reliable communication. Cooperative communication is realized through various protocols such as Decode-and-Forward which are primarily designed with the assumption that nodes are always willing to cooperate. However, in practical systems nodes may violate the rules of cooperation with the selfish intention of reaping the benefits cooperation without bearing the cost. It is thus difficult to design an optimal cooperative system where nodes achieve reliable communication without implementing techniques for detection and mitigation of selfish behavior. In this paper, we present a joint technique comprised of detection and prediction components to provide protection against selfish nodes.
Numerical modeling of a vaporizing multicomponent droplet

A numerical investigation of the fundamental processes governing the energy, mass and momentum exchange between the liquid and gas phases of vaporizing, multicomponent liquid droplets is presented. The configuration studied is unsteady, axisymmetric and consists of an isolated, multicomponent droplet vaporizing in a high-temperature, convective, oxidative environment. the model considers the different volatilities of the liquid components, and accounts for variable liquid properties due to variation of the species concentrations as well as for non-Fickian multicomponent gaseous diffusion. Additional features include variable thermophysical properties in the gas phase, variable liquid viscosity, conductivity and heat of vaporization, consideration of the surface blowing effect and droplet surface regression due to vaporization, internal liquid circulation with transient droplet heating, and droplet deceleration with respect to the free flow due to drag. The numerical calculation employs finitedifference techniques and an iterative solution procedure. The time-varying spatially-resolved data for a bi-component (n-octane/benzene) liquid droplet show depletion of the more volatile liquid substance on the droplet surface due to preferential vaporization. The surface depletion is subsequently transferred to the droplet interior through convective mechanisms that develop as a result of the liquid-surface motion under the influence of the fast-moving surrounding gas. The preferential vaporization results in a gradual reduction of the more volatile species concentrations throughout the droplet interior with maximum concentrations occuring at regions around the center of the vortex formed within the droplet. An examination of the potential for microexplosion of the n-octane/benzene droplet, indicated no possibility of a catastrophic fragmentation under the conditions investigated. The bi-component droplet model was employed to examine the commonly used assumptions of unity Lewis number in the liquid phase and Fickian gaseous diffusion. We found that even though the individual surface quantities involved may change substantially, the droplet drag coefficients, the vaporization rates and the related transfer numbers are not influenced by the above assumptions in a significant way.
Design and microwave-assisted synthesis of novel macrocyclic peptides active at melanocortin receptors: discovery of potent and selective hMC5R receptor antagonists.

Differentiation of the physiological role of the melanocortin receptor 5 MC5R from that of other melanocortin receptors will require development of high affinity and selective antagonists. To date, a few synthetic antagonist ligands active at hMC5 receptor are available, but most do not have appreciable selectivity. With the aim to gain more potent and selective antagonists for the MC5R ligands, we have designed, synthesized, and pharmacologically characterized a series of alkylthioaryl-bridged macrocyclic peptide analogues derived from MT-II and SHU9119. These 20-membered macrocycles were synthesized by a tandem combination using solid phase peptide synthesis and microwave-assisted reactions. Biological assays for binding affinities and adenylate cyclase activities for the hMC1R, hMC3R, hMC4R, and hMC5R showed that three analogues, compounds, 9, 4, and 7, are selective antagonists at the hMC5 receptor. In particular, compound 9(PG-20N) is a selective and competitive hMC5R antagonist, with IC50 of 130 ± 1...
The peroxidatic and catalatic activity of catalase in normal and acatalasemic mouse liver

Monomeric, dimeric and tetrameric forms of mouse liver catalase have been shown to express peroxidatic activity while the tetrameric form expresses the catalatic activity. Autosomally inherited acatalasemia, produced by X-ray irradiation of mice results in almost complete loss of catalatic activity of catalase but has o effect on the peroxidatic activity. Liver catalase from normal and acatalasemic mice was purified by following the catalatic and peroxidatic activity, respectively. Antiserum produced in rabbit against catalase from normal mouse completely precipitated the catalatic and peroxidatic activity from normal liver, and peroxidatic activity from the acatalasemic liver homogenate. Similar results were obtained when antiserum against peroxidase from acatalasemic mice was used. These studies indicate that acatalasemia in mice is due to a structural gene mutation which leads to synthesis of structurally altered catalase subunits. The altered subunits express peroxidatic activity but do not combine to form a tetramer which expresses catalatic activity.
Ligand exchange spectrophotometric method for the determination of mole ratio in metal complexes

Abstract An innovative ligand exchange method involving the displacement of Fe(III) or Cu(II) ion by a ligand such as EDTA from the corresponding metal-salicylate complex has been developed to determine the mole ratio of the metal-ligand complex. The validity of the method is ascertained as the overlay of the plot showing the decrease in the absorbance of 1.0 mM Fe(III)-salicylate upon the addition of serial concentrations of EDTA (0.1–0.6 mM) with the absorbance calibration curve of Fe(III)-salicylate. At the intersection point of the two lines, the ratio of the two parts of the x-axis to the left and to the right of the intersection point is equal to 1:1, the mole ratio of Fe(III)-EDTA. Two other different concentrations (0.9 and 1.1 mM) of Fe(III)-salicylate are used to confirm our method using the same concentration range of EDTA with each. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) is applied to compare the three slopes where no significant difference is observed with confidence limit of 95%. This method for the determination of metal complex mole ratios is compared with the reported methods known as Job, Mole Ratio, Bent-French, Asmus, and Nash. The mole ratios for Fe(III)-citrate, Cu(II)-citrate, and Cu(II)-EDTA complexes are also determined. Application to many transition metals which also complex with salicylate or related aromatic ligands is envisioned.
Effects of 5-iminodaunorubicin on nucleoli of rats

We have confirmed that doxorubicin induces irreversible changes in the nucleolar ultrastructure of myocardial cells of rats. Similar changes were not caused by an equal dose of the synthetic analogue, 5-iminodaunomycin. These results combined with previous and current comparative tests with this analogue, doxorubicin, and daunomycin suggest that 5-iminodaunomycin may serve as a less cardiotoxic anthracycline derivative.
Trimethylamine-N-oxide modulates the reductive unfolding of onconase

The physiological osmolyte trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO) stabilizes proteins by decreasing the entropy of the unfolded state through a solvophobic effect. Our studies on the effect of TMAO on the reductive unfolding of onconase (ONC) to form its reductive intermediate, des [30-75], indicate that TMAO diminishes the reductive unfolding rate of the protein although it does not significantly affect the stability of the native protein relative to its denatured state. Since the reductive unfolding of ONC is a local event, our studies provide direct evidence for a TMAO-induced local structural change that reduces the rate of redox-dependent protein unfolding. The implications of our findings for protein folding/unfolding are discussed.
An experimental study of hemopoiesis in necturus: Effects of lead poisoning on normal and splenectomized animals

Lead poisoning causes a selective destruction of mature erythrocytes, thereby depleting the spleen and stimulating differentiation and proliferation of erythrocytes in the blood. In conjunction with splenectomy, this intravascular erythropoiesis is markedly accelerated. During the progressive anemia and subsequent regeneration of erythrocytes in simple lead poisoning the major hemopoietic loci, spleen, mesonephros, liver, and epicardium were observed. The spleen is most rapidly affected. The red cell progenitor first present in the circulation is the hemoblast, but later numerous lymphocytes enter the blood stream and are transformed into erythrocytes. Following simple splenectomy the blood shows relatively little change. A mild regenerative activity of both erythrocytes and thrombocytes ensues. In lead poisoning after splenectomy the blood picture resembles that of simple lead poisoning. The anemia is produced more rapidly and the regeneration of erythrocytes is delayed. This study emphasizes the importance of the blood stream of Necturus as a site of red cell differentiation and proliferation, and shows that the lymphocyte may be a possible progenitor of erythrocytes and thrombocytes. Under normal conditions the hemoblast suffices as a source for red cells, but under abnormal or experimental conditions, where the demand for new cells is excessive and prolonged, the lymphocyte plays a major role.
Virginiamycin and Laying Hen Performance

Two experiments were conducted for five 28-day periods each. In Experiments 1 and 2, Hyline W-36 hens, 36 and 26 weeks of age, respectively, were used. Experiment 1 was designed to measure the effect of virginiamycin on hen performance and egg characteristics when supplementing a diet having low pigmentation potential. In Experiment 2, the diet contained 3% added fat with 0, 10, and 20 ppm virginiamycin. In Experiment 1, virginiamycin-supplemented hens showed increased (P less than or equal to .05) egg production, body weight, and improved feed efficiency. When egg production and feed efficiency were ranked by quartiles within the control and virginiamycin-supplemented groups, virginiamycin was shown to benefit only the poorer producing hens. In Experiment 2, added fat improved feed efficiency; however, the response to virginiamycin, as observed in Experiment 1, did not occur.