cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Joint-afferent-mediated muscle activations yield a near-maximum torque response of the quadriceps

Abstract Previous work from our laboratory has shown that reflex activity is systematically evoked in a number of major knee muscles by large (>5°) (non-physiological) abduction angular perturbations of the human knee. This reflex action was shown to originate from periarticular tissue afferents. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that specific muscle activation patterns exist in knee muscles with preferential activation in medial muscles in response to the lateral perturbations. This study examines the hypothesis that in response to the mechanical stimulus, the sensory information mediated by these afferents results in activation patterns that provide the largest resisting moment by the knee muscles. It is further hypothesized that this near maximum resistance cannot be achieved by the selective activation of medial muscles alone. To examine this, the previously reported mechanically induced reflex EMG activation patterns, a stochastic 3D musculoskeletal patello-femoral joint model, and new data from selective electrical stimulation experiments were used. Using the model, the knee adduction–abduction moment in response to an applied abduction load at the knee joint for every possible random set of quadriceps activity was computed. These adduction moments were then compared to the adduction moment computed by the model when the mechanically induced muscle activation patterns were used. The data presented here illustrated that selective activation of a medial muscle alone would result in an abduction moment, regardless of the knee flexion angle. Furthermore, the findings of this study revealed that the recorded combinations of muscle activity provide a near maximum capability of the quadriceps muscles to resist externally applied abducting stimuli. It was concluded that stabilization in the abduction direction could only be achieved by a control strategy that involves activation of both medial and lateral muscles at the knee. It was also concluded that this control strategy was near optimal when mediated by joint afferents.
Relatedness among proteins: A new method of estimation and its application to immunoglobulins

Abstract 1. 1. A method is presented for the determination of relatedness among proteins based upon statistical analysis of differences in amino acid composition. 2. 2. Analytical results of this method correlate closely with comparisons based upon the sequence of amino acids within the three families of related proteins tested: hemoglobins, light chains of myeloma proteins and cytochromes. 3. 3. The method is applied to immunoglobulins for which amino acid sequence data are not available and general conclusions are drawn regarding the evolutionary relationships of these immunoglobulins.
Quantitation and linearity for particle-beam liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry

Abstract Quantitative performance for a particle-beam liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry system is evaluated with particular attention to non-linear behavior at low concentrations. A mathematical model for the non-linear behavior is proposed and shown to be in agreement with experimental data. The effects of 10 high-performance liquid chromatography mobile phase additives and 24 analytical probes on the linearity are shown. Although certain combinations of probes and additives show improved linear response, no single additive appears to completely alleviate the non-linear behavior as has been suggested by earlier work.
SCALING PROPERTIES AND THE BOUND STATE NATURE OF THE PHYSICAL NUCLEON

The scaling property in deep-inelastic electron scattering is established by regarding the physical nucleon as a bound state of a bare nucleon and a bare meson (or a few bare mesons). This bound-state formulation provides a fully relativistic generalization of the "parton" model that is no longer restricted to infinite-momentum frames. It also connects the scaling property in inelastic processes with the rapid decrease of the electromagnetic form factors in elastic scattering. Rigorous statements are derived for specific bound-state solutions of the Bethe-Salpeter equation with the ladder approximation. An Adler sum rule is derived and crossing properties are discussed. A general phenomenological approach is developed which is relativistically covariant and gauge-invariant, and which allows one to correlate directly the observed structure functions and form factors with the appropriate bound-state wave function. If all constituents in the bound state are assumed to be of masses $\ensuremath{\lesssim}1$ GeV, the model gives a qualitative understanding as to why the scaling property is experimentally observed at relatively moderate energies.
Gender differences in stroke, mortality, and hospitalization among patients with atrial fibrillation: A systematic review

Abstract Objective To conduct a systematic review of gender differences in stroke, mortality, and hospitalization for patients with atrial fibrillation and/or flutter (AF/Afl). Methods Full texts, published, peer-reviewed, English language articles from 1999 through July 2014 were examined. Articles with populations of patients with AF/Afl were included if they conducted longitudinal analysis of any of three outcomes: stroke, mortality, and hospitalization, and reported or compared at least one of the outcomes according to gender. Results Seventeen articles were included: sixteen on stroke, nine on mortality, and one on hospitalization. In nine articles women had more strokes (RRs 0.89–1.9). Findings about gender differences in mortality (RRs 0.69–2.8) and hospitalizations were equivocal. Conclusions Few articles examine differences in outcomes between men and women with AF/Afl. Given the prevalence of AF/Afl and health care costs it is vital to determine gender differences to evaluate appropriate therapies to decrease stroke, mortality, and hospitalizations.
Multiple-Port Power Divider/Combiner Circuits Using Circular Microstrip Disk Configurations

A generalized method for evaluating the scattering parameters of a multiport center-fed circular microstrip disk power divider/combiner circuits is presented. The method is based on the planar circuit approach in which the two-dimensional Green's function of a circular segment is used. Various symmetrical power divider/combiner circuits have been designed and tested. The effect of introducing additional shorted ports between the circumferential output ports on the reduction of spurious radiation losses is discussed. Experimental results verifying the design methodology are given.
Meconium as a biological marker of prenatal exposure.

Pediatricians often come in contact with patients with neurodevelopmental problems. Demonstrating the cause of the dysfunction is extremely difficult. Implicated etiologic factors include prenatal exposure to a wide variety of chemical agents, including alcohol, tobacco, pesticides, and heavy metals. The ubiquitous nature of these agents in the environment indicates a need to develop a method to ascertain the extent of exposure. A unique and novel approach to this problem is to analyze biological samples (matrices) that accumulate in utero, such as hair, for these chemicals and/or their metabolites. Meconium may be such a matrix. Initial work on meconium, starting in 1989, showed its utility in identifying drug-exposed infants. Current research is aimed at 1) broadening the list of chemical agents that can be detected in meconium; 2) determining the relationship between maternal exposure assessed from either blood/urine samples or questionnaire data and the quantity of chemical/ metabolite in the meconium (eg, X mg/mL of cotinine in meconium signifies Y number of cigarettes smoked per day by the mother); and 3) determining the significance of the amount of chemical/metabolite in the meconium (eg, X mg/mL of ethanol metabolites identifies an infant who will have significant behavior problems in school). Few data currently describe these important relationships. In the future, clinicians may be able to submit a sample of meconium for analysis to determine the nature and extent of a child’s exposure in utero to a wide variety of drugs and chemicals and to predict the impact of the exposure on the child. This article summarizes work on developing and validating meconium as an indicator of prenatal exposure.
Spread pattern analysis tool (SPAT): II. examples of aircraft pattern analysis.

The quality of aerial spread patterns was studied based on over 400 test runs in Arkansas during the period 1992-1997. A custom developed computer program called SPAT (Spread Pattern Analysis Tool, Grift, 2000) was used to compute overlapped spread patterns and to determine the pattern quality. The quality of a spread pattern is traditionally expressed by the average application rate (the mean of the overlapped pattern) and uniformity [expressed in the statistical coefficient of variation (cv)]. Both parameters depend highly on the swath width. Inspired by studying the cv-swath width relationships, a new measure for pattern quality called “robustness” was conceived. This parameter indicates the flexibility of a spread pattern shape, or the ability of the applicator to vary the swath width (and, hence, the application rate), either purposely or due to unintended flight path errors, and be confident that the overlapped pattern will have an acceptable uniformity. Grift (2000) stated that, as a rule of thumb, patterns with a robustness factor lower than 5% can be considered robust. From studying spread patterns of unadjusted spreaders in Back&Forth mode, it was concluded that only 3.45% of them are robust and after adjustments had been made, 2.75%. In RaceTrack mode, the percentage of robust patterns was 8.59% and after adjustments it increased to 10.28%. The majority of all patterns (approximately 70%), in both modes, had robustness factors between 5% and 15%. The results of this study imply a definite need to improve the quality of aerial application spread patterns by (1) avoiding pattern shapes that are sensitive to transforming to non-robust, and (2) periodic calibration. The magnitude of the problem indicates that periodic adjustment of spreaders will not be sufficient, redesign of equipment and spreading procedures may be necessary to accomplish overall high quality spread patterns.
Can a phone's GPS "Lie" intelligently?

Introducing finer-grained privacy controls would let users divulge only enough location information to achieve a desired service quality. Although mobile devices are making information access ubiquitous, many applications lack fine-grained controls, which puts user location privacy at risk. For some location-based applications, however, an intelligent GPS could “lie” about the phone's precise location to protect user privacy without affecting search accuracy.
Pulmonary hypertension due to lung disease and/or hypoxia

Pulmonary hypertension may complicate the course of patients with many forms of advanced lung disease. The cause is likely multifactorial with pathogenic pathways both common and unique to the specific disease entities. The occurrence of pulmonary hypertension is associated with worse outcomes, but whether this is an adaptive or maladaptive phenomenon remains unknown. The treatment of pulmonary hypertension with vasoactive medications in lung disease remains unproved. Specific disease phenotypes that might benefit, and those in which such therapies might be deleterious, remain to be determined.
Accumulation of cadmium by the American oyster, Crassostrea virginica

CADMIUM is a major environmental pollutant potentially harmful to health, and if the sea becomes polluted with this metal there could be a reduction in extensive sources of food1. Seafoods constitute a source of cadmium in the human diet2 and in view of abundant evidence that shellfish accumulate trace metals3–6, it is important to investigate cadmium pollution. People have become ill from cadmium poisoning after ingesting foods containing concentrations of 13–15 µg g−1 (13–15 p.p.m., ref. 7). We now report that adult oysters reared in seawater containing 0.005 p.p.m. cadmium accumulated up to 10.75 p.p.m. in 40 weeks. This accumulation, plus cadmium naturally present, brought the concentration of cadmium to 13 p.p.m. in the soft tissue, which represents a potential health hazard if oysters constitute a major item of the diet.
In vitro regulation of immunoreactive β-endorphin secretion from adult and fetal hypothalamus by sequential stimulation with corticotropin-releasing hormone

Abstract Previous work has shown corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) stimulation of β-endorphin (END) secretion from hypothalamus. We tested the hypothesis that CRH stimulation of β-END (measured by radioimmunoassay) from hypothalamic explants is dependent on: (1) ovine CRH dose, (2) pattern and sequence of CRH stimulation, (3) androgen status, and (4) hypothalamic age. Hypothalami from adult male rats and day 17 fetal rats were studied. In adult hypothalami, CRH-stimulated immunoreactive (IR)-β-END secretion with 10 −7 M was greater than that with 10 −11 M CRH and showed dose-dependent stimulation. Serial stimulation for 20 min by 10 −11 M CRH followed by a 40 min interval without CRH stimulation resulted in a brief stimulation of secretion of IR-β-END and also secretion of IR-α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (MSH), another peptide derive from pro-opiomelanocortin, the precursor of β-END. subsequent stimulatio with 10 −6 M CRH showed a desensitization to stimulation despite readily releasable pools of IR-β-END shown by potassium-induced depolarization. In addition, prolonged stimulation for 1 h with 10 −7 M CRH or increasing concentration of CRH produced a sustained increase in IR-β-END release as long as CRH was present. Dihydrotestosterone treatment had no effect on basal nor CRH-stimulated IR-β-END release in orchiectomized rats. The pattern of IR-β-END secretion from fetal hypothalamic explants exposed briefly (20 min) or for a prolonged period (1 h) to CRH was similar to that from adult explants. These results demonstrate that: (1) CRH-stimulated IR-β-END secretion from hypothalamus is dose-dependent; (2) the pattern of stimulation of hypothalamic IR-β-END release by CRH determines whether there is a desensitization or a sustained response to CRH stimulation; (3) short-term androgen treatment with dihydrotestosterone to orchiectomized rats does not alter basal nor CRH-stimulated IR-β-END secretion; and (4) regulation of IR-β-END secretion in fetal hypothalamus by ovine CRH appears similar to that observed in adult hypothalamus.
An S1 gradient of refractoriness is not essential for reentry induction by an S2 stimulus

This communication reports a numerical simulation of reentry induction by successive stimulation (S1-S2) that does not require an S1 gradient of refractoriness. The S1 action potential is uniform in space, so before the S2 stimulus there is no refractory gradient. Nevertheless, a unipolar S2 stimulus initiates quatrefoil reentry. The result supports the growing realization that virtual electrodes, hyperpolarization, de-excitation, and break excitation may be important during reentry induction.
Chronic ethanol exposure in the embryonic chick heart: effect on myocardial function and structure.

To investigate the effect of chronic ethanol exposure on the embryonic chick heart, chick embryos were exposed daily to one of seven graded doses of ethanol or to saline only (shams) from 0 to 96 hr of incubation. One hour before and after exposure at 72 hr, and 1 hr before and after exposure at 96 hr, embryos were analyzed for changes in heart function, embryo tissue ethanol content, occurrence of anomalies, and embryo weights. At both 71 and 73 hr of incubation (during cardiogenesis), when compared to shams, heart rate (HR) in embryos receiving ethanol doses greater than 0.0375 ml increased significantly (P less than .05) with commensurate increases in injected ethanol. Additionally, at 73 hr, depressed cardiac contractility, measured as shortening fraction, was noted at doses greater than or equal to .0375 when compared to shams. While slight increases in shortening fraction (SF) across dose were noted at 95 and 97 hr, only random doses were statistically significant from shams, with no specific trend in either HR or SF at this postcardiogenesis stage. Within each time group, gas chromatography analysis of embryo tissue ethanol content demonstrated a linear relationship between dose injected and tissue ethanol content retrieved. With increasing dose and stage, viability decreased. Weights of ethanol-injected embryos were not significantly different from shams within each time group. Our studies of the response of the embryonic chick heart to ethanol indicate both dose and stage susceptibility, with greater susceptibility to ethanol injury during active cardiogenesis.
Test of Model Masonry Single Pier Under Dynamic Shaking and Quasistatic Cyclic Loading

In order to improve seismic design of masonry structures, research is needed in the area of masonry response to seismic loading. One of the purposes of this program is to investigate the difference of the structural response of masonry single pier when in-plane shear force is applied dynamically and slowly. In addition, modeling techniques for brick masonry were studied. The experimental results are reported for the structural behavior of two brick masonry piers under dynamic shaking and slowly applied cyclic loading. Each specimen was an unreinforced model pier having a height-to-width ratio of I with fixed-end conditions. The model was constructed of one fourth scale brick and mortar composed of fine sand, lime, and cement. Compressive tests of model mortar cubes, prisms, and one square panel were done to understand the modeling techniques of brick masonry. It was found that the piers under dynamic shaking are characterized by localized failure and abrupt stiffness degradation. However, the peak strength was lower under dynamic shaking. This tentative, preliminary conclusion should be verified with further tests.
Assembled agency: media and hegemony in the Chilean transition to civilian rule

Through a close analysis of the media campaign to oust Chilean General Augusto Pinochet from power in 1988, this article explores the construction of national hegemony in transnational context. The...
The immunosuppressant FK506 increases GAP-43 mRNA levels in axotomized sensory neurons

FK506, an immunosuppressant drug used to prevent allograft rejection in organ transplantations, accelerates functional recovery and nerve regeneration in the rat sciatic nerve crush model. While the mechanism by which FK506 increases regeneration is unknown, in contrast to immunosuppression, it does not involve calcineurin inhibition. Using the reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) technique and a digoxigenin-labeled probe, we show that subcutaneous injections of FK506 (10 mg/kg/day) markedly increases the level of axotomy-induced growth-associated protein (GAP-43) mRNA in dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons. Quantitation of DRG neurons revealed that FK506 produced a 33% increase in the numbers of neurons exhibiting intense staining. Increased synthesis of GAP-43 may play a role in FK506's ability to speed nerve regeneration.
Therapy: one component in a mastitis control system.

Abstract On the basis of present information the author is led to the conclusion that the treatment of all quarters of all cows at the time of drying off is the preferred system and should be combined with a teat dip program. It is more effective in eliminating existing infections than lactation therapy because more infections are contacted with a higher recovery rate. As a result of eliminating infection in the dry period, quarters return to near normal production in the next lactation and the new dry period infection rate is reduced from approximately 12 to 4%. All quarters are treated once a year which keeps many infections from advancing into the more advanced stages of pathogenesis. The system easily can be carried out by the dairyman with a minimum of inconvenience. All infections are contacted as compared to 30 to 50% for other systems. As a result the dairyman will obtain the fastest response and the greatest improvement. However the statement of Wilson (26) is very applicable, "Mastitis control does not lie in the antibiotic tube…" An effective mastitis control system must combine an effective dry treatment program with an effective hygiene program.
History and future perspective of the modern silicon bipolar transistor

A brief historical account of the development of advanced silicon bipolar transistors (SBTs) at IBM Research is described, with a focus on discussing the technical merits of the directions taken. A perspective on the future of silicon bipolar is given, including a discussion on the merits of SiGe-base transistors, and on the scaling limits of both Si-base and SiGe-base transistors. An apples-to-apples comparison of SiGe-base transistors and GaAs HBTs is made, showing that GaAs HBTs are inherently faster and more scaleable than SiGe-base transistors.
Women, serious mental illness and recidivism: A gender-based analysis of recidivism risk for women with SMI released from prison.

AbstractTwo groups now constitute the fastest growing segment of the U.S. prison population: women and persons with mental illness. Few large-scale studies have explored associations among serious mental illness (SMI), gender, and recidivism, or compared factors such as illness severity and clinical
Psychotherapies for Adolescent Substance Abusers: 15‐Month Follow‐up of a Pilot Study

In order to test the hypothesis that adolescent substance abusers could be matched to effective treatments on the basis of their comorbid psychopathology, 32 dually diagnosed adolescents were randomized into two short-term outpatient group psychotherapies: cognitive-behavioral treatment (CBT), and interactional treatment (IT). Two follow-up assessments were conducted at 3 and 15 months after planned treatment completion. As reported recently, at the three-month follow-up, no patient-treatment matching effects were identified. However, adolescents assigned to CBT demonstrated a significant reduction in severity of substance abuse compared to those assigned to IT. At 15-month follow-up, there were no differential improvements as a function of therapy type. However, subjects in general maintained significant treatment gains on the substance abuse, family function, and psychiatric status domains of the Teen-Addiction Severity Index (T-ASI), and both CBT and IT were associated with similar long-term gains. Lar...
Regulation of BMP7 expression during kidney development

Members of the Bone Morphogenetic Protein (BMP) family exhibit overlapping and dynamic expression patterns throughout embryogenesis. However, little is known about the upstream regulators of these important signaling molecules. There is some evidence that BMP signaling may be autoregulative as demonstrated for BMP4 during tooth development. Analysis of BMP7 expression during kidney development, in conjunction with studies analyzing the effect of recombinant BMP7 on isolated kidney mesenchyme, suggest that a similar mechanism may operate for BMP7. We have generated a beta-gal-expressing reporter allele at the BMP7 locus to closely monitor expression of BMP7 during embryonic kidney development. In contrast to other studies, our analysis of BMP7/lacZ homozygous mutant embryos, shows that BMP7 expression is not subject to autoregulation in any tissue. In addition, we have used this reporter allele to analyze the expression of BMP7 in response to several known survival factors (EGF, bFGF) and inducers of metanephric mesenchyme, including the ureteric bud, spinal cord and LiCl. These studies show that treatment of isolated mesenchyme with EGF or bFGF allows survival of the mesenchyme but neither factor is sufficient to maintain BMP7 expression in this population of cells. Rather, BMP7 expression in the mesenchyme is contingent on an inductive signal. Thus, the reporter allele provides a convenient marker for the induced mesenchyme. Interestingly LiCl has been shown to activate the Wnt signaling pathway, suggesting that BMP7 expression in the mesenchyme is regulated by a Wnt signal. Treatment of whole kidneys with sodium chlorate to disrupt proteoglycan synthesis results in the loss of BMP7 expression in the mesenchyme whereas expression in the epithelial components of the kidney are unaffected. Heterologous recombinations of ureteric bud with either limb or lung mesenchyme demonstrate that expression of BMP7 is maintained in this epithelial structure. Taken together, these data indicate that BMP7 expression in the epithelial components of the kidney is not dependent on cell-cell or cell-ECM interactions with the metanephric mesenchyme. By contrast, BMP7 expression in the metanephric mesenchyme is dependent on proteoglycans and possibly Wnt signaling.
Technique for conveying three-dimensionality from a sequence of image-level slices.

A simple and easily implemented image-processing technique has been developed that conveys an impression of three-dimensionality from a sequence of image-level slices. The technique has been applied to a series of contour-slice images generated by a new microscopy developed at Sandia National Laboratories. The resulting composite images convey a striking appearance of three-dimensionality that is similar to that observed in a scanning electron micrograph. Stereo pairs can be generated directly from the level-slice data without any necessity for imaging two angularly separated sequences.
Research for Change: Using Implementation Research to Strengthen HIV Care and Treatment Scale-Up in Resource-Limited Settings

The expansion of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) care and treatment in Africa and other resource-limited settings has begun to mitigate the impact of the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome pandemic. As this expansion has occurred, critical research has been conducted that has helped to define best practices and establish guidelines in HIV care. However, despite this research, a tremendous gap exists between the actual delivery of care and those strategies with proven efficacy in the clinical research setting: the program-implementation gap. The field of implementation research has the potential to fill this knowledge gap and to address the barriers to the effective replication of evidence-based interventions in local settings. This article reviews the current understanding of the field of implementation research and discusses its association with other areas of health services research, clinical research, and quality management work. Opportunities for conducting implementation research are proposed, and future steps to develop the field are outlined.
Comparison of Real-Time PCR Protocols for Differential Laboratory Diagnosis of Amebiasis

Specific identification of Entamoeba spp. in clinical specimens is an important confirmatory diagnostic step in the management of patients who may be infected with Entamoeba histolytica, the species that causes clinical amebiasis. Distinct real-time PCR protocols have recently been published for identification of E. histolytica and differentiation from the morphologically identical nonpathogenic Entamoeba dispar. In this study, we compared three E. histolytica real-time PCR techniques published by December 2004. The limits of detection and efficiency of each real-time PCR assay were determined using DNA extracted from stool samples spiked with serially diluted cultured E. histolytica trophozoites. The ability of each assay to correctly distinguish E. histolytica from E. dispar was evaluated with DNA extracted from patients' stools and liver aspirates submitted for confirmatory diagnosis. Real-time PCR allowed quantitative analysis of the spiked stool samples, but major differences in detection limits and assay performance were observed among the evaluated tests. These results illustrate the usefulness of comparative evaluations of diagnostic assays.
MHC–disassortative mating preferences reversed by cross–fostering

House mice (Mus musculus domesticus) avoid mating with individuals that are genetically similar at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC). Mice are able recognize MHC-similar individuals through specific odour cues. However, to mate disassortatively for MHC genes, individuals must have a referent, either themselves (self-inspection) or close kin (familial imprinting), with which to compare the MHC identity of potential mates. Although studies on MHC-dependent mating preferences often assume that individuals use self-inspection, laboratory experiments with male mice indicate that they use familial imprinting, i.e. males learn the MHC identity of their family and then avoid mating with females carrying 'familial' MHC alleles. To determine if female mice use familial imprinting, we cross-fostered wild-derived female mouse pups into MHC-dissimilar families, and then tested if this procedure reversed their mating preferences compared with in-fostered controls. Our observations of the female's mating behaviour in seminatural social conditions and the genetic typing of their progeny both indicated that females avoided mating with males carrying MHC genes of their foster family, supporting the familial imprinting hypothesis. We show that MHC-dependent familial imprinting potentially provides a more effective mechanism for avoiding kin matings and reducing inbreeding than self-inspection.
Preparing for the future through genetics nursing education.

Purpose: To determine recommendations for curriculum change that are indicated by innovations in genetics. Methods: Both quantitative and qualitative. The sample (n = 356) consisted of nurses identified as experts in genetics (n = 228) and nurses identified as potential users of genetics education (n = 128). Nurses' opinions of core components of a genetics curriculum were elicited via a mailed survey questionnaire. Participants also provided demographic information and completed the Jones Innovativeness Scale (1997). Findings: Recommended content in genetics education for practicing nurses was identified by both groups of nurses. Innovativeness characterized 3% of the respondents. Ninety-eight percent of respondents said that adopting genetics education is important. In total, 398 items were identified as potential consequences of education that incorporates genetic information. Conclusions: Identified content provides a template for genetics education programs for nurses. Genetics nursing education was perceived to have positive outcomes for both nurses and clients.
The effect of 3-acetylpyridine on the explanted chick embryo

A structural analogue of nicotinic acid, 3-acetylpyridine, has been shown to produce morphological and physiological abnormalities in a variety of organisms. The effect of 3-acetylpyridine (AP) on chick embryos has been studied by several investigators using the technique of yolk-sac injection (Ackermann & Taylor, 1948; Zwilling & DeBell, 1950; Landauer, 1957; Herrmann, Clark & Landauer, 1963). Following AP treatment at 96 h of incubation, a reduction in body size, underdevelopment of leg musculature and edema were noted. Teratogenic effects of AP when administered after 24 h of incubation were much more diffuse and included instances of cerebral hernia and muscular hypoplasia (Landauer, 1957). Simultaneous injection of nicotinamide (Ackermann & Taylor, 1948; Landauer, 1957) decreased the incidence and severity of these conditions. Landauer (1957) noted the similarity of abnormalities found in AP-treated chick embryos to those of the crooked-neck dwarf mutant described by Asmundson (1945).
Exchange Energy Interactions in Quantum Well Heterostructures

The influence of the exchange energy interaction on electronic subbands in a square well potential is investigated using a Kohn-Sham density functional approach. We concentrate on a layered AlGaAs/GaAs/AlGaAs system, the properties of which are observed as a function of well width, at absolute zero. Previous studies on exchange energy effects in quasi-2D (two dimensional) electron systems often use a local density functional formalism (Stern and Sarma, 1984) or, alternatively, the Slater approximation (Vx(r)elater≈ n(r)1/3) (Kaminskii, 1989). We, on the other hand, apply a recently proposed effective exchange potential Vx(z) (Krieger and others, 1990: see equation 3). The properties of Vx(z) make it interesting for future applications to heterojunction device simulations.
Studies of hemolytic staphylococciHemolytic activity—biochemical reactions—serologic reactions

That staphylococci lake blood was brought out in 1900, when Kraus 1 noticed the hemolytic effect of staphylococci on bloodplates. The following year Neisser and Wechsberg2 demonstrated a hemolytic substance in filtrates of broth cultures. They found that in alkaline beef broth, this hemolytic substance began to appear on the fourth day and reached a maximum between the eighth and fourteenth day. In a general way they showed that aureus and virulent strains produced greater quantities of hemolysins than did either the albus or avirulent strains. Van durme3 found that the hemolytic power was generally greatest in cultures freshly isolated from pathologic conditions, and was generally absent in cultures from dust and from the normal mouth. Todd,4 working with B. megatherium and Kraus5 working with staphylococcus showed that this action takes place in vivo as well as in vitro.
INTRASPECIFIC COMBAT AND THE EVOLUTION OF THE CAPRINI.

Among the animals belonging to the mammalian tribe Caprini (sheep and goats), intraspecific conflict between males often takes the form of violent head-to-head butting. This paper correlates differences in fighting behavior among the various genera with the relative development of the neck muscles in each. Fighting style and horn shape are analyzed with reference to the production of torques about the occiput which, if unopposed, would cause violent and injurious rotation of the head. Areas of muscle insertion on the skull were used as the major indicators of muscle size, but dissections were also performed. Further studies of both musculature and behavior are desirable to clarify details which remain obscure. The tribe Caprini is composed of five genera: Hernitragus, tahr; Capra, goats, ibexes; Amnmotragus, Barbary "sheep"; Pseudois, blue "sheep"; and Ovis, true sheep-mouflons, argalis, and bighorn. All of these animals possess large, massive horns which are used to deal and receive blows of considerable force. In contrast, their ancestors are believed to have resembled the living Rupicaprini (Pilgrim, 1939; 1947), light-limbed creatures with small horns, quite aptly referred to as "goatantelope (McCann, 1956)." Rupicaprini are not adapted to withstand, nor do they engage in, the furious head-on collisions of male caprines. Instead, horn-locking and head-to-head pushing occur, along with some body-butting (Couturier, 1938; Geist, 1964; 1966b). Such behavior is considered to be ancestral to the patterns observed in the Caprini (Geist, 1966b). Evolution in the latter group has thus involved alteration of both behavior and morphology, and
Adverse events of sacral neuromodulation for fecal incontinence reported to the federal drug administration

Adverse events of sacral neuromodulation for fecal incontinence reported to the federal drug administration
Prevalence of behavioral and physiological risk factors of hypertension in African American adolescents.

UNLABELLED African American (AA) adolescents are twice as likely to develop high blood pressure in early adulthood as other groups. Continuous existence of risk factors in adolescents may be precursors to adult cardiovascular changes. The purpose of this study was to describe the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors in a sample of AA adolescents. METHOD A secondary analysis was conducted on data obtained from a sample of AA adolescents (N = 48; 32 males and 16 females) ages 14-17 years from a larger study. Factors included family history of hypertension (FHH), diet, exercise, blood pressure, and cortisol levels before and after physiologic stress. FINDINGS Thirty-one participants (65%) had positive FHH, 35 (73%) had three or less serving of fruits/vegetables per day, 41 (85%) reported exercising less than three times per week. Of the participants, 14 (29%) had elevated blood pressure, 30 (63%) had cardiovascular reactivity, 32 (67%) had elevated cortisol, and 23 (48%) had cortisol hyper-responsivity. Ninety-four percent had four or more risk factors and 44% had six or more. DISCUSSION This study demonstrates the increased prevalence of physiological and behavioral risk factors in this adolescent population.
Dynamin 1- and 3-Mediated Endocytosis Is Essential for the Development of a Large Central Synapse In Vivo.

Dynamin is a large GTPase crucial for endocytosis and sustained neurotransmission, but its role in synapse development in the mammalian brain has received little attention. We addressed this question using the calyx of Held (CH), a large nerve terminal in the auditory brainstem in mice. Tissue-specific ablation of different dynamin isoforms bypasses the early lethality of conventional knock-outs and allows us to examine CH development in a native brain circuit. Individual gene deletion of dynamin 1, a primary dynamin isoform in neurons, as well as dynamin 2 and 3, did not affect CH development. However, combined tissue-specific knock-out of both dynamin 1 and 3 (cDKO) severely impaired CH formation and growth during the first postnatal week, and the phenotypes were exacerbated by further additive conditional knock-out of dynamin 2. The developmental defect of CH in cDKO first became evident on postnatal day 3 (P3), a time point when CH forms and grows abruptly. This is followed by a progressive loss of postsynaptic neurons and increased glial infiltration late in development. However, early CH synaptogenesis before protocalyx formation was not altered in cDKO. Functional maturation of synaptic transmission in the medial nucleus of the trapezoid body in cDKO was impeded during development and accompanied by an increase in the membrane excitability of medial nucleus of the trapezoid body neurons. This study provides compelling genetic evidence that CH formation requires dynamin 1- and 3-mediated endocytosis in vivo , indicating a critical role of dynamin in synaptic development, maturation, and subsequent maintenance in the mammalian brain. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Synaptic development has been increasingly implicated in numerous brain disorders. Dynamin plays a crucial role in clathrin-mediated endocytosis and synaptic transmission at nerve terminals, but its potential role in synaptic development in the native brain circuitry is unclear. Using the calyx of Held, a giant nerve terminal in the mouse brainstem, we evaluated the role of dynamin in this process by using tissue-specific knock-out (KO) of three different dynamin isoforms (dynamin 1, 2, and 3) individually and in combination. Our data demonstrated that dynamin is required for the formation, functional maturation, and subsequent survival of the calyx of Held. This study highlights the important role of dynamin-mediated endocytosis in the development of central synapses in the mammalian brain.
Adenocarcinoma in Columnar Lined Esophagus (Barrett’s Esophagus)

Barrett’s esophagus is one that has the normal squamous mucosa replaced by columnar mucosa. The etiology is thought primarily to be related to consequences of gastroesophageal reflux although it is not possible to exclude a congenital origin [1]. Reflux destroys the normal squamous epithelium and it is replaced by one of the variety of columnar cells.
1914: The Last Stand of the Thin Red Line

The ideals of Victorian heroism had been refined facing crazed Ghazis, fanatical Dervishes, and most recently obstinate Boers. Only the last had come close to technological parity, and even they could not hope to match the industrial might of the aroused British Empire. As the First World War began, Britain suddenly found itself propelled into a full-scale continental war against one of the foremost industrial powers of Europe. It was a conflict for which the British military establishment was scarcely prepared.
Molecular tools for acute spatiotemporal manipulation of signal transduction

The biochemical activities involved in signal transduction in cells are under tight spatiotemporal regulation. To study the effects of the spatial patterning and temporal dynamics of biochemical activities on downstream signaling, researchers require methods to manipulate signaling pathways acutely and rapidly. In this review, we summarize recent developments in the design of three broad classes of molecular tools for perturbing signal transduction, classified by their type of input signal: chemically induced, optically induced, and magnetically induced.
Geometric systematic prostate biopsy.

AbstractObjective: The common sextant prostate biopsy schema lacks a three-dimensional (3D) geometric definition. The study objective was to determine the influence of the geometric distribution of the cores on the detection probability of prostate cancer (PCa).Methods: The detection probability of significant (>0.5 cm3) and insignificant (<0.2 cm3) tumors was quantified based on a novel 3D capsule model of the biopsy sample. The geometric distribution of the cores was optimized to maximize the probability of detecting significant cancer for various prostate sizes (20–100cm3), number of biopsy cores (6–40 cores) and biopsy core lengths (14–40 mm) for transrectal and transperineal biopsies.Results: The detection of significant cancer can be improved by geometric optimization. With the current sextant biopsy, up to 20% of tumors may be missed at biopsy in a 20 cm3 prostate due to the schema. Higher number and longer biopsy cores are required to sample with an equal detection probability in larger prostates....
Electron and Phonon Properties of A-15 Compounds and Chevrel Phases

A review of the information on the electron and phonon spectra in the A-15 compounds and Chevrel phase superconductors obtained from nuclear magnetic resonance, heat capacity, and Mossbauer effect experiments is presented. Relationships of the Fermi energy electrons and the soft phonons to the strength of the electron-phonon interaction are discussed.
What Product Reviews Text Can Teach Us about Important Component of Brand Equity in Digital Industries

In this study, I aim to extract consumers’ opinion and sentiment on the firm’s brand from the product reviews. In particular I am interested to extract consumer’s opinion about resonance, feelings, judgment, imagery, performance, and salience of the brand, from the online product reviews. Based on the marketing theories, each of these elements has sub elements, which include: resonance (loyalty, attachment, community, and engagement), judgment (quality, credibility, consideration, and superiority), feelings (warmth, fun, excitement, security, social approval, self-respect), performance (primary characteristics, and secondary features, product reliability, durability and serviceability, service effectiveness, efficiency, empathy, style and design, and price), imagery (user profiles, purchase and usage situations, personality and values, history, heritage and experiences), salience (category identification, needs satisfied). I want to run my analysis on a data set that I have collected from Amazon that includes two or three products within each of the following high-tech product categories: camera, home appliance (thermostat), laptop, smartphone, e-reader, printer, smart TV, software, wearable tech, and external storage drive. The anticipated output of my analysis shall be the probability that a statement from a consumer review talks positively or negatively about each of these six areas of resonance, judgment, feelings, performance, imagery, and salience. The machine learning NLP pipeline that I am planning to implement and test includes: (i) extract a set of seed words in each area that from the marketing brand opinion questioners (ii) extract the words and part of speech of each seeds, and their synonyms set from WordNet (iii) extract seed sentences from consumer reviews that are concrete, but indicate consumers’ opinion about each of these six dimensions, and design rules and their head that indicate consumers’ opinion on each of these dimensions (iv) use lexical parsing and semantic analysis using Treebank to find similarity of each of the sentences in each of the product reviews to the designed rule, and normalize this similarity to seeds as the probability, and run a sentiment analysis on each sentence to find the bias.
Teaching and Learning from Within: A Placed-Based Pedagogy for Heartfelt Hope

Accepting the insights of Kenneth Beittel that what remains difficult in teaching and listening is actually the practice of becoming conscious of what one has within oneself and to be able to use it as one’s own, this chapter explores what we collectively have come to understand as “heartfelt hope” in relation to teaching/learning about sustainability using place-based education. Teachers and students who are teaching/learning about global climate change and/or sustainability are confronted with personal and political needs for hope in ways not previously experienced. We build upon Freire, Joanna Macy, Chris Johnson, Henry Giroux, and David Grunewald to construct our own place-based pedagogy of heartfelt hope.
A matrix-free line-search algorithm for nonconvex optimization

In this paper, we have developed a new algorithm for solving nonconvex large-scale problems. The new algorithm performs explicit matrix modifications adaptively, mimicing the implicit modifications used by trust-region methods. Thus, it shares the equivalent theoretical strength of trust-region approaches, without needing to accommodate an explicit step-size constraint. We show that the algorithm is well suited for solving very large-scale nonconvex problems whenever Hessian-vector products are available. The numerical results on the CUTEr problems demonstrate the effectiveness of this approach in the context of a line-search method for large-scale unconstrained nonconvex optimization. Moreover, applications in deep-learning problems further illustrate the usefulness of this algorithm. It does not share any of the prohibitive traits of popular matrix-free algorithms such as truncated conjugate gradient (CG) due to the difficult nature of deep-learning problems. Thus the proposed algorithm serves to bridge...
General Strategy To Make an On-Demand Library of Structurally and Functionally Diverse SERS Substrates

Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is a powerful technique for sensing molecules proximal to suitable coinage metal surfaces. The physical structure of the SERS-active metal layer and its support is a key design parameter inspiring considerable, and frequently specialized, efforts in substrate fabrication. The necessary gold film structure can arise from both the metallization process and the underlying support structure, and the structure of the support can deliver additional functions including analytical capabilities such as physical filtering. We used electroless plating as a general approach to create a library of SERS substrates: SERS-active gold films on a range of supports made from a variety of materials, made with a mixture of simple and complex fabrication histories, and offering a selection of structurally derived functions. The result was that supports with existing functions had their capabilities enhanced by the addition of SERS sensing. Electroless plating thus offers a host of ben...