cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Wages of Pay Cuts: Evidence from a Field Experiment

We conduct a field experiment to understand why firms rarely cut nominal wages, a central tenet of macroeconomics, and poorly understood due to the difficulty of observing plausibly exogenous wage reductions in actual labor market settings. We hired workers for a data entry task, paid them a high wage and then offered some of the workers the opportunity to keep working, albeit for a lower wage. Offers were framed differently across groups. Workers were more likely to reject lower offers, but 'reasonable' justifications eliminated this effect. Yet not all justifications were effective - suggesting the cut would improve our profits increased quits. We also measured whether the treatments affected quality, trust and cooperation. The 'profits' treatment reduced cooperation and possibly reduced quality; the other treatments had generally weak effects. Our auxiliary results are more consistent with theories of negative reciprocity, where firms are reluctant to reduce wages for fear of worker retaliation, than with theories of gift exchange or adverse selection. In a follow-up experiment, we measure the value of different framings for wage cuts.
Group Treatment with Sexually Assaulted Male Veterans: A Year in Review

Rape of men by other men is a form of sexual assault that is incompletely addressed in the literature. As a result, little is known about the treatment interventions that are most effective for this population. We designed and conducted an ongoing process-oriented psychotherapy group for male veterans who were raped while serving in the military and/or sexually assaulted in childhood. Our experience with this group provided us with a better understanding of the behavioral, cognitive, and emotional issues presented by sexually assaulted males. We suggest that group therapy is an effective modality in treating this population.
GABAergic circuits of the striatum.

Publisher Summary The neostriatum contains a large number of neurons and terminals that contain y-aminobutyric acid (GABA), an inhibitory transmitter. GABAergic inhibition has been thought to play a major role in regulating the neuronal activities of the striatum. This chapter discusses the studies on the GABAergic circuits and their functions in the striatum. First, it describes the anatomical organizations and then discusses the functional implications of GABAergic elements. The neostriatum contains many GABAergic neurons and GABAergic synaptic terminals, which are considered to be major elements in regulating the neuronal activities of the striatum. Anatomical and physiological studies indicate that GABAergic interneurons play a major role in the regulation of the firing activity of the spiny projection neurons through their feedforward connection. It is also suggested by anatomical studies that cholinergic and dopaminergic inputs affect the activity of GABAergic interneurons.
Epidemiology of Autoimmune and Immunological Diseases in Association with Silicone Implants: Is There an Excess of Clinical Disease or Antibody Response in Population-based or Other “Controlled” Studies?

Case reports, small case series and media coverage have led to the general perception that patients with silicone breast implants are at increased risk of connective tissue diseases or rheumatologic disorders. Our understanding of rheumatologic disorders would be enhanced if such an association could indeed be confirmed by controlled studies, but the reported associations of autoimmune diseases have been based on case reports which have had one or more of the deficiencies noted in table 1. Such case reports or case series provide no evidence of an excess of the specified rheumatologic diseases among implant subjects compared to expected incidence. Furthermore, case reports or case series have no denominators and cannot provide rates for comparison. Comparisons between exposed and nonexposed can best be done through a historical cohort study or through case-control analyses.
The Oxidant Paradox

Abstract Introduction Despite the fact that oxidative stress (OS) is involved in several human diseases, treating patients with antioxidants has failed to show a benefit in many diseases. The idea that OS is uniformly bad and that antioxidant administration can minimize OS and improve outcomes is oversimplified at best and dangerous at worst. Materials and Methods An extensive literature search ending June 2017 examining the relationship between reactive oxygen species, antioxidants, infertility, and other disease states was performed using Google Scholar, PubMed, and MEDLINE. The following keywords were used: “oxidant paradox,” “oxidative stress,” “reactive oxygen species,” “infertile men,” “infertility,” “cancer,” and “inflammation.” Results Many studies have examined the role of OS in aging, cancer, infertility, and many other diseases. Antioxidant treatment has not improved outcomes in many studies and has worsened outcomes in others. The correct antioxidant type and dose have yet to be determined. Conclusions The balance between antioxidants and oxidants in the human body is complex and tightly regulated. Dysregulation of this system may contribute to many disease processes including infertility. Existing trials examining treatment with antioxidants at varied doses across several disease states have thus far shown little or nonsignificant improvement and occasionally harm.
Basement-involved, shallow detachment faulting in the Bighorn Basin, Wyoming and Montana

Abstract ‘Laramide-style’ structures from the Laramide province of the western US involve the underlying crystalline basement. The basement is broken into blocks of varying scales that are generally bounded by moderately-to-steeply dipping reverse faults. This style is very pervasive, so that most structures are interpreted this way, even when field relationships suggest otherwise. The Elk Basin anticline, which lies in the northern Bighorn Basin is one of these structures. Basement is not elevated on the southwest side of the structure, however, which argues strongly for a detached origin. Balanced section restoration and forward finite-element modeling both support the interpretation that the underlying Elk Basin thrust is a detached, listric or ramp-flat style thrust fault. The detachment lies within the crystalline basement, ∼0.5 km below the sediment-basement contact. This detachment is fundamentally different from the detachments in the deep crust interpreted by Erslev (1993) to be the underlying link between widely-separated basement arches within the Laramide province. We propose a new ‘shallow basement detached’ class of structural style. Several candidate structures for this same style are present within the Bighorn basin, with both east and west vergence. These structures do not appear to form an interconnected detachment system, but rather are local ‘flakes’ of basement that may form due to bending of the underlying crust during basin-scale Laramide-age contraction and folding.
First-Principles Structural, Mechanical, and Thermodynamic Calculations of the Negative Thermal Expansion Compound Zr2(WO4)(PO4)2.

The negative thermal expansion (NTE) material Zr2(WO4)(PO4)2 has been investigated for the first time within the framework of the density functional perturbation theory (DFPT). The structural, mechanical, and thermodynamic properties of this material have been predicted using the Perdew, Burke and Ernzerhof for solid (PBEsol) exchange–correlation functional, which showed superior accuracy over standard functionals in previous computational studies of the NTE material α-ZrW2O8. The bulk modulus calculated for Zr2(WO4)(PO4)2 using the Vinet equation of state at room temperature is K0 = 63.6 GPa, which is in close agreement with the experimental estimate of 61.3(8) at T = 296 K. The computed mean linear coefficient of thermal expansion is −3.1 × 10–6 K−1 in the temperature range ∼0–70 K, in line with the X-ray diffraction measurements. The mean Gruneisen parameter controlling the thermal expansion of Zr2(WO4)(PO4)2 is negative below 205 K, with a minimum of −2.1 at 10 K. The calculated standard molar heat ca...
UNIT 1.6 Metabolic Mapping

This unit describes a high-resolution [3H]2-deoxyglucose (2DG)/immunohistochemistry double labeling protocol which enables simultaneous visualization of metabolic and immunohistochemical markers (e.g., neurotransmitter-specific epitopes) in the same tissue section. This approach generates single-cell metabolic measures from large (many thousands) samples of neurons, and allows the assignment of putative neurotransmitter types to large samples of functionally assayed single neurons. Thus, it provides a unique opportunity to assay the metabolic activities of histochemically identified neural elements throughout an entire pathway. [3H]2DG injection and perfusion fixation of hamsters or mice is described first, followed by immunohistochemical staining of brain slices for a monoclonal antibody against glutamic acid decarboxylase-6 (GAD-6). Included are the steps for dipping and developing slides for autoradiography. An alternate protocol gives details of staining for cytochrome oxidase (CO).
Patient-reported outcomes during hospitalization for patients with late discharge after an open surgery for GYN tumors.

e18078Background: Using patient-reported outcomes (PRO) in perioperative care is increasingly common in patients undergoing major surgery. Few reports relate the patient’s symptomatic status using ...
Exploring Frequented Regions in Pan-Genomic Graphs

We consider the problem of identifying regions within a pan-genome De Bruijn graph that are traversed by many sequence paths. We define such regions and the subpaths that traverse them as frequented regions (FRs). In this work, we formalize the FR problem and describe an efficient algorithm for finding FRs. Subsequently, we propose some applications of FRs based on machine-learning and pan-genome graph simplification. We demonstrate the effectiveness of these applications using data sets for the organisms Staphylococcus aureus (bacterium) and Saccharomyces cerevisiae (yeast). We corroborate the biological relevance of FRs such as identifying introgressions in yeast that aid in alcohol tolerance, and show that FRs are useful for classification of yeast strains by industrial use and visualizing pan-genomic space.
Clinical Hypnosis for Chronic Pain in Outpatient Integrative Medicine: An Implementation and Training Model

Introduction: Clinical hypnosis for pain management cultivates specific skills to enhance general self-regulation and address pain. Hypnosis is well suited to integrative medicine settings; however...
Effects of invasive larval bullfrogs (Rana catesbeiana) on disease transmission, growth and survival in the larvae of native amphibians

The mechanisms by which invasive species negatively affect native species include competition, predation, and the introduction of novel pathogens. Moreover, if an invasive species is a competent disease reservoir, it may facilitate the long-term maintenance and spread of pathogens in ecological assemblages and drive the extinction of less tolerant or less resistant species. Disease-driven loss of biodiversity is exemplified by the amphibian–chytrid fungus system. The disease chytridiomycosis is caused by the aquatic chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) in anurans and is associated with worldwide amphibian population declines and extinctions. For amphibian species that metamorphose and leave infected aquatic habitats, the mechanisms by which Bd persists over winter in these habitats remains a critical open question. A leading hypothesis is that American bullfrogs (Rana catesbeiana), a worldwide invasive species, are tolerant to Bd and serve as a reservoir host for Bd during winter months and subsequently infect native species that return to breed in spring. Using outdoor mesocosms, we experimentally examined if two strains of Bd could overwinter in aquatic systems, in the presence or absence of bullfrog tadpoles, and if overwintered Bd could be transmitted to tadpoles of two spring-breeding species: Pacific treefrogs (Pseudacris regilla) and Cascades frogs (Rana cascadae). We found that only 4 of 448 total animals (one bullfrog and three spring breeders) tested positive for Bd after overwintering. Moreover, two of the three infected spring breeders emerged from tanks that contained overwintered Bd but in the absence of infected bullfrogs. This suggests that Bd can persist over winter without bullfrogs as a reservoir host. We found no effect of Bd strain on bullfrog survival after overwintering. For Pacific treefrogs, Bd exposure did not significantly affect mass at or time to metamorphosis while exposure to bullfrogs reduced survival. For Cascades frogs, we found an interactive effect of Bd strain and bullfrog presence on time to metamorphosis, but no main or interactive effects on their survival or mass at metamorphosis. In short, bullfrog tadpoles rarely retained and transmitted Bd infection in our experiment and we found limited evidence that Bd successfully overwinters in the absence of bullfrog tadpoles and infects spring-breeding amphibians.
Un estudio sobre la expresión de la temporalidad en narrativas personales escritas por estudiantes angloparlantes de español de nivel de adquisición más allá del básico

This qualitative, concept-oriented, corpus-driven study investigated the function and form of temporal words, phrases, and clauses in their discursive context in 34 personal narratives written by English-speaking learners of Spanish in a U.S. third-year college-level Spanish course, collected over multiple semesters. The results showed that learners at the beyond-basic stage used time expressions abundantly to complement their fairly well-developed but still evolving verb system. Temporal expressions were used most often to order events and actions chronologically and, secondly, for discourse management. Indicators of frequency and manner were rarer. Students most often relied on the principle of natural order, presenting events and actions in the order in which they occurred with no intervening time words. In order of decreasing frequency, learners employed verbless temporal adverbial phrases, expressions containing multiple time words, and temporal clauses. Genre, proficiency, and assignment instructions seemed to have influenced how the learners communicated temporality.
Applying Rational Choice Theory to International Law: The Promise and the Pitfalls

Rational choice offers a promising foundation-including a coherent set of assumptions and various tools of analysis-on which to base positive theorizing regarding the creation and influence of international law. Yet the power and versatility of rational choice is at once its greatest virtue and a source of potential analytical dangers. First, while rational choice may accommodate a wide range of actors as the locus of theorizing, its use is limited when the preferences of individual actors must be aggregated to explain outcomes. Second, while rational choice has demonstrated flexibility in explaining behavior in diverse settings, existing models and theories can be stretched too thin when transferred from one empirical domain to another. Third, precisely because a rationalist explanation can be constructed (often post hoc) to explain virtually any behavior, research design and empirics are of heightened importance for rational choice practitioners. Researchers must be careful to not just present confirmatory evidence but also to construct arguments that are precise and falsifiable, and to link their arguments to testable implications. Sensitivity to these issues is required for rational choice contributions to the study of international law to become a productive research program.
Nursing Leadership and COVID-19: Defining the Shadows and Leading Ahead of the Data.

The COVID-19 pandemic overwhelmed health care systems and exposed major gaps in preparedness and response plans. The crisis challenged nurse leaders to develop and implement novel care delivery plans while preventing disease transmission to patients and staff. COVID-19 required nurse leaders to make decisions in an environment of conflicting data and directives. The authors share essential nurse leader competencies vital to the development and support of thriving nurse leaders. As crises persist and future challenges arise, nurse leaders can leverage these essential competencies to successfully drive engagement, lead ahead of consensus, and define the shadows of limited, incomplete, and conflicting data.
Fluid and Electrolyte Abnormalities in Children

A physician caring for children is faced with the challenge of evaluating and treating fluid and electrolyte disturbances in patients that range from a 900-g premature infant with dehydration from evaporative water loss secondary to phototherapy to a 100-kg high-school football tackle with dehydration sustained during practice in the hot summer months. The mechanism of dehydration is similar; the goal of therapy is similar; however, the quantities of water and electrolytes necessary to correct the imbalance are dramatically different, even when expressed per unit of body weight.
Association of mammographically defined percent breast density with epidemiologic risk factors for breast cancer (United States)

Objective: Mammographically defined percent breast density is an important risk factor for breast cancer, but the epidemiology of this trait is poorly understood. Although several studies have investigated the associations between reproductive factors and density, few data are available on the associations of breast density and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), physical activity, education, alcohol and smoking. Methods: We investigated the associations of known and suspected breast cancer risk factors with breast density in a large breast cancer family study. Information was collected on members of 426 families through telephone interviews, mailed questionnaires and mammography. Mammographic films on 1900 women were digitized and breast density was estimated in discrete five-unit increments by one radiologist. Analysis of covariance techniques were used and all analyses were performed stratified by menopausal status. Results: Similar to other reports, nulliparity, late age at first birth, younger age and lower body mass index were associated with increased percent density in both premenopausal and postmenopausal women, and hormone replacement therapy among postmenopausal women. Higher levels of alcohol consumption and low WHR were associated with increased percent density among both premenopausal and postmenopausal women (differences of 3–11% between high and low categories). However, smoking and education were inversely associated with percent density among premenopausal (p = 0.004 and p = 0.003, respectively) but not postmenopausal women (p = 0.52 and p = 0.90). Physical activity was not associated with percent density in either stratum (p values > 0.25). Combined, these factors explained approximately 37% of the variability in the percent density measure in premenopausal women and 19% in postmenopausal women. Conclusions: Many of these factors may potentially affect breast cancer risk through their effect on percent breast density.
Japanese Tales of Mystery and Imagination . By Edogawa Rampō. Tr. James B. Harris. Tokyo and Rutland: Tuttle, 1956. xii, 222. $2.50.

This collection of mystery and horror stories is regarded as Japan's answer to Edgar Allan Poe. Japanese Tales of Mystery & Imagination, the first volume of its kind translated into English, is written with the quick tempo of the West but rich with the fantasy of the East. These nine bloodcurdling, chilling tales present a genre of literature largely unknown to readers outside Japan, including the strange story of a quadruple amputee and his perverse wife; the record of a man who creates a mysterious chamber of mirrors and discovers hidden pleasures within; the morbid confession of a maniac who envisions a career of foolproof "psychological" murders; and the bizarre tale of a chair-maker who buries himself inside an armchair and enjoys the sordid "loves" of the women who sit on his handiwork. Lucid and packed with suspense, Edogawa Rampo's stories found in Japanese Tales of Mystery & Imagination have enthralled Japanese readers for over half a century. Mystery stories include: The Human Chair The Caterpillar Two Crippled Men The Traveler with the Pasted Rag Picture
U.S. World War II naval history: Some lesser-known documents

Abstract From its founding, the United States has been a seafaring nation. As a result, no documents are more important than those relating to the country's naval affairs. Certainly this nation's greatest naval activity occurred during World War II. This article describes four series of U.S. Navy official publications that are useful for historical research in this period, and which can be difficult to locate. A bibliography of individual items in the four series is provided.
Zinc finger transcription factor Zn3-Sp1 reactions with Cd2+.

Cadmium is recognized as a major pollutant and threat to health in industrialized countries (1,2). In humans, chronic Cd2+ exposure causes toxicity that targets kidney and bone (1-3). Suggestive evidence implicates other sites such as lung (4). Experimental toxicological studies have largely focused on the role of metallothionein (MT) in the protection of tissues against Cd2+-induced injury (5).1 Using a variety of approaches including investigations with mice that bear the MT null genotype or contain extra, transgenic MT, it is clear that metallothionein induction by Cd2+ protects against acute exposure to Cd2+ and probably chronic exposure as well (5,6). Compared with the sustained interest in metallothionein as a site of reaction of Cd2+, little progress has been made until recently in identifying and characterizing intracellular sites that react with Cd2+ and produce cell injury related to human toxicity. Moreover, few reports have attempted to make the link between functional phenotypic responses induced by Cd2+ and the chemical sites where it binds and initiates the biochemistry that causes these effects, admittedly a difficult challenge. In this context, a series of papers on the reaction of Cd2+ with mouse kidney cortical cells that have the properties of proximal tubule cells show that Cd2+ down-regulates Na+-glucose cotransporter (SGLT) activity as a result of inhibition of SGLT1 and 2 mRNA synthesis (7-9). The SGLT 1 and 2 gene promoters contain transcription factor binding elements for HNF-1 and Sp1 that have been shown to mediate gene expression in other systems (10). Sp1 binding to such elements declines in cells exposed to Cd2+ and human recombinant Sp1 exposed to Cd2+ also loses its affinity for these cognate DNA sequences (7). Sp1 is a Zn-finger transcription factor, that associates with DNA through three tandem Zn-fingers (11). Each finger exists as in a ββα peptide conformation that is stabilized by Zn2+ complexed to 2 sulfhydryl groups and 2 imidazole nitrogens (C2H2 coordination) (12). Studies with other Zn-finger proteins demonstrate that Cd2+ exposure can diminish DNA selective binding as measured by the electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA) (13,14). Titration of Zn3-Sp1 with Cd2+ also depresses its DNA binding capacity in a Cd2+ concentration dependent manner (15). These results are consistent with the operation of a reversible metal ion exchange reaction 3Cd2++Zn3-Sp1⇌Cd3-Sp1+3Zn2+ (1) In turn, they support the hypothesis that Cd2+ down-regulates SGLT1 and 2 mRNA synthesis by converting Zn3-Sp1 to Cd3-Sp1. The present report advances the study of reaction 1 in vitro.
Efficient Radiosity in Dynamic Environments

A method of determining radiosity in an environment containing moving objects, is described. This method uses the hierarchical techniques of Hanrahan et al. to obtain a static solution. Hanrahan’s techniques efficiently create a hierarchical meshing of the environments geometry, and create links from element to element based on the magnitude of the form-factor between the elements. These ideas extend naturally to a dynamic environment, as only three atomic editing operations are required to update a hierarchy when an object moves: a link can be moved up or down the hierarchy, or a link can be occluded. Our algorithm exploits these simple editing processes to maintain the hierarchy, and then uses an iterative technique to solve the resulting linear system. The approach is extremely efficient, requiring little work between frames.
LONG-TERM STORAGE OF SOLAR ENERGY IN NATIVE ROCK

Long-term storage (annual or seasonal storage) of solar-collected thermal energy in native rock or sandstone appears to be both technically feasible and economically attractive. In this storage concept, a large bed of crushed or naturally formed porous rock is heated by hot air flowing from a central manifold to two cold manifolds; on discharge, the flow is reversed and cold air, introduced at the top and bottom manifolds, is heated in passing through the porous media so that hot air can be harvested at the central manifold. The advantages of this concept are due to the low cost inherent in the preparation of on-site native materials using various construction techniques adapted to local geological conditions and siting constraints with minimal environmental impact. The paper discusses some of the basic factors and constraints which govern the performance of such earth thermal storage units and evaluates several possible construction methods of interest from which a storage cost assessment can be made.
Oops, They Did it Again: What We Didn't Learn from U.S. v. Microsoft

On Aug 31, 2011, the Department of Justice, joined later by seven state attorneys general filed suit to block AT&T’s pending merger with T-Mobile USA. This article looks back at the antitrust prosecution of Microsoft to see what, if anything, regulators have learned about the dangers of intervening in dynamic, rapidly-evolving technology markets. To be sure, the Department of Justice has never expressed any regret over the Microsoft case or any other recent antitrust action. But the decision to sue AT&T has plenty of self-interested fans, including AT&T competitors Sprint and Cellular South as well as advocacy groups in Washington who believe every merger will end the consumer internet as they know it. Though different provisions of antitrust law apply to the two cases, both lawsuits repeat the same fatal flaws: A. Both rely on a definition of the “relevant market” that is narrow and static. B. Both cling to old models of economic analysis better suited for mature industrial age markets than to rapidly-evolving information markets, where new categories of products and services rise and fall in the time it takes to bring a case to appeal. C. Both cases pursue sweeping remedies with little regard With U.S. v. AT&T, as Yogi Berra put it so inelegantly, it’s deja vu all over again. There is, however, one important difference. The market is shifting faster all the time. Even as consumers rush to take the next plunge, regulators are left gasping for breath, fashioning an antitrust case without the necessary ingredients.
Countering the consideration of extra-legal factors in damage award decisions

OF THE THESIS COUNTERING THE CONSIDERATION OF EXTRA-LEGAL FACTORS IN DAMAGE AWARD DECISIONS
New lattice codes for multiple-descriptions

A new coding scheme for the L-descriptions problem is proposed. In particular we consider continuous sources and lattice quantizers. New covering and packing bounds for using nested lattices are derived. We prove through an example that using nested lattice quantizers instead of independently generated codebooks results in gains.
The Purification of Ben Matthews

They were not the first alchemists or would-be alchemists I'd met in my life. There was Cov, for example?my much older, college aged brother?who was reading Jung's Mysterium Coniunctionis and had deemed himself white enough of heart to attempt the initial transmutation. "I am the man of lead; I am undergoing intolerable violence," read one of Cov's journal entries back then. Nor were they the last would-be alchemists. I will not, for the utter shame of it, quote the agonized diary of my own teens and early twenties. I, too, fancied myself an arrow of pure longing, a pure beginningless vector pointed in the direction of the beloved. It may not have been until many years later that I fully understood amongst the complex stratagems of purification the role of unre quited love, that terrible apprenticeship?how, for example, the boy whom I loved at eighteen was in his disdain for me guaranteed to do for me what I could not do for myself: utterly eradicate my heavy, burdensome selfhood until I, even I, was ultimately shredded into small unimportant bits of light massa confusa, the essential chaotic building material of the universe?but even back then, at eleven, before unrequited love, before love, even, I understood the basic principles of the Work: Visita Interiora Terrae; Rectificando Invenies Occultem Lapidem. But this is not the story of my purification, but that of Ben Matthews, which happened at the silken hands of my Aunt Jannika.
Creep laws for the mantle of the Earth

The analyses of glacial rebound data by Cathles and by Peltier and Andrews have led them to the conclusion that the flow law of the mantle of the Earth is Newtonian and that the viscosity is essentially a constant (10$^{22}$ P) throughout the mantle. In this paper it is concluded that no large strain, steady-state creep process in mantle rock can account for a Newtonian, constant viscosity mantle. It is suggested that small strain, transient creep and not steady-state creep is involved in the isostatic rebound phenomenon. Since convective motion in the mantle involves large creep strains, conclusions about the effective viscosity of mantle rock undergoing such flow that is based on isostatic rebound data are likely to be wrong. If Post's and Carter & Mercier's laboratory results of the stress dependence of the grain size in a mantle type rock are representative of the actual grain sizes in the mantle, power law creep is almost certainly the creep law that governs convective flow in the mantle.
Blood chemistry of Boltenia ovifera

Abstract 1. 1. The oxygen-binding capacity of Boltenia ovifera blood was investigated; within experimental error, no evidence of O 2 binding was found. 2. 2. Metal ion analysis of whole blood, serum and cells showed high concentrations of iron, zinc and manganese in addition to other trace metals. 3. 3. Tunichrome extracted from the blood showed an absorption peak at 335 nm. consistent with the absorption spectrum of tunichrome from other species.
Oral feeding of renal tubular antigen abrogates interstitial nephritis and renal failure in Brown Norway rats

We have examined whether oral feeding of antigen can regulate the expression of autoimmune interstitial nephritis induced by antigen-in-adjuvant (RTA/CFA) immunization of Brown Norway rats. Male rats were divided into six experimental groups: Group I, RTA/CFA immunization alone; Groups II, III, and IV were pretreated with 1 mg (Group II), 5 mg (Group III), and 25 mg (Group IV) of oral tubular antigen every other day for ten days, followed by RTA/CFA immunization; Group V was pretreated with a control antigen, followed by RTA/CFA immunization; and Group VI was immunized with CFA alone. Renal histology, inulin clearance, DTH responses to RTA, and IgG antibody responses to RTA were monitored as endpoints of the study. Our results demonstrated that Group III and IV animals had significantly less severe renal injury, as assessed by inulin clearance and extent of renal cortical involvement by mononuclear cells. Group II and IV animals had suppressed DTH responses, and only Group IV animals had significantly depressed antigen-specific IgG serum titers. Group III animals had neither suppressed DTH responses or IgG titers. We conclude that oral administration of tubular antigen can modulate the intensity of interstitial nephritis produced by immunization, but that the regulatory mechanism is not dependent (at all doses of fed antigen) on suppressed DTH reactivity to RTA or suppressed antigen-specific IgG.
3-D Atomic-Scale Mapping of Manganese Dopants in Lead Sulfide Nanowires

Dopants in nanowires, whether intentional or unintentional, can ultimately control the material's properties and, therefore, need to be understood on the atomic scale. We study vapor−liquid−solid grown manganese-doped lead sulfide nanowires by atom-probe tomography for the first time for lead salt materials. The three-dimensional chemical con- centration maps at the atomic scale demonstrate a radial distribution profile of Mn ions, with a concentration of only 0.18 and 0.01 at. % for MnCl2 and Mn-acetate precursors, respectively. The ability to characterize these small concentrations of dopant atoms in Pb1−xMnxS nanowires (x = 0.0036 and 0.0002), important for spintronic and thermoelectric devices, sets a platform for similar analyses for all nanostructures. First-principles calculations con- firm that Mn atoms substitute for Pb in the PbS structure.
Antioxidants inhibit the effect of vitamin C on oxygen radical-induced sister-chromatid exchanges.

Abstract The mechanism of vitamin C-induced sister-chromatid exchanges in cultured mammalian cells was studied. Chinese hamster ovary cells, when exposed to an enzymatic oxygen radical-generating system (xanthine oxidase plus hypoxanthine), develop increased numbers of sister-chromatid exchanges. Inclusion of ascorbate (≥0.1 mM) in these incubations resulted in an augmentation of this effect. Superoxide dismutase (100 μl/ml) and catalase (220 μl/ml) caused a significant reduction in the number of sister-chromatid exchanges induced by xanthine oxidase, hypoxanthine and vitamin C. Their heat-inactivated counterparts had no effect. These results confirm that vitamin C (≥0.1 mM) potentiates the genetic toxicity of oxygen radicals and that this effect is mediated by toxic oxygen intermediates.
Clinimetrics of Meniere's Disease

Two clinically useful measures to quantify the morbidity of Meniere's disease are the daily vertigo diary card and the Meniere's Disease Patient-Oriented Severity Index (MD POSI). The development and application of these outcomes instruments for patients with vertigo are discussed.
Safety and Efficacy of Levonorgestrel 0.10 mg and Ethinyl Estradiol 0.02 mg Plus Ethinyl Estradiol 0.01 mg in an Extended-Cycle Oral Contraceptive Regimen

Extended-cycle combined hormonal contraception has become a common practice among women seeking effective contraception and menstrual regulation. Extended cycle regimens have the benefit of decreasing scheduled bleeding as compared to traditional combined oral contraceptive (COC) regimens containing 21 days of hormones followed by a 7-day hormone-free interval (HFI) by reducing the frequency of the HFI. The newest FDA approved product in this family of contraceptive regimens is a 91-day COC regimen containing 0.02 mg ethinyl estradiol (EE) and 0.1 mg levonorgestrel (LNG) for 84 days followed by a 7-day interval with 0.01 mg EE. This regimen has been evaluated in one pivotal trial and demonstrated to have efficacy and a side effect profile similar to the other currently available FDA approved 91-day extended cycle regimens. This is the first 91-day regimen formulated with 0.02 mg EE and offers women an effective option for contraception and menstrual cycle control.
Uniform convergence in some limit theorems for multiple particle systems

For n particles diffusing throughout R (or Rd), let Q&I), A E a, t 20, be the random measure that counts the number of particles in A at time t. It is shown that for some basic models (Brownian particles with or without branching and diffusion with a simple interaction) the pro
Vibrational dephasing in aqueous KSCN solution. A memory function and stretched exponential study

Abstract Raman spectra of 5.0 and 8.4 M aqueous KSCN solutions were recorded. The spectra were analyzed by memory-function and stretched-exponential modeling procedures. The two procedures modeled the vibrational autocorrelation functions within experimental error. The success of the stretched exponential model was found to be its very good fit to the memory functions.
Time dynamics of growth and decay of photoinduced defects in poluanilines

Abstract Polyanilines differ from other electronic polymers in the presence of very long-lived photoinduced absorptions, attributed to pinning of ring-rotational polarons of large effective mass. We report the growth and decay kinetics of long-lived photoinduced absorption in polyanilines. The intensity of the photoinduced 1130 cm −1 peak is monitored for periods of hours both with exciting laser light on and after it has been turned off. Photoinduced signal growth exhibits a stretched-exponential behavior in all oxidation states of polyaniline at low temperatures and does not saturate even after hours of irradiation. Photoinduced signal decay (after the pump light is turned off) is very slow, with half-life of the order of days. The evolution of the electronic photoinduced peak at 1.4 eV scales with that of vibrational peaks, indicating that the mass of photoinduced defects does not change with time. Several models that give rise to stretch-exponential kinetics are reviewed. Comparison with ligth-induced electron spin resonance studies suggests that serial growth and decay are the origins of the very large range of time dynamics in this system.
Effects of Processing Residual Stresses on Fatigue Crack Growth Behavior of Structural Materials: Experimental Approaches and Microstructural Mechanisms

Fatigue crack growth mechanisms of long cracks through fields with low and high residual stresses were investigated for a common structural aluminum alloy, 6061-T61. Bulk processing residual stresses were introduced in the material by quenching during heat treatment. Compact tension (CT) specimens were fatigue crack growth (FCG) tested at varying stress ratios to capture the closure and K max effects. The changes in fatigue crack growth mechanisms at the microstructural scale are correlated to closure, stress ratio, and plasticity, which are all dependent on residual stress. A dual-parameter ΔK–K max approach, which includes corrections for crack closure and residual stresses, is used uniquely to connect fatigue crack growth mechanisms at the microstructural scale with changes in crack growth rates at various stress ratios for low- and high-residual-stress conditions. The methods and tools proposed in this study can be used to optimize existing materials and processes as well as to develop new materials and processes for FCG limited structural applications.
Can gains in efficiency offset the resource demands and CO2 emissions from constructing and operating the built environment

Abstract Urbanization is a demographic, economic, and land transformation process. Building construction and operation are integral aspects of urban land use change and contribute to material and energy resources consumption and the resulting carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in urban areas. In this paper, we ask two questions regarding the urbanization process: 1) Do the land, material, and energy use efficiencies associated with the construction and operation of buildings increase over time? 2) Do the gains in resource use efficiencies offset the increases in resource demands due to the magnitude of urbanization? To answer these questions, we use a systematic approach similar to a material flow analysis and apply it to the Pearl River Delta, a rapidly urbanizing region in China. We use a combination of satellite data and official statistics to evaluate changes in urban population density and building density from 1988 to 2008. Both density measures decrease from 1988 to 2003; after 2003, building density increases while population density continues to decline. We also track the indirect impacts of urban land expansion on material and energy demands and associated CO2 emissions using concrete and heating/cooling as proxies for building construction and operation, respectively. Throughout the study period, structural changes and efficiency gains decrease the demand per unit floor area for both building materials and energy. However, the efficiency gains are outstripped by the magnitude of urban expansion, therefore leading to an increase in the demand for resources and CO2 emissions per capita. Our results show that focusing only on gains in efficiency for individual buildings without considering the scale of urban expansion results in underestimate of the cumulative energy, material, and greenhouse gas emissions impacts of urbanization. We emphasize the distinction between the rates versus the accumulations of these impacts over spatial and temporal scales. We discuss the relevance of the Environmental Kuznets approaches to tackling environmental impacts that are cumulative in nature and may lead to irreversible changes in the environment. We conclude that tracking the energy, materials, and emissions impacts of urbanization requires a multi-scale approach that ranges from the individual building to the urban region.
Molecular Imaging of Macrophages in Atherosclerosis

Macrophages contribute to the initiation, progression, and acute complications of atherosclerosis. Imaging of macrophages during disease progression provides new insights into the mechanisms of atherosclerosis. Advanced imaging techniques may serve as sensitive diagnostic tools for early detection of the disease to identify individuals with subclinical plaques and to prevent devastating complications. Furthermore, molecular imaging may monitor the effects of therapeutic interventions. Development of fully integrated molecular imaging requires dynamic multidisciplinary collaboration.
Polarization-sensitive reflectance imaging in skeletal muscle

We acquired polarization-sensitive reflectance images in freshly excised skeletal muscle samples. The obtained raw images varied depending on the incident and detection polarization states. The Stokes vectors were measured for incident light of four different polarization states, and the whole Mueller matrix images were also calculated. We found that the images obtained in skeletal muscles exhibited different features from those obtained in a typical polystyrene sphere solution. The back-reflected light in muscle maintained a higher degree of polarization along the axis perpendicular to muscle fiber orientation. Our analysis indicates that the unique muscle sarcomere structure plays an important role in modulating the propagation of polarized light in whole muscle.
Palace politics: Resource allocation in radically innovative firms

Abstract The work of Max Weber (1947) on “traditional authority” forms the basis for a theoretical analysis of resource allocation decisions in radical-product innovative organizations. Decisions to support particular projects must be made on arational criteria, because radical product innovation destroys existing competencies and is not subject to economic calculation. The limitations of both bureaucratic and charismatic models of the political processes governing this kind of innovation in large organizations are described. This is followed by a discussion of the traditional practices of selling offices, favoritism toward fellow kinsmen, and nonmerit evaluation criteria in the allocation of resources to innovative projects. The politics of innovative units is better characterized by reference to medieval structures of palace favorites, liege lordship, and fiefdoms, rather than to more familiar bureaucratic concepts. The argument concludes with a discussion of both the theoretical implications and the advantages and disadvantages of traditional approaches to the allocation of resources for radical product innovation.
Some reactions of di-n-butyltin dihydride

The hydroxyl groups of allyl, crotyl and cinnamyl alcohol and the mercapto group of allyl mercaptan, are shown to be the main reaction sites for di-n-butyltin dihydride. Allyl alcohol, however, undergoes a competitive stepwise hydrostannation, typically anti-Markownikoff in nature, resulting in ring compound formation.
Impaired interferon-γ production as a consequence of STAT4 deficiency after autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for lymphoma

Production of interferon γ (IFN-γ) is critical for optimal antitumor immunotherapy in several preclinical animal models. Interleukin-12 (IL-12)–induced IFN-γ production is markedly defective after autologous stem cell transplantation. Quantitative deficiency in CD4 T cells, relative increase in CD25+CD4+ T cells, and bias toward T helper 2 (Th2) differentiation are not the primary mechanisms of defective IFN-γ production. IL-12 receptor β1 (IL-12Rβ1) and IL-12Rβ2 are expressed at equivalent or higher levels on posttransplantation patient peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) as compared with control PBMCs. IL-12–induced tyrosine phosphorylation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 4 (STAT4) was undetectable or barely detectable in posttransplantation patient PBMCs, whereas IL-4–induced tyrosine phosphorylation of STAT6 did not differ in posttransplantation patient and control PBMCs. Levels of STAT4 protein were decreased by 97% in posttransplantation patient PBMCs. Levels of STAT4 mRNA were also significantly decreased in posttransplantation patient PBMCs. Incubation with IL-12 and IL-18 in combination partially reversed the defective IFN-γ production by posttransplantation patient PBMCs. IFN-γ production in response to IL-12 plus IL-18 did not require increased expression of STAT4 but was dependent on the activity of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK). These results indicate that defective IFN-γ production is due to an intrinsic deficiency in STAT4 expression by posttransplantation patient lymphocytes and suggest strategies for circumventing this deficiency in cancer immunotherapy.
Simple fiber-optic confocal microscopy with nanoscale depth resolution beyond the diffraction barrier.

A novel fiber-optic confocal approach for ultrahigh depth-resolution (⩽2nm) microscopy beyond the diffraction barrier in the subwavelength nanometric range below 200nm is presented. The key idea is based on a simple fiber-optic confocal microscope approach that is compatible with a differential confocal microscope technique. To improve the dynamic range of the resolving laser power and to achieve a high resolution in the nanometric range, we have designed a simple apertureless reflection confocal microscope with a highly sensitive single-mode-fiber confocal output. The fiber-optic design is an effective alternative to conventional pinhole-based confocal systems and offers a number of advantages in terms of spatial resolution, flexibility, miniaturization, and scanning potential. Furthermore, the design is compatible with the differential confocal pinhole microscope based on the use of the sharp diffraction-free slope of the axial confocal response curve rather than the area around the maximum of that curv...
Inhibition of muscarinic receptor-induced proliferation of astroglial cells by ethanol: mechanisms and implications for the fetal alcohol syndrome.

In utero exposure to ethanol is deleterious to fetal brain development. Children born with the fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) display a number of abnormalities, the most significant of which are central nervous system (CNS) dysfunctions, such as microencephaly and mental retardation. An interaction of ethanol with glial cells, particularly astrocytes, has been suggested to contribute to the developmental neurotoxicity of this alcohol. At low concentrations (10-100 mM) ethanol inhibits the proliferation of astroglial cells in vitro, particularly when stimulated by acetycholine through muscarinic M3 receptors. Of the several signal transduction pathways activated by these receptors in astrocytes or astrocytoma cells, which are involved in mitogenic signaling, only some (e.g. protein kinase C (PKC) zeta, p70S6 kinase) appear to be targeted by ethanol at the same low concentrations which effectively inhibit proliferation. Inhibition of astroglial proliferation by ethanol may contribute to the microencephaly seen in FAS.