cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Biochemical and functional effects of fenfluramine in maturing mice.

Abstract 1. 1. Biochemical and functional effects of a single dose of fenfluramine were studied in maturing mice aged 1 day or 1, 2 or 6 weeks postpartum. 2. 2. 5-HT and 5-HIAA stores in hemispheres and brain stem were significantly reduced at all ages 1 day after the drug injection. 3. 3. In contrast to adult animals which showed continuing reductions in 5-HT and 5-HIAA 4 weeks after the fenfluramine injection, animals at all younger ages returned to normal by 1 week after the injection. 4. 4. Body weight was reduced 2–4 weeks after fenfluramine injection in 1 week old animals; however 2 week animals showed only a small transient reduction during the first week following fenfluramine. 5. 5. No significant effects were found on body temperature or temperature preference. 6. 6. The results are discussed in relation to the effects of various amine depleting agents.
ACCESSORY SALTS IN THE NUTRITION OF EXCISED TOMATO ROOTS

In a recently reported study of the effect of vitamin Bi on the growth of isolated tomato roots (9), evidence was obtained which showed that the "accessory salts" regularly included in the medium employed in earlier work (7, 8) constituted a growth-limiting factor. Vitamin Bx proved to be beneficial only in the presence of these salts. That result has since been repeatedly verified. The salt mixture used was modeled after that of Trelease and Trelease (3). It was thought that the ions of its 12 salts might take the place of unidentified but important ash constituents contained in the yeast extract which it was desired to replace. No effort was made to determine the relative importance of the constituents. With the establishment, however, of a synthetic nutrient capable of maintaining continuous growth of isolated roots, at a fairly satisfactory level, a quantitative examination of all its constituents appeared to be an essential step in attempting further improvement of this nutrient (9). The accessory salt mixture was the only portion of the nutrient which had not been subjected to at least a preliminary examination of this sort (4, 7, 8, 9). The observations of Robbins, White, McClary, and Bartley (2) also suggested that the ash constituents might be worthy of closer examination. The present paper records the results of a quantitative study of the effects of each of the components of this accessory salt mixture. The materials and general methods employed were the same as those reported in earlier papers (7). The roots had been maintained for 200 or more passages under standard conditions (6) before being subjected to experimental treatments.
Fluorescence measurement of chloride transport in monolayer cultured cells. Mechanisms of chloride transport in fibroblasts

The methodology has been developed to measure Cl activity and transport in cultured cells grown on a monolayer using the entrapped Cl-sensitive fluorophore 6-methoxy-N-[3-sulfopropyl] quinolinium (SPQ). The method was applied to a renal epithelial cell line, LLC-PKI, and a nonepithelial cell line, Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts. SPQ was nontoxic to cells when present for greater than h in the culture media. To load with SPQ (5 mM), cells were made transiently permeable by exposure to hypotonic buffer (150 mOsm, 4 min). Intracellular fluorescence was monitored continuously by epifluorescence microscopy using low illumination intensity at 360 +/- 5 nm excitation wavelength and photomultiplier detection at greater than 410 nm. Over 60 min at 37 degrees C, there was no photobleaching and less than 10% leakage of SPQ out of cells; intracellular SPQ fluorescence was uniform. SPQ fluorescence was calibrated against intracellular [Cl] using high K solutions containing the ionophores nigericin and tributyltin. The Stern-Volmer constant (Kq) for quenching of intracellular SPQ by Cl was 13 M-1 for fibroblasts and LLC-PKl cells. In the absence of Cl, SPQ lifetime was 26 ns in aqueous solution and 3.7 +/- 0.6 ns in cells, showing that the lower Kq in cells than in free solution (Kq = 118 M-1) was due to SPQ quenching by intracellular anions. To examine Cl transport mechanisms, the time course of intracellular [Cl] was measured in response to rapid Cl addition and removal in the presence of ion or pH gradients. In fibroblasts, three distinct Cl transporting systems were identified: a stilbeneinhibitable Cl/HCO3 exchanger, a furosemide-sensitive Na/K/2Cl cotransporter, and a Ca-regulated Cl conductance. These results establish a direct optical method to measure intracellular [Cl] continuously in cultured cells.
Sex Work: A Review of Recent Literature

When Eliot Spitzer was forced to resign as Governor of the State of New York after revelations that he regularly patronized the elite “Elite” agency, conversations among friends, family and colleagues turned for a while to the topic of prostitution. Suddenly sex work—as many women working in the business of selling sex from the ‘80s onward have preferred their occupation, more respectfully, to be deemed—was central to day-to-day discourse on contentious events in the news. Why, people wondered with understandable incredulity, would a man of Spitzer’s prominence risk his career and reputation by seeing prostitutes, high-paid or not? Even more peculiar, why would a prosecutor-turned-governor, well-known for fighting corruption and advocating stricter penalties for johns, indulge so hypocritically in the very private activities he sought publicly to decry? Starting with this incident is useful in several respects for a review essay centered on four works recently published about sex work. For one thing, the fact that prostitution can Qual Sociol (2009) 32:213–220 DOI 10.1007/s11133-009-9122-8
Morphine and hydromorphone for postoperative analgesia: Focus on safety

INTRAVENOUS (IV) OPIOID administration is often necessary to provide effective postoperative pain management. To avert a catastrophic consequence from aggressive IV opioid administration, vigilant patient monitoring and an understanding of the pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of opioids are necessary. For example, the depth and quality of the respirations are just as important as the number of respirations. Cumulative effects of opioids must be considered, particularly when opioids are given near the end of surgery and again early in the PACU. Dose adjustments are necessary in patients who have increased or decreased requirements for postoperative opioids. Finally, multiple orders with one or more opioids, route of administration, or dose may not reflect assessment of the clinical status of the patient or the patient’s response to medication.
Comment on "Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Identifies Neural Progenitor Cells in the Live Human Brain"

Manganas et al. (Reports, 9 November 2007, p. 980) used nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy to identify a biomarker of neural progenitor cells. However, their analysis relies on spectral processing methods that are known to be problematic. Absent detection using alternate methods of spectrum analysis or controls to quantify the false discovery rate, their conclusions may be premature.
Imaging surface contacts: power law contact distributions and contact stresses in quartz, calcite, glass and acrylic plastic

A procedure has been developed to obtain microscope images of regions of contact between roughened surfaces of transparent materials, while the surfaces are subjected to static loads or undergoing frictional slip. Static loading experiments with quartz, calcite, soda-lime glass and acrylic plastic at normal stresses to 30 MPa yield power law distributions of contact areas from the smallest contacts that can be resolved (3.5 µm2) up to a limiting size that correlates with the grain size of the abrasive grit used to roughen the surfaces. In each material, increasing normal stress results in a roughly linear increase of the real area of contact. Mechanisms of contact area increase are by growth of existing contacts, coalescence of contacts and appearance of new contacts. Mean contacts stresses are consistent with the indentation strength of each material. Contact size distributions are insensitive to normal stress indicating that the increase of contact area is approximately self-similar. The contact images and contact distributions are modeled using simulations of surfaces with random fractal topographies. The contact process for model fractal surfaces is represented by the simple expedient of removing material at regions where surface irregularities overlap. Synthetic contact images created by this approach reproduce observed characteristics of the contacts and demonstrate that the exponent in the power law distributions depends on the scaling exponent used to generate the surface topography.
Real-Time Monitoring of Wear Debris in Lubrication Oil Using a Microfluidic Inductive Coulter Counting Device

A microfluidic device based on an inductive Coulter counting principle to detect metal wear particles in lubrication oil is presented. The device detects the passage of ferrous and nonferrous particles by monitoring the inductance change of an embedded coil. The device was tested using iron and copper particles ranging in size from 50 to 125 μm. The testing results have demonstrated that the device is capable of detecting and distinguishing ferrous and nonferrous metal particles in lubrication oil; such particles can be indicative of potential machine faults in rotating and reciprocating machinery.
Dietary Iron Controls Circadian Hepatic Glucose Metabolism Through Heme Synthesis

The circadian rhythm of the liver maintains glucose homeostasis, and disruption of this rhythm is associated with type 2 diabetes. Feeding is one factor that sets the circadian clock in peripheral tissues, but relatively little is known about the role of specific dietary components in that regard. We assessed the effects of dietary iron on circadian gluconeogenesis. Dietary iron affects circadian glucose metabolism through heme-mediated regulation of the interaction of nuclear receptor subfamily 1 group d member 1 (Rev-Erbα) with its cosuppressor nuclear receptor corepressor 1 (NCOR). Loss of regulated heme synthesis was achieved by aminolevulinic acid (ALA) treatment of mice or cultured cells to bypass the rate-limiting enzyme in hepatic heme synthesis, ALA synthase 1 (ALAS1). ALA treatment abolishes differences in hepatic glucose production and in the expression of gluconeogenic enzymes seen with variation of dietary iron. The differences among diets are also lost with inhibition of heme synthesis with isonicotinylhydrazine. Dietary iron modulates levels of peroxisome proliferator–activated receptor γ coactivator 1α (PGC-1α), a transcriptional activator of ALAS1, to affect hepatic heme. Treatment of mice with the antioxidant N-acetylcysteine diminishes PGC-1α variation observed among the iron diets, suggesting that iron is acting through reactive oxygen species signaling.
Carbonate platforms of passive (extensional) continental margins: Types, characteristics and evolution

Abstract Carbonate platforms of extensional margins may be grouped into several major categories. Homoclinal ramps have gentle slopes into deep water, may have skeletal or ooid/pellet sand shoal complexes, that grade without break in slope into deep-ramp nodular limestone, and then into pelagic/hemipelagic basin facies they generally lack significant slump and sediment gravity flow deposits in the deeper-water facies. Distally steepened ramps differ from the above in having a marked increase in slope at the seaward edge of the deep ramp, and abundant slumps, slope breccias and turbidites. However, clasts of shallow platform margin facies are generally absent from breccias. Rimmed shelves have linear trends of shelf edge lime sands and reefs, a marked increase in slope into deep water, and foreslope and slope sands, breccias (with clasts of platform margin rocks) and turbidites, grading seaward into basin hemipelagic/pelagic muds. They may be divided into accretionary, bypass and erosional margins. Isolated platforms are broad flat-topped shallow platforms surrounded by deeper water (few hundred meters to 4 km deep); many are bypass margins but accretionary and erosional margins also occur. Finally, incipiently to completely drowned or open platforms may develop by rapid submergence of ramps, shelves or isolated platforms; shallow platform margin facies are shifted landward and the earlier shallow-water platform is covered with transgressive lags, and deeper-water blankets of hemipelagic or pelagic facies or open marine, whole fossil wackestone. The carbonate prisms commonly develop above a basal clastic phase. Ramps develop early, and evolve into rimmed shelves. However, with drowning, rimmed shelves may evolve up into ramps. Rimmed shelves may also develop into ramps where miogeoclinal faces prograde into filling marginal basins. Carbonate miogeocline deposition terminates when the shelf becomes a prograding clastic shelf, or where it becomes part of a collisional orogen. The various platform types may be recognized from continental margin sequences ranging from Proterozoic to Holocene in age.
The effect of diethylstilbestrol on the anterior hypophysis of thyroidectomized rats.

IN summarizing the changes in the anterior hypophysis induced by hyperthyroidism, Severinghaus (1942, p. 374) has made the following statement: “Strangely enough the basophiles are again increased in size and number and vacuolation occurs, but to a more limited extent [than after thyroidectomyl. The acidophiles on the other hand show increases in size and number, a greater affinity of their granules for plasma stains, and a definite hypertrophy of the Golgi apparatus which we have agreed to regard as an indication of increased secretory activity.” The portion of this characterization which pertains to the acidophiles also summarizes the changes which we (Baker and Everett, 1944) observed in the acidophiles following treatment of immature rats with small doses of diethylstilbestrol administered for brief periods of time. Hence, we were led to suspect that this estrogen might have modified the hypophysis indirectly through a stimulation of thyroid activity.
Environmental Ingredients for Supercells and Tornadoes within Hurricane Ivan

Abstract Hurricane Ivan (2004) was a prolific producer of tornadoes as it made landfall on the U.S. Gulf Coast. Prior researchers have revealed that the tornadic cells within tropical cyclone (TC) rainbands are often supercellular in character. The present study investigates the utility of several common midlatitude, continental supercell and tornado diagnostic tools when applied to Hurricane Ivan’s tornado episode. The environment within Hurricane Ivan was favorable for storm rotation. While well offshore, the bands of Hurricane Ivan possessed embedded cells with mesocyclones of moderate intensity. A dual-Doppler analysis reveals that the updrafts of these cells were highly helical in the lower troposphere, suggesting significant ingestion of streamwise environmental vorticity. These coherent cells were long lived and could be tracked for multiple hours. As the supercells over the Gulf of Mexico approached the coast during Ivan’s landfall, rapid increases in midlevel vorticity and vertically integrated l...
Post-Transplant Lymphoproliferative Disease (PTLD): Risk Factors, Diagnosis, and Current Treatment Strategies

Post-transplant lymphoproliferative diseases (PTLD) are heterogeneous lymphoid disorders ranging from indolent polyclonal proliferations to aggressive lymphomas that complicate solid organ or hematopoietic transplantation. Risk factors for PTLD include viral infections, degree of immunosuppression, recipient age and race, allograft type, and host genetic variations. Clinically, extra-nodal disease is common including 10–15 % presenting with central nervous system (CNS) disease. Most PTLD cases are B cell (5-10 % T/NK cell or Hodgkin lymphoma), while over one-third are EBV-negative. World Health Organization (WHO) diagnostic categories are: early lesions, polymorphic, and monomorphic PTLD; although in practice, a clear separation is not always possible. Therapeutically, reduction in immunosuppression remains a mainstay, and recent data has documented the importance of rituximab +/- combination chemotherapy. Therapy for primary CNS PTLD should be managed according to immunocompetent CNS paradigms. Finally, novel treatment strategies for PTLD have emerged, including adoptive immunotherapy and rational targeted therapeutics (e.g., anti-CD30 based therapy and downstream signaling pathways of latent membrane protein-2A).
P02-213 - QTc interval changes during ECT-ziprasidone-quetiapine-tricyclics co-administration: safety issues

Objectives Both tricyclic antidepressants and some atypical antipsychotics, such as ziprasidone and quetiapine, used as augmentation agents in severe major depression, are known to increase QTc interval to a moderate extent (10-20 msec). Moreover, electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) also increases patients’ propensity to arrhythmias. Finally, females are more prone than males to both drug-induced QTc prolongation and torsades-de-pointes. Thus, the combination of all the above treatments raises serious safety concerns. We investigated the safety of the co-administration of ECT with a tricyclic-ziprasidone-quetiapine combination with respect to QTc interval in six female patients with severe major depression resistant to pharmacotherapy. Methods Each patient underwent a series of 10-11 sessions of bilateral ECT. QTc intervals were calculated at baseline and several times up to 10 min after seizures cessation in a total of 63 patients/ECT sessions. Results A small initial decrease of QTc after the administration of pre-ECT medications was followed by its steady statistically non-significant increase during the first 20 sec after seizure cessation. Thereafter, a steady larger and statistically significant decrease of QTc emerged during the ensuing 21-50 sec interval. Finally, this decrease was gradually reversed within the following 2 min approximately with return of QTc interval to stable baseline levels. Conclusions Overall, QTc interval changes remained within normal limits (fixed at 470 msec in women), without the occurrence of any cardiac adverse events, especially severe arrhythmias such as torsades-de-pointes. Our findings suggest that the co-administration of these treatments might be safe, at least with respect to QTc interval changes.
HEURISTIC EXTRAPOLATION IN SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE

In this paper we consider heuristic methods for system architecture. System architecture problems are particularly open-ended and ill-structured and resistant to “rational” or “derivational” methods. The heuristic method, employing catalogs of heuristics, is one possible way to address the particular problems of system architecture. The heuristic catalog attempts to capture important and consistent structural elements of complex systems that strongly correlate with success or failure. Unfortunately, most heuristics gathered to date are primarily descriptive rather than prescriptive. This paper describes a method for developing context sensitive prescriptive heuristics as part of a design process that iteratively removes abstraction in the design representation. We call this process heuristic extrapolation. We illustrate the method by application to hardware/software partitioning and the Intelligent Vehicles and Highways System, a large scale sociotechnical system.
Using Video Training Lectures in a Mechanical Engineering Computer-Aided Design Course

The primary objective of the Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE) course that is a required course during the third year in the mechanical engineering curriculum at Binghamton University is to educate students in engineering design. The benefits and limitations of computer-aided engineering design are stressed. Pro/Engineer® is used as the basis of this course. It integrates solid modeling, motion analysis, and finite element analysis. As a means to the objective of teaching engineering design, students must first be trained to use the software. The effectiveness of the software training and design education was assessed using a project that is repeated (although modified) each time the course is offered. This is often referred to as a “marker assignment.” The marker assignment in this case is an aircraft landing gear design and analysis. In this paper, the effectiveness of training videos for design education is examined using the marker assignment approach. Data for three semesters is used. In each semester a different method of presentation was used: (1) traditional in class lectures only, (2) only recorded videos distributed to students, and (3) recorded videos distributed to students combined with summary in-class lectures. The changes to the course that were adopted based on the assessment are presented. In addition, the results of a survey of student satisfaction with the video format used in the course are presented.Copyright © 2008 by ASME
Development of a molecular mechanics (MM2) force field for α-chlorosilanes

Abstract Molecular mechanics (MM2) parameters for silanes which have a Si-C-Cl fragment have been developed based on available experimental data and ab initio molecular orbital (MO) calculations. Molecular properties, mainly rotational barriers and geometries, of α-chlorosilanes have been studied using our new MM2 parameter set. Changes in the Si-C bond lengths and several bond angles of α-chlorosilanes due to the additional attachment of polar atom(s) have been investigated utilizing ab initio calculations. An electronegativity correction to both bond lengths and angles helps MM2 to reproduce results from ab initio calculations. The new force field has been applied to the conformational analysis of l-(chloromethyl)-1,2-dimethylsilacyclopentane, a model used in our studies of rearrangements of α-halosilanes.
CRF facilitates calcium release from intracellular stores in midbrain dopamine neurons

Changes in cytosolic calcium are crucial for numerous processes including neuronal plasticity. This study investigates the regulation of cytosolic calcium by corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) in midbrain dopamine neurons. The results demonstrate that CRF stimulates the release of intracellular calcium from stores through activation of adenylyl cyclase and PKA. Imaging and photolysis experiments showed that the calcium originated from dendrites and required both functional IP3 and ryanodine receptor channels. The elevation in cytosolic calcium potentiated calcium-sensitive potassium channels (sK) activated by action potentials and metabotropic Gq-coupled receptors for glutamate and acetylcholine. This increase in cytosolic calcium activated by postsynaptic Gs-coupled CRF receptors may represent a fundamental mechanism by which stress peptides and hormones can shape Gq-coupled receptor-mediated regulation of neuronal excitability and synaptic plasticity in dopamine neurons.
Conjugation of phosphatidylethanolamine to poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) for potential use in liposomal drug delivery systems

Solutions of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (polyNIPAAm) become turbid at their lower critical solution temperature (LCST) of 33°C. In this study we have conjugated a phospholipid, 1-acyl-2-{12-[(7-nitro-2-1,3-benzoxadiazol-4-yl)amino]dodecanol}-phosphatidylethanolamine, to polyNIPAAm. Conjugation increases the LCST of polyNIPAAm by ∼ 2°C and broadens the temperature range over which turbidity changes. Conjugation of phospholipids to polymers in general and to thermally reversible polymers in particular may allow some novel applications that relate to their potential for insertion into liposomes, micelles or cell membranes and hydrophobic interfaces.
Proposed working serologic classification system for rotaviruses

Summary The recent ability to cultivate many new human and animal rotavirus strains and the recent identification of antigenically distinct rotaviruses have emphasized the need to develop a systematic classification scheme. We propose a working serologic classification system which utilizes a cryptogram to convey the information necessary to distinguish and identify new isolates from any source and includes the following: Group/Species of origin/Place of origin/Strain designation/Year/Subtype antigens (indicated by neutralization, subgroup and H antigens). The classification scheme allows for the presence of multiple groups of rotaviruses and for the existence of serotypes which cross species.
Update of the decitabine experience in higher risk myelodysplastic syndrome and analysis of prognostic factors associated with outcome.

BACKGROUND. Therapy for patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) with hypomethylating agents, like decitabine and 5-azacitidine, has produced favorable results. In this study, the authors update their experience with decitabine in patients with MDS and analyze the cytogenetic response patterns and prognostic factors associated with decitabine therapy. METHODS. One hundred fifteen patients with higher risk MDS who received treatment with decitabine were reviewed. Patients received decitabine 100 mg/m2 per course every 4 weeks in 3 different schedules: 1) 20 mg/m2 intravenously daily × 5, 2) 20 mg/m2 subcutaneously daily × 5, and 3) 10 mg/m2 intravenously daily × 10. Decitabine was given for a median of ≥7 courses (range, 1–23 courses). RESULTS. Overall, 80 patients (70%) achieved a response according to the modified International Working Group criteria (IWG): complete response (CR), 40 patients (35%); partial response, 2 patients (2%); bone marrow CR with or without other hematologic improvements (HI), 26 patients (23%); and other HI, 12 patients (10%). Cytopenias were improved in 50% of patients. The median remission duration was 20 months, and the median survival was 22 months. Mortality was 3% at 6 weeks and 7% at 3 months. In a multivariate analysis, poor prognostic factors for achieving IWG CR were MDS (vs chronic myelomonocytic leukemia), longer duration of MDS, and prior MDS therapy. For survival, independent adverse prognostic factors were chromosome 5 and/or 7 abnormalities, older age, and prior MDS therapy (excluding growth factors). CONCLUSIONS. The longer term experience with decitabine in MDS was favorable. Pretreatment prognostic factors may predict the outcome of patients who receive decitabine therapy for MDS. Cancer 2007. © 2006 American Cancer Society.
Tactile Technology for Covert Communications

The modern battlefield is an environment replete with information and distractions, often to the detriment of communication. To circumvent these issues, we developed TACTICS, a tactile display capa...
Understanding and persuading adherence to test-driven development

In computing education, students must learn techniques practiced in relevant professions. Test-Driven Development (TDD) is one such technique popular in the software industry. Preliminary reports suggest that TDD helps produce higher-quality code. However, motivating novice programmers to adopt TDD is also recognized as a distinct challenge. My studies and proposed work address this challenge with the following objectives: measuring adherence to TDD and its consequential outcomes; understanding students' reasons for non-adherence; and influencing students' attitudes and behavior via pedagogical interventions.
Failure of a polyether-ether-ketone expandable interbody cage following transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion

Expandable cages are a more recent option for maintaining or restoring disc height and segmental lordosis with transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF). Complications associated with expandable cages have not yet been widely reported. We report a case of postoperative failure of a polyether-ether-ketone (PEEK) expandable interbody device used during TLIF. A 50-year-old man presented with severe back and right leg pain after undergoing L4-5 and L5-S1 TLIFs with expandable cages and L3-S1 posterior instrumented fusion. Imaging showed retropulsion of a portion of the interbody cage into the spinal canal causing nerve compression. Displacement occurred in a delayed manner. In addition, pseudoarthrosis was present. The patient underwent re-exploration with removal of the retropulsed wafer and redo fusion. Expandable cages are a recent innovation; as such, efficacy and complication data are limited. As with any new device, there exists potential for mechanical failure, as occurred in the case presented.
Adsorption and decomposition of nitrous oxide on zirconia nanoparticles

Abstract FT-IR spectroscopy has been used to study the adsorption and decomposition of nitrous oxide on zirconia nanoparticles. The room temperature IR spectrum of adsorbed nitrous oxide is characterized by two intense absorption bands corresponding to the symmetric stretch and asymmetric stretch that are shifted by over 45 and 17 cm−1, respectively, from the gas phase values. Results from experiments as a function of sample pretreatment and site blocker adsorption indicate that nitrous oxide adsorbs on Zr4+ sites at room temperature and the mode of attachment is through the oxygen atom. Dissociation of nitrous oxide over zirconia begins at temperatures above 350°C. The data suggest that Lewis acid sites (Zr4+) are the active sites for nitrous oxide decomposition and the room temperature adsorbed species is a precursor to nitrous oxide decomposition.
In situ extraction versus the use of an external column in fermentation

Organic extraction of 2,3-butanediol produced by Klebsiella oxytoca fermentation was studied to determine if the use of an external column offered advantages over in situ extractive fermentation. Dodecanol was chosen from 24 tested solvents, 11 of which were non-toxic to K. oxytoca. Although growth occurred in all shakeflask experiments containing dodecanol, growth was never observed when dodecanol was used in an in situ arrangement in a fermentor. Using dodecanol in an external column, however, resulted in a cell yield of 0.10 g/g d-xylose, and a 2,3-butanediol yield of 0.32 g/g d-xylose, similar to results obtained in control (solventless) experiments. Although the partitioning of 2,3-butanediol in the organic phase was low, this study suggests that external columns, with recycling to the fermentor, can offer substantial advantages over in situ extraction.
Age and electromyographic frequency alterations during walking in children with cerebral palsy

The use of surface electromyography (sEMG) recorded during ambulation has provided valuable insight into motor development and changes with age in the pediatric population. However, no studies have reported sEMG differences with age in the children with cerebral palsy (CP). In this study, data from 50 children were divided retrospectively into four groups, representing either an older (above the age of 7 years) or younger (below the age of 7 years) age group with either typical development (TD) or CP. Data were analyzed from 16 children in the younger age group with TD, and eight in the older age group with TD. Data were also available from 14 in the younger age group with CP, and 12 in the older age group with CP. SEMG signals from the rectus femoris (RF) and medial hamstring (MH) were analyzed using wavelet techniques to examine time-frequency content. RF muscle activity was statistically different between all groups (p<0.001), with an elevated instantaneous mean frequency (IMNF) in the older TD group than the younger TD group, an elevated IMNF in the younger CP group than the older CP group, and elevated IMNF in both CP groups compared to both TD groups. Activity for the MH muscle followed the same pattern except for the CP young and old group comparison, which indicated no difference. The results indicate that differences in neuromuscular activation exist between younger and older groups of children with both TD and CP, and may provide new insight into muscle activity pattern changes during the development of walking.
Insider or outsider, both or neither: some dilemmas of interviewing in a cross-cultural setting

Abstract This paper contributes to the growing literature on methods and techniques for conducting qualitative research in economic geography, as well as to recent feminist debates on the impact that relationships of power between researchers and their informants have on the rigor of the findings of qualitative research. Drawing upon my own experiences whilst conducting interviews with managers and workers in information processing companies in Jamaica, I will examine the ways that inter-cultural perceptions, interactions and representations influenced the fieldwork process, and their ultimate effect on my interpretation and writing of the final text. This paper includes that because of the dynamic way in which identities and their attendant power relations are created and transformed during business interviews, uncertainty will necessarily remain a residual in the evaluation and interpretation of information received. It argues that recognizing and naming these uncertainties is an important step towards not only establishing rigor in the research process, but also to displacing the indomitable authority of the author.
Effects of lithium and deafferentation on expression of glycogen synthase kinase-3β, NFκB, β-catenin and pCreb in the chick cochlear nucleus

The avian brainstem serves as a useful model to answer the question of how afferent activity influences the viability of target neurons. Approximately 20–30% of neurons in the avian cochlear nucleus, nucleus magnocellularis (NM) die following deafferentation (i.e., deafness produced by cochlea removal). Interestingly, Bcl-2 mRNA (but not protein) is upregulated in 20–30% of NM neurons following deafferentation. We have recently shown that chronic treatments of lithium upregulates the neuroprotective protein Bcl-2 and increases neuronal survival following deafferentation. The pathways leading to the upregulation of Bcl-2 expression following these two manipulations are unknown. The present experiments examine changes in glycogen synthase kinase-3 beta (Gsk-3β), and transcription factors nuclear factor κ B (NFκB), β-catenin, and pCreb following lithium administration and following deafferentation. These molecules are known to be influenced by lithium and to regulate Bcl-2 expression in other model systems. Lithium decreased immunolabeling for Gsk-3β and increased expression for all three transcription factors. Deafferentation, however, did not alter Gsk-3β or NFκB, resulted in lower β-catenin expression, but did increase pCreb immunoreactivity. While it is possible that pCreb is a common link in the regulation of Bcl-2 following these two manipulations, the timing and distribution of pCreb labeling suggests that it is not the sole determinant of Bcl-2 upregulation following deafferentation. It is likely that the regulation of Bcl-2 gene expression by lithium and by deafferentation involve different molecular pathways.
Pulp therapy in pedodontics

Abstract Pulp therapy in the deciduous and immature permanent dentitions represents a challenge to the investigators in the fields of both pedodontics and endodontics. The therapeutic methods of maintaining these teeth fall in two major categories: preservation of the vital dentin and pulp and preservation of the nonvital dentin by removal of the pulp. Further research promises to clarify the ambiguities which may now exist. Current biologic knowledge has advanced to the position that reliance on solely empirically acquired knowledge has diminished.
The use of normal saline for resuscitation in trauma.

It was chosen as atherapeutic ﬂuid because it has the same freezing point ashuman serum ( pressure or pulmonary capillary wedge pressure within 10%0.52°C). It is composed of 154 meq/L ofsodium and 154 meq/L of chloride and has an osmolarity of308 mOsm. NS has been chosen by some trauma systems asthe preferred ﬂuid for the resuscitation of trauma victims forseveral hypothetical reasons. Because it has a higher osmo-larity than lactated Ringer’s (LR) solution, there is a potentialbeneﬁt in patients with head injury by reducing cerebraledema. LR solution is not approved by the Association ofAmerican Blood Banks for infusion with packed red bloodcells because of the presence of calcium in the ﬂuid andcitrate in the blood. Chelation of the calcium by citrate couldresult in the clotting of blood ﬁlters. The presence of lactatein LR increases lactate levels in hemorrhagic shock patients,but the signiﬁcance of this increased lactate is unknown.Finally, LR contains 4 meq/L of potassium, which couldexacerbate hyperkalemia, especially in trauma patients withrenal failure. NS has been compared with LR in healthyvolunteers, patients undergoing major abdominal and pelvicsurgery, and patients with renal failure. LR and NS have alsobeen compared with respect to their effects on blood ﬁlterclotting. Results of swine hemorrhagic shock studies will alsobe discussed.
Charge-based forces at the Nafion-water interface.

Interfacial water lying next to hydrophilic surfaces has been shown to be spectroscopically, mechanically, and electrically distinct from bulk water. Interfacial water has also been shown to exclude negatively and positively charged microspheres and has thus become known as the “exclusion zone”. Measurements have demonstrated that exclusion zones exhibit a negative electrical potential on the order of −100 mV relative to bulk water, with a corresponding distribution of positive protons in the bulk water region beyond the exclusion zone. This separation of charge is hypothesized to create an electrostatic force between the exclusion zone and the proton-enriched zone beyond. To test this hypothesis, a hydrophilic Nafion ring was attached to the tip of a deflectable ribbonlike force sensor. The sensor was designed to obstruct the flow of protons from one side of the lever to the other, so that any proton-based force would remain unilateral. pH-sensitive dye measurements confirmed that the protons were largel...
Mycobacteria, but not mercury, induces metallothionein (MT) protein in striped bass, Morone saxitilis, phagocytes, while both stimuli induce MT in channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus, phagocytes.

Abstract Recent advances in molecular immunology indicate that the expression of inducible pro-inflammatory proteins is increased in vertebrates in response to both infectious disease agents and various xenobiotics. For example, iNOS, COX-2, and CYP1A are induced by both inflammation and AhR ligands. Moreover, the expression of these proteins in response to stimuli varies among individuals within populations. Little is known of the differences among fish in the inducibility of proinflammatory proteins in response to both infectious agents and xenobiotics. Through random screening of a striped bass, Morone saxitilis, peritoneal macrophage cDNA library, a full length metallothionein (MT) gene was cloned and sequenced. MT is a low-molecular weight (6–8 kDa), cysteine-rich metal binding protein. Metals are required by pathogenic bacteria for growth, and by the host defense system by serving as a catalyst for the generation of reactive oxygen intermediates (ROIs) by phagocytes. A recombinant striped bass MT (rMT) was expressed and purified, then used to generate a specific mAb (MT-16). MT protein expression was followed in freshly isolated striped bass and channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus, phagocytes after in vitro exposure to the naturally occurring intracellular pathogen Mycobacteria fortuitum or to 0.1 and 1 μM mercury (Hg), as HgCl2. MT expression was increased by 24 h in both channel catfish and striped bass phagocytes as a result of exposure to M. fortuitum cells. On the other hand, MT was induced by Hg in channel catfish cells, but not those of striped bass. These results indicate that metal homeostasis in phagocytes is different between catfish and striped bass. In addition, these data suggest that care should be taken to distinguish between inflammation-induced vs. metal-induced MT when using MT expression as a biomarker of metal exposure.
COMPUTATION OF FRESNEL AND FRAUNHOFER FIELDS OF PLANAR APERTURES AND REFLECTOR ANTENNAS BY THE JACOBI-BESSEL SERIES-A REVIEW

ABSTRACT This paper reviews the basic analytical and numerical characteristics of the Jacobi-Bessel series applied to the determination of the Fresnel and Fraunhofer fields radiated by planar apertures and reflector antennas. Only the final formulations are presented here and the reader is referred to the published papers by the authors for specific details. Many useful representative numerical results are generated to demonstrate the applicability of the technique.
O2 absorption cross sections (187–225 nm) from stratospheric solar flux measurements

The absorption cross sections of molecular oxygen are calculated in the wavelength range from 187 to 230 nm from solar flux measurements obtained within the stratosphere. Within the Herzberg continuum wavelength region the molecular oxygen cross sections are found to be about 30% smaller than the laboratory results of Shardanand and Rao (1977) from 200 to 210 nm and about 50% smaller than those of Hasson and Nicholls (1971). At wavelengths longer than 210 nm the cross sections agree with those of Shardanand and Rao. The effective absorption cross sections of O2 in the Schumann-Runge band region from 187 to 200 nm are calculated and compared to the empirical fit given by Allen and Frederick (1982). The calculated cross sections indicate that the transmissivity of the atmosphere may be underestimated by the use of the Allen and Frederic cross sections between 195 and 200 nm. The ozone column content between 30 and 40 km and the relative ozone cross sections are determined from the same solar flux data set.
Purification of human IgA by salt-mediated hydrophobic chromatography.

Abstract Salt-mediated hydrophobic chromatography, a technique by which hydrophobic interactions of a protein with a given ligand coupled to Sepharose are enhanced by specific salts, was used for human IgA purification. The IgA of both normal and myeloma serum undergoes binding to L-phenylalanine Sepharose in the presence of 1 M ammonium sulfate, and is eluted in 0·8 M ammonium sulfate. For IgA myeloma serum, the preparations were homogenous after salt-mediated hydrophobic chromatography and gel filtration chromatography.
Preserving high-resolution surface and rainfall data in operational-scale basin hydrology: a fully-distributed physically-based approach

Abstract This study presents various aspects of the continuous simulation capabilities of a fully-distributed, triangulated irregular network (TIN) hydrologic model. The TIN-based Real-time Integrated Basin Simulator (tRIBS) is calibrated and verified for the Baron Fork at Eldon, Illinois River at Watts, and Blue River at Blue over the period 1993–2000. Computational effort is significantly reduced by simulating complex watersheds using a multiple resolution mesh to represent terrain. Model performance is assessed by comparing streamflow predictions to observations at the basin outlet and interior gauging stations. In addition, simulation results describing the distributed basin response to atmospheric forcing are discussed, including the spatial and temporal variability of runoff, surface soil moisture, evaporative flux, and groundwater table position. By modeling the land-surface water and energy states and fluxes over the computational domain in an efficient manner, the potential for utilizing fully-distributed models at the scales of operational hydrologic forecasting is realized. Through the spatially-explicit approach, high-resolution remote sensing data describing surface properties, topography, rainfall, and soil moisture can be integrated directly into a predictive hydrologic model. A greater degree of physical interpretation of hydrological estimation can thus be added to existing methods of operational forecasting.
Patient safety in the obstetric and gynecologic office setting

The modern patient safety movement began around 2000, when attention was drawn to error-related hospital mortality by the Institute of Medicine. Several years later the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists addressed safety issues in office practice, in recognition of the migration of increasingly complex surgical procedures to the office setting. Efforts begun in 2008 resulted in development of a program for safety certification of ob/gyn offices. Elements of the program are described, with recommendations on how they can be incorporated into standard office practice to reduce the chances of patient harm caused by errors or other adverse events.
The effect of sitosterol on radioactive fat absorption patterns

Abstract 1. 1. Concomitant administration of a plant sterol (cytellin) with radioactive triolein did not decrease the absorption of the tagged fat. 2. 2. In a group of patients with coronary artery disease and hypercholesterolemia prolonged treatment with this preparation produced no appreciable change in their radioactive fat tolerance even when the serum cholesterol level decreased to normal. 3. 3. Reliance on blood cholesterol levels alone is probably an incomplete guide as to the effectiveness of “antiatherogenic” medication.
Influence of sunflower morphological characteristics on achene depredation by birds

Abstract Bird depredation on sunflower ( Helianthus annuus L.) achenes (seeds) is a serious problem in many parts of the world. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of distinctive plant morphological characteristics of six sunflower genotypes (white achene, purple achene, long chaff, tight achene, long bract and commercial hybrid 894) at two stages of plant growth on achene damage by sparrows and finches. The field experiment was conducted over a 2-year period. A split plot with stages as whole plots and genotypes as subplots in a randomized complete block with six replicates was used. Morphological characteristics evaluated for their effect on achene loss by bird feeding included plant height, head diameter, head angle, chaff length, stem angle and distance from top leaf petiole to head. The commercial hybrid 894 had the highest 2-year average achene loss caused by bird feeding (57%), while the tight achene genotype had the lowest average achene loss (20%). Six morphological characteristics (chaff length, head angle, head diameter, plant height, stem angle and distance of top leaf petiole from head) accounted for 50 and 43% ( P = 0.05) of the variation in achene destruction by sparrows and finches in 1983 and 1984, respectively, as determined by multiple regression analyses. Chaff length, head angle, plant height and stem angle consistently accounted for most of the variation in achene destruction each year and are potentially useful morphological characteristics for developing genotypes to deter bird predation on achenes.
On the correlation between ice water content and ice crystal size and its application to radiative transfer and general circulation models

[1] We performed correlation analysis involving ice water content (IWC) and mean effective ice crystal size (De) intended for application to climate models. For this purpose, ice crystal size distributions obtained from in situ measurements conducted from numerous field campaigns in the tropics, midlatitude, and Arctic regions were used and we show that IWC and De are well-correlated in this regional division. Including temperature classification in midlatitude cases increases this correlation. We applied the correlation results to cloud radiative forcing calculations in terms of IWC, in which De is expressed as a baseline mean and deviation from uncertainty in small ice crystal measurements. The latter deviates from the mean by less than 2 W/m2 in net radiative forcing. Using the correlation results, simulations from the UCLA GCM showed substantial regional deviations in OLR and precipitation patterns from assuming a constant De.
Traumatic trochlear nerve palsy diagnosed by magnetic resonance imaging: case report and review of the literature.

Although head trauma is the leading cause of acquired trochlear nerve dysfunction, it receives little attention in the neurosurgical literature. A case is reported of closed head injury that resulted in a right superior oblique palsy in association with incoordination on the left side. Diagnostic im