cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Technical note: Improved methodology for analyses of acid detergent fiber and acid detergent lignin

The objective of this study was to evaluate the methodology of the acid detergent lignin (ADL) assay in an effort to evaluate particle loss, improve repeatability, and decrease variation within and among samples. The original ADL method relied on asbestos as a filtering aid, but that was removed in 1989 with the mandate from the Environmental Protection Agency to eliminate asbestos in the environment. Furthermore, recent work on fiber methodology indicated that pore size in the Gooch sintered glass crucible (40–60 μm) was too large to trap all of the small particles associated with neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and acid detergent fiber (ADF). Thus, any loss of ADF could potentially result in a loss of ADL. Sixty forages including conventional and brown midrib corn silages, alfalfa silages and hays, mature grasses, early vegetative grasses, and 9 feces samples, were analyzed sequentially for ADF and ADL as outlined in the 1973 procedure of Van Soest except for the use of the asbestos fiber. A glass microfiber filter with a 1.5-μm pore size was chosen as a filtering aid because it met the criteria required by the assay: glass, heat resistant, acid resistant, chemically inert, and hydrophobic. To compare with the current ADF and ADL assays, the assays were conducted with either no filter or the glass filter inserted into crucibles, rinsed with acetone, and then according to the 1973 procedure of Van Soest. The samples analyzed covered a range from 18.11 to 55.79% ADF and from 0.96 to 9.94% ADL on a dry matter (DM) basis. With the use of the filter, the mean ADF values increased 4.2% and mean ADL values increased 18.9%. Overall, both ADF and ADL values were greater with the use of the glass microfiber filter than without, indicating that as the type of sample analyzed changed, use of the Gooch crucible without the filtering aid results in particle loss. The adoption of the use of a small pore size (1.5 μm) glass microfiber filter to improve filtration and recovery of ADF and ADL and to reduce variation in the ADL assay is recommended, especially when sintered glass bottom crucibles are used. These differences in recovery and repeatability have implications for other fiber and lignin methods, as well as for estimating the potential changes in digestibility of fibrous feeds and feed quality.
Idiopathic rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder is a harbinger of dementia with Lewy bodies

Idiopathic rapid eye movement (REM) sleep behavior disorder (RBD) is a parasomnia clinically linked with the α-synucleinopathies multiple systems atrophy (MSA), Parkinson's disease (PD), and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). Available autopsy information is limited but suggests that the pathologic basis of idiopathic RBD may be neuronal loss and Lewy bodies in pigmented monoaminergic nuclei, including the locus coeruleus and substantia nigra, which project to pontine nuclei mediating atonia during REM sleep. Thus, idiopathic RBD may be an α-synucleinopathy per se and a harbinger of impending PD, DLB, or MSA. Inclusion of historical or concurrent idiopathic RBD in the diagnostic criteria for DLB may improve their sensitivity, specificity, and clinical utility. (J Geriatr Psychiatry Neurol 2002; 15:000–000).
Perspective on Variability in the Development of Human Action

Humans are designed not only with variability but for variability. This article explores the important contribution of variability to successful human action. Human systems for action have abundant variability of tissues and processes. This plasticity provides for the necessary flexibility when humans encounter the metric and dynamic changes of growth, development, and adaptation of action across the life span. However, variability must have definable limits. The reduction of possible solutions to probable solutions and the reduction of variability appear to be common assumptions of most theories of human action. The lack of variability of action is a hindrance to the development of skilled, functional action, and excessive variability interferes with the production of automatic, dependable, and typical functional action. The lack of variability and excessive variability are hallmarks of the movement patterns produced by people across the life span following neurological insult. Active problem solving as therapy, with its inherent error as a part of the therapeutic process, is critical to the successful learning of functional actions. The role of the physical therapist is to create movement environments and provide personal and environmental constraints that elicit and support self-produced functional actions.
Integrative Analysis Reveals an Outcome-Associated and Targetable Pattern of p53 and Cell Cycle Deregulation in Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma

Diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is a clinically and biologically heterogeneous disease with a high proliferation rate. By integrating copy number data with transcriptional profiles and performing pathway analysis in primary DLBCLs, we identified a comprehensive set of copy number alterations (CNAs) that decreased p53 activity and perturbed cell cycle regulation. Primary tumors either had multiple complementary alterations of p53 and cell cycle components or largely lacked these lesions. DLBCLs with p53 and cell cycle pathway CNAs had decreased abundance of p53 target transcripts and increased expression of E2F target genes and the Ki67 proliferation marker. CNAs of the CDKN2A-TP53-RB-E2F axis provide a structural basis for increased proliferation in DLBCL, predict outcome with current therapy, and suggest targeted treatment approaches.
Interpersonal communication apprehension, topic avoidance, and the experience of irritable bowel syndrome

Through the lens of the theory of inhibition and confrontation (Pennebaker, 1989), this study explored the relationships that interpersonal communication apprehension and topic avoidance in one’s closest relationship share with the experience of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Specifically, an online survey that studied U.S. IBS-diagnosed and non-IBS subsamples examined person–partner communication apprehension, amount of overall topic avoidance, and reasons for topic avoidance in relation to four IBS experience variables. Communication apprehension displayed a particularly strong relationship with multiple aspects of the IBS experience, and a number of the communication avoidance variables varied according to IBS diagnosis. Implications for the theoretical understanding of interpersonal communication processes in the specific context of IBS and general chronic health conditions are discussed.
Antenna–load interactions at optical frequencies: impedance matching to quantum systems

The goal of antenna design at optical frequencies is to deliver optical electromagnetic energy to loads in the form of, e.g.,?atoms, molecules or nanostructures, or to enhance the radiative emission from such structures, or both. A true optical antenna would, on a qualitatively new level, control the light?matter interaction on the nanoscale for controlled optical signal transduction, radiative decay engineering, quantum coherent control, and super-resolution microscopy, and provide unprecedented sensitivity in spectroscopy. Resonant metallic structures have successfully been designed to approach these goals. They are called optical antennas in analogy to radiofrequency (RF) antennas due to their capability to collect and control electromagnetic fields at optical frequencies. However, in contrast to the RF, where exact design rules for antennas, waveguides, and antenna?load matching in terms of their impedances are well established, substantial physical differences limit the simple extension of the RF concepts into the optical regime. Key distinctions include, for one, intrinsic material resonances including quantum state excitations (metals, metal oxides, semiconductor homo- and heterostructures) and extrinsic resonances (surface plasmon/phonon polaritons) at optical frequencies. Second, in the absence of discrete inductors, capacitors, and resistors, new design strategies must be developed to impedance match the antenna to the load, ultimately in the form of a vibrational, electronic, or spin excitation on the quantum level. Third, there is as yet a lack of standard performance metrics for characterizing, comparing and quantifying optical antenna performance. Therefore, optical antenna development is currently challenged at all the levels of design, fabrication, and characterization. Here we generalize the ideal antenna?load interaction at optical frequencies, characterized by three main steps: (i) far-field reception of a propagating mode exciting an antenna resonance, (ii) subsequent transformation of that mode into a nanoscale spatial localization, and (iii) near-field coupling via an enhanced local density of states to a quantum load. These three steps define the goal of efficient transformation of incident radiation into a quantum excitation in an impedance-matched fashion. We review the physical basis of the light?matter interaction at the transition from the RF to optical regime, discuss the extension of antenna theory as needed for the design of impedance-matched optical antenna?load coupled systems, and provide several examples of the state of the art in design strategies and suggest future extensions. We furthermore suggest new performance metrics based on the combination of electric vector field, field enhancement and capture cross section measurement to aid in comparison between different antenna designs and optimization of optical antenna performance within the physical parameter space.
Evaluation of canopy interception schemes in land surface models

Summary Field measurements of interception loss ratio published in the literature for different locations over the globe are used in this study to evaluate four canopy interception schemes incorporated into the Community Land Model version 3 (CLM3). Those are the CLM3 default scheme, the Shuttleworth scheme, a scheme that considers the sub-grid variability of both precipitation and canopy water storage (WW07 scheme), and a herein revised WW07 scheme (rain type-distinguished WW07) that distinguishes for rain type (convective versus stratiform). With the exception of Shuttleworth scheme that exhibits significant temporal resolution sensitivity in simulating the canopy interception loss, the rest three schemes are validated against observations. The rain type-distinguished WW07 scheme exhibits the best performance in producing the annual rainfall interception loss ratio over the globe with an overall mean bias error (MBE) of −0.007 and root mean square error (RMSE) of 0.121. This scheme also produces a realistic seasonality of the rainfall interception loss ratio in tropical areas, which is verified against field measurements from a site in the Amazon rainforest.
Use of radiation in the treatment of age-related macular degeneration.

form of AMD, this accumulation leads to cell loss and atrophy, while in wet macular degeneration drusen appear to be a stimulus for blood vessels to grow from the choroid. It is theorized that this neovascularization from the choroid is an attempt to clear the waste. Unfortunately, these new vessels, called choroidal neovascular (CNV) membranes, cause the problems related to the wet form of the disease. The vision loss due to neovascular (wet) AMD involves the growth of these abnormal ‘‘new’’ vessels through breaks in the Bruch membrane from the choroid and under the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). Treatment is only possible at this time for the wet form of macular degeneration, and it involves the destruction of the abnormal blood vessels. Optimal treatment would involve a method that destroys the growth of abnormal blood vessels while not damaging the normal cells and the normal retinal and choroidal blood vessels.
PARSING CONJUNCTIONS DETERMINISTICALLY

Conjunctions have always been a source of problems for natural language parsers. This paper shows how these problems may be circumvented using a rule-based, wait-and-see parsing strategy. A parser is presented which analyzes conjunction structures deterministically, and the specific rules it uses are described and illustrated. This parser appears to be faster for conjunctions than other parsers in the literature and some comparative timings are given.
Near-infrared-to-blue energy upconversion in LaF 3 :Ho 3+

When the 5F5 levels of Ho3+ in LaF3 were resonantly excited with a red dye laser beam of 640 nm, blue and green emissions were detected from the 5G5, the 5F3, and the 5S2(5F4) levels at 416, 485, and 546 nm, respectively. We found that excited ions in the 5F5 state undergo nonradiative relaxation to the 5I6 state and are then upconverted to the 5G5 state by the absorption of a second photon, as well as by energy-transfer interaction. The upconversion efficiency into the 5F3 state was estimated as ~1.1 × 10−4. We also observed energy-upconverted emissions from the 5F3 and the 5S2 levels when the material was excited with an 800-nm near-infrared laser. The absorption of a second laser photon from the 5I6 state was found to be responsible for the upconverted green emission.
Changes in the Myocardial Interstitium and Contribution to the Progression of Heart Failure

With a prolonged cardiovascular stress or pathophysiological stimuli, a cascade of structural events occurs defined as myocardial remodeling, which occurs as a continuum of changes in the structure and function of the myocardium. It has been shown that adverse left ventricular (LV) myocardial events affects cellular signaling and extracellular signaling processes. Changes occurring in the cellular constituents of the myocardium that accompany remodeling are discussed in a previous chapter; therefore, the significant alterations in the structure and composition of the myocardial interstitium will be the focus of this chapter. Historically, the myocardial interstitium was considered a static entity with a passive and nonresponsive structure comprised of a fibrillar collagen network; however, it has now been demonstrated that it is a dynamic structure which plays a fundamental role in myocardial adaptation to a pathological stress facilitating the remodeling process. Therefore, the purpose of this chapter is threefold. First, present an up-to-date overview of myocardial extracellular matrix structure and function. Second, briefly demonstrate how the myocardial interstitium is altered in important disease states which can progress to chronic heart failure: POH in context of hypertension and aortic stenosis, ischemic heart disease in the context myocardial infarction (MI), and DCM. Third, identify potential diagnostic and therapeutic strategies relevant to myocardial matrix remodeling in the context of these cardiac disease states.
Bayesian active learning-based robot tutor for children's word-reading skills

Effective tutoring requires personalization of the interaction to each student. Continuous and efficient assessment of the student's skills are a prerequisite for such personalization. We developed a Bayesian active-learning algorithm that continuously and efficiently assesses a child's word-reading skills and implemented it in a social robot. We then developed an integrated experimental paradigm in which a child plays a novel story-creation tablet game with the robot. The robot is portrayed as a younger peer who wishes to learn to read, framing the assessment of the child's word-reading skills as well as empowering the child. We show that our algorithm results in an accurate representation of the child's word-reading skills for a large age range, 4-8 year old children, and large initial reading skill range. We also show that employing child-specific assessment-based tutoring results in an age- and initial reading skill-independent learning, compared to random tutoring. Finally, our integrated system enables us to show that implementing the same learning algorithm on the robot's reading skills results in knowledge that is comparable to what the child thinks the robot has learned. The child's perception of the robot's knowledge is age-dependent and may facilitate an indirect assessment of the development of theory-of-mind.
Dynamic multi-chain graphical model for psychosocial and behavioral profiles in childhood obesity

Childhood Obesity as a System Problem. Childhood obesity is a social epidemic [1],[2] that persists from childhood to adolescence and well into adulthood. Energy-intake and energy-expenditure-related behaviors --- diet and physical activities --- form the core of the energy-balance equation. These behaviors are heavily influenced by a complex set of interrelated psychosocial, biological, and ecological variables. The recent literature is beginning to recognize the need to study it in terms of multiple chains of causal influences flowing from distal social factors to proximate, individual factors and behaviors, and in terms of drivers of change in trends and patterns over time. This ecological, multilevel perspective calls for the analysis of obesity as a complex system that involves information collected from multiple sources and at multiple time points.
Optimization and evaluation of a method to detect adenoviruses in river water

Adenoviruses are often implicated in recreational water disease outbreaks but existing methods for their detection perform poorly within these matrices. In this study, small volume (100mL) concentration was used to identify processes that promoted recovery of adenovirus from river water. Several alternative secondary concentration techniques were investigated and compared to the baseline method consisting of primary concentration via filtration, followed by celite mediated secondary concentration. The alternative secondary concentrations included multiple filter elutions, soaking the filter for 15 min prior to elution and concentration using pre-treated celite (river water, 1.5% and 3% milk) instead of a filter. Modifications of the viral nucleic acid extraction technique were also evaluated. Concentration using pre-treated celite and a modified extraction technique (10 min boil and a 1h ProK incubation at 37 °C) recovered significantly higher levels of adenovirus (P=0.001) than other methods tested. This optimized method increased recovery of spiked adenovirus (57 ± 27%) compared to baseline method performance (4 ± 3%) indicating that use of pre-treated celite as opposed to filtration significantly improves recovery. Application of the optimized concentration method to larger volume (1L) of river water resulted in similar recoveries (42 ± 19%) underlying the utility of this method to detect adenovirus from environmental samples.
Large perceptual distortions of locomotor action space occur in ground-based coordinates: Angular expansion and the large-scale horizontal-vertical illusion.

What is the natural reference frame for seeing large-scale spatial scenes in locomotor action space? Prior studies indicate an asymmetric angular expansion in perceived direction in large-scale environments: Angular elevation relative to the horizon is perceptually exaggerated by a factor of 1.5, whereas azimuthal direction is exaggerated by a factor of about 1.25. Here participants made angular and spatial judgments when upright or on their sides to dissociate egocentric from allocentric reference frames. In Experiment 1, it was found that body orientation did not affect the magnitude of the up-down exaggeration of direction, suggesting that the relevant orientation reference frame for this directional bias is allocentric rather than egocentric. In Experiment 2, the comparison of large-scale horizontal and vertical extents was somewhat affected by viewer orientation, but only to the extent necessitated by the classic (5%) horizontal-vertical illusion (HVI) that is known to be retinotopic. Large-scale vertical extents continued to appear much larger than horizontal ground extents when observers lay sideways. When the visual world was reoriented in Experiment 3, the bias remained tied to the ground-based allocentric reference frame. The allocentric HVI is quantitatively consistent with differential angular exaggerations previously measured for elevation and azimuth in locomotor space. (PsycINFO Database Record Language: en
Central Nervous System Complications of Human Immunodeficiency Virus

ABSTRACT.This review outlines the major neurological manifestations of the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and other AIDS-spectrum disorders. The clinical features of AIDS-related dementia, which is estimated to affect 60% of patients with AIDS, is reviewed and contrasted with opportunistic infections. Present treatment and options are discussed.
Levels of Cyclic Nucleotides in Autotransplanted 7,12-Dimethylbenz[a]anthracene-Induced Rat Mammary Tumors During Their Growth and Regression

Previous studies indicated that autotransplanted 7, 12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA)-induced rat mammary tumors were hormone-dependent and, if derived from a single primary tumor, many of their metabolic parameters varied little. Therefore, these tumors transplanted in multiple sites provided an opportunity for serial sampling of individual tumors for repeated biochemical evaluations. In the present study, primary mammary tumors induced by DMBA in female noninbred Sprague-Dawley rats were autotransplanted at six sites. When these grafts grew to an average size of 6 cm, the hosts were ovariectomized. Eighteen days later when all tumors were apparently regressing, a silastic tubing 2 cm long containing crystalline estradiol was implanted sc into each host for 14 days. Individual tumors were serially removed from each host before ovariectomy, after ovariectomy, and after estrogen replacement. Levels of cyclic AMP (cAMP) and cyclic GMP (cGMP) in these tumors were measured by radioimmunoassay. Results indicated that tumor regression was associated with an elevation of cAMP levels and that tumor growth was accompanied by a decline in cAMP. The level of cGMP did not correlate with either tumor growth or regression. Therefore, the concept that cAMP is a biologic regulator for tissue proliferation and regression may be applied to the present model of autotransplanted, DMBA-induced rat mammary tumors.
Mechanism and Functions of Platelet Mechanosensing

Mechanisms by which blood cells sense shear stress are ill characterized. In platelets, glycoprotein (GP)Ib-IX receptor complex has been long suggested to be a shear sensor and receptor, but the underlying molecular mechanism is unclear. Recently a quasi-stable structural domain in the GPIbα subunit of GPIb-IX, located between the heavily glycosylated macroglycopeptide region and the transmembrane domain, was identified. Binding of the ligand of GPIb-IX, von Willebrand factor, under physiological shear stress induces unfolding of this mechanosensory domain (MSD) on the platelet surface. The unfolded MSD, particularly the juxtamembrane Trigger sequence therein, leads to intracellular signaling and rapid platelet clearance. These results illustrate for the first time the initial molecular event underlying platelet shear-sensing. Our results provide a novel mechanism linking platelet mechanosensing to platelet clearance, and have implications on the mechanism of platelet activation. The mechanosensation via receptor unfolding may be applicable to many other cell adhesion receptors.
Analog and Digital

The distinction between analog and digital representation of numbers is well understood in practice. Yet its analysis has proved troublesome. I shall first consider the account given by Nelson Goodman and offer examples to show that some cases of analog representation are mis-classified, on Goodman's account, as digital. Then I shall offer alternative analyses of analog and digital representation. DIFFERENTIATED ANALOG REPRESENTATION According to Goodman in Languages of Art , the distinction between digital and analog representation of numbers is as follows. Digital representation is differentiated . Given a number-representing “mark” – an inscription, vocal utterance, pointer position, electrical pulse, or whatever – it is theoretically possible, despite our inability to make infinitely precise measurements, to determine exactly which other marks are copies of the given mark and to determine exactly which number (or numbers) the given mark and its copies represent. Analog representation, on the other hand, fails to be differentiated because it is dense . For any two marks that are not copies, no matter how nearly indistinguishable they are, there could be a mark intermediate between them which is a copy of neither; and for any two marks that are not copies and represent different numbers, no matter how close the numbers are, there is an intermediate number which would be represented by a mark that is a copy of neither. It is true and important that digital representation is differentiated, and that it differs thereby from the many cases of analog representation that are undifferentiated and dense: those cases in which all real numbers in some range are represented by values of some continuously variable physical magnitude such as voltage.
Factors affecting the distribution and stability of unoccupied 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 receptors.

AbstractRecently our laboratory reported that unoccupied 1,25(OH)2D3 receptors are found in the nuclei/chromatin fraction under low salt conditions in vitro (J. Biol. Chem. 255, 6799–6805, 1980). Additionally, various conditions exert differential effects on receptor solubilization and stability in vitro, potentially leading to confusion when these effects are not fully appreciated. In order to facilitate future studies, we have compiled a review of these factors and their effects. The conditions discussed include dilution, ionic strength (KCl and molybdate), protease inhibitors (Trasylol, PMSF and TPCK), temperature, ligand, glycerol, dithiothreitol, and EDTA.
Effect of ractopamine on growth, carcass traits, and fasting heat production of U.S. contemporary crossbred and Chinese Meishan pure- and crossbred pigs.

Twenty-four U.S. crossbred (Duroc x White composite; D x Wc; 83.9 kg), 24 purebred Meishan (M; 59.4 kg), and 24 Meishan x White composite crossbred (M x Wc; 83.4 kg) barrows were allotted within genotype to a 16% CP corn-soybean meal diet or this basal diet + 20 ppm of ractopamine and allowed ad libitum access to feed for 52 d. No genotype x ractopamine interactions were detected (P greater than .05) in pigs for growth, lean cuts, ham and loin characteristics, leaf fat and visceral organ weights, fasting whole-animal heat production, and carcass traits except longissimus muscle area (LMA). The LMA was increased by ractopamine in D x Wc and M x Wc pigs (P less than .05) but not in M pigs. Compared with D x Wc and M x Wc pigs, M pigs had lower ADG, ADFI, and gain to feed ratio (G/F), shorter carcasses, and lower dressing percentage, LMA, predicted amount of muscle, weights of trimmed picnic, loin, and ham cuts, percentage of ham lean, and CP in ham lean, but heavier liver, kidneys, pancreas, and entire gastrointestinal tract with greater percentage of ham fat and ham bone (P less than .05). The M x Wc pigs had lower ADG, G/F, dressing percentage, LMA, amount of muscle, weights of trimmed cuts, and percentage of ham lean but heavier lungs, pancreas, stomach, and large intestine than did D x Wc pigs (P less than .05). Supplemental ractopamine increased ADG, G/F, dressing percentage, amount of muscle, trimmed loin weight, percentage of ham lean, and CP in ham lean and decreased weights of heart, lungs, kidneys, and pancreas in pigs (P less than .05). Neither genotype nor ractopamine had any effect on 4- to 24-h postprandial whole-animal heat production of pigs (P greater than .05). These results indicate that ractopamine will improve growth performance and carcass leanness in pure- and crossbred Meishan pigs.
Microvascular permeability after cardiopulmonary bypass: An experimental study

Microvascular permeability is presumed to increase during cardiopulmonary bypass, but this has not been directly demonstrated. Method: Therefore, a controlled experimental study was performed in dogs in which the permeability ratio of the small intestinal microvasculature was determined. Shortly after 120 minutes of cardiopulmonary bypass (experimental group, n = 7) or a sham procedure (control group, n = 7), the superior mesenteric venous pressure was raised in a stepwise fashion until the intestinal lymph/plasma protein concentration stabilized at a minimum value. Data: Minimal lymph/plasma concentration ratio (permeability ratio) of the total proteins and each of six protein fractions was greater in dogs that had been on bypass than in control dogs (p = 0.01 for total proteins and
The history of a public science: How the Addiction Research Center became the NIDA Intramural Research Program.

The Addiction Research Center in Lexngton, Kentucky, accomplished many of he formative studies in the field of drug buse from its inception and into the 970s (Acker, 2002; Campbell, 2007). This rticle traces the process by which the RC became what it is today—the Intraural Research Program of the National nstitute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) in Balimore, MD. While we might say that he old ARC moved north to become the ntramural program, the story is neither o linear nor seamless as that statement uggests. The ARC’s fate was intertwined ith that of the larger custodial instiution of which it comprised but a tiny art. The U.S. Public Health Service Narotic Hospital in Lexington, Kentucky, was thousand-bed federal drug treatment acility that opened in 1935. Two-thirds f admissions to the Hospital were conicted felons; the remaining third sought reatment voluntarily and were free to eave at any time. Prior to 1941 all of hose admitted were males; after 1941 oth men and women were admitted. pon admission, patients were detoxified nder medical supervision, which after 948 involved the use of methadone as detoxification agent. Once detoxification as complete, patients were housed in he “general population,” from which the RC “borrowed” human subjects who par-
Effect of prolonged administration of spermicidal contraceptives on rats kept on low-protein or on full diet.

The carcinogenic activity of 2 spermicidal contraceptive agents in rats was studied. The animals were kept on either a full diet or a semisynthetic low-protein diet. The principal spermicidal agents used for treatment were either: 1) boric acid 2% oxyquinoline benzoate .02% phenylmercuric acetate .02% in an emulsion pH 4.4 or; 2) ricinolic acid .7% rho-Diisobutylphenoxypolyethoxyethanol 1% boric acid 3% pH 4.5. The body and organ weights of control and treated animals were measured. All of the 39 control rats on the low-protein diet developed liver damage 13 developed mammary tumors 1 showed a uterine tumor and another had an intestinal tumor. The number of tumors in 14 rats receiving the full diet and treatment with spermicides did not exceed the number expected in aging rats. 73 of 95 rats on the low-protein diet and treated either orally or vaginally with the spermicides developed tumors. Untreated animals on the same diet developed mammary and liver tumors. In addition to the mammary and liver tumors occurring in treated low-protein diet animals tumors appeared at other sites including the brain. It is not yet known which chemical constituent of the agents is responsible for the tumors although the carcinogenic activity of 8-ortho-hydroxyquinoline is being investigated. The difficulty in applying the findings to the occurrence of human cervical cancer is discussed. The possibility that liver damage impairs the detoxification of estrogens and thereby enhances the carcinogenic activity of spermicides is under investigation.
Consequences of inoculation with native arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi for root colonization and survival of Artemisia tridentata ssp. wyomingensis seedlings after transplanting.

In arid environments, the propagule density of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) may limit the extent of the plant–AMF symbiosis. Inoculation of seedlings with AMF could alleviate this problem, but the success of this practice largely depends on the ability of the inoculum to multiply and colonize the growing root system after transplanting. These phenomena were investigated in Artemisia tridentata ssp. wyomingensis (Wyoming big sagebrush) seedlings inoculated with native AMF. Seedlings were first grown in a greenhouse in soil without AMF (non-inoculated seedlings) or with AMF (inoculated seedlings). In spring and fall, 3-month-old seedlings were transplanted outdoors to 24-L pots containing soil from a sagebrush habitat (spring and fall mesocosm experiments) or to a recently burned sagebrush habitat (spring and fall field experiments). Five or 8 months after transplanting, colonization was about twofold higher in inoculated than non-inoculated seedlings, except for the spring field experiment. In the mesocosm experiments, inoculation increased survival during the summer by 24 % (p = 0.011). In the field experiments, increased AMF colonization was associated with increases in survival during cold and dry periods; 1 year after transplanting, survival of inoculated seedlings was 27 % higher than that of non-inoculated ones (p < 0.001). To investigate possible mechanisms by which AMF increased survival, we analyzed water use efficiency (WUE) based on foliar 13C/12C isotope ratios (δ 13C). A positive correlation between AMF colonization and δ 13C values was observed in the spring mesocosm experiment. In contrast, inoculation did not affect the δ 13C values of fall transplanted seedlings that were collected the subsequent spring. The effectiveness of AMF inoculation on enhancing colonization and reducing seedling mortality varied among the different experiments, but average effects were estimated by meta-analyses. Several months after transplanting, average AMF colonization was in proportion 84 % higher in inoculated than non-inoculated seedlings (p = 0.0042), while the average risk of seedling mortality was 42 % lower in inoculated than non-inoculated seedlings (p = 0.047). These results indicate that inoculation can increase AMF colonization over the background levels occurring in the soil, leading to higher rates of survival.
Approach to acute diarrhea in the elderly.

SUMMARY Diarrhea is a common problem among the elderly that can have catastrophic results. Atherosclerosis predisposes older adults to morbid sequelae from dehydration resulting from diarrhea. Deaths related to diarrheal illnesses are recognized among older adults living in the community as well as among those confined to nursing homes. Outbreaks have most often been associated with excess deaths from diarrhea among nursing-home patients. Although most cases of dehydration from diarrhea result from gastrointestinal infections, noninfectious causes of diarrhea related to prescription of laxatives, side effects of medications, and use of enteral feedings are common. Clostridium difficile infection is particularly common among older adults in hospitals and nursing homes, and relapsing disease in these groups may be more frequent than among younger adults. The approach to an elderly patient with diarrhea is to ensure proper hydration using available oral rehydration solutions, proceed with diagnostic tests likely to yield a positive result, avoid the use of harmful antiperistaltic drugs, and provide adequate follow-up of the nutritional state.
Time course of cerebrospinal fluid inflammatory biomarkers and relationship to 6-month neurologic outcome in adult severe traumatic brain injury

Abstract Objective Activation of the inflammatory cascade is a known pathophysiologic process in severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) with yet non-standardized scientific data regarding relationship to outcome. The understanding of the time course of expression of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarker levels following severe TBI is an important step toward using these biomarkers to measure injury severity and/or early response to therapeutic interventions. The objective of the current study is to report the time course and values of a battery of CSF inflammatory biomarkers following severe TBI in our reasonably sized patient cohort. Patients and methods Our patient cohort consists of 32 consented patients, who met the study's inclusion criteria for data collection from 2000 to 2010. The time course and values of a battery of CSF biomarkers (IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, IFN-γ, IL-12p70, IL-10, and IL-8) following severe TBI in this patient cohort was characterized. Additionally, the correlation of biomarker concentration with 6-month neurological outcome was assessed. Serial CSF sampling through an external ventricular drain was performed over the first five days following injury. Concentration of a panel of inflammatory biomarkers (IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, IFN-γ, IL-12p70, IL-10, and IL-8) were evaluated using Meso Scale Discovery's Multi-Array technology. Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) score at six months following injury was dichotomized into poor outcome (GOS 1-3) and favorable outcome (GOS 4-5). Statistical analyses were performed using Kruskal-Wallis test and linear regression analysis. Results The result shows that CSF concentrations of inflammatory biomarkers had a significant association with 6-month neurological outcome ( p -values≤0.05 for each marker), with the favorable outcome group having lower concentrations of these biomarkers on average, in comparison to the poor neurologic outcome group over the first five days after TBI. All inflammatory biomarkers decreased to normal levels by post-trauma day 5, except for IL-6 and IL-8. Upregulation and increased expression of key inflammatory markers following severe TBI were significant predictors of worse 6-month neurologic outcome. Additionally, post-trauma day 5 concentrations of IL-6 and IL-8 remained elevated over normal CSF values. Conclusion The study shows that inflammatory biomarkers in CSF are potential biomarkers of injury severity and progression and/or recovery; they could prove beneficial in the future assessment of injury severity and response to therapy after severe TBI.
Compliance auditing in data stream management systems

Recent improvements in location-based technologies and the drop in prices of sensor devices have spurred a new wave of stream-based applications, such as location-based services, geo-social networking and ubiquitous healthcare. These applications often rely on highly privacy-sensitive information (such as physical location, activity, health state) and introduce a potential for serious abuses including privacy violations, discrimination and unwanted services. In our research work, we tackle the problem of compliance auditing on infinite data streams, where users may specify the streaming (sensitive) data subject to disclosure review. We will describe a framework, called StreamAudit, for determining whether a Data Stream Management Systems (DSMS) is adhering to its data disclosure policies at all times. In StreamAudit the audit can be initiated by: (i) users sending their real-time data through embedded into data streams audit metadata, and (ii) administrators formulating continuous audit expressions on the server. StreamAudit continuously monitors executing queries returning all queries (deemed "suspicious") that accessed the specified data during their execution. The overhead of our approach on query processing is small, involving primarily the logging of each query information along with other minor annotations. To compress audit information for infinite data streams, StreamAudit employs "tilted time frame" data structure to enable "approximate" compliance answers for distant past.
Higher-Order Learning

When leaders engage in higher-order learning, they experience a continual improvement in their capacity to learn. Leaders who develop higher-order learning are not limited by their pre-existing experience but learn to transfer their learning to new situations. Learning no longer becomes constrained but can be applied to a variety of situations. Leaders seek out new and unfamiliar situations and continue to learn. Higher-order learning involves three progressive steps: learning from experience, deliberate practice, and meta-learning. Stress, multiple competing demands, and emotional burnout conspire to undermine higher-order learning.
The Cytochrome b6 Complex of Oxygenic Photosynthesis

The cytochrome b6f complex is the central complex in the electron transport chain of oxygenic photosynthesis. It provides the electronic connection between the two photosynthetic reaction centers and generates most of the transmembrane electrochemical proton gradient that is used for ATP synthesis. It is a hetero-oligomeric 220-kDa homo-dimeric complex consisting of 8 polypeptide subunits, 13 transmembrane helical segments, and 7 tightly bound prosthetic groups per monomer. It is one of relatively few hetero-oligomeric membrane proteins whose crystal structure has been solved to a resolution ≤3.0 A. Among the seven prosthetic groups per monomer, five have a redox function: two b-type hemes, bp and bn, on the electrochemically positive and negative sides of the complex, the p-side heme of cytochrome f, a unique c-type cytochrome, and a p-side [2Fe–2S] center, and a unique heme cn covalently bound to the cytochrome b subunit, which interacts electronically with hem bn. These groups are arranged to accomplish the oxidation and reduction of plastoquinol/plastoquinone (PQH2/PQ) on the p- and n-sides of the membrane, and thereby accomplish a net transfer of as many as two protons across the membrane per electron transferred through the complex, thus providing the major input to the transmembrane proton electrochemical gradient. The redox reactions of PQ/PQH2 occur within the two quinone-exchange cavities formed by the two monomers of the complex. The p-side redox reactions are similar to those of the cytochrome bc1 complex. However, redox reactions on the n-side are different, partly because of the presence of heme cn. 3D Structure Keywords: crystal structure; electron transport; energy transduction; heme cn; hetero-oligomeric integral membrane protein; plastoquinol oxidoreductase
Synthesis and Biochemical Evaluation of 5-Tethered Boron-Containing Pyrimidine Nucleosides for BNCT

In order for BNCT to be successful, a major need is the development of boron compounds, which penetrate the blood-brain barrier (BBB), target tumor cells selectively, and maintain a relatively high concentration of boron-10 in the tumor, ca. 30 ug/g of tumor tissue, vis-a-vis surrounding normal tissues. Boron-containing nucleosides that use a carrier-mediated transport process for penetrating the CNS and have the potential for becoming incorporated into proliferating cells may be useful agents for BNCT.1 This fact led to the attempts to synthesize carborane-containing nucleoside derivatives. Yamamoto2 and Schinazi3 have attached the carborane moiety to the 5-position on the pyrimidine nucleosides, either directly or through a bulky substituent. Unfortunately, these compounds are very poor substrates for nucleoside kinases, and are unlikely to demontrate the requisite biological activity. This may be due to the fact that having a bulky substituent, like the carborane moiety, attached directly on the 5-position may inhibit enzymatic conversion of the 5-carboranyl-2′-deoxyuridine to their corresponding nucleotides. The formation of the latter is a necessary precondition for the incorporation of such nucleotides into DNA.
Information and Inaccuracy

AbstractThis article proposes a new interpretation of mutual information (MI). We examine three extant interpretations of MI by reduction in doubt, by reduction in uncertainty, and by divergence. W...
Loss of DPC4/SMAD4 expression in primary gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumors is associated with cancer-related death after resection

Background Gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumors have frequent loss of DPC4/SMAD4 expression, a known tumor suppressor. The impact of SMAD4 loss on gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumors aggressiveness or cancer-related patient outcomes is not defined. We examined the expression of SMAD4 in resected gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumors and its impact on oncologic outcomes. Methods Patients who underwent complete curative operative resection of gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumors were identified retrospectively (n = 38). Immunohistochemical staining for SMAD4 expression was scored by a blinded pathologist and correlated with clinicopathologic features and oncologic outcomes. Results Twenty-nine percent of the gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumors were SMAD4-negative and 71% SMAD4-positive. Median overall survival was 155 months (95% confidence interval, 102–208 months). Loss of SMAD4 was associated with both decreased median disease-free survival (28 months; 95% confidence interval, 16–40) months compared with 223 months (95% confidence interval, 3–443 months) for SMAD4-positive patients (P = .03) and decreased median disease-specific survival (SMAD4: 137 [95% confidence interval, 81–194] months versus SMAD4-positive: 204 [95% confidence interval, 143–264] months; P = .04). This translated into a decrease in median overall survival (SMAD4-negative: 125 (95% confidence interval, 51–214) months versus SMAD4-positive: 185 (95% confidence interval, 138–232) months; P = .02). Conclusion Consistent with the known biology of the DPC4/SMAD4 gene, an absence of its protein expression in primary gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumors was negatively associated with outcomes after curative operative resection.
Evaluating medical students’ proficiency with a handheld ophthalmoscope: a pilot study

INTRODUCTION Historically, testing medical students' skills using a handheld ophthalmoscope has been difficult to do objectively. Many programs train students using plastic models of the eye which are a very limited fidelity simulator of a real human eye. This makes it difficult to be sure that actual proficiency is attained given the differences between the various models and actual patients. The purpose of this article is to introduce a method of testing where a medical student must match a patient with his/her fundus photo, ensuring objective evaluation as well as developing skills on real patients which are more likely to transfer into clinical practice directly. PRESENTATION OF CASE Fundus photos from standardized patients (SPs) were obtained using a retinal camera and placed into a grid using proprietary software. Medical students were then asked to examine a SP and attempt to match the patient to his/her fundus photo in the grid. RESULTS Of the 33 medical students tested, only 10 were able to match the SP's eye to the correct photo in the grid. The average time to correct selection was 175 seconds, and the successful students rated their confidence level at 27.5% (average). The incorrect selection took less time, averaging 118 seconds, yet yielded a higher student-reported confidence level at 34.8% (average). The only noteworthy predictor of success (p<0.05) was the student's age (p=0.02). CONCLUSION It may be determined that there is an apparent gap in the ophthalmoscopy training of the students tested. It may also be of concern that students who selected the incorrect photo were more confident in their selections than students who chose the correct photo. More training may be necessary to close this gap, and future studies should attempt to establish continuing protocols in multiple centers.
Speaking of Possibilities: The Theistic Actualism of Anselm's Divine Locutio

In his Monologion, Anselm represents God's knowledge of his creative possibilities, not in the intellectualist and Platonic terms of Augustine's divine ideas, but in the linguistic, poetic, and semi-Stoic terms of a divine “utterance” or “expression” (locutio). Through his shift in theological metaphor, Anselm makes a subtle yet significant departure from the prevailing, “possibilist” model of divine possibility in western theology—according to which God's possibilities are known prior to and independently of any act or intention to create—towards a radically alternate, analogical and “actualist” appreciation of God as the sovereign speaker and inventor of his own possibilities.