cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Role of SiO in Si Oxidation at a Si-SiO2 Interface

Deal and Grove (1) modeled thin oxide growth by a Si-SiO2 interfacial reaction whose rate is expected to vary linearly with time and exhibit a first order dependence on oxidant pressure. Deviations from this model, which increase with a decrease in temperature, are observed during oxidation in dry O2 for oxides ≤ 30 nm thick. To account for the unexplained thin oxide growth process, it was proposed (2) that molecular SiO is formed in parallel with SiO2. SiO formation and transport from the Si-SiO2 interface into SiO2 are identified as as a parallel oxidation process that originate at the interface and that affect Si02 growth. Experimental studies supporting this previously proposed model show a) evidence of significant SiO transport for oxide films that are ≲ 30 nm thick and b) that oxidation to SiO2 is inhibited by blocking the intermediate step in which SiO forms.
P117 : MASKING OF HLA IGG ANTIBODIES BY HLA IGM ANTIBODIES IN SINGLE ANTIGEN BEAD TESTING

Aim On postoperative day (POD) 17 after deceased donor transplant, an 18 month old kidney recipient experienced acute humoral and cellular rejection with high titer HLA class 1 & 2 donor specific antibodies (DSA) present. The recipient was exposed to transfusions, but showed only DPB ∗ 04:01 DSA at an MFI of 792 in pretransplant sera. This was determined with the Luminex Single Antigen Bead (SAB) assay for IgG HLA antibodies after heat inactivation (HI) of serum. Pronased flow crossmatch produced negative results with peak PRA and current sera. The speed that DSA appeared post transplant (POD 9) suggested undetected DSA was present pretransplant. Further methods were explored in an attempt to detect the hidden antibodies. Methods HI day-of-transplant serum was tested with Flow PRA Specific Beads, and found to have both IgG and IgM HLA DSA. The serum was dialyzed to precipitate IgM euglobulin. The IgM depleted fraction was tested by the same methods. Luminex SAB testing for IgG and IgM were performed as separate assays, using PE labeled anti-IgG or anti-IgM. Flow PRA Specific Bead testing was done as a single combined test using FITC labeled anti-IgG and APC labeled anti-IgM. Results After HI, IgM antibody was detectable by Luminex SAB and Flow PRA. Dialysis was able to remove IgM antibodies. Flow PRA efficiently detected IgG and IgM in a single assay. IgG DSA that was not found by Luminex SAB was detected by Flow PRA. When IgM was removed by dialysis, multiple IgG DSA antibodies were unmasked in Luminex SAB. Adding back the re-dissolved IgM euglobulin fraction to Luminex IgG SAB decreased DSA MFI values. Conclusion Patients frequently make both IgG and IgM HLA antibodies. Heat inactivation does not effectively remove IgM antibodies. High epitope density of Luminex SAB increases sensitivity to IgG anti-HLA antibodies. It also increases the possibility of competitive inhibition from IgM anti-HLA antibodies. IgG Luminex SAB testing alone may not be sufficient for detecting all HLA antibodies that may have clinical relevance. DSA results for day of transplant serum. Donor HLA type Luminex Single Antigen IgG Luminex Single Antigen IgG Dialyzed Luminex Single Antigen IgG Dialyzed Luminex Single Antigen IgM Flow PRA Single Antigen IgG Flow PRA Single Antigen IgG Dialyzed Flow PRA Single Antigen IgG Dialyzed Flow PRA Single Antigen IgM A 01, 02 – – 01 – – 02 – – B 08, 57 – 57 8, 57 – – 57 57 – C 06, 07 – – 06, 07 – – – – – DR 07, 17 – – 07 – – 07 – – DQ 02, 09 – 02 09 – – 02 – – B345 B3 ∗ 01 – – – – – – – – DP 0101, 0401 0401 – 0101, 0401 – – 0401 – – “–” indicates no DSA present. Other antibody specificities may be present.
Supra-Postural Task Performance in Children with Cerebral Palsy: The Importance of Functional Context

Postural instability is a classical characteristic of cerebral palsy (CP), but it has not been examined in the during simultaneous supra-postural activity. It is important to study postural control in the context of other behaviors children perform when standing because recent work demonstrates that when motor tasks are made functionally more relevant, performance improves, even in individuals with movement pathology (Volman et al., 2001). If supra-postural tasks provide a functional context for postural control, children with CP might improve postural stability when performing supra-postural tasks. Thirty children with CP participated in this study. Their postural sway was quantified during performance of two different supra-postural manual tasks (a steadiness task involving keeping a pointer inside a target, and a task requiring balancing a marble inside a hollow tube), and compared to a control group (n = 30) of comparably aged, typically developing children. A baseline condition (no supra-postural task) was also included. Traditional measures of postural sway variability and non-linear quantification of patterns in the time-evolution of postural sway were analyzed using analyses of variance and appropriate simpleeffects and post-hoc tests. I hypothesized supra-postural task performance would reduce postural sway variability in both typically developing and CP children. I also hypothesized the postural sway of children with CP would exhibit rigid, stereotypical behavior and a decrease in complexity, in accordance with a growing body of research on the loss of behavioral and physiological complexity accompanying “dynamical CP and SPT performance v diseases” (West, 2006). I furthermore hypothesized that the latter difference would be attenuated during performance of the supra-postural tasks. The outcomes supported the hypotheses. Children with CP demonstrated changes in postural stability consistent with supra-postural task effects. The results were also consistent with the loss of complexity hypothesis, in that CP children demonstrated rigid and stereotypical postural sway patterns. However, their sway patterns became more complex and less predictable during suprapostural task performance, indicating that the functional context provided by the supra-postural task promoted a “healthier,” more complex sway pattern. These findings illustrate a degree of motor flexibility and adaptability in the postural control system, despite the pathological features associated with CP. CP and SPT performance vi CP and SPT performance vii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii ABSTRACT iv TABLE CAPTIONS ix FIGURE CAPTIONS x CHAPTER 1
Microfluorimetric Comparison of Chromatin during Cytodifferentiation

Cytodifferentiation is a continuous process of nucleocytoplaismic interactions which regulate the changes leading to a terminally differentiated state. Classical literature abounds with elegant descriptions of the morphological changes and staining characteristics of cells as they undergo this process. However, our knowledge concerning the regulatory mechanisms associated with specific biological processes and functions is severely limited. One of the main thrusts toward elucidation of these mechanisms has focused attention on the functional and structural properties of nuclear chromatin. Conventional biochemical techniques have been used primarily for the extraction and characterization of nuclear components. In such efforts, many investigators have been concerned with determining the influence of nuclear protein fractions on template activity of DNA and chromatin. Biophysical techniques, such as X-ray diffraction and circular dichroism, also have been used to study chromatin. Both biochemical and biophysical studies, however, generally require the use of large populations of cells and usually do not permit the multiparametric investigation of single cells, which in our opinion, is critical for the thorough understanding of regulatory mechanisms.
Recursion, Legibility, Use

Certain kinds of cognitive abilities are required for recursive structures to be legible. Once the basic abilities are in place and recursive structures become legible, our ability to construct and express complex ideas is unbounded. It is argued that the prerequisite cognitive abilities are rules of semantic composition, understood expressivistically – that is, they are higher-level operations on expressivist attitudes. These operations on attitudes place constraints on the grammar, since different operations make legible different kinds of recursive structures.
A Retrospective Analysis of Prolonged Empiric Antibiotic Therapy for Pneumonia Among Adult Neurocritical Care Patients

Background and Purpose:Current literature reports that half of critically ill patients are continued on broad-spectrum antibiotics beyond 72 hours despite no confirmed infection. The purpose of thi...
Clinical-Neuropathological Correlations of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias in Latino Volunteers

Clinical, neuropsychological, and neurological procedures used to diagnose Alzheimer's disease (AD) and related dementias were largely developed and validated in well-educated, non-Latino, English-speaking populations. Sociocultural and genetic differences in Latinos might influence the accuracy of clinical diagnosis of AD and other dementias. We aim to compare the accuracy of the clinical diagnosis of AD and related dementias in Latinos with the corresponding neuropathological diagnosis. From the UCSD Alzheimer's Disease Research Center longitudinal cohort, we selected all Latino participants who had autopsy neuropathological studies from 1991 to 2017. Participants underwent annual neurological clinical evaluations, standard neuropsychological tests, neuroimaging, and genotyping of Apolipoprotein E. We calculated the sensitivity and specificity of the clinical diagnosis of AD against the primary pathological diagnosis. Of the 34 participants with a primary neuropathological diagnosis of AD, 33 (97.1%) were correctly clinically diagnosed as having AD at the last clinical evaluation, and 1 was incorrectly diagnosed with dementia with Lewy bodies. Of the 19 participants without a primary neuropathological diagnosis of AD, 8 were incorrectly clinically diagnosed with probable AD at the last clinic evaluation. The clinical diagnosis of AD at the last clinical evaluation had 97.1% sensitivity and 57.9% specificity for autopsy-verified AD. In this Latino cohort, clinicians predicted AD pathological findings with high sensitivity but moderate specificity. Tangle-only dementia was the most common misdiagnosis. Our study suggests that current procedures and instruments to clinically determine AD in Latinos have high sensitivity compared with neuropathology, but specificity needs to be improved.
Application of an Implementation Science Framework to Policies on Immediate Postpartum Long-Acting Reversible Contraception.

Objectives:Implementation science provides useful tools for guiding and evaluating the integration of evidence-based interventions with standard practice. The objective of our study was to demonstr...
Prediction and Measurement of Perceptual-Behavioral Change in Drug-Induced Hallucinations

Hallucinations can be defined as intense sensations with simultaneously inhibited or even blocked intention and ability to verify those sensations through voluntary motor performance. Such a view can accommodate even Delay and Pichot’s [1] phantom sensations defined as kinesthetic hallucinations; indeed, phantom phenomena can impressively illustrate the meaning of our new definition of hallucinations since concomitant with the intensely active (phantom) sensation of a limb, the absence of the latter represents a complete “blocking” of motor manifestations. Further, Prevosnik and Eckenhoff [2] produced phantom sensation during spinal anesthesia by keeping the lower extremity flexed until the induction of motor paralysis. A proprioceptive phantom was produced, i.e. patients felt the extremity to be in the position prior to induction of motor blockade in spite of the fact that the limbs were returned to resting position after the induction of motor paralysis. The phantom persisted throughout motor blockade despite the loss of the sense of position.
The End of the World as They Knew It? Jews, Christians, Samaritans and End-Time Speculation in the Fifth Century

After the Christianization of the Roman empire, representations of Christ’s return no longer envisioned the end as the fall of an evil empire. Rather, relying especially on Romans 9–11, Christians focused particularly on expectations that the conversion of Jews would inaugurate the end. Jews—and Samaritans—however, envisioned the restoration of their Temple(s) and a political theocracy that would counter the power of the now Christianized Roman empire. This contribution considers four instances in the fifth-century c.e. in which such expectations played a significant role: an account of the conversion of the Jews of Minorca, framed as a prelude to the end; a millenarian episode on Crete whose narrator claims resulted in the mass conversion of Jews; a roughly contemporaneous possible messianic uprising in Jerusalem narrated in the Life of Barsauma, and a Samaritan revolt toward the end of the century. All may be understood as instances of intense contestations between Jews, Christians and Samaritans, in the wake of intensifying orthodox Christian pressures to conform the entire empire to that orthodoxy.
Preparation and in vitro release of fluorouracil polylactide glycolide-polyethylene glycol monomethyl ether nanoparticles

Abstract This report demonstrates a novel strategy to prepare fluorouracil polylactide glycolide-polyethylene glycol monomethyl ether (PLGA-mPEG) nanoparticles and study their in vitro release characteristics. Fluorouracil PLGA-mPEG nanoparticles were prepared by nanoprecipitation method. The encapsulation efficiency was determined by high performance liquid chromatography. Based on the single factor experiment, the prescription and preparation process were optimized by orthogonal experiments. The in vitro release characteristics of nanoparticles were studied by dynamic membrane dialysis. Results The prepared nanoparticles were relatively uniform spheroidal particles with an average particle size of about 124. 3 nm, a Zeta potential of - 20. 6 mV, and an average encapsulation efficiency of (44.72 ± 0.38%). In vitro drug release experiments showed that the particle burst release was less than 30% at 2 h, and the drug was slowly released within 48 h after burst release.
Meta-Deep Q-Learning for Eco-Routing

In this paper, a multi-objective deep Q-learning (MOM-DQL) method is developed for solving eco- routing problem in a signalized traffic network. The problem is formulated as dynamic multi- objective Markov decision processes (MOMDPs). MOM- DQL can explore the optimal eco-routes with respect to driversâ€™ different preferences on saving travel time and fuel. The MOM-DQL agent is trained under a series of learning environments that are based on historical vehicle trajectories, fuel consumption, and traffic signal status in the remote data center. The model that represents the action value function of the historical dynamic driving conditions can be downloaded to the vehicle requesting eco-routing service. The model can quickly adapt to the most recent driving condition through online one-shot learning and predict the optimal eco-routes for the subsequent unseen driving condition of the signalized traffic network. Simulation shows that the MOM-DQL method can discover the optimal eco-routes, and saves 52% travel time and 33% fuel, compared to the shortest-path strategy that is widely used in navigation systems.
Female Bodies and Sexuality in Iran and the Search for Defiance: Nafiseh Sharifi, New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2018, ISBN 978-3-319-60975-1 (hbk), 978-3-319-86974-2 (pbk), 978-3-319-60976-8 (ebk), xi + 197 pp.

Nafiseh Sharifi’s book provides the reader with a thoughtful and profound analysis of two generations of Iranian women’s perceptions of their female bodies and sexuality through in-depth interviews...
Socially Anxious Science Achievers: The Roles of Peer Social Support and Social Engagement in the Relation Between Adolescents' Social Anxiety and Science Achievement.

Socially anxious youth are at an increased risk for academic underachievement, withdrawal from school, and negative peer relationships. Given that learning tasks in science classes rely heavily on peer collaboration and social skills, this study aimed to investigate the link between high-school adolescents’ social anxiety and their science achievement while also determining whether and how peer social support and social engagement mediated the relation. Data was collected from 805 high-school students (48.7% female; 30.9% in 9th, 24.0% in 10th, 25.3% in 11th, 19.8% in 12th grade; 51.2% White, 29.8% Black, 11.4% Biracial, 7.6% Other). The results showed that socially anxious adolescents were more likely to report lower social engagement, which in turn predicted lower science performance. In addition, adolescents with social anxiety tended to experience less peer social support, which led to lower social engagement and subsequent lower science performance. These findings have important implications for guiding teaching practice and school-based interventions that support socially anxious adolescents in learning tasks.
Chapter 99 – Congenital Myasthenic Syndromes

Congenital myasthenic syndromes (CMS) are heterogeneous disorders. Clinical, electrophysiologic, and morphologic studies have paved the way for detecting CMS-related mutations in proteins residing in the nerve terminal, the synaptic basal lamina, and in the postsynaptic region of the motor endplate. The disease proteins identified to date include choline acetyltransferase (ChAT), the endplate species of acetylcholinesterase (AChE), β2-laminin, the acetylcholine receptor (AChR), rapsyn, plectin, and Nav1.4. Other mutations occur in proteins subserving endplate development and maintenance, namely agrin, MuSK, and Dok-7; and in proteins that subserve glycosylation, such as GFPT1, DPAGT1, ALG2 and ALG14. Myasthenic syndromes can also occur in combination with centronuclear myopathy defects in plectin. Analysis of the properties of the expressed mutants contributed to finding improved therapy for most CMS. Despite these advances, the molecular basis of some phenotypically characterized CMS remains elusive. Moreover, other types of CMS likely exist and await discovery.
Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy in the Study of Speech and Language Impairment Across the Life Span: A Systematic Review

Purpose Functional brain imaging is playing an increasingly important role in the diagnosis and treatment of communication disorders, yet many populations and settings are incompatible with functional magnetic resonance imaging and other commonly used techniques. We conducted a systematic review of neuroimaging studies using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) with individuals with speech or language impairment across the life span. We aimed to answer the following question: To what extent has fNIRS been used to investigate the neural correlates of speech-language impairment? Method This systematic review was preregistered with PROSPERO, the international prospective register of systematic reviews (CRD42019136464). We followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) protocol for preferred reporting items for systematic reviews. The database searches were conducted between February and March of 2019 with the following search terms: (a) fNIRS or functional near-infrared spectroscopy or NIRS or near-infrared spectroscopy, (b) speech or language, and (c) disorder or impairment or delay. Results We found 34 fNIRS studies that involved individuals with speech or language impairment across nine categories: (a) autism spectrum disorders; (b) developmental speech and language disorders; (c) cochlear implantation and deafness; (d) dementia, dementia of the Alzheimer's type, and mild cognitive impairment; (e) locked-in syndrome; (f) neurologic speech disorders/dysarthria; (g) stroke/aphasia; (h) stuttering; and (i) traumatic brain injury. Conclusions Though it is not without inherent challenges, fNIRS may have advantages over other neuroimaging techniques in the areas of speech and language impairment. fNIRS has clinical applications that may lead to improved early and differential diagnosis, increase our understanding of response to treatment, improve neuroprosthetic functioning, and advance neurofeedback.
Surgical Tracking, Registration, and Navigation Characterization for Image-guided Renal Interventions

Most image-guided interventions rely on surgical tracking and image/model to patient registration to establish a spatial relationship between the patient and the pre- and intraprocedural images, by using surgical tracking and localization systems. In this work, we characterize the tracking, registration and navigation accuracy using two different surgical localization systems – the NDI Polaris Spectra optical tracking system and the NDI Aurora electromagnetic tracking system – in the context of an image-guided renal intervention, using a 3D printed life-size model of a patient-specific kidney phantom generated from a CT image. Our results reported a 0.05 mm fiducial localization error, 0.70 mm fiducial registration error, and 0.78 mm target registration error, and 0.63 mm overall navigation error using the optical tracking, and 0.12 mm fiducial localization error, 0.78 mm fiducial registration error, 0.93 mm target registration error and 0.89 mm overall navigation error using electromagnetic tracking. Additionally, our study also showed similarity between the overall navigation accuracy using optical (0.63 mm RMS error) or electromagnetic tracking (0.89 mm RMS error) and the overall navigation accuracy achieved using direct visualization of the surgical scene (0.68 mm and 1.06 RMS error respectively), which serves as a baseline control metric.
Clinical Term Normalization Using Learned Edit Patterns and Subconcept Matching: System Development and Evaluation.

Background: Clinical terms mentioned in clinical text are often not in their standardized forms as listed in clinical terminologies because of linguistic and stylistic variations. However, many automated downstream applications require clinical terms mapped to their corresponding concepts in clinical terminologies, thus necessitating the task of clinical term normalization. Objective: In this paper, a system for clinical term normalization is presented that utilizes edit patterns to convert clinical terms into their normalized forms. Methods: The edit patterns are automatically learned from the Unified Medical Language System (UMLS) Metathesaurus as well as from the given training data. The edit patterns are generalized sequences of edits that are derived from edit distance computations. The edit patterns are both character based as well as word based and are learned separately for different semantic types. In addition to these edit patterns, the system also normalizes clinical terms through the subconcepts mentioned within them. Results: The system was evaluated as part of the 2019 n2c2 Track 3 shared task of clinical term normalization. It obtained 80.79% accuracy on the standard test data. This paper includes ablation studies to evaluate the contributions of different components of the system. A challenging part of the task was disambiguation when a clinical term could be normalized to multiple concepts. Conclusions: The learned edit patterns led the system to perform well on the normalization task. Given that the system is based on patterns, it is human interpretable and is also capable of giving insights about common variations of clinical terms mentioned in clinical text that are different from their standardized forms.
Achieving positive classroom experiences for Latino K-5 students

Creating proactive classroom experiences for Latino students in K-5 settings requires intentional support and knowledge among classroom teachers. Educating Latino students is a complex task given t...
Patient Experience with Postpartum Pain Management in the Face of the Opioid Crisis.

Introduction Professional societies have urged providers to reduce opioid use for pain management. Accordingly, the objective of this study was to assess patient experiences related to postpartum pain management in an effort to better understand potential paths to achieve such a reduction. Methods This is a planned secondary analysis of a prospective observational study of opioid use following birth. In the primary study, women who received opioids as inpatients were queried about their pain management, including questions about pain experience, pain satisfaction, perceived areas for practice improvement, and the opportunity to leave additional comments. Participants who were prescribed opioids upon discharge completed postdischarge surveys with a similar opportunity for qualitative input. Data were analyzed using the constant comparative method to identify themes and subthemes. Results Of the 493 women enrolled in the primary analysis, 125 provided qualitative data. Three overarching themes regarding pain management were identified: positive experiences (n = 22), negative experiences (n = 19), and beliefs and preferences on opioid use and pain management (n = 28). Women with positive experiences reported satisfaction with timely pain medication administration and appreciation of open dialogue with their care team. In contrast, several negative experiences centered on tardy administration of pain medications, resulting in increased pain. Patients also perceived judgment, accusation, and excessive lecturing by staff when requesting opioid medications. Finally, participants expressed the necessity for opioids for postpartum pain management, as well as their desires for limiting opioid use, improved options for multimodal pain management, and increased communication with providers about pain regimens. Discussion Understanding women's perspectives and experiences regarding postpartum pain control is essential to improving care. Amid growing research on the role of maternity care providers in addressing the opioid crisis, women's voices are rarely solicited. These findings stress the importance of open and frequent dialogue between patients and providers and a need for multimodal pain management options.
Stereo Digital Image Correlation with Improved Depth of Field using Tilt-Shift Photography

Stereo digital image correlation (DIC) is a non-contacting technique to obtain full-field displacement and strain fields from the surface of a deforming object by comparing images recorded before and after deformation. With stereo measurement techniques, out-of-plane measurements are often limited by the depth of field achieved in an image. Tilt-shift photography uses the Scheimpflug principle to improve depth of field by rotating the image plane with respect to the camera sensor. This is implemented using a tilt-shift lens mount, which imposes an angle of tilt between the lens and the camera sensor. In this stereo-DIC study, images were taken using a range of stereo camera angles with either the lens tilted or not tilted to impose the Scheimpflug effect. A series of rigid body displacements were then measured for each combination of stereo and tilt angles. An evaluation of the means and standard deviations of the measurements shows that Scheimpflug adjustment offers minimal improvement when measuring rigid body displacements, but significant improvement at reducing artificial strains.
A Qualitative Study of Facilitators and Barriers to Self-Management of CKD

Introduction Self-management is an integral component of chronic kidney disease (CKD) treatment. Nevertheless, many patients with CKD do not adequately engage in self-management behaviors, and little is known on the underlying reasons. We aimed to identify and describe the factors that influence self-management behaviors from the perspective of adults with CKD. Methods We conducted 30 semistructured interviews with adults with CKD stage 3 or 4 from an academic nephrology clinic in the United States. Interviews were analyzed thematically. Results The following are the 3 key phases of CKD self-management behavior engagement identified: (i) prioritization, (ii) performance, and (iii) maintenance. Prioritization was favorably influenced by optimism, stress management, and patient-provider communication and hampered by fatalism and competing priorities. Behavior performance was facilitated by motivating factors, self-efficacy, and support resources and impeded by comorbid conditions that caused treatment burden and adverse symptoms. Behavior maintenance relied on effective routines, influenced by similar factors as behavior performance, and reinforced by memory aids, goal setting, self-monitoring, and proactive preparation. Conclusion We identified modifiable facilitators and barriers that influence the incorporation of CKD self-management into daily life. Our findings have important implications for the care of patients with CKD by providing a framework for providers to develop effective, tailored approaches to promote self-management engagement.
Development of a typology of common adolescent free time activities: a validation and extension of Kleiber, Larson, and Csikszentmihalyi.

Kleiber, Larson, and Csikszentmihalyi (1986) recently reported a study in which experience sampling data were used to develop a typology of common adolescent free time activities. This paper descri...
Cash Flows and Financing in Texas Agriculture

The rapid increase of real estate debt and nonreal estate debt outstanding in the farm sector at the national level is well documented [e.g., 2, 4, 6]. Reasons for these increases include the rapid consolidation of land ownership, continuing adoption of capital intensive technology, greater off-farm purchases of operating inputs, increases in land values, and other such factors. On the one hand the ability of the farm sector to attract this debt is encouraging. Yet, serious questions arise concerning agriculture's liquidity position, repayment capacity, and the actual performance of its finance market. Much of the increased debt came from land sellers, other individuals, and merchants and dealers. None of these are specialized lenders.
Type II chaperonins, prefoldin, and the tubulin-specific chaperones.

Publisher Summary This chapter describes several experiments that give a qualitative feel for how Type II chaperonins might facilitate protein folding. Imaging of CCT/actin complexes and experiments on actin and tubulin folding in vitro suggest that target proteins bind to chaperonin in a surprisingly native-like state, probably consisting of only one or a few kinetically trapped folding intermediates. Chaperonins are a specialized but ubiquitous group of molecular chaperones that are characterized by a multisubunit ring structure. Chaperonins exist in all kingdoms of life, in all cases using cycles of ATP binding and hydrolysis to generate allosteric changes that promote the correct folding of bound target protein. Type I chaperonins are present in prokaryotes (exemplified by GroEL/GroES), in mitochondria (exemplified by Hsp60/hspl0), and in chloroplasts (exemplified by Rubisco subunit binding protein), while Type II chaperonins include the chaperonin present in archaea (exemplified by the thermosome) and the chaperonin present in the cytosol of eukaryotes (referred to here as CCT, for cytosolic chaperonin-containing TCP-1, but which is also termed c-cpn or TriC). Indeed, chaperones in general appear to function by releasing and rebinding target proteins, allowing a kinetic partition of folding intermediates among the chaperone proteins present in the cell, and leading to their folding, subcellular sorting, or degradation.
Oligonucleotide probe hybridization and modeling results suggest that populations consuming readily degradable substrate have high cellular RNA levels

Analyses based on ribosomal RNA (rRNA)-targeted hybridization performed in our laboratory identified two types of bacterial populations: a population with a high RNA level per biomass and a population with a low level of RNA per biomass. To extend these descriptions, the diurnal dynamics of the RNA pool were monitored by rRNA-targeted oligonucleotide probe membrane hybridization. Under the typical diurnal variation in COD loading rate experienced by municipal wastewater treatment plants, the RNA level of the bacterial population with a high level of RNA per biomass varied with changes in the COD loading rate. Under the same conditions, the RNA level of the population with low RNA level per biomass remained constant. A structured biomass model was developed to describe these data. Substrate COD was divided into a readily biodegradable and a slowly biodegradable COD fraction. It was assumed that two specialized populations coexist in municipal activated sludge treatment systems. One population consumes readily degradable COD and the other consumes slowly degradable COD. According to model simulations, the population consuming readily degradable COD has a high level of RNA per biomass under variable substrate concentrations. Comparatively, the population consuming slowly degradable COD has a low level of RNA level per biomass. Furthermore, model simulations reproduced the two diurnal RNA profiles observed in a full-scale municipal activated sludge system. Therefore, we suggest that two populations can be distinguished in municipal activated sludge systems: a population consuming readily degradable substrate and a population consuming slowly degradable substrate.
The postschool outcomes of students with mild intellectual disability: does it get better with time?

Background Although students with mild intellectual disability (MID) present unique educational needs and considerations, in research and in practice, they are sometimes aggregated with students with learning disabilities and emotional disorders and considered mild disabilities or aggregated with students with moderate/severe intellectual disability and labelled as intellectual disability. Method This study is a secondary analysis of the NLTS2 data to understand the immediate (i.e. within 2 years) and longer-term outcomes (i.e. within 4 years, within 6 years and within 8 years) of secondary students with MID. Frequency distributions and a significant test were conducted to analyse data from the NLTS2. Results Students with MID struggled with postschool success when considering employment, postsecondary education, and independent living. Across the span of time since graduation (i.e. within 2 years, within 4 years, within 6 years, and within 8 years), a lack of consistent pattern existed, in general, for these students with regards to outcomes. Students did not necessarily improve or decline in their outcomes the longer they were out of school. Conclusions The postschool outcome data warrant critical examination of the factors contributing to the poor outcomes. The field needs to systematically understand what schools can control with regards to improved outcomes for students with MID – particularly employment regardless of the length of time out of school and independent living as the time since school exit increases – and then implement such practices.
Atoms in external fields

We consider now the effect of an external magnetic field on single-electron atoms (with a central potential). We use, at the moment, CGS units instead of atomic units. We shall see that part of the effect of the magnetic field depends on the intrinsic spin, another part, connected with the orbital angular momentum, is independent of spin.
Monorail Maglev Technology

This paper summarizes work presently under way at MIT to determine some of the data needed to establish a national U. S. maglev system. Our work is focused on developing a narrow beam guideway for Electro Dynamic Suspension and Linear Synchronous Motor propulsion; a design that meets the needs of the U. S now and in the future. This guideway and motor are adaptable to a range of vehicle sizes and speeds so as to allow appropriate evolution. Present demand estimates are typically low enough that guideway cost is significantly higher than the sum of vehicle, labor, and maintenance costs. However, we know that with time the capital cost will be paid off and demand will increase until these other costs dominate. Thus it is necessary to be very careful in creating a guideway and motor design that will be suitable for the U. S. for many decades.
Potassium Bromate Assay by Redox Titrimetry Using Arsenic Trioxide

Bromate, a disinfectant, is one of the analytes of interest in wastewater analysis. Environmental laboratories have a regulatory need for their measurements to be traceable to NIST standards. Bromate is not currently certified as a NIST Standard Reference Material (SRM). Therefore, a traceable assay of potassium bromate (KBrO3) is needed. KBrO3 was dissolved in water and assayed by redox titrimetry using arsenic trioxide (As2O3). A nominal (0.1 g) sample of As2O3 was dissolved in 10 mL of 5 mol/L sodium hydroxide. The solution was acidified with hydrochloric acid and about 95 % of the KBrO3 titrant was added gravimetrically. The end point was determined by addition of dilute (1:3) titrant using an automated titrator. The KBrO3 assay was determined to be 99.76 % ± 0.20 %. The expanded uncertainty considered the titrations of three independently prepared KBrO3 solutions.
The use of spectral skin reflectivity and laser doppler vibrometry data to determine the optimal site and wavelength to collect human vital sign signatures

The carotid artery has been used extensively by researchers to demonstrate that Laser Doppler Vibrometry (LDV) is capable of exploiting vital sign signatures from cooperative human subjects at stando. Research indicates that, the carotid, although good for cooperative and non-traumatic scenarios, is one of the first vital signs to become absent or irregular when a casualty is hemorrhaging and in progress to circulatory (hypovolemic) shock. In an effort to determine the optimal site and wavelength to measure vital signs off human skin, a human subject data collection was executed whereby 14 subjects had their spectral skin reflectivity and vital signs measured at five collection sites (carotid artery, chest, back, right wrist and left wrist). In this paper, we present our findings on using LDV and re ectivity data to determine the optimal collection site and wavelength that should be used to sense pulse signals from quiet and relatively motionless human subjects at stando. In particular, we correlate maximum levels of re ectivity across the ensemble of 14 subjects with vital sign measurements made with an LDV at two ranges, for two scenarios.
Gold-Adatom-Mediated Bonding in Self-Assembled Short-Chain Alkanethiolate Species on the Au(111) Surface

Microscopic evidence for Au-adatom-induced self-assembly of alkanethiolate species on the Au(111) surface is presented. Based on STM measurements and density-functional theory calculations, a new model for the low-coverage self-assembled monolayer of alkanethiolate on the Au(111) surface is developed, which involves the adsorbate complexes incorporating Au adatoms. It is also concluded that the Au(111) herringbone reconstruction is lifted by the alkanethiolate self-assembly because the reconstructed surface layer provides reactive Au adatoms that drive self-assembly.
Cross-Cultural Issues in Information Systems Research: A Research Program

The diverse multicultural aspects and emerging organizational structures associated with global information systems (IS) provide a rich area for extended research programs. The strongest programs will be built on a multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary foundation and are guided by a strong theoretical model based on current knowledge. Such a model is developed in this paper to focus on a research program for international information systems, give participants a common frame of reference, and set the stage for individual project models. The focus of the discussion is on the effects of multicultural environments on technology development and use in organizations. A review of the nature of international organizations and processes is used to provide a framework for an explanation of the program. To illustrate this program, specific research projects in two substantive areas are proposed and described in detail. As the discussion progresses from the general to the specific, a system for developing research projects will emerge and be discussed.
Analysis and Application of Soft Reduction Amount for Bloom Continuous Casting Process

Based on the principle of solidification shrinkage compensation, a soft reduction amount calculation method was derived for bloom continuous casting process, and the bearing steel GCr15 was chosen as specific research steel to describe calculation process in detail. A two-dimensional heat transfer model was built to predict the solidification process of bloom, and the material properties of GCr15 were derived by weighted averaging of the phase fractions. The predicted temperature and shell thickness were verified by a thermal infrared camera and nail shooting results, respectively. The soft reduction amount of typical high carbon alloy steel blooms were calculated and discussed. The plant results showed that after the application of soft reduction to the bloom, centerline segregation and “V” type segregation were improved significantly. The carbon and sulfur ratios of the bloom centerline were reduced from 1.39 to 1.09 and 2.14 to 1.29, respectively.
Facets of the three-index assignment polytope

Abstract Given three disjoint n-sets and the family of all weighted triplets that contain exactly one element of each set, the 3-index assignment (or 3-dimensional matching) problem asks for a minimum-weight subcollection of triplets that covers exactly (i.e., partitions) the union of the three sets. Unlike the common (2-index) assignment problem, the 3-index problem is NP-complete. In this paper we examine the facial structure of the 3-index assignment polytope (the convex hull of feasible solutions to the problem) with the aid of the intersection graph of the coefficient matrix of the problem's constraint set. In particular, we describe the cliques of the intersection graph as belonging to three distinct classes, and show that cliques in two of three classes induce inequalities that define facets of our polytope. Furthermore, we give an O(n4) procedure (note that the number of variables is n3) for finding a facet-defining clique-inequality violated by a given noninteger solution to the linear programming relaxation of the 3-index assignment problem, or showing that no such inequality exists. We then describe the odd holes of the intersection graph and identify two classes of facets associated with odd holes that are easy to generate. One class has coefficients of 0 or 1, the other class coefficients of 0, 1 or 2. No odd hole inequality has left-hand side coefficients greater than two.
A link between p73 transcriptional activity and p73 degradation.

Top of pageAbstract The p53 family of proteins includes three members, p53, p63, and p73. The levels and stability of p53 are controlled in large part by MDM2, which can bind the p53 N-terminus and promote its degradation. Because the MDM2 gene is transcriptionally activated by p53, it forms part of an autoregulatory feedback loop that directly links the transcriptional activity of p53 with its degradation. In contrast, little is known about the mechanisms that control p63 or p73 stability. In the current study, p73 deletion or point mutants that lacked transactivation activity were stable compared to wild-type p73. A naturally occurring p73 variant (Np73) was also stable compared to wild-type p73. Finally, fusion of the VP16-transactivation domain to an inactive, stable p73 mutant restored transactivation function and rendered the mutant protein unstable. These results demonstrate that p73 transactivation activity is necessary for rapid p73 turnover, and suggest that one or more transcriptional targets of p73 may promote its degradation. Keywords: p53, p73, degradation
Artificial Radiation Belt Discussed in Symposium at Goddard Space Center

Artificial radiation belt produced by nuclear explosion and composed principally of electrons
Behavioral science, engineering, and poetry revisited.

Forty years ago, Lehrman (1971) identified 2 orientations to the study of animal behavior. The natural history orientation conducted field and lab research designed to reveal how animals cope with the circumstances of their natural environment. Such research reveals the diversity among different types of animals and differences between the world of animals and the world of humans (i.e., “poetry”). In contrast, the anthropocentric orientation studies animals either to generate animal-derived general laws applicable to humans or to provide experimental information that, for ethical and practical reasons, cannot be acquired from human research. The primary motivation for the anthropocentric orientation is to provide workable models for investigating specifically human problems (i.e., “engineering”). Evidence is presented from the study of bird song that demonstrates the contribution that the “poetic” approach can make to anthropocentric (“engineering”) concerns.
Interrogating translational efficiency and lineage-specific transcriptomes using ribosome affinity purification

Transcriptional profiling is a useful strategy to study development and disease. Approaches to isolate RNA from specific cell types, or from specific cellular compartments, would extend the power of this strategy. Previous work has shown that isolation of genetically tagged ribosomes (translating ribosome affinity purification; TRAP) is an effective means to isolate ribosome-bound RNA selectively from transgene-expressing cells. However, widespread application of this technology has been limited by available transgenic mouse lines. Here we characterize a TRAP allele (Rosa26fsTRAP) that makes this approach more widely accessible. We show that endothelium-specific activation of Rosa26fsTRAP identifies endothelial cell-enriched transcripts, and that cardiomyocyte-restricted TRAP is a useful means to identify genes that are differentially expressed in cardiomyocytes in a disease model. Furthermore, we show that TRAP is an effective means for studying translational regulation, and that several nuclear-encoded mitochondrial genes are under strong translational control. Our analysis of ribosome-bound transcripts also shows that a subset of long intergenic noncoding RNAs are weakly ribosome-bound, but that the majority of noncoding RNAs, including most long intergenic noncoding RNAs, are ribosome-bound to the same extent as coding transcripts. Together, these data show that the TRAP strategy and the Rosa26fsTRAP allele will be useful tools to probe cell type-specific transcriptomes, study translational regulation, and probe ribosome binding of noncoding RNAs.