cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Human Placental Production of lα,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3: Biochemical Characterization and Production in Normal Subjects and Patients with Pseudohypoparathyroidism*

Biochemical characterization of placental 25-hydroxyvitamin D3-1 alpha-hydroxylase was performed in placentas from eight normal women. Production of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25-(OH)2D3] was linear with time; the mean production rate was 282 +/- 74 (+/- SE) pg/mg protein X h. Only the fetally derived trophoblasts had significant 1 alpha-hydroxylase activity, and this was located solely in mitochondria. Kinetic analysis of 1 alpha-hydroxylation in isolated mitochondria from normal placentas disclosed a Km for 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 of 0.57 microM. To assess whether placentas from women with disorders of vitamin D metabolism could also produce 1,25-(OH)2D3, we measured the placental production rates of 1,25-(OH)2D3 in three women with PTH-resistant hypoparathyroidism (pseudohypoparathyroidism) during four separate pregnancies. Their mean production rate of 1,25-(OH)2D3 was 353 +/- 184 pg/mg protein X h, a value not significantly different from that of normal placentas. Therefore, placental production of 1,25-(OH)2D3 may provide a significant contribution to the circulating concentration of 1,25-(OH)2D3. In women with PTH-resistant hypoparathyroidism, in whom the renal capacity to synthesize 1,25-(OH)2D3 is impaired, placental production of 1,25-(OH)2D3 is not compromised.
A Review of Poll Everywhere Audience Response System

Poll Everywhere, an audience response system based on cell phone texting technology, was tested in two undergraduate social work classes with very positive results. A survey conducted in one class reveals that two-thirds of the students answered every question and 14% most of the questions; over 90% found text-based polling to be either easy or extremely easy to use; over 90% thought it helped them learn class material; and over 80% would recommend or highly recommend its use. The instructors, too, found many strengths to this system. It is very easy to use, proved to be an effective way to engage students and increase class participation, free for a class size up to 40 students, and free to students with cell phone plans with unlimited text messaging. With the vast majority of college students owning cell phones, and text messaging serving as their primary form of cell phone communication, this technology is an intuitive, cost-effective, user-friendly technology that can enhance students' learning and cl...
Objective measurement of eating rate during behavioral treatment of obesity

This study assessed changes in eating behavior of 10 obese women who participated in a behavioral weight control program. Eating rate, hunger, and satiety were measured during consumption of a standardized laboratory meal at weeks 1, 28 and 41 of treatment. Subjects increased their meal length (i.e., slowed their rate of eating) significantly from weeks 1 to 28. Increased meal length was associated with greater weight loss. Meal length returned to baseline levels at week 41, however, and there was no longer a significant relationship between changes in meal length and weight loss. Subjects indicated at all three assessment periods that they were significantly more satiated 15 minutes after their meal than at its immediate conclusion. These results are consistent with recommendations provided in behavioral weight control programs to slow the rate of eating. Clinical efforts must be directed toward sustaining changes in eating behavior, which appear to fade with time.
Prevalence of antibody to hepatitis B virus in foreign-born hospital employees

Hepatitis B surface and core antibodies were measured in 512 community hospital employees at increased risk for developing infection with hepatitis B virus. Antibody was detected in 140 (27 percent) participants. Multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that seropositivity was strongly associated with the prevalence of hepatitis B in an employee's country of birth and with age. These results suggest that reported differences among hospitals in hepatitis B seropositivity may in part be a reflection of the national origin of its employees. These data also indicate that each hospital should assess its own risk for hepatitis B infection and that prevaccination serologic testing is particularly worthwhile in hospitals having large numbers of foreign-born employees.
State Unification: Domestic Weakness or Foreign Threat?

Uniting States: Voluntary Union in World Politics. By Parent Joseph M. New York: Oxford University Press, 2011. 244 pp. $75.81. hardcover (ISBN: 978-0-19-978219-2). In Uniting States: Voluntary Union in World Politics , Joseph M. Parent seeks to explain voluntary political union among states in the international system. He argues that successful union results from the specific kinds of security threats facing fragmented states. The critical threats are those that reveal problems in the status quo and offer potential security benefits from unification. Unification then occurs when political entrepreneurs convince audiences that union can secure solutions to joint security problems. He contrasts the utility of his realist approach with alternative explanations from constructivism, liberalism, and binding theories and argues for its analytical superiority. To Parent, unification is a threat-driven process that flows from a security crisis. He emphasizes American concerns with Great Britain, Spain, and native populations as the paramount motivation for the Constitutional Convention and the resulting federation. This emphasis will likely find favor among international relations scholars focused on the impact of the international system on nation behavior. Uniting States is written in a lively manner. Parent presents his argument avoiding tedium with much-appreciated wit. The presentation is very readable and should be accessible to a wide audience including undergraduate and graduate students as well as researchers interested in international relations. On the other hand, as an Americanist and a student of federalism, I had mixed feelings about this argument. Certainly, if security were not an issue, history may have turned out very differently. However, security was only part of a complex of important and interrelated political and economic forces in operation between the Revolution and the Constitution. Parent opines that the Articles of Confederation functioned well, that the economy had weathered a recession, and that Shays' Rebellion was largely a trivial sideshow, possibly fostered by the British. The fortunate timing of the Rebellion, for instance, allowed political entrepreneurs to capitalize upon …
Lending a hand: Competence through cooperation in Nepal's Deaf associations

Since forming contacts with international Deaf associations promoting an ethnolinguistic model of Deafness, members of Nepal's Deaf associations define Deafness by competence in Nepali Sign Language rather than audiological status. By analyzing the ideological and interactional processes through which homesigners are incorporated into Nepali Deaf social life, this article explores the effects of local beliefs about the nature of language, personhood, and competence on this model of Deafness. Due to former linguistic isolation, many homesigners are constrained in their ability to acquire Nepali Sign Language and, in social contexts where ideological conceptions of language use highlight individual competencies, would not be included in a Deaf social category. However, Nepali conceptions of socially distributed personhood contribute to a focus on the dialogically emergent dimensions of semiosis. As a result, recognition as a competent signer in this context can depend less on individual cognitive ability than on social collaboration. (d/Deaf, sign language, competence, language ideologies)*
Are there variances of calculated free testosterone attributed to variations in albumin and sex hormone-binding globulin concentrations in men?

OBJECTIVE Calculated free testosterone (cFT) is determined from total testosterone (TT), sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG), and albumin (Alb) levels using mathematical formulae. Variations in cFT due to changes in SHBG or Alb have not been investigated. We evaluated potential cFT variances determined with fixed Alb (4.3 g/dL) and measured Alb, and the point at which low SHBG and Alb combinations produced significant cFT variance. METHOD We analyzed 11,176 data points from 5,797 men. cFT values with fixed versus actual Alb values were evaluated and compared. cFT levels were theoretically determined for all possible combinations of TT, SHBG, and Alb (8,343,552 combinations). Agreement between the 2 measures was assessed with Lin's concordance coefficient. RESULTS Mean Alb was 4.06 ± 0.32 g/dL. Mean SHBG was 39.0 ± 23.6 nmol/L. A fixed Alb of 4.3 g/dL did not produce significant variance for most cFT evaluations. Accuracy decreased when Alb was ≤3.5 g/dL in combination with SHBG ≤30 nmol/L, and this occurred in 1.2% of all data points. CONCLUSION A fixed Alb of 4.3 g/dL is acceptable for most clinical evaluations. If Alb is ≤3.5 g/dL and SHBG is ≤30 nmol/L, the variance increases, and a free testosterone (FT) measurement by equilibrium dialysis is warranted for better accuracy.
While You Were Sleepwalking: Science and Neurobiology of Sleep Disorders & the Enigma of Legal Responsibility of Violence During Parasomnia

In terms of medical science and legal responsibility, the sleep disorder category of parasomnias, chiefly REM sleep behavior disorder and somnambulism, pose an enigmatic dilemma. During an episode of parasomnia, individuals are neither awake nor aware, but their actions appear conscious. As these actions move beyond the innocuous, such as eating and blurting out embarrassing information, and enter the realm of rape and homicide, their degree of importance and relevance increases exponentially. Parasomnias that result in illegal activity, particularly violence, are puzzling phenomena for medicine and the law. Via a review of the pertinent medical literature, a general overview of the current scientific knowledge of parasomnias will be provided. Though this knowledge is far from complete, it can provide some neurobiological information about the nature of parasomnia, including conclusions about a sleepwalker’s level of intention as well as factors that predispose one to such episodes. Although a parasomniac’s complete lack of consciousness warrants acquittal from criminal liability, it does not exclude responsibility for subjecting oneself to exacerbating factors that result in these violent parasomnias. Individuals should be held accountable if they could be expected to control these factors. In addition, they should undergo appropriate treatment and management in order to prevent future parasomnia behaviors. Establishing a legal defense for parasomnia will prove difficult due to the strong potential for malingering, so specific criteria will be outlined in order to distinguish between true and fraudulent claims of crimes committed during parasomniac states.
Urban contexts, spatially dispersed networks, and the diffusion of political information

Abstract This paper examines the spatial and temporal diffusion of political information within urban areas. We construct a multi-level analysis of information and communication, dependent on time, that is based on interviews with residents of the Indianapolis and St Louis metropolitan areas during the 1996 presidential election campaign. Moreover, based on a social network name generator, interviews were also conducted with discussants of the main respondents to the survey. Both sets of interviews are spread over a period of ten months, and we are able to locate the main respondents and their discussants within the urban neighborhoods where they reside. Hence, both the individual respondents and their discussants are located in time and space. Levels of aggregation are both dynamic and spatial, based on individuals who are located within residential neighborhoods and networks of social and political communication. We draw three main conclusions. First, not all networks are spatially dispersed, but some are, and the factors that give rise to spatial dispersion are directly related to an individual’s position in social structure. Second, spatially dispersed networks produce a number of important consequences, but none is more important than decreasing the density of the respondents’ communication networks. Finally, spatially dispersed networks are not necessarily politically diverse, but they are more likely to connect individuals who reside in socially and politically divergent settings.
Fractional Distribution of Right Ventricular Output in the Lungs of Dogs

Microspheres, approximately 50 µ in diameter and labeled with scandium46, were injected into the jugular vein of seven anesthetized dogs. Each lobe of lung contained nearly equal counts per minute per gram of tissue. This suggests that the indicator was completely mixed with the blood by the time it arrived in the pulmonary artery, and that the perfusion rate of blood per gram of lung is nearly identical for all lobes.
Orientational Changes of Crossbridges During Single Turnover of ATP

Muscle contraction results from rotation of actin-bound myosin crossbridges. Crossbridges consist of the globular N-terminal catalytic domain and the α-helical C-terminal regulatory domain containing the essential and regulatory light chains. The essential light chain exists in two isoforms, of which the larger one has a 41-amino acid extension piece added at the N-terminus. The catalytic domain is responsible for binding to actin and for setting the stage for the main force-generating event, which is a “swing” of the regulatory domain. We measured the kinetics of the swing associated with the turnover of a single molecule of ATP. Muscle was labeled at the regulatory domain by replacing native essential or regulatory light chain with fluorescent adducts. The rotations were measured by the anisotropy of fluorescence originating from ∼400 crossbridges residing in a small volume defined by a confocal aperture of a microscope. The crossbridges were synchronized by rapid photogeneration of a stoichiometric amount of ATP. The rotations reflected dissociation from thin filaments followed by a slow reattachment. The dissociation was the same for each light chain (halftime ∼120 ms) but the rate of reattachment depended on the type of light chain. The halftimes were 920 ± 50 ms and 660 ± 100 ms for isoforms 1 and 3 of the essential light chain, respectively. The reason that the lifetimes were so long was creation of a small amount of ATP, enough only for a single turnover of crossbridges. A model was constructed that quantitized this effect. After accounting for the slowdown, the halftimes of dissociation and attachment were 34 and 200 ms, respectively.
Flow Cytometric Ultrasensitive Molecular Detection And Applications

The traditional domain of flow cytometry has been the measurement of properties of discrete biological particles - primarily cells or chromosomes. In actuality, most flow cytometric fluorescence measurements of cellular properties are determinations of the amount of a specific type of molecule such as DNA or a cell surface antigen. Since the early developments in flow cytometry, there has been a continuing quest for more sensitive instruments and for techniques to detect and quantitate lower levels of cellular components. The effort described here is directed at increasing the sensitivity of molecular detection by laser induced fluorescence to the point that single molecules can be both detected and identified.
Cubic and quartic hard-sphere and Lennard-Jones chain equations of state as foundations for complex fluid modeling

Abstract Hard-sphere compressibility factor Z and hard-dimer radial distribution function at contact gHD(σ) are fit to simple packing fraction η expressions and are used in the dimer version of Wertheim’s perturbation theory to obtain five cubic equations of state (EOS’s) for athermal hard-sphere chain fluids. The predicted Zm versus η for various chain lengths m and the reduced second-virial coefficient versus m are compared with simulation data and the original noncubic dimer perturbation theory EOS’s. A cubic analog of the Boublik–Mansoori–Carnahan–Starling (BMCS) EOS successfully represents the unlike pair correlation function g12(σ) and Z versus η for binary hard-sphere mixtures of moderate size difference in the components. The new CTPT-D models are extended to calculate Zm versus η for binary homonuclear hard-sphere chain mixtures. The choice of a suitable EOS dispersion term to simultaneously represent single phase PVT and phase equilibria is briefly explored. A similar TPT approach was used to derive a quartic EOS for Lennard-Jones chain fluids, and Zm versus η isotherms are determined and compared with simulation results for chains up to 100 segments long. The new cubic and quartic EOS’s provide a simple foundation for developing equations of state for complex fluids including multipolar and association effects.
Hydride generation interface for speciation analysis coupling capillary electrophoresis to inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry.

A novel hydride generation (HG) interface for coupling capillary electrophoresis (CE) with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICPMS) is presented in this work. The CE-HG-ICPMS interface was applied to the separation and quantitation of common arsenic species. Lack of a commercially available HG interface for CE-ICPMS led to a three concentric tube design allowing alleviation of back pressure commonly observed in CE-HG-ICPMS. Due to the high sensitivity and element-specific detection of ICPMS, quantitative analysis of As(III), As(V), monomethylarsonic acid, and dimethylarsinic acid was achieved. Optimization of CE separation conditions resulted in the use of 20 mmol L-1 sodium borate with 2% osmotic flow modifier (pH 9.0) and −20 kV applied potential for baseline resolution of each arsenic species in the shortest time. Hydride generation conditions were optimized through multiple electrophoretic separation analyses with 5% HCl and 3% NaBH4 (in 0.2% NaOH) determined to be the optimum conditions. ...
Effect of 9 -THC on the open-field activity of the rat.

Using the open-field activity of the hooded rat as a model of overall activity, the dose-response and time-action effects of doses of Δ9-THC which did not adversely affect spontaneous activity or behavior on appetitively motivated tasks were studied. Subjects received two exposures to an open field one week apart. Prior to the first exposure subjects were treated with small doses of Tween 80-water. At 30 min or 3 h prior to the second exposure subjects were treated with Tween or Δ9-THC in doses which ranged from 0.5–5 mg/kg. Results indicated that Δ9-THC affected various indices of open-field activity such as grooming, sniffing and ambulation differently depending on the time after injection. Rearing and defecation were affected similarly by THC independent of post-injection intervals.
Reliability in Miniature and Subminiature Tubes

The meaning of the term "reliability" as applied to electron tubes is discussed, and the thesis is developed that reliability is a function not only of tube design and quality but also of the relationship between tube ratings and the operating conditions and requirements. Specific features of the miniature and subminiature tubes are discussed with respect to factors affecting tube reliability, such as mechanical ruggedness, operating temperature, emission stability, and life. General comments are made on the over-all effect of reduction in tube size on life and reliability.
Endothelial Function and Oxidative Stress

Increased oxidative stress impairs endothelial function and is thought to mediate vascular disease. Several pathological conditions increase the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the vascular wall, including hypercholesterolemia, diabetes, and hypertension. These conditions are associated with endothelial dysfunction and cardiovascular disease. Thus, overall vascular function is dependent upon the balance of oxidant and antioxidant mechanisms, which determines endothelial function. Endothelial function is usually defined as nitric oxide (NO) production and/or bioavailability. Because ROS can interact and inactivate NO, vascular oxidative stress can lead to decrease NO bioavailability. This results in endothelial dysfunction and increased risk of cardiovascular diseases. Several pharmacological approaches have been used to improve endothelial function and decrease oxidative stress. These include treatment modalities that augment the antioxidant defense mechanisms, increase NO production, and inhibit ROS-generating enzymes. This review provides an overview of the relationship between endothelial function and oxidative stress.
Discovering How Advertising Grows Sales and Builds Brands

Abstract Advertising nudges consumers along the think–feel–do hierarchy of intermediate effects of advertising to induce sales. Because intermediate effects—cognition, affect, and experience—are unobservable constructs, brand managers use a battery of mind-set metrics to assess how advertising builds brands. However, extant sales response models explain how advertising grows sales but ignore the role of intermediate effects in building brands. To link these dual contributions of advertising, the authors propose an integrated framework that augments the dynamic advertising–sales response model by integrating the hierarchy, dynamic evolution, and purchase reinforcement of intermediate effects. Methodologically, the new approach incorporates the intermediate effects as factors from mind-set metrics while filtering out measurement noise, extracts the factor loadings, estimates the dynamic evolution of the factors, and infers their sequence in any hypothesized hierarchy by embedding their impact in a dynamic a...
The role of the sarcoplasmic reticulum in the response of ferret and rat heart muscle to acidosis.

1. The photoprotein aequorin was micro-injected into papillary muscles from the right ventricle of ferrets and rats. Tension and aequorin light (a function of intracellular [Ca2+]) were monitored. 2. In stimulated ferret papillary muscles, increasing the [CO2] of the bicarbonate-buffered superfusate from 5% (pH 7.35) to 20% (pH 6.8) led to a rapid decrease of developed tension, with no significant change in the size of the intracellular Ca2+ transient which accompanies contraction. There was then a small brief recovery of tension which was accompanied by a large brief increase in the size of the Ca2+ transient. Tension then declined again before recovering more slowly, with no significant change in the size of the Ca2+ transient. 3. The time course of the Ca2+ transient was prolonged on exposure to the acid solution, but shortened on continued exposure to the acid solution. Relaxation of twitch tension became faster on exposure to the acid solution, but slowed again on continued exposure to the acid solution. 4. In the presence of 10 mM-caffeine the size of the Ca2+ transient increased during the initial decline of developed tension, the short-lived recovery of tension was abolished, and the Ca2+ transient became smaller during the slower recovery of developed tension. 2 microM-ryanodine had similar effects on developed tension. 5. Addition of 10 mM-lactic acid to the superfusate produced changes similar to those described in 2 and 3 above. 6. An intracellular acidosis, produced by the addition and subsequent withdrawal of 20 mM-NH4Cl from the superfusate also caused changes similar to those described above. In the presence of caffeine, withdrawal of NH4Cl produced changes similar to those described in 4 above. 7. In unstimulated ferret papillary muscles, increasing superfusate [CO2] produced an increase of aequorin light when the bathing [Ca2+] was increased or in the presence of ouabain (10 microM). This increase was not inhibited by verapamil (5 microM), carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone (1 microM) and oligomycin (2.5 microM), but was reduced by ryanodine (2 microM). 8. Rat papillary muscles showed responses which were quantitatively different from those observed in ferret papillary muscles: the initial recovery of tension developed more slowly, and sarcoplasmic reticulum (s.r.) inhibitors had a greater inhibitory effect on the recovery of tension. 9. It is concluded that the early decline of developed tension observed during acidosis is due to a decrease in Ca2+ release by the s.r. and a decrease in Ca2+ binding by the myofilaments.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
An open cycle life support system for manned interplanetary spaceflight

Integration of life support system and propulsion system for manned interplanetary space missions
Vibronic line broadening of an isolated resonance

Abstract The vibronic line broadening theory is formulated in the “crude adiabatic approximation”.
Mechanism of the TPNH-linked reduction of methemoglobin by methylene blue

Abstract The mechanisms by which red cells accomplish the reduction of methemoglobin in the presence of methylene blue have been investigated. Data indicate that reduction is attributable to the direct interaction between methemoglobin and reduced dye. It is the reduction of methylene blue rather than methemoglobin which is accelerated by an enzyme, TPNH dehydrogenase. Findings suggest that the so-called TPNH-linked “accessory pathway” for methemoglobin reduction is an artifact of no metabolic significance in the red cell.
Constraining cold dark matter halo merger rates using the coagulation equations

We place additional constraints on the three parameters of the dark matter halo merger rate function recently proposed by Parkinson, Cole & Helly by utilizing Smoluchowski's coagulation equation, which must be obeyed by any binary merging process which conserves mass. We find that the constraints from Smoluchowski's equation are degenerate, limiting to a thin plane in the three-dimensional parameter space. This constraint is consistent with those obtained from fitting to N-body measures of progenitor mass functions, and provides a better match to the evolution of the overall dark matter halo mass function, particularly for the most massive haloes. We demonstrate that the proposed merger rate function does not permit an exact solution of Smoluchowski's equation and, therefore, the choice of parameters must reflect a compromise between fitting various parts of the mass function. The techniques described herein are applicable to more general merger rate functions, which may permit a more accurate solution of Smoluchowski's equation. The current merger rate solutions are most probably sufficiently accurate for the vast majority of applications.
Graphic applications for spectrum management using personal computers

Recent technological advances have made it possible to develop cost-effective computer graphics tools for spectrum management using personal computers. To illustrate this, two applications which have been recently implemented at the Canadian Department of Communications are described. The first application overlays microwave data from the licensing database into digitized maps. This assists radio engineers in planning future microwave systems. The second application automatically draws earth station coordination contours, thus eliminating a tedious and manual process. These applications are called the Microwave Environment Display System (MEDS) and the Earth Station Coordination Contour Display System (CONTOUR), respectively. Based on experience with these application, it appears that the major cost is associated with the application program development and not the hardware. It is suggested that this investment can be protected by selecting a computer graphics language like GKS which is an international standard and is designed to be portable from one installation to another. >
Zooplankton Abundance in Unstocked Mariculture Ponds at Three Salinities

Abstract Zooplankton abundance in unstocked saltwater fish culture ponds was studied over 4 weeks in southern Texas. Paired 0.2-hectare ponds were filled with bay and well water to yield salinities of 10, 15, and 20‰ and were fertilized with 568 kg cottonseed meal per hectare. Dominant zooplankton groups were compared to determine which salinity produced the best forage base for culture of euryhaline marine fish. Peak total zooplankton densities occurred at day 9 in 10‰ salinity ponds, and day 23 in the 15 and 20‰ salinity ponds. Further, peak total zooplankton densities were approximately five times greater in the 10‰ salinity ponds than in the 15 and 20‰ salinity ponds. Acartia tonsa densities were unaffected by the salinities tested. Oithona sp. densities were significantly greater at 15‰. Densities of mixed rotifers, copepod nauplii, and polychaete larvae were significantly greater at 10‰. Accordingly, pond salinities of 10‰ appeared to provide the best zooplankton forage base for culture of euryhalin...
Speech Compression Using the Matrix Pencil Technique

Matrix Pencils (MP) facilitate the study of differential equations resulting from oscillating systems. Certain problems in linear ordinary differential equations, such as speech processing, can be represented as the problem of finding a canonical pencil strictly equivalent to a given pencil. The MP is a direct data domain approach to estimate the signal's poles. The MP depends on only the data and is not a stochastic estimator. This approach has many benefits over a statistical approach. One benefit is that a smaller amount of data could be used to estimate the poles. The second benefit is that it results in a lower variance associated with the estimates of the parameters, which comes close to the Cramer-Rao bound.[1]
The proliferative immune response to autologous Epstein-Barr virus transformed lymphoblastoid cells. II. Studies with HLA class II loss variants demonstrate a role for gene products other than DR and DQ

The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) transformed lymphoblastoid cell line (LCL-721) and some of its HLA loss mutant derivatives were used to study the immune specificity of the autologous proliferative T cell response to antigens expressed as a result of EBV infection. We have measured secondary and tertiary proliferative responses to well-characterized variants that lack expression of some or all known class II gene products (DR, DQ, and DP). These experiments prove that the region mapping between DR/DQ and glyoxalase I (GLO) of one haplotype controls at least one specific restriction element which is recognized in the autologous response to LCL-721. Furthermore, specific proliferative responses to variants lacking expression of all known class II gene products indicate the recognition of determinants other than DR, DQ, and DP.
A Simple Method for the Quantitative Determination of N-Acetyl-p-Aminophenol (APAP) in Urine

A simple method is described for the rapid quantitative analysis of N-acetyl- p -amino-phenol (APAP) in urine. APAP and its conjugates present in the urine following the ingestion of acetophenetidin, APAP or acetanilid, are hydrolyzed with acid to p -aminophenol. This compound is coupled with phenol in the presence of hypobromite to form an indophenol dye whose concentration is determined spectrophotometrically. Application of this method to a study of 3 human subjects treated with acetophenetidin is described.
Evaluation of oral skeletal muscle relaxants in the morphine‐induced straub tail test in mice

Morphine is known to produce a characteristic and reproducible elevation of the tail in mice (Straub tail response). The morphine-induced Straub tail response in mice has been used to evaluate skeletal muscle relaxant (SMR) activity of compounds administered intraperitoneally (i.p.). This model was used to evaluate the oral (p.o.) efficacy of a number of SMRs and other pharmacological agents. Male mice (n ≥ 5) were given test drugs p.o. followed by morphine sulfate [15 mg/kg subcutaneously (s.c.)] 15 min later. The mice were scored all or none for a Straub tail reaction 45 min later. Graded doses of active compounds were further evaluated for ED50 estimation by probit analysis. ED50 values (mg/kg) were estimated for the following compounds: baclofen (6.4), chlorpromazine HCl (3.8), cyclobenzaprine HCl (24.6), dantrolene Na (14.4), diazepam (8.3), haloperidol (6.2), naloxone HCl (8.7), phenoxybenzamine HCl (47.6), phentolamine HCl (265), and trifluoperazine HCl (25.4). These ED50 values appeared to correlate with initial adult human daily oral doses for muscle relaxation. The following compounds inhibited the Straub tail response in ≤ 40% of the mice tested at the doses indicated (mg/kg): carisoprodol (300), lidocaine (100), mephenesin (300), phenytoin (100), procainamide HCl (100), procaine HCl (100), propranolol HCl (100), quinidine sulfate (100); and all selected calcium-channel blockers (30), antidepressants (30), and neuromuscular blocking agents (> 10 times the literature i.p. ED50 values with the exception of gallamine triethiodide at 30 mg/kg) that were tested. Pentobarbital Na was active only at doses that impaired the righting reflex. This animal model was thus determined to be useful for evaluating SMR efficacy and in predicting.
Examining difficulties software developers encounter in the adoption of statistical machine learning

Statistical machine learning continues to show promise as a tool for addressing complex problems in a variety of domains. An increasing number of developers are therefore looking to use statistical machine learning algorithms within applications. We have conducted two initial studies examining the difficulties that developers encounter when creating a statistical machine learning component of a larger application. We first interviewed researchers with experience integrating statistical machine learning into applications. We then sought to directly observe and quantify some of the behavior described in our interviews using a laboratory study of developers attempting to build a simple application that uses statistical machine learning. This paper presents the difficulties we observed in our studies, discusses current challenges to developer adoption of statistical machine learning, and proposes potential approaches to better supporting developers creating statistical machine learning components of applications.
A reliability enhancement approach for computer networks and distributed applications

The authors address an important problem in reliability improvement of existing distributed systems. The reliability of a distributed system depends not only on the reliabilities of its communication links and computing elements, but also on the distribution of its resources which consists of programs and data files. A genetic algorithm based reliability improvement approach is discussed for distributed systems under a given budget constraint. The reliability parameters of a distributed system considered are terminal reliability and computer network reliability. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the genetic algorithm based approach, the results obtained from the proposed approach are compared with the optimal solutions computed using exhaustive search. >
Horses and Zebras: complex cardiac anatomy in a patient with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest

This case report describes a woman presenting after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest with several cardiac anomalies, including a form fruste of Ebstein's anomaly complicated by a large tricuspid valve vegetation. On autopsy, she proved to have unstable plaques in epicardial vessels that likely caused arrhythmic sudden cardiac death, a reminder that even in the presence of rare anomalies, common things are common.
A note on homology surgery and the Casson-Gordon invariant

We give a ‘picture’ proof to a theorem of M. Freedman (2) which shows the failure of the 4-dimensional homology surgery theory and the homology splitting theorem. Our proof employs the language of the framed links (3) and it involves calculating Casson-Gordon invariant of a certain algebraically slice knot. We use framed links to represent 1-connected 4-manifolds with boundary by attaching 2-handles along them onto B4 via the framings. We adapt the notation ≈ for diffeomorphisms, and for diffeomorphisms between the boundaries of manifolds. Here manifolds refer to smooth manifolds.
Measuring organizational health in child welfare agencies

Abstract In recent years, federal funds have been directed toward programs to improve the organizational health and functioning of public and tribal child welfare agencies. This study introduces a battery of instruments aimed at holistic measurement of organizational health factors in public, private, and tribal child welfare agencies. The Comprehensive Organizational Health Assessment (COHA) was designed as part of a federally funded grant to aid development of organizational interventions in child welfare settings. Assessment results are used diagnostically to identify strengths and challenges and to guide the development of targeted systems-change interventions and to track change over time. This study describes the iterative process of developing and testing the measurement tools, including results from exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. The final, revised set of measures includes 20 scales and 3 indices measuring aspects of individual, work unit, and organizational functioning.
Glibenclamide Reduces Inflammation, Vasogenic Edema, and Caspase-3 Activation after Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) causes secondary brain injury due to vasospasm and inflammation. Here, we studied a rat model of mild-to-moderate SAH intended to minimize ischemia/hypoxia to examine the role of sulfonylurea receptor 1 (SUR1) in the inflammatory response induced by SAH. mRNA for Abcc8, which encodes SUR1, and SUR1 protein were abundantly upregulated in cortex adjacent to SAH, where tumor-necrosis factor-alpha (TNFalpha) and nuclear factor (NF)kappaB signaling were prominent. In vitro experiments confirmed that Abcc8 transcription is stimulated by TNFalpha. To investigate the functional consequences of SUR1 expression after SAH, we studied the effect of the potent, selective SUR1 inhibitor, glibenclamide. We examined barrier permeability (immunoglobulin G, IgG extravasation), and its correlate, the localization of the tight junction protein, zona occludens 1 (ZO-1). SAH caused a large increase in barrier permeability and disrupted the normal junctional localization of ZO-1, with glibenclamide significantly reducing both effects. In addition, SAH caused large increases in markers of inflammation, including TNFalpha and NFkappaB, and markers of cell injury or cell death, including IgG endocytosis and caspase-3 activation, with glibenclamide significantly reducing these effects. We conclude that block of SUR1 by glibenclamide may ameliorate several pathologic effects associated with inflammation that lead to cortical dysfunction after SAH.
Continuous Repertoire: Multiple-Response Control by a Continuous Stimulus Dimension

Summary.-Three points of correspondence were trained between a continuous stimulus dimension and a quasi-continuous response dimension. Human subjects were then tested with novel test stimuli from the stimulus continuum to determine whether appropriate new mapping responses would be emitted. A procedure was developed to allow a fine-grain analysis of the mapping responses. Data indicated that use of continuous stimulus and response dimensions results in significant positive transfer to untrained values.
What have we learned from collaborative partnerships to concomitantly improve both education and health

BACKGROUND Collaborative partnerships are an essential means to concomitantly improve both education outcomes and health outcomes among K-12 students. METHODS We describe examples of contemporaneous, interactive, and evolving partnerships that have been implemented, respectively, by a national governmental health organization, national nongovernmental education and health organizations, a state governmental education organization, and a local nongovernmental health organization that serves partner schools. RESULTS Each of these partnerships strategically built operational infrastructures that enabled partners to efficiently combine their resources to improve student education and health. CONCLUSIONS To implement a Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child Framework, we need to purposefully strengthen, expand, and interconnect national, state, and local collaborative partnerships and supporting infrastructures that concomitantly can improve both education and health.
Conducting Multi-paradigm Inquiry in the Study of Higher Education Organization and Governance: Transforming Research Perspectives on Colleges and Universities

Researchers in the field of organizational theory have begun to adopt new analytical and methodological approaches that capitalize on the strengths of multiple social science paradigms. Rather than viewing paradigms as distinct and incommensurable domains, organizational researchers are beginning to use multiple paradigms in the same study to form their research questions, shape their methods, and ground their data analyses. These new forms of multi-paradigm inquiry may be particularly beneficial for developing the knowledge base in complex, multi-faceted research domains. Multi-paradigm inquiry, however, remains underutilized in higher education research. Our goal in this chapter is to familiarize higher education researchers with approaches to multi-paradigm inquiry that can readily be applied to the study of higher education organization and governance. First, we discuss paradigm use in the field of organizational theory and examine the influence of paradigms in higher education research. Second, we examine specific analytical and methodological approaches to multi-paradigm inquiry, which are now used by scholars in the field of organizational theory but are seldom used in studies of higher education. In order to foster more extensive use of multi-paradigm inquiry in the field of higher education, we identify directions for future multi-paradigm research on issues related to organization and governance. We conclude with an overview of the practical considerations associated with conducting multi-paradigm inquiry, as well as recommendations for researchers who seek to incorporate these techniques into their research repertories.
The Development of Children’s Representations of Temporal Structure

Adaptation to the temporal environment requires building mental representations of recurrent time patterns. From infancy onward children store information about the temporal order of event sequences, and from early childhood through adolescence they come to form representations of progressively longer patterns. The nature of the representations can be studied by asking children to perform certain unusual operations on the elements of time patterns. Research using this method indicates that image representations are available for the pattern of daily activities by about five years of age. Imagery for the days of the week and months of the year appears much later, at early to mid adolescence, showing that content has a strong influence on the pattern of representational development. Questions about developmental mechanisms and the importance of temporal representations in adaptation are discussed.
Orchestrating from the Outside: The Commission and Agenda-Setting in the EU

The role of the Commission as the ‘engine of integration’ within the EU highlights the key formal role the commission has in introducing all legislative proposals. This formal agenda setting capacity has led to a general tendency to assume that the Commission is the political or substantive agenda setter of the EU as well. While there is substantial anecdotal evidence of this, there are few large empirical analyses of the Commission’s ability to effectively set the policy agenda within the EU. This research makes a first attempt to gather substantial information on both the Commission’s legislative priorities and the final legislative outcomes in the EU between 2000 and 2011 to determine the extent to which the Commission is both a formal and a substantive agenda setter. Perhaps unsurprisingly our research suggests that the Commission plays and important political role as well as its formal role, but that it is also highly constrained with a large number of its openly stated policy priorities never being adopted. Furthermore, the lack of success is unlikely to be due to functional capacity as there are substantially more bills adopted each year that are not Commission priorities. Overall our research suggests that at the very least the role of Commission as EU agenda setter needs to be re-evaluated.
Environmental mold exposure, brain inflammation, and spatial memory deficits

Approximately 40% of American buildings are moldy. Early studies found that neurologists could not differentiate between people who lived or worked in moldy buildings and patients with mild to moderate traumatic brain injury—they had the same neurological and cognitive deficits. Our laboratory developed a mouse model to determine how mold exposure might lead to cognitive dysfunction. One critical issue is whether exposure to any mold causes problems or only exposure to extremely toxic molds like Stachybotrys. We therefore quantified the effects of exposure to (1) intact Stachybotrys spores (IN) containing a variety of toxins, volatile organic compounds and proteinases, (2) Stachybotrys spores extracted twice with ethanol (EX) to remove toxins and denature proteins, or (3) the nonpyrogenic saline vehicle (VEH). Mice were nasally instilled 3X per week. After 5 weeks, EX mice performed significantly worse in finding the hidden platform in the Morris water maze (MWM) than VEH or IN mice, taking longer to find the platform and using longer paths. Surprisingly. IN mice showed evidence of lesser memory impairment. MWM performance in EX and IN mice was inversely correlated with numbers of interleukin-1 β cells in dorsomedial CA1 as well as with weight gain over the first 3 weeks of treatment. Clearly, exposure to just the mold skeleton is sufficient to cause brain inflammation and cognitive deficits, suggesting exposure to any mold could be problematic.
The Prevalence of Neuropathy in Seniors (>=65 Year Old) with and without Diabetes, a Population Study (PD1.010)

OBJECTIVE: To study the prevalence of neuropathy in seniors (>=65 year old) with and without diabetes. BACKGROUND: Neuropathy is a debilitating and common disorder. By far, the most common cause of neuropathy is diabetes. The most common presentation of diabetic neuropathy is distal symmetrical polyneuropathy with symptoms of hyposthesia, paresthesia and dysesthesia. It is also believed that nerve damage with neuropathy contributes to refractory diabetic ulcers and wounds. The prevalence of neuropathy in diabetic patients is about 30%, and up to 50% of diabetic patients will eventually develop neuropathy. However, the prevalence of diabetic neuropathy in seniors is unclear. DESIGN/METHODS: This study is a two-year longitudinal cohort study. Data was collected from the Medicare Health Outcomes survey 2008-2010 Cohort 11. A total of 223,871 beneficiaries completed a baseline survey. Two-years later, 133,706 of 223,871 remained eligible at the time of follow-up. Of 133,706, 61,488 seniors (age >= 65) completed the survey on their own. Their answers to all four neuropathy related questions (Q16a-Q16d) at the baseline were analyzed. RESULTS: Of 61,488 seniors, 12,884 (21%) reported diabetes, and 48,604 (79%) reported no diabetes. Compared to the seniors without diabetes, the seniors with diabetes complained more of hyposthesia (Q16a: 41.7% vs. 21.1%), paresthesia (Q16b: 43.4% vs. 23.1%), dysesthesia (Q16c: 23.9% vs. 9.8%) and refractory sores or wounds (Q16d: 6.6% vs. 2.8%). The prevalence of neuropathy (defined by any of hyposthesia, paresthesia, dysesthesia or refractory sores or wounds) with and without diabetes is 54.4% and 31.4%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of neuropathy is significantly higher in seniors with diabetes. This may further implicate the importance of aggressive diabetes control to prevent this debilitating condition in the senior population. Disclosure: Dr. Molina has nothing to disclose. Dr. Shi has nothing to disclose. Dr. Li has nothing to disclose.